Midlife: We're back!!! (IRL)

We’re back IRL (in real life!) for a chaotic, hilarious, and surprisingly emotional catch-up. From a secret surprise visitto post-travel comedowns, we unpack what it really feels like to return home after a life-changing trip—and how to navigate the next chapter when your kids start flying the nest.

Expect travel disasters, jet lag confessions, Southeast Asia culture shocks, and some honest chat about parenting adult children, identity shifts, and what comes next.

It’s messy, real, and very on-brand.

midlife podcast, empty nest journey, parenting adult children, travel stories podcast, women over 40 podcast, friendship podcast, life after kids leave home, IRL podcast recording, travel chaos stories, Southeast Asia travel experience

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Keep in touch, follow our socials or send an email to hellomidlife@icloud.com.

Transcript

SPEAKER_05 0:22

Hello.

SPEAKER_01 0:22

Hello. We're back. Together, IRL. IRL. An IRL podcast. This is our second ever IRL podcast.

SPEAKER_04 0:36

Yeah. When was it? Oh no, we have to do that. The first response was the first one. The very, very first one. Yeah, the drunken hangover one.

SPEAKER_01 0:43

Which was a bit like this really, wasn't it?

SPEAKER_04 0:45

So very similar, yes. We don't really know what we were doing. Hangover, talking shit. Yeah. I'm not hungover, are you hungover?

SPEAKER_02 0:52

I was a little bit hungover first thing. Oh no, you need to know. I need to man up.

SPEAKER_04 0:56

Yeah, you do, really. Drink more. Yeah, that's that's pretty pathetic. We didn't really drink a lot. Um I feel like we need a description, not a description, an explanation of why we're in IRL. Yes. Why we're in the room.

SPEAKER_01 1:08

Do you want to do it from your perspective?

SPEAKER_04 1:09

Because I feel like my perspective, I didn't know what was going on. So I went to sleep yesterday on the sofa because obviously I'm hungover not hungover, jet lagged to hell. And we'd been out for the day, came back, thought, right, I'm just gonna get my pyjamas on and a jumper, and I'm just gonna have a little lie down and watch the telly. Went to sleep, woke up, and Katie's looking at me. Hi, hi. I was like, shit, what's going on? What? What? Oh my god, I was so confused. I was so confused, and I've just been asleep as well. I didn't even realise, you know, when you like you don't realise you've been to sleep, do you because I didn't know I'd been to sleep. So when I woke up, I was so confused. It's like, is this real? Is this what's actually happening? Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:58

That was cool. And um, so from my perspective, I'd come come up with this idea before you left, thinking you're gonna be really depressed when you get back and you're gonna be really sad. Has that gone off?

SPEAKER_00 2:11

Yes.

SPEAKER_02 2:11

Oh, okay. Let's just keep trying it. Um had we actually pressed record? Don't think we did. Not on the video, but we have we are recording on the podcast. That's right. We're recording on the yeah, okay.

SPEAKER_04 2:24

So that's people's ears are fine. This is so funny because this is just record on the video, but never mind.

SPEAKER_02 2:33

Oh my god, right, okay. So I decided before you left, um I was worried that you were gonna be super sad when you got home, and I was really worried for you, and I thought, um, I know what'll cheer her up. Me, me. So I'd rather and I said, I'm gonna come down. Um, because it was Easter, so it seemed like like a good time, and I've not been down for ages, and yeah, I thought it'd be nice to do the podcast in real life, IRL. IRL and um yeah, so I did decided it, and then yesterday as the reality of getting on the train here, and I was like, fuck, what if she doesn't like what if she's really fucked off, just doesn't want anyone around, she's really tired, and me turning up is the worst thing in the world and she hates me.

SPEAKER_00 3:16

So then I got really nervous, and Dave was like messaging me.

SPEAKER_02 3:20

Oh no, what did he say though? Well, no, because he was like, he was saying um you're at Jimmy's and then he's she's then he messaged me to say she's a bit grumpy, and I was like, Alright. I said, Shall I tell her I'm coming? Do you think I should tell her? And he was like, No, no, it's fine. He said, just leave it as a surprise. So I'm thinking, oh my god, what am I gonna walk into? I was grumpy, and then I got off the train and he messaged me to say, She's asleep, you can wake her up. I was like, I'm in the taxi going, oh my god, she is gonna hate me.

SPEAKER_04 3:48

So nervous. No, it was nice. Oh it was a shock, but it was nice.

SPEAKER_02 3:54

Yeah, well, it just keeps your brain occupied, doesn't it?

SPEAKER_04 3:58

It has been quite nice actually, because everybody's I've had quite a lot of messages from people asking how I am, and you know, because everyone knew that I wouldn't be great. Um, and it has been nice, yeah. Yeah, I think yeah, I've got to move on in life.

SPEAKER_02 4:11

You have. Well, we'll we'll come back to that. So welcome to Midlife No Crisis, everybody. Standard like lack of introduction from us both. Um, but we're back. Um, so you've had four weeks in Australia, yes, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 4:26

Three weeks in Australia, three weeks in Australia, a week elsewhere, and then a week trying to get to Australia, pretty much. No, yeah. Um, tell us everything, right? Everything. Oh my goodness, mate.

SPEAKER_02 4:38

The war had just broken out.

SPEAKER_04 4:40

Yeah, the war broke out, but I thought, well, never mind, that won't stop me. No orange maniac is gonna stop me from getting to Australia. Um, so yeah, so that's so the day we left, it James was still packing his stuff about 20 minutes before we left the house. Like, no joke, honestly, still putting stuff in his bag, and I'm like, just just ignore it, just breathe, just breathe. Um, and then I got a message through saying, Um your flight is delayed by two hours, so we had a connecting flight in Delhi that was an hour and a half, so I was like, right, we're gonna miss our connecting flight. Um, and it said ring customer services, so ran customer services, you're gonna have to get on the flight the day after. Fine, fine. This means we're gonna have a night in Delhi. And um, and I mentioned this yesterday, but it's standard me. I'm like, right, we've got a night in Delhi. I'm like googling how to get to the Taj Mahal.

SPEAKER_00 5:34

It's miles away from Delhi.

SPEAKER_04 5:35

It's about three hours. Three hours, and I was thinking, well, three hours is absolutely doable. That's six hours well spent. Six hours? See the Taj Mahal? It's absolutely fine, we can fit this in. Um, I genuinely, I was genuinely thought, well, we'll land in Delhi, they'll sort out a hotel, it'll all be lovely. We can have a little look round. Taj Mahal if we can make it, blah blah blah. This is fine. Anyway, then got to Heath Row, your flight is cancelled. Um, please go to the customer sale. I thought, oh no, here we go. Oh no. There were hundreds of people just all stood around, just confused, and said, right, we're gonna take it to a hotel. You end the end up with a flight. So we were supposed to be going at 10 o'clock at night, and they they said the next flight was seven in the morning. So they're like, well, we'll take it to a hotel at Heathrow near Heathrow. Absolute chaos. So there was like coaches full of people, and no one knew what was going on. So we got to the hotel, it was probably about 11 half eleven, and then we had to get on a bus to go back to Heathrow at 4am.

SPEAKER_05 6:42

Oh my god.

SPEAKER_04 6:42

Oh, just I was like, oh god. So we had about we had about three hours' sleep, then we were back. Then we had a 10-hour flight to Delhi. So as you can imagine, you get off the flight in Delhi and you don't know what was going on.

SPEAKER_02 6:55

And then I bet you feel you feel rank as well, don't you? After a long hour flight, because you've like all your systems have gone weird because you're up in the air and like nothing's working properly.

SPEAKER_04 7:07

Yeah, your belly's not right, yeah. It's just so we got off and we were a bit we were a bit bamboozled when we got to Delhi. I was like, Well, what I don't really know what's going on here. So I said, right, we're gonna have to go and find a desk to find out whether which hotel we're going to or whatever. And we spoke to three of the most unhelpful humans in the world who were just looking at us like, What'd you what are you doing? And they were like, Why are you on a flight? So I would bearing in mind, so what time did we land? Delhi time. I can't I don't even I don't I can't even remember what time it was, but we weren't flying until the following day at 1 pm.

unknown 7:42

Oh my god.

SPEAKER_04 7:43

So it was like 15 hours we had. Um, and they were like, Why are you on this flight? Why are you on why are you here? Why are you on this flight? I was like, because your customer service people put us on this flight, and they were like, Oh right. And I said, Well like surely there's a hotel they said that we would be staying in a hotel. Yeah, uh, well, all the hotels you've got to go through security, and they're on the other side. And I was like, Yeah, I understand that, but we need to we need to speak to services before we go through there because once we go through, no, no, no, no, no, it's all through there. So I right, okay, okay. Went through there, nobody was there. No one. So we went that so then we so we found somebody who was like at the Air India Customer Service, they just said, Oh no, we can't get we can't help you, but essentially, there's nothing we can do. Basically, you booked onto this flight, you're gonna have to wait. Went to the hotel fully booked, all the sleeping pods fully booked, and we're just all looking at each other, the three of us, just going like reality dawning that we've got 15 hours in the airport. So, what I thought was they could give you an emergency, like temporary visa, which I think they can when they're like prepared for it, but you so many people knock it out. Yeah, yeah, and and and they can't give you a visa, so you're stuck. That's it, airport. So, yeah, that was us, Tom Hanks, walking round. So I'm gonna start, I'm gonna go and help the cleaner in a minute to give me something to do. I'm gonna go start emptying the bins or something. Oh god. Oh god, but we did um so we slept, yeah. We slept in this, we did find a like a decent place to sleep to be fair, so it wasn't too bad. Anyway, so yeah, roll on. Then we had another six hour flight to five hour flight to Vietnam. Got off in Ho Chi Minh. Ho Chi Minh's absolutely mental as you can imagine, like it's just everyone's on those little scooters, it's like um, yeah. So that's a bit of an attack on the senses. It was absolutely pissing down when we landed as well. Like, you know, like storm pissing down.

SPEAKER_02 9:44

It rains in such a different way, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 9:46

Yeah, it was battering down. Um, but yeah, so we got there, and I was just like, look, we've got we've we've lost a night in Ho Chi Minh, so we need to make the most of it because we only had two nights, and I was like, by the time we've adjusted and everything, so we just went out and we went down to the street food place, and like we thought, right, we'll just have a couple of drinks. I mean, I don't I still don't know how how we functioned. I really have no idea how you can function after it. It feels like a dream, doesn't it? Yeah, so you're like, did that really happen? Am I still going? Actually, my body that's moving through these streets. That's what I was like. Oh god. So it's a lesson in how resilient you are.

SPEAKER_02 10:24

Especially, I think, over there, where like I mean, I remember when because we went to Thailand for our honeymoon and we went to Bangkok first, and I'd never been because I stopped in Bangkok on the way to Australia, but I didn't get out because I was coming straight over. And it's like it's so foreign to your senses because it's so different, and you're right. It's I remember feeling like I was in like a Blade Runner film or something like that. Yeah, that's what it's like. Because it feels so chaos and people and like different language and different everything. Smells, everything smells differently.

SPEAKER_04 10:58

It's like the roads are different, the sm everything smells different, the heat, the humidity. It's and I love it, really. Yeah, because there's some you walk down the street and you're literally just like, what's that, what's that, what's that, what's that, what's going on over there? What's that building? He's like, What's that person doing? Yeah, what are they eating? What are they drinking? Like over stimulation, yeah, it is, yeah, yeah. But loved it, and James really loved it as well.

SPEAKER_05 11:20

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 11:20

Um, because obviously he's never been anywhere like that. That's his first so to see it through his eyes, because I've obviously been to Southeast Asia, and to see it was just like, Oh, what was going on?

SPEAKER_05 11:30

Oh wow.

SPEAKER_04 11:30

Yeah, and um, I don't like I if any I don't know if any of the listeners have tried to cross the road in Ho Chi Minh City, but oh my god, you have to just run. Oh my god. But the but the and you literally you stand on the end of the road and you just look and you're like, right, run. And it's like chick, you go, you like weave in between the and they don't stop, you've just got a weave in between all the bikes to get to the other side. That is terrifying. It's quite so when you first go, you're just like ah, and then like you start to get used to it. You're touching them, you touch the bikes as you're crossing the road. Push them over, push yeah, you kind of like like that. Yeah, I mean, some of it was just it is crazy, absolutely crazy, but yeah, brilliant. And like James went and bought a load of like fake clothes. Oh god, because uh designer I bought some fake trainers. Um yeah, I loved all that, that was good. So I mean some amazing markets and stuff. Um yeah, we had a nice hotel, so it kind of like set us set us a bit a little bit better, really, because we had a bit of a rest, and then it was like reset. Then we yeah, so then we flew to Brisbane, and then we were we were tired when we flew to Brisbane, but um we were so excited because it was like right we're gonna see Olivia, we're gonna see Olivia. And we didn't land, it was about 11 o'clock at night, we landed, and then she was in the hotel. So I wanted to kind of like do a bit of a video of us all like greeting each other and everything, but we couldn't do that because and she was in her pajamas because she came down the stairs in the lift. So I've got a video of her coming down the stairs in the lift. But I was like, Well, I can't put that on Instagram, she'll bloody kill me. Um but we were all like our faces all pressed up against the door because there was no one there at reception, there was no one there, but obviously she had the key anyway. So we were all stood there, like absolutely hanging. All the three of us like, yeah, it's whoop whoop whoop whoop. Everyone must have wondered what was going on in the hotel. Oh, it was so nice, yeah. But she'd had a bit of an emotional day because she'd like said goodbye to her friends and left her work and all of that, so it was quite, yeah. I think it was quite loaded, really, for her. She was really tired. Um, yes, we had a whole day out in Brisbane. Brisbane's lovely. Um, yeah, I really liked it in Brisbane because everyone well, we talked about this last year, we didn't. Yeah, yeah, but I did, I enjoyed it, yeah. But we only had like a day there, and that was it. We went got the car, and then we were like road tripping, and it was brilliant. The four of us, it was absolutely brilliant. We had like a road trip playlist, we're all singing, and oh yeah, it was lovely. Went to Byron, went to Byron, then carried on the road trip. I mean, it's just like go driving down that coast is just amazing.

SPEAKER_02 14:06

Yeah. Because some of the pictures you put on Instagram were just incredible.

SPEAKER_04 14:10

We'll have to put I've got quite a few on the yeah, yeah, we'll have to I'll I I have stuff I've not even done me. I usually do like a little album on Facebook for all like Facebook people.

SPEAKER_02 14:19

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 14:20

And I haven't done it. I did do my stories.

SPEAKER_02 14:22

Yeah, no, you did proud. Yeah, I was very proud of you. I tried I tried to make an effort to like every picture that you posted. Oh, did you? Oh right. Oh to encourage you.

SPEAKER_04 14:30

To keep going, keep going, keep putting your Instagram stories. Yeah, yeah, because you never know, dear, you put them up and you think everyone must have fuck off with your holiday photos.

SPEAKER_02 14:40

No, it's lovely. Well, that's what we said about social media that time when we were talking about it, wasn't it? If if it's for the right reasons, it's lovely to be able to see what people have been doing and just keep in touch.

SPEAKER_04 14:50

Well, so many people had said to me, Oh, please keep me in updated and send some photos. And I thought, well, that's probably the best way of doing it, really. Yeah. If I don't know if anyone looks at, I mean I'm not very good at looking at Instagram. No, I know. Well, I looked. Thanks. I think other people looked at me. A couple of people did message me. Yeah, oh this looks amazing, yeah. Um, yeah, so that and then we so we carried on. Obviously, saw Andy and the kids, that was really nice, and then we went to Sydney after that. Um I mean Sydney, I mean Sydney, Sydney, Sydney's just an amazing city, really. Um but it's so like it's a lot busier than I remembered it.

SPEAKER_02 15:26

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 15:26

Um like Bondi, it's it's all very Instagram.

SPEAKER_02 15:31

Yeah, I can imagine, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 15:33

Yeah, yeah. You've got to be up early, you've got to be like very tanned, working. Very tanned.

unknown 15:40

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 15:41

I've just done a workout and now I'm drinking my matcha.

SPEAKER_04 15:43

I'm drinking my matcha. Yeah. Just I've got a surfboard under my arm, even though I have got no fucking idea how to surf.

SPEAKER_02 15:51

I'm scared of water.

SPEAKER_04 15:52

I have no shoes, I don't own shoes. Left my shoes in the UK. Shoes of the losers. Yeah. Yeah, it is a bit like that. It's quite funny. Um, but yeah, so we had a but then we did the walk from Bond Eyes Kudji, which is lovely. Um, went to Kudji and had a bit of a like nostalgic reminisce because we went to our old house in Wallara. So 28 for Apple.

SPEAKER_02 16:17

Yeah, we definitely need to put that picture on that.

SPEAKER_04 16:20

So 28 for Apple was the house we had in Sydney, which we only actually lived in it. We were trying to figure it out yesterday, weren't we? But we think it was about three and a half months, four months. Um, but it was quite pivotal to us all because we kind of how many of us lived in it? It's like a three-bedroom, very small house.

SPEAKER_02 16:37

Officially four of us, but then eight of us, I think. Probably eight to ten. It kind of varied depending if people because people came and went a little bit, didn't they? Yes. They arrived in Sydney.

SPEAKER_04 16:46

Yeah, we put people in random mattresses that we found.

SPEAKER_02 16:50

And we had a pet huntsman spider in this in the bathroom.

SPEAKER_04 16:53

We used to eat the cockroaches. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 16:55

Oh god, the cockroaches were the worst.

SPEAKER_04 16:57

Cockroaches, nice, just used to crawl on your face.

SPEAKER_02 17:00

No, thanks. No, thank you.

SPEAKER_04 17:01

We had a sofa that we got for free because in Australia they used to, and I think they still do it. They still do it, yeah. They still do it. So any any stuff like furniture and big stuff you can put out on the street, and then there's a day. I don't know whether it's a day a month or a day a week, I can't remember what it's called. I just called it free stuff day. Um, and you could just drive round and pick up furniture. Yeah, and I can't remember who told somebody, well, it was whoever it was we were talking about. What was his name?

unknown 17:29

I can't.

SPEAKER_02 17:30

Didn't we get really friendly with a hairdresser as well? I was thinking about this the other day. Yeah, we did. Yeah, I think it was him that told us about it.

SPEAKER_04 17:36

Oh, maybe it was, yeah. Yeah, what was his name? He was cool, wasn't he?

SPEAKER_02 17:41

Yeah, why wouldn't you? How did we know him?

SPEAKER_04 17:43

I don't ask me. I don't know. We usually just go and get our hair couldn't probably chew his ear off.

SPEAKER_02 17:47

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 17:48

Um yeah, so we got a sofa and like random bits of furniture, but that sofa had a bit of massive rip in it, wasn't it? It was like a fake leather sofa. Oh god, it was horrible. And you sleep on it, and your face would just be stuck to the and you'd have to like your whole body would because you'd be wearing like shorts and stuff. You have to get something like butter to remove yourself off the sofa. Spray me with oil.

SPEAKER_02 18:10

The only thing, and I'm I will be forever grateful that we did this, the only thing we spent money on was mattresses, wasn't it? We bought four mattresses, yeah, and that was it. We just slept on them.

SPEAKER_04 18:20

Oh my god. Anyway, so yeah, we went to see 20A for Apple. It's not 20A, it's just 20 now.

SPEAKER_02 18:26

Oh, is it?

SPEAKER_04 18:27

Yeah, so the garage next door I think is part of the house or something. Yeah, I don't know. Oh yeah, but it looks exactly the same, it doesn't look like even like they painted it to be honest. No, 30 years.

SPEAKER_02 18:38

It's got shutters on, yeah, and then people peeking.

SPEAKER_04 18:40

Yeah, because you just used to be able to stick your head in the window, yeah. And people would just be like, hello staring. Um yeah, the pub was still there, the Phoenix. So the Phoenix pub was like just across the road from the house, and we literally used to go in and ask to borrow their Hoover so that we could and it was every week. We'd go and borrow the Hoover, and he got which can you remember the name of the guy? He worked in was it Len? Yeah, I think I think you're right. Oh, he was so nice, wasn't he? Yeah, and we'd go and get toilet roll out of the out of the thing. Well, we've run out of toilet roll, Len. Can you give and he'd just come and give us stuff. We've got 15 people living in our house. He just used to find us so funny, didn't he? Yeah, so we did so we went there and it's lovely, it just felt like going home. Walking around Walara and that area of Sydney felt so familiar and just nice, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 19:29

Which is mad when it was only really four months of our lives, but it was but it shows what a core pivotal four months it was.

SPEAKER_04 19:36

Yeah, it was, yeah, it was. And that's where I got together with Dave, and it was, you know, it was it did mean a lot, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 19:41

How was it saying goodbye to the kids then? Uh hard.

SPEAKER_04 19:46

Yeah, it was.

SPEAKER_02 19:47

Because you did it in the airport, didn't you? Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 19:50

So they went to they flew to Melbourne and we flew up back up to Brisbane to get our flight to Kualumpa. But um, yeah, so we were all in Sydney Airport, and it was a bit weird really because we went and all got a pint, and then we were all sat there. I was like, right, we've got an hour until we've got to go, and we flew before then. Um, we were all just kind of like looking at each other, and James is going, Are you gonna cry? Who's gonna cry? Are you gonna cry? And I was like, Well, I'm definitely gonna cry, aren't I? Like, obviously. Um, but yeah, so James, James was alright actually, he kept the held it together. He did look a little bit like he did look a bit upset, but Olivia bowled her eyes out. I bowled my eyes out. Dave just kind of stood there looking around. I was like, Oh god. Um, and I just continued, yeah. So I just cried, so I said goodbye to them, walked up, just cried. And you know, when you're like that, I had just had tears just ro rolling down my face. But then people, I'm like handing over my boarding card, handing over my passport, it's like crying, don't didn't really care. And then sat on the plane crying. Yeah, and then I just was like, come on, pull yourself together. But actually, Dave was Dave was bad actually, because he I can't remember where it went, when we whether it was when we left Brisbane, it might have been, and he was like, What have we done? Well, I suppose leaving Brisbane was leaving the country. Leaving the country.

SPEAKER_02 21:12

Yeah, that's the biggest step, really, isn't it?

SPEAKER_04 21:13

Yeah, and it and he was like watching, you know, you can watch the map on the plane, and when we left Australia, he was like at a moment. Yeah, he was like, Oh god, we've gone, like that's it, we've left them. Yeah, so that was all a bit like oh, but you kind of also because we've spent that three weeks and we all got on so well, there was no arguments, which I am absolutely amazed at. There was like a few like little bickers, but no, we we all got on so so well. Uh not that I didn't expect to, but I think we got on better than I thought we were going to. Um, and we kind of felt like actually we've just set them up now. It's exciting. You're like, oh, I'm so excited to hear what you're gonna do. This is brilliant, you know. So I tried to switch my mindset. I keep trying to switch my mindset.

SPEAKER_02 21:58

Well, I suppose. But you're right, aren't you? And and I think it it was also probably a change in relationship for you all because it's the first time the four of you spent together as adults, really.

SPEAKER_04 22:09

Well, it was very different.

SPEAKER_02 22:10

Obviously, I was when she when she was 18, but she's changed so much in that time now, hasn't she? And so in a way, yeah, it it's kind of started, it it's not the end of anything, it's the start of your relationship with your kids as grown-ups. Yeah, and that's how it felt.

SPEAKER_04 22:27

There's there was so it was so loaded, like the whole trip was amazing, but very loaded with all these different things, like say adult relationship, it was very much an adult relationship to kind of be sat there, like you know, having a drink with them, going out for meals with them, and like they were like offering to pay for meals, yeah. It was it was just it's so weird, it's very different, yeah. And Olivia's very, very grown up now, very like organised, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 22:54

Yeah, well, yeah, she's been on her own for that length of time, but you can see it in her. You've got to remember that's why you wanted her to do it, and yeah, that's what it's given her. You you you've given her that gift in a way that she can just go and do whatever she wants now. Yeah, do whatever she wants, you can sort things out, and that's what I hope James is gonna do now as well.

SPEAKER_04 23:12

Yeah, because obviously he's that little bit far behind in terms of like organising things like that, because he's never had to do it before because I've always well, kids who stay at home, and you can see it, can't you?

SPEAKER_02 23:21

Grown up kids who've stayed at home aren't capable of looking after themselves because even though and I know and and we'll talk about our house movies in a bit, but I know when I'm at my parents or when I'm with my parents, I do regress.

SPEAKER_04 23:34

Yeah, I do, I completely regress.

SPEAKER_02 23:36

And I let my mum do things for me, and I let them pay for things for me. Yeah, and I let them and I just think it's quite nice that then it's nice, it is nice, but at at a young age you want them to we're we're independent without it, and it's nice to go back to it, but you don't want them to then be in a position where they can't do anything for themselves. Oh no, and I do think kids who stay at home that they they get into that place where they they can't be independent, yeah. And you're not helping them there really. No, you're not. It feels like I don't know, it's uh unhealthy love, really, isn't it?

SPEAKER_04 24:09

Yeah, I mean Olivia's having to like deal with James and like organise him a little bit, yeah. Oh my god, why have you not done your washing? You need to sort this out, and she's like FaceTiming me going, look, all this stuff, it's all over the floor, he's so disorganised. And I was like, Look, I said Olivia, like I appreciate what you're saying, but he's not done this before. Yeah, he's only been there for like six days in a hostel, he's got to figure it out, yeah. And he will learn. Like you learn, don't you? Yeah, and I said, like, he's been like obviously he's been in a hostel in Melbourne, then he's going to a hostel in Adelaide, then they're going on this twenty they're going on this day, I can't remember, a 14-day trip over to Perth. Yeah, which will be amazing because that's like camping outside, yeah. No Wi-Fi for 10 days. Yeah, they're just gonna be amazing. Imagine it's just like campfire, they'll see all those bloody shooting stars, yeah. Yeah, that's what I said. That's the first thing I said, you're gonna see the shooting stars. Um, but I said by the time if you think about it, when he gets to Perth and he's in a hostel, he'll have already learnt then how you how you get on in a hostel, what you've got to do, you know, how to organise your stuff, food, all of that.

SPEAKER_02 25:15

He's learning the difference between being on holiday and travelling, yes, because it's such a different way of living. Like, yeah, you can't you can't be lazy when you're traveling, whereas holiday is about being lazy, isn't it?

SPEAKER_04 25:26

Yeah, it is, yeah, it's honest. And you you do have to adjust when you start travelling though, don't you? Because your first week or so, two weeks, you'll you are on holiday.

SPEAKER_02 25:35

And then suddenly it's like, oh, I've got to pack all my stuff up again, or wish I hadn't got it all out, or I wish I'd done that. Yeah, yeah. So you and you and then you learn, you think, right, next time I'll do all my washing, make sure it's all dry, put it away so that I'm like ready to go.

SPEAKER_04 25:48

I'll put that in that bag, I'll move that over there. Yeah, and it is that's how you do it. I mean, you do it when you're travelling. Like, I'm obviously like a bit of a pro at it now, but even me when I was away, you do change things just to help you for the next bit and the next bit. It's just facilitating it. But yeah, and I just said to Olivia, like she obviously travelled for quite a while and then she's was living in a flat, but it's it's it's it is a good lesson, it's a good lesson, and then yeah. And now you're home, and how does that feel? Weird, does it? Yeah, very weird, and then friends rock up out of the blue to make it feel even weirder.

SPEAKER_01 26:25

So funny this morning. I went, Is that real fatal for a shower? She went, Well you can, but it's not like I knew you were coming. Right.

SPEAKER_04 26:35

I would have been organised. I was like, oh my god, I've not even like washed the bed, I've not put the sheets on my god. Dave's like, oh for God's sake. Well Dave knew I was coming, so I knew that you'd be silly. Yeah, yeah. I like that. I do like that though when someone's coming to stay like it's a little nice, don't you? Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 26:52

I know, but I wasn't expecting that. That wasn't the point of it, was it?

SPEAKER_04 26:55

No, I know, I know. It's fine. Um, yeah, so being home, it just I mean, obviously, I have I have quite bad jet bad jet lag, really. I would say I thought I'd be alright, but I don't think I am.

SPEAKER_02 27:06

No.

SPEAKER_04 27:06

Um but they keep waking up at three in the morning. But I'd like I said to you this morning, I keep waking up and looking at my phone because I'm thinking, what time is it in Melbourne? How what are the kids doing? Have they sorted their bags out? Have they sorted out their stuff? And I need this is something I'm gonna have to learn now over the next couple of weeks to switch off and let them be because I'm too like, oh, are they alright? But yeah, so that's something I think I need to um I need to focus now. Yeah, so what's next then?

SPEAKER_02 27:36

What I'm gonna do my garden. We're gonna do your garden next.

SPEAKER_04 27:39

Yeah, garden plan. I'm gonna yeah, and we're gonna sort the van out. I think Dave's actually out there doing it already. So we're gonna do that because we want to go away in the van in a couple of weeks. Yeah, yeah, just little things. I think I need to like obviously I'm gonna have more time. But I mean like James, I mean Livy's not been here for ages, and James was in and out and in. It's not like he took a lot of I mean they didn't because it's like washing, they just didn't, don't they? But um yeah, I don't know. Just need you you just I just need a project. Yeah, I'll be back at work next week. You know what you need, don't you? Go on. You need a hobby. Read it on, go on, here we go. Gardening, gardening project, that's a hobby. Is that our hobby? I suppose it is, yeah. You can have that. And then I'll draw a picture of it when I'm finished.

SPEAKER_02 28:24

Well, yeah, do like a proper garden design. Design, I'll do that, I'll draw the pictures. Do it all. I was gonna use Chat GPT. No, no, I'm not gonna get it. Chat GPT is rubbish at drawing things. I've tried. Oh yeah. Yeah. Um but it can give you some ideas, but I've got loads of really good design books. If I'd have known I could have brought them with me.

SPEAKER_04 28:43

Oh, you could have done. Did you not know? I should have told you so. You should have told me you wanted to go design. I couldn't. Yeah, to be fair, you didn't know I was coming, so oh god, design this down. Anyway, um yeah, so it's uh every day at a time. I'm just taking every day at a time, yeah. I think one step because uh yeah, it's just an adjustment. I've got to adjust, and it's gonna take me a little, I think it's gonna take me a few weeks, really.

SPEAKER_02 29:09

But yeah. And then we can look forward and we can start planning our hopefully Dubai trip, but who knows where we'll end up somewhere. Oh, it'll be alright by then. He'll someone will have shot him or something by then. We're allowed to say that, probably not. No, probably not. Well, we we know that we're never gonna make it into America again now, don't we? Because we've already bitched about him a few times. Well, they're not let us in if you like. I've heard somewhere, this and maybe I need to check my facts on this, but I have heard people have been stopped at customs and if they've they've talked shit about anything in their social media posts or anything, then they've check everyone's. No, they well there there is that, isn't it? And they're they're not good to listen to all our podcasts, are they? Well they we have got American listeners though, haven't we? Maybe it's them. Maybe it's them. It's the CIA. Let me check where they're podcasts. Let me check where they're basically.

SPEAKER_04 29:57

I mean, we are in the realms of fantasy here, but you know. That would be great. That would be cool, though, wouldn't it? Hi, hi, CIA. I've got a few ideas for you. Oh god. I think the war it'll all be done by then. We'll go we'll be alright going to. It's Dubai's alright anyway, isn't it? Now they've stopped kicking off in Dubai. I think so, yeah. We can get there.

SPEAKER_02 30:19

Yeah, I think uh yeah, it's they're not posting all the influencers aren't posting loads of videos to or anything out anymore, are they?

SPEAKER_04 30:26

That didn't make me laugh though. Oh god.

SPEAKER_02 30:32

Let's have a look.

SPEAKER_04 30:33

No, I think we should just go anyway, I don't really. Abu Dhabi maybe might be a bit more. Yeah. I think they're still kicking off in Abu Dhabi.

SPEAKER_02 30:39

Maybe we'll stay away from Abu Dhabi. Yeah, well, I don't know whereabouts in um oh here you go. We haven't booked anything in Abu Dhabi anyway, have we? No, we've well we've not really booked anything yet, have we? Oh, we'd well apart from flights. Yeah, uh bombed hotels. New Jersey was um the biggest listener in America. Who are you in New Jersey? You've listened to all 20 well 27 of our podcasts.

SPEAKER_04 31:06

Oh, right in.

SPEAKER_02 31:08

Tell us who you are. Tell us if you work for the CIA.

SPEAKER_04 31:11

Surely don't. They'll be listening going on. These idiots are not listening to this.

SPEAKER_02 31:14

Oh, I'm Virginia, so I'm in my own. Oh, I'm just listening to 20 hour podcasts. There you go. There you go. You must be our regular American listeners. Get in touch, tell us where you are, what you do, what you think of us. And can we come to America and stay with you?

SPEAKER_04 31:27

Yeah, can we stay with you undercover?

SPEAKER_02 31:29

Yeah. Just in case Donald Trump doesn't let us in.

SPEAKER_04 31:32

Yeah. Oh man. I don't think they're Donald Trump fans. Do you not think? No, I reckon they're not.

SPEAKER_02 31:39

Yeah. I don't think a Trump fan would listen to us, would they?

SPEAKER_04 31:43

I wouldn't have thought so.

SPEAKER_02 31:44

Because we're women and we've got opinions and yeah. Oh yeah.

SPEAKER_04 31:47

I don't like that. No, loud opinions. No way. Trump derangement, whatever it's called.

unknown 31:54

Oh god.

SPEAKER_04 31:55

Is it Trump what does he call it a syndrome?

SPEAKER_02 31:58

Yeah. MAGA.

SPEAKER_04 32:02

Oh, don't let us anyway, let's not talk about him.

SPEAKER_02 32:04

No, let's not talk about him.

SPEAKER_04 32:06

So you've got a project garden. Yeah. That's gonna be your hobby. I'm just taking one day at a time. I'm gonna go back to work because I have to pay for the next trip. Um yeah, and I'm just gonna I'm I'm I'm gonna be positive about all of this, and I'm actually excited to see what the kids do, and that's what how I'm gonna I'm just gonna approach it like that.

SPEAKER_02 32:25

Yeah, exactly. They'll come home eventually.

SPEAKER_04 32:29

Yeah, well Olivia was on about coming back in the summer anyway, so she's done two hours, two hours, two years, hasn't she? So she might be back, but only she's only gonna come back for a bit for a month because she might want to come back for her birthday and my birthday.

SPEAKER_05 32:45

Oh yeah.

SPEAKER_04 32:46

But um I don't know. But I mean the flights are so expensive at the moment I don't think it's worth really thinking about it.

SPEAKER_02 32:52

No.

SPEAKER_04 32:52

So I just said leave it for another month and see how it goes. But yeah. I just think if you come back, if she comes back for a month here, even though like obviously she's gonna see all her friends and family and stuff, the novelty wears off. Yeah, doesn't it?

SPEAKER_02 33:10

Yeah. Unless she's got a plan and she knows what she wants to do.

SPEAKER_04 33:14

But she doesn't. Who knows? Who knows? Australia seems like a great place to live to me. Yeah, apart from all the rules. Yeah, there are a few rules. Yeah, keeping people in check.

SPEAKER_02 33:28

Yeah, unlike when we were there. I know, there were no rules. Literally smoke as much as you like. They have still got a bit of a gambling problem over there though. Yeah. Yeah. I would say. The casino used to be one of our big nights out, didn't it? Going to the casino.

SPEAKER_04 33:41

I mean, I'm a terrible gambler, don't understand it, but yeah, the like all the pokies, and then they have like um like the races dog races on in the pub.

SPEAKER_05 33:51

Oh god, yeah, I remember.

SPEAKER_04 33:52

And then you can just go up and like gamble whatever dog it is that's running on the thing.

SPEAKER_02 33:57

I do remember that. Yeah, they've still got it there. That's bad, innit? It's weird, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 34:01

And yet, and yet you can't smoke within ten metres of any kind of building. You've got to stand next to a bin and look like a loser.

SPEAKER_00 34:08

Did you have to do that?

SPEAKER_04 34:09

Pote yourself in the eye with a fork while you're doing it.

SPEAKER_00 34:14

Smoking kills.

SPEAKER_04 34:16

Smoking kills. Yeah, which I just found quite bizarre. I mean, Olivia was telling us about all the like the rules. Oh man. No shots after midnight. Yeah, that's wild that. Yeah, no shots.

SPEAKER_02 34:28

Why? I don't want I mean Are there drunken yobs around?

SPEAKER_04 34:32

There obviously is, because you wouldn't have those rules, would you? So the they obviously have got an issue with with like drinking and that kind of culture, I suppose. But yeah, I don't it seems a bit extreme, but yeah. But then I d I don't know, I do feel like they they look after they're like protecting the the younger people. Yeah, like trying to raise a better kind of way of living, better society. Yeah, yeah, which you can't grumble about that, can we?

SPEAKER_02 34:59

But anyway, what's going on with you? Tell me about you. Um so I mean it's just been relatively samey, same same for us at home. Um, we're obviously curdling towards GCSEs, and that's fun. Um no, it's fine. I think Freya's getting a head round it now. I think um she's obviously got this got this boyfriend, got Harley, a boyfriend, which is lovely, but it's a bit of a distraction from what she should be doing. So just trying to monitor that a little bit, make sure that the really she's doing the revision to earn the time away and stuff. You know, you don't need a break from a break, do you? You should be having a break from revision. So yeah. And how is she responding? Oh, fine, yeah. No, she's got it. I think she gets it.

SPEAKER_04 35:45

Yeah, I think she's she's not stupid, she'll know she she knows.

SPEAKER_02 35:48

Yeah, she knows, and so so yeah, we've got that going on. Um, and then we talk we've put our house on the market.

SPEAKER_04 35:56

So you've just told you've just said not a lot's been going on. I put our house on the market.

SPEAKER_02 36:00

Your house on the market, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 36:02

Which is terrified. Same in my in my life. Oh put your house on the market.

SPEAKER_02 36:06

It is quite terrifying though. It's like yeah, well, yeah, because it was just an idea, and then you it just suddenly spirals into activity, and it's like shit, I've put my house on the market. Wow, but it was quite fun. Like we did um we did a big sort of dress in the house, and the guy came around to take the picture, and I was really nervous about that about the pictures being taken. I don't know, because it's like you're putting you're really putting your self out on the internet there. I mean then I know I do this, but just putting myself out on the internet, but but like like you everyone we know because everyone knows how you decorate your house, everyone knows yeah, I know what you mean. So we put like with I put a little note on our we've got a little neighbours group, so I put a note on there yesterday because I knew it was gonna go on to right move yesterday. Um and Neil went, you know what the first thing them lot are gonna do. They'll be straight on right move, won't they? Looking at it.

SPEAKER_00 36:56

I was like, I know that's so much. But isn't that funny?

SPEAKER_04 36:58

Because that's like a judge, another judgy thing, isn't it? You obviously feel like people are gonna look at it and judge like how you how how your house is.

SPEAKER_02 37:06

But the weird thing now is because last time we moved when we moved to the house we're in now, which is like eight years ago now, we didn't do this. So we were in our house, we were looking at like potentially moving, and then we found the house in Adlington and we were like, Oh, we really like it, and it was a new house, a new build. And they had this deal on, I can't remember what it was called, but they basically sell your house for you to enable you to move more quickly, right? So we didn't have to do any of this, like we didn't like it in the house at all last time. But what they do now is everything is obviously social media based, so it's on Facebook and it's on Instagram, and you can go on. And I'm now not obsessively, but I looked this morning because just out of interest, and you can see how many people have liked it, obviously. Yeah, you can see comments under it, and you can see how many people have sent it on because it shows you how many times it's been forwarded on to other people, right? So that's like a whole new world, of it, like anxiety around social media.

SPEAKER_01 38:04

I mean, no one said that yet, thank God.

SPEAKER_02 38:07

But it paints the wall that colour. This ridiculous blue, and then no, it's not ridiculous, and then it's like and then you look at your house as a as a potential buyer and you think, oh, it's really nice, that is that's it. Yeah, it's just it is, it's the same thing. And then I think, well, why are we moving? But I know why we are, we are moving for the right reasons, but it's just like you suddenly start doubting your decision a little bit, don't you? So we have been looking at some places, um, so we need to sort of bottom out our plan. We're either going to move just the four of us, and the idea is to reduce our mortgage and just get a bit of money, yeah, money back, um, or do the whole granny and grandpa flat thing with my mum and dad. So we've looked at just to try and get a few ideas about what's available. We've looked at about three houses now, just as a potential multi-generational living um type thing. And it do you know what? The more I think about it, I was a bit like, oh god, am I doing the right thing? But the more I think about it, the more I think it is the right thing, anyway.

SPEAKER_04 39:11

So you can you'll know, you know, yeah, we've made the right decision. And are your mum and dad alright with it? Like the thought of like the smaller space.

SPEAKER_02 39:18

Yeah, I think they are struggling with that concept, and they've they've definitely not made that mental commitment yet. Because when I was around the other day, they were talking about what they're gonna do in the garden and all this kind of thing, and I thought we've still got a bit of work to do, really, there. Yeah, but uh but our house going on the market, but at some point in the next sort of few days, they've got to make a decision, really, because if we sell ourselves, yeah, yeah, yeah. Then we have to move, don't we? So um, so yeah, we're gonna we'll have a little chat over the weekend. We've got family stuff planned for the weekend, so we'll make our decision there. But yeah, so it but it makes you think like we've seen so many different types of house now. So we've looked at like a big old barn that's already been converted and done, which was really nice, um, but just didn't work levels-wise for um for everyone being in the same place. We've looked at this really nice um like bungalow, but it's like a barn conversion bungalow, which you could add on to, which was really nice, um, right next to the reservoir in Rivington. Oh, nice, lovely, but it was and it's weird, isn't it, when you start because you look at house online and then it you think something and then you get there and it's completely different. Yeah, so this looks lovely and it is lovely, but it's right next door to a massive house which kind of overlooks it, and it's like you'd feel a bit like you're in the servants called over the house. Oh, right, okay. Um, and then we went and looked at this house in Chorley a couple of weeks ago, which was it's an old farmhouse, and it's weird because it's it's in the middle of a like a newish estate, maybe a 10-year-old housing estate, but it's they've done it really well, so it fits in really well. You're not over it's not overlooked by anything, you've got and it's had loads of land around it, like beautiful. You go in and you in the cellar, they've got a cold stone in there from when they used to keep cold food in the cellar, it's about I think it's from the 1700s, the farmhouse beautiful looking, like you could totally you could imagine it so well, but you could also spend about a million pounds making it right, and it was grade two listed, so like everything about it was screaming this is going to cost you a fortune. But it kind of gave us a little bit of an idea about what we wanted, and then we were thrown because we've seen a house yesterday, which is not far from where we are now, which isn't like proper 70s style house, but I really like I'm like, I really like that. I could really like imagine doing something with that.

SPEAKER_04 41:43

Well, that's the thing, you have to think about what you do to it, don't you? Yeah, I think it's some people there's different trains of thought with buying a house. Some people just want to walk in and not do anything to it, don't they? Just like unpack their boxes and crack on. Whereas I quite like like changing things, making it your own. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 42:01

We moved into this brand new house because and that was a real drive for Neil, like he didn't want to move into a house that needed any work because the house that we'd been in previously, when we bought it, looked fine and done, and it was alright. And then literally, the minute we moved in, we realised that and everything had been bodged, everything had been done by the guy who lived there before us himself. Right. So we had to have it rewired, you'd literally have to have everything done. And it's costly, in it, everything like they'd got it, had got two extensions on it, and that they just weren't right, and it was like everything was just hard, and I think we wanted a brand new house so that we didn't have to do all that work. I understand that, and now and I do like I love our house, I do love our house, but I just want something, it's just the same as what everyone else has got, and I just want something a bit different that's character and smorgas, and yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 42:52

With that, does come, like you say, a bit of work, yeah. I think, yeah. But the kids are older now, and yeah, I think we've got more time space, yeah, yeah. I mean, this house, like this constant like crack here, and uh this needs doing, and but I mean, Dave is pretty good. Yeah, you'll you'll luck your date if Dave's handy, isn't it? This is I mean, then this is what we were saying about when we come back and it's just the two of us now, it's too big for the two of us, really. But you you you've got time, and I was like, actually, if you wanted to like well the first day I got back off Milladison, I was like, I'm just gonna weed the the drive because I can't cope with anything at all. So that's what I'm gonna do. So you know, when you're like a mind I need a mindless task, it's got to be outside so I don't fall asleep, yeah. And that's what I did, but I was like, I I absolutely loved it. Two hours of like just yeah, and then but it but when you've got time, you can actually think, Oh, look, I can I can take my time, I can enjoy this and do it properly. Whereas I think, yeah, when you've when you haven't got that time, don't know, it's having that mind space to be able to focus on something properly. And do it properly, not think but I've got to do this quick.

SPEAKER_02 44:03

Yeah, and I think house-wise, for me, like our house, when we bought our house, it was always I bought it with the intention that we wouldn't, we knew we wouldn't live there forever, it was too expensive for us, really. But I kind of justified that in my mind that I saw our mortgage payments a bit like rent, so it was like I'm gonna pay 10 years worth of mortgage, but then move somewhere cheaper, yeah. So to regain some of that cash back. So I kind of I'd justified that in my brain a little bit, but now I'm thinking my next house. So I've always lived in this house with the idea it's not a permanent house, but I want my next house to be the permanent house, I want that to be our family home that eventually the kids can have, or the kid, you know. I was talking to my boss, and he's um he's got a beautiful house, and it's like it's up in Ramsbottom. Um, and the house is stunning, and then they've got this like double garage, and above the double garage is a flat, and he put it originally in for his dad, so his dad lived with him at like in the last couple of years of his life, and he said it was really nice having him there because he was well, like he wasn't ill, he was you know, he was well, yeah. Um, and he said he really helped with the kids, and he you know, he was just it was nice to have him there, and then when he died, they've got four boys, like all the boys at some point have lived in that flat. Ah, nice, and he said it's quite nice now because one of one of his boys is coming back with his wife and his daughter just to save a bit of money up, just so that they can put a deposit together for a mortgage and that kind of thing, and he's and he's like really excited about it. Yeah, yeah. And I thought, do you know what I can because I don't think Lotte will ever really go very far from us. You say that she might well she might be the one that does actually, yeah. She might be the one that does, but then it's nice to think, well, you don't have that worry that there's somewhere that they can come back to if we've got that availability and we've got that accommodation for them. That but it's separate, that it's separate for them as well, yeah. And it's just nice to think of having that family, like my brother always calls it like the we called it the low max family PLC, but right, but it is like you know, it's having that sort of capacity for everyone looking at it. That's nice, yeah. I don't think we'll be doing that. No, no, no, but you want to do different things, don't you? Like you've travel is travelling, yeah. We want to travel definitely, but I do like to have a a route and have a home and I think I will though in in a few years.

SPEAKER_04 46:26

I'm not quite there yet. I feel like I need to go off and do some adventuring and then well you can come and live in half life. Oh I'll go, yeah, that's a good idea. We'll just do that. I'll just sell my house. Reduce rent.

SPEAKER_00 46:42

Yeah, I'll give you a cheat rate, but if Dave does all my odd jobs and you do the garden, yeah, that's fine.

SPEAKER_04 46:49

Yeah. Reduced rent, and then I'll just go off and travel every so often. Oh, perfect. We didn't cheers our Vimto's. Oh no, we didn't cheer. Cheers!

SPEAKER_02 46:59

That's IRL IRL Vimto. IRL Vimto, yeah. You see, I need to get onto Vimto again. Bloody pain in the ass that they are.

SPEAKER_04 47:08

They don't sell it in Australia.

SPEAKER_02 47:09

Oh no, it's busy. It is busy Vimto.

SPEAKER_04 47:12

In the UK section of the World Foods Park of Coles and Woolworths, it's like a small very small bit, and they've got Branson pickle, yeah, uh, beans. Hines, yeah, Hines beans. Yeah. Because they don't eat beans over there. Do you remember that? No, they don't have beans. They do, because I lived on beans on toast when I lived in Melbourne. I don't they seem to have a lot of beans.

SPEAKER_05 47:34

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 47:34

Um, and like cans and cans of fizzy vim toe. Tunnock's tea cakes. Honestly. What they envisage British people eat. Yeah, this is all we eat. Uh what else did they have? Oh, I can't remember. Like tea bags, PG tips. Uh did they have custard? Yeah, they had custard.

SPEAKER_02 47:54

Burnbrosia. Oh, ambrosia, yeah.

unknown 47:56

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 47:58

I wonder why they don't do Vimto cigarette then. That's weird, isn't it? Really weird. We'll get we'll get on to Vimto about that week. Fizzy Vimto. We've already made the offer, haven't they? If they they clearly don't want us. I don't know what's wrong with them really. No, I don't either. And you know, I was looking on their Vimto um Instagram. They do Vim, they've got Vimto merch. You know you can buy like Vimto jumpers and stuff. Oh. Maybe we should just say that we will wear them. I know. Well, I yeah, I think they've got quite a lot of influence vimtu vim vimtuinfluences?

SPEAKER_04 48:29

What's the word? Vimtuinfluin. Vimtuflus. Vimtuers. Like a vimfluenza. Vimfluencer. Vimfluenza.

SPEAKER_02 48:40

Vimfluenza, that's what I was called.

SPEAKER_04 48:42

Vimfluenza. That came out very wrong. Yeah. A vimfluenza. Yeah, that's what why don't we do this? We're doing yes, as a job. A vimfluencer. What do you do? I'm a vimfluencer. Oh yeah. What does that look like? I increased the worldwide interest in Vimto just by talking about how much I like it. Oh god. I've drunk a lot of Vimto since I got home. All 50 listeners that we've got. Have you? Yeah, but if all those 50 listeners started drinking as much Vimto as I drink, then we'd be in the money. They'll quid in Vimto. Quids in. Quids in. Yeah. But I have drunk a lot of Vimto, yeah. First thing I'd do the first thing I did when I walked through the door. Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Should have taken some with you. Before I even put my bag down. Vimto. That's the best, isn't it? Yeah. It's a bit sad when you think that that's what the only but it was the only thing I was like thinking about on the way back.

SPEAKER_02 49:45

So I think um we're probably done for today, aren't we? People are probably fairly listening to us by now.

SPEAKER_04 49:50

Yeah, bored of my story. That's it. I'm back now. I refuse, I won't be talking about holidays anymore. Different things.

SPEAKER_02 49:57

No, looking forward. Looking forward, not looking back. Yeah. So next week we're back to normal. Yeah. We'll do a normal podcast and crisis talks, topic TBA.

SPEAKER_04 50:08

Write in, tell us what you want us to talk about. Yeah. Give us a subject that we haven't already done to death.

SPEAKER_02 50:15

Surprises.

SPEAKER_01 50:16

Let's talk about surprises.

SPEAKER_04 50:17

Do you like surprises or do you hate surprises? Depends what the surprise is. When it's me, it's can only be good. It was nice. I don't normally get surprises because I'm quite nosy and I tend to figure them out.

SPEAKER_02 50:36

I love the fact that me and Dave, like literally since before you went away, have been texting about it and you've just not cottoned on or something. No, which is not like me.

SPEAKER_04 50:43

I was so distracted.

SPEAKER_02 50:44

If you'd done it now, I would have been right on it. And my favourite bit yesterday was I forgot to say this when I was I got in my Uber to come up, and Dave messaged me and said, um, just to let you know she's gone to sleep, don't worry, you can wake her up. Um so I was like, fuck, what am I gonna do? Like this is gonna be awful. So I'm sat in the taxi, and I don't know if you'll be able to hear this on the microphone. You probably won't. Wake me up before you go go.

SPEAKER_04 51:15

I was like, oh my god, the irony of a taxi. Thank God you didn't sing that to me. I really would have shit myself. Rocking in. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 51:24

WTF. Ah, kill, right. So we're back. We're back. Back back from Australia. Yeah. It went quick though. Yeah, it did go quick.

SPEAKER_04 51:36

I well, did it? I don't know. It felt like I feel like I've been away for about three months, but I think it went quick now. I'm back. We've just done this podcast. I feel like I'll we've majored.

SPEAKER_02 51:46

Yeah, we did, and we we did do that marathon podcast record just before you did as well, which was like awesome. That was enough time. Yeah. Never again. Never again. Cool. Alright, my darling. So we're off out for lunch. We're going for lunch. Yeah. And then I'll be back on the train with all the weirdos. Hopefully, without Storm Dave causing kids. Storm Dave, oh yeah.

SPEAKER_04 52:09

Well, he's alright here, isn't there's no storms going on here? No, we're good.

SPEAKER_02 52:12

I think it's late home. It'll be fine. It'll make it an exciting journey.

SPEAKER_04 52:17

They don't have me like stuff over here. Bloody storm. It's like it's a bit of windy. Storm Dave. It's the best name ever. Storm Dave, I know. The irony of it.

SPEAKER_02 52:27

The whole weekend is ironic.

SPEAKER_04 52:28

I know it is, isn't it? Yeah. Poor old Dave. There's not much storm about him these days. He's gone out actually, I don't know where he's gone. Oh really? Yeah, he's gone. Storming away. Stormed off. He's just stormed off, and he's whipping up a storm.

unknown 52:42

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 52:43

God knows. He's probably gone to BQ to make some up for the van. Oh my god. I know. I love him. Oh god. What a tinkerer.

SPEAKER_02 52:50

DC Solutions. DC Solutions. Professional inventor.

SPEAKER_04 52:55

Oh no, there's a magpie up there. Don't look at it. I've seen a few of them. Have you? Since I got back on their own. For the purposes of international listeners, if you see a magpie on its own, it's one for sorrow. It's one for sorrow, two for joy, three for a girl, four for a boy, five for silver, six for gold, seven for a secret never to be told. Well, I keep seeing one on their own, which is sorrow, and then if you salute the sorrow, it doesn't happen.

SPEAKER_02 53:23

So the but salute, there's like loads of different traditions, isn't there? So you can salute it. Um Sally Preswich used to say morning George, how's Maud? I remember that actually. And or you have to say hello, Mr. Magpie, or hello Mr. Magpie, yeah. So I now have the kids and me in the car saluting hello Mr. Magpie, morning George, how's Maud? We literally do all three just to be safe. Do you do it only walking around the road on your own? Sometimes, yeah. Did you say morning George?

SPEAKER_04 53:50

No, I do a little shady. I was going to say that's weird. No, but you could do a little shady salute, can't you? I have to try and pretend I'm like messing with my hair or something.

SPEAKER_02 53:57

I also do the touch collar touch and e hope it never comes to me when you see an ambulance. Do you? Yeah, so I do that as well, really, really and with other people. Oh I don't know that's weird now, don't you? I mean, I come from a very, very superstitious family. Yeah. So I'm screwed, really. Right, we better say goodbye. Yeah. Right. Bye listeners. Bye listeners. We're not saying bye to each other. We're not saying bye together.

SPEAKER_04 54:22

Yeah. Woo. IRL. IRL. See you next week. Bye! Bye.