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DoubleBooked Official's Podcast
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ON today's episode we catch up after two weeks apart. We cover football, high school friendships, drugstore makeup dupes, and how to deliver bad news correctly.
Hello, everybody, and welcome back to today's episode of Double Booked Official Podcast. I am Mike Alan and I'm here with the world's greatest tennis all-star Wimbledon Ready co-host, Nicole. And you are hopefully listening to us on Apple Spotify, watching us on YouTube, or checking us out on social media. Please remember to follow us and subscribe on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube Shorts at Double Booked Official Podcast, your headquarters for all of your life solutions as working moms.
SPEAKER_03And all the other things that you experience in life, period, you know, sometimes whether you're a mom or not, or you're working or not, we're just here to solve the world's problems and one person at a time. But I will say, I am trying, we are trying to work on our social media. And so if anybody has recommendations for us, B feels like sharing our funny clips, all the things, we would greatly appreciate it. It's just we are learning as we go. And sometimes it's a little challenging for us. So just bear with us. We will get better.
SPEAKER_01Yes. And we're working on solutions. So stick her out. We're gonna get better at social media. Let's talk about the content. The content is amazing. Although I missed you last week and I have learned it was a wonderful, wonderful, a lot of intelligent communication and advice was given last week. But on the witty banter size, I am less funny without you. That's my own story.
SPEAKER_03I that means a lot to me. I missed you last week. Feel like we have so much to catch up on because in our daily life, we really haven't totally caught up on all the things that are going on. And you know, I send you some highlights here and there, but like the real stuff. I mean, we're about to go on a weekend trip together for everybody. Like, just wait for the content. It's coming. So many things to talk about there. I I wanted to pick your brain on something that I slowly started to get anxiety about today. And I'm wondering if you're feeling it.
SPEAKER_01You mean how yesterday last night when I was just word vomiting all of my anxiety to you, like my paid therapist? I'm sure.
SPEAKER_03Listen, that's okay. So that there that's one thing on my list to talk about is all the therapy I've been giving lately. Okay. But okay, not just to you. There's been a lot of therapy going around. I feel like everybody is in need of a break right now. However, the we are about to creep in to the time of year, which is the holidays. Whoa. These Christmas ads are giving me full-fledged anxiety already. I am like, oh my gosh, am I late to the game? So then I'm having to do articles for work and I'm reading about consumers and consumer spending, and people are already starting holiday shopping. So I'm getting it from that angle. Then I'm getting it as I'm scrolling through social media. I mean, there's some really cute Christmas things that have come up lately. And I'm just like, oh my gosh, are we there? Like next week is October 1st.
SPEAKER_01Okay, first of all, what's interesting is in one of my sets of notes here, I have asked Nicole when it's appropriate to put up Halloween decorations. So we're on the same wavelength, it's still 150,000 degrees down here in Tampa. And there's must be something going on with your algorithm because I have seen no Christmas ads on any social media or TV at all. Well, so I wasn't stressed. So I really appreciate that.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, you're just so welcome. My Christmas dec, or excuse me, my Halloween decorations went up two weeks ago because it was the only weekend that I was home in October. So, or excuse me, in September. So I was like, all right, pulling those out now. So that's done. But I'm also on a um, yeah, we're living in this rental, which is a whole nother situation. But it's I'm like very minimal on my decorations this year. I'm not, I haven't gone all out.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. I one thing that I've realized that I think we I'm not great at, and I want to get better at it, is traditions, like like things with my kids that we do this thing every single year. Like every single year, they can't wait for pumpkin carving day because we don't have that. Like pumpkin carving, it's usually like just something we slot in at the very last second. We sometimes run out of time, sometimes we paint them, sometimes we carve them, sometimes we do one big one for the whole family. Sometimes everybody gets their own. Sometimes we get it at Home Depot or the grocery store, sometimes we go to a pumpkin. So we I wish I was better at like creating like a this we do every year.
SPEAKER_03I'm gonna give you one. And you're gonna think I'm nuts because I'm gonna give you anxiety for the next 10 days. So October 1st, I I basically do a almost like they're the own boo basket. So I get Chloe like either Halloween pajamas, Halloween slippers, and then like maybe Halloween bracelets or bows, so that she has the entire month of October to wear them. But it's like, okay, this is how we're gonna celebrate this, right? So that if she doesn't get some, if for some reason nobody boos us or something, she's at least got something on October 1st, and she gets it every October 1st, so she knows that just like sometimes our elf when he comes, he always brings like an advent calendar. So there's always like something to look forward to. So you could start that for October 1st to kick off the month of Halloween.
SPEAKER_01Oh, I'll be sure to get Grayson and Dean some Halloween bows. I'm sure they would love that.
SPEAKER_03I'm sure they would love it. I'm sure there's some sort of thing.
SPEAKER_01Video games? Do they have video games? So they're Halloween. That that would probably be the only thing that Dean does not wear pajamas. Maybe socks. Maybe socks. But I mean, we're almost out of time. If you could see my calendar for October 1st, you would not be suggesting.
SPEAKER_03I need to send it to Jason to put on your skylight real quick. You're welcome, Jason.
SPEAKER_01We are literally we're going to a USF game at some point this season. Like he got tickets through work or something like that. Like we are, and so, but I keep trying to look at the calendar to figure out like the kids get invited to a birthday party, and every single Saturday says the USF game because he just incorporated their, he just downloaded the entire season onto our Skylight calendar like a flipping appointment. So I have no idea what day I actually have to care about the game. Like we're going to the game. I've asked him three times to take it off, and he's not listening to me. Violation. Somebody throw the flag.
SPEAKER_03Yes. Oh gosh.
SPEAKER_01Oh my gosh. So speaking of football, so this past weekend, yesterday, actually, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers played the Cleveland Browns. I know. And I know most of the people in the world are like, who gives a crap out either one of those sucky losers? But they only play each other like once a decade. Like it's been, I think, eight years since they played each other in regular season. So it was kind of a big deal. Yeah, I think so. It's been a long time. We did, of course, we did. Yes, we went. That's awesome. Yes. And a bunch of my high school friends, four, four of my high school friends, I wouldn't say a bunch. Okay, so they choose a different away game for the Cleveland Browns. They all live sort of scattered throughout the country, and they pick a different away game to go to for the Browns every year. And it happened to be that this was the year they picked to come to Tampa. So they reached out to me. They came, we hung out at my house on Saturday. We all went to the game yesterday. We tailgated. We had a great time. And I literally have not seen some of these guys more than in passing or this out or really downloaded or caught up in 20 years ago. 20 years. Wow. I know. I know. I know. I was so excited. It was such a good time. We're all grown-ups now. Some of them are old. We're all the same age. We're all the same age. Some of them are old. Some aging better than others. No, everybody actually is aging well. And what I loved was we are older, but we're all still the same people. Like they have the same relationship. They tease each other in the same way. They have the same sense of humor. They have the same core personalities. I had the absolute best time. I just had the best time. It was not awkward. No, it was not awkward. It was not uncomfortable. And I love like being down here 20 years now and being a transplant. And you know how Tampa is. Tampa can be superficial. We can care a lot about our vanity. We can care a lot about keeping up with the Joneses. And so anytime I can go back home to Ohio, anytime I can be with those Midwest people and just bring it to humbles you right down to remembering who you are, girlfriend. I love it. I love it.
SPEAKER_03I love that. I love that. And so you got to spend all weekend. You spent, I think, some of today. Like, how did you guys leave it? Well, are you going on the next away trip?
SPEAKER_00I you know what? Now that you bring that up, they did not invite me.
SPEAKER_03Oh my gosh. Well, you can invite yourself. You hosted. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01We'll see. We had a great time. And then the Browns won.
SPEAKER_03I know.
SPEAKER_01It was the battle of sucky teams, but oh, that's so cool.
SPEAKER_03Well, we didn't get the game up here. So that's the and we didn't buy an NFL ticket this year just because we really haven't been sitting and watching football a ton on Sundays. Like, there's just other things. Now I'm playing tennis. So it's like, eh, whatever, I'll just see what happens. And then I saw they lost. I was like, I saw the Bucks lost. I was like, oh man, bummer.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, and it wasn't even a very exciting game. The most exciting part was the two and a half hour lightning delay we had right in the fourth quarter. Six minutes left in the game. No, absolutely not.
SPEAKER_03I was gonna say, wow, you're brave.
SPEAKER_01Nope, absolutely not. Okay, so tell me about your tennis career.
SPEAKER_03So I did it. I feel very proud of myself. I was extremely nervous because I know nobody on this team, and I've never played in a real match before. Ever?
unknownEver.
SPEAKER_03I've played love and things like that. But this is like a real like something that counts. Like this one actually counted. So I went and I'll be honest, these were the nicest ladies, and they were so helpful and just really wanted to, you know, wanted to make sure I felt comfortable. They were talking about their husbands, what they do. They want to help out Mike and like get them all together. And so it was just like very cohesive. Now I will say this there was a little bit of drama at the end.
SPEAKER_00Oh.
SPEAKER_03The other team that we played was trying to pull off some tricks because they're like, I guess they're like on the low man on the Totem pole that might get kicked out of our league. Didn't even know this was a thing. I thought this was I I don't know any of the rules, but it was really fun to get caught up in the drama and listen, and um everybody like drinks and eats afterwards. The club puts on a big like food display and everything. So I was like, oh my gosh, this is so cool. What I thought was gonna be an hour or two hours, it was like a five-hour afternoon for me.
SPEAKER_01Oh my god. How were it was this singles or doubles?
SPEAKER_03Doubles. I I don't know at this stage I could play singles. That's a it's already, I mean, it was 100 degrees out, it was already hard enough on my body to do that in doubles. And the lady I was playing, playing with, she was also a little bit older.
SPEAKER_01And so her and I were just like, Whew, no, let's how did you find like this group that needed a fourth to play with?
SPEAKER_03So I talked to one of the instructors at the club. So I was taking a private lesson, and I said, Do you think that I have enough skill to hold my own on the team? And she said, Yeah. I said, Well, do you have a team that plays at night or weekends? Because I can't make it during the week. And she said, Yeah, we have actually have a Sunday team, and most of them work, and so you know, they practice Wednesday nights and then they play on Sundays. And I said, Well, I can't make it every Wednesday. She's like, Not a problem, just come on Sundays. Like, it's not nothing is mandatory. You tell them which matches you can make and not, and they put you on the schedule as needed. I'm like, this is so up my alley.
SPEAKER_00Amazing! I'm so proud of you.
SPEAKER_01I'm so proud of you. Let's get to the most important question, though. What did you wear?
SPEAKER_03So I forgot to ask if there was like team attire. So I did not wear team attire. I wore a leopard tennis skirt with a blue tank. And now I'll be wearing navy in white. I have it all in my Amazon cart ready to go. I don't play again for two more weeks.
SPEAKER_01So that's so exciting! Yay, go Nicole!
SPEAKER_03Crazy. I can't believe it. I actually did it. So check that off the bucket list.
SPEAKER_01Well, I actually had my first golf lesson on well, I've had golf lessons before, but it's a new every other Friday night with our a good friend of ours. This is like our new Friday night out, every other Friday night out. And so we went and we had our golf lesson on Friday. And I'm I'm not a terrible golfer. I'm fine. I'm fine golfer. I'm okay for somebody who plays twice a year. But apparently, every single thing I have ever done is wrong.
SPEAKER_03That's I hear that I hear the coach was up your butt.
SPEAKER_01Oh god, he was a lot. He was he was, I'm sure Ali will be great someday. But it was like 152,000 instructions and then followed by just relax, just real you gotta relax more.
SPEAKER_03I am shocked that you didn't bite this guy's head off.
SPEAKER_01I was very nice. I was I was very, very patient with him.
SPEAKER_03Oh my gosh. Like, come on, instructor. Like, give me one or two things and let's get past those before we move on to the next.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yep. Okay, you know what else we haven't caught up on? We haven't even talked about our my birthday trip with Grayson, have we?
SPEAKER_00No, how was it?
SPEAKER_01It was awesome, and there's two, it was a couple of quick highlights. So he's 14, and although he loves me, sometimes he doesn't like me per se. Like he just, you know, parents are cringy, friends are very important. It's completely developmentally appropriate. But the other thing, too, that I that makes me kind of sad too is that teenagers start to become adults, and as adults and teens, I don't think we just don't laugh as freely. We don't, we start to care about how we're perceived more than just our enjoyment. And so I think it's getting harder and harder for him to just like be spontaneous and be a child. And so this was a great time to see, like after the first day, it he just kind of uncurled and could be faster to laugh and giggle and think we're funny and have a good time. So we had a wonderful time. They the place we were at had a teen club. Oh, and yes, and he went all the every night we were there, and it was kind of his our first taste. It was you're only you have to be between ages of 13 to 17. They did have music, they had a concession stand that had like sodas and chips, but they really had like these giant gaming pyramids and then um like pool tables and ping pong tables and things like that. And so we walked him there, it was open till midnight. We walked him there every day, dropped him off, and then he was responsible for getting himself back home. So, of course, I'm sitting there till like 12:30 in the morning, just like staring at the door, waiting for him to walk in. So it was a little bit of a taste, a controlled taste of that. But it also reminded me did you have a teen club when you were growing up?
SPEAKER_03So this teen thing must be new because well, they have it on the cruise ships that I've seen. And they had it when we went skiing this year. They had like the middle school one, then a high school one. So it's kind of like pre-teen and teen, different hours for each group. And I thought it's it's actually a brilliant idea to kind of get them amongst their peers while they're on these vacations. Because we, you know, I listen, we all need a break from each other. There's no secret to that. But I think this it's new. I feel like it's new. I feel like a lot of the, you know, some of the nicer resorts maybe have it.
SPEAKER_01No, I had it. I had a teen club growing up. Yes. And in fact, having just done this with my son, I got to talk about it with my high school buddies when they came in about the teen club that we had right by our house growing up. It was called the Cause. I think that was short for the Cosmopolitan. And it was, or was it just like no, it was like only Friday nights, I think. Because sat, I think, if I remember correctly, Saturday night, like the other nights, it was a regular club that serves alcohol and 21 hours.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, I think he had like teen night at some of the places.
SPEAKER_01But it was like every Friday was teen night. So we would hang out at the COS was a very common thing to do. And I would not let my children, at least not. I mean, he's 14, so and I think you had to be 16. I think it was like six ages 16 to 20 could be there. I would not let him go to the kinds of things that were happening at the cause.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, that's why I sort of feel like it's a little bit different, right?
SPEAKER_01These resorts that and these much more controlled environment.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, I was gonna say, like I went in there to do like in the open house to check it out, and I was like, Oh, there is nothing happening in here.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, plus nobody smokes anymore. That used to be the big thing everybody would go and hide from their parents and smoke at the cause. And then you just you could tell your parents it was everybody else smoking at the cause, right? But nobody smokes anymore, which is great. I love that. Oh my gosh.
SPEAKER_03Well, what what was like the highlight for him? What did he what was his best experience?
SPEAKER_01We went fishing. Well, this is another amazingness. So we went fishing, we did a fishing charter, and I I think I texted this to you, but it was just really funny. He he was the only one that caught fish, he caught a bunch of fish, a big trigger fish, grouper, all kinds of fish. It was fantastic. He loved that. But with two captains that were, or a captain and a co-captain, and they were younger gentlemen, early 20s, very cool, much cooler than me, and they let me be the DJ. And we get to the end of the day, and we're just chit-chatting and catching up, and you know, and he was like, I gotta say, mama, we we had our doubts when we saw you. You are the best DJ we have ever had. We have been talking about this privately. We cannot believe what a great DJ you were. We loved all your music. Thank you.
SPEAKER_03Mike, the trip is over. You win! Like that was all I needed.
SPEAKER_01All I needed.
SPEAKER_03Oh my gosh, you're so cool.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I know. I keep telling my kids that yeah.
SPEAKER_03Well, listen, if if your career fails you, now we know you can be a DJ.
SPEAKER_01Absolutely.
SPEAKER_03Oh, I love that. So going back though, you talked about traditions, like this tradition that you're doing with their birthday and taking them on the trip. That's a very memorable one.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, that's true. That's true. And now my 12-year-old is already talking about well, for my 14th, I want to do this, blah, blah, blah. Although he keeps saying for his 14th, he wants to bring his brother. And I'm like, that's not the point, buddy. It's supposed to be you and your mom and dad, and like that's it. And like you don't have to share the spotlight. He's like, No, no, I really want, I really want my brother to go. I'm like, let's address it in a year and a half.
SPEAKER_03Two years that can completely change.
SPEAKER_01Yes. Okay, so coming up, we've got this big trip, as you mentioned. Both of us, however, so the trip is already a four-day, a Thursday through Sunday trip. But you and I are both going somewhere before that, right?
SPEAKER_03No, so I I this one of the things to talk to you about were like some of these fall trends because I'm going to Chicago tomorrow and the weather is high of 62. As you mentioned, we've both been in hundred degree weather. Hacking is like such a challenge when you're this hot and you're going to cold, and then and where we're going in, we're going to Arizona. After and that's hot. So I'm going hot, cold, hot. A, I feel like I'm gonna come down with something. But B, like I this the packing challenge, but I'm really enjoying some of these fall colors right now that are out at the stores.
SPEAKER_01Yes, I am loving it too. This color cinnamon is popping up on all of my feeds, and I love it. I love a dark chocolate suede, but I'm kind of loving this cinnamon as well. Yeah.
SPEAKER_03I did end up getting like an army green color jacket that I'm in love with. And then I got jeans that were that same color. It's just not a normal green is just not always that color green is not my norm. So I'm stuck in my comfort zone. But yeah, packing has been a complete challenge.
SPEAKER_01I don't I gotta I need to Yeah, I think I'm just gonna go. I think I just have to check it back. I mean, one, because my brain can't get straight. Like the way to bring a carry-on on a longer trip is that you really have to be programmatic about every single outfit choice. I just don't have the brain space right now. We're so busy at work. Just I was out of town for work last week, which means that you know all the paperwork kind of gets pushed to the side. I only have today and then I leave tomorrow for the trip. So I'm just checking and plus toiletries. Like if I'm going, which I was gonna ask you about this, how often do you wash your hair?
SPEAKER_03I do it every other day unless I get a blowout.
SPEAKER_01Okay, so same. I'm every other day, sometimes every third, but that many days of being gone, like I need all the shampoo, conditioner, all the things to wash my hair. And so I think for toiletry purposes alone, I gotta I'm just gonna check a bag.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, I um I'm using the hotel shampoo. I'm not even worried about the shampoo. I uh but I'm bringing all my other product.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, good. Speaking of products, do you this is something I've been going, I vacillate back and forth between I'm gonna buy just a few makeup products high quality versus no, I gotta try all the fun, trendy stuff, but I need the dupes. So do you have any good drugstore? And this is for any of our listeners too, drugstore. So CBS Walgreens Target dupes for higher quality, higher expense makeup products.
SPEAKER_03So I'm glad you asked. I've been using some of the Medicude stuff. Okay, um, the moisturizer and their stick, and I actually really like it. So far, it's been really good. I and it's you know one third of the price of the other stuff that we've purchased. So that was good. I've noticed there's been some sales lately on Amazon for a lot of these products that we've been trying. So I've been trying to, you know, the moisturizer, La Roche Pazet moisturizer was on sale for like six dollars off. So just trying to get stuff when it's on sale. But yeah, I did. Um did I tell you about the I think I texted you about the cream that I thought my face was gonna like electric static off.
SPEAKER_01Yes, yes, yes.
SPEAKER_03Oh my god. So that is an interesting product to use, and it wasn't terribly expensive, but part of the whole Medicume family. I've been using kind of what you're supposed to do there. So I've been trying. What about you? Any any dupes that you found that you like?
SPEAKER_01So, yes, so I have been going down as I've been texting the group the liquid or not powder, uh liquid blush rabbit hole, trying to find the best liquid or balm type blush, but I'm new to that, right? I've been using NARS orgasm in a powder for 15 years. So I didn't want to spend a lot of money while I'm learning what's the best, like a true liquid, something with some viscosity, like what is the best way to get the dewy complexion, the dewy look, and what's the right color, right? Is it peachy or pinkier or so? I've been trying a lot of Maybellines and Revlons and L'Oreals and CoverGirl things. So I don't have a favorite yet, but I'm working on it and I will report back. But if anybody has any suggestions, that's what I'm doing. Liquid blush dupes. And then something that I absolutely love, have been using for a long time, Maybelline. So Maybelline makes two different versions of this lip gloss. As you guys know, I am a big gloss girl. I love a gloss, I like shinier the better, but I like a little plumping action to it. And so there's one that I've been using forever. It's by Maybelline, it's called Plump. And I think the color is watermelon, and it has like a picture of a chili pepper on it because I think they put chili pepper, they put something spicy, so it is spicy, yes, which I love. I do not mind that. But if I go to if I kiss my husband or I kiss my kids, they're like, ah, what is that? So I found this one. I'm very excited about also Maybelline. Also, color is called watermelon. I think it's called watermelon without the without the chili, without the chili, it's called lifter gel, lip oil in gel, and it is also supposed to have plumping, and that is what I'm wearing right now.
SPEAKER_03Oh, I love that. Okay, so you had at on one conversation had brought up the the cupping disaster. So now I've been looking at my skin. Of course, all the shit is popping up in my feed right now because I feel like it's reading my mind. But my skin, especially on my legs, is starting to get that crepey look. It's if you know it, you know it. And I'm like, what do I use? I have no idea what to do about that.
SPEAKER_01I have tried a lot of things, and I won't say it's perfect, but I will show you, I'll show you my legs on Thursday. I have tried the gold bond crepe erase. I have tried like I think vanna cream. I have tried the retinol body creams, like the just generic retinol, but I've tried some of those. The one I absolutely love the most is from Walgreens or CVS. It is Olay. Olay makes it and it's called the Renewing. And it's a white bottle, purple writing, and it does have retinoids in it, as well as some other things. But I just love like it's the perfect level of emollient, a perfect level where I feel like immediately it looks better, like immediately it has that temporary improvement to tone, and then it really I feel like does have a long longer lasting result too. So Olay renewing, that's my suggestion.
SPEAKER_03Okay, I'm totally gonna do that. So we're talking about things we spend money on, and I want to tell you something that happened to me, and it's about wasting money. And I realized, I mean, I realized probably right after I did it that it was a waste of money, but now a few years later, I'm still entangling it and waste of money. I got into a timeshare, and I am trying to get out of it right now, even at a loss, and I am like I am beside myself.
SPEAKER_01How did you get sucked into a timeshare?
SPEAKER_03Oh god, love my dad, but we were with him and he is so into it, and he uses it and knows how to use it right and does it and has all the what all the things it's not for me. I can't plan that far in advance. I don't have you know, I want to go all kinds of different places, so it has not been of benefit to me. There's many people that like it. I will I can appreciate that for other people, not for me. It has been a waste of money, and I'm trying my damnedest to get out of it. So today was I spent a little bit of my lunch trying to figure that out.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, that might be something next time to phone a friend about.
SPEAKER_03Oh my gosh. This was this was 10 years ago that we did like this was 10 years, and I'm still unraveling it all.
SPEAKER_01I'm so sorry to hear that. Please keep us posted. I'm sure there is more than one listener here that would like to get out of a timeshare. I know everybody that I know, like in our age group, working parents, whatever, they are all anybody who's gotten into a timeshare, it has not benefited them. Our lifestyle just doesn't allow for it. We get too much crap going on. Like we just can't book a trip that far in advance, or put those couple pieces together.
SPEAKER_02No, or if anybody wants to buy my points, I'm happy to sell them to you at a deep discount.
SPEAKER_01So there you go. Yeah, send us a DM at double booked official podcast.
SPEAKER_03There you go. What about do you feel like you've wasted money on anything? Like, I'm sure there's many other things I waste money on, but like this one was a big one.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, my car. I'm still like it was an impulsive purchase. I use my car. I my car is fine. I love my car. Well, I don't love my car. I like my car. It's whatever it gets me, it's a nice car that gets me nicely and prettily from point A to point B, but I really like the car I had immediately before this. And usually, like, I hate cars are a depreciating asset. I struggle with that as it is. I hate paying stupid interest rates. So the car I had immediately before this was a Ford expedition that I actually liked. I liked how it looked, I liked how it felt, I liked how it drove, and I bought it for zero percent interest. It was like a flash sale that Ford had through Ford credit, zero percent interest. Great. And I only had it three years, maybe. So it started to experience engine issues. It was get it was at 99,500 miles, and it was starting to have engine issues and transmission issues, things that were about to become really, really pricey. And also the resale value was once you hit over 100,000 miles, psychologically, your resale value just goes down exponentially. So these things all kind of were coming to fruition at the same time. So I panicked and impulsively traded it in, and they gave me like an amazing uh trade-in value to buy a new car, and now I'm in a new car. But because it was an impulse purchase, it has all-wheel drive, which I don't need, which means my mileage fuel efficiency is terrible, and it has 6.9% interest, which is terrible. So now I'm just trying to hurry up and get it paid off in the next year.
SPEAKER_03Oh my gosh. Yeah, I have a feeling I've been very fortunate not gone wood, except I have gone through a lot of tires on this car. I don't know if it's because the curbs come up and bite it, I don't know if it's because people throw nails at it. I haven't quite decided why I keep going through all these tires. But today I'm on the phone with our friend and I'm driving, and all of a sudden, my tire pressure light goes on. And I just had an issue with it last week. And so I was like, and it went to zero. Like it went like no. And I was like, Oh my god, did my tire just pop? Like, what happened? I didn't feel anything. So we're up, I'm on with a friend and she's like walking me through it because I'm on the interstate. I am in I am in not a great part of town. I'm on the interstate. It's like if I pull over, I it's like I'm risking my life big time. So she's like, Was it your car driving okay? Yeah, she's like, is the car shaking? I'm like, no, I'm fine, I'm fine. Like it's I'm just gonna keep going. I have two miles to my destination. So I made it there right before I turned in. The tire pressure came back on and the light went off, and it was like normal. So I feel as if it was just like a sensor issue, but I'm so hypersensitive to my stupid tires because I do have a tire problem with it, but we'll see what happens.
SPEAKER_01That's scary, that's really scary.
SPEAKER_03Because I don't know how to change a tire, I would just call triple A to come save me.
SPEAKER_01But I know how to change a tire.
SPEAKER_03I know you do. You're good.
SPEAKER_01I'll come change your tire.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, well, listen, I'm sure you'll be made be quicker than triple A getting here.
SPEAKER_01Oh, for sure. I am for surely even driving Tampa to Atlanta, I'll be faster than Triple A. You know it. So just call me.
SPEAKER_03I'll call you. I'll call you.
SPEAKER_01Something that I have been thinking about lately too is on the work. This is work-related that I was thinking about it, but really it could be relevant to anything in our lives. How do you deliver news that you know is going to be very disappointing to somebody that you care about? Whether it's a coworker that you really like, a client that you really like, a friend, like something you have to deliver this bad news, it's not gonna work out what for whatever reason, and you are sad to have to deliver this. How are we delivering bad news?
SPEAKER_03You know, I usually just am honest, like going in. I think, and I I don't come off as the most compassionate person. I'm very well aware of this. So when I come and I am having my compassionate side, you usually know it's probably not great. But I think I usually just say, like, listen, this is a hard thing for me to tell you, or this is not something I wanted to share with you, but it's you know, eating at me. You know, I think I kind of start with the message before the message.
SPEAKER_01Okay. Do you ever soften it? Like, not lie, but maybe just soften it. Like, all right, let's say you have an employee asking for a promotion that they are not they're not qualified for this promotion or they're not the right fit. And so you've got to tell them that. But maybe and you could do it like the most truthful way and say, you're just not qualified. Here are the things you could do to get qualified. Or you could just soften it and say, look, I just don't think this is the right time. I kind of envisioned this really great other role for you in your future, or you know, things like that.
SPEAKER_03If you really think there, like I'm also gonna not set somebody up for failure, right? Like if there's something I genuinely don't believe that they're good at, like I'm pretty much gonna probably tell you like it is. If I do think that there's hope for that person, then I might say, like, you know, maybe if you try X, Y, and Z, we can consider this in the next year or so. Or you know, if you know, here's what I'm really looking at to see you grow, and give them the expectation or kind of what would get those benchmarks to get there.
SPEAKER_01Okay. We had to tell somebody today that it was a candidate that had interviewed for a particular role, and it just wasn't gonna be a good culture fit. Like they just they had just have a different personality for our size of company. We're a small company, and we you know have a more of an entrepreneurial spirit, just wasn't gonna be the right personality fit. So no matter what, we weren't gonna hire this person, but I did hunt a little and just kind of tell them I think they were overqualified for the role. And it's not that that was a hundred percent inaccurate, it was more that I didn't think their personality could handle fitting into the role that we needed versus wanting to do all the things. And so that that was to play in it, but I definitely said, I just think you're overqualified.
SPEAKER_03I I had one the other day where it was a gentleman who I knew already had an offer at a competing firm, and they're a great firm. Friends of mine run the company, I know it's a good spot. And he still kept coming to me and he's like, Well, are you gonna send me an offer? And I ended up going back through kind of some of our budgets and things like that. And finally I came to the conclusion it's probably not the right time. So I gave him a long message and just said, Hey, listen, not the right time. You know, you're a great candidate. I know you have a great opportunity. I highly recommend you take the opportunity. I am not in the position to bring you on at the moment. I've had some things change that I was unaware of behind the scenes, and I just I can't do it right now. So he kudos to him. He called and he's like, you know, what could I have done differently? And what, you know, what could I do differently going forward? And I was like, well, that was pretty good, but I had to like let him down again. Almost more like, dude, it's a no. Like, please go take this other job. You'll be extremely happy there, I promise. And it's like, you know, this isn't no forever, it's just a no right now.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. Do you feel like collectively people are asking for so much money these days?
SPEAKER_03Yes. And they a lot of people think that they're worth more than they really are.
SPEAKER_01Everybody thinks they're worth all the things, and it's like, even if your skill set is is is the absolute best, which you know, sometimes it is. You are the best, you are worth every penny I have to give. But I don't have that many pennies to give that you're asking for. The pennies just don't exist. Revenue minus expenses doesn't equal your salary.
SPEAKER_03Like I expenses have gotten um, you know, company expenses, personal expenses. I think on both sides you can look and everything's just is more expensive as it's today. So yeah, it's um it's definitely the expectations have changed for sure.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, and I feel like we pay our people really well.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, yeah, yeah. I would say, you know, a lot of mine have to eat what they kill. So yeah. It is what it is, but you know, traditionally their their amounts have not gone up as much, you know, as following inflation. So they're still having the same woes. There's something I was gonna tell you that just have oh, the what's interesting that it's been a hot topic lately is the work, the non-working remote anymore. Okay, and all these companies coming out and saying like you have to be in the office three, four, five days a week now, which I think is really interesting. And in the business we're in, and we you know is retail, but we talk about the office sector quite a bit.
SPEAKER_01So I'm kind of curious now what happens as yeah, because a lot of this office space has been repurposed, right? Yeah, yeah. So interesting to see what's gonna happen.
SPEAKER_03It is, it is okay. Let me ask you this. This is a really, really big question. Okay, what are you binging right now?
SPEAKER_01I mean, it's football season, so we're watching a lot of football around here. Oh, what did I just binge? The hawk. I just finished The Hawk. That was amazing. I loved The Hawk. Yes, you haven't seen The Hawk on Netflix.
SPEAKER_03Oh, that's with Will Farrell.
SPEAKER_01So funny.
SPEAKER_03I know that I'm into that kind of humor.
SPEAKER_01Oh, I loved it. I thought it was so funny. I love have you watched four seasons on Netflix? Yes, okay. Just watch the latest episode or the latest season of that.
SPEAKER_03Waiting for the diplomat to come back out. I think it's like October 16th.
SPEAKER_01Oh my god, there's always so long in between the seasons, though. I forget. I know, I love it, but I forget. Have you watched The Pastor's Wife?
SPEAKER_02No.
SPEAKER_01Oh, okay. It's a documentary, it's not a series. It's about God, what is his name? That that crazy pastor, the mega church pastor whose wife died, and they ruled it a suicide, but there is a bunch of debate on whether it was a suicide. He did some okay. So the way I found out about this was I have a podcast that I love to listen to called Crime Junkie. If you've ever listened to it, it's amazing. But it's these two women that sort of go down the rabbit hole of cold cases or cases that were hard to solve or things like that, and they pull old police files and they go and do interviews for people who were never interviewed and things like that, and they try to piecemeal together what might have happened. And so they did a deep dive on this case in an episode that I was listening to, and I love the episode so much that I then watched the documentary. But, you know, this pastor of this mega church was married and started having an affair with this other woman, ends up leaving his wife and marrying this other woman, and then is so incredibly psychologically and physically abusive to her for years. Like, oh, it's deep dive. Like apparently, he is a sex addict or something like that. So he started, he was telling her basically that if she couldn't meet his demands in that department, he was going to cheat on her because you have to keep up with your husband, you have to make your husband happy. The Lord says you must keep your husband satisfied that he was leaning into religion, so much so that he put her on testosterone to specifically like get her to increase her sex drive to keep up with him. And it was to such a degree, it ended up altering her voice. She was in the church choir, and all of a sudden she was having a heart, she was losing her voice and not able to sing the same way with her group because of the testosterone that she was taking for this purpose. So anyway, no doubt about it, proven to be very abusive to her, and then she dies, and there's a big debate on whether he kill her, did he have her killed? Did she really commit suicide? And even if she did commit suicide, is he really not culpable at all? So it's crazy. I recommend it.
SPEAKER_02Wow. Okay, I'm going home and downloading that for my flight tomorrow.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, just right up there with the hawk. I mean, they're right on the same level.
SPEAKER_03I'm I'm much more documentary/slash government type stuff than I am some of the hawk type comedy, but maybe I'll give it a shot.
SPEAKER_01I like it because you don't have to pay, like if you're doing other things, you can just kind of have it on.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, that's true.
SPEAKER_01What about you? What are you binging? What should I download for the flight tomorrow?
SPEAKER_03Listen, I've got nothing. I very helpful. No, I know. This is what I've been looking, and I've been trying to like find something, and I'll be scrolling through. And I was like, eh, if you didn't watch the third season of quarterbacks on Netflix, it was really good.
SPEAKER_01With Baker Mayfield and uh Joe Flacco. Yeah, Joe, yeah, Joe Flacco. I did watch it because again, I'm a Browns fan.
SPEAKER_03So that one was a good one for me. I did like that.
SPEAKER_01Have you watched Lioness?
SPEAKER_03No, but everyone's told me I might like that.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, that's what I've heard too. And I haven't watched it, but maybe I'll download that because they just brought on, or I don't know if they brought him on to a different show, but he was always on the line. But anyway, Michael Kelly is an actor that I really, really like. He's in a lot of the political drama. He was in House of Cards. He played the chief. No, not the chief. He was in House of Cards. Anyway, I really, really like him. And so I may now go and find a way. I think that's on Paramount Plus.
SPEAKER_03So yeah, I've been watching a few things on Paramount Plus. So I watched what the spin-off of a few of the spin-offs of Yellowstone.
SPEAKER_01Nice.
SPEAKER_03Like Beth and Rip.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I couldn't get into that. Too violent, but who is that? Yeah.
SPEAKER_03It was that.
SPEAKER_01So I do love Beth and Rip. I do know who they are.
SPEAKER_03Well, that's good. I'd be worried about you if not.
SPEAKER_01Thanks. Well, great. Well, I can't wait to see you in person this week, and we'll be recording our next episode together, possibly in matching outfits. Who knows? And we're gonna be talking about friendships, friendships at the stage of our life with these kids and geography and work and all these commitments. How are we making new friendships? How are we keeping new friendships? And what is important in a friendship at this point in our lives?
SPEAKER_03I look forward to it. Thank you guys for listening. We are double booked official podcast. Podcast official official podcast. Double booked official podcast. We you can catch us on YouTube, Spotify, Apple. And do not forget to follow, like, and share us on social media, Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram.
SPEAKER_01Thanks, everybody.
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