"Teacher Appreciation: Gift Overload or Genuine Gratitude?

In this episode, we dive into the often debated topic of Teacher Appreciation Week, exploring whether the heartfelt gestures and gifts truly reflect our gratitude or if they’re simply overkill. With a comedic twist, we respect the dedication of teachers while questioning the need for an entire week of gifts for our little ones to navigate. We also tackle the upcoming Mother’s Day, sharing laughs and insights on how we celebrate the incredible moms in our lives. Join us for a lighthearted discussion that balances respect with humor, as we navigate the fine line between appreciation and excess!

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:01

Welcome to Gotta Get Said. Here's your host, Matt Cuco. What's happening, guys, and welcome to another episode of Gotta Get Said on this Wednesday, May the 6th, 2026. How's everyone doing today? How's everyone's week been? Everyone having a fantastic week. Enjoying the weather. Unless you're in Denver and you enjoying the weather. It's beautiful out here, right? 70s, 80s. It's really starting to come along. Really starting to come along. I enjoy this weather. Who doesn't, right? Summer's fun, but it's hot. Winter's cool, but it's cold. I'm really a fall guy, quite frankly, but this is cool. Spring's cool. Put you in a good mood. Trees are changing. The bees are out. It's nice. It's a nice little uh change of scenery, if you will. So yeah, guys, before we get into this episode, I would like to say this. Some exciting news over here at Gotta Get Said headquarters. Some very, very exciting news that I can't tell you yet. What I can tell you over here at Gotta Get Said is changes are happening. Good changes. There will be a gotta get said facelift. There will be a gotta get said. What's the word? I don't know. Revamp. Very exciting. And the next coming weeks, gotta get said, will have gasoline pouring on it. If got if gotta get said right now is a fire, there's gonna be a lot of gasoline being poured on, gotta get said, in the upcoming weeks. So stay tuned. I'm very, very excited. I want you guys to have the best experience you can while listening to this. I know I don't average a ton of listeners, but the ones that true the true diehards that listen, I appreciate you. And I want you to have the best experience ever. I want you to enjoy the show, I want you to interact with the show. I want you guys to be invested in the show. So for 59,90. No, I'm just kidding. But um, seriously, though. So I'm excited. I'm very excited. Some new things will be happening. It will be a facelift, there will be some changes, and I'm very excited about them. I can't talk about them all yet. But um, it's very exciting stuff, very, very exciting stuff. So stay tuned for more information. As I know more, I'll be able to tell you guys more. But right now, I'm just saying stay tuned. Stay tuned. And um, it's gonna be very exciting. All right, back to the show. Back to the show. What do you want to talk about? What do you want to talk about? I have two, I have three kids, but two of the kids, perfect example. I have three kids. Do I want to touch this? Do I want to get into this? Do I want to open this box? I'm well aware that this sentence is gonna be super controversial. I'll even double down on that. I'm well aware that this sentence is gonna get me in trouble. I'll even triple down on that. I'm well aware that this sentence is gonna put me on a minority island where no one agrees with me and I look like a monster. I know that. Up front, I'm admitting to you guys now that I know that this next topic is gonna make me look like a monster. No one's gonna agree with me. I'm gonna be all alone on my island, and I'm gonna look like a POS. Noted. Noted. Waving the white flag, hat in hand, totally taking responsibility and acknowledgement for me being wrong in this next topic. But you know what? It's it's called gotta get said, and I just feel like it's gotta get said. So I'm sorry for the people that I am about to offend right now. I truly am from the bottom of my heart. But it's gotta get said, and I'm sorry. I really, really, truly am sorry. Let me just paint the picture for you. I have three kids. A 15-year-old in 10th grade, a turning four-year-old in pre-K, and a two-year-old in whatever. Daycare K, whatever the fuck you call it. Teacher Appreciation Week. Now look. I'm well aware that teachers are the backbone of our country. I truly mean that. I'm well aware that teachers, you know, fuel our society. They they paint, well, what's the word? It's not paint. They mold our future, they create our future, they create our next president, they create our lawyers, they create our doctors, they create our scientists, they create what keeps us as a society moving. I know that. I am well aware how important teachers are to our society. A hundred and ten percent. A hundred and ten percent. And I'm also well aware that commanding a room of children 18 to 6 is challenging. I know that. I know that commanding a room of children is challenging. And I also know that you guys don't get paid a shit ton. You don't get paid a shit ton. You don't get paid as much as a doctor or a lawyer. I get it, I understand, I get it. Totally, I totally appreciate teachers and for what they do. I really do. So I just want that point to be noted. I appreciate teachers, I acknowledge how important they are in our society, and I understand that it's a challenging job. All of those things I'm acknowledging, and I'm saying I'm on your side. But with a monsoon of respect, with the most respect I can give in this next sentence. You know, respectfully. You signed up for this. You know? You didn't get drafted to being a teacher. You signed up for being a teacher. You might not get paid the most ever, but you get paid okay. I live in New Jersey and New York. Y'all get paid okay. It's a pretty good job. After five, six years, you're making eighty to a hundred and ten thousand dollars a year in Jersey and New York. Summers off, full pension, pretty good benefits? It's a pretty good gig. And I know. I understand that it's a challenging gig. I get it, I understand. But it's a it's a pretty good job. And I respect that. So do I feel that we have to give you guys a gift every day for the next week because it's teacher appreciation week? Do I feel like that's a little bit of overkill? Respectfully? A little? Right? You know, there's tons of jobs out there. Tons of jobs. I have buddies that work sanitation, aka garbage men. Is there sanitation appreciation week? No, right? That'll be silly. Is there UPS appreciation week? Is there target cart pusher appreciation week? No. And I'm not saying that your job isn't important because I would argue it's the most important. But, you know, you get paid. It's a job you signed up for, you get paid to do it, you have summers off, you have weekends off, you work till like three o'clock. It's a pretty good gig. You're all flag day. You know, it's a pretty good gig. On top of that, now you have to get an appreciation week where me as a parent have to give you gifts on a daily basis through the next Monday through Friday to show you my appreciation for a job that you signed up to do that you get pretty fairly comp compensated for? Fairly, right? Can I say that teachers get fairly compensated? I know people are disagreeing with this sentence right now, and I'm not being disrespectful. I'm really not. I'm on the teacher's side. I appreciate y'all. I really do. But do I need to give you a gift every day for the next week to show you my appreciation? I don't know. I don't know. And I'm also gonna double down. You know, I'm not that old. I'm unk. But I'm not that old. I graduated in 2007. Correct me if I'm wrong. DM me and correct me if I'm wrong. But I don't recall Teacher Appreciation Week when I was a kid. Maybe an apple here and there. But I don't remember getting sent flyers home to give to my parents, telling them what each day is themed based on the gifts we're gonna give. Am I crazy? Is that a new thing? Because it feels like a new thing. Because I don't remember doing that when I was a kid, respectfully, of course, but I don't remember doing that. And I know that this topic is gonna make me look like a bad guy. I'm hearing myself talk and I know speak. And I know you guys are like, wow, what a POS. Teachers like, we put up with so much, and you do. I'm agreeing with you. You really, really do. I know it's a tough job, but I don't know. You know, you weren't, you know, you, you know, you knew what you my point is you knew what you were getting into. You know, when it when it's summers off and you guys are living your best life warranted, I don't complain. You know what I mean? So, like, I would argue being a teacher is a pretty good gig. Do you need an extra week of appreciation? I don't know. I don't know. I feel like it's a little much, if I'm being honest. You don't volunteer, you get paid. Fairly. Everyone wants more, and um you guys probably are underpaid in a vacuum, but fairly? I think fairly's fair. I think saying you're fairly paid is fair. I don't think that makes me a monster. Do I need to have my kids bring in a flower today to show you their appreciation? I'll do it. For the record, I'm I'm doing it. But I don't know, from the outside looking in, it feels a little much. My son's 15, he's in 10th grade. They're not doing appreciate appreciation, and I, you know, respectfully, I would argue, and I don't know if I want to say that, but like it's true, like that's how I feel. I don't want to say it, but it's how I feel. How do I word this correctly? Um, you know, teaching 11th grade honors chemistry as opposed to teaching my two-year-old, I don't am I allowed to say that that's a it's a little more challenging? Am I allowed to say that? I feel like I'm not allowed to say that. I feel like that's a no-no, I'm not allowed to say that. I feel like I'm not allowed to say that teaching 11th grade honors chemistry isn't harder than teaching a two-year-old to color. Am I wrong for saying that? I apologize. I guess I'll lay off. I'll lay off. Whatever. But what I will say is this high school, I don't think they're getting sent home flyers for Teachy Appreciation Day. And do we not appreciate high school teachers? High school teachers are in the most crucial point, I would argue. SATs, you're really, hey, you're about to throw them into the weird real world. You're truly about to throw you, you better start molding and molding fast because they're about to be in the real world. And that's what they're doing. Do we not appreciate them? I don't think they're getting gifts every day. I don't maybe maybe a couple of one-offs here and there, but I don't think they're getting sent home a calendar of how much gifts to give and what days to give them. Is that fair to say? Why not why not them? You know? Why not them? I don't know. I appreciate the teachers. I do. I really, really do. But do I think that you guys should send home something saying it's teacher appreciation week and every single day this is what you should give to said teacher? Do I think that that's a little much? Do I think that that's a little distasteful? Do I think that that's a little heavy? Do I think that that's a little overkill? Sure. Sure. But listen, I'll play the game, I'm doing it. I'm doing it. Reluctantly, quite frankly, but I'm doing it. But I will say this for the people listening to this podcast that have students in high school, or for the people listening to this podcast that are in high school, appreciate your teachers there too. Give them something, give them a thought, a gift card, a ten-dollar Amazon gift card, something that gives them that satisfaction of feeling appreciated because they deserve it. You know, there's a world where I can argue they deserve it more. I'm just gonna choose not to argue that. But there's a world where I can make that make sense. But at the very least, at the bare minimum, it is more than fair to say that they also deserve some appreciation. So I'll challenge you to do that. Appreciate all teachers, not just the young ones, because I feel like the older ones get overlooked. You know? So everyone, I know you know, listen. I know a lot of people that listen to this podcast are teachers, and I know that it's probably gonna rub them the wrong way, but I apologize. And I love teachers, I love teachers, I acknowledge how important you are. So don't get too mad at me. Do I think you need an extra week of gifts? Probably not, and I think that's pretty fair to say. I don't think that makes me a bad person. I don't think that makes me a teacher hater, because I'm not. I'm really not. I understand your significance. Probably more than others, quite frankly. I'm probably more understanding of what you guys do more than others, because I'm pretty damn understanding about it. I get the gist. I know what you do, and I know what your challenges are every day. I know. I know. So, you know, maybe give me a break. Maybe let's all take a chill pill, you know? Can we do that? Can we all take a chill pill? Alright, it was heavy. I know, I know that's not gonna get um taken well. And I apologize for that. I really do, but it's just frustrating. It's like, dude, daycares demand so much out of you. And now on top of that, I have to fucking follow a template of gifts to get every single day to show these teachers that I appreciate that my children appreciate them. It's a lot, it's a lot of stuff to handle, it's a lot of stuff to juggle. It really is, it's a lot of stuff to juggle. But yeah, whatever. Whatever. Whatever, right? What else do you guys want to talk about? Any other touchy subjects? Is there any other touchy subjects you guys want to talk about? How I feel about healthcare. No, I'm just kidding. I'm just kidding. We're lighthearted, we're fun, we're all having a blast. You know, my child, the four turning four-year-old, he just started like watching movies. Thank God, right? So I thought. You know, uh before that, we were just doing like the YouTube, the Miss Rachel, the blippies, the handyman house, the what had the people opening fucking Happy Meal toys, you know, that crap. And I was like, man, I just want to sit and watch a movie. At what age do they just sit and watch movies? But now I'm kind of regretting it. I've seen Toy Story 2 like literally, you know what? I'm not even gonna make it funny. I've seen Toy Story 2 11 times in a row in the last 11 days. Honestly, those are honest numbers. And we never sit through the whole movie because we started at times where you know, an hour into it, it's bedtime, and you would think, like, okay, well, we always say the same thing. We'll pause it and we'll pick right up. He wants to restart it every time. So I've seen the first half of Toy Story 2 11 times in the last 11 days, and I'm tapping out. I'm calling Uncle Man. I want YouTube back. I'm so sick of what I'm so sick of watching the same half of a movie. I try to sell them on other movies too, it just doesn't work. I don't know, just certain things take. Toy Story took. I try to sell them finding emo, won't take. Frozen kind of takes, very little. But Toy Story really takes, you'll sit through it. And I'm thankful I am, but like, can we switch it up? You know, like Paw Patrol was cool because there was a lot of different episodes. You got into Paw Patrol, we could switch up episodes. Movies, you can't, you know, movies are movies. So it's like you're kind of just like, you're kind of stuck in there, you know? And it's like, like I said, it's fine, it's fine, but it's just you know, it's kind of stale after a while. It's kind of stale after a while watching these movies over and over and over again. Eating the same stuff over and over. Toddlers are just like OCD, man. Toddlers are OCD. I eat three they literally, I'll eat three things for the next seven years. It's like, alright. You sure? Because like this stuff's good. This stuff's good, you're missing out. You're missing out on the good stuff, man. Nope. Nope. Pasta, chicken fingers. You know, quesadillas, if you're lucky, my kids don't even eat quesadillas like that. I know a lot of kids do. My kids don't. My kids are like pasta, chicken. Is it weird like that? That's really it. For their four year old, that's pretty much it, man. Pizza. But even pizza gets weird. Not overly obsessed with pizza, as crazy as that sounds. Not overly obsessed with pizza. The daughter eats more. But I know that that switches. Once they start getting more mindful, then they start getting picky. But at that young age, they'll eat, they're pretty much disposable. Yeah, they'll eat anything. But once they start getting, like, you know, a little more brain power up there, then they start, you know, disagree. No, I'll pass. Like, no, don't pass. You love this. You've loved this your whole entire life. Why would you start passing? It's really good for the record. Nope. I'll pass. You literally ate it 90% of your life, and there was never an issue, but I guess you'll pass. Not a problem. Not a problem. Not a problem. Not a problem. You got Mother's Day this weekend. Mother's Day. Isn't everyday Mother's Day? Am I right? Hey, fellas!

unknown 22:54

Am I right, fellas?

SPEAKER_00 22:56

Kind of feel like everyday is Mother's Day. Mother's Day is cool. I got no qualms with Mother's Day. You know, a lot of different moms out there. You gotta buy for the grandma. You gotta buy for the significant other. You gotta buy for the fucking mother-in-law. A lot of mothers, man. You don't realize how many mothers are out there until it's Mother's Day and it's time to buy cards. You're buying cards for second cousins. You are a mom. You know? Happy Mother's Day. You are a mom. Then you got some of those dads that are like, she ain't my mom. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Go ahead, man. Don't get her a Mother's Day gift. Let me know how that works out. Don't get your significant other a Mother's Day gift because she's not your mom. Go ahead, do that. Good luck. Good luck with that, man. Seriously. Good luck. Let me know that works out for you. I love people that say that. She ain't my mom. And you gotta give like that fake. You're like, yes, she ain't. I know. The fuck up, dude. Buy the fucking card, buy the fucking gift card, and shut the fuck up. Please. No one needs to hear about it. No one needs to hear about how she isn't your mom. Well, that's nice. Your kids are two, so your kids aren't gonna go out to fucking Kohl's and buy a fucking bedroom set, you know? They're not gonna buy that towel set. You're gonna have to fucking get up and drag them through it and pay for it. Even though she's not your mom. Even though she's not your mom. People say that all the time. I've heard that my whole life. Shame my mom. Dude, shut the fuck up. What a douche. What a douchey thing to say, you know? Very douchey thing to say. But yeah, happy mother's day, everybody. Enjoy the Mother's Day. The mothers deserve it. Teachers deserve it too. Appreciate your teachers. Appreciate your mothers. I'm changing my whole stance. We love teachers. We appreciate you. We do. That's why we give you 90 grand a year in summers off. That's an appreciation. Trust. Where do I sign? Like, oh, you know, we don't get paid as much as doctors and lawyers. Like, yeah. I hear ya. I do. I do. But still. Alright, let me shut up before I get in more trouble. Guys, I love you all. Like I said, stay tuned to God and get said. There will be some changes. Exciting, exciting, exciting changes happening in the near future. So keep in mind. I will see you guys next week. And until then, I'm out of here. And I say peace.