Thirsty Topics podcast
Thirsty Topics is where unfiltered conversation meets culture, entertainment, and everyday life. Hosted by Lawrence Elrod and co-hosted by Meryl Klemow, the podcast dives into the latest headlines, social media buzz, and trending stories—always with humor, honesty, and fresh perspectives.
From pop culture and viral moments to real conversations about society, relationships, and lifestyle, Thirsty Topics is designed to spark dialogue and keep listeners engaged. No scripts, no filters—just real talk that’s as entertaining as it is thought-provoking.
What listeners can expect:
- Engaging weekly episodes featuring the latest cultural trends and stories
- Thoughtful and funny takes on social media, entertainment, and everyday issues
- Multi-perspective conversations that feel like sitting down with friends who aren’t afraid to “go there”
Available on all major podcast platforms, Thirsty Topics is part of the Elrod TV Network, expanding the brand’s mission to deliver bold, original, and diverse media.
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Thirsty Topics podcast
Pantone’s “Cloud Dancer,” Melissa McCarthy’s Transformation, A Taylor Swift Wedding Plot, Family Priorities, And The Pizza Economy for 12/11/25
We challenge a near-white “color of the year,” weigh the reaction to Melissa McCarthy’s transformation, and unpack a rumored Taylor Swift wedding date buyout. Then we wrestle with partner vs parents priorities, decode pizza as a recession signal, and examine a $50 salon standoff.
• why Cloud Dancer sparked backlash and what trends say about taste
• bold colors versus minimalism in homes and fashion
• public reactions to celebrity weight loss and autonomy
• rumored wedding date buyouts and ethics of money and access
• who comes first in family dynamics and boundaries
• pizza orders as a budget barometer and smart hacks
• a stylist’s $50 dispute turning dangerous and lessons on de-escalation
• plugs, gratitude, and where to find us online
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Tired of surface-level inspiration? This raw, transformative documentary digs deep into turning pain into purpose. Mainstream platforms wouldn't touch these powerful stories of resilience, but you can access them now on elrodvnetwork.com.
Tired of surface-level inspiration? This raw, transformative documentary digs deep into turning pain into purpose. Mainstream platforms wouldn't touch these powerful stories of resilience, but you can access them now on elrodvnetwork.com.
Tired of surface-level inspiration? This raw, transformative documentary digs deep into turning pain into purpose. Mainstream platforms wouldn't touch these powerful stories of resilience, but you can access them now on elrodvnetwork.com.
Hello, and thank you for listening to Thirsty Topics podcast! I'm Lawrence Elrod, and every week Meryl Klemow and I dive deep into the stories that matter, the conversations that shape our world."
Please help support our show by following us and telling others about our show. New podcasts weekly.
Hello everyone. Welcome to this week's episode of Thirsty Topics from Lauren Selrod.
SPEAKER_01:And I'm Meryl Climo.
SPEAKER_00:Hey Meryl, how are you?
SPEAKER_01:I'm really good. How how art thou?
SPEAKER_00:Doing great.
SPEAKER_01:This is a Shakespearean play now.
SPEAKER_00:There you go. We got some great. Oh, go ahead.
SPEAKER_01:Oh, I was just gonna say, I agree. We're we're both bursting at the seams to get it out. Do you want me to start? Start kicking off?
SPEAKER_02:Yes. Let's go ahead and have you start.
SPEAKER_01:Okay. Now I'm already noticing that you and I uh for those of the people that are watching, we're both kind of wearing a color that's like, you know, almost a maroon type of like a burgundy color. Now you would think that's such a beautiful color. Maybe that should be the color of the year. Um, but instead, we have one that was named that's causing a lot of controversy. So Pantone uh announced there, you know, I I always get excited. Maybe it's a geeky thing, but I love hearing about like the color of the year. I think last it was cerulean blue one year. And even though it doesn't mean a lot, it does in terms of like they'll name a color of the year, and then a lot of we'll see like clothes and just trends, you know, decor just make its way down the runway and like at stores. So whether or not we notice it or we care, like you know, in our subconscious, we're seeing these colors a lot once they're named the color of the year. So that's all a long way to say that they announced their um 2026 color of the year, and it's called Cloud Dancer, which they thought would predict, you know, they predicted would maybe be like calming. Um, this is like a pillowy, billowy type of white. It's not exactly white, but it's like uh a creamish white. Um, instead, it caused a lot of heated controversy and people online blasting the shade, calling it bleak and boring, um, possibly not a color at all, which is a very interesting statement, too. And after hearing the description uh on Al Roker on the Today Show said, otherwise known as white, this color. So, you know, some some have gone as far as to denounce Cloud Dancer as tone-deaf and whitewashing, expressing controversial takes. Um, I'm not a fan of it. I don't know if I'd go as far as to say that it's like a political statement or you know, a racist statement. I don't I don't see it that way, but I do see it as like in the past couple of years, we've had a lot of beige and a lot of millennial gray, as they call it. And I feel like 2026 to me feels like a year that could be a more of a bold color. And I don't know. I think we can need some joy to spice things up. What do you think?
SPEAKER_00:I mean, I like bold colors just because you know it kind of for me, it makes me feel good, it's lively. Yeah, and you know, there are some people that like the muted whites, stuff like that, off-white. You know, this it's amazing until you start painting a room, you'll be amazed how many shades of each color it is.
SPEAKER_01:It's like yeah, there's like cream white, eggshell white, bright white. Yes, gray. Yeah, we for for a really long time we were like obsessed with the different grays. And I'm like, okay, this one is like the color of a manatee, this one is the color of a uh, you know, old old hair. Um, but yeah, I think and also like I feel like this could have been a few years ago because remember, like Kim Kardashian and then Kanye and House was like all white and kind of the absence of color, and I feel like that was big a few years ago. Now I feel like people are sick and tired of like the beige trend and kind of the gray and the the white, and they're we're looking to add more color and more like pizzazz.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, I I agree. You know, you don't have to be so bold either. I mean, you could also like let's say if you're doing a room, you can do an accent wall where you have like a neutral color for most of the room, and then one wall, you know, you do something that's really kind of splashes some real color in there, too. So there's a lot of creative ways you can use color.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah. No, I do I do see this as a choice. If we're gonna say this is any sort of like political statement or kind of cultural statement, I I could what I like about it is I guess it could be seen as like a blank slate of a color and just kind of there's been so much chaos and nonsense that like having a nice like white color could be like a nice kind of like okay, we're we're clearing our space, we're all like you know, having our mind go blink a little bit in the next year, um, and clearing us of some of like the madness and just kind of the kind of disgustingness that has been happening.
SPEAKER_00:It's almost like having a a blank slate. So you know, you can have your your color that you like, and then you can spice it up with different things to accent that color as well, too.
SPEAKER_01:Exactly. Yep, exactly. And I don't know, tell okay, tell me how you feel when people are saying that this color of the year is like white washing and everything. Like, of course, I do you feel that way, or like as a you know, a black man, like is that this isn't like I don't see it that way. Um okay, I know.
SPEAKER_00:I I I don't even see how you would you know even prepare that to be honest with you.
SPEAKER_01:Exactly, yeah. To me, that's not a nice statement to say because it's like people of all types and ethnicities can enjoy like a nice white background if they want to, you know what I mean? Like it's not just for a certain type of people, it's it's not nice to say that, I think. So yeah.
SPEAKER_00:I mean, what do you what are you gonna say to someone whose favorite color is pink, or another person, their favorite color is blue, or their some one person may have a favorite color is red. So what is you know?
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, so yeah. I have a feeling that the people commenting this too are also, as I always say, annoying white women. So leave everyone alone, or anyone that wants to have this weird white color on their walls can have it and let everyone do their thing. Of course, only in 2025 we make like a political statement out of the color of the year.
SPEAKER_00:Unfortunately, Meryl, people will make political statements out of anything these days.
SPEAKER_01:Exactly. And if you find yourself like on Reddit arguing about the color of the year, maybe time to touch grass, as the children say.
SPEAKER_00:That is true.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:Well, talking about making a statement, um, I'm quite sure you know who Melissa McCarthy is.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:Melissa McCarthy was on Saturday Night Live uh over weekend. So Melissa McCarthy had a dramatic weight loss. Um, in fact, a lot of people noticed it. You couldn't help but to notice it when you watch Saturday Night Live. So a lot of people were you know commenting online about her weight loss, how dramatic it is. It's estimated that she probably lost anywhere from 75 to 100 pounds.
SPEAKER_02:Wow.
SPEAKER_00:Honestly, I had to do a take when she came out too because she is really small compared to what she used to be. Yeah. What I like about the whole situation, Merle, is that she didn't go online, she didn't make no fanfare about it. People just happen to see her when she came on Saturday Night Live.
SPEAKER_01:Yes.
SPEAKER_00:Do you think that people are making too big of a deal for this?
SPEAKER_01:Um, I think unfortunately, like the society that we live in, people are just obsessed with like weight one way or another. And you know, it it's annoying to me. Like to me, I kind of don't care if people go up and down on their weight. I thought she was like always really beautiful and talented, and I like the fact, but but it seems like obviously it's probably not fun for her to be to have been overweight in like a you know an industry that's like very weight and physical appearance obsessed. So um, I hope she feels like better and healthier, and she's still beautiful and talented. So yeah, it doesn't surprise me, but I just like wish we didn't care as much about women's weight as much as we do.
SPEAKER_00:I agree. And I I think the thing that makes this one special is Melissa McCarthy before she lost the weight was already a big time A-lister.
SPEAKER_02:Exactly.
SPEAKER_00:The weight has nothing to do with her career whatsoever. So to me, and again, I'm just speculating she did this for herself. You know, she didn't have to do this to try and make it in the industry, she's already a heavy hitter. She didn't have to get more roles, she's gonna get the roles no matter what. So to me, I just think that she did this for herself. And to me, if a person is gonna lose weight, do it for yourself. Do it because you want to get healthy, you want to have a better life. Exactly. Don't do it because someone's pressuring you or an industry saying, Okay, you need to look like this. I don't think that's wrong. I I mean, I don't think that's right because to me, God made us in his image, and yeah, there's a reason that we all look different, okay?
SPEAKER_02:Yes.
SPEAKER_00:So I I commend her for doing that, and I really commend commend the fact that she's not even commenting on it, she's just doing her thing, being who she is.
SPEAKER_01:Exactly. I totally agree. And we don't know, like maybe she has a role coming up that she wants to have more energy for, or maybe she just is feeling like, okay, I really want to commit myself to being healthy, or maybe she had bad habits before and now she has better habits, or we you know, we don't know at all.
SPEAKER_00:It's true, and and you make a good point. Um, because a lot of times um, you know, actors and actresses do either put on or lose weight because of a role that they're coming up for. So that's a good point.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah. One example, I'm just gonna be uncharacteristically snarky here, but um one example of someone that lost weight that I think is still really annoying that shows it doesn't really matter how much weight you lose or gain, you're you could still be annoying, is the singer Megan Trainer. Like, I find her very annoying, and now like with her bangs and everything, I'm just like, this is someone that obviously this is what I mean. Like, to me, weight doesn't matter as much because you can like lose a ton of weight and now be like 50 pounds version more annoying to me. So so her annoyingness has doubled, her annoyingness has gained like 15 points to me. So sometimes, like, I think Meg Meg, this, you know, have the person we're talking about has been like lovable since day one. To me, I'm sure some people find her annoying, but like like I still see you know, people can basically losing weight isn't the end all be all, is what I'm saying.
SPEAKER_00:That's true, that's true. And I'm a big fan of her. She's um she's in based crap movies over the year. Yeah, and I think her best performance is when she played spicy, you know, starting that laughed.
SPEAKER_01:Oh, yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, and when she first started doing it, a lot of people didn't even know that was her at first. Yeah, she got his mannerisms and everything. I mean, she I think she even got an award for that, didn't she? Didn't she get some kind of?
SPEAKER_01:I think so. Maybe I don't know if she should have if she didn't.
SPEAKER_00:She got something for it.
SPEAKER_01:I was like, wow, yeah, and and she still looks like so beautiful and healthy. I think a lot of some of the actresses we've seen very dramatic weight losses that it's like clearly Ozempic or GLP one or whatever, what you know, whether or not they want to admit it that it like freakishly looks different, they don't look healthy or great, and I think that's why it almost but I think with her people may not talk about it as much because she just looks like good in her own body, so I think that almost like that gives me hope and happiness for her, too. You know, that she looks good.
SPEAKER_00:That's true, that's true. Well, Melissa, we we definitely love your new appearance and we always support you no matter what. Um come on our show one day, too.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, I love that. And Megan Trainer, I'm sorry, please don't come on our show. If you you could go on Lauren's show separate, but I don't know why I find her so annoying. Maybe she's lovely in real life, I don't know. But to me, she's just proof that you could like be very annoying even after you lose weight. So even to give people hope, but then also take the hope away. Well, uh people are also talking about the fact that it was just just came out. A lot of sources said that Taylor Swift cut a hefty check to snag a bride's wedding date at a Posh Road Island venue. Um, page six reported this. Now, this is one of the things that I had heard on TikTok like almost a month ago, but it seemed like at that time it was like a friend of a friend, you know, some someone that I saw on TikTok was saying that they knew a person that knew the bride that was contacted by the wedding place, saying like they didn't say Taylor Swift directly, but they said um someone wants to give you like a lot of money to try to move your wedding date because apparently the person at the time had the room booked for um June 13th, 2026. And that is when Taylor and I guess Travis want to get married at a place called the Ocean House in Watch Hill, Rhode Island. Um, and it looks like this person said yes to it. So we don't know exactly how much it has been. I think it was definitely like obviously probably more than like a couple hundred, maybe a hundred thousand dollars or you know, over that amount. I don't think we're talking like eight thousand dollars here. So um, yeah. No, okay. My first thought with this is like I feel like if Taylor is smart and I feel like this might be a decoy because maybe she doesn't want everyone and their mother like coming into Rhode Island on June 6th, like you know, I don't know if they want the general public knowing exactly where and when they're getting married. So like I don't know if they're leaking this story and it's not true. Um, I don't know. What do you think?
SPEAKER_00:I mean, I don't know, it could be. I mean, she definitely has the resources to do that, and you know, there's a lot of a lot of brides that say, you know, you know, this is my perfect day. I'm not changing it for anyone. I challenge that. If a superstar comes up and they're team content, you would say, we're gonna give you$1.5 million to move. Oh, yeah, to move your uh your your wedding day. Now, they're obviously gonna be always exceptions to the rule, but I'm willing to bet you most brides would be like, okay.
SPEAKER_01:100%, 100%. And either I would like I would either change the date of it and then be like, perfect, we'll have it five months from now and it will be paid for, you know, and or I would change the location and be like, okay, this date is really important because it's like our anniversary or you know, someone's birthday or something, and then I would just change the location, and I would definitely also renegotiate and like go back one more time with like a okay, you said a hundred thousand dollars, like let's it will be a deal, make it 250 and we'll have a deal. You know, I'd I'd go back one more time. Now imagine if this just is a decoy and she's not really getting married that day, and then like actually, whoever is getting married on June 13th at this venue, they're gonna have like helicopters and paparazzi and everything.
SPEAKER_00:It's true, that's true. That could happen. Um, I mean, it's it's not unique, you just don't hear about it because a lot of times they kind of you know hide it from the media, but it doesn't if she were to do this, it wouldn't surprise me. And the sad part is is that depending on how much money a person is being offered, um a great example of this is you know, years ago when Whitney Houston passed away, and someone at the nursing home snapped a picture of her in a casket. Um, you didn't know about that? No, oh yeah, that was all over the the tabloids. Oh, uh and what it is, it was a a an employee for the funeral home that sold it to TMZ. Oh my god, actually for like$200,000, you know.
SPEAKER_01:Ew, that's gross though.
SPEAKER_00:Unfortunately, that happens all the time. That's why to me, I think a lot of these entertainers and celebrities go through such great lengths um to really, really watch who they associate themselves with and who they have around them.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah. Now, like I know Taylor gets a lot of heat for stuff she does. I don't necessarily think this is terrible or really tacky, like to at least reach out and see. You know, like she is a billionaire, and that's money talks, and all the time people are like a lot of men, a lot of times, are like whether that's greasing the waiter to get better service or trying to, you know, upgrade for a hotel. I think a lot of people with a lot of money just are kind of used to paying their way to get their experience. Like, I don't love it. I wish we lived in a different society, but I also don't really fault Taylor. It's kind of like the don't hate the player, hate the game kind of thing to me. Do you think that it's like a very tacky move to offer money to the person to try to change the date or I don't think it's tacky.
SPEAKER_00:If I had the resources, would I do that? No. Um that's the right thing to do. Um but I do understand when people do do it. And um, you know, again, a lot of people say, well, you know, there's nothing, there's no price that I'm willing to take to change this. Yeah, there is.
SPEAKER_01:Exactly. And that's the thing is I I want to know how high she would go. Like, would it what if a million dollars is no big deal for her? Then, you know.
SPEAKER_00:I mean, this is like here's a great example. Uh, you you you you and your boyfriend and your apartment, and for whatever reason, someone wants that apartment says, Hey, I'm gonna give you a hundred thousand dollars. Would you would you leave and get out of the house?
SPEAKER_01:Oh yeah, for sure. I'd once again I renegotiate, I'd be like, okay, but then also pay our moving fees and our like you know, what whatever. But yeah, oh yeah. I feel like almost anything in my life, maybe besides my boyfriend and my parents and like my best friends can be bought.
SPEAKER_00:That is so true. That is so true. Just like, you know, this this home that the that the home I'm in, um, you know, my son was born here, raised here all his life. If the right offer came.
SPEAKER_01:Oh, yeah.
SPEAKER_00:You know, I'm just saying, you know.
SPEAKER_01:Exactly. Except I do love my car. I feel like I really love my car a lot, but but yeah, I don't know, but but it is interesting. And what we're thinking about not only Taylor's money, but like Travis's too. So it's like you have the combined powerhouses of like pretty much unlimited money. So that bride, I mean, could you imagine if like she's like, okay, I'll move it absolutely for two million dollars, and then it's like you get to buy a new house, you know, because of just changing your wedding date? That that's crazy.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah. And then, of course, there's that one person that won't do it no matter what.
SPEAKER_01:I know, or out of principle, I think some people too, if they get offered to do something, it makes them feel like, no, you're not taking this away from me, you know.
SPEAKER_00:Uh, here's a great question. What if you had a friend? Uh, she was getting married on a date, and let's say Taylor Swift offered her this insane amount to change her wedding day. I mean, uh, the amount that it changed our lives. And she goes, Well, for principal, no, this is the day I chose and I want to keep it. Would you say anything to your friend or would you just let it be?
SPEAKER_01:Um, I would say something. I definitely would say something. I also what I would tell my friend too is like, I feel like Taylor Swift is is also diabolical. You know, like she's going to get what she wants. And whether or not, like, I think even if that person says no, she will be able to convince or manipulate the the venue itself to like dump that client. Or, you know, if she's not gonna get what she wants through the person, it's almost like a nicety to me that she's offering money because I feel like she could be a bitch or whatever, you know, not a bitch, but she could be like. So aggressive and like sweep that person away, probably with her own power and everything, and have them just like dump cancel the date on the other person. So I almost feel like it's kind of nice that she's doing this because like if she really wanted to, she probably could like just go through all this and yank the rug out of the person without even offering money.
SPEAKER_00:That's actually a really, really good point. So kudos to to the to the bride if if she took that offer, which I'm quite sure she did if it's a real offer.
SPEAKER_01:Exactly. I would tell my friend you should definitely do it, and you should definitely give me 20%.
SPEAKER_00:Well, this is gonna be a real hot topic here. Um, does your wife or husband come before your other family members? Like, for example, your siblings, your mother, or your father?
SPEAKER_01:I mean, the real answer, no. Like, I'm obsessed with my parents. And so I feel like really. Yeah, I know. I've had this talk with friends that have kids because they're like, no, you're like husband and children are supposed to be like your family, but I think maybe because I'm an only child or I'm just like so enmeshed with my parents, like I love, love, love my boyfriend so much, as much as you could live love a significant other, but I feel like my main people are like my mom and my dad.
SPEAKER_00:Now, AI says here, it says, yes, generally, a spouse comes before other family, like siblings or parents, because marriage creates a new primary family unit, meaning your loyalty and your primary commitment shift your partner, although respect and care for original family members remain important. It's about prioritizing the partnership while still honoring parents and relatives with the marriage vows signifying this new primary bond. Now, this is an interesting topic for a number of reasons because to me, in the perfect world, you shouldn't have to choose.
SPEAKER_02:Right. Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:You get married, you know, your your your extended family, her extended family, we all bond together, become one family in the perfect world. Unfortunately, there are situations where you have toxic family members, yeah. And family members that keep up a lot of drama. Um, you know, you would hope that they would love each other, but at a minimum respect each other.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:And you know, to me, if your family loves you, they wouldn't put you in that situation to begin with.
SPEAKER_01:Right. I think so too. I mean, uh that's why like people that live that have good relationships with their family and they live in the same town, they're so lucky. Because I even feel this too, thinking about like the holidays. And I'm like, okay, do I choose if I have to choose, do I be with my boyfriend, which I usually do, and my that's what my parents want me to do, or do I like go down to San Diego and spend time with my parents because you know their time is limited and they're getting older, and like ultimately in my life, my parents are like my main people. I know that sounds crazy, but maybe when you also when you don't have children, you you feel like not that I don't feel like a family unit, but I feel like more like a family unit with like my parents and me. And so it's always a choice to be like, okay, how do I spend my time or how do I like get make sure everyone you know gets their equal time?
SPEAKER_00:And that's assuming that you have great family that don't keep up no drama, exactly, exactly.
SPEAKER_01:I have I have yeah, totally.
SPEAKER_00:Because here here's a here's a great question. What if you have family members, and I'll just be specific. What if you have a mother or father that you they met your your your husband, your wife, and this person's a good person. There's nothing wrong with them, they're hardworking, they're a good person, they treat you with respect, they love you, but your parent or parents have given them a hard time ever since they came to the picture.
SPEAKER_02:Oh, yeah.
SPEAKER_00:Just be a mean and nasty to them.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:Try to force that relationship, or do you have to kind of push them back a little bit?
SPEAKER_01:Uh yeah.
SPEAKER_00:You know what I mean?
SPEAKER_01:Exactly. Then you should take care of, I feel like you should always take care of like your little family first and just protecting that. And then if someone's giving you grief or making it stressful, like I don't see any need to engage with that. And I feel like it's totally healthy to put up boundaries.
SPEAKER_00:Oh, absolutely. And you know, that's why, you know, when we sit when we we talked about it on previous episodes, when you see situations, um, like the one NFL player was you know trying to mock um mock uh this other uh this other his friend, well, supposedly friend, and his wife, well, why weren't your family there? You don't know the situation, right? Yep. And you know, sometimes saying nothing says a lot.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, absolutely.
SPEAKER_00:And you know, you have to protect your peace too. And unfortunately, sometimes you need to love your family from afar.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:Is it the ideal thing? Of course not. But sometimes for the sake of your family and for the sake of your household, you need to love them from afar. Because to me, if you love me, you accept whoever's with me.
SPEAKER_01:Exactly.
SPEAKER_00:Unless they're doing something to physically harm me, they're you know, doing talking about me, they're doing something toxic or whatever, unless they are specific reasons. If I love this person, then you shouldn't have an issue with them. Right again, unless there's a problem that you see. If there's no problem and you just don't like them because you don't like them, that's a bigger problem.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, yeah. And and the and they're trying and they're coming correct, and then yeah, that's a different problem. But if they're creating grief for you or stress, then absolutely, then I think it's good to put up big boundaries.
SPEAKER_00:That's true, that's true. So yeah, especially around the holidays, you know how that is, right?
SPEAKER_01:Exactly. Not not me though. I I'm beyond obsessed. Like, I think my parents soon are gonna go on a cruise to Alaska, and I'm like, well, obviously I'm coming too. Like, I'm like, I'm coming to and then, and then my boyfriend can't come to it. He says to work, and I'm like, okay, bye, see you later. Like, like, and other people are like, that's so weird. Like, why wouldn't you wait and go on a cruise with him? I'm like, I don't care. Like, my parents are I only get like one lifetime with them, and they're my they're my people, you know. So not that I'm saying like romantic relationships come and go, but I feel like right now, while my parents are alive, like they're that relationship is like so much a very big priority of mine, you know. It might be immature or whatever, but I feel like as an only child, like sometimes maybe some people can relate to that. I don't know.
SPEAKER_00:Definitely, definitely. And you know, the thing is, it sounds like you have some great parents, which you know, unfortunately, not everyone has.
SPEAKER_01:Exactly. No, I'm I feel very grateful. I'm obsessed. They don't, they're like, Do you really have to come on a cruise with us? I'm like, I'll be right next door. Happy anniversary. Even my mom will have to text me, like, don't worry, we're taking an Uber tonight at 6 p.m., but we'll be home by 7:30. Like, I'm I'm overly like obsessed with them. Well, um, okay, oh yeah, okay. So my last topic, I thought this was an interesting one. They're saying that people are ordering smaller pizzas and fewer toppings, and that this can be like a recession indicator or just an indication that maybe people are trying to spend less money all around. Um, pizza sales are slowing as prices have increased, with the national average price of a large cheese pizza nearly$17, which actually seems very reasonable to me. The ones by us are way expensive. People are also um choosing like less premium toppings and you know, kind of less of like the fancy meats and fancy vegetables and just going for the good old pepperoni or you know, maybe just some extra sauce. Now, for me, this is interesting because I would almost think in general, maybe people would resort to like making their own pizzas or buying frozen, but people are still ordering pizzas. Now, like also, I don't know if I would save my money in the form of like I feel like if I'm ordering a pizza, I'll go all out and get whatever toppings or whatever size I want. Like, it's not the pizzas aren't the time to flex the budget. What do you think?
SPEAKER_00:Well, I mean, for me, pizzas are inherently not a healthy food to eat. So if I'm gonna go through the trouble of wording a pizza, yeah, I'm gonna get the toppings I want.
SPEAKER_01:Me too, me too. And it's gonna save an extra like dollar or two. I don't know, that just seems weird.
SPEAKER_00:Exactly. And and this, let's face it, it's not something you're gonna have every day. But you know, if you're gonna have it, you might as well go ahead and enjoy it. You know, yeah, and again, I don't think for me personally, spending a few dollars for toppings is not gonna make or break my budget. So, you know, I'm gonna go ahead and splurge a little bit and you know, get the toppings I want on it.
SPEAKER_01:I think so too. I also feel like sometimes when you like the price difference between medium pizzas, large, extra large, can be so different that it actually works out to like buy the really big one and then you have it for lunch the next couple days, or you know, like like have dip for dinner. Because I think like it's it's almost they charge more when you uh or like more per whatever when you get like a small or a medium, you almost get like penalized for that.
SPEAKER_00:Actually, that's a great point. Um, I know personally when we order pizza or we order out of whatever, I purposely get extra food just so we have leftovers.
SPEAKER_01:Exactly, because having extra pizza is so fun.
SPEAKER_00:Yes, and you know the thing is that pizza, the only good pizza to me, you know, you can buy frozen pizza, it just ain't the same.
SPEAKER_01:I know, yeah, it's not the same.
SPEAKER_00:Now, the only exception to that rule is if you make pizza at home. I haven't done it in a long time. I need to make another pizza, but making homemade pizza at home, there's nothing like it in the world.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, yeah, that sounds really good. Yeah, especially if you find a sauce that you like or like make it from yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_00:So even making it from home, and even if you get sauce already made and kind of cheat a little bit, it's still healthier than getting a frozen pizza.
SPEAKER_01:Exactly. And I I see nothing wrong with like ordering pizza too. Like, I don't know, a lot of times that's fresh too, and it's it's made right there. Like, I'd rather order from a local place than get like a frozen one that's almost the same price.
SPEAKER_00:That's so true. That's so true. Because you know, the frozen pizzas have a lot more um ingredients to it to make it have a sustainable shelf life, so that's a lot more, it's already unhealthy as it is, so we don't need to make it more unhealthy than it already is, you know.
SPEAKER_01:Exactly. So we're our financial advice is get get a bigger pizza with more toppings.
SPEAKER_00:That is so true. That is so true. Well, my last topic of the day. This is um a very, very uh to me, a troubling um subject here. A hair hairstylist jumped on a customer and held her hostage for$50. So a Memphis, Tennessee hairstylist, her name is Michelle Ray, was arrested in October 24 for allegedly holding a customer hostage with a pair of scissors over dispute uh over a$50 fee. Um, the incident occurred occurred at the Love My Hair Salon. The reason it's starting to get uh you know a lot of uh attention is because it's starting to make its round through social media and it's kind of going viral. But basically what happened is uh the client had already paid$410 via Z. Oh my gosh, uh, which is very, very expensive, and a$50 deposit for her hair services. At the end of the appointment, the stylist, Michelle Ray, demanded an extra$50, which the client questioned. So basically, according to the arrest uh affidavit, Ray became irate, locked the door, blocked the exit, and told the client, don't move, because I got these scissors next to your face.
SPEAKER_02:Oh my gosh.
SPEAKER_00:And bitch, you're not going anywhere until you pay me. So the client called 911 during the ordeal, telling authorities she was in fear of her life. Ray only allowed the woman to leave after the police dispatcher informed her that she was committing a crime by holding her customer against her will. Ray was arrested and charged with aggravated assault, which is a felony, and false imprisonment, which is a misdemeanor. She was released on a$7,500 bond. This is so crazy. Right?
SPEAKER_01:It's like you don't want that person anywhere near your scissors or anything sharp.
SPEAKER_00:And you know, the crazy thing, Merle, is you you quoted a price. She paid the price.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_00:So I I I don't know if she decided to change it at the last minute, or maybe she got mad because she didn't leave a tip. Um here's the reality about tips tips are given when a person gets exceptional service.
SPEAKER_02:Exactly.
SPEAKER_00:So I don't know if this is a tip situation or not, but if you say this is my price and they pay it, you can't hold her hostage and be like, Well, I know I told you this price, but you will be$50 more.
SPEAKER_01:Right, exactly. Like she already paid$400 plus dollars, like that shows that she was a good client. And I because I can see if someone like skips it. I mean, I don't think there's ever really an excuse for holding someone at scissor point and like threatening their life and everything. I think that's like a sign that this person is definitely unhinged and needs to take some time off.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, and and to me, it's kind of crazy because now that$50 is costing you thousands of dollars now.
SPEAKER_01:Exactly. And I wonder if she owns a salon, like either way, it's gonna be bad publicity, or like if she doesn't own it, she's gonna be let go. I mean, who who what owner is gonna want an employee like that there, you know?
SPEAKER_00:That's true, and you know, the other thing too is that uh it sets a bread a best uh precedence with her existing customers because she may have customers that maybe I need to find me someone else because I don't think you know.
SPEAKER_01:So have you have you heard your barber was like you know, knife razoring uh someone and threatening them, it wouldn't make you quit.
SPEAKER_00:Well, that ending will be totally different.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, exactly.
SPEAKER_00:You know, we we probably won't handle that much differently. Yeah, you hold it unless it's a gun, yeah, we're gonna we're gonna take that from you, and you know, it's it's gonna end differently.
SPEAKER_01:Exactly. That's why I feel like if you work in customer service or like any type of job, whether it's a coffee person or a hairdresser, it's important to just know when you're kind of like at your limit and you're like, okay, maybe I need a mental health break this week, or I'm at my edge, you know. So if something like this pushes you over, you kind of recognize it before it happens.
SPEAKER_00:Oh, I agree, and you know, the other thing too is, and I say this all the time we're all human, you know, we have our good days, we have our bad days. The customer doesn't give a shit how your day is going, right?
SPEAKER_01:Exactly.
SPEAKER_00:If you're really in that bad of a mood where the slightest things will set you off, stay home. You don't need to go, stay home.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, and the fact that this person already paid$400. I hope she got that money back.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, and here's the crazy thing about it she paid that already, so it's not like, and you made a great point. She wasn't trying to skip out or whatever, she paid what you told her to pay. Yeah, yeah. Something tells me that she's not gonna be in business too much longer. No, not at all. I mean, how would you feel if your hairdresser was like, okay, Merrill, I know I told you this price, but you owe me$50 more dollars and I'm not letting you go.
SPEAKER_01:Oh, my hairdresser is the sweetest. And even it's so funny when it when it's time for me to like choose a tip, she always like looks away and she's like, It's only optional, it's only optional. I'm like, it's really not because I'm like, I I kind of have to do this, so it's not like I would tip her anyway, but um, but yeah, she would never ever ever do that. You go back to someone that threatened you to hold no god no, no, I would probably and I would do what this person did, which was like it's like do the most in that situation and call 911 and call, you know, like get them the most in trouble. I think a lot of people would just like post about it on Reddit or just tell their friends, but it's like no, because what if next time she actually hurts someone? You know, it's important to tattle on these weirdos.
SPEAKER_00:That's true. And here's the other thing, too. What if you um pull that to the wrong cut the wrong client?
SPEAKER_01:And that's like the client knows some maybe not so savory people, exactly, all over fifty dollars, and decide, you know what?
SPEAKER_00:We're gonna make a little trip back here with some friends, you know. Yeah, really bad, really funcused.
SPEAKER_01:Absolutely.
SPEAKER_00:So wow, this one went by very fast.
SPEAKER_01:It did. This one was lots of drama.
SPEAKER_00:Well, Meryl, what do you have coming up?
SPEAKER_01:Um, I'm gonna give a shout out to the show that I also mentioned last week, Horror Nerd, uh, which is Saturday, December 20th at Transplants Brewing in Los Angeles.
SPEAKER_00:Nice, nice. And and when is that again?
SPEAKER_01:That is Saturday, December 20th.
SPEAKER_00:Horrific. Well, if anyone's in the area, definitely stop by and see Meryl.
SPEAKER_01:Please.
SPEAKER_00:Well, this was a lot of fun.
SPEAKER_01:This was so much fun.
SPEAKER_00:Well, everyone, thank you so much for watching and to listening to us. We really appreciate your support. Please continue to support us by sharing this and letting other people know who we are, how to come watch us or listen to us, and also stop by our social media page and uh give us your thoughts.
SPEAKER_01:Yep, I love hearing from people.
SPEAKER_00:I'm Lawrence Elrod.
SPEAKER_01:And I'm Mary Alclima.
SPEAKER_00:Take care, everyone. Bye.
SPEAKER_01:Bye bye.
