Welcome to Everyone Deserves Sunshine, I'm Diana.
And I'm Anusha, we're the girls in the crease.
This is episode 20, where we're - We're talking
about everything we've done this season so far
on our podcast. We're going to call it the recap
episode. The recap episode. The recap and a farewell
for now episode. Farewell for now. Yes. Just
temporarily for a little bit. Do not leave us.
We'll be back soon. 20 episodes when I talk to
the few friends of mine that haven't listened
to this podcast because they have not. watched
the show. I cannot believe I'm friends with these
people still. You should not be friends with
them anymore. Concessions need to be made. Personality
defects must be overlooked. And that's a huge
personality defect. And you could say that because
clearly they don't listen to this podcast. We
could just talk about them the whole time. We
could. They always say, isn't the show like six
episodes? How are you making 20 episodes from
this? And is there actually that much to talk
about? And the answer to that is. A resounding
yes. There is always that much to talk about.
Yeah. I mean, in the fandom alone, they're talking
about it all day, every day. So the fact that
we did 20 episodes, which is 20 weeks on a six
episode show. I mean, like, I think we're OK,
you know? Yeah. I mean, that's less than 20 hours
of talking about the show. We know that we spent
20 hours recording. We've spent a lot longer
recording. So speaking of that, I'd like to ask
you a question. What has this experience been
like for you, this whole podcasting situation?
All right. This is it. The moment of truth. This
is the question. This is the question. You know
what? The best part about this whole podcast
was getting to know you better because we were
friends, but now we're... We were friends, but
now we're... But now we're immortal enemies.
We went from friends to enemies. That's our trajectory.
That's our... That's like the romance genre story
from us. Like friends to enemies to lovers. Well,
we like it that way. You like it that way. My
favorite part is we were friends and now we're
friends who really know each other. You know
what I mean? I mean, I think podcasting teaches
you a lot about your co -host. So that's my favorite
part. Like the fact that your co -host thinks
that an hour episode will only take an hour of
recording. And then she only schedules an hour
out of her day. And then we spent the first half
an hour just like. figuring out the technical
difficulties. Yeah, yeah, that. Yeah, you learn
a lot about each other in that way. You know,
Diane, I think you thought maybe I was like this
perfect goddess before these last 20 weeks. Yeah,
I did. And now I'm slightly less perfect goddess,
like a demigod maybe. Well, you know, I don't.
I don't know if that's true. To be serious for
a second. I think we definitely learned a lot
more about each other, even though we've been
friends for five years prior to doing this. And
I always say to all my newish friends, right,
because I've had some friends as you also from
like childhood. But I always say this to my newest
friends, like, let's make it through year seven,
you know, the year and seven year itch. And we'll
see if we actually remain friends because seven
year itch. And one of our friends gets real mad
when I say that because she's like, oh, my God,
Diana, we're going to be friends forever. But
my point is, is that we've been friends for about
five years prior to doing this. And there are
definitely things that I have learned about you
that were very interesting to me, but moved you
up in. how I feel about you. So I feel like we
will pass the seven year itch eventually and
just continue going. Now I say that after 20
episodes, who knows what will happen after another
20, you know, life, life takes you in very interesting,
unexpected places. So do you remember our first
episode where we had five to six hours of content
and we had to edit that? I mean, that was such
a beast. And for the first set of episodes, we
were sitting like right next to each other or
staring at each other, in fact, like across from
a table, which actually logistically was not
that great. We didn't know what we were doing.
We had no idea what we were doing. My husband
was like the third producer on the floor. I almost
forgot about. all of that until you just reminded
me. Like the way we started, it was so crazy.
And we had no idea what we were doing. I also
remember how nervous I was. I was tripping over
my own name. To be fair, I did it this episode
too. So maybe that was a good bookend. The logistics
of podcasting were such a new thing. And now
we're sitting here doing things just on the fly.
So it's a very steep learning curve, I think.
For sure. Yeah, I approached this project with
your husband first, as you remember. Well, he
approached it with me. But when he had this idea,
I was like, well, I know nothing about podcasting.
So he's like, no, no, no, I'll do everything.
I'll produce it. I'll edit it. I'll, you know,
whatever. And the first. episode or so couple
he was there he was right along with us you know
and then we're like okay we got this but the
funny thing is I I approach podcasting in the
same way I approach most things I go 100 % in
like if I'm doing it I'm doing it and I always
have this mindset of well if boys can do it how
hard can it be so like there are plenty of boys
doing it and it's you know, you and I are doing
it too. Why not? We can do it. And we have been
doing it. So props to us. I mean, obviously a
learning curve. I remember we would lose edits
often and we would cry about it. And we would
fight about it. And we would fight about it.
It was like hours and hours of work just gone.
It was a tough start, I got to say, you know,
but I think we got over the hump rather quickly,
I would say, for two. Working moms who try too
hard and never stop. Yeah, I think I learned.
I wouldn't say I learned anything about myself
because I know myself pretty well. But I learned
to have a little more patience with things when
they don't quite go the way I thought they should
because I'm a perfectionist and I hate it. But
also I can't help it. So that's that. And I have
to say the best part also about. The podcasting
is the creativity. It inspired working and existing
in this current state of the world. And being
a mom, you just feel completely spread thin.
And oddly, the podcasting continued to spread
us thinner. But the creativity that I think came
out of it, it really felt like it was like. it
lit up my soul a little bit, you know? And for
me, the creativity is the writing piece and the
editing and, and like the storytelling piece.
And for you, it's not just that, it's the creativity
of the social media. posting. And then of course,
like your newfound creativity of edits of all
sorts, which was so fun to see for me personally,
because I'm like, who's this girl? I am a creative
person in some ways, not always. And there's
certain things I'm good at and certain things
I'm not in terms of like art. artsy things. Most
artsy things I'm not good at. I'm not like an
artist. I've always been very envious of people
who can create art. I'm analytical and critical,
but I am not artistic. But I loved how all of
this has inspired my analytical brain. I love
that it gave me specifically an outlet for creativity.
And the fact that My creativity was just so dormant,
you know, because in my current position at work,
I don't really get to be creative too much. It's
almost like a very technical job. I used to be
a teacher, as you know, so I was very creative
in that life. And I felt like that was. gone
for a very, very long period of time. To be fair,
I have done a lot of this type of somewhat creative
work when I ran campaigns, the editing and the
videos and the graphics and all that. But it's
definitely a different type of situation because
when you're working on campaigns, it's a volunteer
position, obviously, I say working, but when
you're volunteering, it's a very thankless position.
It's a very high level stress. position. And
while you get to be creative, it's not really
fun to creative in many ways. This, on the other
hand, is very fun. Creative feels very rewarding
on a personal level. And it's thankful. Like,
I am so grateful to all of this. And I'm so happy
that we got to do this. And we're going to continue
doing this because I don't know, like we talk
about joy and sometimes it feels very silly to
say like joy when everything is burning around
you. And you know me before this too, like I'm
not a very like, oh, joy, happiness. Like I'm
not one of those people. I'm more like the world
is burning, you know, we're all going to die
person. But I have been using the word joy a
lot and using the word spread the joy a lot.
And I'm like, who am I? Like, that's not a Diana
that I grew up with. But I feel it. And if I
feel it, I may as well talk about it, you know,
and it and it does bring me a lot of joy. I know
it does for you to this whole endeavor. And it's
funny that you mentioned the how we can be doing
this with only a six episode show, because literally
last night I was talking to one of our friends
about it. And I was like, oh, I was complaining
that I had to wake up early to do this. And and
she was like, I can't believe I cannot believe
that you are six months in. And you guys are
still this obsessed with this show. And I'm like,
listen, it actually is exactly six months, like
the last for me, right? Because I started like
a month later than you. It was December 28th,
I think, was when I like finished binging the
show. And it's May. And I actually, you know,
in my memories, I have pictures of me like just
sobbing to episode five that I was like taking
and sending to like you and my other friends.
Artistic crying. Yeah, artistic crying. And it's
six months, but I'm not at all in a place where
I'm like, OK, I can move on. I have no interest
in moving on. I'm so happy here. Leave me here.
This is where I belong. I want to ask you a question
now. Yes. Can you? And you must pick some of
the most favorite episodes that you had from
our podcast. Okay. And why? You know, that's
hard, obviously, because it's like picking your
favorite child. And I can. I can. I can pick
one. Just kidding. My kids don't listen to this
podcast, so it's okay. Okay. I have a couple.
And because you break rules all the time, I too
will break rules. So I think that. First of all,
I think our first couple of episodes, the immigrant
experience and the toxic masculinity and the
why we're obsessed. They were some of my favorites
just because we were trying to like figure things
out. And they were the ones that like got us
our audience. Like, let's be honest, right? I
think the immigrant experience won because it's
obviously so near and dear to my heart and as
is to yours. It was one of my favorites, especially
since my mom had listened to it and she had texted
me and she's like, thank you for this episode.
It was so meaningful to me. She said, I felt
so seen. buy that episode. So I love that one.
I will say I listened to Rachel Reed. She accepted
an award. It was like Women in Entertainment
by I want to say like Hollywood Reporter maybe.
In her speech, she said, many times people have
asked me why women enjoy my books. Why do they
enjoy watching a show about two young men who
fall in love with each other? What are women
getting out of this experience? And why are they
able to relate to the story? And to me, it's
very obvious why women want to watch a show where
sex scenes are full of consent and caretaking
and checking in and mutual pleasure. I don't
think it's. at all surprising that women would
want to see emotionally vulnerable men watch
them yearn and struggle and hurt and grow and
be patient and loving men who love their mothers
and value their relationships with women. I write
books about men. I wouldn't say I write them
for women specifically, but I write them knowing
that women will appreciate these characters and
I write them in a way to expose the way patriarchy
and toxic masculinity harm all of us. And I write
them also because I care deeply about the rights
of queer and trans people. and about the rights
for everyone to be who they are openly and without
fear. Isn't that beautiful? And I feel like that
quote is like multiple of our episodes, like
in one, right? Like we talked about like toxic
masculinity and queer stories and queer rights.
And, you know, we've talked about women and our
feelings, which I know is that that's going to
be one of yours. And in our first episode, Why
We're Obsessed, we talked about this, why women
specifically are really enjoying this show. So
to answer your question, in a very long way is
that I love a lot of our episodes, but I think
the first few were the ones that kind of like
got me into this, like more so than anything
else. And it allowed me specifically to unlock
my brain that kind of has been like locked since
I've kind of stopped teaching into this like
analytical creative thinking ideas. So, and Rachel
Reed is right. Toxic masculinity hurts us all.
So here we go. It absolutely does. That quote
is stunning. And it also answers the question
of why we're still doing this 20 episodes in.
Because there is, I mean, we haven't dismantled
patriarchy the last time I checked. One episode
at a time, Anusha. One episode at a time. Right.
And that's why. I mean, it's so deeply resonating.
I mean, the reason we decided, you know, to do
this thematic version of this podcast instead
of... episode recaps which are really fun too
as you know I love a good recap and there were
times where we you know deep dove into episodes
but it was always with this sort of thematic
lens in terms of the subject matter. So my favorite
episode, and I agree, it's very difficult to
pick. You know, I'm going to say Women and Our
Feelings. I take pride in that because that episode
was inspired by me. So the fact that it's your
favorite, you know, come on. First of all, you
were inspired by a post about Trenchfoot. Then
you wrote a whole piece, published it. It was
beautiful. I loved that piece. And then. We crafted
a whole episode out of it. It was like the most,
I think, creatively meaningful episode for me
in terms of like. putting together the story.
You know, I do things, maybe the fly, maybe last
minute. Do you know this about me? I have learned
this about you over the last 20 weeks. I was
in the car doing the notes for the episode. And
then you wrote me this text that made me so happy.
The text was, I'm laughing and crying at the
same time. I mean, not that I wished you were
crying, but it just made me so happy because
it was just like a circle of creativity. Like
someone inspired you. Your piece inspired me.
And then we did this whole episode. And it was,
I have to say, one of the more cathartic episodes.
I just felt like it was a very, very well done
primal scream. So many of our listeners reached
out and said, oh, my God, I was crying listening
to this episode. And I felt that way myself,
editing and listening and writing that. It just
felt like. So cathartic. And that's my favorite.
And once we started having guests on the show,
that was so fun. First of all, many of the guests
were our friends. So listening to them in that
way. I'm like, wow, you're pretty cool. As if
you didn't know that before. I always tell people
as a joke, but also not really as a joke. I only
surround myself with super smart people. Like,
you know, if you don't have a PhD or, you know,
an MD, I don't want to be friends with you. You
have an educational threshold. I have an education
kink. Like the more degrees you have on your
wall. The likelier it is, I'm going to want to
be your friend. Yeah, girl. This feels very pointed.
I like this pink. It really is. You must feel
some sort of way when you're in my house. I feel
so many ways when I'm at your house. But I laugh,
but in some ways it's true. Obviously, not all
my friends have PhDs and MDs. This is obvious.
But all of our friends do have really analytical
brains and they're smart and they're funny. And,
you know, our girlfriends are just fucking amazing.
Like, I mean, truly the best people I could ever
think of to be friends with. I truly wish for
everyone to have a group of friends like that.
The guests that we've had, that's been so exciting
because we got to meet so many outside of our
friends. We got to meet so many fun, smart, funny,
kind people who are just as obsessed as we are
with the show and who love talking about it as
much as we do. And thank you all for coming on
our show and for appearing on our show. And we
hope to have some of you back if you're willing.
And we hope to do more of this. in the next season.
Absolutely. Thank you for sharing your music,
your art, your knowledge, your creativity, your
obsession with us, especially, I mean, the friends,
we could be like, you gotta be on our podcast,
but the ones that are now friends through our
podcast, that was a really... wonderful connection.
And I couldn't believe, I mean, I love our podcast,
but I was like, wow, people want to be on our
podcast too. It was really nice. I think people
just love talking about the show and they're
willing to do it at any platform, in any place.
And we are more than happy to give you that platform
because we're just two girls, you know, just
two girls doing this podcast. Two girls in the
crease. And speaking of that, remember how on
the last episode we asked for ideas for the next
season, we're already getting them in our DMs.
And I just want to say, if you have sent us a
DM, I may have read it and not responded because
it has kind of been a crazy couple of weeks.
It is, as many of you know, Maycember. In the
end of the school year. And we are just trying
to survive the end of the school year. But I
promise when we have a break, I will read through
all your DMs. Anusha and I will respond. Collate
your ideas. Yeah, we will. Yeah, we will. We
will get there. I promise. I promise. I promise.
We're not ignoring you. We're just trying to
survive the end of the school year. Anusha, I'm
going to throw a curveball. Because who are you?
Me? Yes. This question is, you don't know that
it's coming. It's an on the spot question that
you must answer. And first thing that comes to
mind, rapid response. Okay. Are you ready? Oh
my God. Yes. OK, if you had to choose, you know
what your face is like just now when Ilya and
Shane are at the cottage and they're trying to,
like, get it on. And Shane keeps saying, like,
oh, my God, you haven't been with anyone. I have
an idea. That was your face. I have an idea face.
And Ilya's like, oh, my God, like, seriously,
just touch me. Yeah, like, that's exactly what
you do. I will do anything if you touch my dick.
Like, exactly. OK, well, this is me. I'm Shane
now. And I have an idea. And my idea is to ask
you. Okay. Hold your horses, girl. I'll get there.
If you had to choose top three quotes from the
show, any quotes, what would it be? Top three.
Okay. And you had no chance to prepare. I just
want everybody to know. So if she doesn't choose
the quote that you think she should choose, we
will not crucify her on the internet. Okay. I'm
coming to the cottage when Ilya says it as he's
watching Scott and Kip kiss. That one is a really
big one. That one. That's probably the top. Yuna,
when she says, and I know it's supposed to be
a quote, but it might be more of a paraphrase.
But this one really gets to me every time. You
have done nothing wrong. I am sorry that I did
something to make you feel like you couldn't
tell me. Right. And I always feel like I pause
after she says, I, because that's how she says
it in the show. Every time I hear that, I tear
up. I don't know. Maybe it feels like that's
what I want to hear from, like, you know, your
own parents, like about something that they.
You have nothing to apologize for. Yeah. And
it wasn't even the apology. It was the recognition
that the environment. that they created, no matter
how loving, still wasn't exactly what you needed
or what Shane needed. So that one is, that one's
a lot. I love that quote. Oh my God, the third
quote. Let me think, let me think. Probably every
time Ilya says, you're so boring. Of course,
every time. Of course, you have like one quote,
but that reappears throughout the entire show.
I cheat too, see? I'm a liar who lies. So I really
love the boring one because it's just so tinged
with affection from the beginning. He's so charmed.
Oh my God, Hollander, you're so boring. You're
so boring. And boring is just... His way of saying
safe. You're a safe person for me. Yeah. You
know, that's the underlying message. Because,
and it's the same when Shane calls him an asshole.
He means like he's exciting and like cocky and
kind of a free spirit in a way that Shane needs.
Yeah. I love that. Okay. See, you did it. I did
it. I did it. Yes, it's scary, but you're brave.
I am brave. We can do hard things. We can do
hard things. Pre -coffee. I just finished my
cup of coffee. I really wish I had another one.
Okay. Mine. Oh, shit. I brought this on myself.
No, this one's going to be good. Okay. For those
who don't know, Diana is chronically online.
Hey, don't give away my secret. A secret that
everybody knows. Yeah. A poorly kept one. And
I have to say, I flirt with being chronically
online. But at this moment. I'm chronically offline.
Yes. Actually, that is a gift that this podcast
has given me somehow is like the ability to disconnect
in it from like. Must be nice. A toxic way. No.
Must be nice to disconnect from social media
while Diana does all the work. Yeah, I know.
But it really just like let it let me channel
that into something this like different. But
anyway, my question is, what is the strangest,
most like unexpected rabbit hole that you have
veered into in terms of fandom? I I'm not you.
And that's. No, but you are. This episode we've
switched. We've had personality translets. Listen,
I honestly, I don't think I've gone down any
rabbit holes. Or just like a little corner, unexpected
corner of fandom that like gave you so much joy.
Oh, listen, I, this fandom is. freaking amazing
i mean granted this is my first one but i really
enjoy okay so every now and then um somebody
i don't know how this starts or who starts it
but starts a trend um and this these last couple
days there's been a heated rivalry at the zoo
have you seen this where they take oh my god
anusha I cannot. They take like zoo animals in
their natural state and then pair the animals
with quotes from the show. Oh, my God. And it
is. Yeah, it's my favorite. It is hilarious.
It is perfect. Everyone is so creative, like
so funny. This fandom has the funniest people
in it. So there's heated rivalry at the zoo,
which is full of zoo animals with, you know,
conversations. There's also. medieval heated
rivalry that's like paintings and then same thing
idea and today today i just saw before we got
on this is sculpted heated rivalry where it's
just different sculptures from all over the world
and paired with quotes chef's kiss to the fandom
in this. So I guess if you say rabbit hole, like
that's the little trends is where it is. Because
I don't do rabbit holes like you do where like
the whole snake and animal baby situation, you
know, you and Shane have that in common with
your ADHD brains. You know, I don't do that,
but I do love the fandom like trends that that
happen. And I really, really enjoy that one.
There's like people will do like Shane Day and
they all change their profile pictures to Shane's
face. They'll do same thing for like Ilya or
Jacob or whatever. The fandom is amazing. There's
Cowboy Shane days. I mean, there are, I know,
there are, I mean, people are getting banned
for Cowboy Shane from threads. My biggest fear
is getting banned from threads. So I'm trying
not to get banned from threads because I'm going
to be so upset. But anyway, there are so many
fun things that I could just go on and on. And
that's why I'm chronically online. you know,
because it's fun. Like I'm having a lot of fun.
Yeah. So. So, yeah, I'm having a ton of fun and
I cannot wait. Well, I don't have to wait to
explore the fandom because that is consistent
and it keeps going. And I am looking forward
to like seeing where it goes. Tonight are the
Canadian Screen Awards and Hudson is nominated
for Best Actor. And of course, the fandom is
losing its collective mind and me too alongside
with it. So I can't wait to watch that. Obviously,
I hope he wins. And when he. does, I will cry.
And so will the rest of the fandom. So we will
be crashing out collectively tonight all together.
And I hope that when our listeners are listening
tomorrow, we, you know, we all can celebrate
together. It'll be our post episode sunshine.
Yeah. Oh, my God. I know. And we won't even get
to do the sunshine because this is our last episode
for the season. But it's OK. We can post about
it, you know. Anyway, so speaking of next season,
here's a question. What are you looking forward
to our next season of this? podcast and the next
season of Heated Rivalry. Without spoilers. Yeah,
that's a good point because we will focus only
on the show. Yeah, yeah. Also, what is up with
you asking the biggest questions? What is the
meaning of life? What does this podcast mean
to you? I mean, I'm a very philosophical person,
Anusha, so that's why, obviously, I'm asking
all the big questions. So answer it right now,
immediately now. Rapid response. Go. You're stalling.
I'm trying. OK, I'm going to start with season
two of the show and what I'm hoping for it. Jacob
had said he wanted to end season one on this
high note of hope and sort of like a the end
question mark, because not everything can be
resolved in six episodes in real life or in show
life. But. There are just so many things that
are kind of hanging. Last episode was about narrative
and what's moving the narrative forward. And
one of the things we talked about was how the
trap was set with their first hookup, the veil
of secrecy that permeated the rest of the episodes.
So now I'm just curious. I know. There are some
more people, Yuna and David, who are now in like
the cone of trust. Is it cone of trust or circle
of trust? What is a cone of trust? It's the cone
of shame and the circle of trust. I completely
mixed all of my metaphors. It's okay. It's fine.
Circle of trust, cone of trust, whatever. Whatever.
All the same. Yeah, but there's still... being
very secretive. There's all these like very elaborate
plans, this beautiful foundation for Ilya's mom,
for Irina. All of it sounds really good, but
it just is not completely truthful. And I worry
about that because Ilya and Shane take a little
kernel of like, let's keep it under wraps. And
it like blows up into 10 years of. The rap just
gets bigger and bigger. The strings keep, you
know, getting more complicated. Right, right.
That's what worries me. And we all say collectively,
we're all at the cottage. But I want to know
what the cottage season two looks like. What
does it mean? Part two. I'm going to hold off
on that because I want to know what you want
for the show in season two. Jacob and Rachel
have discussed what they want in season two.
So I feel like I can talk a little bit about
that because that is public knowledge. So obviously
we're going to get Troy and Harris's story from
Role Models. Rachel and Jacob just talked about
that on one of the interviews. I'm so looking
forward to that story because I love Role Models.
It's my second favorite after The Long Game.
I'm actually really excited to see who they cast
as Troy and Harris because... I want to know,
you know, what they're actually going to look
like. I'm assuming that those stories are going
to be intertwined just like Scott and Kip's was
in season one. So I'm really looking forward
to that. Ilya shows up in all the books and he
shows up significantly in role models because
role models and the long game are going on about
at the same time. So obviously there's a lot
of crossover. I'm interested to see how that's
going to be done. I mean, Jacob's a genius, so
it's going to be really cool, I'm sure. I wonder
if there's going to be like a separate episode
for them, like it was for Kip and Scott. Or if
like we're just going to see all of the characters
throughout the entire season and every episode.
I'm also looking forward to see how they're going
to explore. their secrecy and again we i've read
the long game you and i have but it'll be different
on screen to see how that's gonna look so i'm
interested to see how jacob is gonna do that
i know it's like a year away but i cannot wait
i think the summer first of all we probably will
know who they've cast so that's gonna be really
cool i'm excited and we're gonna have to maybe
talk about it we're gonna probably have to talk
about it We might not be completely done. We
may not be done. Yeah, you guys, like we say
we're done, but this is what happens. Me, Diana,
I will get an idea at like 1230 a .m. as I'm
trying to go to bed. I will text Anusha this
idea, completely random, like an idea for an
episode or whatever. And then she will respond
to me around 3 a .m. Usually saying, yeah, let's
do it. So there might be a time in the summer
where I text her at midnight. I think we should
leave this on a cliffhanger. We should. Much
like the show. Yeah, exactly. Like, it's a happy
ending, but we'll be back. But we'll be back.
Do you know when we'll be back? Nobody knows.
Now you have to answer part two. What are you
looking forward to for our show in the fall?
Our sophomore year -ish. Yeah, our sophomore
season. Look at us growing. Yeah. We're growing.
I'm really proud of our podcast. It really moved
me in a way that I didn't expect. I hope it moved
our listeners in a way they didn't expect. The
power of it all, I think, is in the story. Ilya
and Shane's story is so intensely personal. I
mean, it's like so esoteric. It's two hockey
players who are cream of the crop from Canada
and Russia. I mean, they're not living a life
that is... circumstantially relatable to us,
but the emotional resonance is what's relatable.
And it crosses different kinds of experiences.
And that's the power, I think, of the story.
It tackles huge things, but it does it in a way
that's a story. One of our guests, Jayanthi,
said the only way to change culture is to change
culture. The only way to change culture. is to
provide these kind of stories. Stories are the
way we can connect, especially in this digital
age where disconnection is what is driving a
lot of our political climate, our polarization.
The story matters. And that's what the show showed
us. These rich, suave hockey players. That's
not a life many of us live. And it was so...
impactful for so many people so if the season
two of the show continues that and I have great
hopes it will I hope that we continue to voice
different stories on our podcast so that it continues
to resonate with listeners. And if that story
isn't exactly your story or your life experience,
that you can still see the emotional resonance.
And I hope we continue to convey that. I wanted
to bring up one listener's email to us. I'm not
going to share a lot of details. I don't want
to expose anything. Yeah, privacy. But the gist
of it is around our Mother's Day episode where
we sat down and said, you know, let's try to
think of all the kinds of mothers, mother figures
there are. And in the email, this woman said
she and her partner and their lesbian couple,
the story that she described of having a child
who has two moms and their experience of not
quite fitting into these. little boxes of Mother's
Day. And I read that and it was such a beautifully
poignant way to explain the emotion. And it was
because it was a story. If that listener is listening,
hear us when we say we were really moved by it.
And we agree that we don't capture everyone's
experiences, but... When we don't, what I hope
is that we learn from those who tell us about
their experience and lead with empathy. The thing
is, feeling like you're not belonging doesn't
affect one type of person. We've all felt that
way. And essentially, that's what this story
is. It's a story about loving who you are and
feeling a sense of belonging. And that's something
all of us can understand, wanting. And I hope
that's what we do in our season two. is that
we continue to promote that and that when we
fall short of it, we acknowledge it with empathy
and being humble. Yeah. Oh my God, Anusha, I'm
like crying. Do you see my eyes? They're teary.
That was really beautiful. I don't think I have
anything else to say about that. I know you're
going to ask me the same, but like, I agree.
I agree with you that I hope that for our season
two. We continue to uplift stories. We have guests
who want to share their stories with our audience.
I hope that we share stories that move others.
I hope that you and I continue to grow in our
views and our friendship and maybe some of the
blind spots we have. I hope that this podcast
and anything related in this fandom allows people
who never felt seen. to be seen, just like heated
rivalry has for many. I hope that we continue
to learn and grow within the fandom and on our
podcast and just as people and become better
and even better allies than we thought we were.
And that's just my hope, not just for season
two, but for permanent life, you know. Your personal
development. Personal development. And I think
that when you're open to growth, And you don't
react defensively when someone potentially criticizes
you. That makes you just better ally to anyone,
not just LGBTQ plus folks. One more thing that
I wanted to say is that I hope we have created
a space that if you're listening to us, you feel
comfortable enough to reach out and say, hey,
maybe you didn't get this quite right. In the
very beginning, when we were first going to do
this, we were obviously a little worried because
we are two women talking about a show about queer
men and we didn't want to offend or upset or
say something wrong. In today's world, where
you can get canceled for anything, we were worried.
And I remember saying to you, hey, we're going
to get it wrong sometimes. And I just hope that
people will give us enough grace, especially
after they learn who we are in some ways, which
I feel like in 20 episodes, you kind of sort
of get the gist of who we are as people. And
we're going to say something wrong. And we're
going to have to take accountability for that.
As long as you don't become defensive, which
is what we talked about on our allyship episode,
right? As long as you don't become defensive
and shut down, then you can grow. And we just
continue growing here. So that is my long answer
and follow up to what you just said. To growth.
To growth. To growth and joy and to continuing
to listen to other people. Yeah. And their experiences
and sharing stories. This is a recap episode
of our podcast. And a podcast wouldn't be what
it is without our listeners. So where are we
at in terms of our streams as of today? All right.
So I'm looking at our analytics. We have, as
of now, 85 ,000 plays, which is decent, I think.
I mean, nobody really knows, but it feels...
Decent. We have on Apple Podcasts 1 .2 thousand
followers, 2 .7 thousand engaged listeners and
4 thousand listeners. Top countries, United States,
Canada, United Kingdom, Australia and Germany.
Yes. And RSS has something slightly different.
Canada is our top country. OK. All right. I kind
of love that for this Canadian show. Right. So
I'm going to take that as like an extra. It's
like we're doing it right. We're doing it right.
If Canadians are listening to us. Yeah. Like
if Canadians are listening to us, we're doing
something right. So, I mean, that is incredible.
I mean, I have no reference, but that feels incredible.
I mean, because when we started, we said only
if only like a few people listen, it'll be fun.
So we have a few. And we have so much engagement.
People write to us. People share really, really
personal stories with us. I don't take any of
that for granted. We would be nowhere without
you guys. So thank you. Truly love you guys.
And especially when you're engaging with us,
like on some socials, we love you all. And we
are looking forward to continuing this with you.
And I hope you remain part of us always and forever
and ever and ever and ever. Anusha's like, are
we doing this forever? It's starting to hinge
on creepy now. Be with us forever. Be with us
forever. In the cottage. Listen, some people
will be just happy here. All right, Anusha, we've
had our fun. I must ask you one last question.
You ready? It's our last sunshine. I know. I
know. Okay, but so make it good. What is your
sunshine this week? Okay. It better be good.
It's going to be ridiculous. OK, fine. Which
is also good for this podcast. My son sometimes
asks these rapid fire questions. And typically
the person answering these questions is me because.
If I don't respond, he'll ask Alexa. And I'm
just like very worried that he thinks Alexa is
a person and maybe could replace his mom. So
I try not to get it there. And my husband has
this incredible ability to not focus if he's
focusing on something else. Meanwhile, me, like
I hear everything. So we've had this longstanding
discussion about. opossums. And he has asked
me over and over, why do people call it opossum
when it has an O in the beginning? And I responded,
I should have probably looked this up before
I did. I said, well, the O I think is silent.
But today, my mind was blown because we went
to a wildlife sanctuary and there were opossums
there. And he did. The thing that he would always
do when we talk about the subject, which he's
asked, why is it called a possum? And there's
a no. The volunteer said, possums live in North
and South America. Possums live in Australia.
They are related marsupials, but they're different.
And I almost dropped dead. Because I did not
know this. I didn't know this either, honestly.
Yeah, okay. But this has been a subject that
has been under discussion for months. And you
never thought to, like, look it up? I should,
but I was so confident that the O is silent.
I really, really was. That's because you're a
really great speller. Yes. And so you just know.
You just know spelling rules. Yeah. As one does
the silent O. Literally never heard of a silent
O. Yes. No. No, there's no such thing. And of
course, my son is staring at me. I have let him
down. I should have probably let Alexa handle
this one. But yes. The most amazing thing is
my husband was not aware of the amount of opossum
-related conversations my son and I have had.
Oh, I believe that. A hundred percent. I was
like, you've never heard him say this to you
before? He's never asked you this question? He
asked me all the time. Because he didn't believe
you. He didn't trust you. He was like, are you
sure? He didn't. He didn't. And then he took
it upon himself to ask the expert the minute
we walked in. He knew you were full of shit.
He knew it. He freaking knew it. He was like,
he was like, I'm just going to let her redeem
herself every single week when I ask her about
this. Maybe if I keep asking her, she will finally
get it right. And then he figured he couldn't.
tell you you were wrong. But if you were to ask
an expert in front of you, then that would be
a very solid way for you to learn the information.
Yeah, it worked. It worked. So your helmet of
sunshine is getting owned by your child and the
expert in opossums. Opossums. Opossums. Gotcha.
Okay. I didn't know that either, but I had no
interest in finding this out. That's my moment
of sunshine. Okay, I love that. Well, my moment
of sunshine also has to do with my son. which
is funny. He has been playing on a travel league
for a year. And this past year, he tried out
for another one, kind of more elite, I guess.
And he made it. And so he's now moving to a different
league. He's a keeper. He's a goalie. Now in
our current league, they just assign goalies
like a standard number. It's either 00 or 99.
In this league, apparently a goalie can have
any number. Let me paint you a picture. Okay.
So we get this email. We're done dinner. My husband
and my son are in the kitchen discussing numbers.
I'm in the living room, probably working on my
storyboard or a magazine or whatever, some fandom
stuff I'm doing. I'm not even paying attention
to him. And then I hear my husband go, hey, D,
don't you have some jersey numbers that you like?
And I literally looked at him and I go, huh?
I don't do sports. What do you mean? Why would
I like jerseys? Why would I like Jersey? I don't
do sports. Like I don't even know numbers, right?
Except for the one thing. Except for the one
thing. And he like looks at me like, really?
Kind of like when Ilya looks in the car where
Shane says like, maybe you should stay in the
car. Like that look kind of like, are you serious
right now? And I'm like, oh my God, yes. Obviously
there are numbers I like, Jersey numbers. And
he goes immediately, he goes, well, 24 is taken
because that's. Hollanders, right? So I go, oh
my God, 81, please. Is that taken? And he goes,
no, it's not taken. So he writes 81. We had to
pick top five. So he writes 81. And in parentheses,
he goes, because he copied me in the email, in
parentheses, he goes, most preferred. But as
he's saying this, I'm like, oh my God, yes, 81,
81. My son looks at me and he goes, oh my God,
is this your heated rivalry stuff? So he's completely
uninvolved in this choice. Correct. So I look
at him and I go, absolutely not, bud. Like, totally
random. But this actually works out really well
for all of us. OK, let me explain to you why.
He wanted the number 18. My son, he wanted the
number 18 because that is the number of Blake,
who is the goalie for the Union League, right?
So his number is 18, but 18 is already taken.
81 is the reverse of that. Look at that. So he
was more than willing to be 81. And guess what?
The next day, we got an email and he got 81.
So now my son will have... Ilya's jersey number
for soccer. And I will get to see that every
time we're at soccer. Yes. Go me. Go my husband.
Go the league that lets us pick our own numbers.
I'm happy. I'm in a happy place. And also your
son. Oh, right. Yeah. Go my son. The child. And
also my child. Yay. Oh, my God. And so I can't
believe you didn't think about this. I can't
believe it either. But also like I probably was
my brain was like elsewhere. You know, you do
forget this is a sports show. Correct. It's an
afterthought, as you said. I hope that doesn't
offend anyone. But like for me, yes, the hockey
is an afterthought. A hundred percent. I will
admit it. I like hockey. I think it's fun to
watch. But I will admit that that is. Almost
not really part of the show for me. The culture
of hockey, right? Like why it's so difficult
for them and whatever else. But the actual game,
whatever. It's there in the background. As Jacob
Tierney called it, it's a workplace romance,
which I thought was hilarious. Anyway, that's
my moment of sunshine. That's our last moment
of sunshine for season one. That is an amazing
moment of sunshine. Absolutely. Like that is
truly chef's kiss. Thanks. 81. I mean. It's like
full circle. Here we are. It's not going to start
until the fall, I think. And so as soon as that
jersey goes on, there will be a picture posted
for everyone to see. So what do we do now? Now
that we don't say next week on Everyone Deserves
Sunshine. Holy shit. I know. What do we do? Well,
let's wrap it up. Okay, Anusha. It has been a
pleasure doing this with you for the last 20
weeks. And we will see you guys perhaps sometime
in the summer. Perhaps in the fall. But for now,
we're taking a break. EBD, thank you so much
for listening. And that's a wrap for the Girls
in the Crease.