This Show Has Everything

It’s almost Mother’s Day, and most of us at Little Red Bandwagon are off getting ready to see (or avoid) our moms this weekend. So, here’s a particularly meta LRB Instant Classic™ from one year ago, when Bobby, Mike and Phyllis listened back to the time Luke, Jen and Sean all interviewed their moms on TBTL, and then gushed about their own childhoods.

Sure, your brother might be a lawyer, and your sister might be a doctor. But you’re a wagoneer, and we love you just the same.

This episode listens back to LRB 113: Mama said pod you out, which originally aired May 6, 2016. THAT episode listens back to TBTL May 9, 2008, Hour 2, Why It Matters: Moms Edition.

Today, Mike and Ann welcome guest host and Tube Full of Loot™ winner Naomi Hillyard on the third mic to talk tattoos, cults, and our honest opinion of Shirley Temple’s talent. We cover a veritable buffet of TBTL topics, including a battle for supremacy between candy-colored coffee drinks, whether preparing a frozen lasagna after eating a burger should really qualify as shame-eating or something else entirely (still shameful, mind you), and what's reasonable to expect your loved ones to do with your remains. Plus, Ann begs for an end to KFC Colonel talk, Mike shakes his head at the irony of Andrew correcting anybody on sports terminology, and Naomi offers a safe space for the karaoke-curious. And before we begin, let us remind you that you can use the safe word at any time.

Park close to the door and drag your Little Red Bandwagon straight to the pierogi station, where Ann, Mike and Phyllis are serving Generation snaX some middle-aged disdain. Stroll through the aisles of competitive parenting and grab a bag of miniature oranges for soccer later. On your way out linger over a jumbo pack of hot takes on the complex Burbank family feelings about a Seattle original: Costco.

Don’t listen to that dorkus malorkus Siri trying to direct you to The Gist—you definitely want to steer your podcatcher to Bobby, Ann and Mike recapping the latest week of the Peabody-adjacent TBTL. It may not be as addictive as a questionably shady home poker game or as stimulating as an inevitably damp Reader’s Digest, but it’ll definitely get you where you’re looking to go, unless you’re looking for a TBTL picnic. (If so, we’re sorry that happened to you.)

Plus, Emily used technology to mildly traumatize Mike, Ann’s OK with you cracking into a Diet Coke because it’s noon somewhere, Meredith (via our planning spreadshee) says to keep your damn cat inside, and Bobby is now a man with something to live for.

Public radio listener, coffee drinker, cigar lover, Chipotle enthusiast and newly minted Little Red Bandwagon official counsel (at least in Tennessee) Caleb Gelineau joins Bobby and Meredith for a trip to the Stool Capital of the World as we listen back to TBTL’s classic “Why it Matters: Waiting for Guffman.” Plus, growing up religious like Luke and Jen, tips for curating a Tinder profile, and everything’s coming up Priceless Granite.

And if you’re a glutton for audio punishment, here’s the time Luke interviewed Carl Kasell in a bathroom.

Enjoy!

This episode features hour 2 of the Sept, 12, 2008, edition of TBTL.

Meredith, Bobby and the once-again bipedal Mike go HAM on the latest week of TBTL, and answer the great questions of life, including but not limited to: Should jeans be washed? What TBTL producer emeritus should hide Shia LaBeouf? What’s the co-pay on Rick Rizzs’ hair insurance? Why is this gyrocopter only $400? And, most importantly, why Scottsdale?

Plus, Red Robin napkins, Taco Bell trash, practice locks and Rocks for Jocks. Four out of five Hotel deLuxe employees agree this episode is great, and we’ll tell you who the fifth is if you’ll introduce us to Barbara Bogaev.

Here’s that clip from The Newsroom breaking down Nancy Grace.

Burn your bra and grab a copy of The Feminine Mystique, because we’re venturing into the world of One and a Half Men. Ann and Christy, along with Very Special Guest Mansplainer Bob Stein, are here to take on TBTL’s occasional treatment of lady issues. We catch up with what’s been happening in Bob’s life since the last time he joined us on LRB (Episode #91: Casserole Playing), consider how we feel about the One and a Half Men segment in general, and then dig into some clips. Are men the cause of most of women’s problems? When does persistence become harassment? Is it ever okay to accuse a woman of being emotional? (Hint: NO.) We evaluate the guys’ approaches and attitudes towards thorny problems that they’re completely unqualified to discuss, cheer on their feminist sympathies, and roll our eyes as needed. Plus, we share our own stories of getting emotional in the workplace and come up with an early contender for Song of the Summer. Remember, guys: don’t email Andrew until we say it’s time!

This show contains clips from the following TBTL episodes: 4/3/12 (lady television shows, Lee Aronsohn, sexism, On Our Media); 5/8/12 (going without makeup, AnnaLynne McCord, vanity); 4/7/14 (Dianne Feinstein, getting emotional, gendered insults, crying at work); 3/12/15 (persistence and consent, dating, YouTube, Doe Eyes, imperfect messenger, male entitlement).

It’s bathroom #demoday at Burbank Springs, and Bobby, Meredith and Ann are just trying to recap the latest week of TBTL while avoiding the sketchy element down at the local Lowes. Thankfully, we’ve learned what not to do courtesy of the Bryant Park Project, we’ve got a lead on some “cute” overalls, and—despite an examination of subpar lobster and an extensive Burger King Tangent Tracker—most (*most*) of the terlet talk sticks to actual, non-euphemistic plumbing. 

All that, plus Bobby wonders if he’s a jerk, Ann actually saw “We Bought A Zoo,” and Meredith rolled her eyes so hard at Luke she ruined her amazing vision, but it’s OK because we’ve all decided to say we’re doctors, so we’ve got it covered.

And in case you missed it, a guy got forcibly dragged off an airplane last week. 

Here’s a TV segment about the Nordic Lodge.

Find your camera, grab your helmet, and scoot on over to the Little Red Bandwagon where this week Aaron Roden of the You Blu It! podcast shares a TBTL clip that hit him a little close to home. In 2013 a picture of Andrew was leaked, leading to a Facebook attack on his masculinity. Aaron joins Christy and Mike to defend Andrew and all scootabouters, as well as tell a harrowing story about the worst thing he ever encountered while cruising around Seattle at a reasonable speed. As discussed on the show, here is the original thread on the sTens page

Hi, stranger. Last week things got a little strained in the TBTL-verse, but we’ll always make room for you on the LRB escalator! Come and join the conversation riot with Mike, Meredith, and Ann as we break down The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly & Extremely Upsetting. We’re talking taxes, T-rexes, S-Bux(es) and more. Things you need to know: smoking some Chris Haze will not help you understand Chris Hayes, “cream and dream” may have worked as a lyric in the 1960s but it’s problematic now, and you’re not as funny as you think you are (even you, Mike). Plus, tattoo lookouts, how to fall in love with baseball, and dog talk galore.