Should You Break Up Over A Bird? (From Good Mythical MORE)

0:00Rhett McLaughlin: Is overfeeding birds a reason to break up?

0:07Rhett McLaughlin: Welcome to Good Mythical More. We have a phone number, and if you call it and ask us to help you out with stuff, we might play that voicemail like we're about to do here on this episode of Good Mythical More, and then make your life perfect. Jenna, what's the number? 1-833-GM-MORE-1. 1-833-GMOOR1. You got some good ones for us, Jenna, or what? Oh yes, we got some good ones today. All right, what's first? Hey Rhett, hey Link. Whoa. Recently my boyfriend got a new bird feeder outside and I visited him a couple weeks ago and the birds that I saw before are actually super fat now, and I wanted advice on what I should do.

1:01Should I kill my boyfriend, or should I take out the bird feeder? Okay, thanks, let me know.

1:08Rhett McLaughlin: Did she say kill her boyfriend? Kill her boyfriend? Okay, that's all you can do. You can either kill him or take the bird feeder. Okay, I guess the writers wrote the options. I believe that there might be some other ways is to approach this that don't involve killing your boyfriend. How do birds get fat? By overeating. I mean, they can't, a fat bird can't fly. If you're an obese bird, I have to think you can't fly. I think it probably impacts your flight, yes. I don't know if it means you can't fly, but it means flying's harder. But is Fat Birds, first of all, Fat Birds, great restaurant name.

1:49Rhett McLaughlin: I mean, it should be a restaurant name if it's not. You been to Fat Birds? Fat Birds? Fat Birds. It's a wings place and they got big, or maybe just a chicken place. I don't know, Fat Birds. Yeah, if it's a chicken place, maybe if it's a body shop. I actually think it's a better name for a body shop. Body shops are usually named after a person. Yeah, but they shouldn't. They should be named something like Fat Birds Body Shop. And maybe that's his nickname. It's a good name for either a body shop or a restaurant. Terry Fat Birds blank, blankmanship. But are Fat Birds really a problem? Because I'm not a bird watcher and I've actively resisted becoming a bird watcher.

2:24Rhett McLaughlin: Because they're so hard to see. Yeah. You want them to be bigger? In fact, Jesse and I were recently walking in North Carolina and we saw a striking bird, very, very yellow, black and yellow. And she's like, ooh, what is that bird? And I said, I don't wanna know. I don't wanna become a bird watcher. I said, I'm resisting. You looked away. You're like, oh, don't tell me. I'm resisting it because the moment that you start trying to figure out what a bird is and then what another bird is, you've become a bird watcher, and maybe I'll do that when I get older, but I don't wanna do that yet. And then what?

2:56Rhett McLaughlin: What's so wrong with being a bird watcher? I don't wanna know. But what I'm saying is, if I was to be a bird watcher, I think watching fat birds would be the best kind of bird watching. More to watch. And also they move away more slowly. And they have trouble flying, and so they stick around. The thing about little birds, skinny birds. They flitter and flutter. Which is not a great name for a restaurant, but it's a good name for like a popcorn. Skinny birds popcorn, you know? Yeah. That would be, those are not fun to watch. You wanna watch fat birds if you are gonna be watching birds. And if you've got a bird feeder, why do you have a bird feeder?

3:33Rhett McLaughlin: To watch birds. So fat birds are better for bird watching. I'm really feeling this fat bird phenomenon. I think it can catch on. It's the only type of bird I wanna watch. Because I get afraid of birds. Like, I remember that time that, this was back when we lived in North Carolina, there was like this noise in our attic, and then I went up there, and I'm looking around, and I'm scared already, and it was like, I was like, is it a bat? Something's flying around. It wasn't scurrying on the ground, and then it was this black bird. I don't know if it was a black bird, but it was a smaller blackbird with like a needle-like protrusion on its face.

4:25Rhett McLaughlin: What's that called? A beak. Yes. It had a needle-like beak and it would fly and like buzz me and then it would be over there on the side and then it would be looking at me and I could just see that thing going right into my eyeball. It hated you. They're just so unpredictable and they move so quickly and they change direction and they're so light. Wait, wait. And if it was a fat bird, it would've just slowly lumbered across the air. It never would've gotten in there. Landed on your hand, you could've grabbed it. Never would've gotten in there. I mean, my type of bird is the fat guy. So what we're saying is.

5:00Rhett McLaughlin: Marry that man. Yeah, you need to stick with this guy. You do not need to kill him. And you need to let him continue to make the birds fat. Yeah. But if you do kill him, feed him to the birds. Oh yeah, because it'll get fatter. You got any. hot car bars. Yes, I want you to have these hot car bars right now. We earned it. I want it.

5:27Rhett McLaughlin: You guys have an obsession with something. They have a fixation. Oh, they're still about my... I spit so hard you need windshield wiper. Link's had a fat ass since he was in diapers. I mean, spit so hard you need a windshield wiper. That's pretty good. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Give me one more. I love transporting stuff in my automobile. So much junk in my truck, they call me Link Neal. I love transporting stuff. In my automobile. All right. I like the syllables. Give me one more. Rule of threes. Okay, here we go. Okay, okay, okay.

6:12Rhett McLaughlin: If driving fast is a crime, then go ahead and book us. We're on our way to see Link's Juicy Took Us.

6:24Rhett McLaughlin: I've been in the gym. Oh. Yeah. Yeah, you have? Yeah, yeah. And I feel like the top is like really getting a little, there's a little bit more on the top. Are you focusing on it? I, you know, I'm just trying to give a general wellness fitness regimen. You're trying to become a fat bird? Fat bird's gym. I think I'm turning into a fat bird on the top there. Okay, good. All right. Jenna, do we have another one? Why did you pick it? I picked this one because it's advice and you should give it. Okay. Well, sometimes it's just as simple as that. hey mythical beef uh how's it going ret and link uh you know i'm a big fan of yours um i love you guys ret and link um i've been watching uh all five of your channels for a very long time and uh yeah i would say i'm a pretty big fan and uh i would say um i'm also andrew from upstate in New York.

7:31Thanks for that. I was wondering if I would love to get advice on how to get a pretty girl's number without being too awkward or direct. Okay. Oh, you don't have anything to worry about. Have a great rest of your week. And yeah, I would love to get feedback on that.

7:49Rhett McLaughlin: If feedback. Thank you so much. All right. It sounds like. Is he gone? Is it over Jenna? It sounds like he like fell off of a skateboard and skid for a few seconds and then started talking. Play the beginning of that call again. And then he got back on it. Hey, Nicholas. Okay, yeah. Yeah, he did a little flip kick. He wants to know how to get a girl's number, a pretty girl's number. I've never gotten any girl's number in my entire life. This isn't something that either of us have, we have no experience with this. Back when we were dating, they didn't have numbers. We've been married for a really long time, and then before that, we were just dating in circles where it wasn't like, hey, can I get you a number?

8:33Rhett McLaughlin: It was like, it just worked differently. Yeah, if you wanted her number, you just look on the youth group directory. Right, exactly. Yeah, yeah, that's the last time we were dating was in youth group. Yeah, and then when me and Christy were dating, her phone number, I mean, I did ask her for her number, but I met her in person, and we started, we would see each other. I didn't have to ask, well, I did ask for her number, but it was not a pickup line. I already knew her. And then it was her dorm number. Yeah, where she shared with somebody. Where she shared with somebody. It wasn't even really her number.

9:09Rhett McLaughlin: And when I called it, sometimes a roommate would answer. I'm remembering that now. Can I speak to Christy? Yeah. Is that what you'd say? Yeah, can I speak to Christy? Is Christy available? It's that time of the week when I talk to Christy. Yeah, you would call her once a week. Let's not get into the weirdness with which you conducted your relationship. It's good to ease into a relationship, and putting a limit on how often you talk on the phone is a weird way to do it. Yeah. Jenna, I wanna know how you think about this. As a woman who is approached by men asking for your number... Which you do have.

9:49What is, like, what are you looking for in this situation? I am looking for, be direct, just ask for the number. I don't think it's that hard. I do it if I see a pretty man. Okay.

10:09Rhett McLaughlin: But you talk to him first. It's not the first thing you say, obviously. Not always. I have given my number without talking to someone before. and. So as a woman, is it, it's more acceptable to give your number like than a man, right? I disagree. I think it's totally acceptable for a man to do that. So the man. Double standard man. Is it, are we onto something here? Is it better to give a number than to ask for a number? Because then the ball's totally in the other person's court. That's fair, actually. Yeah. Okay, well, I would say it's easier, but listen. Like at the bottom of a flyer? I don't know much about Andrew from upstate New York other than the voicemail that he just left.

10:58Rhett McLaughlin: Yep. And I just don't know if that's gonna be the best advice for Andrew. Okay. I think Andrew might need to walk away with her number. Yeah, yeah. Okay? So I think while I don't disagree with that, I think what he's asking for, and he specifically said non-direct, you're immediately saying, well, you gotta be direct. You do, yes. If he hasn't met this person, I think going up and being like, hi, what's your name, a quick little chit chat, I think you're really interesting and I'd love to continue talking with you, can we exchange numbers? I think that is the best direct way. You gotta just bite the bullet and do it.

11:39Rhett McLaughlin: You just have to do it. And then you might get rejected by who cares. The worst thing that happens is rejection, and people get rejected all the time. You get rejected from jobs, you get rejected from a cat not wanting to pet you, not wanting you to pet it. There's so much different types of rejection that you're going to be fine. Well, okay, case in point, here's a little anecdote. I was, I will not say exactly who they were, but I was having dinner recently with some young single men who I am related to in different ways. Was it one of those K-pop groups? And we were at a restaurant and the hostess was, by their estimation, hot.

12:23Rhett McLaughlin: And so when we left the restaurant, they started talking. Hot with a W. Hot. They were like, man, one of us should have gotten her number, man. And so then they started talking about what they could do. And one of them had an idea that was to go back into the restaurant and be like, oh, you know what? I forgot your number. Forgot to get your number or something? I forgot to get your number. Yes, he should have done that. Did he do that? And they didn't do it. They chickened out and they didn't do it. But I, as the longtime married man in the group, was like, I mean, that sounds like the best idea y 'all come up with ever.

13:04Rhett McLaughlin: To go back in there and be like, oh, excuse me, you know what, I forgot, and she's gonna think that, oh, you forgot something in the restaurant, I forgot to get your number. And then she's probably gonna laugh. Yeah, she'll laugh, but then will she give the number? Who cares, maybe she does. Just based on him being cute. I mean, Jenna, do you give somebody your number just based on, don't you wanna, if somebody came up and in the first meeting they're like asking for your number, don't you have some like fundamental questions first? Like background check type vibes? I think that's up to the individual.

13:40Like, maybe.

13:42Rhett McLaughlin: I don't mean a literal background check, but like something that's just like. Girls can do our own background checks on the back end when we have their number, we can cross-reference and find them very quickly. You don't understand how good girls are at finding things out. Oh. I got a friend that I call who's basically my own private detective. Yeah, you gotta have one of those. So when they give you their number, you're also asking for their legal name. Yeah, social security number. You don't even need a legal name sometimes. Number can take you exactly where you need to go. And a couple little facts.

14:17Like if you know their first name and roughly their age and what they do, people are not hard to find.

14:25Rhett McLaughlin: Yeah, that's right. Jenna's right. I think what you're getting at is something that makes sense to me. But then he has your number. Correct, but boys don't do the same thing as girls do when they go down those deep dives. No, I'm just saying, but if you decide that you don't, you wish he didn't have your number, he's already got it. You block it, you block his number. But also, you make an assessment, a very quick assessment in the moment, like based on his vibe, the way that he looks, like you all, it isn't just how somebody looks, but women especially, in my observation, are very good at immediate gut check evaluations of people, and trusting their instincts is usually a good thing.

15:02Rhett McLaughlin: Intuition, they call it. And so I think that that gut level intuition is actually a lot of times a pretty good way to make a decision about whether or not there's gonna be something there. Because the thing is, so if you're usually, again, it is a double standard, but typically the way that it works is it's a guy asking a girl for a number. And I think that a lot of guys think, well, I got to like have a conversation and then ask for the number. but that conversation can be, especially in certain situations, oh, she's at a restaurant, she's the hostess, and I think that if you just go in and you ask for the number, sure, maybe there's a 70 % chance you get rejected, but then if you do actually, it's easier to ask for the number than it is to have a conversation that works well and then leads to like an opportune time to ask for the number.

15:56Rhett McLaughlin: Skip the gamesmanship you're saying. If that's what you're interested in, It's not like a one-minute conversation is gonna give you that much more insight into the situation. Just ask for the number. And you have more to lose by doing that because you tip her off something in your personality or something. Right. Yeah, like leave her, yeah. You might expose yourself. Like, let's say a voicemail where you're a little awkward, but in real life. So the advice we're giving now is for him to just immediately and just directly ask for the number without giving any information about himself or how there might be some awkwardness.

16:31Rhett McLaughlin: Yeah, and if he was at a restaurant going back in and saying, excuse me, I forgot to get your number, that's a good one. Yeah, leave. Whenever you want somebody's number, always leave so you can come back and say that. I will say a good, rather than just a number, because there are some women out there who, if you don't introduce yourself and give your name and ask her name, they're not gonna give their number. so do a proper introduction with her. Learn her name besides pretty girl. And then ask for her number. Yeah, yeah. I mean, yeah. That's what I was saying, Jenna. Well what I was saying was, there's nothing better than that new car smell.

17:14Rhett McLaughlin: Link's ass is activated like a sleeper cell.

17:21Rhett McLaughlin: Like, so you're rapping about the smell of my ass? I'm a little lost. You know, your ass is activated like a sleeper cell. Okay, but the smell is for the new car. Yeah, yeah, there's nothing better than the new car smell. Okay. Link, as is so fat, it's a crime like murder. Oh no, someone stole my catalytic converter. It happens. They're valuable, I guess, for like the metals in it or something. Okay, how about something that's not about your ass? Please. anything will do. My raps flow hard, just like the Euphrates. I got a good lease on a new Mercedes. What a brag. But Jenna, before you play the next voicemail, so if you don't want to give somebody your number, what do you say?

18:13No thank you. Yeah, reject them. Yeah, me saying no thank you. Sometimes people can be mean back. I have been called a B word once, because I said no thank you to giving my number, and I was like, okay.

18:27Rhett McLaughlin: And that was confirmation that you were right in saying no. Exactly, my intuition was correct. That is masterful. No thank you. The power of no. The power of no. Okay, let's get another voicemail. Hi Rhett and Link, this is Lily. I'm currently in Texas. I've been a huge fan of y 'all for probably 10 years at this point. Thank you. I'm about to move all the way up to the Midwest for law school. And that's the finest I've ever been from home. So I'm just curious as people who moved out of their home state, what tips you have for dealing with homesickness, for dealing with being far away from family and friends.

19:07And if you have any tips for how to be successful at that, thanks so much. And I hope I will hear from you guys soon.

19:15Rhett McLaughlin: Good question. to me the answer is bring your wife, your kids, and your best friend and his wife and their kids when you move to another state. At least you got a little pod of people. That's the best way to do it. This is why we don't have a lot of insight into this because yes, we brought our whole lives with us in some way. Yes, we left some family back home, parents and whatnot, not in the place that you grew up. Yeah. But it's something about when you move with these people and you're also moving because of the thing that you're passionate about, which is your job and the thing that our life's work basically kind of brought us out here.

20:02Rhett McLaughlin: But it's different when you're going out by yourself and you're going out for school because you're going to, okay, I'm preparing for this next stage of my life. Jenna, when you moved out here, you moved out with a friend, right? You didn't move out here alone. Correct, I moved out with my best friend, yeah. Yeah, so that, so. Do that if you can. I mean, if you're going to school, though, it's like you're entering this, you're entering a world where a lot of people are doing that. So I think you can lean on that a little bit. That like, it's not a forever thing. And it's a, yeah, and you got tracks to run on called class.

20:41Class.

20:42Rhett McLaughlin: You've got class is to learn. I just think, be homesick and, you know, sell some donuts, raise some money to go back at a nice interval. Find somebody else who's also homesick and connect with them. Yeah, and just have a downward spiral of emotions together. Hey, what about you reach out to the last guy and give him your number? How about this? All other rappers are rather inferior. My rhymes are sleek and smooth like leather interior. There's a lot of syllables in that one. Okay, all right. Okay, this one, I'm gonna close you out with this one, okay? You can take this one. Close me out. Keep it in your head the rest of the day.

21:32Rhett McLaughlin: No, thank you, she says. You're so square, you're like a straight-up cube. But my rhymes get you wetter than a jiffy lube