Cover Your Hole

Summary

Conan O’Brien Needs A Friend – "Cover Your Hole"

Date: April 30, 2026
Host: Conan O’Brien, with Sona Movsesian and David Hopping
Guest: Philip, Relic Hunter & Preacher from Williamsburg, VA

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Episode Overview

In this engaging and lighthearted episode, Conan and his team are joined by Philip, a history-loving relic hunter and preacher from Williamsburg, Virginia. Together they explore the world of metal detecting and the unique artifacts Philip has uncovered, dive into his experiences as a firefighter and preacher, and riff on topics of etiquette, history, and humor. The episode is filled with Conan’s classic banter, playful jokes about “covering your hole,” memorable stories about found treasures (and live grenades!), and reflections on living an interesting, regular life.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Meet Relic Hunter Philip

• Introduction and Background ([01:45 – 03:19])

  • Philip is a lifelong resident of Williamsburg, VA, a passionate history buff, and a family man.
  • “I grew up in this area, so I’ve always been a huge fan of history.”—Philip [02:30]
  • Married to Karen, a math teacher, and father of two boys.

• First Impressions: Beards, Dating Apps, and Super Swipes ([01:51 – 03:19])

  • Conan admires Philip’s “neatly curated beard,” joking it required jeweler-level maintenance.
  • The introduction veers comically into dating app territory:
    • “I just swiped you up, Philip. Yeah, super swipe, because you like history, which I love.”—Conan [03:03]

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2. The Art and Thrill of Relic Hunting

• What is Relic Hunting? ([03:19 – 04:20])

  • Philip explains it as the hobby of searching for historical artifacts with a metal detector.
  • Relic finds include bullets, buckles, cannonballs, buttons, coins, and rare items.

• Favorite Find: The Colonial "Posey Ring" ([04:20 – 05:36])

  • Philip describes discovering a gold colonial-era "posey ring," traditionally exchanged between young lovers.
  • “When I got home and cleaned it up...it has some old gothic script. I think it says, ‘I choose thee.’”—Philip [04:55]
  • Conan jokes: “Yeah, I swiped up, and now you’re proposing to me.”—Conan [05:00]

• Philip’s Reflections:

  • The poignancy of finding such a personal artifact, lost for centuries.

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3. Extraordinary – and Sometimes Dangerous – Finds

• Finding a Live Grenade ([05:52 – 10:45])
  • Philip recounts uncovering a Korean War-era live grenade.
  • Initially moved the grenade with a shovel (a big no), before calling military bomb techs.
  • “When you're digging, you find all sorts of stuff. Most...is trash...but this particular day, I dug a hole and pulled out of the ground...realized quickly what it was.”—Philip [06:25]
  • The bomb squad uses C4 and detonates it via Bluetooth:
    • “He goes, no, we do that all by Bluetooth now. And so they blew it up with their phone.”—Philip [10:45]
  • Conan riffs on the dangers:
    • “I’m packing it around...when someone near me accesses a song on Bluetooth and half my face gets blown off…”—Conan [10:47]

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4. The Research and Etiquette Behind Treasure Hunting

• How Philip Chooses Where to Hunt ([18:45 – 20:19])

  • Research is “over half of it”: pouring over old maps, getting permissions from private landowners.
  • "You have to do some research, I would think, right?"—Conan [18:47]
    • “That’s over half of it...just look at old maps and history...figuring out where you can go.”—Philip [19:12]

• Arrangements with Landowners ([19:53 – 20:19])

  • Most landowners don't care about keeping finds, some want to see them or split anything valuable.

• Fakes and Forgeries in Relic Hunting ([20:19 – 21:37])

  • Conan jokes about planting "King Arthur's helmet" to punk treasure hunters.
  • Philip reveals a local replica-maker famous for fake Civil War relics:
    • “There’s a guy...one of the best replica makers...he was known to go in the Cold Harbor area and bury it and people would find it and lose their minds.”—Philip [21:01]

• Etiquette: "Cover Your Hole" ([22:56 – 24:22])

  • Respecting property: always fill in holes dug, especially around livestock.

  • “My rule number one is cover your hole. I’ve said that since day one.”—Conan [23:18]

  • The team riffs endlessly and hilariously on the phrase “cover your hole,” blurring lines between innuendo and etiquette.

    Memorable Quote:

    • "You cover my hole, I'll cover your hole. How much more do you think I can go on this?"—Conan [23:34]

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5. Philip the Preacher: A Life of Service

• Firefighter to Preacher—A Bivocational Life ([25:01 – 27:14])

  • Philip’s church started as a “church plant." He continued firefighting as the church grew.
  • “As the church grew...then I was full time here as the preacher.”—Philip [26:10]

• On Relatability and Regular Life

  • “My dad did not go to church...he’d meet preachers and say, ‘that preacher doesn’t know anything about real life’...I was determined...not to be that guy.”—Philip [26:41]

• Conan’s Appraisal:

  • “You seem like you’d be a good preacher...very understanding, accepting, a cool guy, good sense of humor.”—Conan [26:28]
  • “You live by two rules: cover your hole and cover your soul.”—Conan [25:05]

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6. Hobby, Family, and Invitation

• Philip’s Passion for Relic Hunting

  • The running joke about the nerdiness of relic hunting and the amusement it brings (even if family isn’t always as enthusiastic).
  • “It’s the reaction I get from my wife when I bring stuff home...could you please get that out of the kitchen?”—Philip [27:36]

• An Invitation for Conan

  • “You come to eastern Virginia, I got another metal [detector]. We will go out and dig holes...and we will make sure that every single one of them is covered.”—Philip [28:10]
  • “No one plugs a hole like me.”—Conan [28:24]

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7. Closing Moments

• Conan warmly thanks Philip, joking that after this, "you will no longer be a preacher" due to their comic routine.
• “This was a joy for us. Seriously. Really fun talking to you.”—Conan [29:06]
• Philip expresses his longtime fandom:
  • “Since I was in college...thanks for just taking the few minutes just to hang out.”—Philip [28:56]

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Notable Quotes & Moments (with Timestamps)

• [02:30] “I grew up in this area, so I’ve always been a huge fan of history.” — Philip
• [04:55] “I think it says, ‘I choose thee.’” — Philip (on the posey ring inscription)
• [06:10] “What happens when you find a live grenade? Don’t you have to call the police?” — Conan
• [10:45] “They blew it up with their phone.” — Philip (on Bluetooth detonation)
• [18:47] “You have to do some research, I would think, right?” — Conan
• [23:18] “My rule number one is cover your hole. I’ve said that since day one.” — Conan
• [25:05] “You gotta cover your soul. If you don’t, I’ll come and get a preacher to cover your soul.” — Conan
• [26:41] “My dad did not go to church...I was determined from the beginning that I wouldn’t be that guy.” — Philip
• [28:10] “You come to eastern Virginia...we will find something cool and we'll cover them.” — Philip

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Episode’s Tone & Style

• Warm, playful, and irreverent—with deeper notes about family, history, and service.
• Conan’s comic timing and rapport with Sona and Philip shine throughout, making even the etiquette of relic hunting into a running joke with heartfelt undertones.
• The running “cover your hole” bit stands out as a hilarious and memorable moment, emblematic of the show’s lovingly ridiculous spirit.

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Suggested Listening Timestamps

• [01:45] - Meet Philip & beards/dating app banter
• [04:20] - Discovery of the colonial posey ring
• [05:52] - The live grenade story
• [18:45] - The art and research behind relic hunting
• [22:56] - Treasure hunting etiquette ("cover your hole")
• [25:01] - Philip’s background: firefighter to preacher
• [28:10] - Invitation to Conan, closing riff

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Summary

“Cover Your Hole” is an endearingly silly, surprisingly insightful episode where Conan and team find common ground with Philip—relic hunter, preacher, and everyday historian. The episode balances sharp wit, unique life stories, and reflections on curiosity and community, making this a perfect listen for fans of history, comedy, or the simple joy of digging up something unexpected—always remembering to cover your hole.

Transcript

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[B]

Conan O' Brien needs a fan. Want to talk to Conan? Visit teamcoco.com call Conan. Okay, let's get started.

[D]

Hey, Philip. Welcome to Conan o' Brien Needs a fan.

[C]

Hey, guys.

[A]

Hey, Philip. How are you?

[C]

I'm doing well. How are you?

[A]

I'm just going to comment right away and I encourage our listeners to watch the video. You've got one of the most neatly curated beards I've seen in my life. I mean, thank you. It's incredible. I feel like you had a jeweler come in and maintain your beard. Impressive. Very impressive. Philip, tell us a little bit about yourself. Where do you live? Where are you coming to us from right now?

[C]

So I live in the Williamsburg, Virginia area. So Colonial Williamsburg, if you ever been here, Right in that area. Eastern Virginia. So yeah, this is live at.

[A]

And tell us about yourself.

[D]

What?

[C]

Okay.

[A]

What makes you tick, Philip?

[C]

All right. Well, I am. I grew up in this area, so I've always been a huge fan of. Of history.

[A]

Yep.

[C]

So love history. I live here. I'm married to my wife, Karen. She's a high school math teacher. I have two teenage boys. We love being outside, whether it's in the woods, hiking, boating, whatever it may be. So that's that's kind of our world.

[A]

Okay. I feel like this is a dating app now. And I like, um, you swipe right if you're interested. Or left.

[D]

Swipe right. Right, Right.

[A]

You swipe right. And if you're really interested, you, swipe up for a super swipe. Get out. Yeah, that's right. I just swiped you up, Philip. Yeah, super swipe. Because you like history, which I. Which I love. Now, I see in my notes here, it says you're a relic hunter. I don't really know much about that. What do you do?

[C]

So it's. It's a hobby. It's so relic hunting.

[A]

If you've.

[C]

It's kind of like using a metal detector to go out and find. Okay. You go out looking for.

[A]

Well, I guess if you're in williamsb, Virginia, you've got lots of stuff. I mean, mostly there's a lot. Probably civil war stuff, and there's probably also revolutionary war. What else?

[C]

Absolutely.

[A]

I mean, that sounds like you had hit pay dirt. Go ahead.

[C]

Yeah. So growing up in this area, it was sort of all around me. I live right between jamestown, colonial williamsburg, yorktown, cold harbor, all the. All the battles outside of richmond area. So it kind of grew up right at the epicenter of that sort of history.

[A]

And so what are you finding when you got your metal detector? What are the things you're. You're pulling out of the ground that are exciting to you?

[C]

Also? We find bullets, Civil war bullets, American revolutionary bullets. We find buckles, sometimes old cannonballs and artillery shells and buttons and coins and all sorts of things.

[A]

What's one of the coolest things you ever found? Like, you pulled it out of the ground, and you thought, this is awesome.

[C]

One of the coolest things I found was a posey ring. It's called a colonial. Posey ring is the name of it. It's a gold ring that they would have. A young man would have shared with a young woman back in colonial times. And when I first found it, I thought it was just simply just. I'm not sure what it was. And then when I got home and cleaned it up, I realized what it was. And inside of it, it has some old gothic script. I think it says, I choose the. I actually have some stuff over here. I have.

[A]

That is so. That's.

[C]

That's amazing how well you can see that.

[A]

And now. Yeah, I swiped up, and now you're proposing to me.

[D]

That's right.

[A]

That's how things happen on this. This is one fast app that is so cool and poignant. And sad and sweet at the same time, you know?

[C]

Yeah. Well, I mean, I found it in a. In a. In a field. And so oftentimes, you know, people got married much younger during those times than they do today. And so it was much smaller. And probably as she got older, she would wear it as a necklace or a charm. And it fell off at some point and laid there for probably 200 years until one day I dug it out of the ground.

[A]

Right. And does her ghost haunt you now?

[C]

No. No.

[A]

That's what I would worry about when I pull something out of the ground is eventually the ghost or zombie would come looking for it.

[B]

Zombie.

[A]

And it says here you once found a live grenade.

[C]

Yeah. So you find all sorts of things.

[A]

Did the grenade say I choose the.

[C]

No, it did not. Fortunately, the one thing I would say is there's a sort of a.

[B]

You're so proud of yourself.

[C]

Yes. Yes.

[A]

Sorry.

[C]

So proud.

[A]

It's whatever. It's what I do. It's what I do. Nice. Nice ceiling there, Michelangelo. That's what I do. It's what I do. Sorry. So what happens when you find a live grenade? Don't you have to call the police?

[C]

Yes, you do. When you're digging, you find all sorts of stuff. And one of the things I would say is most of the stuff you find when you go hunting or relic hunting is trash. You find shotgun shells and beer cans and more beer cans and anything metal you can think of that's been in the ground for a long time. So you don't. You don't. Most of what you find is not worth keeping. It's not civil war, American revolution. But this particular day, I. I dug a hole and pulled out of the ground. I wasn't sure what it was at first and realized quickly.

[B]

We.

[A]

We live.

[C]

If you know anything about the Hampton Roads area. That's a lot of military bases.

[A]

Sure.

[C]

For. For a very long time. And realized pretty quickly what it was and moved it. I don't know. I sort of got told I shouldn't have done this. Later, I picked it up and moved it to a tree line and stuck it next to a tree. I don't know why I did that.

[A]

You started juggling it.

[B]

Kicking it like a hacky sack.

[A]

Yeah. You kicked it like a hacky sack.

[C]

Minutes. Yes. Yes.

[A]

While you were listening to a fish album.

[C]

There you go.

[A]

You okay there, Stone? Laughing pretty hard. Sona. When you laugh. Don't move away from the mic. Get those laughs right in there. I work hard for those.

[C]

For the record.

[A]

Y.

[C]

Okay. For the record, let me just. Sona has the best laugh.

[A]

She does have the best laugh.

[C]

She has the best.

[A]

But, Philip, you know what drives me? Say this, Philip. This drives me crazy.

[B]

Let him continue.

[A]

What I'm saying is, I'll get. I'll say something. She'll laugh real hard, and she does this. She fades away from the mic, and I'm like, those are my laughs. Give me my milk, mama.

[B]

You're hearing, wow, that's sweet milk. You hear them? You want other people to know I'm laughing at you?

[A]

That's what that is with me, not at me. Anyway, Philip, we got off on this sidetrack thing.

[C]

I was talking about Sona's laugh.

[B]

Yeah. Let's get off the civil war stuff. Yeah.

[C]

Let me just say. Okay. I know I could hear you, Sona, before they call me in the room and they told you guys it was a civil war with relic hunter. And you're like, oh, I knew that was going to happen with you. But that's okay, because I wanted to know. But my goal was that she would laugh at some point because. You guys listen real quick. We're going off the relic hunting stuff for a moment. I listen to you guys all the time in the car on XM radio. So I listen to you guys. There you go. A little plug for xm. I listen to you guys. So you guys are the voices in my car. And so we've talked about. Sona has the best laugh.

[A]

You know what? I will agree. You have the best laugh. Sony. You've always had the best. And I consider you one of the treasures I pulled out of the ground. Does that work as a compliment?

[B]

I was so close. It was almost close.

[A]

You were. When I met you, you were dirty.

[B]

Yes. I get.

[A]

You know that, right?

[B]

I get what you tell people. I, like, jumped out of a bush.

[A]

But you were. You had soil on. I was. There was a. Maybe the first year of me knowing you was me brushing you clean.

[B]

Oh, that's so sweet. Thank you so much. Thanks for making me human.

[D]

But she had a great laugh.

[B]

I was a live grenade. You picked that up.

[A]

You were, in a way. But wait, back to the gren.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Philip, what vintage is the grenade? Is it. It's not a. Don't tell me.

[C]

It's Korean.

[A]

Oh, good. Okay.

[C]

Korean war air grenade is what I found out later. And so, again, set it next to this tree. Knew I'd spent over 20 years in the fire department. These sort of things happened in this area again, because of all the military bases So I knew what needed to be done. So I called, called it in. They. There's a lot of the military base nearby. Us sent their. Their bomb technicians over who examined it and quickly determined that it was a live grenade and that it was actually. The pen had been pulled out of it and thrown. But I guess somehow it hit just right. It never exploded. And I moved it with a shovel.

[A]

Oh, my God.

[C]

And so the guys were not. They were like, you move that, you should never move that. And. But what was really cool, I mean, these guys got out of the truck. They look like they were extras in a military movie. I mean, tall, the mustache, the whole deal. And they go over and they basically put a thing of C4 and sandbags around it. And I have a video of it.

[A]

They blew it up.

[C]

Whole fire in the hole. Yeah, they did fire in the hole. Fire in the whole fire hole. And blew it up. And I asked him where the little wire was that went from the C4 to the little, like, explosive thing. And he goes, no, we do that all by Bluetooth now. And so they blew it up with their phone.

[A]

Oh, my God.

[B]

That's not that cool.

[A]

No, but. No, it is cool. It sounds dangerous. Like I'm there setting up my C4 and I'm packing it around the object I want to blow up when someone near me accesses a song on Bluetooth and half my face gets blown off because they wanted to listen to

[B]

Fish.

[A]

Yeah, whatever. You know, fish. Just cause David needed to hear Hilary Duff, I have to die.

[D]

Hey, some things are worth it.

[A]

I want to talk about Mother's Day. You came to mind. You're a mom.

[B]

I'm a mom.

[A]

I'm the godfather to your two boys.

[B]

Yep.

[A]

Maybe the most important adult figure in their lives.

[B]

Oh, okay. I don't remember there being a Godfather's Day.

[A]

Well, it's a good. It's a good point. There should be. But that's not what I want to talk about, David. And I wanted to get you something. And so I thought, hey, you know, we're big fans of Macy's, and Macy's online gift guide has some great ideas. And so I asked David to check that out and come up with some notions for you.

[B]

Well, that's really nice. Thank you, David.

[D]

Of course.

[A]

And I thought it was going to be really funny.

[B]

Well, thank you, David. I mean, he did the legwork.

[A]

My money.

[D]

And you're going to be happy because we didn't get you just one thing or two. We got you three things for Mother's Day.

[A]

That's pretty nice.

[D]

All right.

[A]

Yeah. I was afraid.

[B]

This is really nice.

[A]

Thank you. I was afraid this would spoil you getting three things because next year you'll be like, no, I want four. But anyway, David.

[D]

All right, if I can have your attention to the screen. The first thing, for Mother's Day, we got you a Michael Kors Noita large hobo shoulder bag.

[A]

Michael Kors, you know, that's good stuff.

[B]

Yeah, I like hobo stuff, too.

[D]

I feel like you need a big bag.

[A]

I do.

[D]

You have a lot of things to carry.

[A]

And also Sona likes to go to a restaurant and maybe take a few rolls or a dessert and sometimes a salt and pepper shaker that'll fit nicely into this Michael Kors bag.

[D]

Next up, we have the Oracle Jet automatic espresso machine by Breville.

[B]

That is nice, Breville.

[A]

Great machine. And look at that thing. It's gorgeous.

[D]

Make any. Any coffee you want.

[B]

You're cool with this? Because this is 2000.

[D]

I have the card. He's cool with it.

[B]

Thank you.

[A]

I didn't know it was that much, but I don't mean to say that much, because that's Breville. That's quality stuff.

[B]

That is good. I don't even drink coffee, but I just want it.

[A]

Well, also, wouldn't that look cool on your counter?

[B]

It would.

[A]

And also doesn't your husband doesn't drink coffee?

[B]

He does, but he doesn't drink, like, fancy coffee.

[D]

Until now.

[A]

Until now.

[D]

And the third thing, we got You a Mezzards 10.1-inch digital calendar and photo frame.

[A]

Yeah. He asked me, how big should it be? And I said, do they have 10.1 inches? And he said, actually, they do.

[B]

That's so specific.

[D]

And now you can. You can sync, you know, Conan's calendar if you want to know what he's up to.

[A]

If you want to know what I'm up to, which you don't seem that interested in these days.

[B]

Not at all.

[A]

And I still employ you. It's weird.

[B]

And I still have access to all that information. I just choose not to look at it.

[A]

These are great gifts. These are all for you for Mother's Day.

[B]

Well, thank you.

[A]

Or does she choose one?

[D]

No, I. We said all three.

[B]

Thank you, David.

[A]

I kind of think next time I didn't say yes to all three.

[D]

You give a lot of parameters.

[A]

I really didn't. But you could use common sense. That's always the best parameter.

[D]

Sona means so much to you, and it's Mother's Day.

[A]

Sona, I want you to have these. Oh, thank you, Connie. And a big thanks to Macy's. They've got this great online gift guide. And, David, thanks to you for doing what I probably should have done on my own. Yeah. But I'm too entitled.

[D]

Keeps me employed.

[A]

All right, there you go. Let Macy's be your guide to gifting for Mother's Day. Shop now, online or in store. Support for today's episode comes from Square, the system powering like half the places you go. Hello.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

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[B]

Me, too.

[A]

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[B]

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[A]

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[D]

Yeah, you know, it's about time.

[A]

It is true. Yeah. They're available as single serves at a convenience store near you. Go out and get these. Okay. And guess what? It's not just Coca Cola. Okay. Are you a Fanta fan? Do you like Sprite? Do you like Cherry Coke? Are you a loyalist for Cherry Coke? I do love Cherry Coke. I think you're the same way. And mini singles are originally available in all these options. It's terrific. So take a mini break with Coca Cola. No planning or overthinking required. Keep a mini can single in your backpack. Stash one in the fridge. Middle of the night, thirst attack. Yeah. You know, you can sneak one under your partner's pillow as a way of saying, I'm thinking of you.

[B]

Oh, that.

[A]

That's so nice. Yeah. If I did that, my wife would be like, hey, this is nice.

[B]

You love me.

[A]

You do love me after all.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

It's a Mini that can bring some big can vibes. It really can.

[B]

Sure.

[A]

Coca Cola mini can, big deal. Now on the go. Can you imagine having that job where your job is to blow things up?

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

You know, you have C4 and you have a van and you get to drive around and. Okay, I gotta go blow something else up in a field. Yeah, that's what a great job.

[B]

Is it great?

[A]

I think it'd be fantastic.

[B]

Oh, I didn't know if you were gonna say great or terrifying.

[A]

No, I love that. You get, first of all, your time's your own. You get to drive around. It's probably a company car. You get C4 that you don't have to pay for. I don't know. I just like it.

[D]

It's like a company car kinda.

[A]

It could be fun. And you get to see stuff blow up, which would be fun.

[B]

Yeah. I don't think that ever gets old.

[A]

How do you do? Because how do you even know where to look? How do you do. I imagine there's some kind of research involved in finding out what's a good place to try and find relics, what will be fruitful. Because you can't just wander around a big state like Virginia hoping that the thing that sets off your metal detector is a Civil War heirloom. You have to do some research, I would think. Right? Yeah.

[C]

That's over half of it is just spending the time to study. It's really dorky, but it's a ton of fun. But just look at old maps and history. And Library of Congress has maps that you can access online, so you're with those. And then figuring out where you can go. But then getting permission to go to this place is obviously, you can't go to any national parks or state parks or anything like that. So it's. It's finding private property, farmers, people that own land, that you ask permission. Can I come on your property and dig holes? And can I. Can I search for. Search for. For relics, For. For old things that might be on your property. And a lot of times they'll say no. And sometimes they'll say, yeah, okay, and

[A]

do they have a deal? Like, if you find something valuable, they get to. They want to keep it?

[C]

Sometimes it sort of depends. Some of them, most of them actually don't really care. You know, what I've run into is they just kind of go, I don't really care. I'm not, you know, that's your thing. It's not my thing. So whatever you find, there's others who have said, hey, I'd really like to see what you find. And then there's others you can maybe work a deal with and go, hey, let's split. Whatever. Whatever it is we find.

[A]

I'm intrigued. There's part of me that would want to go around and fool guys like you. Like, drop things in the ground. Do you know what I mean? Go out and buy. You know, go and buy, like, what looks like a knight's helmet and then drop it in a hole.

[D]

Just hide and watch them, and then

[A]

hide in a bush and watch you guys come by and think that you've found. Oh, my God, King Arthur's Court. They hung out here in Williamsburg, Virginia. I know that's a bad thing. I'm admitting, too, but.

[C]

No, there's people that do that.

[A]

No, really?

[C]

No, there's a guy. No, there's a guy here locally who has like, been known for decades as one of the best replica makers of Civil War buckles and things like that.

[A]

Right.

[C]

And if he made one that wasn't quite perfect, he was known to go in the Cold harbor area and bury it and hide it and people would find it and lose their minds. I love to find out.

[A]

I love this guy.

[B]

Yeah, you would.

[A]

Hey, can this guy contact me? I will fund your operation.

[C]

Yes, yes. Gary Wilson.

[A]

You know, I would be drawing up like a fake Gettysburg Address and then dropping it in a hole. You know, stuff like that. A fake Lincoln's beard and a note that says, if you find my beard, contact a Lincoln. 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

[D]

Just.

[A]

I would want to see people freak out.

[B]

1600, was he. He didn't live in the White House. Did he live in the White House?

[A]

Lincoln? Yeah, yeah, the White House was there.

[B]

Who is the first person to live in the White House?

[A]

Good question. Thomas Jefferson.

[B]

Oh, okay. I didn't know that.

[A]

Sona. There's a Lincoln bedroom. It's like the most famous room in the world.

[B]

I just thought it was. I'm sorry, I was. I wasn't sure who. The first president.

[A]

You thought he lived in a split level condo in Reseda, California? Yeah, I saw him at the hot tub the other day. The communal hot tub.

[B]

Sorry.

[A]

Yeah. Bubble, bubble, bubble, bubble.

[B]

See, I asked questions. I'm curious.

[A]

Yeah, this is. I mean, this is fascinating to me. I just. There's a. Because whenever you examine something, you find out that it's a whole ecosystem. There are probably really good, you know, artifact hunters, but they're also probably ones that give you guys a bad name. Do you know what I mean? That break some of the rules, I imagine.

[C]

Yeah. Well, I mean, it's like any other.

[A]

Oh, you just got mad.

[D]

So much behind that.

[A]

Yeah, you got mad. Yeah. So much behind that.

[C]

Well, no, names.

[A]

Don't name names.

[C]

No, I mean, they're just like any other niche or subculture. There's etiquette and there are people that. That hold to that etiquette and do it respectfully, and there's others that just simply don't.

[A]

What is the etiquette of treasure hunting like this?

[C]

Well, one of the things would be just if you dig holes, you cover holes, and you'd be just surprised how many people will dig holes in somebody's yard and just leave them. Which if they have animals like horses and livestock, they could step in It. And get hurt.

[A]

Yeah. Terrible.

[B]

What?

[C]

Yeah. And so.

[B]

That didn't feel sincere.

[A]

No, I meant. That's bad. That's bad.

[C]

Okay.

[A]

No, my rule. If. If, man. My rule number one is cover your hole. You know, I've always. I've said that since day one. And when I meet a guy that doesn't cover his hole, I'm out. I'm like, cover that hole, dude.

[C]

Cover the hole.

[A]

Yeah. And then every now and then.

[C]

Etiquette.

[A]

Yeah. I say that all the time in my regular life, and I'm rare. Guess what? I'm rarely outside when I say it. Hey, dude, cover your hole. I'll cover my hole. You cover your podcast before. I don't like it when someone covers my hole. That's where I draw the line. Don't cover my hole. If I said, you can't cover my hole. Don't cover my hole. You cover my hole, I'll cover your hole. How much more do you think I can go on this?

[B]

I don't know, but it needs to stop.

[A]

I don't think it does. I think it needs to go more.

[B]

I think it's stopped.

[A]

Yeah. But anyway.

[B]

Never heard you say hole so many times.

[A]

Well, I'm just saying cover your hole.

[C]

That is the rule. That is the rule.

[A]

Guess what? Guess what, Philip. People here are laughing and acting like it's a joke, but it is the rule. And it's a simple rule to live by. Cover your hole. You know what I mean? Or I'll come over there and cover it for you. You know what I'm saying? I've got a hole cover in my pocket, a little brass plate.

[C]

So you cover the whole.

[A]

I love you. You know what I love? I love that you just said so. My favorite thing about this whole interview is Philip finally going so. And you think you're gonna get away from the topic. And then you said, you gotta cover your hole, so you brought us right back.

[B]

Can we also talk about what else he does, which is he's also a preacher.

[C]

I spent over 20 years in a fire station. There is little these ears have not heard.

[A]

You gotta. You gotta cover your soul. You gotta cover your soul. And if you don't cover your soul, I'll come and get a preacher to cover your soul. So you live by two rules. Cover your hole and cover your soul. These are the rules that Philip lives by.

[D]

Our fire chief.

[A]

Yeah, listen, we'll get to that. We've got a lot to get. You know, we've got a lot to cover here. Yeah, we really do preacher?

[C]

Yes.

[A]

So I hope I didn't offend you with my cover your whole run, but I think it can be taken many different ways, and so I'm not worried about it. And what is your religious denominational acceleration?

[C]

Non denominational process.

[A]

Non denominational. Got it. Very good. You accept all kinds?

[C]

All kinds.

[A]

I'd be welcome as a Catholic.

[C]

You would be welcome.

[A]

Okay, absolutely. I like that. I like it. Very accepting.

[C]

Absolutely.

[A]

And how long you been preaching for?

[C]

12 years.

[A]

I think it is.

[C]

13 years. Something like that.

[A]

And before that you were a firefighter?

[C]

I was bivocational for a while. I worked in the fire service and I worked at a church simultaneously and did that for a period of time. And then as the church grew, it was a church plant, so it started from scratch. And as things grew, then I. Then I was full time here as the preacher.

[A]

You seem like you'd be a good preacher. You seem like you're very. Someone that would be very understanding, accepting, a cool guy, good sense of humor. I think you'd be very good at that.

[C]

I hope so. I. I will tell you this. I grew up and my dad did not go to church very often. And one of his biggest things was he was like, he'd meet preachers and he would go, that preacher doesn't know anything about real life. He doesn't know anything about me. He doesn't understand anything because they live in his little world. He just reads the Bible all day and sits in his office and sings hymns or whatever. And. And so I was determined from the beginning that I wouldn't be that guy. And that's one of the reasons why between the fire service and just real life, just to just be a regular. Just a regular dude, just a regular

[A]

guy, regular dude out there digging up grenades.

[C]

I get it, man. It is not. It's not the sexiest hobby I get.

[A]

I love it, actually.

[B]

Pretty cool.

[A]

I think it sounds great.

[B]

I'm sorry. You heard me make that voice. That's not what I meant at all. I thought it was just more like Conan's gonna geek out.

[A]

She was mocking me for being a Civil War history.

[C]

No, that's the typical response I get whenever anyone finds out that I dig holes and find old stuff. So I complete. It's the. It sort of. It's the. It's the reaction I get from my wife when I bring stuff home and there's mud and I bring it in the kitchen and I'm cleaning stuff up that I found and I'm dorking out over it. And my wife just like, could you. Could you just please get that out of the kitchen? So I get it. It does not offend me at all.

[B]

Oh, good, good. I mean, I just know Conan, what is going to get really excited about it.

[A]

I am excited.

[B]

I feel like you want to go out with Philip and like, dig holes in Virginia.

[A]

I do.

[C]

I tell you what, you come to eastern Virginia, I got another metal. We will go out and dig holes. We will find something cool and we'll cover them.

[A]

We'll cover them up.

[C]

And we will make sure that every single one of them is covered.

[A]

Gotta cover them up.

[C]

Every single one of them is covered. That's right.

[A]

No one plugs a hole like me. All right, I think we broke it. Philip, it was lovely talking to you. By the way, when this airs, you will no longer be a preacher. So you need to find yet another vocation because that is over when our little who's on first routine plays. But it was really nice, really nice talking to you. And I'll see you on down the road, sir.

[C]

Hey, man, I really appreciate the time. It's good to see you guys. Seriously. I. I listen to you guys all the time.

[A]

Thanks for listening to us.

[C]

Since I was. Since I was like in college. So I just.

[A]

Oh, cool.

[C]

Thanks for just taking the few minutes just to hang out. Let me.

[A]

This was a joy for us. Seriously, really fun talking to you.

[C]

Appreciate it.

[A]

All right, take care, Philip. Bye.

[C]

Bye, y'. All. Take care. Thanks a lot. Bye. Conan o' Brien needs a fan With Conan o' Brien, Sonam Obsessian and Matt Gourley Produced by me, Matt Gourley Executive Produced by Adam Sachs, Jeff Ross and Nick Leow Incidental music by Jimmy Vivino

[A]

Take it away, Jimmy.

[C]

Supervising Producer Aaron Blair Associate Talent Producer Jennifer Samples Associate Producer Producers Sean Doherty and Lisa Berm Engineering by Eduardo Perez get three free months of Sirius XM when you sign [e-mail] Conan please rate, review and subscribe to Conan O' Brien needs a fan. Wherever fine podcasts are down.

[A]

I'm just gonna say it. There's a Hyundai Hybrid for everyone.

[B]

There sure is.

[A]

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[B]

It's a good one.

[A]

It is a good one. Hard to beat all those stats. America's Best Warranty Claims Based on Total Package of warranty programs. Visit HyundaiUSA.com or call and give you a phone number. Write it down, okay, 562-31-4603 for more details.

[C]

Lots of places can expose you to identity theft.

[A]

Oh, no.

[C]

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