
Matt and Karo get back to a topic they discussed slash invented a few years back. We all know about "cuffing season" for relationships, but there's also a friendship cuffing season and it is upon us. So we give you the best practices to get out and friend! manoftheyearpodcast.com
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Alex Canceroitz
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Aaron Caro
Pickup fees may apply.
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Aaron Caro
Man of the Year.
Matt Ritter
Man of the Year. Man of the Year. Welcome to the number one friendship podcast in the country. I'm Matt Ritter.
Aaron Caro
I'm Aaron Caro.
Matt Ritter
Guys, go to manoftheyearpodcast.com, check out our merch, go to our YouTube page and see our beautiful, freshly rejuvenated from our plastic surgery. Or we've had a couple of lifts. We had a chin lift, a butt lift. We had that thing where you pull the skin back behind the ears. Check it out. Do we have any of that?
Aaron Caro
Yeah, audible dot. Oh, you forgot our audible.
Matt Ritter
We haven't even had any plastic surgery yet. But I also. We do. We do have an audio original. It's called the buddy system. Audible.com thebuddy system. Carol, you look. You look great. You know, we just got back from full plastic surgery reconstructive. We have new faces.
Aaron Caro
Everybody. I Mean, you could use Matt. A bbl. The. The thing that. That's like the butt thing.
Matt Ritter
Oh, because my butt deflated from the. Yeah, sciatica a couple years ago. I've rebuilt it. I did a. Have you seen this guy on Instagram who only lifts one side of his body? Come on.
Aaron Caro
Of course you have, Matt. What the f. At first it was the Liver King, then it was Squat guy. What was his name?
Matt Ritter
Oh, Knees over Toes.
Aaron Caro
Knees over those. And what's this guy called?
Matt Ritter
I don't know. I think he's like Imbalanced Lifter guy. I don't know what he is.
Aaron Caro
Shut up. You're making this up. This is not real.
Matt Ritter
Oh, you gotta look this up. He only lifts one side of his body. It's absurd.
Aaron Caro
This is to do. For what point?
Matt Ritter
Just to see how crazy his body would get asymmetrically. You're looking it up. Crooked Man. You don't know about Crooked Man?
Aaron Caro
God, this is insane.
Matt Ritter
How do you not know about Crooked Man? It's. It's almost like it's not real. But it is real. He literally free. I think he did it for like a year and then he stopped, I think. Or he fixed it.
Aaron Caro
I mean, I can't tell. Is this satire? No, it's real because he calls himself a looks minimizer.
Matt Ritter
Well, that's pretty funny because, like, the Max Maximalists. Looks maxing. How come all the looks. How come all the looks maxers are actually really ugly?
Aaron Caro
He's only working out one trap. Oh, my God.
Matt Ritter
Yeah. Can we talk about how the looks maxers are all ugly? Like, they think they're beautiful, but they. They're awful looking.
Aaron Caro
I still like these.
Matt Ritter
These looks maxing men. That clavicle clicker. Clavic liquor. Neo Nazi looks maxer. Okay, yeah.
Aaron Caro
What's the whole thing that the. The clavicular guys like, decomposing?
Matt Ritter
I don't know.
Aaron Caro
There's something where his. He.
Matt Ritter
He's like, takes meth. Yeah. Anyway, good for them.
Aaron Caro
I can't believe you're into the Liver King. Knees over Toes guy and the Crooked Man, I mean, are a parody of yourself.
Matt Ritter
Yeah, I love Crooked Man.
Aaron Caro
Like, how does this even come. I just.
Matt Ritter
Can we get Crooked man on the pod?
Aaron Caro
God, Which. Which angle are you shooting from?
Matt Ritter
Oh, it's like Two Face Seinfeld. Remember Terry? Was that Terry?
Aaron Caro
That wasn't Terry Hatcher. She was. She was the real boobs.
Matt Ritter
Yeah, yeah, there was. It was a working actress, though.
Aaron Caro
Yeah. I just want to say one thing before we get into the topic that combines several of our brands. You know, you and I are morning people. We, we respect morning people. We have no respect for night owls.
Matt Ritter
Yeah.
Aaron Caro
I've talked a bunch of times about how when I go to the gym in the morning, the people who worked out at night have left all their shit out. And I'm just, like, furious. We've also discussed both of our anger with people who leave, like, the shopping cart out at the, at the.
Matt Ritter
Oh, yeah. But then I, but then, you know, Lindsay was right. Sometimes parents have to do it. And I was like, oh, she's right.
Aaron Caro
My Lindsay.
Matt Ritter
You can't, you can't. Yeah. She was like, you can't leave your kid in the car to go return it.
Aaron Caro
Oh, okay. I forgot about it.
Matt Ritter
She made a good point. She made a very good point.
Aaron Caro
Okay, fair point. But so I, I, I usually, if I do a grocery shop, it's like a Sunday morning, first thing, bang it out as soon as the store opens.
Matt Ritter
Yeah.
Aaron Caro
A couple weeks, I had to go on a Saturday afternoon.
Matt Ritter
Okay. Chaos, chaos.
Aaron Caro
The amount of carts. There were more carts in the.
Matt Ritter
Where do you go?
Aaron Caro
I do Trader Joe's and Gelson.
Matt Ritter
Okay, so you went to the Trader Joe's.
Aaron Caro
I went to both.
Matt Ritter
Okay.
Aaron Caro
And the carts, these, they're not people with kid. The carts were everywhere. And it's because they're not morning people. These are, these are, these are day people.
Matt Ritter
You get different, you get different responsibility levels, different attitudes about life. You're right. From, from, from sunup to sundown, you can see entirely different work ethic.
Aaron Caro
Like, you know that, that civic responsibility
Matt Ritter
declines as, as you get to the afternoon hour. You know?
Aaron Caro
You know the, the famous thing of, like, the Monkey, there's like 10 pictures and it's eventually walking upright and becomes a human.
Matt Ritter
Yeah. Reverse.
Aaron Caro
That morning person is the upright human.
Matt Ritter
You're talking about the evolutionary chart. So we'll call this the devolutionary chart.
Aaron Caro
Right. The devolution of the night owls.
Matt Ritter
Yeah. Wow.
Aaron Caro
Literally just carts everywhere. I'm like, I gotta tell Matt about this because it's like you can't park.
Matt Ritter
We have basically taken over grocery store aisles now because we have, we do two carts with two kids side by side. So you, like, you can't even, you can't even be in our aisle now.
Aaron Caro
I just, I don't think that's cool.
Matt Ritter
Grocery cart takeover.
Aaron Caro
I mean, it's bad enough you have a double wide stroller.
Matt Ritter
Oh, yeah, the double wide. So. Or if he takes the double wide. But I do, I, it's actually really funny. So we have a stroller that has the two things on it also where you can do top shelf, bottom. Brenner didn't like it, but. So he just lays down underneath the stroller. It's pretty funny.
Aaron Caro
Oh, God. Is that like. Like where you put, like, the wipes and stuff?
Matt Ritter
Yeah. But then he was like, you slammed my head against some rocks, Daddy. I'm like, I know you're not supposed to be down there. It's dangerous.
Aaron Caro
Oh, my. What's the suspension like on that stroller?
Matt Ritter
They're all horrible because.
Aaron Caro
Could you but think about what we had when we were kids. Just a rod on two wheels. Four wheels.
Matt Ritter
Yeah. Well, some of them. I mean, they're better than that, but not really that like her. The double wide can. Cannot get over bumps.
Aaron Caro
That's just because it's so heavy with two kids.
Matt Ritter
Yeah.
Aaron Caro
I guess maybe those big wheels don't do anything.
Matt Ritter
Not really. You would think. Actually, I'm surprised at how, like, non sophisticated they are when it comes to that.
Aaron Caro
What do you think about people who run with the stroller?
Matt Ritter
I have no feelings one way or the other. I'm not against it, however, I don't think it bothers the kid. You know, I don't do it, but I think kids are fine with it.
Aaron Caro
You're not. You're not a stroller running guy?
Matt Ritter
No. Just because I don't think Brenner liked it. I think I tried it a few times and he was like, stop it, Daddy.
Aaron Caro
Yeah, yeah.
Matt Ritter
He goes, don't talk at me.
Aaron Caro
That's what he says. Finally, a Ritter family person is.
Matt Ritter
Yes.
Aaron Caro
He goes talking back.
Matt Ritter
Don't talk to me, Daddy.
Aaron Caro
Oh, man.
Matt Ritter
Yeah, we're in the. No talking. No talking.
Aaron Caro
Yeah, man. That ship is the only time I
Matt Ritter
get to talk during the week. You're the only one who'll let me talk even then.
Aaron Caro
And this is under duress. So it's March. What a terrible way. But it is. It's March. Almost April.
Matt Ritter
Oh, yeah. So this is big. You know, we coined this. When did we coin this phrase? Was it three years ago now?
Aaron Caro
It was. It was before we were on the Today show. I believe it was early 2023.
Matt Ritter
So we coined this term. It's called friendship cuffing season. As you all know, there is a romantic cuffing season. Traditionally, would you say, I don't know, Thanksgiving, or would you say a little earlier is when romantic cuffing season begins? It's when the weather gets cold and you got to find somebody to cuff up with for the Long, lonely winter, especially in cold cities.
Aaron Caro
Yeah.
Matt Ritter
Would you say when would you. When would you put the starting point on cuffing season?
Aaron Caro
I'd say, I say as soon as you put the Halloween costumes away.
Matt Ritter
So November, Early November. And so we came up with a term friendship cuffing season, which we consider springtime, because when the weather gets nice and people are getting outside and they start booking things up on their calendar, and they're a lot more open to friendship. And, you know, I always say you never really want to have. You never want to play Frisbee alone. Right. You don't want to be the guy throwing a Frisbee to himself, you know, in Central Park. So we think it's really important to, you know, name these things to put some structure to them to help you go, okay, it's March, time for me to look at the calendar and, you know, try to build on some of these friendships before I'm, you know, I have nobody to do summer weekend things with or weekday or, you know, the movies on the roof or the happy hours or, you know, all the things that people do when the weather's nice, they just get more social. Right. I mean, that's just the fact. People get more social when the weather's nice. We want you to prepare for that and start thinking friendship cuffing season is upon us.
Aaron Caro
Speaking of weather real quick, Matt, last month in February, sort of end of January, was that insane cold, like, thing throughout the United states, except for LA, which was 87 degrees.
Matt Ritter
Yeah.
Aaron Caro
Like, how many screenshots did you send of, like, whether the weather app to friends? I just love doing that.
Matt Ritter
Oh, yeah. I mean, I was, like, walking around in shorts, which I don't normally do, but then if I know they're called, I should wear shorts.
Aaron Caro
Yeah, it's. It's. I feel like. Because, yeah, I mean, it was. We've had some bad winters. I mean, la. Bad winters. And this is this one. It's been great.
Matt Ritter
No, it's been amazing.
Aaron Caro
I like what you said. I think another way to frame it is that this is a good time to take stock.
Matt Ritter
Take stock.
Aaron Caro
Like, it's. It's March, April. What is your friendship universe looking like? Like, what is your summer looking like? Are there some people that maybe you haven't reached out to yet that you were going to. Are there some potential fringe friends which are acquaintances whose name, you know, that you haven't level up yet? This would be a good time to do it because, like, you said, Al. Free me if you mentioned this, Matt, but, like, once school Ends. You know, people start summer hours and they travel and they're just, like, gone.
Matt Ritter
Yeah. The calendar. Let's call it the great calendar grab.
Aaron Caro
Okay.
Matt Ritter
Oh.
Aaron Caro
Ooh.
Matt Ritter
Yeah. And I think part of the great calendar grab is it's not. Just hear me out on this. Tell me if you agree. It's not just that people's calendars get full. They sort of choose their summer crew or cruise. What do you think about that?
Aaron Caro
Yeah, I mean, like, you, the people. Because we talk about be the friend people are going to make plans with the people who've reached out to them already, also their existing friend groups.
Matt Ritter
Right. But I think summer is like its own subset of like, okay, you're in my summer crew. Or like, you know. You know what I mean? Like, where it's not as inclusive as maybe the rest of the year. Like, I think things tighten a little. Even though you go out more, maybe. I think, you know, there's a lot more, you know, like you said, the calendar gets. Gets tighter. And I think sometimes people go. This is the people I'm doing my summer thing with. Right. Group trips.
Aaron Caro
Yeah. You know, people get houses with people. People. The kids are friends.
Matt Ritter
Right. So I think, you know, let's back up. You know, guys, we're here every week to help you understand that you need to be consistent with this stuff, and we're giving you tips. And, you know, New Year's wasn't that long ago, but it's also now March almost. You know, we're getting to that time of year. It's almost April, and it's like, oh, almost half the year is gone. I guess I missed out. You didn't miss anything. Right. You still have the full year ahead of you. But again, we like to take stock on a more regular basis. That's why we're taking stock now. We took stock in January. How are you doing? Have you been listening to anything? Have you implemented any of it? And if you have, then maybe you already have people that you've already set plans with for summer, or maybe you have people that you have in mind. And now that's when we're going to go, hey, so let's try and kind of lock in some people to cuff with.
Aaron Caro
The other thing is that I just want to point our listeners to our episode this time last year, which is episode 124, Q1 check, in which we just talked about a few of the best practices to see how your friendship is going. The other things we talked about for cuffing season is that people are a little Bit more dtf. Down to friend.
Matt Ritter
Yes.
Aaron Caro
Because the summer is getting, you know, like, like you said, the. The sun is going down later. People are in a better mood also. People.
Matt Ritter
Yeah.
Aaron Caro
You always talk about body language. Like people's. Like, you're not wearing giant puffer coats.
Matt Ritter
Yeah.
Aaron Caro
Bundle up. You're. You're out. Like your scapulas retracted.
Matt Ritter
Yeah.
Aaron Caro
A crooked man.
Matt Ritter
Yeah. Yeah. So that's all gonna happen. But the draft for it happens now. Let's think of it that way.
Aaron Caro
Yes. Yes.
Matt Ritter
Like, this is your, you know, like in the NBA, they draft in June, but the season starts in fall or, you know, like October. So, yeah, you know, cuffing season is upon us, but now we have to find the people to go do these things with.
Aaron Caro
I think one thing, I think we should also talk about one of our main tenets. Find your golf. Right. So we've, me and Matt, we always talk about, like, what do you actually like doing? Forget about making a friend or doing whatever. Like, what is your golf? Like, what is the activity you like doing? And are you going to do it this summer? You know, like.
Matt Ritter
Yeah, I was going to say, what do you think about this? I thought of this last night. I don't know if we've. I don't know if we've talked about circulating things enough to your. To your actual existing friends or even acquaintances. Like things that you're thinking about doing. Right. I don't know. For some reason this was relevant because of our basketball league started not really working on Wednesdays because it was too dark out and it was on the roof. So now we're kind of recirculating for the group. Like, hey, what would make it easier for everybody to show? Is it a different day of the week or do we need to be indoors or do we just need to wait till it gets lighter out? So is there something to be said for kind of circulating, you know, ideas now about, hey, what's. If I hosted a monthly barbecue or something? Like, I don't know, you know what I'm saying? Like, is there any. Any benefits to circulating it to the group? Your ideas now about what you're thinking you want summer to look like as a, as. As a friend. As a friend group is.
Aaron Caro
Is, by the way, is there. Is it. Is the court lit?
Matt Ritter
So here's the issue. Well, the court is lit, but the end of the courts is so far removed from the fence where the lights are. It's. It's almost like it doesn't do anything. Like the lights are at the Border of the entire fence line. But the court is not all the way to the fence line. The court is like 30ft in on each side.
Aaron Caro
So basically not lit.
Matt Ritter
It's not lit.
Aaron Caro
Yeah, yeah, yeah. God, that's not lit.
Matt Ritter
It's not lit for basketball. You know what I mean? It's not lit for basketball.
Aaron Caro
Basketball is dangerous to play if it's not that lit.
Matt Ritter
Exactly. So we've been in a little bit of a. It's coming back now. But I'm just, you know, just my point being, I was like, what am I doing wrong? I'm like, oh, well, why don't I circulate it? I don't know what people want.
Aaron Caro
Yeah. I mean, and that. That also was circulating to people who you're already in the gang with. I wonder if there's a version of that circulation to maybe more fringe friends or people. You don't ex. Have it existing.
Matt Ritter
That's what I'm asking. Because I think you're right. That's the harder one. So how do you do that? That's the question, I think. Think.
Aaron Caro
You know. Hama, Hamad. Are you. Are you on WhatsApp?
Matt Ritter
Yeah, I use WhatsApp a lot more than I used to, actually.
Aaron Caro
Yeah. Like, with all these WhatsApp, like, communities. And like, I'm in this WhatsApp of like, New York to New York and LA. I don't know if you've heard of that. And like, people will just be like, hey, I'm going to this concert on Tuesday. Anyone want to come? And I'm like, why would anyone go with this random person? And people are like, I'll go, I'll go, I'll go.
Matt Ritter
I'm like, that's great.
Aaron Caro
That's. That's literal circulation. Just throwing it out there in a group.
Matt Ritter
Yeah. The deals were like, hey, I do that. Like, hey, I don't want to grab lunch and larch models. Like, I'm around. Yeah, I think it's great for that. I think, look, we're trying to lower the barrier to yeses.
Aaron Caro
I'm trying to think, because I don't know if we talked about this. Like, I do, like, what you're saying. Like, you got to put it out in the ether of, like, you want to do X. Otherwise how would anybody even know that? Like, you know, if you were like, listen, I. I'm really looking to go to Medieval Times, and you bring it up in a couple random conversations at work or with a neighbor, and then eventually someone's going to be like, oh, I'll do that.
Matt Ritter
Yep.
Aaron Caro
Like people. I like the floating, the circulating, like nobody knows.
Matt Ritter
Can we put a pin? Because I think this question is my listener question is kind of relevant.
Aaron Caro
We'll be right back with a listener question.
Matt Ritter
How do you cash back with Chase Freedom Unlimited? What do you want for dinner? Whatever. I'm easy.
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Aaron Caro
Had it for lunch.
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Mexican?
Matt Ritter
Yes, but not tonight.
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Chinese?
Matt Ritter
Pass. Japanese? Nah.
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Italian?
Matt Ritter
Eh. Indian? Indian? How about Masala place? Um, whatever. I'm Izzy.
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Aaron Caro
Earn 3% cash back on dining with Chase Freedom Unlimited. Chase make more of what's yours. Restrictions and limitations apply. Cards are issued by JP Morgan Chase Bank, NA Member ftic.
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The Bleacher Report app is your destination for sports right now. The NBA is heating up, March Madness is here, and MLB is almost back. Every day there's a new headline, a new highlight, a new moment you've got to see for yourself. That's why I stay locked in with the Bleacher Report app. For me, it's about staying consistent, connected to my sports. I can follow the teams I care about, get real time scores, breaking news and highlights all in one place. Download the Bleacher Report app today so you never miss a moment.
Alex Canceroitz
Hi, this is Alex Canceroitz. I'm the host of Big Technology Podcast, a longtime reporter and an on air contributor to cnbc. And if you're like me, you're trying to figure out how artificial intelligence is changing the business world and our lives. So each week on Big Technology, I bring on key actors from companies building AI tech and outsiders trying to influence it, asking where this is all going. They come from places like Nvidia, Microsoft, Amazon and plenty more. So if you want to be smart with your wallet, your career choices, in meetings with your colleagues and at dinner parties, listen to Big Technology Podcast wherever you get your podcasts.
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Bleacher Report Announcer
Until the season changes and suddenly you lose your motivation to get out of bed. In fact, one in five people experience some form of depression no matter the season or time of year.
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At the American Psychiatric association foundation, our vision is to build a mentally healthy nation for all. Because we want you to live your best life and be your best you all year round.
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Please visit mentallyhealthynation.org to learn more.
Aaron Caro
Okay guys, this is asking for a friend. If you have a friendship question, question or ethical dilemma, send it to us on Instagram. Our handle is man of the Year podcast and we can anonymize it if you'd like. Matt Take it away.
Matt Ritter
Hey, Matt and Caro. I thought you guys would like this. I came up with a term that I think is happening to me. It's March, and I'm feeling like group chats are happening and trips are getting floated and barbecues and beach weekends are quietly getting planned, and I'm not getting the text. Am I getting, quote, friendship benched for summer?
Aaron Caro
Friendship benched.
Matt Ritter
I like friendship bench, don't you? That's interesting. I mean, I. I'm not sorry to laugh at the listener. I'm just. Actually, I feel like they would appreciate the laugh because they said, like, I think you guys would, like, they know Caro is the creator of isms and sayings and things, so this is a Karo special. He.
Aaron Caro
He's on the friendship injured reserve, but he doesn't know it.
Matt Ritter
Friendship benched. Oh, that is. Oof. That is genius.
Aaron Caro
No, now, my first question is, how does he know?
Matt Ritter
I mean, you know.
Aaron Caro
You know when you see. When you see an Instagram while your friends are at a beach house and you're like, you know.
Matt Ritter
Yeah, we're all. The beach house. You know. You know, when they, like, suddenly, like, the ratio of text just goes to a creature screeching halt. And, like.
Aaron Caro
Yeah.
Matt Ritter
Yes. You see pics of those other friends doing stuff.
Aaron Caro
Yeah, yeah.
Matt Ritter
You know, and, like, nobody's addressing it, but you just feel something forming, and you're, like, not in the starting lineup.
Aaron Caro
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Matt Ritter
We're, like, not getting looped in, and it's, like, getting too close to the time to have been invited something, you know? Like, we all know that, right? Where it's like, oh, that person's wedding is in six months. I'm not invited.
Aaron Caro
I like that because, yeah, there is this idea of, like, you kind of got them. You're not, like, being unfriended. It's just like, we're starting somebody else now.
Matt Ritter
Exactly. Like, like, Tibs didn't call you into the locker room and tell you you just. They blew the whistle and you weren't in the game.
Aaron Caro
Yeah, yeah, right, Exactly.
Matt Ritter
We haven't been unfriended, you know?
Aaron Caro
Yeah.
Matt Ritter
But I think the question is what to do about it, right?
Aaron Caro
Number one, are we, like, your friends aren't mind mirrors. Maybe you fell off the group text, Maybe, like, oh, I thought you didn't want to go, you know? Oh, it's more of a couple's thing. Oh, you don't like hanging out with kids? Like, assumptions could be made, Right.
Matt Ritter
Friends are mind readers. We say it every week.
Aaron Caro
You Know also, like, I had a friend who. Who was it? They have an Android. And he's like, yeah, I. Why'd you guys stop texting me? I'm like, you're on the text thread. You're just not getting them.
Matt Ritter
Do they not get text on threads? I'm so confused about how that works.
Aaron Caro
I don't think Android people, like, really exist, you know?
Matt Ritter
Yeah. I haven't been able to figure out how the communications work between the phones ever, and I never will.
Aaron Caro
I don't know if you were as close with him, but early Fireball, Adam had an Android, and I was like, why? Like, why are you. Why are you doing this to yourself?
Matt Ritter
So, okay, so let's address, right? Go ahead.
Aaron Caro
Yeah. One thing I would make sure is that. Okay, make sure it's actually happening.
Matt Ritter
Right? But when you say, make sure it's actually happening, like, you know, you're not going to go out and say, hey, am I getting iced out here?
Aaron Caro
Right? Well, I guess if it's something where your other friends. You're like, how come you didn't tell me about this? You could. You could possibly say you're saying just. Or, how do you. How do you bring yourself into it? Well, it all comes back to the number one.
Matt Ritter
I think you could say, has anybody got any plans specifically? Like, does anybody have anything on the summer agenda? Anyone you don't want to go in on? How, you know, like, whatever it is that you're thinking about, say it.
Aaron Caro
Well, that second part is the opinion. The operational. The op. What's the. What's the word? The operational phrase? Be the friend.
Matt Ritter
Operative. The operative.
Aaron Caro
Operative. Operative. Thank you. That's the number one tenant of the entire podcast, which is be the friend. Which is that, like, are you just sitting back while other people make plans? Well, why are they including you, then? Like, what are you doing for the summer? Are you getting a house? Are you planning a weekend? Are you getting tickets for Broadway show?
Matt Ritter
Well, can we back up for one sec? Do you believe that, like, quote, unquote, real friends automatically should include you in everything?
Aaron Caro
Well, we have talked about this. No, I mean, no. I mean, you do plenty of stuff without me. You do a couple stuff. You do kids stuff.
Matt Ritter
Right. I just don't think it's other people's obligation to always include you in everything and, you know, look, ideally, yeah, all your, you know, quote, unquote, good friends will include you and everything you want to be included in. But as you said, they may not even know you want to be included in that thing. For a variety of reasons or I hate to say it, the numbers may not work.
Aaron Caro
Numbers may not work. But if numbers don't. Don't work, you know, last one in, first one out, you know, you don't just cut anybody. You cut the one you don't want to. You know, you're not cutting me.
Matt Ritter
You're true, right? No. You got to know where you stand in. In friendship. Like it. There is something to be this K Rose. Like, you got to be self aware. You got to know where you stand. And sometimes this is a sign of like where I stand. I was like, oh, are we best friends? Well, if we were best friends, they would have maybe thought about me for this summer house that three other couples are in on, you know, but that is like when you are the planner and you are making the plans less likely to have that happen and you get to choose who's in your circle. So that's why I've always been a big fan of, you know, being the. You know, Jesse's a big planner. We're both big hosts. Hard to get iced out of things. You know, maybe you won't get to some specific thing that somebody else is doing, but you're crafting your own destiny.
Aaron Caro
No one can exclude you if you're making the plans.
Matt Ritter
Except if nobody comes and then they throw another party and then you're.
Aaron Caro
Nobody's arrival party. There was an episode. God, it's a deep cut of Married with Children. I know one of your favorite shows. Peg and Al went away. And what were the kids names?
Matt Ritter
Bud and Peggy. Bud
Aaron Caro
Christine Applegate, whatever her name was. Which by the way, her. Do you watch Landman? Yeah, it's like, you know that the daughter character is the same as. As Kelly Bundy. Kelly Bundy. Kelly.
Matt Ritter
Oh, I can't believe.
Aaron Caro
So Kelly and Bud throw like an insane party and it like spirals out of control. And then there's like some like, you know, there's. You hear a news report like, parties are spreading along the eastern sea.
Matt Ritter
Oh, my God.
Aaron Caro
At least are starting back back parties to stop the parties from spreading. I just always remember that part.
Matt Ritter
That's hilarious.
Aaron Caro
The other thing is just another diagnosis here. Have you said no a lot? You know, as we know, I keep a list every year. Everyone I invited to my birthday party. It's my social inventory. My social.
Matt Ritter
Right.
Aaron Caro
You know, three years in a row, they don't come, you drop off.
Matt Ritter
Yeah, no, you're right. You could be the passive person where they're like, ah, he doesn't care he doesn't even care.
Aaron Caro
Yeah. Yeah. He doesn't even know. He doesn't even, like, have any talk.
Matt Ritter
Right, right. So, like, you go from being a core invite to, like, use the bonus, it becomes, like, whatever. So part of it is, like, claiming. Claiming your. Your stake, you know, like sticking your claim and your desire.
Aaron Caro
Yeah. I mean.
Matt Ritter
Right. It's positioning. It's a little bit of friendship positioning.
Aaron Caro
Let's.
Matt Ritter
If you're treating yourself like you're a free agent, you're not really on the team.
Aaron Caro
You can't just show up in the transfer portal without. I don't know.
Matt Ritter
Right.
Aaron Caro
I mean, Matt, should you. Should you recount the famous story of when I came back from the summer of, I don't know, 1996?
Matt Ritter
Oh, yeah.
Aaron Caro
Came up to the beach.
Matt Ritter
We're hanging out on the beach. And Caro goes, I drink now so you can invite me to things.
Alex Canceroitz
And we did.
Aaron Caro
It worked.
Matt Ritter
It worked.
Aaron Caro
And it probably wouldn't. And it wouldn't have been your fault if you hadn't, because how would you know?
Matt Ritter
Yeah, actually, it worked. It worked. And then a year later, we were not even. A year later, the thud heard around the world. They rode through a full bottle when the cops were chasing us. Full.
Aaron Caro
Full Budweiser, but heavy. But heavy cannon.
Matt Ritter
Yeah. So, look, I think what we're saying is, you know, whoever plans first wins, you know?
Aaron Caro
Yeah. I think you got to take some of this friendship benching into your own hands.
Matt Ritter
Yeah.
Aaron Caro
I think I focus a little too much on why it's happening and how to prevent it. But you're. You're. I think. Right. Just saying. Just. Just make your own plans and you'll be. You'll. You got to work your way back in the starting lineup.
Matt Ritter
Right. And I think a lot of times people get the regret, and it's like. Well, did you even act like you wanted to be, like, a core member of this crew, or are you only feeling the regret because you're seeing them do these things now?
Aaron Caro
Yeah. And also, are you fun? I don't know. That's what we try to. Are you. Are you a good time?
Matt Ritter
But that's why we always say go first. I mean, you know, it's like, that's the way. Showing up, being the friend. Like, we're not just saying this stuff because it's like a mantra or a cliche. We're saying it because we know that these are foolproof ways to make sure that you have ironclad good social fitness, and you have a calendar that is vibrant.
Aaron Caro
I Think, you know, bringing it back to cuffing season. Like, as the summer is coming, these plans are not going to come to you.
Matt Ritter
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. You know what? That's so right because so, so many times where it's like, man, I. You know, we're all in that thing. I'm like, man, I wish I even thought of that. Like, that would have been fun. Or, like, wish I knew about that. It's like, yeah, they're not always coming to you. They're not always coming to you. Go out. Reach out. Reach out to the people that you want to spend the summer and do things. You want to go skiing. Reach out to the friends that you know who ski. Be like, you know what? We're. I think we want to do that. So if you're. If you're making plans, I would love to be in or be like, we were looking at a house. Would you be interested? Do the work.
Aaron Caro
I like you break your skiing when it's like, our summer episode. But do we?
Matt Ritter
Yeah. I don't know why. Just because there's, like, a lot of people teaching their kids how to ski now, and I'm having, like, a bit of an existential crisis because Jesse and I don't ski. And, like, do I want to have my kids be skiers? Are they going to be missing out on something in life? I don't know.
Aaron Caro
Yeah, listen, we know skiing should be illegal. And yes, as you. As, you know, a couple. A couple winners ago, I went to my friend's Aspen ski house. Everyone went skiing. I went snowshoeing because I don't like skiing, and I never got invited back.
Matt Ritter
That's hilarious.
Aaron Caro
And. And you know what? Self awareness fair. That's their thing. That's their vibe, is like, we are big ski people. Like, okay. Wasn't for me.
Matt Ritter
Right? It's okay to not snow shoehorn yourself in there. Oh, man. Oh, Lord.
Aaron Caro
All right, I think we answered the question. I think we covered Baba. That was asking for a friend. If you have a friendship question, send it to us on Instagram. I just want to wish people, like, good cuffing season. I want to. I want to wish them luck and, like, going out there and making friends.
Matt Ritter
Yeah, let us know. Let us know how it goes.
Aaron Caro
Thank you so much for listening. Always remember, be good to yourself. Be good to your friends. Love you, buddy.
Matt Ritter
Love you, buddy.
Episode #178 – Cuffing Season 2026
Release Date: March 31, 2026
Hosts: Matt Ritter & Aaron Karo
In this lively episode, Matt Ritter and Aaron Karo dig into the concept of “friendship cuffing season,” a term they coined to describe the social equivalent of romantic cuffing season—but for friendships as the weather turns warmer. The duo discusses how spring is the perfect time to take stock of your friendships, lock in plans for summer, and “draft” your summer social crew. With a mix of comedy, practical advice, and relatable anecdotes, they help listeners proactively build their social calendars and address the challenges of feeling left out.
(09:10 – 11:10)
(12:28 – 13:40)
(11:48 – 13:10)
(15:18 – 19:22)
(21:50 – 33:36)
(25:44 – 32:34)
(15:41 – 16:57; 31:49 – 33:36)
On spring’s effect:
“People get more social when the weather’s nice. We want you to prepare for that and start thinking friendship cuffing season is upon us.” – Matt Ritter (11:10)
On “friendship benching”:
“You’re not being unfriended. It’s just like, ‘We’re starting somebody else now.’...You know, and nobody’s addressing it, but you just feel something forming, and you’re, like, not in the starting lineup.” – Aaron Karo & Matt Ritter (23:35)
Advice to the benched:
“Are you just sitting back while other people make plans? Well, why are they including you, then? Like, what are you doing for the summer? Are you getting a house? Are you planning a weekend?...Are you making the plans?” – Aaron Karo (25:44)
On FOMO and initiative:
“Well, did you even act like you wanted to be, like, a core member of this crew, or are you only feeling the regret because you’re seeing them do these things now?” – Matt Ritter (31:02)
Comedy moment:
Aaron’s “I drink now so you can invite me to things” story from their youth. (30:04)
The episode crackles with comedic banter, self-deprecation, pop culture references, and genuine friendship insights. Matt and Aaron keep the conversation relatable and light, using personal anecdotes, running jokes about social dynamics, and “isms” that make their advice both practical and memorable. Their energy and authenticity break down the barriers around male friendship, all while making listeners laugh and reflect.
Final words from the hosts:
“I just want to wish people, like, good cuffing season. I want to wish them luck and, like, going out there and making friends.” – Aaron Karo (33:36)
“Always remember, be good to yourself. Be good to your friends. Love you, buddy.” – Aaron Karo & Matt Ritter (33:39)