505 - Brief Recess

Summary

My Favorite Murder – Episode 505: "Brief Recess"

Release Date: November 6, 2025
Hosts: Karen Kilgariff & Georgia Hardstark
Guests: Michael Foote & Melissa Malbranche (hosts of the new podcast "Brief Recess")

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Episode Overview

This lively episode welcomes Michael Foote, a criminal defense and immigration attorney turned TikTok educator, and Melissa Malbranche, a nonprofit leader and activist, as they introduce their new legal podcast “Brief Recess” on the Exactly Right Network. The conversation blends classic MFM humor with frank discussion about legal literacy, personal experience, social change, and the quirks of daily life. Listeners are treated to in-depth discussions about anxiety, perimenopause, post-pandemic rage, direct action, legal realities, fat discrimination, and… mac and cheese preferences.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Meet Michael & Melissa, Hosts of ‘Brief Recess’

(02:10–02:40)

• Backgrounds: Michael is known for making the law accessible on TikTok and working as an attorney; Melissa is a senior nonprofit leader, “frustrated writer” and curly hair activist.
• Both share a commitment to actionable, hopeful change, bringing practical legal tips and advocacy to a broad audience.

2. Anxiety, Perimenopause, and Medical Neglect

(03:35–07:22)

• Ketamine Conversation: Michael discusses the benefits of ketamine therapy for his anxiety.
• Perimenopause Realism: Melissa shares, with candor and humor, the onset of intense perimenopausal anxiety and rage, the lack of medical research & social awareness, and generational silence around women’s health.
  • “I remember, you know, I went to my mom and I was just like, did you have this? No.” – Melissa (05:08)
• Historical Context: Tangents include theories tying menopause to accusations of witchcraft and the dismissal of women’s suffering.

3. Rage, Boundary Setting & Subway Stories

(07:32–08:39)

• Rage Amplified: Melissa recounts an altercation on the subway, where she and a man exchanged symbolic kicks after a minor accidental step—a moment fueled by heightened post-pandemic stress.
  • “By the time you get to your 50s, you are out of fucks. I am 53 years old. I am negative fucks again.” – Melissa (09:01)

4. Legal Deep Dives: Duty, Harm, and Symbolic Kicks

(09:26–10:36)

• Michael breaks down tort law in everyday terms, applying legal reasoning to subway disputes, and highlighting the limits of everyday civil action.

5. Pandemic Trauma & Social Behavior

(11:18–13:36)

• The guests reflect on how pandemic isolation has left people “still not okay,” fueling social friction, anxiety, and collective trauma.
  • “We just kind of walked out of it... That was traumatic.” – Georgia (11:39)
  • Discuss the eerie emptiness of NYC, return of wildlife (“Pizza rat took over”—13:00), and lasting distrust in leadership.

6. Podcast Mission: Actionable Legal Advice & Hope

(13:36–16:19)

• Avoiding Doom-Scrolling: Michael is adamant about not just reporting problems but attaching an actionable “what you can do” solution.
  • “Everything I do, there has to be a ‘this is what you can do’ button on the end of it.” – Michael (14:00)
• Melissa positions herself as the avatar of the regular listener, pushing for practical advice for non-lawyers.
  • “What can I actually do, right? As somebody, as a layperson, you know, somebody who has sort of average resources, right?” – Melissa (15:57)
• Discusses the inadequacy of “just write your congressman” and seeks concrete, empowering steps.

7. Action, Privilege & Protest

(17:22–24:38)

• Stories of ICE raids, legal advocacy, and knowing your limitations in protest.
  • “Know thyself is, like, the governing principle in everything I do... What can I do to help those people who don’t have those same privileges?” – Michael (22:30)
• Melissa empowers listeners to challenge everyday racism with discomfort (“make that person feel uncomfortable”—24:11).

8. Personal Stories: Friendship, Pets & Viral Moments

(19:12–20:41), (36:07–38:56)

• Pet tales (Mimi the cat, Jack the dog), chaotic best friends, and TikTok recognition in public.
• Banter about estate sales, vintage fur, and the ethics of secondhand luxury.

9. Making Law Accessible: Tales from the DMs & Digital Privacy

(31:02–32:46)

• Voicemails and DMs become fodder for legal mythbusting—yes, your DMs can be used as evidence!
  • “Oh, yeah, absolutely… So under the Fourth Amendment, anything you text or your phone records, you are technically sharing them with a third party, and you don’t have a right to privacy.” – Michael (31:46)

10. Fat Discrimination, Body Positivity & Social Change

(53:59–56:36)

• Michael and Melissa preview the next “Brief Recess” topic: fat discrimination, legal cases, and the lived experience of body shaming.
  • “I had weight loss surgery about 11 years ago... the world is not kind to fat people.” – Melissa (54:24)
  • Both celebrate the generational shift toward body acceptance and critique old diet culture.

11. Segment: Pick A Side

(42:31–47:15; 59:34–66:02)

• Kraft vs. Velveeta Mac and Cheese
  • Michael delivers an over-the-top lawyerly defense of Velveeta.
  • Melissa: “I hate them both. But... there is a certain level of creaminess to the Velveeta shells…” (45:09)
• Bathing: To Shower or Not To Shower After a Bath?
  • Michael: “We are all post-bath, shall we?” (62:09)
  • Georgia: adamantly does NOT shower after (“I've cleaned myself!” – 62:17)
  • Delighted banter about generational and cultural differences in bathing.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments (with Timestamps)

• “By the time you get to your 50s, you are out of fucks. I am 53 years old. I am negative fucks again.” – Melissa (09:01)
• “Everything I do, there has to be a ‘this is what you can do’ button on the end of it. I don’t want any more doom scrolling.” – Michael (14:00)
• “Write your congressman. All right, sure. Yes, that bitch.” – Melissa (15:44)
• “We just kind of walked out of it... That was traumatic.” – Georgia (11:39)
• “My favorite thing to do is to make that person feel uncomfortable.” – Melissa (24:11)
• “We’re not taking advice from England on hygiene...” – Michael, on the bath versus shower debate (61:03)
• “As someone with very thick hair, I can’t wash my hair in a bathtub.” – Karen (63:14)

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Essential Segment Timestamps

• Guest introductions & show premise: 02:10–03:12
• Perimenopause, anxiety & medical neglect: 03:35–07:22
• Symbolic subway kick & legal analysis: 07:32–10:36
• Pandemic trauma: 11:18–13:36
• Why “Brief Recess” is different: 13:36–16:19
• Actionable protest & privilege: 17:22–24:38
• Challenging racism via awkward confrontation: 24:11–26:50
• “Pick a Side”: Kraft vs. Velveeta: 42:31–47:15
• Body positivity & fat discrimination: 53:59–56:36
• Bath vs. shower debate: 59:34–66:02
• Outro & how to connect: 66:03–68:18

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Episode Tone & Style

True to the MFM ethos, the episode is a blend of irreverent comedy, candid storytelling, dark and light, with frequent detours—tangents about pets, snacks, vintage fur, and TikTok lawyering temper more serious reflective moments. Michael and Melissa mesh easily with Karen and Georgia, delivering both legal expertise and the unfiltered, conversational warmth fans love.

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Summary for New Listeners

If you’re new to "My Favorite Murder" or just tuning in, this episode delivers what longtime fans love: sharp wit, emotional honesty, and fresh voices examining the complex intersection of law, life, and social change through laughter and lived experience. Michael and Melissa preview a show where legal knowledge is practical and activism is hopeful, not simply overwhelming. Coping with rage, finding courage to act, and decoding the law—plus mac and cheese hot takes—make this a must-listen for anyone craving both laughter and empowerment.

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Stay sexy and don’t get murdered—and check out “Brief Recess” on November 13th for more candid, hilarious, and practical legal conversation.

Transcript

[Karen Kilgariff]

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[Georgia Hardstark]

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[Georgia Hardstark]

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[Karen Kilgariff]

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[Georgia Hardstark]

That's B O M B A S.com mfm code mfm at checkout. Goodbye. Hello and welcome to my Favorite murder. That's Georgia Hartstart, that's Karen Kilgariff and.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Today we have two very impressive guests on the show. He is an immigration and criminal defense attorney who you might know from TikTok. She is a senior leader in the nonprofit world and a self professed frustrated writer, fledgling wedding officiant and curly hair activist.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Correct.

[Georgia Hardstark]

And they're here to talk about their brand new legal podcast which debuts in mere days here on Exactly Right Network. Please welcome all the way from New York City the hosts of Brief Recess, Michael Foote and Melissa Malbranch.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Hi.

[Michael Foote]

Hi, everyone. Big reveal. The wig comes off just now.

[Karen Kilgariff]

We know.

[Melissa Malbranche]

And here we go.

[Michael Foote]

Yeah. Hi. Thank you for having us.

[Melissa Malbranche]

We're so excited to be here. Really.

[Karen Kilgariff]

We're thrilled to have you. Thrilled to have you.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Thank you.

[Karen Kilgariff]

In a time like this, I think we should go back to the ketamine conversation we were just having.

[Georgia Hardstark]

We're just trying to. Ketamine Karen.

[Michael Foote]

We've been calling her Ketamine Karen. She's in the studio.

[Karen Kilgariff]

She's on it right now.

[Georgia Hardstark]

We're gonna do the first live podcast, Ketamine Treatment.

[Michael Foote]

I actually grew up with horses, so it is a very apt conversation. It's a horse tranquilizer that humans have, you know, appropriated.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Yeah. Like they do for everything.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Right.

[Melissa Malbranche]

That's true.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Horse appropriation.

[Michael Foote]

Look to the white man in the room to be like, let's talk about appropriation. Let's talk about what they do best. Horse culture. Reappropriating it for my club. My circuit party.

[Karen Kilgariff]

For your club nights.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Yeah.

[Michael Foote]

No. Ketamine therapy is what I've been doing, and it's incredible. It's helped with, like, deep anxiety, I think. Like, I used to get really bad panic attacks and just sort of, like, shifted the way I sort of, like, perceive myself when I'm, like, experiencing anxiety. Do you get anxiety? You're always, like, the cool, calm, collected one.

[Melissa Malbranche]

I will say that historically, I have not had anxiety, but perimenopause. That bitch. Let me tell you something. And since really. And since then, my anxiety is ridiculous, and it's about anything. It could be about anything, about nothing. Right. And I was actually going through my text messages looking for something, and I found a thread between my cousin and I where I was saying to her that I had just come back from my gynecologist, who said to me, I think you're in perimenopause in 2017. I am still there.

[Georgia Hardstark]

You're not on any. Are you on anything?

[Melissa Malbranche]

Oh, yes. Oh, I got my ketamine, I got my patch, but I'm not on.

[Michael Foote]

Not on ketamine yet.

[Melissa Malbranche]

I am on the patch, but I'm not on ketamine. And I feel like the anxiety is such that it can almost paralyze you.

[Michael Foote]

Yes. I've been there.

[Melissa Malbranche]

And I think for me, what was so surprising is that I didn't know what was happening to me, so I just thought I was going crazy.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Right.

[Melissa Malbranche]

No.

[Michael Foote]

I remember when you and I were connecting a couple years ago when this was Starting to happen.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Yep.

[Michael Foote]

And you were like, I actually think I'm going insane.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Well, they didn't talk about it in 2017. It's just now that we're finding out this huge explosion.

[Melissa Malbranche]

And I remember, you know, I went to my mom and I was just like, did you have this? No.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Yep.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Same time my mom.

[Georgia Hardstark]

My mom never had turns out.

[Melissa Malbranche]

No.

[Karen Kilgariff]

They just got hot every once in a while. Other than that, it was hot.

[Michael Foote]

Can we turn the air on? I'm sorry. Can we get the air?

[Georgia Hardstark]

Actually, yes. I'm so hot.

[Melissa Malbranche]

But it's. What. Interestingly, I remember when my mom. I didn't know what it was at the time.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Yes.

[Melissa Malbranche]

But I remember there was this period of time where I felt like my mother was going insane. Yes. And I remember saying that to my dad. I think something's wrong with Mom. And he was like, like what? And I was like, I don't know.

[Georgia Hardstark]

I'm a child.

[Melissa Malbranche]

I wasn't. I was in my 20s. But, like, she was acting so crazy, and she, in hindsight, I'm realizing, was having panic attacks, was having anxiety. It's when her claustrophobia really sort of exploded. She couldn't be.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Flashes, like, you can't explain that to who won't get them. That it does feel like claustrophobia a little bit. Like, you're just. You need to take off all of your clothes now. And you're angry about it.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Yes.

[Georgia Hardstark]

You're also very angry at it.

[Michael Foote]

I've been there. I'm not going through menopause, but I have angrily wanted to rip my clothes off.

[Melissa Malbranche]

I can remember one day, like, coming off of the subway, going into the office, and feeling like I was going to die. I went into the ladies room, I took off all my clothes and pressed my back up against. I swear to you, I pressed my back up against the stainless steel door. It felt so good because the heat is coming from inside the house. It's horrific.

[Karen Kilgariff]

It's like what they say about you just can't control it in any way. And it is a surprise. The thing that's driving me crazy is now on TikTok, the big thing where they're talking about. Oh, in women's medicine, they've never done any research about the way ABCD. So this idea that now in 2025, we're suddenly talking about perimenopause and menopause is a disgrace.

[Melissa Malbranche]

It's.

[Karen Kilgariff]

It's insane.

[Michael Foote]

Well, historically, they would just be like, oh, you're crazy. Right. Why don't you just not be Crazy.

[Melissa Malbranche]

I had read this thing where they were talking about so fucked up, but, like, burning witches at the stake. And the women were usually, like, in their 40s.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Yeah.

[Melissa Malbranche]

So.

[Michael Foote]

Oh, my God.

[Melissa Malbranche]

I mean, again, I don't know.

[Michael Foote]

I mean, it was. Yeah.

[Georgia Hardstark]

I mean, it fits.

[Melissa Malbranche]

But it fits, right? It kind of makes it. You're like, okay, that's what it is. Yeah.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Yeah, I know. I think about my mom, too, and, like, she had to get on, you know, antidepressants and anti anxiety and. Yeah, it was probably just hormones, but they didn't check that back then.

[Michael Foote]

Melissa called me one day, and she was like, I honestly am so filled with rage, I think. I don't know if this is attorney client confidentiality that I'm preaching right now.

[Melissa Malbranche]

I didn't do anything, so it's fine. But I wanted to.

[Michael Foote]

She was like, I actually am concerned about what I might do to someone. Like, I am so angry and like.

[Melissa Malbranche]

I mean, I don't know if this is sort of related, but a little bit. So a few months ago. Do you remember this? A few months ago, I was getting off the subway and I. Oh, we.

[Michael Foote]

Talked about this on the show. We talked about this on our podcast.

[Melissa Malbranche]

I accidentally stepped on the back of someone's foot, and I said, oh, excuse me. This man turned around and he kicked me. Wait, that's not even the worst part.

[Michael Foote]

And I was the first call. It was like, okay, assault on the subway. I kicked you. Let's file a suit. She.

[Melissa Malbranche]

But, like, that was a part of it. That, like, completely wrong.

[Georgia Hardstark]

You weren't wrong.

[Melissa Malbranche]

No, no. But, like, that is not who I am. I don't kick people. But I kicked this man back. And this other man behind me came. He was like, no, no, no, no. I didn't kick him too.

[Karen Kilgariff]

The other man.

[Michael Foote]

It was a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle moment.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Very gently touched me in the back and was like, don't do this. And now I'm like, he kicked me.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Oh, what an angel. That person.

[Melissa Malbranche]

I know.

[Michael Foote]

Let's de escalation.

[Melissa Malbranche]

So enraged. That has never been me before.

[Michael Foote]

No.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Right?

[Melissa Malbranche]

And I don't know if taraji Henson was on somebody's podcast and she said that she really feels that we are born with a certain amount of fucks to give. And by the time you get. Yes. And by the time you get to your 50s, you are out of fucks. I am 53 years old. I am negative fucks again.

[Karen Kilgariff]

So keep your feet to yourself.

[Michael Foote]

Keep your fucking feet to yourself. You're gonna lose a toe, bitch.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Watch Your mouth.

[Melissa Malbranche]

And I'm willing to go down like it's weir.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Instant violence.

[Georgia Hardstark]

What level of violence can you enact on someone who just kicked you without getting.

[Michael Foote]

Okay, so under tort law, you have a duty, breach, causation, and harm. So you have a duty to behave a certain way in society.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Okay.

[Michael Foote]

If there is a breach, such as someone kicks you, then that duty's been breached. It has to be the causation. You have to cause someone's harm. So the harm is usually damages. So in this situation, there were the harm. Sounds mostly emotional, I think, is what we can ascertain. So I would say that it probably wouldn't pass the SNF test. A tortoise, a civil suit. Usually there's some sort of documented medical.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Issue either way with her side or that man's side.

[Michael Foote]

It depends on the state. So this was in New York, so it depends. Contributory negligence. So if you were someone who contributed to the other person's harm and they harmed you as well, it kind of, like cancels out in some cases. So it sometimes comes out in the wash, but so would her flat tire.

[Karen Kilgariff]

And then the kick wash, then the exit kick. I need to know.

[Michael Foote]

The flat tire is technically not harms and damages.

[Melissa Malbranche]

I also apologize. Right. Like, it wasn't just like. I was like, no, that was.

[Georgia Hardstark]

You were at zero.

[Michael Foote]

That was a curable. Yeah, we cured.

[Melissa Malbranche]

The other thing I will say is that, to be fair, neither one of us had any power behind the kick. I feel like the kick was symbolic.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Middle school, fifth graders. Yes, exactly.

[Georgia Hardstark]

I touched my best friend in high school, and I really didn't mean it like. So I didn't hurt her.

[Karen Kilgariff]

It just came out.

[Melissa Malbranche]

He didn't hurt me, and I didn't hurt him. I think I was just. I was so offended.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Right.

[Melissa Malbranche]

I was offended.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Symbolic kick.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Yes.

[Michael Foote]

Well, also, to go from okay, a slight accident to okay, intentional harm.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Yeah, right.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Violence. Such a crazy choice.

[Michael Foote]

That is a wild decision.

[Melissa Malbranche]

New York City in the morning on a commute. It's happened to all of us.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Right. It's like, get over yourself, asshole.

[Michael Foote]

Get over it.

[Karen Kilgariff]

But in these trying times.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Yes.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Are you seeing this? Is this a thing that's like an escalating thing where the normal interaction would have been no problem from that guy.

[Michael Foote]

Yes.

[Karen Kilgariff]

But now everyone is under this insane.

[Melissa Malbranche]

I will say, do you think this. I feel like we are still not okay from the pandemic. Right.

[Michael Foote]

I was just gonna bring up Ms. Pandemic.

[Georgia Hardstark]

We just kind of walked out of it.

[Michael Foote]

She was like, yeah, we were like, okay, back to work, divas. Like, we weren't like, oh, we should all probably go to therapy.

[Georgia Hardstark]

That was traumatic.

[Melissa Malbranche]

It was really traumatizing. Right. I mean, we were stuck inside the house and it felt like. And it's easy, I think, to look back on and be, okay. We made it out relatively. But in the very beginning, it felt like the zombie apocalypse was upon us.

[Michael Foote]

Right.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Very scary.

[Georgia Hardstark]

A pizza delivery was going to kill us. Like, that's the thing. We all thought we were going to die.

[Karen Kilgariff]

We were wiping down cereal boxes, leaving the mail outside.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Right.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Like, you know, it was, it was. And you know, and it didn't help that the commander in chief at the time, whatever, how you feel in the very beginning, did not take it seriously enough. And there were a lot of people that we thought we could trust who were saying, it's like getting a cold.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Yeah, that's it.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Yeah, yeah.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Do we know this?

[Georgia Hardstark]

I know, right?

[Melissa Malbranche]

Exactly.

[Michael Foote]

So I remember when we were watching Italy, we were like, oh. And it was. We were watching what was happening.

[Georgia Hardstark]

The bodies, like stacked up in the Brazil.

[Melissa Malbranche]

It was awful.

[Michael Foote]

And in New York, there were choppers overhead 24 7. So it was like living in empty, Saving Private Ryan situation.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Empty. The streets were so empty. And it was bizarre. And I also think what's interesting, like, you also saw that, like, wildlife came back around, right?

[Georgia Hardstark]

Like.

[Michael Foote]

Pizza rat took over. Yes.

[Melissa Malbranche]

The water was cleaner because as you.

[Michael Foote]

We were drinking from the East River.

[Karen Kilgariff]

It was a beautiful time.

[Georgia Hardstark]

It was.

[Melissa Malbranche]

It was a magical time.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Right.

[Karen Kilgariff]

I'd never seen out my front window, I have a beautiful view of the valley and it was crystal clear. I could see so far that I was like, what is that mountain over there? I've never seen that before.

[Melissa Malbranche]

I mean, it just shows you, like, we are the problem.

[Michael Foote]

Right?

[Georgia Hardstark]

100%.

[Michael Foote]

We are the problem.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Human beings are the problem.

[Georgia Hardstark]

It's us.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Whether it's on the subway or up where the view is.

[Melissa Malbranche]

It's all of it. We are the problem.

[Karen Kilgariff]

It's true.

[Georgia Hardstark]

My God.

[Karen Kilgariff]

How are you guys gonna solve that problem on your podcast?

[Michael Foote]

Yeah. So anyway, yes, actually, we have a 10 step plan. 10 starts with make it 2, 10 toes down. Kicking people on the subway is the whole plan. But yeah, so we're excited about this show. I mean, we actually are approaching a lot of these issues on the podcast. I. For the people who maybe know me from the Internet, maybe they don't. Everything I do, there has to be a this is what you can do button on the end of it. I don't want any more doom scrolling. I don't want any more think pieces about fascism. It's not interesting to me. It is depressing. Speaking of ketamine and it's just not something I'm interested in consuming anymore. And I just feel there's like this. I'm not a journalist, but I am like a citizen who has at least some knowledge of what folks can do to flex their democratic muscles to combat what's going on in this country. I do a lot of work with immigration advocacy. So a lot of what I do is like, okay, this is literally what you can do from your sofa right now. If this is pissing you off, if this is bothering you. So we don't cover any fucking story that doesn't have something at the end where it's like, this is what you can do. If you didn't like this and you want to do something teaching moment, like a, like didactic, educational, like sit down and eat your vegetables situation. It's like, no, we're gonna talk to this congressman. And I think in the first episode we talked to a congressman. And I'm like, dude, what is the literal to do list of what you are doing to fix this?

[Georgia Hardstark]

It's overwhelming. It is very overwhelming, especially on social media. It's like, no, that person was wrong. You have to do this. No, this person is wrong. You have to do that. This is, you know, and it's just you don't know where to start.

[Melissa Malbranche]

And I think the great thing is that because Michael is an attorney, he sort of understands the law. I am not though. So I feel like maybe I can represent like most people in the audience, right? So I'll ask him a question like, okay, that's great for you as an attorney to go in and help one person. What can I do? What can I do? And I think a lot of us have grown weary of hearing this advice of like, well, write your congressman. All right, sure. Yes, that bitch.

[Michael Foote]

What the fuck is.

[Georgia Hardstark]

No, what is this, the fucking Victorian writing party?

[Michael Foote]

Write a letter, a 19th century Russia.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Sternly worded, stamp it with your Anna.

[Michael Foote]

Karenina letters on a train.

[Melissa Malbranche]

But what can I actually do, right? As somebody, as a layperson, you know, somebody who has sort of average resources, right? And like, I don't have a huge social media presence, but what can I do? What are the conversations that I could have with people? And I think, you know, at the end we're all looking for hope, right? But real hope, not like airy fairy.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Do you know what I mean?

[Melissa Malbranche]

Like, I Hate, Like, I hate that. Like, well, you could just sort of, like, I love my family very much, but, like.

[Michael Foote]

I love a qualified standout.

[Melissa Malbranche]

No, no, no. You have to say it right. But, like, a lot of the times, and if you are. We have WhatsApp groups, and I think this is like, a very sort of immigrant sort of situation. There's a family WhatsApp group.

[Michael Foote]

Melissa's family's from Haiti.

[Melissa Malbranche]

From Haiti. And they are big prayers, right? They love to pray. They love a good saint.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Yes.

[Karen Kilgariff]

My family.

[Melissa Malbranche]

What I get really frustrated at is, like, you know, God is in charge. That's great. That's great. If you are a believer, not everybody is. And that's also okay, but what can I do?

[Michael Foote]

We also have, like, non deities in charge, too, who have responsibilities in the.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Meantime, because it seems like there's, like, kind of a disconnect. The Internet connection isn't great between us and, like, you know, God.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Right?

[Georgia Hardstark]

So, like, in the meantime.

[Melissa Malbranche]

In the meantime, dialect is getting correct. What can we actually do? What is, you know, what is one thing that I can do? Right? Like an individual thing.

[Michael Foote]

That's how I mean, the podcast kind of came together was because Melissa and I would sort of get together and we'd be like, what are we? What is going on? What can we do? And we would kind of talk about it, especially around, like, the Black Lives Matter movement. We were sort of figuring out, like, and those were the dark days of the pandemic first year. What can we do? How can we be safe? How can we. What can we do if we get arrested? What happens if something goes down at a protest? Like, people were getting beaten in, strange for no reason. So we were kind of looking at each other as just as dear friends.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Know each other for years. What do we do? What do we do? How do we help?

[Michael Foote]

So that was really, like, when we came into the show, we were like, all right, that is the governing principle. That is our guiding light.

[Georgia Hardstark]

I love that because it's like, when two people who agree completely talk, it's like, now turn to us. And that's a podcast, you know, Exactly. Like, we love True crime together. Let's fucking talk to each other about it.

[Karen Kilgariff]

It makes me, I think, though, about the amazing no Kings protests. But then, of course, the two, three days later, what you start to hear on social media is like, protests don't do anything. Marches don't do anything. And it's like, just as a person who isn't. I grew up in the 80s and 90s where political action Was not cool. It was like, you don't talk about that. That's for those people that went to the student UN or whatever. And everybody else needs to be rock and roll. And you're watching, you know, the fall of democracy kind of in front of you. And me seeing that, where I'm like, that feels like a bad faith voice that's now in here when clearly, that was powerful and huge. And then you see the ice raids and you see these people being taken and the rest of the community just coming right up and around, and then they walk away. And I'm like, that's what it does.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Right?

[Melissa Malbranche]

And that is the best part about it.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Right.

[Michael Foote]

It's so funny. I mean, my husband and I, we go. We take the dog for a walk every night, and we have, like, a debrief. We do, like, our daily sort of, like, debrief.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Love it.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Is it one of those dogs on your shirt?

[Michael Foote]

Jack.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Jack is a bad dog.

[Michael Foote]

Jack is a bad.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Jack is a very bad dog. I love it.

[Michael Foote]

He's wanted in all 50 states. Sexual offender, Megan's Law. Just humping strangers and dogs in the store. Like. He is a wild animal. He is a rescue. He lives with two men for a reason. Because he can't handle any other situation. And he's 13, going.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Losing his mind.

[Michael Foote]

Dementia. Yeah, just.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Did he have dementia?

[Michael Foote]

Yeah. Oh, yeah. He's starting a sunset at night.

[Georgia Hardstark]

He just.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Oh, my God.

[Michael Foote]

But he's. I love him.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Yeah, of course you do.

[Michael Foote]

He's becoming even more adorable and endearing as he just becomes, like, this, like, crusty goblin and is just, like, wandering around the house late at night, just.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Like, I have a senile cat. And she screams, mimi, Mimi.

[Michael Foote]

Just for me.

[Melissa Malbranche]

How old is Mimi?

[Georgia Hardstark]

She's like, 16.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Okay.

[Georgia Hardstark]

And she's going through it, and people keep giving us catnip toys shaped in knives. Like, bloody knives and axes. So she carries a bloody knife around the house screaming, I don't know. Sorry, this is not here or there.

[Karen Kilgariff]

This is not you. She's pitching you.

[Michael Foote]

Her new horror movie is coming from inside the house.

[Georgia Hardstark]

I know, I know.

[Karen Kilgariff]

The irony of being killed by a cat is so sad.

[Georgia Hardstark]

I'd kind of be okay with that.

[Michael Foote]

That's actually. That's probably in Final Destination 3 or something. Yeah. Like, the cat comes out of nowhere.

[Georgia Hardstark]

You're walking your dog.

[Michael Foote]

We go on these walks and we sort of debrief, like. And we were talking about the New Kings protest, and I was like, like, brad, like, what did it do? Why is this important? And he's much more emotionally stable than I am. And he was like, think about the impression that made on everyone. Not the president, everyone else in a elected position in government. Saw this outcry, saw all these people coming out. And when you're looking at that crowd as an elected official who isn't in the White House, you're seeing the people who are going to vote or not in this election. That is the real power of something like that.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Interesting. Yeah. What else does protesting do? That sounds so dorky, but I really wanna know. Cause I'm scared to go out in big crowds like that. And what's gonna happen? Is it smart to get in the middle of an ICE raid? Is it smart to. What should you do if you see that?

[Melissa Malbranche]

Yeah, that's a really good question. I asked that question, too. What do I do if ICE comes into my neighbor? What do I do if ICE comes to my workplace? What can I do? I mean, there's a part of me that feels like if they're in my neighborhood, I'm gonna go out and just start yelling, la Miguel. Immigration is here. Don't open your doors. Don't open your doors. Immigration. I feel safe doing that.

[Michael Foote]

The ACLU currently has a lawsuit up against this administration, against ice, because they are arresting American citizens now, and they're being held in detention centers, which is a clear violation of so many constitutional numbers.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Did you see that when they tried to.

[Georgia Hardstark]

The guy yelling, I'm from the Bronx. No, Brooklyn.

[Melissa Malbranche]

The guy from Brooklyn, he was like, brooklyn, I'm from Brooklyn.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Oh, my God.

[Melissa Malbranche]

This new. The New Yorker in me just. My heart just opened up. And he was just like, suck my dick.

[Georgia Hardstark]

He was love.

[Karen Kilgariff]

It was great. That and the girl in the polka dot dress who just.

[Michael Foote]

Oh, my God, that was so crazy.

[Melissa Malbranche]

With a double middle finger. Love her.

[Michael Foote]

For me, I'm just like. I mean, I always think know thyself is, like, the governing principle in everything I do. It's like, okay, I know I'm a white man. I'm usually in a suit and a tie. I'm usually at, like, an immigration courthouse. I am going to be the person who's in the middle. Like, that is how I need to exercise that privilege.

[Georgia Hardstark]

You can stand up.

[Michael Foote]

Yes, exactly. I get incredible privileges in life being a white man in a suit who has an education. I can walk right past security guards into any building or business in New York City. Security doesn't follow me around stores. Okay. I get all these fun privileges when I get pulled over. Nothing weird happens. Okay. What can I do to help those people who don't have those same privileges? So how can I intervene in that advertisement adversarial situation where someone's getting arrested?

[Georgia Hardstark]

How can we. Like, how can people like us.

[Michael Foote]

Yeah. So thinking a lot about, like, depending on the situation. Like, I can't advise people to break the law because I'll lose my license.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Come on, do it.

[Michael Foote]

No, but I mean, definitely attending protests, definitely contacting. It depends on the situation, too, right? I mean, there's this incredible image on TikTok of, like, a young girl in, like, a Pilates outfit with an iced coffee sitting down in front of a car that has migrants in it. It's just sitting in front of a car that's trying to drive away.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Wow.

[Melissa Malbranche]

People who've been to jail, I think you figure out what your comfort level is, right? And then maybe. And as time goes by, maybe you push it a little bit, right? So, you know, I think I said this on our show, right? I was talking to somebody, and I'm like, you know, if somebody says something in front of you that is clearly racist or xenophobic and they think it's a joke, my favorite thing to do is to make that person feel uncomfortable, Right?

[Michael Foote]

Oh, my God. This is the. Melissa does this, and she is an absolute fucking.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Oh, tell us.

[Melissa Malbranche]

I thought.

[Georgia Hardstark]

I'm.

[Melissa Malbranche]

No, I'm just saying. And I'm just like, oh, wait, I don't understand. Like, turn it around to me. I don't understand why that's.

[Michael Foote]

Someone will be like, well, because, you know. You know, they're.

[Melissa Malbranche]

You know, they're black or they're gay. And on the. I can whisper it and whisper it.

[Michael Foote]

You might be gay, and Melissa will be like, what? Sorry, I couldn't hear you. What was that?

[Melissa Malbranche]

I don't understand. Wait, so it's funny because of. And then eventually, yeah, the person is just, like, frozen, and they're just like, oh, no. I mean, so you.

[Michael Foote]

Someone at one point was like, melissa. Because they're, you know, touching their hand, their skin, dry skin.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Like, I was like, melissa, yes.

[Michael Foote]

And I'm like, this. I have no.

[Melissa Malbranche]

And then like, blank. Blink, blink, blink. Like when you're. And frankly, the audacity, right, of somebody to Melissa, come up to me, a black woman, and be like. Because. And this person was not a black person or a person of color. And they were just like, because you know what?

[Georgia Hardstark]

So crazy.

[Melissa Malbranche]

And I was like, what are you saying now? I didn't feel like, again, I'm not somebody who kicks people, right? So I did not feel like I.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Heard a different story about that.

[Michael Foote]

Okay. As her attorney, I'm gonna have to put a halt to the questioning.

[Melissa Malbranche]

But if you are not somebody who is sort of naturally aggressive. Right. Or you're not somebody who likes to sort of cause a scene, you do it in the space where you are. Right? Yeah. So I made this person explain to me what it was that they were trying to do. And then there is something. And maybe this is me just being petty, Patty, but there's something that I find invigorating about watching the person deflate in that way. You are not allowed to do that in front of me. You know, there was somebody that I knew who they had asked a question about whether or not the person was Indian, and this person said, oh, my God.

[Michael Foote]

Yeah, I know what you're talking about.

[Melissa Malbranche]

This person said. Said dot, not feather. Excuse me.

[Michael Foote]

We took great umbrage for this.

[Melissa Malbranche]

This was a wild thing to say.

[Georgia Hardstark]

What is it, the 90s?

[Melissa Malbranche]

Explain to me what it is that you're trying to say here and let.

[Michael Foote]

People sit in that discomfort. I mean, that's what we do in court all the time. Right.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Uncomfortable until they are squirming. And hopefully without being preachy. Right. If that's not who you are, hopefully you've turned that into some kind of a teachable moment. Right. So, like, the same person, this person was deeply problematic. But, you know, Jesus. We were talking about getting Mexican for lunch, and they said, oh, you're going to Home Depot.

[Karen Kilgariff]

What? Fire.

[Michael Foote]

Which is like, bring them in here.

[Georgia Hardstark]

We're gonna.

[Melissa Malbranche]

I think a lot of us have sometimes people like that in our lives who think that they could say things like that and that they can get away with it. If you are not somebody who is confrontational, there is a way to turn that into a teachable moment. Right.

[Georgia Hardstark]

That's kind of what your podcast is gonna be doing. I can't wait to see you guys interview people who don't agree with you.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Oh, I.

[Michael Foote]

Very few people agree with.

[Melissa Malbranche]

And I'm actually really interested because of the rage. The rage problem that I have. Am I gonna be able to, like.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Perfect timing for a podcast, or am I gonna do.

[Melissa Malbranche]

What was the name of that woman from the housewives who threw up the table?

[Karen Kilgariff]

Is that Leanne?

[Melissa Malbranche]

Teresa. Teresa.

[Michael Foote]

I don't watch her.

[Melissa Malbranche]

No, neither do I, but I know that clip.

[Michael Foote]

Yeah, no, yeah. And the table we record at the Iheart studios in New York, which is really cool.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Do they bolt down their table?

[Michael Foote]

We asked our producer, C.J. to bolt down the table just for. Just for liability purposes. But I wasn't gonna. I was gonna give you an out.

[Karen Kilgariff]

This podcast is sponsored by PayPal.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Okay, let's talk about holiday shopping. When you wanna make the most of your money, head to the PayPal app before you check out.

[Karen Kilgariff]

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[Georgia Hardstark]

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[Karen Kilgariff]

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[Georgia Hardstark]

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[Karen Kilgariff]

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[Georgia Hardstark]

The Beast in Me follows acclaimed author Aggie Wiggs, played by Claire Danes, who has withdrawn from public life life after the tragic death of her young son.

[Karen Kilgariff]

She's unable to write and is a ghost of her former self, but Aggie finds an unlikely subject for a new book when the house next door is bought by Niall Jarvis, played by Matthew Rhys.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Niall is a famed real estate mogul who was once the prime suspect in his wife's disappearance.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Horrified and fascinated by this man, Aggie finds herself compulsively hunting for the truth, chasing his demons while fleeing her own.

[Georgia Hardstark]

It's a game of cat and mouse that sets them on a collision course with fatal consequences.

[Karen Kilgariff]

The Beast in me on Netflix November 13th.

[Georgia Hardstark]

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[Karen Kilgariff]

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[Georgia Hardstark]

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[Karen Kilgariff]

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[Georgia Hardstark]

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[Karen Kilgariff]

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[Georgia Hardstark]

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[Karen Kilgariff]

Go to squarespace.com murder for a free trial and when you're ready to launch, use Offer Code murder to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain.

[Georgia Hardstark]

That's squarespace.com murder code mur. Goodbye. Goodbye.

[Karen Kilgariff]

How has that been? Because, like, you guys just going in and doing your weekly video podcast. I know. Is that, like, adjustment for you guys in any way?

[Melissa Malbranche]

It is. And I can. What's really interesting is that I can see it. Right. So when I. Our first one, I think when I'm watching myself, listening to myself, I feel like I came across kind of wooden. Do you know what I mean? I was nervous. I was nervous, I was anxious. And I'm used to the conversations that I have with Michael being between Michael and I. Not with cameras, not with people looking at us, But I've been able to see. We've been doing a few. We've done quite a few of them now. Yeah. And I have gotten more comfortable, you know, even though it doesn't really feel exactly like the conversations that Michael and I had when we were alone, but it does. I feel very safe with Michael, and I feel like that's coming across. Right.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Yes.

[Michael Foote]

And we're talking about, like, difficult conversations here. I mean, we're talking about abortion rights. We're talking about access to contraceptives. We have an opportunity. People have the opportunity to leave us a voicemail and we play it on the show.

[Melissa Malbranche]

I love that.

[Michael Foote]

Ask us their fun questions. People ask us all sorts of crazy stuff. I mean, we call it tales from the DMs, where we go into, like, the crazy things. People DM me, which is, like, sometimes wild.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Absolutely insane. But I love it so much.

[Michael Foote]

It's like admitting to a crime.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Right, right, right.

[Karen Kilgariff]

That TikTok, Michael made a TikTok recently, just showing. There was a couple of them.

[Michael Foote]

Right.

[Georgia Hardstark]

People saying, like, this client was like.

[Karen Kilgariff]

I totally did it.

[Michael Foote]

I did it.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Lol. Lol. In writing.

[Michael Foote]

I was like, dude, what the hell?

[Melissa Malbranche]

In writing?

[Michael Foote]

Yeah.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Has a DM ever as evidence in a court case?

[Michael Foote]

Oh, yeah, absolutely. Yeah. So under the Fourth Amendment, anything you text or your phone records, you are technically sharing them with a third party, and you don't have a right to privacy. So if you are texting someone, technically you're texting at and T who then sends it to your friend. So you've already breached that expectation of confidentiality in the text message, and therefore it's not protected under the Fourth Amendment.

[Georgia Hardstark]

So I remember being way really young and hearing that those. Remember they used to have supermarket cards that they. They were like membership cards.

[Michael Foote]

The BJ's card.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Yes. That they can subpoena that. Yes. It blew my fucking mind.

[Michael Foote]

A guy found out that his wife was cheating on him from the easy pass. She got the E Z pass record going back and forth to the vu's house.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Yeah, yeah, that'll do it.

[Michael Foote]

I represented her and the divorce and how's she doing? She's great.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Flourishing.

[Michael Foote]

She got enough money to use that easy pass.

[Karen Kilgariff]

She gets hired.

[Michael Foote]

Great. And hire me.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Good for her.

[Michael Foote]

Get it, girl. You got this.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Yeah.

[Michael Foote]

Round two.

[Karen Kilgariff]

It's such a public world. Like it's that I think that kind of information, especially for say a Gen X or something where it's like that was not the truth for my whole life until 26 7. Whatever. And now suddenly it's like, oh, you're on camera at the store.

[Michael Foote]

I took a waymo here. I took a waymo here and I'm going through, I'm going down Montana Avenue and someone is filming me in the waymo. No, because they're like, look at this self driving car go by. And I'm like, I've been documented at this place, here in this, at this moment.

[Melissa Malbranche]

I mean, aren't you. As a fellow Gen Xer, I am so glad that my life was not recorded.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Yeah, right. Every morning I wake up and think, oh lord, thank you.

[Michael Foote]

You know what? Get it on camera right now. What was it? Do it straight to camera.

[Karen Kilgariff]

I used to do a lot of fake talk shows where I was being interviewed by David Letterman, but it was just an empty chair.

[Michael Foote]

Oh my God. I used to drive around talking back to Terry Gross on mgr. I'd be like, oh, what was the question? I'd go, bloop, mute. And I'd answer that D ball. I'd be, my girl, Terry. I'd be chatting with her, this is jeopardy.

[Karen Kilgariff]

And you'd be like really trying to construct the perfect dancer where you're like, Dave, the thing about me is that just I feel like I'm a natural.

[Georgia Hardstark]

I still do that.

[Michael Foote]

And I would do like my haunted NPR voice. You know how everyone on npr. Well, Terry, the thing about existing as a queer man in America, he's so calm. Is that we look at ourselves the way that we see the world. It's always a reflection and a mirror back of what's happening in the world around me.

[Georgia Hardstark]

That is actually perfect.

[Michael Foote]

Isn't that good? That's like a Terry Gros voice.

[Karen Kilgariff]

It was very beautiful.

[Michael Foote]

Terry, if you're watching, book me my ancient sets caa.

[Karen Kilgariff]

I feel like my voice has never gone to that decibel in natural in the Natural world.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Not in natural world.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Such a loud person.

[Georgia Hardstark]

That's a beta blocker voice, which we were also talking about.

[Michael Foote]

Oh, I love a good beta blocker.

[Georgia Hardstark]

That has got me through this tour is take a beta blocker.

[Michael Foote]

Oh, I'm waiting for the hotels to, like, leave it on the pillow for me.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Like, I'm waiting, like, a mint.

[Michael Foote]

The mints have gone by the wayside now that everyone's like, Paleo and not eating sugar.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Right.

[Michael Foote]

Want a little propanol on my pillow before bed? Because it does sort of just like, calm you a little bit. And it's nice. It's not like a Xanax where you're like, nope.

[Georgia Hardstark]

You can take it in the middle.

[Michael Foote]

Of the day, operate heavy machinery, go to your job on a flat.

[Karen Kilgariff]

I recommend you don't. Please don't.

[Melissa Malbranche]

I feel like I need to investigate this.

[Georgia Hardstark]

You do. It just stops your racing thoughts in.

[Melissa Malbranche]

A way that's like.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Does that like, Xanax does too. But you're up, you know, and like it. Get addicted down.

[Michael Foote]

The, like, music playing in the background in your brain.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Exactly. Which is just Sabrina Carpenter on a loop for me. Driving fucking crazy.

[Michael Foote]

We actually. I actually. Oh, my God. You're the composer from. Exactly. Right. I don't know if he has a hit out on me because I had him change the music too. And I had him base it off Sabrina Carpenter. I don't know if we're allowed to say this on the show, but I sent him a house tour and I was like, can you take the underlying, like, 90s theme from this? Melissa and I have a lot of 90s references. We do, you know, Duncan.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Even though he was a child.

[Michael Foote]

Even though. Yes.

[Melissa Malbranche]

And I was out here making terrible decisions.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Just a few.

[Michael Foote]

Don't wanna name names.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Wait, how did you guys meet? Speaking of that.

[Michael Foote]

So, yeah, Melissa and I have gotten to know each other through. We work together. We've known each other just for about a decade now, right?

[Melissa Malbranche]

Yeah, about 10 years.

[Michael Foote]

And we have one absolutely chaotic, villainous best friend who is sort of the glue between us. She's my favorite Alyssa. And she is our best friend.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Alyssa is the kind of person. She's our.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Bored.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Yeah. Y. Yeah. Alyssa is, you know, the kind of friend that you have that is down for whatever. Alyssa. We're going to Croatia tomorrow.

[Karen Kilgariff]

She's.

[Michael Foote]

Oh, she's at the airport in a single day.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Georgia Hardstark]

She upgraded your seats.

[Michael Foote]

Oh, and she has the miles. Like, she is never home. And we track her location. We tracked her because we Kept. We have shared custody of this 37 year old woman.

[Melissa Malbranche]

I know because I worry about it.

[Michael Foote]

I do, too. I'm like, why are you at a casino? It's two in the morning. I'm only awake. My dog is pissing everywhere. I'm cleaning it up and I'm checking your location. Why are you at a casino?

[Melissa Malbranche]

What are you doing? She's like, oh, I just got here.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Wait.

[Michael Foote]

Do you remember when she left her phone at a Yankees and angel found it at a Yankees game and a guy named angel in the Bronx found it?

[Georgia Hardstark]

Yes, he did.

[Michael Foote]

And she was like, I'm gonna go meet this guy angel who's got my phone. And I was like, you are not. We're. Angela, with me.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Absolutely not.

[Michael Foote]

We're going with you.

[Melissa Malbranche]

No, you can't do that.

[Georgia Hardstark]

I went with Angel.

[Michael Foote]

I went with her. I was like, you're paying for the Uber. I'm coming with her. I'm your security. And we went and got her fucking.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Phone on from Angel. It was so cool. That is a good friend.

[Michael Foote]

It was more the paperwork alone. If something happened to her, I'm not doing that paperwork. I'm not talking to her parents about this. It is untenable. It's not gonna happen.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Could Alyssa ever make an appearance on the podcast?

[Melissa Malbranche]

Yeah.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Chaotic Corner with Alyssa.

[Michael Foote]

Well, the problem is she would have to be there on time.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Never mind.

[Michael Foote]

Yes, but I do think at some point she's gonna get so mad. She does have major fomo.

[Melissa Malbranche]

She does.

[Michael Foote]

She's gonna kick down that fucking studio door.

[Melissa Malbranche]

At the very least, we have to.

[Michael Foote]

Have her call in in a chun.

[Karen Kilgariff]

What can she bring to the table? What can she help with? Do we think? What is she. What's her strength?

[Melissa Malbranche]

Alyssa just brings herself. Like, the Alyssa energy. Like, everybody needs a friend like that.

[Michael Foote]

Truly. I went to a drag show with Alyssa last weekend in Brooklyn.

[Melissa Malbranche]

And she let the record reflect. They never asked me to go to any of these things.

[Michael Foote]

Well, okay. It was. We went at midnight.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Okay.

[Michael Foote]

And I had a couple drinks with me. And Alyssa's always out. So I text her. I was like, meet me at this show. I'm in the bar and I can see through the window 50ft away. And I'm there for like 10 minutes watching her on her phone. And I'm like, what are you doing? So I called her because I'm like, I know you're on your phone and I'm in here throwing dollar bills at a drag queen. Yep. And she's like, sorry, I'm booking a flight. She was booking a flight at midnight, drunk on the street. On the street.

[Melissa Malbranche]

It's all the time.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Where'd she go?

[Michael Foote]

I don't think she knew. And it was. I was like, that is a computer activity. That's not a phone. We don't book flights from our phone.

[Karen Kilgariff]

That's a laptop on the kitchen tabletop.

[Michael Foote]

That's a desktop situation.

[Melissa Malbranche]

It is.

[Michael Foote]

We're not doing this on our phone.

[Melissa Malbranche]

She does.

[Michael Foote]

I'm too scared.

[Georgia Hardstark]

I do it all the time. It's not flights, obviously, but, like, can you use your phone for things like that in public? Should you?

[Melissa Malbranche]

I don't know. No, I don't think so.

[Michael Foote]

I've been. Yeah, because you're putting.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Cause you're putting your credit card information.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Yeah, but how?

[Michael Foote]

My credit cards haven't stolen all the time. I think they think I'm running game because it's always like, 80, like, $800 of vapes in Queens were bought on my credit card. They go to the vape store, like, down the road. It's like 10 different vape shops stock.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Up while we have this credit card available.

[Michael Foote]

And I'm on the phone with the person from Amex and I'm like, I swear I am not vaping. I promise. Listen to this voice. It's not a vaping voice.

[Karen Kilgariff]

This is my instrument.

[Michael Foote]

I'm not a hard smoker. Okay.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Right.

[Michael Foote]

This is American spirit class to do.

[Georgia Hardstark]

American spir at least. Yeah.

[Michael Foote]

Thank you.

[Karen Kilgariff]

This podcast is sponsored by PayPal.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Okay, let's talk about holiday shopping. When you want to make the most of your money, head to the PayPal app before you check out.

[Karen Kilgariff]

They give you the flexibility to pay in four no fees, no interest.

[Georgia Hardstark]

You can get 5% cash back when you pay later with PayPal. PayPal helps you make the most of your money this holiday.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Save the offer in the PayPal app expires 1231. See paypal.com promoterms Subject to approval.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Learn more at paypal.com payinfor PayPal Inc. NMLSN Goodbye. Don't miss Netflix new series the Beast in Me.

[Karen Kilgariff]

It's a riveting psychological thriller from the team that brought you Homeland.

[Georgia Hardstark]

The Beast in Me follows acclaimed author Aggie Wiggs, played by Claire Danes, who has withdrawn from public life after the tragic death of her young son.

[Karen Kilgariff]

She's unable to write and is a ghost of her former self. But Aggie finds an unlikely subject for a new book. When the house next door is bought by Nile Jarvis, played by Matthew Niall.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Is a famed real estate mogul who was Once the prime suspect in his wife's disappearance.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Horrified and fascinated by this man, Aggie finds herself compulsively hunting for the truth, chasing his demons while fleeing her own.

[Georgia Hardstark]

It's a game of cat and mouse that sets them on a collision course with fatal consequences.

[Karen Kilgariff]

The Beast in me on Netflix November 13th.

[Georgia Hardstark]

You will not want to miss this. Goodbye. Goodbye.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Women's bodies are amazing and mysterious.

[Georgia Hardstark]

And after a certain age, things start to feel off. Losing sleep, feeling anxious or moody, and gaining weight with no explanation.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Thankfully, hers is here to help us find answers.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Hers now offers access to perimenopause care.

[Karen Kilgariff]

It's part of their trusted online health and wellness platform that already helps hundreds of thousands of women with things like hair regrowth and mental health.

[Georgia Hardstark]

The process is simple. Start today by completing a medical intake online. And a licensed provider trained in women's health will create your personalized treatment plan. It should be simpler to access health care built around you and your unique needs.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Whether you want to manage your perimenopause or menopause symptoms. Grow thicker, fuller hair. Or find relief rings and anxiety. Hers has women covered.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Visit f o r h E-R-S.com mfm to get a personalized perimenopause treatment plan that's right for you. That's f o r h e-r s.com mfm not available in all 50 states.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Perimenopause and menopause by hers includes hormonal health support, educational resources, digital tools, and prescription options if appropriate.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Hormone replacement therapies are not FDA approved for the treatment of perimenopause, but may be prescribed off label for perimenopausal symptoms at a provider's discretion.

[Karen Kilgariff]

See website for full details, important safety information and restrictions.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Goodbye. Well, maybe she'd be great at. You guys could do like pick a side.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Oh yeah, that's right.

[Michael Foote]

Yeah, we could do a great debate.

[Georgia Hardstark]

She'd be great about that.

[Melissa Malbranche]

She would be actually really good about that.

[Karen Kilgariff]

If you don't know, this is a little game where essentially we just make you pick a side in a very benign argument.

[Georgia Hardstark]

People write in just their basic problems. We're not gonna solve anyone's big problems. Don't fucking listen to us.

[Karen Kilgariff]

That's not our.

[Michael Foote]

I love how they hired a litigator to come in and fucking fight about something to finally settle on a hill right now.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Right?

[Michael Foote]

Okay. I'm so ready.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Do you want me to go first?

[Georgia Hardstark]

No, if you have a good one, let's do it.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Let's see the subject line of the email was 17 years of contention. Hi, friends. Boy, do I have the lowest stakes. Longest running. Pick a side for you. My husband and I have been married for 17 years, and at least twice a month for that entire time, we have argued over which is better, the basic Kraft Mac and cheese with the powder or the Velveeta shells and cheese with the sauce pack. I'm not gonna tell you who prefers which so as not to bias your opinion. This is such a low st. We will both eat either Our kids will eat either. It's just an argument over preference. But I want the upper hand, so I'm hoping you ladies agree with me. Thanks for everything you do, Brooke.

[Michael Foote]

Okay, do you want a rock, paper, scissors for a side?

[Melissa Malbranche]

No, you go ahead first.

[Michael Foote]

Okay. Well, should I do, like, an opening statement?

[Karen Kilgariff]

I wish you would be a professional.

[Michael Foote]

Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, I will be representing the Velveeta cheese here in court today, and you're gonna hear a lot from the defense about what is and is not cheese and what constitutes cheese. We have experts here in the courtroom who are gonna talk about the process that powders go through and how they are still cheese even though they're reconstituted. However. Let's say an animal gets run over in front of your house, right? Very sad. Very tragic. And no one comes and cleans it up. And it's a particularly dry season, and it dries out. Right? And then it rains, and it reconstitutes. Is that still an animal? I don't think so. And you're gonna hear a lot from the defense about what is and is not reconstituted cheese here today. And what I'm here to tell you is that it isn't, because Belvita is in its purest form. We're not modifying. We're not adding. You don't have to add and take away in order to give something its original shape, texture, and taste.

[Georgia Hardstark]

So.

[Michael Foote]

So, in closing, in conclusion, Velveeta is and always will be the best Mac and cheese.

[Melissa Malbranche]

The best box Mac and cheese.

[Michael Foote]

Yes. Yeah.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Okay, so I'm not gonna do what Michael just did. I couldn't do that anyway.

[Michael Foote]

Wait, you say that all the time.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Yeah.

[Michael Foote]

Whatever Michael just did.

[Georgia Hardstark]

I'm not doing it.

[Karen Kilgariff]

I'm not doing it.

[Melissa Malbranche]

I hate them both. But I suppose that's the problem is that I. I don't like fake cheese, and they both feel like fake cheese to me.

[Michael Foote]

Yes.

[Melissa Malbranche]

However, there is a certain level of creaminess to the Velveeta shells Mac and cheese What I wish, though. What I wish. Deeply, deeply wish. I don't like my Mac and cheese with shells. I like my Mac and cheese with, like, the elbow type.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Right? Yeah.

[Melissa Malbranche]

So if we could do macaroni with macaroni. If we could do the cream creamy Mac and cheese with the right pasta.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Has anyone done that?

[Melissa Malbranche]

I don't know.

[Karen Kilgariff]

You know, there's somebody out there that buys both and combines the best.

[Michael Foote]

Sure.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Right.

[Melissa Malbranche]

That's what I would go for. That.

[Michael Foote]

I like the shell because it gets kind of stuck in there.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Mm.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Mm.

[Michael Foote]

You don't like that?

[Melissa Malbranche]

No, no, no.

[Karen Kilgariff]

That answer is just so diplomatic. It's just like.

[Michael Foote]

It is very much. Yeah. Keri Russell and the Melissa.

[Melissa Malbranche]

A Melissa Malbranche response.

[Michael Foote]

Yes. Yeah.

[Karen Kilgariff]

That's how you do it.

[Melissa Malbranche]

That's usually how I do it.

[Michael Foote]

Melissa Malbranche response are always like, it's all disgusting. However, I will say that, you know, I do make my own bechamel for.

[Melissa Malbranche]

My macaroni and cheese.

[Michael Foote]

I do. Yeah, she does. See?

[Karen Kilgariff]

What are you saying, lady?

[Melissa Malbranche]

Who's your.

[Georgia Hardstark]

What's your recipe?

[Melissa Malbranche]

A combination. Ina has a good one. My grandmother had a good one. I usually combine all those things. It can't just be the one kind of cheese. You need several cheeses.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Yes, you do.

[Michael Foote]

Each one has a different purpose.

[Melissa Malbranche]

And I like a baked Mac and cheese as opposed to a Stove Top Mac and cheese.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Yeah, but they have different. One is late night.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Yes.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Stone drunk. I need something to snack on.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Feed your kids. Shove it in their mouth. You're done.

[Michael Foote]

Yeah. We're always. Melissa's always making fun of me because I go to Taco Bell when I am just glazed over. And people will recognize me as like the TikTok lawyer at 4am Taco Bell because it's all like 22 year olds from TikTok at the Taco Bell leaving the frat party. Except for me. I'm like, long in the tooth. I'm a little long in the tooth to be going out all night. It's not just that.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Taco Bell divas.

[Michael Foote]

Hey, divas.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Divas.

[Michael Foote]

You're not supposed to get that. She's a Gordon Crutch girl. And so when I am there, sometimes people will be like, so my landlord's giving me trouble.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Oh, my God.

[Michael Foote]

And I'm like, I've got one eye on last weekend and one eye on next weekend. That is. And gone. There is no way I could be giving legal advice at this point. Brad stepped in the one time he was like, he cannot be giving. Do not Listen to anything he's saying.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Cause he will. Right? Right.

[Michael Foote]

Because he was at the club with me, seeing what I was doing. He was like, you should not be talking to anyone right now.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Not even hit me up in 48 hours when I recovered.

[Michael Foote]

Yes.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Yeah, that's true.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Okay. Want another one?

[Melissa Malbranche]

Wait, wait. Where do you guys come. Oh, yeah, yeah.

[Georgia Hardstark]

We don't matter.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Yes, you do.

[Georgia Hardstark]

What?

[Karen Kilgariff]

Yeah, we were trying to make you guys argue. Well, I have very early daycare memories of Kraft Mac and Cheese that when I smell it, I just go like that.

[Michael Foote]

Oh, yeah.

[Karen Kilgariff]

It's just that kind of like, I realized I was being warehoused at age 4, and I was just like, what the fuck is this?

[Michael Foote]

Visceral reaction.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Yes.

[Michael Foote]

I can smell a Chobani yogurt across the subway platform. I can triangulate someone's location based off that goddamn Chobani smell. You know that smell?

[Georgia Hardstark]

Yeah.

[Michael Foote]

It's like the airport at 5am Sour. You didn't sleep. You're waiting to board.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Coat your stomach for Southwest.

[Michael Foote]

They're already. Yeah.

[Georgia Hardstark]

You're making me so sad right now.

[Michael Foote]

Anyway, sorry. Bring us back. Bring us back.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Well, I have a Midwestern husband who loves snacks and, like, really bad food. So he buys the little cups, individual cups of craft. You do the powder, we mix it up. It's like, perfect. And then you add more. More cheese.

[Michael Foote]

Oh, from the fruit.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Real cheese.

[Michael Foote]

Gotta get that. Tillamook factory.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Yeah.

[Michael Foote]

I don't know what they're doing at the Tillamook factory.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Oh, they're delicious.

[Karen Kilgariff]

They're just happy people living in a beautiful valley.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Yes.

[Michael Foote]

I met one of the employees, and he was. Yes. He's, like, dating my cousin. They might be married if I didn't send a gift. I'm sorry.

[Melissa Malbranche]

No, you're not. No, you're not.

[Georgia Hardstark]

This is a gift again.

[Michael Foote]

And here he was like, I've worked there for years, and it's like the most wonderful employer. It was, actually. I think it might be a cult.

[Karen Kilgariff]

We stopped there on the way from Portland to the ocean, and it's this gorgeous. It looks like you suddenly went into the picture on the front of a package of cheese. Like the little hills, the green hills go like this. And in the split, idyllic farmhouse, and.

[Michael Foote]

There'S, like, a house, perfectly staged.

[Karen Kilgariff]

And they have a dairy and a factory that you can tour. And then at the end, you can buy wheat, whatever they make. And there's this big ice cream shop. So everybody there at the end of the tour is eating triple scoop of ice creams. And smiling and laughing.

[Melissa Malbranche]

They're singing, frolicking.

[Michael Foote]

What's everyone's ice cream order? That's a good one. That's a good. Yeah.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Peanut butter and chocolate.

[Michael Foote]

Peanut butter and chocolate.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Cookies and cream.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Yeah. Bren and Jerry's has everything but the. That's a really good one.

[Michael Foote]

That's for the girlies who can't make up their mind. Right. Like, that's for the divasor. Like, I want a little bit of everything. I'm in chocolate chip because I. Very cleansing.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Yes.

[Michael Foote]

Very light.

[Melissa Malbranche]

It is.

[Michael Foote]

It's elevating. Yeah, it is like the elevated choice for the modern woman.

[Georgia Hardstark]

The same with, like, the York Peppermint Patty, where it's like, this isn't a chocolate bar.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Those are my favorite Peppermint Patty. That's my favorite peppermint Patty.

[Michael Foote]

You get it fluffy, because those are egg whites in there. Did you know?

[Georgia Hardstark]

Really?

[Michael Foote]

Yeah.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Is it protein?

[Michael Foote]

It's not vegan, so.

[Karen Kilgariff]

So be warned.

[Michael Foote]

I came here today, I was like. I was in. I have a full leather jacket, having a big leather bag, and I was like, I hope no one had. Exactly, exactly. Right as V. I'm so sorry.

[Karen Kilgariff]

There's a couple of them.

[Melissa Malbranche]

I'm sure there are.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Yeah.

[Michael Foote]

I hope they're not. And you know what? I can handle it. I'm okay. You know, I've been through worse.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Sure. You passed the bar.

[Karen Kilgariff]

You're still part of this family.

[Georgia Hardstark]

I mean, as long. Was it really just a big fur? A big bear skin fur?

[Michael Foote]

Alyssa loves a vintage fur. We talk a lot about vintage fur on the show.

[Georgia Hardstark]

It's okay, right?

[Melissa Malbranche]

I think it is. I mean, and maybe I'm just sort of like trying to, I don't know, justify what I'm doing, but I feel like it's already dead. Right. Yes. And I didn't do it. And I.

[Michael Foote]

It was a minute ago. It wasn't like last season.

[Melissa Malbranche]

The first fur coat that I got, I inherited from an aunt of mine. And I will say that I remember when she got it. And for her, I feel like it was a moment where she felt she had arrived. Like, it was like a big deal. I feel like in the 80s, right. When I was growing up, a woman with a fur coat was a woman who had arrived.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Right. Status symbol.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Yes. So when she passed away and she didn't have any children, and the rest of my cousins all lived in sort of tropical places. So I was like. So it's either, I take it, or it ends up in a landfill somewhere. Right. And I also. Because I love estate sales so much. There was this woman who. She was in publishing. She had died. She had the best clothes in the world.

[Michael Foote]

People in publishing have fierce. New York City is, like, the hub for the publishing industry.

[Melissa Malbranche]

I racked up and I bought her fur coat, and I love it so much.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Yeah.

[Melissa Malbranche]

But I get it that people feel.

[Michael Foote]

Like Melissa called me from the estate sale.

[Melissa Malbranche]

I did.

[Michael Foote]

And I'm the friend people call when they're, like, about to maybe do something unethical. They're like, I just kind of want to, like, run the gut check past you because my ethics are a little gray, I would say. You know, I do represent people accused of violent crime sometimes. Sure, sure, sure. I do a lot of work with immigration defense, but sometimes there are, like, a lot of crimes attached to it. I was just telling the two of you before we started rolling about my client who has. Was maybe or maybe allegedly was caught with a bunch of heroin at the border. So we've a lot of things. I'm sort of the ethical gray, which is, like, a really fun person. And Melissa did call me and ask me. She did call me as if she.

[Melissa Malbranche]

I did.

[Michael Foote]

There was some sort of heinous crime committed.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Was it okay?

[Michael Foote]

I was like, yeah, get it. Do it. Oh, my yaya died, and my mom donated her furs to the animal shelter.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Oh, my God. What? It sounds like a threat.

[Michael Foote]

It was like.

[Melissa Malbranche]

But you know what, though? I had so a while ago, when I got this coat, I posted it, and I was just like, what do people think I should do? And a lot of people said that I should donate it to an animal shelter.

[Michael Foote]

Yeah. For the puppies to, like, snuggle with when they're like, if they don't have their. Yeah.

[Melissa Malbranche]

But I was like, yeah.

[Georgia Hardstark]

I don't know.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Like, it felt weird, right? It's almost like giving chicken to a chicken.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Like, it God fell on. There's a butcher shop in New York. I live there.

[Michael Foote]

Very quickly, Karen, I'm so worried where.

[Karen Kilgariff]

This picture outside is a little pig with a chef in it.

[Michael Foote]

I know what you're talking about. Yes, It's. Yeah.

[Karen Kilgariff]

And I took pictures the first week I lived there. I was like, what the fuck is going on?

[Georgia Hardstark]

Yeah.

[Michael Foote]

What is that?

[Karen Kilgariff]

It's just like, come get our sausages.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Like, oh, no.

[Michael Foote]

Did you know him?

[Georgia Hardstark]

Sweeney Todd, the hot dog putting ketchup and mustard on himself.

[Michael Foote]

What are you, Self harm?

[Melissa Malbranche]

No, no, no. That is self harm.

[Karen Kilgariff]

That is loathing.

[Melissa Malbranche]

That is self loathing.

[Michael Foote]

That is self loathing. Yeah, yeah. We're Excited. We're going to talk about fat discrimination on the next episode. I'm so excited because I was a former fat kid and I was treated viciously growing up. And you know, whatever your like body journey is, is your own journey.

[Melissa Malbranche]

And I had weight loss surgery about 11 years ago now. And I will tell you really interesting about that journey is the world is not kind to fat people.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Not at all.

[Melissa Malbranche]

And I can't tell you I could feel the difference in the way that I was treated even by strangers. Right. People would look you in the. People would look me in the eye. Now people are just smile on the street sort of kinder. To me, the one thing I will say that I wish was that there is a body positivity movement right now that I wish that I would have been part of. Because I think a part of what was wrong with me is that there was self loathing.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Right.

[Melissa Malbranche]

And really feeling like I sort of didn't deserve to be treated better.

[Michael Foote]

Yes.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Which I feel bad for the person who I was for that reason. Right.

[Karen Kilgariff]

But it is amazing to see especially young women these days not having any of it.

[Georgia Hardstark]

No.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Bullshit.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Doesn't work for me.

[Melissa Malbranche]

I love that for them so much. And I'm sorry that I missed out on that moment because when I was like 17 years old or 20 years old or 30 years old, I needed it then.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Yeah. You know, and it felt like it would never change. I mean, that was the kind of thing where it was like we lived in a very Vogue magazine world. It was very singular. The monoculture, Chuck Roll cookies.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Right. Diet culture was so fucked up, so.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Huge that it's like we would never have that conversation about shells and cheese versus Mac and cheese because what a pig. What are you saying? That whole culture. And I think that's the upside of social media where it's like everyone got on there and then a bunch of people were like, hey, how about you don't. How about. You know what I mean? How about you adjust that position and what you think?

[Michael Foote]

Totally. And we're going to talk about like discrimination lawsuits around fat people and how they're treated and like things that have been litigated. So I think it'll be an interesting kind of like entree into that. But we always end up talking about like our personal experiences with these guys because it's so, I don't know, it's amazing.

[Melissa Malbranche]

It hits home.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Yeah.

[Michael Foote]

For a lot of people.

[Melissa Malbranche]

For a lot of people.

[Michael Foote]

Even if you didn't like live that experience, you know, someone or you had a Family member who was always treated differently or you always heard, like, someone's side remark after.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Yeah, yeah.

[Georgia Hardstark]

What I love about this is, like, the legal side of things. I feel like I'm not part of that, and I'm not there. Like, I can't be part of that conversation because I don't know legal terms at all. But. But I love that you guys make it.

[Michael Foote]

Pull up the trashy bt. No. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Karen Kilgariff]

You know, you may. I mean, this conversation is very similar to the podcast in that you've got your central thing. You go there, but you also, like, friends, just kind of chat, talk through things, discover things.

[Michael Foote]

Yeah. We were talking about looted art and, like, stolen art, and then the Louvre robbery happened, and we were like, somebody got arrested.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Did you see Someone got arrested?

[Georgia Hardstark]

Yeah.

[Michael Foote]

So we're. I mean, we're recording every week. It'll be a very topical episode. I think we record a couple. It comes out a couple days after. So we will be covering headlines, like, what's really happening? And I'll dive into, like, the law behind it. But, like, I'm not a Supreme Court litigator. Like, I am. I am at the local courthouse with your drug dealer, with the person who was drinking and driving. Like, I am there with, like, the local public defense and the local prosecutors. This is not gonna be like, an esoteric legal podcast where we're pontificating on, like, the latest Supreme Court.

[Melissa Malbranche]

No, but I mean, I think the point is to sort of, like, give some information and also make people laugh and make people sort of recognize, like, oh, you know what? I'm gonna think about that. And maybe I've heard this thing from Melissa and Michael's podcast, and I'm gonna look and do a deeper dive.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Right.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Yeah.

[Michael Foote]

Contextualize it, too.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Right.

[Michael Foote]

Like, what do you do if you get pulled over? Okay, we're gonna do this twice. Once for white people people, and one's for black people. Because the things that happen to the two of us when we get pulled over are very different.

[Melissa Malbranche]

They're very different.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Yeah.

[Michael Foote]

And I've started giving legal advice in my practice to migrants based off of their appearance, based off how brown they may appear, which is. It's always kind of been like that. I mean, criminal defense attorneys and immigration attorneys, we've always had to sort of think about, like, okay, this client is from Sweden. It's going to be a little bit different. Maybe we do this thing a little bit different differently, or do something over here. But now it is quite explicit. It was always, like, inferred And I think especially defense attorneys were always acutely aware of racial injustice and the justice system. But now it is so explicit. The quiet part's being said out loud with your full chest. So it's been a really interesting time to start a podcast because the first episode I was like, what the fuck are we gonna cover?

[Melissa Malbranche]

I mean, there's so many things.

[Michael Foote]

We've got too many things.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Yeah, there's so many things. So much.

[Michael Foote]

But we will be. We'll be in the studio every week talking about it. And I always say I'm flying around New York City on my broomstick. I bike everywhere. I bike up and down Second Avenue to the courthouse. And then I come after. After court wraps at like 5 o', clock, I lie up on my bike with a helmet.

[Melissa Malbranche]

He does wear a helmet. I do Safety first.

[Michael Foote]

My dad taught me that. I fly up to the studio after trial wraps. Yeah.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Oh, my God. Let's do. Should we do one more pick aside?

[Michael Foote]

And then we'll do a pick aside for them.

[Karen Kilgariff]

But it'll be all constitutional law and we won't be able to answer. We don't know.

[Michael Foote]

We told you we didn't know I was sweating.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Okay. Should I do one?

[Karen Kilgariff]

Yeah.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Okay. This has solved my disagreement. Do you shower after having a bath? Hello, MFM family. Love you all. Recently, I had a disagreement with my fiance. At the time, I was so sure I was in the right that I polled my friends and family to find out. It was more of a divisive, divisive, divisive topic than I. I don't know.

[Michael Foote]

If it's divisive or divisive because I said one on TikTok and everyone fucking came for me. They were like, this disgusting man doesn't know how to pronounce it. They came for me.

[Georgia Hardstark]

They know I did.

[Michael Foote]

And doxxed me because people just started calling my phone after that.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Oh, my God.

[Michael Foote]

I don't know what happened. It could be that or the Swifties. I'm not sure.

[Karen Kilgariff]

They're very powerful.

[Melissa Malbranche]

So easily triggered.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Everyone's divisive about it.

[Michael Foote]

I don't. I still don't know.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Data.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Data.

[Michael Foote]

I'm so mad I didn't know.

[Georgia Hardstark]

I'm gonna do both.

[Michael Foote]

So piss everyone off at the slash.

[Georgia Hardstark]

When you have a bath, do you shower afterwards? My view is that you do all that relaxing, that showering afterwards would just undo the relaxing. The bath also cleans you. That's how people have been cleaning themselves for centuries. My fiance says that you need to wash off the suds if, for example, it was a bubble bath, what other people have said is that. That you are lying in your own dirt. That's what my husband says.

[Michael Foote]

That's what I think too.

[Melissa Malbranche]

That's what I think.

[Georgia Hardstark]

What I have realized in my information gathering is that most people who are British, where we live and where my family is, agree with me. But my fiance, who is Polish, and a lot of other. My friends who are from other countries, they have another opinion. I haven't asked any Americans yet. Please help solve the disagreements. Thank you, Lottie and her.

[Michael Foote]

I'm sorry, we're not taking any advice from England on like, hygiene. I'm sorry. To any British divas.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Or spicy.

[Michael Foote]

I'm sorry. All of us around the table have fierce teeth. We're looking iconic. We're not going to England for any. How we're gonna. I've been there, I've lived there. It is wire. First of all, in England, the two faucets hot and cold about a mile apart on the fucking sink. Why do I. I'm getting. I'm changing time zones to get warm water. This is absurd.

[Melissa Malbranche]

It's like the war's over. Guys get it together.

[Michael Foote]

Around the world for 300 years. That was absolutely by force. Yeah. But like. Anyway, so that. That was the first thing I heard. And the second thing I heard was for centuries people have been bathing like this. I don't think it's been documented that they were bathing particularly well centuries ago.

[Georgia Hardstark]

No.

[Karen Kilgariff]

They used to share the bathwater.

[Michael Foote]

Yeah.

[Melissa Malbranche]

So that's.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Ew. Yeah.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Plain and simple.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Let's do the most updated version.

[Michael Foote]

Yes.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Instead of looking back to our ancestors.

[Georgia Hardstark]

What would they have wanted to do? Probably get in the fucking shower.

[Karen Kilgariff]

I wish I could get this.

[Michael Foote]

We are all post bath, shall we?

[Georgia Hardstark]

Yes. I'm 100% not.

[Michael Foote]

You are not.

[Georgia Hardstark]

I am 100% not.

[Melissa Malbranche]

So after a bath, you just get out.

[Michael Foote]

You're like, later, divas.

[Georgia Hardstark]

I've cleaned myself.

[Melissa Malbranche]

But you've been.

[Georgia Hardstark]

No, no, I'm not dirty, though. Like, I married my husband and he was like, what are you. And I was like, why are you getting in the shower? Like, what a fucking wake up call after this relaxing thing. I mean, I'm not that dirty to begin with.

[Michael Foote]

To begin with, you're taking a bath.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Is like a. I wanted to tell you.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Oh, no.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Oh, no.

[Karen Kilgariff]

George has always just had a little batch of ring right there.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Are you. Are we thinking that the bath is for cleaning or relaxing? Both, I think.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Both.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Okay.

[Michael Foote]

I think that sometimes the bath bombs are like so strongly scented. I worked at Lush in 2009 as a holiday hire before law school. I had to make money while I was studying for the LSATs. I had four jobs and that was one of them.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Wow.

[Michael Foote]

And my laundry smelled fucking wicked after the end of the day. Those bath bombs smell crazy.

[Georgia Hardstark]

I mean, it's asking for a UTI not to fucking 100 for sure.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Right?

[Karen Kilgariff]

But as someone with very thick hair, I can't wash my hair in a bathroom. So you're just like.

[Michael Foote]

Yeah, from the neck down.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Maybe like a face mask. Okay. Some magnesium salt, a magnesium salt.

[Michael Foote]

Magnesium dries my skin out a little bit. Oh, yeah, yeah. But then I have to add.

[Georgia Hardstark]

So you add in something else. Like.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Yeah, I definitely feel like bath. The bath for me is relaxing, not cleansing.

[Michael Foote]

But showers aren't. Don't wake me up showers. I'm like, still going to sleep.

[Georgia Hardstark]

The shower and the bathtub have to be separate.

[Melissa Malbranche]

I will.

[Michael Foote]

Oh, you won't do a shower tub. Okay. Ms. Diva's never lived in New York. Always put the baths in the sink.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Same. I mean, I've lived. Yeah, I've lived in apartments and I haven't didn't take baths for two years.

[Michael Foote]

Neighbor fell in the tub. This is like, oh, my God.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Oh, I remember this.

[Michael Foote]

And I think I called you.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Yes, you did.

[Michael Foote]

Because why would I call my husband? No, no, no, no. I called Melissa. And these are the friends we are. When your cat died, you called me, not her husband, Andre. Like, this is how. This is. This is how emotionally dependent we are.

[Karen Kilgariff]

This is how best friendships really work.

[Michael Foote]

They were like, can you come help deadlift this 90 year old man out of the tub? My neighbor came and got me and I'm like, you know, I'm there, I'm like, I'm ready. And I go down hard. Cut to me trying to deadlift this man out of the tub. It was. And I was like, wait, was he alive? I was like, he needs medical assistance.

[Karen Kilgariff]

We have to call.

[Michael Foote]

They didn't want him to go to a hospital. They were like, he might get an infection.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Oh, my God.

[Michael Foote]

And I was like, this is beyond my capabilities at this point.

[Karen Kilgariff]

This is as a neighbor.

[Michael Foote]

This is like, yeah, right, yeah. And I went back, 40 minutes go by. The police came. I'm talking to the police. We're doing a translator situation. I go back upstairs. My husband's still watching tv. He's like, where were you? I was like, sorry, triage telemetry checked out. Where were you?

[Karen Kilgariff]

Hope you enjoyed Dancing with the Stars.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Watching tv.

[Michael Foote]

The cha Cha slide on Dancing with the Stars. What the. What a fuck. My drag. I'm downstairs covered in blood.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Wait. But also, like, if you helped him and he got hurt from it, he could sue you.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Oh, right.

[Michael Foote]

I'm sure. Yeah. And that was my thought as a naked octogenarian was laying over my shoulder, bleeding on me. I was like, this is a head trauma situation. This is really something that we need medical assistance. It's beyond.

[Georgia Hardstark]

You gotta know when it's beyond your powers.

[Michael Foote]

Anyway, we moved, and I don't talk to my neighbors anymore. Let me tell you something. I don't talk to. And I've lived there for years in my new apartment. And people come. They see me come off the elevator, and it's down, headphones in.

[Karen Kilgariff]

They want to talk to you so bad because they're like, I saw you on TikTok today.

[Michael Foote]

He's my neighbor.

[Georgia Hardstark]

He's my neighbor.

[Melissa Malbranche]

My TikTok neighbor.

[Michael Foote]

I don't want to be that guy who has to come pick your grandpa up out of the tub. I can't do it.

[Georgia Hardstark]

I can't. I can. That's too much.

[Karen Kilgariff]

I feel like this could go on forever.

[Georgia Hardstark]

And I know so many questions.

[Karen Kilgariff]

I don't want to stop it, but I think we have to. But we just need to tell you guys, we are so thrilled that you are on this network with us. We're so thrilled to have your voice, to be able to hear what you have to say and to help guide in whatever way you guys do through friendship, through law, through life experience, whatever it is. We're just thrilled. So thank you so much.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Thank you for having us. This is a wonderful opportunity. We're super excited. I can't wait to see what happens next.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Yes.

[Michael Foote]

We're gonna have a blast. The show premieres on November 13th.

[Georgia Hardstark]

That's right. We have all that info, and we're.

[Michael Foote]

Gonna have so much fun. Get ready to laugh.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Questions. People need to call in their questions.

[Michael Foote]

Y' all need to send in those questions because Are calling me just because I got doxxed. They're just calling myself.

[Karen Kilgariff]

You really did. I thought you were joking.

[Georgia Hardstark]

No, no. Yeah.

[Karen Kilgariff]

They doxxed you.

[Michael Foote]

Yeah, but I get doxxed all the time as well.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Oh, okay.

[Michael Foote]

Yeah, okay.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Okay.

[Michael Foote]

People throw my.

[Melissa Malbranche]

It's actually not fine, but okay. But it happens all the time.

[Michael Foote]

Please don't do it. If I say don't do it, they'll just do it harder.

[Melissa Malbranche]

So it's like, yeah, things like that.

[Michael Foote]

But please send in your questions because we really are answering them.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Yeah, we are answering them. And like I say all the time to everybody, while Michael is a lawyer, he is not your lawyer. Smart.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Yeah.

[Melissa Malbranche]

But we really want you to write in and information personal because people are out here giving up their Social Security numbers.

[Michael Foote]

They're really, they're like, okay, here's my credit card number. Please read it on the air. Like, it's like people are sending the.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Yes, my name is John Smith and I live at 123 Main St. Don't.

[Michael Foote]

Tell anyone where I'm located, but here's a here, I'm gonna drop a pin.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Yes.

[Michael Foote]

It was so wild, though.

[Georgia Hardstark]

And I think that you also, because we get a lot of letters at the very bottom. They'll say, keep me anonymous. Put that at the top.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Keep me anonymous and do it yourself. Diy.

[Michael Foote]

Diy.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Well, thank you guys so much for being here.

[Michael Foote]

Thank you for having us.

[Georgia Hardstark]

The newest podcast on on Exactly Right network brief recess debuts November 13, 2025. Listen to new episodes out every Thursday on your podcast app and watch Brief Recess on the exactly right YouTube channel. Go to YouTube.com exactlyrightmedia.

[Karen Kilgariff]

You can watch it and then you can subscribe to brief recess on YouTube or you can listen and subscribe and give it a five star review wherever you get your podcast. And please do that.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Yay.

[Michael Foote]

Thank you.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Thanks you guys for having us.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Thanks for being here.

[Michael Foote]

Thank you, diva.

[Melissa Malbranche]

Yay.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Now we all do ketamine.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Oh, man. Cut the camera.

[Michael Foote]

Cut the camera.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Elvis, do you want a cookie?

[Karen Kilgariff]

This has been an Exactly Right production.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Our senior producers are Alejandra Keck and Molly Smith.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Our editor is Aristotle Acevedo.

[Georgia Hardstark]

This episode was mixed by Liana Squillace.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Our researchers are Maren McGlashan and Ali Elkin.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Email your home counts to my favorite.

[Karen Kilgariff]

Murder mail.com follow the show on Instagram at my favorite murder.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Listen to my favorite murder on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Karen Kilgariff]

And now you can watch us on exactly right's YouTube page while you're there. Please like and subscribe. Goodbye.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Your pet is your best friend, your therapist, and your unpaid intern.

[Karen Kilgariff]

So don't just feed them, fuel them with Hill's pet nutrition.

[Georgia Hardstark]

Hills is backed by science to support whole body health and in dogs and cats.

[Karen Kilgariff]

As a leader in science led nutrition, Hill supports lean muscles which are essential for everything your pet does, whether that's the Zoomies, squirrel patrol or occasionally knocking something over. Hill's science led nutrition helps you give more love than humanly possible. Because you're only human.

[Georgia Hardstark]

There's Hill's science does more find the right [e-mail] iheart goodbye this is Jacob.

[Michael Foote]

Goldstein from what's yous Problem? When you buy business software from lots of vendors, the costs add up and it gets complicated and confusing. Odoo solves this. It's a single company that sells a suite of enterprise apps that handles everything from accounting to inventory to sales. Odoo is all connected on a single platform in a simple and affordable way. You can save money without missing out on the features you need. Check out Odoo at o d o o.com that's o-o o.com Ah, greetings from my bath festive friends. The holidays are overwhelming, but I'm tackling this season with pay and making the most of my money, getting 5% cash back when I pay in 4. No fees, no interest. I used it to get this portable spa with jets. Now the bubbles can cling to my sculpted but pruny body. Make the most of your money this holiday with PayPal. Save the offer in the app ends 1231. See paypal.com promoter points can be redeemed for cash and more. Paying for subject to terms and approval. PayPal Inc. And MLS 910457.