Jake's Takes Thanksgiving Reflux (Premium E313) Sample

Summary

QAA Podcast: "Jake's Takes Thanksgiving Reflux" (Premium E313) Sample

Date: November 22, 2025
Hosts: Jake Rockatansky, Travis View, Liv Agar
Theme: Thanksgiving Traditions, Gaming Nostalgia, and Cultural Commentary

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Episode Overview

This premium sample of the QAA Podcast finds hosts Jake, Travis, and Liv riffing on the quirks of Thanksgiving—from their personal and cultural traditions, to favorite foods, and the uneasy history behind the holiday. Along the way, they detour through gaming nostalgia, debate generational slang, and share family stories to comic effect.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Acid Reflux, Call of Duty, and "Bad Games"

• The episode opens with light banter about Liv’s acid reflux and Travis’s Santa-esque hair, setting a playful, self-deprecating tone.
• Jake shares his enjoyment of the much-maligned recent Call of Duty game:

  "A game that everyone seems to hate, except for me, perhaps. Like movies. I also enjoy bad games." (00:48)

• The hosts discuss near-future FPS games:
  • Jake compares the new Call of Duty to Titanfall, Max Payne, and Quake, describing its fast-paced, chaotic movement.
  • Travis lights up when he recognizes Titanfall 2, leading to a short nostalgia spiral.

2. Generational Labels in Gaming

• Liv jokes about "Unk shooters" and invents "Gramp shooters" to describe slow-paced, legacy games like Arma:

  "It's an Unk shooter for sure. I'd even go one step further. What's one above Unk?" (02:19)
  "A Gramp. A Gramp shooter." (02:24)

• They riff on the lack of language for the generation between "Unc" (Uncle) and "Gramp":

  "I'm just older than I think I am." (02:42)

3. Thanksgiving Traditions, Do’s and Don’ts

• Jake proposes to "get various takes and gives on some of the greatest American Canadian Thanksgiving traditions. Do's and do nots at the supper table or lunch table if you're a G and eat early." (02:57)
• The conversation quickly turns into a debate about regional dialects ("supper" vs. "dinner"):

  "Do you guys say supper? Like, seriously?" (03:23)
  "I say supper." (03:25)

• They reflect on how ironic use of slang or regional words becomes habitual.

4. The Contested Legacy of Thanksgiving

• Jake unpacks the uncomfortable history of the holiday:

  "Thanksgiving is a tough holiday. It's essentially celebrating the prequel to a genocide." (04:18)

• He shares a formative family memory:

  “When I came home from kindergarten with a handprint turkey and tales of the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria, my mom informed me that Christopher Columbus was, quote, a rapist and murderer.” (04:32)

  • Liv’s reply: "She’s so based." (04:37)

5. Cross-Cultural Thanksgiving Stories

• Canadian and Serbian influences come in:
  • Liv, whose Thanksgiving was in October, discusses her family's mix of Canadian and Serbian traditions, including unique dishes like "chevapcici" (spicy grilled meat, similar to kebabs).

    "We just, like…I think last Thanksgiving, did we eat steak? We just don't care." (05:33)

  • Travis jokes:

    "I assume the Serbs have a holiday when they reflect on all the things they're ungrateful for, all the pain and suffering they've experienced." (05:58)

  • Liv recounts:

    "My grandma once told me that a day isn't perfect unless you have something to complain about." (06:06)

6. Family Dynamics: Interfaith Gatherings and Toy Nostalgia

• Jake reminisces about multi-faith family get-togethers ("Chrismica"), and the universal joy of children’s gift exchanges.
• He describes an obsession with the vintage game Snafu at his cousins’ house:

  "It was the part of my brain that would eventually become like a...mm...like I like Destiny or I like the way that the Call of Duty is like...that little casino part of your brain. This was satisfying it." (07:24)

7. Modern Lament for Analog Toys, Satirizing Political Speech

• The group jokes about how tactile, analog toys are disappearing:

  "I don't have tactile toys anymore because of Joe Biden's America. You know, it's all—everything is computer." (07:59)

• Travis briefly impersonates "Jewish Bill Clinton" and riffs on nostalgia for childhood toy mazes versus modern gaming:

  "A lot of kids nowadays are on Nintendo Switch playing with other family. I can't be coming from Mario Kart." (08:14)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Thanksgiving's dark side:

  "Thanksgiving is a tough holiday. It's essentially celebrating the prequel to a genocide." — Jake (04:18)

• On generational gaming terms:

  "I'd even go one step further. What's one above unk?" — Jake
  "A Gramp. A Gramp shooter." — Liv (02:24)

• On family wisdom:

  "My grandma once told me that a day isn't perfect unless you have something to complain about." — Liv (06:06)

• On inherited skepticism:

  "My mom informed me that Christopher Columbus was, quote, a rapist and murderer." — Jake (04:32)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• [00:48] — Jake enjoys the "bad" Call of Duty; banter about game settings
• [02:18] — Invention of "Unk shooter" and "Gramp shooter" slang
• [03:23] — Debate: "Supper" vs. "Dinner"
• [04:18] — The grim origins of Thanksgiving and Jake's family backstory
• [05:32] — Serbian-inflected Canadian Thanksgiving traditions
• [06:06] — Liv’s grandma and the joys of complaining
• [07:03] — Childhood memories with the game Snafu, analog vs. digital nostalgia
• [08:05] — Parody of modern childhood, "Jewish Bill Clinton" impression

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Tone and Style

The conversation is irreverent, self-aware, and tinged with dark humor. The hosts blend personal anecdotes with wry observations, poking fun at themselves and the culture around them. There's a seamless mix of sarcasm, warmth, and critical commentary on history and modernity.

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This episode sample provides listeners with both hearty laughs and food for thought—perfect for anyone interested in the intersection of pop culture, tradition, and political consciousness.

Transcript

[A]

Sam, if you're hearing this, well done. You found a way to connect to the Internet. Welcome to the QAA podcast premium episode 313, Jake's Thanksgiving Reflux. As always, we are your hosts, Jake.

[B]

Rockatansky, Liv Aycar and Travis Vu.

[A]

With Liv's acid reflux slowly dissolving her from the inside and Travis's hair reaching Santa Claus levels, I have been going 23 for 15 in the latest Call of Duty. A game that everyone seems to hate, except. Except for me, perhaps. Like movies. I also enjoy bad games.

[C]

Wait, is it. Where does it take place? Is it future? Present?

[A]

It's future.

[C]

Is it future? Okay, those ones are kind of a wash to me.

[A]

It's future enough, right? Like it's got a robot dog, it's got some Metal Gear type mechs. I don't like it for the story so much or even the setting. Although I think it's kind of cool. To me, it's kind of like a Titanfall. Remember that game?

[C]

Yes.

[B]

Oh, that's one of the handful of games I've actually played. I did play Titanfall 2.

[A]

There we go. Travis lit up. He was like, oh, it was like a game I'm familiar with. He was like, yes, we can discuss. Yeah, you can like jump off the walls and stuff. Like it's got a little bit more movement. To me it feels kind of like Max Payne. Like you can sort of dive in every direction while you're shooting. And I'm just. I'm a basic enough gamer that to me I'm like, oh, just like Max Payne. So I don't know. I've been having a lot of fun.

[C]

Complete movement, shooter, victory. We're just back to Quake. Went back around.

[A]

Yeah, I mean, I was telling my buddy, like, it feels like doom. And I don't know, maybe there's. Maybe it's giving. Cause I fancy myself a simmy kind of gamer. I mean, I like. I own Arma and all the versions on almost every single platform, which is a slow, janky, thorough.

[C]

It's an Unk shooter.

[A]

Yeah, it's an Unk shooter for sure. I'd even go one step further. What's 1 above unk?

[C]

A Gramp. A Gramp shooter. A Gramp shooter.

[A]

There's nothing in between. That's so funny. My parents generation just fucking erased anyways. Although I guess they are Grant. I mean they are Grandpa and Grandma now.

[C]

That's.

[A]

That's true. I think I'm just older than I. Yeah, I think I'm just older than I think I am.

[C]

There's no.

[A]

I'm just Ank. Yeah, yeah, yeah, you're Unc and then you're Gramps.

[C]

Yeah, yeah, your Unc.

[A]

Yeah, your Unc and then your Gran and then. Then what? Death.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

So this week, I thought it would be fun to get various takes and gives on some of the greatest American Canadian Thanksgiving traditions. Do's and do nots at the supper table or lunch table if you're a G and eat early. Some classic Thanksgiving conspiracy theories. And as always, you know, whatever you've posted in the discord, like an NBA 2K fan fiction film from 2014.

[C]

Do you guys say supper? Like, seriously?

[A]

I say supper.

[C]

Okay, that's. I think I feel like a Victorian child would say, in my mind.

[A]

Maybe I am a little bit of a Lord Fontleroy. I don't know.

[B]

Maybe that's. That might be a regional dialect. Not something I say.

[A]

No, I don't think my parents ever said supper. I think my Canadian friends said supper. And I thought it sounded so fun that I just. It sound. That sounded so prim and proper that, you know, it just sort of stuck. It's like, you know, sometimes you say things ironically, you'll pick up slang ironically, and then you'll say it so much that it kind of becomes part of your dialogue.

[C]

My big one right now. I don't know if you guys saw that clip of the guy who's like, I'm such a fat fucking chud. And, like, I've just been saying that all the time recently. Like, if anyone says it on stream, it's one of my vocal sims. We'll just say it out loud.

[A]

No, I have not seen that.

[B]

What's on your table?

[A]

Thanksgiving is a tough holiday. It's essentially celebrating the prequel to a genocide. I've told this story before, I'm sure on the pod, but when I came home from kindergarten with a handprint turkey and tales of the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria, my mom informed me that Christopher Columbus was, quote, a rapist and murderer.

[C]

She's so based.

[A]

That's so awesome.

[C]

I know.

[A]

And so I carry on her tradition. To all of you when I say that in this episode, we are celebrating time away from computers. We are celebrating time with loved ones gathered around a large table and potentially a smaller children's table, which is always more fun. Sharing good food together.

[C]

I'm just gonna be hanging out because mine was in October, but.

[A]

No, but we want you to bring. You can bring your Thanksgiving. Obviously, we didn't feel it was important Enough. And it's not around the time. But. But. But now that we're celebrating our Thanksgiving, we want you to feel included. So we. I. I'm curious about some Canadian Thanksgiving traditions. Maybe it's a little bit different. Maybe you guys do. Hamilton. Yeah.

[B]

Do you have pumpkin pie? This is my main question.

[C]

Sometimes my. I think. I think it's more like my Thanksgiving. The food is, like, more Serbian coated because my dad cooks.

[A]

Ah, okay.

[C]

And we just, like. I think last Thanksgiving, do we eat steak? It was like. We just don't care.

[A]

It's like a really good steak.

[C]

Okay.

[A]

I was going to ask, like, Serbian Thanksgiving if there was, like, a different kind of. A different kind of animal eaten.

[C]

I don't think there is a Serbian Thanksgiving holiday, but we would probably go shabapcichi, which is like pork. It's like a kebab. It's a similar etymology, I think. I think they're kind of.

[A]

That sounds good.

[C]

It's good. It's like spicy grilled meat. It's delicious. I love Serbian food.

[B]

No, the Serbs have a. I assume the Serbs have a holiday when they reflect on all the things they're ungrateful for, all the pain and suffering they've experienced.

[C]

My. My grandma once told me that a day isn't perfect unless you have something to complain about.

[A]

That sounds similar to mine. That sounds similar to mushrooms. But it's funny. Cause, like, you know, Thanksgiving was always a very important time in our family because we got to go up north and visit my cousins in Milwaukee. And my grandfather also lived there, and they're Christians, so it was like we were the. I think. Cause my. Yeah, my dad's sister married into a Christian family and converted, and so their kids were like, Christmas, but we were Hanukkah. But then we would kind of get together and do a Chrismica kind of D gift exchange that me and my brother always looked forward to, especially because my cousins had this toy in their basement that set my little brain on fire. And it's called Snafu. I've included a picture for both you and Travis. Liv. Have you guys ever seen this game before?

[C]

This looks a lot like a game that I did play. Do you guys know that, like, mouse trap game that's like a machine?

[A]

Another classic.

[C]

Yeah, classic.

[A]

Now, we had Mousetrap, but this, I had never seen this. And for the audience, it's like a big kind of green plastic board with all of these, like, obstacles coming out of it. And various buttons at the base of this board control each of the obstacles. And the goal was to move this steel ball, like, from one end of the kind of like, obstacle course basically to the other side. But it was really hard and it just. It was heavy. The ball felt nice. I really did. It was nice and click clacky. It was the part of my brain that would eventually become like a. Mm. Like I like destiny or I like the way that the Call of Duty is like. Like when it hits the body, you know, that little, like that little casino part of your brain. This. This was satisfying it. But I digress.

[C]

I don't have tactile toys anymore because of Joe Biden's America. You know, it's all. Everything is computer.

[D]

They don't let you play. They don't let you play steel balls anymore. Put balls through mazes. A lot of kids are still sitting in basements with Christian. With Christian cousins, and they're sitting over the maze and they're taking. They're guiding the balls through the maze. But a lot of kids nowadays are on Nintendo Switch playing with other family. I can't be coming from Mario Kart.

[C]

Jewish Bill Clinton.

[D]

Jewish.

[A]

Jewish Bill Clinton. Jewish Bill Clinton. Oh, man, that's like my anti Semitic Walk at Christopher Walk. And those two characters, we'll have to get them together somehow. You've been listening to a sample of a premium episode of the QAA podcast. For access to the full episode, as well as all past premium episodes and all of our podcast miniseries, go to patreon.comqaa or travis. Why is that such a good deal?

[B]

Well, Jake, you get hundreds of additional episodes of the QAA podcast for just $5 per month. For that very low price, you get access to over 200 premium episodes, plus all of our miniseries. That includes 10 episodes of Man Clan with Julia and the Nanny, 10 episodes of Perverts with Julian Liv, 10 episodes of the Spectral Voyager with Jake and Brad, plus 20 episodes of Trickle down with Me Travis View. It's a bounty of content and the best deal in podcasting.

[A]

Travis, for once, I agree with you. And I also agree that people could subscribe by going to patreon.comqaa well, that's not an opinion. It's a fact. You're so right, Jake. We love and appreciate all of our listeners.

[B]

Yes, we do.

[A]

And Travis is actually crying right now, I think out of gratitude.

[B]

Maybe that's not true. The part about me crying, not. Not me being grateful. I'm very grateful.