Apple Representative (0:00)

The Apple Watch Series 10 is here. It has the biggest display ever. It's also the thinnest Apple Watch ever, making it even more comfortable on your wrist whether you're running, swimming or sleeping. And it's the fastest charging Apple Watch, getting you eight hours of charge in just 15 minutes. The Apple Watch Series 10, available for the first time in glossy jet black aluminum compared to previous generations. IPhone XS are later required. Charge time and actual results will vary.

Dan Kennedy (0:30)

As we approach the end of the year. I'm thinking about the next Next year is the year I finally make my Spanish better than my 9 year old's. Rosetta Stone is the most trusted language learning program available on desktop or as an app, and it truly immerses you in the language that you want to learn. I can't wait to use Rosetta Stone and finally speak better than my 9 year old who's been learning Spanish in his own way. Rosetta Stone is the trusted expert for 30 years with millions of users and 25 languages offered. Spanish, French, Italian, German, Korean. I could go on fast language acquisition. Rosetta Stone immerses you in many ways. There are no English translations, so you can really learn to speak, listen and think in that language. Start the new year off with a resolution you can reach today. The Moth listeners can take advantage of this Rosetta Stones lifetime membership for 50% off, visit rosettastone.com moth that's 50% off unlimited access to 25 language courses for the rest of your Life. Redeem your 50% off@RosettaStone.com moth today.

Jim Bennett (1:39)

Welcome to the Moth Podcast. I'm Dan Kennedy. This podcast is brought to you by Audible.com, the Internet's leading provider of audiobooks, with more than 100,000 downloadable titles across all types of literature. You may like to consider listening to a book written and read by one of our storytellers, Andrew Solomon. In his latest New York Times bestseller, Far from the Tree, Andrew explores through true stories the relationship between parent and child and its powerful impact. That's Far from the Tree, written and read by Andrew Solomon, and it's available from Audible. To try Audible free today and get a free audiobook of your choice, go to audible.comthemoth that's audible.comthemoth this week we bring you two stories from our Storyslam series, which, as you know, is our open mic storytelling competition series. The first story by Jim Bennett was told live at our Storyslam series in Los Angeles, which is sponsored by kcrw. Here's Jim.

Rebecca Adelman (2:52)

Well, I was on the team that helped win marriage equality in Iowa. I worked for Lambda Legal. Thanks. And it was five years leading up to that victory. And so a lot of town halls and going to forums, and then, of course, the case that went all through the court. And to celebrate, we decided the best thing to do would be to do Ragbrai. And for those of you who don't know, Ragbrai is the Des Moines Registers annual Great Bike Ride across Iowa. So it starts at the Missouri river, and it's 10,000 bikers, and then you end at the Mississippi River. And it went really pretty well. And so we were all wearing our Lambda Legal jerseys, and people were very nice, and they would tell us they're getting married, or they would congratulate us on our victory. And every now and then, you would have people that really were not so happy with our win, but they're Iowans, so they would just give you a very stern or disappointed look. But we could deal with that, and we were all right. And there was one time that really stuck out because it was just a very rough day. It was incredibly hot, and the wind was blowing from all four directions, as it often does on these bike rides. And we were starving. And all at once, like from a mirage in a desert, we see this sign, and it says, ham balls in 20 miles. And mind you, ham as in pig, not a hand. Ham balls. And my partner Terry, who's very fond of meat, was like, this is going to be great. This is exactly where we're going to eat. And I just smiled at him because I was pretty certain he would forget about it in time. And in five more miles, we see a sign, 15 miles to Ham balls. And Terry, again is just like, oh, my God, I love ham and I love balls. This is going to be great. We're going to have such a good time. And so I just thought, okay, we'll go, because I have no other alternative. And in 10 miles, we see the sign, but this was a little different. It said, handballs in 10 miles, but this time it included the location. And the location was this Evangelical Lutheran Church. Well, we were familiar with this Evangelical Lutheran Church because they had been posting signs along the route of fetuses in different stages of development. And those fetuses would have these little thought bubbles, and they would be thinking things like, I hope my first bike is red, or. Or, I can't wait to go on the first bike ride with my dad. And one of the fetuses even had a little safety helmet. So that we were reminded to Wear a safety helmet. And this was just outrageous. And it made us so mad because we kept thinking, there is no way that that fetus is thinking about their first bike ride. They have a million other things on their mind at that time. So I told Terry, there's no way we can do this, this handballs, because this church is the enemy. Like, we have been fighting against this church for the last five years on a variety of issues. And Terry was nonplussed. We are going to go. We have to have handballs. I've got to have one of these handballs. So we decide we're going to go. And I tell him, look, we're not telling anyone in the group that we have had that we've gone to this church. We're just going to tell them we went to the Unitarian Church and had the spaghetti supper, and they were all right with that. And so we agreed on our story. We get to the church, and of course, there's the bike riding fetuses proudly displayed on the lawn. And we get in and we pay our money, and we start going down these stairs. And I realize we're going to be trapped in a basement, in this basement with all these Lutherans. And I look at Terry and I tell him, just don't say anything to anyone. Just get your handball, eat it and get out. We're going. And so he's in agreement. That's all we're going to do. We get in the line and we get our utensils and our green beans from the can and our cheesy scalloped potatoes. And then these handballs. And they're like this shellac, red, and they're about twice the size of a meatball. And the cook told us they're exactly like meatloaf, except instead of hamburger, it's ham, and instead of saltines, it's graham crackers. And instead of a loaf, it's sort of a circular formation, so. So exactly like meatloaf. So I take one, and Terry fills his plate up, and we go to a table that's pretty empty in the back. And within minutes, four women, I assume, from the church come over and they decide they're going to sit down with us. So they have. They're really engaged in this conversation about the handballs. And one of them is upset because she feels they're too fibrous, and another person doesn't understand the texture, and they're wondering if the church changed the recipe. And. And within seconds, Terry is completely engaged. So he's asking for the recipe and he wants to know if he can put cheese on it. And he wants to know how their recipe compares with the church. And so, of course, they like us. And so we start talking, and they want to know how we're enjoying the ride and how we like Iowa and then where we're from and then, of course, what team we're on. So then I look at Terry, and he's just staring down at his handball, rolling it around with his fork. And so I look up to them and I say, we're on Team Lambda Legal. Team Lambda Legal. And this woman stares at me, and I'm about to explain what we are, and she goes, we know who you are. And so I look over at Terry, and he is grabbing his plate and trying to figure out where the closest exit is. And I just wanted to be sick because I just felt like this has been our fight for years. We've been at all these meetings, all these town halls, but yet I've got to do it again. This is my job, and this is what I care about. And it's an important fight. And so I look back to the lady, and I start to tell her, and then she just says, we're fine with gay marriage. We don't go to this church. They're crazy. We're just here for the balls.