Let Me See Your House w/ Alison Leiby

Summary

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The Nightly – “Let Me See Your House” with Alison Leiby

Date: June 7, 2026
Host: Josh Gondelman
Guest Co-host: Alison Leiby

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Overview of the Episode

On this cozy, late-night edition of The Nightly, comedian and author Alison Leiby joins host Josh Gondelman in “the pillow fort” to wander through playful nighttime thoughts about pillows, sleep companions (including beloved pets), the peculiar dynamics of neighborly friendships, and—most importantly—the irresistible urge to peek inside other people’s houses. It’s a warm, witty exchange filled with relatable city-living musings, unfiltered sleep habits, and a delightfully weird pitch for a band new home-intrusion reality show.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Pillow Talk

[01:17–02:23]

• Josh and Alison kick off their pillow preferences:
  • Alison prefers “a stacking situation”: a firm one on the bottom, a soft feather/down pillow on top.
    • “I want it to be like a foam mattress with a mattress situation.” [01:22, Alison]
  • Josh’s pillow is “a flat guy,” so worn it’s “like a hand towel at this point.” [01:57, Josh]
  • Both have “living pillows” in bed—Alison’s hefty cat Riz, and Josh’s pug, Maggie.
• The chaos of nocturnal pet movement:
  • “Four seconds to claim the space I need, because she will then abut herself directly to my leg making it impossible to scooch.” [03:03, Josh]
  • “Riz will slowly make his way into the center, and I will somehow be, like, arm and leg hanging off to the side.” [03:30, Alison]

Nighttime Climate Control

[03:47–04:23]

• The annual return to the “leg out of the covers” move.
• Alison’s AC philosophy:
  • “I sleep in a morgue. I keep it cold. I want it to be a meat locker.” [04:07, Alison]
  • Josh jokes about the “ozone layer depleting directly above my head.” [04:13, Josh]

Neighborly Bonds & Cat Diplomacy

[04:26–07:38]

• Alison’s budding friendship with her across-the-hall neighbor after six years.
  • “I feel like in New York, have you had neighbor friends—like, real friends you hang out with?” [04:50, Alison]
  • “It's very cordial... I get to feel like a hero for doing [her favors].” [05:04, Josh]
• They introduce their cats (Riz and Eggs Benedict, “Eggs” for short) in hopes of inter-apartment pet friendship.
  • “We just kind of each held them up in the door... both arms outstretched, not excited.” [06:33, Alison]
• “I just want to see them snuggle together... as husbands.” [07:06, Alison]

On the Rarity of Visiting Friends’ Homes in NYC

[07:38–09:17]

• The oddity of city living: even close friends rarely see each other’s apartments.
  • “You could go a whole lifetime in a friendship and never go to somebody's apartment and it wouldn’t be weird.” [08:51, Alison]
  • “I think I've been in your apartment half a dozen times or less.” [08:57, Josh]

The Craving to See Inside Strangers’ Homes

[09:41–11:21]

• Alison’s candid admission: she’s obsessed with seeing inside people’s houses.
  • “Let me see inside your house. That is my refrain when I'm walking around the neighborhood...” [09:54, Alison]
  • Not out of nosiness: “I just want to see your stuff... I would like to know what everybody's house looks like.” [10:07, Alison]
  • Questions she yearns to answer: “What’s your couch sitch? Where do you have your TV? Do you have a lot of objects? How do you figure out where to put a plant?” [10:26–10:42, Alison & Josh]

Friendship, Intrusion, and a Reality Show Pitch

[11:21–13:40]

• The blurred boundary between friendship and trespassing:
  • “If I have been inside your house and you have not been in there, we are best friends. If not legally married, that is either a very intimate form of friendship or a crime.” [11:00–11:07, Alison & Josh]
• HGTV show idea: strangers tour homes without owners’ knowledge.
  • “Would it make you feel better or worse if they had a camera crew?” [11:32, Josh]
  • Alison: “I think better, because... at least I can tell the purpose immediately.” [11:48, Alison]

Apartment Soundscapes & Urban Eavesdropping

[14:06–15:12]

• Both hosts are curious about the unseen lives around them, especially when overhearing Zoom calls or half-conversations.
  • “If I have to hear you, I should get to see.” [13:49, Alison]
• The oddity of overheard phone calls, and the particular annoyance of public speakerphone.
  • “Half a conversation... feels like it’s not for me. But then if someone in public has speakerphone on, I find that somehow more distracting.” [14:30, Josh]

Throwback Music and Band Formations

[15:08–16:38]

• Tangent on ‘90s pop tracks with “Barbie Girl dissonance”: different band members, different musical styles.
  • “What an era of music that we left behind... there's a lot of people, and they all come in a different time.” [15:41, Alison]

Goodnight Rituals

[16:56–17:18]

• Josh ends with a special goodnight to his neighbor Annie and her “very cute dog.”
• Alison reciprocates with, “Good night, Eggs across the hall, the cat who I will force on my cat.”

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On pillow strategies:
  “There is like a point of no return where you're like, is this even a pillow or is this just a blanket now?” [01:52, Alison]

• On pet bedtime logistics:
  “Four seconds to claim the space I need, because [my dog] will then abut herself directly to my leg...” [03:03, Josh]

• On neighborly introductions:
  “We both are aware there's a cat in the other apartment... Riz is a chatty boy, and so is our neighbor, Eggs—short for Eggs Benedict.” [05:44, Alison]

• On home curiosity:
  “I just would like to know what everybody's house looks like.” [10:30, Alison] “If I have to hear you, I should get to see.” [13:49, Alison]

• On reality home tours:
  “HGTV needs to get on that and just do a show where people are, like, giving home tours, but people don't know they're in there.” [11:11, Alison]

• On city friendships:
  “You could go a whole lifetime in a friendship and never go to somebody's apartment and it wouldn’t be weird.” [08:51, Alison]

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• 01:17 – Pillow preferences and sleep set-ups
• 02:42 – The role of pets in the bed
• 04:01 – Kicking the leg out for temperature regulation
• 04:26 – Making friends with the neighbor across the hall
• 05:44 – Introducing the cats: Riz and Eggs Benedict
• 06:48 – Dreams of pet sleepovers and animal friendships
• 07:38 – How rare it is to visit friends’ apartments in NYC
• 09:41 – “Let me see inside your house”: home curiosity confessions
• 11:11 – Alison’s (possibly criminal) home tour reality show idea
• 13:49 – “If I have to hear you, I should get to see”
• 15:08 – Retro music tangent
• 16:56 – Goodnight shoutouts

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Episode Highlights

• Pillow fort confessionals: Comical breakdown of weird but relatable sleep preferences and pet-induced sleep chaos.
• The New York neighbor paradox: Candid discussion about the gap between cordiality and genuine friendship with people living just feet away.
• The universal longing to snoop (nicely): Alison’s non-creepy plea to simply see how others organize their lives, stuff, and light fixtures.
• Blurry lines between friendship, privacy, and fun: Entertaining hypotheticals about house-snooping, social norms, and pop culture references.

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This episode is a warm, intimate riff on city living and the quirks that keep us cozy (or crowded) at bedtime. Perfect for feeling like you’re eavesdropping on the most charming, relatable pillow talk—without the need to peek inside anyone’s apartment.

Transcript

[A]

Audio for sleep by hatch.

[B]

Hello and good evening everyone. I'm Josh.

[A]

And I'm Alison. Welcome to the Nightly from Hatch, where your late night thoughts go to rest.

[B]

This is so exciting, Alison, I'm so glad you're here in the pillow Fort. This summer we're actually bringing lots of fun, cool, interesting people to co host our episodes of the Nightly. And if you're listening, we'd love to hear any thoughts of what you want to talk about, who you'd like to hear in the pillow fort. If you have any reactions, responses, excitement about anything we've talked about and you can write in at thenightlyatch co thenightlyach co. This week, as you've already heard, listeners, I am joined by my wonderful friend, comedian, co host of the podcast Ruined with Ally Kiefer and the author of the forthcoming essay collection I'm a Lot, it's Alison Leivy. Alison, welcome to the pillow fort.

[A]

Oh, I'm so happy to be here. I love a pillow fort.

[B]

Totally.

[A]

So fun.

[B]

What's your like, preferred thickness of pillow?

[A]

I like a stacking situation. I like a thick, firm one. And then on top of that, like a softer, kind of more malleable, feather down thing that I can kind of squish up so I can be like having a foam mattress with a mattress situation. Like that's what I like in my pillows as well. What are you doing pillow wise?

[B]

Oh boy, it's chaos. I will, I like a flat guy that's like, I think become a stereotype about like, oh, men have these flat pillows and saying, I like a flat pillow. But I think my flat guy has gotten too flat.

[A]

Yeah. There is like a point of no return where you're like, is this even a pillow or is this just a blanket Now?

[B]

It's, yeah, it's kind of like a, like a hand towel at this point. And then I have a second one that props up my arm like kind of a pillow spoon. And then sometimes I will use it. This is like a very, I need to draw a diagram, but I kind of prop it up over the side of my face so that there's air in between my face and the bed and the pillow. Like it doesn't, it's not smushed right against, but it's kind of using my head as like a, like you would prop up a stick against the wall. And that is to muffle the insulation of my snoring from my wife.

[A]

Oh, that makes sense.

[B]

I use it as kind of a sound barrier. Yeah.

[A]

I also have Another living pillow that sleeps in my bed with me, which is Riz the cat, who is so large and really, he likes to get right up against me. And it does become kind of like an armrest. If I'm on my back, my arm rests on him.

[B]

Oh, that's nice.

[A]

If I'm on my side, it's like snuggle city, usa. Population us, we have that too.

[B]

With Maggie the pug. And she so funny. Cause sometimes in the middle of the night, she'll get up and kind of adjust herself, and I'm like, okay, I have, like, four seconds to claim the space I need, because she will then abut herself directly to my leg, making it impossible to scooch. So I have to, like, move towards the middle of the bed so that she doesn't push me off progressively over the night.

[A]

Yes. Riz will slowly make his way into the center, and I will somehow be, like, arm and leg hanging off to the side. And I'm like, how did this happen? I am much larger than you.

[B]

I also. It's. Tis the season I've been. Which is honestly. Tis the season. That's just. It's the season. It's all the same letters and punctuation.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

And as a Jewish person, I don't say Tiz. Say it's. Tiz is very. It feels very Christmassy to me.

[A]

Yes, Tiz is very Christian.

[B]

But it's the season I've been starting to hook my leg out over the covers again.

[A]

Mm. Me too. Even blasting the ac. And I do blast my ac. I sleep in a morgue. I keep it cold. I want it to be a meat locker. I want to be able to be like, we could store, you know, all kinds of food in here, and it

[B]

wouldn't spoil one freezing cold leg. The rest of me under a big blanket. Ozone layer depleting directly above my head.

[A]

Yes. Greenhouse effect in full.

[B]

Wait, you were. You were talking about Riz the cat, A handsome gentleman. Riz had a big weekend.

[A]

You were telling me Riz had a big weekend because my neighbor across the hall and I have become friends. After six years of us living in these apartments, we have finally. We've been friends in that. Obviously, when we see each other in passing, we're like, oh, hey, how's it going? But we've never broached into. What if we actually knew each other? Because I feel like in New York, have you had neighbor friends, like, real friends that you hang out with?

[B]

Not in the building. Yeah, but I've had friends that I've Made around the neighborhood.

[A]

Yeah. But, like, in the building, I feel like it's so rare.

[B]

It's very cordial. Like, it's also. I live in a building with about eight apartments in it, and it's three floors. And the downstairs, like, directly below us is an older woman who will, like, occasionally ask me very easy favors that I get to feel like a hero for doing. Or she'll just be like, will you move this over there? And it's just like, a bag, and I have to move it from in front of her door to not directly in front of her door. And I'm like, of course I can. And just make a big show lifting it.

[A]

I got this lady.

[B]

Yeah, don't worry about me. I'm kind of like if a firefighter has never fought a fire.

[A]

So I made friends with my across the hall neighbor, and we've, like, we both are aware there's a cat in the other apartment. Cause we've heard both of each of us, like, talking to the cats, and then also the cats making their own sounds. Riz is a chatty boy, and so is our neighbor. Eggs. Hell, yeah. Eggs. Short for Eggs Benedict. Eggs Benedict.

[B]

Wait, that's his full name is Eggs Benedict? Yeah.

[A]

Oh, he's so good. And so we were like, I just wish they could be friends. Like, we're friends now. Like, I wish that they could be friends. Like, Riz really usually runs away when somebody comes to the door. When I open the door, he's like, I'm out of here. I've been outside before. I lived there. I didn't like it. I'm an inside boy. But then we decided we're gonna start introducing them to each other, which we did once during our power outage during the blizzard or whatever. And we just kind of each held them up in the door. Like, we were both, like, holding them, and they both saw each other, both arms outstretched, not excited. We do think there is a path toward cat friendship. Why we need this, I don't know.

[B]

Right?

[A]

Like, Rachel and I watch each other's cats all the time when we're away. But, like, it doesn't require much.

[B]

Right. It's not like a sleepover.

[A]

Right. But we were like, what if it could be? It's like, that's so much. Why do we need that?

[B]

What is like, the. Your fondest dream? Like, what do you. What are you really hoping happens?

[A]

I just want to see them snuggle together. I want to see them, like, curl up in a little cat bed, just, like, resting each other's heads on each other as husbands.

[B]

I do love when cats snuggle as, like, parenthesis. Or they look like two of the same parenthesis, you know?

[A]

Yes, yes, yes.

[B]

I think that's really fun.

[A]

Yeah. So I feel like if we could just get them to being, like, snuggle buddies. I don't know what. Again, they don't want that. They aren't asking for that at all. But it's fun to be friends with a neighbor. It's been, like, very convenient. I've never had this.

[B]

It's so nice.

[A]

Like, I have a friend who lives in my building who moved into my building after I moved in, but that doesn't quite feel the same. That's jeeting as, like, having this neighborhood that now, like, I'm friends with.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And who's, like, literally, like, we could just open our doors and see directly through each other's apartments.

[B]

It's so exciting to have a Kramer.

[A]

Yes. It literally is. Jerry and Kramer.

[B]

I'm so jealous.

[A]

But you know better.

[B]

But I do. I love having neighbor friends. So on one block, a woman who we would see on dog walks with our old dog Busy, who was, like, a little less aggressive, so they. Her little dog would sniff up on Busy, and we made friends with her. And I've been to her home, so I count that as friendship.

[A]

Yeah, absolutely. If you've been inside somebody's house, you are friends.

[B]

That's like, such a funny way to say that rule because you're like, I have snuck into their house in the night. Friendship confirmed.

[A]

Yes. I was dragged in and yelled at a lot. And we are friends.

[B]

And we're friends now. Just definitionally, we're friends. Yeah.

[A]

But it's so strange how long you can go without going in somebody's home in New York City.

[B]

I think that is a real city thing.

[A]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. You could go a whole lifetime in a friendship and never go to somebody's apartment and it wouldn't be weird.

[B]

I think I've been in your apartment half a dozen times or less.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And we see each other in prison multiple times a week. Most weeks. All the time.

[A]

Yes, yes. Most weeks. Three to four times, minimum.

[B]

Yeah, yeah. It just feels like when you are in a place where you take public transportation and homes are smaller and there

[A]

are lots of people. Restaurants and bars and.

[B]

Yeah, right, right, right. There's like a great density of, like, places. Yeah, yeah.

[A]

Not third spaces.

[B]

But not third spaces. This is kind of a fourth space Taco Bell style fourth space

[A]

friend.

[B]

Think outside the acquaintanceship But I love, like, a house party, and I love being at someone's home.

[A]

I know.

[B]

Well, you're also. You wrote about this recently for your newsletter, Comfort Read, but you wrote about. And this is something I've known about you for a long time. You want to see the inside of everyone's home.

[A]

I want to see the inside of everybody's house. Let me see inside your house. That is my refrain when I'm walking around the neighborhood, pointing at apartments, being like, let me see inside your house. I just want to see inside.

[B]

There's some big windows nearby.

[A]

There are definitely apartments that you can see inside of and not in a, like, creepy. Like, I don't need you to be there. I just want to see your stuff.

[B]

Right, right, right, right.

[A]

Like, I'm not trying to spy on you. I'm not trying to catch you doing anything. I would like to know how much stuff is on your kitchen counter and how much is in a cabinet. Like, I want to know what you're doing about light.

[B]

What's your couch? Sit.

[A]

I want to see inside your house.

[B]

Where do you have a tv? How is it mounted?

[A]

Yes. Like, do you have a lot of, like, objects, or do you have, like, not a lot of objects? Like, what books are in your home? Like, I just would like to know what everybody's house looks like.

[B]

How do you figure out where to put a plan?

[A]

Yes, exactly. And I just think that there should be an opportunity to see inside of people's houses more often. And again, they don't need to be part of it.

[B]

This does. But if you. If you are in their house and they're not there, they are your friend 100%.

[A]

If I have been inside your house and you have not been in there, we are best friends. If not legally married, that is either

[B]

a very intimate form of friendship or a crime.

[A]

Yes, yes. Or we are mortal enemies and I am doing something illegal. HGTV needs to get on that and just do a show where people are, like, giving home tours, but people don't know they're in there.

[B]

And sometimes they come over the middle. They're like, hey, what the heck, man? You're like, you got house snuck.

[A]

There's, like, a whole crew shooting, I think.

[B]

Would you. Okay. If you got home from a trip. Not even a trip. If you got home from errands and there were a bunch of people in your home, would it make you feel better or worse if they had a camera crew with them? I think better.

[A]

I think better because it's like, I'm like, okay, well, at least I can tell the purpose immediately. Yes.

[B]

And it's being documented.

[A]

Yes, yes. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Right? It's like you guys have no problem with there being like a video trail of what you've been up to in here, which feels like maybe it's a little less criminal than if it was just a group of people. I think I would also be less nervous if I got back to my house and there were a lot of people versus, like one person.

[B]

I think so too. Which is counterintuitive.

[A]

I know, because it's like, well, more people, more. More danger, more risk. But I'm like, no, a bigger group means it's like they just kind of needed the space.

[B]

Right.

[A]

Versus one person is definitely here to kill me. Right?

[B]

One person. And it's like, also, there's not any to like confirm. Like, if one person is in your house and you're like, hey, it's weird that you're here. And they're like, no, it's not. It's like, well, then you're at a stalemate, right?

[A]

Yeah. It's a real he said, she said situation.

[B]

But if there's a bunch of people and you're like, it's weird that you're here and one person's like, no, it's not. At least you have a shot for other people to be like, it is kind of weird that we're here. Or they can all gaslight you. I'd be like, all seven of us think this is normal.

[A]

And then you're just like, I guess I'll go with it. Like, what do I have to, you know, what do I even say to this?

[B]

It's so wild that you are all here, members of the Polyphonic Spree.

[A]

I feel like I'd be honored if I, like, came in and I was like, what are you guys all doing here? And they were like, we love what you've done with your shelving. Like, we, like, like, if they were like, we actually just have the same instinct that you do, which is to see inside people's homes. So we decided to do it. And we think you've done a great job here. Real bang up job.

[B]

First of all, so flattering.

[A]

So flattering.

[B]

A compliment you don't have the opportunity to receive that often.

[A]

No.

[B]

And then second of all, would you ask to join them?

[A]

Absolutely.

[B]

You'd be like, we're going to go see some other people's houses.

[A]

Yeah. I'd be like, what's next? Like, can we please? Like, I. I just want to see, like, everybody on my floor. Like, I want to know what. Like, if I have to hear you, I should get to see.

[B]

I think that's a great rule.

[A]

Yeah. Like, I hear zoom calls when I'm out in the hall. Like, I hear the kid. There's a kid on the hall who makes some noise. Like, whatever. It's an apartment. That's New York City. It's fine. But I'm like, but if I have to. If I have to hear it, then I should get to see, like, what's going on in the place that the sound is coming from.

[B]

And it's like, okay, what's. If you're on a zoom call all the time, what's your setup? Standing. Are we talking standing?

[A]

Desk.

[B]

Sitting desk. Do you put your computer on your

[A]

tummy like an otter opening up a shelf?

[B]

These are all questions that we deserve the answers to.

[A]

Absolutely. And I feel like, you know, I'm sure that they similarly are. Like, we hear her doing God knows what in there because it's either me, like, talking to Riz or me doing podcasts. So they just hear one half.

[B]

That is always. Weirdly, though, I find that less disorienting to hear half a conversation because that feels like it's not for me. But then if someone, like, in public has speakerphone on and they're having a full conversation, I find that somehow more distracting.

[A]

Yeah. Well, also, like, there's, like, the dissonance of, like, the kind of, like, tinniness of, like, a speaker voice. Like, the sound of, like, it's like two different registers. Like, one is like, someone's near me, and the other one is like, this is being broadcast at me, which is, like, a very, like, hard. If you're not part of it, it's

[B]

like, it's got that Barbie girl dissonance. You know what I'm talking about?

[A]

Yes. That's what they call it in the studies.

[B]

In the audio studies biz. But you know what I'm talking about where it's like, I'm a Barbinger. The other guy comes in.

[A]

That's a really good impression.

[B]

Thank you. Well, I was kind of. I cheated because I was kind of doing the guy from Real McCoy. That's like a dog talk. A dog. Do you.

[A]

What an era of music that we left behind?

[B]

I know.

[A]

Just kind of that, like, weird. Like, there's a lot of people, and they all come in a different time.

[B]

They have very different vocals and with

[A]

very different voices and very different, like, musical stylings.

[B]

So different that you're like, how did you all decide to be in one band?

[A]

Right? Did you know he was coming or did he just pop in?

[B]

Maris just laughed. I heard her. When I started doing the guy's voice, I could hear being like, I know what's going on in there.

[A]

Do you?

[B]

I think you probably could guess.

[A]

Yeah, for sure. You're like, sorry, I'm warming up. We're recording a new song later.

[B]

That's right. Alison and I are a band now. We record. We record in the office during the day. Sorry, remotely. We're kind of a remote band.

[A]

Yeah. We're banned from home.

[B]

Our frontman tried to make us go back to the studio, but we were like, come on, band from Homework's fine.

[A]

Hybrid.

[B]

Hybrid. Yeah. We come in to band two, three days a week. Well, Allison, this was so much fun.

[A]

This was so much fun.

[B]

Thank you for joining me on the nightly. And I'm so excited that we get to do some more of these. This will be really great.

[A]

Me too.

[B]

So at the end of the episode, we say goodnight to each other usually, but we also say goodnight to somewhere out there in the world. And so I would like to say goodnight to you, but I would also like to wish a beautiful good night to my neighbor Annie down the street, who has a very cute dog.

[A]

Oh, well, good night, Josh. And also good night, eggs across the hall, the cat who I will force on my cat, beautiful. Sam. Sa.

[B]

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