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Foreign. Hello, everyone, and welcome back to Intrusive Thoughts. I'm your host, fresh from Australia, Adam Rippon. That's right. If you listened to last week's episode, you know that I did allude to the fact that I would be traveling down to the Land down under all last week for work. And as I am a man of my word, that's exactly what I did. And when I say fresh from Australia, I do mean that this morning I arrived back in the United States of America at 5:15 in the morning. So I'm physically unfresh, but I'm fresh in the sense that I'm newly here. I hope that makes sense to you and I hope that's something that means something to you, because it definitely means something to me in this episode. I do feel as if it's going to be very Australia heavy. So if you're a big fan of the Land down under, this one is for you. So I've also mentioned on this podcast that you can call in, you can leave a text message, a voicemail on the podcast hotline. And I have a bad habit of not really kind of going over those, but there is a voicemail that sticks out today because I feel like it's gonna tie in really nicely to the theme of, like, we're traveling. Okay? We're world travelers. So to begin this episode, let us begin with a listener voicemail. Please leave your message after the tone. Hi, my name is Melissa. I can't believe I actually heard your voice on the voicemail. That's so cool. I'm going on a long trip and I saw in one of your Olympic videos that you have packing cubes and that you like packing cubes. Are there any packing cubes in particular that you really like? Thanks so much. Sorry, I'm a little nervous. Have a wonderful day. Bye. What an excellent question, Melissa. And please don't be nervous about packing cubes, because they are not something to be nervous about. They're actually something to embrace and something I think everyone should incorporate into all of their travels. I'm a big believer that the vacant vessel that is a suitcase should be occupied by smaller vessels, which are packing cubes. No matter the trip. There is really nothing that makes a trip easier than a packing cube. You know, it doesn't matter if you're just there for a day or a few days, right? Like, a packing cube makes all the difference. Don't you think it's nice to just take a cube out? There's nothing I hate more. It's a pet Peeve of mine. When somebody's like, I'm living out of my suitcase, and you see them actually living out of it. Right. I just feel like the suitcase is just like your travel vessel. I just think it's like a mode of transportation for your things. It shouldn't be a mode of lifestyle for your living situation, whatever it may be, whether it be hotel or motel or Airbnb. I just think that you shouldn't be living out of that thing. It should be. That should be an expression. It shouldn't be like you're using it as a chest of drawers. So I think that no matter the trip, length, or stay, everyone needs to have packing cubes. I just think your underwear should have its own spot. Your socks, your shirts, your pants. I just think they make a world of difference, especially when you're packing. I think, you know, it's kind of like no rules on the way home, and I'm gonna. I'm going to get into my own travels and my uses of packing cubes in this episode just a bit. You know, I like to touch on things that really don't matter, but they matter to me and they matter to Melissa. Right. Melissa's Matters is the name of that segment that we just did. But do I have favorite packing cubes? So let's kind of touch on that before we go heavy Australia. I do, and I'll tell you my favorite ones just right off the bat. We'll just, you know, cut right to it, and then I will wax poetically on packing cubes. Don't ask me twice. You really don't have to ask me twice to speak about pretty much anything. I'll just do it. My favorite packing cubes are whatever ones are the cheapest ones you can get. Okay. So I don't really have favorite ones. The ones I use are just. I think they literally say Amazon Basics on them because they were the cheapest. Okay. And I do believe that if you do get packing cubes, you should have a variety of sizes. And I have three sizes. One you might call a small size, one you might call a large size, and my favorite size, medium. Medium just sort of fits everything, right? Small is really for your socks, underwear, sort of situation, or like, miscellaneous, like belts. Right. A packing cube doesn't need to be just isolated for clothing. It can be used for accessories. And I do use them in that sort of form and fashion. So packing cubes can be very versatile. And that's. That is sort of my stance on packing cubes. Now, there was a point and Time in my life where I did feel like I needed to upgrade the packing cube situation. I don't know why. I just. This is just the way I felt. I felt like, you're an adult now. It's time to grow up. From the Amazon basics. And I got these a long time ago. They've lasted me for years. These packing cubes. They're very. You know, you're not using them every day, so, like, why wouldn't they last years? It's a nylon bag with a zipper. All right, now, if you're familiar with luggage, you might have heard of the luggage company Tumi. Now, Tumi makes, like, suitcases and travel bits and bobs, and Tumi's not my favorite. You know, I. For no reason, I think that the. The style of a lot of Tumi things is very. It's a little too travel forward. I don't. I don't know how to better describe it. It just feels like it's very, like, office on the go. It just doesn't feel. There are things that Tumi does really well, but for the most part, I just don't find it stylish. Is that fair? I think it's fair enough. But I'm not saying it's bad, because I have, like, a backpack from them that I got a really long time ago that I used on my last trip, the trip that I was just on. And it was, you know, when you're traveling and you get something that's specifically for travel, there's a lot of little things. Like, it had, like, one of those slips in the back where you can slide it into the handles of a suitcase that you're, like, rolling, which I had never really utilized that feature before. And I went, oh, that's really nice, because I'm really one for just sort of balancing a bag on top and just kind of like, whoa. Like, picking it up as it, like, falls. And you just have to be really careful. No balancing act. With the Tumi suitcase, which I found, I just felt like I was using untapped technology that I had never really tapped, you know, so I'd never tapped the technology of the back slip. And using it, I went, ah. Aha. Now, the backpack itself is just, you know, it's. Whatever. Another hack I have for, like, buying anything is that if you're like, oh, I want a new backpack, or I want a new this or whatever my kind of hack is, I think sometimes you want to get things that are, like, a fun color or daring or whatever, and that might be your first reaction. But the reaction that you have when you buy these things is like, I'll just get it in black. Because you want to have it forever. You don't want to get bored of it, yada, yada, yada. My hack is you should see if they have other colors that are cheaper because there's a high percentage that if it's something pretty basic like a backpack or a bag or a wallet or something like that, and you've been really eyeing it, look for the price of every color, because every once in a while, like, the backpack I got, I think it was like, I don't know, it was some amount of money. And then this version of it that I got was this sort of like blue flowerish sort of pattern. Again, it's like not stylish, but for some reason it was $50 cheaper. Okay, so just that's my advice on, for today on lifestyle purchases and choices. So back to the packing cubes. I digress. I really thought for a moment I was going to get these two me packing cubes. Uh, until I saw the price. Hey, the price is what really just, it took me back. It took me to a place I wasn't ready to be taken to, which I think was debt. I looked and I think the Amazon packing cubes are like $10 for three. Okay, just to kind of give you a point. And I feel like this is also something you can get at like a TJ Maxx or like a home goods, like in the travel sort of section of the yard sale. That is a TJ Maxx. One day we'll have to kind of go and do a real deep dive on the, on the home goods TJ Maxx franchise as a whole. But we're not gonna do that today. But I will just sort of tease and just say that I do consider it. Basically going to a TJ Maxx or home goods is like, it's a free for all. You know, things are there, things are broken, things are here, things are there. It is a free for all. And I think this is the best way to put it. It's a yard sale. And so there's a time and a place for it. And I, you know, I don't want to touch on it now. I will a little bit. I will say that it's really good. If you need like a hairspray, it's really good. If you need like a quick moisturizer they have, I think that's like at a T.J. maxx. I, I don't even know if they have, like, a cosmetic section. At a Home Goods, I think, no. But at a T.J. maxx, yeah. You know, if you need a random towel or a blanket, like, that's the place to go, because you'll always find something for, like, $10. And that's sort of like the magic number, $10. If it's $10, it's whatever. And that's the best, therefore, because when you get in there and you're like, I really could use a new small bookcase. That's wood that's been whittled. And then when you buy it, you walk out of the store and you go, this is. Why did I buy this ugly thing? It's broken, it's chipped. I don't need it. But there is something about being in a Home Goods or TJ Maxx sort of place where, you know, it's the allure of a yard sale. Back to packing cubes. So I do think if you're looking for cheap packing cubes and you don't want to get them on Amazon, I think that that is a good place to go to search. Now, these packing cubes from Tumi were. I gave you the price of the Amazon ones. The Tumi ones were anywhere but for one. Okay. And for a smaller size, anywhere between, like, $75 and maybe $150. It blew me back because it's, you know, it's just a nylon sack. I think it had, like, a leather detail, but it wasn't anything to like, write home about. It was just a packing cube. And so I really. And I don't know why, but there was a real part of me that thought, like, no, getting. This is the next level. This is what you need to do. It's time to just, like, upgrade. And I never took the bait. I never did it. And I'm glad I didn't, because what. That's insanity. And also, when a brand does something like that, where they just, like, price something that realistically should be a lot cheaper when they price it. So, like, far out, it turns me off of everything else that they sell. And I think that at its core, is what makes Tumi so unstylish to me. Because I think that if you're gonna sell expensive suitcases, like, I understand the idea of selling expensive packing cubes, but a packing cube should be a cheaper thing. Right? I just. I feel like you're trying to price me out of the packing cube, which, like, even if I want the suitcase now, I'm not gonna get it. Cause you're trying to price me out of a packing cube. Like, what gives? Anyway, that's a me thing, not a you thing. Back to my trip. I arrived this morning from Sydney, Australia, because I had to connect from. And I was in Brisbane, Australia, which I found out I was going to Brisbane maybe the day before or on my way to the airport. Cause I just, I didn'. No, I just knew that like what time the flight was. And I was like, well, I'll just figure out the rest as it goes on. I'll find it out live. Which I do like to do when I am traveling. And you might be thinking, like, how does that even happen? Well, it can happen. Like if I was going, for instance, on a work trip and they like booked my travel for me, so I knew the date and the time and I said, you know what? I'm gonna let go. I'm gonna let God and I'm gonna let Delta fly me there and fly me where? I'll find out when I get there. And I did. And that's how I found out I was flying to Brisbane, Australia for the week. And this trip started out pretty well. You know, usually if I am flying somewhere, I always have this like fantasy, and I'll call it a fantasy because it's past the point of being a dream. I feel like a dream is something that you're like, I could do that. A fantasy is something that you can't even imagine, right? And for me, the fantasy is packing like days before a trip. That's a fantasy. It's never gonna happen. It's not gonna happen. And if it were ever, there are a few times where it's crossed into dream territory. Like for instance, when I went to the Olympics in Milan, I got sent a lot of clothes that I was gonna wear when I was in Milan. Instead of putting them, you know, away, I packed them right away and I put them into a suitcase, like in our downstairs area. And so in a sense, I was sort of half packed, you know, but I didn't pack any of like the essentials, like the underwear, toothbrush, socks, shoes, belt situation. So I don't really consider you being packed for a trip until you get that done. And it really just doesn't feel official until you have toiletries in the bag. And I'm really not one for travel sized toiletries. I'm a full size bottle kind of boy. And I just, you know, it's because travel says you use it once or twice, right? You use it once or twice and you're already sort of at the Bitter end. And there's still some left. But then you're in this, like, weird predicament of like, I think I need to bring in extra travel size with me because I'm surely going to run out of this, whatever it is. And so it's just like, it's an irrelevant thing. It's a nice idea, but I'm just not. It's a nice idea in theory, not in practice. How about that? And if you practice with travel size things, you are just. I have a lot of respect for you and I want to know how you do it, But I know that for a fact. I can't. I'm not traveling with a travel size deodorant. I'm bringing the whole, you know, kitten caboodle. Sorry, there's not travel size of the. A toner I like to use, right? And I do have a nasty, nasty, nasty habit of bringing a bunch of products that I never use, truly never use. Maybe use them a few times a year, and it's only when I bring them on a trip. But it's like, I'll use this, I know it, and I might use it the first day I get there, and then I'll never use it again until the first time I get somewhere else. And it's a nasty habit because it's not something I need to bring, it's just something I want to bring. And I know I can do better, right? But I'm just. I'm not a believer in travel size. I'm like, just bring it. Like, I think, like, I draw the line at like shampoo bottle, you know, But I'm a. I'm a boy and I have short hair. And if the shampoo from the hotel is going to damage it, I'm going to get a haircut probably in two weeks. We'll cut that damage straight off. I know it could be different if you're like, have longer hair. All right, if you're in a longer hair situation, I understand. If you're gonna bring your nice shampoos and you're not gonna use like whatever thing they have there, whatever collaborative shampoo that the hotel may have, I understand you might not wanna do it. You're gonna wanna use your nice shampoo, whatever that may be. I have no shampoo recommendations. Don't stay tuned for them. They don't exist. I use Kirkland brand shampoo. It doesn't get, you know, more cost effective than that. And, yeah, just not a believer in travel size. And again, I'm not a believer that you are Packed before your trip until all the toiletries are in. Because for me that's one of the parts of packing that takes the longest. And I'm always like, well you know, if I can get through the toiletries, I'll just hold off until they're done and then I can just throw the socks in a small travel cube. Okay, so this trip started off really well because if I'm packing for a trip and the flight is, and another nasty habit is taking a morning flight for some reason that is sort of, I'm like, I'll be up and I am up, but it's against my will and it's not my way. So I don't want to be up for a morning trip. But if I know I'm traveling in the morning, let's say, you know, recently I think I've taken a few flights that maybe have left at like 7 or 6, maybe 8 o' clock in the morning. Which means you need to get to the airport quite early. And if I'm getting to the airport early, that means one thing. All fucking nighter, baby. Yeah, that's right. I'm probably not going to go to bed the night before because God, something that may only take a normal person 45 minutes. I really can stretch into a 5 hour activity when it comes to packing because I just, I want everything to like be folded in there nicely. And I'm just, I have, I have this vision of future me opening the bag, going, I packed everything just right and just nicely and just well and just good. And I imagine that future me is just gonna be so proud of that future me. Like I have I ever opened my suitcase and is there a feeling that I remember of like, oh, that felt good? No, it's like opening your suitcase and unpacking it is just sort of like an experience that you don't ever think about again. But it's just, it's something I think about in the moment and something I can stretch for five to eight hours long. Again, I could just be throwing three pairs of underwear in a bag, zipping it up, calling it a day. But that is not me. It's not in my nature, not in my nature to do that with this trip. It was not a morning flight, it was not an afternoon flight, it was a late night flight that was leaving at 11:30pm And I actually feel like I did an excellent job of preparing for this flight. I knew what I needed to bring, I knew it wasn't a lot. I knew it wasn't going for a very Long time. And so I held off unpacking. I packed kind of throughout the day and, you know, when it was time to go, the bag was packed and I didn't need to do any sort of aggressive no sleeping the day before situation. And my flight from LA was a direct flight to Brisbane. And I got to the airport and I got there very early because. And again, I've totally been in the dark and I haven't even, like, been on my phone in the last week. So is the airport situation still bad? Are there still lines out the door and around the parking lots at airports nationwide? As I'm recording this podcast? There could be. You know, I don't even know if that's like a storyline that's still happening, but maybe it is, maybe it's not. Maybe the time, by the time you listen to this, you're like, oh, honey, that happened a week ago. I don't know. You know, I actually don't really know anything that's happened in the last week. So this is me sort of like, kind of creeping back. Like, hello, Just kind of. I'm surveying the land, I'm figuring out what's going on. Should I figure that out? Let me figure it out right now. Let's Google it together. Is get ready for what I'm about to google. Is TSA still bad? Let's see. Okay, well, it says as of early April 2026, TSA wait times have improved from severe four to five hour delays. Seems positive they're improving. That's from DelawareOnline.com in case you wanted me to cite my sources. So they're improving. But when I was leaving for Australia, this was like, in it. I was, you know, it was in it. So I got to the airport, I think maybe four hours early. And I want you to know that's not something that I normally do. And I'm not somebody who waits until, you know, the 11th hour to get to the airport and just chance it and just hope that they feel bad for a young boy traveling on his own and they're like, oh, gotta get him on the flight. You know, I'm not going that severe, but I am sort of one of like, okay, when's the cutoff? Let me get there, like 45 minutes to an hour before when the cutoff is, because I feel like that's the necessary amount of time. I am really not a fan of getting there really early. Kind of like how my husband likes to do. My husband likes to get there early. He likes to have dinner at the airport. Which when somebody says that, to me, that sounds like a nightmare. But I will say that when we do it, because when we travel together, we will. You know, I think that when you're traveling with somebody and they're somebody who likes to lean on the side of getting there much earlier, and you're somebody who doesn't. You should. This is something that you don't need to kind of. This doesn't need to be the hill you die on. I think you just do what the person who wants to get there earlier wants to do, and you can just see it from their point of view, because at least, you know, you're not going to be dealing with somebody who's, like, stressed out or angry with you. If something doesn't go right. Right. If something doesn't go right and you got there so early, then you have every right to. To, you know, holler, hoot, and scream. And it's on them. You know, it is on them. And, you know, sometimes maybe you'll feel a little bit differently once you get a little Applebee's in your tummy and the flight never takes off and you have to go home, but you'll definitely regret not getting there earlier. If you missed the flight and you brought somebody there and you said, don't worry about it, and then you. There was every reason to worry about it. So that's why I do believe that, you know, you bend a knee at that stage. So, you know, I'm not really somebody who likes to get there early. But in this case, I was like, I definitely want to make this flight. So I will make sure that I get to the airport in a timeframe that they're recommending, because I was seeing all of these pictures and videos online of people like, in Atlanta, and not even pictures. A friend of mine was traveling from Atlanta to D.C. and they got to the airport four hours early. Okay, they got there four hours early. And do you want to know something? They missed their flight. Four hours wasn't long enough. So I was just trying to think, like, okay, four hours wasn't long enough for them. I really haven't been hearing a lot of these, you know, tales from the belly of lax, But I don't want to chance it. I get to the airport and within five minutes of being at the airport. I've never made it through security faster in my life. I don't know what happened. Okay, so I was at the airport and through security in a Delta lounge with four hours to spare. It was an experience I have never done. That Wasn't a layover and I'm not complaining about it because I got something to eat, I could open my computer, I shot a few emails out to the Internet to people. So I got things done, things happened, I was moving and shaking. But I'll tell you, it was crazy because I truly have never gone through security faster in my life. I don't know what it was. I got to the airport, no line at the baggage check in counter, no line at the security. In fact it felt express. And so I made it all the way through and it was just, you know, euphoric. And there's a kind of a reason, I know why there wasn't a line. So I was flying Delta 1 and there's a Delta 1 terminal at LAX. And now Delta 1 is basically, it's like the business class, like flight for on Delta. Love Delta 1, very Delta 1 positive here. And there's a Delta 1 entrance at LAX. And when you go through the entrance, it does make it feel like, oh my God, I'm so famous, I'm so luxury, I'm so rich. And it's incredible because there's, when you check in, you go through the private entrance and if you're ever flying Delta 1, you're like, there's a private entrance. You know, it's not a secret. It's like, I think at like arrivals Terminal three. Okay, I'm really getting in the weeds of Delta One here. But if you go to arrivals at Terminal three, you'll find the Delta one entrance. And at this entrance there's a counter, there's a little lounge area there, Right. But there's a counter. And they took my bags immediately. And this is the real kicker of the, of the Delta 1 entrance. They have their own TSA. Uh huh, you heard me correctly, they have their own TSA. Now I had traveled pretty recently through the Delta 1 and the, there was more like TSA, whatever. And so like that security entrance wasn't open so they'd like bring you upstairs to the regular security. So I really, I don't feel like I had ever done the Delta One exclusive security experience. But it was, oh God, it was nice. So in my carry on bag I had like a lacrosse ball and I had like a foot roller because I can't say what I was in Australia for, but I can say that it was like something I had to be very active. So I had like some like recovery equipment, athletic stuff. With me you might be thinking lacrosse ball. Like if you like lay on a lacrosse ball on like A pressure point. God, that will really get into the fascia. And it's real nice. So I had that night at a foot roller and the tsa, they scanned my bag. And she goes, hey, I have a question for you. Do you like your foot roller? And I immediately know that one, they are checking the bags, and two, I was like, did you mean my wooden foot roller? She's like, I can't see what material it's made out of, but I can't see its shape. And we had a good five minute conversation about my wooden foot roller, which I really recommend. Love a foot roller. So I make it through, I'm in the lounge, we go, off we go to Australia. So I'm in Australia for the week. Like I mentioned, it was something that I needed to be pretty active for. And at the moment, I'm exhausted. Yes. But more than that, I'm sore. And it feels good, right? Feels good to be sore. But on this trip, when we can, we'll talk about what it was about. But until then, we'll talk about other stuff because there is other stuff to talk about now. One of my favorite things to do, no matter where I'm traveling to, is to really. Surveyor. The surveyor. I hope I'm. You know, when you say a word and you're like, that can't be correct. That's what I'm thinking about. The way that I'm utilizing the word survey. Survey the land maybe, is what I'm trying to get. Okay, let's start that over. Whenever I travel to a new country, I like to survey the candy and sweets situation of said country. When I go to Finland, it's a real thing that I'll demand and kind of. No, it's not anything more than demand. It's demand, want, wish, need the candy from Finland. I just, I love Finnish candy. I know for a while people were talking about Swedish candy is amazing. And it's like, Swedish candy, Finnish candy, it's basically the same thing. And there is something about it. It is just fantastic. And my favorite kind of candy is gummy candy. My favorite candy in the US Is sweet tart ropes. They're just, oh, my God, they're sweet, they're tart, they're ropes. And it's really. It's all in the name. Everything I mentioned is exactly what it is. And it's basically like a licorice sort of piece of string with. Mm. You might describe it as some sort of creamy center. And I don't want you to think that it tastes like milky in any sort of way. It just, oh my God, it's fabulous. Sweet tart ropes. They're my favorite candy in the United States. And I say that because I feel like you can't really find them much places. You can't find them much places. You can't find them in many places. And in Finland I definitely have my favorite candies. But when I was going to Australia I wanted to really check out the candy situation and I did find my favorite brand of what was I going to call them? Gummy candies, which I, you know, in Australia there is some lingo and language that we don't have that they use and they call all candies, no matter shape or size, they call them lollies. And so they're like, you want some lollies? And you know, to me as a level headed person, when I hear lollies, I think lollies pops, right? Lollipops. Because that's what a lollip is. You know, I'm having a lollipop, right? Just finished the word lollipop. But they call all candies lollies. Thought that was interesting. I went, hmm, I'm gonna think about that. I don't know how I feel about it of all candies being lollies. But you know what you do you it's an island, right? There's only so much they can do. If they're gonna call em lollies, who's gonna correct them? Not I, not I. And I didn't. And I really fell kind of into it going, I'm gonna have some more lollies. Does anyone want any more lollies? I'll tell you my favorite lollies from Australia are a brand called Alan and I just think that Allen lollies are the best in Australia. And there is something about gummy candy of I'm gonna explain it to you now what I'm gonna explain and I'm rubbing my eyes as I say this because I can feel myself separating spirit and body where you know, I am coming to that sort of point in the, the trip back from home where I started this episode off and I felt, oh, I'm sharp as attack. And now I am sort of going, I don't really remember what I'm talking about. Regardless, we continue. She persisted. So I need to describe caliber of candy and gummy candy and how, what it means to me, my favorite kinds, how I distinguish a good piece of gummy candy. There are different textures of gummy candy. Not all gummy candy is equal. Now if you're thinking of, like, a Haribo Gummy bear. I would consider the texture of a Haribo Gummy Bear. Glassy. All right. And I'm not a fan of glassy gummies. I'm a fan of silky gummies. I wish I had done a little research. I bet there's an entire discourse on this. I can't be the only person who's literally ever thought of this. But my favorite kind of gummies have, like, a silky outer texture. Like, it's almost like. There's a. Almost like a powderish kind of texture to it. And there's just something that elevates that experience that a glassy gummy just can't do. A glassy gummy is just like. Yeah. Like, there's no. It doesn't. It does not hit the spot every once in a while. Like, and no. Absolute. No. Hate to Harry Bow because they do have some great candies. But a Haribo gummy bear is you, really. For me, I need to be in a specific glassy gummy mood. And nine times out of 10, I'm not now a powdery gummy exterior. If you are a child of the 90s. Scooby Snacks, right? The blue Scooby Snack, the mystery flavor that's the perfect texture of a gummy Is that powdery, silky exterior. I don't know. It just. Because it feels like it's. It's like it has a crust almost. You know, I'm just trying to think of, like. Of how to explain or share what the difference is. I feel like the glassy. It's just like, sort of like, you know what it is? It feels like it's missing its peel. Right. When it's a glassy candy, it's like eating an apple without the skin. But when you're eating the powdery, it just feels like that's different from the inside. So you're getting, like, a combination of textures, which I think is ideal, because candies, or if you're Australian lollies, should be a full oral experience. And if it's not, it's just lower tier. And that's just how I feel. And so the Allen brand of candies from Australia, for me, top tier, they have candies called snakes, which are basically gummy worms, except for the fact that they're about a. I was gonna say a foot, but let's say, like, seven inches long still. Because, like, we know a gummy worm. Like, even your longest gummy worm is, like, maybe three inches. This was, like. I felt like a magician. Like, the scarves, like, whoa. It never ends. And that threw me off a little bit. But the texture of the Allen snakes, it hit the spot. And I got. I brought back a bunch of candies because, you know, I mentioned my husband and I, we love. That's a. It's kind of like. It's kind of our thing where we. If we travel somewhere, we'll bring back candy from wherever we were, blah, blah, blah. Okay. It's kind of our thing. I'm like, I don't have a better way of describing, like, it's something we like to do. Right. I don't know why. It's like. It's kind of our thing is hitting me in, like, a sort of way where I'm like, I don't like the way that sounds anyway. Whether I like it or not, it's the way that it is. That's the way it is. So I brought some back and I brought a few different kinds of, like, Allen's lollies with me. So we're gonna be. We're gonna be really ripping into those over the weekend. Australia is a beautiful place. It's really clean. It's beautiful. So many of the major cities are coastal. It has almost like a Hawaii meets Southern California sort of vibe, where you can be Brisbane specifically, you can be in a part of it that feels downtown. And then immediately you go up a street and around the corner, and you're in what feels like a very residential area, and it's very hilly. In Brisbane, it was beautiful. And I was catching Brisbane in the autumn, which had weather that was incredibly similar to the way that it is right now in Los Angeles. Like, it feels very like spring. And like, those places I mentioned, Hawaii and California, they don't really have, like, a real frozen winter in these bigger cities. So this was really the first time that I was staying in a big city for any sort of extended amount of time because I have been to Australia once before. This is not my first Australian trip. The first time I ever went to Australia was a few years ago, and I flew into Adelaide, which is, you know, that is a major city. But I was only there for a day. But I was in Australia on that trip for an entire month. And I was in a city called Coober Pedy, which is right smack dab in the middle in the outback. And I was there filming Stars on Mars. Oh, yeah, yeah, we filmed that in Australia. If you're like, what's Stars on Mars? It is a show that was on Fox for one season because I am sure that, you know, I'm sure in theory the idea was, like, amazing, but in practice, it was about $100 billion. Yeah, that's, you know, that's that on Stars on Mars. But we were there, and we were in Coober Pedy, and we were in Coober Pedy because the terrain of the Outback is very orange. It looks like Mars. They shot, you know, the Martian in this city, Coober Pedy. And because it's in the Outback, a lot of this city is underground. And so when we filmed the show, we lived on set. So we were on set living and competing. Competing Loose Term, filming stars on Mars on the set. But when we were there, the first day we were there and the last day we were there, I stayed in a hotel that was in a cave. And I mean that as seriously as I said was it was a cave. Like, the whole inside of the. Of the hotel was like a dugout part of a mountain. And my hotel room had no windows, except, like, it had one window that, like, faced the hallway, which also had no windows. And the walls were the rock of the cave. It was. I mean, it was. Honestly, it was an experience. Absolutely. For sure. But you could even see, like, the claw marks of whatever sort of like industrial shovel or jackhammer or whatever they needed to use to, like, claw my hotel room out of. And, like I said, experience. One of my favorite things that I got to do on that trip was I got to go to a kangaroo rescue. Yes. So please, please, please, if you're Australian or if you know anything about what I'm talking about better than I do, feel free to correct me. But my understanding, and nobody said this, but, like, I put this together in my own mind, is that the kangaroo in Australia can be compared somewhat to, like, the deer on the east coast or the Midwest, where it's like, somebody might hit a deer with their car, you know, obviously accidentally. I don't think somebody's going out there, like, all right, time to run over the deer. It can happen by accident. And I think the same thing can be said for kangaroos. And so this rescue rescued and rehabilitated kangaroos that were injured or were hit by cars, which, you know, would lead, you know, famously to an injury and would also nurse, like, baby joeys, which is what you would call a baby kangaroo, to health. I don't know. I don't. I guess. Yeah. The only reason I'm questioning that, because I'm like, I don't know if they were nursing them to Anything else. I don't know if they. I don't know if they would release those baby kangaroos that they nurse back into the wild. Like, I don't know if that's a thing. So I don't want to be like, they nurse them back to the wild, because I also think that if they're nursing them, they're without mother, so maybe they go to a zoo or a different habitat or something. Anyway, the point I'm trying to get to is this. I got to hold a joey. And it was cool. It's a cool picture. Definitely. Holding a baby kangaroo is like holding a dog with arms. And that's all I have to say about that. Not like, in a bad way, but just in a way that, like, I felt comfortable doing it because I've held a dog. So if you've held a dog, you've basically, you've realized the feeling of what it's like to hold a baby joey from a kangaroo rescue in Coober Pedy. And, I mean, that is one of my favorite Australian memories. Something I did not get to do on this trip. And I really feel like I should have stayed for maybe, like, one or two days more. But I needed to get back. I needed to get back to reality. We have a medical spa to open, right? We have to open the Atami Aesthetics Club in Arcadia, California. Bookings open soon. Yeah, we had to get back, and we need to get, like, back into, like, the groove of things stateside, you know, I need my husband to remember that he's married to me and that I'm not just somebody who, like, FaceTimes him. I want my dogs to know that they have two dads, you know, that they have a full family unit, union unit. Why was that a challenge? Unit. A unit. Really sorry about that. Can't take it back. This podcast is edit free. So, yeah, I really. This is what I. If I were to stay a few extra days, I would have loved to see koala bears. Oh, God, I love those sleepy little bears. I really, in my lifetime. And I do hope that I get to go to Australia. And it's very interesting. A lot of things. There are more and more jobs that, like, pop up in Australia. I say more and more. It's like one like the one I was just on, like, oh, that's more. Well, it's more than zero, right? More and more jobs are popping up. One job popped up, and so I do hope that maybe another one, because, like I said, more and more, you know, day by day, just everything is Australian made. But more and more are popping up and I hope that I have the chance to go. And I would love to have a little bit more time because I would love to see my favorite little sleepy bears, the koala bears, eating the eucalyptus. I just think it's so. I just think it's really cute that they eat like basically a plant that's like for a spa. I just think that's great because I just also can't imagine they eat a plant that smells good. So they just like, they must have good breath. I know. I just love that they're so sleepy and cuddly and so I would love to see kangaroo. Didn't get to see kangaroo. I just really saw more of like there wasn't time, right? Like I was working so there wasn't time to see any koala bears. There was time to get more Alan Lollies at the convenience store. So I did that instead. And I don't regret it. You know, there was. I can't take it back. So I don't regret not having that time. I'm just saying there wasn't at that time. Now my trip was great. I had an amazing time. And when the time is right, believe me, we'll come back to this. I'll tell you all frigging about it, but I will allude to this. What I was working on was supposed to end in the nighttime, okay? It was supposed to end around 11pm and I didn't realize it because you know me, I like to let go, let God, let Delta. And I usually don't check my trip until I get that email where it's like, yeah, are you ready to check in? Are you? Hey, you ready to pick that meal? And so I don't really deal with any sort of the logistics of the travel day until like, it's really, there's no choice, but you gotta look at it straight down the barrel. And I got my email and it was like, hey, are you ready for that flight? That's at 5am Exclus moi. I like could not believe it. I like a 5am flight. And the reason was because I needed to fly from Brisbane to Sydney, which I. And I remember that they wanted to put me on a direct flight from Brisbane back to la. And I don't know why there wasn't. I'm acting like I don't know why there wasn't when I know, like in reality, like maybe there just aren't direct flights that day. It's probably an easy answer, but I'm just Going to give it a befuddled, sort of like disgruntled. I don't know why. But anyway, I had a 5am flight, which meant that I had a car to the airport at three o' clock in the morning. And when I found this out, I wasn't looking forward to it, but I knew it had to be done. And so, like I said, we were supposed to kind of finish up with everything around 10:30, 11:00'. Clock. And in my mind I said, you know, no, later, I'll be at the hotel. 11:30, 11:45. Now we were on a set, okay? We were on a set. And on the set it's like, there's obviously like no windows, okay? And when you're just like on a set, you're just like doing stuff and you're not paying attention. You kind of have like no concept of time. And there came a point in time in this trip where I thought to myself, hmm, it couldn't be more than 6pm and this is because somebody was looking at their phone and they're like, ugh, you're not gonna wanna know what time it is. And in my mind I was thinking like, oh, it must be like 6pm because they must be. They said it in a tone that alluded to the fact that there was a lot to still go. Which there was still a lot still to be done. And so I said, what time is it? 8 o'. Clock. And they said, oh, it hasn't been 8 o' clock for hours. And I said, what? They said, oh, yeah, it's 12:30am And I was like, oh my God, wait, we still have so much to do. And they're like, yeah, we're gonna be here a while. And then I was like, oh my God, I might miss my flight. Which kind of was making me excited. Cause I was like, maybe I'll get to see the koala bears. My sleepy little bears. And that's not what happened. But what ended up happening was we did eventually, like finish up, but we finished up at 2 o' clock in the morning. Oh yeah, that's right. Which meant that by the time I got back to the hotel, it's like 2:15, 2:30. And was I, like, I wasn't in the frame of mind or in this state of being packed at all? So I liked to start this episode with. And it always ties back together with. I like to arrive at the trip with like the packing cubes so neatly and nicely organized. So that when I open the suitcase at the destination, I go, oh, God, it's so nice and so organized. And, you know, this trip there was just, like. It was. I was very busy the entire time that I was there, and so I didn't have a lot of time to, like, settle into the hotel room. And I'm not a very messy person, but, you know, sometimes a hotel room does get a bit messy or just a bit, like, things are a little bit all over the place. And I'll be honest, that's exactly how this hotel room was looking. And so by the time I got to the hotel room, I needed to leave in 30 minutes. Yeah, I had things everywhere. So those packing cubes. Yeah. I shoved them in a ball and threw them right in the fucking suitcase. That's just how it went. That's. You know, there's no. There was no romanticizing opening the suitcase when I got home. I knew it would be a nightmare when I got home. And I'd zip it up and, like, a cartoon accordion would go. Like, it just, like, explode. You know, it's like a can that you open that has, like, fake snakes pop out. That's exactly the experience that I knew I would get when I got home, which is actually exactly what did happen, where it's like, you open the suitcase and just, like, bottles, like, rolling out, clothes explod exploding. Like, that's. That was the reality I lived with. And I had to do what I thought was something that people only did in movies, which is I needed to sit on the suitcase to zip it, which is. I had not done that in years. A real grounding experience. Humbling to go. I'm sitting. Like, I packed so poorly that I have to sit on this. And it was like, yeah, you did. So sit on it. Uh, and what I did to pack was I just. I found everything in the room. And this is my key and trick. Like, if you have to pack very quickly, my trick is, like, throw everything that's in the room on the bed. Throw it all on the bed so it's all in one place. And then. Then you're not, like, running around being like, did I forget that in the drawer? Like, just do that. That's step one. Step two is shove and throw, shove, throw, sit, and zip. Those are the only four things you need to do next, which is what I did exactly. I was throwing toiletries into a bag that were, like, not in the toiletry bag. Some were still wet because I had to take a shower, too. Like, whatever. So I'm going to the airport. I go to the airport. I'm on now, awake for about 24 hours, delusion is setting in. And so I'm still on a pace where I feel like, you know what, I can make it through this. I really, I'm gonna, I needed to get that out. Okay. I just needed to get that one yawn out. So let's finish up this episode and we're just going to talk about the trip home because it's worth the story. So I get to the airport and the lounge opens at 4am okay. You know, I'm one of the first people in there. I can make a grilled cheese in there. I go, I can rally, I can rally to just like make it on the flight. Because I'm like, if I make it on the flight, I'll be good to go. So I make it on the flight and I'm still feeling in like maybe, I don't know, I wouldn't say good spirits, but I'm in. I'm still feeling level headed. Once the plane takes off, I'm doing that horribly embarrassing thing where it's like you're dozing off and you're like, whoa. Oh. It's like. And it's violent. You're whipping that neck back, you're whipping your neck from side to side because you're totally out of your mind. And I was just getting so uncomfortable, so uncomfortable in this seat on the plane. And there was just nothing I could do about it. I just felt like I wanted to rip off my own skin. Ugh. It was just, it was so bad. And my, my layover in Sydney to Los Angeles wasn't very long. I knew that if I could just make it to the long flight I would be good to go, which I did do. And I was grateful to the heavens, grateful, grateful that I was in like a lay down flight on this. Like it was like 13, 14 hours and I laid down and the flight attendant said, can I get you anything? I said, no. I said, I'm about to sleep for about the majority of the flight, I think. And she said, okay. And I slept, I think for about seven or eight hours. And when I woke up, she did say this to me. These were her exact words. Wow, you're my best little sleeper. And that made me feel really good that I could be the best at something to this woman. And even if it was just her little sleeper, at least I was her best little sleeper. Now the work continued today. So my flight got in early. I arrived at 5:15 and I don't know why again, like, I just like I was like, future me. We'll deal with that. And it's just not my problem at this time. And that was that I agreed to, like, go and film something today on the east side of la, on the. I'm sorry, on the west side of la. I live on the east side. But I got there and I thought that I was gonna do, like, the really valiant thing of, like, no, I'll do it, and I'll go from the airport to the place. But I got in and I was going to get there still comically early to the place, like, two hours before they needed me. But then when my flight landed, like, almost an hour early, I was like, I can't get there. Like, it's too, like, you know, rolling in off the streets. Like, hey, you guys got a spare room in here? Like, it felt too. Like I was asking too much doing that. So I was like, you know what? I'm gonna go home, I'm gonna take a shower, and then I'll show up to work, like, in a proper dress. And I'm really glad I did, because when I did get home and before I took a shower, I looked at myself in the mirror and I said, what's that red stuff on your cheek? And it was marinara sauce from a pizza. A piece of pizza I ate on the plane. And so I am grateful that the flight got in early today because it gave me the opportunity to wash dried marinara sauce from Australia off my face. And I just think it made a better impression to show up to work sort of in a clean outfit and a fresh face rather than a dirty outfit, dry hair, and a marinara stain on my cheek. And so that's what I'm grateful for today. Now I'm also grateful for everyone that listens to this podcast, and I'm grateful to all of the really patient listeners out there who have gone, when are you going to talk about Australia? And I really, I'm grateful that I did that deep dive and pretty much didn't talk about Australia at all and just talked about gummy candies. But to me, that's what Australia is all about. It's about making it your own. And I did make it my own, and I love that. Now my brain is starting to melt. And on that note, I think I'm going to call it, and if you want to call it, and by it, I mean the Podcast hotline to leave me with an intrusive thought of your own, please go ahead. The podcast hotline is 310-909-711. 7. I look forward to hearing from you, and I look forward to sharing your message of wonder, positivity and negativity, maybe even sometimes on this podcast and with our listeners, our family, our Intrusive Thoughts family. And again, if you'd like to leave a voicemail or a text message, that number is 310-909-9717. You can find that number in my Instagram bio. And on that note, my name is Adam Rippon, and these have been my intrusive thoughts. Bye everybody, and I'll see you next week. With VRBoCare. Help is always ready before, during, and after your stay. We've planned for the plot twists, so support is always available because a great trip starts with peace of mind.