An Army of Normal Folks - Tanya Rae Piper: The Cake Lady (Pt 1)

Episode Date: May 20, 2025

Tanya is a hairstylist who decided to bake some cakes for some firemen. And next thing you know, she’s baking over 450 cakes a year for firemen on their birthday! We cannot wait for you to meet “The Cake Lady”.   Support the show: https://www.normalfolks.us/premiumSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I now bake for 16 stations, 450 firefighters, plus all the girls at work. And last year I made 598 things. That is insane. Welcome to an army of normal folks. I'm Bill Courtney. I'm a normal guy. I'm a husband, a father, an entrepreneur, and I've been a football coach in inner-city Memphis. That last part somehow, it led to an Oscar for a film about our football team.

That movie's called Undefeated. Y'all, I believe our country's problems are never gonna be solved by a bunch of fancy people in nice suits using big words that nobody ever uses on CNN and Vox, but rather by an army of normal folks. Guys, that's us, just you and me, deciding, hey, maybe I can help. That's what Tanya Rae Piper, the voice you just heard, has done. Tanya's a hairstylist who decided to bake some cakes for some firemen.

And the next thing you know, she's baking over 450 cakes a year for firemen on their birthdays. While still keeping her day job, this cake ministry is all during the nights and weekends because she feels called to do it. I cannot wait for you to meet the cake lady right after these brief messages from our The American West with Dan Flores is the latest show from the Meat Eater Podcast Network, hosted by me, writer and historian Dan Flores, and brought to you by Velvet Buck.

This podcast looks at a West available nowhere else. Each episode, I'll be diving into some of the lesser known histories of the West. I'll then be joined in conversation by guests such as Western historian, Dr. Randall Williams and bestselling author and meat eater founder, Stephen Rinella. I'll correct my kids now and then where they'll say when cave people were here. And I'll say, it seems like the ice age people that were here didn't have a real affinity for caves.

So join me starting Tuesday, May 6th, where we'll delve into stories of the West and come to understand how it helps inform the ways in which we experience the region today. Listen to The American West with Dan Flores on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Michael Kassin, founder and CEO of 3C Ventures and your guide on Good Company, the podcast where I sit down with the boldest innovators shaping what's next. In this episode, I'm joined by Anjali Sood, CEO of Tubi, for a conversation that's anything but ordinary. by Anjali Sood, CEO of Tubi, for a conversation that's anything but ordinary. We dive into the competitive world of streaming,

how she's turning so-called niche into mainstream gold, connecting audiences with stories that truly make them feel seen. What others dismiss as niche, we embrace as core. It's this idea that there are so many stories out there, and if you can find a way to curate and help the right person discover the right content, the term that we always hear from our audience is that they feel seen. Get a front row seat to where media, marketing, technology, entertainment, and sports collide

and hear how leaders like Anjali are carving out space and shaking things up a bit in the most crowded of markets. Listen to Good Company on the iHeart radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. In 1978, Roger Caron's first book was published, and he was unlike any first-time author Canada had ever seen. Roger Caron was 16 when first convicted. Has spent 24 of those years in jail. 12 years in solitary. He went from an ex-con to a literary darling almost overnight.

He was instantly a celebrity. He was an adrenaline junkie, and he was the star of the show. Go Boy is the gritty true story of how one man fought his way out of some of the darkest places imaginable. I had a knife go in my stomach, puncture my skin, break my ribs, I had my guts all in my hands. Only to find himself back where he started. Roger's saying this, I've never hurt anybody but myself. And I said, oh, you're so wrong. You're so wrong on that one, Roger.

From Campside Media and iHeart Podcasts, listen to GoBoy on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. She was a decorated veteran, a Marine who saved her comrades, a hero. She was stoic, modest, tough, someone who inspired people. Everyone thought they knew her, until they didn't. I remember sitting on her couch and asking her, is this real? Is this real? Is this real?

Is this real? I just couldn't wrap my head around what kind of person would do that to another person that was getting treatment, that was dying. This is a story all about trust and about a woman named Sarah Kavanaugh. I've always been told I'm a really good listener, right? And I maximized that while I was lying.

Listen to deep cover, The Truth About Sarah on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. In 2020, a group of young women in a tidy suburb of New York City found themselves in an AI-fuelled nightmare. Someone was posting photos. It was just me naked. Well, not me, but me with someone else's body parts on my body parts that looked exactly

like my own. I wanted to throw up. I wanted to scream. It happened in Levittown, New York. But reporting this series took us through the darkest corners of the internet and to the front lines of a global battle against deepfake pornography. This should be illegal, but what is this? This is a story about a technology that's moving faster than the law and about vigilantes trying to stem the tide.

I'm Margie Murphy. And I'm Olivia Carville. This is LeverTown, a new podcast from iHeart Podcasts, Bloomberg and Kaleidoscope. Listen to LeverTown on Bloomberg's Big Take podcast. Find it on the iHeart radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Tonya Rae Piper from Edmonds, Washington. Thanks for being here. Well, thanks for having me. So Edmonds, Washington, Seattle area. North of Seattle, about 30 minutes maybe. Yeah. So suburb. Suburb. Got it. It's beautiful up there. Yeah, it is absolutely born and raised. No born in Cut Bank, Montana. And

what exactly cut cut bank? Yeah, Montana, Montana. It's a place a good place to be from. I bet it's very cold and windy in the winter and hot and windy in the summer. My oldest daughter and her husband live in Missoula. Is cut bank anywhere near Missoula? No, cut banks near nothing. Maybe. Okay. It's 50 miles from the Canadian border in the center of the state. So it's prairie on the not on the pretty side of Montana. There's you can look at the mountains from one side, but you can look for 50 miles and

See nothing else but planes that's First first of all, thanks for coming all the way from Washington to memphis. I know it's a trek And I can't wait to get into your story But since we're kind of on it Tell me kind of how you grew up. What's your background?

My dad was a police officer in Cut Bank. And when it was time to leave there, my mom had a couple of brothers who lived in Seattle. So that's where we moved to. I was seven. So I say I grew up in Seattle. I got to ask. You say your dad was a policeman in Cut Bank?

I would think he might be the policeman in Cut Bank. He was the chief of police. Yep, that makes sense. He was the chief, and then he got a job in Edmonds, Washington, and that's why we moved there. Actually, he started in Bellevue, and then he went to Edmonds, so. And that's as a police officer too?

Yeah, yeah, he retired as a police officer. So siblings? I have three brothers, one older, two younger, right. And you grew up the kid of a cop. I did. What's that like? hard to date. When your when your father carries a gun on his hill, Bill, my dad remembers every face. That's what he does. Yeah, so I literally took,

I had a picture of my father in my purse at all times, so if somebody asked me out, I'd show them, do you know this guy? If they said yes, I'm sorry, I can't go out with you, because it would not have been an option. That's absolutely hilarious. Oh, true, yeah. So you have a travel partner with you. Some, some, some chick

named Jan Hinson. That is my mother. Hey, mom. How are you, Jan? What's it like being married to a lifetime police officer? It's different. You don't have schedules like most people. We learned that we would have conversations at midnight with our kids because that's when they were coming home and he would be getting off when I was going to work. And so we had a ship through the night thing. I blame my late night habits on my father shift work.

I guess, I guess that would make sense. Yeah. Despite all that, aren't you proud of your father's service? Oh, absolutely. Well, my wife is married to a guy who runs a business and then coaches football. And so my family and children many times up through this very week have to give up a little of me

so that I can serve in the way that I can as a coach and kids. And you know, I always worry about balance with my own family, but I also am really inspired and humbled by the way that my wife and kids feel like they're part of the service and they're willing to give up a little because of the good that can come from the work that I do.

And I think Lisa kinda has worn it as a little bit of a badge of honor. I'm just wondering, did you guys experience pride that, hey, my dad's out there making life better for all of us and keeping our world safe? I always had a soft spot for first responders in law enforcement, especially law enforcement because of that. My dad worked three jobs. He worked his regular job at Edmonds, then he would be part-time at a small city called Woodway, and then he worked ferry traffic also, directing ferry traffic at the time when they needed that.

So he wasn't there a lot. I mean, he was always there, but then, you know, he worked a lot. So mom was- To make ends meet for his three kids and his four kids and his wife. Yeah. I mean, mom worked too, but with his shift work. But I mean, I was a daddy's girl.

Mondays were our thing. Because Mondays, I always, as a a hairdresser I always had Monday's off so that was we go to breakfast and when I had I owned a salon for a while and when he would he'd come in and he'd do my Costco runs for me so I wouldn't have to take time out to do that so yeah retired earlier because hearing disability so he retired probably a lot younger than most officers would. Did you Jan, did you feel a sense of pride that your husband was one of the guys out there serving our communities? Yes.

And I think he took it very seriously at what the risk could be because he always made it a point never to leave the house without kissing me and saying that he loved me. That's beautiful. And that always meant a lot to me. Did you live with any, I don't know how to say this, but did you leave with any sense of dread that maybe my husband didn't come home tonight?

Because of where he was a police officer, the suburb of Edmonds used to be very, very quiet. It was like a bedroom. Bedford Falls. Yeah. So it was not difficult to trust that he would be okay, although there was always that opportunity that something horrible could happen. But I just, I think I had a lot of trust in the Lord that knowing that he was protected, God was watching and that was a good comfort to me most of the time. To know that I didn't have to be in control. There was nothing that I could do, but God was with me.

But I get the sense that every family of first responders has anywhere from at the worst dread, but at the very least even a sense that my husband, my father, my brother, my uncle works in an occupation that involves daily risk and it's always got to be a sense that's there. Yeah. Yeah. I think there's always that undercurrent that something could happen. And the fact that he kissed you goodbye every single time he left the house

indicates to me that he had that sense. Yes, and our kids, I don't remember which one it was, but said, Dad won't even empty the garbage without kissing Mother goodbye. I just said, okay, it wasn't that bad. Well, that sounds like a beautiful relationship. I had June and Ward Cleaver for parents and I had the house that, because I grew up with it,

I didn't understand what I had, because that's all I knew. But all of my friends at one point or another came and stayed with us because of turmoil that they had at home, because our house was so peaceful. I can never remember my parents yelling at each other or, I mean, I'm not saying they didn't have disagreements. They did, I'm sure.

But we never, we never saw that. They would, they didn't ever fight. It was, and then what, you know, I'd have friends that their parents were getting a divorce and there was turmoil. And I'm like, why would you want to come to my house? Cause to me, our family was very strict and we had rules and there, there wasn't a lot of, no, God forbid rules. No, I know. But I had, yeah. Um, all my friends would come in. Now I look back and I'm like, Oh, I had an amazing

upbringing. Jan, this thing is about Tanya, and we're going to get back to her. But I just want to say, I don't know what you've done in your life. And I don't know what your legacy is. But what I just heard of my children say that about me and Lisa and the way we brought up our kids one day, that'll be enough. So well done, ma'am. She is the reason I am who I am.

I Jan, I don't know. I sit there and don't choke up. I hear that. But that is, I mean, what better legacy to leave that your children view the way they came up as the right way and for them to give credit to who they are to you. So thanks for being here. Thanks for giving us a little glimpse into being what it's like to be the spouse of a first responder. And wow, I hope the trip was worth you just hearing that from your daughter because that's pretty

special stuff. Well, she tells me quite often how important I am. I hope the trip was worth you just hearing that from your daughter because that's pretty special stuff. Well, she tells me quite often how important I am. Seems like there's a lot of love in this family of yours. Oh yeah, yeah. And now a few messages from our generous sponsors, but first, our next live interview in Memphis will be on June 12th with Father Mark Hanna.

Father Mark and a team of four other civilians saved over 50 lives on 9-11, and the rest of his team died while trying to save more people. After 9-11, Mark became a Coptic priest, and hence the Father title. It's part of our Lunch and Listen series that we've been doing at Crosstown Concourse's Memphis Listening Lab.

And you can learn more and RSVP at fathermark.eventbrite.com. We hope to see you there. We'll be right back. We hope to see you there. We'll be right back. The American West with Dan Flores is the latest show from the Meat Eater Podcast Network, hosted by me, writer and historian Dan Flores, and brought to you by Velvet Buck. This podcast looks at a West available nowhere else. Each episode, I'll be diving into some of the lesser known histories of the West. I'll then be joined in conversation

by guests such as Western historian, Dr. Randall Williams, and bestselling author and meat eater founder, Stephen Ronella. I'll correct my kids now and then where they'll say when cave people were here. And I'll say, it seems like the ice age people that were here didn't have a real affinity for caves. So join me starting Tuesday, May 6th, where we'll delve into stories of the West and come to understand how it helps inform the ways in which we experience the region today. Listen to The American West with Dan Flores on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or

wherever you get your podcasts. In 1978, Roger Caron's first book was published, and he was unlike any first-time author Canada had ever seen. Roger Caron was 16 when first convicted. Had spent 24 of those years in jail. 12 years in solitary. He went from an ex-con to a literary darling almost overnight. He was instantly a celebrity.

He was an adrenaline junkie and he was the star of the show. Go-Boy is the gritty true story of how one man fought his way out of some of the darkest places imaginable. I had a knife go in my stomach, puncture my skin, break my ribs. I had my guts all in my hands. Only to find himself back where he started. Rod, you're saying this, I've never hurt anybody but myself. And I said, oh, you're so wrong. You're so wrong on that one, Rod.

From Campside Media and iHeart Podcasts, listen to GO! BOY on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Michael Kassin, founder and CEO of 3C Ventures and your guide on Good Company, the podcast where I sit down with the boldest innovators shaping what's next. In this episode, I'm joined by Anjali Sood, CEO of Tubi, for a conversation that's anything but ordinary. We dive into the competitive world of streaming, how she's turning so-called niche into mainstream gold, connecting audiences with stories

that truly make them feel seen. What others dismiss as niche, we embrace as core. It's this idea that there are so many stories out there, and if you can find a way to curate and help the right person discover the right content, the term that we always hear from our audience is that they feel seen. Get a front row seat to where media, marketing,

technology, entertainment, and sports collide. And hear how leaders like Anjali are carving out space and shaking things up a bit in the most crowded of markets. Listen to Good Company on the iHeart radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. She was a decorated veteran, a Marine who saved her comrades, a hero. She was stoic, modest, tough, someone who inspired people. Everyone thought they knew her, until they didn't. I remember sitting on her couch and asking her, is this real?

Is this real? Is this real? Is this real? I just couldn't wrap my head around what kind of person would do that to another person that was getting treatment, that was dying. This is a story all about trust and about a woman named Sarah Kavanaugh. I've always been told I'm a really good listener, right? And I maximized that while I was lying.

Listen to deep cover, The Truth About Sarah, on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. In 2020, a group of young women in a tidy suburb of New York City found themselves in an AI-fuelled nightmare. Someone was posting photos. It was just me naked. Well, not me, but me with someone else's body parts on my body parts that looked exactly like my own. I wanted to throw up. I wanted to scream.

It happened in Levittown, New York. But reporting this series took us through the darkest corners of the internet and to the front lines of a global battle against deepfake pornography. This should be illegal, but what is this? This is a story about a technology that's moving faster than the law and about vigilantes

Trying to stem the tide. I'm Margie Murphy and I'm Olivia Carville This is Levittown a new podcast from I heart podcasts Bloomberg and kaleidoscope Listen to Levittown on Bloomberg's big tape podcast find it on the I heart radio app Apple podcasts Or wherever you get your podcasts Okay, that flips us to this dude named Todd Hinson. Tom. Tom Hinson. He's my oldest brother. He's your brother.

On January 17th, he wrote this, Hey Bill, I'd like to nominate my sister. First of all, Tom, we don't nominate, but thank you very much. There's no awards being given. But we got the indication. Tanya Piper to the Army of Normal Folks. I love for you to hear her story. This is a surprise, so please use me as a middleman

if you decide you wanna speak to her. As for me, love your show and continue to be inspired. I discovered your show through your visit with Mike Rowe. I discovered his podcast while recovering from open heart surgery in March. I've listened to all of his and I'm still getting caught off with all of yours. I love the army of dead folks. Listening to Harriet Tubman today. Thank you for your hard

doing to highlight normal folks doing extraordinary things. God bless you Tom. So your brother's pretty impressed by you. Yeah he's pretty impressive too. Tell me about Tom. Tom is four years older than I am. When I was a child he always wanted to do things for me and I am very stubborn and very strong-willed and I would want no it's like no I'll do it myself. As we got older we became very very good friends. He's always he's just a rock. He's an amazing father, amazing grandfather, incredible husband and I love all my brothers. Sorry. You're getting teared up. That's beautiful. I have an amazing family.

Once again, Jen, well done. So Tom, I hope you're listening. We heard you. I'm sure you talked to the pain in the butt Alex or producer. And that's how Tanya ended up here. So Tom, thanks for reaching out. And again, to all your listeners, we beg for you to continue to give us ideas to talk about on Shop Talk. If there's some dead people that you want us to talk about, Tom will tell you the army of dead folks is pretty good.

Normal dead folks. And yeah, normal dead folks. And if you have ideas for people Alex will get in touch with them and if they've got a story to tell we'll have them down here and Tanya is a living proof of that so you grew up in Flat Rock Montana or edge of the river or something Montana I don't know what would you call it? Cut bank. Yeah cut bank that's it and you moved to Edmonton Edmonds when you're seven seven. All right, and

We kind of get an idea of what your family's like obviously tighten it Obviously a father working three jobs provide lots of love closeness. So let's go to One day when you're 10 years old you decide there's something you want to do. So with your hard headed self, with my, so, so when I was younger, I, I wanted my mom to teach me how to make a pie and she says, Oh honey, pie crust is really hard. I said, well, just show me how. So in your 10 or younger, maybe. Okay. I was a child, so she taught me how to make pies, and then one day I came home and I made a pie for my dad,

and my crust was better than hers, and she's never made a pie since. Jan, you got fired. So what was this first pie you made? I don't even remember. Was it cherry pie? I don't remember. I remember. Dad's favorite was cherry pie.

So probably. Probably a cherry pie. First of all, that's sweet. My little kid wanted to make a cherry pie for her dad. Learned how to make a great crust. Yeah. So I did pies a lot for people. I don't do as many pies now, but I do I did

a lot of pies then. So then you I guess this becomes a hobby. I so I love to feed people and I like to bake. Alright, so you graduate high school and I think you start, tell me, tell me what, so you learn to make pies, you get this great cause, now you got kind of this hobby, you like to feed people, but life goes on, so what are you doing? I become a hairdresser. I go to beauty school, worked as a hairdresser in other salons for about three years and

then when my dad retired, he said he wanted to take his part of his retirement, invest in his family. And my parents opened a salon for me. And I had my salon for nine years. And Bill, anybody who tells you when you have your own business, you have more freedom is a liar. Yeah, let me just tag on that.

I started my business in 2001. Yeah, there's no freedom. No, no vacations, you work 12, 14 hour days. You have to deal with other personalities. What do you do when the toilet gets stopped up? Called my dad. No, actually that's not true. I called my middle brother Nate because he's the fix-it guy.

The point is when you own it, you're the guy or the lady. Or you know a guy. Or you know a guy. I know a guy. I know lots of guys. You guys ever heard the line of the great thing about being an entrepreneur is you get to make your own hours? And you also get to work all the hours.

You get to make your own hours. Yeah. And you also get to work all the hours. You get to make your own. An entrepreneur that ended up a billionaire that was one of my mentors once told me to be successful as an entrepreneur, you only have to work half the day. Doesn't matter. First 12 hours, the second 12 hours, just work half the day. So that's it. It's it always. So that was nine years, nine years. And then I sold my salon and I went and worked for an ex employee. Well, actually, I leased a station from her. Man, I was there for seven years. And sometimes it's not always good

to work with friends. So it was when it was time to go. I left there and I found the salon that I'm in now, which I've been at it for 23 years. And it is called salons. Zuberin. It's a play on exuberant. And there's there's 24 of us in this. That's a big place. Yeah. In Seattle area still in Linwood, which is just, you know, right next door to Edmonds. Okay got it. So 21 years 23 years 23 years. Yeah, okay 23 years there. I

Am a mentor to all of the new stylists that come into the salon, so I work with young 1920s Love you know what? Really stupid people. Most of the time, yes. The ones that I have two right now, and oh my gosh, Bill, they're amazing. My wife birthed as a result of her interaction with me for stupid people. They are 25, six, seven, and eight right now, but they're really, really stupid.

Speaking of which, is Max at fault for getting his car stolen. I haven't heard the story this week. What happened? Max's car got stolen. Yeah. How did that? That wasn't his fault. It was a stupid person.

Yeah. Was he being stupid when it got stolen or it just got stolen. Max worked very hard and bought his first house. Yeah. Which I'm very proud of when your youngest kid is actually there, they're now boy, did I mess that up. I'm the stupid person. 30, 29, 28, 27.

So Max just bought his first house, very excited. And he pulled his jeep Cherokee up in front of the house, popped up in his thing, left it running, unloaded his TV to put it in his house. And after eight, six, what do seconds, what do you think about this, Cassius? I know, stupid people. He knows he's in Memphis, right? Yeah, that's right.

And he opened it, and in eight seconds, dropping his TV off in his den, he heard his engine rev up, ran out the front door to see his car headed off down the street with the hatch still open. He and his buddy who are in a truck with other stuff, dropped the trail off the truck and chased the car. And while chasing the car because the stupid people who are about Max's age that stole the car, because everybody that age is stupid, we're establishing this

and I was actually his ear pods or buds or whatever those stupid things is that young people wear in theirs all the time. I think Alex, you have a pair. Anyway, a lot of people. Yeah, right. So yeah, so they can track those apparently. So they tracked his moving car from his earbuds that are in the backseat because one stupid person left his valuable stuff in his car and another stupid person stole the car. Tracked him, called the police while chasing him.

The police are now engaged and now my son and his buddy in a truck with three police cars are chasing his car. With the hatch open. With the hatch open. And the earbuds in the back seat. hatch open terrible part of Memphis to which the two stupid people that stole the car decided you know this just didn't worth it they roll the car up on a corner jump out and run off through a neighborhood and the cops and max pull up and he

gets his car back he said it cost him like three thousand,000 or something. Well, he left a bunch of stuff in the car that they stole and the rear-view mirror Which is attached to all of your sensors and your backup camera and all that the first thing they do when they steal your car Apparently you yank that off the windshield throw it out the window because that's where the GPS beacon is so They didn't they didn't plan on the ear pods and the airplane on the air pods, but it has like six wires. So now he's got a windshield with all these wires hanging down.

I don't know. So he's gonna have to pay for that. But I think that is a tax for being a stupid person. And there's another stupid person involved. The cop that made the scene at his house, she was probably 27 or eight, equally stupid. She did not engage in the chase for the stolen car and the criminals who stole my son's stuff,

but she was happy to give my son a ticket for leaving his car running. This an unintended vehicle ticket, but it was in his driveway on his private property, not in the street. So it's Is that still legal doing it in your own private property? You can do whatever you want to in your private property, right? If it was on the street had been trickle worthy. So now she showed her youth and stupidity through writing a ticket that is completely illegal, which is being thrown out.

So that basically what happened in about a 45 minute period of time commenced a confederacy of dunces. Were you on the phone at all during any of this? Yes. And then I showed up to watch it all unfold. And there was this, it was just a confederacy of stupid people engaging with one another in a way that now is laughable, but at the time was showing was Lisa on the phone during this? What's that was Lisa on

the phone? No, Lisa realized that it was a confederate of stupid people did want to be involved and she stayed at home. She was the only smart one. Yes, I guess I joined the ranks of the idiots for showing up just to know. But for the laughter. Well now, but at the time, I was really not happy. Because I was surrounded by ignorance, bliss and superstition. Oh, speaking of stupid devices. But matter completely closed down. All right. I love you. So, okay. Anyway, you bring in people that do things just like the story we just told and you're there onboarding people and I assume

part of the job is to try to make them less stupid. Yes. So are the two I have right now, they're gonna listen to this and we just blister them. We don't even know who they are. No, I know. But I say that all the time to my clients about the fact that I don't. They have renewed my faith in the younger generation because up until... Give it a chance. I know. I know, but I'm on this positivity.

Yeah, I can tell. I'm always going to find the silver lining. And these two actually, they blow me away with their work ethic and they're just there. They learn, they listen, they're sponges. This could be proof of life off of the planet. I know. Where they come from. That's what I said too.

And I got, I have got two more coming up that are the same way. And I'm like- Do either of them have antennae or what looks like a baby arm growing on their forehead? No, they're, they're hidden. They're, they're, they've hidden the aliens well. Yes. Fabulous. We'll be right back. back. The American West with Dan Flores is the latest show from the Meat Eater Podcast Network, hosted by me, writer and historian Dan Flores, and brought to you by Velvet Buck. This podcast looks at a West available nowhere else. Each episode, I'll be diving into some

of the lesser known histories of the West. I'll then be joined in conversation by guests such as Western historian Dr. Randall Williams and bestselling author and meat eater founder, Stephen Ronella. I'll correct my kids now and then where they'll say when cave people were here. And I'll say, it seems like the ice age people

that were here didn't have a real affinity for caves. So join me starting Tuesday, May 6th, where we'll delve into stories of the West and come to understand how it helps inform the ways in which we experience the region today. Listen to The American West with Dan Flores on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Michael Kassin, founder and CEO of 3C Ventures and your guide on Good Company, the podcast where I sit down with the boldest innovators shaping what's next. In this episode, I'm joined by Anjali Sood, CEO of Tubi, for a conversation that's anything but ordinary. We dive into the competitive world of streaming,

how she's turning so-called niche into mainstream gold, connecting audiences with stories that truly make them feel seen. What others dismiss as niche, we embrace as core. It's this idea that there are so many stories out there, and if you can find a way to curate and help the right person discover the right content, the term that we always hear from our audience is that they feel seen.

Get a front row seat to where media, marketing, technology, entertainment, and sports collide. And hear how leaders like Anjali are carving out space and shaking things up a bit in the most crowded of markets. Listen to Good Company on the iHeart radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. In 1978, Roger Caron's first book was published, and he was unlike any first-time author Canada had ever seen. Roger Caron was 16 when first convicted. Had spent 24 of those years in jail. 12 years in solitary.

He went from an ex-con to a literary darling almost overnight. He was instantly a celebrity. He was an adrenaline junkie, and he was the star of the show. Go-Boy is the gritty true story of how one man fought his way out of some of the darkest places imaginable. I had a knife through my stomach, puncture my skin, break my ribs, I had my guts all in my hands. Only to find himself back where he started.

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All right. So that's what you do. And at some point you decided this hobby I have where I made a crust much better than my mother's a 10 and I've still continued to bake and like it. Want to share this. I started baking for all the girls at work for their birthdays. And whenever I felt the need to bake something and I don't want it at my house, because if

it's there, then I will eat it. So I, you know, and when you, when you bake for girls, women, they love you and hate you at the same time. Yeah, because it's so good. And and I make it and they eat it and they'll the calendar. Our calendar has everybody's birthdays on it. So I always, you know, what do you want for your birthday? And they have to contemplate because there's so many choices. And then if there's a month that there is no birthdays,

then I look at the calendar and say random cake day, which means we need case. Okay, so my wife Lisa is 50. For four or four or four, I don't know, 53 or four. Now. She's gorgeous. She is little and cute, precious. And I don't know how this woman has eaten 23 donuts in one setting. She has good metabolism. Oh, off the charts. Tell her not to get used to it. 53 now and had four kids in four years and she's still teen icy. It's just it's it's she's probably from another genetics. Yeah, it's ridiculous. But the point is, it's funny which saying the reason I'm telling the story is her

mother is 75 is the same way. And they will eat like when we go out to eat, Lisa will order dessert before the meal. She has the biggest sweet tooth you've ever seen in your life. There's never a mill that we go to, regardless of how much we eat that she doesn't order dessert and take it home and eat it for breakfast the next day. It's true. Okay, well you can tell her now I hate her. Because I can't eat any of the stuff I bought.

I look at her chocolate chip cookie and I gain two and a half pounds. It's just crap. Okay, I understand. Okay, but here's what these two women do. They go to the grocery store and they come home with like six desserts, both of them do it. And my in-laws live in the guest house at our home. So we are separated by a driveway, all right? Peggy will go and she'll buy four or five desserts.

She'll take a bite out of each. And then when Lisa leaves and comes back home, all the desserts are in our kitchen. Because she doesn't want to eat but a bite and doesn't want them there to get right. She just wants to try them. Right. And then get them to you. And then she dumps them so she won't be,

have to eat them all, right? Because she knows if they're there, she'll devour them in 24 hours. And then my wife will do the exact same thing. She'll cook or buy desserts, have a couple of bites. And then when Peggy goes for walk or something, she runs up and dumps it all in her kitchen. So we have traveling desserts going on at my house at all times. And

it's like you're trying to justify a lot right here, Bill. Well, just guess who ends up eating the desserts? Yeah. Me. Yeah, that's why I take them to work. Because these two crazy women. Yeah. So I understand that people at your salon who are probably trying to be stylish and

everything because of their hair are saying quit cooking all this stuff. And then I come along. But they do it anyway. Yeah. And they eat it. They do. Absolutely. Do you ever catch them like they're sneaking it, like they're not eating it, but in fact

they're eating it? I bet they. At some so moment. Oh, no, they eat it proudly. Do you know the best way to eat a cake with your finger when nobody's looking you just dig down on that thing and suck it up and eat it like that. Because that's naughty. It is not it is so much fun to just don't even utensils and no plate just right on the platter it sits on, you know, when nobody's around just dig your finger. I don't know that they use that but they do utensils and no plate just right on the platter it sits on you know when nobody's around just They use that but they do cut it and no plate and no fork cut it pick it up and eat it with their fingers That's right, but they do cut a piece out

Oh, did you make a cake for me? Yes, I did Oh get yourself back I'm going to what is it? This is a cookies and cream. It's one of my signature cakes. Oh my god You gotta take a picture of this for the thing before I ate it. All right. Well, you know Why can't I eat it I Want to eat some of it this is a guy's way to eat a cake just like way to eat a cake just like that's good was that Oreo in there it's my it's one of my signature cakes and what it's so so what is we'll get into it more but that the guys will go hey can you make me data data data? And I create things for them, and this is one. Somebody asked.

It's like a coffee cake with Oreos. Well, it's just a regular Bundt cake. So Bundt cakes look fancy, but they're really easy to make, so I do Bundt cake. That is so freaking good. What is it? What's it called, what do you call it? A cookies and cream cake.

A coconut cream cake? No, cookies and cream. Cookie and cream cake. But it's Bundt with cookies and cream on it cream cake, but it's bund with white cake with No On the other side where you did like your fingers and put him in the rest of us are gonna wait till you're done That's really good.

That's awesome. I made that last night. I can't wait to taste that. He's going to love it. I'm all enjoyed. Why? We're not going to eat this throughout the interview. It's the greatest thing in the world.

All right. So people have got to be wondering why in the world I'm talking to you about this because this is an army of normal folks. Yeah. And one of the things we say that is really good for real. And it's not for the purposes of show, but that is tasty. Oh, you know, her dedication. She got what she Tanya got an Airbnb, I think in midtown just so that she could bake you a cake and hopefully make some other people a cake. Did you make that Memphis? Yeah, I made it last night after I got here.

That is so sweet. Thank you. Well, I had to I had to talk to the owner of the Airbnb and make sure that I had a working stove and oven and I Bill I brought my own mixer and I brought my own bun pan and my favorite spoon and spatula because Because they might not have those things. I didn't want to have to buy him So my suitcase brought my on my cooling rack because those are all things that then Airbnb's never have time You're sweet, but you're neurotic as hell. Yes, I am.

Okay, so. One of the things we talk about is, I mean, we have featured people on the show that have massive 501C3s that have grown into, you know, 20 or 30 places in the United States doing huge things, but, and that's awesome. But one of the things we talk about is magic happens where you see an area of need and you have a passion

and you use that passion to fill that area. And that you do not have to have a massive 501c3. You don't have to do, all you have to do is have a talent and a passion and see where that talent and passion can fill into an area of need and just make somebody's life better. That's all it takes to be a part of the army.

And we believe there's people like that all over the world. We also believe that there's this narrative that is propped up by an enormous amount of power and wealth in places like DC and our national media on both sides of the spectrum that that power and wealth is maintained by crafting narratives to convince us that we're all enemies and that there aren't that many people doing good things. We're trying to be the antithesis to that narrative by

telling stories, people who have passions and disciplines and use those passions and disciplines just to make somebody's life a little better. That's the idea. You are quintessentially that. And it's not about cooking cakes for your fellow hairdressers. Although that's kinda where it started. I guess. That's where it started, yeah. So,

about 10 years ago or so, maybe seven, back in 2018, Evergreen Church in Bothell? Actually, it was the 10th anniversary of 9-11. But the church was in? The church, so it was 2011. Okay. Our church was doing a service honoring first responders

on the 10th anniversary of 9-11. Which is beautiful. So our pastor asked us, there's a list of police and fire departments. We're supposed to sign up and bring them invitations and cookies to this event. At your church? At our church, yes. So I signed up for the Linwood Fire Department because they are the ones that had responded. My dad had had a heart attack and stroke on the same day and that station was the ones

that had responded to his 911 call. So my dad and I went together. I'm kidding. Yes. Your dad went with you. Yeah, he did. And we... This was your thanks for their work for him.

Well, I chose that station because of what they had done for him. But it was years prior to that. So that was why I chose the Linwood station. So I knocked on the door and I gave them their little invitations and I said. Is this a 24-7 fire station? Live and stay.

Which is almost a family away from a family. Yeah, they are. Yeah, okay. So I knocked on the door and I said, is this a 24 seven fire station live and stay? Which is almost a family away from a family. Yeah, they are. Yeah. OK. So I knocked on the door and I said, you know, told them what we were doing. And this little voice in my head. Said you should adopt them for you, make them perfect. And I'm thinking, you know, conversation in my head. Oh, that sounds like kind of fun. Maybe I'll do that. Randomly. I when I say

that I started baking for firemen, I had no indication, no clue that was not anything that I had ever planned on doing until I knocked on their door. So I said, I got to tell you something. One of the other things we say all the time, and you were quintessentially this too, is we get all kinds of people say, Oh, hand wringing. Oh, I really want to be involved in help. I just don't know how. And we say it's literally as easy as walking cross street knocking on a door. Which ironically is literally exactly what your father did. Yeah. So you knock on her door.

Knocked on the door. And I said, so of course. They have to be looking at you a little stupid right now. Well, yeah, of course. Who are you? Hey, Barbara. So I said, hey, I bake birthday cakes. If you're interested, here's my number.

Give me a call, and I just left it at that. And about a week later, somebody called me. Which kind of surprised me anyway, because it's like, you know, you've some random person knocks on your door says, I want to make birthday cakes for the fire department. And he says, Well, it's not just us. There's another station down there is a main station in Linwood had two, there was a larger one, I was at the smaller station. And I he says, like, there's, I think there was like 60 of them

at the time. And I said, well you can't all have a birthday at the same time, so I don't care, that's fine with me. And he says, okay. And then a week later I got a phone call. And I said I just need somebody to coordinate, you know, let me know who's having a birthday each month and I'll bring cake.

What does this have to do with the church thing though? Nothing. You've just gone on your own. Absolutely nothing. You went down your own path. No, yeah. Okay. That was my God voice that told me what to do.

I got it. So I listened to the, I haven't always listened to that. None of us have. I've gotten older, I've learned to listen. I haven't always listened to them. None of us have. I've gotten older, I've learned to listen. I got it. So that's where it started. And I'm like, so I would get a phone call and they would give me a list. And I found out later that I'm bringing a birthday cake to a guy that's probably not

even at work, but his cake came. And I would drop it off at the front desk with the little old lady volunteers. And I did that for, no, my dude, this is most people think, Oh, you know, Oh, I'm single. I don't have, I'm not married. I don't have children. No, it was not about trying to meet a fireman. It was not my intention whatsoever. It was because that was what I was supposed to do.

I didn't know why I was supposed to do it at the time. And that concludes part one of my conversation with Tanya Rae Piper. And you don't want to miss part two that's now available to listen to. Together guys, we can change this country, but it starts with you. I'll see you in part two. You're listening to an iHeart Podcast.