Judge John Hodgman - In Photo Parentis

Episode Date: May 22, 2024

Family photos as decor: Only for grandparents? Morgan says yes, but James says no! Who's right? Who's wrong?We are on TikTok and YouTube! Follow us on both @judgejohnhodgmanpod! Follow us on Instag...ram @judgejohnhodgman.Thanks to reddit user u/DrColossusOfRhodes for naming this week’s case! To suggest a title for a future episode, keep an eye on the Maximum Fun subreddit at maximumfun.reddit.com!

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Starting point is 00:00:00 Welcome to the Judge John Hodgman podcast. I'm Bill of Jesse Thorne. This week in Photo Parentis, James brings the case against his wife Morgan. James put up some photos of the extended family in their home. Morgan wants him to take them down. They can go back up in 20 years when the couple is closer to grandparent age. Who's right, who's wrong, only one can decide. Please rise as Judge John Hodgman enters the courtroom and presents an obscure cultural
Starting point is 00:00:35 reference. This absence of people should be and feel unnatural and place the scene in a clear limbo. Liminality in this way naturally draws on other concepts. Although only pertaining to physical people, the concept of Canopsia defines well the kind of emptiness we seek. Pertaining to the surreal atmosphere of an empty place usually populated by people, this ties in with the abstract transition of a place being between uses.
Starting point is 00:01:09 Bailiff Jessie Thorne, please swear the litigants in. James Morgan, please rise and raise your right hands. Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth so help you, God or whatever? I do. Do you swear to abide by Judge John Hodgman's ruling, despite the fact that he doesn't show up in photographs like some kind of dang Dracula? I do. You swear to abide by Judge John Hodgman's ruling, despite the fact that he doesn't show up in photographs like some kind of dang Dracula. I do.
Starting point is 00:01:28 It's not true. It's not true. Judge Hodgman, you may proceed. It's not true. Anyone can go and see me and see that I am not a dang Dracula over on our YouTube channel right now, where you might notice this episode, I got a little haircut. Do you notice that, Jesse? I got a little haircut.
Starting point is 00:01:43 You look great. You look great in my little monitor that I have. Thanks. You look great too. And so do you James and Morgan. And we are back at the Sycamore, the studio not far from Columbus, Ohio. Where we last spoke to Casey and Matthew, you remember that Casey wanted to buy a church and a bank and a castle. Now we have James and Morgan in there. James and Morgan, although you may be seated, for an immediate summary judgment in one of your favorites, can either of you name the piece of culture
Starting point is 00:02:08 that I referenced as I entered this courtroom? I don't know. Morgan, you go first. Well, the first thing that came to my mind when you said, I think, Canopsia or something reminded me of Barbie. But I know that has nothing to do with this. Oh, Canopsia.
Starting point is 00:02:25 Yeah, no. Yeah, no. Canopsia, and I'll give you a hint. That is the eerie atmosphere of a place that is usually bustling with people, but is now abandoned. That's a term from the dictionary. But I'll put down Barbie. I'll write it down.
Starting point is 00:02:41 And I'm going to write it down. B-A-R-B-I-E. If you think I'm faking it, check out our YouTube channel. I wrote it right down. Morgan, that was a good guess. What is your guess over there, James? I mean, since I have no idea and she wants Barbie, I think I have to go Oppenheimer, right? Sure. Absolutely. Got to go Oppo.
Starting point is 00:02:58 Got to go Oppo. Got to do your Oppo research. I'm just writing Oppo because I don't have all day to write these things down because all guesses are wrong. Throw that on the floor. All guesses are wrong. The answer was one but one of many bullet points in the rules, the posting rules of the subreddit called liminal spaces, which is a subreddit devoted to posting unnerving photos of typically abandoned places. They define liminal space, and it's really tricky, because if you post something that's merely creepy, you're going to get flamed. A liminal space is a transitional space, a space that connects other spaces, like a corridor or a road, or spaces that you transition through, often without paying attention to, like an airport sky bridge or a steam tunnel,
Starting point is 00:03:49 some place that is mundane, a place especially empty spaces that feel abandoned and uncanny and a little unnerving, like for example, I don't know, James and Morgan, your dining room. Yeah, that's true. Now, I mean this in the nicest way possible. But you sent in some photos of your home as evidence,
Starting point is 00:04:09 which people can go and see on our show page at MaximumFun.org, as well as on our Instagram page at JudgeJohnHodgeman. And your home is lovely, but your dining room scares me. It does need more in it. We'll get into it in a second, but I just want to say that this one photo of the dining room, where you see the stairs to the upstairs, this is truly, I think, could be posted on Liminal Spaces
Starting point is 00:04:32 and not get taken down. Because it's a transitional space between a living area and a kitchen, and there are the stairs going up, and you also have two different styles of, three different styles of flooring. Yeah. This transitional wall-to-wall carpet between tile and what looks like hardwood or laminate hardwood. And there's nobody in these photos. It was a little scary to me, this particular one. And even though there is one picture on a wall, and in some of the other photos we see a lot more,
Starting point is 00:05:00 but there is an element of sparness and bareness to these walls, which is part of why we're here today, because we're talking about wall decoration, right? So let's get into it. Who comes to seek justice in this fake court of law? I do. Who is that speaking? A Jim James. Oh, would you prefer that I call you Jim?
Starting point is 00:05:20 Either is fine. All right, Jimmy. What is the nature of the justice that you seek? I seek to put up more photos on the walls. I'm from a big extended close family and I would like to have more of the aunts and uncles and cousins displayed on the walls. And you have some up there already, correct? Yeah, but that's pretty much immediate family like siblings and nieces and nephews, yes.
Starting point is 00:05:43 Oh, you want to go, do you want to go full chronology, like back in time? Not necessarily back in time. I mean, the ones that lived lifetimes that overlapped with mine would be nice. Do you want me to send you the photos that my dad has of my great grandparents? Sure. I'll put it next to my grandparents' wedding photo. Jimbo, you know that nieces and nephews are by no definition immediate family. No, but they're the immediate family of our immediate family. Okay, got it. Jimmy James, you want to be putting up many, many more family photos than are up already,
Starting point is 00:06:19 correct? Yes. And Morgan, you say no. Why do you hate family photos? Particularly, why do you hate Jim's family? I do not hate Jim's family. I actually like them very much. No, they are very kind people.
Starting point is 00:06:31 You just don't ever want to look at their faces. Well... Kind, but homely. I'm okay with having some pictures in our house of extended family, but not that many. I think it's more important to have pictures of immediate family in the house. And why?
Starting point is 00:06:52 It reminds me of going to like a grandparent's house. Mm-hmm. Because usually when you go to a grandparent's house, they have pictures of all of the extended family in the house. So it just, it reminds me of this older type of house. And you're not a grandparent, right? No, not.
Starting point is 00:07:11 You're both parents, right? You have kids, kids, what do you got? Two kids. Two kids. And they're young, right? They are, yeah. They're young, like you are, Jim. That's what, I think that's what Morgan's trying to say.
Starting point is 00:07:24 Too young to have all these family photos because it makes you feel like you're visiting a granddad. So I'm like, my dad who is a granddad and he's got pictures of my great grandparents up there. Yeah, Jimbo, why do you wanna put out a bowl of dietetic candy? Yeah. What do you want, you want a bowl of rocks?
Starting point is 00:07:41 I think part of it might be, you know, I grew up so close to a lot of my cousins and aunts and uncles, and we aren't seeing them quite as frequently now that my grandparents have passed away. I'm sorry to hear that. Thank you. And the pandemic, you know, put the kibosh on that for a year or two.
Starting point is 00:07:56 And so it would be nice to see those faces of the people that I don't get to see as often as I used to. Where did you grow up? In central Ohio. Where you live now? Yes. So why don't't get to see as often as I used to. Where did you grow up? In central Ohio. Where you live now? Yes. So why don't you get to see them? Did they move away?
Starting point is 00:08:10 Half of my cousins and siblings have moved out of the state. Where'd they escape to? I've got a sister in Michigan. I've got a brother in Colorado. I've got a cousin in... You have a sister who left Ohio for Michigan and you still want to talk, you still want to keep a photo of her?
Starting point is 00:08:24 I know that my family- You gotta remember what she used to be like before she betrayed him. My family are huge Buckeye fans, so it has been a point of contention, but her, her husband has a very similar family of huge Michigan fans. So we tolerate him. I like to imagine that when he says his family is a huge bunch of Buckeye fans, that they're just fans of Buckeyes. Not college football Buckeyes, but just the actual tree nuts.
Starting point is 00:08:51 I have an aunt that has a Buckeye tree, but my mom grew up next door to Archie Griffin, so they're very, very close. All right, all right. I know I introduced this and I was very pleased with myself for even knowing about a sports rivalry. I credit Jordan Klepper with introducing me to that. But now you're talking about probably a coach, right?
Starting point is 00:09:12 Probably a coach you're talking about or a player? A player. Morgan, what do you do? I work at Ohio State University. Oh, literal, you're a literal Buckeye. Yes, I am. What is a Buckeye? It's like a, it's like ackeye? It's like a tree nut.
Starting point is 00:09:28 Yeah, it's like a tree nut. Looks like a sort of like a chestnut. Yeah. Oh. And it falls on your head or something. It looks vaguely like the eyeball of a male deer. Not quite, but enough that that's what it got its name from.
Starting point is 00:09:43 Why don't they call it a deer ball? Enough, enough already. Enough, enough Buckeye talk. Tell me which family members are currently represented in your home decor, walk me through it. I'm gonna look at the evidence and people can look at it too if they want over the websites that I mentioned before. So there's pictures of us and our daughter,
Starting point is 00:10:04 no pictures of our son yet, we are overdue on getting that up. But your son is photographable? He is, but he's two and we've just been busy. We have like a wedding picture from my brother's wedding, so all of us together, which includes all of my siblings and my parents. And then we have some individual pictures
Starting point is 00:10:23 of a couple of my siblings and one of my siblings' family. And then we also have pictures from our wedding of us with our siblings and with our parents. And Morgan, is this already too much? Yeah, it is. Which ones would you like to get rid of? There's a whole wall in our dining room of extended family that I would like to get rid of.
Starting point is 00:10:46 There are multiple angles on your dining room. Mm-hmm. And I will say this, only the one angle creeped me out. The rest suggest a very comfortable and extremely tidy home. Are you equally tidy? We try to be. James, do you believe that Are you equally tidy? You try to be.
Starting point is 00:11:06 James, do you believe that you are equally tidy? In the main living spaces of the house, yes. I mean, this is pretty god or whatever damn tidy you two. Like, I don't see this very often. Did you stage these photos? No. I mean, you know, did you have a professional come in and stage your house to put, take photos for this podcast? Because that would have been a wild waste of money.
Starting point is 00:11:27 No, there are a couple of things on the floor in the photos and I was worried she'd be really mad that that happened, but they're not very obvious. Oh yeah. There's like a throw pillow down. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. You know, normally when people share photos of their home, it's like, I wonder if they've taken a t-shirt cannon full of dog hair and just blasted the place before they get the photo. But this is very, very, very spare, I would say.
Starting point is 00:11:50 Whose sensibilities does this represent, Morgan? Yours or James's? Yeah, probably more mine. Yeah, yours. I will say this. So I'm looking at sort of the wall of family photos in the dining room. wall of family photos in the dining room. And I see like, this is the photo that sort of has a nest thermostat and then three photos.
Starting point is 00:12:10 Yes. Whose photos are these, just so I know? Well, two of them are immediate family. The other one is the one of your brother's wedding. Yes. And you like all of these down from this wall, right, Morgan? No, I like the one of my immediate family, but the one of the brother's wedding, I think.
Starting point is 00:12:30 Would you want to replace them with something else? I would like to have more decorative art pieces on the wall. I was going to say, you know, I noticed that there is a... I mean, perhaps you have only taken photos of the family photos, which would be reasonable. But in this spot in particular, it feels like you have three small family photos where one nice piece of art could go. Yes, I agree.
Starting point is 00:12:55 I think that this photo size issue needs to be addressed. Right? Cha-cha. I know, I've danced around it for too long. Go ahead, Jessie, wait in. How did you end up with tiny, tiny pictures on big giant walls? Well, I think it's also the angle of the picture
Starting point is 00:13:10 that you took of the picture. It's clear in all pictures. In all pictures, there are four by six photographs in frames on giant walls. One to three tiny photographs on a big giant wall. I think one's an eight by 10. The canvas is a little bigger. giant walls, one to three tiny photographs on a big giant wall. And I think one's an eight by 10. The canvas is a little bigger.
Starting point is 00:13:32 That's the size of a piece of notebook paper. Bring that eight by 10 down to the dry cleaner and sign it for them. Now, Morgan, do you agree or disagree that these pictures, no matter what they're of, too small for the walls? Yes or no. Do you agree or disagree? I agree. You agree. Okay. There is one room that feels a little bit distinct from the others. And this is a room that looks packed full.
Starting point is 00:13:57 It's got bookshelves. It's packed full of books and maybe, and then a bunch of collectibles, including the character Q from the first episode of Star Trek, The Next Generation, dressed up as a judge, which you know I'm a big fan of that costume. Whose collection is this? Oh, definitely mine. Yours, okay.
Starting point is 00:14:19 It's got a lovely brio of, it's got a lovely feel of nerdery to it. Would that be fair to say? Absolutely. Yeah. And there's a photo of a beloved family member on the wall here above Q. Who is that?
Starting point is 00:14:32 That is my grandmother. And can you describe what your grandmother is doing in the photo? She's hanging out with some anime guys. She is giving the photographer the middle finger. This room feels alive to me. Morgan, how do you feel about this room? I think it represents Jim. Ah!
Starting point is 00:14:51 You two have a good marriage. How long have you been married? Fifteen years in June. Oh, well, happy anniversary in advance. Yeah. And how long have these family photos been on the dining room wall, would you say, Morgan? I don't know, since we moved in. So what was your reaction when you saw them for the first time?
Starting point is 00:15:15 Did you know that Jim James was going to put these photos on the wall or what? Well, did we have them up in our last house? We did, yeah. But I don't remember where they were in the last house. We moved into this house about 2 and 1 half years ago. Oh, OK. So they're holdover from our last house. So it wasn't surprising when they were put back up on the wall.
Starting point is 00:15:34 In the photographs, they're small enough that I can't see anything in the photos. And it kind of makes me feel like when you say they've been up since you moved in, that they were there before you moved in. And did you ever ask him directly, can we just take these down? We've had conversations about it. And how does the conversation go? I'll play you, you play James. Hi James, it's me, your spouse and whole human being in my own right, Morgan. Uh, I noticed you put those pictures up.
Starting point is 00:16:06 Uh, we didn't talk about it. It's not my favorite. I'd like to put something else up in there. How do you feel about that? I like having pictures of my family up. I like to see them on the walls. James, have you received a specific request to take these photos down, at least in the dining room and put up something else?
Starting point is 00:16:23 No. Why not Morgan? Why wait for a podcast? I feel like maybe I've said it once. You've expressed that you would like them less family photos. You haven't said you want to replace them with anything. So, but okay. So Morgan, you have requested a gent made a general request,
Starting point is 00:16:40 fewer family photos. Yes. But you could understand why that could be interpreted in many ways. And that James is prepared to interpret it to his benefit. Yes. We're at an inflection point because James, you would like to add more, correct? Yeah, I've tried to and she's kind of like moved them in places that aren't very visible. Where did Morgan put them?
Starting point is 00:17:03 In the living room where there's the record stand, like I had him up on top of the record stand and she put them down like in the record stand where they're kind of hidden. This living room photo, this is the one which has sort of the there's a piano in there.
Starting point is 00:17:18 There are framed images on the wall here. Are those family photos or this that art? I can't tell. Above the piano are our wedding photos, four from our wedding and then above the record player that is a piece of art that I believe you made and your mom framed for you and And do you like that piece of art James? Yes, I do good, but I want you to answer this question How many more photos you got and where are they are they ready to go? What's going on? How many more photos have you got? And where are they?
Starting point is 00:17:43 Are they ready to go? What's going on? No, I don't have any ready to go. I would probably go through the giant tub of photos and try to pick out some nice ones if she allowed. Please describe the giant tub of photos. It's like one of those plastic bins, storage bins. It's maybe like, I don't know, a couple feet by 18 inches and that deep.
Starting point is 00:18:04 And I've got almost one full. And it's full of photos. Yes. Of your family or of miscellaneous subjects? Almost entirely of my family. You have a plastic bin full of photos on paper. Are we speaking to you in the past? I mean, I also have a record player, so yeah, maybe.
Starting point is 00:18:27 And how large are these photos? I mean, most of them are the standard four by sixes, but we have some larger ones that are older. And do you have a vision for where they would go all over the place or on a particular wall or throughout the dining area or what? Two tiny ones on each wall in your home? I mean, never really... Really near the ceiling for your home? I mean, I've never really Really near the ceiling for some reason?
Starting point is 00:18:47 I don't know. Yeah, think about it that way. I don't think I've ever dared to dream enough to actually come up with a plan because I knew it would immediately be shut down. So I don't have a specific plan, but I would say any place that where there's a couple of feet of empty wall,
Starting point is 00:19:01 we should have something on there. And I'd probably put a photo or two or three. You're listening to Judge John Hodgman. I'm Bailiff Jesse Thorne. Of course, the Judge John Hodgman podcast always brought to you by you, the members of MaximumFun.org. Thanks to everybody who's gone to MaximumFun.org slash join. And you can join them by going to MaximumFun.org. Thanks to everybody who's gone to MaximumFun.org slash join, and you can join them by going to MaximumFun.org slash join.
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Starting point is 00:22:23 Go to squarespace.com for a free trial. When you're ready to launch, go to squarespace.com slash Hodgman, squarespace.com slash Hodgman for 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain. It does feel like your photo placement to this point has just been one photo every few feet. That's been the main, like just one four inch by six inch photo every four feet on the wall. Yeah she dictated where they would go roughly and so I just yeah. Have you ever considered grouping smaller photographs into more substantial, less frequent
Starting point is 00:23:09 displays? Oh yeah, definitely. So why don't you do that? Not allowed. Where did this tub of photos come from? Are they photos you've taken or did you collect them from other family members or what? It's really been basically my whole life. Not that I take paper photos anymore.
Starting point is 00:23:29 Now they're all, anyone we've taken the last 10 years is digital on the computer. But yeah, so these are mostly photos from childhood, ones I took or my family members took. And my mom at one point went through all her photos and gave me a bunch of them that I was in, cause she was slimming down how many she was holding onto.
Starting point is 00:23:44 So, and then we have some photos from after her mother passed away, gave me a bunch of them that I was in because she was slimming down how many she was holding on to. So and then we have some photos from after her mother passed away. We got a bunch of her family photos from her house and I added them to the tub. So yeah, we've got quite a few. And I presume you would want to represent Morgan's family as equally as your own, right? That's not what this is about, is it? No, I mean, she has a smaller family, so it would probably be fewer photos, but I would want to represent them
Starting point is 00:24:08 proportionally equally for sure. Morgan, what is your vision for the walls of your home that's currently being stifled by your husband? I would like some more artistic pieces on the wall. I would like some family photos, more of our immediate family, but I would also like some more artistic pieces on the wall. I would like some family photos, more of our immediate family, but I would also like some more artistic pieces
Starting point is 00:24:29 on the wall as well. I will say we have a couple of pieces in the house that we have, and we did not include them in here, but we have the Son of Man by Rene Magritte. We have a photo of that, like a poster of it. Like a print, yeah. Mm-hmm. And we also have... It would be awesome if the payoff to this
Starting point is 00:24:50 was that you just had the painting. Right, yeah. This is the famous painting of the gentleman with the business suit with the big green apple in front of his face. Yeah, if you had the original Magritte, that would be pretty intense. Yeah, like, we got these four by six photos
Starting point is 00:25:04 of cousins, cousins. We got about a dozen of those. We got a Magritte, two Chagalls. Yeah, we also have another Magritte too. This is not a pipe. We have that as well. So we both like that. And my mother actually put a framed picture of Jim's poster
Starting point is 00:25:26 from Battlestar Galactica in a nice frame. It's, and you can explain what the scene is, but it's the scene, it's a last supper scene from Battlestar Galactica. And it's hanging up above our fireplace. And I'm, you know, it's a nice picture. So I'm fine with that. I mean, Jim, you have, that's a pretty famous photo from Battlestar Galactica.
Starting point is 00:25:47 Mm-hmm. Where the cast is recreating the famous positioning of the painting The Last Supper by... Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. What is it? Michelangelo Da Vinci or whatever? Yeah. Who is it? That's one of those Ninja Turtles.
Starting point is 00:26:02 Who did The Last Supper? It's a Leonardo da Vinci. Okay, good. And it's the entire cast minus, unfortunately, they ended up editing me out of it. I was in one, I was the brain guy. I was the brain doctor in one episode in the final season. I didn't get into The Last Supper.
Starting point is 00:26:24 I was painted in the final season. I didn't get into the Last Supper. I was painted in the overflow room. It's pretty cool that you have a, that you have a spouse who will let you hang a Battlestar Galactica fan poster above your fireplace in your living room. And that's a pretty major display area in any home, wouldn't you say? Oh, absolutely. I was really surprised she let me, but her, as she said, her mom did frame it really nicely, so it actually looks like a piece of art and not just a geek poster. Maureen, you said that having extensive photos of extended family kind of feels like a grandparenty vibe.
Starting point is 00:26:59 Mm-hmm. Is, is, did that describe like your grandparents' house or is there a place you're thinking of? Not only my grandparents house but also Jim's grandparents house and his mom. Now she's a young grandma but it's also kind of filtering on into her house as well. What does a grandparenty vibe feel like to you? When you're in a house like that, how does it make you feel? Just feels kind of dated. You didn't marry James' mom, you married James.
Starting point is 00:27:27 Right. Yeah. James, your mom has extended family photos throughout the house? Not throughout the whole house, but the main living spaces, yes. And did she always have them up? Was this a part of your decor growing up? Or did she add onto it as she got older? We always had quite a few, I think, but yes, she's definitely added to it as she's gotten older.
Starting point is 00:27:51 James, do having a lot of photos of extended family around the house feel like home to you? Yes, absolutely. I see. And do you feel, are you worried that if you don't have them up, you won't feel at home? I wouldn't say that. I feel pretty at home in our house. That's just, if I'm looking at walls,
Starting point is 00:28:11 that's what I would like to see on the walls. Morgan, do you feel at home in your house or just at home at your desk in the corner of the living room? No, I feel at home in my house. But I would feel better if I had more things on the walls that represented my interests. So Morgan, when you look at the photo of the dining room, like, would you be happy if those precise photos in that configuration were replaced with 8x10 Magrits or something?
Starting point is 00:28:47 Or what's your vision there? I think I would like more pictures of our immediate family in the dining room. And then maybe a couple of artistic pieces on the wall as well. James, it says here that you're the family historian, is that correct? My younger cousins would say that, yes. Besides the point that you obviously love your family, why do you collect these photos in a tub? I don't know. I've always been interested in history and connection and family. And I have a degree in history. And I'm the oldest of my generation on my mom's side of the family.
Starting point is 00:29:26 So the younger ones always rely on me to tell them the family stories and stuff. And I don't know, it just has always felt important to me and that that's kind of my role as the oldest to keep track of that. Has your family been in central Ohio for a long time? Yes, absolutely. Got it. Maureen, is James sentimental? It depends on what it's about. OK. Example, Battlestar Galactica.
Starting point is 00:29:51 Yeah. If you have him watching a show, he will cry while he watches shows. But in real life, he doesn't usually shed tears. James, would you say that Morgan is unsentimental? About her immediate family, she's sentimental. But yeah, she does not have the same extended close family that I do. She's not close to any of her cousins or aunts or uncles. So I think that is a big difference in our perspective. I consider them like close family, and I don't think she has any but one beyond her immediate brother or sisters that she would call close family.
Starting point is 00:30:24 Morgan, where are your siblings in the world? My brother is in Columbus as well. My sister is in LA. Do you feel that you might, if you're surrounded by images of James's extended family, that you might feel chased out of your own home? Maybe a little bit. Oh, maybe a little bit. How do you respond to that, James?
Starting point is 00:30:46 I'm trying to chase her out. How many, do you have a photo in particular that you cannot wait to put up, James? If I had to pick one, we took a huge group family photo when my, shortly before my grandfather passed away that has everybody, almost everybody in that extended group in it. And that would be great to get a good print of that and blow it up and hang it up. Where would you see that? In the dining room, maybe on that empty wall.
Starting point is 00:31:17 All the walls are essentially empty. I wanna be clear about this. I can't overemphasize this point. How big are you going to blow it up to? Maybe 9 by 12? Or are you going to go all the way to like 10 by 13? I'd say at least 10 by 13. I say 4 by 6. Feet!
Starting point is 00:31:42 Yeah, I mean... I wouldn't go that big. This photo isn't has not been entered into evidence. Can you do you have it on your phone or something? Can you hold it up to the camera? It would probably take me a little bit of time to find it. But yeah, it's just a group of people in a living room around the couch, grandparents in the center, the youngest grandchildren on their laps and all their kids behind them and their kids' spouses and all the grandkids
Starting point is 00:32:09 around. I appreciate that you paint a wonderful word portrait, but I don't know how the photo looks. I mean, what if they all have apples in front of their faces? Then it's art. I can try to find it. It just may take a minute. Yeah, why don't you take a second and why don't you try to find it? Okay.
Starting point is 00:32:24 I'd love to take a look at that. Because I'm going to have to decide, Bailiff Jesse, whether or not we're going to make this 8 feet by 10 feet and put it all, fill up that whole wall with it. Or at least make it Battlestar Galactica sized. So I did not find the specific photo I was talking about, but this is a similar photo that
Starting point is 00:32:44 includes even more extended family that might be more representative of what the kind of photo I'm talking about. That's a lot of family. Morgan, what do you think about putting a huge print of that particular photo in your home? I'm not interested in having that in my home. All right. But what if I ordered a huge print of that photo being in your home and then no more family photos after that? All right, but what if I ordered a huge print of that photo being in your home and then no more family photos after that?
Starting point is 00:33:10 Maybe. I'm trying to strike a bargain here. Is that, be honest, is that enticing to you or no? Maybe. Maybe, okay. Morgan, I have a question. If it were me, I think the placement of these photos would feel important.
Starting point is 00:33:27 And I wonder if that's the case for you. I wonder if there are places in the home where you would be more comfortable with there being a lot of family photos and places where you are less comfortable. Yes, I would agree with that. What are those places? His office is pretty much wall to wall with books.
Starting point is 00:33:48 So I don't think there's much space in his office for family photos. The basement has a lot of his movie posters in it, which I'm fine with because it's the basement. Sure. So that kind of leaves. The septic tank. The living room, dining room area, which I don't really want them in.
Starting point is 00:34:12 So I would say if he wants to take down some of the posters from the basement and put those family pictures in the basement, I'd be more okay with that. James, I tried to ask Morgan to describe her style and she was stumped. Can you describe her style? And I'm talking about decor, the things
Starting point is 00:34:31 that she likes to see in a home. Yeah, I'd say kind of minimalist. She definitely like hates to have anything on the kitchen counter. She wants to hide everything away, even the things that we use all the time, which drives me crazy. Yeah, I kind of want to live there. Keep going.
Starting point is 00:34:48 I mean, it would be great if we had, like, one of those walk-in second kitchen pantry areas with counters and, like, and put stuff there, but we don't, so, you know. No, you chose a poster basement instead. That's a trade-off. Sure. But, yeah, she's got, like, some, like, in terms of decor, she might have like a
Starting point is 00:35:06 little some little fake plant or a little plate with like just colored balls on it. Morgan, do you feel that you would be I keep asking like, what would you want to put on the wall instead of these photos in the dining room? And now I'm wondering, would you rather
Starting point is 00:35:21 there just be no photos at all? I would like immediate family photos. I'd like more immediate family photos. You don't want bare walls? No, I do not want bare walls. Right. You don't want to live in a place that looks like you were going to leave at any given moment in the middle of the night? No.
Starting point is 00:35:41 Morgan, one of these pieces is an artwork that you made, right? Mm-hmm. So what kind of... Do you make art as a matter of course? Not anymore. I used to draw, but I haven't done that for a while. And, James, you didn't submit Morgan's artwork other than the side view where I can't see it.
Starting point is 00:36:01 Do you have a photo of that that you can hold up to the camera? I don't, unfortunately. It would be hard to see have a photo of that that you can hold up to the camera? I don't, unfortunately. It's it would be hard to see with a photo anyway, because it's like a white styrofoam she did like carving on. So it's just a blank piece of paper. No, but it's it's carved in such a way that you can't get the depth unless
Starting point is 00:36:19 you're like looking straight on it. And it's yeah, it's cool. I really like it. Morgan, James has a lot of places to express himself in this house. With his stuff, I mean, to say. Do you have a place that you feel is yours that you can fill up with your own stuff in the same way?
Starting point is 00:36:39 I have a desk in the corner of the living room that I put things on. desk in the corner of the living room that I put things on. Now, I don't know how to ask this question, but is that as sad as it just sounded? Yeah, it really is. I just, what is that? Do you feel good about the desk in the corner of the living room or do you, or, or, or, or, I mean, you could, you might feel fine with it. Or do you feel like? I, I'm fine with it. I have a desk. or do you, or, or, or, or, I mean, you could, you might feel fine with it. Or do you feel like you- Yeah, I'm fine with it.
Starting point is 00:37:06 I have a desk. Right. So. In a window. In a window, it's right by a window. So I like that. So let me go back for a second, Morgan, to when Jim put up those family photos.
Starting point is 00:37:20 What happened when you saw them? Yeah, I just kind of was like, oh yeah, we had those in our old house. So I guess it makes sense We have them in the new house She directed me hanging it. I didn't she didn't just come home and find them She told me where I could hang them and directed me to make sure they were level and had to measure from either wall And all that that's an interesting thing to do for something you don't want in your home Do you feel like you can't just put your foot down and say, no?
Starting point is 00:37:49 I think it's more of the fact that we hadn't bought anything yet that I wanted to put on the wall. So I was fine with it being on the wall in the interim. James would like to blow up this huge photo of this family gathering and put it somewhere. a family gathering and put it somewhere. And you've talked about the Magritte prints that you have. Is there something that you would like to put up that isn't a family photo? I don't really have anything in mind yet. I'd have to look for something,
Starting point is 00:38:18 but I would like something artistic. And by artistic, you mean not a family photo, but a piece of art. Right, a piece of art or some type of ceramic design or something that would go on the wall. Do you ever go into like antique shops, thrift shops, goodwill? Sometimes you can find some pretty fun art there. I haven't, but I would like to do that. So James, what would you have me rule if I were to rule in your favor? That I could, I don't want to make her walls too full.
Starting point is 00:38:50 I like, not a full, my grandma had walls that were just covered. Not trying to do that, but I'd say, at least let me put up enough photos that all of my first cousins and my parents' siblings, aunts, uncles are covered so that the whole clan's represented. Morgan, how do you feel about that? I think that's too much.
Starting point is 00:39:16 You think that's too much. Morgan, were there a lot of family photos, immediate or otherwise, in your home when you were growing up? We had a number of immediate family, each of one of our siblings, probably a couple of the whole family, immediate family that we had, but we didn't have a lot. What did you have on the walls of your home, do you remember? Anything you liked? Yeah, we had some artistic pieces.
Starting point is 00:39:43 Got it. Anything that you could get your hands on? Yes, I think we probably still have some of them in storage. In a storage space that you have somewhere else so that James can put his posters in the basement? What's going on in the basement, James? What do you have down there? A little hangout area? A little poster museum?
Starting point is 00:40:03 What's going on? It's a nice finished basement. There's a TV and a elliptical machine and some tables and microphones when I do like theater rehearsal and stuff with my podcast group. What do you do, you have a podcast group? Tell me about that.
Starting point is 00:40:17 I write a, I'm sure, I know you're familiar with Thrilling Adventure Hour. It's kind of like that with our own material. We've been doing it every month for nine years, live in front of an audience and record it for podcasts. What is it called? It's All Been Done Radio Hour. Jesse's been on it.
Starting point is 00:40:32 He's guested for us. Jesse, is this true and you didn't recuse yourself? I'll go on any podcast that invites me pretty much. My main thing is, look, if you're out there and you want me, I feel like I don't get asked enough to read historical newspaper clippings or otherwise perform headlines for non-fiction podcasts concerned with the past.
Starting point is 00:40:55 I recently portrayed Gore Vidal on a podcast. I would love to welcome those kinds of invitations. But yeah, if you got a scripted fiction podcast, you need Jesse to lay down a few tracks, I'm there for you. You know me, I'm the star of television's archer. MORGAN, before I go into my chambers, can I ask you, what would you have me rule if I were to rule in your favor specifically?
Starting point is 00:41:18 That I think we have enough family photos around, well, enough of his extended family photos around the house. And actually, I think some of them should be taken down. That maybe we could have a couple, maybe in the living room, but I think that's about it. Would you be more okay with it if the family photos were all collected together on one wall as part of a sort of wall of photos of family?
Starting point is 00:41:44 I think that might be a little too much. Unless it was immediate family, then I'd be okay with that. So you really feel like the extended family cannot go. That's not okay with you. I think it's okay if there's a couple of framed photos, maybe in the living room, but that's about it. I think I've heard everything I need to in order to make my decision. I'm going to go into my poster basement and stare at this framed 9x30 photo of me
Starting point is 00:42:08 from Battlestar Galactica. I'll be back in a moment, my friend. Please rise as Judge John Hodgman exits the courtroom. Morgan, how do you feel about your chances right now? I feel pretty good about my chances. Why is that? I think it's just a little unreasonable to have too many extended family photos in your
Starting point is 00:42:26 house. I mean, it's only one every four feet. Like some kind of weird breadcrumb trail around the walls of your home. James, how are you feeling? I mean, I think the best I can hope for is a compromise ruling. So I'm hoping that maybe I'll get to have like one nice big photo of everybody. And then maybe I'll have to lose some of the other ones, but I don't know. I think the judge is fair and wise and I'm the one that's listened to every episode of the show,
Starting point is 00:42:53 not her. So I hope he keeps that in mind. Maybe a nice cluster. Do you think you could manage a nice cluster? I'd be happy to do a nice cluster. Okay. Well, we'll see what Judge Hodgman has to say about all this when he comes back in just a moment. In 1979, singer Miki Matsubara cut Stay With Me, a love song that hit big in her home country of Japan. The song has almost half a billion plays on streaming apps. But Miki Matsubara didn't get to enjoy all that renewed interest.
Starting point is 00:43:26 She died in 2004. In fact, she had burned all of her music, and she literally asked everyone she knew to forget her. I'm Christian Duenas. I'm Yosuke Kitazawa. On our new podcast, Primer, we celebrate unforgettable music from outside the English-speaking world, starting with Japanese city pop. We'll cover Miki's work and others in conversation with Devendra Banhart, Umi, Dame Funk, and more.
Starting point is 00:43:50 Get Primer on MaximumFun.org or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Emily Fleming. And I'm Jordan Morris. We're real comedy writers. And real friends. And real cheapskates. We say, why subscribe to expensive streaming services
Starting point is 00:44:05 when you can stream tons of insane movies online for free? Yeah, as long as you're fine with 25 randomly inserted, super loud car insurance commercials. On our podcast, Free With Ads, we review streaming movies from the darkest corner of the internet's bargain bin. From the good to the weird to the holy, look at Van Damme's big old butt. Free with ads, a free podcast about free movies
Starting point is 00:44:30 that's worth the price of admission. Every Tuesday on MaximumFun.org or your favorite pod spot. Free with ads. Judge Hodgman, we're taking a quick break from the case. What's going on with you? Oh, I'm just over here at my friend Christopher Frizzell's sub stack frizzlitt.substack.com. That's frizz, F-R-I-Z-L-I-T.substack.com. I'm looking at this video that he posted of our middle March book group reading our favorite
Starting point is 00:45:02 sentences from that week's middle March reading. I love middle march so much. What's one of the sentences? Well, I'll read you one of my favorite sentences from this most recent week's reading, which I didn't get to read in book club because Chris read it instead of me by accident. It was as if he had had a loathsome dream and could not shake off its images with their hateful kindred of sensations as if on all the pleasant surroundings of his life a dangerous reptile had left its slimy traces. Oh boy oh boy. I'll tell you what, George Eliot, Mary Ann Evans knew how to write sentences and how
Starting point is 00:45:43 to put them in order to create a novel. I'm loving middle March so much. I think that by the time you listen to this, the book club may be done and I'll be sad for it, but if you go to frislett.substack.com, you might see some videos of me reading sentences and also, you know, who's a member of the book club? Jesse Thorne, who the incredible Julia Sweeney from Saturday Night Live and, and, um, memoirist and a wonderful, funny writer in person has been such a treat. I guess I'm just plugging this books this week, books and, and sub stacks.
Starting point is 00:46:17 Like if you don't know that you have it in you to read a whole book, why don't you join a book club, uh, check out George Saunders, read some Chekhov along some guided reading experiences. It can be so much fun. It's been such a gift in my life. And I'm so lucky to have been inspired by both, uh, our daughter and my wife, both of whom are human beings in their own rights to read middle March, which I never would have done, and it's just been great.
Starting point is 00:46:39 So read middle March, everybody. It's terrific. Or find another book and read it. Uh, by the way, there is a sub stack called Hodgman.substack.com. What would you find there? I don't know. Maybe just me trying to figure out what my creative life is going to be going forward. It's a lot of fun. We have good time there. Hodgman.substack.com. Jesse Thorne, what do you got going on? I got some really amazing people on Bullseye. Many Judge John Hodgman listeners
Starting point is 00:47:04 know I host the public radio show Bullseye with Jesse Thorne, which you can get via podcast. This week's episode is an interview with one of the greatest living American artists, Ed Ruscha. He is 86 years old, I believe. Absolutely 1000% sharp as a tack. Handsomer than you and I. And had just brilliant, insightful, wonderful things
Starting point is 00:47:31 to say about Los Angeles and Disneyland and making art. And just one of the greatest painters of our time and a brilliant genius in many forms. he recently recreated, by the way, he has this piece called Chocolate Room. And it's just a room that's shingled in paper that's been soaked in chocolate. Mm-hmm, sure. Just the best.
Starting point is 00:47:57 But anyway, that is a really great interview. And speaking of people in their mid to late 80s, there's also a great interview coming up next week with the legendary Billy Dee Williams, who is talk about guys that are handsomer than us. Wow, exactly. That's right. I saw on social media that you got to spend time
Starting point is 00:48:18 with Billy Dee Williams. Billy Dee Williams was in a Broadway show with Lottie Lenya when he was like seven years old. I'll tell you something, that's something I never knew about Billy Dee Williams before in my life. And I wouldn't know unless I were a listener to Bullseye. You're right.
Starting point is 00:48:36 A lot of listeners to Judge John Hodgman know that you host Bullseye, but what are they doing about it? Go and listen to Bullseye. It's an incredible show. I've learned about so many incredible people through the show. Also in our cavalcade of AARP geniuses, next week we have a really great interview and performance
Starting point is 00:48:58 from the legendary folk and rock singer-songwriter, Richard Thompson. Wow. So if you want to hear Richard Thompson perform solo acoustic or actually solo acoustic with backing vocals from his wife, who's a very brilliant musician in her own right, it's pretty special. And I know what you're thinking, Jesse,
Starting point is 00:49:21 at the end, did you make him sing, oops, I did it Again by Britney Spears? Uncanny that you knew that I was thinking that. The answer is yes, I did make him do that. And it was great. That's incredible. I don't think she wrote the song. I'm sure Max Martin or whatever wrote the song, but.
Starting point is 00:49:37 Made famous by, originally famous. And now made extra famous by Bullseye with Jesse Thorne available on radio stations and as a podcast. Okay, let's get back to the case. -♪ Pounding on doorbell, door slams shut. Please rise as Judge John Hodgman reenters the courtroom and presents his verdict. Now, obviously, you two are...
Starting point is 00:50:00 I mean, I said it early on, you know, like great marriage. Very, very tolerant. It's a, it's a rare marriage where a spouse who does not have a native desire to look at the cast of Battlestar Galactica would allow their spouse, their own mother to frame for their spouse, a poster and put it in pride of place above the fireplace. I mean, James, you got, you're getting a lot of tolerance in this, in this relationship, although I do find, uh, I do find, uh, your mother Morgan in contempt of this court because I have a feeling that when she had the poster framed, she didn't, um, cut the corners off Battlestar Galactica style.
Starting point is 00:50:41 If you're a BSG person, you know what I'm talking about. The corners, there are no square pieces of paper. All the corners are cut off. You should have that reframed immediately. I'm also going to sentence you to get a large poster of me as Dr. Gerard in Battlestar Galactica. And a large poster of Jesse Thorne as, what was your character's name and archer again?
Starting point is 00:51:04 Hall of Mirrors guy. Hall of Mirrors guy. Hall of Mirrors guy. And we will sign it for you the next time that we're in the Columbus area. Next time we go on tour. If we're anywhere in the area, you can come to the show and we'll sign it for you and get it framed and put it pride of place, pride of place.
Starting point is 00:51:22 But you notice that I say poster size. So these pictures are too small for these walls. I think that's something that Jesse noticed right away. And I agree with. Because look, your style might be small pictures, bare walls. Like, we don't know what your style is. be small pictures, bare walls. Like we don't know what your style is. And I am in an accessory ruling I'm going to order you to figure out what your style is. Because I feel like you're getting run roughshod here by James's Battlestar Galactica and his Judy Garland's and his cues
Starting point is 00:51:59 and his grandma giving the photographer the finger but giving the whole world the finger. I mean if I were you and I would walk in by that grandma, I feel like I was getting the finger. Where's my stuff? You're an artist. You've got a visual sense and you need to, you need to, I think both of you, look through some interior design magazines
Starting point is 00:52:20 or websites or something. Look at how they're decorating the walls, right? And feel if you vibed anything. I think that you need a little outside inspiration. Simply in terms of making these walls look a little bit more like a home and a little bit less like a posting to the liminal spaces on the subreddit liminal spaces.
Starting point is 00:52:46 And I hope that this is not, that you don't take this as an insult. I mean, you're still filling up this home. I mean, two and a half years goes by quickly, particularly if you have kids. Like the last thing you're thinking about is what's going to go on the walls. But since we're talking about what's going to go on the walls, my primary reason for being inclined to limit James' family photos is they're all the size of, like, snapshots. You know, they're all, like, the size of Polaroids. And we'll talk about what we're going to do with those, with that tub of photos in a second.
Starting point is 00:53:24 But in the meantime, you know, like, sometimes you need a little outside help. Now we have a wonderful friend named Sarah Reed. And if you want, I can put you in touch with her. She does, she's, I mean, she's an interior designer who has gone back and forth between being a professional interior designer and then just like, yeah, I just do it for fun for myself.
Starting point is 00:53:47 You can check out her Instagram at Small Victories. I didn't mean to buzz market her stuff. This might not be your vibe. Do you know what I mean? I only brought it up because Sarah Reed came to visit us in Maine one time. And we, we had a big blank wall behind our sofa in Maine and we didn't know what to do with it. And we went into an old barn in Maine and, uh, well, I didn't go into it. My wife is a whole being in a room, right.
Starting point is 00:54:19 And Sarah went in to this barn while I was doing something in the car. And when I walked into the barn, they're like, we just bought a painting. And I was like, Oh, and it's a ginormous painting of a child who is not mine and is no longer a child because this painting was painted in like 1977 of a child with a, in a, sitting in a wingback armchair with a bowl cut and looking depressed as F. As though he had just, he was so mad at presumably his parents divorce. There was no, it was a very seventies portrait. I've seen it and I loved it. Is it my favorite thing in your house? No offense to you. No, it's fine. That's right. We got to hang out together in Maine and we got to do that again soon.
Starting point is 00:55:02 That boy's name is Charles and we know because it's written on the back of the poster, not the poster, but the painting. And we also know that the painting was painted in Brookline, Massachusetts, my hometown. So I understood why they were both attracted to this. But I was like, this kid is haunted and it was going to bring a terrible energy to this house. But I'm going to bring a terrible energy to this house.
Starting point is 00:55:25 But I'm going to give it a try. And over the years, that kid has grown on me. And indeed, the demonic spirit of Charles has entered my body and now controls me five days out of every week. I get older and Charles gets younger. Anyway, scary big painting that I did not expect to come to love the painting of someone else's family member. Do you know what I mean? If anything, it felt wildly invasive. But in time, I realized this wall needs a statement.
Starting point is 00:55:59 I'm trying to sell this painting to you. I would like you to get it out of my house in Maine. I'm trying to sell this painting to you. I would like you to get it out of my house in Maine. No, I'm trying to say that Sarah Reed was right. And sometimes you do need someone else to sort of help you see a space in a different way. And I do think that one of the recurring motifs in your home is small pictures in big empty walls. And it feels a little off to me. So you should go, as I say, and check out some interior design websites or something.
Starting point is 00:56:40 And, I don't know, buy a copy of HDTV magazine, the airport, look at a bunch of different stuff and go through it together. And I'm not talking about the kinds of pictures, right? I'm talking about the size of wall decoration. I'm talking about the arrangement of wall decoration and see if anything vibes with both of you, right? And that's a fun project for you to do together.
Starting point is 00:57:06 And I think then you can, whether you work on this together or whether you get some outside help or whatever, then I think you're gonna choose stuff for these walls that's going to make them feel more cohesive, have more flow and a little less random, which is to my eyes, that's how it feels right now. And to my eyes, the content of the photos doesn't particularly matter because it's hard for me to even see them.
Starting point is 00:57:33 They're so small. Now I'm encouraging you to think about getting a little bit bigger. I'm also encouraging you, James, to listen to what Morgan has to say. Having extended family photos throughout the house will make her feel like she's living in a grandparents house, and that's not her vibe, right? There's one thing for sure that Morgan has been clear on from the very beginning in terms of what Morgan's style is. I don't want to live in a grandma house. is, I don't want to live in a grandma house. And I think that means that I mean, you deserve to mount and and enjoy your
Starting point is 00:58:11 extended family photos, you know, and you have a space in which you can do that multiple spaces, you know, if you can find space in your poster basement and remove some posters or move some around, you could do a whole extended James family museum down there, which, you know, honestly, if you do it in that way, if you do it in a themed wall, then it's contained.
Starting point is 00:58:44 And I hope that Morgan won't feel that she's wandering in a themed wall, then it's contained. And I hope that Morgan won't feel that she's wandering around a grandma house, that she's just like, oh yeah, this is James's weird room, which arguably she feels already. You gotta pick your spot and you've gotta maybe make some sacrifices yourself. But ultimately, you can't keep putting up all the photos all
Starting point is 00:59:06 throughout the house because one thing's for sure, Morgan's vibe is not that. You both have to work on figuring out, and I know it's hard, particularly if you have two little kids, like the last thing you tend to think of is like wall decoration. But you will feel better in your own house if you both figure out what kind of vibe you want and what you're going to put up there. And I think for Morgan, we're talking about more art pieces, maybe more of Morgan's art if there's any more to put up, and you're going to find out some new arrangements to make the walls just feel a little bit more aesthetically pleasing to both of you. You're going to figure out what your vibe is. But one
Starting point is 00:59:44 thing that we know for sure is Morgan vibe is extended family throughout the house. And I'm going to side with Morgan on that. You're going to redo that. You're going to get all your family photos into one place where you can do a rotating exhibit of the, the extended family James and that dining room. You're going to figure out your vibe together and you're going to solve this problem. Okay, this is the sound of a gavel.
Starting point is 01:00:08 What is this? A stick for ants! Judge John Hodgman rules, that is all. Please rise as Judge John Hodgman exits the courtroom. James, how are you feeling about this verdict? I agree that we definitely need to redesign the dining room, but I am disappointed that the family gets pushed down to the basement.
Starting point is 01:00:34 Family belongs in the basement. . Morgan, how are you feeling? Good. I think it's a good ruling. James, Morgan, thanks for joining us on the Judge John Hodgman podcast. Thank you. Thank you for having us. Another Judge John Hodgman case is in the books.
Starting point is 01:00:54 Our thanks to Redditor Dr. Colossus of Rhodes for naming this week's episode In Foto Parentis. If you want to name a future episode, join us on the Reddit at maximum fun dot reddit.com. You can also check out other people's suggestions. Always fun to see just a list of dumb puns. A lot of fun maximum fun dot reddit.com. If you want to see the evidence from this week's show, you can go to this episode's page on MaximumFun.org or follow us on Instagram. That's Instagram.com slash Judge John Hodgman.
Starting point is 01:01:30 There's video of this and every new Judge John Hodgman episode on YouTube. So go to YouTube, search for Judge John Hodgman pod and hit like and subscribe. We discovered a website called YouTube. It allows us to put up videos. Judge John Hodgman pod. You can check out my new hair haircut there too.
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Starting point is 01:02:07 Maybe leave a review. I want to say thank you to STC guy on Apple podcasts. STC guy left a five star rating over there on Apple podcast. Quote, this is STC guy talking. I love this show. I recommend it to the folks on my team. It's a beautiful example of how to take a disagreement and deconstruct it into something that's easier to understand and negotiate to a solution." SDC guy, this is a team leader. We've got team leaders listening to the show.
Starting point is 01:02:35 Leave a review, press a like button, press a share button, share the podcast, tell anyone you know who you think might like it any way you can. It really does help people discover the show and it's really, really helps us continue to bring it to you. So thank you very much for all of that. Judge John Hodgman created by Jess Thorne and John Hodgman. This episode engineered by Steve Moussa at the Sycamore in Plain City, Ohio, our social media manager, Natty Lopez.
Starting point is 01:03:04 The podcast is edited by A.J. McKeon. Our video editor is Daniel Spear, At the Sycamore in Plain City, Ohio, our social media manager, Natty Lopez, the podcast is edited by AJ McKeon, our video editor is Daniel Spear, our producer is Jennifer Marmer. Now, Swift Justice, where we answer small disputes with quick judgment, ctrexpope on the Max Fun subreddit asks, my toddler will only go to sleep if I sing American pie.
Starting point is 01:03:26 Whoa. I demand that they at least let me sing the weird Al Star Wars version without them having a tantrum. Yeah, sure. I'm going to go ahead and tell your toddler what they like. Obviously I wish I could make your toddler go easier on you at bedtime and allow you to sing the weird Al Star Wars version of American Pie, if only for a little, a little variation in your life.
Starting point is 01:03:56 But I can't change a toddler's mind any more than you can. And let's face it, CT Rex Pope, you brought this on yourself. You started singing American pie. You know where this was going to go. I find in your favor, but it's not going to mean anything to you. Good luck. And Hey, speaking of songs, I love, I love a song dispute. Best songs, worst songs, good songs, bad songs. Let's hear some more of them.
Starting point is 01:04:20 It's been a while. It doesn't have to be, these songs can be any kind of music. A few weeks ago, we've heard from Doreen and her husband, the pianist Shang, who pretty much called Mendelssohn trash. Yeah. Pretty much said Mendelssohn was a garbage pile. Yeah. He said it was garbage pile called Debussy. A kind of a dumpster fire too. Do you agree? Do you disagree? Does a member of your folk band want to go electric and you think that you
Starting point is 01:04:44 should stay acoustic? Do you happen to have a Rolling Stones cover band? And your lead singer doesn't want to sing started up? Shut it down. If you submitted that case to me at MaximumFun.org slash JJ HO you know which episode I'm holding it for so hang in there. But get all of your song and music disputes to me at MaximumFun.org slash JJ HO. Your ire at one another is the fuel that makes the podcast go. MaximumFun.org slash JJ HO.
Starting point is 01:05:12 We'll talk to you next time on the Judge Sean Hodgman podcast. -♪ BANG BANG BANG! -♪ GONG! Maximum Fun. A worker-owned network. Of artist-owned shows. Supported. Directly.
Starting point is 01:05:25 By you.

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