Holiday Parties & High School Reunions (ft. Laren)

Join Alex and Laren for a wholesome Thanksgiving hang. The girls reflect on their plans and traditions and Lauren opens up about how her family coped with the holiday season after losing her dad. Then, Alex and Lauren reminisce on what they were like in high school, their most dramatic moments, and their arch nemeses. Enjoy!

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:00Alex Cooper?

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• 0:44Alex Cooper?

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• 1:03Speaker 01

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• 1:34Alex Cooper?

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• 2:18Alex Cooper?

  What is up Daddy Gang? It is your founding father Alex Cooper with Call Her Daddy.

• 2:27Alex Cooper?

  Daddy Gang, welcome back to another episode of Call Her Daddy. I am joined today by my lovely best friend, a fan favorite, Lauren McMullin, or as I call her, Laren.

• 2:40Speaker 03

  Hello Daddy Gang.

• 2:41Alex Cooper?

  We were just laughing because we rarely do this when we podcast together.

• 2:46Speaker 03

  We've never podcasted with like notes or a laptop.

• 2:50Alex Cooper?

  Something came over us and maybe it's because it's like the holiday season. We like really wanted to come prepared and give the gift of a little bit of an organized episode. It's still going to be a little unhinged, but Lauren and I wanted to talk about Thanksgiving this year together because what better way to celebrate Thanksgiving than you guys popping on an episode of Call Her Daddy and hanging out with Lauren and I. I'm so aware that some of you could be alone today. Maybe you fucking hate your family. Maybe you love your family and you're listening to this with your family. Regardless, we are here for you. So let's just get into it. We haven't even talked about this. What are you going to be doing for Thanksgiving this year?

• 3:25Speaker 03

  So I'm doing two Thanksgivings this year. I'm doing one in Louisiana in the middle of November. And then I'm doing one in Pennsylvania on actual Thanksgiving.

• 3:37Alex Cooper?

  Oh, wow.

• 3:38Speaker 03

  Wasn't entirely planned to do two Thanksgivings. I've never done two Thanksgivings before, but I guess we'll just rip the Band-Aid off in the first minute of the episode. I recently went through a breakup and the plan was to spend Thanksgiving with my ex-boyfriend's family. So I was gonna do with my own family in the middle of November and then go celebrate with his family.

• 4:01Alex Cooper?

  On actual Thanksgiving.

• 4:01Speaker 03

  On actual Thanksgiving. So now I'm just celebrating Thanksgiving twice with both sides of my family.

• 4:06Alex Cooper?

  Okay, well, I'm gonna be honest. I don't think there is a better holiday to have two of than Thanksgiving because it's just meaning that you're getting to eat really good food. So I feel like that's kind of a blessing.

• 4:15Speaker 03

  I'm not like really complaining. What are you doing? Wait, you're hosting and that wasn't supposed to be the plan.

• 4:20Alex Cooper?

  Thank you. Thank you. I was not supposed to be hosting this year. I was very, very adamant about not hosting. I think I talked about this on an episode before, but I'm... I'm a good host, but I really have to be in the mood and I think.

• 4:34Speaker 03

  There's no escape for you.

• 4:36Alex Cooper?

  Oh, there is no escape.

• 4:37Speaker 03

  And you're like an escape artist at like a party.

• 4:40Alex Cooper?

  Yes, like I like to relax and I like to get out when I want to get out and I feel like Matt and I have been so busy that holidays are so important to me. Like I really, really want to spend time with him and I want to be present and I know that when you're hosting, you can't really be present with each other. Like I'm not going to be sitting on Matt's lap like making out with him and like shoving cornbread in my face. Like I'm going to be making sure everyone is like situated and their plates are filled and like we're eating last and like so.

• 5:06Speaker 03

  Yeah. How did you, how did you get like cornered into this situation?

• 5:08Alex Cooper?

  Right. So like, why the fuck am I hosting?

• 5:09Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 5:10Alex Cooper?

  So I think we were first initially saying, don't host because we thought like my family was coming too. And we thought it was going to be like a couple of years ago, it was literally like 40 something people. It was fucking insane. And we had people inside and outside and it was just overwhelming. Now this year, Matt's mom called us and was like, you guys, it's literally just our internal side of the family on Matt's side. Like my family's staying on the east coast this year. So it's gonna be smaller. So first she was going to be hosting and then all of a sudden Matt and I were like, should we just offer? Like I felt bad because our house is a very good hosting house.

• 5:47Speaker 03

  Your house is very conducive to hosting. You've got the inside, you've got the outside, you've got the outdoor heaters, you've got the outdoor bar.

• 5:54Alex Cooper?

  Ooh, yeah, we definitely set ourselves up to host. So I think we just had a moment where we were like, why are we making your mom do this? Like, let's just fucking take it.

• 6:02Speaker 03

  Once you get over the mental hump of hosting, not that I host many things, I feel like once you get over the mental hump, then you can kind of start to get cozy and be like, well, now I get to pick exactly the foods I want. I get to pick exactly the vibe and the people and like now you can just like own it and make it exactly what you want.

• 6:17Alex Cooper?

  No, you're right. And there was also something about like mentally for a minute, thinking that Matt's mom was doing it. Now that it's like, I don't know why, but it's something like knowing someone else was going to do it and now it's back on me. I'm less stressed than the whole time it had been like, Matt and Alex are hosting this entire year. Now it's kind of like, who gives a fuck where it is? Let's just like eat.

• 6:37Speaker 03

  Oh, it's last minute. If I don't have matching things, if there's no decor.

• 6:42Alex Cooper?

  Low stakes.

• 6:42Speaker 03

  I'm taking one for the team. I'm doing this for you. So like no judgment. Okay. So what's your menu?

• 6:47Alex Cooper?

  Oh, what's my menu?

• 6:48Speaker 03

  Yeah. Have you thought that far ahead yet?

• 6:49Alex Cooper?

  Oh, no. Matt's mom is gonna be cooking everything. Matt's mom and Matt's sister will be doing all the cooking. And Matt and I, always to every single family event, we bring the alcohol. We are not the chefs in the family. But I have the menu in terms of like what I wanna eat.

• 7:03Speaker 03

  Yeah, what do you wanna eat?

• 7:04Alex Cooper?

  Are we going over like our favorite Thanksgiving foods right now?

• 7:06Speaker 03

  Yeah, yeah, hit me, hit me.

• 7:07Alex Cooper?

  We've never talked about this as friends and I feel like we, I feel like we kind of have different food palates. When, like, things we like.

• 7:13Speaker 03

  If we go to a restaurant, we're good because

• 7:15Alex Cooper?

  True.

• 7:15Speaker 03

  we'll do a group order and we're always aligned. But for some reason, I feel like we're not about to be aligned on this.

• 7:20Alex Cooper?

  Okay. So my favorite, like, should I just do like top favorite Thanksgiving foods?

• 7:26Speaker 03

  Okay, first, are you a sides person? Or are you a main course person?

• 7:32Alex Cooper?

  I'm a sides person.

• 7:32Speaker 03

  I think that's the obvious answer. If like you're a main course person, like

• 7:35Alex Cooper?

  Yeah, what the fuck are you doing? It's like, you're like, you're looking forward to the appetizers when you're at a dinner more than you're looking to the main event. Okay. So I would say I'm the sides person. I would say I couldn't, number one on my list, and I know this is controversial maybe, is stuffing. I am a stuffing girl through and through. Are you a stuffing girl?

• 7:52Speaker 03

  It's low. That's pretty low on my list. I feel like stuffings can go wrong really quick and they can be dried.

• 7:58Alex Cooper?

  No, I am, I was like, I don't wanna be come off as high maintenance, but my mother-in-law loves to cook for me. Like, you were here.

• 8:05Speaker 03

  Yeah, she was, she was like, she brought us a pumpkin pie and was like, girls, texting you later, like, how's the pie?

• 8:10Alex Cooper?

  How's the pie?

• 8:10Speaker 03

  Did you try the pie?

• 8:11Alex Cooper?

  She loves to cook for me. And I remember it was like the first Thanksgiving I was doing with Matt and I'm such a fucking freak about stuffing. And I remember I was like whispering to Matt before we went to his mom's. I'm like, I just like feel like you've been kinda telling me your family doesn't like emphasize carbs as much and like stuffing. And I'm really getting anxious because like I'm a carb family. Like, I love my mashed potatoes.

• 8:31Speaker 03

  Their, Matt's family's healthy. So I would be anxious going in and be like, are you gonna be doing like a gluten-free stuffing?

• 8:37Alex Cooper?

  I, I was like

• 8:37Speaker 03

  Just to cut the carbs?

• 8:39Alex Cooper?

  Lauren, I was absolutely on the edge of my seat being like, I don't wanna fucking miss out on a good Thanksgiving. If you guys are doing healthy, like, let me know and I'll go to Boston Market, pick up a couple little sides. Exactly. And so his mom, for my first Thanksgiving, made two different stuffings.

• 8:57Alex Cooper?

  Two completely-

• 8:58Speaker 03

  That's when you know.

• 8:58Alex Cooper?

  That's when you know. She was so nice and I remember trying both-

• 9:01Speaker 03

  What was the difference between the two?

• 9:02Alex Cooper?

  One was way more like-

• 9:03Speaker 03

  Fat.

• 9:04Alex Cooper?

  Fat kid and it was just like doused in everything.

• 9:07Speaker 03

  Grease and butter and like all the things.

• 9:09Alex Cooper?

  And then the one that was like somewhat healthier that other people were eating was actually pretty phenomenal, but she's a great cook, but overall stuffing number one, I would say creamed corn. The sweet potatoes with the marshmallows on top are go to. I have to have the good cornbread. The thing is with Thanksgiving food, you guys, I'm someone that dips it all together. Like I'm gonna get my turkey or my ham. Oh, you hate that.

• 9:33Speaker 03

  And they can't touch. I'm not the weird person who's like, oh my God, my food can't touch, but like I do not mix it all around. I'll go back three times because I'll do like little ventures so that they stay in their sections.

• 9:44Alex Cooper?

  You're not gonna get a little turkey with gravy and put a little like mashed potatoes on it?

• 9:50Speaker 03

  Gravy and turkey, that's normal, but like-

• 9:52Alex Cooper?

  A little stuffing on like with it?

• 9:54Speaker 03

  No, no, no, no, no.

• 9:56Alex Cooper?

  Please fucking comment down below. Are you an Alex or a Lauren? I need a like, I need a sandwich essentially of my food all together in my mouth.

• 10:05Speaker 03

  Ideally, I have one of those child's plates that has like the dividers and they keep them in their sections. So nothing's bleeding over and touching.

• 10:12Alex Cooper?

  Okay, wait, what is your top like go to?

• 10:14Speaker 03

  So my family is from like Louisiana and like the deep south. So like our Thanksgiving foods are like so like southern and rich and like I love them.

• 10:23Alex Cooper?

  Yeah.

• 10:24Speaker 03

  Number one is definitely the sweet potato casserole with the brown sugar and the mushrooms on top. Number two would be green bean-

• 10:31Alex Cooper?

  You should mushrooms, marshmallows.

• 10:33Speaker 03

  Oh my God. Cause I'm already thinking ahead to the green bean casserole with the mushrooms in that, but God forbid those touched, that would be disgusting.

• 10:40Alex Cooper?

  Green bean casserole?

• 10:41Speaker 03

  Green bean casserole. It's like literally canned green beans with canned cream of mushroom soup and the canned or the little French onion things that you put on top and you bake them.

• 10:50Alex Cooper?

  Oh wait, that sounds amazing.

• 10:51Speaker 03

  So good.

• 10:52Alex Cooper?

  Wait, I don't think I've ever had that.

• 10:53Speaker 03

  You know something I saw on social media?

• 10:55Alex Cooper?

  What?

• 10:55Speaker 03

  About Thanksgiving food. Someone was like, do you think it's like telling why we only eat Thanksgiving foods once a year? Cause they're not good.

• 11:03Alex Cooper?

  I'm the other creep on social media that like posted being like, why can't we eat stuffing for every meal?

• 11:08Speaker 03

  When you and Matt were like legit like getting in a fight the other night, you're like, yeah. So the other Thanksgiving I woke up and like Matt threw away all the leftovers.

• 11:16Alex Cooper?

  This was a literal point of contention in my home and it was what, okay. So it was the first time we hosted. And when you are not hosting, you're not taking fucking leftovers from people's house. So this was the first in our relationship I remember.

• 11:28Speaker 03

  Oh, so you, if you're a guest, you leave all the leftovers for the host?

• 11:31Alex Cooper?

  Usually, unless they offer it to you. Okay, I also want to hear comments on that. Like, if you're the host, don't you agree you get to keep the leftovers? And unless you offer it.

• 11:41Speaker 03

  Yeah, unless you're offloading.

• 11:42Alex Cooper?

  So, fast forward, we host for the first time, and I remember I had like, I, I promise, I, I really, I love how I say I promise, in my brain, I really thought I told Matt to keep the leftovers. Now in hindsight, I don't think I told him. I think it was in my brain, like, a fucking no-brainer, Matt. Like, what are you fucking doing if you give all the leftovers away? So I remember I came down the next morning and like, something I used to do as a tradition in my family, we, we would make, um, like Thanksgiving sandwiches the next day for lunch. Yeah, like with bread and some cranberry sauce and the turkey and the gravy and the whole thing. I like saunter downstairs, ready to eat a pumpkin pie slice, and I open my refrigerator and it's spotless. And I was like,

• 12:26Speaker 03

  Knowing Matt, he probably like wiped it down too. It was like freshly cleaned. Like, not even the smell of Thanksgiving was left behind.

• 12:33Alex Cooper?

  No, I literally Cloroxed to the fucking brim. And I remember I look in the refrigerator, I'm like, look in our other pla- I'm like, looking all over and I looked at Matt, I'm like, where's the food? And he's like, oh, like, everyone took leftovers. Like, there's nothing left.

• 12:46Speaker 03

  So probably so proud, like, honey, I got it all out of the house for us. Don't worry.

• 12:49Alex Cooper?

  And I'm mortified. And I remember being like, Matt, like, I'm genuinely upset to the point where I made him go to the grocery store with me that day and buy the stuffing mix so that I could remake stuffing for myself, so I could have it with dinner. And yes, I brought that up to Matt, because I was like, if we're hosting this year, you better believe, motherfucker, we are not giving away our fucking food. And he was like, okay, babe, like, it makes you wonder how am I married to this man?

• 13:27Alex Cooper?

  Call Her Daddy is brought to you by Airbnb. So the other day I was just scrolling on my phone and one of those one year ago today notifications popped up. I usually don't pay much attention to them, but when I saw it was from my Napa trip with Lauren. I obviously had to go back through every single photo. I remember we drove up to Napa for a weekend and found the cutest farmhouse on Airbnb to stay in. The location could not have been more perfect. It was right by a vineyard and overlooked this beautiful golf course, which yes, Matt was very jealous of. During the day, we went wine tasting like a little cute couple.

• 14:12Alex Cooper?

  Then we brought our favorite bottles back to the house at night for cozy, long girl talks on the couch. Obviously, I haven't had a drink in forever since being pregnant, so I cannot wait for wine nights again soon with my girlfriends. And now that holiday travel season is finally here, all of my group chats are going off with everyone trying to coordinate dates and just figure out where we're going to stay and where we're going to go next. But looking back through those photos reminded me that some of the best parts of a trip happen back at the house, right? Like, that's why I love booking a home on Airbnb. It literally gives everyone space to just spread out and it makes every trip feel more relaxed.

• 14:57Alex Cooper?

  You can even order groceries, which I love, for your trip through Airbnb and have everything from breakfast essentials to holiday snacks delivered after you arrive. If you're planning your Thanksgiving trip or any holiday travel this season, definitely check out Airbnb before you book. Call Her Daddy is brought to you by SoFi, the everything app for smarter money. If your money is scattered across five different apps you never open, you're not in control. Your money should move you forward. With SoFi, you get award-winning banking, investing, Borrowing and more all in one app. So you finally know where your money is. Make your first move with SoFi Checking and Savings, competitive APY, no account fees, a bonus when you join with eligible direct deposit.

• 15:41Alex Cooper?

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• 16:25Alex Cooper?

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• 17:06Alex Cooper?

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• 17:17Speaker 03

  What is the vibe of your Thanksgiving, so like, is it like stuffy, formal? Are you getting dressed up or like, are you wearing like this?

• 17:24Alex Cooper?

  So here's a problem that I feel like I deal with, not even just in Thanksgiving, but like my every single day life is like, I want to be the girl that dresses up. I want to put together a cute outfit that like someone puts on their Pinterest board. Like, I want to be that, but. I love being comfortable more than anything in my life. Like, I don't know.

• 17:45Speaker 03

  I pop a button at dinner.

• 17:46Alex Cooper?

  Oh.

• 17:47Speaker 03

  Like, I like, don't like having, at my birthday dinner a few weeks ago. I literally got up to go to the bathroom, was like, oh, fuck, my pants are unzipped. Let me sit back down and put them back together.

• 17:57Alex Cooper?

  It was, Matt and I were at a business dinner the other night. He's gonna kill me for saying this, but my family, like, the Coopers, like, we unbutton at the table.

• 18:05Speaker 03

  Mm-hmm, I'm an unbuttoner.

• 18:06Alex Cooper?

  Right, like, it is a sad thing. And Matt, you know Matt, like, he just, like, would never do that.

• 18:12Speaker 03

  Matt's proper.

• 18:13Alex Cooper?

  He's, Matt's more proper. And so Matt would just, like, never do that. And he, ever since he's, like, known me, he started to slowly do it. And so he would find himself in moments. I know. So he starts unbuttoning at dinners. Even if he's having a fucking straight vodka martini, he's like, boom, open it up. We are at a fucking work dinner, and he gets up, and I look at his pants, fu- full three buttons down.

• 18:38Speaker 03

  Matt!

• 18:39Alex Cooper?

  And I'm like, Maddie. And he didn't catch it. I don't think anyone saw it, but I was laughing because it's like, we unbutton in our home. So back to your question.

• 18:45Speaker 03

  Yeah, what are you wearing?

• 18:46Alex Cooper?

  I wanna dress up in some capacity, especially if I'm a host. Like, in my heart, I want to lean into that Nancy Meyers, like, be a host, be cozy. But the reality is, I at least am going to have to wear some form of elasticity. But this is what I'm realizing with being a host. This is gonna be my situation. People are gonna show up, and I'm probably gonna do a sweater and, like, jeans and, like, a boot situation. Or like, a little skirt and, like, tights and a boot. Like, I'll show up and look cute. And halfway through the night, I'm gonna come back down the stairs and I will be in a full sweatsuit.

• 19:22Speaker 03

  Benefit of hosting. You can do an outfit change.

• 19:25Alex Cooper?

  Every single time I host a party or anything at my house, that is the one thing, and everyone mentions it.

• 19:31Speaker 03

  And everyone also, like, whenever you host, everyone ends up in your clothes.

• 19:34Alex Cooper?

  Yes, because, yeah.

• 19:35Speaker 03

  You end up dressing everyone, like, the end of the night, every girl at the party that you're hosting.

• 19:40Alex Cooper?

  Yes.

• 19:40Speaker 03

  Is fully in one of your sweatsuits.

• 19:41Alex Cooper?

  Because I am like, the peer pressure, I hope in a good way, where I'm like.

• 19:45Speaker 03

  It's getting late, let's change the vibe, let's change the vibe.

• 19:48Alex Cooper?

  I'm like, come on, guys, like, you don't wanna actually be in those fucking. I'll look at Kristin and be like, you don't want to be in those jeans. And she's like, I'm completely fine. I'm like, no, come on, you don't want to be in those jeans. And I like bully everyone to go upstairs and change into my pants. Wait, what is your vibe gonna be? Are you formal or are you not formal?

• 20:00Speaker 03

  No, not formal at all. With my dad's side of the family, I'm the oldest cousin and I'm the only girl cousin. So like, it's not like I have like other cousins who I'm like, let's go get ready. You're like, what are you wearing? Let's do our makeup. I'm with just like my brother and all my guy cousins.

• 20:14Alex Cooper?

  Okay.

• 20:15Speaker 03

  I like take a nap and I wake up and like, oh, it's like time to eat and I haven't showered today, haven't done my hair, I haven't done my makeup. And like, in theory, I agree. Like, I want to look back at the family photos and be like, oh, like that was a good year for me. But like, I look back.

• 20:29Alex Cooper?

  I always look like shit.

• 20:30Speaker 03

  Oh my god. Like, I look like I haven't like showered in days at family Thanksgiving.

• 20:33Alex Cooper?

  That's what I will say that my sister is good at doing. Like Catherine is always down to dress up. And like, I know for Christmas this year, like, she's always gonna go all out. And I'm like, it makes me want to dress up with her.

• 20:45Speaker 03

  I wish I had a little someone putting a little peer pressure on me.

• 20:47Alex Cooper?

  I know. And, and I feel like Matt's family is, no one is gonna show up in sweats, but they're very like casual. Like, they'll do like jeans and sweaters.

• 20:54Speaker 03

  They're like elevated basics.

• 20:56Alex Cooper?

  Yeah.

• 20:57Speaker 03

  Quiet luxury.

• 20:59Alex Cooper?

  Matt's mom is watching this being like, keep going, Lauren. What else? Um, no, but you're right. It's like, it's chill, but it's still elevated. Okay, next question.

• 21:09Speaker 03

  Ooh, okay. Something I wrote down was, are your holidays the type where you have to navigate difficult conversations?

• 21:15Alex Cooper?

  Oh, that's such a good question. Well, I think the first like obvious answer is every single year of my life has changed, right? Like, when I was

• 21:28Speaker 03

  Starting Call Her Daddy.

• 21:29Alex Cooper?

  Starting Call Her Daddy. And all of my like extended family was like, you fucking whore. And I was like, oh my god. Um, now with um, my internal family and like Matt's internal family, no. I think if I'm gonna have to, I wouldn't even say navigate difficult conversations, but if I had to be, if someone had to be like, what are you not as looking forward to, I think it's now where we're at the point where maybe it's more about like people socially, and I so understand where they're coming from, but like just socially asking like, when are you guys gonna have kids?

• 22:04Speaker 03

  I think people don't realize like how personal of a question that is.

• 22:09Alex Cooper?

  Yes, because

• 22:11Alex Cooper?

  I have had so many different people in LA that I'm close with. I've had people that it took them a year to get pregnant. I've had people that got pregnant after literally the first time they tried. I have people that have fertility issues. I have people that are freezing their eggs. Like, I know so many different women and literally, I would say, I don't know any woman that's had like a similar almost experience in my life right now. And so, of course, Matt and I want kids, but I feel like I'm, I don't know, whenever I'm in those positions, I'm kind of like, this isn't really the time to talk about it. And I know that if anyone asks us, it's genuinely coming from a place of like, they love us and they're just like-

• 22:52Speaker 03

  Good intentions, excitement.

• 22:54Alex Cooper?

  Yeah, and like, it's really coming from like, oh my gosh, we're so excited for you too. And like, we want that next chapter and that next generation. But I do think that, um, if anyone is listening to this at Thanksgiving this year and your sibling or your cousin is there-

• 23:09Speaker 03

  Oh, I thought you were saying, if anyone in my family is listening to this right now and you're planning to ask me if when I'm having kids, knock it off.

• 23:14Alex Cooper?

  No, but I also, well, you know what it also is, and I think this is a part of it too, that Matt and I have discussed, is like, not knowing what my personal experience will be with trying to get pregnant when it comes time that I want to do that. It's like, I could literally say to someone like, yeah, like, we're gonna try, um, this next month. And then, what if I can't get pregnant? You know what I mean?

• 23:34Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 23:34Alex Cooper?

  I don't want to talk about things of timelines because I am so aware that there is no fucking timeline. There is no right time to get pregnant. There is no exact, like, there, none of it. So I, I think I'm more just like adverse to the entire conversation. But I'm not like, please don't ask me about that. I'm more just, I always just kind of avoid it. I'm like, oh, I don't know, like, we're still like, think, we're talk-

• 23:56Speaker 03

  There's just so many layers to it and things you need to figure out yourself before, like, you share it with other people.

• 24:00Alex Cooper?

  You, Miss McMullin.

• 24:03Speaker 03

  Oh, I know, I'm gonna be asked like, oh my gosh, so like-

• 24:06Alex Cooper?

  What happened?

• 24:07Speaker 03

  Well, one, what happened? And then, two, like, I think just like, oh, like, you're, you're, we're 30 now and we're single. And like, not that I've had much, I don't know how much I can speak on this, because I haven't- Been single that long and I haven't been thirty that long and I haven't really had to navigate many of these conversations yet. And maybe I'm just feeling like empowered because I'm not like feeling like beaten down like fucking stop asking me.

• 24:32Alex Cooper?

  Right.

• 24:33Speaker 03

  So I'm like in my empowered stage. And I feel like, I don't know, at least the approach I'm gonna take is I'm gonna lead the conversation where I want it to be and like be excited about it and be happy about it and be empowered by it and be like, yeah, I'm thirty and like, I have a whole decade and it's so exciting like, who knows who I'll end up with, who knows where I'll be, who knows what I'll be doing, who knows what my life will be like? Like how exciting of like all the opportunities ahead.

• 24:58Alex Cooper?

  That's such a good point, like steering the conversation in a direction that like, most of the time when someone asks you like, wow, like, how do you feel about that? Like, you understandably, like, we know it is them.

• 25:09Speaker 03

  Checking in and caring.

• 25:10Alex Cooper?

  Yes, checking in and caring and understandably like, also on the other side, it is just like based a little bit in like, you wouldn't be saying that to a man, you wouldn't be saying to a thirty year old man who's single like, oh god. And I get it, it's usually not coming from a bad place, but instead of allowing it to be this like sad sap thing, you're, you can just be like, I am so happy, I know, how incredible.

• 25:31Speaker 03

  Even if like you want to do that to like shut the conversation down, like even if I'm being like, ignorantly happy like, oh my god, I'm so fucking happy. They're gonna be like, they're gonna be like, uh huh, okay, okay.

• 25:43Alex Cooper?

  What drugs is Lauren on? No, that's a good point. You're like, Uncle Jerry, I'm so fucking happy. I want to be single for the rest of my fucking life. It's true though, it's like the whole of the life. I'm literally like, Lauren has lost her fucking mind. But I could see you, I also feel like you're so not that type of person, so for you to like, be sarcastic, I feel like people would be like, oh my god.

• 26:08Speaker 03

  Okay, I'm gonna walk away.

• 26:11Alex Cooper?

  But I do, I, I love that approach. How do you feel obviously like? You mentioned early, obviously, in this episode, like you just went through a breakup. And regardless of the fact that like, I think you're in such an incredible place right now. Like, breakups are hard and holidays, I feel like specifically are really, really tough. Because even when you're feeling good, there's this odd thing that like holidays do that really just shed light on like love and family and the perfect holiday notebook-esque environment and family and relationship. Like, are you at all anxious that you're just gonna feel that like dark cloud in a moment?

• 26:53Speaker 03

  I think I'm prepared to feel it and like, I think I like, I know I'm gonna feel it. It's so new that we were supposed to be doing this Thanksgiving together and we were supposed to be doing Christmas together. So I'm still like going through phases of life where like, I had tangible plans with my ex to be doing this together. So like, no doubt, I'm gonna be sitting there being like, well, I'm supposed to be doing this right now and now I'm doing this instead. And like, so I think I'm just expecting to feel that.

• 27:18Alex Cooper?

  You're understandably going to lightly play out like what it would have been like had they been there versus now there's like this empty chair that would have had their name on it. And it's like a weird fucking feeling. It's sad, but it's not sad, but it's just like, I don't even know how to describe it.

• 27:36Speaker 03

  It's literally what grieving is. Like, that's, I went through something like very similar when I, um, for those of you don't know, my dad passed away when I was in college.

• 27:43Alex Cooper?

  Yes, like, it's almost like the missing person.

• 27:45Speaker 03

  Yes.

• 27:45Alex Cooper?

  Like, the unsaid thing.

• 27:46Speaker 03

  Yeah, it's something I had felt before with, in regards to holidays, like that missing presence, like the empty chair.

• 27:53Alex Cooper?

  Yeah, that's a good point. Like, I feel like we've talked about a lot before, um, kind of like when you do, now this is like kind of getting over like your ex-boyfriend. Now it's more like you talking about your dad. I feel like there's probably like a lot of daddy gang that have lost a family member. And the traditions that you kind of have to start to like, create with your family without someone is like a really challenging thing because you want to honor them and remember them, but you also don't want to like move on from them, like.

• 28:29Speaker 03

  Oh, I have a lot to say about this.

• 28:30Alex Cooper?

  Oh, give it to us, give it to us.

• 28:32Speaker 03

  So, I think. The weird feeling of feeling like you're like moving on and like forgetting them. Something that really made me think of that was my mom is now engaged and we love him.

• 28:46Alex Cooper?

  Shout out Kara.

• 28:47Speaker 03

  Yeah, shout out Kara, baby. Live your life.

• 28:50Alex Cooper?

  She's like, she's gonna clip this and send it to us and be like, "Lara, you guys gave me a shout out on the pod." Yeah, we did. Yeah, we did, Kara.

• 28:59Speaker 03

  She was, her and her fiance were indescribably thoughtful about the way they introduced him into me and my brother's lives. And they were very, very seriously dating for a while, for years, before he came to one of my family holidays. And I was talking about it in therapy and I was like, "I love this person. I love him as an individual. I love him for my mom. I love them together. I feel more at peace knowing they have each other, but why does him coming to a holiday feel so unsettling to me?" And she was like, "I think that there's this unspoken thing that when he sits down at the fourth table setting, it means your dad's replaced. It means your dad's forgotten." And like, that's not the case.

• 29:42Alex Cooper?

  That's not true, right.

• 29:43Speaker 03

  Because it was so confusing to me. I'm like, "I love this person. I love their relationship. I love the whole thing." But like, it's just making me not anxious. It's just I couldn't put a finger on this unsettling feeling of like, and it was the feeling that I thought that meant that my dad was being replaced and that wasn't the case at all.

• 30:00Alex Cooper?

  Yeah. No, that is like so beautiful. I remember that time in your life and you handled it so gracefully. And I think like, again, you were so fortunate to have your mom handled that way and I know that there are so-

• 30:11Speaker 03

  Yeah, I'm so appreciative of that.

• 30:12Alex Cooper?

  I know there are so many people that probably have horror stories of stepparents and all of that, but I do think it's such a true statement and I think we've talked about this a lot, about how like there are so many ways to like continue to remember someone and a new addition doesn't mean that someone else now like can't be a part of things. And I feel like it's hard when the person isn't there, but there's so many ways that you can celebrate that person without feeling like you're just like overriding them when we're done with you.

• 30:40Speaker 03

  Sitting at a table, the four of us, I couldn't get over the fact. It just felt like delete and like insert. So we just like said, "Fuck it." And now for Christmas, we don't sit in Pennsylvania. Every year for Christmas now, we go to a different national park and we hike and we just do something entirely different. And like start over fresh and it just feels so nice and new and- We hike and we reminisce and we talk about them, but for some reason, just like, sitting in Pennsylvania, sitting the four bus around the table just felt like, and it's so illogical, but it just felt like we were trying to like write my dad out of like the story.

• 31:13Alex Cooper?

  Yeah.

• 31:14Speaker 03

  And it just feels so much better and more exciting and fun to just completely start over with a new tradition.

• 31:20Alex Cooper?

  I love that you said that, though, that you're like, it feels completely illogical and like, I'm pretty sure, and so many people that experience that type of grief, it's like, it should be illogical.

• 31:31Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 31:31Alex Cooper?

  Because it's this like, you can't explain it and you don't have to explain it. Like, you felt the way you felt, and now, I love that, like daddy gang, like you can make your own new traditions. And especially when things are wrapped in like, trauma and loss, like, you can shake shit up. And when you step out of line or when you change shit up, it can feel a little disorienting.

• 31:50Speaker 03

  Even thinking about like breaking the tradition, like you're like, oh, I feel like I'm like fucking up and like being like a bad family member.

• 31:56Alex Cooper?

  And it's like, I bet all of you sitting at that fucking table, like, I bet your mom's fiance was like, probably would have been the first one to be like, guys, I'm so down to do something different.

• 32:06Speaker 03

  He probably was ecstatic that now he's getting to hang out with a version of me that's like, relaxed and like open and not me sitting around the table being like,

• 32:14Alex Cooper?

  Oh my god.

• 32:14Speaker 03

  Talk, right, say words, say words.

• 32:16Alex Cooper?

  Right, right. I think that's like a great way to like wrap that conversation up in terms of, tradition is a motherfucker and it's beautiful, but it can be really, really intoxicating where you just feel like you have to follow it. And sometimes I do think, like, anything in this world, maybe sometimes we need to check ourselves of like, is it tradition because it's fun or is it tradition because you actually kind of don't know why it's tradition? And like, maybe it's time to shake shit up.

• 32:40Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 32:41Alex Cooper?

  Um, okay, you're going back to Pennsylvania.

• 32:44Speaker 03

  I am.

• 32:45Alex Cooper?

  And you told me that when you go back to Pennsylvania for Thanksgiving, you will be attending your high school reunion. Now, I am fascinated and I need every fucking detail when you go because I haven't gone to a high school reunion. Let's just talk, first of all, high school reunions.

• 33:25Alex Cooper?

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• 34:10Alex Cooper?

  SoFi, get your money right. This is a paid advertisement by SoFi Technologies and is not intended to be financial advice. This is a paid ad by BetterHelp. I always think it is so important to find time to take care of myself because I think self-care for me a lot of times is getting some alone time, even if it's just go on a 10-minute walk outside. Self-care can obviously look different at different stages of life, and the ways that we practice it often evolve over time. But one possible way to take care of yourself is through therapy. Therapy with BetterHelp, one of the leading online therapy platforms, can be a space to prioritize your mental health, reflect on where you are, and check in with yourself. With over 30,000 therapists worldwide, BetterHelp has served millions of people globally.

• 34:55Alex Cooper?

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• 35:29Alex Cooper?

  So let's discuss. How do you feel about it?

• 35:31Speaker 03

  I'm excited.

• 35:32Alex Cooper?

  What are you gonna wear?

• 35:33Speaker 03

  I was literally thinking of that.

• 35:34Alex Cooper?

  Like, right, do you like pop the fuck off?

• 35:36Speaker 03

  Like, maybe like a little bit.

• 35:37Alex Cooper?

  Right, like.

• 35:38Speaker 03

  Because also, I don't have social media, so like, no one knows what I look like, or like, what I

• 35:43Alex Cooper?

  Right.

• 35:43Speaker 03

  do, or what I'm up to.

• 35:45Alex Cooper?

  You gotta kinda like pop off.

• 35:46Speaker 03

  A little bit.

• 35:46Alex Cooper?

  Look, we need you to look hop and out, like, try hard.

• 35:49Speaker 03

  Try hard, yeah, no, no, no, no.

• 35:50Alex Cooper?

  Um, while we're talking about high school, though, we have been friends for so long, but I don't know if people know this. We did not go to the same high school.

• 35:57Speaker 03

  Mm-mm.

• 35:58Alex Cooper?

  We went to the same elementary school for one year, you guys.

• 36:02Speaker 03

  My parents fucked me up. I moved to Pennsylvania from Texas in first grade. I went to public school, and they were like, mm, you need to find God. They sent me to Catholic school in second grade, and they were like, mm, you're not Catholic, and this is expensive. Back to public school. So literally, first, second, third grade, I switched schools every year. Like, imagine what that would do to a child.

• 36:23Alex Cooper?

  But thank God, right in between there, that second grade, where you were supposed to find God, you found me.

• 36:29Speaker 03

  Yup.

• 36:29Alex Cooper?

  And we became best friends in second grade. I remember Lauren with like her giant bows, because like, your mom had every color bow, ready to go for you at school. I was so fucking jealous.

• 36:40Speaker 03

  I remember in first grade, and even in second grade still, when we'd have dress down days, I would cry, because I'm like, Mom, the kids in the north don't wear this.

• 36:49Alex Cooper?

  No, I thought you were epic.

• 36:51Speaker 03

  Uh-huh.

• 36:52Alex Cooper?

  Anyway, so Lauren and I went to school for one year, we-

• 36:55Speaker 03

  One year.

• 36:56Alex Cooper?

  One year together.

• 36:56Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 36:57Alex Cooper?

  Oh my, that's it?

• 36:57Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 36:58Alex Cooper?

  So all of middle school, all of elementary school, we didn't go, and then high school, we went to different schools.

• 37:02Speaker 03

  But we stayed connected, like, really connected, all through elementary school and middle school, because we were on the same soccer team.

• 37:09Alex Cooper?

  Yeah.

• 37:09Speaker 03

  Like soccer teams. We were on like, three teams together.

• 37:13Alex Cooper?

  And then we went to high school, and naturally in high school, like, we literally stayed close, but it wasn't as close, because you're like, you have your own friend group.

• 37:19Speaker 03

  Yeah, you went to private school, I went to public school.

• 37:22Alex Cooper?

  Yes. Um, so, let's talk about how we were different in high school. What do you think?

• 37:31Speaker 03

  Um, you were like head down grinding soccer was like your mission and like your career. Like you only hung out with like the soccer girls like every weekend, like you were going all around the country, like doing like your college showcases.

• 37:44Alex Cooper?

  Yeah.

• 37:45Speaker 03

  And I said goodbye to soccer and I was partying it up and living my life.

• 37:49Alex Cooper?

  I think that I slowly, slowly ramped into my more social mode, but my, for sure, my freshman year, I was like head down like soccer, soccer, soccer. Because I had gotten like a scholarship. I couldn't afford to go to that fucking school.

• 38:01Speaker 03

  That's why you were going to that high school. I forgot.

• 38:02Alex Cooper?

  I got a, I got a scholarship that they like faked was like academic. Meanwhile, like no one was giving me an academic scholarship. Like that would have gone to you. No one in their right mind was giving me an academic scholarship. It was just disguised so that I could play on the soccer team. Okay. It's obviously the Thanksgiving episodes where partying, maybe you're drinking, maybe you're fucked up, uh, maybe you're laying in bed and you're alone. Do we have any overlapping high school stories of us like, cause we, Lauren and I did not party together and let's like really explain why. Our friendship was so wholesome and growing up, it was based in like, we would make movies together and we would like film and we would make-

• 38:45Speaker 03

  Like I like viewed your parents as like family.

• 38:49Alex Cooper?

  Yeah.

• 38:49Speaker 03

  So the idea of going to your home and like cracking open a Mike's heart, like I couldn't disrespect Lori like that. I was disrespecting a lot of other situations, but not Lori Cooper.

• 39:02Alex Cooper?

  No, didn't.

• 39:03Speaker 03

  I was getting after it everywhere across Newtown, Pennsylvania, but not in-

• 39:09Alex Cooper?

  Not at my house. I'm fucking obsessed. I am obsessed. I'm gonna bleep that you guys cause she just said my street name, but I'm obsessed. You're right. I think we had this weird thing where like our relationships to our families were so-

• 39:23Speaker 03

  Pure.

• 39:23Alex Cooper?

  Pure and youthful and we'd been through so fucking much that it was just like-

• 39:28Speaker 03

  I would come over and we'd catch up and order dumplings.

• 39:30Alex Cooper?

  Dumplings, dumplings, yep, yep. We'd get duck sauce, we'd order dumplings and we would just chill and we wouldn't drink. So, but do we have any, like, high school?

• 39:37Speaker 03

  So there were, oh, you came to, I-

• 39:39Alex Cooper?

  Your New Year's.

• 39:40Speaker 03

  I was gonna say, I threw a New Year's party-

• 39:42Alex Cooper?

  No.

• 39:42Speaker 03

  My senior year.

• 39:44Alex Cooper?

  Let me just say this, Lauren threw this banger of a New Year's party.

• 39:47Speaker 03

  Banger.

• 39:48Alex Cooper?

  And when you just referenced, like, not wanting to disrespect my mother like that, I remember, I showed up late to your party and we had a lot of memories in that house.

• 40:00Speaker 03

  Uh huh. It was my childhood home.

• 40:01Alex Cooper?

  Yeah. And I think it was also a hard time for us because, not to get too deep, so much had been going on with your dad that, like, understandably, I think in your life in high school, like, no one kinda knew about fully.

• 40:14Speaker 03

  Yeah, most people did not.

• 40:15Alex Cooper?

  Didn't know. And you and I, like, we knew every detail and I think I hadn't been back to that physical house in so long.

• 40:25Speaker 03

  So many years.

• 40:25Alex Cooper?

  And I, Lauren, I don't think, did I ever tell you this?

• 40:28Speaker 03

  Yeah, you did.

• 40:28Alex Cooper?

  Okay. I was so emotional at that party because I show up to this house that had, like, incredible pure memories and then, like, pretty, like, really fucking traumatic memories for us. And I remember walking in late and I'm with Moonen-

• 40:44Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 40:44Alex Cooper?

  Um, our friend Nicole, and I walk in and it is like people are swinging from the fucking chandeliers and I'm thinking like, oh, Lauren's having a bit-

• 40:53Speaker 03

  You're thinking probably like 20 kids hanging out in my basement.

• 40:55Alex Cooper?

  Her entire school plus another school was in this fucking house, jam-packed. I'm like, Lauren, I will never forget, what happened on the ceiling?

• 41:02Speaker 03

  Oh, my gosh, someone sprayed a champagne bottle, like, all over this-

• 41:07Alex Cooper?

  And the cork went up-

• 41:09Speaker 03

  Through the ceiling.

• 41:10Alex Cooper?

  And I remember, I'm-

• 41:11Speaker 03

  I was like-

• 41:12Alex Cooper?

  I'm coming up and-

• 41:13Speaker 03

  I'm gonna have to fix that in the morning.

• 41:14Alex Cooper?

  And your poor mother comes home and everyone's like, trying to like, be like, no, no, it's not what it looks like. And Kara is literally looking up at the ceiling crying.

• 41:23Speaker 03

  So I talked about that in therapy. I was like, I feel a little guilty for that one.

• 41:25Alex Cooper?

  It was, but it was like a sending away your house party, but I do remember, like, that extent of our friendship was like, us feeling like so nostalgia childhood that it was like, we never really drank together in high school.

• 41:39Speaker 03

  We didn't need to drink to have fun.

• 41:57Alex Cooper?

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• 42:41Alex Cooper?

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• 43:25Alex Cooper?

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• 44:08Alex Cooper?

  We're like, how did we get here? How did this just slide in? Because we want to talk about it. So Lauren and I were laughing about her going to this reunion. And I was talking to her about like, who are you most looking forward to seeing? Like, who are you nervous to see? Like, who do you want to impress? Who do you want to avoid? And Lauren-

• 44:24Speaker 03

  Impress no one, avoid no one, nervous no one. But my arch-nemesis. I also have to be careful because this is going to air three days before the reunion. So I'm not to like, blow up how much I have on arch-nemesis and then walk in this room and be like, "Oh, that's the girl who like, can't get over high school."

• 44:41Alex Cooper?

  Do you think that your nemesis would know that they are your enemy?

• 44:47Speaker 03

  I don't think she thinks I like, think about her one bit.

• 44:53Alex Cooper?

  You're like, it's painful.

• 44:54Speaker 03

  I think she would listen to this and be like, "Oh, my god."

• 44:58Alex Cooper?

  Okay, let's talk about, why is she your nemesis?

• 45:01Speaker 03

  Okay, so, I don't want to accidentally paint myself as a saint here. The issue is, and I truly cannot remember who cheated first, me or my high school boyfriend. But junior year, we hit rocky territory.

• 45:19Alex Cooper?

  You're saying we hit rock bottom?

• 45:21Speaker 03

  We hit rock bottom, we did hit rock bottom. And it kind of became this open situation. But like, we still were in love, we were still talking all the time. But like, I ventured off a little bit to this older guy and he ventured off to my arch-nemesis. But then we had a reconciliation and we came back together. And I kicked the older guy to the curb. Or did he just graduate? I don't know.

• 45:44Alex Cooper?

  Yeah, yeah, details, fuck it.

• 45:46Speaker 03

  But my arch-nemesis could not get kicked to the curb. She literally was like the bug that would not die. And-

• 45:55Alex Cooper?

  No, we're getting riled up.

• 45:58Speaker 03

  I just have such vivid memories being in my childhood bedroom after school. 4:30 PM, prime time, everyone's on AIM, everyone's on formspring, everyone's on Snapchat. And I'm snapping him and I'm watching my snap streak with him go up and up and up and up and up. But I'm watching his snap streak with her go up and up and up and up. And they were just, oh, that's just a good core memory.

• 46:19Alex Cooper?

  Wait, hold on. So, did he cheat on you with her?

• 46:23Speaker 03

  Oh, all the time.

• 46:24Alex Cooper?

  Wait, so did you can, did you, how did you find out, other than?

• 46:28Speaker 03

  Okay, well, there's two incidences where, where he was caught red-handed.

• 46:32Alex Cooper?

  Okay.

• 46:33Speaker 03

  Okay, incident number one, senior prom.

• 46:36Alex Cooper?

  Oh, wait, I don't even know this story.

• 46:39Speaker 03

  So, it was the morning of senior prom and we met up in a parking lot and had sex in a car.

• 46:44Alex Cooper?

  Classic.

• 46:45Speaker 03

  And we go to pictures, we do pictures together. So like, that's kind of official.

• 46:50Alex Cooper?

  Oh.

• 46:50Speaker 03

  I like checked Facebook this morning. We had pictures. We took prom pictures together.

• 46:55Alex Cooper?

  Not her making sure the receipts are dotted and the, oh my god, Lauren, I'm obsessed with you, okay?

• 47:02Speaker 03

  And so, we're at prom, we're grinding, I'm slapping the ground, I'm turning around, I'm making out, get low.

• 47:10Alex Cooper?

  Get low, oh my god, the grind chains, I can't, I can't.

• 47:14Speaker 03

  And I go get a beverage and I come back into the auditorium and I'm like, oh, where's my boyfriend? Grind chaining with my arch nemesis.

• 47:22Alex Cooper?

  What?

• 47:23Speaker 03

  Making out with my arch nemesis.

• 47:25Alex Cooper?

  In front of you?

• 47:26Speaker 03

  In front of the whole auditorium.

• 47:27Alex Cooper?

  Wait, so what the fuck did you do?

• 47:29Speaker 03

  So, I had known that like, they were consistently talking. I would talk to him about it and be like, "You have to stop. Like, I'm not doing anything else. Like, I'm not hanging with anyone else. Like, I wanna be together."

• 47:39Alex Cooper?

  Right.

• 47:40Speaker 03

  And like, he was like, "Ah," but like, they were still always operating. So I did the craziest thing I've ever done in my entire life.

• 47:47Alex Cooper?

  Oh my god.

• 47:48Speaker 03

  I've, I have, I've never, let me just give context for my character. I've never had a falling out with another girlfriend before, I've never gotten to a physical confrontation. I've really never gotten to like, an heated exchange words to this day, except this one moment.

• 48:03Alex Cooper?

  Oh my god.

• 48:05Speaker 03

  I walk up to them.

• 48:08Speaker 03

  And I say, I pull them apart and I say, "We had sex this morning. I hope you're enjoying the taste of me right now."

• 48:17Speaker 03

  She starts hysterically crying.

• 48:18Alex Cooper?

  In high school.

• 48:19Speaker 03

  In high school. I don't know, I don't know how I feel about it, but I just like snapped.

• 48:24Alex Cooper?

  This is high school. Like, people are cheating and people are being, whatever. It's not actually nefarious. Like, it's actually just like, but it's so funny to think about, like, the drama in fucking high school.

• 48:34Speaker 03

  What's the most bold thing you ever did to confront someone?

• 48:36Alex Cooper?

  Oh, well.

• 48:38Speaker 03

  You have like a laundry list. I'm like, this is the one time I've ever said something to anyone ever.

• 48:43Alex Cooper?

  Well, the thing is too, for like, me, I would say, which I'm gonna have to tell the story one day, is-

• 48:47Speaker 03

  Oh, your arch nemesis story?

• 48:49Alex Cooper?

  Yeah.

• 48:49Speaker 03

  This is fucked.

• 48:50Alex Cooper?

  Because it was me really standing up for my other best friend and I-

• 48:55Speaker 03

  Then she tried to ruin your life.

• 48:56Alex Cooper?

  Yes. I am someone that will always stand up for myself. Like, my mother taught me that. Like, use your fucking words. Um, and so I would always say it to people's faces if they were upsetting me. And when someone, though, fucks with one of my friends who, who I know has a harder time speaking up for themselves, I go to like, a different level. And I stood up for my one friend to another one of our friends. And one day, I'm gonna tell the story, Daddy Gang.

• 49:23Speaker 03

  It's a good story.

• 49:24Alex Cooper?

  It is the most insane thing because it followed me into my adult life and it still is going, it's just crazy, whatever. But drama. Let's talk about drama because I can't talk about my arch nemesis because that deserves like a solo fucking episode and I need to like, literally call my mom for like, notes and I need to like, literally call my headmaster and get the notes also from them.

• 49:42Speaker 03

  For seats.

• 49:42Alex Cooper?

  Okay, so, drama though. The, one of the most dramatic things, and, and when I say dramatic, like, this is so fucking stupid, but I remember for me with boys, um, my high school year boyfriend, I was so obsessed with him. And I remember he was a boarding student and I was a day student. And so he would always just like, it, it was really fun in high school because you were able to try to sneak into the dorm rooms and like, what high school kids are afforded, like, a bed that you can just access at the dining hall. It was hard to sneak, but we figured it out. Anyways, so I was like, falling in love and I was having the time of my, my life my freshman year. And I remember-

• 50:24Alex Cooper?

  He was definitely a partier and he had transferred from another school and he had to redo his freshman year, so.

• 50:30Speaker 03

  Oh.

• 50:31Alex Cooper?

  Yeah, that's my first red flag. Anyways, I remember it is a Tuesday and Tuesdays were always chapel days where we had to like walk to this chapel in New Jersey and it was like a Presbyterian school and we would sit and we'd do chapel, whatever. And we always would walk together and we would always hold hands together and he was nowhere to be found and I'm texting him and it's all going to green and I'm like, where is he? And the boarding students come up to me and they look like they saw a fucking ghost and his friends come up to me and they're like, Alex, you didn't hear? And I'm like, no, like what happened? And they're like, he drank so much last night with everyone, but like people were drinking, but he drank to the point of absolute blackout to the point where it got so, so bad that we had to blow our cover and call for help.

• 51:16Alex Cooper?

  And they took him out on a stretcher in an ambulance and they had to bring him to the hospital and he had to get his stomach pumped. And I'm sitting in chapel as like Deandre is like sitting next to me whispering this to me and I'm like, what the fuck? And finally his phone turns on and he's like, I'm fine, like I'm okay. And I'm freaking out. I'm like crying, whatever. He gets kicked out of school, not from that, which is crazy. He did so many more things and eventually they were like, you have to get the fuck off this campus. Like you are literally ruining like our, our culture here. And when he got kicked out, I shit you not, Lauren, for three straight months and think about like three months of high school.

• 51:56Speaker 03

  That's long.

• 51:57Alex Cooper?

  That's long. For three straight months, I wore black every single fucking day to school because I was so mad at the headmaster.

• 52:07Speaker 03

  To protest?

• 52:08Alex Cooper?

  I would, I was literally protesting. I was.

• 52:11Speaker 03

  Were you mourning him?

• 52:12Alex Cooper?

  I was, both. I was mourning, but I was more protesting because I was so livid that they kicked him out. They, let me just be clear, they should have kicked him out, but I was just so dramatic because I was like, I just lost the love of my life. He got kicked out.

• 52:26Speaker 03

  Your future husband got away.

• 52:28Alex Cooper?

  Exactly. And I'm like walking around campus and every fucking week, the dean of students would pull me in being like, Alex, like. People are getting concerned, like, and meanwhile, I'm like, not a fu- like, I'm not a sad fucking person usually, so I'm, they can tell I'm fucking fine. They're like, bitch, you're fucking fine. And meanwhile, I'm like, I don't know if I'll ever recover. Like, I can't believe you got rid of him. And eventually I got over it, but, it's like, why do we do those things when we're younger? The drama within us?

• 52:52Speaker 03

  Oh, high school, I have like memories, just like, laying on the floor, like sobbing.

• 52:56Alex Cooper?

  Right? Just like, heartbreak and like, oh my god, my chest hurts if the boy broke, like, just so fucking stupid. But honestly, like, kind of amazing. And it's fun to reminisce. And we'll try to post pictures, you guys, if we can find any of these, like, hidden gems. I think there's some crazy ones.

• 53:11Speaker 03

  Oh, yeah, I'll post my prom pics. I look good.

• 53:15Alex Cooper?

  Y'all, Lauren coming out of the woodwork this episode. I kind of love it. I love the confidence. Um, I think, the fun thing also about like, being friends for your whole life is, it's really beautiful. Like, we have seen every single, almost like, decade of each other so far in our lives. Like, we have been, together and we have seen it all. And I think it's also humbling, to know, like, where we both came from, because we can both keep it real with each other. Um, we've had some of our darkest moments together. We have had some of our best moments together. We have had both moments where I think we've been able to look at each other and say, you need to get your shit together, or you need to get your shit together, and I'm here for you, but let's,

• 53:59Alex Cooper?

  let's pick, let's pick it up. And I feel like we've, in a good way, like, both done that for each other. Like, it's a very, very equal, sided relationship. But I was talking about that in an episode the other month, about how we're always on the opposite pages.

• 54:12Speaker 03

  I know.

• 54:13Alex Cooper?

  And but I, but I feel like it's kind of like the beauty of our relationship. Like, we always know.

• 54:17Speaker 03

  Makes it more interesting.

• 54:18Alex Cooper?

  It does. It does. Listen, I think Thanksgiving is so fun, and I hope, Daddy Gang, that you are surrounded by your loved ones. And I hope you enjoy this little, like, throwback reminiscent episode. We have had, we have so many random stories together, and it's always fun to sit down and just like, chat and talk, and, um,

• 54:36Speaker 03

  Yeah, I think I would just like to end this episode by saying, everyone who was in my grade, I just, I think they're all probably doing amazing things. I prob- I think they're probably so successful. I can't wait to see how good they all look. I can't wait to see how they're all thriving in their own lives. And they were just like such amazing people that I was blessed to go to school with. And I just, I cannot wait to see you all.

• 54:59Alex Cooper?

  Bye Daddy Gang, we love you. Happy Thanksgiving and have the best fucking time and go eat some food and drink good drinks. We love you.

• 55:05Speaker 03

  Pop a button or three.

• 55:07Alex Cooper?

  Many. I will see you fuckers next Wednesday. Goodbye.

• 55:24Alex Cooper?

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