Hello and welcome to Big Gay energy.
I'm Bree. I'm Fiora and I'm Caitlin come
along with us while we dive into the fun and nuances of queer
media representation matters. And we're here to talk about it.
Welcome back everyone today your host will be me and Kaitlyn.
Yay Caitlin unplanned read a book together and wanted to talk
about it. So we're going to talk about a
book today and it's called several people are typing.
By Calvin, I don't know how to say I've been looking up this.
Thank you Kazuki, I believe this Kazuki okay because sulky
natsuki not your dog, my dog did not write this book.
I have no financial interest in this book nor its corrosion
other than it's a fun book which is why we're talking about it so
yeah. Caitlin's like basically wrote
it our group chat something along the lines of like I'm
reading this book, it's a trip. So Not my words, something like
that. Do you remember exactly what he
said? Um, Shit man.
I write if you want a lot in our.
Yes, okay, no I got the it if you want the weirdest book I
have ever read to read. Check out several people are
typing. So naturally, I checked out
several people are typing, what Kaitlyn didn't tell me, is that
this book is queer. I thought that was
self-explanatory. My next two messages are my
brain hurts and I think I read 250 pages in two hours.
Yes, so The book. So yeah, I read it.
And surprisingly it was queer, thanks Caitlin for not spoiling
it and so I was like, let's talk about it.
The book. Yeah, it's a short book and it's
super fast to read, mainly because the entire book is
written in slack messages, which if you're not familiar with what
slack is, it's kind of like Discord.
If you're more familiar with that, where it's basically like
an electronic platform for communicating and you can have
channels within the main group that lets you talk about
different topics. X.
And so, this book is basically a contemporary piece that's set in
New York City. And we have our protagonist
Gerald, who's one of those, these white collar workers that
work on this company, on this slack Channel.
And the story is told in entirely through the messages of
this company's, slack messages, and I think this Story is very
timely in terms of content, not just because it's queer for our,
for our like, you know, this podcast.
But also, because of what's happening with the writers
strike in Hollywood, with this big fear of, like AI, artificial
intelligence replacing humans, and that's kind of like the main
Crux. Yes, entire story.
So I think it's pretty timely and it's a good one to kind of
talk about. So, the story is basically a
modern take on the melding of like physical existence, which
has been the human norm since forever and the virtual
existence. And it's a cautionary tale of,
like, the psychological impact. When we lean too far into like
virtual existence, and that's depicted in the story by Gerald,
our protagonist literally getting trapped in the Slack
server. I just Kaitlyn.
Before we get too much into the book, I have I think I found a
short bio that Calvin wrote about himself like who the
author is? Yes.
Calvin cuz silky Sure is a writer podcast, producer and
transsexual Menace, living in Brooklyn.
Love it because I found this book through the trans
read-a-thon week. So Theodora had his participate
in that and I saw this on a list so I was like okay that's
interesting. And that is how basically we got
to this point. That's really awesome.
Honestly if you're a reader and you want good book
recommendations honestly like go look up the The trans rights
read-a-thon. Hashtag I found so many awesome
books through that like This is, I'm glad this is where that came
from. It's awesome.
Okay. You want to get get into the
story? Sure.
Alright. So Gerald is basically living
his life in this kind of like company and the Tipping Point
for him. When he gets like literally
trapped in the virtual world. IE slack is when he opens this
Excel sheet he's creating About coats because he's trying to buy
a coat because he lives in New York where Winter happens and
it's like winter, actually, when the, the story starts and so
he's, he's trying, he's trying to like open an Excel document
that's what like transports. It him which I was like, that's
really weird and random, but then when I kind of thought
about what I thought about it, Okay.
No. Why did you find it?
Relatable. I think I didn't like your be
relatable to Julie to it is. Yeah this is where my brain
went. That's my partner.
This is I always have to look at like every little thing.
Luckily, I don't have to make sure trees for everything, but I
almost when we were apartment, honey made a spreadsheet and was
like assigning points to each thing of like big must-haves and
like little nice to haves and it was just gonna and I was like,
no, you're gonna make it two Big.
But yeah, spreadsheets are great.
I think they're great but they're also like I think in the
context of the store it is relatable because we do things
like that. Now, whereas back in the day
you're just like I'm cold. I need a coat.
Can I afford this? That was the decision.
Whereas now, I feel like we do this for a lot of different
things without and without realizing what we're really
doing is we're breaking down real life into data points
rather than like Reinstating the coat.
We're like, breaking down the coat into little pieces and
like, experiencing the coat, like, peripherally if that makes
sense. And so, I think that that's,
like, the start of like, Gerald, like not experiencing, like
quote, real life, the physical world.
He's just doing it through this virtual medium, and I think that
using Excel kind of in that format of like, breaking down
life into data points is something you do over and over
and over again in, like the modern workplace.
And I think that was the, the The Tipping Point for him
because he's not as you know, it's a metaphor for not
experiencing life and that was it.
That's what transported him kind of into the into the slack
Channel because he wasn't doing it for work.
He was doing it for his own personal purchase, right?
I'm going to buy a coat for me in my personal life and now his
personal life is becoming like work which is like Excel sheets
and stuff and he's like, that's it in the, in the slack Channel,
I think that's kind of where that happened.
And yeah. This book was relatable and very
many, many ways, going back through it.
The first time I read it, I had not used to GPT yet.
Okay, now I bring it up a lock, so I have to use it for work and
as I was reading, I was like, well shit.
This thing is like exactly like it, because it learns and then
takes over everything. Yes, so yeah.
I think this is a human fear kind of what Calvin's try to
like right in the story but we'll get into like the AI is
also a character in the story anyway.
Okay so anyway so what's Gerald gets transported or / trapped in
the slack Channel he then has to explain to his coworkers.
He is trapped in slack and of course, nobody believes him
because who would, and I think this story also probably takes
place after the pandemic around the pandemic time, we're like
working from home is becoming more common with like, you know,
having a slack channel to like still communicate without like
physically being in an office. So he keeps using all this work
from home time. And and then they're like, yeah,
whatever you're trapped in slack.
Sure. And at first like Gerald finds
the whole experience of being trapped in slack as like freeing
because if you're trapped if you're just existing in the
virtual plane, like all the mundane work that comes with
like just being in the real world like having a coat to go
go outside or like paying rent or like cooking cleaning all of
those. Things that just come with
existing are just gone because he's just existing in the
channel. So, at first, he's like, I'm so
productive. I'm getting all this this work
done and like, I don't sleep because I just live in this
thing and you know, it's kind of freeing.
I don't think about all those other stuff that like come with
existing. The leg over time.
I wasn't sorry. Huh?
I feel like I wish I could do that for eight hours a day.
No distractions. Right, exactly.
So like At first he's like this is great.
I have no distractions. That's exactly right.
And it's really sad when you think about it you're just like
when you think of existing as a distraction.
Yeah, shit. That's something else is talked
about in therapy now, thanks to Yura.
Well, it's true. You come like, you know, because
like you know, that's another thing in like, at least in The
six-pack in America, the culture is very like work first, life
second. And so I think that's another
way he's kind of trying to say that like, like being able to
work all the time, unencumbered is like yeah, goals met.
But then you're not like living your life kind of thing.
And that's kind of what Gerald discovers like as time goes on.
Because as time goes on, he starts losing himself and starts
becoming slack, right? And then he's like, oh shit,
maybe this Escape is ISM isn't so great.
And through that process when that starts happening is when he
starts interacting with slack bot so do what explain what a
slack bot is is that like common?
Yeah, I Don't Know. Jack look, I don't use slack.
You don't okay. Yeah so just like you've seen
our Discord but for everybody there's like different bots in
slack that will help you do things.
So we have a birthday bought that will remind us of
birthdays. With time off.
But but slack bot in general, is just there to help you through
it and remind you of things you can do actually.
I feel like I should have slack up for this whole thing.
No, don't, this is your off time.
That's the point Caitlin. Did you know, I do to do stuff
this weekend? This is why this book is
relevant. Yeah.
So slack boss, just like, oh, here we go.
There's slack bot. Ready to streamline your channel
list below a few channels you really interact with it, might
be time to say Auburn for. Okay.
So basically it just helps you keep track of things.
It told me that Danielle shared my private file wonderful in a
channel. So She did that twice.
And then it says you're here. Hello to learn all about using
slack. Click the question mark help
icon in the top right corner of the app or you can visit the
help center on the web. I do not want to see help center
one more time. Yeah, we'll get to that.
So if I'm not a human just a bought a simple but with only a
few tricks up my metaphorical sleep, but I'm so happy you're
here. There we go.
I did not expect to read that one.
So that's like a preview of what slack bot in the book says
because that's what so slack bot really what it is.
It's an AI tool. In the in the server basically
that just regurgitates information.
Like you can give it certain commands or like well I've heard
the call Like rules I guess logical rules of things that it
can look up in the server but it just regurgitates information.
That's really what it does. So we're gonna have you
considered maybe Kate was slack bot, you really could.
So continue speaking, I forgot wasn't fake.
So anyway, so that's what it is. And so basically, Gerald starts
feeling himself, slipping away because he becomes more and more
like the slack but over time, and that's depicted by like the
phrases that he keeps saying. So like The Help Center thing
that kept coming up because the slack bot is essentially, it's
like a Google also in, The in the server where I can like help
you find stuff, right? Where it's like I need help with
whatever and the slack but would be like cool.
I can help you. Here's some little search.
The server and be like here's some suggestions.
So Gerald starts like glitching overtime and liked his phrases.
Get intermingled with like slack bot phrases.
Where it's like I need you to instead of help me.
It'll say help center me because that's what slack bot does and
so so basically and I think what that's really trying to show you
is that like the difference between kind of like virtual
personalities like an AI, like slack bot versus like the human
personality that exists outside of the virtual medium is
learning and what does that mean?
So, And this is I think where the writer strike really comes
in with saying hey part of their demands is like pay us which yes
and another piece of that is do not feed my work to an AI
machine, like a chat GPT that will mimic my writing to make
you television shows and then you can fire me and not pay me
or like do not give me an AI script and asked me to just edit
it, which is an excuse to pay us less.
So they're trying to like, get AI out of, that's what the whole
thing is. Yeah, well it's not just not
educated on it. So so for those that do to the
right Rick, it's mostly about them actually getting paid
because their contracts are based on like broadcasting
syndication. Where like they, it's almost
like a kin to in America, like waiters waitresses, where they
make below the minimum wage because the thought is, they'll
get that made up in tips which is really stupid and doesn't in
Europe that is not the case. They just get paid a fair wage
but here we do it that way where the tips Implement the income.
And so with writers here, television writers, they get
paid below what they should get paid with the thought of,
they'll make that money up in syndication which is when we
actually have got caught on little tease.
Yeah, like royalties. But it was through that Medium
but then when they switch to streaming that Contracting never
changed the writers never made up that money.
So they're getting paid below what they should be getting paid
and like a lot of them can't make rent and stuff and they're
like, I can't make this a career.
So, their Union is involved. Like, get them wages where they
can live. But part of that now is what's
threatening writers in the pay is the AI weather.
Like well we don't need to pay writers if we have chat gbt so
that's why it's together in the writer strike right now is those
are the main two demands. So this really do unless you're
going to get the same lessons of every episode as we've seen in
trying to write Thor's story. Yeah, so like it, it's good but
it's not perfect, right? And I think in this book it
would it really highlights through contrasting Gerald and
slack because they talked together and then slack bot
later. Talks to other people when it
becomes more independent but there's limitations to it
because the weirdest. Okay, so just jump ahead.
The weirdest part of this book is when the body swap happens
and basically, Gerald's trap it. Then slack.
Bot becomes more because slack bot is like just trapped in the
channel. And then slap, but becomes more
independent kind of learn stuff and eventually takes over
Gerald's body somehow. It's not explained.
And it doesn't need to be, and it does it and so slack bot.
It then starts impersonating Gerald, right?
So this is what everyone's afraid of, right?
The AI is going to replace me and that's what's happening in
the story where the AI is literally replacing Gerald and
his co-workers, don't notice. Because again, like they're
mostly interacting on this virtual medium.
It's not face-to-face conversations.
They're talking to each other through the slack channels, and
slack bot. What's like, what does is slack?
But has access to all the information in the slack?
Like the slack server for this company?
And so it uses Gerald's phrases to like impersonate him and so
everyone's like, oh, that's how Gerald talks like.
Yeah, that's him obviously. And the name says Gerald because
like that just changes the same to Gerald.
And everyone's like yeah, cool, that's him.
And like slack bot engages in like they're inside jokes and
just like is just mimicking Gerald, right?
And so it it's like fine for a while, but then the Crux of the
story. While it's like scary.
Cautionary tale. That shows you the limitations
of AI replacing humans at least right now where we are in
technology and that's that slot thought can't learn anything
outside of the server. So, stuff happens outside of
this virtual medium slack, bot cannot learn.
So, slack bot can only Advance as much as the information in
the channel, let's advance. So because of that like it
really can't impersonate Gerald because it can only mimic what
it knows from the past because Gerald is not evolving.
So after a while, they Kind of figure out this thing is acting
weird because again, it uses weird phrases like, hey, help
center me and like it ends up like it doesn't understand
decorum outside of the channel. So like a beep lot that's
happening. Or see plot really is that these
two other co-workers trip and Beverly start like having an
affair with each other basically and like they fuck on the boss's
desk and they're so stupid though.
I understand why in the book but they talk about it in the slack
Channel and they're very much upfront about like a our boss
has access to all of our messages but because he's so
busy. He's never gonna read this,
which is real life. They check your messages when
something goes wrong, not all the time.
And so slack bot again, has access to all of the messages so
accidentally outs them to the boss, where it's like, hey I
need help with my desk, I think Beverly and trip know something
about this because it's like using their exact phrasing and
regurgitating it to everybody. Eddie and that ends up outing.
So, it shows the limits of like this AI.
Like it doesn't know how to behave like a human is kind of a
thing. It can just it's smart and it
can regurgitate and impersonate, but it actually isn't you like?
And it's kind of obvious. So I think that's like what the
books trying to show I have a question.
Are you planning on talking about Lydia at all?
Yeah, like I mean we can talk about her now, whatever you want
I was going to bring her up because I have I have questions
about I was gonna get through all the Gerald stuff and then
talk about the other part, but it's good.
That's get through Gerald. I'm just gonna eat their job
because we're almost done another interesting thing that
happens with Gerald. Is they have this like Sunset
metaphor that happens. Where?
What happens is he anyway? He gets basically, this is what
they bond over it were Gerald's. Like I don't understand Who I Am
anymore because I'm trapped in slack and slack but this is one
slack bus like learning the hey maybe I can take over your body
and like I can escape my slack existence and he's like, hey
Gerald, have you ever been asked, have you ever been a
sunset? Set.
And he's like, what? I've seen a sunset I haven't
been a Sunset and it's like what's a cool?
And then like they like disappear from the channel and
Gerald later explains it to another character.
Pradeep a deep is the love interest spoiler who is taking
care of Gerald's because rev Gerald has a body.
And like, I don't remember how long this book, like, what time
period, but it's like a while this book where he's trapped and
so pradeep takes care of his body, which is basically
Comatose, it's very strange. So he has to like feed him and
like pay his rent and like do all the stuff you have to take
over. This isn't seemed like he knew
him before the book. Yeah.
I think again, they just it was
interacting through the slack and then they start physically
interacting with each other. Through this weird body, swap
thing. That that's happening.
We're pretty busy keeping him alive, basically, and he
explains it to pradeep the Sun to set thing where he's like, He
explains what a sunset is where it's like at like experience and
they think this is a metaphor for like a space actually
experiencing something versus like peripherally experiencing
something and in the virtual world.
So in the virtual world like he explains being the sunset as
like everybody says, he basically says, he basically was
like, getting all this you for it was like a Euphoria he
couldn't explain because he's like I was the sunset and I was
like in multiple places across the globe because basically Like
slack button, like made him a get turned him into a gift for
like a little bit of a sunset, basically is what it was.
And so every time the gift got used in slack all over slack
Gerald like felt that and so he's like I felt like I was
everywhere all at once and like I got this Euphoria because like
people were using me, the sunset and it's so kind of like the
Euphoria you get through like Twitter or like social media
where like people validate You by like seeing your posts and
liking it, interacting with it. That's what was happening too.
General. He's like I got all this
Euphoria from like people looking at me and like
interacting with me basically through this medium, but it's
like fleeting and once it was done, it was done and I didn't
feel anything anymore versus like when you see us on set
Gerald explains, he's like it's so like Majestic I can't even
fully process the whole thing at once it's just so much at once
and I take in what I can and it's very Indescribable like
actually experience of sunset versus like people looking at
you as the sunset. So I think that was a really
cool metaphor he had For like how do you get Euphoria from
like virtual mediums versus like physical medians?
Who would have thought that sunsets are you so much?
I've never used a sunset GIF. I wasn't aware of this was
popular. I've seen him multiple times.
I think it's a slack thing. Probably maybe it's a slack
thing. I don't understand little like
emotive. Like there's City underscore
Sunset that you can use their little pictures like emojis
emojis. Yeah. so, That was that and then
in the end with Gerald, basically like pradeep and
Gerald confess feelings for each other.
Now, they have feelings for each other and it's really cute and
weird because, like, the AI is trying to expand its try to
experience life and wants to experience, what trip and
Beverly has experienced. So pradeep has sex with the
robot for Gerald's body, which is weird.
I told you the story hurt my A brain.
Oops. Is he like basically, like
pretty but Darrell talk about girls.
Like, that's kind of weird. This is kind of weird, but then
like pretty much, like, basically it's like, I always
had a crush on you, but I never like, said anything and like
same thing with Gerald. So, like the moral of the story
here, and like, this is what Gerald like really pushes him to
like get the hell out of slack is because the thing he was
missing that made his life so mundane as he was just
experiencing my virtually peripherally, hence, the Excel
sheet to buy a coat and what really Him out of it is like the
human interactions in the physical world.
That you can't really, replicate, like, tough, physical
touch, and like, all this stuff with Gerald, and there's another
character. Is it Rob?
Who is one of the first ones to To understand that like Gerald
isn't the slack but so it's like people that know you for more
than just like being a sunset. Basically Rob would make some
with that whole thing. Yeah, and Rob is the Lydia plot
which will get it to you right after we finished your old.
But that's the the Christmas right?
That's where a I can't really replace humans at this point in
time with technology because they can't learn outside of
their medium and also like they can't, they can't experience the
sunset. They can only describe it to
you. They can paint a picture of it.
It's like That's really what he's trying to say and so that's
what that what he's missing in the virtual world as what like
really pull motivates Gerald to get out of it.
And the thing that gets him out of it is the coat Excel sheet,
he has to get the slack but to open the code Excel sheet
because what is that bot slack by is real life broken down into
data points so he opens it and then like the body swap gets
reversed and Gerald and pretty. It's very convenient.
I feel like they're happy to easily too much body, but also
like the slack but to was like, It couldn't cope with trying to
exist because it doesn't know how to exist outside of its, you
know, data Haven. Like it didn't know what to do
in real life. Like so it just, it can't, it
can't work in the current formats that we have everything
was there really the point of the story, like, I know the AI
is scary and as a writer, it's scary, but like, we're not at
the point where they can actually replace you and and
have it really, truly be believable.
That's what Calvin, I think, is trying to say with the story.
Yeah. And then Gerald a deep actually
get to like live their happy little wives together, which is
great. So the queer people win.
No one is harmed. That is queer, just
psychologically. With, for once we played it's
just a logical. Gerald is bisexual king, it's
great. Alright, so that was really, you
can't be queer without a little psychological damage.
Exactly. So all of this tracks Calvin
knew it. He was doing.
Anything you'd like to add for like the Gerald plot.
It still, it still hurts my brain.
I'm really surprised that his body like stayed alive, so long
for until the team checked in on him.
Oh my God. But like pretty proselyte.
So this book, I thought it was funny to, like, a lot of the
like, pretty, pretty sarcastic and stuff, and like him kind of
like curtly describing taking care of Gerald's, bodies,
hilarious. He's like, I had to get you
diapers. So many diapers, so many,
diapers, your dusty. I had to like, baby, like, I
like it. It's really funny like but yeah
I don't like At first I didn't know Gerald had a body hanging
out like it's not explained to later and they're like, oh yeah,
he has a body. It's being neglected.
It's like, you're just like laying asleep on this computer.
It was wild but I love that. He only checked in on him
because he won his desk someone. So yeah, over his desk and was
auctioning it off because it was in a good location that and
that's The whole thing started with actually finding the body,
but it's relatable, isn't it? They're like, hey, you're not
using your desk, I'm going to use your desk, you have to go
desk. Don't me.
That's what I that's how I learned what that meant, nice.
Speaking. Yes, tea.
Yes, Pico. Yeah.
Okay. So, all right, I guess we'll
cover this before we go to Lydia.
So what are the inside jokes for, like, The entire company
and I don't, I forget. It doesn't matter.
Anyway, is anytime. They don't like something or
somebody says something they don't like or is doing something
they don't like they use this. I guess a boji and in the book,
you don't see the Emojis. Like, they like how even just
describes them for you, in like Colin's to like be like, this is
a gift basically and describes the GIF.
And so the name of this gift is called Dusty stick.
So anytime they don't like something.
You see the this phrase Dusty Stick Over.
And over and over again. I don't have slack as far as I
know, I don't have an emoji on my phone for a Dusty stick.
So like, I wanted to ask Caitlin what on Earth were you picturing
in your brain? Every time this came up,
Dusty's, it because we have the actual answer because we looked
it up before recorded, but like, what were you picturing your
brain? When you saw Dusty stick.
So at first, I think I was literally a picturing stick that
head just like dirt on it. Yes, it was like this weird
metaphor when I saw the photo ice.
I saw something different than you.
I thought it was just a stick that you like hit furniture with
and then like, the dust comes out of the furniture.
The wand that's T1. Yeah, I produce this dust.
So what it actually is, yeah, I was also picturing just like a
stick that had dust on it, here's the thing.
It's a Dusty stick is a thing. That's so weird.
If you don't know if you know what a Dusty stick is,
congratulations if you don't it's basically like it is a
stick that has like managerial sorry it's has material at the
end for collecting dust like it's a dust but I call it a
Duster or you just like, clean blinds or whatever.
I didn't know this was called so I don't know what the hell.
They're also. How is that something bad?
I don't. Like, I don't understand that
either. It doesn't look like what you're
talking about. Let me.
I sent to the wrong cat butt. I can't believe Dusty stick is
an actual thing. I had no idea.
I'm glad I checked. I'm glad you checked.
But again in, I'm glad to know that in our brains because we
had no idea we were picturing. A stick that had dust on it.
Hey son, Dusty still slack but it did nothing.
That's the strangest thing I've ever seen.
Anyway if you use a just a sec congrats, but okay.
But then there's a part in the book Kaitlyn where they're like,
trying to go ahead. Why are you smiling?
I was looking up Dusty stick. Okay, we're done with the
dustiest. I'm sorry.
Apparently, it's a thing. I'll tell you later then, okay.
There's a part in the, okay. So that's how like in the book
because it's through slack, they don't show you the gift, they
just again, they're like: Dusty sink: again.
Signify there's a part in the book where like after slack bot
outstrip and Beverly where I don't know what they're doing,
but they're trying to like trick the slap on or something where
they're not like spelling out, the full word, Dusty stick their
spelling out like parts of the words.
In the, in the colons. And I don't know what that
means, because in my brain, I'm like, isn't this supposed to be
a gift? Why are you like, they would
like, script the letter orders and like, I didn't know what
they were trying to do. What do you mean?
You're good. There's, there's a part towards
the end of the book where instead of writing out Dusty
stick. They would write, like, do UST
and just keep that in the colons and then likewise tick, and like
separate it. Instead of like, I don't know
what they were trying to do there.
I'm not sure. Yeah, it was weird.
But like the slack bot didn't know what was going on.
So, just be like, great, thanks friend.
But like, answering like a bot would even, like, where's Gerald
be like, what the hell are you guys doing?
This is weird. I don't know.
I thought was weird. It's not important.
Well no, it's kind of it's in my head now.
So just so, you know, I found the article that I was like, I
haven't read it yet but I did read a part that Vice.
I think that's a magazine or something.
Yeah, they use Dusty stick a lot in their slack message.
Has and Calvin wrote for vice so it just makes sense on why
that's a thing in the book. That's funny.
And so I thought that was relevant to share and if you're
very curious at the end, I will explain more because I'm now
just invested in this freaking Dusty stick who would have
thought that this would be the ticket.
I mean we're on the dusty stick topic, you might as well.
Its Origins are excused her. Its purpose is unclear and its
meaning is hotly viciously contested.
We hear advice. I've been using it for years but
unbeknownst to us until very recently.
We don't have all the same conception of what it means.
All right, so it's a long. It's a long thing but that's all
you're gonna get right now. It's Google Vice Dusty stick if
you want more information. Yes, Yes actually.
Yeah. That's it was Dusty.
Stick slack Emoji, what does it mean?
It means whatever you want it to mean, barely.
All right. So speaking of weird shit that
went on in the slack world, there's Lydia.
So to kind of set up the weird thing that happened with Lydia
basically, what? I don't understand what this
company does to me. It's like the Contemporary
version of like the main job that was happening for like
people whereas like if this is a hundred years ago, they would
all be working in factories. This would be a factory job.
Like the factory workplace but now you are company.
Yeah, this is like white collar work, where they're not
producing stuff, it's a Communications is basically what
they're doing. You don't make stuff like a
factory. You're just communicating for
people that make up that makes stuff.
Yeah. So this is like the new Factory
job basically and so they're all working the big campaign they're
working on is this dog food company that poisoned
Pomeranians And they're trying to like, PR their way out of
this, basically. And so that's because Lydia
comes in the ark. I think, I guess, I don't know.
It's like Swedish for bark. I guess.
Be jrk, I don't know. It doesn't matter, but not know.
It doesn't. No, go ahead.
No. You want to talk about, Lydia?
Take it away. Oh, Lydia.
I know I'm sorry. It's great.
Lydia Lydia, Lydia Lydia and her the Wolves.
That's all I remember with Lydia.
So Lydia seems like Rob's boss to be honest.
Or like at least the leader of the dog food company.
And she's asking things. I'm just be like it's very
positive in the things but she's always talking about the howling
that she can hear and then Rob will respond.
But then everyone else would ignore her and I all when I was
reading the first time I was like this is so weird.
Why are they they're being so mean to Lydia.
They're just like not noticing that she's there and at the end
Rob is talking about. Has anybody heard from Lydia?
And like everyone? I don't even remember if Gerald,
remember is Lydia. No.
Well, Gerald was doing his own thing.
So it's for context. Rob and Lydia were like, working
on this campaign together and Lydia's like, hey here, like it
starts with like the memo getting lost or Rob's like.
Well, where's the memo about this Bjork thing or whatever?
And Lydia just like I think part of it was trying to show you in
the beginning is like the way people aren't really
communicating on these channels. And so like they're not like
directly communicating with each other because like Lydia would
never fully answer. Rob and like Rob would ask her a
bunch of questions and she would never really answer him and then
like in the main groups like Caitlin was saying with Lydia
would say stuff and everyone would ignore Lydia.
But also like he wrote Calvin, wrote the book kind of like real
life we're like one person's typing while the other one
already answered. So like the messages are kind of
out of order. Sometimes like somebody will
answer it as Question three other people will message and
then the other person will answer it, like three messages.
So it's like, it fits, like slack would actually read but in
reality, they're ignoring Lydia for a reason only Rob can see
her for some reason. Yes, see the messages right?
Only Rob sees the messages? Yes, he is.
Her sees the messages. She's supposed to be working in
the office so I don't get that either.
Well, that's the thing people are so okay.
Yeah. So no one knows who Lydia is and
Rob's like yeah. No, she uses that desk and then
everyone's like, no, that desk is always empty and he's just
like assume she's always working from home.
Because, again, like, it's a commentary on this type of job
where, like most of the interactions everyone's having
is in the slack Channel, not in there, if they have a physical
office where they come in but they don't really interact with
each other in the physical office, they're interacting on
the slack medium. So like it's a commentary about
even though like we exist in the real world, we're still like
always existing in this virtual experience, even at work When we
are in the same room with each other, right?
So then no. So that's why Rob's like I
didn't think was weird because like, I don't see Mike, like I
can relate to this. Totally like I work at a
hospital but like, a lot of my co-workers, I interact with.
I've never met, I only interact with them on or like our team's
Channel. That's are like slack version.
So, I've never met these people, but I've talked to them on
messages. So, if like, you told me this
person didn't really exist, I wouldn't know because I only
talked to them in this channel so Rob finds out.
Like later that like Lydia. Basically is a bot to like a bot
manifestation. So that's why she doesn't exist.
I don't know why he can see her messages.
I was thinking that Lydia was like a version of slack bot.
Like, I think so too. I think it's Indian like slack
bot was practicing with Lydia. Yeah but I also wonder if yeah
was a real person and it got the same thing but she's like Gone
Gone. Yeah so yeah it was Lydia was
slack bot in person or slack impersonating, somebody else and
we're Lydia of comes from Rob finds out later.
So again this whole their whole conversation starts with,
where's the memo about this project?
We're working on with the dog food and they want you to make
copies, which I don't know what that means.
So, basically copy is you know, all the social media posts.
Each one, each social media post is a copy, like it just the
words written. So a Blog.
That's copy for this blog. Okay.
And so I don't understand, we understand this part 2 but they
had like three people So then one of them, this is a customer
Persona. So those are the people that
they are targeting with their marketing message.
See, I didn't realize that like this wouldn't make sense to
people because this is what I do.
Yes so yeah. Each one is a buyer Persona and
you do that so you can better understand what people you are
trying to Target. So when you're writing copy your
targeting it better and it'll have better engagement with the
people. You want to actually interact
with. I think though, the problem with
the memo is it It to the people were actually real people and
the third wasn't and so like the memo goes missing and then what?
So Rob's like, where is it? Where is it?
And then Lydia the Bots ends Rob
basically the copies and like, to of the people, it's like this
weird story were like, would we find out they're real later?
Because Rob outs, all of them on social media and solves the
problem, which you shouldn't do as a PR Company.
But like one of those like a real person doesn't have a dog,
is like a social. Justice Warrior and then you
find out. She's mad at the second person
because they like had a boyfriend in common or some
shit. And so she's trying to poison
her a dog or something. It's something like that.
And then the third person like Lydia sends it and it just says
like 3 like as the name and then it has a couple of bullet
points. But we find out at the very,
very end that the third person was a Persona.
Like you're saying is makes more sense.
Now to me named Lydia and the bullets up The Bulls were
missing because Lydia the bot, remove them and like was
mimicking, these personality traits.
So they said something like oh this person is overly
enthusiastic uses multiple exclamation points which if you
go back and read her messages with Rob, she's always writing
like yeah two exclamation points.
This two exclamation point. So the bot was just mimicking.
The Persona the come off like a person and something I'm like,
laughs Ewing since I read this it's been a few weeks since I've
read like the entire book. So As you're saying this, it's
all coming back to me. So yes, like Bob basically just
chose Lydia to be a human and then was like this isn't enough
for me. I want to be in the real world
and then targeted Gerald Target and Gerald.
Yeah, exactly. So they were used to Rob was the
original guinea pig and and I guess like, I guess, Lydia was
like his slack bot. And only that's why only he
could see the messages. And like when Lydia left the
group, only Rob could see it. Only Rob could at Lydia.
And like, any way. So that makes more sense to me
too. I was trying to figure this,
this is the plot. You don't figure out till the
end and anyway, you're like, what the hell happened?
Yeah, because Lydia gets weird and like it's the same thing
that happens with the slack bot that impersonates Gerald like
over time, the slack Bart starts fracturing because it doesn't
actually know how to exist. Outside of regurgitating
information, which is what it's an AI is designed to do or
program to do. And so, Lydia has trouble
interacting with like Rob because over time.
She's the the bot is trying to mimic the bio and part of the
bio, says something about always hears howling.
And so over time, Lydia's messages get more deranged where
she's like the housing is everywhere.
I am the howling. I feel it deep in my bones and
like Rob is reading this going like what is happening with
Lydia and he's like you live in New York City, what howling
could you possibly be talking about?
There's no howling outside your apartment.
Like, it sounds like she's going crazy at her.
A job, which like also relatable really.
It's because the bot is going crazy because it doesn't know
how to exist as a person and it's like failing.
So I think you're right. I think that was lakh, bahts
first attempt and then PSI plus, I crap, maybe I need the body
like the physical body to like actually experienced this and
that doesn't go well either with Gerald.
They'll be messages were pretty like you're sitting really weird
because looks like what does know how to sit.
Like imagine only existing in the virtual world, then you come
out and there's all these other things that you do.
Think about because you are we always exist in our bodies.
Like what the computer would have to learn and how the hell
would it learn it? There's no manual for like, how
to sit in a chair like this but they're technically is a no.
But I mean like there's no like I mean where would the slack?
But really fine? This it wouldn't know not chat.
Gbt it doesn't have, the internet's knowledge.
It has only. This is slack.
Correct. That's what it.
That's what it's showing. But even like even the chatty
Beauty, which can access everything like You cannot
access the full Human Experience is what the story is trying to
say like and piece it all together and have it be
believable like right away. Like the the compute, the the
slack bot was struggling, didn't know how to sit in a chair.
It like it the first time it tasted food was like, this is
really cool, but it ate too much and it had like crazy
indigestion, like it's like things you don't think of like
the stock pot has to learn. So anyways, Lydia learning that
would though. Yeah.
So so Lydia was like, chat button.
Talk about the first attempt, but like the messages from Lydia
are just like so weird when you're reading this girl, what
is wrong with Lydia? They're just how she's just
going on and on about this howling and you're like a sugar
mama. And yeah.
And and then Rob's and everyone's like, who the fuck is
Lydia? He said, Lydia was the one who
was directing me what to do with this project when he who is
Lydia? I thought she was my boss, like
that. It's really funny.
That's exactly slag. Pot was running the entire
project, the project But like some help Rob was put in charge
of the whole thing. So, like, I don't know, I want
to know more about Lydia. Yeah.
Because it just, it comes in at this like, in the middle of this
campaign, it doesn't like yeah, explain it but it's hilarious.
Feel like things happen to and progressed really quickly at
times and I would have liked more of like, what the hell did
that happen? But yeah.
And then I don't know what was going on with do dogs, the boss
and Doug would have his own private slack Channel where he
would just like write lists of shit.
He has to do and what's always on his list that I find
hilarious, he's like get pairs, get the good pairs, get better
pairs, I'm like what is wrong with Doug?
We should have a funny side plots going in there too.
So I think it's Carolyn is like the I getting bugs in charge
then Carolyn's like second and she's the typical man.
Manager who has no time for anything.
She's always in a meeting, always running to meetings and
Doug always has and then beside clot.
You find through dogs like weird messages.
He liked his list to do list of her is that she has like this.
I don't know reptile, that has babies and like, he's always
like look, he's like Carol and offered me one of these babies
look into what this thing is. And then my dad, he's like,
right, note declining, stink babies, or whatever.
It's just like this weird random thing that happens.
Think babies. This thing babies.
Anyway, it was about as funny as it was weird like plot that's
not discussed and she just threw his messages but like that's
what life like on slack is like, you know.
Yes, I do know. Yes.
Okay so that's basically the book and so I wanted to ask
Caitlin who works from home works through slack like How was
it reading this? But I tried to explain this book
to, like, my wife and she's like, this is literally my job.
I'm not reading this. This is my job.
I didn't get along very well. Yeah, she's she works with Dad
literally is an Excel Master. Like so like this is literally
her do not PR stuff. But like, all right, being on
fire wife is hurt. Lifeless, her computer.
I think she would love living in slack.
To be honest, I just doing Dad all the time Anja.
I mean and you fill it suitcase. Great job.
Her dog is what would bring her out of, really this like anyway,
so Caitlin, how was this book? How relatable, was it pretty
relatable? I used to work in the office but
the office only had About seven people at most and usually was
only like four who would actually show up each day
because my boss hates work from home, which ironically, we now
all work from home, it's really dumb.
But anyway, it is, I do find it difficult just because I haven't
figured out my focus yet. Need more help with that area.
But I we have about 40 some employees and I only know about
five of them, my personally. Yeah, but I only talked to one.
See people have gotten fired, that's not part of this.
But like so I really only talk to my boss.
I only know my boss. Really And it's very odd and I
just muted the channels where everybody's talking because I
find it difficult to get to know them.
I were spread all around the country so it's not like we're
ever going to really see each other and to be fair to them,
they really do try to get people to, like know each other and
really connect. So we have The first day I got
on here. I saw a not-safe-for-work
channel. I'm like, that's what animal
could be Channel. Yeah.
It's just for anything not related to work.
So, basically that cute channel that they have in this book in
the snow. They put it in, not safe for
work. And so, at some point, one of
the person, the person that I know from the office, put in
Miley Cyrus's The Climb music video.
Why? I have no idea?
So slack can be so random and you're just like, what the hell
is happening and I do, I relate to trip.
Remember really, not in that way, but the way that you talk
about things that you don't want like, before the big people to
know about, because Danielle and if you watched her channel in
the motherland reaction video, you know, who Danielle is she
used to work at the company and most of our messages contain Can
Ryan? See this show me go off and just
texting each other. So there's yeah, there's certain
things you don't want to say so through slack but most of the
time they just don't check because really who has the time
to check everything? Yeah.
So like I think the way Calvin wrote it was super relatable and
like it. The Lydia thing to like somebody
just going crazy and messaging random shit in this slack.
Like I feel like That is actually relatable and you
wouldn't find that weird really off the cup because like you
said, people just Rock drop random stuff in group chats all
the time and you're just like sure I kind of want to use
deceased giggling every single post now, it just anybody
comments on it, Dusty spit. Oh my God.
Okay, so right now my boss wants monsters on every deliverable
that I give him, so he has a book coming out, he wants
monsters on the cover, the Publishers, just said, no, we
have a podcast. Coming out.
He wanted the monster as a mascot, so I gave it to him.
So now whenever he ones monsters, I'm just gonna use
just East ST. Stick because I used to Grimace
face on one of them. Oh, that's a cute kid.
Sorry, I got distracted. Don't go to not safe for work.
No, it's no. Don't do it.
It's filled with dogs and babies and tattoos.
Yeah, I think. That makes sense.
I just saw monsters in there and that yeah, I'm good getting out
of it now. That's it's enough head of in
the work week. Okay.
So basically yeah, slack is weird.
The book is weird. Perfect match.
Okay. Other thing I wanted to ask so
like the book has like I read it on my Kindle or whatever it has
its own like group guide questions.
Hmm and so I wanted to ask something that from this list
that I thought was interesting. So ask one question about like
slack bot and it's Like did you see slack bot as a villain.
What do you think about that? I thought about that one,
because at the end, like, it's supposed to be, like the
antagonist of the story, write the word, right?
Yeah, right. But really, It's just trying to
learn. Like, that's what it's meant to
do. Yeah, and sooner, there is
plausibility, and I think it's hard to say like, oh wants to be
human. Like it hasn't actually happen.
Like these things are like fictional, but I mean, I guess
it could just like when we were talking about the last of us and
like that could actually happen. Things that we never thought
Could Happen. Have already happened.
Yeah, so being in precedented times all like every week.
I don't know. Do you think that I don't think
it was trying to be a villain? I wasn't trying to do any harm
totally accept takeover Gerald's body and drink.
Okay? Okay, wait, it kind of did
though it away. Yeah.
A portrait was like okay, there's a we didn't talk about
this but there's a part where like slack bot after.
So I quite like, does the body swap?
Basically tries to get Doug, the boss to like reset the slack
channel to trap your than slack. So there is that plot where he's
like hey let's fuck is acting weird help center, whatever
Channel what looks like yeah. Whatever.
All like said said it2 like once a week once slack gets human
form and stuff then it becomes very villainous.
Yeah. So but like people don't know, I
think it's an interesting question.
Ask because you're right. I think that slack by the setup
as the antagonist but like I don't know.
Maybe I'm just super desensitized to like villains
and like what is a villain really?
We're like yes. Like B is the antagonist to
Gerald but like is slack bot bad.
Like you would associate a villain or is like slack bot.
Trying to just live It's life and trying to like do what
Gerald was doing escapism like is it really?
Is it really malicious? I mean at the end of the day we
are not a eyes so we're not going to know that experience.
Yeah exactly and I would not which I me Gerald those so like
Gerald. Yeah that's real person.
Gerald can I speak on this? I think Gerald thought slack bot
was evil because he was like fuck you at the end but he tried
to take my body. So like yeah Gerald probably saw
it as a villain. but you don't like the end, that all the
actions were pretty villain like, but That would be, it's a
really hard question. Yeah.
Because I think the broader question is like is AI the enemy
to humans. If an AI could do that like take
over your body and like trap you and the computer and just move
on with its life. Could a eyes.
Be the villain like will be get the Terminator situation where
like AI is like trying to destroy.
Yeah is very you know tricky because in some ways it helps a
lot with work but then you're going to have people who think
that it can just replace workers, which it might cut down
on jobs, but I don't think it could ever replace because you
still need. Need people to know what's right
and wrong. We have someone who works with
us and they call him brain with a capital.
A, I because his name is Brian and he knows chat GPT inside and
out. He's been teaching the whole
company how it works and how to use it, effectively for our own
jobs. So I forgot where I was going
with this, which is something I say in every single episode
you're basically saying like a, I can't replace the human so it
look he said remember that our company is very has human or
Mission. This AI, it will try to lie to
you because it will think that things are true, but you still
have to validate and make sure go through things.
I asked this, I used it to write a blog and it took like five to
ten tries that I still had to piece it together to make it
actually cohesive. And what I wanted it to be. so
it's a tool, it's a helpful tool, but I hope it never gets
to the point where it tries to take over bodies.
I mean, yeah, let's hope we don't get into a turn are
situation or body-swapping but yeah I think I agree with you.
I think it's kind of like AI is a tool and it's kind of like to
go back to like 100 years ago this would have been a story
about working in a factory and what is working in a factory
like now like technology took over most of the jobs that the
physical people had and the goal was to like make it better for
the people because it's safer because like you know robots are
more efficient and like peoples like lose their limbs and die in
these dangerous jobs. But now, all of these people
don't have jobs. So, like, I think AI is another
tool that will be incorporated into like the white collar work.
Now, which is like the factory job is this Communications job,
but like it can't at this point in time, replace everybody, but
it likely will replace. Some people just like, machines,
replaced people in factories, the factories, made their money
back from that, they use to purchase these machines by not
having workers comp Yeah, by firing people and giving all the
money to the few people. That remained mainly the guy who
owned everything. So yeah, like and that, and that
brings us back to the writers strike, which is why they're
writers are like, you're not going to replace us, because we
have tried using chat GPT to write stories and like they're
okay, but, like, They're not just looking funny to laugh at
their but they're not like they don't at least from our
experience at this at this point in time.
The chat TV series, it didn't have the depth of like what a
human could come up because again it can only regurgitate
what you tell it to regurgitate you know and if you can't tell
it everything and you can just hello people who like may know
and use it very well or listening.
We didn't train it at all. We gave it a short prompt didn't
give it any background info. These writers that you really
need to be able to train it, give them Mission.
So the person I was talking about, like, trained, what they
work on through our entire mission, statements like
history, and just gave them a bunch of data to work with
already. So it takes a lot to make it
smart enough to do what you need. so, Yeah, I have a
question for you, from this. Absolutely what you got.
So number two, the novel is written entirely in slack
messages. How did this unique format
affect your reading experience? Well, first of all, it made it
faster to read. Because if you had a novel, that
was like, 250 Pages, it would take a lot longer to read it.
So it was a quick read which I really liked and I liked that,
it it, the weight Calvin wrote it, It, it read like a slack
message, so you kind of almost have to be used to like big
group chats to like read this. Because we are which we are and
if you're not, I can see this as being a frustrating reading
experience. Whereas normally when you read a
narrative, it's like everything flows from like sentence to
sentence whereas in a realistic giant group chat, it doesn't
read like a reads when the person hits send to like the
message. And you can have multiple
message in between. So like I thought it was fine
because I'm used to working on these platforms and I'm used to
working on something like reading like a slack where it's
like, you know, the the answer you're looking for could be like
five messages later because of when several people are typing
at once, like the messages just come in when they come in, so,
some day before. But just like slack goes
something that they didn't put in this book, but is able you
have threads, which I find actually more frustrating.
So it doesn't go like linear. In the main Channel.
You you have to open the thread within that one message because
you can, when you reply to that one message, it's it pisses me
off, but you can also send it to the main channel.
So I don't know, but I hate got Reds.
Yeah. And then you have to go to the
threads tab to see when people respond.
It's annoying to me. Yeah, I think that would
definitely have not worked in the book, but other than that, I
liked it. It broke up the book.
And I thought it was a really interesting way to like, get to
know these characters like Doug and his private Channel, or he
would just literally, its to-do list, and so you like learn
stories through this type. A is like to duel has like pears
by Paris by fancy pairs, by better pairs.
Like it was just like another, it's like this weirdo.
Like the clearly never has time. And oh my God, the the other
plot with Doug we're like Beverly and trip.
Basically have sex on his like movable desk in room his desk
and so he thinks that the cleaners are sabotaging his desk
He like makes messages to like pay them give them tips, pay
them or get on their good side like all of this it's really
funny. So like I liked it, I liked the
channels and you and it wasn't. It gave the writer the
flexibility to tell multiple people's point of views just by
going to the channel. So you like you knew what was
like it's like cute group. So like you kind of like we're
Prime for like what was going to happen.
I'm like tripping, Beverly's group or like you found out
about them because they were messaging each other.
Whereas, if you only had Gerald perspective, it would have been
weird. Weird.
So, I thought it really worked and, you know, I thought it was
fine. I like it and because you won't
you jump from channel to channel like the it breaks up the book,
too. So you can just like, read what
was in that channel. And then like I read it like
waiting for coffee like in between stuff in my day so I
could just like read the channel and then close it and then open
up another Channel next time and read it and close it.
So it was a, it fits in the modern world.
So I found it efficient to read it and I kind of liked it for
like it for like, What the book was about.
Personally, I'm a person who starts a book in just kind of
wants to finish as much as possible at once, and just so I
don't read a little bit a little bit.
I as, you know, because I've complained about this a lot, I
don't do well with Exposition. So this book was all basically
dialogue. So I was able to read it more
but having I found myself like reading too fast, so then I
would have to go back to be like, who's that?
If you ask me about the different characters, who may
not have been as big? In the book, I couldn't tell you
who they were, just because I was reading the messages so
quickly. but, It did feel a little weird, but I understood
it because I do work in this and especially with the marketing
which I didn't realize that that would be confusing for people.
Yeah, like I didn't know what they were talking about.
I was just like I assume this is some Communications because I
don't explain it, they don't explain it just like their
channels, like NYC company. They don't explain what they
are. They don't say what they do.
They're just like, we're copying, we're doing this on.
Like I don't know what they're talking about.
I'm glad sure the modern workplace right 100 social media
posts and as soon as I read that I was like, huh?
I'm just like I hate this so much.
I feel you paid Rob girls. Go help him.
Totally. So like I think it is very
relatable book. If this is your job and I think
it's easy to read. Like, I don't work in slack but
I, you know, we run a Discord server which is similar like and
I work, you know, I again I'm an essential work, I think
throughout the pan to make I physically had to go to a
hospital. There was no virtual work in a
hospital for my job. So like, I have to have that
person interaction all the time. I have to physically be there.
So like parts. If it weren't relatable, but I
could empathize with the situation and the format made
sense to me. But like if I had no Baseline
for what slack was for, what Discord was if I didn't, you
know, regularly interact in group chat formats.
I could see this being very difficult to read.
Personally, I'm just thinking, like there's this names on our
slack that you just you don't hear from, you don't see them in
meeting sometimes that I'm like, Lydia, are they a Lydia?
Because like there's something. I'm like, who are you?
Yeah, so again like the whole thing is relatable, if you have
a baseline for this story, but I feel like if I tried to have my
mother read, this who's never used any of these think.
She'd be like, what am I reading?
I hate this. Oh my God, I should do that.
I should have my grandmother read it.
Do it. Yeah.
Caitlin's Grandma's a big reader.
Yeah, I have to see you gave her a book recommendation, will see
if she read it. She loves book recommendations
so if anyone has recommendations for her she'll read it all.
She loved big Swiss. I would love to get her
eyebrows. Take on face was when we invite
her and them. So we finally talked about, no,
I think I was gonna see if Bree wanted to do big Swiss because I
know she got the book. But yeah, like I would love
getting film. Something about your grandma
like if she's cool that I want her to.
Yeah, I mean she's she's totally cool with being on camera.
Yeah, I want her take because that's amazing.
Thanks, so so super fun. I promise we will talk about
things so as I know it was supposed to be earned The club.
And now there's this book surprise.
This isn't really a book club, this is just us.
Yeah, I just read it and I was like, Caitlin, you didn't tell
me, he was queer. Let's, let's talk about this
book. It was interesting and I thought
again timely because like, the writers strike and it's
relatable to what's going on. But world of media, like we said
off camera, it's queer, but then it's like very little queer.
But then it's It's like very beginning.
It was just it was quick and it was just again, just part of
life that wasn't the main point and like, I appreciate like I
was surprised by it. I was like, great, love it, I
love it more. Now.
I don't know if I knew about that relationship when I
started, I just knew that the author was trans, so that's why
it worked for a trans read-a-thon.
Yeah. Like love it anyway, but you
please tell pretty quickly when he's like yeah, the beard works
for you. It highlights your cheekbones.
Yeah. There's once yeah there's like
hints later e. Like what's going on here?
Because like their first interactions pretty deep and
Gerald on the slack Channel or just like these like hippie.
Sorry. Mastic like you wouldn't know,
you know, out of context, its heart like is you don't realize,
like, it's like negging flirting a little bit until later when
you're you have a context where you're like, oh okay, that's
what's happening. So I love it.
Well, that was a fun book. It's super easy to read, we just
spoiled the shit out of it if we did.
So, if maybe we should tell them to read it first, is that brave
Quail? That was pretty cool.
Oh no. That's a Actually, just a
regular vaccine. Thank you, Bridge.
Pool is gone. They have Quail is fiora's
rumba. Rumba is rumba.
You said it's on. What do you mean?
It's gone. Oh, Julie took it to go clean
while we were doing. Okay.
I thought it was gone gone like free fucking hog.
No, I wouldn't. I would be sobbing.
I love never about Cai is great as a tool.
That's what I'm saying. Yes.
Hey oh so okay. Is there anything else you'd
like to say about this book? Before we wrap this up with our
hydration scale no. But I'm starting to look Dusty
stick even more. So I know we're in a, we're
going to bring it into our group chat window contacts and see
what braces because you're not really supposed Discord or like
put it in our Discord adjust or should I get before they're
using? It comes out again and just
Recycles this. So like she wanna you guys would
be shot it. Everyone.
She's not gonna know. Alright.
Supple it. Honor him.
Don't tell her and honor of a Calvin.
We will use the are non-binary trans hydration.
So how many cups of coffee would you drink before a trans?
Non-binary? Jesus, Huh, or how much would
you caffeinate for? How many cups of caffeination?
Caffeination of your choice? I'm sorry.
Give it a six me too. Me too me too.
I thought was if I liked the format honestly it made for a
very easy read. It was.
Yeah. You know, if you're not somebody
who does well with reading and like, I thought it was helpful
that it was in digestible pieces.
I was absolutely wild. You were correct, it was fun.
I just thought it was a fun story and the fact that it was
queer was also just a nice bonus.
Honestly, I have trouble with reading and pictures.
Any things. So like I usually just throw out
all the descriptions that were given to you and then just
create a world of my own that probably looks nothing, like,
what the author intended, I need you to see.
So having this not have to Really picture things exactly
how its messages. So it was definitely easier for
me and a lot easier to read. Yeah.
It's like a very quick read. Yeah, cool.
So check out several people were typing.
I've heard that I was like, parties are several people, are
typing, I apologize. Several people were typing also
book. They were typing has regretted
because the sequel when AI has fully taken over Yeah, that's
that's the secret. Just this lakh bahts messaging
each other and she wear like the people were typing in the first
book. And then, what was the Bots
doing in the background? We need to contact welcome.
He's right. This niggas a duology.
Yeah. Duology is like where you have
a. It's not really a sequel because
it doesn't follow it. It's what was happening at the
same time from another character's point of view.
So like the duology of these, that's what was slack bot doing?
Yeah, exactly. Exactly.
Exactly cool. So we hope this was
entertaining. And we'll see you next time when
we have some other topic we're going to talk about, I have a
couple. I'm thinking of, I'm trying to
Wrangle a friend of mine to do Swift.
Yes, Taylor Swift. She's like an expert on Taylor
Swift lyrics. I'm not kidding.
She's gone. She's really going through it
right now. Family death in the family and
things like that, so maybe next month.
So she we're going to talk about Out queer themes and Taylor
Swift songs. So not a commentary on the
sexuality of the artists that just about her music and why
queer people love it. Basically her.
I have a friend who has a pole presentation on that topic.
Yeah. No you can find Gaylor stuff
elsewhere. We are not talking about that.
That's not we're doing. And then I think I'm going to do
Willow finally. We recorded Willow is one of the
Lost episode. You'll be able to talk about
that. It's a hot mess.
So, yeah. I figured you I can do that.
And then I want to do killing Eve also.
It's just, I'm the only one that seems so now that I have watch
Grey's Anatomy, All I'm gonna try and watch.
It's just gonna be me ranting. Yes, so much nicer said, well,
no, it, I think what I'm going to do is talk about like, season
one and season two by themselves and then just Loop 2, 3 and 4
and just the anger lest it might be Right.
I just be me talking which is and then I'll do like a reaction
video either with just me or someone else.
And we'll watch the first and last episode with no context of
miss her, I would love to see somebody do that because it's
just now the ending was spoiled. I have seen the first episode so
I don't remember the first episode though so that's what
it'll work. But yeah, just just to go for
like Phoebe wall or Bridges. Killing you, too.
Laura Neal's, kill Eve. Just yeah, good luck with that.
Yeah, it's a whole other episode.
That's those are hold, those aren't be multiple episodes.
But anyway, so that's potentially stuff.
We have coming up and we might, there's going to be a problem
reaction video. Kalin later on today is going to
be filming a prime reaction video.
You'll get to meet somebody new in that video and movie prom on
Netflix. Yeah, because it is prom season
tis the season and it's queer and Murphy production, so it's
actually pretty selling. I know.
I'm just it's colorful and it's a good production.
I did not know that it was his production.
Yeah. It's a primer.
It was based on an actual real play, and then we may be
filming, we may be filming word on soonish.
So if you're waiting on the warrior and on and you made it
this far, like it's coming. We're going to finish it.
We promise cool one way or another.
I'm gonna find you. That's the killer gonna finish
finish. Finish, finish.
Finish were none and have some fun.
All right. We've gone to Musical and so I
think it's time for us to sign off.
Thank you guys for everything, please.
Like, like us on all the things review us down the litter
episodes, please please, please. Which is really helpful.
Like stuff like the YouTube videos.
Subscribe via patreon. If you want those extra stuff,
Caitlin keeps promising everybody, dude put it on.
On there, we can do we do? We do we do?
We love our Patriots, all our friends.
And hey, if this book didn't turn you off of Discord
channels, come join our discussion.
We promised our slack Bots are Bots and not people, so cool.
Yeah, we have Maki Maki, Maki, and we have levels and people
love leveling up in our Discord. It's a whole game.
So come join the fun. We promise nobody swapping.
And until next time, See you guys later.
Aye aye. And with that we've been big a
energy if you liked this episode check out all our other episodes
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hydrate for lesbian Jesus.