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[bright holiday music]

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[singer vocalizing]

- Hello, Laura, Ms. Ross.

Good morning, hello.

Can I take your coat for you?

- Oh, no thank you.

- Of course.

And how 'bout a coffee?

How would you like your coffee?

I can get you whatever you'd like.

Anything to eat?

- Thank you, I can get my own coffee.

- Hey, Jasmine? - Mm hm?

- Hey, I think we're fine in here.

Do you mind checking in my studio

and seeing if they need any help in there?

- Yes, Sir. - Okay.

Hey, what did I say about calling me sir?

- Not to do it.

I should just call you Paul.

- Exactly. - Yes, Sir.

You're right.

So sorry.

- She's a good kid.

She's very excited to be here.

- Who is she?

Should I know who she is?

I'm usually very good with faces.

- Oh no, that's our new intern, Jasmine.

It's her first day.

- [sighs] I thought I was losing my touch.

- Nah, still got it.

All right, you ready in there?

- Let's start talkin'.

- Okay, we are on in five, four.

[upbeat theme song]

- Hello ladies,

and any of you modern thinking men out there.

Welcome to another episode

of the "Modernly Independent" with me,

your host, Laura Ross.

If this is your first time listening,

this is the podcast where we discuss life as a modern woman

and how you don't need anyone's help

to do what you wanna do or to get

where you wanna be in your life and career.

As always, I'm joined by my dearest friend

and producer, Paul.

- Hello, hello and good morning, Laura.

You're looking lovely as always.

- Ah, thank you.

How are you doing today?

- I'm doin' well, thank you.

I think I'm finally recovered from last week.

- That's right.

Last time we were here,

we were getting ready for Thanksgiving.

And what a Thanksgiving it was.

I had people over to my house

and in true "Modern Independent" fashion

I made the entire meal entirely by myself.

So, I'm gonna ask you, and I want you to be honest.

- Whew. - Paul?

- Okay. - What did you think?

- I ate myself into a coma

if that's what you're asking [laughs].

- That is what I'm asking [laughs].

Great.

I made all of the Thanksgiving goodies this year.

So Paul, are you ready for a game of,

- [Laura and Paul] Name It!

- For those of you who are new listeners to the show,

Name It is a quick fire rapid challenge

where we try to name single items within a category.

Today's category is Thanksgiving food items.

Laura, go!

- Turkey. - Tofurky.

- Mashed potatoes. - Green beans.

- Yams. - Apple pie.

- Salad. - Mac and cheese.

- Pecan pie. - Potatoes.

- Green bean casserole.

- A tuna fish sandwich [laughs].

- [laughs] I don't think that counts.

- [laughing] I don't know why I said tuna fish sandwich.

You know, in fairness,

I did have a sandwich that afternoon before I came over

to your house for that lovely dinner

because I was scared that I would get full too quickly,

so I wanted to expand my stomach.

- You pre-game.

- Mm hm, I'm quite the pre-gamer

when it comes to eating, yes.

- I don't, I just wait.

- But given that that's not an actual answer

for a Thanksgiving food item,

I am going to award you the point.

- Of course you are, thank you.

You're so generous.

For any of you listeners out there, you can do this.

It takes a lot of time and a lot of hard work,

but I felt so accomplished in the end.

Having done it myself,

I think it made the food taste that much better.

And you can take this mindset

to all other aspects of your life.

I am getting the signal from my producer

that it's time to listen to a few words from our sponsors.

And when we come back,

we're gonna be reading your comments and emails.

[upbeat podcast music]

- Good show today.

- Oh, you too.

- Thanks.

So, we've got something to talk about.

- Oh, that sounds serious.

- Good news.

Well possible good news.

- Okay, hit me.

- Okay, so you know how we've been doing

this podcast for the last few years,

and so far things have been really good?

- [Laura] Mm hm.

- We've had great reviews and a steady increase

in our listenership,

but a few months ago it's sort of plateaued.

- Okay.

We can drum up some ideas to get more listeners.

- Right, well, I might have a solution.

You know how we were talking about reaching out

to one of those bigger podcast networks?

- Yeah, wider audience, more advertising revenue.

But I thought we were too small

for them to take us seriously.

- Well, I reached out to a few of them.

I sent off some links and one of 'em

just got back to me saying we might be the perfect fit

to fill a void in their female demographic.

- Are you serious?

- It's nothing concrete yet by any means,

but you know, they're gonna be taking an extra look at us.

- That's great.

- Yeah.

So, I was thinking that since we're starting off December,

it would be really fun to come up with a cool idea

to engage the listeners for the rest of the month.

- Okay.

We have the award show buzz with all the female nominees

and the progress being made.

- Right, which is great but I was thinking this year,

it might be cool to do something

a little bit more Christmas-y.

[Laura inhales sharply]

- I like Christmas as much as the next person.

- Oh, do you now?

- Unless the next person is literally you.

- Thank you.

- I mean, I like me some Christmas.

- Yeah. - But don't we have

enough of it out there?

- Oh, as opposed to the lack

of Hollywood awards coverage out there?

- Oh, oh good point. - Yeah.

- Did you have any ideas?

- No, nothing certain yet, but I'm marinating on it.

Big things to come, I promise.

Hey, congrats.

This is a really good first step.

- Yeah.

Okay, so we will think about it and we will talk later.

Right now I've got to meet Mary for lunch.

- Oh, that's funny, I'm meeting Erik for lunch.

- Do you think it's the same place?

- Who knows?

But if it is, it certainly isn't a coincidence.

They're one of those perfect couples

who tell each other everything.

- Something we can all strive for, right?

- [Paul] Right.

- Oh, Jasmine? - Yes, Ma'am?

- Hi [laughs].

You can call me Laura.

I just want to officially meet you

and welcome you to the team.

[upbeat music]

- [Mary] Thanks for meeting me today.

- I love having a lunch date with you.

- Me too.

- But it sounded like there was something important.

Did you want to talk about it?

- Yes.

So, I'm not sure if you noticed,

you probably didn't notice

because you were a little busy at Thanksgiving,

running around, handling everything yourself and all.

- Okay, I get it.

Go on.

- So, I wasn't drinking at Thanksgiving,

and there's a very wonderful reason for that.

- Oh my goodness, you're pregnant.

[Mary laughs]

- A baby?

Oh, that's awesome!

You are gonna be like the best dad ever, man.

- Thanks, man.

It's still a little early,

but we wanted to make sure we told

you and Laura first thing.

- Wow!

So, that's what Laura and Mary's lunch is about.

- Well, that and we wanted to know

if you and Laura would be the godparents.

- Yes!

Are you kidding me?

Yes.

That would be...

Oh man, that would be such an honor.

Wow.

"I'm gonna be a godfather."

- Don't do that again, please.

- No promises. - I know.

- "I'm the godmother."

- Please, don't do that again.

- No promises.

In fact I can guarantee I will do it again.

[Mary chuckles]

Please don't change your mind.

- Never.

I couldn't think of anyone else I'd rather.

- I'm so excited for you.

And for me, actually.

- I'm just a little sad

that we aren't gonna be pregnant together.

- Are you kidding me?

Do you think the world could handle

both of us being pregnant at the same time?

- Yes.

With you I can only imagine.

You know, our kids could be pretty close in age

if you'd go ahead and get hitched already.

- I'm not even dating anyone.

- You could be.

- You know, I always thought it'd be fun

if you and I had kids around the same time.

You know, they could be on the same baseball team.

They could ride bikes to school together, stuff like that.

- I'm one very key ingredient away

from making that a reality.

- Why don't you just ask her out?

- Who?

- Laura.

- Oh, come on man, you know Laura.

- I do know Laura, and I know you,

and I know you two are perfect for each other.

You're in love with each other,

but neither of you is gonna make a move.

- With her being Miss "Modern Independent,"

I can hardly imagine that she'd want me to ask her out,

and she clearly doesn't see me that way.

So, while you're probably right,

I also really love our friendship

and I don't wanna mess that up,

so it's probably for the best.

- He's my producer and my friend.

That's it.

- That doesn't have to be it.

- If he was interested, he would ask me out.

- You think so?

Really?

He knows you better than anyone.

You think he would ask Miss "Modernly Independent?"

- Yes, that's me, but I'm also a girl

and I'd like to be treated like a lady and romanced.

Besides, I don't wanna risk losing our friendship.

- Some risks are worth taking.

- Let's be done talking about me.

Let's raise a...

Let's raise a fry to you and me having a baby.

- [chuckles] Well, actually it's me and Erik

that are having- - To you and me having a baby.

[Mary laughs]

- To havin' a baby.

[Laura laughs]

- We got nine months to prepare ourselves

for the adventure that awaits.

- What's all this "We" and "Us" talk [chuckles]?

- I'm this kid's godparent,

and that is a role I plan to take very seriously.

To us molding the future.

- You know, we could have toasted without drinks

like normal people, right?

- Oh, you think I'm gonna let my godchild

be raised like a normal person?

Not a chance.

- I knew this was gonna be a mistake.

[Paul chuckles]

- I can feel that.

You know, I have a ton of baby names

for you whenever you're ready.

- Oh, that's so kind of you,

but I think Erik and now can take care of this on our own.

- Okay, so I'll write him down for later then.

- Ladies. - Hey.

- Mary, a hot cocoa for you. - Oo.

Thank you, babe.

- Oh,

well, do you think I'd be bold enough

to get Miss "Modern Independent"

a drink and deprive her of getting one herself?

- Okay.

Well speaking of that, we should get back to work.

- Bye. [Laura squeals]

- Gimme a call. - Okay.

- Yeah, gimme a call. - Okay.

- Nice work.

- Y'all have a good show.

- [Mary and Erik] How'd it go?

- [sighs] No luck on my end.

She didn't say no, but she's waiting for him.

- He's waiting for her. [Mary sighs]

So, what do we do?

- Now, I think we need to take this into our own hands.

- Hm, what do you have in mind?

- Well, we've got our work cut out for us,

but this is gonna be really fun.

[bright holiday music]

[Jasmine chuckles]

- This is gonna be so much fun.

Oh!

[bright music]

- What are you doin' in here?

- Working.

- [Laura] Don't you have your own office to do that in?

- Yes, but I don't have a comfy couch

in my office and you're not there.

- Yeah, 'cause I'm working in my office.

- How was your lunch with Mary yesterday?

- Good.

How was your lunch with Erik yesterday?

- Good.

- [Laura and Erik] "They made me

an offer I couldn't refuse."

- What are you doing?

- Uh, Brando, "The Godfather."

What are you doing?

- I think it's pretty obvious what I'm doing [laughs].

- We're gonna be godparents!

- Yes!

- You gotta work on your Brando.

- Yeah, sure.

Okay [laughs].

- Well, in other news,

I think I may have stumbled upon

the perfect Christmas idea for the podcast.

- That's funny, so did I.

- Really? - Yeah.

- You first.

- Well, I got an email from a listener this morning

and it suggested that we do the,

- [Laura and Paul] Christmas Challenge.

- Yep, well, this listener must have doubled down

because I got the same exact email.

What do you think?

- I like it. - Yeah?

- Yeah, we do a new Christmas-y thing

every day leading up until Christmas Day.

- Yes, no, I think it's perfect.

I think it's a really fun way to engage the audience

and capture the network's attention.

- Yeah!

Yeah. - Yes.

- What?

Where?

- I present to you, the Christmas Challenge calendar board.

- So, you were pretty confident that we were doing this?

- Was I wrong?

- No, you were not.

- Well, I'm glad we're on the same page then.

- But the listener's email did not detail

what we were gonna be doing each day.

- Well, actually I did get a list

and in order for them to be done in,

but per the listener's request, I didn't look at it.

- Oh, you did this board blindfolded.

- No, I used the power of an intern.

- The what?

- Jasmine made it. - Oh, yeah, yeah, Jasmine.

- So, shall we?

- Yes!

Well, thanks to this listener,

I think this is gonna be

an interesting month leading up till Christmas,

don't you think, Paul?

- I do think so, yes.

I think it's gonna be a really fun way

to get into the Christmas spirit, yeah.

- Yes!

All right, well, let's get started.

Paul, will you please reveal day number one?

- Oh, the moment we've all been waiting for.

- Paul is standing up and reaching over

to our Christmas Challenge board and reviewing number one.

- Day number one, "Christmas music!

Kick off the season by getting the warm,

fuzzy feeling inside you by pushing play

on some classics, some favorites.

Any kind will do,

but play Christmas music and let it work its magic."

- Oh, Christmas music, huh.

Well, that's an easy one.

I think I'm gonna be getting through this list pretty fast.

Okay, so any of you indie poders out there,

please feel free to join us on this.

- Yes, and we will be posting every item up

on our website so you can join along

and participate in this Christmas Challenge with us.

Hey, make it a family affair.

- Or you can join me in showing

that you could enjoy Christmas independently

if that's what you want.

And I'm gonna do this one for everyone.

Here's some Christmas music to get us in the holiday spirit.

[upbeat holiday music]

You know, it's day two.

- Day, number two, indeed.

Yes. - Hm.

- I listened to Christmas music yesterday

for like 24 hours straight,

and I gotta say, it's kinda workin' its magic on me.

What about you?

- I listened during the show yesterday.

I'm ready for my next task.

- All right, well let's roll in five, four.

- Christmas time is upon us.

Welcome to day two of this crazy adventure that we're on.

To reveal day two,

I'm going to throw it to Mr. Christmas himself,

Producer Paul.

- Mr. Christmas.

That's a title I could get used to.

- [Laura] Paul is reaching up.

He's grabbing number two

from our Christmas Challenge board

and executes it perfectly.

- "Christmas cookies." - Oo.

- I don't even have to read the rest

of this because Christmas cookies are my jam.

- Cookies are good.

So, what do I need to do today?

- "You are gonna need some energy for the rest of this list,

so let's give it to ya.

Everybody loves Christmas cookies."

- True. - "So, share some

with friends, family, even strangers,

really anybody who could use a little extra holiday cheer.

And don't forget to enjoy some yourself while you're at it."

- Great.

So you heard it, poders.

It's,

- [Laura and Paul] "Cookie time!"

- [laughs] We're so lucky.

We get to eat cookies as part of our job.

[music continues] [singer vocalizing]

Merry Christmas. - Thank you, kindly.

- Of course.

[music continues]

- Merry Christmas.

Some fresh baked Christmas cookies.

And I included some fun things to help you decorate.

You and Mary can get into the Christmas spirit.

- [laughs] Oh, thanks, man.

This is very nice of you.

- Yeah.

- I'm sure the missus will be very happy to get these.

- Mm hm.

I even predated some so you can

just dig right in if you want.

- Even better.

Is this part of your Christmas podcasting?

- Yeah. - Do I smell cookies?

- It's like she has superpowers now that she's pregnant.

[laughs] You wanna hang out?

- No thanks, I got some more cookies to deliver.

- All right, well good luck.

- Thanks.

- [Mary] I'm sure I'm smelling cookies.

What are they?

- Okay, well I better get goin'

and you better get her these cookies.

- Yeah, thanks man.

- As we said last time,

we are changing up the format a little bit

to be a daily mini pod leading up until Christmas.

Paul, will you reveal what we are doing today?

- "Hang a wreath.

There will be more Christmas decorating to come,

but let's start with a wreath on the door.

Just a way to warm your heart

as you walk into the door of your home or office."

- Well, I don't have a wreath on me here in the studio,

but that doesn't mean I can't get

a little creative and make one.

All right.

Like I always say, don't let anything stand in the way

of you achieving your goals.

With a little creativity,

out of the box thinking and some extra red bows,

you can really accomplish anything.

So, I am gonna have Jasmine, our trusted intern,

she's brand new and lovely.

You're gonna hear from her soon.

She is going to just put this up

on the site so you can see it.

All that's left to do is hang up this brand new wreath

that I made right now on the podcast.

Good luck to all of you out there on your Christmas journey.

- Wow, very impressive.

It looks like we've got a Picasso in the studio, everyone.

- [Laura] You're so kind.

[Paul chuckles] [Laura chuckles]

- Hey, how's the mama to be feelin'?

- She's good, man.

Well, consumin' a lot of Christmas cookies,

but she says it's due to the pregnancy.

I however, think it's just an excuse.

- Yeah, well, let's not get in the habit

of cookie shaming pregnant women now, all right [chuckles]?

- [Erik] [chuckles] Yeah, I guess you're right.

How's the Christmas Challenge going?

- It's going pretty good.

You know, I was hoping that Laura

might be a little bit more excited about it, though.

- What are you talkin' about?

- Well, you know,

I was really hoping that we could do these things together,

but she seems more interested in just checking items

off a list than really getting in the Christmas spirit.

- Well, maybe she'll get into it soon.

I mean, you're only on day three, right?

Maybe she needs a little bit more,

you know, motivation or encouragement.

- Yeah, maybe.

- [Erik] Well, I gotta go.

- [Mary] Did you tell him?

- I will.

Paul, Mary says thanks for the Christmas cookies,

and if you have any more, feel free to dump 'em off here.

- Okay.

I'll drop some off tomorrow.

- [Erik] Thanks, man.

You're a lifesaver. - Bye.

[Paul sighs] [soft holiday music]

- How's it goin'?

- [sighs] Not great.

- What do you mean?

- They're taking very different approaches

and she's not interested in doing this with him at all.

- Well, let's give it some time and see if that changes.

She can't do the whole list by herself.

- I don't know.

She's a pretty determined person.

- There's still time.

Um, what, um,

what did he say about the cookies?

- He'll bring them tomorrow.

- Tomorrow?

- I know, he's a horrible friend

who's clearly not doing his role as godfather any justice.

- Mm mm.

- What? - I need all these.

- It's the season of giving, not taking.

- Good morning.

Care for a breakfast cookie?

- [Laura] What's a breakfast cookie?

- They're breakfast cookies.

- Wow, what a balanced meal.

- Mm hm.

- Do you happen to have any-

- [Paul] Oh, I got you right here.

- [laughs] Very clever.

- [Paul] Thank you very much.

- Wow.

You are rolling day two into day four.

- Well, you don't have to just stop

an activity because the day's over.

I mean, I haven't stopped listening

to Christmas music since the first day.

It's about getting into the spirit of things,

not just checking items off a list.

- Well, I think if I'm doing my list,

the listeners will be happy.

- Sure, but keep in mind

we've also gotta impress the network.

- You're right.

I should step it up for them [sniffs].

Mm, nice.

- "For day four's activity,

we are gonna be writing and sending Christmas cards.

It's a great way to keep in touch with old friends

and reacquaint ourselves

with those we may have lost touch with.

[upbeat holiday music]

[singer vocalizing]

Day seven is write a letter to Santa.

It's an activity that brings so much joy

to kids each year and can bring

the same to you as an adult."

[Laura exhales]

- "Dear Santa,

how are you?

Things are good here."

- "Dear Santa,

thank you for all the joy that you have brought

and continue to bring to children all over the world.

You are a true inspiration to us all.

Merry Christmas, Paul."

- "I know what I want for Christmas this year.

I want the network to pick up our podcast."

Yeah.

- "P.S., please help us get acquired by the podcast network.

Laura really deserves it."

All I'm saying is that we're a quarter

of the way through this,

and so far, I feel like maybe you're not caring

as much as I expected you to.

- Oh, well, I'm coming in every day

and I'm doing everything on the list,

so what is it exactly that you want me to do?

- Well, yeah, you are completing

the list and reporting to your listeners about it,

which is great.

I just feel like there could be more energy put behind it.

Does that make sense?

- Yeah.

Do you want me to be sprucing up the podcast?

Like, we could put some more work into it.

I mean, it's not like we're on TV or anybody's watching me.

- You're right, we're not on TV,

but pretty soon somebody will be watching you.

- What?

- I talked to the network this morning,

they really like what they're hearing,

but before they commit any further,

they wanna send somebody down here

and check out how our operation works.

- Okay.

When?

- Today.

- Okay.

Paul, wait, what did, what are you saying?

Paul?

Paul, are you...

- Hey Jasmine, I need three copies

of this put on my desk right away,

and then this needs to be proofread,

retyped and put on Laura's desk

before our two o'clock recording.

And then this needs to be collated and delivered to HR ASAP.

- I'll get right on these on.

But oh, where is the HR department?

I don't think I've been there.

- Okay, you know what?

Nevermind, I'll just take that one back then, do it myself.

- That was really painful to watch.

- What are you talking about?

- I'm talking about

the busy producer guy routine you're doing.

- Well, excuse me for trying

to give off a good first impression.

- Oh, is this person coming soon?

- Honestly, I don't know.

I just know that a Michael is supposed to be here today,

so I figured I'd get down here to greet him

and then got a little carried away giving off

the impression that maybe

we're a bigger deal than we really are.

- I know.

- You know what?

These need to go to our sponsors,

so let's just get right on that,

and then this, hi,

needs to be completely redone. - Hi.

Hi, Chad.

Pay no attention to the show going on over here.

Paul's just having a little bit

of a nervous breakdown.

- No, I'm not.

Thank you.

- I'm gonna go to work. - Okay.

- Real work.

Good luck with Michael.

- Okay. - Have fun.

- Thanks. - Okay.

Did I get you the licensing agreement?

- Mm.

- Oh, I forgot to hand these to Laura.

- Okay, I'll get these to Laura,

the podcast host in the third office down the hall.

- Yeah.

Okay.

And these need to be-

- Tabulated.

Got it. - Tacked to a bulletin board.

- Yeah, what about those?

Do those need to be shredded?

And do those need to go

to the printers for balloon printing?

- [Paul] No, stop.

Jasmine, just stop.

Okay, did you say balloon printing?

What are you doing?

Okay, we're waiting for Michael.

Does that look like a Michael to you?

- No.

Sorry, Paul, I just really felt that one.

You know, I thought that Michael

would be really impressed if he walked in on that one.

- Maybe.

- Hi.

Are you Paul?

- [Paul] Yes.

- I couldn't help but overhearing.

You're waiting for Michael?

- Yeah, that's correct.

- [Michale] Hi.

- Hi.

- I'm Michael.

- I'm sorry, what?

- I'm Michael.

Well, actually it's pronounced Michale.

- Oh, oh.

You're Michael?

- [Michale and Paul] Michale.

- She does look like a Michale.

- Okay, thank you so much, Jasmine.

Hi, I'm so sorry.

It's such a pleasure to have you here.

- Thank you, I'm glad to be here.

[bright holiday music]

- Hi.

- Hi.

Paul, I see that you found a fellow Christmas enthusiast.

- Oh [laughs], hi.

It is such a pleasure to meet you.

I have been a fan of yours for quite some time now.

- That is so nice of you to say.

Thank you.

- And I've been loving the recent Christmas episodes.

It's really put me into the Christmas spirit

as you may have noticed [laughs].

Oh, I even brought some of the cookies that I made.

- Wow!

- And don't worry, I did it myself.

No pre-made dough or store bought cookies here.

As you say, we can do anything [chuckles].

- This is great.

Thank you so much.

That's so kind of you to do this.

I really appreciate it.

And as much as I've enjoying this, Paul,

I feel like you might wanna get back downstairs

before we start so that you can be there

when the big network big wig gets here.

I don't mean to be rude.

I'm so sorry.

If you would like a tour, Jasmine,

one of our interns would love to take you on a tour

or if you're really close with Pauly here,

he might want you to join him in the big show down-

- Okay, Laura? - Yeah?

- This is Michale [throat clears].

- Hi, Michale.

Nice to meet you.

- [Michale] Hi.

- Michale is from the network where ironically

there's no Michael who works there,

and she's here to check out how our operation works.

- I'm so sorry.

I'm, I'm so sorry.

I'm sorry.

- Me too.

[soft music]

[Michale and Paul speaking indistinctly]

- So Michale, if you have any questions

for me before the show, I'm happy to answer some as well.

- Oh, thank you so much.

More than anything, I'm just happy to be here.

Thank you so much, I'm really just happy to be here.

- Oh.

I forgot to take you off of mute.

- Oh [laughs]. - There we go.

- Sorry. - Now she can hear you.

- Okay.

Thank you, Laura.

You can just pretend I'm not here.

I'm just going to be a silent observer [laughs].

- Great.

- That was my fault.

- Okay, well, I'm all set in here whenever you're all set.

- Yeah, we're all sudden here.

We are on in five, four.

So, I count down silently

and then she just knows to go on and talk.

[Paul whispering faintly]

Yeah.

- Hello, hello, hello.

I hope that you aren't getting too sick of me and Paul yet.

You're [laughs] probably not used

to this daily dosage from us,

but I really hope that you're enjoying yourself.

Right?

Isn't that right, Paul?

- Yes, that is correct.

- Okay, well, let's just jump right into day eight then.

- Oh. - Day eight.

- Yes, day eight.

Okay.

Oo, a Christmas tree.

Personal favorite of mine.

- Let's see what the card has to say about it.

- Oh, right.

- Yeah.

- [Paul] In my opinion, best bakery in town.

- Oh, well thank you again for the hot chocolate.

- Oh yeah, it's the best way

to keep warm on a cold day like today.

- Hey, if you two don't mind,

I would love to tag along with you

when you do your Christmas tree shopping.

You know, kinda get a feel for how you work together.

- We actually do the activities on our own.

Oh.

- I just assumed from listening

that you two were really close.

- Yeah.

I mean, we've been best friends for years.

- You know, Laura likes to live the life

that she talks about on the air,

and I guess being independent is a big part of that.

- I see.

Well, I guess I'll just have to keep listening then.

I'm sure I can get a feel for your work from the office.

- Oh, well, I don't have any commitment

to being independent if you'd like to join me.

I'd love to have you.

- That would be great. - Okay.

I gotta warn you, I do my Christmas tree shopping

just a little bit differently than most [speaking faintly].

[soft holiday music]

- I decided to step out of the normalcy

of the Christmas tree lot this year,

and step into nature's Christmas tree lot, nature.

I'm venturing out into the woods

to pick my own tree and cut it down.

I hope it inspires you to know that you can do that too.

And I have found a winner.

The next sound you hear will be metal to wood,

sawing down the tress and listening to the tree fall.

- Now, the key is to look at it from all angles.

Most trees have a weak side and sometimes

that's just what you need to be able

to perfectly fit it in the corner of a room.

And then sometimes you need-

- Sometimes you find the perfect tree from all angles,

which gives you more room for decorating

and the ability to put it in a window

so it can be enjoyed from all sides.

Boom.

- Wow.

Isn't that a beauty?

- [Michale] I know, right?

- Would you like the honors?

- I mean, I can give it a go [laughs],

but maybe be ready to jump in and help.

- This is the perfect tree.

You've got plenty of room down there

at the base to make a cut,

but you don't have to worry about making it even

'cause we'll just make it straight

before we put it in the stand.

- This is so great.

I wonder how Laura's doing.

I hope she's all right.

- All right.

Oh, we're gonna do this.

Oh, right there.

Oh, that's the stuff [chuckles].

[sawing scraping] [Laura grunts]

Oh, oh [laughs].

Take that, nature.

[Laura screams]

Ah, man.

[playful music]

[Laura panting]

I cut down the tree, and I feel so accomplished.

Now I just need to get it to the car and drive it home.

I need to get it to the car.

Oh.

- [Paul] Star first and decorate.

- You decorate after.

No, no, no. - Yeah.

- The star definitely goes last.

- [Paul] Oh, Laura.

Hey.

- Hi.

- I didn't realize you were out here too.

- Yeah.

- [Paul] You okay?

- Yeah, I'm great.

Yeah.

- Okay.

Would you like some help?

- You know I don't.

All good.

Yeah. - Okay.

[Laura grunting]

- Laura, that's a really great looking tree.

- Oh, thank you.

So is yours.

- Are you sure you're okay? [Laura grunting]

- Yeah, yeah.

- [Paul] Okay.

Well, we'll see you later.

- Bye, Laura.

- Have you guys see my car?

- Sorry. - Okay.

- Isn't it a good thing that she's here

and enjoying herself so much?

Doesn't that bode well for you joining the network?

- Yeah, but does she have to be so happy

with Paul all the time?

- He's the producer of your show.

It's kind of his job, right?

- Well, it's just ever since she got here,

they have been completely inseparable.

- She's shadowing him.

- No, it's the Christmas Challenge thing.

Ever since the Christmas tree day,

they've done everything together.

Day nine, Christmas shopping together,

day 10 wrapping presents together,

day 11 toy donation together, day 12 eggnog.

- Okay, slow down.

There's nothing wrong with drinking eggnog with someone.

- Oh, no.

They decided it would be best

if they made homemade eggnog from scratch together.

[Mary sighs] [Laura sighs]

They did the same thing with the warm hot meal

and hot chocolate for days 13 and 14.

- Well, have you thought about joining them?

Or asking Paul to do any of these daily things with you?

- I can't.

- Why not?

- The whole point of my podcast is that I'm showing

that I can do all of these things by myself.

What would it say to my listeners

if I was just doing everything with someone else?

- Maybe they would think it's Christmas,

and it's not about checking things off of a list

or doing things alone,

but about spending time with the ones that you love.

[door opens]

- Babe, I'm home.

It's day 15, Christmas movie time.

- Speaking of time with loved ones.

[Laura chuckles]

- Laura, are you joining us?

- No.

You two have a wonderful time together.

I don't wanna be a third wheel, or a fourth wheel.

Are we counting the little one in your belly?

- Sweetie, we would be happy to have you join.

Or you could call Paul.

- No, I think I will go home by myself.

I'm sure he and Michale are watching

a Christmas movie together right now.

- Think about what I said.

It's so much better to share these things with someone.

[soft music]

- Oo.

- It's that time of year, folks.

It's time to sing.

- It seems that the Christmas board is repeating itself.

If you recall,

we started this adventure with Christmas music.

- Yes, that's true, but this kind of Christmas music

is to be performed by you for others.

It's time for Christmas caroling.

- [Laura] Oh no, that one's way too hard.

Oh, no.

- Hey, what's goin' on?

- Hi.

Well, I'm looking up Christmas carols for me to sing tonight

that won't bring physical pain to the listener.

- Come on, I've heard you sing before.

You've got a lovely voice.

In fact, we could use that voice of yours tonight.

- What are you talking about?

- Well, you know, Christmas caroling

is usually done as a group activity.

It's not so much a solo thing.

- You know-

- So far it's Michale, me, Jasmine and her boyfriend,

really nice guy, and then you, if you wanna join.

- I think I'm gonna do this one solo.

Unfortunately, I don't know any Christmas carols,

but fortunately I have the internet.

- The internet.

Oh, the worldwide web.

I gotcha. - Bye, Paul.

- [Paul] Okay, have fun tonight.

- Thanks, you too.

[anticipatory music]

I think I can make this work.

Yes.

Uh huh.

[bright holiday music]

[Laura knocks]

- Can I help you?

[Laura gasps]

- [laughs] Hi.

[man chuckles]

Yes.

Good evening.

I'm here to carol for you.

I don't need to tell you that, I should just start singing.

- Oh, wait a minute.

My wife loves this stuff.

- Oh. - Honey.

- Okay. - Come out here.

- Cool. - We have carolers.

She'll be right here.

Honey, come on.

- [Woman] I'm coming.

- [Man] Well, hurry it up.

- Why are you yelling at me?

- We have carolers.

- Oh. - Oh, well, we have a caroler.

[woman laughs]

- [Woman] Okay.

- Oh, that's me now.

Okay [chuckles].

[Laura's throat clears]

♪ On the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to me ♪

♪ A partridge in a pear tree

♪ On the second day of Christmas, my true love gave to me ♪

♪ Two turtle doves, and a partridge in a pear tree ♪

♪ On the third day of Christmas, my true love gave to me ♪

♪ Three French hens

- That's okay [chuckles]. [woman chuckles]

♪ Two turtle doves and a partridge in a pear tree ♪

♪ On the fourth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me ♪

♪ Four calling birds, three French hens, two turtledoves ♪

♪ And a partridge in a pear tree ♪

♪ On the fifth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me ♪

♪ Five golden rings

♪ Four calling birds, three French hens, two turtledoves ♪

- It has been quite an adventure so far.

And my caroling last night is something that we may never,

ever speak of again [laughs].

And we are well past the halfway point

and a dear friend reminded me about the holidays

being about spending time with your friends and family,

people who mean the most to you.

I really hope that these daily activities

are bringing you closer to someone.

[gentle music]

It's been a crazy- - Told you.

- Yep, you were right.

She certainly has a way with words.

- She does.

- And with that, I'm gonna throw it to Mr. Christmas himself

and ask you to tell us what we have next

for all of our wonderful people out there.

- "With Christmas growing even closer,

it's time to decorate your home.

It'll fill your spirits every time you come home

and do the same to anyone who passes by

and sees the lights shining the way for Santa to find you."

- Well, that's right.

It is time to decorate.

And I hope you caught that.

He said, "Decorate your home,"

not your house because it doesn't matter

if you live in a house or an apartment or even a hotel room.

It's your home for the time being.

Time to make it festive.

- [Mary] I heard what you said today.

Whoever that friend is sure sounds

like they know what they're talking about.

[Laura exhales]

- Even you have good ideas sometimes.

It doesn't mean I'm gonna start listening to you.

- [Mary] So, you aren't even going to take your own advice,

which was actually my advice?

- Actually, I just loaded a box of decorations into my car

and I'm gonna bring it over

to Paul's house and surprise him, help him decorate.

- [Mary] Yay!

Stop wasting time on the phone with me and get over there.

- Okay [laughs].

- [Mary] I'm invested.

Bye. [Laura laughs]

[bright holiday music]

[keys thud]

- [Laura] Aw, man.

- Are you sure you can spare all of this?

- Oh my gosh, it's no problem at all.

You heard Laura the other day.

It may be a hotel that you're staying in for right now,

but it's your home, so you should decorate it that way.

- Well, I appreciate it.

[engine rumbling]

Definitely never decorated a hotel room before,

but I think it should be pretty fun.

- Yeah, you'll be great at it.

I'll load these in your car.

- Oh, thanks.

[soft music]

[keyboard keys clacking] [staff chattering]

- Good morning.

- Sounds like you had a good night last night.

- You know what, I did.

I spent the entire night decorating my house

and you know how I love some Christmas decorations.

- I do.

I'm glad you and Michale had a good night.

- Michale?

- Good morning.

- Hi.

- Hi.

- I just wanted to say, Paul,

thank you again for last night.

- Yeah, did it all work out for you?

- Yes, perfectly.

- Good.

- So, should we get today's recording down?

- Yeah.

- Great, let's do that.

Yesterday's task was a big one.

Well, that depends on the amount

of decorating you wanted to do,

so today we're just gonna get right to it.

Paul, what do we have today?

- [laughs] Yes.

Okay, before I read this one,

there's something that I have to do real quickly.

- Okay.

For all you listeners, because this isn't a visual format,

I'm gonna let you know that I have no idea what's going on

and you are not missing much.

Oh, I take that back [chuckles].

Our producer, Paul,

is, I can't quite describe what he's wearing.

- It's my Christmas sweater.

- [laughs] Yes, it's a Christmas sweater and it's so very-

- Festive.

- Paul [giggles].

I have to know, why was it under your desk

and are you peeking ahead

to see what we have on our Christmas calendar?

- No, I have not.

When we started this whole Christmas fun,

I just knew there would be a day

that would arise where a Christmas sweater was called upon.

- So, you hoped there would be a Christmas sweater day?

- Well, maybe a little bit of both.

Either way, I bought this beautiful Christmas garment

last holiday season but never had a chance to wear it,

so when we started the challenge, I came in,

hid it under my desk and was just waiting

for the perfect moment to pull it out, which is now.

- [chuckles] It's so you to do that.

And with that, I encourage all of you out there

to go out and get a Christmas sweater

that would bring this much joy to the people in your lives.

- Great, and we are out.

- Please tell me, like how long have you been waiting

with the Christmas sweater [laughs]?

- Hey, I could not wait for today.

- Wow. - This has literally

been marinating inside of me this entire time,

and I was just scrolling through social media.

I found it and I was like, [Laura laughs]

"I do not care what this costs."

- [laughs] Of course you would.

I love the lights on the trees and the like,

the Christmas string.

Like, everything about it.

Do a little dance, let me see it.

What's your favorite part?

- Of course, it's the Christmas trees that light up.

- [chuckles] Mm hm, it's perfect for you.

[Michale laughs]

- No.

Stop.

- Oh my gosh. - Get outta here.

- Look at this. - You gotta be kidding me.

Did you- - Oh my gosh.

It's amazing.

- I...

There's...

Literally I am in awe right now.

- I mean, what are the odds?

We look so cute.

I feel like we need-

- Oh, great minds think alike.

All right, okay.

Yeah.

[bright holiday music]

- I listened to your podcast today.

Sounded like you and Paul

were having some fun times in there.

I assume it went well at his place

with the house decorating?

- I'm afraid not.

- What are you talking about?

- Well, first of all, I did go,

but I never made it outta the car.

- Did you chicken out?

- No, I didn't make it outta the car

because when I got there,

Paul walked out of his house with Michale.

So, I left before they could see me.

- But what about today?

- Well, yeah, we had a moment, but then...

- Michale.

- Yep.

Hm.

- Don't give up.

- Honestly, I think I'm too late.

I missed my chance.

And honestly, it's better this way.

She is perfect for him.

They're like two happy little Christmas elves together.

Now I just need to focus on making the network deal happen.

[soft holiday music] [line trilling]

- [Paul] Hey.

- Hi.

Paul, I'm sorry for bothering you.

- [Paul] You're not bothering me at all.

What's up?

- Can we meet for breakfast in the morning?

- [Paul] Yeah, sure.

Office break room at eight?

- No, away from the office.

Can we meet before we go in?

- [Paul] Yeah, sure.

Is everything okay?

- Yeah, yeah.

Everything's fine.

We'll talk at the cafe.

- [Paul] Okay.

I'll see you in the morning.

- Okay, bye.

[bright holiday music]

- Hey.

Oh, let me- - I got you covered.

- Oh, thanks, but I don't do-

- Do coffee for the month of December?

I know, it's hot chocolate.

- It really is a wonderful month, isn't it?

- Yeah.

- So, what's goin' on?

- Michale's not gonna walk in here is she?

- No.

- Okay, I wanted to talk to you away from Michale,

so that means away from the office.

- [Paul] Okay.

- You've been spending a lot of time with her.

- Yeah, she's been really helpful

and a lot of fun to do the Christmas challenges with.

- I know.

Where do we stand on the network deal?

- We don't really talk

that much business when we're together.

I mean, we talk about you and the podcast,

but not exactly where we stand with the network per se.

- Okay, well, we're coming to the end of the month

and soon she's gonna go back

to wherever it is she came from

and I wanna make sure that we did everything possible

to make this happen.

So, what can I do to win her over?

- She thinks you're awesome, and she loves the podcast.

I don't know.

Maybe just spend more time with her,

give her the chance to get to know the real you,

see how awesome and amazing the real Laura Ross is,

and then like me, she'll fall completely in love with,

you know, um, she'll fall in love

with the idea of acquiring the podcast

and be a win-win for everyone.

[playful music]

- So, I'll join you two on some

of the upcoming Christmas challenges, I guess.

- Yeah.

Yeah, that would be great.

- Great.

- Only eight more days until Christmas,

so let's make sure to make 'em count.

- Yeah.

[glasses clinking]

- Man, I do love hot chocolate.

- You're such a child.

- At heart, yes.

A child at heart.

[bright holiday music]

- It is one week till Christmas,

and we are getting down to the nitty gritty

of this Christmas Challenge.

I really hope that you've been enjoying yourself,

either listening to our exploits or joining along with us.

Paul, will you tell us what you have next?

[Paul chuckles]

Apparently Paul has decided to keep this one a secret

and enjoy it all by himself.

- No, there's no way I would deprive you of this one, Laura.

- Oo, I don't like the sound of that.

- Today we are going to be visiting Santa Claus.

- Like, take a kid to Santa?

- No, you wish.

"As a child, one of the most cherished moments

was always going to visit Santa.

You sit on his lap, he listens to you

and his presence magically brings you warmth and love

and you usually get to walk away with a candy cane

and an unmatched sense of wonder and excitement.

It is now time as adults

for you to go and regain that feeling."

- So I'm all for this,

but I think this should be a group activity, right?

Let's all go see Santa.

[upbeat holiday music]

[singer vocalizing]

- Ho, ho, ho, ho, ho.

Now, Sammy, I know you've been a very good girl this year.

- How do you know?

- Well, because you're on the nice list.

[gasps] But I haven't checked it twice yet.

You have been good, haven't you?

- Yeah, I was really good.

- Ho, ho, ho, ho, ho.

Well, that's so good to hear.

Well, in that case,

I think you can count on getting

that robot for Christmas this year.

Does that sound good?

- Yeah. - Good.

Ho, ho, ho, ho.

Have a very Merry Christmas [chuckles].

[shutter flashing]

Ho, ho, ho, ho, ho.

- Thank you, Santa.

- You're welcome.

- I really think we got a lot.

Come here.

Was this so much fun? - Ho, ho, ho, ho.

- Say bye. - Bye Santa, love you.

- Okay, let's go.

Come on. - Ho, ho, ho, ho.

- And that is what we are trying to recapture for ourselves.

- I can't ever remember being that happy.

- Hello there.

Is your little one around?

Did they run to the potty?

- Oh no, we're here to see Santa.

- What do you mean?

- We're here to see Santa.

- Oh.

Okay.

Well in that case I guess [throat clears],

you are about to meet Santa Claus.

He's just the greatest, right?

- Yeah.

We're really excited - Yeah.

- to meet Santa Claus.

- He's super great.

- This is gonna be the best day of my life.

I love Santa so much.

I just can't even. - Okay, that's good.

That's enough.

- Now remember, Santa has lots of other kids to see,

so you can't stay up there too long,

but he loves you so much and is so excited to meet you.

We can even take your picture.

My good friend Chipper right over there

just got a new camera last Christmas,

and he would be happy to take your photo,

or we can use mommy and daddy's camera as well.

- Not a daddy, but you can use my camera.

- All right.

It looks like he just finished up with his last friend.

Who wants to go first?

- I'll go first.

- [Santa's Helper] Right this way, little girl.

- Okay.

- Well hello, little girl.

- Hi, Santa. - Ho, ho, ho, ho.

It's so nice to see you.

- Yes.

- Come over here and sit on Santa's knee.

- Oh. - I'm not gonna break,

you know? - [laughs] Okay.

I'll sit right here.

- [Santa] Ho, ho, ho, ho, ho, ho, ho.

Now, have you been a good girl this year?

- Yeah, for the most part.

- Hm.

That's nice to hear.

You know, Laura,

we all make mistakes sometimes

and may upset our mommies and daddies and our friends,

but as long as we work really hard

to make it right and be good,

you will for sure get on that nice list.

- Thanks, Santa.

- Ho, ho, ho, ho, ho, ho.

Now, what is it you would really like

for Christmas this year?

- I think I know what I want.

I know exactly what I want.

- [Santa] Ho, ho, ho, ho, ho, ho.

[Santa laughs] [upbeat holiday music]

[shutter flashing]

[singer vocalizing]

[music continues]

- Family photo.

Very fun.

- Looks like it's time for another field trip.

Okay, everybody scooch in. - I have a lot.

- Oh. - Scooch in.

We're taking a family photo and you guys are my family.

Thank you so much for doing this.

- I can take the picture.

- Well, thank you, but you're family too.

You've been here for almost a month.

Get on in here.

And I can figure out how to do

the timer on Paul's camera, is it?

Paul, do you think you could figure out the timer?

- I am not so good with that camera.

Austin, could you set it up on a timer for us?

- Thank you so much, Paul.

- Thank you, Austin. [Laura chuckles]

- [Laura] Okay, where should I?

- Oh, squeeze in right here.

- Okay.

Great.

[laughs] Everybody look at the camera.

Everyone say podcast.

- [All] Podcast!

- Let's take a look. [Laura laughs]

[bright holiday music]

- All righty.

Well, thanks for coming over

to help make gingerbread houses.

I think this is gonna be fun.

- Well, I would've had you over to my house,

but I figured it'd be more festive here

and I don't wanna make any assumptions,

but did you happen to have

all of these ingredients already in your house?

- That assumption would be completely correct, yes.

But what Christmas would be complete

without all the gingerbread house fixins, right?

- Well, thank you guys for letting me tag along.

I would've had you over to my hotel,

but well, it's a hotel [laughs].

- That's a good point.

So, have you all done this before?

- I have.

It's been a tradition in my family since I was a kid.

- Oh, cool.

Fun.

- I'm sure I did it as a kid or in school.

I just have no recollection and I have not done it

since I entered the boredom of adulthood.

- Hm, well, before we begin.

♪ Up on the house top reindeer pause ♪

- Oh.

- Hm.

- Gotta set the tone for the evening, right?

Okay, let's get started.

- Oh, how do we do that?

- Okay, so your plate is your workstation,

but also think of it as your foundation.

The walls and the roof are gonna be made outta gingerbread.

- Is that why they're called gingerbread houses?

- You know what?

I never thought of it that way,

but you might be onto something.

- I'm so wise.

[Paul chuckles]

- And then you're gonna use icing

to hold everything together,

and I suggest getting a good layer on the bottom

so it holds the walls up,

but if you want to cheat a little bit,

you can use a few of these toothpicks to prop the walls up.

But don't tell anyone I gave them to you, okay?

- Thanks for lookin' out for me.

- No problem. - Hm.

- Other than that, the sky's the limit.

You can make any kinda house you want to.

I suggest probably putting a door and some windows on it,

but hey, you do you.

- Who are the residents of these houses?

- Oh, that would be those fine friends of mine.

- Oh.

- Did you make gingerbread men and women?

- Oh yeah.

Do you think I would work with this one

for as long as I have and not

have a little sense of female empowerment?

- Good on you.

- Hm.

- Let's get started.

- Let's do it.

- All right, let's start.

Okay, so where is my foundation from?

♪ Rooftop, rooftop

♪ Up on the rooftop

♪ Up on the housetop reindeer pause ♪

♪ Out jumps good old Santa Claus ♪

♪ Down through the chimney with lots of toys ♪

♪ All for the little ones Christmas joy ♪

♪ Ho, ho, ho

♪ Who wouldn't know

♪ Ho, ho, ho

♪ Who wouldn't know

♪ Up on the housetop, click, click, click ♪

♪ Down through the chimney with good St. Nick ♪

♪ Up on the rooftop

♪ Up on the rooftop

♪ Rooftop, rooftop

♪ Up on the rooftop

[singer vocalizing]

- Well, ladies, we did it.

Or looks like two of us did it

and one of us sort of did it.

- Hey, my gingerbread house has a story.

It's a jailhouse, and people in jail deserve

a happy Christmas as well, and this person is,

he wanted to be home so badly he climbed all the way,

like dug a hole all year long and he's coming out

with his cellmate and they're gonna run home

just in time for Christmas dinner.

- Yeah, I think the takeaway here is there's no wrong way

to celebrate Christmas.

- Yeah.

- Merry Christmas.

[Laura laughs]

Are you sure you didn't break

through the roof of the jailhouse?

- Well, that's the guard [laughs].

- Oh. - I see it.

It's like a control tower.

[upbeat holiday music]

- [Paul] Are you ready for this one?

- [Laura] Yes.

- I don't know if you're ready.

- [Laura] Oh, come on, bring it on.

- A good old fashioned Christmas party.

- All right, folks.

We are going to have a party [chuckles].

I imagine people all over the office are slowly closing

their computers and getting ready to celebrate.

- Well, keep in mind not all

of our listeners work in an office.

- That's right.

You can translate this to mean whatever works for you.

As long as you're celebrating

this joyful season with the people in your life.

["Jingle Bells"]

[guests chattering]

♪ Dashing through the snow

♪ In a one horse open sleigh

♪ Over the fields we go

♪ Just laughing all the way

♪ Bells on bobtails ring

♪ Makin' spirits bright

♪ What fun it is to write and sing ♪

♪ The sleighin' song tonight

♪ Oh, jingle bells, jingle bells ♪

♪ Jingle all the way

♪ Oh, what fun it is to ride in a one horse open sleigh ♪

♪ Jingle bells, jingle bells

♪ Jingle all the way

♪ Oh, what fun it is to ride in a one horse open sleigh ♪

[crowd cheering] [crowd applauding]

- Oh, wow.

Isn't that something?

- Yes, thank you to Sarah

from our marketing department for sharing her gifts with us.

This is really special.

- If any of you are talent scouts here in the audience,

she is the real deal.

- [Laura and Paul] Mm hm.

- And we still have plenty of room

if anybody wants to sign up to show off

their hidden talent tonight.

[crowd cheers]

- Oh, and if you haven't given out your Secret Santa yet,

tonight would be the perfect opportunity to do so.

Oh, who do we have next?

- Oh, next up we have Jude who juggles.

- Wow. [crowd applauding]

One of our technical directors at the studio.

Apparently he has other talents.

- Yes. - Come on up, Jude.

[crowd applauding] [crowd cheering]

[bright holiday music]

[Jude grunting]

Wow, how about that?

[crowd cheering] [crowd appliqueing]

- Wow.

Did you know Jude could juggle?

- When he started showing up at the office a few months ago

with bruises all over his arms,

I thought there might be something up with that.

- I feel like the practice was probably worth it.

Do you know how to juggle? [crowd laughs]

- I do, yes.

I juggle things at the office everyday.

- Very funny. [crowd laughs]

- What about you?

- I do not, no.

- Well, there's no time to learn

like the present is there?

Hey, Jude, can we get a couple

of those juggling balls up here?

[crowd laughs]

Great.

- Are you serious? - Why don't you give it a go?

Yeah. - Cool.

Here goes nothin'.

- Wow. [Laura exclaims]

- Oo.

- [Audience Member] Woo! [soft music]

- Thank you, thank you.

- Great. - Very wonderful attempt.

[Laura chuckles] [crowd laughs]

- Next up we have John, the nicest custodian in the state.

He's gonna tell us all the secrets

that he learned by going through our stuff.

- Excuse me? [crowd laughs]

- Yeah, I'm just kidding.

He's gonna do magic!

- Everyone, give it up for John.

[crowd cheering] [crowd applauding]

[upbeat holiday music]

[crowd cheering] [crowd applauding]

- I can't believe you guys put this Christmas party together

on such short notice,

and it was so thoughtful for you

to let all the employees out early today.

- Well, thanks, but it's all credit to Paul.

- Oh, come on.

- He's the super producer here

and him putting together this party is his talent.

- I have been very impressed with Paul in my time here.

- Thank you.

- Laura, this is for you.

- [Laura] Oh.

- I drew your name for Secret Santa.

- Thank you.

This is-

- Open it!

- Oh, 'kay.

Oh.

- I didn't know what to get you.

I mean, you're Miss "Modernly Independent,"

and you're so good at everything,

but then I saw you try to juggle, and it was great, and-

- It's okay, I was horrible.

- Well, I thought you might like to learn,

so I asked Jude and he said you could have these,

so Merry Christmas.

- Thank you.

Sincerely, thank you.

This is so thoughtful and yes, I will be mastering this.

- Okay, well, I have to go get set up for my talent.

I'm up next.

- Yes.

Have fun. - Good luck.

- Wow, she's just somethin'.

[all laughing]

[upbeat holiday music]

Our next performer is a new member

to our team as of recently.

- Yes, she has been a wonderful addition to the team

and you've no doubt seen her running around the office.

- Yes, please welcome our talented

and valuable intern, Jasmine.

[crowd cheering] [crowd applauding]

- Hey, everyone.

I'm here today to talk to you about scuba diving, all right?

And what we need to know first of all

is that safety is number one, okay?

So, we wanna get our buoyancy clearing all set.

Make sure you have a safe zone of entry.

All right?

Let's check our pressure next, our air pressure, all right?

We wanna make sure

we have enough time down there, all right?

'Cause if you don't have enough time,

you're gonna run out of time,

you know what I'm saying? [crowd laughing]

[tongue clicks] We don't want that, all right?

So we've got air checked.

We got our buoyancy checked.

All right.

Make sure we have our water nice and nice and toasty.

Just kidding, you can't control that.

You kinda just gotta do whatever you're gonna do, you know?

All right. [crowd laughing]

So, air check.

[air puffing]

Cool, all good.

All right.

And then we're gonna enter.

We'll do entry, that's next.

All right, we're in the water.

All right, [speaking indistinctly].

- Interesting.

[crowd laughing]

- Whoa!

No one's gonna believe that we saw that.

We will, we'll know.

- [Jasmine] All right, let's put out a call.

Woo! [Laura chuckles]

We got limited air here, guys.

We gotta be careful.

All right, so solid form.

We got the froggy as the first one.

Goin' on.

All right. - Ew.

- All these limbs, we're gonna make it happen, okay?

All right, there we go.

Look at us go.

Look at that, that's a whale!

Wow!

You won't be able to see that

without being in solid form, all right?

- How much longer do you think we should let this go on?

- [Jasmine] From the ground, up to the top.

- Yeah, I think we should put a stop to this.

- Yeah, I think so.

- Actually, Laura,

do you think you could handle this on your own?

I had Paul for Secret Santa

and I was kinda hoping I could

give him his gift if that's okay.

- Yeah, sure.

That's...

- Cool. - Don't!

It's dangerous.

The real question is when you're under that big blue,

you know, and you're lookin' up,

think about what your future self on land would say.

Would they want you to have this journey?

Think so, but I'll tell you what,

you can't go under unless you got safety.

Underwater safety up top foot,

you know what I'm sayin'?

All right, thank you so much, everybody.

- Wow, thank you so much

to our resident scuba diver, Jasmine!

[crowd cheering] [crowd applauding]

- Thank you.

I was afraid I would look silly up here,

but scuba really is one of my biggest passions,

so thank you [laughs].

- You looked great.

Really great, and educational.

That is a tough act to follow. [crowd laughs]

So, I'll take my turn.

Ladies and gentlemen,

it is time for a Christmas classic

that I will try to do my best, but I would really love it

if you would join in with me.

I'm sure you'll know it.

It is a Welsh melody from the 16th century

by beloved Scottish maestro, Thomas Oliphant.

♪ Deck the halls with boughs of holly ♪

♪ Fa la la la la, la la la la

♪ 'Tis the season to be jolly

♪ Fa la la la la, la la la la

♪ Don we now our gay apparel

♪ Fa la la la la, la la la la

♪ Troll the ancient Yuletide carol ♪

♪ Fa la la la la, la la la la

[crowd cheering] [crowd applauding]

You guys are wonderful at this.

Now, the original Welsh lyrics.

Just kidding.

[crowd cheering]

We are gonna have Sarah from marketing

come back up and entertain all of us.

Sarah from marketing!

[crowd cheering] [crowd applauding]

- You sure know a lot about Christmas Carol history, huh?

- I did do a little bit of research, yes.

- Well, I thought it was great.

- Thank you.

Do you know where Paul is?

- Michale said she had a present for him,

but she wanted to give it to him in private.

- Yeah.

- They're really cute together, aren't they?

- Who?

- Paul and Michale.

They're like two peas in a pod with how much

they both love Christmas and both being producers.

It's really cute.

- Yeah.

[melancholy guitar music]

[glasses clinking]

And in conclusion,

I think we have the most talented office around.

- I totally agree.

- I hope that you enjoyed whatever festivities

you were able to put together

or are planning for the future.

- And most importantly,

we hope you had time to enjoy this with a loved one.

- Let's move on to the next day.

- "Some Christmas traditions we all know,

but we don't know why they continue

to stick around year after year.

Mistletoe is one of those.

If you're standing under some mistletoe,

it's bad luck not to give someone a kiss.

So find a loved one, find some mistletoe and find luck."

- Well, you heard it, folks.

Paul's the producer and you have to do what he says.

Only two more days.

Great job, everyone.

Keep it up.

- Okay, and we're out.

Good work.

And I really think this has been

a wonderful idea for the podcast.

- Yeah, it's been great.

- Hey, Laura?

There's something that I've been wanting

to talk to you about. [phone vibrating]

I was just wondering if you had some time maybe later we-

- Hold on, I've gotta get this.

Hey.

Hold on just a minute.

Hey, this is gonna take a minute.

Did you have a question for me or anything?

- Oh, no, no, I'm fine.

- Thanks.

I didn't see Michale,

So when you go see her tonight,

make sure to bring some mistletoe.

See you tomorrow.

[soft music]

I really thought we'd been connecting these last few days.

- [Mary] Maybe it's not what it looked like.

- No, I think it was clear.

And honestly, it's my fault.

I missed my chance.

And I'm really happy for him.

They're perfect for each other.

- I'm sorry.

- Me too.

Thanks, I'm gonna be fine.

I'll talk to you tomorrow.

- [Mary and Laura] Bye.

- Well, our Christmas Challenge worked exactly as we wanted.

- Well, that's great.

- Unfortunately, it worked for Paul and Michale, not Laura.

- No.

Oh.

Well, there's still time.

- According to Laura, it's gonna take a Christmas miracle.

[soft holiday music]

- [Paul] Is there enough ice cream in there for two?

- Hi.

- [Paul] Hi.

- How did, why are you up here?

- I wanted to tell you something.

- How did you know I'd be up here?

- Well, I think I know you better than just about anyone.

- Well, yeah.

- Look, I've got something to say and I just,

I can't wait any longer to say it, okay?

- Where's Michale?

- Michale went home,

but I'm not here to talk about Michale.

- Wait, Michale went home?

What happened with you two?

- I thought- - I love you.

Okay?

Look, after the Christmas party,

Michale offered me a job working

as an executive producer at the network.

- That's so exciting.

- But I told her no.

- [Laura] Why?

- Because I'd have to move away.

I thought about it, and the more I thought about it,

the more it didn't feel right

and I realized that it didn't feel right because of you.

- Me?

- Yeah.

I have felt this way about you for the longest time

and I just didn't know how to say it.

And I didn't want to ruin what we have,

but I think you're the most amazing person in the world

and working with you has been

the best experience of my entire life.

Everyday, I look forward to coming into the office

because I love my job.

That's because I love you.

I mean, I have my own office and I don't even use it

because I wanna be close to you.

- I...

[soft music]

We don't want bad luck, do we?

- No.

No, we don't.

[bright holiday music] [singer vocalizing]

[upbeat music]

- It's been a crazy adventure here podcasting

this Christmas Challenge.

I am so thankful to the mystery listener

who sent this to us.

You have changed our lives more than you will ever know.

For our 24th day activity,

we have started a new Christmas Eve tradition

of spending the holiday together.

Something that I look forward

to doing for many years to come.

And now we have come to the last day

of the Christmas Challenge,

which means it is Christmas Day.

Merry Christmas to you all,

and thank you for being a part of this with us.

Remember, family can mean so many things.

So, for your Christmas dinner with family,

make sure that you're spending it with the ones you love.

- So, here we go. [all laughing]

- I still feel strongly

that you can do anything you put your mind to.

It's okay to be independent,

but I've learned that it's okay to have help sometimes.

In fact, some things are better shared.

And starting in the new year,

you are all going to be sharing this podcast

with a lot more people

because we will be joining the Podworks network,

which is very exciting because we will be reaching

a much bigger audience.

So this Christmas, be sure to raise a glass

to the ones you love.

I guess all there is left to say is...

- [All] Merry Christmas!

[soft music]

["We Wish You a Merry Christmas"]