Rachelle Hampton
Appearances
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
I want to tell you about a new show from Radiotopia Presents that we are so excited about. It's called Red for Revolution, and it is a six-part audio drama about Black women, queer love, and liberation. In the show, we meet Jasmine, an 18-year-old who's grappling with her emerging queer identity and first crush, all while trying to mend her relationship with her homophobic mother.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
That TMZ shot of her walking up the elevator, her face just absolutely so angry. Beyonce in the background trying to look serious, but you can see her smiling a little bit because she was like, someone had to do it and I couldn't do it. And then Jay-Z just in the background, head down.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
The way there was a bodyguard in the elevator and Solange still got her licks in.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
No, exactly. She's like, I gotta give this dress back. This was a rental. I don't condone violence publicly. However... That was iconic. I love Solange. The love of a little sister for her big sister. I don't know because I don't have sisters, but I've seen it play out.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
So the last question is, I'm running for political office against my boss's best friend. How do I tell my boss?
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
We have officially started production on season eight. Eight of Normal Gossip, which will come out this spring. We have picked a lot of the stories, but we still have a few spots left. So if you have gossip for us, now is the time. Send all your mess to normalgossipatdefector.com. As a reminder of some of the kinds of gossip that I am absolutely desperate for...
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
My instinctive reaction, which is maybe not helpful in this situation, is you don't owe that bitch anything. They'll find out when they go vote or whenever they see the campaigning slogans. They'll figure it out. Why do you have to tell your boss about your political aspirations? Your boss's best friend. Who is that to you? Right. And it's not on company time. Right.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
So our collective choice is don't tell that person.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Do you want to hear my platform?
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Remind them when voting day is. Remind them where their local polling station is. Tell them local elections are very important, the most important. Very. The most important, especially in these times. Become a poll worker. Vote in your local elections. But other than that... Don't tell them. You don't have to tell them shit.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
real estate gossip, gossip that is secretly a romance novel, fandom gossip, service industry or retail gossip, mega church gossip, Pokemon Go gossip, polycule gossip, road trip gossip, tabletop gaming gossip, and family lore gossip. If all of that sounds amazing and makes you think, wow, I miss normal gossip so much. Don't forget, we have a newsletter.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Wow. I really wasn't sure how we would reach a quorum on that last question, but I'm proud of us. We immediately were both just like, you don't owe that bitch shit. But now onto the part that y'all have all been waiting for, which is the gossip. We've got some little tidbits that have been gathered for us and we're both so excited. You might recognize the voices reading these morsels.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Thank you so much to J. Tolviera and Alex Ujong-Loughlin for lending your incredible voice acting chops to this episode. Let's hear the first one.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Okay, on one level, I'm proud of your children for collectively organizing.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Exactly. As a bitch with long arms relative to her body, that fucking rule that's like your dress has to reach the bottom of your fingertips, for some people, that's mid-thigh. For me, that is knee length because I have a really big wingspan.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
It makes benching really hard. But yeah. So actually, I think the eighth graders are right. That's how I feel about this. Power to the people.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Why would you do that? Who would do that? That's so rude.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
No, same. Actually, so true. I need to know how different the fake is from the real. Because if it's a pretty close replica, if it's like, what, that Walmart Birkin that everyone's talking about... Then I'm kind of just like, okay, they tried. But if it's just an immediate fake, like the Birkins in Canal Street, then perhaps I have questions. And have we found out who it was?
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Like, these are things we need to know. Your mother needs to go investigation mode. She needs to be requesting the tapes. She needs to be running back to that security footage. She needs to be doing fingerprint dusting because I need to know who took her stuffed toy off her desk and then replaced it with a fake.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
There's no way whoever submitted this could have known how hard this would hit for me specifically.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
So all of you know me as Rachel spelled with an extra L-E at the end. It's giving Rochelle. It's giving French. It's special. It's confusing for a lot of people. The people who pronounce my name correctly upon first meeting me, I'm a little bit just like, where'd you come from? My parents spelled my name the normal way, as in R-A-C-H-E-L.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
For most of my life, I thought that was how my name was spelled. And by most of my life, I mean up until I was like 9 or 10. That's not most of my life at this point, Jesus Christ. Anyway, I found out when my family moved from Chicago to Texas...
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
And I started going to Texas public school that my name legally is spelled Rochelle, despite the fact that I grew up with my entire family and my old school spelling it the old way. So it turns out my name is spelled incorrectly on my birth certificate because the nurse just kind of decided to go rogue. Yeah.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
My parents were like, we want our child's name to be Rachel Danae, spelled R-A-C-H-E-L, Danae, D-A-N-A-E. And when we got the birth certificate a few months later, I don't know why it was so late. I wasn't conscious I was a baby. It's spelled Rochelle Danae with an apostrophe in the Danae. D apostrophe N-A-E. I was born in Chicago.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
It goes out every two weeks and has blogs and recommendations from me and Kelsey, Alex, Sierra, and Jay, and a bunch of our defector buddies. If you'd like to sign up, the link is in the show notes. Okay, last bit of business, I promise. Kelsey's book is coming out soon. Is that even business? That's also a treat. If you haven't pre-ordered it yet, that link is also in the show notes.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
In the south side of Chicago, some nurse was like, this girl needs a little space.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
So I go to Texas and the public school is like, we call you your legal name. And so I was like, okay, now I have to tell everyone my name is Rochelle Rachel. And my parents are like, don't worry, we'll fix it. We have to go back to the county we're born in to fix it. But then I take like my SATs and it's all under my government name.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
And then I get my passport and it's all under my government name. And then I was like, you know what? At this point, it's a funny story to tell in interviews whenever I walk into a room and they're like, hello, Rochelle. And it's like, actually, it's Rachel. It's spelled wrong on my birth certificate. And everyone's like, what? And then it just kind of breaks the tension.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
And honestly, I've gotten every job that I've ever told that story in. So, Power to the nurse, I guess. Thank you. All the same. Benjamin. Benjamin. I get it. There are a lot of legal implications, which is why I have not changed my name. It's so much paperwork. And then it doesn't go through for a long time. Like a lot of people who change their names understand this.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
If you get married, if you transition, like for whatever reason, you're changing your legal name. It's a lot of fucking work and it gets harder the older you get. So I'm sorry, but you married Benjamin. That's Benjamin right there.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
that's benjamin and you know what it's the same person that's so true what is a rose by any other name that rose's name is benjamin and he still smells sweet i hope i would literally call him benjamin the entire time yeah this is a perfect opportunity for an extended bit like benjamin come over here
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Does your landlord live in your house? Or what is this rental situation?
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
This is your home and your landlord doesn't live there. You're renting it from them, but they just decided to have a cuddle party in your home. That violates so much. Because that violates your lease 100%. There is 100% a clause in your lease somewhere about warrant of habitability or some shit that will say this is not legal. Are you invited to the cuddle party? Are they allowed in your bedroom?
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Or is it just a cuddle puddle on the floor? The way my brain is doing mental gymnastics. 18 to 20 people feels like a lot of people. I, like, I'm gonna be honest. I have, like, a pretty decently sized couch. And even cuddling with one other person on the couch gets real crowded really fast. Yeah. I usually disavow neighborhood Facebook pages because they scare me.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
There are still tickets to see me and Kelsey gabbing about her book on February 11th in New York at Town Hall. I'm just saying. I'm just saying. Okay, that's it. I promise. On to your first of many little treats. I am thrilled to welcome Normal Gossip's new lead producer, Sierra Spagli-Rix, to the front of the microphone.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
But I'm going to need you to stay on this Facebook page. And I need you to get an invite to the cuddle party. I'm sorry. You need to take one for the team.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Please update us because I have many, many questions. I need to know.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
None of these words are in the Bible, I would like to say. That's A. B. Why did Pokemon Go put one of their whatever sites on someone's private property?
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Like on one hand, I kind of agree with your situation, Chip. If some random, if like just a horde of random people were coming to my home every so often and hanging out in the lawn, I would be a little stressed out by that. On the other hand, why are you petting them?
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Yeah. No, exactly. I understand why he's annoyed. Is there no way to like contact the app and be like, yo, you put one of your little landing sites in my backyard. Yeah. Did this affect your situationship standing, finding out that this happened? Ooh. Because this gossip is told very neutrally in a way that I appreciate, but I also want to know if you were like, ooh, that's an ick, which I get.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
As some of you may know, Sierra and I worked together on Slate's Internet Culture Podcast, in case you missed it, where we found out we're both March Pisces. It shouldn't then be surprising that we fell in love immediately. Sierra, hello. Welcome to the front of the mic. How are you feeling? Hi.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
I could spend at least half an hour with that last one, honestly. Yes. But unfortunately, it's now time to address the passing of time. It's 2025. It is. Sierra, do you believe in New Year's resolutions?
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Yeah. I might steal that. It's pretty cool. Resolutions feel like a lot of pressure. And I have never really attached a lot of meaning to New Year's. No. It always feels anticlimactic to me. Every single time I'm just like, okay. Okay. Another year has passed. It's now 2025. I'm not going to internalize that until March. We all know that.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
I'm going to be writing 2024 for at least the next three months. So New Year's resolutions don't really hit for me. But I'm wondering if these next few resolutions that listeners send Tess will inspire us. Okay. Okay. The first one is, I resolve to leave my current job and take my crew with me. As someone who did that, I will go ahead and say, fuck yeah. It's great. 10 out of 10 recommend.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
That's so real. That's so real. But if there's a space for vulnerability, it's right here with me.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
I read that and I was like, is this about us? Is this play about us? Why not? Like, literally, it worked for us. That's a great resolution. 10 out of 10 recommend. The next one is, I want to watch all 10 Fast and Furious movies. That's an achievable goal. I just watched Fast 10 for the first time with my family over the holidays. I hadn't seen Fast... No, I have seen Fast 9.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
I saw Fast 9 in theaters. That's the one where they went to space. And then I saw the one where there's the safe being dragged behind them. And then I've seen the original three. Everything else that happens in that universe... This is a good year to watch those movies because they exist in a universe that is not real.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
So for today's episode, we've got a real buffet of treats. First, we're going to answer some burning questions that y'all have for me and Ciara. Then later in the episode, we'll be reacting to some delectable morsels of gossip. And finally... New Year's resolutions. Y'all have them and we'll be giving our thoughts. I'm excited. Are you excited?
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
They're not dead. And then someone came back at the end that everyone thought was dead. And I was like, see, if that bitch can come back, why can't this other bitch that just died?
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
I laughed out loud when that happened in the theater. And I was one of the only people who laughed. And I was like, please don't tell me y'all are taking this shit seriously. I cannot look at Tyrese Gibson staring at the screen and saying, we're going to space? Yes.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
All of this to say, this is a wonderful resolution because your mind will be occupied watching these movies because nothing makes sense
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
And it's very fun to kind of just pick apart in a way that's like, what are we even doing here? The perfect escape. The perfect escape for this time. Next resolution is, I want to try a new class every month. Pottery, fitness, etc. Please suggest... I love this. Absolutely love it. I think this is a really good idea.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
One of the classes that I would recommend, I've been looking for classes to take with my best friend. We get each other Christmas presents, and the Christmas present that I got her, her sister already got her, so I have to think of a second one. Okay. Piss me off. But I found some dumpling making classes in New York and some sushi making classes as well.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
So I think I'm going to buy her one of those and we're going to do it together. So that is an option. I think there's a kind of cuisine that seems a little complicated. Having someone take you through is really fun. I've looked into woodworking classes. Those are very expensive. But you do come out with like a side table. So I'm going to be honest, the money feels worth it. Yes. Oh, aerial yoga.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
I walked past someone doing it in a building and I was like, I don't be one of those people who's just like looking in on people doing fitness because nothing freaks me out more. But I was like, I want to do that. I want to be swinging from the chandelier like fucking Sia. Yeah.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Yay. I love that. I can't wait. Wow.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Actually, one of my friends took, this is the same friend, took a sewing class at the Fashion Institute in New York. But I think there are probably a lot of places that do sewing classes. And that is something that when I have more free time, I'll be very interested in getting into because I love the idea of being able to like make or mend my own clothes.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Yes. Just picture me steepling my fingers like a villain. That's what I'm doing right now. But before we get into the morsels of gossip, some questions. So the very first one, and I'm excited to hear this one, is one of our listeners says they need to know Ciara's relationship with gossip immediately.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Wow. And then the last one, I like this one. The last resolution is to give fewer fucks in general.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
As she seeks solace and guidance from her grandmother, we're transported back to 1971 to follow the passionate love affair between a jazz singer and an activist. Two remarkable women from vastly different backgrounds with opposing political views and living oceans apart risk everything to embark on a romance that defies all conventions. This show has everything.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Amen. Yeah, truly. I mean, I would say my addendum to this would be to place my fucks in the correct spaces. There are a lot of things that I think we should all just care less about. What celebrities are doing. It's not activism to care about what celebrities are doing. They're never going to represent us. I think giving fewer fucks about the just TikTok coverage of the Trump administration.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
If there's anything I learned from the first Trump administration is that a lot of people will spend a lot of time spinning theories that don't happen. And the things that actually happen will be entirely surprising and devastating in ways that we couldn't have guessed.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
And I don't really want to listen to pundits or people on Twitter who are just spiraling and scared and trying to control their fear by trying to guess what's coming next. I get it. I also try to control my fear by predicting the future. But unfortunately, I don't have that ability and neither does Ezra Klein. So I don't want to pay attention to those people.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
I want to respond to the moment that we're in.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Yeah. Ciara, thank you for coming on the show. Oh my gosh, thanks for having me. I mean, technically you're always here.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
If you don't, I'll come to all of your houses. And fight you. No! Personally. No, no. I'll be getting in street fights for Ciara's honor. This is my bestie. This is the love of my life. I'm so glad that this happened. I know you said it's a rare occurrence, but we might be making it less rare as time goes on. So this hopefully is not the last time y'all get to hear from Ciara on mic.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
This podcast was produced by Sierra Spragley-Rix and J. Tolviera. The co-creators and dowager queens of Normal Gossip are Alex Dujon-Laughlin and Kelsey McKinney. Justin Ellis is Defectors Projects Editor. Jasper Wang and Sean Kuhn are Defectors Business Guys. Alex Dujon-Loughlin is Defector's supervising producer. Tom Le is our editor-in-chief.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Dan McQuaid runs our merch store, which you can find at normalgossip.store. Tara Jacoby designed our show art, thanks to the rest of the Defector staff. Defector Media is a collectively owned, subscriber-based media company. Normal Gossip is a proud member of Radiotopia. I am your host, Rachel Hampton. And remember, you did not hear this from me.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
That's a football team right there. I don't know how many players on a football team, but. but that's a football team right there.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
No, you really were. You were orchestrating. You were hearing the sides. You were putting them together. You were making a coherent storyline. There's nothing better as a child than being in grown folks' business. It feels life-giving.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Of course. How could you not with an introduction like that? But I do think this segues into the next question, which is, how long have Rachel and Ciara been friends? Based on the way we're talking, you would think it's been 20 years at least.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Two. Yeah, we met at the beginning of 2023. So it's been two years as of this January.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
We also come from, I think, pretty similar places in terms of like region, ethnicity, ethnicity. So I think, especially in journalism, finding someone who understands that background and kind of speaks the same language as you. I remember the first time that I said something and got Sierra to respond with, bitch! Bitch!
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
And we were working, obviously, and we didn't know each other that well at that point. It had maybe been like a month or two. And I was over here just grinning because I was like, got her. And Sierra was like, I'm so sorry. You're my host. And I was like, girl, we're in for a ride. We're locked in now.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Yeah, and you know, we've been through some shit together. That's gossip that is not for this podcast, but we have been through some shit together and nothing bonds you like going through some shit together and making it out the other end.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Romance, family drama, history, fantastic original music, and a killer cast, including Loretta Devine, S. Impatha Merkerson, Danny Glover, and Jennifer Beals. Radiotopia presents Red for Revolution, wherever you get your podcasts. Hello, my beautiful flock of gossip birds. Welcome to a bonus episode of Normal Gossip. I'm your host, Rachel Hampton.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
It's real. I just remember when I would go on vacation, you would do the little like sealy crap from Color Purple. Yeah. And I was like, this girl is ridiculous and she is for me. Like, I'm like, girl, I'm going to be back next week. And he would just be like. I'm like, no. Don't leave me, Rachel! And now you're stuck with me forever.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
We're here. Wow. The next question is, do we have any defector gossip? We had a little party for the finale of season seven, which was my first episode hosting. I don't know if this is gossip, but... When I get nervous, like most people, I'm just like, give me another drink. So that day, everyone came over to my apartment basically to watch the episode published.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Let me tell you, there is nothing more anticlimactic than publishing a podcast episode. Oh my God. You're over here thinking this is something I have spent the last many months of my life being nervous about. And then it just goes live and nothing happens. Right. Because obviously nothing happens. You're pressing publish on audio. It's so anticlimactic.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
And we're just waiting for it to hit the airwaves. Exactly. And so someone brought champagne, which was very nice. And everyone left my house to go get ready, and there was half a bottle of champagne left. And if there's one thing that is true in my household, it's don't waste champagne. Because you can't save it. I mean, I don't have the means to save it.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
I know there are means to save it, but I don't got it like that. So... I drank half the bottle of champagne and then went to dinner with my friends where they ordered a bottle of wine for the three of us. And then went to the party where they had this lovely little menu of special drinks, including one that was a delicious little vodka drink. Had three of those.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
So the gossip that I have is that I was three sheets to the wind. That night, I was just like, I can't feel how bad my feet hurt in these shoes.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
So I didn't know. That's beautiful. I think I was too nervous to reach the normal Rachel state of drunkenness at that level, which is just me being like, I love you guys so much. I did cry at the bar that we went to afterwards. I remember you did cry. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So actually I did get there, but I think I would have done that sober.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Yes! Oh, my God! I forgot. Oh, my God. Let me tell you, when you called me at that point in the night, I was definitely three shoes to the wind because I had had another beer at that bar.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
The food was, it was finger food.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
And I'm like, wait, who keys are these? Yeah. Important note, Sierra does not live in Brooklyn. So there's no reason for her to have her house keys in her pocket at a party in Brooklyn. Her house keys were probably in like your luggage or some stuff in the hotel. Yeah.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Yeah. I remember you calling me in the bar. And again, I was what? Half a bottle of champagne, half a bottle of wine, three whiskey drinks and a beer into the night. So I just teeter my way outside and I'm like, why is Sierra calling me? And you're like... I have the wrong coat. And I immediately, as much as possible, sobered up and was just like, we're going to get it back. You were.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
You were very encouraging. I was like, don't worry. We're going to get it back. The thing is, I told you that, hung up, and was just like, I'm too drunk to deal with this. I don't know what to do. And so I went into the party where Kelsey still was. And I was like, my Virgo queen will fix everything. And so I go up to her and one of our staff writers, Gideon Nathan,
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
In case you have somehow missed that news, check out the season finale of season seven for updates and a delightful slash stressful tale that takes place on the high seas. We have got a little treat for you today because let's be real here. It's a rough time and you deserve a treat. But before I can serve your little treat, we have got to get down to a little bit of business. Some exciting news.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
And I'm just like, Kelsey, I have a problem. She's like, what? And I'm like, Sierra lost her coat. It's a family heirloom. It's been traded with someone else's. So she has someone's coat, but we don't know whose coat it is. And I was just like, I don't know what to do. And she just lays out a plan. And she's like, we're going to do, she's like, we can't do anything tonight.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
She's like, when does Sierra leave? And I'm like, okay, okay, okay. And then you found out who had your coat. Yeah.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Incredible, incredible luck that that was in there. And Israel is Israel Daramola, who is a staff writer at Defector, who I'm not surprised that y'all swapped coats because you're both very fashionable. So once you told me it was Israel's, I was like, oh, okay. Yeah, that tracks. Actually, I understand.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
I just remember getting your Slack message that you figured out it was Israel and that you were going to swap. And I was the most hungover I've ever been in my entire life. And I was just like... If I could pull myself up into a vertical position, I would be jumping for joy. But I simply can't do that. I was like, I'm so happy for you. I need to go lay in a dark room somewhere.
Normal Gossip
Champagne, Capers, and Cuddle Parties with Se’era Spragley Ricks
Y'all was like, crisis averted. Okay, great. I can go back to being hungover. So that's the defect of gossip. I got too drunk. Ciara had a caper all on her own. Listen. Okay, next question. What is your favorite piece of celebrity gossip of all time? Remember when Solange punched Jay-Z in the elevator?
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Yeah. Make sure your alarm's on. And she's like, all right, well, fuck the police. She doesn't get that far. But this is kind of an ACAB movie.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
You're so right. I actually did forget about the fact that my man has giant cakes.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
And it's like, you can tell where we're going. It's gonna be flirty at one point. I do appreciate that it was clearly enemies at first. There was not a single hint of sexual tension at first. It was just like, this is a ghost made into a man who is trying to get me out of this inn. And I...
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Yes, the innkeeper comes back. She calls the innkeeper. Yes. Kate calls the innkeeper and is like, yo, what the fuck is going on? Who is this man? And the innkeeper who has been keeping the inn for, it seems like his entire life. Yeah. Like it's giving Sam and Frodo. Yes. But so the innkeeper comes back and it's just like, yeah, so this is why I told you to leave.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
He becomes corporal every 12 days of Christmas for 12 days. And when he comes back, his senses are heightened. So all he wants to do is eat food. And I was like, does he want to fuck? Yeah.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
I was gonna say, there's so many kinds of eating that could be done when your senses are heightened.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
But he just wants an apple at this point in time.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Correct. But you're right. This is giving like made for women porn. So there's an opportunity out there for someone.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Hi, Rachel Hampton here. If you missed last week's episode of Normal Gossip, please go back and listen because, spoiler alert, I have been crowned America's Next Top Gossip Queen. I wanted to say a very, very heartfelt thank you to all the listeners who have been so generous and so excited about the next phase of this show that we all love so much.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
So we kind of have a sense of what's going on. And Kate is like, okay, I need to sell this house. Yes. I can't sell this house with this man in here. But also, why are you here? Why do you keep coming back? Why are you only here for 12 days out of the year? She's just asking questions. She's just asking questions. And the ghost, Daniel, is like, I don't ask these questions.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
I just want to live my peaceful 12 days and eat as many apples as possible. Yeah. He's on vacation, baby. He's like, this is not my problem. This is your problem. And she's like, well, I need to do my job and get the fuck out of here. So I'm going to go investigation mode and we're going to figure out why the fuck you're still here. And then we're going to get you to the other side. Yes.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
As in heaven or hell. Or hell. Somewhere. Purgatory. I mean, he's in purgatory.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Yes, yes, yes. I appreciated how much of a star turn that prohibition plays in this story. Yeah. It's really all about how bad prohibition was.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Listen, Kelsey, one of my all-time favorite fan fictions takes place in Prohibition, and it's a supernatural fan fiction. God. And Jensen Ackles is obviously a rum runner. Obviously. And I'm like, oh, that's hot. Crimes for alcohol?
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Upcharging rich people for alcohol? Good. Congrats, babe. We love you. So Daniel, at this point, I'm like, even though you're a white man with a fash haircut, I'm on your side. Yeah. But also, I'm like, do you want to be resolved? Do you want to keep coming back here year after year? Do you wish to go on to the beyond? It seems like he's kind of tired of this shit, which makes sense.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
We here at the Normal Gossip Team really appreciate it. So much so that we thought maybe y'all might like to have a little holiday bonus episode as a treat. Before we get to your present, though, I just wanted to say that I am so, so, so, so, so excited to start working on season eight of Normal Gossip, which will come out this spring. But I need your help. We are looking for gossip.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
It really doesn't. Because all we care about is what Kate wants, which is to sell the motherfucking inn. Yes.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
So, our girl goes detective mode. She's researching, Googling, presumably, going to the library, I think, at some point. Like, there's some real, I'm looking at microfiche stuff.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Okay, wait, yeah, let's rewind. Let's rewind because there's like, there's a side plot where apparently no one has ever seen Daniel The ghost, other than the innkeeper, who doesn't really hang out with him. So he's just left alone for 12 days. To eat apples. But then the water goes out in town or some shit. And a local owner of a bar comes by and is like, you guys have a bar at the hotel.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Let me have my party here. Exactly. And Daniel's like, no one's allowed here. Fuck you. And the bartender lady, who also seems to have a little bit of a flirtationship with the innkeeper... Big time. ...is just like, who is that? And Kate's like, he's like a cousin of the family or whatever. He's just like a little, he's a little extra. Yeah.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
And then the bartender's lady is like, I make the best cocktail in town. And Daniel's like, I bet you fucking don't. And the thing is, Daniel clearly is using egg whites in his whiskey sour. He's making some real drinks. He's a rum runner. He clearly knows his alcohol.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Whatever, babe. Sure. Whatever you fucking need, my guy. And so this turns into like a party at the inn. And I guess Daniel is reminded that being around people is good. Yes. And Kate is also figuring out that Daniel is hot. There's this scene where she's wandering around the house and stumbles upon him taking his shirt off.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
But I also was like, who? And at this moment, I was like, this is a porn. This is leading to a very clear resolution.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
It's like, oh, this is a man from the 1920s. He's not used to women being able to drive. He's not used to women having rights. He's just really confused as to why this woman is allowed to be a barrister. Yeah. And... It is like every single romance novel where you're like, why is this man so possessive and angry? And then you're like, oh, like, I don't know. It's his culture.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
He watched his brother get shot or some shit. Like, he has trauma. It's his culture. Yeah. Yeah. So we find out that it is, in fact, Daniel's culture to be a little bit domineering. But it's okay because Kate... Well, Kate kind of likes it. She likes it. She likes it.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Which, I'm going to be honest, if a tall, beefy man who was caked up like that... Picked you up over his shoulder and carried you outside... I'm also like, is he misogynist? Because he seems to really value Kate as a human being, which is more than some men in 2024.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
You can email us at normalgossip at defector.com or you can leave us a voicemail on our hotline at 2679-GOSSIP. Some gossip that I am dying to receive, real estate gossip, gossip that is secretly a romance novel, service industry gossip, and fandom gossip, but truly anything you have that you think might be a fit, please send it over. If you have ever in your life thought,
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
He just needs new information and he'll be a different man.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
And his brother, which we see through flashbacks, is very disapproving of his rum running. And not hot. Not hot at all. Like, they do not look like brothers. No. I mean, they do, but in that way where you're just like, oh, that's unfortunate. Yeah. So the brother's very clearly a villain.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
And importantly, the brother, we realize through these flashbacks, is the person that Daniel saw on the veranda with his fiance right before he got hit over the head. Which is an alibi. So true. It is an alibi. So we are pretty sure that he is not killed by his brother to get with his fiance. Yes, Lily. To be with Lily. Yes.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
So at this point in the movie, it's like, it's a lovely night and they're bartending and the bartender from town is like, what if we had our annual town Christmas party here? And Kate's like, there's no way that'll happen. And Daniel's like, let's fucking go! He got a taste of partying, and he's like, oh yeah, I miss this.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Now that I've had three of the strongest cocktails any of you have ever had in your entire life because I'm mixing fucking Prohibition-era cocktails. Like, those are Great Depression cocktails. Yes. Like, times were hard.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Here you go, babe. People were literally drinking shit that would kill them because it had minor amounts of alcohol in it because of prohibition, which I learned from the book Water for Elephants, which I read many times as a child.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Maybe. I mean, I love clear stakes. And prohibition is really, the stakes are so clear. They are really clear. It's like, here is an illicit substance that everyone wants that was previously legal. Like, it's so rare to go backwards in such a strong way on a substance like that, where it's like, you have an entire society. Exactly.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Could you imagine if tomorrow the government was like, actually alcohol is banned? Yeah.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Maybe the story might work for normal gossip. Send it, please. I will work with you on anonymization. And if it turns out to be too hard to anonymize, well, I still want to read it. Okay, now for your present. As many of y'all know, we put out an extra episode for our subscribers once a month. For December's episode, we tried something just a little bit different.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Imagine giving this ghost a vape. Like that would be a scene in 2024. This movie was made in 2024.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
And he's like, what is that? What is that? Imagine, I mean, they had weed back then, but it was weak as fuck, so.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
He'd be out there in the snow doing snow angels. Yeah. High off his ass.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
I made Kelsey watch the 2015 Lifetime original movie, The Spirit of Christmas. And we just gabbed about it for an hour. As literally anyone in my life will tell you, I'm obsessed with this movie. And I think it might haunt Kelsey forever. What more could you want? Happy holidays.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
But... Yeah. He sleeps in her room, like, facing away from her. Yes. And she's like, I feel so safe and protected. And I'm like... Now... Kiss. Kiss.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
But they don't kiss. They don't. But there's this open mystery of, like, what else is in the house? Because at first... She thinks that it's him. Like something gets knocked off a wall or like she, a door gets closed really loud. Like something scary happens and she thinks that Daniel's fucking with her because they had just had this big fight. And he's like, no.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
He's like, I wouldn't do that to you. I would never do that to you. And she's like, wow. Am I starting to have feelings for this ghost that's only around 12 days out of the year?
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
And you have to compromise so much. And despite the fact that I love romance novels and I love romance, as I get older and also busier, I'm just like, I actually don't know if I want or have the time for all of that right now. Yes. So a boo who just shows up once a year. That sounds perfect.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Like he is only for you. It's beautiful. So I could see Miss Girl being like, Honestly, maybe I'll start taking off Christmas because there's a plot line that she never takes off Christmas because she doesn't give a fuck about holidays or her family.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
And you know what? Correct. Having jobs does make women miserable.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Question mark, question mark, question mark.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Yeah. And her boss is also mad because Kate is very clearly the closer of this company. And they're like, why haven't you sold this fucking inn? Why haven't you figured this out?
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Oh, oh, she's there to get the inn appraised so they can sell it. But they can't get the appraiser in because Daniel keeps fucking shit up. Which is funny. It's really funny. And they're like, why haven't you gotten the inner praise? And Kate can't be like, well, there's a ghost that I'm thinking about fucking. Yeah. Yeah. That doesn't usually go over well with your boss. No, it doesn't.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
It might here, but not then. Yeah. I think I could tell Justin that I was busy because I was thinking about fucking a ghost. You probably could. And it would probably be okay. Yeah. He would be like, we'll talk about that later. No, he'd be like, well, um, I'm concerned for you, but as long as the ghost isn't evil, we'll talk later. Yeah.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Yeah. She goes back. And this is the moment where, like, when she leaves, she promises to come back. And Daniel very clearly is like, I hope you do. Yes. And then when she comes back, I'm like, oh, something has changed here. They are... into falling in love territory. Mm-hmm. Yes.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
When you can tell they've been running around at recess and have maybe redone their ponytail that you gave them at the beginning of the day. Like, it looks so bad.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
I would say it does, yeah, less than nothing. It's negative. It is a net negative hairstyle.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
It's so bad. And it's like, this is the most romantic scene in the movie because it's a Christmas party. Daniel and Kate are dancing. The innkeeper and the bartender are dancing. Like, the innkeeper and Daniel are talking about Kate. And he's like, I think I really like her. And you look at her and she's wearing this stupid ponytail. And you're like, motherfucker. Yeah.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
I'm like, you probably look like a little girl to him. Like, stop this. Stop it. Yeah. So that was terrible. But it is a cute scene. You can see that they're really starting to feel each other and thinking about the logistics of making this work. Because they haven't figured out what exactly happened yet. Like, all Daniel knows is that his fiancée maybe betrayed him. Maybe.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Clearly, no one was paying attention here. They were like, well, whatever she needs to find out. So we're going to make this easy for her. Yeah, of course. So Daniel's like, do I want to go into the great beyond to be with Lily, my fiance, or do I want to be with Kate? And this becomes the central tension where Kate is like, I want you to be happy, but also I want you to stay with me.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
And then spooky shit starts happening at the party. Spooky. This is the spookiest scene. Yeah.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Exactly. And there's a confrontation between the ghost of Lily, the ghost of the cousin, and Daniel, who is also ghost. And also Kate, who's not ghost.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
This movie has been in my life for at least the past four years, minimum, possibly more than that. What I think happened is, do you remember back around like 2017 when BuzzFeed would do big lists of like the craziest Christmas movies you should watch? Oh, yeah, yeah. I think this was on there. And I think that at the time, this movie was on Netflix. And so I was like, okay, cool.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Yeah, I think the gift is that she is protecting him from his cousin who we find out killed him because the guy that Daniel was running rum for in Canada is just like evil.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
If you think about it, it's ACAB all the way down. It sure is. I'm not entirely sure what Lily's gift is. I think him being stuck in this purgatory is somehow her gift to him. Like, she saved him somehow.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
I don't really get it either. All I know is that, like... Daniel and his cousin have a conversation and his cousin is like, thank you for forgiving me. Yeah, and then he disappears. And so he's released from the purgatory and then Lily is like, okay, deuces. And Daniel has to make a choice as to whether or not he is released from purgatory. And him and Kate spend, like, a night together.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Do you think they fucked? They don't fuck.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
And they're going to disappear in two hours.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
You don't have an opportunity for another year. You also don't know if he's going to come back next year because his storyline has been resolved. So Kate wakes up the next morning. And funnily enough, Daniel's not there. But also she receives a call from her boss who's like, you know what? I have been underappreciating you. You do deserve vacation. It's insane.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
I'm so sorry that I yelled at you about closing the inn. This has never happened. It's never happened, but I also was like, you know what? I'm glad that they know your worth now because you stopped working for, what, three days? The real moral of this story is to take your vacation days so that your work will appreciate you. Actually, yes, it is.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Take your vacation days so your work realizes how much work you're doing. So she takes her vacation days and she's like, okay, great. I'm going to get promoted to, again, what, partner? I don't fucking know. I don't fucking know. But she's also like, she walks outside. It's a beautiful snowy day. And she's like, Daniel's gone. I miss him. I guess I'll come back next year to see if he comes back.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Because again, we don't know. We don't know. We have no idea. But then... And something we haven't mentioned yet is that a lot of this movie relies on the concept of property lines for some reason. Like, Daniel can't leave the property. Every single time he tries to leave, he, like... Disappears and gets ported back in.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Why does the ghost respect property lines? Also, what happens if the house gets rezoned? None of this makes any sense to me. What are the laws of ghosts? None of it makes any sense. But we do know that the laws are broken and that Daniel is free because as Kate walks out into this beautiful snowy morning, who comes walking from the forest past the property line where he previously could not go?
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
I don't have to buy anything. I'll watch this movie. And then I watched it with my roommate at the time. And I was immediately obsessed. And then every single year, I brought this movie up to other friends being like, have you seen The Spirit of Christmas? And they're obviously like, no. What the fuck is that?
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
But Daniel made... like fully human in 2015.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
He's also wearing a stupid hat. It looks so bad. This is like, he looks the worst in the scene. And I don't know why they did this to him. It makes no sense. He has been caked up and hot the entire time. And now suddenly he's wearing a stupid hat. I guess he saw her fuck ass ponytail and was like, you know what? Vibes match. He was like, this is a safe space.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
He's like, I found someone to match my freak. Yeah.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
His ears are cold. Yeah, he's finally, I guess, feeling the cold. I don't know. So he's wearing this stupid hat and they run together and they get together. And from here, I have a lot of questions. And I think that's why I love this movie so much. I have so many questions. It's because it just, it ends and you're like, okay. So does he have a social security number now?
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
How do you turn somebody who has been dead since like the early 1900s into a fully legal resident of the United States? Like she's a lawyer, so I'm sure she has some method. Will he age? Is he just this age forever? Does he have any skills? Clearly he can go across property lines. I guess he could be a bartender. I guess they're just going to run the inn.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Also, how are you going to explain where this man came from? To the people in your life.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Yes. And so this is the point of the movie where I'm like, I would watch a sequel. I would watch at least a 30 minute epilogue of what happens of introducing Daniel to the real world of 2015. Because I... I am just like, I want to see him go to the DMV. I want to see him learn how to drive. I want to see him try a Cheeto. I want to see him try Sriracha.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Like, I want to see him take a 10 milligram edible. I have so many questions. Does he know what skinny girl liquor is? Like, I have so many questions.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
I want to show him the Real Housewives of New York. Like, I want to show him the Titanic film.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
So it has become an annual tradition where every single year, I force at least one of my friends to watch this movie with me. And this year, it's me.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
No, literally. I'm like, what happens when this man sees a Black person? Yeah, bad. Like, can you imagine being like, okay, so there's this man named Martin Luther King. He had a dream. This is important for you to know. Yeah.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Now there's a Black president. And the thing is, this movie came out in 2015. Oh, yeah, there was a Black president.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Like, the president is black. And then you immediately go into Trump after this? Like, I'm just like, what? Tell me about their life afterwards.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
I don't know. I'm like, does this work on Twilight Rules where, like, some random shit happens and suddenly you're allowed to have a baby? Like... Does she even want children?
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Maybe she doesn't. Maybe the N is their child. Also, they never fuck. Not even once. I know. I know. It's so funny because I described this movie as a movie where a woman fucks a ghost, but she actually doesn't fuck him once. But spiritually, she does.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
It's a really chaste movie, but somehow the vibe of it being the prelude to a porn movie really makes it feel far more... Yeah. I'm like, nothing happens, but like...
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
I'm like, I'm gonna be honest. That man has not felt the touch of a woman in a hundred years, and you're telling me he's not bricked the fuck up right now?
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
And they were like, okay, she's going to take a nap and then we'll come back to this at a later date.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
I am so happy that I have gotten to take my personal mission of making as many people as possible watch this movie and somehow broaden that mission even further. It's beautiful. And I'm glad that you're achieving your dreams. Thanks so much. I'm gonna fuck a ghost. Hell yeah.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Thank you so much for listening to this extra special bonus episode of Normal Gossip. If you do want to subscribe, you can do that at supportnormalgossip.com. If you are already a subscriber, please keep your eyes open. We are sending you an email to get feedback on what you might like to see in this feed in the future. More insanity? More caked up ghosts? Tell us!
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
This podcast was hosted by me, Rachel Hampton. It was produced by Sierra Spragley-Rix and J. Tolviera. The co-creators and dowager queens of Normal Gossip are Alex Sujong-Loughlin and Kelsey McKinney. Justin Ellis is Defector's project editor. Jasper Wang and Sean Kuhn are Defector's business guys. Alex Sujong-Loughlin is Defector's supervising producer. Tom Leigh is our editor-in-chief.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Abigail Siegel is our intern. Dan McQuaid runs our merch store, which you can find at normalgossip.store. Tara Jacoby designed our show art. And thank you to the rest of the Defector staff. Defector Media is a collectively-owned, subscriber-based media company, and Normal Gossip is a proud member of Radiotopia. I'm Rachel Hampton, and remember, you did not hear this from me.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
And the thing is, both of those are annual traditions for me. I reread Giovanni's Room every single year around this time. And I also watch this movie every single year. So you're really hitting the Rachel Hampton annual tradition.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Beautiful. I really want to hear your thoughts, but I feel like we should do a brief recap of what happens in this movie.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
This is a recap pod now. So we open. Let's start with that opening scene. Yes. All right. So it's snowy. It's clearly like what fucking Michigan or something. I don't know.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
And he also has that haircut that now is a little fashy, but in 2015 was the hipster haircut. Yep. And the outfit that he's wearing... Which is like this vest with a little shirt under it and boots is giving Williamsburg hipster. Yeah. Like, so it's really confusing as to where we are in time. But I'm buckled the fuck in.
Normal Gossip
Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
It is. It really, it keeps you guessing. It keeps the girlies on their feet. And speaking of girlies, we have to talk about our main girlie of this movie, whose name is Kate. Kate. Kate. And Kate, Kate's a lawyer. And lawyering is her entire life. Yeah. In the first scene where we're introduced to her. This scene rules, to be honest. I love this scene. It's such a good scene. She's at dinner.
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Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
She's talking to this guy. And he's like, you know, you're really great. You're so ambitious. But like, I just feel like something's missing. And she's like, yeah. Yeah. So true. Everyone I date knows nothing about me. My ex called me his ghost girl. And then at the end, she's like, can I have your dessert? And she takes this creme brulee and she's like, yeah, I didn't want to be here anyways.
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Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Yeah. So she drives her Jeep Cherokee out to this huge house and it's beautiful. Also, this movie is supposed to take place like somewhere in snowy United States.
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Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Same. Speaking of James Baldwin, I have been reading Another Country. We've both been reading Another Country. And there's a scene that takes place right around near Thanksgiving. And the character is thinking about, oh, it's snowing again. It's all on the ground. It's cold. It's cold. And they're like, we're leading up to Thanksgiving. And I read that and just like...
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Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
had one of those Raven Baxter moments where I was just like, oh, fuck, it used to snow before Thanksgiving. But in the mythical land of 2015, New Hampshire, Vermont, wherever the fuck we are, it's snowing. It's snowing hard.
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Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Unclear. Unclear. But she arrives at this inn and the innkeeper, whose name is escaping me at the moment, but does end up becoming kind of an important tertiary character at some point. Yeah. But the innkeeper is like, oh, I'm leaving. And asks her, where are you staying while you're figuring out where to sell the inn? And Kate's like, it's an inn. I'm staying here.
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Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Yes. They are never open during the 12 days of Christmas, which do I know when those start? I'm assuming it's 12 days before Christmas, but does it include the day after Christmas? I don't fucking know. Partridge in a pear tree? Mm-hmm. Yeah, exactly. But he's like, we're never open during the 12 days of Christmas, so no one can stay here. And Kate's like, I'm a hardened lawyer from the city.
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Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
I'm fucking staying here. And he's like, there's a ghost. I wouldn't recommend staying here. And she's like, fuck your ghost. Rachel. Yes.
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Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Yeah, I think we were both raised too Christian to not believe in ghosts and demons. I'm just like, you know what? I wish not to fuck with it. I don't want it near me. Don't bring it near me. I have a respectful distance. It's like the ocean. I respect her. I don't want to be near her. I will watch from a distance. So I would also not stay in a haunted hotel. But Kate does not believe in ghosts.
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Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
And she is too logical and too lawyerly to believe in ghosts. So she stays at this inn overnight. And surprise, surprise...
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Holiday Bonus: Caked Up Spirit of Christmas
Oh, being trapped in a random house in New Hampshire, Vermont, Michigan, with a white man from the 1920s who's absolutely huge. With a fash haircut? No. With a fash haircut? No, exactly. Exactly. And the thing is, Kate does respond correctly to this in that she immediately calls the police. And she's like, there's a strange man. And she has a weird knife. Yeah, where did that come from?