Episode 62 (11-18-15)
But the most eccentric of them all was Miranda’s paternal grandfather–the only one of her four grandparents born in the United States. A traveling photographer with half a dozen wives and families scattered over the western United States, he had done time in prison for polygamy, after one of those angry spouses ran him to ground.
Episode 61 (11-17-15)
At that point Christi leapt up from the lunch table and took a swing at Taylor. Taylor screamed. The maitre d’ from the hummus shop separated them, and threw them out on to the street.
Episode 60 (11-16-15)
The first internet date Miranda went on was with was a retired airline executive. They had dinner at Il Fornaio, in downtown Palo Alto.
The exec said, “Then I did this, and then I did that. And then I did this, and then I did that.” Or that’s what it sounded like to Miranda. He offered her a free vacation to the Caribbean, but the implied trade-off made her uncomfortable. So that turned out to be Dating Strike One.
Episode 59 (11-14-15)
Christi decided to have an affair.
She thought about it carefully, and selected as her appropriate candidate the buff contractor who was remodeling three houses that she and JJ had purchased in Old Palo Alto.
Episode 58 (11-13-15)
Newlywed Christi was opposed to having children. “I’d be bored as a soccer mom,” she told her friend Tina.
“That’s hard to believe,” Tina replied. “I’d love to be a soccer mom. I can’t think of anything better.”
Episode 57 (11-12-15)
There was a difficulty, JJ well knew, of many creators of start-ups; and the ultimate demise of many small tech companies–even ones that had workable ideas.
To wit, company founders were often creative people, but they didn’t have the best skills for jumping their original great idea up to the next level.
Episode 56 (11-11-15)
“Everyone wants their kids to have high test scores,” said Miranda, “So they can get into Stanford, or wherever.”
“Nowadays,” replied Valerie, “All standardized testing results are ‘zip code dependent.’ That means that if your kid’s zip code is 94306, her test scores will be fine.”
Episode 55 (11-10-15)
“When did our lives get so overtaken by sarcasm?” asked Valerie.
“About 30 years ago,” said Miranda. “It’s the current social disease. People are afraid.”
Episode 54 (11-09-15)
Eddie went on a rant about how he could feed himself for a week off of game-day tailgate scavenging on the Stanford campus.
Episode 53 (11-07-15)
Miranda was fascinated by the story of the Chinese-born woman, now living in Palo Alto, who was working as her foot reflexologist.
“I was a medical doctor in China,” her new friend Daisy explained. “But here I am a foot reflexologist.”
“My father was a professor of chemistry at the university,” Daisy continued. “During the Cultural Revolution, he was put in prison, and I was sent to a collective farm, when I was 13 years old.”
“Because I had some education,” she continued, “They made me the public address announcer for the farm. So I spoke on the loudspeakers that all the workers would hear during the day and night, giving them instructions.”