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special protection to drunkards, lost

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American Miracle. Subscribe to

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the American Miracle on

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Apple, Spotify, Amazon, or

0:57

wherever you get your podcasts. 4th

1:01

of July everyone, it's Independence Day in

1:04

the United States of America. This

1:06

is our first 4th of

1:08

July in Cuenca, Ecuador, and I don't

1:10

know what to expect. And you might

1:13

say, well don't expect anything dumbass because

1:15

you're not in the States. And normally,

1:17

I would agree with you, but

1:19

this is a different kind of place. It is. It

1:23

seems like they just

1:25

look for excuses to

1:28

ignite fireworks. So I

1:31

wouldn't be surprised if we had

1:33

a massive fireworks display here

1:36

in Ecuador. Yeah, it's a very celebratory

1:38

place. It is. Sometimes it's

1:40

like Tuesday. Well, it's

1:42

true that happened last week. I'm

1:45

sure that there was some reason for

1:47

it, but I don't know.

1:49

We have a view from our

1:52

apartment that overlooks an area where

1:54

there are a lot of public

1:58

venues and wedding receptions. and things

2:00

like that. So oftentimes that's

2:02

probably what it is with the

2:04

fireworks, but man, all the time

2:06

and it's pretty cool. I'm

2:08

okay with it because Lukey doesn't mind it.

2:10

I am an advocate for silent fireworks. I'm

2:13

just saying they're, the only benefit of them

2:15

is that they're pretty. So why, why are

2:17

they gotta be loud? Why? Yeah,

2:19

it's not like, you know, the

2:22

car alarms here. You

2:24

know, you just get the annoying noise

2:26

and nothing pretty to look at. Right.

2:28

Anyway, it's the inbox of oddities and

2:30

we are so glad you're here. We

2:34

got a negative review. We did.

2:37

What was it? iTunes. They gave

2:39

us three stars and said, stop with the inbox

2:41

of oddities. Yeah. Go back to

2:43

what it was before. Nobody likes it. Nobody likes

2:45

the inbox. I was very impressed. It seemed to

2:47

be, you know, I guess

2:49

I could understand it better if

2:52

we had replaced some of our

2:54

regular content with the inbox.

2:57

But we still do four stories a

2:59

week and the Monday show is twice

3:01

as long as, you know, the other

3:03

two normally were. So we're actually doing

3:05

more work and it's

3:07

not enough for some people. For

3:11

real though, we do appreciate the feedback. I

3:14

want to know if you don't like

3:17

something, you just don't maybe leave it as a

3:19

review. Indeed.

3:23

Nanette wrote to us, Kat and

3:26

Jethro, I have a story that

3:28

might interest you. It's about the

3:30

medical diagnosis of prosopagnosia, which is

3:33

known as face blindness. Yes. It

3:36

refers to those persons, including myself,

3:38

who do not recognize faces when

3:40

they see them. For

3:42

me, it manifests as not being

3:45

able to recognize people I should

3:47

know like coworkers, I frequently see

3:50

relatives, et cetera, unless they are

3:52

seen in context, like

3:55

in a uniform or a specific

3:57

place. Sure. Some people

3:59

have this condition. and I hate to refer

4:01

to it as a condition because there's nothing

4:03

wrong with us. It is simply the way

4:05

our brains are wired at birth. So

4:08

severely that when they wake up

4:10

each day and look in the

4:12

mirror, they don't recognize their own

4:14

faces. Wow. Holy shit.

4:17

That I didn't know was a thing. These

4:19

people often require psychiatric care for

4:21

their condition, as it can cause

4:23

depression if you don't recognize people

4:25

that you know. That makes perfect

4:27

sense. You wouldn't feel connected to anyone

4:29

around you, I imagine, that there would

4:32

be a real lack of human connectedness.

4:34

And that little beep you just heard in

4:36

the background, that was a notification that our

4:40

delivery is almost here. Excellent. And that

4:42

goes on to say, I have been

4:44

this way since birth, but I always

4:46

felt that there was something wrong with

4:49

me because I could not recognize relatives

4:51

that we don't see every day. Now

4:53

I work as a clinical educator in

4:56

a hospital with several thousand employees. Jeez

4:58

Louise. Many of them meet me during

5:00

their initial orientation and then can't understand

5:02

why I don't know their names when

5:05

I see them, or I don't recognize

5:07

them outside of the hospital. My husband

5:09

recognized that I had this issue

5:12

early in our relationship. And when

5:14

we're together, he will drop behind

5:16

me and remind me of someone's

5:18

name, or he'll say, that person

5:20

is looking like they know you.

5:23

That's a partnership right there.

5:26

Gives me a bit of a warning. She's

5:28

an invaluable resource and a fantastic husband. Okay,

5:31

hope to hear this read or mention on

5:33

the box. Hopefully it'll reach

5:35

someone who also has this

5:37

condition, but does not know

5:39

what's going on. And

5:41

Nanette is an RN, and

5:45

she's a professional development specialist

5:47

and clinical educator. P.S. she

5:49

says, I must mention that this

5:52

is different than someone who has

5:54

Alzheimer's or dementia. And has

5:56

always recognized people, but then cannot

5:58

at some point. Thanks, Nanette. I

6:01

love the name Nanette. Me too. I

6:04

had a crush on a girl named Nanette when I was in

6:06

third grade. Oh really? Yeah. Where

6:09

is she now? Does she have a house with

6:11

an address that I might find? I

6:14

have no idea. I'm just kidding, Nanette. I got nothing

6:16

against you. I don't even remember her last name. AMW

6:19

Rupier on Instagram commented, I

6:22

was so happy to hear Kat

6:24

likes Stardew. It's been my comfort

6:26

game forever. I lost my soulmate

6:28

dog at the end of May, and I've

6:30

been playing like it's my second full-time job

6:32

since then. That's how we

6:34

cope around here, baby. I

6:36

totally get it. And I'm so glad

6:38

that you refer to it as your

6:40

comfort game, because that's what it is

6:42

for me. Some people have comfort shows

6:45

or movies or whatever. Right. Mine is

6:47

the gentle sounds of harvesting my crops

6:49

and putting beets in Lewis's fridge. He's

6:51

the mayor, right? That's right. Isn't that

6:54

considered like a political

6:56

bribe? Listen, I've done favors for

6:58

Lewis before, like returning his underwear.

7:01

So Lewis isn't saying anything. All

7:04

right. You got dirt on the mayor. Wow.

7:06

You're not sneaky, Marnie. That's all

7:08

I'm saying. Emily sent us an email.

7:11

Kat and JJ recently had a bizarre

7:13

experience while hiking alone in a remote

7:15

part of the desert. It

7:17

was a clear moonlit night, and I

7:19

was navigating through a narrow canyon. Why

7:22

would you hike

7:24

in a narrow canyon at night? Because

7:27

it sounds amazing. Yeah. It scares the

7:29

hell out of me, just the thought of it. Suddenly,

7:32

I felt an intense chill, and that's when

7:34

I saw it. A faint glowing

7:36

figure standing at the mouth of the

7:39

canyon. Suddenly, not sounding so cool.

7:41

As I cautiously approached, the

7:44

figure seemed to almost shimmer

7:46

and distort like a mirage. Its

7:50

features were indistinct, yet humanoid.

7:52

It emitted a soft pulsing

7:54

type light that illuminated the

7:57

surrounding rocks, and I froze.

7:59

I was unable to comprehend

8:02

what I was witnessing. Without warning,

8:05

the figure appeared to lift a hand, and

8:08

it looked like it was gesturing to me to

8:10

come closer. Fear and curiosity

8:12

battled within me, but before I

8:14

could react, a powerful gust of

8:16

wind swept through the

8:18

canyon, and it's

8:21

almost like the figure's glow

8:23

extinguished. In an instant, it

8:25

was gone, leaving me there

8:27

alone. To this day, I can't

8:30

explain what I saw. Was

8:32

it a trick of the desert's conditions,

8:34

or did I stumble upon something beyond

8:36

my understanding? Whatever it was, it left

8:40

an unforgettable mark on my mind,

8:42

I can imagine. To

8:44

this day, I can't explain what I saw

8:46

that night. Was it

8:48

a trick of the desert's conditions,

8:51

or did I stumble upon something

8:53

beyond my understanding? Steve

8:56

on TikTok sent me a

8:58

video about the Icelandic penis

9:01

museum. You remember. Oh yeah.

9:03

He said, I saw this, and it made me think of you

9:05

and your husband. Heh

9:07

heh heh heh. That's

9:10

sweet. I love that. We have some

9:12

very special relationships, don't we? Kells

9:14

writes, a most sincere thank you.

9:17

I wanna send a most sincere

9:19

thank you. I am a few

9:22

days away from finishing my Bachelor

9:24

of Science in Fire Science and

9:26

Emergency Management. Wow. And

9:29

the two of you kept me company, not only

9:31

through my studies, but also while I was working

9:33

to support the dream. I am now getting ready

9:35

to start training to become an EMT. Stop,

9:39

that's amazing. And looking forward to

9:41

more stories from the box as I work

9:43

my way through and into the future. Congratulations,

9:46

Kells. That's pretty awesome. It

9:49

takes a special kind of person, I think, to

9:52

be an EMT, and I salute you. I get

9:54

woozy on a golf cart. I can't imagine having

9:56

to report to a major accident scene or

9:59

something. Right. Carrie sent a

10:01

message on Patreon. Are you okay with

10:03

me sharing this message about the loss

10:05

of your dad? Yeah, sure. Carrie

10:08

sent this message. JG, I am so

10:10

sorry for the loss of your dad.

10:12

I've been gone since the

10:14

end of last year, mostly because I also

10:16

lost my dad. Things are hitting weird

10:18

as fuck and I didn't expect it. It's

10:20

an absolutely shitty club to be a part

10:23

of and I'm so sorry you're a part

10:25

of it. We're thinking of you and sending

10:27

love. Carrie of the Carrie and Danny. That's

10:30

sweet. Thank you so much. Here's the weird

10:32

fucking thing. Carrie sent that two

10:34

years ago. Two days ago, there was a

10:36

follow-up message. I do not

10:38

know if I was time traveling or what the

10:41

fuck prompted me to send that message two years

10:43

ago. I was a few episodes

10:45

behind and Danny told me that your dad had

10:47

passed and I swore he was wrong. And I

10:49

even told him I messaged you a year or

10:52

two before about the loss of your father. At

10:54

any rate, I hope the mystery gives a

10:57

moment of comedy slash weirdness to

10:59

it all. Holy shit. And please

11:01

know the sentiment from two years ago,

11:03

almost to the day, remains. I am

11:05

truly sorry for your loss, sending all

11:08

love. Wow. It was June 15th of

11:10

2022 that she sent the message and

11:12

your dad passed on

11:14

the 12th of June this

11:17

year. I mean, it

11:19

was almost exactly two years. That's insane.

11:21

So wild. That is really weird.

11:24

I didn't know the follow-up on that. Wow.

11:27

Yeah. Well, here's some more weirdness.

11:29

You know, we went to the

11:31

funeral in my dad's town, which

11:34

is Fort Kent, Maine, which

11:36

is about as far as you can go without

11:39

ending up in Canada. Michael sends this

11:41

email a few years ago. I rented

11:43

a cabin in the

11:45

Allagash in Maine,

11:47

which is very, very close to

11:49

Fort Kent. Right. It's on the

11:51

same road and it's one

11:54

of the most remote areas that you can go

11:56

to. It's completely not just

11:58

in Maine either. No, like it is. one of the

12:00

most remote areas you can go

12:02

to. Period. It's a third of the

12:05

state of Maine and it's totally unsettled.

12:07

It's just wilderness like it always has

12:09

been. So

12:12

Michael says he rented an old

12:14

cabin in the woods for a

12:16

quiet weekend getaway. On

12:18

the very first night as I was settling in

12:20

with a book I heard faint whispers coming from

12:22

the walls. At first I thought

12:25

it was just the wind or maybe

12:27

some animals or maybe rats in the

12:29

walls or something but the whispers grew

12:31

louder and more distinct. Curiosity

12:33

got the better of me and I pressed

12:35

my ear against the wall. To

12:38

my shock the whispers sounded like

12:40

a conversation in a language I

12:42

did not understand. It

12:45

felt as though multiple voices were engaging

12:47

in some sort of heated

12:49

debate and it seemed like the

12:51

voices were coming from

12:53

within the very structure of

12:55

the cabin itself. I

12:57

packed my things and left never

13:00

to return. To

13:02

this day I have no idea what those

13:04

whispers were but I

13:06

know one thing is for sure I will never

13:08

rent a secluded cabin in

13:11

the alagash again. Michael.

13:13

That reminds me of the first story

13:15

in the book that I'm reading it's a

13:17

collection of short stories by Stephen King called

13:20

You Like It Darker and

13:22

the story was called Two Talented

13:24

Bastards which

13:27

was delightful and involved camp

13:30

in secluded Maine. Are

13:32

you interested in the parts of history

13:34

that remain a mystery? Do you want

13:37

to learn more about the historical myths

13:39

and misconceptions used to prop up false

13:41

belief today? I'm Nathaniel

13:43

Lloyd. In my podcast Historical

13:46

Blindness I delve into all

13:48

of these topics, sharing puzzling

13:50

tales from the past and

13:52

examining hoaxes, conspiracy theories, and

13:55

misremembered events that provide insight

13:57

into modern politics and religion.

14:00

Find out what's real and

14:02

what's not when it comes

14:04

to famous conspiracy theories like

14:06

those surrounding notorious assassinations and

14:08

secret societies. Discover

14:10

the weak and deceptive underpinnings

14:13

of modern political ideologies and

14:15

religious beliefs. Join me

14:17

as I attempt to shed some

14:19

light on our historical blind spots.

14:22

Have you ever wondered what really happened to

14:24

Amelia Earhart or the lost colony of Roanoke?

14:40

Do you ever find yourself scouring

14:42

the internet for vicious Victorians and

14:44

their murders by gaslight? Or

14:47

perhaps you're just sick and

14:49

tired of women being constantly misrepresented

14:52

or plain lied about

14:54

throughout history? If

14:56

so, join me, Katie Charlwood, History

14:58

Harlot and Reader of Books on

15:01

Who Did What Now? The History Podcast that's

15:03

not your History Class, part

15:06

of the Airwave Media Network. Available

15:08

on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever

15:10

you listen to podcasts. Adios

15:13

au revoir au vous des m, my friends.

15:16

Bye bye. I'll be seeing you. Candice sent

15:18

us a message. Good morning. I

15:22

just discovered your podcast

15:24

about a week ago and I've been binging the entire podcast.

15:32

I'm kind of upset because your first live show, I

15:34

was only three and a half hours away and I

15:36

didn't hear about it until about a week ago. But

15:41

I love your podcast. You guys are funny and hilarious.

15:43

I love what you do. Keep doing what you're doing.

15:45

You all have me belly laughing all the way down

15:48

the road. I'm an over the road truck driver and

15:50

you all have kept me company for the last two

15:52

weeks and I really appreciate it. It makes my day.

15:54

I hope I get to see you all in person

15:56

one day. I'm super excited. I also love the fact

15:59

that you have. I have a dog that rides

16:01

with me. His name is Winston, and he listens

16:03

to you all too. Thanks,

16:06

Candace. That's a great name. When

16:08

I was in Maine last

16:10

year, I went to go get a tattoo,

16:12

and while I was there, I

16:15

was talking with the tattoo artist about the

16:17

podcast, and a couple of people overheard, and

16:19

they came over, and we were all talking

16:21

about what we do, and I

16:23

happened to mention that a lot of our

16:25

listeners drive truck. And the

16:28

two people I was speaking with, burst

16:31

into laughter, and were like,

16:34

they do what? I said, you know, they

16:36

drive truck. And they had never heard

16:38

that turn of phrase before, you know, as an

16:40

over the road truck driver, or a long haul

16:42

truck driver. You drive a truck. Is

16:44

someone who drives truck. You're a truck

16:46

driver. Right. But in Maine.

16:48

They drive truck. You drive truck. And

16:51

I didn't realize that that was a thing.

16:53

It was one of those things that my

16:56

dumb, dumb, regional brain overlooked.

16:59

And I just have always said it that way. Yeah,

17:01

well it's like the

17:03

term door yard. Door yard. Door

17:05

yard. Most people in Maine understand

17:08

what you mean when you say

17:10

door yard. Yeah. But

17:12

everywhere else, they have no fucking idea.

17:14

It is very confusing. That's how we

17:16

refer to the front yard. The space

17:18

between your front door and the road. Yeah.

17:21

Your door yard. It started as a description

17:23

between the house and the barn.

17:26

The door from the house to the door to the barn.

17:29

That's your door yard. And it

17:32

evolved into just, it's the front

17:34

yard. Yeah. Door yard. I'll meet

17:36

you in the door yard. It

17:39

is falling out of use though. I don't hear it

17:41

as much as I used to. Sadly.

17:43

True. Meg writes, hi friends.

17:46

So I'm fucking off at work on

17:48

a sweltering Friday afternoon in West Central

17:50

Illinois. And I came across

17:52

a story map that is the

17:54

stuff of cats nightmares. I'm

17:57

a GIS specialist and I looked that

17:59

up. to make sure that I

18:01

understood what that meant. It's

18:03

a geological information systems

18:06

specialist. Oh, that sounds

18:09

cool. So looking at story

18:11

maps counts as work, right? It

18:13

puts the deepest part of the

18:15

ocean into terms that our measly

18:17

human brains can understand. Kat, don't

18:19

hate me for this. Okay. I

18:21

love you. Also, please shout

18:23

out to Ian, a former student worker

18:25

who turned me on to the podcast.

18:28

He is brilliant and obviously has great

18:30

taste in podcasts. We all miss him,

18:32

but are thrilled that he's doing great

18:35

since leaving us. And so

18:37

Story Map Link, I looked at it

18:40

and it kind of puts it

18:42

into perspective. The Mariana Trench, we all

18:44

know is the deepest

18:46

part of any ocean on

18:48

the planet earth. But within

18:50

the Mariana Trench, there was

18:52

something called Challenger

18:55

Deep. How deep is Challenger

18:57

Deep? About

19:00

seven miles or 35,000 plus

19:03

feet. Yeah.

19:06

You okay? Yeah, I'm fine. Okay, good.

19:08

Thanks Meg. There's also, I learned

19:11

about this not long ago and it

19:14

was too late and too close to

19:16

bedtime for me to be learning about

19:18

it. But once I found it, I

19:20

couldn't, you know, you know how that

19:22

is. Anyway, it's called the Cola Superdeep

19:24

Borehole. And

19:26

it's about 1300 meters deeper

19:30

than the Challenger Deep. It's around

19:33

12,262 meters. But

19:37

it's only nine inches wide, which

19:40

you'd think would make it less

19:42

terrifying, but it does not.

19:44

No, no, God no. Because you

19:46

get stuck so easily. Just stuck

19:48

right in there. Oh, you get

19:50

stuck. Last

19:53

week my friend went to New

19:55

Hampshire to the state park

19:57

there, what's it called? Laconia. cave

20:01

and it was called the belly scraper and I

20:04

was like do not go in there. No. You don't

20:06

go in there. You stuff it. At

20:09

least it wasn't filled with water. What? Ugh.

20:12

What? Yeah. Again,

20:14

Kat gets squeamish when she can't

20:16

get her sweater on without struggling.

20:18

She's a bit claustrophobic. I

20:21

remember one time I couldn't get my necklace unhooked.

20:24

It was just one of those round ones with

20:26

the little guy that slides. Yeah. Yeah. Oh,

20:30

I don't have a necklace anymore.

20:32

Bye. Bye. Kat and JG. This happened

20:34

to me during a camping trip in the Rocky Mountains. I was

20:36

hiking a

20:39

well-traveled trail when I noticed a man ahead

20:41

of me. He was dressed in old-fashioned clothing

20:45

like something out of the 19th century. That intrigued me

20:47

so I quickened my pace to catch

20:50

up with him as I got closer. He turned around and

20:52

he smiled at me. There was something unsettling

20:55

about his eyes though. They were

20:57

unusually bright and almost seemed to glow. He

21:01

spoke in a friendly manner and he

21:03

asked me about my journey and offered some advice about the

21:05

trails. Just as suddenly as he had appeared, he turned a corner and

21:08

vanished from

21:11

sight. When I rounded the same corner, he was

21:13

nowhere to be seen. I looked for any signs

21:17

of him but there were none. It was if he simply

21:19

disappeared into thin air. So I go

21:25

back to my campsite and I tell

21:27

my friends and they were of course

21:29

skeptical but I couldn't shake the feeling that

21:32

I had seen a ghost.

21:34

Later, I learned the area where I saw the

21:36

man had a history

21:39

of tragic events and disappearances dating

21:41

back for more than a century.

21:44

Which is a great opportunity for you if you

21:47

really enjoy dressing up in old-fashioned clothing

21:50

and diving into the bushes real quick. To

21:54

this day I wonder if I had a

21:56

brush with the past or it was something

21:59

else entirely. keep flying

22:01

that freak flag, Sarah. Virginia

22:03

writes, listening to the newest freak family favorites

22:06

regarding grave robbers in Baltimore.

22:09

I can't stop singing, let the bodies hit the

22:11

floor. Keep

22:14

up the freakiness. Love you guys, Virginia. We

22:16

love hearing from you guys and we

22:18

would love to hear from you if

22:20

you've not written yet. Curator

22:23

at the box of oddities.com. If

22:25

you've got a story and you want

22:27

to share it, you can, you know, send an email.

22:29

If you like, or even better,

22:32

record it on your phone and email us the audio.

22:35

Yes, please. Are we wrapping this up? Let's

22:37

wrap it up. Oh. Have a great

22:39

4th of July and we'll see you next time. Until then,

22:41

keep flying that freak flag. And fly it

22:43

proudly, you beautiful freak. And so, let

22:46

it be known that the box

22:48

of oddities belongs to you, and

22:50

its fate is in your hands. We

22:53

wish to offer our deeply felt

22:55

gratitude and appreciation for your patronage.

22:58

The box of oddities.com. Copyright

23:01

2024. All rights reserved. The

23:28

box of oddities. Is

23:58

a scientist. I am Molly and I'm a... science journalists,

24:00

and we talk to people smarter

24:02

than us, and we have fun along the way.

24:04

The show is called Big Picture Science, and as

24:06

Seth said, you can hear it wherever you get

24:08

your podcasts.