WEBVTT - How Hanukkah Works

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<v Speaker 1>Brought to you by the reinvented two thousand twelve camera.

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<v Speaker 1>It's ready. Are you welcome to Stuff you Should Know

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<v Speaker 1>from housetof works dot com. Hey, and welcome to the podcast.

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<v Speaker 1>I'm Josh Clark with me as always as Charles W.

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<v Speaker 1>Chucker's Bryant MS Jackson. If you're nasty and that makes

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<v Speaker 1>this stuff you should know, hunt, Chuck. It's a nice

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<v Speaker 1>dated reference dated from like last week that was where's

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<v Speaker 1>the beef? No? Oh, you mean in the email? How

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<v Speaker 1>are you doing? I'm great? Are you psyched? You know

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<v Speaker 1>what today is? Ah? Yeah, pill it Today's the last

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<v Speaker 1>day of Hanka it is. It's a big day. It

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<v Speaker 1>is in the US. Yeah. The lighting of the we

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<v Speaker 1>won't spoil it. No, no, don't. There's a lighting of something.

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<v Speaker 1>That's some nice foreshadowing each other. Yeah. Um, Chuck and

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<v Speaker 1>I I request are doing a how Hanukkah Works episode.

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<v Speaker 1>I think last year we did How Christmas Works? Right, Yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>and I think we promised to cover other holidays of

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<v Speaker 1>other religions and people's Um, we were originally going to

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<v Speaker 1>release this right before Christmas, like two days before Christmas,

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<v Speaker 1>and um we figured out pretty quick through a research,

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<v Speaker 1>and by we, I mean Chuck that um, Haneka would

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<v Speaker 1>have been over for about three or so weeks had

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<v Speaker 1>we done that, And that kind of reveals a certain

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<v Speaker 1>mentality in the US among Christians, the Christian majority that

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<v Speaker 1>Hanika is Jewish Christmas. But Chuck, have you ever heard

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<v Speaker 1>of Hanakah Harry? I think so. You always say this

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<v Speaker 1>and I always say no, and they always go, oh, yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>I know, Harry. Haneka Harry is John Lovett's. It's a Saturday. Remember,

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<v Speaker 1>so Santa Is is vomiting. He has a horrible stomach

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<v Speaker 1>bug much like you. It every once in a while.

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<v Speaker 1>And um, I remember one of the elves is at

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<v Speaker 1>his bedside and he like throws up on the elf right.

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<v Speaker 1>He's got a pretty bad uh. And Christmas is about

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<v Speaker 1>to be ruined because this is Christmas Eve that he's

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<v Speaker 1>he's falling ill. So the only person who can save

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<v Speaker 1>it is Hanakah Harry. They call Honeka Harry who was

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<v Speaker 1>John Lovitts. And he's gott a nice beard and uh

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<v Speaker 1>he instead of a sleigh with reindeer, he rides a

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<v Speaker 1>cart led by flying donkeys name Moisha, Hoischel and Shlomo.

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<v Speaker 1>Remember that, Yeah, good h and Haneka Harry finally, you know,

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<v Speaker 1>he makes the rounds. But rather than the really great

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<v Speaker 1>presence that that you know, Christian children expect that Christmas,

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<v Speaker 1>they get socks eight pay can you believe it? And

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<v Speaker 1>um slacks and and that kind of thing, and they're

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<v Speaker 1>very disappointed. And sincefortunately Santa recovers comes down and saves

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<v Speaker 1>the day with really great presents. Right, that's funny. That

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<v Speaker 1>is Haneka in the United States. That's the that's the

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<v Speaker 1>conception of it um, which is to say that I'm

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<v Speaker 1>glad we did this because I really didn't understand hanakah. Yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>and you know what, I'm glad you brought that up because, uh,

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<v Speaker 1>for our Jewish friends out there. And by the way,

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<v Speaker 1>if I could choose to be a real you know, Jewish,

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<v Speaker 1>I probably would be. You can't, buddy, you convert the

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<v Speaker 1>goldberg Samy Davis, Jews are not the same, not born Jewish. Yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>it's just not the same. Because I studied in college

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<v Speaker 1>and with my comparative religion class, and I was I

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<v Speaker 1>remember at the time thinking that this is a religion

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<v Speaker 1>I can get into. Really yeah, I liked it. But

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<v Speaker 1>for those of you are Jewish friends, that are worried

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<v Speaker 1>that you know, we're just a couple of boys, and uh,

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<v Speaker 1>you probably think we're cornished. Heaf Why do you keep

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<v Speaker 1>looking town at the piece of paper. But I want

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<v Speaker 1>to say, don't plots honestly because we are a couple

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<v Speaker 1>of gys. But we were mentions as well, so no

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<v Speaker 1>need to worry. We will do right by you. Is

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<v Speaker 1>that what you were saying? I just like Yiddish words. Yeah.

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<v Speaker 1>And by the way, since I print these out, did

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<v Speaker 1>you know a schlemiel is a clumsy person and that

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<v Speaker 1>person and a schlamazel is someone with constant bad luck.

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<v Speaker 1>That sounds familiar. Schlamil schlamaz. That's aweso like two hours

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<v Speaker 1>spress that it's la Vernon Churley, right, Yeah, ones are Schlamila,

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<v Speaker 1>ones are Lamazel. That's awesome. So my dad told me

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<v Speaker 1>that before UM they showed that that show in Iran

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<v Speaker 1>and he said Iran specifically, and he told me this

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<v Speaker 1>in UM that they had to show a disclaimer that

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<v Speaker 1>these women were, you know, in a psychiatric hospital, and

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<v Speaker 1>that these these episodes were filmed before they've been committed.

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<v Speaker 1>And I was like, wow, that's really The Iranians really

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<v Speaker 1>don't have a very good sense of humor. Now I

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<v Speaker 1>understand that my dad is just insane. Well that sounds

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<v Speaker 1>like an urban legend, although who knows it might have

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<v Speaker 1>been true. What do we know. We're just a couple

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<v Speaker 1>of boys. So, Chuck, let's talk about Hanukah. One of

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<v Speaker 1>the things that I figured out, um, from researching this

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<v Speaker 1>is that it's not really a very important holiday as

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<v Speaker 1>far as the Jewish religion goes Jewish culture. Sure, no,

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<v Speaker 1>it's no rash hashana. Now, Hanakah means a dedication. Um.

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<v Speaker 1>It is basically the well, it's the festival of lights

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<v Speaker 1>and uh. It commemorates the rededication of the temple in

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<v Speaker 1>Jerusalem that was that fell and was recaptured by the Jews.

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<v Speaker 1>Let's talk about Jerusalem circa one sixties seven b c. Chuck,

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<v Speaker 1>Josh Syrian King Antiochus the Fourth, who was no slouch. Well,

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<v Speaker 1>he's our bad guy in this story. He's a bad guy.

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<v Speaker 1>He uh. You know, at the time there was a

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<v Speaker 1>lot of Jewish persecution and he was one of the

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<v Speaker 1>big dudes involved in that. Well, he showed up in

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<v Speaker 1>Jerusalem and he said it was like, I can't practice

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<v Speaker 1>your religion like you want to you will be killed,

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<v Speaker 1>and here's some Greek idols and you should worship them,

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<v Speaker 1>and that's what you're gonna do now, right, um, some

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<v Speaker 1>Jews went along with us. They're like, that's fine. This

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<v Speaker 1>just makes us less cut off and isolated and world.

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<v Speaker 1>It makes us more worldly, so we'll do this. I

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<v Speaker 1>don't know about fine with it, but there well, there

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<v Speaker 1>was a fraction apparently in the Jewish community at the time,

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<v Speaker 1>because some went along. It's very much like the the

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<v Speaker 1>American Revolution. There were some who sympathized with the king,

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<v Speaker 1>who were loyal to the crown still, and there were

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<v Speaker 1>others who were like, well, we'll tar and feather you

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<v Speaker 1>for that. This Hanuka is about the group that would

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<v Speaker 1>have tart and feathered the loyalists. Yes, specifically that started

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<v Speaker 1>with a family, just one family, the Hasimonians, led by

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<v Speaker 1>Mattayahu also known as Matthew and his five sons, who

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<v Speaker 1>must have been some pretty bad dudes because they took

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<v Speaker 1>a stand and sort of one like right off the

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<v Speaker 1>bat right well, there was apparently a an incident where

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<v Speaker 1>Matthew was told to go ahead and start praying to Zeus.

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<v Speaker 1>There's a statue right there it's a nice marble statue.

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<v Speaker 1>Go ahead, And he said no, and not only that,

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<v Speaker 1>I'm going to attack you Greek soldiers. And he did,

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<v Speaker 1>and uh that started the Jewish Rebellion of one sixty

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<v Speaker 1>seven b C in a good way. It well if

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<v Speaker 1>they were pretty successful early on, right the family the

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<v Speaker 1>hasmoneans yeah, yeah, oh, I think they they this guy

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<v Speaker 1>and his five sons who led the rebellion became Yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>I think they were successful. But the most successful among

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<v Speaker 1>them was Judah, who by this time they had changed

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<v Speaker 1>their names to mccabee, which means uh as strong as hammers,

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<v Speaker 1>men who are as strong as hammers. That's that's basically.

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<v Speaker 1>His son changed his name to Judah the Hammer, and

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<v Speaker 1>he was the head of the Jewish rebellion. So the

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<v Speaker 1>whole thing kicks off in one sixty seven BC. By

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<v Speaker 1>one sixty five b C, apparently they have been successful

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<v Speaker 1>enough because over the two years, remember we're talking BC,

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<v Speaker 1>so it goes backwards, it counts down to zero. You remember,

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<v Speaker 1>I do remember um they had recaptured the temple in

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<v Speaker 1>Jerusalem right on the twenty five of the Hebrew month

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<v Speaker 1>Kiss left, which is Kiss left five, and that's they

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<v Speaker 1>chased the crazy bald heads out of town. It's very

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<v Speaker 1>important date because that's the start of hank Yeah, kids love,

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<v Speaker 1>I think the kids love. Yeah. Yeah, that's the twenty

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<v Speaker 1>day of that count of that month of the Hebrew calendar.

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<v Speaker 1>I think we can think of even one more way

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<v Speaker 1>to say that. Let's hear the day after kids live,

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<v Speaker 1>before kids live. So, chuck, what did they do on

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<v Speaker 1>the kids live? Well, they took the temple back and

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<v Speaker 1>they said, you know, we need to rededicate the temple

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<v Speaker 1>because it's dirty from all these uh Greek worshiping pagans,

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<v Speaker 1>well private pagans, people's, and so let's redicate it and

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<v Speaker 1>let's light a lamp with the oil. But holy cow,

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<v Speaker 1>we don't have enough oil. We only have enough for

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<v Speaker 1>one night. Yeah, what are we gonna do? Well? Lo,

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<v Speaker 1>and behold, you've heard of Christmas miracles. This is the

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<v Speaker 1>first Hanaka miracle, as it was because that one night

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<v Speaker 1>of oil lasted for eight nights. It did, and that

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<v Speaker 1>is indeed a miracle. It gave the Jewish rebellion chance

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<v Speaker 1>to make more oil, so they didn't actually ever run out, right.

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<v Speaker 1>So that's what this says. This is the commemoration of

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<v Speaker 1>that miracle of the rededication of the temple. And it

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<v Speaker 1>lasts eight nights, the eight nights of Hanukkah, eight crazy nights.

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<v Speaker 1>So it's not Jewish Christmas. But it has become that

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<v Speaker 1>demo isn't Mexican. Fourth of July. I love that the

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<v Speaker 1>American purviews through everything. I like. Recall you referring to

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<v Speaker 1>Canada as America's hat recently on our Facebook page. The

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<v Speaker 1>only reason I did that, it's because the Canadian introduced

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<v Speaker 1>me to that term, and I really found it very funny.

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<v Speaker 1>It is funny. I guess what would that make Mexico

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<v Speaker 1>our shirt? I would say it's our foot or shoe.

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<v Speaker 1>Are well, if the hat is Canada, that would make

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<v Speaker 1>mexicorn neck. So no, that's not necessarily true. So chuck um,

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<v Speaker 1>as you said, it's it's not Jewish Christmas, it's the

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<v Speaker 1>festival of Lights. It's commend m rates Jewish culture, right, um.

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<v Speaker 1>And let's talk about the practical applications of this. How

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<v Speaker 1>do you celebrate Hanukkah or Hanuka? Well, as most people know, Josh,

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<v Speaker 1>even a couple of boys like us know that there's

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<v Speaker 1>a menora holds nine candles, eight that represent the eight nights.

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<v Speaker 1>And then there's the shamash, which is the candle you

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<v Speaker 1>used to light the other candles. You would make a

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<v Speaker 1>good converted jew man. You got the you get the

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<v Speaker 1>pronunciation down, the enthusiasm, everything I'm trying. So what you

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<v Speaker 1>do is you inserts very specific You insert the candles

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<v Speaker 1>from right to left, one for each day for which miracle.

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<v Speaker 1>You insert them from right to left, right, but you

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<v Speaker 1>light them from left to right. Yeah, so the leftmost

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<v Speaker 1>candle represents the most recent day that the oil kept burning.

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<v Speaker 1>And by by lighting the leftmost candle first, they're saying,

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<v Speaker 1>we're very pleased with this most recent day of miracle. Yeah. Perfect. Uh,

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<v Speaker 1>they need to burn for it. You need to light

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<v Speaker 1>them after it gets dark. They need to burn for

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<v Speaker 1>at least a half hour after it gets dark, which

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<v Speaker 1>presents a problem on shop it, because lighting a candle

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<v Speaker 1>is work and you're not allowed to work after the

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<v Speaker 1>sun goes down. And shop it. What do they do

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<v Speaker 1>shop it? They light it before the sun goes down,

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<v Speaker 1>but it sells to burn thirty minutes after, so they

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<v Speaker 1>got a time in out just right? The candle work? Well, yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>I think anything, but not necessarily because you're gonna exhale anyway, right,

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<v Speaker 1>you weren't going to light a candle and exhaling near

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<v Speaker 1>the candle. Well, they do blow them out, so yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>well I guess it's not work. Yeah, a heavy sigh uh.

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<v Speaker 1>And then there are some blessings. And then on the

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<v Speaker 1>first night you recite all three of these blessings. You're

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<v Speaker 1>gonna try your hand at this, and on each subsequent

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<v Speaker 1>night you only do the first two. This is a

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<v Speaker 1>blessing for the candles, for the Hanukah, and for thee So, Chuck,

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<v Speaker 1>since you are so good at Hebrew and or Yiddish pronunciation,

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<v Speaker 1>I think you should try these and then I will

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<v Speaker 1>translate after you've made it through each one. So go ahead, please.

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<v Speaker 1>This is the blessing for the candles, as presented by

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<v Speaker 1>Charles W. Chuck Bryant Butcher. This melam a cherki dashah

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<v Speaker 1>new themts votaf the svanu led had licknair shell very nice, beautiful.

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<v Speaker 1>What Chuck just said to those of you, um who

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<v Speaker 1>didn't get it is blessed are you, Lord, our God,

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<v Speaker 1>King of the universe, who has sanctified us with his

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<v Speaker 1>commandments and commanded us to light the candles of Hanukah,

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<v Speaker 1>or once you do this one, and already you're just

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<v Speaker 1>doing so well at it, let's do it again. This

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<v Speaker 1>is the blessing for Hanukah. So you say the first one,

0:13:00.040 --> 0:13:02.800
<v Speaker 1>you say the second one on each night, and then

0:13:02.880 --> 0:13:04.520
<v Speaker 1>on the first night you say this third one that

0:13:04.800 --> 0:13:07.040
<v Speaker 1>you're going to do as well. So do the second one, Chuck,

0:13:07.080 --> 0:13:14.840
<v Speaker 1>the blessing for hanaka bar don't i olam shiasa, nissam

0:13:15.840 --> 0:13:24.200
<v Speaker 1>labatai new ba yah mimima jase very nice, blessed are you?

0:13:25.200 --> 0:13:30.439
<v Speaker 1>I'm sorry you're trouble the English version? Are you kidding me? Blessed?

0:13:30.440 --> 0:13:32.680
<v Speaker 1>Are you Lord, our God, king of the universe, who

0:13:32.679 --> 0:13:36.280
<v Speaker 1>performed miracles for our ancestors in those days at this time?

0:13:36.360 --> 0:13:40.319
<v Speaker 1>Pretty straightforward stuff. Uh. And then the last one, this

0:13:40.520 --> 0:13:48.679
<v Speaker 1>said the first night only it's the shek Yahnu. Yeah, okay,

0:13:48.880 --> 0:13:52.800
<v Speaker 1>and uh, this is the first night blessing. So go ahead, Chuck, Bara,

0:13:53.200 --> 0:14:02.319
<v Speaker 1>I don't ila newam new viki, I'm a new vernew

0:14:02.400 --> 0:14:07.320
<v Speaker 1>lasman Jose. Okay. So Chuck just finished the full blessings,

0:14:07.360 --> 0:14:09.839
<v Speaker 1>all three of those of what he just said would

0:14:09.840 --> 0:14:11.600
<v Speaker 1>be said on the first night, and then the first

0:14:11.640 --> 0:14:15.400
<v Speaker 1>two would be said on each night after that. And

0:14:15.440 --> 0:14:17.600
<v Speaker 1>what he just said is, blessed are you Lord, our god,

0:14:17.720 --> 0:14:20.480
<v Speaker 1>king of the universe, who has kept us alive, sustained us,

0:14:20.680 --> 0:14:24.600
<v Speaker 1>and enabled us to reach this season. And that's that's hanka.

0:14:24.840 --> 0:14:28.160
<v Speaker 1>Every night you light a candle, you say the blessing,

0:14:28.720 --> 0:14:33.120
<v Speaker 1>and you spin the draidal, don't you. Yeah? You also

0:14:33.360 --> 0:14:37.880
<v Speaker 1>u sing songs, traditional songs, you recite psalms. You want

0:14:37.880 --> 0:14:40.480
<v Speaker 1>to talk about the dredel. And then there are games

0:14:40.520 --> 0:14:43.000
<v Speaker 1>like the draid So the draidl is that top that

0:14:43.040 --> 0:14:47.000
<v Speaker 1>you've always seen and dradell actually is German for to spin, right,

0:14:48.400 --> 0:14:51.960
<v Speaker 1>is it? I believe? So on each side is a

0:14:52.040 --> 0:14:56.640
<v Speaker 1>Jewish character. There are four characters, none, Gimmel, hey, and

0:14:56.680 --> 0:15:00.400
<v Speaker 1>shin right, And they're actually the abbreviations for or a

0:15:00.480 --> 0:15:04.480
<v Speaker 1>phrase nest guttal hya sham or a great miracle took

0:15:04.520 --> 0:15:10.400
<v Speaker 1>place here right um. They're also German Yiddish for uh, nick, goot,

0:15:10.800 --> 0:15:15.760
<v Speaker 1>hobb and schlecht, which is um, no good, half and bad,

0:15:15.800 --> 0:15:19.280
<v Speaker 1>And they refer to the possible outcomes for playing the draidl. Yes,

0:15:19.560 --> 0:15:22.320
<v Speaker 1>you spend the draidal and you get good, you win

0:15:22.400 --> 0:15:25.920
<v Speaker 1>all everything's in the pot. What do you mean by everything, Well,

0:15:26.240 --> 0:15:29.480
<v Speaker 1>guilt is usually what's in the pot. Uh, So that

0:15:29.600 --> 0:15:31.360
<v Speaker 1>the reason they spend. You know, there's some history here.

0:15:31.400 --> 0:15:35.120
<v Speaker 1>The draidl was what they used to fool people into

0:15:35.120 --> 0:15:37.480
<v Speaker 1>thinking they weren't practicing the religion. Right, So they shooting

0:15:37.480 --> 0:15:39.640
<v Speaker 1>around reading the Torah. Some dudes come up and like

0:15:39.760 --> 0:15:42.120
<v Speaker 1>what are you doing. They're like, we're just spending the draydle, dude.

0:15:43.040 --> 0:15:46.520
<v Speaker 1>And then the Greek soldiers, like those Jewish people in

0:15:46.560 --> 0:15:49.480
<v Speaker 1>their dradels, they love this. They take their guilt it.

0:15:50.880 --> 0:15:53.520
<v Speaker 1>So that's the dreidl. It is. It's a gambling game.

0:15:53.920 --> 0:15:56.840
<v Speaker 1>It is sort of four kids. No, you're not really gambling.

0:15:58.040 --> 0:16:01.360
<v Speaker 1>This gambling implies that you're putting money down for it

0:16:01.400 --> 0:16:03.440
<v Speaker 1>to come up on a certain thing, and you're just

0:16:03.600 --> 0:16:06.440
<v Speaker 1>from what I know, you spend it and depending on

0:16:06.480 --> 0:16:09.040
<v Speaker 1>what it comes up as you get money or nothing.

0:16:09.240 --> 0:16:14.240
<v Speaker 1>That's gambling. It's gamle. Putting money on on chance is gambling? No, no, no,

0:16:14.280 --> 0:16:16.560
<v Speaker 1>But what they're not. They're not saying I'm putting twenty

0:16:16.600 --> 0:16:20.480
<v Speaker 1>on gimmel. No, but you're just putting money on a

0:16:20.600 --> 0:16:25.520
<v Speaker 1>possible outcome. It's gambling. All right, so we've got the guilt.

0:16:25.720 --> 0:16:27.120
<v Speaker 1>I bet you were going to hear from people to

0:16:27.160 --> 0:16:32.040
<v Speaker 1>say it is never gambling, that's gambling. Okay, uh is guilt.

0:16:32.440 --> 0:16:35.240
<v Speaker 1>We've got gelt, we've got the dradell, and we can't

0:16:35.240 --> 0:16:39.320
<v Speaker 1>forget the food, chuck um. Because the oil factors in

0:16:39.400 --> 0:16:44.760
<v Speaker 1>so heavily into the celebration, the Festival of lights Um.

0:16:45.640 --> 0:16:49.080
<v Speaker 1>The food is generally cooked in oil, and it's also

0:16:49.200 --> 0:16:55.400
<v Speaker 1>generally delicious. Potato pancakes. It's basically shredded potatoes held together

0:16:55.440 --> 0:16:58.040
<v Speaker 1>with eggs and milk and deep fried. This is like

0:16:58.080 --> 0:17:03.560
<v Speaker 1>the greatest Holly Day ever. Deep deep fried food. Yeah,

0:17:03.800 --> 0:17:06.119
<v Speaker 1>as part of the holiday is awesome. Well you know

0:17:06.160 --> 0:17:09.480
<v Speaker 1>what they say, Josh, best are in frient mitt gets

0:17:09.880 --> 0:17:14.879
<v Speaker 1>at a un crix. It's a better one friend with

0:17:14.920 --> 0:17:18.480
<v Speaker 1>a dish of food than a hundred with a sigh. Yeah.

0:17:18.560 --> 0:17:21.480
<v Speaker 1>Truer words have never been spoken and checked. There's also

0:17:22.119 --> 0:17:25.280
<v Speaker 1>what is where do the jelly donuts called uh self

0:17:25.359 --> 0:17:29.520
<v Speaker 1>kanyat does sound delicious as well? They're just fried jelly

0:17:29.560 --> 0:17:33.440
<v Speaker 1>donuts fried in oil and then with powdered sugar all

0:17:33.440 --> 0:17:35.200
<v Speaker 1>over them. Well, yeah, they say they fry a lot

0:17:35.200 --> 0:17:37.080
<v Speaker 1>of this stuff in oil because oil was such a

0:17:37.080 --> 0:17:41.399
<v Speaker 1>big deal for the miracle. I think they do it

0:17:41.400 --> 0:17:45.080
<v Speaker 1>because it just tastes better. It's delicious, nutritious. Well, there

0:17:45.080 --> 0:17:49.119
<v Speaker 1>you have it. There we have it. It's it's a

0:17:49.119 --> 0:17:51.960
<v Speaker 1>lot more simple than I thought. Very simple. Not to

0:17:51.960 --> 0:17:54.080
<v Speaker 1>say that's a bad thing. Christmas is pretty simple too.

0:17:54.119 --> 0:17:57.400
<v Speaker 1>There's jelly donuts and lacus. I'll take it. So what's

0:17:57.440 --> 0:18:03.840
<v Speaker 1>next year? I was thinking Kwanza? What else is there? Um? Ramadan?

0:18:04.800 --> 0:18:08.199
<v Speaker 1>It's not Christmas, but it's pretty holy holiday, isn't it.

0:18:09.000 --> 0:18:10.639
<v Speaker 1>It's cover all the holidays. They don't have to be

0:18:10.920 --> 0:18:15.120
<v Speaker 1>December December. I think that's a good idea. Well, then

0:18:15.160 --> 0:18:19.040
<v Speaker 1>for next year we'll do I don't know, maybe we'll

0:18:19.040 --> 0:18:21.760
<v Speaker 1>do center clause. Did we talk about We talked about

0:18:21.840 --> 0:18:24.440
<v Speaker 1>him a lot in the Christmas one D Yeah, we'll

0:18:24.480 --> 0:18:26.880
<v Speaker 1>figure it out. Yeah, we have a year. Who we're

0:18:26.880 --> 0:18:28.800
<v Speaker 1>planning this thing out like years in advance. Now that's

0:18:29.359 --> 0:18:32.640
<v Speaker 1>that's dangerous. Well, until next year, we hope that you

0:18:33.080 --> 0:18:36.520
<v Speaker 1>keep listening. We hope that you have a fantastic that

0:18:36.560 --> 0:18:40.440
<v Speaker 1>you've had a fantastic Hanka to our Jewish friends and listeners,

0:18:40.880 --> 0:18:45.280
<v Speaker 1>um for our Christian friends and listeners and are Jewish

0:18:45.280 --> 0:18:52.800
<v Speaker 1>friends and listeners who practice Christmas Um. Happy Holidays, Happy Holidays. Uh.

0:18:52.800 --> 0:18:55.280
<v Speaker 1>And if you want to learn more about Hanukkah, you

0:18:55.320 --> 0:18:58.560
<v Speaker 1>can type that word in We spell it on How

0:18:58.600 --> 0:19:03.680
<v Speaker 1>Stuff Works as H A and U K k A H.

0:19:03.920 --> 0:19:06.120
<v Speaker 1>Type thing into the handy search bar how Stuff Works

0:19:06.160 --> 0:19:09.159
<v Speaker 1>dot com UH, and that means now it's time for

0:19:09.480 --> 0:19:16.240
<v Speaker 1>listener mail. Josh, I'm gonna call this one Medieval Times email.

0:19:16.720 --> 0:19:19.080
<v Speaker 1>I got permission to read this to UH. This is

0:19:19.119 --> 0:19:21.840
<v Speaker 1>from Gerald in Boston, although I believe he said he

0:19:21.880 --> 0:19:25.600
<v Speaker 1>was from Texas. Gerald says this interestingly, Guys, my first

0:19:25.680 --> 0:19:29.120
<v Speaker 1>job after college was the Master of Ceremonies, also known

0:19:29.119 --> 0:19:32.199
<v Speaker 1>as the King's Chancellor at Minipal times. That was the

0:19:32.280 --> 0:19:36.359
<v Speaker 1>role Andy Dick played in the cable guy Us The

0:19:36.400 --> 0:19:40.359
<v Speaker 1>Master's Ceremonies. I wrote A Very Large and Delusion Horse

0:19:40.920 --> 0:19:43.080
<v Speaker 1>or a Velvet and sequen Cape, and introduced all the

0:19:43.240 --> 0:19:46.800
<v Speaker 1>nights and narrated much of the action of the show. Supposedly,

0:19:46.880 --> 0:19:49.600
<v Speaker 1>our show was set in Spain in the eleventh century.

0:19:50.840 --> 0:19:53.480
<v Speaker 1>One of the more embarrassing aspects of the job was

0:19:53.520 --> 0:19:57.080
<v Speaker 1>the occasional educational matinee that we put on for large

0:19:57.080 --> 0:20:00.560
<v Speaker 1>groups of students. The show was not researched at all

0:20:01.040 --> 0:20:03.359
<v Speaker 1>and was written by someone who didn't have a background

0:20:03.359 --> 0:20:07.359
<v Speaker 1>in the entertainment industry, let alone any knowledge of history whatsoever.

0:20:07.880 --> 0:20:10.640
<v Speaker 1>Among this is like a restaurant employee writing this. Basically,

0:20:11.240 --> 0:20:14.439
<v Speaker 1>among the ridiculous facts quote unquote we were required to

0:20:14.480 --> 0:20:17.400
<v Speaker 1>present was that the night sword weighed fifty pounds, their

0:20:17.480 --> 0:20:23.639
<v Speaker 1>armor weighed three hundred pounds. Despite such misinformation, we couldn't

0:20:23.640 --> 0:20:25.639
<v Speaker 1>do much about our show being written by someone who

0:20:25.720 --> 0:20:29.040
<v Speaker 1>just made things up. The perils of a working stiff anyway,

0:20:29.080 --> 0:20:30.760
<v Speaker 1>you might want to mention not to pay too much

0:20:30.760 --> 0:20:34.240
<v Speaker 1>attention to the information presented by a caped man on

0:20:34.320 --> 0:20:37.399
<v Speaker 1>horseback and what is basically a rodeo arena with a

0:20:37.440 --> 0:20:41.359
<v Speaker 1>medieval decor scheme and fancy lights. It was interesting work,

0:20:41.440 --> 0:20:43.040
<v Speaker 1>although it was one of the worst jobs I've ever

0:20:43.080 --> 0:20:46.240
<v Speaker 1>had in terms of hours, pay and lack of benefits. Oh,

0:20:46.240 --> 0:20:50.840
<v Speaker 1>how Knighthood has fallen? Killer show dudes, Gerald, I hear

0:20:50.880 --> 0:20:53.719
<v Speaker 1>the chickens good. I don't know. I've never been there.

0:20:53.760 --> 0:20:55.840
<v Speaker 1>I haven't either. We should totally go some time just

0:20:55.920 --> 0:21:00.960
<v Speaker 1>for laughs. Okay, in history, okay, and yeah, fifty pound

0:21:00.960 --> 0:21:05.240
<v Speaker 1>swords and three und sits of our Thanks Gerald, how

0:21:05.280 --> 0:21:08.600
<v Speaker 1>about your worst job? Let's hear about that. Yeah, I've

0:21:08.600 --> 0:21:11.440
<v Speaker 1>had good jobs. I can't talk about my horse, John

0:21:11.680 --> 0:21:14.040
<v Speaker 1>don't air well. That means that we need to hear

0:21:14.080 --> 0:21:16.840
<v Speaker 1>from all of you listeners to fill in for Chuck.

0:21:16.920 --> 0:21:18.640
<v Speaker 1>Fill in the blanks to see if you can guess

0:21:18.680 --> 0:21:21.720
<v Speaker 1>what Chuck's works job was. He'll probably never actually say,

0:21:22.119 --> 0:21:24.560
<v Speaker 1>but let's see what you got. Wrap it up sending

0:21:24.600 --> 0:21:28.920
<v Speaker 1>in an email to Stuff podcast at how stuff works

0:21:29.000 --> 0:21:35.240
<v Speaker 1>dot com. For more on this and thousands of other topics.

0:21:35.400 --> 0:21:37.479
<v Speaker 1>Is it how stuff works dot com. To learn more

0:21:37.520 --> 0:21:40.320
<v Speaker 1>about the podcast, click on the podcast icon in the

0:21:40.400 --> 0:21:43.440
<v Speaker 1>upper right corner of our homepage. The How Stuff Works

0:21:43.520 --> 0:21:49.960
<v Speaker 1>iPhone app has arrived. Download it today on iTunes, Brought

0:21:50.000 --> 0:21:53.159
<v Speaker 1>to you by the reinvented two thousand twelve Camray. It's ready,

0:21:53.359 --> 0:21:53.840
<v Speaker 1>are you