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[“Don’t Tell Me Your Major Theme” By Malena Ramnath]
Malena Ramnath: Hey guys! My name is Malena Ramnath.
Allison Rhee: I’m Allison.
Malena: And we are your hosts and freshmen here at Northwestern. This is Don’t Tell Me Your major, an interview podcast where we avoid getting to know people on the surface level, with questions like what their major is, where they’re from and stuff like that and just instead try to get to know them on a more profound level. That’s how you really know the kind of person someone is rather than judging them based on pre-established stereotypes. And so today’s podcast is being recorded on February 27th – hopefully released soon thereafter – and that means Valentine’s Day was a couple of weeks ago. Allison, did you have a date on Valentine’s Day?
Allison: Yes, I did actually.
Malena: Oooh. I, personally, did not, so that’s just kind of like, where we’re at, kinda two ends of the spectrum, right? And so, we’re just going to talk a little about love, and that’s the topic of our podcast today! instead of having a guest, we’re just going to kind of bounce around ideas about that. So Allison, do you believe in soulmates?
Allison: I don’t think that there’s just one soulmate out there for you. I think you can have multiple, just cause like, I feel yeah, I feel like relationships take work and just because someone’s your soulmate doesn't mean … you know what I mean? I feel like a soulmate is a cop out for like not wanting to put any effort into something. I just think, yeah, I think you can have multiple soulmates that fit you in different ways.
Malena: Yeah, my mom does say though - shoutout to my mom real quick – she always says that I should marry my best friend, y'know?
Allison: Oh yeah, my mom says that too.
Malena: And I think that what you’re kind of saying applies to that because to have a best friend – you can have best friends for different things. I definitely have –
Allison: Yeah
Malena: – like my guy best friend, I have my best friends from college, my best friends from high school, that kind of thing.
Allison: Yeah
Malena: And so you can have different people for different ways. But isn’t it crazy that like – how – are your parents still married?
Allison: Yeah
Malena: How long have they been together for?
Allison: Since, 1998 so – what is that? Like 22 years?
Malena: Like 22 years or something?
Allison: 21 and a half cause their anniversary is in June.
Malena: Yeah. My parents are going on 20 years. That’s crazy. Can you imagine spending that much time with someone?
Allison: No, that’s why I always say I don’t get it.
Malena: Yeah.
Allison: Like my cousin married her first boyfriend like a few months ago in August or something.
Malena: Did they break up in between? Was it like a oh!
Allison: No, no. They’ve been together for 10 years.
Malena: Oh my gosh.
Allison: They met their sophomore year of college. They were like a campus couple. She went to school somewhere near here. I forget where, but yeah, they’ve been together for like 10 years. First boyfriend.
Malena: Mhmm.
Allison: And, the thing is I asked her about it when I met him, I asked her about it. I was like how can you stand someone for – y'know, I was like 15 no, no, I was like 17 years old, but I was like how can you stand being with someone for so fucking long? And she was like in the end the butterflies and all that stuff like sort of fade a little bit, but what you’re left with is like a stable relationship and trust or whatever and I was like, oh. Couldn’t be me. Sounds fun.
Malena: Couldn’t be me. what’s your favorite – OK so in between all these like profound things I’m asking, what do you think your favorite rom com is? Or just romantic movies in general.
Allison: Oh! Before Sunrise.
Malena: What is that about, for those who don’t know.
Allison: It’s like – I forget, I think it’s in Vienna. So this American guy gets on a train.
Malena: It’s Ethan Hawke right?
Allison: Yes!
Malena: Ugh, love that guy.
Allison: Yes, so you know the movie?
Malena: Yes, I do, but for those who don’t.
Allison: Yeah, OK. So this American guy is on a train, and he’s on his way to Vienna, I believe, to catch a flight. And there’s this French girl on the train on her way to Paris. And she’s a student, she’s going back. And he’s coming back from I believe a bender after his girlfriend broke up with him. He went to Spain to see her, and she broke up with him. But then, she ends up sitting next to him on the train, u and they end up talking and he’s like, would it be crazy if I asked you to get off at Vienna with me? And she was like, would it be crazy if I actually did? So they get off together and, it’s basically they have one night, she gets on the next train back home, and he has to catch his flight, but they basically just spend the entire night roaming the streets of Vienna. They go to a bar, he gets his palm read and stuff like that and it’s just very – it’s like not dramatic y'know? There’s no climax, it’s just two hours of just very sweet conversation between the two of them. They don’t even like kiss until the middle of the movie, and then when they do it’s cute, you know it’s like – I think it’s in a ferris wheel or some kind of gondola or something like that. I don’t know it’s just cute, it’s like a lazy movie, yeah.
Malena: It’s wholesome, yeah. I mean it’s like a feel good thing, like you’re never really stressed about it y’know?
Allison: Yeah
Malena: I think my favorite romantic movie. Oh, that’s a tough one. I really loved Crazy, Stupid Love. Like -
Allison: Oh! That is such a good movie!
Malena: Oh, sorry I take it back though.
Allison: What?
Malena: So, Allison hasn’t – have you seen this movie? I recommended it to you it was one of the first –
Allison: The, the S –
Malena: Serendipity.
Allison: No, I have not watched it.
Malena: So, Serendipity is this really cute movie. Um, I’m a sucker for John Cusack movies, which are really old. You know the thing of for those young’uns out there of the guy holding the boombox over his head?
Allison: Say Anything?
Malena: Yeah, that’s John Cusack. So I’m a sucker for like any rom com with him in it.
Allison: Oh, so Serendipity is old?
Malena: Yeah, it’s 2001 and then so –
Allison: Oh
Malena: It’s John Cusack and Kate Beckinsale, the woman who dated Pete Davidson.
Allison: Oh, oh my God.
Malena: And it’s the two of them, and it’s basically like she’s in New York, and she meets this guy kind of like randomly too, like the Before –
Allison: Serendipitous.
Malena: Serendipitously, as it were. And she believes in fate, so she writes her name and number on the inside of a book
Allison: Oh! I heard this, and it’s like if you can find the book, then it’s meant to be.
Malena: Yeah, yeah. And he writes his name and number on a dollar and then they sell the book and they give the dollar to like a random person, and so then it’s whether they find their way back to each other or not.
Allison: Do they?
Malena: I don’t know, you’ll have to watch the movie and see! So yeah.
Allison: They probably do.
Malena: That’s my favorite romantic movie.
Allison: Oh, I like that.
Malena: OK, so we kept it light. Now, a little bit of a deeper one. Y’know?
Allison: Yeah.
Malena: Do you think that love at first sight is real?
Allison: I think I read this statistic once that said you can tell if you like someone within 4 minutes, seconds of meeting them or something like that. Four minutes maybe? I think, I think love at first sight – I would say it’s more like infatuation at first sight. But, I think it’s real, but it definitely is not the most stable grounds for a relationship. Like you know what I – y’know? Like cause I feel like if it’s love at first sight it’s very much driven by physical attraction, and I feel like while it’s a good opener, it’s not a good basis. I mean, I definitely feel like I’ve fallen in love at first sight. Yeah, but it’s not like love it’s like –
Malena: Yeah, it’s like.
Allison: Fuck, you’re really hot, and then like never mind.
Malena: Yeah like, oh my gosh, so hot mister mans. Please, I cannot think. but no I think yeah I don’t think I believe in love at first sight cause there’s no way you can truly know someone’s personality, y'know at first sight, and that’s honestly in my opinion what makes you really fall for them. But, this is something that slowly I think I’m like realizing more and more, is that if you’re ambiguous about someone. I mean obviously, if you don’t like someone or you don’t gel with them you, you never will, y’know? But, if you’re ambiguous about someone, the more time you spend with them, you will fall in love with them. I think. I agree with that.
Allison: But I have many people that I am - like I don’t particularly have strong opinions on them but I like, I’m kind of like oh, it would never really happen.
Malena: Yeah, OK. But, so, what do you think of Valentine’s Day as a whole institution? Do you think it’s cheesy? What would you want to get on Valentine’s Day? What are your views on it?
Allison: I … can you go first so I can think?
Malena: I always think it’s cheesy when I’m single on Valentine’s Day. No I think that y’know, it shouldn’t be like, the only day that you show love to someone a year for sure y'know?
Allison: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Malena: Like, it shouldn’t be like, oh it’s Valentine’s Day, time for me to pretend I love someone y'know?
Allison: Yeah.
Malena: But I definitely think that, yeah, you know what? It’s cute that humans as a collective have a day of love.
Allison: I mean I think that Valentine’s Day … I don’t really think about Valentine’s Day actually like, unless I like someone at the time. It’s just a day, it comes and it goes. If I do like someone then I’ll be thinking. No, I’ll wake up and be like, oh, it’s Valentine’s Day. And then I’ll be like "eh," y'know. I guess this year was a little bit different, but I mean, I think it’s cute.
Malena: Would you want to get flowers and chocolates on Valentine’s Day?
Allison: Yeah, I really would. I really like flowers. I like getting flowers.
Malena: Yeah? What’s your favorite kind of flower?
Allison: I like roses, I’m a basic bitch. OK, I like red roses, but I also really like white roses. And I like, hmmm.
Malena: I’m here for daisies, guys.
Allison: Oh, yeah.
Malena: Got to be hipster. Can’t be with these mainstream roses.
Allison: Yeah, I like red and white roses.
Malena: Yeah, and OK, our last question for the evening, got to end it on a positive note. What’s your favorite love song? Just a classic, guys.
Allison: Oh wait.
Malena: Do you need to think about this for a second?
Allison: I do.
Malena: Mmm, I think my favorite love song is “Daydreamer,” by Adele. Which is like, oh, you guys, I’m sorry I’m being so sappy today, but it’s like, it’s just a song about –
Allison: Wait, are we going sad love songs, or happy love songs?
Malena: Any love songs!
Allison: Can, can I give a recommendation in each category?
Malena: OK, yeah.
Allison: Ok, I would say .. . sad love song, “Peer Pressure” by James Bay and and fuck what is it called again, “The First Defeat” by Noah Gunderson. And then for upbeat love song, “I Love You So Bad” by LANY –
Malena: Oh, I love that song. I love that song.
Allison: Yeah. “I.F.L.Y” by Bazzi, and that song from To All the Boys 2 about love the – I don’t really know a lot about love, a lot about love …
Malena: We don’t know what that song is called but if you guys want –
Allison: Oh never mind. And “Lover” by Taylor Swift.
Malena: Yeah, I love the, I love the LANY song guys, you should definitely listen to it.
Allison: Yeah, “I Love You So Bad”. It’s such – everybody should go listen to it.
Malena: It’s just a cute song about loving someone.
Allison: Go sing it to your boyfriends/girlfriends right now.
Malena: Yes, and “Daydreamer” is just a song about this boy who’s just there for you ,and I really appreciate that, y'know?
Allison: “Daydreamer,” I’m gonna listen to that.
Malena: Definitely worth it. And OK guys so, this, today’s podcast was a little more low-key. Our last podcast was definitely full of energy, a lot of talking over each other and y'know big vibes, shoutout to Karthik’s presence on that one. But we just wanted to do a quiet, Valentine’s Day, it’s just post midterm season, if you guys wanted to hear a little bit about –
Allison: I still have a midterm.
Malena: Oh, gosh. So if you guys wanted to hear a little bit about love, y'know.
Allison: Our sad love lives.
Malena: Any of you guys out there, yeah I mean, not that we’re popping off but –
Allison: But, y'know we have opinions.
Malena: But, for everybody out there. We have opinions, if anybody cares to hear them. So, your local love gurus, signing off. Um, oh! Also, before we go –
Allison: XOXO
Malena: Before we go, in the description for this podcast, there should be a Google Form. We want to hear from you guys! So we want to hear if you have any questions you want to hear, any guests you want to hear from. And, if you have, we just want to hear the answers to the questions – your answers to the questions we’re asking y'know?
Allison: If you want to be featured –
Malena: Yeah!
Allison: Leave your name.
Malena: Leave your name, see if you want to be a guest, but also if you kinda want to just let us know what your favorite love song is. We’re always looking for recommendations.
Allison: Oui.
Malena: And on that note, this is Malena and
Allison: Allison!
Malena: And it’s been another great Don’t Tell Me Your Major episode from North By Northwestern Audio. Bye, guys!
[“Don’t Tell Me Your Major Theme” By Malena Ramnath]