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From.

Wundry and Dr. Sue, broadcasting all the way from Mount Crubbit Studios, let's hope the equipment stays dry, Tiz the Grinch holiday talk show. This week's special guest, Olympic gold medalist, Sean Johnson-East, and, of course, Max the Dog. But first, he's greener than a Tesla parked outside of Greta Thunberg's house and more bitter than a school bus full of sour gummy worms. Here he is, your host, love... The Rich. Welcome to.

The Grinch. Welcome to The Grinch Show. Why is there a Grinch show? Well, because if you steal Christmas, even if you end up joining in on the festivities at the end, you have to pay the price. This is my community service. It's the brainchild of the Hooverville Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Based on how much I want to be here, they came up with a pretty good punishment. They think it will help improve my interpersonal skills to schmooze it up with the cells. But guess what? I'm not interested in celabs and I refuse to talk to them.

Really? You not interested in celebrities.

I forgot you had a microphone. Everybody, this is my court-ordered kid producer, 12-year-old Cindy Lou Who. You might remember as the little tattle tale that sold me out to the whole town of Hooville about my little Christmas practical joke.

Sorry to interrupt, but you did try to steal Christmas.

Cindy Lou Who, ladies and gentlemen. Apparently, they don't have child labor laws in Hooville. Okay, fine, I'll talk to celebrates, but good luck buttering me up, beautiful people. I'm The Grinch, the Grand Pouba of Bahamba. A man who looks at the oncoming Christmas season like someone tied to train tracks would look at an oncoming train with razor blades for wheels. But look, I'm not a bad guy. For instance, kids, I'm going to take your side on something.

Hold onto your seats. Keep on your pants. The Grinch is going on one of his rants.

I sure am. Parents are putting you to bed too early. In downtown Hooverville, I overheard a family who apparently has a bedtime for their eleven-year-old son of 9:00 PM. 9:00 PM. That's like late afternoon. 9:00 PM? Let me tell you something. Your parents.

Not prison guards. It's not fair.

Don't get me wrong, kids, for the most part, I think of you as feral.

Fiendish foes, rambunctious.

Revolting.

Rugrat, reprobates. But on this bedtime issue.

I'm with you.

What is with your parents? Pj's on in 10 minutes. Be in bed by 9:00, brush your teeth by 8:00, no sweets after 7:00.

What is this? The military? How are kids going to learn to take care of themselves when they're older if all you do is boss them around like some crazy gym teacher? How are they supposed to sleep with the PTSD of having you as a parent? I say let kids go to bed when they want. Let them develop their own sleeping habits. Banishing them to their beds when they aren't tired just guarantees they'll lie in bed staring at the ceiling. Have you seen a ceiling recently? Pretty boring. I can't stand lying in bed awake at night when I can't sleep, especially since I've seen every episode of Elf Fights on YouTube. Kids, stay up as late as you want. Except for you, Cindy Loo-hoo, on Christmas Eve, you don't need to know what's going on in your house at that time.

Ha-ha! Good one, Mr. Grinch. But actually, what you're telling our listeners isn't exactly the best advice. Okay, here we go. According to the American Academy of Sleep Science, kids in the age group you're referring to need between 9 to 12 hours of sleep each night.

Good thing the fun police are here. Point taken, Cindy Lou. Boo. But parents, just I don't know, turn it down a notch over the bedtime thing. All your rules are giving kids nightmares. Speaking of nightmares, I know we just got through Halloween, but I need to warn you, Christmas is not that far away. It's snaking up on us like it always does, like a green and red plague.

But this year I thought to myself, Why not do something for the Christmas season? Why not channel my.

Grumpiness into something productive this year instead of spending all my energy devising another one of my genius schemes to sow chaos in the town of Hooville? Or at least that's what my therapist, Dr. Terry, told me.

To do. So here's what I did.

I built my very own Grinch advent calendar. Look at this thing. It's monstrously beautiful.

Wow, Grinch. Good for you. That's incredible.

It sure is, Cindy Lou. Listeners, you hear that? My creation, it's huge. Imagine, if you will, a giant bureau or a hudge. It's almost seven feet tall, made of the finest cedar, painted green, of course, and it has 10 little cabinet doors behind, which are special holiday gifts, one for each show leading up to Christmas.

You know, Mr. Grinch, I have to say, I am genuinely impressed. This is very nice of you.

Pull your jets, Cindy Lou Sunshine.

Now let's open up the first little window in the Grinch.

Admin calendar. Here we go.

Okay, it's sent in a envelope with two tickets to see Owen the ornament eater at the Hoover Hill Forum. Oh, this guy. Okay, what he does. He asks ahead of time that you steal an ornament or three off any Christmas tree you see, and he promises to eat all of them during his live show where he tells tales of Christmases gone bad. It's the best. Any ornament: glass, metal, wood, what have you, bring him and he'll eat them up.

Is there any truth to the rumor that Owen, the ornament eater, is just you in a blonde wig?

No, that's nonsense. I don't.

Know, he looks like you and he's clearly green in the promo photo. Why don't.

We take a break?

It is you, isn't it?

You're a mean one, Mr. Grinch. You really are a heal. You're as.

Cuddly as a cactus.

You're as charming as an eagle. Mr.

Grinch.

You're a bad banana with a greasy black pill. Get ready to be wowed by a real talent of mine. It's time for Name That Sound. You were supposed to join in with me. Okay, well, everybody, okey-dokey now. It's time to.

Have a little bit of fun.

Granted, my idea of fun is pulling the fire alarm at the Hooverville Community Center during Old People aerobics, but today we're going to make it a little more family-friendly.

And since this is a podcast.

I think it's time to have a little fun with the medium. It's time for a game I've created called Altogether Now. Name that sound. All right, here we go.

Here's the first one.

Well, from listening to that horrifying assemblage of sounds, that's clearly a Black Friday down at who, Mart.

Because nothing says Christmas season quite.

Like ramming a grandma's shopping cart out of the way so you can get the last hootooth enabled waffle maker.

Okay, next.

Sound, roll it. Oh, no. What? No. Oh, this one's easy. Obviously, that is Santa Claus after 30 seconds on a treadmill.

You know what's a.

Great idea? Doing heavy aerobic exercise covered.

Head to toe in felt. What is this guy thinking? We need to get you some ho-ho, Lemon, Santa. Okay, roll the next.

Sound, please.

All right, that one is me.

Trying to wrap a present with less than 35 different pieces of Scotch tape. That's why I don't do presents, okay?

You know, I have to say, Mr. Grinch, despite yelling at me a couple of minutes ago, you're turning a new leaf here. You're having fun. You're loosening up. You're positive and upbeat.

Oh, you think that this is me having fun, Cindy Loohoo? Yeah. That is the single most insulting thing anyone has ever said to me. I love it. Moving on. On. Here we go. Next sound.

Oh, yeah, that's good.

Music to my ears. That, of course, is me settling in to a nice eggnog hot tub. Now people say eggnog is gross that it's both soupy and brackish and also hot and sticky and gooey. And I say, give me more. I love eggnog. Did you know this, Cindy Luhu? Eggnog is a natural exfoliant. I did not know that. The deeper you rub into your fur, you can really loosen up all of the tingles and the mice that live in there and the microorganisms and.

The.

Dust and the sand and the broken glass and the oil. It's like nature's Hootragena. I love being in the eggnog tub just all night getting even more wrinkled, even more bloated and gross. It's good for me.

Okay, next sound. Let's hear it.

Oh, that one's easy. That's me when I see two people kiss under the mistletoe. Makes me want to... You know what I mean? When nothing comes out, but you still make the sound? Oh, yeah. That's what mistleto does to me. You do that a lot. Plus it reaks. You ever stuck your nose in a mistletoe and took a big sniff?

Well, that's not what it's for.

Then why are we bringing greenery into the house if we're not going to sniff it?

You don't like a little decor? A little outside, inside?

No, I don't. You just bring these things in and they slowly die in front of you and you go, I guess that's the spirit of Christmas zipping away. Oh, you know what? Actually, now that I think about it, there's something really lovely about that. Bringing greenery into your house for Christmas and then it dies right in front of you? I like the sound of that. All right, and last but not least. Attention! Stop singing, Carol! Defences are neutralizing! Your singing is unwanted and also terrible! That's easy. That's my house whenever carolers are singing at my door. This actually is hard to turn off once it gets started. You know.

The guy came around and he was selling these security systems and he was a really charming guy and I just went.

With.

Everything he sold me and I didn't like it for a long time because I got the sticker shock from seeing the bell.

And I didn't like it at all. But ever since those carolers started coming, I feel like I made a good decision.

Whatever you say, Mr. Grinch. Now, as much as we all want to hear more about your home security system, our special guest is waiting. So I'll just start some transitional music and Mr. Grinch, just read that cue.

Card right there. Okay, here we go. My guest tonight is an Olympic hero.

In 2008, she took home the Balance Beam.

Gold medal at the Beijing Olympics, and now she balances two kids going on three. If you don't believe me, just check out her Instagram because.

She won't.

Stop talking about it. Please welcome Shawn Johnson East. Hello.

Hi, welcome.

To Tiz the Grinch, it's a holiday talk show. Is that where we're calling this, Cindy? Is it Tiz the Grinch holiday? Whatever, she's shaking her head. How are you?

I am great. How are you?

Oh, Grinchy, it's another day. I open the blinds, I go, Ah, the sun. I shut them real quick and I put her around. I'd say I put on my sneakers and my coat, but I was born in my slippers and coat. You know what I'm talking about?

I get that.

Now, listen, what an.

Athletic career you've had.

Was it always your dream to go to the Olympics and compete in a children's.

Playground activity?

Did you not qualify for sandcastle building?

What happened? The trampoline made me feel like I could fly as a little kid. I literally felt like a superwoman and kept doing that and found myself at the Olympics and thought it was the coolest stage.

On earth. Do children ever try to crack you open like an egg on the trampoline? Do you understand the activity that I'm.

Talking about? Absolutely, yeah. You're like, sit in an egg position, people jump around you, try to crack you open. Yes, my kids try to do it all the time and they love it.

They crack you right open even though you're some big champion Olympian. Yes, it's my week spot. It's my week, but- And it's the 15th anniversary. 15th anniversary of your gold medal win. But that wasn't in the trampoline egg game, right? That was for something else. I'm joking, of course. I love the balance beam. It's my favorite gymnastics exercise. I just love seeing people fall off of it. Does it hurt falling off? Please tell me it hurts.

Sometimes, yeah. It hurts when you split the beam. That's the worst.

Split the beam? Yeah. What do you mean, split the beam? What happens there?

No, split the beam.

Split the beam? Yeah. So your leg goes one way and your other leg goes the other way, and then, I don't know if I'm allowed to say this, but do men compete in this sport? Because that sounds like a disaster waiting.

To happen. Fortunately, they do not compete in this sport. I think probably for that reason.

Are you in the circus?

I am. I'm raising two toddlers, so it feels like.

The circus. Are you familiar with.

Santa Claus? I am very familiar with Santa Claus.

Now, that guy doesn't look very gymnastics to me. Would you describe his figure as a particularly gymnastics?

Physique? He makes his way down the chimneys of every household. That's what I'm saying. I think.

He's pretty agile. That's what I'm saying. You look at him and you think, I don't think that guy's much of a fitness, but there he goes.

Trampet all over the tops of all the.

Roofs and shimmy and down all the chimneys. He's magic. He's magic. I would like to see him do some gymnastics. You know what? I'd like to see him split the beam.

I would not like to see that. It's Santa Claus, the most magical guy on earth. I have an almost four year old girl and a two year old boy, and it is so magical to see their little faces light up thinking that Santa Claus thought of them that day is like the most special thing in the world.

Okay, yeah, I get it. You're one of those people who think that Christmas is just, Oh, it's so important. The looks on their faces and all the Christmas magic. This isn't the show for that, all right? So can it? The Olympics looks really fun.

Is it fun? It's a lot of fun. Bringing the world's best athletes from all over the world together to share a moment together is.

Really special. That's the part that looks the most interesting to me, that little Olympic village. Every day I get out of the cave and I look down at Hooverville and I see everybody milling around. They have solid public transit. And oh, there's the Baker Lady and oh, there's the Doctor. Is the Olympic Village like that? I mean, do you have some backflipping podiatrist or something like that? Is it like a village?

It actually is. You have restaurants, you have barber shops, clothing stores, and arcades and laundromat. It's literally like a village or a little city. Arcades?

Yes. You don't have time for arcades. Your money doesn't work in the arcade. You're in Hungary or something, wherever they've organized it. I can't imagine they accept quarters.

It's shockingly busy at the arcades at every Olympic village.

Those people need to be fasting and drinking strange protein drinks and worrying about their various little games they're going to play later. I agree.

But you also have to have fun. You spend so much time focused on your event that when you get to turn off, we just play games, board games, eat at McDonald's in the Olympic Village, and have fun.

Do you ever get to hang out much with all the.

Surly, curmudgeonly, foreign judges? Those are.

My people. They hate everything.

Those are the one people that we're not allowed to hang out with.

You can't look at a judge and go, Hey, dude, watch this, and then do 30 back flips and stuff. I wish. Can you tell me what the toll gymnastics takes on your feet? I mean, especially that balance beam.

It definitely takes a toll on.

Your feet. Is there a particular bunion or a callous that stands out in your memory as being your favorite?

Well, I remember at the Olympics. This was really attractive. It wasn't a bunion, but every single one of my toes in between my toes were ripped open and bleeding. Oh, my. I basically had to make these sandals out of tape that I would have to compete with. Kind of big band aids, so I didn't get blood all over the beam.

You just had to go out there and do your thing?

Yeah. You can't give up your Olympic moment.

You made your feet dress up like mummies. That's dedication. I'm not one to talk. I mean, if you could see my feet, they looked like a couple rotten corn husks, strapped to my ankles. But do you have any foot care advice? I will give myself a home pedicure. I'll get a big pot boiling like I'm about to make some macaron, and I'll just shove them right in there. While I watch daytime TV, I'll watch Kelly Clarkson and boil my feet.

You could even add some teabags in there. That'll help.

I don't think that's going to do a whole lot for me. I don't know. That's not very helpful advice. You know what? Speaking of giving advice, you've transitioned.

From decorated Olympic athlete.

Into becoming one of the most successful Mommy bloggers of all time. Was it always your dream to talk about poopy diapers and tantrums professionally?

It was actually never my dream. I wanted to be a surgeon. I wanted to go to medical school and be a doctor. But after the Olympics, I was thrown into this limelight and was there long enough that I said I had two options. I could either make a career out of this by being provocative and doing things that grab attention, or I can try to do something for good and serve a community of people, mommies, who can go feeling isolated and unseen and just try to relate to them and build a community around them. I never really intended to be in this space, but it is very rewarding. It gives me a wonderful community, and it gives me a reason to celebrate my family every single day.

Oh, that's so sweet. And probably the best outcome of all of that is that.

Now you've gotten to meet the cringe.

Wouldn't you say that was the best thing to come out of all the babies and the recordings and the blogging and.

All that? I would say it's probably top five.

Can you give me some mommy advice right now? What advice are you doling out around the holidays?

I would say some of the best advice I was ever given around the holidays is it is such a magical time to celebrate just joy and happiness.

Yeah, here we go again.

You don't necessarily need to have an elaborate gift, but baking cookies and singing carols and wrapping presents for friends, even if they're homemade.

Yeah, I see what you're trying to do here. You're trying to turn my heart into a smile emoji. Absolutely. But let me tell you very firmly, my heart is a poop emoji.

Well, my four year old has faith in your heart that it's going to smile this Christmas.

Oh, really? How's that going to happen?

Well, she said she was going to make you warm cookies. So you get to choose the kind. She'll make them, she'll bake them, and she'll deliver them to you.

You should let your child know that my doctor has warned me that I'm not allowed to have cookies this Christmas season. I'm off cookies, okay?

Okay, she'll make you donuts then.

All right. It was a lateral move, but I do like donuts. Now back to your accomplishments. You're also the Season 8 Dancing with the.

Stars, mirrorball champion.

Defeating the likes of Lawrence Taylor, Lil' Kim, and Steve-O. Tell me, what was it like competing against a guy who.

Staples.

Himself for a living?

I was so surprised by Steve-O. He is one of the kindest humans I've ever met, and I still keep in touch with him today. He might staple stuff to his forehead, which I don't understand, but he is so nice and he is so thoughtful, and he was a joy to be with.

We have a lot of kids listening, so I do think it's important that we tell children, don't staple yourself. That's solid parenting advice, right? Yeah.

I would say me and my husband, we try really hard to give our kids the space to be who they are and find their own passions and live on the edge of danger just because it forms curiosity and adventure to them. But yeah, it's also our duty to teach them about the world. The alphabet, potty training, kindness and lead them by example.

So what is some good parenting advice for the holiday season? I mean, particularly if you have a nosy kid like Cindy Lou who likes to sneak downstairs on Christmas Eve and spoil my life's work.

The cure to negativity is optimism. If someone's being mean, if someone's being unkind, if someone is being negative, it's usually because they haven't seen enough of the good. And the best thing in life we can do for them is to give them the opposite, to teach them love and positivity and how to put a smile on someone's face because that can end the streak right there.

Look, dude, if you're trying to change me or something, you can just come out and say it. I feel like you're being subliminal right now and you're trying to critique me and everything, but I got a good thing going on, okay? My occupation, I think, is very much matched up with my talents, which involve ruining Christmas for entire villages. So if you've got something you want to say to me, you should just come right out and say it.

I think you are a wonderful person, Mr. Grinch. Okay. I think my daughter is going to make donuts for you because you can't have cookies because you're a doctor. Yeah, thanks for that. And she's going to smile and give you a hug and teach you a Christmas carol. And you're going to feel the beauty of Christmas and you'll spread it yourself.

Get back.

Of.

There.

Stop smiling. Stop looking at me and smiling.

I'm having a real issue right now. Get back down. Get back down. Oh, sorry. I might burp a little bit. I always.

Get burpy.

After something like this. Okay.

All right. Well, you tried. Sorry, Cis. Not going to happen. You can't make me like Christmas, okay? I don't care how many medals you got.

I still think you'd enjoy Christmas.

I do enjoy Christmas. I enjoy it in my way by destroying it as thoroughly and comprehensively as possible.

I have faith you'll enjoy it the way we do with love and joy and sharing and cookies.

Yeah, I get it. The cookies and the sharing and the tickling and the braiding of the hair and all that. Yeah, I get it. All right? You're a broken record about this thing, okay? I'm doing my best to stay consistent and stay balanced. Sean Johnson East, would you say that life is like a balance beam?

Yes. As cliché as that is, I would say life is like a balance beam. Spending time with your family, spreading love, spreading joy, having fun is the most important. If you focus too much on other stuff, it'll detract from it. You just have to find balance in it all.

All right, well, turns out you're a lovely person. I was hoping that you would be a little grumpier and a little bit more on my level, but I guess when you're an Olympian who's won every medal and who helps moms get through the hardest job of all being a mother. I don't know. I just thought you'd be a little bit more bitter.

I think it takes a lot of effort not to be bitter in our world, but I try to see all the beautiful things every day. It can be hard on some days, but that's why we have friends. That's why we have community and family. We can lean on them on our hard days and make it still better.

Okay, well, you know what? It's actually been wonderful talking to you. You're very surprisingly fun to talk to. Well, thank you. I do have one last question for you. What's next for Sean Johnson East? Besides adding to how.

Overcrowded this.

Planet already is with this baby?

I am just so excited for the holidays this year. I'm excited for this baby, and I'm excited for the Olympics next year.

You're going to be watching from home or are you going to jump up there with a baby in your arms and start flipping around?

I'll jump up there with a baby in my arms and start flipping around.

Oh, that's so sweet. Well, thank you, Sean Johnson East. Is there a Sean Johnson West?

I don't think so.

North.

South? Maybe north.

All right, well, thanks for coming by Sean Johnson East. So nice to meet you. Olympic champion Sean Johnson East, everybody. Fun fact, I conducted that whole interview out of Balance Beach.

Couldn't.

Tell, could you? I'm just that talented. Anyway, Sean Johnson East, such a pleasant young lady with a very melodic laugh. It was like a flute or something. It was like a clock and spiel. Mine's more like a Foghorn. I enjoyed my time with Sean John, plus her daughter promised to send me some fresh baked desserts.

Jackpot.

But I'll tell you.

This, if they're storebot, I'll know.

I'll shame that toddler for all the.

World to hear.

Okay, thank you to Sean. Thank you to Sandy and the crew. Who cares? Credits. You're a.

Vile.

One, Mr. Grinch.

You have termites in.

Your smile.

You have all the tennis weuse of a seasick crockadow, Mr. Grinch.

Given the choice between the two of you, I'd take the seasick crocket alistair.

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The.

Grinch holiday talk show on the Wundery app, Amazon Music, or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to all episodes early and ad-free by joining Wundery Plus in the Wundery app or on Apple podcasts. Before you go, tell us about yourself by completing a short survey at wundery. Com/survey. Tis the.

Grinch holiday talk show is a production of Wundery and Dr. Suez enterprises, hosted by James Austin Johnson as the Grinch. With Anjali Knippinani as Cindy Luhu, that's me, and Antonia Taminik as the advertiser. This episode was written by Dan Cronin, sound design by Jamie Cooper, with additional sound design by Kelly Cromerick, music supervision by Scott Velazcus for Frison Sync. Our senior producer is Jennifer Klein-Walker. Ayana White is our production assistant. Our managing producer is Sarah Mappas, and our senior managing producer is Callum Plus. Carlos Hernandez is our audio engineer. Audio assistants by Andrew Law and Adrian Tanya. Executive producer by Susan Brandt at Dr. Suez enterprises. Executive producers are Lauren D, Dave Easton, Andrew Goldstein, and Marcia Louis for WNDYRY.

Hey, grownups. The Cat and the Hatcast is a new podcast from Wundry, perfect for the whole family. Join the Cat and the Hat and your favorite Dr. Suez characters as they get whisked away on a new adventure every week. Bursting with music, sillyness, and rimes, The Cat and the Hatcast encourages us all to find fun that is funny in every episode. I'm about to play a clip from The Cat and the Hatcast. Follow The Cat and the Hatcast on the Wundry app or wherever you get your podcasts.

And there you have it, folks. The epic tale of why you should never underestimate the power of a water filter in your Fishbowl. That's it for today's episode of The Fishcast. Until next time, swim on.

Did you say swim?

Oh, no, it's that cat. That cat in the hat.

I couldn't help but overhear your aquatic request, and I'm.

Here to help. This is my show, Kat. I don't need your help.

Fear not fish, for I am not your average water fearing feline. I have all the swimming equipment you'll need right here in my hat. Oh, like these.

Swimming.

Finns. I already have finns. I'm a fish.

Okay, how about floaties?

I float.

Naturally, cat. Of course you do. How silly of me.

Cat, enough about swimming.

Good point. Let's not water down this trailer any longer.

Wait, this is.

A.

Trailer? It sure is. Announcing a brand new podcast for kids and Family is hosted by me, The Cat in the Hat.

I'm the host. And since I'm the host, the show is, of course, called The Cat in the Hatcast. Cue my theme-song.

Your theme-song? This is my podcast. Oh! The cat.

And the hat is coming your way. Yes, the cat and the hat brings joy to you.

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