Laugh More: Stories From An Unexpected Life

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Hi, I'm Debbie Travis.

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And I'm Tommy Smith.

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And this is trust me. I'm a decorator.

0:07  
Hi, Debbie.

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Hello, hello, hello. I'm a bit nervous.

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A little bird tells me that you have some exciting news to share with our listeners and with me today. And it's news I'm pretty excited about.

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It's a big thing, you know, when you've worked hard on something. So we now have what they call in publishing the cover reveal of my next book. Oh, so

0:31  
you're not pregnant?

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Well, that's my that's my second surprise. I'm having triplets. No, I'm not pregnant. Are you not? Yeah, no, yeah. So in publishing, you have your publishing date when the book is out in the shops and on Amazon, and things like that. But they all now do something called the cover reveal. So they reveal the cover of a book.

0:55  
It's like the literary version of a gender reveal.

0:59  
Very similar. Yeah. So so it's a cover reveal. And it's really to get people excited. And also, the most important thing is for pre sales, of course, people can press a link, and buy the book, and then they'll get it in the post, like a week before it's in the shops. So it's a very important thing in publishing. And for an author, it's hugely important, because we haven't actually seen the book finished yet, obviously, like anybody else. But it really is the end of the road, there's no changing anything, you know, the book is being printed. And it's a fine moment, as they say,

1:35  
I mean, I'm so excited about it, because we've been talking about this book, even here on the podcast, for many months. And I do know about how important those pre sales are. And everything must be such an exciting moment for you emotionally. Because even though I joked like, Oh, you're pregnant, really, giving birth to this kind of a project is like, going through the experience of just stating something for many months, and then suddenly, it's ready for the world. And it must be such an emotional thing for you.

2:04  
Well, I think for any author, because it really starts with an idea. And I think every human being has has a book inside them. But then a lot of us get kind of nervous with me in this particular book. And this is the 12th book. So I did eight design books, originally from like, 1997, right through to the 2000s. And then I did a book called not guilty, which was about working and being a racing mother, then I did design your next chapter, which was a massive hit about my move to Italy. And then I did joy, which was how our guests in Tuscany can take this lifestyle home with them. But what I've always been very good at, I think, is telling stories, and you spent quite a bit of time we just spent a week on a boat together. Yeah, you know, and you're a good storyteller. And so I had this idea of because we're all a little bit fed up now, of so much crappy stuff going on in the world, we really are in desperate need of a good laugh. I mean, we really are. I mean,

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that's where this podcast came from, was our desire to

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make people smile. Exactly. Yeah. And my life here is a constant stream of stories. So what I started to do was write a year of a life living on this Tuscan hillside. But when you're writing, it kind of spawns other stories. So it's a bit like being at a dinner party, and somebody's telling a story. Yes. And there's somebody says, Oh, my God, and you spiral into him, especially women are so good at this, you spiraling into all these different things. And then two hours later, you can come right back to the beginning again. So I would be talking about something happening here in Italy in the present day. And it would immediately bring back memories of something that happened, maybe when I was 15, or when I was a child or a young child, or when I was in my debauch days in in London in my 20s. So so it kind of is jumping all over the place. But it keeps coming back to a year here through four seasons. So the book is called laugh more, which I think is a wonderful title, because we all need to laugh more stories from an unexpected life. So for instance, for instance, it may be a story about artichoke season in Tuscany in Italy, where everybody is buying artichokes and there's something like 100 varieties and and, and I also because the food is so important to life here. Yeah.

4:43  
When I was there recently, every restaurant had artichoke recipes because they were in season eight. So many artichokes nearly choked on artichokes, and

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so good for you. So I put recipes in this book as well. Anyway, so I'm writing about artichokes and being in the market and there's a funny story already happened there. But then I suddenly driving home I thought, god I nearly died once from an artichoke.

5:08  
How is that possible? Somebody threw one out, you

5:11  
know worse. So when I was about 18, or 19 there was until recently, a very, very famous club in London. I mean, it was the club and it was called tramp. Oh, I

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know about tramp? Yeah. Very famous club. Very famous. Good. Boy.

5:28  
There, Royals, Mick Jagger. I mean, oh, yeah. You know, like, all the names would be there. And they had a restaurant on the side of the dance floor. And so men could not get in, in those days without a woman because they didn't want gangs of lads in there. So we used to go to the wine bars, pick up men, so we could get in. So we use them. They used us once you were inside, it was like do your own thing. But of course, we couldn't afford the drink. So we kind of hung around for a bit. And

5:57  
when you see we you're talking about Jackie and you know what,

6:02  
I don't think I actually knew Jackie then. So it's a bunch of models then. So any any kind of reasonably pretty girl got into this place. So next to the dance floor was a restaurant. And I didn't really know anybody. But there was a guy had invited me and there was a bunch of rich guys and a bunch of you know, cool girls. They all got asked to dance and this guy had ordered for everyone. So I was kind of straight off the train kind of thing from the north of England as naive as you get. And they all get up to dance the entire table, maybe 16 people, and I'm left alone. So a few minutes later, a waiter comes around and puts in front of me and everybody else a plate with a large globe artichoke, which you would get today in a supermarket, you know, the big round ones. And yeah, a little bowl with hot water and lemon, you own an empty bowl. So I didn't know what to do. So I ate it. And I ate the entire thing. I had never seen an artichoke before I come from the north of England where the food is basic. I eat the thorns, the outside leaves, the gristle in the middle, the entire whole thing. And I thought this whole thing but the entire artichoke and I thought these people in London, a very strange people eating was like cow food or something. I mean, what are they eating? But I was swigging it down with the bowl of lemon juice thinking that was what you did. That's the finger bowl. No, I had never seen it. We don't have finger balls in the north of England anyway. So not in those days anyway. So what happened was all the girls came back all the people came back and there was a model sitting next to me a little bit older than me. And she said, Where's your dinner? Did you not get anything? And I said I ate it. She said the whole thing. I suggest just as this is a little bit of blood drip down, you know, so I was taken to or emergency that to the hospital. And you know, I was basically just humiliated and had a very sore throat for about a month. But I'd rip the inside of my throat. So you know, so they're kind of still

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eating. It's like eating wood and glass like It's like it took a wooden lantern and just chewed it up and swallowed it. Like that's terrible.

8:16  
Yeah. And I'm still surprised today when I see artichokes in the shops, and they should have a label, like dangerous do not eat whole thing. But I guess everybody's not quite as stupid as I was at that age.

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I was gonna say to be fair, I don't think many people have eaten the whole thing. I mean, that's like eating corn on the cob, and then eating the cob. Exactly.

8:34  
On the little sticks at the end. So you know, so what, uh, what was what was challenging about writing life more was I have told many of these stories to friends and guests and family and stuff many times over the years. But it's a bit like being a comedian. And I'm sure a comedian on a stage when you write a joke is quite difficult, quite flat. Whereas it was the same thing. So I would sit in my writing hub, trying to write these stories down. So they really come to life. And then once I felt I'd got it right, I would take it inside and read first two hands. And then I had the kids here quite a bit, and they would cuddle up on the sofa. And if they laughed, honestly, it was like I'd won the lottery. Because just to see, you know, your children, which I mean, my children are grown up, but to see them roaring and not falling asleep or yawning, you know, was gold. And that's how I did it. And then finally, when I realized, you know, it was correct, I'd send it to my editor. And then if she laughed out loud, and she'd send funny things back going splitting my coffee all over though snorting again, you know, so So I hope people will just curl up with a glass of wine or a nice cup of coffee and let it lift their spirits because I think we do in these times. Just so tired of bad news. I just need need something to make us grin?

10:02  
Well, I've loved listening to your stories for so many years of our friendship, and you are such an excellent storyteller, you are at times a slight embellisher. Like one of my favorite activities is to sit in a room or at a dinner table or in a bar with you and Jackie, where you'll start telling a story. And then Jackie is the fact checker says really to say no to know, Debbie, that is not exactly how

10:31  
the differences when you'll publish, they have fact checkers. And you know these exactly, it's like kind of what you were. So so you're not 48 No one knows. That, you know, so they're fat checking everything

10:47  
I know. And Jackie's like your real life fat cheese like? Yeah, so Debbie, what is the format of this book? Is it really just sort of narrative? Are there photographs associated with it the way there were with joy. Remember the photographs? Enjoy was so pretty. They

11:03  
were so beautiful. Yeah. So no, it's actually very different. So it's set around the four seasons. So it's winter, spring, summer, fall. And it's illustrated now I had worked with an amazing woman, and she's Australian born in Melbourne. And she lives in Florence, in Italy, and we hooked up years ago. And she does some of our sometimes during our retreats, we do art classes, because it's a very wonderful thing for for people who if they're a bit stressed watercolor art,

11:34  
you know that when the kids say hooked up, it means something different. Right? And to say what does it mean? It means

11:43  
something rude. Okay, good. No, no. So you hooked up years ago? Yeah, I don't think she's fancy me must have a lot

11:49  
of drinks involved in that evening. Yeah. So

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I really liked her and I will I adore her now. So I said, Look, what if we did this as an illustration? So it's because again, illustrations can be very funny. And so the way it worked is I would write a story. I would send it to her. And she would illustrate it. And I would laugh, you know, so maybe it's a it's a story about being chased by a wild boar. She would draw it out. And she's such a she's amazing. She is such a beautiful, beautiful artist.

12:24  
He's a beautiful person to I've met her at the retreats because yeah, workshops with her and the women. We

12:29  
did an art class A month ago when you were here, and she's so lovely. Yeah, we went to a wildflower farm and all the guests pick the flowers and then had to paint them. So it was really lovely. Anyway, we worked very, very closely for about 18 months, and I would send the story she would draw it out. And just to give you a an example of the humor, so there's a chapter in the summer about life in Italy on the beach because the entire country from the 15th of August it has a name it's called Ferragosto they head to the beach. And you know when you go to the beach I don't know if you're the same Tommy but let's say you go to Cape Cod, those beautiful long beaches. The first thing you do is you drag your crap as far away from any other human being so as if you've got the beach to yourself, that's the way we do it. Right?

13:18  
Yeah, you're looking for your private spot. Yeah, you're looking for your private

13:21  
spot but not in Italy. In Italy, you're going with your friends, your village friends, your neighbors, your clients your I mean if I went to the beach in Cape Cod, and a client went and put her towel down next to me or somebody I worked with I would be rather annoyed right? Because I want to be alone I want to be alone so no not in Italy so it's it's like sardines you know head to toe head to toe altogether the noise level on the beach and then there's an etiquette on the Italian beaches wish there has to be so so one of the things is all beaches in Italy are private beaches but some are more private than others. The etiquette of what's aware you know if you're going for lunch at the restaurants and the beach tops are mandatory, not always kept you know bottoms are mandatory. Again, not always kept. So when I sent to go

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to the restaurants without their bottoms on, like a person would go and have a really hanging out.

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Like can you imagine the illustrations we've got?

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Well, if you can find a spoon to store your coffee. Oh

14:32  
Tommy. So yes, so there's this kind of etiquette and the way people handle and of course, there's also the getting to the beach so many years ago me and the kids in the family they were young drove from Paris to to the beach, which was about three hours away. And when we went through the toll booth lining up and it was school holiday Those and it was jam packed. They had students giving out paper bags with a couple of yogurts, some apples, and some toys. And they would look at the driver who was usually the bloke, the dad. And they would say good luck, mate. Good luck. And you see all these men and these women looking so angry hitting the back of the seat, stop it, stop it, don't touch him. Don't touch him. I will stop the car, you know, typical families going on holidays. And of course, it was the most hellish journey. And I'll never forget these tiny little European cars, packed, packed every square inch, and then the roof racks with boats and oars. And I mean, it's, you know, beach balls and umbrellas. There's an amazing drawing of a like a fit 500 statue up with all the crap and everything. So, you know, it was great fun to send these stories, and then she would capture them. So they're throughout a publisher loved the pictures so much that we decided to make it the cover. So the cover is lots and lots of illustrations, really like a frame of illustrations, explaining the book. So the cover makes me laugh.

16:12  
And it's so beautiful in the sense that like she, Lisa is so talented as a water colorist, that's her chosen medium, the medium and that she works in. And the color on the cover of the book is so joyful. And I think that's just such a signature part of your brand and who you are in your DNA is the celebration of color and life.

16:32  
And you know, she would ring me and be weeping with laughter. And then I would do the reverse because she so she did a picture of my grandmother in the early 70s. And she said, Okay, describe it to me. And I said, Well, you know, she was surrounded by handsome gays especially was young, she was only in a, you know, for a grandmother. She was in maybe a late 40s. And I used to be sent to the south of France. I've told you this story before. Well, our listeners

16:58  
know your grandmother very well. She's been such a character in your stories here at the podcast. Exactly.

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And she smoked and she had one of those things. You put the cigarette in the end, and she would wear Pucci and she'd have these you know, put your Gucci kind of you know, long kaftans which was the the fashion that down in the south of France at the time. And when I sent Lisa the story, she was howling, and then she said, Okay, stay on the phone. I'm what sapping you the illustration of your granny and I just burst into tears because it's hilarious. You know, there's this woman, Gucci Gucci. But the story there was, I was maybe 10 At the time, and I'd been sent down and my grandmother was an antique dealer. And the south of France was very expensive for antiques. So we would drive over the border intervent Amelia, which was the last town on the French border in Italy,

17:50  
just on the side of Nice and Monaco. Yes. Right there. Exactly.

17:55  
Anyway, so I wasn't asked to go because she usually went with a couple of these guys. And they were scouting the markets and buying jewelry and bits and bobs and things like this, bring it back. And so one day she was putting on her lipstick, very heavy red lipstick, and I was sitting on the bathtub watching her and I said Granny, can I come? And she went? Of course you can. And it was like really, really? So what that meant was No, I wasn't spending a lovey dovey afternoon with my granny. I was actually left in the town square. And there was no cell phones, of course, alone. Well, my mother would have had a fit, but my mother was back in England. So I was left in this square. How old were you? 10. And in a foreign country, and for like four hours while she went shopping. And she was alone. At the time she had none of these these very smart men with her. So she was out looking for for stuff. And then she said stay here and I'll pick you up in four hours. She gave me a couple of francs and to buy ice cream. So she came back and we got in the car. And I remember what she was wearing. It was a Nina Ricci fuchsia silk blouse with these long, huge, I don't know what those sleeves were called, like butterfly sleeves type of thing. So in those days, we had a border control. And we go on the Italian side and the guys like you know, a van der Lanzi is just looking at her bum and stuff. She drives on and now we're on the French side 200 yards ahead. So Frenchman comes out and it tells her to get out of the car and I get out and he opens the trunk and there's nothing in it nothing. And so he tells her, you know Ali, Ali in French Go, go. But he leaves the trunk open and he's standing there in his full uniform. And my grandmother puts her arm up to bring the trunk down. And she had something like 25 gold watches strapped to her arm and see, go watch this guy, next minute she's in a jail and I had to sit on the side of the road and found in America Can tourist who would go to a phone box with me to call my mother to say Granny's been arrested 10 years old. So that was my granny so, so there's quite a few and her storytelling was incredible. So my mum was very good. But my grandmother, I mean, she would have us as children, like mouths open, and she would tell us tales. And my mother would say, Mother Stop, stop, because they would get very saucy. But she had this this talent for quietening a room, as she told tales of this opulent life in the south of France. So so it was a you come by it, honestly. And that's how I come by it honestly. Exactly. So that's how Lisa came in. So we would we would literally, I'd share the story. She'd do the illustration. I would how, and that was it. And it was the most wonderful process.

20:52  
We're just going to take a quick break, we'll be right back.

Well, it's such a rare thing to be so compatible with a person that they really actually get you in that way to be able to illustrate things that you then react to it in a familiar way. Yeah, like you're recognizing something that, you know, though, it's something someone else has created. Exactly.

21:22  
And some of the stories are quite poignant, and do a bit of a flip, because they're really quite moving and upsetting. And I didn't know whether to put them in and, you know, and then my editor sob so much. And I thought, well, maybe that's a good sign, you know, because then you're laughing again in five minutes. But one of them was about me going TO to conference as a child, and I was brutally abused in the first convent, like, we all were. So I really didn't think much of it until years later, when I was like, Oh, my God, this was not normal. So I wrote about it. And I will get letters from other people I know who went to similar conference. And that was a lot of fact checking as well, because I thought Have I made this up over the years. And then I couldn't find it. And a friend wrote to me, in the north of England, and she said, you know, because I'd asked her what happened to this conference. And she said, Oh, they changed their name. And so we found it. And then we found the Facebook page of all these people who had similar stories. I mean, it made me I was so upset, especially the boy. Oh, it was awful. I mean, you know, but it makes you tough all boot that I am today. But the story of that and the tears, I had drawn a picture when I was about 13 of a little girl crying. And I was telling my my youngest son about this, or reading the story in the book, and he says, Mum, you painted a picture of a little girl crying. And I said, Oh my god, yeah, but where would that be? He says, but I have it. I haven't worked on my wall. You gave me 20 years ago, you daft old thing, you know, and I'm like, really? So he he photographed it. And so that's in the book. And it's my drawing, when I was a young girl of my despair, because often it's a way of letting things out to draw. And I guess I found a way of distressing, you would say today of this incidents that happened over years, you've always

23:20  
been a very creative person. And creativity is not just one thing. I mean, your creativity runs the gamut from, you know, decoration to writing to doodles and drawings. I mean, you've always found a way to be creative. Have you tried singing yet? What about a music career? Oh, God,

23:40  
no, you don't want to hear me sing. But but but you know, I could not do what Lisa does. But I said, Look, I'm am I going to stamp on your your talent? And she said, No, no, let's put it in. Let's put it in. And that's it. So it's there's one illustration in there that that I did as a girl. And it's really quite cute. Of a six year old bawling her eyes out. But then he slams you again with another funny story. So it's so it's a roller coaster of tales, really. And then it brings you back to what's going on here. And I think you're you're in the book that you know, the car rallies are in the book, you know, and the funny things that happen. You know, of course, when you're doing all this stuff you can't help. You know, if you stay at home all day and watch television, you're not going to have incidents in your life. If you're out and about stuff happens whether it's dropping somewhere in the supermarket. Oh my

24:30  
god. Yeah. If anyone's listening who hasn't heard our podcast episode entitled 101 ways to get arrested in Europe, Travis, and you'll understand what Debbie has just said which is once you go out in the world, things happen to you. And if you go out in the world with Debbie Travis, more things happen to you.

24:50  
I'm like, we should write that book. We should we should go touring around the world. So this is what they call the cover reveal. And I've also I've already Had you done the audiobook?

25:01  
I remember you telling me about that. So for listeners, tell them about what that was like, because I remember you were quite worried about your voice because you were talking so much, which even for you was more talking, even for

25:13  
me. So when you do an audio book, a lot of novels are read by other actors and things like that. I was picturing

25:21  
I was picturing Julie Andrews. Yes.

25:27  
I don't know. I don't know. But But anyway, but with me, my voice is kind of I guess it's known because of 20 odd years on TV. But it's the third one I've done. And it's an amazing procedure, because you sit in a in a sound booth. And but you have to protect your voice because you're literally like reading your book for about five hours a day. And you can feel the vocal cords, like I guess a singer on stage, you know, if you're doing a tour, you feel the strain. So you're the certain things you can drink and not drink, obviously not gin. But you because you're you have to keep the level up all the time, you get tired energy level to stay off like this. And so you can't have any drinks, because you're keeping your voice loose all times. So you're drinking all the time. So you've nothing with Milkin because milk lines, lines, the vocal cords lightens the throat. So things like chamomile tea, ginger tea, nothing with bubbles, because you'd be burping down the microphone. So you're keeping it going, and then they stop every so often. And everybody takes a break. And you can't talk in between. So I'm always dying to chat to whoever the engineers are and stuff like that. And they go no Debbie sit quietly Shut up, you know, because you're raising your voice. Yeah. And no going out at night. So you know, if anybody calls, it's like you've got you pretend you've got laryngitis, going to can't talk can't talk. And that takes takes about six days to do and then they edit and then you go back in afterwards. And they do any fluffs and things that didn't work out, or the pickups, pickups, and things like that. But I love the process. It's really fabulous. And I guess it's like doing this or, you know, being on the radio or something.

27:16  
I think it's so much more personal to because your books are so personal, that you are the person reading them. I mean, you know, lots of fiction and things like that, I think could be read by someone else. But because you have the training in broadcasting because you have the well known voice. And because it's such a personal story for all three of those reasons, it makes perfect sense that you would do the audio version of your own book. I think it's interesting, too, that you have you have 12 books under your belt is this 13 or 1212.

27:44  
This is 12. Maybe I should miss out 13. Like they go from

27:47  
12 to 14 like they do in hotel floors. Yeah, in the elevator. But I think it's so interesting to me, I'll tell you something that I've observed over three years of doing retreats with you at the villa, I've noticed that the women when they come to the villa, often bring books for you to sign. Yeah, often they're given books for you to sign at the villa. But many times they bring the books with them. And it's always fascinating to me to see which women bring which book because I mean up until now 11 to choose from, are they going to bring design your next chapter? Are they going to bring joy? What book are they going to bring for Debbie design, and it's so interesting, and I really believe that this next book, because you've been telling me about it, as you've been writing it, I've been sort of sitting on the sidelines in the bleachers cheering you on while you've been writing it, I really think this is going to be the one that people keep and refer to over and over again. because laughter is, you know, I mean, there are funny stories in all of your books. But I think that this one is a compilation of your life stories, the ones that are the most amusing and the most interesting, and that hold, maybe the best lessons will be the one that people go back to again and again. You know, I

28:59  
didn't want this to be a teaching book, like design your next chapter, which I have to say when people bring that book for me to sign and it's stuffed with post it notes of, of ideas that they've got about how can I change this? How can I do this that I love. But I think with this book, you know, there is a little message through that, you know, I've had just as much heartache and failure and miserable bloody moments as everybody else. Sure. So sometimes, you know, people don't think that they see you as this, you know, image of wishes, you know, the problem with social media, you know, it's all mostly positive, mostly positive and stuff like this. But but when they know that, you know, things, things were tough for you or you know, whether it's your parents or you growing up or you're, you know, and it's also generational. So I think what what's kind of nice about this book that there are things in there that would not happen today. I mean, parents would be probably locked up like a granny leaving you in a square in a I just wasn't done. And today you'd be in trouble. So I think, you know, I find the generation gap a little disturbing at the moment. So I hope that younger people will read it and see that the was tools that we had, I think, because we were I do think we were a little bit tougher in those days, and there were tools that helped us get through things, you know, like, you know, pull up your socks and get on with it. And, and we were softer than our parents who were softer than the poster, you know, the parents who came out of the war. You know, when you're living in the Warriors, you know, whining about little stuff, you're trying to find food for the table. So every generation brings something good, and a way of tackling adversity, adversity and life's crap and life's this. And, and so I hope when they when they read some of the stories that do have funny endings, that we can laugh at ourselves, because life is funny, and sometimes when you can, you know, we had an incident here 10 days ago, where a friend of mine who was helping with the car rally ran into the supermarket because we don't supply coke here. Not Coke, the drug but

31:18  
specified coke.

31:19  
Can you jump for me? Cook? Yeah.

31:22  
The bonds full of that television show. What's that show? The money laundering? Show Ozark? Yeah. Your your hands will run your own Ozark. Yeah, little

31:31  
nice business on the side. But because for the Health Week, it's not the great, greatest thing to offer. So anyway, with the car rally, I can't stop people drinking Coca Cola. So she ran into the supermarket and she was ages, like, standing with a dog outside in the heat. What is she doing? Then she runs out. And she grabs a trolley. And goes, just looks at me with terrified eyes and goes back in. And she had grabbed a box of 12 Coca Colas and dropped them on the floor. And every single one broke. So there was some guy with a mop with a weathered look. But what she didn't realize the reason he was so like, Oh, for God's sake, not again, is because it was a Sunday and all the rentals here. Lots of rental houses start on a Saturday. So on Sunday, all these foreigners go to the supermarket to buy goods and you know, supermarkets are different in every country. And they've different, you know, how do you get the trolley the cart? How do you do this? How, you know, how do you pay and people it's just different. So that foreigners apparently are always knocking bottles of wine off the shelf. We're always not breaking some These poor guys. She probably was the 30th client that day that he had to mop up after

32:45  
he went in that day knowing he was going to be doing after she spent

32:49  
10 minutes in the car sobbing about it. You know, she said we started laughing and she thought it was awful. So if you turn these situations around. Yeah, so the humor of it. And that poor Sadhus is probably still mopping up glass and Coca Cola eight bottles or 12 bottles you drop, you know, and that's what life is all about. And we need to laugh more. And we need to laugh at ourselves and all the silly things that we do, you know, well,

33:15  
I will tell our listeners a little just a small story about the last time that you and I were together which was at one of the women's retreats. And for anyone who hasn't been to those retreats, we often have forums, which are like a salon where you sit around and have conversation usually centered around a certain subject. And Debbie was presiding over one of these Selo one night and went afternoon evening into aperitivo time. And she read an excerpt from her new book to these women, a group of 18 or 20 women. And I have to say, and I'm not exaggerating, we were all crying. We were laughing so hard. What was that it was a story about the pond, you read the little story about the creation of the pond at the villa. And it was so fun for the women because Sergio, they knew the pond, they'd seen the pond, the pond is quite gorgeous. But it wasn't always that way. And there was a journey from an idea of having a pond to actually the pond that it is today at this moment. And that journey itself is so funny. And it's so filled with saucy, you know, Italian flirty stories and humor. And I think you know what I learned in that moment, other than the fact that you're quite a talented and a gifted storyteller. Is that your idea for this book, your wish for this book, which was that it would bring joy and laughter to people who read it was very real and very visceral in that moment because it was a room filled with people laughing hysterically at a story myself included. So I loved that because it was a preview. It was

34:55  
a little preview and you know what's so funny about that is you can't help but laugh at the Italians, because they just have a way and sometimes this lost in translation. So two days ago, we've got this car rally on at the moment and one of the mechanics is Italian. And very good looking very nice. So I come out haven't seen him since September. You know, I have been on a bit of a diet. And so I go it goes, Oh, Bella, Bella, you are so thin. You look fantastic. Last week, you're so fat. Today you are so calm. And he means no harm at all. But it's just the way it's translated. And I'm like, Oh, I wasn't that fat. Maybe I lost 10 pounds. But yes. All right. So it's like, do I go and throw myself across the bed and sob. So it's very funny, but it's funny. So again, when you're dealing with different cultures, there's a few stories in there about when Jackie and I hiked across Vietnam. And we had a massage issue.

36:08  
It's a really funny story. Oh, so Adventures of you. And Jackie has his own book. Before we did

36:14  
this big hike to raise money for colon cancer. We'd stayed at the Rex hotel in in Ho Chi Minh City, which is the old hotel from the from the Vietnam War where all the journalists were in it. I don't think they've changed the linens since then. Anyway, so when we get to this long, long flight, everybody went for a hike. And I said to Jackie, I'm not going for a hike. We're going to be walking for the next 20 days. Come on, let's go and get a massage. So we call downstairs and the woman says, oh, a $5. So I said, Oh my god, check. It's $5 for a massage for an hour's massage. So you put on these little paper underwear and stuff. And we have these massages. 20 days later when we come back after walking across Vietnam, by all day everyday stinking and filthy, stupidly, I told all the whole crowd on the bus that oh, you can get a $5 massage and Jackie's like shut up. They're all gonna have one, you know, there won't be for us. So everybody rushes to reception. We all become massage. And they said no what no worries, we'll get people in to do it. So we all had a massage at the same time, like 25 people. So everybody came out and there was one honeymoon couple. I don't know if I can see this on a podcast. But anyway, there was one honeymoon couple. And they'd both gone in separately and had their massages. So one by one we all came out and paid. And we all sitting sitting down chatting was not a great massage and everything. And at the end of the counter, you hear this young guy in his 30s on his honeymoon go. But that's not right. Everybody else paid $5 Why is mine $25 And in the loudest voice these Vietnamese beautiful girls you ever saw you had happy ending? Marriage over

37:57  
Wow. On the honeymoon before it even started. She knew

38:03  
exactly what he was saying you had happy endings if you like to play with airmiles Wow.

The new honeymoon wife and she's like, she couldn't speak and that was it. That was insane. But I hope people will use these stories to you know, to either ignite themselves, or to remind them

38:26  
of their own findings, your own stories. Exactly. When you and I first talked about that. We went around the table and everybody had some sort of an awkward massage story. You could write a whole book of awkward massage stories collecting them from various people because we've all had some people had

38:41  
them we've had them. Oh my god so so yeah, so that's a laugh more stories from an unexpected life.

38:48  
I think it's going to be a colossal hit. Congratulations, my dear friend. You have birthed this wonderful thing that we all now get to enjoy.

38:57  
How will you tell me

39:01  
this one's not about me. The next one can be about me. Okay, it will be it will be find the link to preorder the book and support our dear Debbie Travis in the show notes. The book is laugh more stories from an unexpected life out October 22 and available to reserve now.

39:18  
Thanks for talking about the book with me follow and subscribe to our podcast on your favorite podcast apps. And we'll see you soon