Podcast Episode - Merry Christmas From KT and Suze

For a special Christmas 2023 episode, Suze and KT talk about Christmas Eve traditions and pay tribute to a very special friend.

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Podcast Transcript:

KT: Hi, everybody. It's KT here on the Women and Money podcast. December 24th, 2023. And are you wondering what happened to Suze School? Well, here's what happened to it.

Suze: Nothing because I'm still here. But tell them why KT...

KT: I said, Suze, you can't do a money podcast on, on Suze School on Christmas Eve. You need me with you so we can wish everybody a very merry Christmas a happy year ahead and really give this Christmas joy and spirit that we feel today. But I have to share something. We talked about gifts. I guess it was Thursday and gift giving.

KT: And one of our podcast listeners wrote back the best response to Suze and it said the best gifts that we give and share in our family are either you make it bake it, grow it or sew it. And I love that I loved it so much.

KT: So within that spirit, we are about to indulge tonight in our traditional Christmas Eve festivities. But before I do that, I want to ask Suze if she has something in her, she might want to share with all of you.

Suze: Like what?

KT: I don't know your thoughts. You're very good and very poetic.

KT: So what can you come up with?

Suze: Are you telling me? You want me to make up a poem on the spot

KT: Yea go for it? How do you feel Suze?

Suze: So just, you know, today is also a day that it would be nice for you to know a little bit more about me and KT. Why not? Because you all write and say, tell us more about yourselves, tell us stuff beyond money. So one of the things that I do all the time is I'll be sitting there and I'll just break out into a poem or sometimes into a song. All that I have made...

KT: The poems are better than the songs.

Suze: KT the album that I made you...

KT: Oh, that was fabulous.  I am talking about you singing. I think the poems are more...

Suze: But my words are great.

Suze: Your words are brilliant.

Suze: All right. So I didn't say I sang them but I can write them. So you want me just to on the spot right now? Whatever comes out.

KT: Make me a poem. Make me a holiday, Christmas Eve poem. Come on, Suze, you're a writer.

Suze: So, it's the day of Christmas Eve. And for me, it's hard to believe

Suze: that another year has almost gone by. And as always, I'm amazed at how time flies for me. The greatest gift of all my KT is that we are together for, I know in my heart we make each other better. That was good, Suze. For all of you who have listened to us this year, we both wish you a wonderful day of joy

KT: And cheer.

Suze: Oh, that's good, KT. You did it. See, you're a writer too. So that's my impromptu poem for all of you. Alright. What else should we talk about, KT?

KT: Well, let's tell everyone what Colo and I did to get ready for the week weekend, we decided that we were gonna completely light up with lots and lots of Christmas lights and all these laser lights, all these things in the front of our home, which is filled with palm trees so that when the Children drive by on the golf carts, the Children of the staff that work here year round, they can have a little bit of fun and joy and because it's empty on Christmas weekend, we decided to make this as festive as possible. So tonight after dinner, we light the lights, Suze sits on the porch and plays Christmas carols really loud and we just have a lot of fun watching everyone come by and then they must tell each other in the village and more and more cards come by, they stop, they take photos. It's fun. We love that. We love doing that.

Suze: The other thing that happens tonight, obviously, as you can tell KT isn't just celebrating more than me, but what to tell you. Right. So, tell everybody.

KT: I grew up, I grew up that can all get this many of you will understand. I grew up in an Italian household and we had a tradition that I maintain every year no matter where I am in the world. And that tradition is the seven fishes dinner.

KT: And I don't have exactly all of the ingredients that I need. But we have definitely seven types of seafood and fish.

Suze: So, what's funny about that, I don't eat seafood.

KT: But I prepare it anyway and Colo loves it. But it's a really traditional dinner. And to today tonight, I'm creating something fabulous with lobster, our fresh tuna, yellow tail stone crabs that we just got from some of the fishermen, um, a shrimp rice, some pasta with squid. I'm creating everything I possibly can in the tradition of what my grandfather used to do, which was unbelievable. And I just love that holiday. So we'll have the seven fishes and Suze will probably eat the rice

Suze: In the past, you have written in and you've said Suze, you were so close to Jimmy Buffett, but you haven't talked about him since his passing on September 1st. One of the reasons that we haven't talked about it is it's been too hard to talk about. It truly was a devastating loss for both me and KT and it will be hard to even get through it because it was one year ago on Christmas Day, which is his birthday, happy birthday to Jimmy, right. That he sat here and he did a podcast about fishing with me.

Suze: So it's been interesting for us and we're very, very close with his daughter, Savannah and, and her husband Josh and he has two other Children as well and obviously his wife Jane, but Savannah and Josh, who we are very, very close to. And one of my ideas for this podcast was Savannah, come on with me and let's talk about stories about Jimmy that only, you know, fishing, fishing tales, but it's still a little bit too tender for her as well. So she's not quite ready for that.

Suze: But I just want to let all of, you know, that Jimmy and me in particular had very, very honest and close conversations about what he was going through and what he expected was going to happen.

Suze: And he said to me, you know, Suze, if I can't sing, if I can't perform, I don't really want to live anymore because it's what I live for and I just have to, I want to do it and, and, you know, I hope that never is taken from me.

Suze: And as time went on, it was just a few months after that, that Jimmy had a hard time talking and his vocal cords weren't really working because of things that were going on. And then what started to happen was the last time we spoke with him was just a few days before he passed and he was in the hospital and he couldn't speak Savannah his daughter. However, he wanted to facetime us, he was like, he would like mouth the words of what he wanted to say to us.

Suze: And at least we got to see him and essentially say goodbye to him and always smiling. But we used to spend a lot of time with Jimmy here on the, on the island and he was really so fabulous. He would ride his bike and leave it on the front porch and then just walk in and leave his little flip flops, his famous little flip flops all over the place,

KT: Make a mess with sandy feet all the time. Make a mess here. So let's tell everybody, one of the greatest parts about being neighbors and having this fun friendship with Jimmy is that he'd come over and test his songs out on us.

KT: And I remember he would come and say, what do you think of this girls? And sometimes he would play a couple bars or he would have his little recording that he did in his own home studio and we'd listen to it. It would be the poorest quality of sound ever, but it didn't matter. He just test it out. And Suze would say, I don't like that one so much Jimmy or, and then he'd say, what about this one? And we, we like that one,

Suze: But the two that I really liked one was why can't you love me like my dog? I loved that one. And there's another one that, it's almost as if he knew what the future held for him

KT: To close this wonderful Festive podcast... Suze. Can you play a little bit of our favorite song? Bubbles up from Jimmy's last album, it's called Equal Strains on All Parts. And for all of you listening, if you don't have it, go and get that, it'll make the best Christmas and birthday gift ever, you can find that album where you buy all your music. It's the best. Come on, Suze, give them a little taste.

Suze: I'll do that and listen everybody. We wish you a very, very what, KT?

KT: Merry Christmas.

Suze: We love you also very, very much. All right, Jimmy in heaven. It's for you. So take it away.