#58 Harry AI transcript and summary - episode of podcast Heavyweight

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Episode: #58 Harry

Author: Spotify Studios
Duration: 00:47:18

Episode Shownotes

Before Scott died, he bequeathed to his brothers his beloved pet parrot, Harry. The brothers promised to care for the bird. Except they didn’t. Over twenty years later, they want to find Harry and make things right. Credits This episode was produced by Phoebe Flanigan, Mohini Madgavkar, and Jonathan Goldstein.

Our senior producer is Kalila Holt. Our supervising producer is Stevie Lane. Editorial guidance from Emily Condon. Special thanks to Mimi O’Donnell, Lauren Silverman, and Katherine Brewer. The show was mixed by Bobby Lord. Music by Christine Fellows, John K Samson, Blue Dot Sessions, Heinz Kiessling, Boxwood Orchestra, Luke Janela, and Bobby Lord. Our theme song is by The Weakerthans courtesy of Epitaph Records. Stay in touch on Twitter @heavyweight, on Instagram @heavyweightpodcast, or at our new email address: [email protected]. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Summary

In episode #58 of 'Heavyweight,' host Jonathan Goldstein delves into the journey of brothers Ted and Todd as they grapple with the loss of their younger brother Scott and their commitment to care for his parrot, Harry. Reflecting on their memories of Scott, who battled AIDS and adopted Harry, the brothers confront their guilt over not fulfilling their promise to care for the bird. Their quest to find Harry leads them through emotional territory, exploring familial obligations and the longing for closure. Ultimately, the reunion with Harry symbolizes a pathway to forgiveness and the complexities tied to their past promises.

Go to PodExtra AI's episode page (#58 Harry) to play and view complete AI-processed content: summary, mindmap, topics, takeaways, transcript, keywords and highlights.

Full Transcript

00:00:07 Speaker_10
Hey, how are you?

00:00:08 Speaker_11
I'm okay. How are you?

00:00:10 Speaker_10
I'm okay. I'm okay. Fine. You want to borrow money? Fine. Fine.

00:00:14 Speaker_11
So you heard the news. Did you read the tweet that I sent you?

00:00:17 Speaker_10
No, actually I haven't.

00:00:18 Speaker_11
I've been working all day and I haven't had a chance to, but... Can I read you the tweet from the heavyweight account that we put out?

00:00:25 Speaker_12
Yeah.

00:00:27 Speaker_11
Okay, it's Heavyweight As It Exists under Spotify will be ending after this season. We're so proud of everything we've made and we're hoping the show finds a new home in the future.

00:00:37 Speaker_11
Till then, stay tuned, stay subscribed, and thank you all so much for your love and support. No, things are going to be okay. You know what? Because it's show business. You know that song from the Bugs Bunny?

00:00:51 Speaker_14
Oh, please.

00:00:52 Speaker_11
Overtures, turn the lights. You know that song? This is it. The night of nights. No more re-hoising and noising of parts. We know every part by heart. It's about going on with the show.

00:01:06 Speaker_01
How are you going to go on with the show?

00:01:08 Speaker_11
We're going to try to find a new place for it. You know, we have an obligation to our listeners.

00:01:14 Speaker_10
Why does that make you laugh?

00:01:16 Speaker_11
I have an obligation to my listeners. Wait, let's just sit here together and think about all the laughter through the years.

00:01:26 Speaker_14
You're such an idiot!

00:01:28 Speaker_11
Can I hang up now?

00:01:29 Speaker_14
Can I hang up now? Okay, and you know what?

00:01:57 Speaker_11
I'm gonna be okay, and you know, you're gonna be okay. We're gonna keep on doing this. I don't think you are. I don't believe it. I think you love doing this. Am I right? Just admit it, and I'll let you go. Hey, Jackie. Jackie. Jackie.

00:02:16 Speaker_11
Thank you for these past eight years. I'm Jonathan Goldstein, and this is Heavyweight. Today's episode, Harry. Right after the break.

00:02:51 Speaker_01
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00:03:22 Speaker_00
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00:03:50 Speaker_11
Our story begins with two people, Ted and Todd. Or is it Todd and Ted? In the plaid shirt, you are Ted? Yes. And you're Todd? That's correct. Okay, hi. Hi. Nice to meet you both.

00:04:03 Speaker_11
Ted and Todd are identical twins, but not the Mary-Kate-and-Ashley cutie-patootie type. They're more the slappy-happy, punchy-grumpy type. If you hit me one more time.

00:04:14 Speaker_11
Case in point, that was the sound of Ted reacting to Todd, who, for no apparent reason, just whacked his brother in the arm. Is that a part of the way that you guys... Communicate? Yeah. Uh-huh.

00:04:28 Speaker_11
But if I'm not here, I mean, you don't punch each other, right? not anymore not anymore Ted and Todd are in their 60s. They both have long white hair and the stoic deadpan affect of hitmen in a Cormac McCarthy novel.

00:04:47 Speaker_11
They grew up in South Dakota, surrounded by literal cowboys. Before the interview, they asked if there'd be cigarette breaks. They both smoke Pall Malls, drink Keystone Lights, and they both work as contractors.

00:05:01 Speaker_11
They tell me they can't go into a Home Depot together without being asked the same asinine question. Are you guys twins?" In response, Ted and Todd stare back blankly. But the story Ted and Todd are here to tell isn't actually about their twinship.

00:05:22 Speaker_11
It's about their younger brother, Scott, who died in 2000. Do you want to start off by maybe talking to me a little bit about Scott?

00:05:31 Speaker_03
Go ahead. Well, just, he was a little brother and, um, that was about it.

00:05:40 Speaker_11
To spare you 20-odd minutes of coaxing and cajoling, I'll fast forward a bit to let you know that Scott was a year younger than Ted and Todd. He was the baby of the family, and they often ended up taking care of him.

00:05:53 Speaker_11
As older brothers, Ted and Todd were measured and steady. Scott, on the other hand, was fun and colorful.

00:05:59 Speaker_03
Oh, yeah, yeah. Real bright personality. I mean, he was just definitely his own individual, for sure. Yeah, he got all the personality.

00:06:06 Speaker_11
In school, Scott attracted attention and not all of it good. This because in addition to his big personality, Scott was gay. From a pretty young age, he was a target for bullying, but Ted and Todd always kept an eye out.

00:06:21 Speaker_02
You couldn't go after our little brother because then you're gonna have to deal with both of us. So one offense, you're gonna have three events. It's not because we liked it, we were protecting our family.

00:06:33 Speaker_11
In spite of the haters, Scott remained a force to be reckoned with. As a teenager, he once got into their dad's Lincoln Continental in the middle of the night and drove it almost 1,000 miles across state lines. At 15.

00:06:47 Speaker_11
I mean, that tells you how independent Betty really was. Yeah. Strong-headed. While Ted and Todd got married and settled down, Scott maintained his impish spontaneity, doing things like buying Ted and Todd's kids the candy they weren't allowed.

00:07:02 Speaker_11
Or once, having promised his seven-year-old nephew a trip to the circus and then breaking his leg, made sure they could still go by teaching his nephew how to pump the clutch. Scott led a nomadic life.

00:07:18 Speaker_11
Every so often, Ted and Todd would get a phone call. Scott was in Roanoke, Virginia living with friends. Scott was in Nebraska going to mortician school. Scott had crashed his car in the desert outside of Phoenix.

00:07:32 Speaker_11
But no matter where he went and no matter how old he got, if Scott was in trouble, Ted and Todd's phones would ring. So one day in the fall of 1986, when Todd received a call from Scott at 3 a.m., he wasn't all that surprised.

00:07:47 Speaker_11
He wanted me to come down and get him now, which was not unusual. Scott told Todd he was in the hospital. When Todd got there, he was directed to a special ward. And pretty obvious something was wrong.

00:08:01 Speaker_03
And I walked in and there must have been six other beds in there. Probably he was. the youngest. At that point, he would have been in his early 20s. And everybody had gowns and masks and gloves and shields. I mean, it was really bizarre.

00:08:19 Speaker_03
What is happening? And they said, you weren't aware of your brother's diagnosis?

00:08:25 Speaker_11
And that's when they said, your brother has AIDS. Scott wanted to get out of the hospital as quickly as possible. So Todd just put him in the car and drove him home. Never did they talk about AIDS or what it meant. They didn't talk much at all.

00:08:41 Speaker_11
Ted and Todd would call to check on Scott as often as they could. They'd ask if he was going to the doctor, taking his meds. Are you taking care of it, they'd say. Yeah, he'd say. And for the next few years, this is how it went.

00:08:56 Speaker_11
Until the day Harry arrived. Todd was on the phone checking in on Scott, like usual, when he first heard her voice. This thing in the background, it's like, what is that? That was Harriet, a.k.a. Harry. A red and green parrot.

00:09:18 Speaker_11
A three-foot-long macaw, to be exact. Ted and Todd, of course, had questions. Questions like... What the hell are you thinking? Scott had always loved unusual pets. As a kid, he kept a squirrel in the house and even a bat.

00:09:37 Speaker_11
But there was something particularly worrying about adopting a parrot. Its longevity.

00:09:43 Speaker_02
You have this disease. We don't know how long you're going to live and you buy an animal that's going to last 85 to 100 years.

00:09:51 Speaker_11
Even for a healthy adult, such a purchase would mean a commitment that lasts into old age. In Scott's case, it felt like an act of denial.

00:10:00 Speaker_03
What Scott did was what Scott always does. Just, I'm going to do what I'm going to do, and I like it, and I want it, and that's how it's going to be, and it's going to be fine.

00:10:07 Speaker_11
And so Harry was suddenly a fact of their family's life. Wherever Scott went, there was Harry. And in time, she won Ted and Todd over with her rowdy antics and foul-mouthed turns of phrase. You son of a bitch. Scott, come here. What's for dinner?

00:10:25 Speaker_11
Ted and Todd had five kids between them, all of whom adored their cool uncle and his crazy bird. They would take road trips together, Harry glued to Scott's shoulder.

00:10:36 Speaker_11
When they went to get dinner and left Harry in the hotel room, she'd scream, Scott, you fucker. Annoyed to be left out of the fun. Harry was loyal to Scott and protective too.

00:10:47 Speaker_11
She'd nibble at the shunt in Scott's chest like it was a splinter that needed removal. As time went on, it became increasingly clear that Scott's diagnosis was taking a toll. One day, when Ted and Todd called to check in, something felt off.

00:11:05 Speaker_03
He just devoid of personality. Just like, whoa, whoa, whoa, I want to talk to you. He goes, I'm just, I'm not feeling it, Todd.

00:11:11 Speaker_02
And the last time I talked to him, he just said, I said, what's going on with you? And he said, I'm done.

00:11:18 Speaker_11
A few days later, Scott died. He was 38 years old. Ted and Todd rushed out to California. Their mom, who'd been living with Scott, was devastated.

00:11:39 Speaker_03
Because obviously she lost her son and her baby, her youngest dad. And then you've got Harry that was mimicking my little brother's voice and, you know, would call mom, mom.

00:11:52 Speaker_11
Harry grew unmoored, getting aggressive with their mother and anyone else who tried to handle her. The only people who she'd let touch her, the only ones she felt safe with, were the ones who most resembled Scott. That is, Scott's brothers.

00:12:07 Speaker_11
She was fine with Ted and I. When we would get there, she would just cock her head and look at, and she would say, Scott? In those moments, it felt like Ted, Todd, and Harry all shared some understanding. That word, Scott, was like a secret handshake.

00:12:24 Speaker_11
Before his death, Scott told Ted and Todd he wanted to leave Harry to Todd's eldest son, who was in junior high at the time. But Todd knew that keeping her just wasn't realistic.

00:12:36 Speaker_03
I had to tell my son, no, it's just, it wouldn't be fair to Harry, it wouldn't be fair to you, because to own him a car, I don't think people fully understand I mean, did they get angry? They can be destructive.

00:12:47 Speaker_03
You know, if you ever see their claws or their beak, you don't want any part of the business end of those. And she was chewing into the ceiling, into the attic.

00:12:56 Speaker_11
I mean, they're a wild animal. And so they approached Harry's longtime groomer for help finding her a home. She offered to bring Harry to a nearby bird sanctuary, or was it a pet store?

00:13:08 Speaker_11
Ted and Todd were so overwhelmed by Scott's death that they can't quite remember which. They do remember though, the day of her departure, how their kids watched in tears as Harry, their beloved uncle's beloved pet, was taken away.

00:13:23 Speaker_11
They remember how Harry seemed to understand what was happening, how she howled. Her wings were everywhere and she was very, very upset.

00:13:31 Speaker_03
The kids were upset. And she was yelling at us. It was just, it was pandemonium. It was heartbreaking.

00:13:37 Speaker_11
Yeah, it was tough. At this point, Ted and Todd haven't seen Harry in over 20 years. But they do know one thing. This bird could still be out there. And so Ted and Todd have come to me with these questions. Is she still out there?

00:13:56 Speaker_11
And if so, did they do the right thing in giving her up? Why do you think you're looking for Harry now? We always took care of our little brother and that's the one thing we didn't take care of.

00:14:08 Speaker_11
Ted and Todd had taken care of their brother since they were children. Making sure Harry was provided for was the last thing Scott needed from them. And it's the only thing they couldn't do. Ted, do you feel guilt about it?

00:14:24 Speaker_09
Yeah.

00:14:27 Speaker_11
Can you say more about that? No. It's difficult to talk about? Yeah, it is. Yeah, OK. So knowing that Harry was OK, what would that bring to you?

00:14:46 Speaker_02
We'd just be happy to know she's fine. And emotionally? I don't really deal with that.

00:14:54 Speaker_08
There's a part of them that doesn't want to talk about it at all.

00:14:57 Speaker_11
This is Hannah, Ted's daughter-in-law. Because Ted and Todd are such a closed book, she's offered to help translate them for me.

00:15:05 Speaker_11
Hannah tells me that through Harry, Ted and Todd can broach a subject they wouldn't otherwise know how to approach, and doing that might allow them to forgive themselves.

00:15:15 Speaker_08
So it's almost like they can talk about Harry in a way that's easier than talking about Scott. It's kind of like a surrogate. I think there's just a lot of pain in the death of their brother.

00:15:25 Speaker_08
Like what I heard from Chase is that the one time that they've seen their dad's cry is when their brother died.

00:15:31 Speaker_11
Yeah. This is Chase, Ted's son and Hannah's husband.

00:15:35 Speaker_09
They had no control over it. I'm sure they couldn't make him take his medicine or do the thing he was supposed to do as far as getting rest or going to the doctors. And like, they couldn't go beat up AIDS.

00:15:47 Speaker_11
When it came to their brother's death, actions finally failed them. And actions, Hannah and Chase say, are the language Ted and Todd have for showing how they feel.

00:15:57 Speaker_11
Hannah says she can always tell when Ted and Todd have stopped by because some drywall will be sanded down or she'll notice a fresh coat of paint.

00:16:05 Speaker_08
They also always unplug my toaster because they don't want to catch fire. So I can always tell when they've been here because the toaster's unplugged. They're always sort of taking care of you.

00:16:14 Speaker_08
You just show up to your house and realize, oh, they've been here and he's like taking care of some stuff.

00:16:20 Speaker_11
Cowboy style.

00:16:21 Speaker_08
Yeah, cowboy style. That's exactly it.

00:16:26 Speaker_11
Hannah and Chase worry though, that in cowboy style too, they suffer in silence.

00:16:32 Speaker_08
Because I love them. I hope for them that if we found Harry, it could, they could heal more from Scott's death.

00:16:41 Speaker_09
Yeah. I think it would just be nice to know that she's doing good. That like, she's like with people who let her cuss and do whatever she wants.

00:16:50 Speaker_11
Kind of like an outlaw.

00:16:51 Speaker_09
Yeah. Living the outlaw life. Yeah, that's exactly it.

00:16:59 Speaker_11
All right, well, I'm gonna do my best here. I'm gonna try to find Harry. That would be good. Okay. Armed with an old photograph of Harry, I set out on my search.

00:17:32 Speaker_11
Since Ted and Todd don't quite remember exactly where they surrendered Harry, I begin my quest to find this bird of paradise by phoning Birds in Paradise. Birds in Paradise is a pet store in Southern California, not far from where Scott lived.

00:17:50 Speaker_11
The owner, Lori, has had the store for decades and is an active member of the Southern California parrot community. If anyone would know how to find Harry, it seems like it would be Lori.

00:18:01 Speaker_11
So I explained to her the project, to find a bright red toddler-sized parrot named Harry who curses like a French sailor.

00:18:09 Speaker_05
It's completely impossible.

00:18:11 Speaker_11
But, like, isn't the macaw community in the area small enough that people would, maybe through word of mouth, be able to find... No.

00:18:21 Speaker_05
No. There's thousands and thousands and thousands and thousands of macaws in this world.

00:18:29 Speaker_11
And it turns out it's difficult to tell one macaw from another, even for an expert like Lori.

00:18:34 Speaker_05
And you don't know if, you know, something has happened to the bird, if it's been rehomed again.

00:18:41 Speaker_11
Is there any resources that you can recommend?

00:18:45 Speaker_05
I mean, that's what the Internet's about. Do a Google search.

00:18:50 Speaker_11
I try to explain to Lori that that's what the problem is. I've nothing to Google search for. But Lori is insistent. It's just common sense, she says.

00:19:01 Speaker_11
With the internet, you can simply Google search for whatever it is that you should be Google searching for.

00:19:07 Speaker_05
With the internet nowadays, it does make things a lot easier. I mean, say I met a man and I was possibly interested in him. First thing I would do is I'd do a search on him.

00:19:16 Speaker_11
Okay.

00:19:17 Speaker_05
Okay, I'll put it this way. I met a man at Disneyland a few months ago and seemed like a really nice guy and gave me his business card. He was a police officer.

00:19:27 Speaker_11
Okay.

00:19:28 Speaker_05
And I found out that police officer is married.

00:19:31 Speaker_11
Oh my.

00:19:32 Speaker_05
And so, um, let him know that I knew he was married and I thought it was wrong what he was doing and I never spoke to him again.

00:19:38 Speaker_11
But you told him that you confronted him. Good for you.

00:19:41 Speaker_05
That's the kind of person I am.

00:19:44 Speaker_11
I tell Lori that while I respect her sleuthing, her take-no-prisoners style, and the internet as a whole, I don't know that any of this will help Ted and Todd. So Lori offers one last glimmer of hope.

00:19:57 Speaker_05
They'll find out when they die one day and go to heaven if anything happened to that bird.

00:20:02 Speaker_11
That's beautiful. In the end, I do turn to the internet, using it like it's 1995 all over again and I just got an AOL complimentary CD-ROM in the mail.

00:20:14 Speaker_11
I joined Facebook groups like The Parrot Posse and Lost and Found Cockatiels and other bird companions. I even bookmark a site called The Big List of National and International Bird Clubs. But that all yields nothing.

00:20:30 Speaker_11
So, as if it's 1895 all over again, ahoy hoy, I turn to the telephone.

00:20:39 Speaker_04
Thank you for calling Annie's Mobile Bird Grooming. Is it red by any chance? Of everyone I speak with, nobody has seen any trace of Harry.

00:20:46 Speaker_07
And nobody believes I'll ever be able to find her.

00:21:08 Speaker_11
To what do I owe the pleasure of this invitation? But then one day, my producer Mona puts a meeting on my calendar.

00:21:16 Speaker_07
As you know, we've been trying to find this parrot, Perry. Oh, I know.

00:21:20 Speaker_11
I do know that.

00:21:22 Speaker_07
And I've been casting a wider and wider net because I feel like the feedback we've been getting is that it's just like a shot in the dark.

00:21:29 Speaker_11
That's a very generous appraisal of what we've been getting because to me it feels like it's been more like, no, this is insane. You are not going to find this bird. Stop trying to find this bird.

00:21:42 Speaker_07
Mona explains that she's been poking around on pet databases and... I found some other parrots who kind of like had similar stories and looked old and there was this one that came from this... What makes a parrot look old? I think you can tell.

00:21:58 Speaker_11
I think you're getting too deep.

00:21:59 Speaker_07
They look grizzled.

00:22:00 Speaker_11
Should I be concerned?

00:22:02 Speaker_07
Okay, just like stay with me.

00:22:04 Speaker_11
Mona tells me her deep dive turned up a sanctuary we haven't tried yet. It's called Oasis. On the Oasis website, each of the hundreds of birds they house has its own profile page. Mona looked through every single one.

00:22:18 Speaker_07
And that is when I found this.

00:22:31 Speaker_11
Oh man. God. Wow. I... I don't know what to say. So this is a red macaw named Harry.

00:22:59 Speaker_10
Mm-hmm.

00:23:01 Speaker_11
Look at the right wing.

00:23:03 Speaker_10
I know. Oh, and look at the rings around the eye. Oh, no, even the beak.

00:23:09 Speaker_11
is similarly, oh, this is compelling. This Harry looks identical to the photo of Harry that Ted and Todd sent me. So you have not called the Oasis Sanctuary yet?

00:23:19 Speaker_07
I have not. I was thinking maybe we could do that now.

00:23:22 Speaker_04
The Oasis Sanctuary.

00:23:28 Speaker_11
This is Janet Trumbull, director of the Oasis. With great excitement, I explain my quest. And his macaw was also named Harry. Oh. And so we begin comparing Harry's. The Harry who lives at the Oasis, Janet tells me, arrived there as a Harry.

00:23:46 Speaker_04
Yep, he even says his name, Harry.

00:23:49 Speaker_11
Really?

00:23:49 Speaker_04
Yeah. So I know when we walk up to Harry, he always says, hi, Harry.

00:23:54 Speaker_11
Janet refers to Harry as a he because she's done a DNA test. She says that otherwise it's nearly impossible to determine a parrot's biological sex. So it would be understandable if Scott thought Harry a her.

00:24:09 Speaker_11
I asked Janet what else she can tell me about Harry.

00:24:12 Speaker_04
So he came to us from California.

00:24:15 Speaker_11
Oh. Not just California, Janet says, but Southern California, an hour and a half away from Yucca Valley, where Scott had lived. It seems Harry was taken in by a family with young children who teased and harassed him.

00:24:30 Speaker_11
In their care, he grew increasingly aggressive, and so they had no choice but to surrender him to a woman in the area who fostered difficult birds. Eventually, she brought Harry to the oasis.

00:24:42 Speaker_04
She guessed his age at 22. I don't know how.

00:24:46 Speaker_11
Okay.

00:24:47 Speaker_04
He arrived in 2020.

00:24:51 Speaker_11
Our Harry hatched in the late 90s, so 22 in 2020 lines up perfectly. Janet, that would be it.

00:25:02 Speaker_04
Yeah.

00:25:03 Speaker_11
Oh my goodness. Wow, this is very unexpected.

00:25:08 Speaker_04
Yeah, it's kind of cool.

00:25:12 Speaker_11
We found a macaw whose name is Harry, who's the right age and who's from the right place. So I get back in touch with Ted, Todd, and the rest of the family. Hi. Hi, hi, hi. Hello. It's nice to see you all.

00:25:28 Speaker_11
I tell them about everything I've been up to over the last few months. The sanctuaries and bird groomers, the pet stores, Lori's Disneyland gigolo. And finally, I show them the photo of the Harry who lives at Janet's sanctuary in Arizona. Mm-hmm.

00:25:44 Speaker_11
Do you believe that this is Harry? Oh yeah.

00:25:47 Speaker_02
Oh yeah, absolutely.

00:25:48 Speaker_11
I do, I'm sure. That's Harry, that's all day long, that's Harry. That's the first thing I thought, yeah. Ted and Todd are convinced this is Harry, but as a freshly minted bird journalist, I can't yet make the call.

00:26:00 Speaker_11
As Lori told me, individual macaws are nearly impossible for people to identify. They all look the same. Birds, on the other hand, can tell humans apart just fine.

00:26:12 Speaker_11
So to truly confirm that this Harry is our Harry, we need to know whether he recognizes Ted and Todd. And for that, there's really only one thing to do.

00:26:25 Speaker_11
I guess what I'm winding up to here is I've Google mapped the Bird Sanctuary Oasis from this studio. It's a 14-hour road trip. I'm not suggesting that, you know, you leave right now, and we hit the road like Muppet movie style.

00:26:45 Speaker_11
But would you want to go there?

00:26:47 Speaker_03
Yeah, sure.

00:26:52 Speaker_11
Chase, is this Ted and Todd when they're excited?

00:26:56 Speaker_02
You're getting like pinata happiness here, I think, with these two. It's hotter than hell in Arizona in July.

00:27:03 Speaker_11
But yeah. After the break, 800 miles to see about a bird. All right, we're here. Ultimately, there was no road trip. Instead, the family decided to fly to Arizona. Ted and Todd said it was the first time they'd flown in nearly three decades.

00:27:39 Speaker_11
The last had been for their father's funeral. Ted and Todd, Chase, Hannah, Todd's daughter, Jessica, and two grandkids all meet me in a Tucson Walmart parking lot.

00:27:49 Speaker_08
And then Ted and Todd jumped out because they were anxious to get out of the car and smoke.

00:27:52 Speaker_11
Where are they smoking?

00:27:54 Speaker_08
Right by the propane tanks.

00:27:55 Speaker_11
Are you serious? By the propane tanks? Hannah, as it turns out, is serious. I find Ted and Todd sucking down Paul Mall's, indeed beside the propane tanks, which, thankfully, are empty. Oh, it's fucking humid. It's humid.

00:28:17 Speaker_11
As people pass by, they can't help staring a little too long at the two identical men, tall and slim with long white hair.

00:28:26 Speaker_11
For Ted and Todd, who shy away from the limelight in all of its forms, who hate to be the focus of attention, to be so notable must be a special kind of hell.

00:28:36 Speaker_11
The Rubbernecker's Rubberneck, while Ted and Todd flash identical expressions on their identical faces, a look of complete blankness. Cigarettes smoked, we all pile into Ted and Todd's SUV. From here, the Oasis and Harry are about 45 minutes away.

00:29:00 Speaker_06
Hi, nice to meet you. Hi Todd.

00:29:12 Speaker_11
Janet greets us at the entrance of the sanctuary.

00:29:14 Speaker_06
Alright, well let's go ahead and go inside.

00:29:18 Speaker_11
The oasis is home to 22 separate aviaries housing hundreds of tropical birds, almost all of which, amazingly, Janet knows by name.

00:29:29 Speaker_06
He's a Patagonian conure.

00:29:31 Speaker_11
There's Cosmo, Tootsie, Molly, Sammy, Toby, and Modine. There's Oscar, a blue and gold macaw, who, Janet tells us, recently lost her mate. And Congo and Timmy, a pair of African greys.

00:29:45 Speaker_11
There are two Green Wings, Tango and Cash, named for the Sylvester Stallone, Kurt Russell film about two mismatched LAPD officers.

00:29:53 Speaker_11
But while that Tango and Cash enjoy shooting off firearms and punching people in the face, this Tango and Cash enjoy eating honeydew and filberts. Somewhere among all these birds is Harry.

00:30:05 Speaker_06
I was just saying when you guys pulled up, Harry was screaming.

00:30:11 Speaker_11
Do you think there is a chance that Harry will recognize these guys?

00:30:17 Speaker_06
It's very possible. It's hard to say. And because he's not a cuddly bird, you know, I'll have to kind of read his body language.

00:30:27 Speaker_11
As we get closer to Harry's enclosure, we suddenly hear... Harry. Hi, Harry. Yes. Hi, Harry. And there he is, shuffling around on a tree branch.

00:30:45 Speaker_11
Throughout this whole quest, with all the phone calls and internet searching, I'd forgotten how beautiful these birds are. Harry's feathers are so vivid, he makes the world around him seem black and white.

00:30:57 Speaker_11
Harry looks like Saturday morning cartoons, 10,000 crayons, a sunset, and a room full of Gauguin's, all set on fire. Looking at him, it makes sense that the most colorful brother would choose the most colorful pet.

00:31:12 Speaker_11
But seated right beside Harry, almost wing to wing, is another very similar looking bird. It turns out that this is Harry's mate, Valentina. Harry met Valentina eight years ago at the Refuge for Difficult Birds.

00:31:27 Speaker_11
They came to the oasis together, and Janet says Harry and Valentina are inseparable.

00:31:32 Speaker_06
Yep, they're always like that, right together. And you can see he's being very protective of her. They have bonded, very strong bonds, so we won't ever separate those two.

00:31:46 Speaker_11
Harry sidles up to Valentina, and as he draws closer, I can see that, while Harry is indeed beautiful, his feathers are ruffled and patchy, and his tail is shredded. Janet says the loss of feathers is something he's done to himself.

00:32:01 Speaker_11
It's a behavior called plucking.

00:32:03 Speaker_06
It's very common for parrots in captivity to pluck.

00:32:07 Speaker_11
She says plucking can start when birds are stressed or frustrated or grieving.

00:32:13 Speaker_06
They do definitely grieve, yeah, because their bonds are very deep.

00:32:18 Speaker_11
Yeah. It's hard to tell how Janet's words are affecting Ted and Todd, but I suspect it might be adding to their guilt, exacerbating their own tendency to pluck at the many should-haves and could-haves.

00:32:34 Speaker_06
Talk to him. See if he remembers you.

00:32:39 Speaker_11
We all step back and allow Ted and Todd's space to approach. All eyes are on them. And with all the self-consciousness of two self-conscious men who must address a bird before a crowd of family and near strangers, they begin.

00:32:53 Speaker_15
Hi, Harry. Hello, Harry. How are you?

00:33:00 Speaker_06
See, now she's responding.

00:33:08 Speaker_11
Harry's body language shifts. He leans towards Ted and Todd.

00:33:12 Speaker_06
See how he's sitting forward?

00:33:14 Speaker_11
It's okay.

00:33:16 Speaker_06
Look at him, he's just looking at him.

00:33:20 Speaker_15
You're okay.

00:33:20 Speaker_06
So I see some recognition there.

00:33:27 Speaker_11
It looks like we found our bird. Harry starts to come closer, but Valentina reaches forward with her beak and tugs on his feathers.

00:33:37 Speaker_06
It looks like Valentina keeps pulling him back, is what I'm seeing. Like, he does want to engage, but then she says no and gives him a little nip.

00:33:49 Speaker_15
Yeah, she looks like she's getting upset. We can leave you alone. We can let you be, buddy.

00:33:58 Speaker_11
Ted and Todd are reluctant to be a nuisance. They decide to leave the enclosure, and we all file out behind them. At last, Ted and Todd have found Harry. And although worst for wear, he's okay. Still, Ted and Todd don't seem satisfied.

00:34:23 Speaker_11
I think I just felt like, you know, you're... It's just disappointing. It's like they were hoping for something more, something closer to forgiveness. But what does forgiveness from a bird even look like? Let's go ahead and get out of here.

00:34:44 Speaker_11
Yeah, I hate everybody watching.

00:34:45 Speaker_03
I hated everybody watching.

00:34:52 Speaker_06
Well, shall we go on?

00:34:55 Speaker_11
Half-heartedly, Ted and Todd acquiesce, and Janet continues the tour. She shows us the monk parakeets, who look nothing like Tony Shalhoub.

00:35:04 Speaker_06
Smaller species, conures, quakers.

00:35:08 Speaker_11
She shows us the lovebirds, of whom I consider asking Janet if she's ever caught making whoopee.

00:35:13 Speaker_06
Lovebirds can be extremely aggressive.

00:35:16 Speaker_11
But reconsider. And she shows us a rose-breasted cockatoo, the Samantha Jones of the aviary.

00:35:22 Speaker_06
She loves men. I love men.

00:35:27 Speaker_11
While I'm having the time of my life watching nature's drones, all throughout the tour, Ted and Todd lag behind. It's only while engrossed by a parrot named Lady Gray and her ability to repeat the word cracker... Cracker?

00:35:41 Speaker_10
Did you hear that? Cracker? Cracker?

00:35:45 Speaker_11
...that I look around and see that Ted and Todd have disappeared. It's only later on, when reviewing the tape, that I realize where they disappeared to. I walked up to see Harry one last time. Yeah. Without the horde.

00:36:01 Speaker_14
Hmm?

00:36:01 Speaker_11
Without the horde. Ted and Todd had doubled back to see Harry. Without the horde.

00:36:09 Speaker_15
Hi, guys. Hello, Harry. Hi, Harry.

00:36:12 Speaker_11
Where did girlfriend go?

00:36:15 Speaker_15
She's back over there. Oh, there she is.

00:36:19 Speaker_11
This time, when Ted and Todd show up, just the two of them, Valentina stands back, and Harry makes his way down the branch. He seems to feel safe. Yep. And Ted and Todd seem to feel safe, too.

00:36:32 Speaker_11
Without the expectant eyes of the group upon them, they can finally ask the question they really want to ask, that they've flown across the country for. Remember Scott?

00:36:45 Speaker_02
Remember Scott?

00:36:48 Speaker_11
See that? He's watching. Harry doesn't respond. But then, Todd has an idea.

00:36:57 Speaker_15
Harry, you son of a bitch.

00:36:59 Speaker_11
He starts cursing like a constipated French sailor.

00:37:02 Speaker_15
Do it again, Todd. Goddamn it, Harry. Goddamn it, Harry. Come here. Harry, come here.

00:37:10 Speaker_11
Harry takes a couple more leery steps down his branch. You hear it? It sounded like Scott. Mm-hmm. It sounded like Scott, says Ted. Now, at this point, I've listened back to this tape hundreds of times. I'm not sure what I hear.

00:37:34 Speaker_11
It does kind of sound like he's saying Scott, sort of. But I guess it doesn't matter what I hear. What matters is what Ted and Todd hear. And it seems like they hear forgiveness.

00:37:49 Speaker_15
I'm glad you're okay.

00:37:50 Speaker_03
They leave him alone? Yeah, probably. Bye, Harry. Say bye.

00:38:03 Speaker_11
Bye. The two near-identical men wave goodbye to the two near-identical birds. I'm glad he's doing all right. Yeah, that's... And with that, Ted and Todd go back to the group, and Harry and Valentina go back to living that outlaw life.

00:38:24 Speaker_11
In the end, Harry has something neither Ted nor Todd nor any human could have given him. He's paired in this world with one of his own. Of all people, Ted and Todd should be able to appreciate that.

00:38:43 Speaker_11
And so, with this last deed for their brother done, there's only one last deed to do.

00:38:48 Speaker_03
Do you have a cigarette with you? Let's go back over here. They're going to give us a bunch of shit about it.

00:38:57 Speaker_02
I don't know what to do with these shirts. No fucking pockets, no this, half a pocket.

00:39:53 Speaker_13
is returning to its goodwill home. Now that the last month's rent is scheming with the damage deposit, take this moment to decide if we meant it, if we tried.

00:40:27 Speaker_11
This episode of Heavyweight was produced by Phoebe Flanagan, Mohini Madgaukar, and me, Jonathan Goldstein. Our senior producer is Khalilah Holt. Our supervising producer is Stevie Lane.

00:40:37 Speaker_11
Special thanks to Mimi O'Donnell, Lauren Silverman, and Katherine Brewer. And special thanks, as always, to the one and only Jackie Cohen. Editorial guidance from Emily Condon.

00:40:47 Speaker_11
Bobby Lord mixed the episode with original music by Christine Fellows, John K. Sampson, Blue Dot Sessions, and Bobby Lord. Additional music credits can be found on our website, gimletmedia.com slash heavyweight.

00:40:58 Speaker_11
Our theme song is by The Weaker Thans, courtesy of Epitaph Records. Follow us on Twitter at heavyweight or on Instagram at heavyweightpodcast. And we have a new email address, heavyweightshow at gmail.com.

00:41:12 Speaker_11
As you may have heard, this is our last episode as a show with Spotify. It's been eight years. I can't believe it. But we're looking for a new home, and I have a feeling we're going to be back soon.

00:41:24 Speaker_11
So please stay tuned, stay subscribed, and truly, thank you for all the great years. Play us out, Weaker Thans.

00:43:10 Speaker_03
I'd be entirely shocked if this thing ever airs. If what? If this thing ever airs. Oh, I wouldn't think so.