the government doesn't want my thoughts.
It’s our one-year anniversary episode and we’re celebrating by spiraling through family discoveries, conspiracy TikTok, Hello Kitty identity politics, Reddit moderator tyranny, reality tv chaos, and the end of a deeply unwell trip to Vegas with the women of The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City.
timestamps
0:00:12 what’s the last song you listened to?
0:01:44 looking back on one year of bestie approved.
0:06:32 Travis's Kentucky family found the pod.
0:09:03 5G is stealing our thoughts and prayers.
0:20:41 our favorite new book about Donald Trump.
0:24:13 Hello Kitty isn't a cat?!
0:29:31 complaining.
0:36:09 our feelings about The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives.
0:49:01 manifesting refund policies with The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.
0:57:20 reworking bestie approved & reality roundup.
1:01:36 The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City season 1 episode 12: “Sinners in the City”
1:38:45 attention from The Real Housewives of Atlanta on social media.
1:39:46 we love you!
This week, Travis and Emma look back on a full year of bestie approved. Then we head straight into the weirdest corners of the doomsday-prepping internet with EMF-blocking hoods, 5G thought theft, and the very important question of what exactly “the waves” think they’re going to find in our brains. Spoiler: probably not national secrets. We also discuss Rihanna Teixeira’s gloriously empty Trump “biblical proof” book, the horrifying revelation that Hello Kitty is apparently not a cat, and the deeply upsetting math of her being five apples tall but only weighing three apples. Emma mourns the loss of Jeopardy sweetheart Jamie Ding, while Travis airs out the 3D printing subreddit moderators after being banned for not having enough karma.
In reality roundup, we get into the Secret Lives of Mormon Wives Orange County spinoff, the problem with trying to build a Housewives-style universe out of MomTok, and why Taylor Frankie Paul’s chaos may have been the engine holding the whole thing together. We also discuss Scamanda Frances and her remarkably low refund rate.
Finally, we recap The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City Season 1, Episode 12: “Sinners in the City.” The Vegas trip fully detonates as Jen Shah rejects peace, Meredith disengages with Olympic-level grace, Baby Gorgeous navigates a hostage negotiation, and Heather somehow remains loyal past the point of reason. Then everyone heads to a hypnotist/mediator/psychic, where the group collectively confirms that nobody trusts Jen.
from Indy to wherever you listen to podcasts, we love you!
* rate and review the pod on Apple Podcasts!
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the government doesn’t want my thoughts [https://www.bestieapproved.com/one-year-of-bestie-approved]. © 2026 by Travis and Emma is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 [https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/].
