The Transcript

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From my living room, I’m Penelope Young, and this is my podcast, Penny for Your Thoughts. Today’s episode: Nick.

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Nick: Should I start now? I can start now if you’re ready? Now? I can explain it now.

Penny: (off-call) This is my friend Nick. Fifteen years ago, he experienced something weird. 

Nick: Okay, so, I was just home from school. I was going to BU, and I was a senior. I came home for Christmas to see my parents, all the way in Rockford, Illinois. It’s where I grew up.

Penny: Yeah? What was it like growing up in the Midwest? In Rockford?

Nick: Mostly just… quiet. I lived in a big suburb, where we all sort of lived far away from each other. Technically, we were closer to Freeport. I always say Rockford, because people recognize it. You know, home of the Sock Monkey.

Penny: Right, right. So you’re home for Christmas.

Nick: Yeah, we were watching one of their shows late or something, and I didn’t really have any friends home that winter. It was just me and my parents. We got into this little argument, so I left. I put on my coat and I went for a walk. I was only going to be gone for maybe, like, twenty minutes.

Penny: (off-call) Nick explains that in the time that he left, at about midnight, what he thought was about twenty minutes passed. Really, he was gone for three hours. He came back to his parents worried sick about him. But that’s not what his story is really about. 

Nick: Yeah so, I am just walking and I hear these, like, bells? Ice cream truck bells are what they sounded like. I remember thinking it was weird, but I also just found myself walking straight toward it. And then I was running. You know, half on ice and half on snow and in the middle of this nowhere suburb. I don’t think I ever thought about what could happen. It was sort of the last thing on my mind, and like, I was in my twenties. A guy. I just didn’t think about it.

Penny: (off-call) Here’s where things got weird for Nick. 

Nick: I found this literal ice cream truck. I didn’t have money on me. I don’t even think I even said a word to this guy. Well, I think it was a guy. I can’t really remember his face or anything. I just remember he had a kind voice, and he knew exactly which ice cream I wanted.

Penny: (off-call) This was in the mid-2000s, there were a lot of ice cream trucks. Not a lot of ice cream trucks that late at night, though. Nick doesn’t remember the driver’s face, didn’t get the license plate, doesn’t have a picture. Just has the wrapper as proof. He kept the wrapper for the last fifteen years. 

Nick: (Laughs) Yeah, I remember there was a joke on the stick. But some of the words were mixed around. I couldn’t quite make it out. I threw that part away, I think. I can’t find it anywhere. The wrapper I kept for some reason.

Penny: But no one believed you.

Nick: It was the weirdest thing! No one believed me. Not even my parents. They kept insisting that there wasn’t an ice cream truck in the neighborhood. Ever. I told my friends when I got back to Boston, and they just brushed it off. I had a ‘weird dream.’ No one believed me. But I thought about it. For a while.

Penny: (off-call) Nick thought about this moment for the next fifteen years. He got married, had a son, got divorced, and was still thinking about it.

Penny: Okay, Nick. I am going to do my best.

Nick: (Laughs) That’s all I ask.

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Penny: (off-call) I started with Nick’s parents. 

Penny: Hi, Mr. and Mrs. Johnson? This is Penny. 

Mrs. Johnson: Oh, hi Penny! So nice to hear from you. Nicolas told us all about your new project. You want to help people! That’s so lovely!

Penny: Thank you, Mrs. Johnson. Mr. Johnson, how are you?

Mr. Johnson: I’m well, Penny, thank you. 

Penny: Okay, let’s get started. Do you remember the event?

Mrs. Johnson: Oh, when Nicky went missing for a few hours? Sure. It was a little odd maybe, but it was even odder that he insisted on that story about that popsicle stand. 

Penny: I believe it was an ice cream truck. 

Mrs. Johnson: Oh, sure. What’s the difference? We haven’t had an ice cream truck in our neighborhood in years. I just thought it was a strange little story he was telling so we wouldn’t find out he was smoking from a marijuana pipe with his friends. 

Mr. Johnson: (mutters) That kid, always getting into trouble. 

Mrs. Johnson: Oh, now, sweetie. Nicky doesn’t do that stuff anymore. You know that. 

Mr. Johnson: Sure. But he gave me a damn headache for five years straight. 

Mrs. Johnson: (Laughs) He was quite the troublemaker. A little more quiet after that, though, I will say. It was just an odd little thing, that Christmas. We were worried sick, but after he came home, I just forgot about it really, until last week when he brought it up again. I didn’t know it bothered him so much! 

Penny: Right. Do you remember anything else from that night?

Mrs. Johnson: (Pause.) Mr. Johnson is shaking his head. I only remember thinking that it was strange. I’m sorry we can’t help more, darling. 

Penny: That’s okay, thank you for the call. Have a nice afternoon. 

Mrs. Johnson: You’re very welcome, Penny! Best of luck on your videotaping. We hope to see you soon!

(Call cuts)

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Penny: (off-call) I knew that’s as far as I would get with them. Next, I looked into some job hiring sites for ice cream truck drivers. There was only one offering for Nick’s hometown. I decided to call them up. 

Penny: Hello?

Pop: Hello, thank you for calling Pop’s Ice, this is Pop, how can I help you?

Penny: Hi, Pop. I was just calling to ask about your summer ice cream truck service? 

Pop: Oh, sure, you lookin’ for a summer job?

Penny: Not exactly. I was wondering about how long your ice cream store has been operating in the Freeport area. 

Pop: Uh… I’d say the last three years or so? Why’re you askin’?

Penny: Do you know of any ice cream trucks other than you? Or any before you?

Pop: I remember they told me I was the first when I got my license. It’s just me in town — my snowballs got no competition. 

Penny: Okay, well thank you Pop. Have a good rest of your day. Actually, just wondering… have you ever heard of an ice cream truck that comes late at night in Freeport? 

Pop: Like I said, it’s just me and my cones here. I would know if there were any guys looking to one-up me. 

Penny: Okay, well, thanks for talking to me. Have a good one. 

Pop: Yeah, you too, toots. 

Penny: (off-call) It was odd. No ice cream truck in the area before three years ago. This seemed sort of unbelievable to me, but I remembered that Pop must have received his license from the country clerk in Freeport. I called them next, but they did not want to be recorded. Basically, they hadn’t heard of any late-night ice cream truck, nor did they know of any legal ice cream street vendor in Freeport other than Pop. I was at a loss. 

Penny: (Upbeat music) But there was one other avenue I hadn’t tested — the neighborhood watch. And we will be right back with the story after this short break.

 

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Penny: Hi, so I don’t have any brand deals or anything, but I thought I would take a second to thank some people for the help. First of all, thank you to my mom for supporting me in whatever I want to do. Thank you to Nick for his story and to Pop for his help. Lastly, I would like to preface this second half with a little background. I have worked this office job for 7 years now. I think I need something new. I mean — I like my work well enough, but my friend Fatima keeps telling me I’m not adventurous enough. She likes to ask where the old Penny went. The one that dreamed of living in the city instead of the suburbs. I don’t know. Maybe this is me looking for who I used to be. It seems awfully deep and self-reflective, but I just really love personable podcasts so I thought I would make one myself. Something new! Something upbeat! Anyway, just thought I would leave a little disclaimer. Back to the story.

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Riiiiiiiiing.

Penny: Hi, is this the [BEEP] Neighborhood Watch line? I got your number from your website. 

Ralph: Yes, you’ve got the right guy. My name is Ralph, what can I help you with?

Penny: Hi Ralph, I’m Penny. I’m calling you because I am hoping to solve a mystery. 

Ralph: I love mysteries. Lay it on me, Penny. 

Penny: So about fifteen years ago, my friend Nick has this weird thing happen to him…

Penny: (off-call) I explain Nick’s story. Ralph is surprised, and then thoughtful. He tells me that the watch for that particular neighborhood has only been around for five years, but something similar happened a few years back in a nearby neighborhood. 

Ralph: I think the name was Liu. The daughter, she was the one with the problem. I think it was something of the same sort — an odd story. Her parents, they were real worried about her. I haven’t heard anything about it since. 

Penny: (off-call) Ralph gave me hope. Thank you, Ralph, for your wonderful memory. After our call ended, I got to work on finding the Liu’s. I started with Facebook, and once I narrowed the search down to the town, I found three connected profiles — a mother, father, and a daughter, Ester. I found Mr. Liu’s LinkedIn and his business email. My first email, he did not respond to. After a few days, I sent another. And another. Eventually, he agreed to exchange phone numbers. My first call with him did not go so well. 

Penny: Hi, Mr. Liu. 

Mr. Liu: Yeah, hi, listen — I don’t need you harassing my family or my daughter. Ester was having problems in school and.. It’s really none of your business. I don’t care if it’s for a story, we have no interest in being on TV over this little incident…

Penny: (off-call) I could hear muffling on the other end. A young woman’s voice. I assumed it was Ester. 

Penny: Oh no, Mr. Liu, this is not for television, I’m just making a podcast. Would it not be possible to talk to Ester for a second? 

Mr. Liu: Absolutely not. (more muffling in the background.)

Penny: Okay. I’m sorry for bothering you Mr. Liu. If you decide to call me, you have my number. Thank you for your time. 

Mr Liu: Yeah, fine. Now stop emailing me. 

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Penny: (off-call) I thought this was it. I would never solve this. I mean, I didn’t think it would be possible to solve, really, because it was just a little story Nick told me once or twice when we were in college. I thought it was interesting, though, and there was this hope in me when Ralph said that something similar happened to someone else. I wanted to give Nick closure, but this felt like a dead end. (Pause.) Until, the next day, I got a call from Mr. Liu. Only, it wasn’t Mr. Liu, but his daughter Ester, who heard her name on the phone and was curious enough to call me from her father’s phone. After I explained my side of the story, we got into her’s side.

Ester: Yeah, I mean it was really weird. I was what… Sixteen?.. When it happened. I didn’t keep the wrapper. I wish I had. I did try to get a picture of it when it drove away. All I got was this weird blurry picture of the headlights turning at the corner. It felt like I was in a trance or something. So weird. Ugh. I get the shivers just thinking about it. My parents thought I got kidnapped or something. They called the police and everything. 

Penny: Did they think you were making it up?

Ester: I think… I think they believe that I was confused. They told the police to look out for a white truck or something like that. I don’t know. They just think some guy in a truck tried to lure me into his van with candy. I couldn’t really convince them otherwise. They were really worried about me. 

Penny: But you were okay?
Ester: I mean, yeah? Like, physically I felt fine. But for the months leading up to it I was constantly stressed and worried about failing school and getting into arguments with my friends. I was kind of a mess. I was so worried about college. God, if I could only talk to that version of me, and help her snap out of it. I missed so much of high school worrying about growing up. After that night, I felt, I don’t know, different?... I felt more centered I guess. I got into yoga and started doing more breathing exercises. I am much more calm now. 

Penny: Huh. That’s interesting. Did it really mean that much to you? This freak occurrence? 

Ester: They gave me a strawberry shortcake popsicle. My favorite. I don’t know. I just felt so peaceful after it. I mean, after I kind of freaked out about the whole hypnotizing thing. 

Penny: Hypnosis? What do you mean? Nick didn’t mention that. 

Ester: I mean, yeah, it just felt like that I guess. I don’t remember asking for ice cream, I don’t remember saying much of anything at all. It was like a dream. But it was also the first time I was out there, alone, at night. I just walked home after, with my ice cream, and thought about what college would be like. For the first time, I wasn’t thinking about school, or worried about being far from home and alone. I just felt peaceful. I was by myself, and I didn’t mind it. 

Penny: Did the police ever find the guy?

Ester: I’m not really sure that it was a guy, but no. They never found anything. Like you said, a freak occurrence. Must have been magic or something. 

Penny: Right, well, I would love to give your information to my friend Nick. Maybe you guys can talk about it. 

Ester: Sure. 

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Penny: (off-call) This story was important to Nick. It was important to me, after all of the work I put into it. I wanted Nick to have his happy ending — mostly confirming that he was not, in fact, crazy, nor did he dream the event up. (Pause.) According to Nick, he and Ester talked for a while. This weird story meant similar things to them — it was a moment that reminded them of their loneliness while growing up, both only children in a house with busy parents. Nick thought of it as a homecoming. After he let go of his anxieties about being with his family again and the change after his many semesters seven hours away from his childhood home, he was finally able to enjoy the holidays with his parents. He enjoyed being home for the first time in a while — away from his friends, and away from the life he created. Ester felt at peace with herself — a different sort of homecoming. She would be alone in two years, everything would change, and she would be fine: this was something she had to come to terms with. 

I don’t know why it was an ice cream truck. It doesn’t make much sense to me. At the end of the day, I couldn’t quite find proof. Sorry, Nick. This was all I could do. I hope that Ester’s story was enough to convince you that you didn’t make it up. 

For all I know, you both could have both had the same weird dream that resulted in a deep reflection of who you are and where you are in life. I don’t really know. I think your stories, knowing how they made you feel, are kind of beautiful. Maybe I’m the weird one. 

(Pause.) This feels a little like my midnight ice cream truck moment. This whole time, I thought maybe, just maybe, I could be an amazing podcast host. Someone with that real people-person talent. Getting people to talk. To tell their stories. Getting to the bottom of things. You know, like mini journalism. 

(Laughs) I couldn’t do it. I don’t know why. I don’t know where I went wrong, but I somehow feel like I didn’t do anything that was really me. Oh my God, I hate talking to people on the phone. I don’t love the sound of my voice. I have been avoiding calling my mom for weeks. Mr. Liu scared the shit out of me. I am not cut out for this. I couldn’t solve it, and that has to be okay. 

I am okay with that, I think. I don’t have to be this person. I like me, and I don’t need to pretend to be someone else to feel successful in life. I may always be in the outskirts of Chicago, in a little house with a creaky front porch and a radiator that doesn’t work most winters. I think I am happy like this. I love my job. I don’t need to take a risk with a new one. I love you, Fatima, if you’re listening to this. I really do, but I don’t need to be adventurous to be happy. I like things the way they are. 

This was fun, this podcast. I hope someone out there enjoys listening to it. I want to apologize for talking too much, but that’s kind of what a podcast is. I think I like listening to them more like I like creating them, and that’s not a bad thing. So, I’ll leave you with this, dear listener: If it means something to you, it doesn’t really matter if it’s a dream or not. It doesn’t. We all have these periods in our lives where we believe that we should be doing something else. Something better. Something more significant or important. Don’t worry about those moments. They pass. If you are happy, if you can find happiness, then you are exactly where you need to be. 

(Podcast Intro Music plays again)

My name is Penelope Young, and this has been the first, and only, episode of Penny for Your Thoughts. I hope you enjoyed it. My living room is getting a bit cold. I think I will put on another pair of socks.

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