Watch Out for That Tree

当心那棵树

This American Life

2025-09-08

1 小时 7 分钟
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Small human plans that run into much larger obstacles. Visit thisamericanlife.org/lifepartners to sign up for our premium subscription. Prologue: Angela's dad, an accountant, made a spreadsheet to prepare for their family trip to a national park. But there are things you never think to put in a spreadsheet. (7 minutes)Act One: A young couple, excited to start a new chapter in their lives, is suddenly put on a very different trajectory. (30 minutes)Act Two: A sixteen-year-old plans out a prank, and a complete stranger from Honduras ends up in a million-dollar deal. What could go wrong? (25 minutes)Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.org This American Life privacy policy. Learn more about sponsor message choices.
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  • Tom's an accountant and he once said this thing to his kids that really stuck with them

  • because it summed up so much about his personality.

  • And now he handles decisions at work and with his family.

  • He said it's his job to assess risk.

  • It was part of his thinking even when he planned family vacations.

  • Planned vacations would take him months.

  • He'd get travel guides, check out national parks.

  • He'd look for hidden gems near the parks that they could visit along the way.

  • He'd check the local weather.

  • to make sure that we know what the average temperatures are during those times of years.

  • Now, I'm going to ask this question as an accountant's kid.

  • When you would put together the family's plan for the trip, was that done in an Excel spreadsheet?

  • You know it.

  • Pretty good on her.

  • I like that.

  • And so if I saw that spreadsheet, what would I be seeing?

  • You'd be seeing from left to right, it has the dates that we're going to,

  • you know, where we're going to be.

  • Also mileage between each spot, hours on the road, places to stay, that kind of thing.

  • Okay, so one year the plan was to go to Great Basin National Park in Nevada and hike.