How do trick candles reignite?
Hey. I'm Melissa.
Jam:I'm Jam.
Melissa:And I'm a chemist.
Jam:And I'm not.
Melissa:And welcome to chemistry for your life.
Jam:The podcast helps you understand the chemistry of your everyday life.
Melissa:Okay, Jim. Today's episode, I'm really excited. I guess I'm always excited, but it's inspired by my friend David.
Jam:Okay.
Melissa:Before we get to the episode, do wanna take a minute to shout out our new Patreon supporters. Yay.
Jam:That's right. Since our last, you know, real proper episode, we've had Four new people join our awesome team slash community of patrons over on patreon.com/chem for your life. Those people are Nicole c, Emerson w, someone named Shadow.
Melissa:This is so mysterious and cool.
Jam:Yes. Very cool. And Brian Kaye. Guys, thank y'all so much for supporting the show, for keeping it going, keeping it free, and just caring about sharing chemistry with A lot of people around the world.
Melissa:It means so much to us. And coming up this week, we're gonna have our 1st ever coffee hour with our h Bond tier, so that's really exciting. And our sticker that we'll be sending out to some of our supporters based on the tiers just came in the mail, it's to those supporters, and I'm really excited. It's so cute. Worked by local artists.
Melissa:So it's been really fun to start connecting with our Patreon supporters. Okay. So that's been really fun, but also really fun is today's episode topic.
Jam:Nice.
Melissa:So, again, this episode is inspired by my friend David. He is in the same research group where I did my PhD research, and we were just walking and talking one day about how candles burn. And he said, no spoilers. I'm listening in order, Which made me laugh. Like, something that happens
Melissa:in our life could be a spoiler. Right.
Jam:That is
Melissa:so funny.
Melissa:I was like, I don't know that candles burning is a spoiler, but Okay.
Melissa:But then he said that he wanted to know how trick candles might work. He thought that that might be an interesting topic.
Jam:Okay. Trick candles.
Melissa:Yeah. Do you know what trick candles are?
Jam:I feel like I is it the ones that won't go out?
Melissa:Yeah. Well, they'll go out, but then they come back.
Jam:Right. Right. Right. Yes.
Melissa:So they're sometimes called relight candles. Sometimes they're called magic candles. Funnily enough, they're banned in Canada, which I think is amazing.
Jam:Weird. I mean, I guess maybe it'll make sense once you explain it, but that seems so strange to ban it.
Melissa:Well, that's because they're prone to reignite spontaneously. So if you didn't remember that they were magic candles or If, you know, you thought they were out and they weren't, and you threw it in the trash, it could light your whole dragon on fire.
Jam:Right. Or other explanation, just hypothetically. Maybe a certain politician didn't like the trick being played on them in Canada,
Melissa:and they
Jam:were like, you know what? Nope. No one is gonna go through this again like I did.
Melissa:That's funny.
Jam:Just not a good sense of humor, so he banned them.
Melissa:Maybe so. Well, I've had Add those for my birthday in 2020, I remember. My sweet roommate, Nicole, it was right when COVID was starting. And we weren't sure what was happening. Oh, yeah.
Melissa:Yeah. To get together with a bunch of friends at, like, a local drink place called Harvest House here.
Jam:Uh-huh.
Melissa:And I was like, I don't know. Maybe we shouldn't. So I canceled that gathering, and it was when my mom was sick and I was sad. Yeah. And I Came home, and Nicole had, like, a feather boa for me and a crown.
Melissa:And she had,
Melissa:like, a little cake and, Some magic candles that I didn't know were magic candles, so I blew them out, and they came back. And it's like it's always so delightful and shocking. But then you're like, how do you get these out? And I being a little scared because we would blow them out and then to take them out of the cake, but they could reignite at any minute. So it was kind of scary.
Melissa:So that was fun. Yeah.
Melissa:So and I remember wondering that night how they worked.
Jam:Yeah. Yeah.
Melissa:But I didn't have the capacity to go look it up. So here we are today Because of David.
Jam:Yes. Just a few years later.
Melissa:Yeah. Yeah.
Melissa:I think it's more than two and
Melissa:a half years later, Actually
Jam:Man.
Melissa:Man, time flies when you're in a global pandemic.
Jam:Yeah. Amen.
Melissa:So we already did an episode on how candles burn. Do you remember that?
Jam:I do. And I actually feel like I kind of remember it better than some. There's some episodes that we do, given how hard they are for me to understand it or whatever.
Melissa:Yeah.
Jam:Where, like, the more weeks go by, the more it fades. But
Melissa:maybe the less you encounter it in real life.
Jam:Correct. But we do Somewhat regularly burn candles around here.
Melissa:Especially in the fall.
Jam:Yep. A 100%. So my wife really likes them, and I do too. I mean, especially if I've just Cooked something that smells strongly and I wanna, like, cover it up with something else, then then I, light a candle. But I feel like Because of that, it's been a little bit easier for me to remember the basics of candles.
Melissa:Okay. So do you wanna take a stab at Teaching me about candles? Do doing a quick reminder for the me and the listeners?
Jam:Yes. I'll try it. I'll try to do it quickly, and I'll stumble through it, but
Melissa:we'll
Jam:see what happens. So I remember being that the the heat at the top
Melissa:Yes.
Jam:When you light the wick Is as that is lit, because it's lit, it's drawing wax. It'll continue to draw wax up the wick. Mhmm. It burns the wax. Mhmm.
Jam:And that combustion's happening up there
Melissa:Yes.
Jam:Is what keeps drawing more and more wax up the wick, basically.
Melissa:Yes.
Jam:That's why the wick seems like it's not, Like, just burning itself, like, in, like, a minute.
Melissa:You know
Jam:what I mean? Yeah. And That's, I think, the basics that I can remember.
Melissa:Yes. So
Jam:a lot more, but
Melissa:No. That's good. So the wick is it's burning, but it's not the main source of of, like, fuel for the candle. Uh-huh. So the we light the wick, and it melts the wax.
Melissa:And when the wax is in liquid, it can be drawn up into the wick Through that capillary action thing we talked about
Jam:Yes.
Melissa:Where basically, you know, the liquid travels up, and it gets vaporized. And then the Vapors of the wax is actually what's doing the combustion reaction.
Jam:Right. Right. Right.
Melissa:And remember we talked about how the reaction sort of need Something to get it over that initial energy. Like, it needs a little bit of energy, but then once it starts, it's giving off enough energy to keep it going. So it's almost like The lighting of the wick pushes, like, a boulder down the hill, and then it just keeps going. It's like a self fueling reaction
Jam:kind of. Because it it's there's all this fuel right there, but it's in a state that at the moment is not
Melissa:Yes.
Jam:Usable until it's melted.
Melissa:Yeah. It needs some energy to get the reaction going. And then once the reaction is going, it gives off energy in the form of heat and light, which is A candle burning.
Jam:Right. Right.
Melissa:Which is great. Yeah.
Jam:And it smells great.
Melissa:And it smells so good. There's this 1 candle I love that's called volcano. It's by Pre blue.
Jam:Woah. That sounds cool.
Melissa:It's super expensive. It does not smell what I think a volcano would smell like at all. I imagine a volcano kinda smell like sulfur, but it is my favorite candle in the world.
Jam:Interesting. Is it kind of like cologna a little bit?
Melissa:No. It kinda smells like sweet to me.
Jam:Okay. Interesting. I like Fruit. I could see I could see someone using the word volcano for, like, almost like a, you know, a cologne y type of scent.
Melissa:Yeah. You know what I mean?
Jam:Not that that's exclusive to men, but all like, for instance, my wife prefers candles that have a little bit of, like, a cologeness Yeah.
Melissa:Like, cozy sweater or whatever.
Jam:Right.
Melissa:Yes.
Jam:Right. That aren't too yeah. Anyway.
Melissa:But No. It I don't I actually don't know that your wife will love this candle too much.
Jam:Okay.
Melissa:It's much more fruity and less. It almost smells like spring to me.
Jam:Okay. Interesting.
Melissa:Okay. So sorry. That was an about candle preferences. Yeah.
Melissa:But it is if you ever see
Melissa:it, it's like at little boutiques and stuff usually. And weirdly at Buc ee's, Which is a
Melissa:Texas gas station that has
Melissa:all kinds of stuff. Becky's has it too.
Jam:Interesting.
Melissa:I know. Weird. But it's a it's a good gift candle, I would say. So that's an aside on regular candles and how they work and which one I think you should buy. Yeah.
Melissa:So The vaporized wax is the fuel for the candle.
Jam:Mhmm.
Melissa:And that's how we did that trick. We did an episode where you can, an experiment at home where you can use a lighter above a candle that's burned out and get some of the smoke from the candle The light on fire, and the fire will travel down back to the wick and reignite the candle?
Jam:That's right.
Melissa:Okay. So trick candles are not so different than that, but can you think of something that would maybe make them work? It's okay if you can't. I just figured I'd let you try, And maybe our listeners at home can think about it too. My husband came up with it really quickly, and I was
Jam:Dang it.
Melissa:Like, oh, rats. How'd you get That. Yeah. So I wanted to give our listeners a chance too in case they, like him, could have the satisfaction of guessing right.
Jam:Well, it's probably in some ways better for the episode that I can't really come up with anything specific. Like, all I can think of is, Could they mix something in there that also burns in a different way? Did a standard candle, but I can't think of what might be a way that it could be delayed. You know what I mean?
Melissa:Like That's well, that's actually really good. The idea of mixing something in there. Okay. That can burn.
Jam:Okay.
Melissa:That's basically it. So, basically, there's something in the candle that's not usually there that can act as a source of ignition to Push the boulder down the hill again, basically. Something that can get the self contained reaction to keep going. You know?
Jam:Right. And as we've seen in, like, when we did that experiment, it doesn't take once it's already been lit once, it doesn't take a lot because there's still the stuff right there.
Melissa:Yeah.
Jam:There's still some vapor right there.
Melissa:Vapor right there, so it's ready to relight. So, basically, just like in that smoke trick, you just need something to catch it on fire again. Just like a quick something Yeah. To get the reaction rolling again.
Jam:Okay.
Melissa:So I didn't have a guess of what that was. I had to look it up.
Jam:K.
Melissa:But what that thing is is magnesium.
Jam:Uh-huh. Okay.
Melissa:So they mix magnesium into the wick Because magnesium is a combustible metal, and it ignites at relatively low temperatures for
Jam:metal. Okay.
Melissa:So I mean, you've probably heard of magnesium a lot, actually. It's, usually a salt that we encounter. So have you had, like an Epsom salt bath?
Jam:Yes. I have.
Melissa:That's magnesium sulfate.
Jam:Okay.
Melissa:So in the same way, sodium is a metal, but then we have it in salt form in sodium Chloride, magnesium is a metal, but when, you know, it forms ions and mixes with other things, it comes in this salt form like Epsom salts.
Jam:Uh-huh.
Melissa:So, there's also metal alloys of that or base of magnesium where it's basically incorporated in with other metals. So, I know that magnesium alloys are used for things that should be lightweight like bikes Mhmm. And car seats. But when magnesium is ground into especially fine particles, so the smaller particle size, the easier it can be, Those can ignite very easily. So when it's in its pure form, not in the alloys, not in the salt, and in small powder, If there is enough heat, then that will re that will cause the magnesium to ignite.
Jam:Dang. Interesting.
Melissa:So it has to be relatively hot compared to room temperature to burn. You know?
Jam:Yeah.
Melissa:It I'm like, oh, it burns at relatively low temperatures. That's for metal. Yeah. Yeah. Like it'll be a hot day outside, and your trick candles will just, like, ignite Right.
Melissa:Right. Like that. So this is another question I have for you. I'm kinda putting you on the spot today because I like for I think this is a good episode to Have us, like, you know, test out our knowledge a little bit.
Jam:Okay.
Melissa:Deal. How hot do you think candles burn that they can ignite magnesium?
Jam:Oh, wow. Okay. I
Melissa:don't know if we actually talked about the temperature of candles in our last episode or not. I couldn't remember.
Jam:Yeah.
Melissa:But so I can remember, I thought you might not remember either. So
Jam:Okay. Here's the way I'm thinking about it based on, like, a be a normal person lay person.
Melissa:Uh-huh.
Jam:I'm thinking about metals that I do experience and what heat I see them around. So for instance, it seems like if it's if it's a relatively low combustion point or whatever Yeah. Then some of the metals I use to, like, cook things with or whatever Must have much higher or at least a little bit higher. Yeah. Right?
Melissa:Because they're not combusting.
Jam:They're not combusting when I have them in the oven at 400 or whatever. So, I don't know. Paper burns at 451. We all know that from the book title.
Melissa:I did
Melissa:not think I have not thought about that for a very long time, so we didn't all know that. Okay. Well, I mean, when you said that, it reminded me of something, you know, way back in my brain. But
Jam:What if it was, like, somewhere in the 300?
Melissa:Okay. It's way more than that. Damn it. Isn't that wild?
Jam:What the heck?
Melissa:So it is Candles can burn up to 1400 degrees Celsius.
Jam:Holy.
Melissa:Which that's 25 100 degrees Fahrenheit.
Jam:So it's just wow.
Melissa:That seem that hot to me.
Jam:The fact that there's this tiny flame means probably the point of, like, that level of heat is, like, right In the middle or anything, but
Melissa:Yeah.
Jam:That's crazy.
Melissa:So it's hot enough after you blow the candle out still that the magnesium can combust.
Jam:Wow. Okay. That makes sense then.
Melissa:Yep. And the magnesium is combusting even while the candle is burning. If you've seen a trick candle, which I don't know if everyone, You know, has because they are banned in some places. Yeah. But while they're burning, they're, like, sparklier than regular candles.
Jam:Right. Right.
Melissa:That is the magnesium combusting well as it has a kind of a different quality.
Jam:Got it. Got it.
Melissa:So but after you blow it out, it's hot enough even when there's no flames left on that candle wick to reignite with by making the magnesium combust.
Jam:That is so crazy.
Melissa:I know. Isn't that wild?
Jam:Yeah. Seriously.
Melissa:And this there I think it's like the smaller the particle size to a specific extent because it gives higher surface area. So it's More places for the magnesium atoms to react.
Jam:Uh-huh.
Melissa:But the smaller particle sizes will affect how easily it can combust and at what temperature, But it can ignite as low as 450 degrees Celsius, which is close to, like, 850 degrees Fahrenheit. Okay. So, basically, it can ignite as low as the high 800. So still higher probably than your oven will reasonably get.
Jam:Right. And I guess one of the flaws of my approach to that was, like, knowing that the metals I used to cook with don't Don't combust at that level, but not knowing what they combust at.
Melissa:Really high.
Jam:Yeah. I mean,
Melissa:I think a lot.
Jam:Iron can go, you know, in the oven at, like, the highest your oven can go, and it's fine. Yeah. So it's like but it doesn't tell me much because I don't know. At what point would it have a problem? And then when would magnesium how much lower would that be?
Jam:So Well,
Melissa:Anna, was a little confused on this, and I think this is an area that probably an inorganic chemist who focuses on more metal type things would know. But at at some point, most metals just melt. Oh, right. Right. That it ignites, I was like, well, why is it igniting instead of melting?
Melissa:And I didn't get a lot Good insight into that. So maybe someone who listens who's an inorganic chemist could tell me. And maybe it's something really simple that I'm just not thinking of, but I Thought, why is it igniting instead of melting? Yeah. But also some things just have different properties like that.
Melissa:Some things just will degrade. Like, Salt usually degrades instead of melting because the bonds are so close together. It's really hard to turn it into a liquid. You know?
Jam:Uh-huh.
Melissa:And so, yeah, they're just different things have different properties. So I don't know why magnesium ignites instead of melts, but It does. Mhmm. And it does that at a relatively low temperature for metal, which I didn't think about how hot That candle would be. Seriously.
Melissa:You know? It just seems like that's really hot. And birthday candles might be on the lower range of
Jam:Yeah.
Melissa:But that was just a paper I found that generalized sort of the properties of of candles. So Yeah. I thought that that was really interesting.
Jam:Yeah. That is. That's crazy.
Melissa:So the way the, trick or magic or relight candles, whatever you wanna call them, works is essentially That when you blow out the candle, the heat doesn't go away immediately. And if there is enough heat, the magnesium reignites. It will just ignite itself basically with that heat. The heat is enough to start the reaction with the magnesium, and that ignition of magnesium gives an off enough energy that it's going to cause the vapor of the candle that's still hanging around to react With the oxygen and boom, there we go. We have our self contained candle burning going again.
Melissa:Yeah. And also magnesium because it gives off a lot of energy. It's often used in, like, emergency flares. So there's Times where people will have to send up flares if they're lost in the woods or, you know, things like that.
Jam:Right.
Melissa:A lot of times they'll use magnesium for that because It burns really brightly, and that's why those trick candles have kind of a different color quality on those.
Jam:I see.
Melissa:Yeah. So it's not just using candles, but it is used for our fun birthday party trick
Jam:Yeah.
Melissa:Isn't that so fun?
Jam:Yeah. Seriously.
Melissa:I was very excited. It seems so simple. Right? Oh, you just add something in that can use the heat that's left behind to start the reaction going again.
Jam:Yeah.
Melissa:So I will say they're dangerous because they can spontaneously relight with Temperature is as low as, you know, in the 800, which Right. We're up in the 25 100, and we're Fahrenheit, and we need to get below that threshold. I could see how someone would think, oh, it's done reigniting. And then
Jam:Throw the trash can on something
Melissa:Yes.
Jam:Reignites.
Melissa:So I looked up some of the safety precautions, and they recommend I think there's, like, an American candle association, which I didn't know. Mhmm. They recommend that you put the candles in water for an hour or so to make sure that there's absolutely no way that it could reignite before throwing them away.
Jam:Yeah. Dang.
Melissa:So that's how they work.
Jam:That's crazy.
Melissa:Do you wanna take a chance at saying it back to me?
Jam:Yes. I'd love to. So here's an analogy that came to mind for me
Melissa:Okay.
Jam:Off of the theme of these being used at parties or whatever. So Imagine that you have a party going.
Melissa:Mhmm.
Jam:And there's dancing. Everyone's having a great time. Imagine, like, specifically kind of like those dance music kinda scenes or whatever.
Melissa:Like a rave type situation?
Jam:Rave. Yeah. Any anything where yeah. Music is It loud, and it's fueling the party.
Melissa:Lots of lights flashing. People having a great time.
Jam:A great time. And then someone pulls the plug on the music. If you have some people in the crowd who are they're still really wanting to dance Yeah. They're still committed. The longer, though, the music's gone, the chances of it the party starting back again.
Melissa:Yeah. People are
Jam:get out of here.
Melissa:Let's go
Jam:do something else. But if some even just a little bit of music Can get going again. The people who are really committed, who are really ready, they don't require much. They'll start dancing again, and it starts the whole party again.
Melissa:You know what I mean? Okay. Yes.
Jam:There's enough momentum. If you get about, say, you've got a room full of people, And about 15 of them or something start dancing like crazy.
Melissa:Yeah.
Jam:It's hard to ignore, and it's gonna start Something. It's gonna start a dance party again.
Melissa:I thought you're gonna go somewhere totally different with that. I thought you're gonna be like, and if you have Just 1 person in there who's a technician who can figure out the problem. I see.
Melissa:Thought you were gonna say.
Melissa:I was thinking about,
Jam:like, we're all burning. Like, the wick And that, all the things that are going on in there are all burning, but the magnesium will be those, like, we're ready to party. We wanna party again.
Melissa:Yes.
Jam:As soon as there's a little bit of a sign, a little bit of a some Some party essence will party again, and we'll get the whole thing going.
Melissa:And then they'll make it fun for everyone else too. Yeah.
Jam:So back to the real thing though, it's That the canna gets blown out.
Melissa:Yes.
Jam:It's still super hot though.
Melissa:Yeah. Ready to party, primed for the pump.
Jam:Still lots of potential there. So lots of energy potential. And so if
Melissa:And there's still that wax vapor hanging out around it?
Jam:Wax vapor, and magnesium right there, Ready to combust
Melissa:Mhmm.
Jam:That made to our eyes appear as if everything has stopped.
Melissa:Yes.
Jam:But, really, there's still a lot going on. There's still enough heat that the magnesium could, after just a couple seconds of, seeing no flame could combust
Melissa:Yes.
Jam:And start the whole party over again.
Melissa:Yes.
Jam:And everything gets lit again, and The candle's burning, and it all goes back to normal
Melissa:Yes.
Jam:In this, like, steady flow of of energy being, Produced and the or being given off and burned and drawn up and all that stuff. The whole 2 reaction be continues again, As long as that can happen.
Melissa:Yes.
Jam:And it's because it can it can combust at such a low temperature relative to not only other metals, but also Just the temperatures of the candle?
Melissa:Yeah. Yeah.
Jam:Like, it's a lot it's a lot lower than what the candle's even burning at Yes. Normally.
Melissa:Because the candle can burn around 25 100 degrees Fahrenheit, but the magnesium can ignite around 850 Yeah. Fahrenheit. As low as that depending on the particle size conditions.
Jam:So is that it?
Melissa:That's it. You got it.
Jam:Nice.
Melissa:Yes. I really thought that this is a fun one. It was kind of Quick, but it was something that I had wondered about and clearly other people wondered about too, so I thought that was really fun. Yeah. And it's a fun part 2 to our candle adventure.
Jam:Yes.
Melissa:Which I didn't even know how candles worked when this whole episode situation started. Yeah.
Jam:Seriously.
Melissa:Awesome. Well, that was really fun. Maybe if I remember, I'm notoriously bad about saying, I'm gonna post that and totally forget it. Yeah. But if I can go back and find that video of the trick scandal scaring me.
Melissa:I will
Jam:Oh, yeah.
Melissa:Definitely post them because I think that's a fun memory that I have of, like, a really special night. Yeah. So in speaking of fun things, Jam, do you have anything fun to report for this week?
Jam:So I've got kind of 2 things in mind. 1 is, like, not necessarily fun, but just an update Yeah. That's significant enough. You know what I mean? And then, the other was a little bit of a fun thing.
Jam:So About a week ago from recording this, my wife went back to work. She'd been on maternity leave. Some Oh, yeah. Our second kiddo. And so she went back to work, which is tough.
Jam:She works 3 days a week. She works in medicine. So I got back into the swing of watching The Boys. Yeah. But it's different because last time I was doing that, with this specific schedule to it, there was only 1 kid to watch.
Melissa:Right. And now there's 2.
Jam:Yeah. So that's been pretty different this week, and it's taking me a bit to get back into the habit of that and also just
Melissa:And one that requires a lot attention than the other now. Yep. Like, the the the older boy was he's kind of self contained to some degree now.
Jam:Yeah. Yeah.
Melissa:But like the younger one requires a lot. Yes.
Jam:And but they sometimes you can play your cards right where their times of needing very specific attention can be alternated.
Melissa:Yes.
Jam:So if I I 2 out of 3 2 out of 3 nights last week, I nailed that.
Melissa:Nice.
Jam:One of the times some curveballs happened, and
Melissa:Showed them winning as a dad. Yeah. But one
Jam:of the times, it didn't work out great. It was like, You know, one of them really I had 1 in the bath while I was trying to feed the other one.
Melissa:Oh, gosh.
Jam:And then the and I'll start to put 1 to bed so I could get the other 1 finished. And it's anyway Yeah. You know? Yes. Didn't work great that night.
Jam:But the other ones, it has. And so That's been a strange it's been strange. And I forget also just like how watching both the kids Alone for 12 hours straight. And that's not really 12 hours straight because they go to bed at some point. But
Melissa:Right.
Jam:They're I'm the only one watching them for a 12 hour chunk while my wife's working. How exhausting that can be?
Melissa:Yeah.
Jam:Since Em's been on maternity leave, we've had a a lot more watching them together Or watching in smaller chunks or whatever. Right. You know, we haven't Really. Haven't had to do, like, a a and even when I'm working, I'm not gone for, like, 12 hours straight. I come back and
Melissa:Eat lunch. Eat lunch.
Jam:And have a check out. Yeah. Stuff like that. So it's a it's pretty different. But So that's been new.
Jam:Right. But it's been going fine.
Melissa:Less of a fun thing. Kind of just like a life update thing.
Jam:Yes. Exactly. One thing I've been doing though in the midst of that is I have not been I've been trying not to watch very much TV lately. I've made the rule for myself that I only watch shows with people. Yep.
Jam:And then it's kind of a group.
Melissa:You about to tell me that you've been watching the Lord of the Rings show without us?
Jam:Nope. I have not done that. I have not betrayed you guys. But one of the things that I remember now that I'm watching the kids 3 days a week is that I come I'm completely toast after I've been watching them. Yeah.
Jam:So what I did is I let myself instead of watching a new show, I let myself watch a show that I have already seen.
Melissa:Is it Seinfeld?
Jam:It is not Seinfeld.
Melissa:Oh, house.
Jam:It is a different one that we have history with, it is Twin Peaks.
Melissa:Oh, that's a good one, but kinda spooky. So good for spooky season.
Jam:Good for spooky season. Wow. Oh. Haven't rewatched in
Melissa:a while.
Jam:I think I've watched the whole thing twice before.
Melissa:Nice. The first 2 seasons are really right, like, Right up my alley, quiet my jam, but then after that, it's a little too much for me.
Jam:Which, like I think the 3rd season doesn't have, like, a ton of episodes anyway. So the The larger percentage of the show's just existence Yes. Is just season 1 or 2.
Melissa:This they just have, like, a good spooky vibe. To this day, when I'm out at night and the trees are wrestling, I get, like, a little spooked out, and I think it's because of that show. Yeah.
Jam:So I've been really enjoying that, and I'll, like, put it on. And I don't feel like I have to pay attention to it so I can, like, put it on, pick up the toys the kids got out Yeah. Do some dishes, that kind of stuff. But it's nice because if I was to try to do something else, like, something work related or listen to an audiobook because I've been trying to, like, get through something like that Yeah. All those things require More mental capacity
Melissa:Right.
Jam:Than I usually have. And so I was like, this fits right into that little gap.
Melissa:Yes. Without a comfort show?
Jam:Yes. Without getting hooked on a new show, which we're trying to avoid. So, anyway, that's my stuff.
Melissa:That's a good one. Not a it is I feel like having a show like that that's almost like an old friend. You're like, I know exactly what's gonna happen in this episode Mhmm. So I can walk out of the room Yeah. While it's on, and I'll know it's gonna come on when I'm back, and it'll be funny and fun and just, like, keeps me company when the house is empty and it's quiet.
Melissa:Yep. Yeah. Yep. There's good shows like that for I was I'll I'll talk more about this in our next episode when I was out of town recently. Uh-huh.
Melissa:And I, 1 night was having, like, I was feeling kinda lonely, and I was texting your wife. And I was like, I'm just gonna watch Murder, She Wrote and eat my hamburger and go to bed early.
Melissa:And she was like, That sounds like a dream. So we kind of share she and I share those, like, those kinds of comfort shows. Yeah. Yeah. That's funny.
Jam:That's great.
Melissa:Oh, I love that. That's really good. What I'm gonna talk about is actually totally different.
Jam:Okay.
Melissa:But we took speaking of little kids, I guess. There we go. We took our 4 year old nephew to 6 Flags. I'd mentioned we were gonna maybe do that. Uh-huh.
Melissa:It was better than you could have ever dreamed. He had the time of his life. So it happened to line up with my husband having, like, a family to bring your family to work day.
Jam:Uh-huh.
Melissa:So we went to that, and there was, like, prizes and candy, and he, my nephew, Edison, had the best time. He was just like, this is amazing. I love Mason works where there's, like, big Trucks. Uh-huh. And so he's like, I
Melissa:love these big trucks. You know?
Jam:Yeah.
Melissa:Like a kid's every little kid's dream. And then we went from there to 6 flags. So One big exciting tiring event to another. Yes. Yes.
Melissa:And he rode his 1st, like, little kid roller coaster, and Mason got a really good video of him when he came off of it, like,
Melissa:a subtle one where he didn't know who's being recorded. Uh-huh. And Mason was like, how'd you like it? And he said, it was Crazy. It went this way, and with that way, I love roller coasters.
Melissa:It was so cute. And he, So he he played a game and won a prize because in the little kid area, like, everybody wins a prize. You
Jam:know? Yeah.
Melissa:It was just really fun, and then he came home and slept. He slept so hard. He fell asleep in the car on the way home. Uh-huh. He slept through us getting dinner.
Melissa:Like, we drove through McDonald's. We Dop ed at a restaurant, and, like, Mason went in and got our us food. Yeah. Then we got home, and we woke him up when we got home. And he fell back asleep before we could get him out of the car seat.
Melissa:I mean, he was wiped out.
Melissa:Yeah. And then we
Melissa:gave him his his little happy meal, and then he fell asleep, like, on the couch just where he was sitting. Wow. So and he slept for a while. So he tired him out, but he had the best most Exciting time. I was like, this is so fun that we got to be a part of that.
Jam:Yeah. That's so cool.
Melissa:And Mason has, like, his Grandmother remarried to someone when she was
Melissa:you know, he was still pretty young, and so he had taken Mason to ride roller coasters Mason was little.
Jam:Oh, that's cool.
Melissa:So Mason sent him the video, and, his grandfather responded and said, Nice. You're gonna have a roller coaster riding buddy for years to come. Nice.
Melissa:And then
Melissa:I was like, oh, that's kind of cute. Like, this cycle
Jam:That is cute. Sort
Melissa:of repeat. So
Jam:Yeah.
Melissa:It was really fun, And I was really excited to get to be a part of that and see him have such a great day. And, you know, all like, those things are just more fun with a kid to Have their mind blown by it. You know? Yeah. So Yeah.
Jam:100%.
Melissa:That was a really fun time. And then, unlike you with your kids, he went home,
Melissa:and we slept for 12 hours. Yeah. We were as tired as he was. Yep.
Melissa:So that was really, really good.
Jam:That's so fun. They're very cool.
Melissa:Yes. I've I loved it. He's a really cute kid, and it was really enjoyable. So, well, thanks To Mason's grandfather for giving us the idea to go to 6 flags, and thanks to you, Jam, for, being so excited and having a fun time. And thanks for learning about Candles.
Melissa:Trick of magic candles. I was really excited to do this episode, and I was really excited to share with our listeners.
Jam:Well, thanks for teaching us. Super cool. Very interesting. Haven't thought about those candles in a long time. But, of course, when I did encounter them, never knew how they worked, so thanks for teaching us about those.
Jam:Wilson, I have a lot of ideas for topics of chemistry in everyday life, but we would do wanna hear from you guys. So if you have questions or ideas, you can actually reach out to us on our new website, kim.chem for your life .com, and you can go to the our contact page and submit your question or your idea or A follow-up or a correction if you have 1. So you can go do that on there. It's a little easier for us to sort through. So doing that There, instead of having it come through Gmail or Twitter or Instagram or Facebook, you can understand how it makes life easier for us.
Melissa:So Definitely.
Jam:Kem for your life.com. That's kem, f o r, your life.com to share your thoughts and ideas. If you'd like to help us keep our show going and contribute to cover the cost of making it, Go to patreon.com/kem for your life or tap the link in our show notes to join our super cool community of patrons. If you're not able to join that, you can still help us by subscribing at our favorite podcast app and rating and writing our review on Apple Podcasts. That also helps us to share chemistry with even more people.
Melissa:This episode of Chemistry For Your Life was created by Melissa Collini and Jam Robinson. Jam Robinson is our producer, and this episode was made possible by our financial supporters over on Patreon. It means so much to us that you're willing to help us make chemistry accessible to even more people. Those supporters are Nicole c, Timothy p, Bree m, Chris and Claire s, Hunter r, Steven b, Avishai b, Chelsea b, Christina g, Emerson w, Shadow, and Brian Kaye. Thank you again so much for everything you do to make chemistry for your life happen.
Jam:We'd also like to give a special thanks to s Navarro who reviewed this episode. And if you'd like to learn more about today's chemistry lesson, check out the references for this episode in our show notes or on our website.
