A Contagious Smile Podcast
A Contagious Smile is a powerful platform dedicated to uplifting and empowering special needs families and survivors of domestic violence. Through heartfelt stories, we shine a light on the journeys of extraordinary individuals who have overcome unimaginable challenges. Their triumphs serve as a testament to resilience and strength, inspiring others to rediscover their own inner light. Each episode features candid interviews with survivors, advocates, and experts who provide valuable resources and insights to support those on their own paths to healing and empowerment. Join us as we celebrate the power of resilience, the beauty of shared stories, and the unstoppable spirit of those who turn adversity into hope. Let us guide you in rekindling your spirit, because every smile tells a story of courage and transformation.
A Contagious Smile Podcast
Smoke, Safety, And A Package On The Porch
A quiet Thanksgiving gave way to a jarring delivery that raised a bigger question: what’s the line between personal freedom and public safety at our front doors? We walk through the moment a driver cut across our lawn, tossed a package, and left a thick marijuana smell seeping into our living room—then unpack why that matters in a home that must stay scent‑free for medical reasons. This isn’t pearl‑clutching about legality; it’s about responsibility, impaired driving, and the real health stakes for families managing respiratory sensitivities during peak cold and RSV season.
Michael draws on years in law enforcement to break down how on‑shift impairment slows reaction times and raises risks in neighborhoods where kids and pets move unpredictably. We connect that to a broader pattern: porch piracy, tossed parcels, and a culture of excuses that erodes basic courtesy. When companies rely on contractors, who sets the standard for safety? We look at what employers can do—clear policies against on‑shift intoxication, training for scent‑sensitive environments, better route support—and what customers can expect without being labeled “fussy” for wanting clean air and intact deliveries.
We also highlight the power of positive feedback and community norms. Most drivers are pros who deserve recognition for doing it right. Equal parts story and stance, this conversation calls for common sense on our doorsteps: respect the home, respect the health needs inside it, and keep the roads safe. If you’ve faced similar delivery issues or have ideas for raising the bar, we want to hear from you.
If this episode resonates, tap follow, share it with a friend who relies on home deliveries, and leave a quick review. Your feedback helps us keep the conversation going and the standards rising.
Howdy y'all watch another episode of State Smile Unstoppable with Victoria, Cure, and Michael.
SPEAKER_02:Take three.
SPEAKER_04:Yes. It is now take three. Because I screwed the boot on the first two. Got a good 25 minutes into the second take and flubbed it.
SPEAKER_02:That's why we're live and we're unscripted.
SPEAKER_04:So we had a non-narcistic Thanksgiving.
SPEAKER_02:Yes, that was great. It was quiet. It was the four of us. We had a plethora of food in between doctors and emergency rooms and surgeries and all that, but still an amazing reason to be thankful.
SPEAKER_04:Yeah.
SPEAKER_03:We hope all of you guys had a happy Thanksgiving as well. Things here are being crazy, crazy busy. Can we just talk for a minute about the delivery driver we had today? So I ordered some things off of Timu, and it was delivered. And these are just like little, you know, trinket things and whatever. And we see him drive up because as all of you know, our entire property has cameras and it's recorded and yada yada. So my husband sees this black, dark gray sedan, drive up, and the individual proceeds to come towards the door. And go ahead, what happened?
SPEAKER_04:So I watch a lot of TikTok on the toilet, as my wife knows. You know, because men have to sit on the throne for I don't know, 30, 45 minutes. Well, at least till your legs fall asleep, right? You you need some reading material. You gotta have something to do. So TikTok's my go-to, right? I see a lot of these porch pirates now. I love the exploding packages. I I love them. You get what you deserve and more, buddy. But I don't want our packages to stay down any longer than they have to, knowing that my wife has ordered, you know, X amount of packages that are on their way. I don't want them standing out there too long. So when I see the driver pull up, I start heading to the door. I want to meet them at the door. I don't want the opportunity for that SOB, and there are a few SOBs out there, to throw my package. We've had some steal some of our packages to throw our packages onto the porch, which happened to be wet today because it was raining. Right. We have a box. Put the damn thing in the box, okay?
SPEAKER_03:It even has a sign on it.
SPEAKER_04:There's a sign. I wrote a sign. Put it in the box. Thank you. Right? And then, of course, I'll thank the driver and tell him to drive safe.
SPEAKER_02:He always does that.
SPEAKER_04:And my wife was correct. We did order a sound card, a soundbox. What's it called? Sound a soundboard for our microphones here a while back. And one of the drivers bypassed the camera.
SPEAKER_03:On Amazon, not demo.
SPEAKER_04:Bypassed our cameras, took out the soundboard out of the box, through the box on the porch, took a picture of the box, and then avoided our cameras again. Back then, we we didn't have coverage on what corner of the house. Now we do. Yeah, stole$150. So I like to go out there and greet the drivers. Hey, how are you? Thank you. And drive safe. Right? Today, the some bitch. Some bitch. It's like a view for T Justice, you say.
SPEAKER_03:Or Blake Sheldon.
SPEAKER_04:That some bitch. Came down through the grass. Got up to the porch. Threw the package onto the porch. I was already at the door. I immediately opened the door and yelled at him, stop. Hey, stop, you, hey. He kept he kept running towards his vehicle. I said, Hey, you peckerhead. I'm just upset now.
SPEAKER_03:He ran.
SPEAKER_04:You're ignoring me.
SPEAKER_03:Not to mention there was some smoke coming out.
SPEAKER_04:And and I immediately could smell marijuana from just him visiting that short of time. Picked up the package. It reeked.
SPEAKER_03:And there was a finger hole in the package where it reeked with marijuana looked into as to see what was inside of it.
SPEAKER_04:Okay. I smoked marijuana when I was probably 16 years old. I had four joints.
SPEAKER_03:Never done it.
SPEAKER_04:That's it.
SPEAKER_03:Never done it.
SPEAKER_04:Okay. We're a non-smoking family. We don't allow it in the house. We don't allow smokers in the house, you know, to smoke. We don't even like you smoke around our property because of our daughter and my wife. Okay, there's a lot of medical issues with smoke. But this package was reeking. And now I have to bring this package inside our home.
SPEAKER_03:Well, the door was open, and the smell came in the house with, and right when you come into our front door is like our living room. So the couch, the recliner, the love. I mean, all of that is right there. Not to mention the puffs of smoke coming out of him while he was running.
SPEAKER_04:So the thumb bitch got in his car and hauled ass as I'm still yelling at him, right? All right. So we have a couple issues here. A lot of y'all are gonna focus on the fact that yeah, we're just being sissies and wimps, not being able to tolerate a little bit of marijuana smoke on our packages. We shouldn't have to, buddy. Okay, that's number one. We shouldn't have to endure this. Okay, we don't we don't do it, so why should we have to suffer? The fact that he is out driving under the influence of drugs. Hey, wake up, folks. You know, I used to be a cop, I used to arrest people for this. I used to pull people over and take them to jail, and I take their marijuana, whatever. I write them a ticket. They're out there doing this every day. If somebody doesn't say something, then they're gonna continue to do it. Just like in domestic violence. You see something, you say something. So that's my issue. This guy's out there driving under the influence of drugs, delivering our packages. Maybe had he not been smoking weed while working, he wouldn't have threw my package. Maybe he would have read my our sign and put our package in the box. What do you think, Victoria?
SPEAKER_03:Well, I want to take it a step further because I've had some people make comments about, well, the smell doesn't stay on very long, blah, blah, blah. Well, as a mom of a special needs miracle, number one, you know, for those of you who have or may not have followed Faith's journey, she required a tracheostomy for a good two and a half years after she was born. And when you are having a tracheostomy, you can't even wear perfume, right? This she's so smell sensitive. You have to be so careful. And they tell you, like, my hair would always have to be put up. You couldn't have your hair down in case it got inside the tray, you know, tube. You have to be careful of all and any and all smells. Any nurses knew that they couldn't even wear, you know, perfume in the room with her. There is a lot of protocol. Well, you don't know if you approach somebody's house, if they have chronic asthma, bronchitis, leukemia. You know, there's a plethora of things out there that they could be, you know, dealing with inside of that home and you don't know what it is. And our daughter is post-tracheostomy dependent. So, yes, by the grace of God, she's been decamulated. But seriously, though, you know, it's our choice whether or not we allow smoking in or around our home. And we have been diligent about making sure that no one smokes anywhere around so that we don't even come in our home with it on our person. Like if you're standing outside having a conversation with someone and they're just having a cigarette and they exhale and it gets on you, it gets into your clothes, it gets into your hair. And we don't want to bring that inside with faith. So we've spent our life making sure to be smoke and smell free for this very reason. And, you know, if people want to take into consideration, and I know that medical marijuana is, you know, offered and that some people do utilize that. And that is their right, that is absolutely their right, but it's also our right not to have that in our home. It's also our right where if we spend our hard-earned money not to have those packages come in with that smell. And he was insanely rude. He ran off. You could tell that he was, I mean, you could see the smoke puffing off of his mouth when he went running for the hills. And then when I reached out to Timu, they were at first, they were like, Well, we'll give you a nine dollar credit. Well, the order was ruined, and the order, I believe, was$30 in total. And to me, it doesn't matter if it's$30,$300,$3,000. It's about you know principle and the safety of things. If, you know, for instance, if you have a special needs child and say they have a broviac line, when you go to change something line, you have to glove up. You have to have a sterile environment. If you have a child that's tube dependent, you are doing a tube change, you have to make sure that you glove up, that your you know, environment is sterile, that you check the water within the balloon. There's all sorts of protocol that have to be done. If you're doing the trach change, you know, you have to make sure you're it's the same thing. You need a sterile environment. You want to make sure you glove up, you want to make sure you don't bring in any infection. And see, for Faith, for her, if she got sick because of a lower immune system, that's a hospitalization. So we are very careful with her for that very reason. And it just is it's just common courtesy when you go. If you want to smoke pot and you want to do it in your own home, so be it. That's fine. But if you have a job and you're driving, I bet the people who have given negative comments back wouldn't be so negative if, God forbid, they got hit by somebody under the influence when they were driving. They wouldn't feel so negative about it because it does impair you when you're driving. It absolutely impairs you. And if you get hit, God forbid, by someone who's under the influence, I think you'd have a totally different situation. Or if you had this same scenario and say your child had a dependency for a breathing tube or was on a ventilator, these are things that happen that are in the home. Or maybe, God forbid, you have someone in, you know, hospice, but they're at the home. You just, it's common courtesy, and people are so quick to be negative about everything, but not realistically, you know, maybe she's right. What if I was driving home from getting Christmas gifts and I had the kids in the car and that driver was impaired and hit me and it cost the life of a loved one? You know, these aren't far-fetched. You know, my husband just said he dealt with this on a daily basis, and this is something that needs to be talked about. It's the holidays, it needs to be addressed, and it shouldn't be stood for. So many people are hardworking people looking for good jobs, looking a way to help support their family. And then you have someone who thinks it's okay to first of all be under the influence and then drive out of here like a bat out of hell. I mean, literally forget the post-it speed limit, forget any kind of, you know, laws that may govern the state for your driving. However, none of them were followed. And I guess that is okay. And we've had some people comment about the fact that you you were being tedious over the smell and the smell doesn't stay long. I mean, if you're a non-smoker, go be around a smoker and be around it for five minutes, and it will be in your hair, your clothes, everything. The perfect example, and it's it's not, it is a good example, but it's not, is when you go through law enforcement training, you have to be sprayed with OC or pepper spray or gas or whatever terminology each department uses. They all use a different term for it. And then you are led, after you're sprayed, you are led to the hose to clean your eyes up. But then they tell you to bring in a change of clothes because it is in your hair, it is in your clothes. You have to wash those clothes separately because the smell will carry on to the other garments and the smell stays in there, and that's why they tell you to bag it up and seal the bag because the smell stays in there, and if it's a smell you're not accustomed to or you don't want around, it's pretty potent.
SPEAKER_04:So my wife mentioned driving under the influence. I was police officer with one department for six and a half years, and I believe in Aug four, while worked in an accident on the highway, I was hit by a DUI driver while I was sitting in my in my unit waiting on the tow truck. A DUI driver hit me almost T-bone. Now that guy was not even hurt, not a scratch on him. Of course, he went to the hospital because they had to draw blood on him, but he wasn't hurt. Me, on the other hand, oh yeah, I was I was I was toe up. Okay, my back hurts me all the time. Okay, I still have muscle relaxers that I take from time to time.
SPEAKER_03:But you don't drive on them.
SPEAKER_04:I don't drive them. I can't I can't physically do some of the things that I used to because of that DY accident. Okay, who's to say this guy, this yahoo is out running around delivering packages, he's in a hurry. He's got, I don't know, 75 stops to make. I don't, I don't know. Okay, and he said, I'm gonna I'm just gonna smoke it up while I'm driving.
SPEAKER_03:And his response time well behind the vehicle is much slower. You know, what if there's a child in the in the neighborhood that he's going to deliver a package at? What a you know, a child runs out or a dog runs out, right? Right, your response time is much slower than that of a cognitively non-impaired driver.
SPEAKER_04:Yeah, yeah. So well, that's our two cents on that. And if y'all got qualms with them, hey, my email is Solomon4 at a contagious spawn.com.
SPEAKER_03:You want to, you know, the number four, the number four, not the spelling of that's right.
SPEAKER_04:Solomon the number four at a contagious spawn.com. I'll gladly listen to you and we'll put it on the next episode of a contagious small.
SPEAKER_03:I mean, we're just trying to look out for our kids, each other's kids. I mean, you know, there's just so many people out there who want to get a good job or just get a job to help. And when you see this, it's just people don't drug test anymore to, you know, is it and a lot of people don't realize this is that like you know, a dominoes or pizza hut, when they put the sign on their car, they're no longer driving their personal vehicle, it's a commercial vehicle because they're advertising the company to which they're driving for. And so, I mean, it's just it's just common courtesy, it's common sense. It's like I I always have either videos or music in the background or the news in the background while I'm trying to write stuff because it just keeps me occupied. But, you know, for instance, some somebody stole a bag of dog food and it was in Dunwoody, Georgia. And the guy had the nerve to say, Well, she left it out, and they end up finding that there was pot and everything else in his work van. He was in his work van when he stole it, and they said, Well, you know, sorry, but you're being taken in. And he went nuts. He said, Well, she left it out, and it's not my fault because I needed dog food, so I shouldn't be charged. And the thing is, is that how can people say that that's not wrong, you know? I mean, the guy says, Well, she left the dog food out, and I needed dog food, so I took it, and I shouldn't be charged with theft. But the thing is, is that when this driver came smelling of, and it's not just the fact that he was smelling of marijuana, it was the fact that he was rude. What if he broke everything in the bag? What if, you know, that caused us to have to go to the emergency room? He's not gonna pay the deductible, he's not gonna pay the copay, he's not gonna, you know, sit there and hold our kids' hand while we get close to another holiday. I mean, it was it was a few years ago, we almost lost her at this time of year, and you know, she was in full organ failure. And it's just common courtesy, treat other people the way you want to be treated, because it's like, how hard is it? So many people today want to jump skill it and just berate you. Like when I went to another location of a bank the other day, one that I normally would never go into, the assistant branch manager was so nice. And I said, you know what? I don't know who I can talk to to thank them for your professionalism. And she's like, What? And she goes, Oh my god, we get so much negative reviews. And I said, That's crazy. So I actually made sure to come back when the branch manager would be there, and I asked to talk with her and shut the door, and I told her I was like, This woman went above and beyond to assist me. And I wanted to thank you, and I want to call corporate and thank them because you don't have to take five minutes to be negative when you could be three minutes to be positive. I mean, so many people want to be so negative and take their bad day out on everybody else. Why can't we just be nice and say something nice about people sometimes? I mean, that makes no sense. Like the branch manager was dumbfounded. She was like, What? And I was like, I just wanted to thank you. She was phenomenal. Like she didn't know me, I didn't know her. It's first time I ever met her, and she went above and beyond. And I think she should be accommodated for that. Like she should be recognized for that. Same thing when, you know, I go to like to the grocery store and they have they've hired special needs kiddos. I will wait in line and I don't care how long it takes for them. And they'll apologize. I'm sorry it's taking so long. I'm not going anywhere. I'm good. How are you doing? Tell me about your day. How is your holiday? Whatever. I'll carry a conversation with you. You know, you want to walk out with me or you know, congratulations, you're doing awesome. You're doing amazing. You're out here, you have a job, you're trying to do something with your life. Major kudos to you. I mean, seriously. And then I'll go tell the manager what a great job you've done and and how helpful you've been. I mean, it takes no time at all. So why can't we do more of that instead of just, and I know people are going, excuse me, weren't you the one who's just biting off somebody's head about the marijuana delivery? Yes, because you put my family at risk. There's a difference, there's a big difference. If he had just thrown it on the on the porch and it broke, I would have reached out to Timo and said, Hey, this is what happened. I wouldn't have made such a big issue about it. But the fact that he the whole thing just absolutely reeked and he tried to get into the package. And then when my husband, who does, you know, come out and thank every single driver. I mean, he in the summer he offers them all water and he carries on conversations with them, then it makes no sense. I mean, treat people the way you want to be treated. That's it. I'm done with it.
SPEAKER_04:Yeah. So I want to jump back to the dog food. Okay. If you don't mind. Sure. So the mentality was she left the dog food out on the porch. My dog needed food, therefore, I took it. Right? So it's not his fault, so therefore, he shouldn't be punished or judged because his dog needs to eat. Right? Have we not heard the same ideology or mentality before from these people who call themselves maps?
SPEAKER_03:Minor attracted persons.
SPEAKER_04:Because that small child is wearing provocative clothing, in their opinion. It's their fault. They're asking me to sodomize them, to rape them, to molest them. It's not my fault as a 30, 40, 50-year-old white male. Right? It's their fault.
SPEAKER_03:No accountability for their actions. None.
SPEAKER_04:I can't believe that. It's just we've my wife did an episode way back with a Yahoo that was he was incarcerated, right?
SPEAKER_03:He was incarcerated for killing the person that sexually assaulted him, the man that sexually assaulted him and his brother.
SPEAKER_04:Okay. Yes. And this is the same one that he came back on.
SPEAKER_03:He's been on a couple of times. He actually walked off the show once and hasn't come back since because he said he didn't identify as a pedophile. He identified as a map. After his incarceration, he did realize that he was into it and that he wanted to be called a map. And I said, You've lost any and all respect for me the minute you hurt a child. Like that's an innocent child. You don't get to make that decision. And then he went on about the chemical castration, and he doesn't believe it's okay because he should have the right to bear arms and have kids. And I was like, You A lose the right to bear arms when you become a felon. B, you also should not have a kid if you're gonna molest them. And you know, and he's like, Well, if I wanted to molest them, I could do it with other things other than my penis. As that is true, at least that will no longer be an option. You know, I don't believe you should have children if you are a convicted pedophile. I I don't.
SPEAKER_04:Or a penis.
SPEAKER_03:And he stated that he also should not there shouldn't be a sex registry because it's an invasive, it's an invasion of their privacy. Well, when you invade a child's privacy and invade a child's innocent, to me, you have no rights. And the question I asked him that I remember distinctly, which made him storm off, was if you think you're untreated, you're treated unfairly, excuse me, then please explain to me why you can't be in general population. Why is it you have to be in solitaire and you can't be away, you can't be in the general pop while you're incarcerated.
SPEAKER_04:And I and I can attest to that because I took care of a lot of older white men in jail that was convicted. Sorry, not convicted, they were accused at the time of molesting, sodomizing, raping children. Okay, and they were they they could not be in general population with the other fathers, with the other inmates. Because they would have jumped them, they had to be locked in. The other inmates would have jumped them for four hours, and it was either one or two to sell, but their charges were exactly the same.
SPEAKER_03:But because the other inmates would have jumped them. You don't mess with a kid in jail. That's just, you know, you don't do that. And that was his issues. He was furious with me over that. But you you do not touch children. That's not okay. I want to go back to this for a minute. We we posted reviews and I've had some people make some comments, good and bad. Someone said if someone wants to smoke either cigarettes or pot, of course they can, but not when it infringes on someone else's right not to have to be around it. Then someone writes back, actually, that isn't the way it works. If something is legal, then it doesn't matter. You don't have a right to never smell it. Although if he is working and they don't allow that, then you can complain. I agree it stinks, but it's the new normal, just like cigarettes were a hundred years ago and we need to learn to deal.
SPEAKER_04:So, what company allows you to smoke on the job? What company allows you to get high and smoke weed on the job?
SPEAKER_03:That's a very good question.
SPEAKER_04:Well, let's put it this way what legitimate company or respectable business. Anyway, if you're not part of our academy, please get on there. Go to a contagious smile.com, click on the academy, and join up. It is free, free, free. Some of the classes are not free, but the majority are. Okay. And if you do get into a class where, oh my god, you have to pay four dollars and ninety-five cents, okay, you're not gonna go broke, people. It helps run this globally ranked podcast and all the programs that we have to pay for up here. So yeah. Yes. So get on there and join the academy.
SPEAKER_03:I mean, and you know what? If you've had issues like this, I mean, I've had people write in to me and tell me that the same stuff happened with them at Walmart, but Walmart did the right thing. Yes, they are, and they do have other organizations that you know deliver for them, private companies. And I have also reached out and left a message with the organization that was the delivery team or drivers for this delivery itself. But I thought, you know, Timo should Timu should know what happened, and all of the stuff had to be, you know, gotten rid of. I'm not gonna have that in my home, I'm not gonna have this smell. And that's just it, you know. And the thing is, so many people so quickly, no matter what you could put on there, it doesn't matter what you put on there. Like if you put in there Ronald Reagan was a fantastic president, you're gonna have a dispute. And most of the people are gonna be like, oh, he was the worst president ever, or he was an actor who should never have been a politician, or you know, people love to get in and stir the pot, but nobody wants to get in and acknowledge the accomplishments of somebody and what they've done. Like it's just so quick to be like pointing fingers, not praising. And that's what we need more of in this world is praising. I mean, it's just ridiculous that it's this time of year, and what we're doing is trying to bring attention because so many families are so cautious that, like, when Faith had her trait, I couldn't take her shopping into a store. I would have had to have stuff delivered to the home, you know. And here's the perfect example. Her medical home healthcare system that would bring out her medical supplies had to be governed under very specific rules for their employment. Like, you know, they were always, you know, clean cut and they never had a fragrance on. They would bring stuff, you know, over. And I mean, I understand everything is different and it's the policy of the company, but it's the same, it it's just like I couldn't take her to the store when she had a trike because any kind of tiny thing could have caused an occlusion, right? She could have started coughing and then coughed up a mucus plug. Not that the smell itself would, but her coughing would have, and it would have caused a mucus plug occlusion. And these are things that a lot of families, you know, have to deal with, especially now that there's so many more people out at the stores than normal. And people who've never had to go through any like this will never know. And you know what? Good for you and more power to you. But those of us that have lived our life in the medical family, we know, you know, it's like if somebody coughs, you immediately turn your kid, or you know, you make sure that they wear a mask when you're at the doctor's office because what could be a cold for one ends up is pneumonia for another or RSV, and this is RSV season, and it would be just a common cold to some, but RSV to others, and it's just you know, we're this is a topic we wanted to bring awareness to. And if we ruffled your feathers, then I apologize. But it's just something that I think needs to be talked about, and a lot of times people don't want to bring it up.
SPEAKER_04:So we appreciate you, Victoria, and everything you do, everything you do sitting up here for 21 hours a day.
SPEAKER_00:Oh Lording your butt off.
SPEAKER_04:Oh Lord, y'all be sure to to send uh Victoria a thank you. Okay, y'all can reach her at contact us on the front of our website, and be sure to check out one of her 43 books. A lot of them are on Amazon.com, Victoria Cure. Some of hers are awesome, some of them are I don't know, tear jerkers, and some of them may hit home, very, very close to home. Like a parent, a loved one.
SPEAKER_01:Did you say a parrot? Like a parrot? No. Like a parrot?
SPEAKER_04:I know I thought funny. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:A parrot.
SPEAKER_04:A parent.
SPEAKER_01:A parent.
SPEAKER_04:A parent.
SPEAKER_01:A parent.
SPEAKER_04:A parent.
SPEAKER_01:Like it's a parent.
SPEAKER_04:Yes.
SPEAKER_01:Or a parent.
SPEAKER_04:Like the guy downstairs is a parent. He is a parent.
SPEAKER_03:But there's a difference between a parent and a parent.
SPEAKER_04:It's the same words.
SPEAKER_03:Oh lord. Thank you guys for listening. This is gonna be another squabble quabble about the pronunciation of words, which is what we do.
SPEAKER_04:All right. I'm hungry, y'all. This is Michael signing it off with Victoria. The sexy victoria.
SPEAKER_01:Oh my god. Whatever.
SPEAKER_04:Say that later tonight.
SPEAKER_01:Seriously?
