Thanks For Being Here - Chris Duffy's Thank You to Gary the 10-Year Old Food Critic

Kelly Corrigan Wonders

Kelly Corrigan Show

Society & Culture

4.8 • 3.2K Ratings

🗓️ 11 January 2026

⏱️ 7 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Chris Duffy—standup comedian and author of Humor Me—writes a thank you letter to Gary, a 10-year-old "food critic" who changed his life. Gary was a fifth grader who hated writing until Chris offered him a column reviewing cafeteria food, and what followed was pure genius: hilarious reviews that brought Chris so much joy he still treasures the hard copies. Chris reflects on how Gary's reviews reminded him to laugh when he was taking himself way too seriously as a young teacher. Gary's goofiness eventually inspired Chris to embrace humor in all aspects of his life, ultimately becoming a professional comedian. Fourteen years later, Gary's an educator himself—helping kids who struggle in traditional school settings...and still trying to figure out what was actually in his vegetarian Hot Pocket. Check out Chris' book: Humor Me: How Laughing More Can Make You Present, Creative, Connected, and Happy https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/744561/humor-me-by-chris-duffy/ To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hi, everyone. Welcome to Thanks for being here, a short weekly pod to remind us of the many
0:05.4	essential and beautiful ways we affect one another. Every Sunday, I'll read a submission from a
0:12.1	listener of Kelly Corrigan Wonders. Could be wedding vows or a bat mitzvah toast, a eulogy, or
0:17.3	retirement speech. We believe this is probably the loveliest way to tap into our better
0:22.8	selves and remember our highest values. We encourage you to share this podcast each week with one
0:29.1	person you love. Maybe someone you miss and need to bring closer, someone you want to feel
0:34.5	your appreciation or admiration or both. This is thanks for being here.
0:47.2	This week's thanks for being here comes from a friend of mine named Chris Duffy. I met him at
0:51.9	Ted a couple years ago. He is a stand-up comedian. He's also the
0:56.8	host of a TED podcast that I have been on called How to Be a Better Human. And he has a book
1:02.7	out this week. It's called Humor Me. How Laughing More can make you present, creative, connected,
1:08.0	and happy. Here is Chris Duffy's thanks for being here. Hey Kelly, long time listener,
1:14.0	first time writer. I'm a big fan of the show and you're writing and you as a person. I've been
1:18.6	thinking a lot about laughter these days, especially how big a relief it can be to laugh when I'm
1:23.8	feeling overwhelmed and so locked in to my self-seriousness.
1:28.6	So I've got a thanks for being here letter to the funniest person I've ever met,
1:33.6	a 10-year-old in Boston named Gary.
1:36.7	Gary was a student in my fifth grade class.
1:39.1	He was a challenging student.
1:40.6	He did not often do his work.
1:43.1	And he especially hated writing assignments. His favorite
1:46.8	hour of the day was lunch. It sometimes seemed like that was the only hour of the day he enjoyed.
	...

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