(playful music)
- Hi, I'm Tanika,
- and I'm Alex.
- And we are the authors of
"Mixed Up Confessions of an Interracial Couple".
And today we are going to see how well we know each other
by playing a version of a newlyweds game...
even though we are not actually newlyweds.
My question for you is how did our friends react when
they found out when we were first dating?
- Oh, wow.
(markers scribbling)
- Okay.
- Such a perfectionist.
- Okay. One, two, three.
- I wrote screaming
in a happy way.
- How are we not really in sync?
Who?
- Our friends. Particularly our flatmates at the time.
- Our flatmates, but some friends were like,
"why aren't you,
why can't you date a black guy?"
- That's true.
- Oh yeah.
- That's true.
- Yes. And then some friends were also like,
"were you drunk?"
- Yeah. That was really sad.
- "Were you drunk when you decided to get with him?"
- Yeah.
- So that's why I put not thrilled.
- But that was so strange.
I do remember that and feeling just completely surprised.
- Yeah. You were disappointed.
I mean, like we all were in the same group of friends, so.
- People that normally are so kind of like open and open to
international experiences and supporters of diversity.
But when it came to our relationship, they were resistant.
- Yeah.
- So Tanika,
my question for you is which aspect of British culture do
you kind of get confused about?
And it doesn't really make any sense to you.
- Okay. I know this one because you tell me it all the time.
- All right. 3, 2, 1. Reveal!
- Sarcasm.
- That, actually, is very true.
I'm going to write it, alright?
- You can't amend your answer.
No, I think when we first were--
- Accents.
- Okay. That, yeah, that does confuse you quite at all.
- I don't get different, like regional accents.
I can't, yeah. It's sarcasm.
- It's tough for you
cause my family is so dry and so sarcastic
that sometimes you have to ask us,
"Are you guys being British?"
- Yes. I asked this a lot. Yeah, being British.
- I got a point to and Tanika did get a point.
- I think you'll know this one.
What is my favorite ice cream?
This is the easy one.
- Very easy.
- Yes. This is really easy (mumbles).
Okay. Ready?
- Oh, I'm ready.
Passion fruit.
- But that's a flavor.
- But that Solero is just a brand.
Your favorite type of ice cream in the world
is Passion fruit.
- I think the whole answer is Solero,
passion fruit, and then ice cream.
- Okay. Fun.
Passion fruit, ice cream.
- (Tanika and Alex laughing)
- Tanika, when you're talking on the phone
to your dad in the states and he says to you
pass a message to Alex, what is that message?
- Okay. I think I know.
- You think you got it?
- Okay.
- You ready to reveal.
- One, two, three.
- Hi.
- Yes. Okay. Another one we got.
- My God. Your dad, Mike is such a character.
- Basically. Alex's family, like, you know,
say to different people when we like,
say bye or whatever,
"Lots of love." "Lots of love."
And so, we said it to my dad once.
You said it like, "sending lots of love".
And my dad was like,
"Men, don't send love. Men, say 'Hi'"
- Hi.
- They say 'Hi'. Doesn't like Alex to tell him that.
He loves him.
- I'm really lucky that your dad is so cool.
Like I remember the first time I met him in Alabama.
I'd already proposed to you and I hadn't--
I didn't know him.
So, I didn't ask him
for whether he was okay for us to get married.
I remember going to his house feeling so like,
"oh my gosh, how's this going to go?"
Is he going to be okay with me being, you know,
being white and being British or just not being American
and just immediately, he was like,
"Hey man. What's up?", like very chill.
- Yeah. My dad is pretty cool.
- So he always says, "Say hi."
- "Say hi."
- Hey Mike.
- My question for you is
who is the most peaceful person in the relationship?
- Out of you and me?
- Out of you and me.
- That's the question? Okay.
(Tanika laughs)
- You didn't give me a second.
- Oh, sorry.
- You didn't do a countdown.
I was getting all excited there.
- I don't think you saw it though.
- I didn't see your answer.
- One, two, three.
- Me.
- I picked me and then I put you.
- Okay. So, what's the right answer?
- You.
- I think that's right. I think I am more peaceful.
- But being a white male,
I'm sure things are a little bit more peaceful
in life for you.
- That's true.
- I have to take like microaggressions at work,
in the street, as you see.
If I have people grabbing my hair by the fistful
while I'm walking down the street,
I don't think I'm going to be peaceful all the time.
I don't know what it is.
- And I would always be like, wow, I don't really have
these kinds of altercations and situations happen to me.
But then I think that's probably mostly because
I'm a white man.
Thanks for watching.
- [Tanika] You can get to know us
and our relationship a whole lot more in our audio book,
"Mixed Up Confessions of an Interracial Couple"
out on audible now.