There’s a lot of concern out there about the influence of the media, especially when it comes to the national media. Depending on where you get your information, you could be swayed to worship certain people, and on the flip side, consider other people evil.

However, I wasn’t certain about how far the influence could go until recently.

My sweetheart, Todd, likes to listen to podcasts. Oftentimes when we’re on the road or resting quietly at home, he likes to pop one on so we can learn new things. One of the podcasts he loves to listen to is Tommy DiDario’s “I’ve Never Said This Before,” and recently Todd wrangled me into listening to an episode where Tommy had his husband, “Good Morning America” weekend anchor Gio Benitez.

Knowing that couples have a certain heat and chemistry, we both sat back and listened as they revealed a lot about each other. At one point, Tommy noted that one of the few things about Gio that drives him up the wall is Gio’s tendency to open a cabinet door to grab something and then fail to close it again.

When Todd and I heard this, we had a good laugh about it, realizing we both have some habits that the other doesn’t like. For me, it’s when Todd blows his nose into his shirt—call me crazy, but that’s a little gross. For Todd, it’s when I pick my nose (What is it with our noses?) that makes him nauseous. On the bright side, at least our noses are getting cleared out.

However, I started out talking about the media’s influence. Up until now, I can never remember an instance when one of us left a cabinet door open in the apartment. That changed after listening to the podcast.

A couple of hours after listening to “I’ve Never Said This Before,” I walked into the kitchen after Todd had been there and noticed the cabinet holding our plates and bowls was open. I closed the cabinet door and thought it was a crazy coincidence.

I wish.

Three more times Todd left various cabinet doors open, including one of the lower cabinets where he’d been reorganizing the pots, pans, casserole dishes and ramekins—which he loves to use to make egg and sausage bakes for breakfast. By the last time, I was convinced there was some kind of subliminal message or hypnotic suggestion in the podcast that was making Todd do the same things Gio Benitez does.

Now that I say that, I wonder if that means Todd might quit his job working at a deli and instead become a world-traveling journalist. For a journalist that has always enjoyed reporting within a closer radius, I’m not entirely certain how I’d feel about that. Of course, the theory seems far-fetched, considering Todd doesn’t even drive.

Then again, there are people who desire to be like their heroes, and Todd greatly admires Gio. Besides being gay like Todd and I, Gio’s also worked hard to move up the ladder of national journalism. I remember him breaking down in tears as he talked about his life and family when the announcement came down that he would be the new weekend anchor for “Good Morning America.”

It’s weird how some behavior comes about because of a suggestion or a story. I remember watching something where a person told another one not to think about a purple rhinoceros, and then that was all the second person could think about.

While the cabinet doors are an example of slightly annoying behavior, hearing someone’s story could plant a seed in someone’s mind to do great things. Maybe hearing about the heartbreak witnessed in a war-torn region could plant the suggestion that a person should take action to raise money to help the people or go there in person to serve.

As Christians, we’re called upon to serve, so having people tell their stories—the good, the bad and the ugly—could be just the sign we need to stop the frivolous things we’re doing and perform what we need to in order to make this a better place to live.

On the other hand, having Todd leave cabinet doors open could just be God having a good laugh. By that extension, it gave me and Todd a good laugh for the weekend, and hopefully the laughter will spread to you as you read this.

Nonetheless, I’ll be glad when I can walk in the kitchen and all the cabinets are closed.