Tucker & Thompson
Troy and Jim sit down and discuss life, politics and coming together!
Tucker & Thompson
From Dining Dilemmas to Education Evolution: Navigating Hospitality, Digital Change, and Learning Pathways
May God Be with you!!!
Two plus two 20.
Speaker 2:Two plus two is 20. I think that's wrong, is it? Don't tell me it's wrong.
Speaker 1:What kind of?
Speaker 2:world you live in All right. Here we are, tucker and Thompson. I'm so glad to be back.
Speaker 1:Man, I was sick. I was too. This week I got dog sick man yeah.
Speaker 2:And then everybody called off is that what happened?
Speaker 1:so you just had to come in sick, didn't?
Speaker 2:matter crazy. Last night I was almost done being sick last night, like I did the podcast with with, uh, or was it? Yeah, it was last night. I did the podcast on Sunday and then I went home, passed out Like I had slept all day Saturday. So then Sunday I do the podcast with with Guido, and then I run home and they just go to sleep.
Speaker 2:I get woke up to the bartender calling me that the, that the girl that's coming in at night is not coming in. Oh, no, she's got a baby shower. She forgot to request off or something whatever. And I'm like you're kidding me, she's not coming in. They're like, no, she's not coming in. So I'm like and, by the way, I had to end the podcast early because I had to go open for the girl that was there in the daytime because she had drama at her house. So, yeah, I'm in this whole mix of so. So, yeah, I'm in this whole mix of so. Then I ended up having to come here and close. I was a closer for the night. You know I was bartending, closing. So then you bartend and cook the food. No, no, just bartended. Oh, just bartending. I was just. I'll do both, but I mean not at the same time and bartend.
Speaker 2:Yeah, oh yeah. Now I can Dude. Did I ever tell you the story of the first time I had to serve? Oh, dude, it was bad. So the first time I got to serve, there's nobody here and the girl that worked the days didn't have a ride to work. I don't know if whoever was giving her rides car wasn't working or something, I don't know what it was. So my wife's going to get her, you know, going to pick her up, and I'm like okay. So all of a sudden, now here I am, I'm, I'm the server. You know, I got to serve cause we're open already. So I started serving and all of a sudden it starts getting busy. I mean, I've got. So when you serve like three, four tops, like, when you serve in.
Speaker 1:Like do you mean you serve in what do you serve Food?
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, oh okay yeah, food and beer, whatever we sell.
Speaker 1:Okay, I thought you were just behind a bar giving drinks.
Speaker 2:Oh no, serving tables, bartending everything, all that stuff.
Speaker 1:Hope you got some good tips.
Speaker 2:And it was lunchtime, so it's mostly food at lunchtime, okay, so I got a bunch of tables coming in. You know what I mean? I feel like I could really do good at that job. I never did it. You think that, but you don't give them.
Speaker 1:You got to give restaurant workers a little more credit than that I do.
Speaker 2:I do, but I think I see benny and go ahead, go ahead, yeah so I, I'm, I'm moving and grooving, trying to get everything you know set up and, um, I'm doing, okay, I actually I'm. I, I'm under the gun and panicked, so I'm kind of chaotic in my head.
Speaker 1:But it's doing okay. When pressure comes to you, do you get more refined, does pressure make you better or does pressure make you worse?
Speaker 2:When it's something I've done, probably better. But this is a situation where I'm not even sure how to handle it. See, at this time we didn. I'm not even sure how to handle it, gotcha. See, at this time we didn't have a POS system or anything. We would handwrite all the receipts you know what I mean then have to take them back to the kitchen and put them in there and all that stuff.
Speaker 2:So, either way, I'm moving and grooving, I'm doing my best and I'm not doing bad, and I'm having conversations with people that I'm letting them know hey, I'm sorry, I've never. You know, I'm the owner, but we've got somebody on their way. They'll be here any minute, you know, and everybody seems to be okay with it. So I'm taking the order of this table. It's a, it's a six top there. Do you tell them, hey, I'm the boss, I'm out here doing it. Yeah, I did so and I was new. I mean, I, I write down these order at this table. I got this table here and I'm writing down the order and my wife and this girl come in and I go whew, thank God, you know, thank God, I'm good. I thought they came in to eat.
Speaker 1:No, no, no, no, no, no, no.
Speaker 2:She went and picked them up and brought the girl to work. So they come in and I'm like, whew, thank God, you know. And I'm Thank God, you know. And like 40 minutes later the last table, I was taking their order they're like where's my food? You thought you were doing so good. I never put the rest together. Oh no, they came in. I threw my hands up. I was like, oh, I'm good, oh no. Well, they were pretty mad. They probably never came back here again.
Speaker 1:Did you comp it?
Speaker 2:They didn't get anything. Oh, did you, did you? They just come up and left.
Speaker 1:They didn't get into.
Speaker 2:they didn't get anything. It was nothing. They just got up and left. They were like we're here for lunch. We got to go back to work, oh what do you do with that Like?
Speaker 1:do you just like I'm sorry or like I'll send?
Speaker 2:it to your work. I don't know what to do. I mean, I didn't know what to do they to even put it in my head that sucks, yeah, that sucks, but it was my first time. Now I'll kill it out there, I'll get them all. In fact, when I did bartend Sunday night, the one guy goes you know, the best bartender I've had here in the last two months is you. Right now you know what I mean. What makes a good bartender? Well, the first thing is to understand that you're hosting a party. That's so good man. Yeah, you're not part of the party, though.
Speaker 1:That's the biggest problem. Yeah, you're not here to party. That's the biggest problem. You're here to serve the party, yeah.
Speaker 2:So that's the biggest problem. A lot of the girls have that issue. They are just there trying to have fun while they're at work. Basically, a lot of them do. Yeah, there's others that don't.
Speaker 1:If you're going to have fun doing that job, you got to just enjoy people. Sure, you have to. You have to enjoy social activity without the codependency aspect of the job. Yes, because otherwise, I agree, you can't do it right.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you got to be on your toes constantly. You'll miss the cues and you got to push too honestly.
Speaker 1:That's why I think I'd be. That's like when I go out to eat, like man, I would love to like try this once. Come up here just to see if I'll tell you what we'll make you a celebrity server one night we'll do it.
Speaker 2:We'll host a dinner let's see if I can we'll put something nice on the menu and we'll make you the celebrity server.
Speaker 1:I'll dress up, man, I'll be out here. I have one of them little things you take and you put the crumbs off the table.
Speaker 2:I'll be out here doing it I wouldn't let you be a celebrity bartender, because that just doesn't sit well. I don't think. No, I don't think I could do that.
Speaker 1:But a server.
Speaker 2:You could do that.
Speaker 1:I could serve food. Yeah, I serve food all the time, I serve bread all the time. That's the part I think I, I would, um, I would like to try to do in that realm, because I, you know, I have to do it on time. You know I have to serve people and and connect with people and I've, yeah, I would love you're missing the the part, though that makes it.
Speaker 2:The only thing that makes serving tough is the demand, like the immediate demand, the pressure Because it's feast or famine. You're in there.
Speaker 1:You know what I mean it hits, it hits, it hits, it hits and then it goes away.
Speaker 2:Everybody eats dinner at 4 o'clock.
Speaker 1:You know what I mean? Yeah, yeah, yeah. So it's coming in and you've got to handle your business. You get slammed.
Speaker 2:Right when you get slammed, you're slammed, and it's how you handle it when you're slammed. Is what really really? That's why yeah.
Speaker 1:I, I I've developed I think I don't know it could be wrong, but I feel like I've developed this, this, this, uh, temperament for pressure doing. You know, just like, okay, don't overreact, don't underreact.
Speaker 2:Yeah that's. I mean like, okay, don't overreact, don't underreact, yeah that's. I mean that's something that I think I definitely do as well as a young man.
Speaker 1:But now like it to you?
Speaker 2:I don't I tend to like go okay, this isn't the end of the world, how do I figure this out? Type thing, even in other ways, away from, don't you wish? You could have went back and told yourself that at a younger age like all right, don't overreact no, if I went back to tell myself anything at a younger age, it would be by bitcoin, right when it comes out.
Speaker 1:I don't understand bitcoin dude me neither, but it's a lot of money. Figure it out like a lot of unicorn smurf money. To me it's like monopoly figured it out.
Speaker 2:I finally explain it to me, like I finally got a simple explanation that makes sense to me, like I'm a five-year-old so you always hear about a mining. I feel like this is mining cryptocurrency correct. You always hear that they mine crypto. Yeah, so somebody down in in like they have a server that, like, actually mines the crypto.
Speaker 1:So you're saying mario is digging in his like what are you talking about when you're?
Speaker 2:mining what? That's what I'm going to explain to you. What mining is is essentially every transaction that's going on in the world digitally has to be verified.
Speaker 1:Digitally, so when I spend money in the digital world, and that includes credit card purchases.
Speaker 2:Right, okay.
Speaker 1:So far I'm with you.
Speaker 2:It all has to be verified, verified, and when that's verified, there's a small fee for the verification. Okay, that's what those miners are doing. They're taking the small fee for the verification, but it's real money. That is real money. Yeah, because it is taking a fee. It was like a percentage of a for for verifying a transaction.
Speaker 1:Essentially, uh for for the scent verifying a transaction. Essentially, I mean, I know I got that because every time I use a payment source I get jacked and they, they steal from me, like if I use credit cards or paypal well, we're about to do that here too.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I'm about to change that. Changes. February, first year, jack me up. We're to start charging the person who's using a credit card rather than me paying it, because right now, and mostly because it has moved so much since I bought the place, I went from 40% credit cards paying to closer to 70%. Yeah, so, on a monthly, I'm spending anywhere from like $1,300 to $1,800 in credit card fees. Yes, to accept the money. So I'm moving to a system where, if they're using credit cards, they can pay it Per transaction, and that'll cover my electric bill at least, or something. That's a good idea. You know what I mean. Well, a lot of places are doing it. If you go to gas stations now, you notice, though a lot of places are now showing gas or cash in credit price, but nobody takes cash anymore. A lot of places like that do. They'll give you a cash price at the gas station. I've heard that. Yeah, yeah, a lot of places are doing it. Now I'm going to move on to it too. More industry service.
Speaker 1:Like if HVAC repair guys come out they're like, are you paying them a card, or card or cash? You're paying with cash. It's a different.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, charge me more well, that's how credit cards are working, that way. Now you can get that option if you want. That's what I'm gonna move to, because it just makes. Because, first of all, somebody spends a hundred dollars in here, okay, then they tip their server 20 bucks or something, you know. I mean I'm paying a percentage on 120, so the 20 she's taking full hard, she's taking all of it. I'm getting a percentage hit against me to do that. You know what I'm saying. So then it just doesn't make sense to me, because why? Why should it cost me money for them to tip them? You know what I mean. It just so there's that and, like I said, it's moved. So there's that and, like I said, it's moved so much now where it's like, it's literally like 70% of credit cards compared to when I opened.
Speaker 1:So how does that affect you? Like no, no, no tax on tips. How's that going to affect you?
Speaker 2:That shouldn't affect me at all, right? Shouldn't.
Speaker 1:Why would that affect me? Well, if there's no tax on tips, then the only thing that's taxed is no. That wouldn't. Yeah, I don't know.
Speaker 2:No, I mean that doesn't affect me. It'll just like, instead of it going to the IRS, it'll go to them, that's all. I mean it won't affect me theoretically. I mean it'll affect how I process it, certainly, but not it won't. It won't affect my bottom line. That's not like something that comes out of my money or anything. You know what I'm saying. Yeah, so it definitely makes it simpler. I mean I don't know how they're going to do that exactly if they still have to claim their income.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I'm not sure how the world then. Ok, so you give me my bill. Like, how do I? You know, I tip 25%.
Speaker 2:Yeah, what does that matter?
Speaker 1:I don't know how do they separate all that? How do they determine that it's a nightmare? It seems like it yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it is a nightmare Like I wouldn't want to figure it out. I'll be honest, I do more guessing about it. I honestly take what we brought in for taxes on tips for the week. I take that in and kind of divvy it up between the girls and how many hours they have. That's how I basically do it. I mean, you could be more specific. There are companies that will literally not let them take the tips out of the register and then they have to get them in their check type of stuff.
Speaker 1:But I'm not I don't do that, Although that would be the appeal of of doing service industry.
Speaker 2:I would want the tips at the end of the day, sure, but a lot of people do it and I think that the reason I I and I've just recently started hearing that they do that, and I think that maybe the reason that is is because of, like I said, the 70% usage. So now you don't have the cash to tip them out like that. So how do you do that? Well, I do, I have enough. But I'm just saying some of the other places might not. That might be why they're doing it. Especially, like if you're in like cause, then they get like red lobster. I would say I would believe that, like a red lobster or a Texas roadhouse, like if I'm, if I'm, pushing 70%, they're probably pushing 90. Yeah, cause, who's saying they just got to keep cash around? So I mean it would make sense for to me for them to put it in their check, because that way they can just write the check, because the money goes right into their account, if that makes sense. So I mean it's just I don't know, that's just my thought.
Speaker 1:So cryptocurrency, though, like you figured it out, and that's.
Speaker 2:That's what I was told. That was the explanation gave to me and that was the only one that finally gave me like peace of mind where I went okay, so it is actual money. It's real money, it is actually there. But there's people mining it with. They have servers that are basically verifying transactions and getting paid for their service, essentially, which now, with that new supercomputer, I think that's gonna change. There's a supercomputer. You haven't heard about it.
Speaker 1:No, it's like it's a supercomputer google, I think they said.
Speaker 2:I want to say they said 10. They said this this computer calculated a program that a supercomputer for today, like a powerful computer today, would take 10, 6 trillion years to process. It did in 10 minutes and it's a Google, I think, a Google chip. It's a new processing chip. That they're saying is they're calling it a multiverse chip.
Speaker 2:Basically, I don't know, but I'm assuming that if they get that kind of speed coming out of a processing chip, the whole mining of cryptocurrency is over, like because right now people mine it, they buy servers and they get a cold room and they, you know, they serve they, they basically mine, mine for cryptocurrency. Yeah, yeah, you really thought this through, but I would think one computer now could replace probably all the computers and that are mining it right now in the world. I would imagine, if it's that, I mean first of all I'd have to figure out what sex trick, sure, sure, I mean I don't know, I don't even know whatever that is. I have no concept of that, I have no clue, but I know it's big. I do know that.
Speaker 1:I just learned how to spell million, so I'm good.
Speaker 2:Oh, math question. That's what we were talking earlier, before we went on the question. So we have a question, there is a math question, there is a simple math question, a very simple math question. We have a room with 100 people in it. Oh boy, 99 are right-handed and one's a left-handy. Okay, giving us 99% left-handed people in the room. Simple equation, correct? You just said 99. Or right-handed people yes, 99% right-handed people in the room right. Simple equation, okay. People, yes, yeah, yeah, 99 right-handed people in the room right. Simple equation, okay. How many right-handed people do we have to pull out of the room to make that equation?
Speaker 1:98 right-handed people it wouldn't matter how many you pulled out of the room, because you don't have any left-handed people in the room. You've got one oh to make it to where there were they were. One oh to make it to where there were.
Speaker 2:There were two, where there was 98% right-handed right-handed. How many would you have to take out of the room to make to make it go from 99% left-handed to 98% or 99% right-handed to 98% right-handed? I?
Speaker 1:mean, clearly, I'm going to say one more, but that is not the answer. That is not the answer. That is not the answer. So I will.
Speaker 2:They say that only 1% of people in the world will answer that question correctly within 30 seconds. Most can figure it out with a piece of paper. Okay, but that only 1% will get it correct within 30 seconds?
Speaker 1:Clearly not me. So who is it?
Speaker 2:Well, my son, 12-year-old son, was one of them. He got it, and then actually the girl that does the pull tabs here. Anita, her daughter got it too. The answer is 50. 50. 50 is the answer. I still don't get it. Oh, it's a simple equation.
Speaker 2:Think about it, it's not very simple If you pull out 50, if you pull out 50 people out of the room, you have 49 and one. You double that, you have 98 and two. Yeah, it's a simple. I mean it's that simple, but most people don't grasp it. It's not a mathematical problem, as much as it messes with your head. I think that, more than anything, I was I'm with you, dude. I said three or four, maybe five.
Speaker 1:I didn't know, I knew the answer wasn't one.
Speaker 2:I go. You know it's not one, I knew it wasn't one, but what was it? And I was guessing in the five 10 range or something I didn't know.
Speaker 1:I was like I didn't know math, I'm just like five or 10.
Speaker 2:Maybe I don't know, let me, I got a, I got a phone. I can ask it. It'll tell me yeah, that's, that's cool, yeah, but my 12 year old just, oh, he just knew it. He's smarter than me. I mean, which is good, that's what you want, but he is definitely smarter than me. But I had to verify to him last night. I go, I go, you got to understand. Being smarter is not more educated. You know what I mean. There's a big difference here. I still, I still know a lot more than you do. You just feel, but figure things out easier than I did, you know. But yeah, he's smart. We.
Speaker 2:I was playing chess with him for a while and I beat him all the time. The other day I was cooking and playing chess with him and he got me and I made a mistake. I knew it when I did it. I'm like shit, and I'm in the middle of cooking. I'm like man, I'm going to have to sit down with him and really play and not just like be playing, you know. So now I'm a little nervous. I mean, I'm not nervous because if he beats me, he beats good. God bless him. You know what I mean.
Speaker 2:But I thought, well, I'll pull out a movie for him to watch. I thought you ever seen that or heard of that movie? Uh, the queen's gambit. So it's a movie about a prodigy that was like nine years old in an orphanage. A chick that you know started, uh, playing chess with the janitor or something, but, I see, ended up being like i'm'm just she's a beast, you know, she just was killing it and I, first of all, I go, I go, you, I, you. I want to have you watch this movie, queens Gabbit, and he goes, he goes, you mean Gambit, and I go, probably.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's probably what it is Sounds better than what I just said. You know what I mean.
Speaker 1:Smart Alec.
Speaker 2:So then he goes. This is what he tells me. He says all I know about that is when you get out to the E4 and then when you bring the night out to whatever number he said he goes, the gamut doesn't start until the night gets in the players. I'm like clearly he's beating me the next time we play.
Speaker 1:It's clearly going to happen. You're in trouble. You're in trouble. You start talking like that. He figured it out.
Speaker 2:I'm not even sure I know all the rules. Like I mean, I'm pretty good at it.
Speaker 1:So you mean to tell me that that guy can't do that? I've been doing that the whole time.
Speaker 2:No, he can't do that. Oh yeah, he's sharp as a tack. But yeah, I was thoroughly impressed that he literally went it's not one, and then he goes 50. And I'm like, wow, how did he do that? Yeah, how did he do that? It's just sharp, he gets math.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, I don't. I still don't get it. So, yeah, you know, like for that. You know, I'm at the age where I'm like I don't even need to occupy a space in my brain for that anymore.
Speaker 2:Like oh, I see I'm different. I feel like you. I try to like I a lot of times when I'm adding the money, when I'm bringing a register up and counting. And it's my Uncle Dale's fault I'm not saying it's not it's his fault, but I used to use a calculator immediately when I first got to place. I'd use a calculator to add everything up. And then he goes that's how you get stupid. He's seen me doing it. He goes that's how you get stupid. You've got to work your tools. I work, you get stupid you got to work your.
Speaker 1:You got to work your tools. You know I work my tools in different areas.
Speaker 2:But that's why that, that's why I should. Now I tend to just count it out. And do you count it out? I mean, I always have. But I mean, yeah, yeah, I kind of do it that way more than I do on the calculator, for sure, just because it does, he's right, it keeps you sharper, he's right about that yeah, if I read a lot then I'm sharper.
Speaker 1:Yeah, like in seasons like I go in and out of seasons of reading, like just consuming massive amounts of of literature, when I'm reading I'm sharp, you know, like I just in my responses, in my um, you know my time, like I'm just really really sharp. But in the seasons where I'm down I'm not really reading that much. It's delayed.
Speaker 2:It delays, I'm always delayed.
Speaker 1:The little thing is just going around and around. I need to read some more.
Speaker 2:I'm always delayed. That's what I do, but I don't know if you even remember that, but when I was a kid, that was part of what happened to me. I ended up in like slow learner classes when I was what? Was it like fourth grade or something like that, something like that? No, was it that? Yeah, maybe. Yeah, I think it was. I think it was Mr. Was it Mr Sally that picked up on it? It was Mr Sally. My IQ was good. They tested me for my IQ. My IQ was good. They tested me for my IQ. My IQ was like 120, I think it was a solid IQ, but I'm just a little bit like I'm slower, I'm not going to react fast, and now that I know that about myself, I'm fine with it. I'm okay with that. I think things out a little bit more.
Speaker 1:This is wisdom.
Speaker 2:It's not wisdom.
Speaker 1:I don't think it is, I just it.
Speaker 2:Just it takes a minute for me to process it. I just don't look at it and go boom.
Speaker 1:Like like Dylan does, yeah, but you know, like a lot of the times, you know, I think I think for the most part, a lot of those classes back in the day, you put a good majority of kids in there and that really they just. Development is such a well, development is such a subjective, you know, idea, like who's to say you're supposed to? Who made these rules up for us? You know what I mean.
Speaker 2:Who made the rules?
Speaker 1:That's like the boy should be here at this point like yeah, no, no, no, that's I just. I think that a lot, of, a lot of what we've come to accept as normalized education was really just was pressure put on us by a system that didn't understand fully the development of adolescence. They just didn't understand it. The development of adolescence, they just didn't understand it. And they presumed to understand it because there was a large well. Not even they forced a system that made people like you and me conform to the system rather than set the rules for the system. Just because I didn't develop according to your system doesn't mean that your system understands my development.
Speaker 2:Yeah, but I think I like that, I think that's okay.
Speaker 1:No, it's terrible.
Speaker 2:No, I don't think so. It is. It is terrible. The reason why is because that did happen to me. I did it, I personally went through it, and I was in it a year and then I hated it, just out of my ego. My ego is all that. It bothered me.
Speaker 1:But some boys won't recover from that I get that I understand that they won't and they'll live with that stigmatism their whole life and they will define themselves as such and that's the problem.
Speaker 2:There's the problem, the definition. But the recognition that you're not in form with everyone else is okay. Just sit down and point to that. You know what I mean. Just realize it, recognize it and work with that person that needs that, without saying, hey, you're retarded. You know what I'm saying? I understand that, but you need a standardized test. I think it's necessary Because when you go to work in the real world, they have expectations. As an adult. But what is being a child and learning, except for teaching you how to be an adult?
Speaker 1:It's teaching you how to problem solve, not teaching you the answers to the problems or to the questions that they provide. Development of your intellect and mind should be not here. Answer these questions, but more what do you think? Explore the options, rather than here are the answers and if you don't answer them correctly, you are mentally disadvantaged. No, the critical thinking, learning to think, is the object of becoming intelligent. Learning to think, I think you have to learn.
Speaker 2:I think you have to. I think that you have to have the standardization to compensate, like okay. For instance, for me when I was a kid, when they put that on me, like that, I compensated and I was able to correct it. Believe it or not, this is going to blow your mind. Do you know how I compensated it? I started doing what they use now what they call common core math, but I did it myself. That's how I figured it out In my brain. It worked. So when I found out common core math was, I was annoyed that they're doing this new math. And then when my daughter showed me what common core math was, that's how I always do math, like I've been doing it that way.
Speaker 2:And that's how I compensated to get where I should be. So I mean, if there's no measure, I don't believe there has to be a measure. Now, I'm not saying what you're not. You're not wrong to say that that you. You say somebody is completely an idiot for not knowing this or not knowing that.
Speaker 1:And.
Speaker 2:I agree with you on that stance of it, but there has to be a measuring stick. If there's not a measuring stick, then what is there?
Speaker 1:We eliminate possibilities because we form intellect based on the answers we want, not what lies inside of the potential person in front of us. We limit it and we were like the answer is this I don't come to that.
Speaker 1:You do, cause there are geniuses out there that are labeled retarded, that are really not retarded at all. They just don't even think like you. They think five levels beyond where it's. It's your son, like I see it. Before you, even you had to sit down and write on paper. I already saw it. That's your son. He's an example. Like he doesn't need you to tell him the answer. He, he, he was there already and we rob ourselves of of incredible potential.
Speaker 2:Without testing and measuring you wouldn't even know that about them. So now that you know that, now you put them in the advanced, you put them in the. I mean you have to have a measuring stick, dude, you just have to. I think. I mean you just have to. I'm not saying when it comes to you know other things, but when it comes to like, because math is the one thing beautiful about math is it's certain. Math has a certainty as far as math goes. Science could be questionable, english could be questionable, but math is always math, math always maths. That's how it is. It just always does, it does. There's always a correct answer.
Speaker 1:Always, but there are more than one ways to get to the definitive answer.
Speaker 2:I 100% agree with that. 100% agree with that.
Speaker 1:And if we force people into our systems, then we're not allowing them to teach us, we're telling them this is the way it is, Rather than forming intellect in people. It doesn't exist anymore. We create in our matrix, we are creating it. It just not. It doesn't exist anymore. We create in our matrix, we are creating consumers not leaders.
Speaker 2:I don't disagree. I disagree, and I'll tell you why. When you do that, you comp, you make it complicated and harder for them. Is what you're saying Basically. You're making it harder for them to learn in advance. And the people that are leaders, the people that are going to change the world, I promise you that's not going to stop them. Those hiccups are what drove them. They got past that. I don't think you'll know that. I positively know that. I know that there's nobody out there that would have maybe changed the world. But the math teacher didn't think he was math and write. I know that.
Speaker 1:Oh, you're crazy, no I don't believe that. If you think there are not students that die with potential inside of them.
Speaker 2:Potential Changing the world potential. I know yes, yes, yes.
Speaker 1:Yes. And had they not been, have they not been categorized, have they not been put in a category? They could have tapped, they could have unleashed what was inside them. But because they were, they did not conform. And yes, I'll give it to you, there's a percentage that will have the fortitude to overcome the deep need of every human being to be affirmed, and so they'll do whatever they have to to earn the affirmation of the person in front of them. So they'll even force their intellect into the bottleneck of whatever it is they're being asked to do, like you did. But how many can you say that didn't have that fortitude?
Speaker 2:But how many do you think would have been your leaders of the world? Anyways, that's what I'm saying. You're two leaders, and and, and strong If you're strong, because, first of all, intellect doesn't build leaders. Usually, intellect is a good feature in a leader, but strong driven, driven critical thinking, critical thinking what we can, what we can deduce by the last five years.
Speaker 1:Our experience over the last five years is that very few individuals have feel the freedom to think critically. That's why they put the mask on their face. That's why they put the mask on their face, that's why they took the jab, that's why they did it all, because they failed to have the critical thinking that was required in the moment that met them. And my thing is like how many Now that's just with the vaccine Can we say that?
Speaker 2:I can say whatever I want. It's censored dude. Well, no, didn't you see today? No, we'll talk about that next.
Speaker 1:keep going but that like okay. So that's with that major thing in society and we see we have empirical evidence. We can go back now and look at it and we can see that 98 of society failed and if you ask how many people today who had them, I mean I don't know if it's 98.
Speaker 2:It might be like I mean, dude, it might be like that I'm just doing a one, I'm just doing a 70. I think there's a lot of people that said no Out of 10 people seven out of 10.
Speaker 1:And I would say, like you say, yes, seven out, like you say, yes, seven out of eight. I think, yeah, that seems right. Maybe eight, I don't know, could be, it's somewhere in there, I'm guessing. I don't know for sure, but I just did the math around the people around me and I'm like do you not have critical thinking skills enough to just kind of look at this at face value and go something's amiss, something's afoot here.
Speaker 2:Why did everybody comply? Well, I don't know. My, my father-in-law is the one that boggles my mind the most. My father-in-law, he, he, he listens to all the podcasts like all the right wing even the evidence is there now. He listened to all the right wing extreme stuff. Like he's. He's Mr Trump, like he's Mr NRA. He says and he went and got jabbed. I go what? Why would you do that? I mean, aren't you listening to the people that are telling you not to do this? Yeah.
Speaker 1:I mean and he's always and I, and he regrets it, I think, but I mean, and you would have to say in some capacity, we failed to raise critical thinkers in society and instead we put them in our system and we got what we put in. We got it, we got it. We got compliance. We taught them how to think, we taught them how to live, and now they're doing exactly what we taught them to do. Well, I've always said that the school system is always there.
Speaker 2:School system is always there basically teaching you how to work for someone Exactly. That is the process of it, because, if you look, most of your leaders didn't do that well in school. They didn't fall in line, they didn't do. You know what I'm saying, but I also think, at the same time, that they were leaders. They were leaders despite that, and I believe that would be the case in the end. That's how I feel about it. I don't think that there's going to be—I mean, everybody latches on to a teacher. I'm sure you did, I know I did. Everybody latches on to somebody who inspired you or made you think different or something. Mrs Hoagland, there was always somebody, there was always— Shout out to Mrs H.
Speaker 2:Everyone had that and that's all it requires. But I will give you that they shouldn't label like the labels and man and the pulling the, the, the, the, putting the labels on them and like, making them feel like they're less of something.
Speaker 1:We have friends. We have friends, right and you know they had the room, the room that they put you in because you were learning, you were learning disabled, you were learning disabled. You remember that room? Yeah, yeah, yeah, there was that one room up up top the stairs there and the old wing of clear view and it and so it was never in that one.
Speaker 1:Manual. Roman was right and today manual is like works in a police force. But for many, many years he was in that room, right, and we all knew like, what are you doing? And Manuel was cool with it because he knew as long as he was in that room he didn't have to work hard at all. He literally knew that and we'd be like, dude, what are you doing? And he was like I'm on the honor roll, bro, and he didn't have to work hard at all and I'm like that, doesn't that?
Speaker 2:doesn't add up.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's, that's, that's it. And so, instead of like raising, like I understand there are, there are individuals in society that are learning like handicapped, okay, so like they're a little delayed in their development. But just because they're delayed doesn't mean that we should label them.
Speaker 2:I agree with that. In that limited time frame, I 100% agree with that. You know of which they're delayed. I agree with that. In that limited time frame, 100% agree with that. You know of which they're delayed, I agree with that.
Speaker 1:Because I have a little boy that we adopted and this little boy, because of what he went through as a child now is a bit delayed in development according to the standard of the world, sure, but what I see in him is like oh no, no, like you may not be where they are now, but just because you're not where they are now doesn't mean that in other areas you're not excelling so physically. This kid can. He climbed top of that tree over there. You know he can do things, other things outside of like two plus two, that other kids can't do yet. But I can see in him the potential to do it and that when he's ready he will. Sure he's ready.
Speaker 2:And that's what I'm saying. The label thing is bad, but, like for me, my, my experience was they came in they said, okay, the math isn't like I like, my math grades weren't there. You know what I'm saying. So they did a IQ test First thing. They did, and I, like I said I got one 20, which is very high. Actually, it's not like genius or not, but it's a very high IQ. You're a genius? No, I'm definitely not. That's like one 40 or something.
Speaker 1:I actually have a friend that is one 40, a genius.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I think it's one 40.
Speaker 1:I've never took one of those.
Speaker 2:No, you've never done it because I'm not a genius.
Speaker 1:Well, they forced me into it.
Speaker 2:They forced me into it.
Speaker 1:So it was one, 20.
Speaker 2:So they knew immediately that it wasn't an intelligence issue. So that's why they put me into the to the, to the class. But had they have not done that, they wouldn't have known that. Now I'll give you this much the class irritated me, fucked with my ego. I shouldn't even I got to quit cussing, messed with my ego. But the IQ score made me feel like okay, I got this. I'm not done, I got this, I just got to apply myself a little bit. You know what I mean?
Speaker 1:I'm just slacking a little bit. That makes a lot of difference. That was the word.
Speaker 2:I was looking for earlier Leaders.
Speaker 1:confidence and conviction is everything, all of my development, I would say like came at my like. Once I arrived at a place of confidence, then I'm like oh, I'm not. I'm not weird because I don't think like you. I'm not weird because I don't fit your, you know, your, your little algorithm. Yeah, as a matter of fact, that's what makes me distinct and unique and original. Sure, but I think we do a disservice to a generation when we force them into the system that defines what's intelligent and what's not, and what is normal. What is normal? We take kids. Think about how jacked up this is. We take little boys and we tell them to sit in a room full of unnatural light during the peak of the day, when they should be climbing trees, playing in mud holes, fishing, and we force them to sit there and do these circus tricks for us to prove to us that they're normal. No, there's nothing normal about taking kids. You really look at that the wrong way.
Speaker 2:No, I look at that the way it is? No, you take them in there to teach them and let them learn to grow. They're not going to learn the math climbing a tree, do you suppose they were?
Speaker 1:supposed. Do you suppose that's the way to learn?
Speaker 2:I believe that you know, the Bible wouldn't have been written if it didn't want to be taught. That's the way I see it. I mean, if the Bible was written and just sitting there and everybody was climbing trees what good would it do?
Speaker 1:I see what you did there. You put the Bible in there, but that doesn't make your argument more inclusive to me.
Speaker 2:Sure it does, because if you're not learning what do you do, then you got to learn you have to learn, but who set the rules for how we learn?
Speaker 1:That's it we did, unfortunately we did. And a bunch of rich people set that up for their own, set a system up that tyrannizes us all and creates consumers out of us all. That whole structure, rockefeller right, he sets this whole thing up to meet the end of I need workers for my industry, so let me. And then it's crazy. Then if you do the parallels between prison and schools, they're almost identical in how they operate and how they function from the appearance of them.
Speaker 2:So the system.
Speaker 1:I'm saying the system is so messed up. I'm not saying it's not broken. I definitely agree with that. As society, we'd be better off just dismantling that. That's what makes me hopeful about what I hear in Washington now. They're talking about dismantling these systems and restructuring them in ways that really search for the best of humanity. I mean, I don't know if that's true. Those are high hopes.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you're concentrating on the testing aspect of it. The whole system is a hole, but it has to be taught. The teaching has to happen.
Speaker 1:And that may have to take place. Teaching is unique to the child, to the individual. Teaching cannot be conformed, putting them in a room when they want to be out fishing and climbing a tree.
Speaker 2:that's teaching you a major thing right there. That's teaching you discipline, because most people that are working whether it's for somebody else or at a restaurant or whatever you want to call it most of them have to have the discipline to not go out on the boat and be at a restaurant or whatever you want to call it. Most of them have to have the discipline to not go out on the boat and be at the restaurant or, you know, on the Harley and be at the church. I mean, this is a discipline, it is a teaching mechanism and it has to happen.
Speaker 2:Is it right? Is the whole system correct? No, and maybe blowing it up and starting over isn't a bad idea, I think 75% of the system's broke.
Speaker 1:I think there are some good teachers that are stuck in a construct that has been hijacked long ago for a nefarious end.
Speaker 2:Yeah, to some degree, I agree. Yeah, to some degree. I agree with that. Yeah, to some degree.
Speaker 1:I don't think all schools are like I know, like and if I feel like I feel like a lot of America's waking up to that reality, yeah, and I think homeschools are becoming more popular now, see, but that's a private school is becoming more popular.
Speaker 2:The problem with homeschooling is the social aspect. It's becoming more popular now. The problem with homeschooling is the social aspect. Everyone says that. You need that, you need it, you have to have it.
Speaker 1:I agree that you have to have. So I agree that you have to have. So how I see now is these memes that I saw they're talking about. They said homeschool would make a weird kid and then they show this liberal blue-haired weird can't tell what sex it is kid. And then they show this liberal blue haired weird you know like can't tell what sex it is and then they show this normal homeschool kid, that's just, you know, playing with Legos. You know this boy you know.
Speaker 2:But I mean in all fairness, this is the problem, it's not the blue haired weirdo kid there's nothing wrong with that, kid the blue haired weirdo kid. He is critically thinking. He needs a little, he needs corrected because he's not right. The blue haired weirdo kid he is critically thinking. He needs corrected because he's not right. You know what I mean.
Speaker 2:But he came from a construct, but he's trying to think outside the box. You know what I mean. He's thinking. He's thinking outside the box. It's kind of like when we were in high school. It was the progressives, remember, and I always laughed because they were nonconformist.
Speaker 1:What did you call them? You call them progressives. Yeah, that's what we called them. No, you say we. Who's your? We son? You got a frog in your pocket. What are?
Speaker 2:you talking about the people that we grew up with, like all my friends. We called them progressives. The kids that were in school, the all black, like with the black nail polish oh, I think that's what they called them after we left school was emo.
Speaker 1:I don't think we. I don't remember giving them a name.
Speaker 2:I remember we called them progressive but they're nonconformist, is their thing Right, but what?
Speaker 1:are they doing? What are they?
Speaker 2:doing? What are they doing? They're all conformed to each other. You know injury. My buddy used to laugh all the time He'd go. That's. That's the hilarious, like you know, most conformed group there is, like they're all exactly the same you know what I mean.
Speaker 1:I mean we all to some degree found refuge in herd mentality sure we all, because that's where you're safe.
Speaker 2:You're safe and you're heard you know I was.
Speaker 1:You know I'm gonna go play football and hang out in the gym and and that's socializing yeah, so you're just in the community, uh, but you know who is fascinating?
Speaker 1:It really fascinated me was this individual and I just I spent some time with him down in Florida. I was Chris Vidovich Vido. Vido was a weird dude, even even like among all of the pressure, and I learned something from him in life that that the coolest kid is is the kid that doesn't do what everybody else is doing, and that is something that he did and continues to do even to this day. This dude, like if you're wearing one thing, he's not wearing that, he's going to wear something totally different.
Speaker 2:I always considered him cool as hell never weird.
Speaker 1:He was so cool. You always thought he was weird.
Speaker 2:No, he was cool.
Speaker 1:Oh, I thought he was cool. Hell, never, he was always thought he was weird.
Speaker 2:No, he was cool. Oh, I thought he was.
Speaker 1:I thought he was cool, but he was just he was weird cool. You know he was weird cool because, because you know, you're like who does that, who, who does what you do like? And he, he would do it. And he just it seemed as if he was. He was just flying so high above us all and we're over here trying buying the same shoes and trying to wear the same bracelets and got a tail and he was just like no, I'm, I'm gonna do what I'm gonna do and he had his little curly top.
Speaker 2:He had that like what was that? What was that movie? Uh, can't buy me love. He had that type of hair. Do you remember? Back then he did, yeah, he, no. You know. I ended up friends with his cousin, like Randy and Matt. That was both of them, and Randy actually worked for me and started my painting division when I yeah, he's a painter now still- but yeah, I hung out with a widow, me and Marlon.
Speaker 1:He's down there, he lives down in St Pete's somewhere down there in Tampa or something, and we we got together with him, went golfing, rode around a boat together, pretty sweet, just talked yeah, matt was.
Speaker 2:uh, matt was, matt wrecked my car, he, he did me, he did me wrong. Oh no, not like in a bad way, but we were, we were out drinking and he took my car, we, I think he got caught at Vicks. Matt did, and like we were underage both of us, but they caught him, not me.
Speaker 1:I'm like well, we all got into Vicks. I don't know Everybody got into Vicks.
Speaker 2:But I was talking to a girl and I'm like I'm not leaving, you know, and he took my car I'm not going nowhere and he went, he got, he got uh trash he was a brandon calo actually and they were trashed and he freaking uh totaled my car. He went through a telephone pole, hit two cars. Dude, I had to freaking make payments on this shit before they'd give me my license back. I was only like 19. I had to drive, like, go to work for like three years with no license because I had to make payments to pay it back. Because the way it worked was, the law took my license, so I couldn't go to a judge and ask for privileges, like it was, like the law, like it. Just I don't know how to.
Speaker 1:That's it. That's just the way it is.
Speaker 2:There was no judge that ordered it. The law was because there was no insurance on it. It wasn't my accident, it was his, but it was my vehicle. You know what I'm saying.
Speaker 1:So the law that you have to have insurance he didn't have insurance.
Speaker 2:He didn't even have a license. Well, he should have been obligated. I should have never gave him the car. I was worried about a girl.
Speaker 1:He stole it, he stole it. That's what happened. It turned in real quick.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so that that did me in. So then anyway, so when Randy came to work for me, his whole family's like dude, he's gonna keep your money for the money Matt owes him. But I mean I didn't do it, I would never do. I don't even hold it against Matt. I mean I was my kids. Yeah, he was a good me and him were real close at one time. But he said Chris was kind of weird too, is like I was like really I just never seen Chris's that.
Speaker 1:I'm telling you, chris is a weird cool dude, like even to this day. He's just a weird cool dude Like yeah, I always liked him Always.
Speaker 2:He's so fast, he had that fricking. Uh, I just when I envision him, I envision him with that. Like I said, it can't buy me hair, you know, can't buy me love hair. And that stripe short shirt like like a striped shirt.
Speaker 1:I know the shirt you're talking about. That's how I envision him every time when.
Speaker 2:I think of him, oddly enough, but for me.
Speaker 1:He was growing up, I didn't know it, but I was like that's how you're cool. That's how you're cool when you won't, when you just won't do what the herd does, and you just have the confidence to do whatever it is you want to do. And the older I got, the more I'm like I'm just going to do what I want to do and I'm not really concerned with who approves or not and I don't know. I guess, in going back to where we were, I think that if we would just put more confidence in individual rather than the class, instead of making us conform, just put confidence in the kid.
Speaker 1:Just put more confidence in the kid and create, create, create critical thinking in the, in the individual, like let's educate the individual, not the class, and I think that's where you get a better?
Speaker 2:How much is the confidence of the people that are in you know tag programs, and I mean they have pretty good confidence they do. Yeah, you need the system to do that.
Speaker 1:I don't know. I don't know. I mean you think about that. It's a good point, man.
Speaker 2:I mean you think about it and you're like I don't know when I got that IQ test that overrode what happened as far as this class. They told me I had to take the IQ test, told me I was smart. At that point I felt like I was smart. I probably never felt like I was smart before that. Honestly, if I'm being honest, I probably just thought I was average.
Speaker 2:I was always pretty quick with the test. We'd do a test. I'd always be one of the first ones out. I wasn't getting 100%. I was like 98 or 80 or something. I wasn't getting 100%. I was like 98 or 80 or something. You know what I mean. I would run through the test, but I wasn't trying. I just didn't think I was all that smart. I was just trying to get done with the test and be done with it. Yeah, you know, I don't know what I thought. I mean you need those. Without the measuring stick, how do you know where you're at? How do you give confidence? Because you're talking specifically on the ones that are failing it, but the ones that are succeeding it I mean their confidence gets boosted pretty high.
Speaker 1:They still deal with the same insecurities though.
Speaker 2:Do they Sure?
Speaker 1:I don't think that somebody in the TAG program that's making you think they have the confidence in the world just because they've learned to think like they were told to think Absolutely not.
Speaker 2:I don't know that they're thinking the way. I don't like the way you say that. I don't know that that's what they're doing in most high schools.
Speaker 1:I mean I'm not saying that your teachers that's what they're doing in the entire education system son, I'm sorry to tell you, but there is a system, and if you don't conform to their system, you are labeled either this or that.
Speaker 2:Yes, that's the way it is, but if the state decides what the answers are, and they have, and they have, and we have elected those people and put them in place. No, yes, no yes.
Speaker 1:Who elected these people and put them in place and said create a system that defines whether or not my child is normal or abnormal.
Speaker 2:Well, because what you're describing is chaos. If you walk into a room and you have, if you walk in with no parameters, where do you begin, where do you start, where do you end?
Speaker 1:It was like, okay, so let's take. It's going to be hard to do that too, but let's just take the, the, the concept of college going sitting in a room with a professor.
Speaker 2:That's almost unnecessary, but go ahead, that's not.
Speaker 1:What are you talking about? Man College is unnecessary in most places. It has become that basic education.
Speaker 1:It has become stupid because there's no critical thinking. We're not. Okay. Here's the professor. I loved college because it let me think, it allowed me to think, and it didn't define that's what appealed to me in college. I'm like oh, appealed to me in college, like. I'm like, oh, like, so you're giving me this stuff and you're letting me decide how to get to the answer. I love that about chemistry in college. I love that about, like, my English courses. I love that about every aspect of college that I was the one and now the responsibility for the conclusion was to me, and it didn't mean that there weren't definitive answers, but the arrival to those answers forced me to think critically Okay, how does, how does two plus two equal four? Well, there are many, many ways we can get the four, but it allowed me the expression of like okay, let me, let me figure this out. That's what I loved about it, and I think that's what's missing from school today.
Speaker 2:There's not enough, I think that's for college, though I think that's at a college level, I think that's for college. I think a basic education system is exactly what it is. A basic education system, I mean I think that you learn more in and in the primary. You know. Regular school prior to college, high school, middle school, you know they all have. I think that they need to readdress, you know. I think, like in the earlier years, I think they need to really teach socializing far more than they do. I think they need to make that more of the criteria in those younger years as they're teaching them. I'm not saying don't teach them, but like when they start, but like they started, focus on trying to push the limits a little bit too much.
Speaker 2:Like I remember when we were kids, like in kindergarten, you weren't even expected to read and it was a half a day. You know what I mean. Yeah, I took naps, yeah, yeah, and it was like a half a day it was. I mean, I didn't go to kindergarten. Actually, I went straight to first grade. I didn't. My mom just didn't, even my mom just didn't put me in. I was eating crayons.
Speaker 2:So then when lexa went to kindergarten, it was an option. You could go for a full day. Yeah, and I think I think that it helped her. She did well by doing it. I thought, well, why not? It just advances her, you learn a little more maybe, and for her it did. By the time Haley went to school now I mean, and they're only three years apart, 97, 94. By the time Haley went to school, kindergarten was full day, regardless, and you were to be reading by the time you left kindergarten. That Kindergarten was full day, regardless and you were to be reading by the time you left kindergarten. That's just how it is now, but it wasn't like that even when Lexa went in. So they're pushing and pushing more of a criteria and it walked away from the social aspect, which to me is more important in the younger years to learn how to socialize with people. I agree, I think that's big.
Speaker 1:If you ask me yeah, I think you just hit it, I think that's big, I think you know you, you learned. If you asked me yeah, I think that, I mean, I think you just hit it, I think that's it.
Speaker 2:But I mean the basic education should be structured. I do believe that until college, college is different and I believe that I believe that colleges you have a choice right, like we can. You can go to Tri-C, or you go to LCC, or you can go to ohio state, or you know what I mean. I believe that the colleges need, need a little more freedom so that they can give you something that's more appealing to you. You know what I mean. So that, uh, it's like going out to eat, you know, you go, what's your flavor? You know what I'm saying? Yeah, and I, and because some people love the structure, some people.
Speaker 1:That's what they want. One more caveat to consider Okay With the school systems that we've created? Yeah, yeah, that were created and now we just continue to do? We perpetuate broken systems.
Speaker 2:They're so different from just they're constantly trying to fix it. They're so different from when we were in school.
Speaker 1:I don they're constantly trying to fix it. They're so different from when we were in school. I don't think they're trying to fix it, I think they're trying to defend it. And instead of fixing it, they're uh, they're doubling down on defending what's in in their best interest, meaning this, the system in the school, the school system and those who who are in it. Because if they were honest with themselves, they would say, um, these clearly don't work because, you know, because, if we take these, these standards, and we move them to different demographics of society, they don't work there. And the reason they don't work there is because of a whole set of situation, a whole set of circumstances, like, like, basic needs being met, that kind of thing. But what we did learn during COVID and over there because they shut down, right, right, they shut down everything and what we learned over COVID is that education didn't stop.
Speaker 2:It was just We've got a lot of social issues with kids. Now we do.
Speaker 1:Yes, A lot, but the education didn't stop. No, the socialization stopped, yes, and what we see from the education aspect of it was oh, the parents now were teaching their kids. And when the parents were teaching their kids, you know how long it took to do An hour. Kids were getting done with their school work in an hour. Took them six hours before. Now it takes them an hour. Go ahead, do the math on it. You had a different family.
Speaker 2:No.
Speaker 1:During COVID, students at home were learning way faster their content. I don't believe that. Do the studies you don't have to believe me Just do the studies and research.
Speaker 2:I'll just talk about my own personal. I know that it was rougher on Dylan to try and learn from Amanda. You know what I mean. That it was for him in a classroom. He's not structured so he doesn't listen to us Like he does a teacher. You know what I'm saying, cause he needs that. I think my sister, who's a school teacher, she, she told me I'll take the 20 kids in a classroom over these three every time.
Speaker 1:This is horrible at home. Yeah, yeah, yeah yeah.
Speaker 2:She goes every time. This isn't this is, she goes. I'm a teacher and this is too hard for me. Well, my wife is a teacher. I don't know where that stat comes from?
Speaker 1:Oh, it's known, you can research it. My wife is a teacher. She taught for 10 years in the Lorraine school system. She taught our child. So it's her fault? No, but she taught our child. And our child was going to school just like everybody else, but Denny stayed home. We were done with school by 10 o'clock. Oh, yeah, yeah, to this day I mean he does like an hour and he's progressing and he's learning disabled. He came with a whole set of circumstances behind him that are challenging to his development.
Speaker 2:I guess that's a fair analogy, because if you're in a classroom with 20 or 30 kids, I mean to expect you to teach one kid the same is a lot harder. You just proved my point. Yeah, that's a lot harder. The system's broke? Nah, I don't think so. You just proved my point. How, how did I do that?
Speaker 1:You said well, if he's in a classroom with that many kids which tells me that we're teaching classes, not kids. We're teaching classes, not kids. We're teaching standards, not children. We're teaching criteria, not children. It's the child. I don't agree with that.
Speaker 2:You have to, I don't.
Speaker 1:I don't Because when you go to a school.
Speaker 2:No, I didn't.
Speaker 1:I did not say what you said what did you say? I said that it would take longer because you're addressing 30 kids 20 longer, because you're addressing 30 kids 20 to 30 kids so effectively to teach a group, a classroom full of kids? You can't effectively do it.
Speaker 2:I'm not saying that if you taught 30 kids, if you taught, if you taught no, if I took, if I took an, if I took an hour to teach 30 kids, one I one subject, you taught 30 in that time. That's a 30-hour day. The way you're talking, you're saying.
Speaker 2:So what you're saying is that that's like assembly line processes. What you're talking about, no, what you're saying is assembly line. What I'm saying is what I'm saying is you're talking assembly line. I'm saying that the one person teaching 30 is far more efficient than the one teaching one.
Speaker 1:For the person teaching, not for the student. The student learns better isolated. Possibly, but the other thing is that so if you increase the number of teachers and lessen the number of students in a classroom, you would be able to teach them at half the time.
Speaker 2:I don't agree with that and I'll tell you why. Because what happens in a classroom?
Speaker 1:you would be able to teach them at half the time. I don't agree with that and I'll tell you why. Because what?
Speaker 2:happens in a school and you're ignoring that, let's ask educators.
Speaker 1:We could ask educators.
Speaker 2:But what happens in a school is that you have, first of all, you're limited To learn from one person. You're limited to that person's ability to teach you, so you don't bring in your favorite teacher, for instance. You see what I'm saying. That's necessary for all of us, because that's when we really start to learn, when we find somebody that we really dig.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I agree, I'll give that to you. There are teachers that are more effective at teaching the material than others.
Speaker 2:Well, Ms Holcomb wasn't more effective to me. I didn't particularly care for her.
Speaker 1:I'm sorry, he said that, ms Holcomb. I apologize for him the other way he's talking about it, but each person has their ones that they latch onto.
Speaker 2:That's what they have. Everybody has that. You know what I mean.
Speaker 1:But regardless of that. So the attention of one teacher has the potential to do to teach better.
Speaker 2:No, that's not what I said at all. You're not letting me get there. That's the first aspect is you can find one that you prefer and you recognize it and see it. Second of all, you get taught different ways from different teachers, different aspects, so you get to see different abilities. Third of all, the school system does place you where you're supposed to be by testing you and seeing where you're supposed to be. So you're in a classroom with 30 people, typically by high school I'm not talking elementary school, but by high school. We're in a classroom with, you know, algebra kids, not applied math kids. You see what I'm saying? Yeah, and that that gives you that benefit of of. So you act like it's not individualized. But when you have 20, 30 classrooms and you specifically set one for the 30 that are at the best at this or the best at that, I think that you are catering to their needs to some degree. Now, I'm not saying it's perfect, I don't mean to say that. I definitely am going to say the education system is perfect and I'm not trying to argue that, but to say blow-up testing and blow-up blow up to me I.
Speaker 2:I, you know what I loved when we did it in school and it happened in our. We were like the first, I think. I think we were the first group that came through. Do you remember we had to do the? What were those tests? The aptitude, what were the tests? Yeah, yeah, we had to take them tests within a certain amount of time. We had to do them in high school and your grade depended on that period. What was that called? What the hell was that called.
Speaker 1:I remember taking tests like that, but I don't. Maybe I just didn't care enough to let the pressure get the best of me.
Speaker 2:No, there was a test. They put it. I think we were, like, they brought them to Ohio when we were here and I can't remember what they're called now I thought was it aptitude? No, it wasn't aptitude test. No, it wasn't aptitude. They do that now, though. Right, I think they do, but they're very different than when we did them. But I loved them. I thought it was great because the bottom line was, with those, essentially, you could do no homework, none of your work, all year, and if you ace those tests, you moved on period.
Speaker 2:That was the that they brought that in when we were in high school. I don't remember that that was. I can't remember what they were called, though. I'll have to look into it. I don't remember that. No, I don't remember that. Yeah, that that came in and you had to graduate. You had to pass those tests every, and I'm not saying if you didn't do all your homework that you wouldn't get a lower grade. Your homework and your schoolwork and test accounted for a percentage. But as long as you pass those tests, I can't remember what they were called.
Speaker 1:I mean, that sounds like college to me. I'm down for that man.
Speaker 2:I spent most of my time in the field I was playing basketball. I liked it. I mean I'm not saying don't get me wrong, don't think I'm arguing for the school system the way it is and I'm certainly not arguing for like a you know, like for you to call kids LT. No, I'm not arguing for that. That's not what I mean. But what I do mean is when you see that, that you deal with it without even telling them that you're dealing with it.
Speaker 2:Maybe you, I think a different class and they don't even know it.
Speaker 1:I think my passion exists there for the kids that, like I, believe that if you can just if you can put confidence in a kid early, you can see the best of what that kid has to offer for the rest of his life.
Speaker 2:What if he's an idiot?
Speaker 1:Well, that doesn't matter.
Speaker 2:And then he's walking around confidently. Well, that doesn't matter, just messing up everything.
Speaker 1:I mean I was an idiot. I was an idiot. You must admit you were an idiot as well. But if you're confidently messing up everything no, I mean it doesn't mean that you won't get checked.
Speaker 2:I think that confidence comes to you as an adult, because that's when you're supposed to get it. No, when you actually have some knowledge no no, no, no. If you have confidence without knowledge that's dangerous.
Speaker 1:I'm not saying you don't have to develop. I'm just suggesting that there was a lot of times in my life and a lot of opportunities I know I missed because I didn't believe I belonged there. A lot of opportunities I know I missed because I didn't believe I belonged there. I was insecure. I thought you were religious, though I was.
Speaker 2:I'm not at an early age. I wasn't. But don't you believe you're where you are now because that's where God wants you to be.
Speaker 1:I believe that there are many routes that could have gotten me there way earlier. I could have you know the destiny and purposes on somebody's life is dependent upon the trust they put in.
Speaker 2:Christ, but you don't have the same experiences to draw from the wealth.
Speaker 1:But there's a reason God put you there.
Speaker 2:Why would I have?
Speaker 1:to go through that. I think God's smart enough to give me that without having to make me go around that.
Speaker 2:Why do you make me go through this?
Speaker 1:That is beyond my ability.
Speaker 2:My thing is I've always said God will never handle hand you more than you can handle. That is a lie.
Speaker 1:God will give you a whole lot more than you are capable. I don't believe that at all. 100%, because you don't know. If it were up to you, you wouldn't know what you could handle. You think you think 60 pounds, that's, that's more than I can handle, and God's like no, you don't even know what you can handle.
Speaker 2:Right, I'll show you what you can handle but he's not going to give you more than that.
Speaker 1:But to suggest that, oh, god's not going to put more on me than I can handle. God will break you in order to restore you. That's okay. What you can carry is— but you can handle it. You don't know. You can handle it.
Speaker 2:You don't know it, but he does.
Speaker 1:Every time I hear somebody say that, I'm like don't say that, because, man, you're about to go through something that is just going to test the living daylights out of you.
Speaker 2:That's okay, as long as you know that.
Speaker 1:You're down for that. I realize that. But most people don't even understand what they're saying when they say that God will put a whole lot on you.
Speaker 2:Like my wife. She can't handle a lot. She can't. Dylan. He was sleeping two weeks in 12-hour nights. Yeah, straight-a student does exactly what he's supposed to do. Super smart, she's petty. The last thing that would happen for him to have my attitude when I was a kid that clash would not work. You know what I'm saying. She's not that person. You know what I mean. Guys, I could give her more than that. He knows that's what she can handle is Dylan. You know what I'm saying. I believe that I've seen it and, and and Alexa.
Speaker 1:Alexa will test me all the way to the top. I mean I'll get really real.
Speaker 2:I'll get really real with you.
Speaker 1:I'll get real. I'll get real with you.
Speaker 2:What's that we? Uh, she told me I had 80 ADHD the other day.
Speaker 1:Stop saying that You're going to ruin my man's confidence. One more thing before I get real real, I want to say on the confidence part of it there is a reason. There is a reason. Eli Manning played in the NFL. Yes, he wasn't that good, he was okay, but he wasn't Peyton Manning. He wasn't his father, but you know what confidence did for him. It told him he deserved an opportunity to be in that room.
Speaker 2:Yeah, the lack of confidence did.
Speaker 1:No, no, his confidence. His dad did it. We don't agree with that. His brothers did it. Yeah, yeah, 100%.
Speaker 2:Look at TJ.
Speaker 1:Watt Look at, look at, look, I Look, I know this is true.
Speaker 2:You're trying to prove something. Why do you think Michael Jordan was who he was? You're trying to prove he was trying to be as good as his brother. That's true. You lacked confidence. That's true.
Speaker 1:You didn't get there. You weren't as good as they said you were, and so you had to prove that. That's why I went to college. I didn't even want to go to college, so I'm like I'm going to college, so I went. But there's something to be said about about going to the combines. I did this with my son and I didn't go play college football and I, man, I there's a part of me that always wishes I would have like man, I should have.
Speaker 2:just I should have went. I actually got offered to go play for like a small college I forget what was it in Athens. Yeah, I went there. They wanted me to go play. They like talked to me at like when I was 19,. I got that offer and I'm just like I was scared of it. Honestly, I was scared of it too. I was scared of the books, I was scared of the books.
Speaker 1:I was scared of the experience because I had no exposure to it. And then when my son, jeremiah, he's in college, he's in high school, he's going to you know, he's on a really successful program over in Avon. They went to state and I remember as a sophomore I was taking him across state lines to go to these combines because he was just like it was just. I'm like. You know what I'm going to give him the? I'm going to expose him to such greatness that when he walks into a high school locker room he's confident, he's confident. And so I exposed him. I took him around the country to these combines at sophomore juniors.
Speaker 1:As a sophomore and a junior he was being exposed to an entire different stratosphere of playing. And so when he walked into high school locker rooms it was over. He knew he had already been exposed to greatness and by the exposure to greatness his confidence level on a football field excelled. He was crazy. He was crazy, he went to state. They lost, but he went to state. Shout out to Mike Elder they just won state. Avon just won state. But that confidence that I saw in him was what I didn't have and I was like man. That's what I'm talking about for students.
Speaker 2:That's not confidence, that's a father. That's not a confidence, that's just having a father that pushes you. That pushes you. Yeah, that's not confidence, that's a father that pushes you and that's good. You need that too. I'm not saying you walk into these rooms, that's a good dad, and you walk into these rooms.
Speaker 1:That's a Fox News dad, that's a good dad and you already know I got it, I got it, I got it, and that's what I'm saying.
Speaker 2:The problem. She didn't make the tryout because she wasn't working very hard at it.
Speaker 1:She made it to next year because she worked her ass off to get back there. Disappointment has a part in the equation as well.
Speaker 2:I mean confidence. I don't think it's confidence that does it. I think you're misguided on that. I think that the lack of confidence because the reason that people work hard Failure- You're talking about failure, not talking about confidence.
Speaker 2:No, I'm talking about working hard. I'm talking about you work hard, because you work hard, because you know you have to, because otherwise you're not going to be good enough. So that's, that's where the lack of confidence says. I mean, that's like I said Jordan worked his ass off to be as good as his brother was with what the goal was. That was his competition. You know what I mean.
Speaker 1:But it was never a question of whether or not he belonged there.
Speaker 2:The only one that I know that had the confidence to be like king ding-a-ling to everybody was Larry Bird. He just had it. There was nobody he seemed like he was trying to measure up to. He just thought he was dominant. But I mean, every one of their stories not LeBron had the confidence to. I'll give you that LeBron did have confidence to, but most of their stories not LeBron had the confidence to. I'll give you that LeBron did have confidence to, but most of their stories there's somebody they're trying to live up to and Eli was trying to live up to Peyton. He's trying to live up to his dad.
Speaker 1:But he knew he belonged there because he had been exposed to it his whole life. There was nothing you could say to him that would say you're not going to the NFL, Go to the NFL.
Speaker 2:He knew he had to work hard to get there.
Speaker 1:You're not that good.
Speaker 1:But you're not as good as your brother. So yeah, there's competition and you're going to have to work hard, but the confidence to say I belong in the room, that's a game changer. That's a game changer for anyone, for all of us. I'm just more confident in certain areas than I am in other areas. But once I walk into those other areas, once I become familiar with it and I have a couple wins in it, suddenly now I know how to, I can dominate that area and we started this episode out talking about serving.
Speaker 2:We start, and that's the same thing. Like I said, it's not chaos when I'm out there. Now, I could just do it, now you can do it. But when I first walked in, I'm going oh, what do I do? What do I do you know what? I trying to figure it out and I, and I get that, I get that. That. That that is the same thing. I guess I forgot what I was going to say.
Speaker 1:I was going to talk about. What was the other thing you were talking about I was talking about. I was going to education, confidence, confidence away from them. I don't even know why I was going to share that. I was going to share my wife and uh, you had three miscarriages.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I'm sorry, I didn't know that that's yeah, she, she died.
Speaker 1:She died, uh, in the hospital when, uh, because of the complications of the one and uh, and I remember, oh yeah. So I remember, like going through that time period and, and my confidence was shook and I was just like God must hate me, I must be cursed, I'm doing everything wrong. I remember like my confidence oh, god gives you more than you can handle. Yeah, and it was so overwhelming and, uh, I began, the narrative in my mind began to become like I'm cursed. I remember like it must be cursed. I must, I must have earned this, I must have, I must deserve what this pain that I'm going through, and and it was just overwhelming, it was crushing. It was crushing. I mean I was, it was everything I could do just to fight. And I mean, mind you, I'm still. I still have to get up and preach sermons. Yeah, I have to give people counsel. I have to still lead a staff. I have to keep doing all of the things.
Speaker 1:Are you questioning God at this? Oh my God. Well, I never questioned the existence of God, I just quest. I began to question the love of God in my life. I began to question, like, oh my, the love of God in my life, I began to question like, oh my, I must've done something that has, that has earned me displeasure to him and and taken me out of his favor. I remember, I remember thinking of all your sins you've done. Oh everything, everything, man. Like everything. From a kid like I began to like everything I did in my entire life. Is is why I'm going through this and and I just remember struggling, struggling, struggling for years, for years. It was a private struggle of of like God, like does God love me or does God like is he reject me or and do you feel like he's, do you feel like he had a reason?
Speaker 2:now?
Speaker 1:No, no, I remember, um, just I don't remember the exact time or day, but I remember the season. I remember the season of like, where God just began to speak to me and like no, no, like, I've never left you. And then I heard this story the other day. It was, it was awesome. It was awesome.
Speaker 1:It was about this father whose son was about to become of age and so he takes his, he takes his son, who's like 12, right, he's coming of age, and he's like all right, well, there's time for you to spend a night in the wilderness alone. It's well, that's well for yourself. And so he takes him out and they walk like way into the woods and and he sets up his tent and he's like all right, I'll see you in the morning. And it's dark by then, and the kid just climbs in the tent and he's just like they're in the middle of the darkness, in the middle of the night. You know, his father's gone and he's in the middle of the night and he's you can hear. You know, he's just, he just can't sleep and he's just wrestling like he's just, he just can't sleep and he's just wrestling like he's afraid. You know, he's full of fear, you know. And but then he, he feels like, oh, it's becoming daylight, you know. So he all night long he was afraid. And so so he, uh, the daylight breaks, he opens the, the tent and he gets out and he looks, and he looks down about about 50 yards away.
Speaker 1:His father was right there sitting in a chair and he was like, when did you get there? And he said I never left, I've been here the whole time. Just because it got dark doesn't mean I wasn't there. And that's kind of what I felt when I went through that. I heard God say just because it got dark didn't mean I wasn't with you. Yeah, yeah, I'm with you. You've never lost your favor. There's nothing you could have ever done to earn it. There's nothing you could ever do to give it away.
Speaker 2:You question reason, though, and I get that you do, but there is a reason.
Speaker 1:There's always way. There's no way. My man, my wife, died, literally died on the table. I'm standing over top of her for 15 seconds. That little machine Just cried out to God, god, no, no, I go, jesus, and I back awake up, jesus, back awake up. Wow, I'm screaming top of my lungs, I'm screaming in the room. It's chaos everywhere. And then one last time I said Jesus and I look back down and my wife said why are you screaming? She woke back up.
Speaker 2:She woke back up. Maybe she just had sleep apnea, I don't know.
Speaker 1:She was dead. She says that too. I'm like, girl, you were dead. She was like, I was not dead. I'm like, yes, you were dead.
Speaker 2:My wife says that it's like sometimes I don't breathe for over 40 seconds.
Speaker 1:Like at night when you're sleeping.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, that's what she says, I don't know what that's about man, sleep apnea, they say.
Speaker 1:I had a good friend that died from that, from sleep apnea. Yeah, scotty Poprock, it's a city and he had that. He was severely overweight and he smoked cigars, brushed his teeth with a cigar and all that you know, and one night he just didn't make it out of his dreams.
Speaker 2:Yeah, they say it's not good for you, that's for sure. No, but yeah, she says I go pretty long without breathing on occasion. Why? Always when I'm heavier, though. When I'm heavier, it happens more. Yeah, I can feel that too. The more I thin down, the less I. When I start getting thin, I don't even snore or anything.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's for sure. That's for sure. I'm just out of shape. I'm on a fast right now, so I'm fasting, but I'm getting ready to go on this cruise.
Speaker 2:I'm like, ah, I'm doing so good and they give you all the seafood and everything right, oh yeah, but I'm just going to be normal.
Speaker 1:I'm not going to be a glutton, I'm just going to be a normal. I'm going to eat the same thing every day. I might have some French toast. I love French toast. I do too, so I may have some French toast, but other than that, I think I'm just going to be normal.
Speaker 2:I used to try to make it when I was a kid. I just put egg on it. It's not the same. I'm like this is not good. And then I went over to a friend's house Actually, it was Matt Vidovich's house oh yeah, he taught you how to make. Yeah, he's making it up, he's throwing cinnamon and sugar in the egg, and I'm like, okay.
Speaker 1:All right, wait a minute.
Speaker 2:Yeah, cinnamon and sugar. It's phenomenal. I think the bread matters too, right, you've got to have some good bread. I don't think so.
Speaker 1:The better the bread though.
Speaker 2:Maybe it might help a little bit. But when I watched him do that, I didn't know. I thought well, did you just put egg on? It Changed your life? I had no clue you'd mix other things into the egg. I didn't know. Are you a big resolution dude? No, not, really, not so much. I mean. You know what I am. I'm a quietly to myself. You know what I want to do this year for myself Interesting. You know what I mean? What, what? Now you're telling me that's not quietly. No, no, what. This year my goals are I want to get financially stronger this year and I want to put an addition on this bar over here to the side. That's my goals for the year. I wouldn't call them a resolution, but that's what I want for the year. No, I don't believe in resolutions. I don't believe in resolutions, but I do like to set a standard, a goal.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think you've got to put something on the horizon to go at yeah, but I think I want my got to put something on the horizon to go at yeah, but I, I want to. Um, I think, I think I want my character to match my promise. So I'm going to work on my character and then I won't worry about the promise God will give me. The promise I'm just going to, I'm just going to make myself better.
Speaker 2:I like that, cause you got demons you talk about and I'm like it's weird, don't get those where those come from.
Speaker 1:Yeah, because you just you just, you just uh, I mean, I'm just, I'm aware of the, of the nature, of my nature. Yeah, I live with a, a very clear awareness of, of darkness. Yeah, it's so real. Darkness is real in the, in the um. The nature of man is not good, it's, it's absolutely. There's a lot of good people, though.
Speaker 2:There are a lot of good people. Yeah, a lot of them, a lot of them are just sheeps to you.
Speaker 1:I'm curious In your mind I'm curious, what makes a person good?
Speaker 2:Um, in my opinion yeah, in my opinion is. Is is first. Honesty is is is. You know, um, honesty is is always number one. And, uh, putting other people before yourself. And I think those two things become your good at that point. If you have both of those in you, if you're honest with yourself, honest with other people and you put other people before you, I think that's pretty good. I think that makes you a good person. I think there's more people out there like that than you think. I do believe that. I believe that you know it may look sometimes like people you know are greedy and they take, and there are clearly they're called the top 1% for a reason. For the most part, I mean, that's the people that are greedy, and there's a lot of people out there that do without for other people to do, and those people that they do for probably don't even realize it. They think maybe they have more than they had to offer and they offered it anyways, I think it's Carl, I think it's carl young that that talks about.
Speaker 1:I think it's that, I think it's him, but he talks about the shadow, like, like living with this awareness of your shadow and uh, and, and you can't even discover the good until you have an understanding of the shadow that you cast, that there is this, there is this darkness that is in with. We all have a shadow, we all have a shadow, and there is this darkness that that, until you, until you surrender that darkness, you may offer a few moments of good, but until that darkness is surrendered, I think I'm going to pause you for one second.
Speaker 2:Well, I'm not pausing you. You keep going. I can hear you. Oh, okay, we're going to do like we did last time. Well, I'm not pausing you, you keep going. I can hear you. Oh, okay, we're going to do like we did last time.
Speaker 1:Yeah, the shadow. I think most of us don't live. We live too confident in our, in what we have defined as good, and there's a darkness that the Bible talks to us about that no man is good. There was a situation where they came to Jesus and said they began to define what good was, and he said there's none good, there's none, there's, there's. There's a shadow in all of us and there is darkness in all of us. And until that shadow is, is surrendered, good is elusive, good is, is, is not what we think it is, and so when, when Jim talks about that, I'll just go. Nah, I'm aware of the darkness that's in my thoughts.
Speaker 2:So if you're finding yourself aware of your shadow and we all have a shadow, and by that you mean I want to say it's like a desire Is that kind of what you're talking about Like a desire and it's like a desire. Is that kind of what you're talking about Like a desire and it's a sinful desire? Obviously Okay. And you're saying you want to, you want to match what you want to be rather than what you actually desire. Is that kind of or no? Am I missing that?
Speaker 1:No, I, I. That's what being born again is. No, that's what being born again is. It is this death, burial and resurrection of a life, and the old man stays in the tomb and the new man emerges in Christ. That's what baptism is. That's the significance of water baptism.
Speaker 2:It represents. So then, how come you do it when you're a kid?
Speaker 1:and you don't even realize. That's why you're doing it?
Speaker 2:Yeah, I think you should do it. I think you should do it Because I just feel like you're accepting yourself as you're accepting Christ as your savior. Yeah, and that's what I, as a kid, when I got baptized, that's how I, that's what I thought it was or thought of it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's what I thought it was or thought of it, yeah, but to suggest that that there is good, even though you could do that without baptism, there is good without the death of the old self.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's like washing away your sins or something.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's it's the, it's the death of of sin, and it's I'm no longer a slave to my sin, I have. I've been born, born again brand new. And the old me is is dead. I let him in, I left him in the grave, the water. He stays there. I emerge out of the water cleansed in the righteousness of Christ, and the old life is gone. The new life and the life I now live is is a life in Christ.
Speaker 1:But I'm never not aware of the nature, the sinful nature, of the old man that Jacob. Even though God's changed my name from Jacob to Israel an old Testament reference God, God, changes Jacob's name. You'll no longer shall be called Jacob, but now Israel. Even though he's changed my name, I'm still acutely aware of the darkness that God rescued me from and that, and it is that awareness, that that keeps me humble, that keeps me empathetic, even to those who are, who are wrestle with their darkness. It keeps me, um, it keeps me sympathetic Like I'm, like, oh, I, I'm not detached from the darkness. I realize the, I realize what lies in man that they need rescued from.
Speaker 2:And so what do you think is the overall biggest sin? Not sin, but darkness in man, which is a sin. But you know what I'm saying yeah, no, yeah, the darkness, the, which is a sin. But you know what I'm saying yeah, no, yeah.
Speaker 1:The darkness, the thing that I think um is um so want it's pride, pride yeah.
Speaker 2:More than one Probably a lot of times you only want for pride. Yeah, you're probably right.
Speaker 1:It's pride, I think it's a lot of pride and power. I think power is we confuse. We confuse a lot of the things in our life and uh, for for control, control, power, like I've. You know, you don't really know a person until you see them with a little bit of authority. Then you'll know the true nature of people. Give them, don't take stuff away from them, give them everything. And I think you can even see that in society unfold today, like, like you saw evil in people of power. Oh god, yeah, yeah, yeah, because it wasn't it, we didn't manifest until they had everything of which?
Speaker 2:what about biden with what's like? He's like. He's like putting all these laws, no oil drilling. Like trying to sell the fence, like it's like. He's, he's literally like.
Speaker 1:I know that the American people have voted and said this isn't what they want, but I'm going to like, just it's going to try to make it hard, but if he can do it through that means, then so can the other guy. Well, he can undo it, just the same.
Speaker 2:It's just why, what's?
Speaker 1:the point in that? Is it so he can get credit that he did it? Well, it's pride, because you reject this notion that people didn't accept your leadership and your policies.
Speaker 2:But going back to that, we said we'd get back on another subject. I said that we'll talk about that in a minute. Well, zuckerberg, you haven't seen it, uh-uh. So Zuckerberg released a statement this morning and it's on, it's on all social platforms, it's even on Twitter and all that. It's a it's everywhere. He released a statement stating basically that he is going to go away from changing algorithms, from talking about politics, he's going to go away from all those things. He's going to put a community board, the same as X is doing, like X has the community freedom of speech. You mean, he's giving it back, he's saying he is not going to. He feels that and and and and, all this.
Speaker 1:And now what he's talking about. Yeah, he did.
Speaker 2:He is doing the right thing for sure, but he and he did. He is doing the right thing for sure. But in all of that, he's also moving his headquarters, the headquartered people that are in control of any censorship that's going to happen to Texas and out of California.
Speaker 1:We have to in order to get blasted, because he doesn't want all the censoring, he goes.
Speaker 2:The problem is with the censoring is that they are censoring based on their political beliefs or whatever you want to call it, or wherever they stand. They're being biased essentially. So he's getting rid of all of it and they're going to move more to the community boards. Like X has the community boards, which I haven't gotten involved in a whole lot, but I guess there's community boards that what's a community board?
Speaker 1:What do you mean? I? Guess I haven't gotten involved enough in it to know an X in X there are longer boards. Twitter, yeah, I mean, I have a Twitter account but like, or an X account, but but there's community boards now.
Speaker 2:So if somebody posts something that's false, yeah, the community boards allow you guys to go discuss it, whether it's false or not, or? You know what I mean? It doesn't just blatantly say this is false. You see what I'm saying. There's like a community board discussion on that topic. You know what I'm saying. And facebook's going to move to that platform or just have a discussion, yeah, okay.
Speaker 1:Well, that, yeah, that's called, yeah, freedom of, yeah, freedom of speech, absolutely, that's what we're doing here and he and he is agreeing that that's what he needs, because he basically said that he was, you know, algorithms were you know, basically keeping political.
Speaker 2:he admitted it. Then he had political comments and and and uh videos and and post from getting put out there. He basically said it today that he's going to move it, that where you can see that you're going to see more, start to see more political posts, and he acts like it's something it'll roll out, but it sounded like within a month we'll have it all right there.
Speaker 1:Isn't it strange how the whole world's like everything's shifting now back to freedom and normalcy. It seems like just like a rash, at least at least rational. You know somewhat it's, I mean it's. It just seems normal. It's like okay, we're no longer gonna do the whole, you know inclusion and yeah di. And all that stuff was like, yeah, it's wild trans with kids and you know we're gonna we're gonna put an end To all that. Like well, I feel like.
Speaker 2:I feel like that we just reached a Generation, for some Reason, that Decided that. I feel like they've always pushed that. If that was your agenda, transgenders or?
Speaker 1:I mean they let you do that.
Speaker 2:That's what you want to do, and add it, like they were always pushing at it. But I feel like we reached a generation that we're just like yeah, they're right, we should do that for them. You know what I mean Instead of like. I mean you were okay with whatever you're doing, but I mean we're not changing the rules for you. You know what I mean? Right, you don't get to define Right, right, right, right, and that's I guess that's part of what sticks with me. When you say that we don't want to have standards and things like that, it's like you have to have standards. There has to be something to measure you to. And again it goes to the kid that isn't TAG. Is TAG even a thing anymore?
Speaker 1:TAG. I don't even know what that is.
Speaker 2:You don't remember? Tag no. Talented and Gifted. Talented and Gifted. Oh, you remember that?
Speaker 1:Oh, these are the talented and gifted students. You don't remember that? No, but you're saying it sounds very icky. You're saying it Really, really. These are the talented and gifted students.
Speaker 2:You don't remember the tag programs when we were kids.
Speaker 1:You are the dumb and stupid, but what I'm saying is when you don't, you're the Daz and these are the Tabs.
Speaker 2:When somebody is In our day. It was called a tag. I don't know that it's called that anymore, but if you have somebody, that's it. I didn't remember that you don't boost them to that level, and I mean that helps their confidence get there?
Speaker 1:Where are all of those people at today? They should be running society. Well, what was her name? Denise was one of them.
Speaker 2:You call it names man, she should be running you call it names, man.
Speaker 1:She's been brought into society.
Speaker 2:You know the van, isn't it Denise? Wasn't that her name? I don't know what you're talking about. The Christmas light van. You got to know what I'm talking about.
Speaker 1:I don't know what you're talking about. Yes, you do. I don't even know about one. You don't remember the Christmas?
Speaker 2:light van Christmas lights van. How can you not remember that? Every day at Clearview, rolling up, derling the van with all the Christmas lights on it all the time.
Speaker 1:Oh, yes, yes, yes, yes. I know who you're talking about. What was her name? I'm not saying you know who it is, I know exactly who it is, she was in. Tag.
Speaker 2:Yes, she was highly intelligent.
Speaker 1:There's a whole bunch of people like that in that group.
Speaker 2:Yeah, she was a highly intelligent person.
Speaker 1:Where Was it near, wasn't he? Wasn't he Possibly? Oh yeah, chip was dude. He was smart, was he? He was just naturally smart man.
Speaker 2:I never knew. I always was like does he look smart?
Speaker 1:Because he just had that. Look who was the valedictorian. His name was Shannon. Shannon's crushing the game right now. Yeah, shannon Slusky. Shannon, okay, but he is, he's leads, he has a company he does very good and the one in the van.
Speaker 2:I think it was Denise. For some reason, her name was Michelle Scott. Michelle, that's it. Michelle, she's killing it, probably right? I don't know, I would assume. I don't know.
Speaker 1:She had a sister named Denise. She did. That's who I'm thinking of.
Speaker 2:They had a whole family and by the title, but they thought outside the box.
Speaker 1:No, I think they mastered the box.
Speaker 2:No, they thought outside the box.
Speaker 1:That's where we're different, see, that's where freedom of speech is giving us. I think they just mastered their box.
Speaker 2:I think they thought outside the box, Otherwise they wouldn't have rolled up with Christmas lights on their van.
Speaker 1:No, you might have a point there.
Speaker 2:You roll up with Christmas lights on the van. You're thinking different than everyone else. At least your parents are.
Speaker 1:I don't know how much you had to do with that decision.
Speaker 2:They're doing that now everywhere. Everybody's starting to do that, did you?
Speaker 1:see that.
Speaker 2:Yes, they have where they're sticking on them, or something that's got to be bad for your paint job. That's what I think too. I'm thinking the same thing.
Speaker 1:These cars cost too much money to be out here.
Speaker 2:That's what I'm looking at going what are you doing that is so bad? Like not every time I see one, I'm like you are a grown man. Stop it. Like this is not okay, you know. But yeah, they were in tag.
Speaker 1:I don't know that chip was, though honestly, dude, he was, yeah, he was the second guy.
Speaker 2:He was the second smartest guy well, baby, but I wasn't there for high school with you guys.
Speaker 1:I wasn't, I was more elementary yeah, I'm pretty sure it was shannon, and then ship and then like this one girl, but I could be wrong because you know they didn't let me talk at the thing. So there was all the smart people that got to talk. Yeah, not the dummies. Yeah, yeah, we just had to listen to the smart people say things. Yeah, well, I did, it happened. You were a genius, I was, I was not even there.
Speaker 2:I wasn't even at the program.
Speaker 1:I wasn't even trying to be like, I'm just like man. Look, I don't even like the whole system. You know, the whole system is done All.
Speaker 2:I want is the video of me and Calvin when we did the talent show.
Speaker 1:I want that as well.
Speaker 2:How do I get that?
Speaker 1:You see what I'm saying, that's what I want, that's what we need. Dude, that would be gold right now.
Speaker 2:Somebody's got to have it right? I would think they filmed it all.
Speaker 1:They had to record it.
Speaker 2:I've seen it before. I've seen the tape. It was on a VHS Somebody's got it, then We've got to see it. Yeah, I want that tape.
Speaker 1:What was the program that you guys?
Speaker 2:did. It was a talent show, but me and him were the announcers. Oh, so you were the emcees. But if you remember, me and Calvin write a rap in between each program, get out of here and we rap the person in, and so the introduction is a rap. Oh my gosh.
Speaker 1:I do want to see this. I do too. I definitely want to see this.
Speaker 2:I can't even imagine what my mind was like back then. See how come that didn't get like.
Speaker 1:that should have earned you the right to say something at the graduation ceremony Like remember that time we did raps yeah me and.
Speaker 2:Calvin did it.
Speaker 1:It was hilarious.
Speaker 2:Back when we were close, you know, back in the day, and then, yeah, I don't know. Yeah, that's the one I want, but anyways, I think that the system's okay. Well, we have concluded To some degree.
Speaker 1:I do agree that it needs some work, and that's good because we've got some people that are going to fix it.
Speaker 2:But we do need a measuring stick for the kids. If you don't have a measuring stick, you don't know where they're at.
Speaker 1:Okay, I will succeed. I will succeed, you do need.
Speaker 2:I don't think that you call them retarded once they don't get to the measuring stick. Or any word that would make them feel that way or any word that would make them feel that way. No, I think talented and gifted is okay. You think that's okay? God, I had no issue with. Well, I keep saying Michelle or Denise, but were they talented and gifted. I had no problem that Chip and Denise were smarter than me. I had no problem with that. No, no, no, I didn't know. Thank.
Speaker 1:God they are. I did have a problem, However. Were you telling me that I wasn't smart?
Speaker 2:Yeah, but Chip dressed the part too, like he looked smart, like he just he kind of looked like. In seventh grade he looked like Sheldon, let's be honest, didn't he? I mean, he was cool, he was one of our friends, but he just always looked like he was just looking smarter. Yeah, he was chip. Yeah, he was chip. Yeah, he looked the part. I just never minded thinking he was smarter than me.
Speaker 1:I don't have a problem or thinking.
Speaker 2:Michelle was smarter than me.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that is not what I'm suggesting.
Speaker 2:Anybody that I can think that was in the TAG program.
Speaker 1:You earned it, homie, you earned the little things.
Speaker 2:Good for you. I felt like they worked harder than I did too.
Speaker 1:What I don't like about it was that there was a system that said, because I didn't jump through and perform, then I was. There's a word for that.
Speaker 2:What's the word for it? Work? You didn't do the work that they did.
Speaker 1:I didn't do the work that they did.
Speaker 2:But I think that at some point you have to stop thinking honestly. This is my opinion and I'm not a psychologist.
Speaker 1:I didn't go to college. I didn't do anything.
Speaker 2:But I think at some point I think I'm being a victim. Yeah, you got to stop thinking that they did something to you when you just didn't do the work.
Speaker 1:I love, I love, I love the experience that I had and I know that the experience I had created what I became Right.
Speaker 2:But you know for a fact that you did not put the work in them, Michelle. I wasn't interested, Bo and Chipped it.
Speaker 1:I was not interested or.
Speaker 2:Shannon, we did not put that work in.
Speaker 1:I saw school as a social activity. That's the only reason I came. I did not come to learn, I came to hang out with my boys. Yes, I agree, that's the only reason I went to school and play football. I love playing football and I love hanging out with my guys having a good time and the school did not shorten you.
Speaker 2:The other stuff I tolerated. You put work into football, you put work into the friendships, you didn't put work into the school.
Speaker 1:No, that's not true I did. At one point I was like, okay, I'll play the game, and I played the game.
Speaker 2:You worked hard enough because you didn't want to be the dumb kid amongst your peers.
Speaker 1:No, they told me, because they told me that I was too stupid to go to college.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that was it. They literally said it. That's not the school system, that's an idiot counselor.
Speaker 1:Either way, idiot counselor. Either way, I was like, all right, I'm gonna go to college and watch what I do with. I had a semester and a half. I had a semester and a half my junior year and the rest of my senior year and for the rest of the time I was on the honor roll. I was like all right, I'll show you, I'll show you that I can play the game of conforming to the.
Speaker 1:But my, my disappointment in the system was the fact that, like you, you made me, you made me, not me personally, because I didn't care. I just didn't care, like I. I just kind of knew that didn't matter what happened. I was going to get out of this phase and I was going to go into the next phase, and that's when life really began and this face was just for me to use. But what was shocking was the lack of cerebral awareness on behalf of the people that are running this school. It's supposed to be educating students. What was shocking was that they didn't realize the potential of hundreds of students that were going by them. But you didn't care either. I didn't care you didn't care.
Speaker 2:In fact, I'll argue this. I'll argue that maybe that counselor did the best thing he could have done for you.
Speaker 1:He might have I think what he said definitely inspired. Me.
Speaker 2:Maybe he realized this is a kid, that's competitive, it's possible.
Speaker 1:My professor in psychology did that to me on the first day of class. We walk in. I'm a freshman. We all sit where we sit. Of course I chose the seat. I chose not for the reasons of education, but I chose. I chose the seat. I chose not for the reasons of education but I chose.
Speaker 2:You know why I chose the seat. I know exactly why you chose. You know what I mean. I chose that seat.
Speaker 1:You know what I mean. I chose that seat, all right. So I chose that seat and the professor walks in and he says all right, I'm going to hand out the grades today. And he goes to the class and he starts handing out grades and then he gets to me and he's like you are going to get a D minus. And it was all psychology, it was all psychology. It was all psychology. All he was trying to do is get me. Hey, pay attention, dummy, I see what you're doing.
Speaker 1:That's all he was doing he was just like hey, dummy, I see where, I know why you did what you did. I know why you're sitting. I just want you to pay attention. You know what I mean? Yeah, and even in that, even when I knew what he was doing, I'm still like I've got to get a good grade in here. I've got to get a good grade in here. I mean, you're a competitive person. I I got to get a good grade in here.
Speaker 2:So I don't think the system is as broken as you think it is. Oh, the system is broken, though I was getting ready to go there.
Speaker 1:Bad issues for sure the system is broken. The reason I see the system is broken is because it failed my child right now and I'm 50, and I got a 7-year-old. I've got a seven-year-old. My heart breaks, honestly, for kids from the inner city who are in classrooms and it's nearly impossible for them to learn in the classroom. This is really where my compassion comes to this, because of a set of circumstances that you and I are both really familiar with.
Speaker 1:Poverty does a whole thing and it puts you in a certain demographic, and that demographic sets you at a disadvantage for the rest of your life, harder for you to learn, harder for you to reach the standards, because your basic needs aren't being met. And that's what I see in the system. And so the system's teaching the class, but it's not teaching the kid. And I'm here as an advocate Teach the kid, forget the class, take all these things away and see the value of the kid. Because I look at my kid, I look at my little boy who's seven, going to be eight here in about 10 days, and I'm like, ah, he has incredible potential. But but he went to the Avon school system. Sorry, avon. He went there and every day they'd call me and send him home.
Speaker 2:Really.
Speaker 1:Yeah, he called me and they'd send him home. Why he's aggressive, he's this, he's that, he's combative, he won't sit down. Of course he won't sit down. He's insecure. He was born on drugs. He came into the world disadvantaged, he's fighting for his own survival and he's scared in your classroom and instead of teaching that kid and making that kid feel safe and feel nurtured and be you know, just, and I'm not like, like, but I'm saying, if we're going to teach kids in that classrooms, then you got to see the, you got to see him, as I feel like maybe you should bust his ass. No man, you know not, not him, not him, maybe Nope.
Speaker 2:Maybe that's all he understands.
Speaker 1:I yelled, I raised my voice the other day. Dude, this is terrible. I raised my voice to him. He pees himself. He's hurt. I need to Mean, I get it and and I and we homeschool them because we realize his needs and maybe one day will be like, okay, go to go to school, but the problem is if you coddle him forever, he's not being coddled, bro, I don't kind of like it, but I mean when I'm 50, so I've learned I'm a tough, but you see, what I'm saying.
Speaker 1:I coddled my other kids jeremiah, precious, trusting caleb. Yeah, I overcompensated in them because I felt like I was such a sucky dad that I gotta buy you everything I gotta. I gotta absorb all the pain in your life because, because I was struggling with those things in my life, but not this one, this one's like no, I have very much clarity as I raised him Like dang it, I should go back and raise my other kids with this kind of you know comprehension.
Speaker 2:But you know, you know it's different. My mom would have been like I would have been like in school, combative, and I would have came home and got my ass beat, yeah. So when I went to school the next day, I just sat in a chair. You didn't do that, yeah. And I mean I and I and maybe I'm wrong, I don't, I don't want to.
Speaker 2:I'm not trying to downgrade your but sometimes a lot of times when you see somebody that's hurt like that and you do it is the natural thing to just really want a cop. Of cop. I mean I can understand it, I understand it. But sometimes what they need yeah, he gets both is to be told you're too stupid to go to college. Sometimes that's what you need. I mean it honestly is. Sometimes it is, it really is. Sadly it is, I think I survived it. I think I survived it Because that's what I'm saying. You're natural, you were going through anyways, I survived it.
Speaker 1:But when I look back at kids today, I'm like the beast is going to devour you. Look, man it's a different time you go down to the inner city. It's just different, man. I was with them kids the other day. They smelled like a litter box. I mean I could barely stand to be next to them. I mean I'm holding back, I next to them, they, they, and I mean I'm I'm holding back.
Speaker 2:I worked in CMHA housing before for a long time and there was a couple there was one, one of them that I did specifically, but there was a couple of them that I did while they were living there and some of their living conditions are, and it's not. It's not, it's not the housing's problem, it's the parents that aren't. No doubt they're not keeping them up, no doubt. Yeah, it's bad, no doubt, because I mean when I grew up, I had a black stepdad. All his family were black. We would go over there. They were all at Welfare Project housing.
Speaker 2:Things it didn't stink in there. I mean it might have smelled like chitlin or something, but things it didn't stink in there, I mean it might've smelled like, but I mean it. It didn't stink like that Like, not that like dirty like, and some of them are really, unfortunately, drugs have taken over so bad and I, I honestly don't know how you fix that. I really I'm going through redoing the menu right now at the restaurant and I'm I'm coming to, I'm trying to get you know, I, I don't like to be in denial, but I but the sales are down. I mean, the sales are big and food sales are really down and they're really, you know, not doing what they used to do, and I'm trying to figure it out. So I look at it, everything I could possibly come up with, and what I've come up with and it's a sad realization is that I don't think this next generation is going out to the bar and hanging out with each other, playing video games, smoking pot and ordering DoorDash, and I think that's a truth that I man you, just it's a truth that I've had to accept.
Speaker 2:So how do you pivot? I think what I do is I design my menu to DoorDash and Grubhub. That's a good idea. That's, that's my. That's where I'm doing. I'm shifting for that. I'm going to make that position, dude, that's brilliant. And then the next move would be to try and get date night stuff like we were talking and stuff like that Event. Get date night stuff like we were talking and stuff like that event centers, things like that, where maybe we would provide a better dinner environment or date night environment at that point. But yeah, I think that that's my shift is gonna have to foods. That'll travel.
Speaker 1:I mean, I think you, you definitely just diagnosed I think so.
Speaker 2:I think the next generation, and I think probably, since covet has probably made it worse than it ever was.
Speaker 1:Well, it normalized it. Yeah, the sedentary lifestyle.
Speaker 2:People don't seem to mind paying extra money to have a DoorDash. It's kind of weird, right, and they don't drink like they did now. Now that pot is legal, it's like weed is, and you're a bike rider, so you're like me.
Speaker 1:You know when you're driving when you're on the bike, that's all you smell.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you don't smell fresh air, you smell weed. You smell weed. Unless you get out in the country, I mean, that's all you smell is weed, and that's where they're growing it, you know, yeah, but I mean, I don't know if people that don't ride motorcycles realize, but if you take Route 2 from here to the east side, to Willoughby, you will smell pot the whole time. You will never not smell pot. You will smell it the whole time. I was at Gun Range last night. You smelled it there. I smelled it there. That's horrible, holy moly, it's the way it is. Though how?
Speaker 1:are we here with firearms high? Yeah, like what is happening.
Speaker 2:I was so dude, I was just like looking around the whole time and they prefer it over drinking and socializing. They prefer that Like probably I would think that pot is a less social active drug, not to say that people don't socialize while they go smoke a joint together or whatever. I mean, I wouldn't know.
Speaker 1:But I think that it seems like that would be. It seems like that would be very fun. Well, they pass joints and stuff.
Speaker 2:They do that. But I mean, I think that they like, like, like you said, you like you have smoked it correct three times. Okay, so when I was a kid, I smoked it too. When I smoked a long time ago yes, yeah, yeah, I was very paranoid. Yes, every time. I would assume that that makes you want to be by yourself and not around people.
Speaker 1:It definitely made me want to go home. I need a room, I need to be alone.
Speaker 2:It's not a social thing.
Speaker 1:I am exposed right now. I didn't feel like it.
Speaker 2:Maybe people that smoke at all times don't feel that way. My mom tells me, because my mom smokes pot.
Speaker 1:I've had other people tell me.
Speaker 2:She tells me because my mom smokes. Yeah, I've had other people tell me like no man. She tells me it's based on what you smoke. Different groups, different ones make you more inner. Because my mom would like smoking. Like, clean the house, cook, go cut the yeah garden. I'm like what the hell? Yeah, that's not who I am, I yeah I really feel like, um, what, uh, what?
Speaker 1:What has happened is Like when you talk about Having to make adjustments because of the generation that's coming behind you, that's not going to do it. You just not go out and socialize. You can see it. You can see the De-socialization of society and we've always seen it.
Speaker 2:We've seen it since the beginning of, probably since 2000. Probably since 2000. Since chat rooms and all that. Then Facebook became a thing and MySpace and all that. I just wasn't really aware of it until COVID, but it was starting to happen already. But I think now it's coming full.
Speaker 1:Now it's like people just live in the digital world.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you watch. The friends will come over and all they're on their devices the kids, I'm like we're all sitting in a room.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and they're out in each other, in our own room.
Speaker 2:They'll send each other memes.
Speaker 1:Yes, They'll be in the same room together. They'll send each other memes. Yes, they'll be in the same room together. We played this game the other day with the family, with the kids. All kids come over to the house on Sunday and we play this game where you have to. What is it? You have to guess who is who. You put these names in a basket and you're like, okay, famous people, and you all pick a person, you throw it in, and then you, you got to guess who's who in the room without knowing. And if you guess, then you're on the same team and then so so we start playing this game. And while we're playing a game like you, okay, oh, I know who you are, you, you guys. So then you got a whisper and tell me who you are. So nobody else knows. And and so all what I noticed was all the older people playing the game would get up, go across the room and say I'm so-and-so, you know, and then we're texting the younger people.
Speaker 2:It's way smarter.
Speaker 1:I'm like well, you're supposed to, you're supposed to strategize and exchange ideas with it, so you're supposed to go in the other room and then like, strategize and have this conversation. None of that was happening. They were just like that's it, yeah, and so the way it works. Now you do, you. What I notice is dating. I watch how they date. I watch how they date today. It's sad. It's sad they ain't got no game man?
Speaker 2:No, they don't have to. No game no, they don't have to by the time they meet up with somebody. We had a game about a sixth grade. They are out there shooting their shot to 300. And the one or two that like their shot they kind of converse with them, find one and go meet up with them, no risk at all to that.
Speaker 1:No social interaction. No, have to walk across the room cold. Hey, you know, my name is Jim. None of that. No cleverness, nothing, nothing, no risk, nothing nothing.
Speaker 2:Game is mud. Yeah, there's no need for it anymore.
Speaker 1:That's sad, it is sad and then when they tell me, how'd you meet? Oh, we met on tinder. Yeah, what you met on tinder? Oh, my goodness man, we had to go to nightclubs.
Speaker 2:That's why Uncle Vicks is gone.
Speaker 1:You don't need it no more the shark atmosphere in there, man.
Speaker 2:Oh God, yeah, I couldn't imagine. Could you imagine what it must have been like to be a 21-year-old girl?
Speaker 1:and Uncle Vicks, you had to be an apex predator to have to walk in there, you couldn't be insecure.
Speaker 2:You had to have apex predator vibes. Can you imagine what it would have been like for a 21-year-old hottie that was in there? I mean they had to. I don't know if they feared for their life or they were attention whores or what, but I mean that had to have been a different situation for sure in Uncle Vic's back then.
Speaker 1:I feel like that was the social interaction that made you or broke you. You learned a lot from the walk of shame.
Speaker 2:I was usually drunk by the time I got there. I don't know if my game was working or not.
Speaker 1:I don't know. You would walk over there and you'd say something and your boys would laugh at you, and then you'd have to come back across the room.
Speaker 2:Either you either have the number or you didn't.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I remember one time we were down in the flats and, you know, this girl comes over to me and it's like ah, you know, and uh, and we start dancing. And then all of a sudden this guy comes out and throws her across the floor and like squares up with me and I'm like who are you? But once again, like social interaction, like all right, don't square up on me, so like I don't, like you know, and then all of a sudden it just quits and I'm like what in the world just happened to my boys? You know, I think I was there, I think I was with Skinner and Vidovich and I don't know who else. Yeah, David Skinner, yeah, I know, david Skinner. And we start walking away and I reached down for my pager and it's gone. I just got scammed. They got you, they got me. The girl came across the room and played me for a pager, did you?
Speaker 2:beep them some dumb shit. Did you beep them some dumb shit? Huh, did you beep him some dumb shit?
Speaker 1:No, I didn't have no quote, I was done. There was no payphone done in the flats back then. He was like he didn't get mugged or shot. You know, that's funny.
Speaker 2:Yeah, good times. Yeah, good times. All right, we went a while. We're two hours now. Wow, we did a pretty good length for our first beginning of the year. Did you say you had goals for the year?
Speaker 1:I don't make goals as much as I do growth. I just look for areas to grow in. I'm looking for growth. Oh, that's what you did, yeah, so I want to grow.
Speaker 1:And so there's this principle that I've held on to, I've kind of locked in on, and it's from Joshua, the book of Joshua. And there's a story in the book of Joshua this, this guy, you know, joshua, was the predecessor to Moses. Moses took him into the promised land. Now, joshua was responsible for distributing the promised land to each of the tribes of Israel. And there's this one guy by the name of Achan, and Achan decides he's going to take what doesn't belong to him and he's going to put it in his tent. And because he does that, suddenly now the entire nation of Israel suffers defeat. There was territory that was promised to them, and now, because of this one man's action, because his character didn't match the moment, his actions caused the entire nation of Israel to suffer defeat in areas where they shouldn't have, and so the character of one affected the whole.
Speaker 1:And so what I learned from that was this that there's territory that God has promised to each of us. What I learned from that was this that there's territory that God has promised to each of us. There are promises that he's given to each of us, but, but each of our character determines what we possess, and so you can't expect God to give you territory that your character is not prepared to carry. And so I want my, I want my character to match the territory that he's put, that he's promised me. And what I asked myself is Troy, in what areas of your life, in what areas of your life are you not prepared for right now?
Speaker 1:I mean meaning like, where? Where in your life should you be? But you're not, because your character is underdeveloped. So, troy, let's take 2025 and work on character and then don't worry about the land. So we spend so much time focusing on the promise that we neglect the character, but God won't give us the promise until our character can carry it. So in 2025, I'm just like, okay, god, develop me, I'll surrender wherever it is in my life that I'm not the fullness of the image of Christ. That meets my moment, because, of course, I'm going to wake up tomorrow and there's going to be another area that I need developed. But where am I right now? What land do I not possess that I should possess because I haven't worked on my character. I want to work on my character in 2020.
Speaker 2:I like it, that's good. Maybe I'll work on my character Resolutions no resolutions Character development. By character I mean my comedic characters for short clips and videos. Yeah, all right, nice talking to everybody. It was great. Everybody, we're out Peace.
