Episode 28 - Video Store Miracles

Welcome back, everyone! Join Karan and Matt as they reminisce about their experiences living in LA, explore the finer points of men’s haircuts, pay homage to Matt's Uncle Cecil (a giant among men), and discuss some of the biggest stars to emerge from Hollywood’s star-making machine.

Transcript

SPEAKER_03 0:20

You know, to anybody who doesn't have a theme song, go get go out and get one. You there, you don't need a guitarist or anything. You can go to AI and just describe your personality and say, make me a theme song. And it it might very well work. Uh, but it's great to have your own theme song.

SPEAKER_01 0:38

Yeah, well, you know, there is the there's always that guy who's really excited about AI, you know, and he can't wait to just explain to everyone around him how it's gonna change their lives, and they just have to listen to him and pat him on the back and be like, okay, cool, thank you, thank you. I'll try to prepare for that. Thank you, appreciate it. This guy one time was telling me all about he was one of those AI bros, and he was like, You really need to hear what it can do with music, you have no idea, it's just it'll blow your mind. And I was like, I was like, okay, I think I have heard some stuff, but yeah, I would love to hear whatever you'd like to show me. Yeah, yeah. And he was cranks up out of his phone this like completely AI created song. Oh god. And I mean, like my honest and unbiased reaction was just like okay, like I mean, production-wise, like this sounds slick, like it sounds good, I guess. Yes, yes, but and it sounds like full and all this. It sounds like humans could have made this recording, sort of, but at the same time, it just was so boring, and it was like it wasn't a song that could ever be a hit because it just was so not memorable, and it it was really transparent what it was doing, which was kind of like just making this genre salad of different genres trying in an effort to be original, but just sounded like Whoa, a rap song with horns in it, so genius. And it's like, who cares? That's just on paper that sounds like it could be interesting, but that doesn't mean the melodies in the song are memorable or good. It's so funny.

SPEAKER_03 2:33

And that guy was so impressed by it, he just was like he was blowing his own mind with what he's sharing with me, and I'm just like you know what one one thing I will say is that yes, uh, you know, AI can do things, but you know what absolutely kills it is the fact that it's not a human playing it. Because like I feel like that is one of the most like the one of the cornerstones of art is like you know, when you look at something that was created by, you know, an artist, you're like, a person did this, like a person who goes through human struggles and human insecurities created this. For some reason, you know, that's what kills uh AI art for me. It's like nobody went through the pain of like creating that. Um it's weird. Like so for me, like yeah, I I will listen to music created by AI, I look at art created by AI. I'm seeing some people doing amazing things with AI in terms of like um animating uh like sequences, like uh for just just to put an example. I love Indian mythology, um, and I'm seeing a lot of people using AI to recreate scenes from Indian mythology, which is great because Indian mythology it hasn't gotten a lot of like good um kind of content creation because like it's either cheesy Bollywood stuff or like you know, just like things that people have like drawn, but someone's actually uh going out and creating stuff with AI, and it's really great. Um, but at the end of the day, it it lacks the same kind of appreciation that a human has because like it's not done by a human. Uh at least that's my view on on the matter. So yeah, for me that'll it that's for that reason AI will never be the same, even though it can, yes, it can do amazing things, but um it just doesn't come full circle because yeah, it's not a human.

SPEAKER_01 4:26

Yeah, I always just think like if you discover an AI artist and you decide you want to go see them live, how are you gonna do that? I mean, I guess if it it's if it's some person who created all that stuff with AI, they could then learn whatever song the AI spat out for them and perform it as a human live. But A, you still know that those recordings were made with AI and it wasn't even them, it wasn't even the people you're watching who played it on the record or in the recording. And B, like what is inspiring about that? Like, you know, it's like you're seeing them live, you're thinking, wow, these people just plugged in something to an algorithm. That's cool, kind of. Yeah, look at them up there. Yeah, look at them up there. They made it. They're playing a cover of a song AI wrote for them. Pretty aspirational, guys. But anyway, yeah, yeah, yeah. Really, it's it's mind blowing. I get you know, I to be honest, I think some of the people who are probably most fascinated with this shit are like boomers. Because they're just like, whoa. But I think that a lot robots, baby, like Star Wars. But I think that a lot of the younger people who are like Gen Alpha Gen Z are just kind of like, uh, okay, this is gonna ruin my future.

SPEAKER_03 5:53

Like, I you know, it's interesting that you mentioned like boomers because my my my thought was like, you know, I wonder how like the EDM bros are like reacting to AI. Because like at one point, EDM was all the rage because they were like, check out what this guy can do with his MacBook. Yes. For me, like that was so like non-inspirational, because I was like, just the fact that a guy is doing it on his computer. I mean, don't get me wrong, you cr you write music, uh, you play music and you edit it on your computer. I have no problem with that. That's computers, that's for that's me seeing you using computers like you know wisely to uh improve your speed and you know, you know, get access to all the great programs that are out on a computer. But like when I hear people like composing music on like a MacBook, it kind of like messes with my brain a little bit. I was I was thinking that you know, I know like a lot of EDM bros would like go to concerts and they would see like a guy like dropping mad tunes from his MacBook. I think I feel like those kind of people might be more open to like going to a concert maybe with an AI and seeing like um you know like a robot on stage playing playing AI generated music.

SPEAKER_01 7:04

Yeah, they probably find that to be a delightful novelty.

SPEAKER_03 7:07

Yeah, yeah, exactly. Like it's a novelty, right? That's the word for it. It's a novelty. Yep, you know, uh just like pet rocks.

SPEAKER_01 7:15

You know, I I wasn't really old enough to fully appreciate that trend, but there was this trend or fad back in the I don't know when it was 80s or whenever, um, of where like people would buy pet rocks at the mall. My mom told me all about this, and I think she bought one. I every lots of kids bought one. It was like, whoa, who would have thought you could have a pet rock? Wow, but nobody wants a pet rock anymore. Because it's like it's a rock, guys.

SPEAKER_03 7:44

Yeah, uh by the way, shout out we're getting a lot of listeners from around the world. This is it's pretty exciting. It's nice to see. Um, thank you guys for tuning in. It's um it's pretty nice that we are getting some attention from around the world.

SPEAKER_01 7:59

Yeah, there's a few Brazilians. I know. Uh yeah, a few Indian folks, which is awesome. Yep, couple UK, UKers. UKers, yeah. Not a ton. Well, there's a couple Americans I know of, but yeah.

SPEAKER_03 8:16

Oh yeah, I guess I mean that that might take some time. I feel like in America and and Canada, people get are really, really um saturated with podcasts, so like that's true. Like they they probably are just like, okay, you know, I I'm gonna evaluate um the part, you know, a lot before I dedicate myself to another podcast.

SPEAKER_01 8:36

Well, they just they probably just skip it way faster before they've had a chance to even absorb to even begin to absorb what the clip they're seeing might be about or anything. They're just like, where's Joe Rogan? Skip, yeah, you know, because yeah, I guess I get it. You're right. It's so saturated with so many podcasts.

SPEAKER_03 8:54

Yeah, I mean it's it's fine. We don't we I mean, yes, we do love listeners, but you know, we mostly do this because it's fun as hell to to just like meet up and talk for certain that is accurate.

SPEAKER_01 9:04

It's kind of like a form of journaling almost, it's like audio journaling. It's like we could look back at any point and kind of get a sense of maybe where we were at in our lives with a certain episode.

SPEAKER_03 9:16

Yeah, exactly. And I mean, you know, I don't know if you remember, but we we we we set up all the stuff that we were gonna talk about, like you know, uh Charles Haskell Street 807, and we didn't really get around to doing that. That's true.

SPEAKER_01 9:29

I know. Well, actually, on that note, and I'm I'm really glad you brought that up because I have a story I'd like to tell about that period of time. Okay. So get that stress ball nice and comfy as we saddle in for another Matt Matchbook story hour. Yeah, and I'm gonna tell this story before I distract myself with some other bullshit and never tell it.

SPEAKER_03 9:54

Because I already put on your put on your put on your horse blinders and try to get through the story with that.

SPEAKER_01 10:00

And by the way, if in case you'd like a window into how difficult it is for me to focus on one task, right now, at this moment, I'm sitting here in my chair recording. In my left hand, I'm holding a half-opened book of poetry with a uh one of the pages leafed over of a thing I wanted to read. And in my right hand, I'm holding my phone with Google Docs open with the story I want to tell about our time in LA. So literally, I'm inundated in distraction with distraction. Oh my goodness. Yeah, oh my goodness.

SPEAKER_03 10:34

But you're gonna get through this, but yeah, give it your best shot.

SPEAKER_01 10:36

Um I'm gonna give it my best shot. My first LA haircut, okay?

SPEAKER_02 10:42

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 10:42

Okay, so we went, we did a lot of things in a pack in those days. It would be you oftentimes it was myself, Cutan, uh, Casper, the Dane. Casper, our Danish friend. The Great Dane, we call them. The Great Dane, yeah. And Megs. Um, Kuran's uh well, they were already married at the time, actually. Yeah, that's right. Kuran's wife, yeah. Megs. Um, uh, and you know, Meg's Curren and I, we had all known each other since our Boston days of college. That's right. That's right. When Kuran and Karen and I roomed together in Boston, uh, as we talked about in some way back previous episodes several months back. So Curren, Megs, and I had known each other a while. So we're all in LA, we're all living at South Flower Street, and we all do a lot of things together. It was kind of like a little wolf pack. And that's right. And so on this particular occasion, Matt needed to get his hair cut. He wanted to get his hair cut. Right. Matt being myself. We went to this haircut place that I found. I don't know how I found it, probably an internet search or something. I don't remember what part of town it was in. It could have been Koreatown, it could have been. I don't know where it was because you know where we lived at the time.

SPEAKER_03 11:56

I I want to say it was like Gulver City or something. Like it was like it was not in downtown, but it was like what were we doing out there? I I don't know. I think you found the place, and you know, Matt was the only one of us who had a car, by the way. LA without a car, nightmare. But before Matt came along, we used to go everywhere by bus. Um and when Matt sucks for a car, so it opened up a lot of options. So he found this place. Um pretty I want to say it was Culver City, somewhere in Culver City. Um, and then yeah, we went over there. Interesting. Go ahead.

SPEAKER_01 12:27

So Culver City, we go to this barber shop. It was this Russian woman who was the main haircutter person. She's this middle-aged or to or older Russian lady with a thick Russian accent. We go into this haircut place. None of us had ever been there before, obviously. I sit down in the chair, Meg's, Karen, and Casper sit in my midst. They sit near me, chairs near me. Russian woman takes a look at my hair. She says, Your haircut, it is too full, like woman. Here, sit, I cut for you. So I sit down there, and I'm like, wow, well, that was okay, vaguely insulting, but whatever. As long as she makes it look good. Thanks a lot, Lady. Hope she fixes it. Yeah. So she proceeds to weed whack my hair with this hair stripping tool. And I had not yet learned that those do not work for me. It's a shortcut barbers will take sometimes. It's a useful tool, but it should be used in moderation and with consideration to the hair type you're working with, the hair stripper tool. Yeah. It's kind of a lazy way of layering hair, and it's a useful tool, but again, in moderation. But she uh didn't pay a whole didn't uh give a whole lot of consideration to my hair type or anything else. She just knew what she was gonna do and uh went for it. She used that hair stripper almost exclusively in how she layered my hair. And while she was cutting my hair and I was watching the kingdom of Babylon fall before my very eyes in that big barber shop mirror in front of me, she casually turned to Casper, who was sitting by my side, and said, Oh my god, you are so young, and already your hair is gone so sad.

SPEAKER_03 14:26

She you know, they she didn't about anyone's feelings.

SPEAKER_01 14:30

No, no, she had no time for people's feelings. Casper sort of kind of turned his head downward in a dejected movement like a wilted daisy. So the next day my hair basically started falling out. So not not only had she made it look like a wet, lifeless pancake with the sides sticking too far out and the top just this flat plateau, but I was also just losing massive amounts of hair in the shower every time I showered.

SPEAKER_00 15:02

Jeez.

SPEAKER_01 15:02

Yeah, I would go to the shower drain, it would just be friggin' covered in hair, pile of hair. And so I wasn't I wasn't sure if it was related to the haircut, which now I know it was, of course, but at the time, you know, I would see those clumps of hair in the shower drain, and I totally freaked out. I thought I was losing my hair. I remember going to Meg's and confiding in her and being like, Megs, I think I might be losing my hair.

SPEAKER_00 15:33

I might be losing my hair.

SPEAKER_01 15:34

And she was like, Matt, I really doubt it. You should calm down. And you guys tried to calm me down, but I was sort of inconsolable. I really was convinced I was losing my hair.

SPEAKER_03 15:44

Right, yeah. Cause I mean, you're you're trying to be trying to be a rock musician's your hair is kind of important.

SPEAKER_01 15:50

Yeah, unless you're Billy Corgan, but you know, like for that look. Unless you really, really own that. But I was in no way prepared to even think about doing that and did not desire to do so. So I'm like, this is a big part of who I am. And persona, my look. This is who I want to be. I can't lose this shit. So, you know, Meg's is like, Matt, I I you're really young. I doubt you're losing your hair, you know. Because I was in my late 20s. She's like, Matt, you have a big full head of hair. I really doubt you're actually losing your hair. Um, and I'm like, I don't know, I don't know. And so you showed me the this method of rubbing a bunch of coconut oil in my hair and on my scalp.

SPEAKER_03 16:36

Oh, yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah. And you were you were really huge, huge thing in India, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 16:41

Oh, wow, really. Oh, cool. Okay. So you showed me this method of rubbing a bunch of coconut oil in my hair and on my scalp, and you were like, here, this this'll this'll rejuvenate your hair, you know, and so on. And it felt proactive, but it didn't change much at the time for my hair. It uh only very temporarily, maybe a day or two. But I soon I soon realized though that I was not losing my hair per se. Uh, it was just the fallout from the horrible hack job that crazy Russian woman did on my hair when she ravaged it with that hair stripper tool. She ruined my hair for the for the time being and gave me a near panic attack that I was prematurely losing my hair.

SPEAKER_03 17:25

And charged you money for it.

SPEAKER_01 17:27

And probably charged me like $60 to do it. Unabashedly, I'm sure. And also uh ruined Casper's self-esteem in the process. So it was it was she was a lie. Poor Casper, yeah. Yeah, so that's my hair, that's my first LA haircut.

SPEAKER_03 17:44

I was not surprised that there was no waiting line for her. Oh, oh, we got right in. We got right in. We were the first customer there, yeah. I accepted from a very young age that my hair can't be styled because I have wavy hair and thick hair, and like ever since I was a kid, you know, my all my friends would gel their hair and they would make it look all spiky and cool, and you know, kind of like as if they were gonna go join Lincoln Park tomorrow. And I was like, wow, I wish I could do that. And I would try. I would I would get all kinds of oops. I am getting a reconnection. Hello. Why is my internet concrete?

SPEAKER_01 18:24

Hello I can't hear you. Nobody here but me. Hello? He might be gone for real this time. Current! Okay, I don't know what I should do. Maybe I should stop the recording. Oh, there you are. Oh my god.

SPEAKER_03 18:37

Yeah, holy shit. And and it's just so annoying. Max don't have the uh Ethernet port, so I can't because I have like a direct connection Ethernet uh wire, but it it's I need to I guess I need to get an adapter for it. But okay, I'm gonna start from the from the top.

SPEAKER_01 18:53

Uh yeah, I didn't get any of what you were just saying, unfortunately.

SPEAKER_03 18:57

Um yeah, so what I was saying is like getting your hair butchered by a barber is like such a common thing that people go through. I don't know about women, but guys for sure. Uh and because it's happened to me multiple times, and and I I don't really, I'm not I don't ask for much when I go to a barber. I'm just like make short or maybe maybe give me give me a fade. That's like the most stylish thing I can do because my hair is wavy and thick and just unstylable. Since I was a kid, I accepted that I I couldn't, you know, make my hair like all spiky and cool, kind of like how my friends used to do, like as if they were like, you know, getting ready to go join a punk band. Um they would like spike their hair, and I was always jealous that I couldn't do that. Yep. So I would just go to a barber and be like, make it short, make it this. But yeah, there are some barbers who are just like always are like let I got you, bro. Let me fix your hair. I know, I know those are the guys who you want to stay the hell away with. They look at you for like five minutes and you know, they're like, I I know what to do with you. Um, yeah, but I'll so nonchalant. Yes, so nonchalant, but like maybe like halfway through the haircut, they're they start to realize like maybe they bit off more than they can chew, especially with me. Because like I look very different when my hair is short versus like when my hair is all like longer and messy. I usually let my hair grow to a point where I look just awful, and then I go to a barber and I'm like, you know, give me a haircut, and then that's kind of what I do. Yeah, it's yeah, I I'm not one of those guys who goes regularly. So whenever I do uh more than more than at least three different barbers have asked me for can I do a before and after with you because it makes such a good difference when you get a nice haircut. It's like those videos of those of those barbers giving like homeless people like haircuts, you know. Oh, sad for them that you know, yeah, like that makes such a difference. But that's how it is with me. Like I look, I look pretty run down when I go to a barber. That happens so many times. I go to a barber and they're just like absolutely ruined my hair because they're like, I'm gonna give you a nice like style, I'm gonna make you look like this. And those guys usually totally butcher things up, and they usually never see me again because I'm like, I don't want that. What I want from a barber is just someone who like does exactly what I ask, and maybe it doesn't make me feel you know, not makes me feel comfortable when I'm sitting in the chair and they're right up in my face cutting my hair.

SPEAKER_01 21:29

You know what I've asked? It's really hard to get a good haircut, especially if your hair is hard to cut, and my my hair is hard to cut, it's not straightforward. It's more like you know, ra cutting Raggedy Andy's hair than than like uh you know a Chucky doll where the hair is just straight and flat and it's just difficult for them. And so if I get a good haircut, I take pictures of it, I take selfies of the way it looks from all angles, and I save that in my phone. Um, because I'm not messing around. I wanna I don't wanna I don't wanna get it wrong every time. And if I just go to them and I'm like, hey, can you cut my hair? Just do your best, thank you. Then they'll just make up whatever they want to do, and it rarely works. So I keep those I show them those pictures. I'm like, here, this is what I want front, back, sides. And nice, smart. I also really try to use the same barber every time. And she cuts my hair and she does a great job. And so I use her every time. My hair really likes to get big on the sides and not big enough on the top if you don't cut the sides really thin. You have to really thin down the sides and layer them way thin. Like they have to be way thinner than you think they need to be. They have to be thinner than the top. Because the worst thing you can have with hair is when the top is flat and the sides are big, then you just look like Krusty the clown, or you look like a Tetris piece, it just looks bad. And so that's the thing I always have to tell her. And it's really sucks when you get a haircut that sucks because you just have to have lower self-confidence until it grows back. Yeah. Oh god, I look like a tool for the next two months. Well, let's see if we have any updates. Did you have any updates you want to share or anything?

SPEAKER_03 23:20

Uh oh, no, not many updates, but yeah, I'm just uh I mean, maybe like most of the world, it's just feeling a bit of uh uh what is the word? Yeah, just going through a regression phase because like uh the World Cup is done. Uh for anybody who is watching soccer, who was a soccer fan. Uh I don't know how it was in and for you in LA, by the way, because there were a bunch of games in LA.

SPEAKER_01 23:44

It was the only thing anybody would talk about. And it was the only thing people would talk to me about. And I don't know anything about soccer. Uh so uh yeah, I definitely feel for you in your post-glory sadness uh or or come down after the games. However, I must admit I could not care less. I'm just getting you. Yeah, well, you know, I tried to I try to care. I want people to feel like I care about what they're saying, but I don't know I don't know anything about it and I don't follow it. Um Right, right, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 24:14

There's no no reason to, frankly. I mean, if you're not really into soccer. Yeah, because there were a lot of games in Los Angeles. Like we have there were uh we had like a couple of games in Vancouver too, but they not as not as high profile as the ones that were in like Los Angeles. So yeah, we um but it was great. It was great because um, like I said, my mom was visiting, my mother-in-law were visiting, and you know, they all they we all enjoy sports, so like for one month it was like we were all watching like m you know at first like in the group stage you watched like three games a day. It's just fun. Like I haven't watched soccer in so long. I used to play soccer as a kid, but I haven't uh watched soccer in forever, but it was just a great way to just go get back to like you know how much I used to love the game and watching it. Um and yeah, it builds up from like multiple games a day to like the quarterfinals where it's like uh or the knockout stage where it's like two games a day, then it's like one game of day, and then it's like one or two games every week, and then finally the game the finals are done, and it's like everyone goes home, and you just feel a little sad because you're like that was one heck of a month, and like in my view, that's like probably the closest the world has come to like world peace.

SPEAKER_01 25:29

Oh, yeah, that's true. I mean, I I would rather them be excited about soccer than be, you know, trying to fight each other or argue about politics or something, so it's good for that reason. Yeah, exactly. More positive than that for sure. Um what so obviously I I guess you were rooting for team India or Oh, if you're kidding, India does has never made it to the soccer world cup.

SPEAKER_03 25:55

Oh, okay. We we put we put all our money into cricket. India is like the is like an elephant, the giant when it comes to cricket. Like everybody like the Indian cricket, um, whatever, the cricket board of India makes so much money with cricket, it's insane. Uh, and like whenever India plays any country, even on their soil, there's a lot of money to be made because there's just Indians just love cricket, and there are a lot of us. Um but but it's changing now, like the landscape is changing. People from my generation want more diversity, they want more sports. So there is some money being put into Indian soccer, but we haven't quite made it yet. But no, I was just uh I was, of course, since I'm in camp camp in Canada, I was rooting for Canada. Uh and you know the Canadian team actually did did decent. We made it to the knockout stage just like the US um and just like Mexico, they were all we were all co-hosts of the World Cup. So they all made it to the group stage, and then we couldn't go any further from the group stage. You just can't beat those European and Latin American teams where some almost religion, you know, for them.

SPEAKER_01 27:01

Yeah, that's right. Like England. So England, were they the one no, was it Spain who won or England?

SPEAKER_03 27:07

Spain won Spain. Yeah, it was Spain who won. And um, yeah, England made it pretty far. England made it, uh, and they I mean, you know, England.

SPEAKER_01 27:16

Spain wins.

SPEAKER_03 27:17

Uh, what I wouldn't give to hear that guy commentate like a like a soccer game. He probably wouldn't talk about soccer.

SPEAKER_01 27:24

I knew they'd win from the start.

SPEAKER_03 27:27

Hi that is Matt's pr that's Matt's pretty good impression of Harry Carey, the baseball commentator for the Chicago Cubs, who uh was was originally uh imitated on SNL. Uh great skit, go watch it, it's on YouTube.

SPEAKER_01 27:43

Um we can find anything in a box of cracker jacks.

SPEAKER_03 27:50

The funny thing is, after I you showed me that skit, I actually went and listened to one of his commentaries on on YouTube, and that's exactly how it is. He he's talking, he's talking about everything, everything except baseball. He belongs on our podcast. Yeah, yeah, he'd fit right in. The best thing was this YouTube video of him just talking about like Cracker Jack, Chicago, that and like below that the comments are like who's on first, who's pitching us?

SPEAKER_01 28:23

What teams are we watching? What teams are we watching? What's happening down there on the field?

SPEAKER_03 28:31

Because what makes it I think even funnier is I think he's a radio commentator constantly.

SPEAKER_01 28:39

I have no idea what's happening in the game when he's on the mics. It's just everything but the game. Everything, everything his childhood experiences, everything. Oh my goodness. But anyway, so so sp so um get Harry Carey out of the room. Shoo! It's like on his way out the door, he still says, Hi! There's no it's go coming and going.

SPEAKER_03 29:08

It's it was it was um, it was a it was a really good World Cup because you know, you really got to see um like people come together. Everybody was pretty sure it was gonna suck because America has just been so hostile towards foreigners for the last two years. But you know, kudos to the US. You guys were very welcoming. I mean, we always knew that the US people weren't that much of an issue. So like everyone was really welcoming, and like I most people who went to uh the US had a great time. My favorite, my favorite, if you can go online and you're sure you'll find it, is like German or European tourists discovering American fast food, like just being blown away by the size of a burger or the size of like a soda you would get at 7-Eleven. Being like I get all this for just this much money? What?

SPEAKER_01 29:59

Yeah, oh totally. Oh my god, dude. When when when foreign people or Germans or anybody from another country, when they come to America, the first thing they always talk about is how everything is so big. Right. They're just like, oh my god, these freeways are so wide, so huge, there's like seven lanes here. Oh my, oh my god, this soda I just bought from a gas station is the size of my thigh. You know, it's like they can't wrap their head around how huge everything is. Right, yes, you know. It almost makes you think because if you go to Europe, you notice that way more people are skinny, and it almost makes you think, maybe that's the reason, you know?

SPEAKER_03 30:42

Yeah, yeah. Well, yeah, uh lot. I mean, also different lifestyles, like people in Europe, yeah, they they don't eat like how uh people in North America do. They have different lifestyles, they usually, you know, they they walk a lot, bike a lot. Yeah, so it's it's definitely like I mean, they pride themselves on that, right? Yeah, um, it's definitely admirable, but I guess once in a while when they come down for the World Cup, everyone's in like a happy mood. So this cut and America is great because like, my god, do you get a lot of money for do you get a lot of bang for your buck?

SPEAKER_01 31:16

I'll never forget when I was a kid, my uncle Cecil uh sort of proudly proclaiming. I remember him saying, uh really looked up to him, but I remember him um and he was a big guy. He was uh just like oh man, six five, I think, at least, and just huge guy. And he was just friterally from the mountains of West Virginia. He was as close to like a mountain man as you could get in the modern times. But he was he had this really interesting story because and I'm totally Harry carrying us away from the topic we were on, but he had this really interesting life story where he literally he embodied like that classic American dream or American story that you could start with nothing and then I don't know, through yeah, hard work and all this, just end up with a lot of money and really successful and stuff. Cause he really literally did start off, you know, just with all these siblings, uh living in this little mountain house, you know, not much bigger than a friggin' cabin. Because I visited there once when I was a kid, he took us there to his childhood home, and it was just up in the hills of West Virginia, and there was like nothing around other than you know, like a town barber shop. I think his dad, speaking of hair, his dad was a barber. That's a good tie-in. Um, but uh his dad was just like the town barber, and you know, it was just a very humble beginnings. Um, but he went on to become a doctor, he became an anesthesiologist, and he also got into investing and stuff, and he just like nice made a ton of money and was did was really successful. I can admire that, you know. It's it's for me that's there's something worth admiring there because he he didn't have parents just handing him money to to to get there. He he really had to like take out loans, blah blah blah. I mean, it definitely makes you wonder if a dream like that is possible today. I mean, it was in his day, he's much older than me. But I wonder if that's still possible in America. I wonder if the American dream is still uh alive. Um it's it's a it's a question that is worth questioning because it's like when people take out loans for something today, can can they in the economy can they afford to pay it off? Like is it worth is it worth the school loans, blah blah blah, all this stuff. But I guess in his time it could still work out if you were willing to willing to work hard, which he was. And so it worked out for him. But anyway, um long deviation there, but from what I was going to say, which which simply was just that we're talking about big things in America, and I remember Cecil, you know, his everything about him was big, his personality was big, his he was big, you know, yeah, everything he owned was big, his car was big, his house was big, blah blah blah. Um true American, yeah, he's a patriot. He he really liked Pamela Anderson, her boobs were big. Um just everything. She's Canadian, by the way.

SPEAKER_03 34:15

Quick plug-in for Pamela. She is? Yeah, she's Pamela Anderson? Yeah, she's Canadian. She's actually comes from BC. She's uh, if I'm not mistaken, she comes from Vancouver Island. Um, yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 34:26

That's wild. I did not know that.

SPEAKER_03 34:28

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 34:29

Yeah, yeah. I actually do think, you know, it's like at the time it wasn't that cool to say that she was beautiful because she was so famous from Baywatch, and and and as a little kid, you know, there would be there would be the you you were supposed to come up with a more original answer when somebody asked you, who's your crush in Hollywood? Who do you think is hot? And I remember the cool thing to say at the time was something like Garmin Electra. I remember some other guys because there's always that that girl that you're supposed to think is hot.

SPEAKER_03 35:01

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. It's like socially acceptable. Yes, and you get your social points to say that. Yeah, yeah. Ah, you have good taste.

SPEAKER_00 35:09

Good taste. I approve of your choice.

SPEAKER_03 35:12

And it's like I will I will say, I will say that that we didn't give a damn about that in India. Everyone loved Pebble.

SPEAKER_01 35:19

Yeah, well, you guys were correct because what I was gonna say is looking back now, she was gorgeous, she was beautiful. Like it's you would just have to be lying if you want to say she wasn't. And she didn't, I don't think, I mean, to my knowledge, I don't think she had a like a ton of plastic surgery. I think she was just a beautiful, she was just a beautiful blonde girl.

SPEAKER_03 35:38

Yeah, uh, to be to be honest, like I can't always tell. Like uh, at least back in the day, I think plastic surgery was a little more subtle. So sometimes Megs would tell me, yeah, that's someone's that person has plastic surgery, but I I couldn't tell. But yes, she looked she looked pretty natural, at least to me.

SPEAKER_01 35:53

She was a beautiful woman. I mean, but um, and Cecil agreed. I remember one time being a bit in a video store with Uncle Cecil and I was a little kid because back then we had blockbusters and video stars. And we were in we were in like the video store at the mall near my house. Nice. He he and I, and we were browsing the shelves, and I saw him over in one aisle, just like just like holding this video case, staring at it, and he just kind of like he was just kind of like he just kind of shook his head. And he was like, Matthew, God created a beautiful woman here.

SPEAKER_02 36:30

And it was a picture of Pamela Anderson.

SPEAKER_01 36:33

She was on the cover, she was wearing like all black leather. I don't remember.

SPEAKER_03 36:38

Oh, I know, I know exactly what you're talking about because I was gonna I was gonna mention this. There was this movie called, I want to say, I wouldn't go, I want to say it was called Barb, B-A-R-B, or Barb wire, or something like that. She plays like this kind of like vigilante chick. She's in like black leather, and she has um, yeah. Yeah I have friends who definitely watched it for the plot. The screenplay for the dialogue screen game, for the record, for the slick editing.

SPEAKER_01 37:07

This ought to give Citizen Kane a run for his catch.

SPEAKER_03 37:11

And the Oscar goes to. No, but like for sure, like she was that generation's like, I wouldn't say, um, but yeah, she was she was like uh like probably what uh what's that girl, right?

SPEAKER_01 37:25

Sydney, Sydney Sydney Tweeney, but let me just slow us down for a real quick second here. Okay, uh I just feel like Hollywood is just pushing, pushing, pushing her. And I don't, I don't know. This is a weird topic to get way into. We probably shouldn't. Yeah. Anyway, I'm I'll stop there, but it's because I don't I'm not trying to tear anyone down or be a hater. I I Oh yeah.

SPEAKER_03 37:46

I mean, are you kidding? These women are extremely beautiful. They're both beautiful. I think maybe you're getting kind of like yeah, just too much of it happening over there. Well, it's too much, just getting a little overhyped, too much.

SPEAKER_01 37:56

It's a little overhyped.

SPEAKER_03 37:57

I want to know what Uncle Cecil thinks about Cindy Switzerland. Yeah. I don't know. Um yeah, but definitely highlight of the episode was his description of Pam. Totally. God created the beautiful woman here. Well, he works. Yeah, there are certain things that do make you believe in God. I'm glad that he, you know, so I think Pam Lanson is one of them.

SPEAKER_01 38:20

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 38:21

Um, but yeah, for sure.

SPEAKER_01 38:22

Another one I remember getting huge was um was uh Scarlett Johansson.

SPEAKER_03 38:28

Oh yeah, yeah, of course. She was like for a while, she was she was just like the big I mean and and and and you know, so was like Margot Robbie when the whole um the whole the suicide squad with Harley Quinn came out. Totally. I think I think they even won like an Oscar for costume design, and like it was like one of the P one of the Oscar panel judges was not caught, but like said something like, How can you not give them costume design after how how amazing Margot Robbie looks in that? I think it was that was a very nice way of asking for her number.

SPEAKER_01 39:00

I don't know if they ever got it, but yeah, totally that was Margot Robbie was like a moment of like this is the new hot lady in Hollywood. Um she's Australian.

SPEAKER_03 39:11

She is Australian, she's Australian, yeah, and yeah, but yeah, actually, you know, the f the first time I saw Sydney Sweeney was was was was like there was this movie that everybody was just crowing on about. It was like um uh some I don't even remember what it was called, but like I remember being on a plane, and I think at least four of the seats around me were watching that movie. It was also based in Australia.

SPEAKER_01 39:40

Wait, what movie was Sydney Sweeney in?

SPEAKER_03 39:42

It was like it was her with this with the guy, this guy Glenn Powell. I hate myself for not knowing this. I'm sure anyone listening to this right now will be like, it's this one, you idiot. But yeah, it's like um it was like me without you or something, something I know who he is. I think that movie was good for both of them because I think they both got a lot of publicity after that movie.

SPEAKER_01 40:03

Yeah, um, yeah, yeah. I I I don't know what movie it is, actually. I don't think I've seen Sydney Sweeney in a movie.

SPEAKER_03 40:10

I know she was in that show Yeah, Euphoria Euphoria, but I haven't seen that show.

SPEAKER_01 40:16

Yeah, I haven't watched it either. I haven't seen that show, but it was a massively popular show.

SPEAKER_03 40:20

It was a very, very popular show, yes, yes, it was.

SPEAKER_01 40:23

Yeah, so Scarlett Johansson was a big moment. Um, and Scarlett Johansson is beautiful. Um, but yeah, I remember Lost in Translation was yeah, that was a big movie Scarlet was in where she just it just that's when it became the new thing for young guys college age to just be like, oh yeah, she's my thing. I like Scarlett Johansson, and that was the correct answer to the question, you know, yeah, for a while.

SPEAKER_03 40:52

I was I was when I was in college, you know who was huge? Uh Megan Fox, because Transformers had just come out the first one. Yeah, and she was on like this was when people actually read magazines, when like GQ and stuff had her on the cover. I remember just like, whoa, and cause because it came out that she was also like a video game girl, and yeah, guys were super interesting. Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 41:14

As soon as guys find out that a girl is hot and nerdy, and nerdy, yes, they fall in love. Game over.

SPEAKER_03 41:23

It's like, oh wait, she's hot and she can be one of the guys.

SPEAKER_01 41:27

Yeah, that's why you'll find so many hot girls on social media like playing a guitar or holding a lizard on their chest and and stroking him and being like, the guys are watching it just like kinda out of hand now because like, you know, at first, yeah, I used to also like get annoyed because like there would be these girls who play guitar, and they're they do a decent job of playing guitar, better play better than me at least.

SPEAKER_03 41:52

And they all but all their video clips, bras and like low-hanging shirts, and I'm like, why are you doing that? Like, why are you doing that? But you know, they're trying to do their thing, they're trying to get viewers, they're trying to beat the algorithm, so I get it.

SPEAKER_01 42:07

Well, you know, exactly, and it's it's a shame that our you know, it's a shame that entertainment now is kind of reduced to that, where it's like there's this desperation to sort of cut through all the saturated stuff out there, the the oversaturation of content. There's just so much content coming at you. Yeah, and so it's like anything people can do to be seen or heard through all of that noise, they'll do it. They'll do whatever they have to do to like get you to watch this clip on TikTok for more than half of a second. Yeah, and if it works, then they'll do it again for the next video, you know.

SPEAKER_03 42:44

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 42:45

It's a little soulless, but I guess it achieves a certain kind of goal.

SPEAKER_03 42:49

But what's what's annoying now is like um there are people who put clips their clipstick in the first, maybe like they'll put like the uh the thumbnail off like a hot girl doing something, and then when you tap it, it's actually something else, and now you're probably like, how do you know that current? Because it's like and it's like nothing related to the content, and I'm like, ah, you got me. I know you got me, you son of a bitch.

SPEAKER_01 43:16

Yeah, sometimes my wife will look over my shoulder as I'm scrolling, and it'll be some some it'll uh Facebook or whatever will be trying to show some video of this hot girl, and and and my wife is like, why is it trying to show you that? Do you look at stuff like that all the time? Yeah, and I'm like, no, it knows things about me. It it hears me, it listens to me. Because it does social media listens to you, it hears hears what you say, it hears you when you are talking to your wife and you say a certain thing, right? It knows a lot about you, and it will be like, oh, I think I've got something he might click on. You know, you gotta like this one, buddy. Yeah, yeah, yeah. It's it's a little creepy sometimes. I'll I'll be having a conversation, and then the next day it'll be, you know, I'll talk about like some country in Europe or something, and the next day it's like showing me flights to that country.

SPEAKER_03 44:13

Oh yeah, it's like it's creepy. Like I said, they're not even they're not even trying to hide the fact that they listen to you anymore. It's like a couple of years ago, they were they were a little they were a little like low-key about it because people were like actually posting videos where their phones were off. Like they would actually document it happening, they would put off their phones, and then they would just, you know, shut shut shut the eyes and everything, and then they would talk about like a product. Um and then they would open their phones and they would start seeing Google ads or Facebook ads for that product. And it's like they were it was just clear evidence that they were listening to you even when your the apps were off. But guess what? Nobody made a big fuss about it. Yeah, it got shared a couple of times, but nobody made a huge fuss about it, and they they were like, okay, no one seems to care, so we can just do it a little bit more obviously now, and that's what's happening, I think. Thanks everyone for stopping by. Yeah, and yeah, we will talk to you later.