As veterans, we've personally experienced the trials and tribulations of transitioning from military life to civilian life, a journey we've come to term 'the new normal.' It's a challenging process, filled with a unique set of obstacles, from adjusting to a less regimented lifestyle to grappling with physical and mental restrictions. But what if there were a way to ease this transition, to find solace and understanding in the midst of change? This episode of our podcast explores this very question.
We'll be sharing candid insights from our own experiences, discussing the power of habits, the importance of tolerance, and the strategies we've found effective in our journey. With real-life examples, like the story of a Marine Corp Staff Sergeant acquitted in the death of one of his Marines, we delve into the complexities of the new normal. We'll also touch on more everyday issues, from the frustrations of parking in unfamiliar cities to the importance of understanding and respecting others' preferences, even when it comes to something like music at a country bar.
But this isn't just about sharing our struggles. It's also about offering practical advice and tools to help others navigate their own new normal. We discuss techniques like self-talk for dealing with memory issues and the importance of creating your own happiness. We'll also be touching on more light-hearted topics like navigating through Cleveland's parking difficulties and managing anger and anxiety in crowds. And as a final note, we'll be discussing an upcoming charity event, highlighting the importance of giving back to our communities. So join us for an episode filled with laughter, learning, and lots of personal experiences. After all, what better way to understand the new normal than to hear from those who've lived it?
As veterans, we've personally experienced the trials and tribulations of transitioning from military life to civilian life, a journey we've come to term 'the new normal.' It's a challenging process, filled with a unique set of obstacles, from adjusting to a less regimented lifestyle to grappling with physical and mental restrictions. But what if there were a way to ease this transition, to find solace and understanding in the midst of change? This episode of our podcast explores this very question.
We'll be sharing candid insights from our own experiences, discussing the power of habits, the importance of tolerance, and the strategies we've found effective in our journey. With real-life examples, like the story of a Marine Corp Staff Sergeant acquitted in the death of one of his Marines, we delve into the complexities of the new normal. We'll also touch on more everyday issues, from the frustrations of parking in unfamiliar cities to the importance of understanding and respecting others' preferences, even when it comes to something like music at a country bar.
But this isn't just about sharing our struggles. It's also about offering practical advice and tools to help others navigate their own new normal. We discuss techniques like self-talk for dealing with memory issues and the importance of creating your own happiness. We'll also be touching on more light-hearted topics like navigating through Cleveland's parking difficulties and managing anger and anxiety in crowds. And as a final note, we'll be discussing an upcoming charity event, highlighting the importance of giving back to our communities. So join us for an episode filled with laughter, learning, and lots of personal experiences. After all, what better way to understand the new normal than to hear from those who've lived it?
All right. So, um, last few episodes we've kind of gotten away from where we started, talking about some other things that you know it's important to us but might not be important to everybody. Um, so we're going to kind of redirect and go over some stuff a little more in detail, some things that we've talked about before, um and and like, the big piece of that is just, you know, what we refer to as the new normal.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and, and we all have um a part of our lives that was steady, that was regimental, that was and you know the target audience here are veterans. So at some point in your life, depending on how long you stayed in the military, but for the time you were in the military it was regimental, it was, you know um training schedules and you know things, things that everything was planned out, everything um to to the, to the time and when, when you get out, you lose some of that structure and you start feeling filling gaps with other um other things that may not be as constructive or it may, quite frankly, be damaging to you.
Speaker 1:Um, yeah, when you, when you're in, you don't want to be told what to do, when to do it, how to do it. But when you get out and you don't have that structure, it's like that scene in Shawshank Redemption, when the guys have been in prison so long and they're so institutionalized that when they get parole they're they do stupid shit to get sent back because they can't function outside of that environment and and and in a way the military institutionalizes us to live a certain way and to have and. So when we don't have that, it kind of fucks us up a little bit.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so that and then, um, it also the new normal also explains. You know, when you were 17 years old, chances are, you didn't have a bad back, you didn't have bad knees, you didn't have chronic headaches, you didn't you know what.
Speaker 1:I mean, you didn't have ringing in your ears. 17, 18 year old, you was fucking. Six feet or seven feet tall and bulletproof.
Speaker 2:Right. So you didn't have um mental restrictions, you didn't have physical restrictions, you didn't have. You know this, this uh large um large suitcase of darkness. You know this, um Samson night yeah uh, suitcase of shit that you've accumulated over the years you were in the military.
Speaker 1:You didn't. You didn't understand the phrase. Hello darkness, my old friend.
Speaker 2:Right, um, so that you know that's a new normal as well. So you know, when you're in the military sometime, you know, yeah, everybody goes on sick call and you know I got an Owie, I got, I got this and that, but you know you're still dealing with things that you're working through. You were made to work through right, and you know again, there's a, there's a thin line between um, you know, being a hard ass and being negligent, and I mean like again, um, like we said about the Marine Corps Staff Sergeant that was um, charged with the death of one of his Marines. You know, um, yeah, I think maybe a murder charges is a bridge too far, but you know, I think there's some dereliction of duty in there. I mean as, NCOs?
Speaker 1:we would. We would deem that negligent.
Speaker 2:Yeah, right, and and um, full disclosure. Um, that Staff Sergeant was acquitted, uh, of all charges except for, um, colin Marine recruits out of her name, which I, you know, I don't understand, but it ain't for me to understand. So, um, but yeah, I mean, you have to, um, and it's worth revisiting, cause he was a fuck, that guy a couple of episodes ago. Um, and I still stand by the fucking. You know, you lost accountability of a trainee for over an hour in when, when he was found, he was dead, regardless of his if his body um was predetermined to shut down at a certain point or not. When he died he was alone and uh, you know you may not be um.
Speaker 1:You may have gotten acquitted on the legal side of it, but in the halls of NCOdom you know, legally you've got acquitted morally.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you know what I mean.
Speaker 1:Um, if, if you know um, I wouldn't want to be one of your guys and rely on you to be accountable for me if something happened.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean I um by. I believe he's no longer in the Marine Corps um at Staff.
Speaker 1:Sgt. I mean it'd probably be pretty hard to put him in charge of anybody, yeah.
Speaker 2:Um, so, um, he could do good things in the civilian world, anyways, but I was always known as, as someone who, who, was hard, um, but I don't think I was ever and again. You know, of course, I didn't think I was. You know, um, I don't, I don't think I ever went to the lengths. Now, um the going back to the reports of the Marine Corps staff. So you know it was, you know he had, um, these ideas, uh, ideas of being the best Marine Corps uh, his training platoon.
Speaker 1:They were going to be the best.
Speaker 2:Right. So, um, I didn't have those goals, right, it wasn't. You know, I didn't write that on a white board somewhere, it was. If we do these things, that thing over here, that's not even up there, we'll take care of itself. You know what I mean, like, and you know there's no. There's no head to head competition Like this. This ain't. The proof is in the pudding, right? The proof is in the pudding when you get called for those missions that I've spoke about before, right, when you're the guy. Oh, we have to go there at limited visibility, and you know yeah, I know who to send.
Speaker 1:If. If you're constantly trying to make yourself better and you're constantly trying to make your guys better, then eventually you will become the best just by the process of being better from one day to the next. You don't have to, you don't have to say we're going to be the best motherfuckers around. You can just say we're going to be the best motherfuckers we can be, and if we do it to what we think we can do it to, eventually everything else fall into place.
Speaker 2:And uh, yeah, cause, you know I knew of NCOs who you know in the army. We have the um you know NCO we are um, non-commissioned officer um evaluation report and you know it's broken down into five sections and you know you get a, you know a needs improvement, uh, success. Or you know an excellent um. That's probably different now but anyways, like I knew guys that like it was almost like first thing in the morning when they woke up, they're like, hmm, let me see what bullet I can write myself today. You know and you know.
Speaker 2:And then on the flip side of that, there was, there's those leaders out there that would be like if you don't fucking execute, you're fucking NCO we are, we'll reflect. And you're like like, bro, the only way you're going to hurt me when a NCO we are is to roll that some of the bitch up and poke me with the pointy end in my eye. You know what I mean. Like I don't give a fuck about your NCO you are. You know, like I didn't. Again, it's one of those things where you know it's a year has gone by and like, hey, vic, um, we need to talk about your NCO. You are cool and um, all right, what we need to talk about. I need I need you to do a draft, and that was usually the case Like I need you to do a draft and have it on my desk by Tuesday. I'm like you're my Raider, yeah, have a draft on my party.
Speaker 1:Your evaluation is how good can you ride it Right?
Speaker 2:You're a military writing skills, Um. But yeah, I mean, that was usually, uh, usually the case, Um. But you know, I had, I had some good officers who, uh, um, they, uh, they they thought of me glowingly at some points in my career.
Speaker 2:So, uh, I appreciate that, but no, it's one of those things where you just do what you do and when it's time, when it comes time to, you know, um, that there are people out there when you have to sit down and think, okay, what did this? You know, and that's why I used to tell my, tell my guy when, when you know, I'm my squad leaders and Raider, raider, we sat down. Often I'm like I'm you're not writing your NC OER, I'm writing your NC OER and that's shit. Everything you do is going to reflect in everything you know. And uh, um, you know, and we're going to, we're going to talk about this. You know um, quarterly like, like we're supposed to um, but the new norm.
Speaker 1:I guess it's we do what we do until we don't do what we do.
Speaker 2:Right, but we're, we're creatures of habit, right, so creatures of habit. So the new norm is your new habits, which could be good, bad or ugly. Right, like my, your, your new habit is smoking methamphetamines every day. Right, that's a new, that's your new norm.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and, and the transition between one normal to the new normal is kind of the. You can learn to tolerate a lot of things.
Speaker 2:Yes.
Speaker 1:But the key is in that transition finding the right things to tolerate and normal is just for clarification. Normal is in this instance a relative term right Like um we're not saying that, uh, sucking on a crack pipe is normal but if you do it every day, it's your new normal Right.
Speaker 2:So it's what normal, it's what's normal to you.
Speaker 1:So we don't condone sucking on the glass stick, but if you do it, it's what you do.
Speaker 2:It's what you do, that's your normal. But just just to throw that out there, um, yeah, I mean it's, it's a good adjustment. You know, when I talk to um my counselor, you know it's funny how you talk to someone about memory issues and they give you tools on how to deal with your memory issues. And you know, part of that tool is remembering. You have tools to use and I'm like, doesn't that defeat the purpose? Like you know it's. But here's a, here's a good tool to remember, talk yourself through doing it. I'm like, okay, I'll try that. And then you go back to the next um session.
Speaker 2:Well, how did that happen? And I'm like, well, I have a six year old that thinks I'm an idiot because I'm narrating getting her chocolate milk out of the fridge for a. You know, babe, can you get me chocolate milk? I most certainly can. I'm going to walk over to the refrigerator, I am going to open up the refrigerator, I'm going to reach in and grab your gallon of chocolate milk. What are you doing? I am narrating what I am doing right now. So just listen and you will know I'm now taking the cap. That's what she wanted me to do. That's what I did. Made, made Nova think my new normal was crazy, and but that was you know sure she told you.
Speaker 1:oh, most certainly you're nuttier and squirrel.
Speaker 2:Right, yeah, Most certainly. I mean she's babe. What are you doing? Do?
Speaker 1:I need to call mom Right, Mom babe's going crazy so yeah.
Speaker 2:So she's like, how did that work out? I'm like, well, I have a six year old that thinks I'm an idiot, but you know, she pretty much thought I was an idiot before that. So I'm just confirming it for. And she's like how did you know? Like, have you ever walked into a room and said why'd I come in here? You know, and then have to backtrack your steps. And then, at some point in backtracking your steps, you're like, ah, that's why I went in there. And then, by time you get back into the room, you're like, fuck, if that's just me, then that's why I have a brain injury, right? So you know, like I will see something on Facebook and be like, fuck, I need to Google that by the time I close one app, open another app and like why the fuck am I in Google?
Speaker 1:Hey, well, I had a compliance review today. My appointment was at 1030. I get there at 1030. She's like I didn't think you were coming today. I'm like why she goes. I was already typing up your letter. Your appointment was at 10. Like no, it was 1030. She's like no, it was 10. So in my head I thought it was 1030. Last night when I was in the database I looked at it. It said 10, but because of my head I read 1030. Because I thought it was 1030. Like I confirmation biased my ass into believing that it was 1030 because I thought it was 1030. I didn't read what it actually said. In my head I read 1030, you know, because I thought it was 1030. And I'm like that with every fucking appointment I do, I can't keep them straight and I used to never be that way. And now I can't keep fucking appointment straight to save my life.
Speaker 2:Yeah, well, I'm so, I'm so anal about being late, or you know, I will check, double check, recheck things like that and and.
Speaker 1:Like I'll know when and where a meetup is, but the night before I'm still double checking to make sure that I'm right. And then I'm going here and this is the time I need to leave, and this is what time I need to do this, and it doesn't help that my wife makes me habitually late to everything.
Speaker 2:I, I. But I still run into, like you, I still run into problems. Like I was supposed to see a neurologist for my brain and and If the appointment was in Columbus. But I went to Zanesville and they're like no honey, your your appointments in Columbus in 15 minutes.
Speaker 2:We don't have neurology here Right and I'm like well, I guess I ain't going to make that one. And then you call, right, you're like hi, I'm, I'm, I'm calling to. You know, I'm supposed to have an appointment with Dr So-and-so about my brain injury. Yeah Well, I forgot what hospital was that. Oh, she's like we understand, in our field that happens all the time. Yeah, I mean, like you know, I get it.
Speaker 1:I was supposed to go Monday to have an EMG and also prosthetics to get fitted for these braces for my hands, and I had a migraine episode, dizzy, lightheadedness, dry, heaving. So I call the number and it tells me to press. You know two for the appointments and then like three for specialty appointments. Right, and so I press that I get sent to the operator. They're like, uh, yeah, we need to transfer you to this department. So they transfer me somehow. I get kicked back out to the operator. The operator is like, um, what can I help you with? I'm like I'm trying to get you know my specialty. She's like, oh, yeah, I got you. She transfers me the primary care scheduling line. I'm like, no, no, I need specialty care scheduling line. So they give you back to specialty care scheduling line and the lady's like, um, well, we don't do those. I have to transfer you to um, specifically to prosthetics, and then they'll transfer you over to EMG. I'm like, all right, cool. So they transfer me to prosthetics and it just rings and rings and rings and rings and rings and rings.
Speaker 1:This entire process has taken so long that when it just rings and rings and rings and rings and then it hangs up, I fuck you, I ain't call them back, right? You know like. So I'm like, all right, I'll wait a little bit and then I'll do it. And then I wait, but then I forget. So then Tuesday I get a phone call. It's from fucking EMG. They're like you missed your appointment yesterday. I'm like, well, I know, I tried to reschedule it, but I got transferred to 27 different people and then I got to where it was just ringing and by the time my brain was back on track to try to call you again. It was too fucking late. So you know, I tried, but you know the, the VA system and all of its flaws and beauty, enabled me to just say fuck it again, right.
Speaker 2:And yeah, it's, it's the, the the phone system is ridiculous, ridiculous. The new and maybe maybe it says it Like I would like To not have to ask people where, like I went to claims and compensation and pension Tuesday when I went up there and now on on my, on the website, on my you know, my healthy vet website, it'll tell me to doctor, but it won't say claims and pension room to whatever.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:So when you get there, you have to fucking talk to people which you know I don't particularly like. Yeah, um, like I would walk around to every fucking, every, every fucking door in that place and look for doctor whoever I'm supposed to meet, before I fucking talk to people.
Speaker 1:That's just me, but or you'll talk to him and they'll be like we're on the second floor. You get off the elevator, hang a left, two rights and then a left, yeah, but your appointment's in six weeks, right. So then when you get there, you're like I'm pretty sure they said the second floor, but when I get off the elevator, where the fuck am I supposed to go again? And then you're like looking around and then you're like, um, I'm looking for this. And they're like, oh yeah, it's here, here, here and here and here. Like can't you read the sign? I'm like where the fuck's the sign? Why didn't you ask the reception down at the thing? I'm like really, Like.
Speaker 1:I'm 44 years old. You want me to ask the 80 year old fucking Korean War vet down there where to get somewhere Like right, like come on, let me be a little more embarrassed to fucking memory issues when the guy that's twice my age is like young man. You go over to the elevator, you go up to the second floor, you hang two rights, a left and then a right, and it'll be right there. It's green door, the yellow door. Now blah, blah, blah, blah, blah and you're like all right, hold on, could you say that again, cause I've done fucking forgot where you started.
Speaker 2:Go ahead and jump in his wheelchair.
Speaker 1:I'll take you up, yeah. I was like oh man, but yeah, I mean it's um, and I don't have a brain injury, I just have fucked up memory issues.
Speaker 2:It's just one of those things where you know you, if you have a resource to give people information, give people all the information, don't, don't? It reminds me of the time I was up in Cleveland and, um, I went up there for an event, um, at um, quicken Loans Arena. Uh, back when it was Quicken Loans Arena, um, where the calves play, and uh, so it was a Sunday. We were up there early, we got some lunch, uh, met up with some other guys that was doing the event with us, and streets parked or street is packed to park but there there was a, uh, there was a spot that if my truck was born there, it would fit in there perfectly. But having to parallel parking there, um, uh, you know it don't fit in there as well, but you know a couple of bumps with the rear bumper in the front bumper fit perfect. Um, so you know we go eat chillin and, uh, head into the arena for our event. I left my truck parked on the street. Everyone else was parked on the street. Well, there's a sign on the meter that said, um, free parking on Sundays, so you don't have to pay to meet her. There's a sign on the other side of the meter that says redesign at the end of the block. What a fuck. But it's on the side of the meter that you pay, right? So I get out. I look at the meter. It says free on Sundays. So I don't go to the front because I don't have to pay. So I don't read any other fucking signs. You know what I mean. Like I I don't know what Cleveland things, but I don't walk around places just looking at fucking signs that tell me what to do all the fucking time.
Speaker 2:So we go into the event, have a great event. Um, got to see a calves game. Um, come out, the whole street where the truck, the trucks, parked is empty. And I'm like, wow, everyone that came to this game that was parked on the street has left already. And we get up to the corner where I can see where the trucks parked, trucking there, and I'm like fuck. And I'm like now, now I'm looking at signs to see if I'm fucked up, go to the. I'm like this parking meter. You know the guy I was with, he's like he probably got towed. Like why the fuck would I get towed? Don't have to pay on Sunday. Today is Sunday, fucking, you know. Um, go back to the meter. Now I see the sign on the other side of the meter that says read the sign at the end of the block. So I walk down and read the sign at the end of the block no parking during these times, on these days, which was Cohen, which those dates coincided with events in the quick and the loan center. Well, fuck. So now I'm pissed because you know, as a, as a city Cleveland's a big city, right, and in a small town where I'm from you don't want somebody to park at a meter you put a bag over no parking when, when the time you're allowing part at that meter, you take the bag off part. Simple as that. I don't, you don't put a bag on the meter that says you can park here. After you read that sign at the fucking block, you know what I mean. Yeah, like, yeah, like. So I am fucking irate.
Speaker 2:So the guy I'm with, um, sean Patterson CLP, um, shout out to him. Um guy I'm with, uh, he, he's like all right, let's figure this out. So he, you know, he calls the the fucking um, the police. Hey, you know, da, da, da, da, da, we're parked here. They're like yep, they told it. You're parked there now. It was told All right, uh, where did you know?
Speaker 2:And it's like flagged down somebody, you know. So we flagged down somebody and you know, the police pulls up. What? What's up? We're like uh, I had a truck parked right here. He's like it was parked here from five o'clock to such and such. Like yep, yep, it got towed. Like why'd you park there? Uh, so the sign right there says I could park here for free on Sunday. Yeah, but that's signed down there. I'm like I didn't read the fucking sign down there. Like why would I read the sign down there at the end of the fucking block and don't say Steve, read me, and don't say all people walking by should read this sign? Nope, nope. He's like I don't know what to tell you. I'm like hey, you, you got a fucking supervisor. Can you get a supervisor over here? Yep, sure, Let me. So supervisor comes over and this motherfucker, he pulls next to the curb where we're standing and he's on. He's facing the wrong way, on the wrong side of the street, but he don't want to get out of his car to talk to us. So he's going to roll his window down, face the wrong way and be like what's the problem? Like the problem is I had a Ford F-150, but I had a Ford F-150.
Speaker 2:I had a Ford F-150. I had a Ford F-150. I had a Ford F-150. I had a Ford F-150. I had a Ford F-150. I had a Ford F-150. I had a Ford F-150 parked right fucking here, and you motherfuckers towed it.
Speaker 2:He's like, yeah, can't park here. Like, oh, I can, because I did. I'm like, come on man, like what the fuck? I like this, you know. I'm like this is how we treat people Right. This is how you treat out of the towners. Like, oh, you know, like I'm supposed to know, I have to read a fucking sign. No, um, and he's like you know. And I'm like, bro, like he's like, uh, you can pick it up at whatever yard it was in. I'm like all right, so fucking Sean Google's that shit. He's like it opens up at nine AM. It's close now.
Speaker 2:So now I'm really pissed. I'm fucking two hours from home. I'm going to have to spend the night in Cleveland. I'm going to have to figure out a way to get from where I'm at to the impound yard, and then I'm all have to spend whatever it costs to get the car, my truck, from impound. So I'm on my phone looking at hotels on a fucking game night in Cleveland, in downtown Cleveland, and nothing was under 235 bucks, nothing, fuck. So this female police officer, she comes up and I'm, I'm visibly, visibly upset so much. So, like you know, bums, bums, were coming up to me. A man, you have a dollar, and I like, hey, motherfucker, I'm like I had a goddamn truck that was parked here, fucking you know, two hours ago. It ain't there no more because it looked like I have a fucking dollar for you.
Speaker 1:Ah, bro, hey bro, and the bums are like yep, I got towed my bad man.
Speaker 2:He's like you're having a bad, worst night than I am. I'm like you, goddamn right. So the guy goes away, the supervisor goes away, then he comes back a little later and then female comes up like and then do the bum, you know, he's sitting there and and I'm talking to the guy, I'm like, hey, bro, I'm like you know, at that point I'm like I don't, I don't know how you, you know, fucking. So Sean. Sean was like yeah, we're, we're veterans. We're over in the Quicken Loans Arena we were doing a thing for a veteran nonprofit organization. Like well, we're doing all the right things.
Speaker 2:And you told our fucking truck and the cops like, well, how the fuck am I supposed to know you're a veteran? I'm like I said it says US Army retired. On the window and when you hook the motherfucker up there's a purple heart plate. I'm like that that's clear indication that a motherfuckers a veteran. And he's like, oh man, you, you had a purple heart. I'm like, yeah, thank you for your son. Fuck all that, fuck that you want to thank me for my goddamn service. Let me get my truck tonight. I said I'll pay. Whatever the fuck, I gotta pay. I said let me get my truck out tonight, that that'll thank me for my goddamn service.
Speaker 2:And he's like all right, man, let me, let me make a call and and whole time I'm hold now I'm talking it, I'm talking to this police officer and I get it, and the whole time, oh boy behind me, he's like yeah, man, yeah, give him his truck back. Man, give him his truck. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. My hype man flavor flayed back there, fucking. Yeah, give him his truck. Man, he's served this country and so I'm. I'm still pissed, and you know, and all of a sudden, another police car, fucking that guy leaves. Let me see what I can do. He leaves, fucking. You know, we asked the female first, okay, let me see what. And they leave. And no one can ever stand there and do something for you.
Speaker 2:They have to leave and you know, so you know, at it, another guy pulls up. He's like you, the guys with the truck. I'm like I'm the guy without the motherfucking truck, you know? Yeah, that's what I meant. He's like get in, get in. Yeah, get in, I'm gonna take you.
Speaker 2:I'm like all right, fuck, we get in. And let me tell you, it was the first time I was in the back of a police car right in my life, right, and it them seeds are fucking plastic, hard plastic, right. So I guess you know people piss shit and throw up in there. They just fucking spritz that shit out and fucking onto the next one. So me, me and Sean in the back of this fucking police car and he's taking pictures and fucking posting on Facebook. He's like man, this, nobody's gonna believe this shit. So I'm like, hey, sir, I'm like I appreciate it. I'm like, you know, I'm willing to pay what you know, whatever fines are you know, to get this. And he's like, amen, when you go in there, I wouldn't say nothing, I don't think they're charging you at all. And I'm like, oh shit, all right. He's like, so don't say nothing, I got you, bro, appreciate you. So he pulls us.
Speaker 2:He, you know, we go to the impound lot and I walk in there. They're like you guys with the F-150 like, yes, sir. He's like, all right, sign here, I signed there. He's like, let's go find your truck. I'm like, all right, so we're walking through the, we're walking through the lot and there's a f1, you know black f1 50 just like mine, in the front end fucking smashed. And he's like this it. I'm like that's fucking better not be fucking better not be my truck. And he's like he looks at you know they have the fucking number on the window. He's like oh, that one number off, not not yours. He's like yours is probably down here, we go down there. He's like all right, have a good night. I'm like that's it. He's like, yep, that's it, have a good night. I'm like all right.
Speaker 2:So we get in the truck and I look down at the clock and that whole story I just told was like 45 minutes. Everything I just said happened in like 45 minutes and I was like fuck, like to me it was like 2 am right yeah no, it fuck.
Speaker 1:It was from start to finish like 45 minutes these fucking cops are taking forever and it was like four minutes right and I'm like you know it, cuz the gravity of all right um well, and but that's one of the things with pts is that you can't you struggle dealing with everyday stress.
Speaker 1:So when you get something like that added on top of it, if you can't handle everyday stress, or you struggle to handle everyday stress, when you get that kind of stress thrust on you that quickly with that type of like you said severity, it your whole world comes crashing down. Like you can't like it.
Speaker 2:Just it fucks everything up yeah it was you know the severity of okay, 200, 230 bucks for a whole. I mean I couldn't even get in a fucking shitty. Oh, I'm like, all right, quit looking up hotels, start looking up motels.
Speaker 1:You know me like I mean I get one of those by the hour places yeah, just give me fucking six hours of sleep, I'll be good.
Speaker 2:And I'm like man, fuck, how much is you know I? I can see right here on my phone how much the fucking rooms gonna cost. I don't know how much getting my truck out of there, you know cuz. You know cuz. There's a tow fee, there's a holding fee, there's fucking. You know we shine on. You know the lights that watch over your truck.
Speaker 1:Fee there cuz you don't know if you got ticketed for a citation right and and all that.
Speaker 2:And so I was like, fuck me, but it cost. It cost $30 to park in the lot adjacent to that little strip on the road. You know, cost $30 to park in that lot. A parking ticket for parking on the street $25. So after all that I saved myself five bucks. I saved myself five, but it like I was.
Speaker 2:I was so defeated that night and you know that I don't care what city you're in, you go to a sporting event. There's motherfuckers out there selling t-shirts and they're on their grind. And I don't hate none of that, I don't. You know you're on your grind, you know you're. You're fucking. If the circus is inside there, you're selling fucking circus shit. If the basketball game yourself, you know you're on your grind, I don't do your thing. But when I'm, when I'm visibly in a state where I don't want you to talk to me, don't talk to me because I'm not gonna be nice. You know me and the amount of motherfuckers be like a excuse me, can you? I'm like no, alright, you know, like after like three motherfuckers, like a excuse me, can I talk to you? And after like three, like the fourth one, I just made a move on like I had my back to him and you know, he's like excuse me. And before he can get anything out of his face, I turn around. He's like never mind.
Speaker 2:Never mind, I'm good you do bum buddies like hey man, I wouldn't talk about motherfucker, but but alright, he said he sat on a stoop of you know, because then all the businesses like we had lunch right there all those businesses were closed and so he's sitting on a stoop and yeah, when that that supervisor came up and he's like, and I'm like, man, my fucking truck. He's like, yes, truck, I'm like I can't believe. You do? You know? And, and you know, sean, you know he was like, hey, he's like we were. He's like we wasn't even in there watching the basketball game. He's like we were in, we were in the. What's that shit? Called the out where the concession stand is. Yeah, that's where we stayed. You know me, he's like, yeah, we were fucking give him pamphlets and all this shit. And for veteran, he like you guys are veterans like yeah, he's like thank you for your.
Speaker 2:I'm like fuck, fuck that you want to thank me for my goddamn service. Get my motherfucking truck out here. And Sean's like man, you gotta calm down. Fuck that fuck. Have to make me want to walk down the goddamn street fuck.
Speaker 1:Well it. And you know I used to say all the time in the history of calm down.
Speaker 2:No one has ever calmed down by being told to calm down most certainly, and so yeah, I mean it but that's part of that new normal is managing stress right and stressors, your everyday stressors, those non everyday stressors yeah, and so I, we talked to some brothers last Friday and you know we went to me and Chris, he went to a concert over the weekend and talked to our brothers. I'm like yeah, and they were like, can't do it, can't do it, won't do it. And I, I get where they're coming from, right, because things, things piss you off, things that environmental things that piss you off that you think I can't control. So the only thing I can't control is not being in places where environmental things piss me off, and I 100% get that right, like I don't. Chances are, if I have my choice, I would never go to another country bar again, ever. Why? Because I've been in many bar fights in my life. All of them have been in country bars.
Speaker 2:Right, I have been the only Caucasian person in a bar before, had no issues, none. I bounced in bars where I'm the only Caucasian male excuse me, I'm the only. Let me rephrase I'm the only Caucasian male in the club. Plenty of Caucasian females, you know. But yeah, like I'm the only Caucasian male in there and have zero issues. You know, I don't have people looking at me sideways like why the fuck are you in here? You know, I mean nothing. Bouncing clubs like that had no issues. I mean, now people, people wanted to fight me because I was a bouncer and I kicked them the fuck out. They, they didn't have a problem with me per se. They had a problem with me being a bouncer, doing my fucking job. I get that, but someone having a problem with me at a hundred out of a hundred times it's in a fucking country bar and I don't.
Speaker 2:I don't particularly know why, especially like in Korea. You know Korea, you'll have every genre of club in Korea and most of my fights in Korea were fucking Bom, bom, bom, bom, bom bom, fuck, battle of banjos and I, you know Cuz, again, I think it's. It's one of those things where them motherfuckers think they're 10 feet tall and bold proof. And and you know Korea, unlike any place else, you don't have to worry about getting shot or getting, you know, stabbed. You just you had to worry about fucking somebody punching you in your face and I was okay with that. But yeah, I mean it. Fucking country bars.
Speaker 2:Every time, man, it's the music, right? I mean, I know you don't like country Country music and I will tell you this I've learned. I've learned to like like country music because when my daughters were born, you know, some of the lyrics in rap music that I was listening to at the time Was fine for me, right, rap music, you know and I say that not the sound hypocritical, because I don't think music Sparks of violence in the sense that People use it today. Right, like when people say all those words are provoking violence, shut up, you're stupid. You know, back when and I'm talking this is rap music before Explicit lyrics labels were put on.
Speaker 2:You know this is when to live to live crew was. You know People lose their fucking mind over a wet-ass pussy. Fucking go listen to live crew. And you'd be like, all right, I get it, you know. I mean like I Mean go go listen to the fucking to live crew. But yeah, I mean when the the rap music I grew up on and I used to be a hip-hop head Didn't, I don't think my daughters it would resonate with them, right? So you know, both of them, born in Georgia, grew up and in Country-ish Settings, right, so it resonates. Their mom was a country music. You know, she grew up in the country and you know that's, that's where her roots was.
Speaker 2:So it, by default, that's what they listen to so out of respect, of Out of respect for them because you know rap music was all about bitches and hoes and Back back then and again, if you listen to live crew, they, they don't. Yeah, uncle Luke could give a fuck about me too, you know me. The only me too he was talking about is we don't a train. Yeah, me too, you know me.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so, yeah, so you don't. I didn't want To project. Yes, I liked rap music, but I very rarely called women bitches or hoes, right, not because I didn't think I have met any bitches or hoes, because I but I met plenty of them. But you know it was a respect thing, right? So, yeah, you know, and it's funny, you use bitches all the time and all the time, no matter who you're fucking talking to, you know.
Speaker 2:Yeah, this bitch and I have inadvertently used that Just by just by association, right, and it don't every time I do. It don't feel right, right, it just don't fucking. Don't fucking feel right now. I will something. Something on bitches. Back back in the day, there used to be In my little clique in Korea, like bitch if we call it, like now, dudes. I call bitches all day. Like you know, don't be a bitch fucking. You're bitching up right now. Whatever you know, it's not to call dude a bitch is not derogatory for me and it's one of those things that my dad instilled on me. And you know, would you ever call your mom a bitch? No, then don't ever call anybody you know one of those things. So, but we, we had these tears, like you know, fucking, you're being a punk right now. You're being a punk ass right now, which is a degree higher. Or you're being a punk ass bitch, right, and you're a punk like, if you fall to the level punk ass bitch, you've done some. So it's pretty funny.
Speaker 1:It's like that key and peel skin right, you said that to.
Speaker 2:You said that to I did. I said Be, they're up in the space shuttle. I said they look around.
Speaker 1:Now I, I throw, I throw bitch around like it's just a term I don't ever Like. When I'm telling stories about the wife and I'm like talking shit about her and stuff, I'll be like this bitch. But in seriousness, or if we're in an argument or something, I don't go, you fucking bitch and it's like I don't use it. I Don't use it, I don't weaponize it right towards her right.
Speaker 2:I use it a lot in just casual conversation, telling stories, humor, things like that right, and I think we're, and I never, I've never taken it, you know, as such derogatory. But I think where we differ is Everybody has a problem with my tone, right? I mean that's, that's so, regardless how I say bitch, it's coming off wrong. Yeah, absolutely every time. Every time, you know, cuz I, you know I'm not a ha ha ha bitch, you know like it's coming off.
Speaker 1:Everybody knows how I'm coming with it, right, because it rarely does. Rarely do people see me in that mindset Like you don't. Rarely do people get to hear my dad voice. Now, if I said my dad voice and I said bitch, you would know I was pissed. But For them, most of the time I'm just ha ha, funny, funny, you know. But again, that's that defense mechanism that I developed when I was a kid. You know, if, if I'm, if I make people laugh? You know, because I got bullied a lot, right, you know I was always the new kid and then as I got older, you know it's, you know that saying you know the tears of a clown, I Always put the mask on. You know, if I'm, if, if I'm making everybody laugh and doing things like that, then people don't need to know just how fucked up I am.
Speaker 2:People say I'm the life-honored party. Yeah, smokey Robinson, anyway, yeah, yeah, I get it. It's Again I. You have to do that assessment to know. I mean, like, what's cool for you Don't really translate really good for me.
Speaker 1:Well, it's also known, your audience too.
Speaker 2:Well, it's that. And if you wasn't like that from day one, right, like from day one when you started hanging around us and you're like, yeah, this bitch, and you know everybody, immediately, like the first time you said it in the group setting, you're like, yeah, this bitch, every like all heads, all eyes go to Brady to see her reaction and there's nothing, right, because she's you know, and Everybody's like all right, okay, and then look few minutes later You're like yeah, and this bitch?
Speaker 2:and everybody's like All right, you know. And then I'm sure I Don't know this to be fact, but you know I'm sure them, them other Other spouses is like, hey, it's okay to not be okay when him.
Speaker 1:Well, and it doesn't take very long to realize that if there's somebody abusing somebody in my marriage, it's not me.
Speaker 2:Most certainly yes. I am a punk ass bitch in my marriage right and and, and I believe I even said like Early on, when I'm like For as much as he does for her, she's getting off easy of all he does.
Speaker 1:I mean, we've all known those couples where you may not be a hundred percent sure that there's abuse, whether physical, verbal, emotional, behind closed doors, but there's the telltale signs. That is not a telltale sign in my and, and oh yeah you know what I mean.
Speaker 1:Like, like it. It would be different if everyone had concerns that maybe I was. You know, I call her a bitch because I beat the fuck out of her or something like that, but it doesn't take very long to figure out that no, right, soon as she opens her mouth, you're like, ah, I get it, yeah, I fucking get it, she runs that motherfucking house. I get it. She is the boss.
Speaker 2:Yes, I'm like, you know, I'd be like, would it Never mind, Never mind, oh shit. But yeah, I mean again. But it's also the consistency, right. Right, you done it since day one and it's now a acceptable thing in your vibe.
Speaker 1:But yeah, because it's a lot of the times. It's this bitch.
Speaker 2:Right.
Speaker 1:You know what I mean? It's not it's. It's clearly in jest, because I'm telling a story about how she fucking but it's it's.
Speaker 2:It's also the dynamic of your family, right? I mean how, how, how Jay talks to your dad and how. You know what I mean. Like that's your family done it.
Speaker 1:Now, brandy's family is not like that, oh right.
Speaker 2:So my family is not like that either. Like well, my family is not like Brandy's family. Like we cuss at each other. Like cussing is an accepted form of English in my house growing up Now cussing at people different cussing while talking right Also different right, it's flavor text. Yeah, yeah, the word motherfucker used as a noun, that's derogatory.
Speaker 1:Motherfucker, you know, used as an adjective right, that's different, this motherfucking piece of shit, right.
Speaker 2:Different. You know, like I used to say, I used to stand in front of my baton and be like, all right, you motherfuckers, and I use that in the nicest possible sense. Right, you motherfuckers are pissing me off, or you motherfuckers, but I always, I always cavity, always, you know, said you motherfuckers, and I use that in the nicest possible sense. Or, and then whatever, yeah, motherfucking them.
Speaker 1:It doesn't take. It doesn't take very long of having a conversation with my father to understand why I am the way I am.
Speaker 2:You know quickly, quickly. And another great trait about your, your family, is you know like in some families it's like all right, we're going outdoors, be on your best behavior, like leave the home shit at home. And you know, you know there's fucking one neighbor level, it's that's it.
Speaker 1:But, with that being said, my kids are respectful. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, but we don't yeah but it's, it's, there's, there's no, when my daughter's when my daughter's walking around your house with a fucking turkey leg like she's the cave man, right God, fuck this shit.
Speaker 2:Right, I mean now again. And then Brandy's like, oh my God, like I'm sorry.
Speaker 1:I don't apologize for my children. Brandy very much apologize, right.
Speaker 2:She's like oh my God. I'm like no, no, no, this is fine, it's great. I'm like yeah, my only problem of this day is you invited yourself. That's my only. My only issue is you know, I had a day that I didn't have to deep fry a turkey until you invited yourself down here. And now I'm deep frying a turkey. No, and I, you know, I give her shit out of love as well. So, no, it was, you know, the whole time. She's like oh my God, you'll probably never want us here again. I'm like no that zero like.
Speaker 2:I'm all about genuine genuineness. So you know, whatever that, whatever that looks like, if you're genuine to yourself, I'm I'm all we are authentic. Most certainly, most certainly authentic.
Speaker 1:Because in the year oh, oh shit, September will be two, and the almost two years I've been in the chapter, almost every event, every interaction you've had with us, has been pretty on par.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, yeah, but but again, it would be different if red flags don't go up when you say bitch, when I say it it don't because I'm I don't say it right and so I'm not being genuine when I do say it. You know like I say listen all the time, so you know everybody, when I started story, people will be like listen listen, listen, listen, listen and and I believe I was doing it before old boy on TikTok, but it is what it is.
Speaker 2:I've been saying listen my whole fucking life and and until you guys pointed out, I didn't really know I did it and I didn't really know where it comes from. You talk to my mother for two seconds. She'll tell you exactly what to do, and listen is the first thing. I'm like motherfucker, like we're on the phone, and she's like listen. I'm like, um, what the fuck else you want me to do? Like we're talking on the phone, that's what people do. You know what I mean. And I'm like, oh my god, I turned into you guys while talking to my mother, the same way you guys talk about me. I'm like I fucking get it now. I fucking get it. Listen, listen. She's like listen. I'm like what the fuck else you want me to do? I'm like I'm listening, and then you have that epiphany.
Speaker 1:You're like, oh, I'm like fuck, I get it now I fucking get it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean yeah, it's again.
Speaker 1:It's you don't realize. You don't realize what's normal until it's not normal, and it doesn't take long for whatever it is to become habit, to become normal. Yeah.
Speaker 2:Well, how about this? The same way, bad habits become normal, right, and they become normal because you keep perpetuating that cycle. Good things, right. You know you can. You can be one of those guys out there that says good things, never happened to me. You could be like. You know, I would love, I would love to do this, but I would love for this to happen. But you know, fuck, make that shit happen.
Speaker 2:Don't give up trying to be happy because people around you are not making you happy. Go make your fucking self happy and then start introducing other people to your happy or your new normal. That's. That's some advice I can give. You know, I mean like, hey, you know people have reached out to me and was like hey, you know, I see, I see you on Facebook and I see things are doing. You know you're doing well, you're great, you're this, that and the other, and I'm like you know I have to. I have to caution people and be like you got to understand. On Facebook, people allow you to see what they want you to see. If they. They want you to see that they're happy and their life is fucking perfect. That's easy to project. You know, nobody, nobody, nobody. Everybody hates the person that gets on there and be like, oh my life, shit and this is why it's shit, and you know that's what I tell my dad that you want something to go to Facebook.
Speaker 1:I ain't giving you any.
Speaker 2:I mean the prayers, right, yeah, I mean. I mean um, yeah, I mean it. But people rarely say all right, this one. And you know, I have a conversation with Mike Callahan all the time he's like man, it seems like you're doing good. I'm like bro, um, the only thing I have done is move my baseline of mood up. So you know, um, the, the, instead of going from you know zero to a hundred right now, you know, or, or I used to walk around.
Speaker 2:I used to use the analogy, like you know, people, like man, you fly off the hook, right, you're like a walking time bomb, right, and and the time is always ticking with you. You know, that was the analogy. My, my ex-wife used to say, and, and after I left, in a rational moment, I'm like you know what, you're right, and it would take me no time flat to get fucking pissed off. And then it took me hours to de-escalate being pissed off. And you know, um, now it don't take me, it don't. It takes me longer to get pissed off because where, you know where, I was walking around at a 30 and or or 60, and it was easy to get to 100 from there. Now I'm walking around at a 10 or 20, right Um well, and that's when Brady and I.
Speaker 1:So I have a lot of baggage from my first marriage. So when Brandy and I got together, um, I would, I would stay pissed for days. She would stay pissed for hours, right? So you know, clearly. You know, because I used to be real high strung and shit. Now she stays pissed for hours she's not changed. But I don't stay pissed for days, I stay pissed for minutes. And now I look like the one who's got my shit together a little bit better, because and it and that makes her even more irritated because she's never changed her anger Um, but because I've gotten a better control of, like you said, I, I, you know, I tell everybody I'm a bottle rocket.
Speaker 1:I shoot up real fast, I throw up some pretty colors and then I'm done Like I don't, I don't stay again, part of that's therapy, part of that's medication. Uh, another thing I tell everybody is I spent so much time in Iraq and Afghanistan, whether I was active or as a contractor, no matter how mad I got about something, it wasn't going to change it. So you just kind of learn to. You know, embrace the suck, roll with the punches, Just if. If I have no, and I tell my dad to some brainail time, cause they stress about everything if you can't control it, who fucking cares?
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:You know I I recently, you know, had a um, a cancer scare, you know, with that nodule they found on my thyroid. And Brandy and my dad are stressing the fuck out about it and I'm like, if it is, they take my thyroid and I take Synthroy the rest of my life. If it ain't, fuck it, it ain't no big deal, like there's no reason to stress and lose your mind over it. It either is or it isn't, and if it is, this is what's going to happen. You know. Luckily it came back. It was benign, no big deal, um, and Brandy and my dad had a huge weight lifted off and and I felt better too. But if it would have come back cancer, they would have just taken my thyroid. You know what I mean. Like it, there was nothing I could do about it at that point. It's not like I did something to get that Right, you know so.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and just again, I mean.
Speaker 1:And I and I, I told Brandy, I said, just so you know if this does come back, um, we're not going to be on Facebook telling everybody because I'm not going to be that guy that cries all the time because he's got cancer, cause and that what Steve asked me. See, you're going to be that motherfucker bitches all the time, cause you got cancer.
Speaker 2:Yeah, the look she gave me after I fucking said that.
Speaker 1:And I'm like again, I thought it was hilarious.
Speaker 2:I mean cause. You know it comes from a place of love.
Speaker 1:I'm not stressing about it, right, she's like freak the fuck out. I honestly think she's freaked the fuck out, cause if something happens to me, she's going to have to take care of herself, right, I mean that's valid and I don't mean money wise.
Speaker 2:But yeah, man, the look she gave me. You pissed her off.
Speaker 1:You hit one of those raw nerves.
Speaker 2:I guess. I guess I can't joke about cancer too soon.
Speaker 1:Right, Like the peewee Herman. The word of the day did.
Speaker 2:Fuck Jesus Christ.
Speaker 1:But yeah, it's, it's, you know you, just you know it's. It's. It's not a matter of getting your shit together. It's a matter of adjusting how you interact with the world, yeah, and how you allow the world to interact with you, yes.
Speaker 2:Very. You know it's in that I've done. I've done a lot of that. I've done a lot of, you know, limiting interaction. You know I do a lot of things but I do. You know we, we go places and, uh, fundraise and you know, uh, that should be like hey, why don't you go talk to that table over there? I'm like, cause I don't want to talk to anybody at that table, she's got great ideas, super great, and in theory they would be.
Speaker 1:They're, they're amazing. In practice, though, we're not those.
Speaker 2:Right, right, I'm like you know. No, no, I'm not going to like I'm going to hold it. My part of this puzzle is I'm going to hold a sign over here that says if you want to win $10,000, come get a ticket. You get off your ass, bring your ass over here and you come get a ticket.
Speaker 1:But that's what we say all the time is that you need to take responsibility for yourself, right? Unfortunately, when it comes to fundraising, it's less about hey, come on over, and more of bring your ass. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:And you know, like my part of this relationship is um August 19th, I'm gonna pull tickets out of the tumbler and if your name gets picked, I'm the. Then call you and then I'm going to deliver however much you want. That's my part. The least you can fucking do is come meet me over here, and you know buy a ticket but the ladies did great that night. So I sat there and drank and drank, and drank some more, and drank some more.
Speaker 1:So you were talking earlier about some of our guys that were talking about not wanting to go to crowds. That used to be me. Right Therapy taught me that I need to do things that I'm not comfortable with, not because I need to torture myself, but because I need to train my brain to understand that it's okay to do those things.
Speaker 2:And sometimes, sometimes, you do not go to places, you restrict yourself because of the what ifs. What if this happens? What if that happens? What if that happens? What if that happens? You know, and the what ifs keep you. If I sit here on my couch in my underwear, none of that, nobody can get to me, None of you know. I won't hear nothing triggering, I won't do nothing triggering you know, whiskey and underwear is a great armor. All, most certainly, and I wore, I wore the shit out of it.
Speaker 1:But so to go to crowds, I, you have to take those baby steps, and for me it was Brandy, because she knows me better than anybody she knows.
Speaker 2:Oh, I thought you were gonna say her little feet, but go ahead.
Speaker 1:Yeah, speak, I'll tell you a story about that just a second from Roe King the other day. But she could navigate me. You know, we went to a Brown's game and I was super, super nervous about going and the worst part was leaving the stadium with all those motherfucking people. But she was able to, without making it blatantly obvious, guide me through the crowd and over to the far side, away from the thick of it, and and I was good. And each subsequent time she takes me out and because she is the one that forces me to go to these things, each subsequent time we do it, things get a little more tolerable and a little more tolerable and a little more tolerable. And I think that you know the guys that say they can't do a crowd or they can't do this or they can't do that. I think if they were at a point where they could do it and baby steps, they would find that they can tolerate it. It's just you have to figure, you know, figure that transition out to what would be normal again.
Speaker 2:So I think it comes down to what. What do you think the worst thing? All right, so I've never been, um, I've never been a big crowds. Do something to me, person, right? Right, it's not the crowd itself, it's the people inside the crowd, right? So just what? What does that mean? Well, like, inadvertently, someone's going to say something or do something to fucking irritate me.
Speaker 1:Yeah, see, that's not what it is for me.
Speaker 2:That, but that's what it is for me, Right? It's like I could go somewhere where there's a million fucking people. If a million fucking people don't say anything to me, I'm a hundred percent for you can go somewhere where there's five people. Yes, and if five people are like, hey, you know I'm like, oh, get the fuck away from me.
Speaker 1:And I mean like oh, um, for me it's, it's the um, it was the anxiety of the sheer amount of, because I? I'm a person who's historically been a homebody, right Um. You add in the you know I don't manage everyday stress. Now you're taking a person who doesn't. You know, I'm not on the introvert level like Sarge is right, but I'm a person who doesn't like to be around, you know, to go out and do things and do all that that's stressful for me. Now you add in the fact that I can't handle everyday stress, and now you're going to put that type of stress on me.
Speaker 2:I'll lose my fucking mind, right.
Speaker 1:I'd have full blown panic attack.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean, but that's what I'm saying, like, um, I, I would go to like at the height of my what we are called sickness, the height of my, the, the bowling point of all my troubles. Uh, I go to concerts. I had I didn't have a problem, um, didn't have, like, I didn't be like, uh, I'm going to go to this concert and you know, but what I found when I was going to concerts, you know, uh, depending on the concerts, again, go to country concert, went to, um, uh, florida, georgia, florida, georgia, line, right, um, um, and and people act a certain way and usually when they they're drunk, their inhibitions go down and they want to fucking. You know, um, say some shit and you know that, that. But I've learned. You know, if somebody calls me an asshole, I mean they don't fucking know me, but you're spot on, and I mean like I shouldn't get offended that you call me an asshole, but you know, you don't fucking know me.
Speaker 1:So if you know me and you call me an asshole, okay, yeah, you spend facts. Yeah. If you don't know me and you call me an asshole, you just trying to be a dickhead. Pretty good, yes, yeah, pretty good. Yes, you're being an asshole by calling me an asshole.
Speaker 2:Right and uh so yeah, like I've been in, I've been in bars, and you know my mood would change and people be like is it time to go?
Speaker 2:Like you fucking stay, I'm fucking leaving, um you know I, you know I talked about the situation with the the thing at Chrissy's birthday party. You know, I didn't have a problem going to that bar, but someone is going to make it a problem for me Then you know, now I'm going to have to punch you in the face and then I'm going to have to feel a certain way about that, um, but yeah, that that large crowds ain't a big problem, like you know, uh, at the concert Saturday, you know you take the mirror with you. He's fucking talking to everybody, um, and that's his personality and and I mean that's just what he does. Yeah, you know, even even when the people are behind us or like we're from Ohio, where are you from? And I'm like, uh, zanesville.
Speaker 1:I don't know where that is.
Speaker 2:Where is it? In Ohio? Like you know, like you, you're, like, you're like that too, like um on deployment, you know, you're, you're, you'll fucking, you'll fucking lay it out for people. Be like.
Speaker 1:Hey, yeah, we left.
Speaker 2:Ohio on.
Speaker 1:Friday Certain, certain people and in certain scenarios I I can just gab with somebody and then other people and other scenarios I don't want to talk to fuck nobody. Yeah, and and I'm kind of in between you and Bobby.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and which you know you're sitting there the other year, but this year you get to ride through Appalachia, a part of Ohio. Most people you know rarely see the twisties, the you know the, the switchbacks, the you know. You get in Ohio. You get on a route. If it has a triple digit, stay on it, bro, cause every three, every three number road over here is worth riding.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you know, the triple nickel gets all the glamour and the glitz, but there's a whole lot of triple digit nut roads that are real nice.
Speaker 2:They're real nice. And then you know we have. We have a lot of, you know, a lot of good auction items. But we usually, usually we have some big ticket items. You know we have. You get a chance that last year we had a guitar signed by Hank Williams. You know what I mean. We, we get. We'll have some bottles of bottles of liquor. You know that are not relatively easy to find where we're at. You know we've. We've in our travels, yeah, in our travels out. Yeah, we got one this year from, from Colorado. I mean so in our travels, that that's what we do. So, um, yeah, I mean it's, it's just so you get a good ride, you get a good meal. Um, our DJ, um, hits it out of the park every year.
Speaker 1:Um, again donates his time.
Speaker 2:Yep Donates his time. All I have to do is open a tab for him and uh, he, uh, he's all about it. Um, yeah, I mean it's, it's um, clayton's a good dude, um, so, yeah, I mean it's it's. You know he even he'll go as far to come down to um. You know the VFW, you know usually where we had in years past and he'll check. There's a way you can check the most played songs on the jukebox or whatever they have. They ain't a jukebox anymore. It's more automated than that.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's like a big ass fucking iTunes console or whatever.
Speaker 2:So he's able, he's able to tap into that and see, you know, the playlist that people like in there and that's what he plays. You know, I mean that's fucking, that's pretty cool. You know what I mean. So I mean he does his due diligence and we and we appreciate him coming out, Um, but yeah, I mean it's, and we're 22 people. Yeah, we're not a big chapter and it's 22, 22 people right there. Um that, that put it together. It's, it's a strong 10 and uh, their spouses and then couple individuals.
Speaker 1:Well, I mean Saturday, when Gunny was like you gave how much, yeah, and you're how big.
Speaker 2:So I mean yeah, but that's what we're doing this year. Um, we're doing a cash bash, Um, oh, we're doing a shameless plug. Yeah, most fucking certainly. Uh, this year we're going to cash bash. We're at the uh Cambridge Eagles from uh 9am to, you know, probably 4pm we'll be in there. But, um, yeah, get there early, uh, register chance to win a hundred bucks?
Speaker 2:Yeah, Just by registering just by registering, pay that $20. You get a chance to win a hundred bucks back. Um, we're drawing five, that's. Um, we're drawing that five times. So we're giving away $500 there. And then when you get in the door, um, you know, again we have door prizes. Um, you'll get a meal from grilling, grilling and chilling Dave style here in Zanesville Ohio.
Speaker 1:We won't be doing the open spit because of the logistics of where we're going to be doing it, right, but we're still going to give you some damn good food.
Speaker 2:We're going to give you some damn good. You're going to have three different meats, three different sides, um, all the sauces and all that. We're going to provide that for you. Um, dj will be there, clinton will be there playing again, and then, uh, every 15 minutes, starting at 11 o'clock, we're going to give away money. Yeah, and every hour on the hour is the thousand dollar drawing and it'll go a thousand dollars, it'll go 125, um, and then it'll go 500, and then it'll go 250, $1,000, $125, $500, $250, $1,000, all the way up to three o'clock, and at three o'clock we're giving away um $2,500. And oh, by the way, at any time during there your ticket gets pulled. We throw it back in, so you can win the thousand dollars at 11 and you can win the 2,500 at three. Off of one ticket, off of one ticket, and we have tickets left. Yeah, go to CVMA126.com to get your tickets.
Speaker 1:Um, it's $25 a ticket. You know you spend $25 on dumber shit.
Speaker 2:Right, and, and you're getting four times. The least you can win is four times the amount you spent on that ticket. Yep, right, we're giving you a hundred plus your 25 back. Yeah, so come on, people, 25 bucks gets you 17 chances to win you don't have you don't have to be there, you don't have to be present to win, but we encourage you to come down.
Speaker 1:It's a damn good party. Well, the big thing too is is like I've told, like last year when we were, when we were raffling off the bike and people would say stuff, I'm like you've spent money on dumber shit and oh, by the way, if well, because people would say, well, I never win anything, okay, then don't. Don't do it because you might win something. Do it because you want to give 25 bucks to a veteran's organization, because that's where the money's going.
Speaker 2:That's it.
Speaker 1:And, and we're paying we're giving away 10 grand, regardless of we sell one ticket or all thousand tickets, we're forking out the money for the 10 grand. The money you're giving us is going to our charities. So I mean we're eating the 10 regardless, you know. So give money to a charity. Oh, by the way, you're donating 25 bucks to a charity, but we're giving you a chance, 17 chances to win some fucking money. So it's it's not even like it's selfless donation. There's opportunity there for you to benefit greatly from it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, and I think that's. I think that goes back to the very first question why do we not give to our communities without getting some type of benefit in return? And I don't know if it's always been that way, because that's not the environment that I grew up in, you know. So I maybe I have this romanticized vision of previous generations giving to their communities to make things better, or maybe I'm a hundred percent right, I don't know. I'm just saying that, growing up the way I grew up and the way I was raised, and all that jazz, you didn't have to put on your Sunday best to be a contributing member to society.
Speaker 2:And and motorcyclists are some of the most giving people out there. Yeah, you know, I guess, you know, I guess when we're out in our vests, people automatically assume we're an MC. We're not.
Speaker 1:But even then, even even the most hardcore motorcycle club right and I'm not going to label them whatever, just what they claim to be, the hardcore motorcycle clubs they still give charity. Oh yeah, you know what I mean. Like like you can see all of the gangland episodes you want to see, but those organizations still do charitable work. And I think it goes back to what we say all the time when we're riding and we're looking at, we're like this is why we served. When we're riding, I think we get that same. We have that appreciation that when we're riding, the opportunity, the the paying 25 bucks to register for somebody's poker ride, for them to give money to a charity, is the least we could pay to be able to ride what we ride.
Speaker 2:I've given 100 just by fucking up names. I would scratch them out, put their name on a ride ticket and then buy those, you know. But yeah, I mean you know it's and you know, like last year we tried to give away a lot of money last year and people gave it back because that's what they do. Yeah, and I mean and that's, and that's why there's still.
Speaker 1:there's still, like I said in the beginning, not everybody fits the mold of what we've been negatively talking about. There is an overwhelming majority of people that still believe in giving of their time, giving of their money, you, you.