These past 20 weeks have been a profound journey. Our hearts are filled with gratitude for the support from you, our listeners, as we've shared tales of adversity, resilience, and transformation. There's an undeniable power in connection and self-awareness, and we've seen how these forces can bring about change. Together, we've explored the trials of trauma, the strength it takes to face one's reflection and the courage required to decide it's time for change.
We've looked deeply into the power of love and kindness, and how they can sometimes be the only thing standing between a person and their darkest moments. As veterans ourselves, we've shared personal stories of overcoming trauma, embracing self-awareness, and recognizing when it's time for change. We've seen firsthand how a single event can ripple out, impacting not just an individual, but those around them. Our candid discussions about relationships, parenting, and personal growth have underscored the importance of connection and the power it holds.
In the end, it's not just about surviving; it's about living and thriving. We've laughed and learned through our many adventures and challenges, embracing the lessons they've brought us. The joy of riding motorcycles, the fulfillment of charity work, and the importance of spending time with family – these are just some of the experiences that have enriched our lives. Thank you for embracing this journey with us. Now, as we prepare for the upcoming changes to our podcast, we look forward to continuing to share, learn, and grow together.
These past 20 weeks have been a profound journey. Our hearts are filled with gratitude for the support from you, our listeners, as we've shared tales of adversity, resilience, and transformation. There's an undeniable power in connection and self-awareness, and we've seen how these forces can bring about change. Together, we've explored the trials of trauma, the strength it takes to face one's reflection and the courage required to decide it's time for change.
We've looked deeply into the power of love and kindness, and how they can sometimes be the only thing standing between a person and their darkest moments. As veterans ourselves, we've shared personal stories of overcoming trauma, embracing self-awareness, and recognizing when it's time for change. We've seen firsthand how a single event can ripple out, impacting not just an individual, but those around them. Our candid discussions about relationships, parenting, and personal growth have underscored the importance of connection and the power it holds.
In the end, it's not just about surviving; it's about living and thriving. We've laughed and learned through our many adventures and challenges, embracing the lessons they've brought us. The joy of riding motorcycles, the fulfillment of charity work, and the importance of spending time with family – these are just some of the experiences that have enriched our lives. Thank you for embracing this journey with us. Now, as we prepare for the upcoming changes to our podcast, we look forward to continuing to share, learn, and grow together.
All right, episode 20 season finale first season. I just asked you if we hit the button, Did you think we'd make it to 20?
Speaker 2:Right, and I said, uh, I said no. And short answer no, uh, long, long answer was uh, we, we'd listen. You know we pre-recorded several episodes, uh, four or five before it dropped in April, uh, when we went on our trip to the Bahamas and we, you know, we went down to Florida, um, on the way, on a way back, we're uh listening and uh, I didn't think, I, I didn't think we should uh drop this thing at all uh because of my brain.
Speaker 2:My brain stutter, my um inability to finish sentences, my Um and you know, right so uh, yeah, so finish your fucking sentence.
Speaker 2:Finish your fucking sentence. Okay, uh, I heard it. I heard me not doing it and uh, so I hope, in you know 20 episodes, uh, or the the sub subsequent 16 episodes, that the ums were a little less and like, like, we told you upfront, we're not going to do a whole lot of editing, we're not. We're not going to sit in a dark room for hours and chop things up and make it sound um more appealing to your ears. You embrace this suck. You chose to push play on fucking whatever platform you listen to us on. So embrace that shit.
Speaker 1:And uh, we appreciate you embracing the sun.
Speaker 2:We, we, yeah, we appreciate the hell out of you Um enduring, uh, the last 20 weeks with us.
Speaker 1:Yeah, we uh. When we started this, the goal was to uh, basically have group therapy with just the two of us and maybe some of our friends, and if we helped one guy, one vet sorry, one veteran guy or gal we helped one veteran this motherfucker, this 20th episode.
Speaker 2:dog, shut the fuck up.
Speaker 1:Grand grand finale, bro Lay down, man, and so, um, again, you even get to hear bearer and his contributions to the cause. Um, but you know, help one veteran. That was our goal. Uh, we weren't trying to make money and we did not. We lost a metric shit ton of it this month this year. You know it's kind of expensive to put one of these together and pseudo sound decent, um, but it was worth every penny. We spent every penny, Um, cause we got a lot out of it. The guys that we had on you know they got a lot out of it and we've heard from dozens of you guys, um, and the positive things that you've gotten out of it. So that was worth every dime and equipment. We spent every dime in, uh, services and stuff. It was worth it all because every time we got told by a veteran or a spouse, hey, I listened to the episode, this is what it did for me.
Speaker 2:That made everything worth it, Right, yeah, and we we got zero negative feedback. Um, which kind of disappointed I was. My sums were prepared to uh finger fuck a keypad, to uh mother, fuck somebody back and no one did that. So I appreciate it, um, but yeah, it absolutely.
Speaker 2:Um, I have um previous soldiers of mine. They they listen um and uh, you know the Callahans and the Owens and you know they they listen um religiously and uh, you know they give me some feedback. They give me post show feedback and the Hobbs can't forget Hobbs down there. Um, he always, every time I post um on Facebook, uh, the little thumb thumbnail, he always shares it and and says this guy has a plethora of knowledge. My guy Hobbs, um, so we we appreciate, we appreciate you guys, Um, and you know it's. You know it's. It's one of those things where, um, you're bonded by service and you know, through the years you lose touch and um, it's nice that something brings you back in the fold with each other and now that we're all civilians and there's no rank and there's no, you know um uh it's just one swinging dick to another, right.
Speaker 2:It's, it's just guys, you know, shoot, shooting people um with the truth.
Speaker 1:So then we've. We've been at events where people have come up and been like are you one of the podcast guys? Um, or like the one we did up at, uh, uh, the Memorial ride, we did up at 12, three for Bondo and uh, what's his name? Mac? Yeah, he comes up and he's like I almost wrecked my fucking bike. He's like he's like when you told that story, I almost wrecked my fucking bike. It goes on Laughin's a damn hard.
Speaker 2:So, yeah, listen, listen, listen to us at your own risk, at your own risk. But yeah, I mean, you know, we, we try to tell um, try to tell stories and and the great thing about military service is it's all relatable, it's all um. You know, you can, you can put yourself in that scenario, in that um place. You, you know, and um, the thing I like to do, I like to put as much details and things into the stories I tell, so that I paint the, the, I paint the picture um as vividly as I can.
Speaker 2:So, um, again, you know, throughout, throughout the um, throughout the stories and throughout the um, the things we talk about, we, we try to throw some, some uh things you will put in your toolbox, some knowledge, and uh, take with you and use. You know, um, not only you can use, but your spouse can use, caregivers can use, you know it's. It's because we, we don't want to lose another veteran, um, one, one veteran a day is too many and we don't want to lose another one. And uh, you know, if, if you take nothing away, just understand, whatever you're going through, um, you know that too shall pass. Oh, throwback, you know that too shall pass.
Speaker 2:And um, you know, I think that's the, the, the the, the, the, the, the the that too shall pass, and I know, sean knows, um, that when you're in the midst of it, you know it's hard to think that this moment I'm in right now is is going to pass. Everybody feels like it's a forever thing, everything. But it's not. You know it's not going to pass and if you do something in that moment to to stop living, the likelihood of it passing stops a hundred percent. Right Like you getting through something. Hey, it's going to be, it's going to be a good day. But living gives you the best chance to get through that shit. We grow through what we go through. Another nugget, god damn it. Oh shit, look at that Um. So yeah, it's, it's.
Speaker 2:You know we talked, we talked early on about me and Sean struggles with anxiety and depression and you know, uh, post traumatic stress and traumatic brain injury, and you know our physical ailments that we deal with, that we battle with on a daily basis and we got away from it, um, in later episodes because you know it's our new normal and we talked about that. It's our new normal. So you know we don't need to harp on it. I don't. I don't need to constantly remind myself I have depression.
Speaker 1:It it'll, it'll remind me, and I think the other thing, too you and I talked about was we wanted to give people, um, the positive side of it too, instead of just harping on all the negative, dark aspects of life. Um, you know, here's shit that you can laugh at, here's shit you can have fun at. You know it's called whiskey, wheels and wounds. Well, we don't always have to talk about the wounds. A lot of times let's talk about the wheels, right, and you know cause that's a huge part of our life now. And you know, like I, that thing I shared today, um, where I was like, uh, fuck, let me pull out real fast.
Speaker 1:So I don't miss quote, cause you know we're notorious for that shit. It's amazing the great, uh, the number of great people in my life that I wouldn't have ever met if I, if it wasn't for motorcycles. Motorcycles changed my life because it got me to this chapter, and by getting to this chapter, I met you and and I know that we have talked about it the impact that we have had on each other's lives? Most certainly. Yeah, 20 episodes later, look at it.
Speaker 2:20 episodes later, um, and yeah, and, and you, know the other people in the chapter, you know, so why?
Speaker 1:wouldn't we talk about the things that make our life better, that help us deal with the dark parts of our life, that help us get through it? Because if all you hear us talking about is all of the bad shit, all of the dark shit, and you're not looking at the other side of it, then you're really going to think am I really going to get through this? Right Now, that permanent solution to the temporary problem looks more promising, because these guys are. All they're talking about is the bad shit and they're never telling me what's on the other side. Yeah, so we started out. You know, survivors, guilt, self-isolation Um, what else? Self-sabotaging. You know we talked about a lot of dark shit in the beginning. Yep, who the fuck was listening to 20 episodes of dark shit? Right, you know I'm not going to be talking about the bad shit. Listen to 20 episodes of dark shit right you know.
Speaker 1:Then we started talking about in ripple effects.
Speaker 1:We talked about the impact the wives have, yeah, um, then we went into the alpha with cornbread, yeah, and, and that got pretty dark, yeah, but like any good story, you get through the dark and everything that happened to cornbread and then you get to talk about Erica getting on the other side, the happiness he has in his life. Now you know the things that you know. He is where he's at in his life. We should all want to be where he's at in his life. Um, we talked about abandonment. We got a little dark again. Then we talked about something that was really important to me. That was 10 grand Right Wheels. You know again. You know we talk a lot about the leisure of motorcycles because that's the bond that we started with, you know, and that's huge and and you know, and it might turn people off and might have turned people off.
Speaker 2:However, if you can look at things through the lens of the metaphor, wheels was meant to be right, we told you. You know if you're a jeeper, if you're, you know if you're a kayaker, if you're a mountain biker, whatever your thing is, um, do that, do that. And if you can do, if you can sit here and talk about your passion as passionately as we talk about our passion, then you're on the right fucking track Yep.
Speaker 1:And if you don't know what your passion is, maybe listening to somebody talk about what's their passion, you might be like, uh, I never really thought about that. Yeah, maybe I should look into something like that.
Speaker 2:You know, um, yeah, like what you know, I talked to a lot of people that I talked to people that tell me they're suicidal. Right, like, hey, I thought about, you know, killing myself, and you know I was in a dark area and and, but I don't know, getting on a motorcycle is dangerous, what the fuck. You're right, because I don't want you being suicidal on a fucking motorcycle anywhere near me because I'm out of my dark phase. So I'm in, I'm in no rush to die right now. Yeah, I can't even leave.
Speaker 1:The light gets turned off on us, but we usually find our way to the switch. Yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, and it does go dark on us, but it don't stay dark as much as it did, because we're not perpetuating the darkness. Yeah, you know what I mean. Um, you know, we allow people to come around us and turn lights on, like like your mommy, like your mommy used to do when you were sitting in your room, and she comes in to talk to you but she can't see it, so she's turning light and you're like mom, what are you doing?
Speaker 1:Why are you sitting in your room with the lights off Right?
Speaker 2:That you have to allow people to come in and turn your lights on Right, and when you're sitting on your couch and you're fucking draws, you're not allowing people to come around and turn your lights on.
Speaker 1:Brandy turns my light on there. Chrissy and a hot year life, and turn your light on in a hot, sexy way. Yeah, and a hot Eric. I came into cornbread's life Exactly, so it is light on right.
Speaker 2:So you know and you can go down the list, you can go down the list of the people sitting at this table with us throughout these episodes and they could tell you about their significant others, you know, and what they were willing to put up with and willing to not put what put up with anymore. So, yeah, I mean it's you have to be willing To allow someone to turn that light on for you and and then, once that light is on, you then have to be willing to face the things you can now see in plain sight, looking in the mirror is rough, right, you know what I mean.
Speaker 2:So when you turn the light on when you're not in the darkness. No more. You know, some some people find I was one of them find comfort in the darkness. I can't see my warts, I can't see all the. I can't see all the bad things that's making my life ugly right now. So what I'm going to do is I'm going to sit in this dark spot and then I'm going to get inebriated to the point where I'm unconscious, because then I'm blind to what's going on.
Speaker 1:And then tomorrow I'm going to see the light.
Speaker 2:And then tomorrow I'm going to do the same thing and the problems will. The problems will always be there until you address those motherfuckers. Yep, your, your, your situation is not going to change until you change your situation. Oh, that sounds simple enough. You know, I was in a marriage for 25 years and you know it started out, um, it started out very, uh, confrontational right, and then that confrontation grew into toxic and I I remained in a toxic relationship that I contributed in, right 100%.
Speaker 1:you were waving red flags, she was waving red flags. Neither one of you wanted to observe the red flags that I contributed in.
Speaker 2:But it got to a point where I'm like I am not going to get any better living in a situation that is so toxic. Until I remove myself from this situation, I'm not going to get any better. And then, as soon as I did Things, things got worse before they got better.
Speaker 1:You know, uh, arrested in my, my fucking yard, um you know, but you sat at the table that day thinking about putting that pistol in your mouth, right, if you would have pulled that trigger, yes, you wouldn't be where you're at, right, you know, living sucks, yeah, living's hard, yeah, yeah, but the only way you're going to Living's, the only way you get to live, I guess is the way I'm trying to say that you know, and and that day I don't know, you know, I don't know the percentages of what was the percent of if I don't pull the trigger right now, I'm going to be a happy man in three years.
Speaker 2:Well, you know, I would say it would be very low. Yeah, and I bet you know, unknowingly, because I wasn't. You know I wasn't betting on my happiness, not killing myself that night. I was. I didn't kill myself that night because of the few people around me who love me enough to not put them through it. They're not put them through it and that's and that's what I tell all these families that I talk to when they're like. You know what I have. I have a veteran. He's struggling. What can I do? I said you put your arms around him or her every time, every chance you get, and you make him or her think of you in that final second. If you're the reason they don't do that in the final second, you ain't got to worry about them ever. You know what I mean.
Speaker 1:You want to be the reason they don't pull it, not the reason they do.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and there's a lot of motherfuckers out there that that swing on that side of the fence too.
Speaker 1:you know when again cornbread story about his, his wife, right Before Erica right.
Speaker 2:Yeah. So there's a lot of motherfuckers out there and I tell you this like my ex-wife, she used to tell story, you know, she used to tell people. You know, if a nuclear bomb hit, the only thing that would survive would be cockroaches and my husband, meaning that nothing hurt me Like she. So she was so fucking spiteful she would say the most damaging shit, and but with with the pretense of it ain't, it ain't hurt me, because you never showed the hurt, right.
Speaker 1:Um what inside it was? It was violently tearing you apart.
Speaker 2:Right, you know she's, yeah, and um, things like I wish, I wish he wasn't your daughter. I, you know things, um, things like that. Um bears just having an off day today. Yeah, it's raining, raining outside and he's just having an off day, so excuse, bear, for him interrupting Uh, but yeah, I mean just, you know I've been sitting here and like we you know me and Sean talked about early on I can come up with probably 10 stories, an episode of fuck that broad.
Speaker 2:You know what I mean, and but it ain't, you know I don't, I don't hold that contempt for anymore and and that's gross in itself.
Speaker 2:You know I tell people all the time, like in in those dark areas, those dark times, I drove um, sometimes an hour, uh, from where I lived to where they lived. And you know um, when I, when I made throughout my military career, you know, uh, health professionals would be, you know you feel like hurting yourself and my, my response to them was I will be homicidal long before I'm suicidal. And, and I said that tongue in cheek in in, you know um, but I tell you, you know I would sit on my couch. I would sit on my couch some nights and I would think you know I have, I have hurt people for less. And um, and when, when you say, you know I've mentioned before, I can't, I can't take no more, I can't take no more shit in my bucket, and then an email will come in and I say fuck it. And so I, I did it in my truck and I would, I would head west and, um, you know, I was going to, uh, hurt the person who hurt me.
Speaker 1:You were getting ready to be homicidal than suicidal Right.
Speaker 2:Now I, I would say that that happened on three different occasions and I went um to, I went farther each time. So, um, yeah, but never the closest I ever came was getting off the exit of their town. And um, and then, you know I, get off the exit, get right back on, you know 70 and head east. And you know I, I've always had a innate ability to, you know, think clearly in the most hectic six situations. And and um, you know when, when things are the most chaotic, that's when I had the most patience, that's when I had the most presence, that's when I, you know um.
Speaker 1:I was a training to be a leader and I was a leader in a combat MOS.
Speaker 2:Right. But yes, and, and you know it's, it's in that in those chaotic times when things you hear quarterbacks say the game slowed down, you know it's, it's like that. No, the more the more chaotic things are, the more things slowed down for me and the easier it was to think through the issue. So, you know, even even in my rage and these times that I'm I'm driving west, I'm in rage, you know, I'm getting in my truck, I'm driving and I'm going to hurt not just my ex-wife but her family, um, and then I'm like you know what? And ultimately, ultimately, making them right, becoming the person that they have told everyone else I am, is the reason why I didn't.
Speaker 2:You know, and you know Chrissy no, chrissy has known me for five years and I've told her in-depth the, the complete layout of my 25 year marriage to nausea. Like she's, like, okay, I get it Right. Like you were a horrible person, I got it. Um, and you know she she'll say all the time she's like if, if that is your nature, I would have saw it, but you know what I mean. Like, um, she's like, I think some of that is what they say you are and some of that is what you perceived you were, but I had. I ain't seen none of that.
Speaker 1:It was. It's like nature versus nurture, but in a fucked up way.
Speaker 2:Right and she's like I ain't, I ain't seen you just having a day bro, just come storming through the door fucking big dick energy like fucking bitches.
Speaker 2:You just having a day, bro, um, but, yeah, I mean the percentage, that percentage of what my life could be. Now I will. I will tell you this I have not spoke to my kids since, um, july 3rd 2017. And, um, I'm not complete. I'm not whole. I'm not. You know the the. However, I allow myself now to have fun, to um, enjoy my life, um, I, I allow myself that now because my kids are adults. They have the ability to make their own decisions. Um, as a father, as their father, I have to respect the decisions they make and uh, yeah, I hope to God one day. You know, uh, we have this. You know rekindlement, uh, some sort of relationship, but you know, as of right now, nothing, yeah, um, but you know making those treks West.
Speaker 1:If you would have executed one of those plans right, you would never have a relationship with your daughters. And again that that's part of the thought process Right.
Speaker 2:Um, I don't, I don't, I don't, I don't, I don't, I don't, I don't, I don't, I don't want them to choose me by subtraction.
Speaker 1:You know what.
Speaker 2:I mean Like um well, I'm the only family, I'm the only family they got left. No, like I want, because they wouldn't choose you. No, most certainly not, the resentment would be lifelong lifelong Um, but I hear so many stories about I mean yourself, right. I hear so many stories about, you know, hard childhoods and then losing, losing touch, and then coming back and finding a new um, a new perspective on their, their parents, that they were at one time they strained a strange to man.
Speaker 1:It gives me, um so much hope, so what? What would be really nice is if someone showed them this podcast and then they could hear from your mouth these are all the things I did wrong. Right, I understand I did these things wrong. I'm different and I hope one day I have the chance to show them. I'm different, yeah.
Speaker 2:And I mean, you know it's, it's. I hold zero animosity to either of my kids. None, not a blip on the radar. Um, I would give either one of my kids the beating heart out of my chest right fucking now, right now, um, even though it would 100% in my happiness, right Cause, effectively no heart. No, you know what I mean, but I would, because I think, as a you know, I thought that way when things were good between us. You know, if anything ever happened, I would you know, I would you know. Uh, john Q, that shit, you're their dad, I'm their dad, and and I would give them the beating heart out of my chest today, today, um, today, um, so, yeah, no, I, and again, through that growth, I have zero. I don't allow their mother to to own any space in my brain cavity group. Um, yes, I talk about her a lot. However it's, it's in the sense of learning, um, it's a part of who you are. Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1:And how you got to where you're at I mean it was 25 years.
Speaker 2:I mean September of this year would be 30 years. We would, we would be married, right, and I mean, fuck, that's for a young man like me, that's fucking everything. That's a 30. Yeah.
Speaker 1:Well, I mean it's you know, it's the things that we go through, that shape who we are and how we get to where we're at.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you know with.
Speaker 1:Without that toxic marriage, without the things that happened, you wouldn't have got to where you got, at that very bottom Right, and you wouldn't have been able to start growing and getting to your happiness, to be able to get where you're at now, because I'm pretty sure that Chrissy adds so much more to your life. Oh, most certainly, yeah. So, and Nova, oh yeah, we can't forget Nova, and it's kind of hard to forget Nova and Nova, yeah.
Speaker 2:But right, I mean, and to you know, like I've said before to to get to a point where you're like you know, like early on, I don't deserve this, I don't, I don't deserve someone to treat me with unconditional love and support, and yeah, I don't, I don't deserve that. And all by the way, it's too quiet around here, you know what I mean. Like we're not talking in octave 10. Yeah, we're not screaming at each other, we're not Calling each other fucking names and shit that whole basic fucking human rights decency. Yeah, Dignity respect.
Speaker 2:Yeah, what? What are you talking about? Yeah, I mean, you know, and again, early on, I tried to fuck that up, because when you don't think you're worthy, you don't think I was. I was comfortable in my sorrow, that was my thing. I tell Chris. I tell Chrissy all the time she's like, oh, my shoulder hurts. I'm like, hey, being broke is my thing, I'm fucked up. You find your own thing, find your own thing you know and and and.
Speaker 1:Like I said, with my first marriage I had so much baggage I was going to be the worst version of myself, and if she still wanted to stay around, then that means she really loved me. Right? It's fucking stupid, right, but you know? And what? What do you tell your doctors all the time? The rational brain understands what you're saying, yeah, but the irrational brain thinks that ideas like that make sense, yeah. Yeah. Now the rational brain looks back 23 years. We've been married. Really dummy, like, really Did you have to push things that far to prove that she loved you? Yeah, like you know, there there are many of times I think back and I'm like man, I need to go back and wit my own ass.
Speaker 2:Most certainly. But again, it took going through that, it took having to sit down, come to Jesus, having an agreement between the two. Hey, this is what we're going to do. We ain't going to fucking, you know, throw this back in each other's face anymore. And and if, if we go forward from this point on, it's always, for it's never, you know.
Speaker 1:So you know that that's even though the other day I told her drove me. So fucking nuts, I'm like I'm about to be a widow.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:But yeah.
Speaker 2:I mean it's. It's one of those things where I I've been in two marriages that are on either side of a spectrum. Yeah, you know what I mean. And listen, for 25 years it wasn't terrible. It it wasn't. I mean, there was a lot of good times and it was 25 years. However, it got to a point where she, her life, was happier when I wasn't there. That's a pretty good indicator of the amount of love someone has for you. When they're like, hey, babe, they're, they're asking me to go back to Iraq, all right, that's pretty. That's pretty good fucking indicator that you know they don't love you as much as you thought.
Speaker 1:Thank you for your service. Unless we're on the highway Right Right most certainly.
Speaker 2:But yeah, I mean it. I don't think, I don't think, when we envisioned this podcast, that it would have turned out the way it did.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you know, I think we had like this idea Right Of what every episode was going to be like. And then, as we started recording them and we started learning, we're like, um, okay, well, it's not quite what we envisioned. You know and and a lot of you know we had all these ideas wrote down of what our different episodes were going to be. And then, after we started cutting episodes, we're like, well, maybe not this.
Speaker 2:Oh, let's combine this with this, yeah, yeah, and also I think we went in with with this preconceived notion that everybody that we knew would be fucking wanting to sit in this chair right here. And that wasn't the case either. And but then you know you get it, but you like I don't get it, but I get it Right. It's kind of like not everybody is willing to or are at a point where they can talk about their, their, their dark spot.
Speaker 1:We, we. We don't get it in the sense that we know the value this brings to mental health, but we get it in the sense that they're not ready to take that step.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that there will never be a confrontation. You know cause. You know our shit is like it's never formal. We, we don't send letters out. Uh, we, we would like you to appear on the next episode of whiskey wills wounds on Tuesday. Nope, no, it's. It's like hey man, what are you doing Tuesday?
Speaker 1:Yeah, Well, and you know, when we originally asked Duke, he was apprehensive right, you know, and him and Stacy talked and and she's like I really think you should try it, and then he did it, and then when we got done he was like, oh, that was fucking awesome, I'm so glad I did it.
Speaker 1:You know, and and Sarge really appreciated it as well, and so that's why we asked them to come back for the NCO club episode, because they were both comfortable being on. Yeah, um, you know it, it was. It was just we had some guys that we really wanted to come on and and we had a really good episode idea for those guys and it just, you know, never worked out, or, you know it, like you said, some people just aren't comfortable.
Speaker 2:And I get it. I mean I part of my healing, part of my it's part of my nature is the candor I have it it's, it's appealing to some, it's very put off, is to the most.
Speaker 1:That bitch is very off-putting.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's very off-putting to most. Um, some people are. You know, some people take my candor as endearing, you know, and I'm, I'm like you know. Um, you know, my, my phrase is uh, women want an honest man until you tell them the truth.
Speaker 1:Yeah. You know, do these genes make my ass look fat? No, your ass makes your ass look fat, right.
Speaker 2:Nothing to do with them, fucking genes.
Speaker 1:If anything, they hold everything together.
Speaker 2:Whatever you paid for them, motherfuckers, it's worth it, um, but yeah, I mean, you know I and I've told my, you know I've had I have friends, I have dear friends, sean Jones, that I, I credit for, you know she was the first person to um turn on the light for me and and fucking hold, like hold a candle, like you know, and listen to me bitch and moan and complain and fucking tell the same story 57 fucking times like she never heard it before. You know. And like Brady, like fucking Brady.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I've heard this motherfucker 50 times, but every time he tells it it's fucking awesome.
Speaker 2:Um my guy, my guy Brady. But yeah, um, you know, sean Jones pushed me to find a purpose, pushed me to um she was holding that candle in the wind.
Speaker 1:Oh, oh, oh, oh oh.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that'd be some gay shit, but uh, but yeah, she was, she was holding the candle for me and and allowed me to, you know, get all that shit I had pent up out. And so I told her the story. And then, you know, you meet someone else and tell them the fucking story, and then you know, and they're like, uh, you're, you're fucking crazy, thank you, you know, I'm like, yep, that's why I told you and that's that's why I told you, um, but yeah, and then you know, which leads to you know, telling Chrissy the the entire story, and she's like, well, you know, I'd like to find out for myself.
Speaker 1:All right, and then she said I have a baby and you're like, uh, fuck you in.
Speaker 2:Right, you win. 18 months old. Are you fucking kidding me? That's not mine. An 18 month old. You want me to put up with an 18 month old who's now six? Who's now six. She went the first grade this morning.
Speaker 1:Six going on, 16. Jesus Christ.
Speaker 2:But I wouldn't again. I'd give. I'd give her the beating heart out of my chest.
Speaker 1:I'd fucking man, oh she makes me laugh every time I'm over here.
Speaker 2:I would run through fire with ice cubes. Use um for that kid.
Speaker 1:But when Chrissy told the story of her giving the fucking pharmacist the what for, I almost died. Yeah, yeah, bitch. Next time get my shit straight. No filter, no filter. I wonder why she has all of this candor. Couldn't possibly be because she she spends the majority of her time with my fault. It's nature right, not nurture. It's all Chrissy's fault.
Speaker 2:She picked up her backpack today and had all her school supplies and she, she's like holy shit, shit. And we Chrissy was on the face time, you know, chrissy's at work and uh, so Chrissy, you know, wants to see her and so she's face time and her so she goes over and picks up her backpack and she's like holy shit, like what was you about to say? She's like you know this was heavy, you know this is heavy. That kid's hilarious. God damn, god damn yeah.
Speaker 2:Um yeah, I wouldn't, I wouldn't trade her for anything, Um, but it it's again. It's that thing where, um, early on, she didn't like me and I was like, cool, stay that way. You know what I mean. Like I don't, I don't need you, Matter of fact. I, I didn't need her to like me. There's, there's, a revelation, but at at the time, I didn't need you to like me, nor did I want you.
Speaker 1:I really didn't want you to like me and uh, because that way, when mom figured out that you were a piece of shit and she bounced, you weren't breaking that kid's heart.
Speaker 2:Right and I wasn't getting abandoned again because or she wasn't having someone in her life abandoned her again. Yeah, and uh, so, uh, I guess, yeah, so, yeah, I, I really, but then you know, uh, leave it up to uh the fire stick and and fucking Coco, the movie that bonded us. She would come over to my house and every time she would come over at my house we would have to watch Cocoa, and and that's we, we would sit there and watch Cocoa and then, soon Cocoa credits run, I had to restart it and watch Cocoa, cocoa and I would tell her.
Speaker 2:I'm like I don't watch movies back to back. Yes, I do.
Speaker 2:And then COVID happened oh then yeah, and then you know which it was? Again, it was great because she would go to childcare at um Jocelyn's house. Jocelyn's, she is a saint, she is Jocelyn's a saint, she, she has a crew of um adolescent youngins. I call them, uh, you know, tricycle owners that she has running around her house, um and uh, you know, every time I go pick up Nova, she has a smile. She has a smile on her face Like, um, yeah, she's a saint. Is the smile on her face cause she's a saint or is it because you're?
Speaker 1:picking up Nova. Oh, I mean, I mean she, if, if she's bluffing, she's she's good, she's good at, she's just happy Nova's leaving.
Speaker 2:Yeah, well, I mean, she's, she's, she's, she's, she's, she's, she's, she's good, she's good at, she's just happy Nova's leaving. Yeah Well, no, she loves Nova, uh, her son, her son, bobo. Bobo and Nova are fucking, uh, you know, boyfriend, girlfriend, partners in crime, boyfriend girlfriend, um, and uh, so, yeah, um, she loves Nova, but yeah, when COVID hit she would, she had to shut down her daycare, um, and uh, you know, chrissy's like I don't know what I'm, you know, I would have to take her, to take her to Columbus and leave her in Columbus, you know, and then only see her on the weekends. That don't make sense. And you know, my dumb ass was like, uh, just bring her here. She's like what, I ain't doing shit, bring her here. Yeah, yeah, bring her here, I'll keep her alive, I'll keep her alive. And let me tell you, from the moment I started watching her, um, that day, my sleeping problems don't fucking gone, my you know, um, and you had to start washing your pants more often because you had to wear them.
Speaker 2:Yeah, well, well, that it coincided with you know. Uh, right before COVID hit, I moved into this house and Chrissy moved in with me. I don't ever remember having a conversation about Chrissy moving in like don't, but I don't.
Speaker 1:she just like, hey, when we pick it up, my shit, and I'm like Tuesday, you know her, her, uh, her lease was up and her apartment and, uh, it really didn't need a conversation, it was just the natural progression of where you guys were going.
Speaker 2:Right, and it was just like um, yeah, and, but yeah, I don't remember having having the conversation and it wasn't and it didn't scare me at all, which again was um scary, yeah. So it's like we just moved in, went, bought bedroom furniture together, like man you know. Then COVID hit and I'm like, well, just keep her here. She lives here, makes sense, I'll keep her alive, I'll feed her, I'll, I'll give her sunshine. She's like she ain't a fucking plant.
Speaker 1:Sunshine is my glowing personality.
Speaker 2:Yeah, sunshine, and you know, and here we are, you know, um three short years later, and she's still living.
Speaker 1:So we you know we had the 10 grand episode. I'm going to skip over our Memorial Day episode. I think that's a little bit of time.
Speaker 2:So just just a touch on the 10 grand. Um, where, where are you at? Where you at this year Like 8,500. All right, so you'll get 10 grand again, yeah, yeah. So I mean, however, you know, with that you got to throw in some growing pains of you know, you, you, you know, I think it's one of those things where you're like, hey, next year we're going to do 15. All right, 15. And then when you kind of think, well, I'm just going to add this whole other contraption to my motorcycle when everything's going to be okay.
Speaker 1:Yeah, we where I lost out on all the miles to Tennessee, right, and you know it was down for a little bit. Why was getting that taken care of? And then you know it was like a month that was down after we got back from nationals from the catastrophe that was you know the, the wheels and stuff. And then since then it's just been you know constant tweaking and you know trying to get things set. Hmm.
Speaker 2:However, you know it goes back to how good you felt last year when you rolled over 10,000, right, what does that compare to that feeling you had when we're in West Virginia? Right, you rolled over 10,000 and you're fucking woohoo. And what? What contrast that feeling you had that day to the feeling you had 1130 at night. Dodge City, kansas, 1000 miles in. You have your dad on one side on his bike, mama sitting behind you and your son in the sidecar.
Speaker 1:Oh, I haven't having the sidecar on the bike this year and getting to um. I had a meeting with somebody a couple of weeks ago and I told him you know, jason is part of that um community of individuals with developmental disabilities, that community as a general role. They don't usually get to experience a lot of things that people get to experience, you know, they have a very um basic existence as far as being in their town doing the same things every day because they're usually, you know, have care providers and you know everything's routine and stuff like that. So if they do get to experience going out of state and stuff like that, it's usually from behind the window of a car and they're just driving to wherever they're going.
Speaker 1:Um, the experiences that Jason's had so far this year from that sidecar, not only was it life altering, but he got to experience things that people in his community will never experience. You know, riding, I mean he's he's probably sitting at about 8,000 miles, maybe seven between 7,500, 8,000 miles. He's put in the sidecar this year. Um, in addition to that, he did his iron butt. He got to see everything that we saw. He didn't ride to the, the pikes peak, but he was up there, blue lips and all Right. Um, you know so. And and then the other thing too is the guitar. Yeah, you know everything that this group brings to the table enriching his life. Well, not hitting 15. Will it be a bummer? Yes, but does it outweigh everything that the sidecar brought into this year? Fuck, no Right.
Speaker 2:And and it's, it's, it's the quality of miles.
Speaker 1:Yes.
Speaker 2:Over the quantity of miles and um, and that was my point, yeah, I mean like that feeling of you know, um, I mean I knew the answer but uh, yeah, it's, it's, it's the quality of quality of miles, um and uh you know my hat Right that had all of my miles on it because I started wearing that hat when I started riding that road glide when I joined the CVMA and I've been wearing that hat every time.
Speaker 1:I get on that bike the entire time, unless I have my helmet on, losing that bitch in fucking Oklahoma and then goddamn or Texas, wherever that fucking crazy as wind was hitting us from. Uh, it was a bummer, cause my plan was to hit 15 this year, which would put about 27,000 miles on that hat, and then I was going to retire that hat cause you know that's pretty big, significant thing I lost the hat, which should have been the foreshadowing of me not hitting my 15,000 miles. But as big of a bummer is not hitting the mileage or not having the hat.
Speaker 1:I have the stories, that's it, you know that's it, and and I don't remember what state I lost it in, right, but I I accept partial responsibility for the hat, but we all know it was actually the wife that lost that motherfucker and since she doesn't listen, I can blame her for all of it right here, and she'll never know.
Speaker 2:Thank you for your support, Brandy. Um but yeah, I mean, you know that um she did listen to the NCO club episode though that you know, that's the point, you know it's, it's a and I think, um, you know J, being uh part of the group is uh really organic, really, um, you know, it's not um forced. You know, uh, the same way with Nova, everyone, you know, everyone fucking grabs her and and and her message with her.
Speaker 1:So it's all, it's all genuine and you can see it in his um plus, let's face it, jay fucks with my dad and everybody appreciates that, yeah.
Speaker 2:And oh, by the way, jay has the. He had the opportunity to fuck up A plethora of fucking bathrooms and it was a thousand miles A plethora.
Speaker 1:I took a massive shit in a buck. He's bathroom. Uh, I'm so glad Sarge sent that shirt to me. He fucking loves it too.
Speaker 2:Yes, if there's one thing he does on a consistent basis, it's fuck up bathrooms.
Speaker 1:Hey dad, hey dad, what I was fucked it up. And then somebody'll go in after him and they'll come out and they're fucking shit. I told you, dad, I fucked it up, yeah.
Speaker 2:I mean. But yeah, I mean it's it's, it's always.
Speaker 1:I always appreciate when individuals accept Jay for Jay oh yeah, yeah. Yeah, you know what I mean, yeah.
Speaker 2:Most certainly.
Speaker 1:Yep, I mean like when we go out to dinner and he's not with us and everybody's like, oh fuck, jay's not here to collect all the menus, because we're just used to handing them to Jay because that's, that's his thing. He wants to get all the menus together, then he wants to hand them to the waitress and then, after she says thank you, he's like I'm smooth with the ladies.
Speaker 2:Right, Um, he met. He met his nemesis, but he didn't know it was his nemesis.
Speaker 1:Rich didn't tell him that part. All right, yeah, michael knew Rich. I don't think rich wanted his kid to get his ass whooped.
Speaker 2:Rich yeah Good on him. Michael knew what he was up against, though Cause Jay a fight for the death.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:But she has a boyfriend.
Speaker 1:She my girl too.
Speaker 2:Oh my goodness. But yeah, I mean it's, it's um. So, yeah, 10 grand, I mean it was. It was good to have an episode and meant a lot. It meant a lot to this program, this, this, this podcast. Um, it was like the second, um significant thing you know, other than us getting in your dad's truck and going to Vermont. Um, that was the next thing that bonded us right. Just getting to 10,000 miles is a bonding experience in itself and uh, yeah, I mean it's especially for a goal that I had absolutely no concept that I would hit Right.
Speaker 2:Obliterated the previous.
Speaker 1:You know your previous riding season or riding seasons, yeah, I well, in October I will have had the road glide two years and I've put 20, 21,000 miles on it already.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean that's, that's pretty good yeah.
Speaker 1:Especially for someone who rode as little as I rode before. Yeah, I mean cause. I always found an excuse, not a reason. Right, and now I find a reason not an excuse, you're bringing all them. Well, that one hit harder than anything you've ever said to me was in that truck ride, when you said that that's what hit me the most and that's what made me like, okay, this is what I'm going to do. I have a goal now and now. I need to find every reason I can to make sure I hit that goal.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and I mean again. And so next year we'll set a new goal and we'll fucking It'll be 15 again.
Speaker 1:Until I hit it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean we'll set a new goal and and we'll set a new goal and have at it.
Speaker 1:I mean hopefully that fucking sheer number of Canadian miles will help yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, but I mean it's, it's one of the things where it's nice to look forward to things. Yeah Right, I mean, there was times in our lives we didn't look forward to doing anything, didn't look forward to um, yeah. So I mean, I think it's good that we got this outlook of uh. You know, there was a time in my life where I was like, well, if I'm here, where I would tell people I'm not going to be here long enough to worry about it, you know Um. And now you're like all right, let's go, let's go 15. Let's go, um, but I, you know, it's one of those things where I don't just riding all that miles, the, the, you know the toll it takes on your bike, on your body, on your, you know, but the thing that does for your mind is is.
Speaker 1:Yeah, when I, when I had my appointment, they did my EMG on my hands and told me I had my old carpal tunnel. And they're like uh, you know, we see you got your your stuff. You know you ride your motorcycle. I'm like, yeah. They're like, well, you know. I'm like no, you don't understand. You can talk to me about anything you want to try you utter the words not ride my motorcycle. We're going to have to throw it. You might as well just call security now, because that is a fucking treatment plan that you people can shove up your motherfucking ass. Yeah, cause the only reason I haven't climbed a clock tower with a water tower with a high powered rifle is because I get to ride my motorcycle. You take that away from me and shit's about to go downhill real fucking fast.
Speaker 2:And um, you know, but you know all those, all those miles we had, you know it didn't come with some adversity. That's what makes it Um, yeah, I mean, it does it blowouts blowouts, water pumps breaks, going out fucking sheer amounts of water. Six foot hole in the fucking middle middle of the fucking interstate.
Speaker 1:Break locking up and damn, you're getting ran over Um yeah, I mean it's.
Speaker 2:we rode in hail, we rode in snow, we rode uh.
Speaker 1:I couldn't tell you the amount of rain we rode in heat, oh my.
Speaker 2:God. Well, here's some people.
Speaker 1:every time I'm on my motorcycle, I'm in rain, so um, I'm just saying every time we ride with you we get wet. But when me and Sarge and Q and dad went over to Pennsylvania, we either was ahead of or behind the storm and did not get wet at all. I mean, and I didn't see stick that weekend either.
Speaker 2:So I yeah, well it's. It's kind of a you know, if you ride as much as we do, rain riders participation over precipitation. Oh yeah, ever thought that as fucking genius. Uh but yeah, I mean, you know um, yeah, you're gonna get wet, yeah, but it's it.
Speaker 1:It's all enjoyable. Yeah, you mean eat there is. There is fun and enjoyment in the suck of getting smashed in the face with hail. That sounds dumb, I know, but when you get back to the house and your lip fucking swollen and numb because you got hit in the face with fucking hail, you're like look what the fuck is. The hell was crazy and blah, blah, blah. Yeah, it's. You know, we say all the time rides with no adversity and great weather. They're, they're, they're good rides because we're riding. But we don't tell stories about those rides. We tell stories about the fucking, the shit weather, the craziness bitch losing her fucking mind because I went in and told her to move her mother fucking car off the gas pump. You know fun stuff Flow with the BJ's brew house and that fucking hairdo.
Speaker 2:Right, yeah, I mean, I don't know it. Good fucking, a good fucking year.
Speaker 1:Yes. Good fucking year, um good Um yeah, you had some losses, yeah yeah, but those losses didn't make your world come crumbling down. No, you were able to withstand those losses, not that they didn't hurt and not that they didn't, you know, make life tough there for a while, but you were able to face them head on and not let them consume you.
Speaker 2:Yeah, cause you're in a better spot, yeah, and that's, and that's how, once, once you get to um about a better spot, you know you don't get beat down as much. So, um, there's this thing here that says you can post as much as you want about suicide prevention, but if you really want to help, just be kind of people in your life, yeah, that makes sense. Yeah, you know like don't be a dick.
Speaker 2:Don't be a dick, I mean it's. It's one thing, um, it's one thing to understand. Um, like I never understood the people who get upset at fucking McDonald's because your fries are fucked up or your, I didn't want pickles on my fucking sandwich, like you know um, I'll bitch about it, but I won't go up to the counter and make a big deal out of it.
Speaker 1:You know what I mean. I'll be like come on, motherfuckers, right. What's no pickles mean to you, especially when you put the thing on it that says no pickles? Right, it's on the box. You knew there wasn't supposed to be pickles in there, cause you put it on the motherfucking box, right? But I picked the fucking pickles off and I'll just eat the goddamn sandwich Cause. Well, fuck man, right, why don't you go up here and scream at some fucking? Either you know kid or fucking old. Yeah, clearly, clearly, clearly. If they're working at McDonald's, there is something going on in their lives that has not allowed them to reach the potential they want to be at, whether that's age and they're still in high school or older, and they don't have a lot of employment opportunities or somewhere in between. Maybe they're trying to get their life started again. Maybe they just got out of jail, maybe they just got out of rehab. You, fucking, you don't know what they're going through.
Speaker 2:Right, and you know it's. It's one of those things where if, if you look at people in the again, look at it through the perspective of put myself in, I mean like, so you're telling me, ma'am, karen, can you're telling me you've never made a mistake at work? That's what you're saying when you're yelling at this person across the counter. You have never made a mistake at work. Bullshit, you know. But when you sit in your cubicle and you make your mistake, it's seen by nobody on the outside of that building, normally, right, but you know, it's one of those things. Now, I have said in the past don't work in the hospitality field If you're not fucking hospitable yet, right, don't bring your motherfucking bullshit of your life into the hospitality field and then expect me to fucking allow you to have a bad day.
Speaker 1:Part of your job is to understand what your job requires. If you have no personality and you don't like people, don't work in a field where you have to engage people and be polite. Right Right Makes sense. And if you're a people person that needs to have people in your life all the time, don't work in a field where you're stuck by yourself and not engaging with another human soul. Right, I mean? Excuse me, you got to do a little bit of that self assessment.
Speaker 2:Right, but but yeah, I mean it's. It's, you know, people get on, people get on Facebook and they bitch. They bitch about the most mundane shit you know and they're like I can't believe that you know fucking whatever. And you're like have you, have you not like, did it endanger the health and welfare of your child? No, it inconvenience me, cool, shut the fuck up.
Speaker 1:My cousin's good for that. Her, her, her two youngest they ride. Uh, they do. They do. You know amateur motocross, right? You know it's not like high end motocross. You know they run at the fair and stuff and they were it. I can't remember the fair they were at, but either way, you know her son. He's elementary age, I believe. He passed the person that was in third place right at the finish line or right before the finish line, whatever the scores. The guy up in the tower said that you know he had passed him and he'd got third the scores. When they finished everything out, said that he, he got fourth. They made a mistake.
Speaker 1:Instead of going to the scores and the people running amateur elementary school age motocross we're not talking about fucking sponsorship dollars here. You know what I mean, right? Um, instead of going to them and saying, hey, the guy in the tower said that it was third. We all saw that it was third. Here's the video footage that said that it was third. Why do you guys think that it wasn't third? Did you have something? Was he knocked points? What the fuck ever? You know what I mean. Nope, we're going to get on Facebook and we're going to say, along with my husband and my daughter who, by the way, this is not a family of perfect angels. You know what I mean. Right, we're going to get on here and we are going to just constantly bash the fair and the people that ran this, because they're fucked up, they don't know what they're doing.
Speaker 1:It was absolutely horrible. Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. So the dude that was in charge of the scores was like hey, our bad, we made a mistake. We didn't realize it. Nobody came to us and said something about it to give us the opportunity to make it right. So you probably shouldn't spend hours ad nauseam telling us how fucking horrible we are. We're volunteers trying to put on a youth motocross race.
Speaker 1:Yep, you know what I mean. Like I got an idea. The kids in elementary school. You know what this is. This is a great teaching moment that, no matter what happens, good people sometimes take it in a fucking ass and bad people sometimes catch all the breaks. Life isn't fair. You may have been third, you may have been a hundred percent entitled to having third place, but you didn't. So fucking deal with it and move on. You know what I mean. Like God damn man, it does not require you to go on a public fucking witch hunt to put these poor people at the fucking stake. Now, if you would have went to them and said hey, the guy up in the tower said that he got third. We have the video footage where it says he got third. We don't understand why you said he didn't get third. And they might have said well, our spotter told us something differently and that's the official spotter we're supposed to use.
Speaker 2:And that's it.
Speaker 1:Or they could have said, oh, our bad, but we can't do anything about it now because the decision's already been finalized. Or they could have said, hey, our bad, let's fix that and let's make it right. But regardless of the decision that was made, you fucking live with it. Right, like God damn man. Right, it's like these people that attack fucking youth referees. Are you fucking kidding me, right?
Speaker 2:And and the, the what. What are you? What are you showing? Yeah, I mean, what are you showing?
Speaker 1:You're not you know a great parenting. Let's show your kid that if you bitch about it publicly, that makes everything better, yeah.
Speaker 2:You know, paul Brown once said if you win, say nothing, if you lose, say even less. Yeah, right. So like um, there's a skill to be in a good loser. Um and I there, there's a skill with handling the loss. I don't want to say loser, you know there's a, there's a skill with handling the loss, and a big part of that is humility.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2:Right, you're like man, you know you got me today, you know and you can see you know on the highest levels in UFC. Uh, sterling got starched the other night by O'Malley and said he got me in a night.
Speaker 1:Usually, if they've tapped out, or the ref breaks it up or whatever, what's the first thing they do for the get up? They hug each other because they understand somebody's winning, yeah, somebody's losing. You know, we both trained you.
Speaker 2:Just you know and he got me. He got starched and he got me bro.
Speaker 1:Yeah, jay's so funny Whenever he loses at basketball or softball or something. When the team loses, first thing I have his mouth. Well, we lost, we suck again. Right Wednesday night, when I told him the game got canceled, I was like, hey, bob, I got some bad news. He said what I said we had canceled the game because of the weather, and he goes shh Well. Well, we'll get him next game. That was it. You know what I mean. Like he was done at that point. Yeah, cause he understood he's. At first he would get really mad, but he's understanding that. You know, you can't play softball in a torrential downpour. Right when the field is absolutely a salt, swampy mess, you can't play softball. So he's learning these things. You know what I mean and he and he just accepts them. But yeah, when he loses, uh well, we lost, we suck again. Let's get him next time.
Speaker 2:Um but yeah.
Speaker 1:I mean it's it's.
Speaker 2:I just don't, I don't, I don't, um, but you, you know, you'll, you'll, you'll see those polls of this is the third, you know, the third week in a row I sent my child to school with lunch money and they don't have enough lunch money, but they're feeding me many ways. I think this is bullshit, you know, or whatever the case may be. Fucking school buses late, like what the hell is wrong? Like um, school buses break down, they get flat tires. You know all the things that you use as an excuse to be late for work. Bus drivers have the same excuses, or or reasons.
Speaker 1:Yeah, Right, or the four kids ahead of your kid wasn't ready or had this, or they had to wait. If every, if every kid because most of them are elementary school kids they rely on their parents to get them to where they need to go right, ie ready and out the door right, or to the bus stop or what have you. If all of those motherfuckers are like most people and they're constantly running behind, that makes the bus bind, yeah.
Speaker 2:And the bus driver ain't gonna leave your kid.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's not the kid's fault yeah.
Speaker 2:And uh, yeah. I mean, I just you know when you see posts like that and you're like the fuck, like you know you understand the people you're talking to. Know you? Yeah, they know you. Yeah, um, my um.
Speaker 1:So I coach basketball and softball with J special Olympics team. I like to coach the lower division, which is the, the, the for lack of a better term they, they don't have the game knowledge or the skill knowledge to play at a higher division. I like coaching those teams because those teams give me the most joy. You know what I mean, cause they play softball and they play basketball for the love of playing basketball and softball. So because of that, you know, there's times where they're going to run into a buzz.
Speaker 1:Saw, you know, a team that's not division properly or whatever, which is what happened at our very first game. We ran into a county team that was coach pitched it should not have been coach pitched and we got mercy After three, 20 to two. It was rough. They ran through their entire lineup twice in the second inning. Yeah, hey, you know what I mean. I can any. Yeah, we, yeah, we got. We got shit stomped.
Speaker 1:But my number one rule every time we get ready to go on to a go into a game is and I ask him, what's the number one rule? Have fun, cause that's what matters, right, I don't care. And I tell them I don't care if we win, I don't care if we lose, we have fun, and if we have fun, sportsmanship will follow. Yeah, and so that's what they do. They have fun. Are they bummed when they lose? Yeah, when they get shit stomped in three innings, are they a little butt hurt? I mean, anybody would, but they still had fun and that's all I care, and that's why I tell them that's the only thing. That's important is having fun and the sportsmanship will follow.
Speaker 1:But not everybody does that. You know. I envisioned special Olympics being that when I brought Jason to special Olympics, I have found that there are a lot of counties, a lot of coaches and a lot of programs that treat special Olympics as a developmental disability, professional sports it. You know the ringers from different counties. You know, uh, this this guy had an IEP when he was in school because he read words backwards, but other than that, he could be a division one athlete at college. So we're going to put him on the special Olympics team and we're going to just beat the brakes off of you.
Speaker 2:You know I would venture to guess there's a lot of motherfuckers in college that rewarn backwards or can't read at all. You know, like back in the day it didn't get, nobody gave a fuck. If you could read your, your, your to do math, none of that shit.
Speaker 1:Can you put an X? Yep, sorry, that's a signature, yeah. So you know I don't want. I don't want my athletes and, by extension, jason, because I coach all of his teams. I don't want them being, you know, negatively impacted by a sport that they want to play for fun. Most certainly, you know, and so that's why I preach that to them so much Now, when they're not around, and I'm talking to the other coaches or to our coordinator this is fucking bullshit.
Speaker 1:This team should not be on this fucking field playing us right now because clearly now, before their tournaments came about, that team and another team that was there that day before they it was you know cause we all have to coach as reports before it was brought to their attention in front of God and everybody that they're clearly not in the division they're supposed to be, both of those teams and their coordinators voluntarily moved up to traditional softball division three. I'm okay with that. You know, you don't have to publicly make them dickheads. They understood that there should not be in coach pitch division. So before it was made known to God and everybody, they're like hey, we understand that we're in division incorrectly for the tournaments. Please put us in this division. I'm down. I'm down.
Speaker 1:You did a self assessment, regardless of what your motor motivations were. You did a self assessment. You voluntarily jumped a division. I'm down. I got no hard feelings for you. But if you would have stayed in the coach pitch division and gone to the regional tournament like that, uh yeah, there'd have been some hard feelings.
Speaker 2:I mean it's. You know, it's like our organization, where you have people. I mean we, we fundraise, um, that is our main objective. We are a charity, we are a charity, so we fundraise. And you know, there's there's people out there that think there's a trophy at the end of the year for the organization that raises the most money. And there's not.
Speaker 2:And and you know, like, when I talk to the, every year, I talk to the organizations that we donate to, and usually it starts with an email and then it leads to a phone call and, uh, the phone call basically goes you know, hey, you, this is me, this is what we do, this is what we have done.
Speaker 2:You know, this is what we're about, um, and you know, when I talked to Ed Halsey from uh disabled veteran outdoors and and we were talking about money raised in this and that, and I'm like, I personally don't care about, um, how much money our organization gets credit for, it ain't about the credit, um, no, granted, we put a donation letter out every year that has the monetary dollar amount that we donate every year. That's to let people know that their money is going to where we say it is where we say it is. Yeah, you know, but it's not. It's not the fact that, um, you know, hey, look look at us. This is like, hey, you, you have helped in the past. Thank you, the money that you've helped with in the past has gone here, and you know. And it's.
Speaker 1:It's not one of those things where you gave us $500 last year. This year you only gave us 200. What the fuck it's?
Speaker 2:thank you so much for giving $200 this year Most certainly, and we can do good with that 200 bucks. And um, when I was at mission 22,. You know, for some reason there's a um competition out there between the 22 organizations, the, the, the mission 22s, the save 22s, the kill 22s, the. Those are the 22 organizations I'm talking about. And you know, when I would call other events in other organizations and be like hey, we're going to, hey, I'd love to come up there and, and, and you know, throw some literature out.
Speaker 2:Nah, we're good, you know, uh you know um and I'm like what the fuck? Um, I remember being down at 12 twos event Um, and I can't remember the organization Um they were doing um the charity that they were um doing. Anyways, it was a suicide prevention ranch they have down in Kentucky or or, and the guy came up and started troubleshooting me because we were in the same um spectrum of charity right, veterans, suicide and he's sitting there troubleshooting me about um how much money mission 22 gives to uh veterans. And da, da, da, da. In this I'm like what the fuck, bro? You know, I'm like if it's fucking $100, $100,000, a million dollars, as long as you know the, the people are not fucking getting rich off of. You know the the the old, uh wounded warrior project deal.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that was pretty bad scandal.
Speaker 2:Right, pretty bad scandal, right. As long as that's not going on, I don't give a fuck. I'm, I'm a member of mission 22 because someone pointed me in this direction. I, I came to, I can help veterans here, but let me do that. And is there a better organization out there? I don't know, I don't know. Is there another organization out there that makes more money to help prevent, um, veterans suicide? I don't know.
Speaker 2:I can speak on what I, my personal knowledge, what I have done, and I know, you know, 97 doll, 97 cents of every dollar that comes in the mission 22 goes out the veterans. That's what I know. Or that's 97, 97 cents is what it was. It could be higher than that now it won't be any lower than 95% or 95 cents. So, um, and I'm like we're not, you're, you're trying to help veterans not kill themselves, right? Yeah, so am I. What the fuck is the pro who'd if? If this one guy over here doesn't kill himself and he said, well, mission 22 helped me or your fucking organization helped me, what the fuck does that matter?
Speaker 2:Because again, everybody's different, we equal we equally don't want him to die. Yeah, yeah, okay. So as long as we can, you know, as long as we can, um, agree on that point. Like what the fuck Like it? It ain't a competition Like I'm in. I'm in no competition with any other commander in the state of Ohio or for the country that matter. I'm doing the best I can, the best we can, with the resources that are available to us, to do the best possible job we can for the veterans we support. That's it. That's it. That's it.
Speaker 2:And you know when, when this organization started, the, the bar was set and we have pushed the bar a little higher every year. And where, where the the personal failure comes in is when you know you push the bar and then like the 10 grand, you know. But if there's no mitigating circumstances on why, if the only mitigating circumstances of the Y is motherfuckers not doing what they say they were going to do when they took the oath to come in this organization, then that's a problem. Yeah, it needs to be addressed. But if mitigating circumstances is a you, you understand that the economy is down. You understand that. You know people don't have money like they did last year or the year before Inflation is a bitch, inflation is a motherfucker. You understand it? Yes, I understand it.
Speaker 1:However, did we did, we do the best we could? Hmm, Right, that's it. Here's why you just tell the kids all the time I expect an A. But if you come home and say, dad, I did the best I possibly could and all I could get was a C, I'm okay with that C. But if you can't come home and honestly say I did the best I could and that's why I got a C, Then I have a fucking problem with that C.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah and oh, by the way, that don't, that don't hold true the next six weeks, because you're you set. You can get an A Yep, you know what I mean. You can get an A, so you, you set that standard, yep.
Speaker 1:So if you come back the next six weeks, let's say you, you know fucking, you're in a section of math that you're struggling with. Dad, I did the best I could, I got help, I tried everything. I just I just couldn't keep that A, I'm good. But if you come back and say, well, I hadn't A last time so I figured, man, fuck it, I could get an A, and then you didn't, we got a problem.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so that's, that's what I'm saying. Yeah, I mean it's, it's. You know, I think internally, and I think this is the same across the board, there's people in every organization out there that will bail water with a fumble before they let the ship sink. Mm, hmm, and we have a bunch of those motherfuckers in our organization.
Speaker 1:Yeah, Our chapter is not big, but we have a high percentage of engaged active members.
Speaker 2:Yes, and I and they all carry that thimble and they all are willing to bail water as long as it takes, as much as it takes. And then you have. You know, I've said it a hundred times in our organization, you have. You have those who do nothing, you have those who do something, you have those who do most things. You have those who do most things and you have those who do everything you know, and we've whittled away the ones who've done nothing.
Speaker 2:So we leave the some things, the most things and all things. And you know when. When you look at each other, you know everyone, everyone that was in that building Saturday. Uh, after our event, we looked at each other and there was an accomplishment, yeah, you know. Uh, everyone came back to the brick corner tavern and and we threw some back and you announced uh, how much you know we, we, uh.
Speaker 1:Saturday was good for about 29 grand 29 grand and right before our the payouts and all that stuff yeah but yeah, 29 grand and money brought in.
Speaker 2:Right Now. Now you have the reward, right the reward. You have the meat, you have the means to feel good about the things that the work you put in, and uh, and that's what it's about. You know, it's that's what it's about. And um, you know, we're able to give $5,000 that day with with you know, we donated five grand and um, you know, bobby Newman matched our five grand with five grand of his own. Um, come on.
Speaker 1:I mean so we uh, our contribution to southeastern guide dogs. We had a hand in $11,000 going to southeastern guide dogs and that still doesn't take into consideration everything that's coming from Cumberland for honor flight and the money we know we're going to be given to disabled veterans outdoors. Right, we see where our dollars go, yeah, and we're going to be given to the. It was important to keep our money in Ohio.
Speaker 2:Now, southeastern guide dogs is not in Ohio. However, you know, uh, our our sponsor, ohio's Gar Mafia, they, they sponsor um Southeastern guide dogs. It's important to them. Um, we had members that brought um uh, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the time. Um, we had members that brought um it up for vote. Uh, you know, when you have an organization that has homed over 750 dogs to veterans and they have zero suicide in those 750, zero members that have received a dog from from Southeastern died dogs, paul's for Patriots program have committed suicide.
Speaker 1:That's a huge statistic. That's a hundred percent success rate, right.
Speaker 2:So I mean goddamn.
Speaker 1:So um, and it's at zero cost to the veteran, zero cost to the veteran.
Speaker 2:The dog is zero cost the the vet. Veterinarian fees zero cost. Food for that dog for the life of the dog, right While it's in service. You don't pay enough, yep.
Speaker 1:Holy shit. So if, if our $11,000 can give them fucking 1100 bags of dog food, it's fucking worth it.
Speaker 2:It's fucking worth it. You know what?
Speaker 1:I mean, like I get that in the overall grand scheme of things, our 11 grand probably doesn't matter to like the big corporate sponsors, right? But our 11 grand is going to buy a shit ton of dog food, right? You know what I mean.
Speaker 2:It'll pay for a hell of a lot of immunizations and you know, and full disclosure, we we have a member that was on a list to to get a dog and they're they're very strict process on on homing dogs to veterans. He didn't qualify. Now he he has since got another dog from another organization, but you know, it's one of those things where and it wasn't so much that he didn't qualify.
Speaker 1:His circumstances didn't line up with what they required.
Speaker 2:Right yeah.
Speaker 2:And and because to have a hundred percent success rate, you need to have a very concrete criteria for things to go, yes, and and and oh, by the way, each of these dogs being raised and trained and all that is all in house, bread in house, and it's a 50 to 70 thousand dollar venture, right? So when we give our 11 thousand dollars, we know that South Eastern God dogs is, they're going to it's, they're not going to be frugal with it, right, and yeah, so, and let me tell you, brian, at the South Eastern God dogs, he was spearheaded, he was constantly on the phone trying to. You know, and we got, we understood, we understood the why we get it beat, beat. We want you to be tough, yeah, we want you to. We want the process to be rigorous, so we get it.
Speaker 2:And uh, but yeah, I mean it's, it's one of those things where, in order to have a service dog, how their service dogs are used, you know it's, it's a 24 seven deal, yeah, and I don't think um all out was willing to. You know, give the 24 seven, not not willing, but needed, needed his, his, his.
Speaker 1:That's right. His circumstances didn't warrant a 24 seven dog yes, and that's. And. And a 24 seven service dog yes, he needed a companion. Yes, just maybe not to that level, right. That's the way, like there was a need there for him to have a dog, but not in the way that South Eastern God dogs dictates the way the dog has to be utilized.
Speaker 2:And not how, and not how Sean Brown describes his dog.
Speaker 1:For him, right, right so yeah, um, which, when Sean and Morgan were on faithful companion episode, right, they talked about how they've been breeding their dogs in house for a long time and, as they get feedback from veterans on what dogs are doing and and and how dogs react and how dogs are training each subsequent breeding, they're getting better and better. You know, like, like Sean said, you know his new dog is a is an upgraded model from his older dog. So you know, if you're taking feedback, you're taking information, you've got a rigorous system. You're trying to make every new batch of dogs better than the batch before them so that you're you're. You're never, you never want to put that 100% success rate in jeopardy by having a substandard dog go out or a dog go to a substandard scenario.
Speaker 2:Right, Right, I'm with you. So it's just so. We we thank um Southeast from God dogs for what they do. We think, listen, I mean we heard from um um disabled veterans outdoors the other day and you know, telling us how much are um. You know, we've given, given them like $17,000 in the last two years. What that meant to them. Um, how many, how many more boats that allows them to put on the water, how many more butts that allows them to put in tree stands to help veterans. So I mean, and it's, local.
Speaker 1:that's the best part and it's local at southeastern Ohio vets yeah.
Speaker 2:And uh, so yeah, and you know, and with honor flight, it takes approximately $1,000 to put a veteran in the seat and you know, yes, corporate, corporate money pays for the plane or things of that nature. But you know it takes approximately $1,000 to put a veteran in the seat and you know that's in the seat that takes them to, uh, washington DC puts them on a charter bus. You know they get to go and and view the memorial that depict their, their wartime service, and you know they get to go to the Vietnam Memorial wall, they get to go to Korean Memorial, they get to go to World War II Memorial, they get to go to Arlington National Cemetery. You know things that these guys may not have had the opportunity.
Speaker 1:Or now that they are ambulatory, right, um, they now have volunteers that can push them around and get them the point eight and point B that they might not have had if they wanted to take the trip with their family you know, and, and it gives them an opportunity to deal with things that they might not have been able to deal with, and it gives them an opportunity to feel that, before you know they're, they're in the twilight of their years. Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1:And uh, so that's our charities, that's, that's, that's who we do it for and and and like, like southeastern guide dogs on our flight, is zero cost to the veteran, Right, that's it. I mean. So if, if, uh, last year we gave him, what? $25,000, that's 25 veterans that got to go to DC and got to experience something that's important to them that they may not have been able to do, or, in the twilight of their years, you know, maybe they finally got into a point where you know, if it's an old Vietnam vet, maybe he struggled to go to the wall his whole life, Right, and and now he's there and he gets to have that. You know, we, when we went to the uh Mideast conflict wall, the feeling that that was for us, for an old Vietnam vet to be able to go there and and experience that wall. It's, it's worth every fucking penny we give them, and then some.
Speaker 2:And then they get to come home and they fly into Jongland international airport. They land to, to a heroes welcome the, the, the fanfare that they didn't receive when they came home from their war. So that's great. Um, it's amazing being in Jongland international airport when they, when they come home. It's amazing in itself. So, um, yeah, but there's for every dollar that we don't raise. I don't see it as a oh my goodness, you know it's another, it's, it's another, but we didn't put in a seat. It's another, but we didn't. Um, it's another. You know, gallon of fuel, we didn't put in a pontoon boat, or you know um things of that nature.
Speaker 1:So we left six grand on the table from our ticket sales. Yeah, that's six vets that didn't get to go to DC.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and I mean, if you, you know, and that's how I like that's how. I'd like to view it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's just not. It's not an arbitrary number. We know what our dollar goes to. So when we don't raise that dollar, we had a thousand tickets. We didn't sell all of them, right? So that's where we're saying. We left six grand on the table. We know that. That $6,000 just wasn't arbitrary, $6,000. We can find we can definitively say that was six guys that didn't get to go to DC.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, it wasn't, it wasn't a, it wasn't uh like, like you said earlier, it wasn't um. Well, last year we went to this person and they gave us a thousand dollars and this year they gave us 500. So that's 500 less. No, no, no, this is we set. We had a set amount of the tickets for a set price. You sell them all.
Speaker 1:That's 25 grand Yep Period, you know we made a commitment as a chapter to sell a thousand tickets and we fell short of that. Yes, that wasn't on any organization Right, that was 100% on the members of this chapter. We were the ones that failed the commitment that we set Right.
Speaker 2:And um, yeah, so you know, and part of part of the commitment was we were giving away 10,000 of the 25,000. You know what I mean? Yeah, Because it was, it was. It was important to me when, when you're in a small, small community like we have a large land mass but a small population.
Speaker 2:Yes, Um, we're in, we're in the southeastern corner of Ohio, and I think there's still people, there's still towns in Ohio that don't. They have no idea that we exist. And you know, as much as we try to get it out out there, um, it just doesn't happen.
Speaker 1:We are the part of Ohio that's still considered part of Appalachia.
Speaker 2:Right, yeah, and uh, great riding. Oh God, amazing, great riding. I mean, one of the chief complaints of our um event this weekend is we didn't have a ride um, which I'll take that um, because that that just lets you know people look forward to coming down this way and riding every year. Um, so yeah, I mean in the small area, um, you know, we have no big city over here. The closest big city to us is probably Pittsburgh or Columbus, and you know, one's in a different state and one's you know an hour and 30 minutes away, um, depending on where you live and their service by different chapters their service, their service by different chat, but you know, um, and the population, the population in Columbus is probably equal to the population of all 15 counties we serve.
Speaker 2:Right, it's not? No, I never looked that up, but I'm I'm pretty sure if it's not more, it's pretty damn close yeah.
Speaker 2:I mean but um, we, we need to get the election board out and fucking hit county by county, um, um. But yeah, I mean, you know I would. I would venture to say that you know, cincinnati, um has more, cleveland has more, columbus has more um held, toledo might even have more um, and then you throw Dayton in there. You know what I mean. Yeah, like the, the other chapters have these um metropolis is they, they live in and they serve right, which which they have a large population, but they also have an extremely large corporate population.
Speaker 2:Yes, and veteran population. Yeah Right, so um, so yeah, I mean, I mean. So. My thought process was this small community has given so much to our chapter over the last seven years that I wanted to give back to the community. I wanted to give back to everyone who have um stood by us thick and thin bought a ticket.
Speaker 1:Yes, donated a dollar.
Speaker 2:Right and by doing that you know um. You know we give them some money.
Speaker 1:We knew we were going to. We knew we were going to raise less by giving away $10,000, but it was important to show our appreciation to the community, Like my post I made about Cumberland the other day. Most certainly.
Speaker 2:Cumberland is a different animal all to itself. You know they used to um give to us all the time and prior to 2000, they gave to us all the time. They, they were a, a linchpin in in, you know, a lot of good community outreach stuff. Then, when 2000 hit 2020, or what I say, you said 2000 my bed 2020. My bed uh.
Speaker 1:I misspoke 2020.
Speaker 2:I misspoke my bed, um, yeah, when 2020 hit, um, we, we couldn't. You know. February 2020, I became commander March of 2020, covid hit. We have our run third weekend in August every year. Right, so, those early, those early runs, poker runs, didn't happen. State meeting didn't happen Um 12 ones, 12 twos, you know those, those the May, they didn't happen. Then, if you remember, back in 2020, there was kind of a lift in COVID and then we started having uh things again. So we had the state meeting at you know, 12 one had their event later on in a year. Um, I felt and again, this is, you know, this was just me I felt, um, asking the people in our community that are affected by COVID, uh shutdowns and and a lot of people didn't work and didn't have a way to pay for things Right.
Speaker 2:You know, our charity at the time was honor flight. That's it. And honor flight wasn't running, um, they suspended um flights. So why would I ask people for money to donate to honor flight, to send veterans to Washington if they're not flying? So I said we're not going to do an event this year and that was the hardest decision I've made as commander and that was two months into being the commander. That's the heart of decision I made. I stand by 100%, even though other chapters had runs that year.
Speaker 2:Now, you know, uh, some give to the Fisher house, some give you know what I mean some give to organizations that that can impact veterans now, today, you know, you know which that led to us branching out into helping other helping the disabled veterans outdoors, helping veterans, outreach with their um food pantries and things like. When we can help veterans today. That's where I want to send my money, that's, that's where I want our money to go. I want to help veterans today and um, so you know we, it was, it was a let's, let's throw this out to our chapter and they brought, they brought back probably nine or 10 different organizations. They have to be 501 C three. They have to be a veteran organization. You know all the criteria we set out. They, they did that, they sent them.
Speaker 2:You know, we, we, we did a poll on Facebook first, then brought it into the meeting and we voted on it and we're like all right, not only is honor flight, honor flight is no longer um, no longer the yeah, no longer our charity. Honor flight Columbus is now our charity. Why? Because honor flight is the, the top of the umbrella in all these. All these states have these different hubs, and honor flight the veterans in Ohio wasn't necessarily receiving our money right, and it's just like in our organization. If you send money to our national organization, us as a chapter have to apply for that money. So you can give it to us and we can use it directly, or we can. You can send it to nationals and we'll we have to pull it from them.
Speaker 1:And sometimes we may not get approved. So your money might end up going to Alaska, or you know, or a different state. You know, it's just it, just you know it's, it's a national, you know, cover all right which you can apply for every every two years.
Speaker 2:So, huh, I just had it. We're able to apply for that this year, 2020, 2022., no, next year, my bet. Um, yeah, yeah, that's how math works every two years.
Speaker 1:Math is math, math is math.
Speaker 2:Um, yeah, so we're able, we're able to apply for that next year. Um, but but yeah, I mean when, when we went to um Jonglin airport and we talked to the people from Honor Flight Columbus and you know their MC up there, uh, boots, lajanette went to the same high school as me, you know what I mean and I just randomly walked up to him and and, uh, talking to him, and uh, he's like, yeah, we don't get none of that money. I'm like, well, that's going to change. So we changed and now Honor Flight Columbus gets our money and uh, you know, in the last two years, um 21 and 22, since that change, um, you know, they received $38,000 from us. So that's $38,000 going directly to veterans in Ohio. So that's pretty good.
Speaker 1:So and that couldn't be done without the Cumberland community.
Speaker 2:And that most certainly, you know, in 2020,. Um, you know, I'll tell you a quick story. Um, bobby Cooley, uh, left hook. He was the original commander, um of our chapter. Um, we call him the mayor, call him the governor. Um, he, he, he can't go nowhere without talking to 100 people.
Speaker 1:He ain't met a person he couldn't have a conversation with. No, no, not a fucking one, not a fucking one.
Speaker 2:Um so it you know um he. He has friends out in Cumberland. Now you have to understand. Cumberland has come. The population of Cumberland is 314 people. Right, um, 314 people.
Speaker 1:That's your subdivision, right, right.
Speaker 2:And uh, you know so, um, tim Cox, a good friend of Bobby, lives out in Cumberland. Um, he had a friend, veteran, uh, 82nd airborne um, brian Hartman, that was diagnosed with stage four cancer, and he, he asked Bobby if he organized a ride, if we would, you know, be part of it. And Bobby's like, well, I'm not the commander, but I'll reach out to the commander and I'm sure he won't have a fucking problem with it. And he, he got with me and I'm like I don't have a fucking problem with it, let's go Say less Right and uh, so basically what it was is, um, we'd link up in Buysville and then we'd ride the 12 miles out to Cumberland and stop at Brian's house and just cheer him. The fuck up, right and uh, so that's what we do. So prior to that, bobby's like, hey, you know, maybe we, maybe we give uh, uh, bryant a uh certificate of appreciation from the chapter. All right, that's easy. Um, I printed up, throw it in a plaque, you know, easy, easy peasy. And and then Bobby took it upon himself to um call down to his daughter, paige, who's was? That Fort Bragg at the time, um and her roommate just so happened to be in the same company that Bryant was in when he was at Fort Bragg, right? So this guy um was able to get his company commander to write Bryant and letter uh inviting him down to Fort Bragg for airborne week, and said a lot of great, beautiful things in the letter and then, in true coolly fashion because if it's worth doing, it's worth overdoing when you're a coolly uh, Paige went to the um the museum and got uh Bryant a 82nd airborne throw um and sent it up here. So Bobby has that in hand. I have the plaque in hand.
Speaker 2:We pull up to his house, unbeknownst to him. His wife knew we were coming, but he didn't. And um, the rest of the community knew we were coming and they all showed up and we stand there and I read the plaque and you know he's crying, and then Bobby does his thing and he's crying and, um, we were, you know, and basically what I told him is you're a veteran, we're veterans, veterans don't fight alone. Uh, you have battle buddies and us, and whatever you need us to do, we're here for you. And that goes to your wife and so on, your, your family and um, brian Prater, uh, member of the community, he invited us, we were about to get all our bikes and leave and he's like hey, I'm having, I'm having to cook out my backyard. You guys need to come. So we left our bikes there, we walked over, cause it's right across street from Brian's house right across street and uh, they were good friends.
Speaker 2:I mean it's 300, 300 people. I mean everything's right across the street, um, yeah, and right across, right across the road. And um, we're standing in his yard and we're talking and beer can chicken, and uh, drinking beers, and he has a nice set up in his backyard, uh, a bar in his backyard. He calls uh affectionately the shack does shack. And uh, yeah, and he's like we're talking. He's like hey, how can we help you guys? And uh, you know he's talking to Bobby and Bobby calls me up on the hill. He's like Brian wants to know how he can help us. And I'm like we're here to help. You know we're here to help you, you don't have to. You're like, no, I want to do something to help. And uh, I'm like, well, next year, you know, we'll have our run again. I'm like we're not doing it this year because of COVID. And da, da, da, da, da. And he's like, well, I'm a private civilian, we can have it right here. You want to. I'm like you want to have it, like you want to have something right here.
Speaker 2:He's like, yeah, like all right, and I took it as tongue in cheek because you don't know people, right. I mean people say, people say shit all the time to you Um, I want to come on your podcast. You know what I mean. Um, you know, people, people say shit all the time, but when it's it's time for the rubber to meet the road, it's like, oh well, you know and I, and so I just take everything with a grain of salt. And you know, when people tell me I'm going to do this for you I never expected and you know it was I don't know, we could have later he's like hey, we don't fucking do this. We're going to plan this, we're going to. I'm like, oh, you're serious. He's like, yeah, I'm bringing your ass out here and we need to talk about this. So I did, and we're.
Speaker 2:He's like well, if we can raise 5,000 or, excuse me, if we were raised $500, I'll be happy. And I'm like, I'll be happy too you know, it's 300 people in this community, you know. And they raised over $5,000 that day and and it hit, you know, like a light bulb went off. And he was like, you know so that first year we were able to donate $10,500 to the honor flight. I got a petition $5,000 from national and we got $5,000, $5,500 from them. So that was great and I thought that was the end of it. You know I thought it All right. And then you know, next year came and you know, like six months out, he's like hey, let's do this again. I'm like seriously.
Speaker 2:He's like, yeah, I'm like all right, and here we are now the fourth year. Well, unfortunately, um, about a month before last year's event, brian died Um, uh, he battled cancer, went into remission, battled, he came back, he battled it again, um, and, and you know, ultimately succumbed to um the fight and uh, so we we have, you know, it was a no brainer to me to uh name this um, you know what I've uh professionally called uh the Cumberland community fundraiser, which Brian Brian called honor flight night. We now call uh the Brian Hartman Memorial honor flight night and uh, you know, the first year of the Brian Hartman Memorial honor flight night we raised um $9,000 or so, um, something like that. Um, so I mean, it's, what do you?
Speaker 2:What do you say about people like that? That's, you know um civilians that that they want to do something bigger than themselves and that veteran in their community met so much of them and the least, the very fucking least, we can do is match that energy. Yep, I, you know, before I stood in his driveway I never met Brian in my life and I think you know there's some solace to his family, his wife, that his name will live on through helping veterans. I mean, I don't know what more you can ask for?
Speaker 1:Um, and all we have to do is just show up and all we, and all we have to do is just show the fuck up.
Speaker 1:As I said in that post I put you know we show up and basically are treated like honored guests from a community that they do all of it. Brian handed me a Ziploc bag on Saturday, Yep, Yep. Now, now we're still a little over a month away from their event. Yep, he handed me a Ziploc bag with $5,000 in checks. That's not all the other shit he's already got, that was just the chunk of checks he gave me to to deposit Five grand in checks six weeks out from their event.
Speaker 2:Yeah and oh, by the way, secured, you know, 84 lumber donated $2,000 to secure the um to sponsor the stage. Oh, what's that mean? That means every band that gets on the stage are paid by 84 lumber. Yep, so that means that ain't coming out of our pockets anymore to pay them, right? That's, that's money we never saw, right, but it's money we're not giving up either.
Speaker 1:Yep, you know that's and that's all him. And in that community, boots on the ground, yeah, knocking on doors, calling in every favor, every person they know Doing everything to to to beat last year's goal. Yeah, you know, eventually that event is going to raise more than our chapter will raise as a whole. Right, because they're just they're not accepting anything less than better than last year, oh yeah.
Speaker 2:And it's, it's, it's already uh, you know, talks of moving venues.
Speaker 2:I think this is bigger than my backyard, Like we raised hold on, like we raised a lot of money in his backyard last year and in the pouring down rain it was cold and raining, pouring down rain and we still raised a buttload of money. So this year I'm, I'm, I'm hoping big things for this year. Um, because you know, it's, it's that thing, it's the little selfish thing in me. I want them to keep doing it Right, that's selfish. And I want them to keep doing better. So they keep wanting to do it. Yeah, you know what I mean. So, um, and you know when, when, when you get bit with the bug of I'm doing something bigger than myself, it's hard not to keep, you know we said before the the the the personal benefit you get from raising money and helping people.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean, you know again, I never for mission 22,. I never, I never knew, oh, this money went to you or this. You know it didn't. That didn't matter to me. It didn't matter who used it, how they used it, what, what program, none of that mattered the matter. What mattered to me was I'm doing, I'm doing a service. It raised money. That money helps veterans. That's all I needed to know.
Speaker 1:But now that we know where our dollar goes, it just makes it. Now you can see that much more personal.
Speaker 2:Yes, Now you can see it and you know, um, and you know, without excuse me, without your help, disabled veterans outdoors is not doing the service they're doing and you're like, okay, I want to keep doing it for them, you know the, the, the leisure part right.
Speaker 2:No, I mean we're we're preaching on this podcast about leisure Go out, get on a boat, go get a line wet. I mean you don't have to be disabled in war, you just have to be a veteran who is disabled. That's the only two criteria Be a veteran and disabled. Go out there, get on a boat, get in a tree, stand, sit on the ground, shoot a gun, you know, shoot a bow, whatever. Whatever the case may be, and again it's, it's all paid for. So I don't know, man. I mean it's one of those things where you know we can get on here and talk about it, but you know we're actually backing up what we're talking about. Yeah, you know, and and so speak, you know.
Speaker 1:Carrying on to that, Um, we had our episode with Sarge, when he really talked about the motorcycle relief project, which is an extremely important charity to him because it had such a huge impact on his life, Right, Um, you know.
Speaker 1:Then we had the episode with Sean and Morgan, uh, where we talked about the service dogs and the impact that has, Yep, Um, we had Gary, um, and 700 different directions all out, Haynes on Um, and you know we had a lot of people that were, you know, and you know, having a conversation with Gary is is an interesting conversation in all kinds of directions. Um, and Gary talked about, you know, not only the stuff he's gone through and the different bikes that he's rode, but also you know, how, you know, shooting is his, is his thing, you know, um. And then we had Duke on, you know, from, you know, being a Sergeant major to being a civilian and that transition, uh, and leadership. Then we had our this too shall pass episode. Yeah, Um, we had our Colorado nationals trip recap, which was an amazing two and a half hours, yeah.
Speaker 2:Um and and, and the first installment of fuck day.
Speaker 1:Ah, there we go. Yeah, uh, we had, uh, our patriotism one, uh, which was sections of that episode. We're slightly controversial, right Um. We talked about volunteerism, which is important to us, hence why we're talking about it again. Yeah, uh, what else did we have here? We had the thank you for your service episode, which is thank you for your service, unless you're on the highway, and then fuck you on, I'll try to kill you, right, um, literally, yeah, uh, we talk all the time about the new normal.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:And so episode uh, let's see what was that. 18 was the new normal. Um, 19 is probably one of my favorite episodes. That was the NCO club. Yeah, oh my God, the stories were fucking priceless. Um, you know, and, and now here we are, and and and, uh, I will Again.
Speaker 2:We've we've heard the feedback and, um, you know, people want to hear stories, they want to hear, you know, and I get it and you'll get it, you'll, you'll. So next season, um, you'll get more stories, you'll get more. Um, yeah, we have some, we have some big changes for next season, right?
Speaker 1:Um, first and foremost, after the first of the year, we have a lot of changes, but we're going to take a break over the holidays and stuff, just cause the recording schedule can get a little hectic. Um, and then, after we get through the we got some.
Speaker 2:We got some, um. So here's it. Here's another thing, like cause we ride so much, we use the winter months in Ohio to um get um medical attention, so we use the winter to all the, all the Owies and bumpies and and and things. Uh, you know um, you know surgery on my hip, so I may not drop my next national sign. I'm, you know, late October. I'm getting gastric bypass Exactly.
Speaker 2:So you know, we take, we push them, we push them to um late in the year so that we have time to recover for next. We don't want to lose any of this riding season or next riding season.
Speaker 1:So, yeah, plus we got, you know, family commitments and holidays and it's just real hard to schedule any type of consistent. Yeah, Then also yeah, and also, you know, as I said earlier on, you know when October hits, that's when my, that's when my moods at its lowest and I'm like, I'm like, I'm.
Speaker 2:That's when my moods at its lowest and I, you know, um, we promised you to come on here raw and and, and you know the moods that we're in when we sit here every day. But you know that three month stretch, right there, is usually bad for me because, a you're not riding a lot, and uh and B, you know it's, it's the, the birthday triangle of. You know, youngest daughter's birthdays October 18th. Oldest daughter's birthday is December 30th. So then you have Thanksgiving in there that you're not spending. You have Christmas in there that you're not spending. And as much as I have fun, you know it's it's still that void. Yeah, and and uh. I never want to lose that void. I just um, um and it. Well, let me refrain or let me retract. The only way I want to lose that void is if we have a rekindling.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, you're never going to lose that void until that happens. Right, that's what you were trying to say.
Speaker 2:Right, I, I. I never want to lose that void, unless they're like hey dad, let's have there.
Speaker 1:There's no way to fill that void, except for those two girls, most certainly, yeah. So big changes coming next season. Next season, follow, uh, after the first of the year we'll start posting some updates. Yep, yep, um. If you miss us in this off time, uh, you can always re-listen to us, cause we're fucking hilarious anytime we talk. So I'm sure that you could listen to just the NCO club episode multiple times and get your fill of all the hilarity that is us. Yeah, um, huge change for next year we will not be recording in the brick corner tavern.
Speaker 2:No.
Speaker 1:Um, we will be recording.
Speaker 2:Well, well, because the brick corner tavern might not be here. Uh, it'll be here it won't be a corner anymore.
Speaker 1:It might be the brick corner basement tavern, the whole basement, Um. But also we are going to be making the switch to video podcasts.
Speaker 2:Yep.
Speaker 1:So you get to see our beautiful faces? Yeah, and then and now you will understand why people think that we're brothers and twins.
Speaker 2:And uh which, yeah, we probably won't be twins in cause.
Speaker 1:you'll be a little stick figure, but uh yeah, I don't think I'll ever be a stick figure, but I'll definitely. But all tents of purposes, I will be significantly smaller than I am now.
Speaker 2:Yeah, Uh, let's hope, Um, but yeah, I mean it's, it's um, yeah, so we'll do digital, cause you know, I was told my whole life I have uh the face for radio and the voice for silent pictures.
Speaker 1:So what we didn't want to start out with video, because we didn't we honestly didn't know how this was going to go. No, and we've gotten such great feedback and we know that a lot of people, um, you know, you know we are not on this level, but, if nothing else that you can learn from Joe Rogan, that there is an appetite for people to consume podcast in a visual form Right, yeah, and so we wanted to make that jump, but we didn't want to make that jump until we knew that this was a sustainable project.
Speaker 1:And because it's a pretty hefty commitment to get the equipment to be able to do Right. You know, yeah, we could set our phone up, but you know, just like with our audio equipment, we wanted to have a good product. Same thing with the video equipment, right.
Speaker 2:So it'll take that long just to pay for, just to pay, uh, pay for um, but yeah, I mean, I mean, fuck it, it's money.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:And we like, we say all the time we've spent more money on dumbers.
Speaker 1:Every time somebody says that they don't need to buy a ticket, I always tell them you know you spent money on dumbers shit.
Speaker 2:Yeah, um so I mean so, uh, use this time away to still hit us up. Let us know what you're, what you want to see next season, what you want to hear about next season. Um, we're, we're doing our best to get as many people in here that's willing to sit down and and talk about their, their whiskey, their wheels, their wounds.
Speaker 1:Yeah, we want to. We also want to branch out. Um Brandy got some pretty good feedback on Saturday Um that there's individuals that would really like to hear the female veteran voice.
Speaker 2:Most certainly.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so, um, I think that's definitely something we need to branch out to next year. Yeah, Most certainly. Um, so it's, it's kind of nice you know to to get feedback, even if it's not to us directly, through you know our different communication channels, Right? Um, I really think that is definitely a good idea. Um, but, yeah, just, I mean no, we will not accept the advice that we're too fucking ugly to be on a camera. That's happening regardless, so you might as well just keep that one to yourself.
Speaker 2:You're right, but we know that. We know that going in.
Speaker 1:Yeah, self-assessment made. We know people don't want to look at us, but guess what? You're going to fucking look at us. I mean you don't have to. You can still listen to us on Spotify and everything else If we're too fucking ugly to grace your eyeballs.
Speaker 1:But, um, yeah, so we're really excited about the video portion next year. We're really excited to kind of you know, recharge and get you know we've got a lot more legwork. We want to do this off season to get things ready. What we didn't want to do was just keep dragging these out every week and then it just kind of fall apart. Yeah, we wanted to have a finite stopping point, yep, so that we can say, hey, we did it. We made 20 episodes. Uh, now we've learned a ton in those 20 episodes. You guys have been a huge, huge contributing force in that learning process, telling us, you know, you know everything that you've shared with us and and and the things that we've been told personally and then via messages and phone calls and all that jazz. So, um, just know that, like anything, we're going to do that assessment, that after action review, take everything good that we learned from season one and apply that to season two and try to grow it and, and you know maybe have an even bigger season next year than we did this year.
Speaker 2:Oh yeah, and uh, you know, if you want to sponsor us, you know we're here for that too.
Speaker 1:Yeah. So just so you know, if you sponsor us, it makes the cameras that much better. Yeah, wait, wait, wait, wait. We shouldn't use that justification. Um, if you want to sponsor us, we will totally tell you that we won't show our face on camera, but we will. Yeah, and 4D. Um, no, I do not want 4D's in my face on camera.
Speaker 2:That's a different, that's a different kind of compensation, Uh by the way.
Speaker 1:uh, father of mine, uh, we do love you, but you know that shit was funny as fuck this morning. It's official. Just throwing that out there.
Speaker 2:We love you, Dinkster, Be safe out on the road, and then with that, we'll put a bow on it for this season. Oh wait, wait, wait. Oh my bad.
Speaker 1:Uh, we have, uh, two people For this week's. Fuck that guy. Oh, and they are you and I fucked those guys. Oh well, fuck that guy.
Speaker 2:All right, Me and you fuck that guy, All right, um, so yeah, um, we'll see you next season.