This episode is dedicated to Tame Fili, who passed away in 2017, and the rest of the Fili family.

In this episode, I speak with Simi Fili. Simi is gigantic and freakishly strong—even after gaining 100+ lbs. and not having been in a gym for 1.5 years, he posted a video one-rep maxing 495 pounds on bench. He was a star high school football player who played in the All-American Bowl, signed for University of Oregon, and would've allegedly been the strongest player in school history.

We talk about how he lost his scholarship, had people turn their backs on him when they figured he wouldn't amount to anything after that, overcoming depression, money he made bouncing at a strip club and bar, losing his father, going from 500+lbs down to ~380 lbs, fatherhood, his future bodybuilding goals and more.

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Today I speak with Daniele Bolelli, host of "History on Fire", and co-host of "The Drunken Taoist" podcasts. Daniele is awesome, and if my interview doesn't convey that, it's my fault, and I highly recommend checking out his appearances on Rogan's podcast, and checking listening to whatever episodes of "The Drunken Taoist" that interest you. Better yet, please consider reading his book, "Not Afraid", in which he discusses caring for his late wife who ultimately died of brain cancer, caring for their baby daughter alone, and many other things—one part of that book in particular almost made me ugly-cry for the first time in years. Daniele is an awesome person and I'm glad I was able to speak with him. I hope you enjoy our conversation. :-)

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In this episode I speak with Alexander von Sternberg, host of the "History: Impossible" podcast.

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Daniele is a mixed-martial artist, college professor, and the host of "History on Fire" and co-host of "The Drunken Taoist" podcasts. If you haven't seen his appearances on Rogan's podcast, I highly recommend them since this episode does not exemplify what I love about Daniele. Better yet, read his book, "Not Afraid: On Fear, Heartbreak, Raising a Baby Girl, and Cage Fighting", which after reading it, is why I love Daniele—parts of it almost made me "ugly-cry" for the first time in years. He cared for his wife while she was dying of brain cancer, raised their baby girl alone, and much, much more. Despite that, he's still able to love and live life to the fullest. His two podcasts mentioned above are fantastic, the latter giving you far more insight into he is than the former, and I hope you consider listening to both, and that you enjoy this conversation.

This episode I talk with Alexander Rader von Sternberg, host of the "History: Impossible" podcast, one of the best history podcasts I know of (he recently did a six-hour episode about the physical, psychological, and societal effects of pandemics, "Pandemic: Rendering a Hue and Cry"). We talked about many things, including why he majored in psychology, "Blood Meridian", coping with depression and anxiety, past (and possibly future) rioting in Minneapolis, and many other things. This is the first of many conversations, since we got through about 1/4 of the questions I had.I apologize for the times I end up talking over him—internet conversations aren't without their drawbacks, which I'll take into better account in future episodes. :-)music by audionautix.com

In this episode, I talk about why I started the podcast, the meaning of the logo, and the purpose of the podcast. I'm still very new to this and have to write what I say out beforehand, because when I didn't do that, the results were usually incoherent. Thank all of you so much for listening, and I hope that if you are checking out the podcast for mental health reasons, that you find such help—do not give up hope, there are many effective treatments out there, and that you're worthy of those treatments. Take care and be well!