Sketch Comedy Podcast Show

ABOUT THIS EPISODE

What makes a movie good? This was a conversation that I recently had and it really blew my mind. The argument was “if a movie is ‘good’ and I can’t keep my eyes open during it, is it good to me?” I had to pause, and completely agree. The movies that I enjoy most are the ones where I am engaged, fully, and feel connected to because they were so entertaining. I hate to admit, but there are a lot of “good” movies that do not appeal to me in any way. 
You know who would totally agree with that? Michael Gibson and Calvin McCarthy. Why? Because they are producing and creating a movie in Portland right now called “Vampire Mutants from the Planet Neptune” which sounds more like a random word-generator than the title of a movie. But, after talking to these two, I have no doubt that it is going to be a really good movie, at least for me!
We talk about putting a movie together, the creative process, being in movies, watching movies… we talk a lot of movies. Calvin has been an actor and director in the Portland area since he was little, and Michael is a producer and focuses on sound, which is near and dear to my heart. And yes, we do talk about hanging dong in a movie. 
Michael & Calvin developed the production company Video Is The Future and their first production is going to be the aforementioned “Vampire Mutants from the Planet Neptune” where you can join me at the premiere and help support this film! Go to http://bit.ly/SCPSmutantvampire to support!
For more episodes, information, and apply to be on the show, visit: http://sketchcomedypodcastshow.com
Sketch Comedy Podcast Show is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
© Copyright 2021 Stuart Rice
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MORE ABOUT THE GUESTS
Michael GibsonMichael Gibson is a local production sound mixer for indie films and is also opening up a small indie film studio in Portland Oregon!
Calvin McCarthyCalvin Morié McCarthy was born April 28th 1992 and raised in Vancouver WA. He began his career as an actor at age 16 playing Romeo in his high school theater production of "Romeo and Juliet". He has appeared in such films as "the Adults in the room", "Lake Noir" and "A House A Home". Calvin has gone on to direct two feature films, "3 flies in a widow's web" and "Bedtimescarries.com". Calvin also directed and produced the documentary "Manos: a conversation with Jackie Neyman".
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TRANSCRIPT
[00:00:00] spk_0: in this episode, Michael Gibson and Calvin McCarthy from the production company Video Is the Future came up with a few sketch ideas. NBA team coming out the music, playing chair song or whatever it is and then the players coming out and going, what's going on, looking around the room on a pitch meeting and just throwing things together. Okay, that's great. That's, that's a great one. What if you had a martin Scorsese who was doing a low budget film?

[00:00:29] spk_1: It's deliverance meets predator.

[00:00:30] spk_0: Which one did we pick? You'll find out on this episode of it's a sketch comedy podcast show. Welcome back to sketch comedy podcast show. The one of a kind show where I Stewart rice invite interesting people to have intriguing conversations and then improvise a comedy sketch based on what we talked about. If you liked this episode, I highly suggest going to sketch comedy podcast show dot com where you can go to Youtube and you can get other episodes and all sorts of really great stuff. Speaking of good, what makes a movie good? This was a conversation that I recently had and it really blew my mind. The argument was if a movie is good and I can't keep my eyes open during it. Is it good to me? I had to pause and completely agree. The movies that I enjoy most are the ones where I am engaged fully and feel connected because they are so entertaining. I hate to admit it. But there are a lot of good movies that do not appeal to me in any way. You know, who would totally agree with that? Michael Gibson and Calvin McCarthy from the production company Video Is the Future here in Portland Oregon. Why? Because they're producing and creating a movie in Portland right now called vampire mutants from the planet Neptune, which sounds more like a random word generator than the title of a movie. But after talking to these two, I have no doubt that it is going to be a really good movie. Well, at least for me, we talk about putting a movie together the creative process, being in movies, watching movies. We talk a lot about movies. Calvin has been an actor and director in the Portland area since he was a wee little one and Michael is a producer and focuses on sound which is near and dear to my heart. And yes, we do talk about hanging dong in a movie, Michael and Calvin developed the production company, Video is the Future and their first production is going to be this aforementioned vampire mutants from the planet Neptune where you can join me at the premiere and help support this film. The link is in the show notes and if you come, I'll even share my popcorn with you. And now my conversation with Michael Gibson and Calvin McCarthy, the movie making duo that sometimes hang Dong Michael Calvin, thank you so much for coming on the show. Thank you for having. Thank you for having us. So, I've got a question for both of you. It's what makes you interesting.

[00:03:18] spk_1: Oh, so such a big question. Uh, my immediate impression is what makes you interesting. Everyone's interesting and it's our life experiences that make us interesting. What makes me interesting? I don't know. Uh, I'm but it's like in the moment or universally, I don't know. Uh, studio in Portland Oregon. What I'd eat faker. That's what makes me interesting. All right. Uh, yeah, I'll give more of a real answer to that. Um, okay, here, here's what makes me interesting, just like off the bat. What I think people go, that is really weird and interesting is my two biggest loves in life. Um Couldn't be more opposite number one. I'm like just a big movie nerd. Like horror movie nerds, sci fi movies, Godzilla movies, monster movies from the fifties. I'm like an encyclopedia of knowledge. But then my other biggest love is NBA basketball. I know every player on every team, I know every starter on every team bleacher report is my biggest thing. So that's usually one that I get people going. That is really interesting that both of those are like your two biggest loves.

[00:04:37] spk_0: Yeah this is like uh gosh what would I say? Like nerd stratification there, like you can be an NBA nerd but those NBA nerds don't usually the Venn diagram doesn't circle

[00:04:50] spk_1: up with and then I throw like a loop another wrench in there where it's like, oh yeah my my two favorite artists, like musical artists are like Billy Idol and the Psychedelic furs. So none of those go together. Like none of my front, none of my basketball friends give a shit about the movies or the music that I like.

[00:05:11] spk_0: That makes it really difficult when you're trying to figure out like uh themes for bringing the teams onto the court, right? Like, you know, like a psychedelic first song? That would be good for bringing an NBA team onto the court. And it's like I can't all of my love, you can't do that. It doesn't work. So yeah.

[00:05:32] spk_1: Yeah. I get I get like Godzilla Blue rays and Trailblazers Jersey for christmas.

[00:05:39] spk_0: That's beautiful. I love it. I love it. Well, excellent. Well, I can think of something else that makes both of you pretty interesting. You've got a little bit of a project going on. Tell us all about your project.

[00:05:52] spk_1: Glad you asked. Well, we have a very exciting movie coming out. It's called Mutant Vampires from the Planet Neptune and it's gonna be a feature film. It's gonna be a horror comedy movie in the style of kind of 80 slasher movies. Uh, similar to Don Dolar films who kind of invented this genre of slasher meets sci fi. So it's not like Michael Myers or Freddy Krueger. It's more like a space alien trying to kill the protagonist in the film. Uh, we're gonna film it. Super low budget. We have an Indiegogo going on right now. And it's incredible that within like seven days we've reached 90 of our goal.

[00:06:30] spk_0: Yeah, that's awesome. I've actually donated. Oh, did you? My money where my mouth

[00:06:36] spk_1: sat. Well, thank you so much for donating. What, what, what did you get?

[00:06:40] spk_0: I don't know. I don't remember. I just look for the amount of money I was comfortable spending. Yeah. With that. So I think it was $25.

[00:06:47] spk_1: Okay. This is good insight to see how people want want to engage with it.

[00:06:51] spk_0: Yeah. Well, I was just, I was looking to support. Yeah. But I think I get, Oh no, I know exactly what it is and that's exactly two tickets to the premiere.

[00:06:59] spk_1: Everyone wants that. We didn't think it was going to go very far.

[00:07:01] spk_0: Yeah. No, I mean that's a, I want to be eventually out with people and enjoying something as a group, Right?

[00:07:08] spk_1: Yeah. That's what I figured. It's funny too, because I've been a part of a lot of projects, like as an actor that have had crowdfunding campaigns. But as a filmmaker, I've never, I've never even really thought very deeply about doing a crowdfunding campaign for a movie. So this is really like my first, my first time. I know this is also Michael's first time and it's just like trying to figure out, you know, what, what did we think people were gonna buy versus what are people actually buying? Um, and uh, it's really hard with how successful this one's been so far to even figure out like, what, what did we do wrong? Like, you know, what, what, what are we getting from this that's not going to apply to other movies that don't have such a catchy title or ridiculous concept, right?

[00:08:01] spk_0: Yeah. I think I think that's really important is to have that that record stretch moment for people, right? That just grabs their attention and

[00:08:12] spk_1: they have to be scrolling and then they have to wait. What was

[00:08:15] spk_0: that? Yeah, I don't know what that even is

[00:08:18] spk_1: packing a girl in a bikini.

[00:08:20] spk_0: Exactly. Got you to stop right with that. That's

[00:08:26] spk_1: what I got that image that I just described. That you to stop and donate.

[00:08:29] spk_0: Right? It totally did. That was exactly what it was and in fact I was only gonna do $10 but then I was hoping she was gonna be hearing no not going to be at the premiere.

[00:08:40] spk_1: Yeah. Who's gonna be at the premiere? Everyone's going to premiere. Monster's gonna be at the premiere. Yeah it's gonna be at the premiere. We're going to be at the premiere.

[00:08:48] spk_0: Yeah that's the most important thing you guys are gonna be at the premiere. Yeah. So what what is the inspiration behind this movie? It's got mutants. It's got vampires. It's got mutant vampires.

[00:09:02] spk_1: Well uh

[00:09:03] spk_0: like a Neptune

[00:09:04] spk_1: oh yeah that's another question we always get. So uh at the top of the show you asked, you know, what, what do we like, what makes us interesting and like I said, fifties b order movies and sci fi movies are like are just my jam. They've always been since I was a little kid. And uh Michael mentioned Don Dolar who's a pretty big inspiration of mine because he's an independent filmmaker From the late 70s into the early 80's. Uh he's from Baltimore Maryland, and he made movies in his backyard that ended up like on TV and ended up gaining like this really big cult following. And I've just always been a really big fan of those movies. So first of all, I knew that when Michael opened up the studio space, we needed to do our our first big project needed to be fun. It needed to be maybe not overly serious. Um and that that kind of like fifties, monster movie genre, it's just perfect for that. Like, like we were also saying it it's one of those types of movies that if it's on like a walmart shelf is a DVD for five bucks, you kind of stop and go, what the fuck is that? You do not pick it up. Yeah. Yeah. You're so curious why Neptune Neptune is the coolest planet in the solar system. It's the furthest from the sun. It's one of the gas giants. It has, you know, the big I uh storm that's constantly there, I mean, and also, you know what? Everyone's everyone's been to uranus, you know, and everyone gives love to all the other planets. So

[00:10:44] spk_0: uh you you mentioned something there that I was trying to keep on the down low, but thank you for exposing me in more ways than one. Yeah, So you're funding this through Indiegogo and you're having some success which is awesome. Um I actually have had a guest on my show before. Who does he does movies as well, steve wallet. I don't know if you know who he is, but he does, he is prolific. He's done like I would say 250 movies. Uh He goes on Indiegogo and he gets like $30,000 in like a week. It's crazy. But I I think it's such a great, great way to get funding because um it's the people that are actually interested in what you're doing going and doing that. Um What has been, I mean I obviously asked a couple questions would have been some questions you've been asked uh from either people from Indie go Go or just people, you know, what are the questions that you've been asked that you're just um kind of surprised by how many people have asked to be in your movie?

[00:11:50] spk_1: A few. Quite a few. Yeah, I think the one that was really interesting to me, uh, there's a pretty popular Youtuber named Shawn C phillips and he's, he, he was like one of the first really big like Youtube people in like the movie community. He just has this huge collection. And he just, you know, he would just, oh, these are my top 10 favorite movies from the eighties, you know, and now he's like, you know, over 100,000 subscribers and his, his day job is doing that. But since he has like this little pocket of, of uh fame, uh, he's able to just get on all of these projects. And originally I, I reached out to him, so I also have a Youtube horror movie review channel and I kind of know him. I've talked to him a little bit before and I said, hey, would you mind like sharing this because it's kind of up your alley and your fans really like it? And he looked at it and said, oh, can I have a cameo in the movie? So that one was really surprising. What's also great is, I think that just kind of speaks to the ethos of making this film is that we're super adaptable. It's like if you wanted to be in the movie, Yeah. And you want to promote it and you're just good for the project that will put you in and then yeah, it doesn't, it doesn't matter to me. You know, I can, you know, the great thing about a movie like this is, you know, it can, it can go through little changes. You can add things, you know, there's nothing wrong with nothing holy or sacred about. Yeah. You know,

[00:13:22] spk_0: you're not working from a source text that is robert, you know, there's no,

[00:13:28] spk_1: this was really funny. I I was explaining this like, uh, oh yeah, have you heard about mutant vampires to a friend? I wanted to get involved? And he said, uh, no, I haven't heard about that. And he thought it was a serious thing, like after the audience and after the coronavirus, there were actually mutant vampires going around and they had to take a second wait, that can't possibly exist. But it did seem like the next chain in the progression of of a society. Yeah. Um, I also did get an interesting question where a couple of people said why mutant vampires aren't vampires from Neptune already weird enough,

[00:14:06] spk_0: You want that subset of the subset you're targeting your audience here. Right,

[00:14:13] spk_1: Right. Um, which I don't really have a good answer for that one. Yeah. Is he like, is he like a mutant on Neptune other he's an outcast. Yeah. You have to say that the sequel we have to have a lot. Right. What are

[00:14:27] spk_0: the questions you answer in the movie? You don't want to just yeah, go out and blow the whole thing, blow

[00:14:34] spk_1: the history. A lot of twists and turns. It has a lot of interest is to it.

[00:14:39] spk_0: So you guys wrote the script?

[00:14:41] spk_1: Yeah. We, you know, like I said, we Michael opened up the studio space. We knew that I've had some, some, you know, success with getting distribution for my last feature films. They've all been horror films. Um, so when we started the space, we already kind of came in with this knowledge of like how, how to do that, How to like go to a company, get your movie sold, get it on DVD, get it on amazon to be maybe even something like hulu. So we already knew how to do that. So we said, well we got, we have to do that for our first big project coming out of here. It's got to be a horror film because they're easy to sell. It should probably be something stupid and fun that everyone can get excited about. And

[00:15:32] spk_0: it went through a couple

[00:15:33] spk_1: of different changes, you know, Michael and I throw the ball around. We had a big white board and uh, we just, we were like, this idea makes this idea and then it came down to like, what do we just have in the studio? Yeah, it looks like it's high production value. And then oddly enough, those items came together, we can make this movie. We have a very, very nice latex vampire monster mask that's like form fitting that the actor can emote. And um, Michael also had like this cosmonaut style suit and it was like, okay, there's gotta go together.

[00:16:08] spk_0: Yeah, vampires in space

[00:16:12] spk_1: and it just works it immediately. It was like we said, it's like we knew. Yeah. And the funny thing is when we, I would tell that story or when I was in the process of writing the script, that's how I would, I would say it's like Michael and I were coming up with something, we realized we have a space suit and we have this vampire thing. And the first reaction that you get from people was please say that those two aren't going together. No, they're absolutely going together.

[00:16:42] spk_0: It's like chocolate and peanut butters to my years. But I hear, Yeah, that's awesome. Um, So I can't, when you've been in movies, other movies, you've

[00:16:54] spk_1: made other movies. Yes, Yes. I I believe I've directed five other other feature films that have had some form of distribution. Uh One of which is the DVD is uh you can preorder the DVD on amazon right now. That's another order of comedy called jesus. I was evil. Um but I've been acting for about 11, 12 years um in the community around here. Um had an agent the entire time. It's mostly just been like a lot a lot of Indie feature films that are shot around here. It's either that or commercials.

[00:17:39] spk_0: Yeah. Yeah, that sounds about right. Yeah. And then Michael, you've been your producer, right? You produce.

[00:17:46] spk_1: Yeah, I'm getting more into producing. I got into doing film stuff in Portland because I was looking to do a career change. I didn't want to work in an office anymore. And I started working in public access and I started to notice that everyone has a camera and they want to shoot their passion project, but they don't have good sound. So then I moved on to doing sound production sound for independent films. And I realized that I really wanted to help friends and other people in town uh make their movies and my sound is a great thing for that because it really helps people uh get getting better sound in addition to having good visuals, makes their feature films or there any projects just a little bit better. So right now I'm kind of shifting from doing just production sound also doing producing, which this studio space that I'm opening up, which I want to give you a tour soon uh is About 800 square feet of like production space. And we're gonna open an office next door. So it's gonna be a space where we can just shoot projects in here. It'll be like a little mini soundstage. And the hope is that like different movies, different feature films, different independent projects. We're going to come through the space and the team that's being established here will give a huge leg up to everyone's project and we'll be able to produce some amazing content out of here.

[00:19:04] spk_0: That's awesome. That's awesome. Michael, when you go to the movies, do you, when you listen to a movie is their movies that you listen to that drive you nuts.

[00:19:14] spk_1: Uh Once in a while. Um uh usually usually uh bigger budget features don't have those issues. They can usually fix it in post a lot of the local stuff. I'm also guilty of this too. It's never perfect and you never have time to do all the work. Uh Yeah, there's some stuff that it's like really noticeable, it's kind of hard to know like if every, if it kills the movie for everyone else, as long as it's just a little blip here and there, it's usually fine.

[00:19:41] spk_0: There's uh there's certain movies, like feature films that get a lot of get panned on the sound a lot.

[00:19:47] spk_1: Sam

[00:19:47] spk_0: design is huge. Yeah. What is an Interstellar is one that gets panned pretty hard and it's just like, it's interesting because it can make or break a movie for people because if you go into a movie and you can't understand the dialogue or you can't, so it really does have an effect on people. I just think it's like one of those like Unsung Unsung Hero is the sound engineer behind the scenes. Um Not to say that the actor is not

[00:20:15] spk_1: important. Yeah, yeah, we're in front of the camera.

[00:20:20] spk_0: Right, right. Um, so, and so I know that you've got the space in Portland, but tell me about Portland, like, so you're not the only filmmakers in Portland. Portland is actually a pretty big filmmaker, you know, Michael, you and I both have a friend that is in the final throes of getting a feature film published. So, um, what do you, what is different about Portland than anywhere else as far as film?

[00:20:50] spk_1: Oh, that's tough. Okay, that's tough. From the perspective of, you know, I grew up in Los Angeles, but I didn't have a connection to the film community in L. A. So I can only speak, so I can kind of only speak to the community here and there's a lot of support, there's a lot of pockets, there's a lot of, there's a lot of talent out there. There's a lot of good people with good ideas. I like, others, different styles, different people are doing different things. Like I know Calvin's a big horror movie nerd, but there are people out there who only do action movies or do romance films or do you know, like more personal artistic projects. So there's a good diversity to the community. Um I think that uh collaboration is key. I wish that people would be connecting a lot more. Um and I think that's one of the unique perspectives that I had doing sound is I got to be on a lot of different teams. Uh and that that showed me different ways of doing things and you kind of take the best things from each pocket, like, oh, that group, that crew has this great ability to do this. Why don't we incorporate that over here and this group does this? Why don't we incorporate that back on our team? Yeah,

[00:21:54] spk_0: yeah. There's some, some terrible habits that you're like, I'm not going to do those. Have you seen things that crews have done where you're like,

[00:22:03] spk_1: you got the big, big ones are like scheduling, you gotta show up on time. Uh, you got to treat people with respect, uh, you have to be realistic about what you can accomplish in a day. I think that's a big thing. Uh, you can't go into it thinking that you're going to have, uh, you know, you can't cram, you can't force your way through a lot of filmmaking problems. You have to have like a time for it to look good. And you also got to come into projects being a little bit humble and not having like a huge ego or you know, expect you have to really work with a team. Yeah, I you know, I would definitely echo that. I think the biggest thing that I've noticed um is that there's maybe there's maybe a fair amount of people who kind of approach the film thinking like I I just I got this because this is like my passion project, where it's it's, you know, this community has a big emphasis on kind of like this like very artistic aspect to it, and especially coming from being like an actor first, and originally not not really ever thinking, I would be able to make my own movies. I obsess over it. Um and I worry about it and I map everything out and I make, you know, shot list months in advance, because I know that when I get into editing like I'm gonna I want uh you know, the most amount of content possible. And I agree with what Michael said. I think one thing that I might differ a little bit on, and it might be why, maybe why Michael doesn't love all of my past movies. But uh it's the fact that for me, uh like as an artist or as an editor, I would 10 times out of 10 rather have 100 Okay shots for a scene rather than like the one that everyone took forever to set up perfectly. Because, you know, I saw this in a Stanley Kubrick movie and I needed to be I need the light glinting on the on the fabric, just right. Because that's what, you know, that's what kubrick would do for me. It's like it's clay, it's like I can cut around, I can make this energetic. I would rather have like diversity in shots to build a c into like, like I, I kind of just call it like the covering your own ass style where it's like, just get a bunch of stuff here.

[00:24:38] spk_0: So the quantity over quality, because you know, you can cut it together properly and getting

[00:24:43] spk_1: a little bit. I think that there is a little, there is something to say about, especially if you find yourself in a time crunch, um having an ability to like muscle your way through a scene and go, I'll just, I'll make sure that I cover my ass somewhere else with the shot. So maybe if the, if the light reflecting off the fabric isn't as beautiful as everyone else wants, I could cut away from that. You can't be precious about those things. It's about what you need to tell the story. I also make corner movies, which, you know, if you're making, you know, if you're making your passion project about, you know, uh kittens learning how to read or whatever. Okay, maybe you need that. Maybe you need your beautiful glorious shots. But uh yeah, I know, but for for mutant vampire smith, you know, make it colorful, make it make it fun and action packed. Put a lot of blood in it.

[00:25:40] spk_0: We're good. People are gonna, let's face it like some of those like, like those those trailing shots or the one shot, you know on a, on a on what do they call him? The tram or whatever. They're Yeah, those things are beautiful. Also ridiculously expensive. Yeah, I get asked all the time. Like why isn't this more of like why don't you make cartoons for your sketches? And I'm like, you don't have any idea the budget. Yeah. What I've looked into it, it's like the budget goes up dramatically when you start adding those things and sometimes it's just good to get the story out there right and and tell it in the best possible way you can. Um That's awesome. What are some of the movies that you guys obviously a lot of horror movies for you Calvin but what are some movies that like those are the movies you aspire to? Is it kubrick?

[00:26:33] spk_1: Uh I will like Stanley, kubrick from David lynch. I also really love charlie Kaufman, I love connected in new york adaptation, Eternal Sunshine being john Malkovich but also like a lot of trash b movies. I love samurai cop, I love hard ticket to hawaii, I love Birdemic, I love the room, I Love Troll two. Um Yeah, so if we can aspire to, anywhere in between that spectrum would be great. Uh You know I and I do love good movies. You know, I do have an entire movie room in my house that's full of Dvds and blue rays and yes, most of them are our horror movies or what people would call B movies. But I mean like, you know, one of my favorite movies is uh Francis, ford, Coppola's rumble fish. I think that's like one of the best, most underrated movies ever made. Most underrated, like art films ever made. You know, I would love to be able to make something like that. There's maybe we did a short recently in the studio space that I don't know. I, I kind of hope maybe has some of that like rumble fish feel to it. Um you know, but yeah, I mean, I would be lying if I said that. Uh you know, I would, I would watch uh, A 70s Godzilla movie over a uh David Lynch film any day. Give me give me Godzilla versus the smog monster any day.

[00:27:59] spk_0: Right? Yeah. You know the fight at the action sequences might be better. Right? For sure. They are. Yeah, Calvin I asked this of all actors or actresses that have been on, on my show uh nudity and film, have you ever done any

[00:28:17] spk_1: Oh yeah, yeah. Oh yeah. From mutant vampires. I have a very small part. I'm

[00:28:24] spk_0: not no, you should not say that when you're talking about nudity.

[00:28:26] spk_1: Yeah. I'm starting to put it in my uh like it's got to be in my contract now. It's like I got to at least have a butt shot.

[00:28:36] spk_0: Yeah. I always be the same way I do that for this show to like I make myself write my own contract so that I have to have some full frontal nudity

[00:28:45] spk_1: in. Yeah. Buts are funny. Yeah, of course. I I, you know, uh, one of the first feature films that I was in when I was really young. There's no nudity, but it's it's definitely uh, suggested I was in a film called Adults in the Room. Uh, and so, so right off the bat as an actor, I was told I was already doing like music or maybe a little bit risque. Um, but yeah, I mean I did I did uh art horror film, I guess, uh, called uh Dead Man Island. And you know, there any full frontal in that there's a lot of nudity in that movie. I just, you know, I don't I don't really have a problem with it. Also don't have anything to like prove also you're not gonna, nobody is gonna embarrass me. Very little shame.

[00:29:35] spk_0: I'm very,

[00:29:36] spk_1: I really don't. I like Jim is one

[00:29:39] spk_0: of those things that just it hinders art.

[00:29:42] spk_1: Yeah, I I agree. And I think that it's really unfair. Um like on a serious note when like Male actors or male filmmakers or just like guys in general, um you know what, what did we all do as like young teens? It's like of course you want to watch the horror movie that's got nudity on the back of the box, you know, that was like average 12 year old boy. So it's just like really unfair then that you have a lot of male actors who are very like you mean a lot of them you don't want to take their shirt off. It's like, come on, you know, you can't double standard, like you really do have to be willing to do anything. You ever ask an actress to do it? Really? It's just it's fair, like on a serious note,

[00:30:28] spk_0: yeah, Calvin. I lied. I've never actually ask that question of anybody, but yeah, I'm in the same boat. Michael. Any full frontal sound design in a movie.

[00:30:44] spk_1: Trying to think what full frontal sound design with you. Uh Yeah, it's uh you hear a lot of like internal stuff. You're a lot of throat gurgling. You hear a lot of stomach issues depending on what people had for lunch. Yeah, You get real deep inside and personal.

[00:31:00] spk_0: Yeah. Okay. All right. That was the dirtiest thing ever said on this podcast. Thank you.

[00:31:05] spk_1: Good. Okay.

[00:31:08] spk_0: Um All right. Uh, so, we're at that point where we're gonna uh we now have to record a sketch after you're done. Googling all the different places where you can see Calvin's Ding dong. Honestly, if you need the list, just send an email to sketch comedy podcast show at gmail dot com, I'll send it to you. No worries. Then you might actually want to find out some other interesting things that both Michael and Calvin are working on mutant vampires from the planet Neptune. Actually, Michael Calvin, Where's the best place to find that?

[00:31:47] spk_1: Yes, uh mutant vampires from the planet Neptune. We are getting into uh production in March, our big day is going to be in april and we have an Indiegogo campaign that is running up into the mid april. We're already doing really well with it and and we just, we need you guys to support, even if you can't contribute money, just shares and likes is huge for it. Just getting eyeballs on the project is just as important. Honestly, we can't wait to be filming it and giving people updates and we really hope that you can donate or share and we can't wait for you to watch the film. Some extra proof that that we're not just, you know, goofy filmmakers and this is just going to end up on youtube somewhere. Uh not my last film but but two films ago, jesus, I was evil. You can already pre order it on amazon, you can preorder the DVD right now. I think it's like a whole whopping $12.

[00:32:50] spk_0: I'd almost be willing to host a watch party if you guys would be interested in that. I have already pre ordered the movie and now our sketch Oscar worthy movie pitch with Michael Gibson and Calvin McCarthy in three two Mr Spielberg. Your next appointment is here. Yeah. Okay. Send these guys in.

[00:33:20] spk_1: We've got the next

[00:33:21] spk_0: blockbuster movie for you. You're saying you've got the next blockbuster movie for me. Do you know who I am?

[00:33:26] spk_1: We've watched every movie that you've ever produced. Mr Spielberg, you're a fantastic artist. But let me tell you something. You are missing out on male. Full frontal nudity. Nobody wants to see tits and ass any more. Give the people what they want. It's all about gongs these days. Mr Spielberg.

[00:33:42] spk_0: Well it's Spielberg. I just want to make sure I'm clarifying. I don't want to get confused with that hack. People want dong

[00:33:50] spk_1: dogs plural. Movies need to hang Dong is these days Mr Spielberg?

[00:33:55] spk_0: Alright, I'm

[00:33:56] spk_1: listening. So what we want to do is we want to make a space opera centered around Romeo and Juliet in space

[00:34:03] spk_0: sort of like zombies and pride and prejudice, bullshit, that type of thing.

[00:34:07] spk_1: And everyone's gonna want to go see this movie. But what they realize is it's not gonna be full of nude women. It's gonna be full of nude men will

[00:34:15] spk_0: be the talk of the town. Now, you realize that I am a Oscar nominated director of film.

[00:34:22] spk_1: Absolutely. You've made fantastic film.

[00:34:24] spk_0: My last movie made $150 billion.

[00:34:28] spk_1: This movie is gonna be so big. They're going to have to open a new category at the Oscars. Just for you Nominated three times for this one movie. You're going to be the first x rated dong hanging film to win an Oscar Mr Spielberg.

[00:34:44] spk_0: All right. I like where you're going, what what do you got as far as plot

[00:34:48] spk_1: to space stations that our on opposing planets that don't like each other. You know, we're going to break a lot of new ground. Well, think puppets, puppets are going to be key to this whole

[00:34:59] spk_0: of these puppets. Do they also have dogs that are

[00:35:02] spk_1: hanging? That's the beauty of puppets. So you can have as many dogs as you want.

[00:35:05] spk_0: Tell me some of the action scenes, because that's what I'm known for. My movies are the dramatic action scenes. Like so tell me some of these dramatic action scenes I can

[00:35:13] spk_1: expect to be

[00:35:14] spk_0: filming in this movie. There's

[00:35:16] spk_1: gonna be tons of laser shootouts to me, tons of gore and decapitations. You know, nobody's going to care about. They're going to go to see puppet Daum's. Have you ever seen puppet gongs in a feature film before?

[00:35:28] spk_0: Your intriguing me quite a bit. What kind of a talent are you thinking for this film?

[00:35:33] spk_1: I will be voicing one of the puppets. Probably the puppet that hangs the most dong. You'll have the gravitas, I have the gravitas for it. I have, I

[00:35:43] spk_0: have, I can hear it in your

[00:35:44] spk_1: voice. You've got a good

[00:35:45] spk_0: hanging dong voice.

[00:35:46] spk_1: Have the voice of someone who hangs dong. But I also think Woody Harrelson, Woody Harrelson loves doing his friend Bill Hill Murray will come along. Have you ever heard you ever heard of Bill Murray? You know,

[00:35:59] spk_0: I ran into Bill Murray at a cocktail party. He was interested in a movie where quite honestly, he was asking why he doesn't get a lot of offered hanging down.

[00:36:09] spk_1: Uh, has never been in a movie with the puppet, but we know that and he's never done nudity. And that's the one thing that Bill Murray goes to his grave and never hangs dong in a film

[00:36:20] spk_0: on his gravestone. It'll say

[00:36:22] spk_1: never hung did everything except for hanging dawn.

[00:36:25] spk_0: I'm loving this project so much. I don't know what the story is. I don't really understand why we would be making it, but I'm in all right. What do you need from me?

[00:36:34] spk_1: A couple 100 million to get the puppets made. We will also need to space stations as we will be filming on location.

[00:36:41] spk_0: Okay, so it looks like I got to get in touch with Elon musk to get some space stations up in space

[00:36:48] spk_1: and if Elon musk can hang dong to, we're just gonna double the revenue that we would have gotten

[00:36:53] spk_0: already, he'll be interested, but he's definitely going to be asking for one thing in particular. What's that? How good is the CGI budget and can they make things bigger? Thank you again for joining us on sketch comedy podcast show. We hope you enjoyed listening as much as we had fun making it sketch comedy podcast show is protected under a creative commons attribution no derivatives 4.0 international license. If you would like to use any portion of this show, please just contact the show at sketch comedy podcast show at gmail dot com and request permission. I would also love to hear from you. If you've got an idea for a sketch shooting my way, maybe we'll record it together.

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ABOUT THIS EPISODE
You know that feeling when you walk into a room, maybe it’s a party or other gathering, and you don’t know anyone really and you start to feel the walls pulling you closer until your back is against it? Or, maybe there is a dog or cat around and you decide that would be the best conversational companion? What about a room filled with people you do know? What about a room with one other person? If you still find yourself “shying away” from others, you might be an introvert. This episode’s guest completely understands where you are coming from.
Nick Shelton is a world-dominating introvert. What does that mean? It means that despite having what would be considered crippling social anxiety and feeling drained being around people, Nic has found a way to overcome it! And better yet… he can help you if you have similar issues! He wrote a book so you can figure this out for yourself called “An Introvert’s Guide to World Domination” (https://amzn.to/3p6S7t1). He even has a worldwide network of introverts! Wild!
We talk about Nick’s 5 engagements (and 2 marriages), the worst lines to use at a party, how to figure out if you are an introvert yourself, what to do with a masseuse who likes your feet too much, and how to watch people in public places without being creepy. Look, it’s hard to do primary research for a book.
This week’s sketch: “This Guy is Really Starting to Creep Me Out.”
For more episodes, information, and apply to be on the show, visit: http://sketchcomedypodcastshow.com
Sketch Comedy Podcast Show is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
© Copyright 2021 Stuart Rice
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MORE ABOUT THE GUEST
Nick Shelton, best selling author of the book "An Introvert's Guide to World Domination" has been fine-tuning the craft of effective, high-level social strategy and networking for twenty years. Beginning with his time in the United States Air Force, Nick learned skills that were indispensable to his journey. Coupled with extensive research and fifteen years of experience in the oil and gas industry, Nick finally cracked the code and developed tools that gave him the confidence to flourish in social situations. Nick has successfully built a strong, international network of friends, colleagues, and associates and continues to teach introverts how to upgrade their lives and lifestyles and navigate social events with ease.
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TRANSCRIPT
[00:00:00] spk_0: in this episode, Nik Shelton world dominating introvert and I came up with a couple of sketches. So I imagine you in second grade to start asking the other the little girls around the playground if, if they like to marry you.
[00:00:19] spk_1: Okay.
[00:00:21] spk_0: I love the idea of you just observing people being very blatant about it, having them as as they go different places notice like that's the same guy from the restaurant guys, the person who's getting into doing security just to have the pistol whipping.
[00:00:40] spk_1: So
[00:00:42] spk_0: Which one did we pick? You'll find out right now on. It's a sketch comedy podcast show. Welcome to sketch comedy podcast show where I Stewart rice, invite interesting people to have intriguing conversations and then improvise a comedy sketch based on what we talked about. It's the only show like it on the internet. Sorry about being so slow releasing episodes. I didn't realize people were still interested in this show. Then all of a sudden I checked the Internet and I'm on a couple of top 20 list for 2021. I figured I should probably release some new episodes. Then this episode is perfect for the beginning of the year. You know that feeling you get when you walk into a room, maybe it's a party or other gathering and you don't know anyone there and you start to feel the walls pulling you closer until your back is against it. Or maybe there's a dog or cat around that you decide would be a better conversational companion than any of the humans in the room. What about a room filled with people? You do know. What about a room with one other person? If you still find yourself shying away from others, you might be an introvert. This episode's guest completely understands where you are coming from. Nik Shelton is a world dominating introvert. What does that mean? It means that despite having what would be considered crippling social anxiety and feeling drain, being around people, Nick has found a way to overcome it and better yet he can help you if you have similar issues. He wrote a book so that you can figure this out for yourself called an introverts Guide to world domination. He even has a worldwide network of introverts wild. We talk about Nick's five engagements and two marriages. The worst lines to use at a party, How to figure out if you are an introvert yourself what to do with a masseuse who likes your feet a little too much and how to watch people in public places without being creepy. Look, it's hard to do primary research for a book. Then we record a sketch. This guy is really starting to creep me out and now my conversation with Nick Shelton world dominating introvert with really nice feet. Hey, Nick, thanks for joining us today.
[00:03:21] spk_1: Thanks for having me. It's an honor and a pleasure.
[00:03:24] spk_0: It is for me to nick, I've got a question to ask you.
[00:03:28] spk_1: Okay, What do we got?
[00:03:30] spk_0: What makes you interesting?
[00:03:33] spk_1: What makes me interesting? Well, let's see. I think one thing that people have said is very interesting, even though I don't know why it is, is I've been engaged five times and married twice and I'm not married engaged
[00:03:49] spk_0: five times and married twice. All right, so three of those engagements did they say, Did they say yes? It's something
[00:04:00] spk_1: yes. So all of the engagements, So five times they said yes, yes. So I was had five yeses. I didn't have any nose on engagements, so I'm 100 for engagements. And then two of those engagements turned into marriage is that did not last. So, but people, I think people think it's interesting for some weird reason that uh someone would get engaged that many times, I guess I'm just romantic, but I don't think it's interesting at all.
[00:04:31] spk_0: Well it is kind of interesting sir, you are fast engage er are you like, hey, we've been tolerating each other's existence for three months, like just do this or or what
[00:04:42] spk_1: is it? I would say that yes, I'm quite a fast engagement. Not anymore, I've learned from this and now I would say I'm an extremely slow engage er but there was a time where I felt like I was a romantic and I wanted to, you know, all these fairy tales and stuff and movies, they kind of brainwashed me, I guess, I don't know. And so, and I fall in love easily or I used to at least, and so I'd say this seems like a good deal to me. Let's go ahead and lock this in
[00:05:14] spk_0: Absolutely any any stories as to and you don't have to share this, but any stories about, like those engagements and why they stopped, Was there anything interesting that happened? There
[00:05:27] spk_1: nothing to noteworthy? Just either, you know, one of them ran off with another dude? You know, that it's kind of, it's kind of interesting, I suppose. But you know, I think in hindsight it was better because now that guy is married to or, and it doesn't seem like he won, it seems like I won by her running off with that guy.
[00:05:51] spk_0: That's a, you know, when someone runs off with someone, you always dodged a bullet. That's my feeling if someone decided like I want to be over there instead, you're great because that means you didn't have to go through all the legalities, Right.
[00:06:07] spk_1: Right. It was so they weren't nothing too crazy or bad. I think it all turned out and I'm actually, I'm friends, I'd get along really well with all five of those girls and the two ex wives were really close. I think my two ex wives were closer now than we were when we were married. So, you know,
[00:06:28] spk_0: when, once the divorce happens, or once the breakup happens or whatever, that is all the cards on the table. So there's no like hiding the hand and there's no like, so you just kind of it's everything's out there. So you just, now I had that's what that's what I was holding and now we can just continue on and I actually like looking at relationships as evolution, They evolve as opposed to starting and ending. Um you evolve relationship. And uh someone who was a lover can definitely be a really good friend because that person probably knows you better than anybody, right? And I will say that a lot of my exes do not do it, but uh, but nick, that's actually shocking to hear that you were engaged five times because I know something about you that I think you actually want everybody to know is that you're kind of an introvert, aren't you?
[00:07:29] spk_1: Yes, I am a definitely an introvert and definitely was also in addition to that shy and socially awkward, but I think how that would, how you say, well how would you be engaged that many times? I think it was another part of that would have been I, you know, instead of trying to date everyone all the time, which is hard for somebody that's not trying to get out there and talk to people, you say, hey, someone's right here, I'll just go ahead and just be with this person, then I don't have to go out and try to find another person. So it's
[00:08:00] spk_0: spending the rest of your life with someone that may not be optimal is far less scarier than
[00:08:06] spk_1: the time. Anyway, it seemed that way.
[00:08:14] spk_0: Now I know better. Right? So, so uh you are, you feel, um you describe yourself as an introvert like I'm not, I'm not throwing that on you that this is something you describe yourself absolutely
[00:08:28] spk_1: describe myself that
[00:08:29] spk_0: Yeah, when did you find out that you were, that you had that mindset that you were kind of an introvert?
[00:08:36] spk_1: Well I didn't really know what it was, but I would say the first recollection was around second grade when I realized, hey, I seem to be a little different than these other kids. So, uh you know, so introversion, it's like when you get your energy from being alone and then you, you spend a lot of energy interacting with people and it's really difficult for you. And then on top of that I was also socially awkward and shy. And so I felt like uh an alien who didn't pay attention in there, how to blend in with humans class. And then they sent me here anyway and I said, oh no, I don't, I should have paid attention in that class. And so that's when I knew around second grade is something's different. I need to try to figure this out, but it took a while to get around to figuring it
[00:09:28] spk_0: out. Sure, sure, but it sounds like you've done a pretty good job figuring it out, but before we get there, you actually just said something that was really interesting is you separated the socially awkward away from the introversion? Can you expand on that a little bit? Because I think that's a major area of confusion for a lot of people,
[00:09:47] spk_1: Right? So uh people a lot of times think that if you're introverted then you're naturally also shy, but that's not the case or socially awkward and that's not necessarily the case. They're all separate things. And a lot of times they'll complement each other and kind of go to hand in hand and you'll see where you see one, you will often see another. But so socially awkward is you just socially you don't know what to do and you're kind of clumsy and social situations and then shy, we all know that you don't speak up. And then being an introvert is you prefer more alone time or time away from crowds because it's sapping your energy. So uh that is it's a little bit different than those other two. But often they all if somebody has one they might have the other two things as well. And I had all of those things. You
[00:10:43] spk_0: had a full suite. Yes that skill set. Um A lot of people are surprised to find out. I I too am actually pretty introverted. I need a lot of the downtime, a lot of the recharge in order to get in front of people. I'm in the exact same boat. Um And the social awkwardness. Maybe not to not to a great extent but it's definitely there. What do you have an example of like a time the social awkwardness took over and it just it just a good highlight for you and you did said something or did something where it was just like little cringe. E I think that's what the kids would say these days. It's a little
[00:11:25] spk_1: I know there's it's hard to there's been so many that it's hard to pick one out but the one that comes to mind right now is I remember man this was many years ago, I think this was back in the The late 80s probably 1989 or 1990. And there was my friend took me over this house where it's just like there's gonna be some girls let's go meet some girls and we're all hanging out and I and they're saying hey so what's going on? How are you doing? And then I couldn't think of anything to say, I don't know what people say to each other. So then I started talking about the weather and you know everyone looked at me like what's wrong with you and then I don't know. And then yeah it just got really strange after that and then nobody really wanted to talk to me and then I was just kind of sitting there and then that made it even more awkward because then I said what am I supposed to say now to try to recover from this weather thing and I couldn't think of anything. So yeah it was really bad and then later my friends tease me about that for a long time to be like, hey so how's that weather? You know what do you think about the weather? It also because that's something that young people don't normally concern themselves with
[00:12:41] spk_0: know what they're talking about like what Anderson to your mind is I've got to fill this space right? Like I got to fill the space with some sort of words but I don't know this person and I don't what's the most famous, but it's the easiest thing to break up. We all experience the weather, right? Yeah, that's good.
[00:13:00] spk_1: That
[00:13:01] spk_0: um yeah, that's not a great, that's not a, you know, I wouldn't write a rap song about that one, what I would say like, but uh we've all been there I think um now as an adult have, how is the uh introversion, the social awkwardness? How has that affected you in like your career or in your job or you know, kind of pull us through like nick's life like when you were because I know you you served in the military,
[00:13:36] spk_1: correct. And so it wasn't really as much of an issue there because that's I had already started to navigate my way through it and uh through the military. And then after that is when I really started getting it down and mastering how to actually make it more of an advantage. So I would say in my career, I've never really had to experience that because I've been, I've already had hacked it by then and been able to move through the system. But I'd say earlier on in earlier jobs, then, you know, you see people get the promotion that you say I should have got that or see people get opportunities that you think that you should have gotten and you get passed up because there they might not know as much as you and they might not be as qualified, but they step out into the spotlight and then so they have that attention on them. And so naturally goes to them while if you're uh flying below the radar and you know, laying low, trying not to be noticed, then naturally you get passed up for stuff and you say, hey, that should have been mine. And so that those types of things were happening not only in the workplace, but also, you know, just with opportunities or with parties, no one's inviting you to a party if they don't know who you are and your boots blending in. And if you're, once again, if I'm trying to talk to some girls or something, are they going to go out with a guy that doesn't say anything and he's standing over in the corner or are they going to go with the guy that hey, that's the life of the party. And I can tell you it's the life of the party that
[00:15:11] spk_0: walks in. Yeah, walks in, you know the cap backwards in the case of beer and is like, let's do shots, you know, everybody wants to talk to,
[00:15:23] spk_1: right? So that translates over into the workplace and everything. So I was a victim. I suffered of that from that, seeing that. And then I said, hey, I would like to be a part of, you know, being able to be seen and heard as well. But I don't want to compromise myself, my energy and myself to be able to do that. So I had to, I looked for resources and I couldn't find any that spoke to people like us. So then I had to figure out myself and then create those resources myself to health other people like us.
[00:15:59] spk_0: Okay, so do you mind talking a little bit about these resources? Because you actually, and we'll put this out there. You compiled all of these resources for people to be able to get them correct? So they don't have to go through the torture of developing these resources. You wrote a book, uh, the introverts guide to world domination. Yeah. Uh it's delightful but like why don't you give give us some of these like are they life hacks? Like how would you describe them?
[00:16:35] spk_1: Well, so I would say that uh so a lot of stuff that's out there, it's it's pretty much talking to like normal people and so I said well that doesn't apply to me and then it also starts you somewhere in the middle. It doesn't start you at the beginning you say, hey what if I am very basic beginner, what do I do? And so I had to go out and just observe people. So I would go out to restaurants, table for one sit there, watch other people the other tables and see how they interacted. And then I'd watch groups and I just go out to places and just observe people because I think a superpower of, of introverts and shy people is observation. So I'd sit and observe people and I would see what seemed to be working, what seemed to be not working while just watching people. And then I would say, okay, well let me try that by the way,
[00:17:29] spk_0: Most non creepy. I
[00:17:32] spk_1: didn't have a scowl on my face while I was doing it. I was, I didn't have binoculars or anything. I would just sit there and enjoy my dinner and I would just kind of notice there was no newspaper held up that I'd kind of peek over, got holes in the front page, right? So it was very casual, I assure you it wasn't in a creepy, I don't think anyone would notice. And then I started going out and saying, well what if I do this, what if I do this? And so I would just try different things and then what worked? I would kind of build off of that. And then once I, everything started coming together, then I, I kind of organized it and I said, okay, now let me do more of this and build my social circle. So I was able to get a very high level international, uh, network of uh, you know, friends, colleagues, and associates. And then all my friends started saying, how do you do this? I want to do this too. As it opened up a whole world of cool stuff for me to be able to be around people that brought out the best in me. Uh, that could be like mentors, people that were doing cool stuff. I get invited to a lot of luxury events and people were like, well, how are you, how are you yachting? And I'm like, oh yeah, because you know, one of my friends has a yacht and he didn't want to go out by himself, so, you know, I'm there too, you know, that sort of thing. And so people wanted to know how to do it. So then I said, well, let me put together how it's done from the very beginning and save people a lot of time. And so I wrote the book, and introverts got to world domination to show how to upgrade your life and lifestyle through building real solid connections with people.
[00:19:22] spk_0: That's amazing. Um, and now this network that you have, this worldwide network, is it a network of introverts? Because that seems like an oxymoron, right? So
[00:19:32] spk_1: some of the people are introverts, but then there are some, so it's all types of people. So some people are really over the top extroverts and some people are very quiet and it's just a whole spectrum of different people that I've managed to to build relationships with and become really good friends with and that it makes all the difference. And I think that you know in life uh more than anything, it's our relationships with people that are really the true true wealth and if you like, you know, we have this a lot of people out there are suffering from depression and I find that if you have really solid awesome relationships, usually it's a lot harder to be depressed if you have like a really great support system around you and if you don't have that,
[00:20:23] spk_0: that's absolutely true. Actually. How to show a couple months back where I talked to a guest who he's a suicidal uh superhero, but but he talks about how that's what's kept him alive, is having that network of people and being able to because because we need people right? Like that's the human as part of the human condition is that we need other people. We need to have that other human contact. Um you just need less of it and you need to recharge in order to be out there with it,
[00:20:57] spk_1: right, I can go out there, do it big, and then I said, okay now I'm gonna need some time. Yeah. And yeah, so when one of the things that I find fascinating that I mentioned earlier is that when people see that, because somebody might say, well you have to divorce is you're going to tell me about building great relationships. But I say, hey, I have great relationships with my ex wives, we are, we are great and they will endorse me and say, yeah, he's the best. You know, we're just not married anymore. But yeah, I have I can communicate well and both these great relationships and show other people how to do it as well. So you don't have enemies floating out there. You can have, you know, at least some friends, you know, that's
[00:21:39] spk_0: all some friends actually had on a dating profile. I had all of my ex girlfriends, right? Like a review for me, I had that as my dating profile on OK, Cupid for a while.
[00:21:50] spk_1: How did it do?
[00:21:51] spk_0: What's that? How did
[00:21:53] spk_1: the profile do? Did it Okay.
[00:21:55] spk_0: Like, I don't know, I'm a guy, so, like, online dating is impossible. Mhm. So what is a what is it like, how does somebody know they're an introvert? Because I think that that's something a lot of people describe themselves as introverts. A lot of people like, oh, you know, I'm super shy, I'm so introverted. Like, how how does somebody know, like what's the thing that you would you would say is like, here are the keys and this is this is the type of person that should be reading your book.
[00:22:28] spk_1: That's a really good question. So the type of person that should be reading my book is everybody can read my book and they can get some value
[00:22:35] spk_0: how I felt about my book to write,
[00:22:40] spk_1: because it has, you know, all these tips for people that anyone can use and even if you're an extrovert, like I have real estate agents that want that edge over other real estate agents. So they use some of these techniques to and there are extroverts, they used these techniques to just get that edge over the competition. So the book has value for anyone who reads it, but for somebody to know they're an introvert, I would say that if you find that like when you go to a social environment, if there's just if it's almost like a timer has started and you can only handle so much and then then all of a sudden it's like I I need to leave, I need to leave right now. And it's not like uh you're scared or anything like that. It's just, it's like kind of taking the life out of you, even if you're having a good time, you say, okay, I'm kind of hitting a wall here, I just need to go somewhere else. And so for me, I don't necessarily have to be alone. But if I'm in a crowd and then maybe I've I'm with one person after that. That might help kind of bring me back around and recharge me a little. But yeah, it is better if I do if I am alone. I was at a, an event a few days ago and You know, we were all as a nice maybe is a social gathering. The, I think uh, the 30 people and we're all spaced apart properly and all that. But we were all talking and then at a certain time I just figured, okay, well this is great and there's still some people I'd like to talk to, but I'm going to leave and I just left and I came home and I didn't have to go to sleep or anything, but I just needed to just have some time by myself and I've had friends do the same thing. We've been out when I've been traveling with some friends, one of them, I said, hey, let's, we just finished some activity. And then I was ready to go do something else. And he said, hey, I just need, give me half an hour, I just need a half an hour just to sit and do nothing. And then I said, I understand that and gave him the half an hour. And so his, his tolerance for being in like that, the, in the community is even smaller than mine. So his, his timer is less than mine is. So I had to recognize that and say, okay, so if somebody is goes out there and then the more they're out there, the more they get, you know, charged up like we can just, as long as this party is going or this organization, this event, I'll be here, then that's, that's more of the other side of it. The extroverted side, the introvert side, there's a point where you just say I need to kind of retreat from this and kind of recharge.
[00:25:29] spk_0: Yeah, I think for myself um what I found is that I've transitioned from the extroverts to more of the introvert and I'll be at a party just like you're talking about having a great time and I'm like no, I'm good. That tanks filled. I'm out. I'm gonna go watch reruns of rick and morty years. Uh Yeah, so that definitely happens. Um All right. So there were some questions that you said I should ask now. We can easily transfer curious about two of these. You
[00:26:05] spk_1: said what questions should I ask? So questions just
[00:26:09] spk_0: these are great. So um naked, I got my feet are sore story about a time where maybe uh foot massage was in play.
[00:26:24] spk_1: Yes. So I enjoy a good foot massage just like everybody else and you know, so I like to go to different foot massage establishments to see where is the best foot massage. And there was one that is not too far off the street from where I am right now that I went in there and and this particular time there was a sometimes it's a man, sometimes a woman it doesn't really matter. But this time there was this uh this guy had to be like uh what a like an NBA player would be. So this is a uh I believe his ethnicity, I'm pretty sure he was chinese Um and he was probably like 6 8 or something like that. And
[00:27:15] spk_0: so you know me so and
[00:27:19] spk_1: so then he's he's massaging my feet and then he but the thing is I believe this is where it gets interesting. He had seemed like he had a foot fetish for like my feet because he was like oh your feet are so beautiful, you have such nice feet. And then he kept giving me this really strong eye contact. So he just kept staring into my eyes and rubbing my feet and complementing my feet. And I was thinking, well this has never happened before, you know, I've gotten a lot of foot massage, I would say over 100 ft massages and that has never happened. So I just kept sitting there just staring me in the eyes and complementing my feet and rubbing my feet and has taken this is quite an experience. I
[00:28:02] spk_0: don't think he was going to propose because he was already on his situation.
[00:28:07] spk_1: I just think wow, I said this because I had if this would have been my first foot massage, I would say well maybe this is just how they do it, I don't know, but since I had had many, I said I know that this isn't normally how they go. This is a little different but it's like at least I know I have beautiful feet because this guy is at least appreciating my feet.
[00:28:32] spk_0: He's a professional. You take the compliment right? You've seen a lot of feet and so you're talking about some nice feet. That's uh huh. Yeah I could. Were you uncomfortable? Were you little
[00:28:46] spk_1: uncomfortable? I started getting uncomfortable because the eye contact us like I would like it if he would stop with the eye contact
[00:28:53] spk_0: his contact
[00:28:53] spk_1: man just look at my feet and run the, yeah and so it was I was uncomfortable and I said well I probably don't need to continue coming back to this particular place but I still continue to get foot massages and other places. But that's the only time that that had happened. And I remember I asked people after that has this ever happened to you does this sound unusual to you? And they said yes that does sound unusual. So
[00:29:23] spk_0: yes that any time that would be the case. That sounds so unusual. Like I would be so uncomfortable. I I don't care if it was a man or a woman doing that. I'd be like okay just rub my feet. Right. Yeah. Yeah. So I'm
[00:29:42] spk_1: glad it happened. So at least I have that experience. I could be like oh that does happen to people. Okay.
[00:29:47] spk_0: It does what happened to you for sure. It's more primary research much like going and stocking people at a you know what that's like
[00:29:58] spk_1: a situation. Um
[00:30:01] spk_0: Do you have any interesting collections? Is there anything that collection like the collect Or is there a collection that you could think of that? Maybe like a sharp connection collection of something?
[00:30:14] spk_1: Oh I see. Yes, because I was thinking the only thing I have a collection of is that so you're talking about the machete collection? So the machete collection, how that happened was apparently I'm really hard to shop for. So my brother and said hey you know you were hard to shop for. So one I think it was christmas or my birthday, he just showed up with a machete and said hey here you go, you're hard to shop for. So here's a machete. And then every birthday and christmas, he got me another one. So now I have all these machetes and the thing is so that's the only collection I have it because I never just collecting anything myself. But he said if I started getting these for you then you will have a collection and then I always know what to get for you because I'll just get you a new different type of machete and just add it to your collection. The problem is that then you have like an apartment full of machetes and then if I'm on a date and they're like, hey, let's go to your place, then I have to think are the machetes up, are they put the machetes away? Because it's gonna be weird, you know, if you walk in and there's like, Well no, to my 14 machetes laying around there, like uh maybe I shouldn't be, you know, so it's something in my mind where I actually have to think, Okay, don't have the machetes out, make sure the machetes are put away. And and yeah, so it's it's an odd thing. So machetes, like they're just just uh you would think when you picture a machete, you just think there's just one type of machete. But apparently there are a lot of different types in different regions of the world have their spin on the machete. So yeah, there's no shortage of machetes and I was thinking he's going to run out sooner or later. How many machines could there be? But there are a surprising different type of bush. Do you have to cut right, like a machete
[00:32:05] spk_0: type would work? But
[00:32:06] spk_1: so yeah, have the machetes and you know, and I haven't I don't think that I have actually used a machete to chop anything. And I was thinking, man, I should go out somewhere where there's like some weeds or something and go chop something. But then there's another part of me that thinks what if somebody sees me out doing that, they're like, what's that guy doing? Because it's not like a common thing here. I'm the hiking trails from a machete. Got me out. Yeah, I
[00:32:35] spk_0: know. That is certainly not the case. Um I guess if you get like a hard piece of cheese that might be impressive. You bring a girl over and you're like, watch this Gallagher it with a machete I guess. I don't know. That is a good idea. Yeah, I'm just saying um maybe second date type situation, you're not the first thing, someone home and you're like, here, check out my machete collection. Yeah, wow. Do you have them on display or do
[00:33:05] spk_1: you, they're not on display there all put away at the moment because I said it's probably best to just keep them away and then that way I don't have to wonder if they are out and and yeah, I don't, it just seems like it just be weird to have a big display thing of machetes unless I could put them behind glass or something.
[00:33:27] spk_0: Some sort of glass because like, what's weirder for somebody if you're inviting someone over things are going really well and you're like, you have them on display on your wall and she sees them and you're like, and she's like, oh, what are those? And you can explain the story, right? Or what's worse? Like she's looking around your apartment, opens up a drawer, unprompted. Like, like
[00:33:55] spk_1: anxiety goes way high real quick. Well, you shouldn't go through people's things.
[00:34:00] spk_0: That's the that's the lesson. It's a list.
[00:34:03] spk_1: Don't go snooping around because you might find a drawer of machetes
[00:34:08] spk_0: or you find them in different places in the, in the apartment, right? Like you're like, wonder what's this under the seat cushions? Like pull out a machete. It's like, what is going
[00:34:17] spk_1: on here? Just one behind the toilet, the bathroom, one under the kitchen sink. Like I got to be ready. You never know what might go down.
[00:34:27] spk_0: That's right. You never know how bad the mold gets in the bathroom. Shetty kept through it. Uh That's fantastic. And then um I you ever had a job where um you know, during the training process, like they taught you something really interesting.
[00:34:46] spk_1: Ah Yes, so when I was a many years ago, I was a security guard and one of the first things I remember, I say, okay, we're gonna, it's training day, we're gonna train shy
[00:34:58] spk_0: security guard.
[00:34:59] spk_1: Yeah, well you don't have to really talk to people, you're just kind of, it's
[00:35:02] spk_0: true. Listen, they're doing something that you're like, hey, can you uh never mind,
[00:35:07] spk_1: you don't worry about it. You guys know you don't figure it out. So I got machetes at the house all. Yeah, so, so as an armed security guard and so we had our firearms and you know, so you have the firearm training and everything like that, but when I had my, my pistol and we're sitting there in the classroom, they said, okay, number one thing first of all, to start the class, number one do not pistol whip anybody. And I think that's a weird thing to say, starting off, don't pistol whip anybody. And uh so I was thinking, I know there's a story that goes along with this, because they wouldn't just say don't pistol whip anyone unless somebody had pistol with, because I would have never thought about pistol whipping anybody, I'm just, I'm a security guard standing over there, wouldn't be like I should pistol if somebody, so you know, do not pistol with anyone and also do not fire warning shots is another one. And then I was like okay somebody must have fired a warning shot as well, so I had to uh dig it took a while, but I finally heard the story, so the pistol whipping, somebody had uh somebody they were chasing them and when they caught them to teach them a lesson they decided they were gonna pistol with them and so they were pistol whipping this person and then the person took the pistol and shot them and uh so there you go, that's how that
[00:36:38] spk_0: ineffective pistol with.
[00:36:40] spk_1: Yeah, he must have been pistol whipping the wrong way, Can we have a class on how to properly pistol with somebody if we hypothetically going to do that? Uh but yeah, this first apparently did it wrong and they got shot, so
[00:36:54] spk_0: that's not so much a pistol whip is more of its like a pistol uh what would be like a slow version of a, like a pistol
[00:37:02] spk_1: nudge,
[00:37:04] spk_0: hey, you get hit in the head with a gun by somebody, I'm probably on the floor. So like yeah, either a really tough skull, really slow slow whip,
[00:37:18] spk_1: right? And then the warning shot one that somebody apparently they were talking to somebody who wasn't listening, so they just figured they would fire a warning shot, just shoot a shot in the air and naturally that is frowned upon. So you know,
[00:37:35] spk_0: because I would like goes up and down,
[00:37:38] spk_1: down somewhere. So uh, so these things, I think, wow, this is interesting, they have to tell us this because you know, I guess some of my peers need to be told this because they're going to go out and do these things. And so I thought that was very interesting and you know, fortunately I never
[00:37:58] spk_0: had to didn't have any of those situations
[00:38:00] spk_1: I didn't have to pistol with and you want to even think about it or
[00:38:03] spk_0: I'm glad that they did have those discussions with people because how many pistol whip situations would they have had otherwise? They're like if we need to make this part of the curriculum because otherwise we're going to lose lots and lots of security guards,
[00:38:16] spk_1: people would say, hey, you never told us that we couldn't do that. You never said you need to say that we're not supposed to do that. Then I would know. I didn't know. But thank you for letting me know next time. I won't do
[00:38:29] spk_0: it. I'll take the written warning this time.
[00:38:32] spk_1: So I'll take the warning. Okay from now on. No pistol whipping, you know,
[00:38:36] spk_0: pissed you. All right, nick. This has been fantastic. We are at that point. It's time to record a sketch. What body part do you think a masseuse would complement you on nick if people wanted to check out your feet or maybe get in touch with you because they too are introverts and want to break out of that shell. What's the best way for them to do that?
[00:39:04] spk_1: All right, well, they can go to my website, connected introvert dot com. That's connected introvert dot com and that will show you that will give you a link to the book. The book is also available on amazon. So the book is an introverts guide to world domination to become a high level networker and upgrade your life and lifestyle and so but connected introvert dot com will give you resources to the book. And I also have an online video course and also some coaching and mentorship program and more stuff coming soon.
[00:39:37] spk_0: Absolutely awesome. And when we can start to leave our houses again, you can be set up so that you can become a world dominating introvert as well. And now our sketch. This guy is starting to creep me out with nik shelton nick. Thank you so much for coming out to dinner with me and invited me to go out to dinner. I've wanted to try this restaurant for such a long
[00:40:04] spk_1: time. It's a great restaurant. Please enjoy. You can even order the market price stuff like Albino Lobster or something.
[00:40:12] spk_0: I have never done. Market prices always so scary to me.
[00:40:17] spk_1: Are you sure? Oh yeah I might as well live a little. You're with me. I got you.
[00:40:23] spk_0: Do you notice that guy over there reading a newspaper?
[00:40:26] spk_1: I see him. Do you know him? No, I
[00:40:29] spk_0: don't know. I was trying to see if maybe like I dated him once before, but there's something weird about that newspaper though.
[00:40:36] spk_1: It's upside down. Just ignore that guy and go ahead and pick out what you want to. Maybe we'll get some champagne or something.
[00:40:42] spk_0: Oh, do you like cream spinach? It looks like he has a microphone pointed
[00:40:47] spk_1: this way, but it does look like a microphone though, but so you don't like the cream spinach. You know, you can get it if you want. He's
[00:40:54] spk_0: taking notes on everything that we're saying. I can tell it because every time we say something he writes something. But something
[00:41:01] spk_1: that, okay, well maybe say something, give him something cool to write down. I suppose it is kind of weird
[00:41:09] spk_0: and now that I'm looking at him, he's kind of sliding under the table a little
[00:41:13] spk_1: bit. So it's like he knows he's been discovered. I see what you're saying now. I don't know. What should we worry about this at all. I can just get our check for the drinks and then we can just go for a walk in the park or something like
[00:41:24] spk_0: that. Do you mind if we go take a
[00:41:26] spk_1: walk? Maybe he'll be gone by the time we come back?
[00:41:29] spk_0: Oh my gosh breast out here. It's a beautiful fall night. I am a big fan of sweater weather. Do you like sweater weather?
[00:41:36] spk_1: It is really nice. I used to not be a fall person. I like spring but you know just the the leaves and just like the smell of the autumn and just I don't know the feeling of it. I do like the crisp, cool evenings. It's really wonderful and romantic.
[00:41:53] spk_0: Are you trying to hold my hand
[00:41:56] spk_1: you know, just you were a little cold I guess. I just want to make sure that maybe my hand warmth could help you out a little bit.
[00:42:03] spk_0: It does. Yeah that's probably a good idea. That's probably really good. Did you see that?
[00:42:09] spk_1: That's that I think that's that guy.
[00:42:11] spk_0: It seems like it's the same guy but he's got like a video camera, maybe he's a birdwatcher,
[00:42:17] spk_1: looks like that guy but it couldn't possibly be that same guy. But yeah let's just just ignore that. Let's just keep walking.
[00:42:23] spk_0: Oh look that's the playground when you were a kid. What was your favorite thing to jump around on a playground?
[00:42:29] spk_1: Well I just like the swings because you try to swing as high as you can and then jump off.
[00:42:33] spk_0: I'm sorry I I know I keep doing this but is he underneath the slide over there
[00:42:38] spk_1: now? Yeah that's that guy. Try to throw a throw a rock over there or something and you're sure you don't know it because I don't know that guy.
[00:42:46] spk_0: It looks like he's doing like a still life drawing of us guys. Really starting to creep me out. We might want to find a place where it isn't his
[00:42:54] spk_1: public, right up the street. We can just go there and I have some champagne there. We could have some champagne if you like. All right, so home sweet. Home, try to keep it clean, but if it's a little bit messy, please excuse the mess.
[00:43:10] spk_0: This is such a nice apartment.
[00:43:12] spk_1: Get settled in. It
[00:43:13] spk_0: looks like the living room. You mind if I sit
[00:43:16] spk_1: on, oh, sit away, enjoy something underneath me. Yeah, maybe the remote control or something metal. Oh, that's one of the uh you're gonna laugh. It's one of the machetes that my brother gave me as a gift
[00:43:30] spk_0: your brother gives you machetes as a gift. Yes,
[00:43:33] spk_1: Yes. So he's a crazy guy and he thought that would be fun. Give me machetes. And so I have some machetes. They're just so they're around and nothing to be concerned about everywhere. They're just around. There's a few around. But you know, it's just, it's just a funny thing. It's nothing to be concerned
[00:43:51] spk_0: about. You've got a beautiful view of the park out your window.
[00:43:55] spk_1: I picked this place because of the view. You can step out there in the mornings and just take in the park and it's really rejuvenating.
[00:44:04] spk_0: We're on the fourth floor. Right. Right. I could have swore I saw somebody on a phone out on your patio. Is that a pot? Do you have roommates?
[00:44:14] spk_1: No, there shouldn't be anyone out there. I think you're right. I think there is somebody out there.
[00:44:19] spk_0: Should we go out and ask him what he's doing?
[00:44:21] spk_1: It doesn't seem like it could really end all that well by asking a guy that somehow on the fourth floor, a balcony that was at the restaurant that was at the park. But yes, maybe if we confront him,
[00:44:34] spk_0: Okay, Well, why don't you take this machete and I'll grab a machete and then we should go ask him.
[00:44:42] spk_1: Excuse me, sir. What are you doing? What are you doing on my balcony? We saw you at the restaurant. We saw you at the park and now you're on the balcony. Can you explain?
[00:44:51] spk_0: I'm not I'm not I'm not just casually observing.
[00:44:55] spk_1: You're observing.
[00:44:56] spk_0: Yeah. I I noticed that you guys have like good interactions. They seemed healthy. So I'm doing some research on a book and I'm trying to figure out what healthy interactions look like.
[00:45:07] spk_1: You're just stalking people to, to see what their interactions look like. That's, that is really a creepy weird thing to do. Maybe you should ask people about it.
[00:45:17] spk_0: I'm planning on like completely highlighting you in my book. Do you mind if I just sit on the porch and just watch you guys and sure that sounds
[00:45:26] spk_1: great.
[00:45:26] spk_0: Hey nick.
[00:45:28] spk_1: Yes.
[00:45:29] spk_0: Um, I know you like to collect weird things, but is this a ziploc bag of human teeth. Thank you for joining us on sketch comedy podcast show. We hope you enjoyed listening to it as much as we enjoyed making it. If you did enjoy the show, visit sketch comedy podcast show dot com for even more sketch comedy podcast show is protected under a creative commons Attribution. No derivatives 4.0 International license. Mm uh huh

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ABOUT THIS EPISODE
We get so caught-up in the presidential election that sometimes we forget that the most important votes are the ones that affect us locally, such as who is going to be the next person to run the town or city you are in. During the Covid-19 pandemic, local leadership was crucial to help small businesses stay in business and your neighbors to be able to stay in their homes. Local initiatives have immediate effect on our lives. So we need to get to know who is going to be leading us heading into the next couple of years.
Travis Stovall believes he is that guy for my hometown, Gresham. He might be right, Travis is a scholar, has a business that helps people find themselves and be able to better deal with others, and is quite possibly one of the most personable people that you will ever meet. 
I originally invited him onto the show because he has a company called eRep (https://erep.com) that offers something called a CVI (Core Values Index) score which does an incredibly astute job of defining the traits and proficiencies for people. Seriously, it blew my mind, and highlighted for me my biggest strengths and made me aware of the things that I could use help with. Go to https://whatsmyCVI.com and take the 5-minute test and see what you get, I bet it is remarkably. accurate! Then, when I found out that he was going to jump into local politics, I thought it was a perfect time to see how something like the CVI could help someone navigate the different personalities and proficiencies of running a city. You can find out more about his quest for the top seat in Gresham at https://www.travisstovall.com
Travis is a really entertaining human, has great stories, and listening to him just feels like you are speaking to someone who has a real grasp on the world. Oh, and we also record a sketch based on a true story.
Sketch: “Pets to the MAX!”
For more episodes, information, and apply to be on the show, visit: http://sketchcomedypodcastshow.com
Sketch Comedy Podcast Show is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
© Copyright 2021 Stuart Rice
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MORE ABOUT THE GUEST
Travis Stovall resides in Gresham, Oregon and enjoys representing this part of the region and its tremendous assets.
A glance at Stovall’s résumé confirms his gift for financial management, marketing and organizational development. As a healthcare administrator, he directed multi-million dollar development projects. He has also succeeded in the role of entrepreneur, assuming the lead in ventures that have greatly exceeded revenue projections.  Having completed more than 20+ corporate and business turnaround projects as a consultant, Stovall brings a unique perspective to organizational health and development. 
Today, he serves as CEO and Co-Founder of eRep.com, a firm focused on helping individuals find work they love and companies build highly aligned teams. Active in the community, Stovall has been featured in The Oregonian for his dynamic leadership of the Gresham Area Chamber of Commerce, as President of the Board of Directors. 
In addition, he is a board member of several prominent local and regional organizations, including Trimet, the regional transit agency board appointed by Governor Kitzhaber.  Along with his fellow Trimet board members, Trimet became the only transit agency in the country with triple A rated debt by all three credit rating agencies.
In 2009 Stovall was chosen as one of the Portland Business Journal’s forty under forty.  In his free time Stovall is a private pilot, plays tennis, cycles and enjoys spending time on Orcas Island in the Puget Sound.
Fun Fact:  Travis helped build 4 different churches in Mexico before he was 18.
Stovall holds a Bachelor’s degree from Union College in Business Administration, Finance emphasis graduating Summa Cum Laude and a Masters in Business Administration from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
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TRANSCRIPT
[00:00:00] spk_1: in this episode, mayoral candidate Travis Stovall and I came up with a couple of sketches,
[00:00:06] spk_0: real estate conversation. Let's go take a look at this house, this floating and then having to disappoint that person. Uh I don't think about being on a date with somebody not being able to tell what their C. B. I. Is. You're in the mayor's office and you've got just people coming in giving you random like crazy things that they're asking for.
[00:00:27] spk_1: Which one did we pick? You'll find out on this episode of it's a sketch comedy podcast show. Welcome back to sketch comedy podcast show where interesting people have intriguing conversations and then improvise a comedy sketch based on what was talked about. It is the only show like it on the internet. My name is Stuart Rice and I'm the host of this crazy thing. You know, we get so caught up in the presidential election that sometimes we forget that the most important votes are the ones that affect us locally, such as who is going to be the next person to run the town or city you live in During the COVID-19 pandemic local leadership was crucial to help small businesses stay in business and your neighbors to be able to stay in their homes. Local initiatives have immediate effect on our lives, so we need to know who is going to lead us in the next huge big issue that we get. Travis. Stovall believes he is the guy for my hometown of Gresham Oregon. He might be right. Travis is a scholar, founded a company that helps individuals and organizations find themselves, has been a board member of Try matt and is one heck of a personable person. In fact one of the most personable people, you'll meet his company, e rep helps people find their core value index, which is what makes you you and you can actually find out what that is by going to what's my CV I dot com links are in the show notes. And now my conversation with Travis Stovall 2020 mayoral candidate, who knows how people tick
[00:02:22] spk_0: Travis. Can I ask you a question with? Of course. All right, Absolutely. What makes you interesting? Just the sheer fact that I'm, Travis makes me interesting. No, I mean, what makes me interesting, you know, for the most part, it's the unconventional way that I exist as a kind of, as an african american man. You know, people ask me what brought me to Oregon, say I'm from Kansas. Originally, people ask me what about me Oregon, instantly. I'm like sleep is in Seattle and they laughed. They're like, really? And I said, yeah, sleepless in Seattle. I was watching the movie hadn't been further west in colorado and it was tom Hanks characters floating house. I mean this isn't a boathouse. This isn't a houseboat, it's a floating house. I mean it's a house that floats. And so I like, I got to go see this. And most people when they, when they hear that, they say, well, you do know you're in Oregon, right? I'm like, I know I made a wrong turn. No, I went to Seattle, spent a year in Seattle, fell in love with the northwest. Um, and then then decided to move here. The interesting thing is when I moved here, I was a windsurfer and a snow ski and people are like a little bit shocked because back in those days, uh, I mean minorities who wind surfed and snow ski where it was just non existent. Right? And so you know, it's some of these things is this this non, can I come from a, I grew up in an all black neighborhood, went to all black schools in the inner city kids city. Uh, but yet made this unconventional move to doing things that were traditionally historically something that people like that look like we do. And so it's always been interesting as I walk into situations and experience the facial expressions of folks as they look at me and they're like um but that's, I mean that's kind of what makes me interesting. It's just that unconventional approach to life. Um So how did you get into windsurfing? Like how does that happen? That's one like I am white and I've never been. So I worked at summer camp in Kansas and most people are like, there's wind in Kansas, there actually is, Kansas has the, has the fifth windiest lake in America. You know that we know that when Dorothy and uh tornadoes and all that stuff And so I worked at a summer camp uh back when I was younger and we had wind surfer and a buddy of mine was the wind first windsurfer instructor said Travis, I am going to teach you how to win sir. So I learned it's, it's just the kick sport. I'm mad. I absolutely love winter. I don't do it much anymore just because it takes so much work to get to the gorge, get your board and all that stuff out. I just don't do it as much anymore. But I do not, I do not. That's definitely a rental. It is. Well, I mean frankly unless you're living in Hood River doing it a lot experience you don't want to win. It is kind of cool that we're so close. Absolutely. There are people that are not that close. Absolutely. Uh sorry that I lived so close to windsurfing. You'd never win. I am offending everything surfer out there, everyone server out there. So you don't just windsurf and you don't just do all that stuff. You are you do something called C. B. I. Yes explain. Absolutely. V. I. S. So the C. B. I. Is the core values index assessment and it is a psychometric assessment tool psychometric says it sounds really fancy but it's just a combination of psychology in math and algorithm. You combine those together to do what we call quantify the human psychology and that's what it is. And so the C. B. I. Is one of the most accurate assessments on the entire market ever produced. It has what we call a 97.7% repeat score, reliability. You can take it multiple times over longitudinal period. The results gonna be the same. That's incredible accuracy. So I can tell you how you are going to generally respond to different stimuli based on knowing your CV high profile. It's incredible. Yeah. It is pretty incredible. And you actually came to attack taught a class on it to a thing I got to be a part of and it was so eye opening. I make everybody take this test. Now I have new co workers. The first thing I do is say, hey, have you ever taken a CBS? Uh absolutely cultivation the way you convert it. Um, but the cool thing about it is that it splits people off roughly like this is very rough. It can get very granular but really into four quadrants. Right? That's correct. And the four quadrants are merchant merchant, right? Builder innovator and banker love is merchant builders, Power innovators, wisdom bankers knowledge, I don't fit into any of those. What does that mean? I'm sure you do. Everybody fits into something place and that's and that's the thing. It's this big picture aggregation of just how people are. So and like you said, it's it's 44 value energy, which is considered a four quadrant. So yeah, it's a four q four quadrant assessment and who like knowing this about somebody else. What does that do for your relationship with? Tremendous, it can tremendously improve our interpersonal relationships because now that I know your profile, I can better communicate with you, interact with you and many times we assess others based on our own CV. I profile because that's the way I see the world. So I see the world as a merchant building, which I am and so I'm going to evaluate and somewhat judge you through my lens, even though your profile maybe dramatically. And that's that's squad because I need to, I need to interact with you the way you want to be interacted with and it would be great if the vice versa occurred and you interact with me the way I want to be interactive. This the platinum rule treat others the way they want to be treated. Yes, that's the platinum rule rather than the golden rule. Yes. So yeah, once we understand how someone's hardwired, we have a tremendous opportunity to then interact with that person the way they want to be interactive with. Without this information, we're kind of shooting in the proverbial guard trying to assess and understand this individual. And we're almost always going to revert back to how we are hardwired because that is what we know. So we are going to lead to lead, others were going to coach, teach, train all of those things are gonna be through our lens And if I had Children, I would want to produce little mini, little mini me because that is the profile that I have. So I want to build a little merchant builders regardless of what their profile is. If I don't know how their hard line I you at home for watching, watch this reaction. So my daughter is an account uh, accountant. What is it? No longer? My daughter is a banker. Uh yeah. How would you handle that If you were uh, you were the parent and your daughter was a banker. I would trade, I would trade her in. I feel like, okay, can I trade this in on a different model? No, I'm kidding. I'm kidding. I yeah, it's not, but it is different. Like once I write it when she took the test and you recognize that I was like oh man that explains so much. Absolutely. Absolutely. So I'm a merchant and so the banker would be a core value energy for me. I'm a six I'm a six banker. Is there's points that you get in each of the categories. I mean since I don't really access the banker for value that's a core value energy that is very difficult for me to understand and appreciate it. So someone who's a high banker I really don't know how they think and so that would be it would be work for me too truly appreciate their contribution to the world. And that's why I said uh the banker right? I mean I I mean now of course before the C. B. I. I didn't understand why bankers even existed. Sure but now I absolutely understand their contribution to the world and we want to leverage that contribution and embrace that contribution good. Um yeah, so I when I took it I was very high innovator, which made me feel good because innovator is a good word, right? Yeah, sounds great. I mean I really good. Um and what I found was in my working relationships, I work best with the building which is kind of the exact opposite. Again it feels very opposite. But when I have a builder, builders are very much like let's get this done with it, do it, do it and that's how you are. Would you lead us to the next part of the conversation? But for me I can sit there and like ponder and an opportunity for a very long time with no action. And when when you said that in the class I was like oh man that's a problem. Like I need to have some sort of building uh aspect of my life. Um people can this test is free, right? So that we do have a free report. So the test is free to take, you'll get a basic report that shows them the primary and the secondary four value energies. But then there's an opportunity to upgrade and get the full report. All the numbers free pdf of the of the core values handbook um and that type of thing. But their initial information where they get their primary and secondary determination is that's free and that's cool. But like getting all the deep down in co and really understanding that stuff really, what it did for me was it it allowed me to recognize my weaknesses and what values that actually bring to a situation a team situation or anything. Absolutely. Now the one thing that I would adjust is we don't we don't actually consider weaknesses anymore because ultimately it's only a weaknesses were expected to access every single core value interview. So because I have six points of banker doesn't mean that I have a weakness. It just means that I don't access that energy. But essentially I'm a merchant builder and those are the two energies that I want to access and I want to leverage from my highest and best contribution. But for folks who haven't taken the C. B. I want to, what's my C. B. I. Dot com? Uh that's a place I can go take. The C. B. I only takes about 7 to 9 minutes. So what's my CV. I dot com tremendous opportunity to understand exactly what you're talking about, understand how folks are hardwired, how they are hardwired. It is just awesome. I love it. I use it every day. I wrote a book on sales and they're hidden in there. I stole some constant telling you that, I don't know if you're gonna sue me now, but not at all. Um, you are, you know, you're, you've got that merchants, so it's love, right? So you're one of your core values is showing other people love and experiencing and uh, being person a lot of times that is associated with being personable and be able to talk to people in those types of things. Uh, that's my experience with you as well. Um, now the builder aspect, that means you're taking action. Yes. Like that's a thing that you're gonna do, you're taking a big action. You decided to do something really big recently. What was that? So, I mean, and all the things that we're doing these days trying to make positive change in the world, an opportunity came up to actually run for mayor, mayor fresh in town here in Oregon Of about 111,000 citizens. And uh, the opportunity came up and I was recommended, uh, to run for mayor. And I spent some time really trying to take a look at it to make sure that I would have the opportunity to lead into this and decided, you know what, at this day and age and the many things that are going on from a social justice conversation through to fiscal responsibility, you wrap all of that up and, you know, at the end of the day, I felt that I'm, I'm really the best candidate to be able to lead our city forward through the myriad of things we need to step through. So yeah, you know, it's all about taking action through that builder. Core value, Energy. Yeah. So the idea of being mayor sound nice. Sound good To people who played Simcity. What are your expectations when you walk into that? I don't know. I said you're in office, You get off. Yeah. You get to go in the first day you sit down like what do you see yourself doing in that situation? I would panic. Well, I mean the beauty of of what we have access to the city of pressure because we've got a great staff into you first and foremost, we've got a city manager. Now we're going through a process of hiring a new city manager currently right now. But that city manager is really the person who is in charge of running the operations of the city. So a person who becomes mayor of the city of Gresham, it doesn't really have to have some significant knowledge, skills in administration of a city. What they do need to bring is the ability to balance, you know, what needs to be balanced, the ability to connect with with individuals, provide leadership and direction. And listen, I mean, those are some of the critical things that the mayor of Gresham should and needs to have is able to be able to lead the city forward. So, you know, your, your sense of of, of being nervous about stepping into the role can be diminished when you understand the city structure and know that you've got professionals who do the majority of things that need to be taken care of in a city like regulations, processes, laws, all of those things are handled by consummate professionals who are hired by the city to execute on those things. Uh, the mayor and the council uh primarily look at policy approval of large contracts, ensuring that as where the where essentially the vector in which the citizens of our community get to work through. Uh And so that's really what it brings me the confidence to know. I used to, I mean, I'm on the tri met board, which is our regional transportation agency here in the metro area and we serve this about two million people. Um We carry about 100 million rides annually, 300,000 writes per day when we're non covid. Um so that's a lot of movement, a lot of things that we have to deal with. We have everything from our own police force to uh to maintenance to you name it, you know, it's encompassed within the tri met universe. And so I've had nine years of opportunity to really exist in a public role or all of our meetings, republic of course, and the discourses public. So it's prepared me well uh to be able to step into the mayor role of the city if the citizens of Gresham honor me with elected me as mayor. Cool, good answer. Um So you're saying that the mayor is not like that man, you're not doing everything, you've got you've got a lot of Alfred around. Well if it was like that man, I couldn't tell you because then everybody would know I would be batman. I mean that's yeah, yeah there is a risk. Exactly, more like Spiderman also, what what is Spiderman's uncle say with great power comes great responsibility. There you go. Kind of more like Spider man. But yeah, it was the role of batman. I couldn't tell you because then you would know that I would be back, right? Yeah, yeah. What are the fringe benefits to being mayor? Do you get there? Like you get like you go to restaurants in town and you're like, okay. And they're like, oh, we've got your table right over here. Well, it's more like, um, it's more like you go to the local grocery store and everybody's like, aren't you the mayor, and then they're requesting certain things we need that stoplight on such and such a road. You know, we're not cleaning the streets enough. That's more like uh, kind of the mayor of a town where you have an opportunity to be, you know, where folks can actually recognize you and also have access. So, I mean the thing about being a mayor in public space is, um, you have to appreciate and understand that not everybody is going to, it's going to approve of all the decisions that need to be made in the city level. Uh, But the whole thing is about being fair and balanced and you know, and that's been the hallmark of any type of leadership opportunities and responsibilities I've had in my lifetime is how do we bring fair and balanced approach everything that we need to have discourse around? But yeah, I don't think there's any mayor, mayor's only parking mayors only seating. Yeah, none of that. Uh Well, well mayors only podcast. Mayors only podcast. Got it. Um Mhm. What what are some uh have you had interactions with previous mayors or other mayors or you talk to dialogue with them? And actually, you know, I used to be the executive director for East Metro Economic Alliance, which is a combination of the four cities that we're sitting right now in Fairview. Um So there's Fairview, the city aggression, this Troutdale, this would village. So all four of those mayors used to actually sit on my board at these metro economic lines. So I worked with all four of them historically as we dealt with economic advocacy here on the east side of Portland of the, well, the multnomah County area. So yeah, no, I've, I've worked very closely with many of the mayors that have existed here in East County over the years, uh, to be able to move stuff forward in a way that's effective and appropriate. So yes, I've been able to work in a number of mayors. So you guys like after these meetings or whatever, do you like have the like go out for a drink, have a chat about what is that? Like? What are the things that mayors get hit with? I mean, besides like traffic lights, like what are the most ridiculous things that you heard the mayor gets hit with? Well, I mean one of the, one of the funniest kind of things that I know that we had to deal with an impression was the question of chickens in the backyard? Yes, chickens in the backyard. It was a serious subject. Um, we had numerous council meetings to discuss chicken in the backyard. Um, I can tell you that in my many years of leading helping lead try match. That's a question that I never had to deal with chickens in the backyard. Nobody's asking if they can ride the max. Well, we did have a llama. We did have a llama that road on the max one time. True, real llama was on the max. Do in that situation. You just let it happen and be like, all right, we got to put up a policy no longer. That's kind of what happened. No longer. You're not no llamas. And I, is that why I see the signs of the llama? It's circle and it is and, and, and it's, you know, and sometimes, I mean it is, it is fun to interact with Republican waste, uh, that we all have fun and enjoyment. But yeah, if we open it up to one mama, we'd have to open up to all mama, alpacas and then goats and horses. And as you can probably imagine before, you know, your animals are in there. Yeah, yeah. We would be overrun with the animals and the max, right? And then they'll start demanding, hey, I don't know. Is that what outback is? I don't think so. I think, um, I'm not quite sure, but you don't have to be an extra enough to be a mayor. I don't know. I don't think you do. So what, what is, so let's speak about Grecian specifically because this is the home of sketch comedy podcast show. No one cares about that. But I listen to, um and what are the big like, what's the big things for you? Like what are you most excited about either improving, fixing continuing things of that nature? So, you know, there's a couple of things. Of course. I mean, we've got to lean into the social justice conversation. You know, I was just speaking with the police officer this morning, uh from another city, neighboring cities police force and just listening, just listening to some of the things. And even he said, he said, you know what? There are changes, there are improvements we need to make in our law enforcement. He goes, yeah, there are there are some some systemic some systemic things have been going on systemic biases that we need to address. So I'm looking forward to leaning into that conversation for the betterment. You know, I don't believe in abolishing the police or de funding, but based on, you know, kind of that conversation, what we've seen. Yeah, we do have some improvements that we need to lean into. So I'm I'm excited about some of these social changes, social justice changes because it's well overdue and long overdue. So we're in a we're in a new space. It's it's just it's it's invigorating that we are here where this conversation actually is getting, it's a new air time. So, uh, so that's exciting, um frustrating that it's taken this long but exciting that we now are on the cusp of I think will change. So that's one thing. We were gonna have some budget challenges based on Covid and the issues that have arisen because of the covid situation, the reduction in revenues, our business income tax is going to come down. Various other things are going to be impacted. So those are going to cost and challenges within our budget. How do we creatively address those? How do we do utilize civic engagement to understand what's going to be the best path forward? So I'm excited about that. I'm excited about ensuring that we are contacting connected with folks civically to get their thoughts and ideas. You know, I really want to continue to work hard on the economic development component and what I say is equitable economic development. How do we make sure that economic development now is shared by all so that everybody has an opportunity to start grow and prosper in their own businesses they want? You know, how do we make sure we can tear down various historical periods, apply? Some could have access to business creation and economic development others. And so how do we make sure those barriers no longer exist? Uh, you know, think about the store garage storefront program, which I, which I believe has been very successful. You know, I know of a business that just restaurant business that just launched our food services that just launched in the heart of covid. So new businesses are really small businesses are the lifeblood of our community, 90 plus percent of business, the small business. And so we have to encourage, again, we have to encourage small businesses to start grow, employ our folks. And then, you know, how do we, how do we support that? So, I'm excited about continuing some of these programs, but also finding other other additional ways to encourage this to happen within our community. Um, education is something that truly passionate about if jimmy falls outside of a city's purview. So our school districts in Oregon or state based. Um, and so we I mean there's no direct control but we I mean I would love to understand how the city and the school district can work together to achieve the outcomes that allow for better access, you know more equitable access and then you know, really closing the achievement because the achievement gaps still exist. And how do we close the achievement by truly equitable funding across, you know, across our school districts to ensure everybody's got that equal opportunity. So those are some key things that yeah, it's really just like to talk about creating actual quality in this day and age. It's nutty to me uh as far as the social justice things you feel like um and do you feel like you're in a way? I feel personally, I feel like you are in a great position to be able to address this because unless I'm mistaken, you are african american. Yeah, Alright. Some people wonder and I have to go windsurfing question. I'm like yes, I'm african american. So I mean I think that that actually um that actually is really important component that you can have these conversations with the police chief that maybe 10 years ago, that might have been a taboo subject. I think it's pretty spectacular. You can have that conversation and they can speak frankly. Absolutely, yeah, we do have issues. Maybe it's time that we look at these things well. And the key thing store the key thing is is that as a black man in America, you know, you and I could argue all day long about whether or not systemic or systematic racism exists. I believe it does, I believe it does. So I'll say that, but you and I could just argue, not saying that you believe it doesn't, that's not the context, but we could argue about that old. I'm, you know, I'm not I'm not I'm not really interested in trying to convince you that it exists, but what I am, what I am more than happy to do is share with you my lived experience, and that's just my story, my lived experience and what I have experienced as a black man, you're in America to allow you to have a bit more understanding about how my life has been here. Um, and so I can bring that lived experience into leadership to help others kind of say, you know, usually you get into situations where it's there's a disconnect between what we're talking about and what someone has experienced. So the person is like, well, you know, it sounds kind of like it, but I know I saw it on television or I read it in the newspaper, but when someone, you know, expresses their just their lived experience, it's powerful. It's absolutely powerful. We hope say, well, that that happened to you, I'm like, yeah, it happened to me, it just becomes more real and it opens up the door to a real conversation that you historically would not have been able to have. And I can I honestly say, I think a lot of the stuff that's going on right now is causing the conversation to become way more in the forefront of what we're doing and what we're talking about on a daily basis than it ever has my in my lifetime. It's same. I don't know how old you are, I assume we're roughly about the same age, but this is the first time that uh people have actually been more open talking about it. I mean, we just we just saw a football team changed its name, very controversial. I think it's the right move. I think absolutely what types of things we need to be doing. Absolutely. And I know this sounds odd, but I've got my own story along those lines, Obviously it was not me specifically. That's my very good for my best friend in high school. Um You want to share one of those stories? Do you have a story that you can think of that? Absolutely. Um, you know, I recently, speaking of the sleeping in Seattle, I recently moved into a floating house, I bought a floating house and uh, this is here aggression. Uh, you know, just, you know, it's here impression. So people tend to think, well, no, our town doesn't suffer from anything like this. Well, I lived in my house for about three weeks and I was essentially walking to um the ramp to get ready to go up to the ramp because I've just gotten done more working on my house with a couple of friends of mine who both were african americans and we were doing electrical, their electric, Thank God you were not wearing hoodies. Well, the store actually, we weren't wearing hoodies, but still we are all three of us. We walk into the edge of the rim to get ready to go up, we're standing there talking and a husband and wife come walking down the ramp. They walked right up to us, look at me and say, what are you doing here? Yeah, And at first this is, this is not even a year ago, so this isn't, this isn't 1975 1970 and this is 2019 and it caught me off your because I just, I've been in the community for about three weeks and I thought people knew me. And so he looks us all three up and down and says, oh, you're working here. And I looked at him and I said, actually, I just bought a house here. I'm your new neighbor, which then he was all fluff office called flustered as he experienced. And you know, just just recounting the story. Just, you know, almost, you know, just wells up the emotion of tell you Stuart no matter what I've accomplished. I graduated top of my class in college, summa cum laude number one college graduate out of the business division to the degree, there's a plaque with my name on it at my college that I went to, went on to get my NBA graduated with honors. You know, people say if you work hard, which I've done my entire life, you stay out of trouble, you'll get the respect you deserve in that moment. Nothing else mattered except for the color of my skin. He had no other way to evaluate whether I shouldn't have been there or I should have been there, but the color of my skin. Um and that's, I mean that's brutal at the end of the day, i it's just exhausting and tiring to exist in a country where we are constantly told and reminded that because of the color of our skin, we're going to evaluate you were gonna judge you based on that external type of marker that exists. Nothing else. Mhm. And so that's the that's the challenge. I mean, that's the challenge. There's been numerous stories, numerous stories of experiences that I've had, but that was just recently. That was that was literally it's just last year later in 2019 and it's just I mean it just just precious your resolve when this happens so often. Did you uh have you had dinner with him? Not yet. But he did say that he wants that dinner with hang out. It's like, I don't know if you ever saw blazing saddles bring that high, but at night. Oh yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I know. I know the connotations. Yes. All right, Well, I appreciate you sharing that. I think that those stories all need to be shared because there's a lot of people that look like me that I think that all that stuff has gone away and went away in the 60s. It didn't it's still there. I am very much just to be clear, uh, institutionalized racism definitely exists. And I think it's getting those stories out is super important. So thank you for that. Thank you for your time going forward because now it is time to record a sketch mm
[00:33:24] spk_1: since the election is next week. It's probably too late to register. Although please check your local state rules on that. Some of them are election Day registration, so you can still get out there. However, if you have registered, please make sure to get out and vote and hopefully hearing about Travis and listening to the type of person that's probably running in your local market as well. You get to an idea of how dynamic and how great your local leadership can and hopefully will be Travis. Can you do me a favor and just give us a rundown of all of the different ways people can come and see and learn more about you and what you do,
[00:34:08] spk_0: brush them together dot org. We're all about bringing aggression together. We want we have a major role in Grecians, nonpartisan. And so we're all about making sure that we can all work together to create a better future. Um, and so that's what we're passionate about over on the C b i world were at the ref dot com. So e r e p dot com. And again, if you want to take the c b I, it's what's my CV I dot com. That's my charlie victor, India dot com. So those are the two places you can find us. Uh, if you want to reach us by email, just info at the rep dot com. Again, info at the rep dot com.
[00:34:42] spk_1: Outstanding. And for all of you at home, please head to what's my C V I dot com and take that five minute test it is eye opening. And now our sketch pets to the max with Travis Stovall in three
[00:35:04] spk_0: two from the max stranger in Portland Oregon. We're coming to you live channel 41 today we are actually here looking at how busy the max trains are. There's a massive looks like a massive movement of people that are traveling across the city and we are shoulder to shoulder into the max. So I am going to actually try and stay on the MAC, see when the doors opened, the doors closed, how many people are in on and off. So we have a, we're understanding, we, we believe that trim it needs to increase the number of trains that are going in and out of downtown because of how packed the max streams truly are. Excuse me. Excuse me. Yes, sir, whoa, what is that you have there? I mean, I don't quite know what kind of animal that is. It's a pygmy goat. Pygmy goes, it looks a little large to be a pygmy goat, but frankly, I didn't know animals were allowed on the max. Well, they're people too, aren't they? Pygmy goats are? Take me Well, I'm not quite sure. Pygmy goats are actually people. Well, it is to me, excuse me. Well, there you have it folks, even though the max trains are incredibly cool, we are now actually not just here. Well, I was getting ready to say we're not here with just people, but then again, to some people, pygmy goats are people too, excuse me, excuse me, sorry, ma'am, excuse me, wow, excuse me, wow. And we just had a pygmy goat. Come on folks. And now we have yet another person who has joined us with another animal, but that's actually about 12. Uh, these are all my chickens. I'm just taking him downtown for a nice walk in the park. So we are, are we on tv right now? We are, we are, I am channel 41 I'm news reporter traps hobo. I'm not familiar. Well, I'm actually incredibly famous. Uh, you're in the boston area. I'm a news reporter, so everybody knows investigative, but today I'm just doing a little bit of reporting on the max and out pull the max is, and I see you, you have actually just made the max significantly pull with your 12 chickens. Yes, I just need people to get up out of their seats and let my chicken sit. They need to sit and they might lay an egg. Just watch where you're stepping, Wow. Um, not only is the massacre really cool, but we are still dealing with folks coming on with various forms of ales. Uh, 12 chickens. I am not quite sure what the number of folks that are sitting here. If all those chickens are going to make it back off, Excuse me. Oh, sir. Excuse me. I wo what is? What is that? This? Yes, it's a uh, it's a pygmy moose. I didn't know moose could feed hit me. They're still not very small when they're pregnant. Just go ahead and sit down dirt. You, are you sure that's a big news? Because that looks is pretty large. Oh, I, I just try to make it, uh, found smaller by calendar. Take me, I don't want people to think I'm taking up too much space and max here. Got it, got it. Because to me that this looks very large. Get get your hat off the fan. That's well, I think it's probably good, efficient use of the antler. Uh, if the person just puts her hat on there to hold it while we have a pygmy moose on the match. All right. Are you taking pictures of the moose? Of course we are, sir. Because how often do we have a big me moose on mass trend? Just twice a week? All you write it more than once? Wow. Well, folks, like I said, we're going again and the max stream continues to get more and more cool, based on more and more people bringing their animals, their pygmy goats, chickens. And now they're pygmy moves. We've got just a couple more stops before we get to downtown and, and we step off, but we hope that we won't see too many more animals getting away. They're pygmy goat is people too Alright? Excuse me? Excuse me. Oh, well, sir. Good afternoon. Yeah. Don't look at my jar. And what do you what do you what do you have in the jar? It's my don't tell anybody. It's my pet. And what kind of pet do you have, Have you heard of? Murder hornets. Thank
[00:39:56] spk_1: you so much. Again for joining us at sketch comedy podcast show Travis and I had a blast putting this together and we hope you enjoyed it as well. Sketch comedy podcast show is recorded under a creative commons, non attribution. No derivatives for international license, which probably means nothing to you, but it means the world to us and our words. If you would like to reproduce this in any way, please contact sketch comedy podcast show at gmail dot com To request permission. I designed this show to be a voice for myself. This is how I get my voice out. Not everybody gets that choice. However, if you have registered to vote, you have a method to let your voice be heard. Please do not neglect. You've got one week left. Get out there! Get your voice heard by voting. Please go vote. Thank you so much. I'm excited about the next episode. I'm gonna be sharing with you. It's my chat with a world dominating introvert. See you next episode.

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ABOUT THIS EPISODE
Remember back to all of those really civil, insightful, and mind-expanding political discussions at Thanksgiving dinner? No? Because they don’t exist—at least not yet. 
Ed Wynn has spent the last 3 decades trying to help governments and companies find fixes to their problems. He is qualified to do so too, because he is really smart. Ed graduated summa cum laude at the University of Illinois and magna cum laude in law at Georgetown. Throw in the fact that he is a Truman Presidential Scholar and you can see why people are so interested in having him find  solutions!
The one thing Ed is not is a political insider, and his new book, “We The People” is his attempt to fix political discourse in America by laying out the blueprint to having discussions with your family during Thanksgiving. It’s worth the read just to be able to get through the evening not trying to strangle your uncle! On a personal note, I think this is the gateway to having some real discussions about heavy subjects without anyone blowing a gasket, and the book even includes TL;DR sections at the very beginning for those of us who want to be more enlightened, but also have a fantasy football team to manage.
My one regret… I should have asked him more about his biking adventure. If you would like to hear more about it, please let me know. I am certain Ed would be willing to go more in-depth with that. (I really do feel bad that I didn’t go more into that, I was so excited to talk about talking)
This week’s sketch: “Master Debaters”
For more episodes, information, and apply to be on the show, visit: http://sketchcomedypodcastshow.com
Sketch Comedy Podcast Show is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
© Copyright 2021 Stuart Rice
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MORE ABOUT THE GUEST
For more than three decades, H. Edward Wynn has helped governments and companies discover and implement solutions to complex, often divisive, issues. He's worked in all branches and levels of government, and with both Republicans and Democrats. A Truman Presidential Scholar, Ed has a political science degree, summa cum laude, from the University of Illinois and a law degree, magna cum laude, from Georgetown. Most importantly, Ed's not a political insider, and he's willing to call out any side on its BS.
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TRANSCRIPT
[00:00:00] spk_1: in this episode, Author Edwin and I came up with a few sketches. What happens if you take uh like have a debate or you just have a political conversation with people known to be curious like a cat or curious George everybody coming up with stupid ideas to solve a problem. But somehow all of these stupid ideas work out to a actual solution in the very end having a presidential debate. But just going for the most ridiculous name calling and then that's the entire debate. That last one might be a little too close to the mark. Which one did we pick? You'll find out on this episode of it's a sketch comedy podcast show. Welcome to sketch comedy podcast show though, one of a kind show where I Stewart rice invite interesting people to have intriguing conversations and then improvise a comedy sketch based on what was talked about this week. I invite Author Edwin onto the show and let me tell you why? Because remember all of those really civil, insightful and mind expanding political discussions at thanksgiving dinner that you've had. No because they don't exist. Well, at least not yet. Edwin has spent the last three decades trying to help governments and companies find fixes to their problems. He is qualified to do so too because he is really smart. Ed graduated summa cum laude at the university of Illinois and magna cum laude in law at Georgetown, throw in the fact that he is a Truman presidential scholar and you can see why people are so interested in having him find solutions. The one thing Ed is not is a political insider and his new book, We The People is his attempt to fix political discourse in America by laying out the blueprint for having discussions with your family during thanksgiving. It's worth the read just to be able to get through the evening. Not trying to strangle your uncle. On a personal note. I think this is the gateway to having some real discussions about heavy subjects with anyone without blowing a gasket. And the book even includes T. L. D. R. Sections at the very beginning for those of us who want to be more enlightened but also have a fantasy football team to manage. And now my conversation with Edwin author trying to make political discussions great again and I've got a question for
[00:02:45] spk_0: you Sure,
[00:02:47] spk_1: what makes you interesting?
[00:02:49] spk_0: I think what makes me interesting is I am a very creative problem solver. So most of my friends and colleagues come to me when they have a tough problem and I can usually by talking it through with them figure out a good range of solutions that we might not have thought of at the beginning. And the title of the book is that's kind of the theme which is we need to work together and have a good conversation uh and be creative in our problem solving to solve some of the very pressing issues we face in our country today.
[00:03:27] spk_1: So you are a problem solver? How did you find out that that was something that you were really good
[00:03:33] spk_0: at? Well, I think how I found out that I was really good at that is people said, wow, that's really a good solution or when we work in a team, so we came up with a good solution and it was successful and I think the key to that is seeking to understand not to be understood and to be curious, I think curiosity of everything is the most important thing to be a good problem, so
[00:03:59] spk_1: I completely agree and being open to um in those conversations, being open to other people's suggestions as well. And then I have always looked at myself as an incredibly good editor and a terrible writer. Um I can usually take someone else's ideas and enhance them and I think that that's really important, but I think that um do you have like a methodology that you use something that you realized early on
[00:04:30] spk_0: that? Yeah, it's funny, it's similar to the methodology in the book is sometimes people get stuck in trying to solve a problem because they haven't first define the problem they're trying to solve. And so I think that's the first step is to figure out what is it that we really are trying to do here and then to make sure you have marshaled enough facts that can inform that decision and then have a discussion and explore different things. Even if they might At 1st sound wacky or bizarre. Getting those out there is important because it gives you a broader range of solutions that you can decide from. So I think that's important in life in general, but I also think it's very important for our political discussions as well.
[00:05:17] spk_1: Awesome. Well, that's a good start to start talking about your book that you wrote. So you did write a book, you're not just a problem solver, you're also a person that put words on a page to help other people solve problems and you solve a very specific problems. So I'm gonna actually mm he wrote a book called We The People And um what got you to write this book? What was it about this book that this information and what is the book about?
[00:05:45] spk_0: Yeah, so let me talk briefly about how the idea for the book came about and then I'll tell you what the book is, give a very brief summary. So, back four years ago, during a similar time in the presidential election cycle. I was fortunate enough to uh, cycle across the US from off the coast of Oregon to maine and you
[00:06:08] spk_1: wrote a bicycle from one side of the country to the other.
[00:06:11] spk_0: I did 3750 miles in 40 days. So, yes, that was an amazing experience. And what was Interesting about that is the ride went through many of the states that turned out to be battleground states in 2016 and that I suspect will be battleground states in 2020. By that, I mean, the states that will decide the electoral vote. And what I observed, literally on the ground was that there was a lot of divisiveness in our country and a lot of mean spiritedness around people's selection or promotion of a certain candidate and that I really viewed as unfortunate. And one of the things that I think caused it, and obviously had a lot of time each day to reflect as I was writing is that people felt they had been silence and that their viewpoints hadn't been Part of the debate. And so that naturally builds up frustration. Uh, and that is what I saw in 2016. So the idea of the book was how do we make this different? And so in the intervening past four years, I've thought about that more and came up with the idea. And there's the book, the book really has three parts. The first part is a what I call a civics lesson, but don't be bored by that. It really focuses not on everything in civics, but the most important things we need to know in each category, 5-7 things that we need to know that most of us were never taught, but they're really crucial in terms of us participating in the political process and understanding the second part of the book talks about what I've defined as the six reasons we do not have civility in political discourse, And then, correspondingly the six things that we all can do to improve that discourse and make it more civil. And then the last section of the book is I put my money where my mouth is and I use that paradigm and the principles that I've set out in the first part of the book to actually take on some of the most divisive, significant issues that we face as a nation today, and use the framework at two, propose a range of solutions to each of those issues.
[00:08:34] spk_1: Uh, so what I didn't understand about the book, and I'm gonna be completely honest is it seems like it's really well thought in its layout and it's uh it's logical and it makes sense. Um I wait, does logic and order and um rationale, What does that have to do with american politics?
[00:08:58] spk_0: Well, unfortunately, it doesn't have much to do with american politics right now, but it should and it has in the past. And so the book is trying to get us back to that paradise. I mean, we can we could turn on any of the major national news stations right now and we wouldn't see a lot of logic, we would see a lot of emotion, we'd see a lot of personal attacks. We'd see a lot of one sidedness, We wouldn't see much curiosity. And so this is seeking to return us to a place or get us to a place where we can have those rational discussions based on identifying a common problem, bringing facts, real facts to that debate, keeping the emotion out of it, and then discussing creatively a range of solutions that quite frankly most of us would agree with. The problem also is what we see is we see the political debates in our country dominated by the extremes, the far left or the far right, and those of us, which I think are the majority are in the middle. And we really want to see unifying solutions. We don't want this all or nothing, take no prisoners kind of debate. We want to look for the solutions that will be meaningful. We want that unity.
[00:10:19] spk_1: What what happened when when did it happen? What happened? When did it become so divisive now? I mean, some people have said like it's always been that way. It's always there's always been this level of, you know, nobody going hi, everybody going low for since the, you know, almost since the very birth of our nation. But what what do you believe is the correct answer? What do you believe feels right to you as far as why did why did political discourse becomes so uh subjective?
[00:10:56] spk_0: Yeah, it's really uh it's a good question, but it's a difficult one in this sense. I don't think there's one point in time that I've been able to identify where this was the point in which it occurred. I think it happened gradually, and that's important to know for this reason. If we tolerate this lack of civility in our political discourse in one regard, it is only going to get worse. And so the way to reverse it is when we hear people making personal attacks, When we hear dehumanizing speech, when we hear all those things that lead to divisiveness, we have to call that out. We can't just be by standards to that and let that happen. It's a gradual situation. But unfortunately, the tenor of that when it's unstoppable gets worse and worse. Could I point to individual things that have happened? Of course I could the name calling that occurred in the presidential debates in 2016 and unfortunately, continues in this round of the presidential election. I could point to the lack of willingness to hear respectful but opposing viewpoints, even in colleges and universities where you want to encourage that there are so many different things that have contributed to it, but no single one of those is the only fact
[00:12:22] spk_1: you mentioned something that has come up time and time again in conversations I've had as the college campuses and the it's this cancel culture, the cancel culture that goes along with it. And what I mean by that is, and I'm not trying to, I know I certainly don't want to convey a political standing for myself or for you if you don't feel comfortable for that. But one of the biggest complaints is that certain sides are specifically targeted as unable to do anything on a college campus because of the cancel culture. Um, uh, it just so happens to be the side, I don't necessarily agree with, but they get a point and when they do say those things and, and it's, I'll just, it's the right or the conservative or Republican viewpoint in a college campus, it's difficult to get in and make some sort of a speech, some sort of statement because it does get protested and it does get knocked down. Is that part of the problem? Or do you feel like that's that's protest happening as it should happen?
[00:13:37] spk_0: It's I guess I define the problem slightly differently. I use college campuses as an example, but I do think it goes both ways. And so when I hear for example, president trump saying the cancel culture is associated with the left. I cringe because that's the same time that he's saying that the right is during the cancel culture. I think he even maybe called for it. I can't remember a major tire manufacturer. I can't remember which one because he didn't like something that they said and basically said boycott them. So my position on that is not confined to one political party. It's confined to anyone on the extremes that isn't willing to listen to a respectful opposing opinion. Now, name calling is not a respectful opposing opinion, Threatening violence on someone is not a respectful opposing opinion. But having a civil discussion is and that's where we really need to go and going back to what I said at the beginning. I think us not having those discussions and taking sites and going to our polarized extremes, that's what in fact led to the extreme divisiveness and mean spiritedness that we saw in the 2016 election.
[00:14:51] spk_1: Do you? Okay. So I've got my own opinion is going to my own bias is going to come out. Do you think that that is? Uh and I have a feeling I know what your answer is. Do you feel like that is because there is a lack of interest in actual politics and in speaking kindly to one another and disagreeing kindly. And do you feel that that stems from people maybe not knowing how to do it?
[00:15:17] spk_0: I think it's could be that. But I think the major reason is, and this is another thesis of the book is that the extremes have silenced the moderates. They've disciplined us like a bully would if you don't join one of our sides or the other, you just need to shut up. And if you don't, we're going to commit verbal violence. In fact, sometimes even physical violence on you and that's just wrong. And so I think the vast majority of us, it's not that we're not interested. It's not that we don't have viewpoints, it's not that we don't care about the country. The problem is we feel were silenced and we've been disciplined in many cases to be in that silenced state. And that's what I'm hoping the book can change.
[00:15:59] spk_1: Well, Ed, I think you're a jerk and this is over.
[00:16:03] spk_0: I'm sorry. I'm sorry. You feel that way stir?
[00:16:06] spk_1: No, I'm just kidding. I'm just kidding. Um Yes, I agree. I agree wholeheartedly with you. This is, it's like I told you at the very beginning this is gonna be a softball because I haven't agreed with most, if not everything that you're saying. And
[00:16:20] spk_0: can I go back to what you just did?
[00:16:22] spk_1: You just think about
[00:16:23] spk_0: that And I can talk about in my own case. And I had that's why you heard a pause, if somebody says start to name calling, what happens just physiologically in your reaction. You get on the defensive, you tense up. If you said, let's have a discussion about uh, this position. I'm not sure. I agree. But let's talk about it. The defenses go down that really isn't a perfect example of the should not and the should in terms of how we should do political discourse.
[00:16:52] spk_1: Yeah. And I think it's okay to disagree. I totally think it's okay to disagree. And I also agree that we just need to give people in general. I think people just want to be heard, right? Like that's the number one thing. And the hardest thing is when you hear something that is off of what you believe, it starts to challenge you on an individual level. Like are my beliefs right? And as soon as that starts to happen, that's when the feelings pop up, and it's, you know, I might, you know, I might disagree with someone about this, happens with movies too. Like even even things like as benign as what's the best christmas movie. And if someone answers other than elf, someone else is going to get upset about it, right? And it's like, let's have a discussion why is uh Miracle on 34th Street a better movie than uh, it's a wonderful life. Like we can have those discussions may become a good points. We're not even close to christmas. I don't know why I'm bringing up christmas movies, but that happens almost universally with anything anymore. And it's um, is that, is that something new? Is that the, the challenge to our personal likes and dislikes? You know, the fanboys versus the other fanboys or whatever it is?
[00:18:11] spk_0: I think when people feel and I do talk about this in the book, I think when people feel that they have been silenced, that's when I must defend my turf, that defensiveness, those walls come up and that really is poor. And part of that is caused by the extreme polarization. They basically say you're either with me or against me and if you're against me, you're the enemy and you deserve the ultimate punishment. Up to sometimes including death, which is ridiculous when you step back and think about it. But so many of our debates are there. I mean, I was terribly disappointed when I learned that Dr Fauci has to have security because he expresses his scientific opinion, and a segment of the population disagrees with that and have sent him death threats. I mean, I think that type of thing is absolutely ridiculous. We can all have different opinions and viewpoints and not have to kill each other.
[00:19:07] spk_1: All right, So how does one get to a point where they can start to listen to other people's stupid goddamn opinions? Like, how do we how do we get to that point?
[00:19:19] spk_0: I think the first thing and you hinted to it in your question which is we have to start with the right mindset, which is we have to be open to listen to others. It's kind of the classic Freij seek to understand not to be understood. And I think you first start with what is the common objective that we're trying to solve? So if it's something like health care, what is the issue that we're trying to solve? And we might all agree that the cost of health care is too high, that we want people to have affordable health care. There's probably three or four of those things, not the ultimate positions, but the objective that we're trying to get that we could all agree on and then we can say something like, okay, given that we agree on these objectives, what facts do we need to know to be able to figure this problem out and then go and get those facts, real facts, not spin or opinions. And then from that, say, what are the potential ways to solve this and do it in a non judging away. This is kind of like brainstorming that you do in the corporate environment where you just write up ideas and you don't judge them, but then you go back and you analyze and assess them and oftentimes and I've done this thousands of times is you often find almost always find that none of the ideas that were put up there are the, the final one, but it's some blending of those are some entirely new idea that came about as a result of that brainstorming and that's the type of discussions that we have to have.
[00:20:45] spk_1: Yes, I yeah, almost take the person completely take the personality out of
[00:20:52] spk_0: it. Absolutely
[00:20:52] spk_1: at, you know, it's so funny because like most of the time you're talking to someone and you don't agree with them politically, but in the end, if you really kind of dig down deep, it's the goal is the same for anybody. It's what's gonna be the best for everybody and everybody thinks they have an opinion. Their opinion is the best solution for everything. And most of the time, uh, it's not, it's it's a nice mix of ideas and uh and those types of things
[00:21:20] spk_0: where where can
[00:21:21] spk_1: we have the most influence to get people to start having these conversations in a way that or where can someone start? I mean, besides your book, but mainly your book, what's a good way to get people down that path to start talking like that?
[00:21:35] spk_0: Yeah, I think that there are a couple pass, I'll describe them because they're in different realms, but one of the first passes start at home. So many of us have those discussions in our own homes or with our friends or family and we start into this personal attack kind of stuff. And I think just at that level, let's work on that and see if we can't get that to be better. I think also doing it in your local government, which are very important. They influence a lot of things in our daily lives, I think could be really important. And then I think the other way is to make sure you're getting a balanced set of facts. And so I do talk about that in the book as well. You know, I think we do have media biases and let me just make a quick point to demonstrate that if we ask everyone, we picked 100 people off the street and we said, tell us the point of view of CNN MSNBC and Fox News, probably 99% of the people could tell us which one ranks on the political scale in that way. Well, these are supposed to be objective news reporters. They're not supposed to have a point of view. The fact that each of us knows that they have a point of view and that's how they deliver so called news test. That should be troubling. So I would look for less biased news sources, there's some tools that can be used to help us with that one that I like is all sides dot com. They rank all of the major media, in fact, even at the local and state level in terms of what is their bias and they take input from all of us, which I think is very good. So getting the facts and then starting those civil debates and not personalizing things. Starting of course with what is the issue we're trying to solve. That's how we can do that. And I think uh continue to make our discourse better.
[00:23:30] spk_1: That's a I did not know about that website, that's pretty spectacular. Um, so let's take a look at how you've written this book, because I think you've taken a different approach and um you don't don't take offense that you don't look like a millennial, but you wrote this book so that the Reddit crowd can really, really key in on it. So let's, I just want to take a look at, well, just look at this uh, this first chapter and I think what's great is uh it is really a three stage book in that it makes sense the way you read it, understanding the political process and all of those types of things. But here this is the part that I love is that you did, you did not take the hubris that everybody is going to read every word in your book and you really wanted to convey, hey, I just want you to be informed. So you created A. T. L. D. Are too long. Didn't read section for every chapter. Um, if someone goes through your book and they only read the T. L. D. R. S how much better off are they going to be?
[00:24:39] spk_0: I think they're going to be significantly better off and thank you for the compliment. Uh No, I am not a millennial quite to the contrary, but I do believe that politics is not the domain exclusively of the baby boomers or any other generation. It's all of us, it's all of our country and so we need to do it. So I tried to be cognizant in writing the book so that it would have appeal to all generations and everyone and so the T. L. D. R. Boxes is really to convey the main point. One of the reasons. And I think you could get a lot of it a lot of the discussion in the book just from reading the tl DRS. What they try to do is summarize the takeaways from each chapter, but at the beginning so that you can decide women already know about the Electoral College. I don't know if I need to read this. Uh, but if you look at that and you say, I don't think that's right. What I've done is provided the backup with extensive endnotes I think almost 200. So that you can say oh yeah there's facts in real data that supports his physicians and maybe I need to think about that a little bit more which is the goal.
[00:25:52] spk_1: Yeah. Um it does it makes for a very uh, relaxing read, especially something that's a political book, but it does make it much easier. So you can read that. It's sort of like someone telling you before you walk into the movie theater. Hey, this is what this movie is about. It gives a nice little overview and then you could go in and just enjoy the actual acting and it's the same sort of thing here. Um, as far as I want to kind of get a little bit, uh, deeper into certain certain things. And the uh, the chapters I think are going to, in my opinion, are going to help people. The most are the chapters about the hold on, let me get, let me get to there. The different types of, uh, not logical fallacies, but the things that are, are people used to the dehumanization and
[00:26:50] spk_0: yes,
[00:26:52] spk_1: let's talk about the six principal causes of lack of civility in political discourse. And and uh if you don't mind, let's I just want to give an overview for for everybody it's individual individualism. And give me the twitter response that the old school twitter the 144 character
[00:27:10] spk_0: response to
[00:27:12] spk_1: Yeah, individualism. Why is it a bad thing?
[00:27:15] spk_0: Individualism is you make up your own facts, everybody's entitled to their own opinion, but you're not entitled to your own facts.
[00:27:23] spk_1: Good supremacy.
[00:27:25] spk_0: My facts are the only ones that matter and yours Iran
[00:27:31] spk_1: polarization, absolute absolutism.
[00:27:35] spk_0: It's either all or nothing my way or the highway. You're a friend or you're a death sworn enemy
[00:27:42] spk_1: and anonymity
[00:27:45] spk_0: I can hide behind uh anonymity to not take responsibility for what I say and do
[00:27:55] spk_1: victimization.
[00:27:57] spk_0: Oh this is my favorite of the group in every situation, there's a victim and I'm usually that person and therefore there has to be a villain and that person is to be hated and despised
[00:28:12] spk_1: dehumanization.
[00:28:14] spk_0: Speaking to someone in terms that do not recognize them as a human being as something subhuman are inhuman.
[00:28:25] spk_1: Yeah. And we can see all of those if you know I used the twitter uh moniker there for a reason obviously because you can see that in tweets from certain very specific people and it's it's shocking when you see that the potus twitter account is loaded with all of these. These are all things that we see coming directly from the leader of the free world and I'm not making a statement one way or the other again about if I support that individual or don't support that individual, but it's concerning when we see that from our leadership, isn't it?
[00:29:09] spk_0: It really is. And so in the book I list on both sides, republican democrat everything in between statements like that that our leaders have made. And it's so very disappointing, we can have a debate of the issues without calling people animals are filthy dogs, or vermouth are all that stuff. It doesn't add anything to the debate, it only further up further polarizes and divides us
[00:29:36] spk_1: very much agreed. Um Yeah, so if you had um if you had a magic wand and you were able to swing your magic wand, would it be, would you fix the way media presents the facts, would it be uh finding a way to make it impossible for keyboards to work as they start to do these terrible things that they do online? What would be the thing that you could do if you could do one thing, what would it be to help discourse in a political arena?
[00:30:15] spk_0: I think it would be uh the next relaxed chapter of my book, which is called switching it up, which is to cause people to consider uh their own viewpoints from the opposite side. And so what that chapter is about, in essence, is taking real life situations with the real actors getting people to either align with that or hate it and then switch it up and give the opposite actor and see if people's views change. I think when any of us can consider uh a particular issue from the opposite side of view and ask ourselves why do they have that position? Let me understand that that is automatically going to make for a better political discourse. And quite frankly, it's gonna make for better media and news reporting, because so often it's all one sided and they don't consider that the other side may have a legitimate point that that needs to be considered.
[00:31:11] spk_1: I um I tried a number of years ago, I was trying to take news reports and take the name, the pro proper names, gender identity and all all of the different signifiers that would other than the title of the of the person. That was the only way I was referring to them. I called it that person in the White House. And it was just to remove all of that. And what was interesting was there was one particular article where I took all the names out, took all the genders out uh you know, he or she said, but what was really interesting was I did read an article because I'm not a trump supporter. All right, there amounted. But uh it was an article about something that trump did that. I was like, oh I kind of agree with what what happened there. It was about Social Security and I was really interested that I agreed with. Whereas normally I don't think I would the bias would have come up and everything he touches I think turns into bad stuff. So it was really an interesting exercise just for myself to kind of go, oh man, even even as much as I think I am not biased, I am biased like he's very heavily
[00:32:22] spk_0: and I think that's something we all have to watch. But taking the personalities out of it and focusing on the positions and the facts, that's how we get out of it. Mhm.
[00:32:32] spk_1: Yeah. And you do list some really, you know, these are subjects that are super controversial, abortion, health care. I don't know why health care is such a touch to touch on a topic. Everybody needs a uh, but you hit up all of these really important things, um, guns and individual rights and those types of things. But your approach is very much as you stated, its explain what the problem is and then how do we work backwards from there without using absolutes, which is well, if we do and the logical fallacies off, we do this, then everything's gonna, you know, if we take guns away from known criminals, then the next thing, you know, the government is going to be knocking on your door and taking all your guns and ammo and it's like, whoa, where did that come from? Like how did this happen that we're drawing these ridiculous conclusions from this? What are the safeguards for for people in these, these kind of in having these conversations like where what's the risk if a conservative who is very much about give me my guns? What's the risk for them to listen?
[00:33:50] spk_0: I don't think there is really any risk. I think we the only risk that I think we've had goes back to something we've discussed Stewart and that is, people have to feel safe going into a conversation like that and to feel safe, you have to feel like you're going to be listened to. So I think starting, if there is any as any risk to those conversations, starting it out by saying, we're going to listen to everyone's ideas, no idea is better than another. The way we'll distinguish them is based on the facts, so everyone is free to do it and we're not going to judge And we'll judge based on the facts, not you as a person. And I think we need to have more of those discussions. And in fact, there have been a couple groups, I can't think of the names right now they're in the book, but they've tried that with a group of 500, uh, citizens across the board and they've got them together for a weekend and, and talk about one of these controversial issues. And it's amazing when they do that in that small group under a certain paradigm very similar to the paradigm that's in the book. They not only go in, go from hating each other, that's on the other side to seeing their point of view and becoming friends and also figuring out here's a range of solutions we can all agree on that we want to get to our elected officials. Now I'll make one pitch that I think is really important, particularly now, the most important thing, the most important thing That we can do as Americans right now is to vote. One of the things that continues to discourage me is the significant percentage of people, usually about 40 that don't vote in a presidential election and it's even lower in local and state elections. So we all need to vote when I hear people complain about a politician are a leader, I say, did you vote? And if they say no, then maybe you should do that first before you rail about this. And I think particularly now with all the controversy, which I would say is false about male and voting. I think to the extent that each of us has early voting in our states, Let's try to get to the polls in person safely and cast our vote because I think we're we all have to admit at this point, so close to the election, less than 60 days, there are going to be issues with mail and vote voting. And I think we need to make sure that every one of our votes count. And in particular, given some of the rhetoric about the results, it is going to be better. The more of us that can vote in person safely, either by doing it early, doing it at times where the polls may not be crowded. I think that's gonna be important. What I urge all the voting officials throughout our country to do Is instead of what happened, for example, in the Wisconsin primary, where the polls in Milwaukee went from 152, 582 5, we need to have more polls so that the crowds are dispersed and that you can do it safely. So I'd encourage them, we know how to open a polling place. We've done that for centuries. So let's have more polling places and try to make the voting safe. And of course let's make it so that there's not fraud or challenges to it to the greatest extent that we can so vote. Please vote.
[00:37:15] spk_1: I think that's great advice. I uh there's the pushback is of course, a lot of people say, um, I don't know, I don't know. I don't know how to get um educated on these things and I don't have the time. Uh, it's a poor excuse. There are some really great resources. This book is a great place to start to start to change your perspective on how to process that information. Um, I, you know, this new website that you just gave me that I'm going to spend far too much time on all sides. That uh that's a great place. And um and you'll get those booklets right? If you register, you get the booklet, they spend a lot of money putting those booklets out, just fan through them and just kind of read and and see how to see how you feel about those things. Right?
[00:38:06] spk_0: Absolutely. I would give one piece of advice. It's my personal advice. So that's all it is. But something for people to consider. I think in our elections now we focus too much, excuse me, on individual positions of the candidates take. And if I support them on one issue, and that's an important issue for me, I'm going to vote for them, no matter what. And I think that's not the right decision to make right now. I think the are at any time I would say, I think the right one question thing that you can ask yourself right now, that can help you decide between candidates and you can do this based on hearing them speak or what they write or what they put on their websites. Is are they unifying us or are they dividing us? And if they're dividing us, I can't vote for anyone that's a divider because that is not advancing we the people of the United States, even if I don't entirely agree with the unifier, I'd rather vote for a unifier than a divider because right now we need that more than anything and I'd focus more on their approach to how they handle issues. Are they the only one that has the answers and they're not willing to listen to the other sides? Are are they willing to listen to the other side and come up with a unifying solution and Stewart on that? I'm not saying that to say there's one party that owns one side of that debate and one that owns the other. I think you have to look at it. Each individual race. Yeah.
[00:39:45] spk_1: Yes. Um, yeah. In fact, we actually had a comment. So let's see. Yeah. You hit the nail on the head listening versus debating. Yeah. And I think that I think that that's the disarming thing about that is when you do invite someone to give their opinion and to get
[00:40:08] spk_0: their version
[00:40:10] spk_1: of the facts and you actually give that those words some importance. People tend to stop and they listen to you.
[00:40:17] spk_0: Absolutely, absolutely, definitely happens.
[00:40:19] spk_1: Well, Ed were at that time it's been about a half hour. It's been a very good discussion. Um, but this show is called sketch comedy podcast cast. So now we have to come up with the sketch. I honestly cannot wait to have my next political discussion. No, that is not an invitation to the internet. My one regret with this entire conversation. I should have asked him more about his biking adventure. If you would like to hear more about it, please let me know. I'm certain Ed would be willing to go more in depth with that. I really do feel bad that I didn't go more into it. I was just so excited about talking about talking. Do you mind explaining to everybody one more time why they should buy a copy of We the people.
[00:41:10] spk_0: I think anyone that's interested in improving the state of political discourse or how we are as a nation, they should read this book. It's succinct, it gives the main points, it doesn't have a partisan view and I think it will improve not only our political discourse, but it will improve us as individuals and as a people.
[00:41:32] spk_1: Ed. That's great. Besides clicking on the link in the show notes, where else can people find the book
[00:41:38] spk_0: on amazon? It's also available in other booksellers as well, the major ones, but on Amazon it is available with the title We The People. And if you type in my last name when W Y and then it will come right up
[00:41:50] spk_1: outstanding. Ed, any last words or bits of advice that you could give me and my listeners,
[00:41:58] spk_0: please vote. That's the most important thing. And if you can do it in person safely, please please do that. And that's particularly true. If you're in one of the battleground States, please please do that.
[00:42:10] spk_1: There you go folks vote. Read this book and get prepared to listen to this week's sketch master debaters with my friend and author Edwin in three two. Mhm. Okay. Welcome to the presidential debates between Edwin and alexander Lincoln, mm mm Post food is Dimitri franklin and he is about to ask the first question right now. Yeah, candidate Edwin, there has been a lot of controversy with Internet services in the United States and privacy concerns. What is your opinion on the ticktock situation that is currently happening in America right now?
[00:43:08] spk_0: Tick tock is awful. Ticktock used to refer to clocks now, we've got people dancing, they're probably all liberals and you know, the chinese are all over that. They're taking it over there, taking our information. We're no longer going to be America. It's just something that has to be stopped. It's un american. I don't know how all these young people can go on there knowing they're giving away their Social Security numbers, their futures to this debate, It must be stopped. It is evil. And my opponent, I can't believe how stupid he is and how gullible he is
[00:43:45] spk_1: alexander Lincoln. Do you mind giving us your rebuttal to this? To this statement about Ticktock? Yes. Let me explain my position on Tiktok in 2018 when taxes were raised, I realized we had a major problem. We want to make sure that people are represented properly and that
[00:44:07] spk_0: alexander were sleeping over here. This is so boring. I thought this was supposed to be about Tiktok not taxes. Who wants taxes?
[00:44:15] spk_1: Listen here, you decrepit old fool. I am trying to convey why it is important that we understand discourse that are you taking a nap again?
[00:44:26] spk_0: You're just putting me out with your boring junk about taxes. Who cares? We're not even talking about taxes. This is about Tiktok and dancing. Oh my gosh, you're senile.
[00:44:40] spk_1: Now. I take a lot of offense at that. And I honestly, I wish people would turn off their volume when they were listening to your manby pamby baloney that you continue to spout?
[00:44:51] spk_0: Are you telling the american people that you support the chinese over them? Really? You're that stupid.
[00:44:59] spk_1: I know you don't understand a lot of things. You probably use tick tock as an educational channel. We need to make sure that we understand exactly what Tiktok is all about. And honestly, I'm not even sure you know how to turn your phone on.
[00:45:14] spk_0: Oh please. And just because we don't understand, it doesn't mean we can't figure out it comes from the chinese and they are taking our personal data and information. Really? I thought you were smarter than that alexander.
[00:45:29] spk_1: Well, I'm definitely smarter than your wife who somehow has married you. This is what? Your 14th wife.
[00:45:35] spk_0: Oh my gosh! Going there. You have little room to talk over there. Mr with your immoral life.
[00:45:43] spk_1: Listen here you incredible putts, I know that you don't understand what we're trying to do in America which is free ourselves from the tyranny of old senile fools like yourself
[00:45:55] spk_0: alexander, it's called experience something you clearly don't have,
[00:45:59] spk_1: that's not what your mom said last night,
[00:46:01] spk_0: just proving my point the lack of morals that you have as a person who would ever vote for someone like
[00:46:09] spk_1: that. Once again, I will point towards your mom
[00:46:13] spk_0: alexander. There he goes again with his ignorant responses.
[00:46:19] spk_1: I absolutely not an ignorant person yet. You are such an idiot that you just my mother and how things work and you don't understand how America America is just spend all of your time. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm gonna have to I'm going to have to shut off your microphones. We're running out of time with this particular question. And quite honestly, both of you are such idiots. We're going to have to find some spongebob cartoons to play for the remainder of the debate because that makes more sense than what's going on right now. Thank you for joining us for the debates. Have a good evening. Are you already kids? I captain. I can't hear you. Thank you for listening to sketch comedy podcast show. Would you believe that that sketch was actually recorded almost a month before the first biden trump debate? I know it's uncanny. Sketch comedy podcast show is recorded under a creative commons attribution, non derivative four point oh, international license. I know it's a mouthful, but it protects us legally. If you would like to be on the show, if you would like to learn more about the show, subscribe and all those types of things. My suggestion head to sketch comedy, podcast show dot com. I know it's a lot of letters to write down, but it makes sense because it's the name of the show sketch comedy podcast show dot com and you can get all sorts of great stuff there. Thank you so much for listening. We had a blast making this and we hope that you're willing to join us again on our next episode. I will be talking to a local mayoral candidate about local elections. I cannot wait to share that conversation with you see you next time.

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ABOUT THIS EPISODE
Have you ever just picked up and moved to a big,  metropolitan city you have never visited on a whim? How about deciding one day that you need to thrust your fellow generation into informed political discourse? I’m pretty sure you haven’t done either of those things. You are about to meet someone who has.
Claire Malkie grew up in Virginia and studied classical acting at Hofstra University. After graduating, someone suggested moving to Chicago and, without skipping a beat, she jumped at the opportunity. Arriving in Chicago ready to tackle the stage, she soon realized that the opportunities were pretty limited, but there were tons of opportunities to do improv. So, she headed back to improv school and started learning and performing at Comedy Court and has worked at a number of festivals.
Overhearing a conversation from a peer that included “I don’t really understand politics, so I don’t want to get involved”, Claire realized that she could help change that attitude, which was important to her because she realized that she had the same attitude. To remedy that disinterest, Claire now co-writes and hosts the podcast “Sit Still, Look Opinionated” (https://sit-still-look-opinionated.simplecast.com) which is not just informative and non-biased, but it is also downright funny as she and her co-writer come up with fantastic jokes about the headlines that deserve to be on late-night talk shows. I highly recommend checking it out, whether you are in the know, or are trying to be, or don’t care… because you should.
Have a completely free audiobook without ANY obligation other than downloading it read by none-other than myself! Get a copy of “Snapshots” a great collection of short stories that I narrated! All you have to do is message the show at [email protected] and I will send you a code! I won’t even keep your email address, I’m just really excited to hear what you think!
This week’s sketch: “Neo Way!”
For more episodes, information, and apply to be on the show, visit: http://sketchcomedypodcastshow.com
Sketch Comedy Podcast Show is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
© Copyright 2021 Stuart Rice
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MORE ABOUT THE GUEST
Claire is an improviser, actor, and podcaster located in Chicago, IL. You can catch her in ongoing improv shows with her team Agent Carol, and you can find her podcast Sit Still, Look Opinionated on your favorite podcatcher site. 
Claire originally hails from Alexandria, Virginia and definitely considers herself an east coast gal. She earned her BFA in Classical Acting from Hofstra University on Long Island, NY. She additionally earned minors in English and Musical Theater. 
Now living in the Windy City, you can find Claire performing in improv shows and doing stand up sets all over the city. Claire recently closed Comedy Court at the Laugh Out Loud Theater. Claire has also performed with Huggable Riot, the Contemporary American Theater Festival, and Hampstead Stage Company. 
In her downtime Claire loves workout classes, lightly scented candles, and of course, dad jokes. Hey, it's all in the delivery right?
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TRANSCRIPT
[00:00:00] spk_0: in this episode, Shakespearean actress turned improviser Claire Malki and I came up with three sketches. What would improv back in Shakespearean time. What would it have looked

[00:00:12] spk_1: like? Yes. And if

[00:00:14] spk_0: to Karen's maybe having a conversation on the cycling bikes about current events and or something along those lines like having trying to have a political conversation but not knowing what they're talking about,

[00:00:27] spk_1: that would be great.

[00:00:29] spk_0: You know, you brought up Neo from the Matrix. What if you woke up and it was right now today, here in this life in this world, what would you decide to do? Which one did we pick? You'll find out on this episode of mm hmm It's a sketch comedy podcast show. Welcome to sketch comedy podcast show though, one of a kind show where I Stewart rice invite interesting people to have intriguing conversations and then improvise a comedy sketch based on what was talked about. This episode's guest is Claire Malki and I've got a couple questions for you. Have you ever just picked up and moved to a big metropolitan city you've never visited before? Just on a whim or how about deciding one day that you need to thrust your fellow generation into informed political discourse. My guess is you probably haven't done either of those things. Claire Malki has Claire grew up in Virginia and studied classical acting at Hofstra University after graduating, someone suggested moving to Chicago and without skipping a beat, she jumped at the opportunity, arriving in Chicago, ready to tackle the stage. She soon realized that the opportunities were actually pretty limited for a Shakespearean actress, but there were tons of opportunities to do improv. So she headed to improv school and started learning and performing at comedy court and has worked at a number of festivals overhearing a conversation from appear that included, I don't really understand politics, so I don't really want to get involved. Claire realized that she could help change that attitude, which was important to her because she realized she had the same attitude to remedy that disinterest. Claire now co writes and hosts a podcast, sit still look opinionated, which is not just informative and non biased, but it is also downright funny as she and her co writer come up with fantastic jokes about the headlines that deserve to be on late night talk shows. I highly recommend checking it out whether you are in the know or trying to be or don't care because you should and this show can help you get there. And now my conversation with Claire Malki, risk taker and political motivator for the hip crowd.

[00:02:56] spk_1: Hey,

[00:02:58] spk_0: I've got a question for you. Yeah, what makes you interesting,

[00:03:04] spk_1: right? You know, I was thinking a lot about this question because

[00:03:07] spk_0: you actually listen to the show. Not everybody does that by the way, but that was pretty good,

[00:03:12] spk_1: I'm glad I did and something that came to mind is that I am all about taking a risk and not quite understanding where the reward would come out of it. Um I think some people like to call that being naive, but I like to think of it as being adventurous. Um so I currently live in Chicago and I moved here straight out of school, I was gonna move to Manhattan as like the rest of my theater class did, and then one of my friends was like, hey, I'm gonna move to Chicago, and I was like, oh, I've never been to that city before, so why don't I just moved there? Um I knew like nothing about the city, I didn't even pick out the apartment that I lived in. Um but it ended up being the best decision I ever could have made. Um How

[00:03:58] spk_0: many, so how many years ago did you do that?

[00:04:01] spk_1: It will be three in October Mhm Yeah, and and that theme has sort of been very central in my life um in that same day I started taking classes at all of the grade comedy theaters in Chicago, so I was like, oh, I'm a classically trained Shakespeare actor, why don't I take some improv classes? And I was like, oh, this is great, I love this. And then um I was looking for more ways, I could be creative and I was like, oh why don't I start a podcast without really doing any research into what all of that entails. Um but luckily everything has worked there okay for me so far, so I just keep liking to, you know, jump off the cliff and land on my feet where it can,

[00:04:50] spk_0: that's pretty great, so now, um so as far as like improv places, second city, is that one of them? And uh that's cool. One of my favorite podcasts actually comes from Chicago and it's the improvised star trek, I don't know if you've heard about that. Yeah, it's pretty great, those guys are fantastic, they won't be on the show, but um anyway, uh but you are, so that's the best part. Um so you were a Shakespearean actor and you just decided like I should probably just throw some improv in there, see what happens.

[00:05:26] spk_1: Yeah, so when I decided to move to Chicago, my friend had kind of pitched this city to me as you know, it's the best of everything, It has a lot of um film and tv work, it has great regional theater, you know, we are classically trained actors who also had focuses on finding new work um which was a little bit interesting that our university pitched it to us is like, oh, you guys have the bones of, you know, the best, the best for history, but we're not really going to teach you about contemporary theatre, which was a little bit of a shell shock when we first got there. So I was like, oh yes, I can do these sonnets and I can do all of these, like have all of these um illusions that I, you know, I can pinpoint and you know, no the ins and outs of R and J. And midsummer and all of those things. Um but when I moved to Chicago I realized I was like, oh, this city actually has a lot of comedy and sketch comedy and improvisation and I was like, well I'm gonna live in this city, I should probably, you know, figure out what it's all about. Um And I actually used to work on the night staff at the second city. So I would bus tables, see guests um you know, watch for illegal cellphone use. And so I got to take classes for free. So that was something that really drove home. I was like, why why would I not take classes if they're being handed

[00:06:50] spk_0: to me? Yeah, that would be silly. So it sounds like you went to school, learned how to work on horse drawn carriages, got out to the world and realized, oh everybody's driving the car, Yeah, how'd you go?

[00:07:05] spk_1: That's very true to the way my background was, but it really has helped me because I understand language in a way that I think a lot of um other performers who maybe have different skill sets, like they might be stronger writers or um you know, have other skills, but I feel like I can really understand where language is coming from and the meaning behind every word, even if the writer of the sketch was like, oh I just thought it was funny, I'm like, oh, I don't understand, I understand in my bones like how to make this sound with my objective and my obstacle and using those acting techniques in sketch comedy. Um and I honestly think that helped me a lot in the shows I worked on.

[00:07:48] spk_0: Oh, absolutely, absolutely. Have you been in a situation where you can you think of a situation where you were in that moment and you were like, oh, I gotta, I gotta pull something out of

[00:08:00] spk_1: like, oh yeah, I was doing an improv show, there's this group that I worked with in Chicago called huggable Riot, and they're a sketch comedy group and I was in the show, there's last summer in 2019 and then um in the fall they were doing sort of a just like a one off improv show with a lot of different people who have been in their shows and um this one guy, he he also knew Shakespeare and he was kind of like poking at me to see like what I could actually do until we recited some verses back and forth to each other and we had never improvised together before. Um and so it was so funny to watch, this would be like, oh, you know, Shakespeare, you know, Shakespeare to what? Um so it's definitely been, there have been some moments where I like have to show my chops a little bit more?

[00:08:50] spk_0: Yeah, that's pretty cool, very cool. Have you been in a situation doing improv, where you were just like, you were like, I am so lot, you're in a scene and you're just like completely lost. And what was that like? Because it's not like that with Shakespearean, you know, the marks, you know, we were supposed to be exactly, what was it like, give us that one?

[00:09:14] spk_1: Um Yeah, because like, as you were saying, when you're working with text that is established, like the period is there for a reason, like the semi colon has a meaning, um whereas when you're improvising, you have to go with the flow and think on your feet. Um and when I was first starting out, I was doing some auditions, obviously we all do auditions, They come and go and I was improvising with someone who had worked on someone who had worked with on some Children's shows and so I knew them quite well, but they were a much better improviser than I was, and they were just like calling the shots and they were like, we knew what to do to complete command of the stage, and I was in such off of this person that I sort of forgot what I was doing and how I had to help tell the story and I definitely floundered on that and I was like, oh my gosh, like, I'm working with this person that I really admire. Um And then, I mean I ended up not looking the show, but like that's not a big deal.

[00:10:10] spk_0: Whatever you get a all practice, right? Like that's that's actually a really good practices. Can and I have been in that situation where you're with somebody and you're like, whoa, that's, they're really good. You just got in ah you're like, oh wait, I'm not in the audience, I should probably do

[00:10:27] spk_1: something and one of my faults too is I love to laugh and I constantly laugh all the time. And um so when I'm in a scene and something's funny, I just, I can't help but enjoy it if my scene partner does a funny accent or comes out as you know, an inanimate object, like sometimes I'm just gonna laugh but sure

[00:10:47] spk_0: yeah, that is actually, it can be, it can be charming and it can also be irritating, but most of the time I find it charming. Um you know, unless it's forced it, if someone's like, oh that was really funny, It's like, okay, wow.

[00:11:02] spk_1: Yeah, and then we're not actually gonna laugh at it, Don't laugh at it.

[00:11:06] spk_0: Exactly. Exactly. Have you been in that situation where you work with uh with someone who chewed up the scene a little too much and and like you're you're starting to feel uncomfortable because there they're taking too long to get to the point.

[00:11:22] spk_1: Yeah, there's um so some of the improv classes that I've taken. Um they are open to all people, which I think is great because, you know, everyone should try performing and I think it brings a lot to your everyday life. Um

[00:11:40] spk_0: but as someone who's the games that you gain an appreciation for when people do perform, I feel like that that definitely worked for me was I used to be like, well that wasn't that funny, but then when you're up there and you're doing it like, oh man, it's hard, like that's amazing. That was funny, right? Like

[00:11:56] spk_1: such a good point because I feel like a lot of people um only see the outcome of the arts and don't see all of the like labor and intensive nous that goes into it. So when you're actually trying to make it, when you're trying to establish a scene and make it coherent and also be funny. Um I think, yeah, that's so true that sometimes people are like, oh I can do that, but it's like can you can you do

[00:12:20] spk_0: that? It's like anytime anybody says I should be a stand up comedian, it's like really well tell me some jokes, it's like, oh no, I just tell stories about my life and and they're funny and I'm like, yeah, I've known you for 10 years, I've never laughed at anything, you said a

[00:12:38] spk_1: such a good point because I'm like, you know, like stand ups, they like, they have a story, like they know what they're saying, they're not if they're just like, oh yeah, that one, kind of thanksgiving my aunt got really mad and you're like, okay, but what's the point? And I totally agree with that. Um I was in so I was in one of these classes that was for everyone, which is great, um and this this guy, it was one of those like warm ups where you know, everyone is on the back line um and then, you know, two people at a time going to the scene and he just came out and he just started talking and he was talking and talking and talking and then let me get a word in edgewise, and I remember being like, okay, so I don't necessarily want to work with you, but you kind of just have to roll with it. And like if that person is going to talk a bunch, which is also hard for me because as I'm sure you've noticed, I also like to talk a lot, so when someone else is like doing all the talking, I'm like, okay, how can what do I character doing this scene? Like it's not just clear up there on the improvised stage, it's whatever character I bring to it. So maybe I know this other character, they always do this, they always talk so in those moments I kind of have to go back to my it's the character work not my personal stand up moment,

[00:13:53] spk_0: right? I think that's hard, it's hard to do because making that switch from this is Me Too, this is a character and then especially an improv one, and then I've performed in that situation where you're like, this is a whole another scene. I have to be a completely different character and having to devise those as you're going along. Yeah, yep, it's good, it's good stuff and you learn to use that in other parts of your life too, which is pretty great. I I do think people need to go take an improv class just to get an understanding. Most people don't need to stay in improv because they're not good at it. Um and I feel that way about podcasting. Like most of the time when I listened to a show, I'm like, oh cool, you've got you in a couple of your buddies, you're drinking beer and talking about pop culture around sitting around the table neat. Um Also don't do it anymore, right? And that's a recurring theme that happens when any time I talked to a podcaster. So any time a podcaster contacts this show and says, I'd like to be on, I'm always like, we'll see your show that you do sit, still look opinionated. First off the title brilliant, I thought it was great. Um and I was like, okay, well, I've got to give it a listen, I got to see what this is all about, brilliant show. I really enjoyed it. I don't I don't give praise off very easy when it comes to podcasting. So what was the genesis of the show first off? Tell us what the show is about and why you're doing it. And then let's let's let's talk about how you got into that and all that. So

[00:15:36] spk_1: yeah, thank you. Um I really, I really appreciate that because we, my writing partner mike we put a lot of work into the show. So it's it's good to know that it uh, is received well. Um, so before Covid 19 and possibly post Covid 19, I worked at a fitness studio that had indoor cycling bikes that uh had a word that has an S S cycle, I don't want to necessarily, but

[00:16:10] spk_0: I have no

[00:16:10] spk_1: idea. Uh you know, okay, it's a fitness studio where a lot of affluent women workout.

[00:16:19] spk_0: Karen's

[00:16:20] spk_1: all the Karens, that video. And unfortunately, um not all, but some of my coworkers could possibly also be described as Karen's um in the most loving sense, and I don't mean that they didn't care, but just some of those stereotypes I think existed by the nature of our work place and the people that we worked with. Um And our President # 45 was getting impeached last fall, which I think everyone has just forgotten about and way

[00:16:56] spk_0: bigger things on our plate at this point, I guess.

[00:16:58] spk_1: Yeah, way And um, some of my coworkers, we were like, oh yeah, I don't even know the difference between the House and the senate. Like, I don't even know this stuff doesn't affect me like, you know, politics. It's just not really my thing. And I was like, oh my gosh, because I, I'm a news junkie. Like I listened to, you know, The Daily NPR, you know, so many, so many news shows. I'm always like trying to take it in and learn from different perspectives. And I figured like, how can I access a access a way to help people like me? Maybe other Karen types, unfortunately, um, to get them to care like how, how can I get them to care about what's going on in the world and not necessarily just women, like also young, other young people who maybe it's just like I have other things on my list. Like I have to, you know, before covid, like I have my job, I have my social life. Like, you know, that's everyone else just deals with that. I

[00:18:01] spk_0: Have to manage the 535 Instagram followers that I've got as well as learn about news. What, how am I supposed to do this? No, I'm not making light of it actually. But that's, that's actually not too far from the truth is that were hit with more things to pay attention to previous generations. I am lumping myself into your generation, which is incorrect, but let's just play that game. But there are just more things to pay attention to now and it is, it's, it's hard because it's, uh, we're not as engaged. That isn't the theater. It used to be that used to be entertainment for people. And it's not so much anymore. So to your point, there are a lot of people my generation to that, that don't understand things. And then because they don't understand them, they think like it's that, uh, you ever seen that chris pratt meme where it's like, uh, I don't know what the difference between the house and the senate and now I'm afraid to ask. Like I feel like that one is pretty prevalent, like that's a pretty good one.

[00:19:08] spk_1: And it's, it's so true. And a lot of people that, that was the part of it. It's like, I don't really know. So I'm just not even going to talk about it. And I, and the thing that really got me, I was like politics is for us, like this is our country. Like you don't have to be a political scientist or have a degree or have, you know, you know, a wealth at your fingertips, understand what's going on around you. And so I figured I was like, you know what, it's time for us to get opinionated and have those conversations and not feel afraid about it. Um, and so the title is, you know, sit still look pretty, which I'm from Virginia and I went to Cotillion and they told us All, you know, girls will sit pretty and guys will sit strong. Um, and I wanted to play on that a little bit. So that's where the title came from. And then when it came to starting the show, you know, that idea where it's like, if you have an idea, you should start talking about it and like maybe somehow it'll, it'll happen. Um, so I was taking the train, the sea to here in Chicago and I ran into my friend's boyfriend too. He also is a writer and an actor and he was like, oh, what's going on? Like what's up? And I was like, oh, I have this idea for this comedy show that would be informative so people could learn in a way that was easy to understand and was like geared towards them and he was like, oh my gosh, that's a great idea, I'd love to write and produce it with you. And I was like, oh, okay, like you, you want to help me with this idea and we'll do this together and it won't just be me. And he was like, yeah, totally. And he was super on top of, um, like meeting every week. And he even like had a straight out of contract so that we would stay on top of our writing process. Um, and then he sort of jumped in two ft first and we have been writing every week. Um, and we wrote, uh, 18 episodes and a trailer and now we're working on a season to um, I've learned a lot and definitely podcasting is a lot more than I think what people think it is. And in the same vein of wanting a story to have an arc, I want my podcast to have an arc to, so I want there to be a beginning, middle and end and like why does it matter? So why are we listening to this? Because I think it's really easy for people to just say the facts be like, you know, George Washington was the first President of United States, but it's like, okay, but why do you need to know that? Or like why do you need to know about misinformation or why do you need to know about the difference between, you know, the Democratic and Republican Party? Um, so now we're working on season two and we've got some great episodes and storms so excited to share them. Once we released them in september, it'll sort of be like a back to the podcast, back to school type thing.

[00:21:43] spk_0: I like it. I like that a lot. You release weekly?

[00:21:46] spk_1: Yes, we released weekly on Fridays.

[00:21:48] spk_0: Okay. That's good. Good on you for keeping a nice consistent schedule because I certainly can't do that anymore. Um, but that's good. Uh, so you, um, you just decided like it was time you heard all you heard people you're your age like saying, I don't know and it was time to just fill that space. I think that's fantastic. What when you think about um where you'd like to see the show go, what what is it that you're hoping happens with the show? Do you have like a desire for it to do something beyond just, you know, you could have a million listeners, you could have five listeners. I have no idea, but like, what is it that you want to see this, this show? Do?

[00:22:38] spk_1: I think my goal with the show has changed a lot over the course of writing and creating it, especially working with my writing partner mike and working with a second person, because initially I was selfishly end up just for me and I was like, oh, this will be in my way, that I'll make a mark and everyone will know my name and it'll be great. And then I realized as I was doing the work, I was like, Oh, you know, yes, it's great. I love having people listen to my voice for 45 minutes. But it's really I my ultimate goal, even if only 10 people listen to it is that they've gone and learn something and that they've gone and had a conversation with their grandmother, their neighbor, their friend about what's going on in the world, because if you don't talk about what's happening, that's how complacency forms and that's how people stop questioning things and just fall in line. Um so

[00:23:34] spk_0: that's the totalitarian ism, basically, Yes,

[00:23:38] spk_1: I

[00:23:39] spk_0: mean famously, um uh boy, I can't believe, I can't remember. And they're a Brave New World. I don't know if you ever read the book, but uh, by Aldous Huxley, he uh him and in 1919 84 and Brave New World War Two books that were side by side one pick, pitched it as no information will ever be given to anybody. And that's how That's how totalitarian that's 1984. The other one was, you're gonna have access to solve the information, but nobody cares. And he was right, That's where we're at. And so I like that you're like, hey, as long as we get some dialogue going, so we have some discourse going, that's important. I think that's really good.

[00:24:25] spk_1: Yeah, thank you.

[00:24:26] spk_0: Yeah, tell me about tell well, you don't have to tell me I listened to the show, but tell people how is the format of the show set up? Because it's interesting. I was I was actually pleasantly surprised by the way the set of the set up the show was So go ahead and just tell me how tell us how that works.

[00:24:46] spk_1: Yeah. So in the trailer that we released, we were frustrating the show. I wanted people understand that, um like, you wouldn't go drinking without eating something before you leave, at least people who are cognizant. Um, so the same way the show, this would be your way to understand what you're going into before you went to the polls. Um So with that in mind and when you go into a voting situation or even having a conversation you need to be prepared you need to have some tools. So there's two parts to it. The show starts with um usually a little joke about a margarita and usually something about the week that has happened. So when it was cinco de Mayo we made jokes about how you know that's not mexican Independence Day, you know be respectful. Um And then we go into a deep dive about a topic. So we've done misinformation, we've done education, we did three parts on the health care system um looking at um trump's plan biden's plan. And even though Bernie Sanders was out of the running we still wanted to look at his plan for health care. And then we do weekly headlines in sort of the um daily show a satirical way where it's the headline and then a punchline. And then I have an interview to round out the show with um before it was sort of with just anyone who had something pertinent to say but now we're relating it, we're at least attempting to relate it to the topic at hand. Um So when we did our episode on education we had a high school teacher come on and talk about the state of education when we did our episode on healthcare um I had a friend of mine who works in um for healthcare firm in D. C. A lobby firm and so she came and spoke to us very eloquently about you know the state of health care in America. Um And also I try to have people that are accessible and it's like oh yeah like this isn't someone who is like you know the mayor or the president I mean which would be amazing but it's usually tried someone who who's voice people will listen

[00:26:54] spk_0: to. Uh Yeah I'll be on your show. I'm just

[00:26:58] spk_1: nobody cares about what I

[00:27:00] spk_0: said um When you think about. Um And it is it's a what was actually the really surprising thing is the headline with the punch

[00:27:10] spk_1: line

[00:27:12] spk_0: was actually funny because that that's hard it is harder to do than people think without rehashing somebody else's joke. You did a fantastic job. Thank you. Yeah you're welcome thank you. Uh So the other thing is uh the the other thing I'm thinking about is we're in a really interesting time and you're an informed person when you look out and see all the things that are happening right now with between Covid Black Lives Matter. Um And really even before that we I mean we we still talk about it right? The uh the um uh why can I not think of the hashtag Me Too movement. I mean there's a lot of different things happening right now. What is the thing that gets you the most um that gets you the most. Either excited or ah the opposite of excited. Like what is the thing that you go we need to make this real change. What is

[00:28:18] spk_1: that? I think a lot about um okay, this is going to be maybe out of left field, but you know the matrix in that movie, you know, Neo understands there's something out there and that he can make it better and so he goes out of his way and he wakes up and he realizes that you know there is a lot that has to be done and it's sort of that the allegory of the cave, that thing, it's like is ignorance better than understanding. And I constantly have to have that discussion with myself. It's like I can either live my life the way it was going and be fine just for me or I can inform myself because I have, you know this cube in my pocket all the time that has tons of information at my fingertips and I can use that to assuage my anxieties by also helping my friends and people I don't know. And that's what I love about the podcast is anyone can listen to it for free um Is that I can help share what I've learned and give that to other people. Um so we've been researching, we were doing an episode about what is fascism next season and honestly like it's really been scaring me. I'm 100% honest, like I'm afraid. But the way to conquer that fear is to say these are the warning signs of what it is. And this is what I can do to understand my place in it. And my role, um, one of my a theater gig that I had worked two summers ago was at this um, farm in new Hampshire and this this beautiful old woman Kathy owned the farm and basically help to run the company. And she was actually a holocaust survivor. And she told us this quote that I'll never forget. And she said, um, you know, 80% of people will not listen and 20% will and the 80% is what you should be afraid of those people who don't listen and don't understand. And I've always kind of thought about that is like I have to understand that some people won't listen and that's okay. I don't know if I necessarily answer your question. I kind of went,

[00:30:38] spk_0: you're doing just fine. Yeah.

[00:30:41] spk_1: Yeah. So that basically is what keeps me going and um, is with with my fears. The education is what will make them better. Um, because if I'm in the dark then I'll never be able to be in the light.

[00:30:55] spk_0: That's true. You know, I actually just had this conversation earlier about something in business where someone was talking about their employees and how can't get compliance. And I was like, well, did you tell them exactly what it is that you expect, right? And I think that that's exactly true with everything that's going on is let's clarify what these things are so that people can start to see like when you discount the media a great deal and everything that the media says suddenly becomes a lie. That is the start of fascism. Yeah. It's very conservative.

[00:31:37] spk_1: Yeah,

[00:31:38] spk_0: yeah, yeah, that's the, yep. Oh man, hit the nail on the head. Now I'm depressed. Um

[00:31:44] spk_1: That's the thing too. I was actually just talking with my boyfriend about with about Covid and about traveling and I'm like, where is this line? It's like, I want to be safe. But I also want to enjoy life. But it's like, am I putting my life at risk by enjoying life? There's so many ups and downs and it's like there's there's a lot to question there. But the questioning, one of my other favorite quotes is the journey is the reward. So, it's the journey of understanding that will enlighten you.

[00:32:16] spk_0: Yeah, that's absolutely true. Love it. So good. Well, Claire, it has been about a half an

[00:32:23] spk_1: hour.

[00:32:24] spk_0: So you had to talk to me for half an hour. You did a good job.

[00:32:28] spk_1: Thank you for what you talk for half an hour.

[00:32:32] spk_0: All right. So now we have to come up with a sketch before we get to the sketch. I really want you to check out Claire's podcast sit still look opinionated. It is so good. The link is in the show notes. So go down there click them. I don't know if it's down, I don't know if it's up. Get in the show notes, click on that link. One other thing I want to offer you is I have a completely free audiobook that you need no obligation other than just downloading it and listening to it. That's all I want you to do and here's how I want you to do it. I want you to email the show at sketch comedy podcast show at gmail dot com and say give me an audio book or whatever you want to say. I'll send you a link and I'll send you a code so you can get this thing for free. I am trying to do audio books for fun and money. So what I would love to do is get your feedback. Now this book is a series of short stories, it's called snapshots and it's fantastic. I didn't write it. Award winning author Eliot Parker did but I did record the audio book and there were lots of accents and I would love to hear your feedback on how silly my accent sound. There's irish, there's Scottish, there's a bunch of a lot of Southern which is good. I can do Southern. I don't know why but please hit me up if you want to get a free audiobook with zero obligation. You don't have to sign up for anything. You don't have to do anything, you just have to click on a link and copy and paste the code. I'm going to give you and free boom free audiobook for life and you get to keep it and enjoy it if you want to leave a review, Fantastic. If you want to leave a bad review, just email me the review and I'll make sure audible, gets it. And now our sketch Neil way with claire Malki in three two

[00:34:31] spk_1: morpheus is that you they're looking for you everywhere.

[00:34:37] spk_0: It is me Neo, come get out of the goo. Oh here where a towel Because you're very exposed right now.

[00:34:47] spk_1: Oh is this what it feels like not being in the Matrix,

[00:34:52] spk_0: It is, you are in 2020, this is the world not as we just merely see it.

[00:35:00] spk_1: What? Well, what's different morpheus This world looks so similar though, I thought it would be, you know, aliens or computers or something. But

[00:35:10] spk_0: yes, you came to in what we call an IKEA,

[00:35:15] spk_1: this furniture is definitely looks like it could be easy to be built. So what's this world like? Like is it different than in the game?

[00:35:24] spk_0: Here? We do not have universal health care.

[00:35:30] spk_1: What? That's the main part of what our society, everyone can be healthy.

[00:35:36] spk_0: There's certain things that are happening now that maybe make it less safe, you know how in the Matrix everyone is treated equally.

[00:35:46] spk_1: Yeah, that's like a main principle.

[00:35:48] spk_0: We don't have that here right now, there are a lot of protests because certain people are not given the freedoms that other people are.

[00:35:57] spk_1: We're going to go fight them, right? But that's what we're here to do for your mind, right?

[00:36:02] spk_0: In a way, quite honestly, the federal government is very much opposed.

[00:36:07] spk_1: That's our First Amendment right to oppose the

[00:36:10] spk_0: government.

[00:36:11] spk_1: How are we going to do it?

[00:36:13] spk_0: We're going to go make some signs and stand downtown and wait until the federal agents come into the area and shoot tear gas at us. Also, before we leave the I. K. I need you to put this on

[00:36:27] spk_1: over my nose and my mouth,

[00:36:30] spk_0: whatever both your nose and your mouth. You cannot breathe air near other people.

[00:36:36] spk_1: Why do I have to wear this?

[00:36:39] spk_0: There is currently a pandemic that is on its way to kill most of us. And this is the only way, the only way to stop transmission is to wear one of these masks.

[00:36:53] spk_1: So just to reiterate by wearing this piece of cloth over my nose and my mouth at the same time, I can stop the spread of this deadly disease.

[00:37:06] spk_0: Whoa! The only problem is most people refuse to do it.

[00:37:12] spk_1: There's no way it's so easy to

[00:37:14] spk_0: do.

[00:37:15] spk_1: We gotta go, we gotta go, we gotta go put these out.

[00:37:18] spk_0: Unfortunately. Everybody's supposed to stay six ft away from each other so we can't hand them out.

[00:37:25] spk_1: Well can we take out a newspaper ad,

[00:37:27] spk_0: nobody believes anything they read in a newspaper or watch on Tv unless it's telling them to do exactly opposite of what I just said.

[00:37:37] spk_1: Is there any way I can go back, you know, in the

[00:37:42] spk_0: goo, if you go back into the goo, you don't go back to your original world,

[00:37:48] spk_1: what's it gonna be like?

[00:37:49] spk_0: You'll live in a dystopian society where humans have been driven underground by robot octopuses.

[00:37:58] spk_1: You know more because this is a really tough call. But like honestly maybe that would be better. Mhm

[00:38:09] spk_0: Thank you so much for joining us for this week's episode of sketch comedy podcast show. We hope you enjoyed listening to it as much as we enjoyed making it Sketch Comedy Podcast Show is Copyright 2020 Stewart Rice and is protected under a creative commons attribution. No derivatives for international license. Looking forward to you joining us for next

[00:38:31] spk_1: episode

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ABOUT THIS EPISODE
When you were a kid and went out for a walk, you might have attracted mosquitos or flies. Not Dan Ram. Dan attracted Lions.
Dan Ram is an accidental event master of ceremonies, has given TEDx talks 5 times and can even show you how to get yourself doing the same thing as a coach. He has met celebrities of all sorts, including being on-stage with Barak Obama, who actually remembered his name even if Dan mispronounced his. 
We hear about Dan’s childhood run-in with a giant kitty, which is only one of four near death experiences he has had. We get to hear how he accidentally found success through a massive failure, which has led to hundreds of speaking engagements, TEDx talks, and has even been an advisor to the Irish Prime Minister.
When not touring the globe MCing events or giving talks, Dan helps others live their lives to their fullest through coaching, and you can find out more about that at iamdanram.com.
This week’s sketch: “Should I Shake, or Should I Go?”
For more episodes, information, and apply to be on the show, visit: http://sketchcomedypodcastshow.com
Sketch Comedy Podcast Show is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
© Copyright 2021 Stuart Rice
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MORE ABOUT THE GUEST
Dan Ram ignites the stage as an Event MC & Speaker at over 100 events a year. Hosting changemakers like President Barack Obama, billionaire founders like Sir Richard Branson, record breaking athletes like F1 champion Nico Rosberg, Grammy-winning artists and celebrities, he works on 4 continents from college campuses to parliaments to in-house corporate innovation days to the biggest tech conferences in the world. His passion is to inspire people with his motto 'Start Now Start Simple' in building a future we all want to live in.
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TRANSCRIPT
[00:00:00] spk_0: this week event EMC ted X speaker and Lion attack survivor Dan Ram and I came up with three sketches. Yeah, it would be kind of lame if you got bit by a mosquito and you turned into mosquito man and like what does that look like? How do you annoy if you're a mosquito man and you stop a criminal from doing something? What is it you're doing this one's real softball real easy. What would you do if you were the advisor to the other person who shares really tiny hands? Obama goes in for the fist bump and you think he's hitting him? Which one did we pick? You'll find out on this episode of a sketch comedy podcast show. Welcome to sketch comedy podcast show. The one of a kind show where I Stewart rice invite interesting people to have intriguing conversations and then improvise a comedy sketch based on what was talked about, visit sketch comedy podcast show dot com to subscribe, get links by merchandise and even apply to be on the show, enjoy the show. We enjoyed making it. Thank you so much for listening when you were a kid and went out for a walk. You might have attracted mosquitoes or flies, not dan ram dan attracted lions. Dan Ram is an accidental event master of ceremonies, has given ted X talks five times and can even show you how to get yourself doing the same thing as a coach. He has met celebrities of all sorts, including being on stage with Barack Obama who actually remembered his name. Even if Dan mispronounced his, we hear about Dan's childhood running with a giant kitty, which is only one of four near death experiences he has had. We get to hear how he accidentally found success through a massive failure, which has led to hundreds of speaking engagements, Ted X talks and he has even been an advisor to the irish prime minister when not touring the globe. Emceeing events or giving talks dan, helps others live their lives to their fullest through coaching. And you can find out more about that at I am dan ram dot com this week's sketch. Should I shake or should I go follows the conversation and now my conversation with dan ram event EMC ted X speaker and lion attack survivor, dan.
[00:02:40] spk_1: Yes. What
[00:02:41] spk_0: makes you interesting?
[00:02:43] spk_1: Ooh, well here's something that most people will not give you an answer. I've survived a lion attack and I think that makes me interesting.
[00:02:54] spk_0: That's a good start. Tell us about a lion attack. What what
[00:02:59] spk_1: Yeah, exactly. What, what is the accurate response to that? I was 16 years old. I was on a school field trip in Zimbabwe where we were living. My dad was posted there because he's the diplomats, uh the ambassador for India at that point. And so it was an annual school trip every year was somewhere different sometimes just on horseback and as it was sailboats, sometimes it was some kind of wildlife reserve. And this one particular time we were exploring different man made islands on a man made lake and so each islands has animals, we don't know what animals are on them. And so off you go for a little walk and explore and starts off with a nice little zebras and giraffes and wildebeests didn't
[00:03:49] spk_0: start so easy. Don't they start so easy.
[00:03:53] spk_1: Exactly. And before you know it we're just going for casual walk. Me and seven other girls plus an english teacher. The rest of the team were cleaning the boats and doing other duties and projects and yeah, and then the lioness came out.
[00:04:13] spk_0: Okay, So as a lioness and she's like, you're the one dude, I'm gonna go after you.
[00:04:19] spk_1: No. What happened was you hear it before you see it And I think implanted in every biological organism is a fight or flight a survival instinct because it's
[00:04:36] spk_0: the, it's the root of our brains is the exact thing. You
[00:04:40] spk_1: don't need to practice or rehearse a lion attack. You just instinctively know this is a bad situation. And that was one of those ones because I have not previously been around lions close enough to know now is the time to start running. And so it just happened. So we were walking chatting as teenagers do, but quietly because we realized, you know, we're in a wild space, anything can happen to be fair. The guide who was leading us did tell us who I can smell lions, but who can smell lions. So we didn't take it too seriously. Right? And so we started walking in very thick bush. This isn't like the Serengeti. It's not like kenya and the, and the images you might have of africa from that. It's really, really thick bush. And so we're walking through navigating and what you hear all of a sudden is like twigs and branches breaking, being destroyed very quickly as a animals rushing at you. And then you hear something that is like a cat except maybe 1000 times lower decibel. And um, it almost makes the ground shake. And so you're just hearing this sound coming at you and immediately I feel like
[00:06:04] spk_0: I have that sound coming out of me if I heard that.
[00:06:08] spk_1: Yeah,
[00:06:10] spk_0: go ahead. So you got this sound and then all of a sudden fill us in, give us the rest of it.
[00:06:18] spk_1: So they uh everybody's body has the same reaction and goes, I have to get out of here really quickly. And so that's what everyone did except my body, my body malfunctioned and when could not compute overload. And so my body just stayed stationary and all the other bodies started running and um the guide yells out, stop. And it's in one of those situations again, not a lot of computing and there's not a lot of processing of information. And so if he had said single song, we would have all started singing. Um If he had said fly, we have learned to fly in that moment. He said stop. We didn't we didn't overthink it. Everyone just stopped. I had already stopped. Thank goodness I had done the right thing by not moving in the first place. And that is when everyone has stopped that the sound rushing at us also stopped. And for the first time you could see through the bushes, brown figure and then it starts approaching us really slowly and then you see the head, you see the teeth, you see it being really upset that you're in its space. The eyes walk in to every single person. And that's when the stare down begins and it's essentially, you know, the game chickens like who's gonna move first, you know, because whoever turns around and runs they or dinner and so each person is just really still. I don't think we even remember to breathe during that time. I think we just we're just standing there as as close to statues as possible and the line of sizes each up one by one down the line including myself and was waiting for one of us turn around when we didn't. So it felt like a couple of days, but it probably was a few minutes that we had the stare down and then she laid to the ground and that's one of two things. Either She was not interested in pursuing us or she was drinking us hard to tell. Uh and so we chose not to take a chance. It keeps just stand her ground. And so there she was on the ground laying and again for a lioness to jump that I don't know, 12 ft that was between us. Um effortless. Uh And so we just watched and watched and watched and watched and and then very slowly we started backing up. Of course anytime someone would gasp or audibly breathe, we would stop and freeze because you see her ears twitch and you know, or if a twig snapped underneath our feet. And so that's what happened. And so eventually slowly we we came out of the bush area into the clearing and that's when the male lion came running out and he
[00:09:17] spk_0: just
[00:09:18] spk_1: he just came running out. Big main big muscles, big pause, kind of did this um Mark attack roars. It's not like one of those things online King where it's like, hello, I'm the king, it's more like get out of here kind of roar and then and it ran away. So that was the lion attack, thankfully not close enough to have claw marks on my chest. I'd just be walking around shirtless all day long to show it
[00:09:48] spk_0: off. Yeah, I mean that's if you get bit by a shark, you purposely tailored clothing so you can show the shark attack if you've got slashes across you because you get attacked by a lion or lioness doesn't really matter. You definitely cater. It's like, you know like when Iron Man has his thing in the front, like you always shows it off, you do that with the lion attacks that way, everybody knows what kind of a badass you are. So a lot of people would, would do, like if I if that happened to me curl up in a corner, cry for a little bit, what did you do with it? You tell us about what you do.
[00:10:28] spk_1: So how
[00:10:29] spk_0: Do you how do you actively show that that lion attack from your when you were 16?
[00:10:34] spk_1: Well, here's the thing, right? I think everything in life, the good and the bad, the positive situations, the negative situations, forum us make us who we are, molded, shape us. And so I have used that same line attack to teach business tips at the universities who have an adjunct lecturer. I've used it to motivate people to seize the day and live because you don't know what lines coming at you in life, because we were just having casual teenage chats until that none of us were preparing to die or to see our life flash before eyes that day and that can happen like someday this all ends for every one of us, Maybe not with the lion, but with someone. So whether it's motivational talks, whether it is confidence and charisma because a lot clicks in when you're in those moments of I'm about to die and I was only one of four near death experiences, not including two death. Um well let's call it to life threatening situations last year. So I like six situations where I've kind of been like on the cusp of it, a lot of clicks in as far as priorities and values and so I help people with figuring out what is the purpose, what is the mission as a coach. So what I do nowadays is I'm a speaker at an event host and I am a coach And the story does come up maybe like 5-6 times a year. I do about 100 speaking engagements. So I do have an arsenal of other stories as well, but I do like the lines because it is something a little bit different. Right, what have you been attacked?
[00:12:07] spk_0: Definitely. I've mosquitoes during the summer. It's mosquitoes, not quite the same level of threat. Way more irritating.
[00:12:17] spk_1: Wait, wait, wait. So one of my um life threatening situations last year was with the mosquito because I got bitten by a mosquito call that gave me Deng And it's the second time I've got dengue in my life. So the first time was okay was Indonesia. You know, your body is fine. The second time, 10 years later. Um actually can cause more complications. I was in the hospital and I lost tons of weight, could not eat anything, had terrible fevers and joint pain. It is terrible. So don't be little, you know, could take you out.
[00:12:53] spk_0: I could take you out. No, probably not because I live in Portland Oregon. Um ours are probably not as life threatening when you know, they're, they're really just annoying. They could annoy me to death. That's not going to get daniel.
[00:13:09] spk_1: That sound right? That's like one of the most terrible sounds because yeah, but you can't always see it. And so you're just punching in the air, hoping grab and everyone thinks they can, you just catch it out of thin air or mid air while it's flying, it's not possible. So then you start like clapping all over the place and
[00:13:28] spk_0: right
[00:13:29] spk_1: essentially you're plotting this thing because it's winning. That's a
[00:13:34] spk_0: good point. Like you're walking around clapping and the mosquitoes like, well I guess I should just keep doing this. It just
[00:13:40] spk_1: seems like it this guy. Yes, exactly.
[00:13:43] spk_0: So you are a coach? Oh sorry, go ahead.
[00:13:47] spk_1: We have an electric bats that we use. So it's a little bit unfair advantage. But I'm a tennis player and abandonment player. And so that really helps as I well, well electrify the the they die. I'm just trying to see that
[00:14:03] spk_0: you have an electric bad mitten racket that you, so you're kind of like, that's what's nice. You got some distance, you got some reach if you do it right?
[00:14:13] spk_1: Exactly. And larger surface area than the palm of my hand. And so there's a higher chance of killing these things and sometimes you catch them and then you open your palm and then bam it flies off again. Not with your um this just made into barbecue
[00:14:28] spk_0: satisfying zap I'm sure
[00:14:31] spk_1: varies like I've been bitten and especially when you get bitten at the bottom of your feet and if you've had that or like somewhere locals hard where it's like you're tickling yourself but you're actually trying to scratch the itch and it's you it's terrible. Mosquitoes are terrible. Sometimes I wonder created mosquitoes. There's a bunch of stuff I understand, you know the symbiosis and the connection between the species and how it keeps the world going to get with mosquitoes. What are they doing?
[00:15:03] spk_0: They don't do anything good
[00:15:05] spk_1: as far as I know, they don't I don't know anything that depends on mosquitoes to survive. And where mosquitoes enhance like flour production or like I don't know what they do.
[00:15:15] spk_0: No, no, no, it's not like if you get bit by a mosquito, it's possible you can turn into like a vampire bat will do that, right? I don't know, spiders, you could be radioactive, you could have spider man powers, No one's mosquito. Dude, no one's, you know, but no one cares anyway. Um
[00:15:36] spk_1: So
[00:15:37] spk_0: now you you do ted talks, you do a lot of speaking engagements. How did you get into that
[00:15:46] spk_1: by accident? But I also think um maybe like your own story Stewart, because I know you've been doing this now for five seasons, right? You've you've been doing the yes, successfully
[00:15:57] spk_0: for for a while.
[00:16:00] spk_1: Yeah. Well, I think, I think when you choose to figure out what does the world need, what can I offer to solve that? Need, am I good at it? And can I get paid to do it when these four things are true Van it locks in? I think life alignment happens. And so these are my four guiding principles during any season of my life, including right now, during a pandemic at the time that we're shooting this um interview, this conversation we're having, because life throws curveballs and so you've got to keep revisiting it. And so a couple of years ago, I had just finished successfully setting up a few businesses, I know more was needed at an executive level to be involved in my startups. We now had CeoS and Cios and the teams are grown and I had successfully fundraise and the way you can fundraise, one of the ways is to show up at these tech events and go, Hey, investors is what we're building. Are you interested in giving like 60 seconds, 120 seconds to give a short pitch? The stage manager for one of those stages approached me the following year and said, Dan, your business did not raise money at the event. Your ideas are okay, but your communication skills and your stage presence is excellent. And given that, you know, the stage, would you be willing to EMC the stage? And I asked her what I'm seeing and then she gave me the only training I've ever received in what has now become the best chapter of my life. And she said, well you introduce startups and you engage the audience. And so that is what I have continued to do for the last three wars. I've done 300 events on four continents, everything from Blockchain to start ups, to real estate, to autonomous vehicles, like a whole variety of topics. And it's always the same thing. I get to introduce some of the coolest people in the world, From presidents of Switzerland and the us and Poland uh, to the ceos of some of the biggest companies in the world, billionaire founders and investors, to artists, Grammy, winning artist, to athletes, uh, Formula one champions and others and again to engage audiences to elevate the knowledge, the aspiration, the focus, the tools and resources of everyday people that are trying to make a difference in their lives and getting to that bridge. And that's what I do every day. And honestly it is, I constantly pinch myself that this is my life because I cannot think of a cooler, cooler thing that I could be doing right now. It is so satisfying and so fulfilling. And even now when I look at so my team, my social media team still keep posting images and I look at those images and go like how could that be me? Like this is insane. Like I am standing next to the newest fully electric Porsche car, who is dan ram to do that. Like that doesn't make any sense. That's me shaking hands with Obama about an interview, like how is that happening right now? This is super confusing. So I'm very grateful for my life. It's still, yeah, well that I am still like, whoa, this is crazy, it's not like I've done this 100 times and now this guy is like, you know, this is this new normal, this is not normal. I don't think my life is normal at all and for that I'm very grateful.
[00:19:34] spk_0: Yeah, that sounds amazing. That's, that's incredible. And that came off of what's interesting about that, that came off of a failure. If you think about it right? Yeah. And you took that failure and you turned around and made it into what what I would define as a very successful business doing something very, very cool, right?
[00:19:57] spk_1: Failure is essential. It is so cute. And I have, I like people who have a linear view on life. I'm actually little bit envious, a little bit jealous of them, you know, it's like, oh, this is my goal and hear my steps and here is I'm gonna do it. That does work for some people. I'm not putting that down at all, it's just not my story. And I have realized that failure, that experimentation, the trial and error, notice error in trial and error are all part of the left, right pivot, jump, fall back and move again position. And I think that's what's allowed for the diversity of my life because the same guy, dan Graham, was an adviser to the irish Prime Minister at the national level, creating policies that affect millions of people and billions in GDP. I am an adjunct lecturer teaching entrepreneurship to university, so it's just so exciting to be contributing to like the next generation of business people have been a startup founder, I've been a radio presenter, I worked for the U. N. I worked for World Vision, I worked for KPMG. Um I am a consultant, I'm a coach like that diversity of life that traveling the world could not have happened if I was really pigeonholing my life and my purpose into this is my one goal. And that's the only thing I want to look at. I've looked to the left, I look to the right, I've taken a wrong step to the left, I have taken a good step to the right and that's all part of it. So failure has been key in teaching me things, but also navigating me because I would not be on this path. It was a bunch for failures along the way. So I completely agree with you. This started off as as part of a failure and I think a lot of my greatest moments, the origin was at a point of real struggle and real failure.
[00:21:48] spk_0: So you experience that struggle. I mean um I mean you that turned around pretty quick for you right? Like it was hey your company didn't make it but uh here come talk to up on the stage and and see how that feels and then all of a sudden it happens for you. Um What are some other
[00:22:09] spk_1: way
[00:22:11] spk_0: for? Yeah, yeah, that's where I'm going with it. You're for it. Tell me tell me about that.
[00:22:16] spk_1: I don't know. Okay. Yes and no because Stuart if someone came to you and said um you know, they watch this one interview, right with dan rather and they go, you're so good at asking questions. Why don't you come and do a tv show? Someone's gonna look at that and go like, well that was quick, you just talk to dan Graham and bam, you got it. But you've done five seasons of this and before the Five, you had other iterations and other versions like this is not the first time you have, you know, put a mic to your mouth. I'm sure there's been many other things on stage and off stage and practice maybe all the way back in school. Because my journey as a speaker began where everybody's journey in life against where a teacher says, can you read this paragraph out aloud? And the problem was, I wasn't good at that, right? Because I am indian. So if you're listening to this podcast and you cannot visualize me. I'm not american, although might come across as american. I'm indian. I've got brown skin, I grew up on uh
[00:23:19] spk_0: grew
[00:23:21] spk_1: Up on three or 4 continents and so my accent adapted to every country. So when I was living in France, I had a French accent. When I was living in Morocco had a north african accent. When I lived in India, my accent became more India when I moved to Zimbabwe had a southern accent. So like the accent kept changing so it wasn't cool, like whatever words came out of my mouth, we're not fun to listen to and my friends mocked me or as they say in Ireland they slagged me. Uh they made fun of me. And so that was again a point of failure. And so what did I do? I would come back home, I would pre read everything that a teacher could possibly asked me to read the next day. And that pre reading simply meant that every day I was that much more prepared than the other students and therefore, my great started going up again from my point of failure. And but then also meant that because I was practicing because I was not good at it, I became significantly better than those who took it for granted. They could just read the words as they appeared. Whereas I was already trying to figure out what is the sentence, not, what is the specific wording? Can I pronounce it correctly? But what's the sentence? What's the message behind this paragraph? Can I communicate that effectively or second church? If you've ever been to church churches, love getting sunday school kids to be part of plays or theater or to read a bible verse. And again, all the other kids would, you know, have written out on a piece of paper and read it out. But because I was so afraid of mumbling or stuttering, I would memorize the entire verse and I would speak it, I would perform it and I would not know that word at that at that age, but I would essentially perform that reading. I would not just read. And so my journey began their from a same starting point as everyone else. But because I wasn't good at it, I put more effort at it because I put more effort at, I got better. I accelerated faster than others when it came to reading and performance. So then it became school plays and then became performing on stage as a musician. And so when you think about 25 years of performance in the form of school plays and on the piano and singing in church and gospel choirs and family events and youth groups and leading games, that's what happened now. The financial business opportunity came in three years ago, but it took all of that work and that's why I keep telling people never belittle an opportunity, never underestimate a person or a connection or a door that opens, because you really have no idea where it's going to take you. Some of my greatest moments have been in many ways on the surface, accidental, but I would not have stepped into that opportunity if I hadn't done the work before that.
[00:26:12] spk_0: Yeah, no, I completely agree. So, I wrote a uh you know, I'm not it's not an ab for me, but I wrote a book and people ask me like, how long to take you, and it's like, well, the actual writing and editing took about six months, but it took me 25 readers to rewrite this book,
[00:26:27] spk_1: because
[00:26:28] spk_0: yeah, and to your point, it does not come as easy as other people see it. And there's a lot of, I think that story is amazing because again, it comes from a place of you were failed, maybe you didn't allow yourself to fail, but it could have come from a failure from your friends making fun of you, you made sure you were prepped, It took extra work. The other work that quite honestly, I would have been sitting in class going, I'll just read the book and I'll just read whatever, which is pretty much what I did. So yeah, that's why you excelled ahead of everybody. That's that's a fantastic story, man,
[00:27:07] spk_1: I love to do that for everything in life, right? So this is a really dumb example but will prove a point. I was in sound check with a german group and they were stressing about how they would shake, had to President Obama when he was about to come on stage because you're only given a few seconds and his team are very particular about what you can and cannot do. They had seen online that he sometimes does a fist bump with people. Um they might have not been culturally woke enough to understand when he um initiates a fist bump and when he doesn't, but they were really hopeful that they would do a fist bone, but they didn't know he was going to do a fist bump, but what he was going to do, so when I walked up as part of the sound checks, they were doing everything from air high fives to handshakes, to fist bums uh to a variety of different things. And the reality is that moment became so insignificant and lost in the whole like our that he spent on stage. But they over fixated on it because it's the first time they thought about it. I on the other hand because my dad was a diplomat. Remember even the age of six or seven key teaching me how to shake hands with people because as a kid I was not excused. So when another ambassador of another country come to your house you have to make eye contact, you have to smile and you have to shake hands and you gotta fight pressure when a dignitary comes to an official meeting. It doesn't matter if you're seven, if you're 10, if you're 12 you have to represent your nation. And so I was taught at a young age all of those things. The beautiful part is when Obama came on stage, it wasn't the first time I was thinking about what I was going to do and I by then had started perfecting not just how do I react, but how do I initiate or how do I create the atmosphere for things? So what was talked about with the event is a rather clumsy interaction with the founders of the event. But for some reason of all the people on stage, um Obama sticks out his hand to shake my hand and then pats me on the back and because he's might depend on my club, he's like, thanks so much dan is the only name he remembers on stage and like how did this foreigner who comes to Germany get this camaraderie with this person that the rest of us don't. But that's because honestly it was years and decades of shaking hands of people and more than that knowing you know what is your body language saying? Because you can initiate and everyone's been in that situation where they have like gone for the handshakes that has gone for the fist bump, but now you're like clawing their fist ball but it's like what what are we doing? This is so embarrassing and but a lot of that is like in the eye contact before you even get close enough. Part of that is in the body language. You know, are you coming in for that bro hug or you coming in for that? Like a lot of that is in your body language. So I had moved from like shaking hands and fist bums too, body language and reading their body and reading my body and what is my body communicating. But even in the little little things, I've paid a lot of attention, which means that I don't have those clumsy exchanges on stage, which by the way, I find homer areas and you as a performance where you probably look at these things on Youtube as well. But I will often look at like performance failures or like stage, but just to anticipate what could happen, what I should be thinking about. But I pay attention to all of those things when I'm on stage, I can tell you where every monitor where every light is because I don't want to do those things right,
[00:30:54] spk_0: Right. And
[00:30:56] spk_1: so they trip on them. And so yeah, I would say in the little and the big things never underestimate an opportunity to train to practice, to rehearse. The smallest things I contact pronunciation, handshakes, body language all the way to the biggest things like the actual words that you say or the audience that's in front of you or the content you want to share. Practice rehearse everything that looks chill and organic and spontaneous is actually decades of practice. Um that's what comes out in the moment.
[00:31:33] spk_0: Who do you look at and admire in their ability to do that.
[00:31:39] spk_1: That is a really good question because I have struggled to find a direct role model in the world of m seeing as many people would imagine, Many people would have thought I'm seeing or hosting an event as a voluntary or an occasional job. I have managed to not just make it a full time job, but to build a business around it. Like I have 12 staff that worked for me, we do so much more than just emceeing. And so there is no school for emceeing, there is no training center from seeing and I don't know any direct role models of people that have been able to, I guess make a a business out of emceeing, although many people have been in that position of m seeing many people will chair a meeting or will host a wedding of their friends or something, so they're in that position, but never in a professional setting of it. So, what I do is I actually look at three different sources, um and I wonder if this may surprise you or not, but one of them are magicians, because I think magicians are incredible storytellers, they are incredible storytellers, after all, it's a trick, it's an illusion, the part that catches you is the story. So they are one sort that I go to stand up comedians, so much admiration for stand up comedians, because you can often, especially in your early days, enter into a hostile crowd and you've got seconds. I mean, those audiences are expecting to laugh. That is a high standard to to reach, especially if they don't know you now, if you reach the heights of say, kevin Hart or any of these big guys, they'll get the laugh just by showing up on stage, they just have to move. Yes.
[00:33:24] spk_0: Patton Oswalt does a great bit on exactly that. Yes.
[00:33:29] spk_1: But for early stage stand up comedians and that's why I watch those kind of sound companies like how do you turn a crowd around and it's all around empathy around connection. So I love watching standard comedians and the third unusual source, our preachers, I listen to preachers because they have to come to the same crowd week after week And keep their attention. So it's almost the opposite of a standard comedian. But I think there's something about the consistency, that longevity of a passionate over 15, 20 years can come to the same crowd and deliver something new and to be such expert storytellers to draw out value out of the same passages. I mean no one's changing the bible up every year and so they have to draw new lessons from well known passages. So those are the three unusual sources I go to, the obvious source I go to is a late night show tv host and so Trevor Noah, I think is the smartest when it comes to unscripted content. I think he's intellectually the most profound and he's also very articulate on the spot. I think Hassan Minaj is the most relevant right now, 21st century. His perspectives, attitudes, he's very current in the way he communicates. I think people like jimmy Fallon and James corden are very good with their sketches. So how do you take actors, actresses and people are very comfortable in the studio and make them feel comfortable in front of a live audience because it is a different art. And I don't think people realize how out of a comfort zone actors and actresses and celebrities can be in a studio setting you know sorry in a T. V. Studio setting it can be a very scary experience. And these guys are able to make them feel comfortable enough to have a good laugh or do interesting sketch with them. And I like some of the creativity behind their games and their sketches. So these are some of the people involved in my world that I watch on a daily basis to just see how do they ask the question? How do they build that connection? What do the Greenback Age so that when they come on stage they have that sense of warmth between these people. Yeah. How about you, Do you? Yeah
[00:35:51] spk_0: obviously obviously it's it's very similar. Um I find uh I'll go back further um Dick Cavett. Like I really if you go back and watch Dick Cavett, it's that's who I aspire to be. Like, that guy always felt like he had report with whomever he was talking to. And uh and he was very good on his own. Like he was very quick, quick witted. He's I I find he was really really good. Um But anybody who can really have a genuinely, it makes it look like it's a conversation. But a lot of times like, you know when you see a tv talk show host, they may not know the person they're talking to very well, but they've been prepped. Much to your point, they have been very well prepped so that when they do talk to that person, it's very natural. Uh it does have to have that, like, inviting into the conversation and uh inviting the audience as well. So like if if they have something they want to say, for instance, there someone posted up a comment. Dave o put up mittens. And I don't know if what that has. Does that does that mean anything to you mittens
[00:37:05] spk_1: mittens?
[00:37:06] spk_0: Yeah. No. Okay. Maybe I was like, so it had like, I've got dirt on him. Ask him about the mittens. Okay, I'll ask Alright,
[00:37:17] spk_1: how about mittens?
[00:37:20] spk_0: Okay, well that's that's good because that I'm sure that you could have lied right there and you could have said, yeah, mittens, let me tell you about that and just launched right into a story,
[00:37:30] spk_1: wow. So I tell you, okay, go
[00:37:32] spk_0: for it. Yeah. Tell me about mittens because I have a feeling like wait, let me let me pose it like this though, you know, dan you say a lot of things, but yep, I have one statement that I feel you need to explain and that is this mittens.
[00:37:51] spk_1: Oh man, I was really hoping you wouldn't bring this up, but given this a transparent, vulnerable space, I'm gonna let you in on something. Mhm mittens. So I am a man, I am five ft 10. Um I have a lot of things that I'm really great at and unfortunately I have one or two faults, one of those faults I actually share with one of the most powerful people in the world right now and I am so deeply embarrassed to confess this to you right now, but I have really tiny hands and so it is true, the stories are true, but I don't shop for mittens in the mail section. I actually go to the Children's section and I get a size four. Um, which also is the same size. That's the most powerful man in the world right now. Uh, where So this person has some good gods on me because they probably have seen me walking into Zara not in some men's session but into women's section. Because as a, as an indian, I'm often in these cold, freezing cold country like Finland Poland and I need to wear mittens. You know, after I use my hands performing, I used my hands when I'm playing the piano. I used my hands when I'm making gestures and I need them to be warm. So I wear you
[00:39:18] spk_0: play a smaller piano when you have tiny hands.
[00:39:22] spk_1: I do that too. Yes. Very small, very small piano. I actually pay the one that's on my phone. I do not play live sized pianos. I just pull out my phone and play that one. Yes,
[00:39:35] spk_0: that's awesome. Thank you. All right, Well it is time to do a sketch. Are you ready for this? I've got a couple of ideas. Did you by any chance? Did you come with an agenda? Did you have a sketch agenda that you wanted to do?
[00:39:49] spk_1: No, but I feel like I just did a sketch. So for anyone who is living and thought that that a real story. That is not a real story. I have normal sized hands and I do not even own mittens. Never had
[00:40:01] spk_0: to. So just to be 100 clear Dan does not have small hands. He really wanted to make sure everybody understood his hands are normal sized one quick ad for one of my new endeavors, I now record audio books professionally. I would love to give you a free copy and urge you to head to audible to grab it. Just go to bit dot LI S cps snapshots to sign up and get this title for free, as well as have access to hundreds of thousands of other titles to listen to. I'm proud of this audio book, I did accents and I didn't suck. If you would like to get a copy of the book completely free, please email the show at sketch comedy podcast show dot com and request a redeemable code for the book, then you can tell me if I actually did suck at making those accents and now this week's sketch, should I shake or should I go with dan Ram in three two and that controls our panel discussion for this evening show, Another perfect event. Little do they know that what makes me the greatest emcee of all time is my secret ability to read minds that I got from that lion when I was young. I would like to thank all of our speakers. Sure I could have used these powers to help the planet but I help the planet in the best way possible by am seeing amazing events like this one Beyonce dr Anthony, Fauci presidential hopeful Kanye West dr Phil and the specialist boy that Obama is pretty amazing. Oh man, I can't remember how to say his first name now these Germans have been butchering it all week. I better read his mind to find out.
[00:42:07] spk_1: Excellent Secret Service told me to only be here for 10 seconds so lift the hands and receive the applause lifting and right and always a powerful hand scan. Stage left, moved to middle scan stage right. I am not a robot. But I've done this so many times. Who are these people? And what is for lunch? I am starving. But keep smiling. Keep smiling Unless Michelle will be upset. Keep smiling. Keep smiling. Here we
[00:42:33] spk_0: go. He didn't say it. That's okay. I'll get it. I'm sure I can remember. Uh and a special thank you to Barack Obama. I mean Barack Obama. Oh no, that was awful. But he doesn't seem to have fazed at all. What a class act. Okay now he's coming over to thank me. He was a handshake guy, wasn't he? It's so hard to tell these days.
[00:43:03] spk_1: I am so tall. I'm sure it was being interviewed by someone but I can't seem to see him. Oh here he is, down there to see the man now. What was his name? What? Oh, that's right. It was damn. Damn. Damn correct. I hope I got it right. I'm still being my uh don't say anything inappropriate. Let's just going for that formal handshake.
[00:43:23] spk_0: Okay he is definitely going in for the handshake. I don't have to worry about it. We are going to handshake. Uh
[00:43:31] spk_1: Well this damn guy seems pretty cool. Almost like a brother to me and uh you know what I do? It's what I'm infamous. Let's get one of those infamous shots of Obama being relatable. Obama being friendly. Obama being one with the people. Let's get that fist bump out. Here we go fist
[00:43:48] spk_0: out. Damn. Oh no he switched up on me. What do I do?
[00:43:55] spk_1: What's he doing? Oh no he's coming for that grab. Does this guy not get a fist phone? Is he going to put his hand over my no this is gonna be a disaster. Maybe I should go in for the punch. There'll be a lot more friendly.
[00:44:09] spk_0: How long should I hold his presidential fist in my hand?
[00:44:14] spk_1: I got to bring this guy close to me. This is always so awkward, but let's go in for the man hug right now. On stage,
[00:44:22] spk_0: I'm now experiencing the presidential hug. His arms are so strong, which is so surprising. How strong and comforting this hold is. I could live here forever,
[00:44:36] spk_1: cannot get the start of my head. He just seems like one of these cute little teddy bears that you would tickle but 8000 people. But I am curious where can I tickle this guy?
[00:44:49] spk_0: Well, I hope he's not thinking what I hear. He's thinking I should not have had that fifth glass of water, but the cucumber in the water makes it so fresh and delicious.
[00:45:00] spk_1: Is he?
[00:45:02] spk_0: And that is today, right? This is not gonna be happy with me at all. Thank you so much for listening to sketch comedy podcast show. Lovingly produced in Portland Oregon. If you enjoyed the show today, I would love it. If you help me out in one of two ways, the first one's free, just share the show on social media or write a review on wherever you listen to your podcasts. That would be so helpful and so wonderful. And it costs you nothing. The other way you can support the show is financially and I'm just going to give you a little behind the scenes. Uh there is no money in podcasting. I do this and it costs me money to do it. It's a passion project. But if you'd like to help offset those costs, which I would really appreciate, please head over to Patreon dot com and to reward you for as little as a dollar a month, you'll get all of the bonus material and let me tell you in this episode, there was a ton of things that did not make it into the episode that we're still incredibly interesting. And now, for the fun part, sketch comedy podcast show is licensed under Creative Commons attribution, noncommercial, no derivatives for international license. If you would like to use this work in any way, please contact the show and request permission. Look, life is made up of stories, find interesting people have an intriguing conversation and improvise an adventure all of your own.

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ABOUT THIS EPISODE
Frank King is always on the verge of committing suicide. It is a feeling that has plagued him since he was young, passed down from previous generations. When faced with a problem, Frank always sees an option a lot of people do not see, killing himself. 
Where most would see this as a detriment, Frank has turned suicide into a lucrative career as a comedian, public speaker and TED Talker. As The Mental Health Comedian, Frank confronts the standard taboos associated with suicide and speaks openly about it, letting people know that these feelings are not just theirs and creating a dialog that allows people to get the help that they need.
On a personal note, this episode could not have come at a better time. Though you may not hear it in my voice, I was desperately struggling with these feelings myself, and it was because of this discussion that I was able to get help for myself. Frank, in his talking about ending one’s own life, actually helped me overcome those feelings in myself. 
Of course I need to put out a warning, this episode dives pretty deeply into depression, mental illness and, of course, suicide. My suggestion, don’t be afraid to confront it. Knowing that there are others that struggle helps. Knowing that you can use it as a super power is incredibly empowering.
If you are feeling those feelings, then please do the world a favor and call 800 273 8255. You are worthwhile and the world is a better place with you. I think so, you listen to my show and I think you are incredibly special. Thank you.
You can hear and see more of Frank on his website: thementalhealthcomedian.com where you can listen to his TED talks, subscribe to his podcast and even hire him to come and do a keynote for your company. 
This was one of my favorite episodes, it literally saved my life.
We also recorded the sketch: “Not the X-Men”
For more episodes, information, and apply to be on the show, visit: http://sketchcomedypodcastshow.com
Sketch Comedy Podcast Show is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
© Copyright 2021 Stuart Rice
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MORE ABOUT THE GUEST
Frank King is an American comedian who has written for late night talk shows, toured extensively, and has turned his desire to kill himself into a flourishing business performing corporately. He is an advocate for suicide prevention, and speaks to different industries about depression and how to overcome it, while being funny. Frank was also stuck on a boat, you should ask him about it (do not ask him about it).
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TRANSCRIPT
[00:00:00] spk_1: in this episode, Suicidal superhero frank king. And I came up with a few sketches going to like the X mansion. Right, right. And the training program is not like you go in the danger room and you do all this stuff. It's more of like they just basically bring out all your depression, which
[00:00:17] spk_0: by the way was superman. The one thing he is vulnerable to is a piece of his old planet. Yeah, I think that's instructive because you know, it's like saying, hey, didn't you used to live here?
[00:00:28] spk_1: And it's not and it's not that it's got some sort of radiation. It's just like it causes so
[00:00:32] spk_0: much like immediately I'll be here. You'll never be depressed again. Never have another suicidal thoughts. We can fix this. Yeah, but you know
[00:00:39] spk_1: what, you're also gonna have another side effect. You can
[00:00:42] spk_0: lose your superpower. What? Yeah, no, I'll deal with the crap.
[00:00:45] spk_1: Which one did we pick? You'll find out on this episode of, it's a sketch comedy podcast show. Welcome to sketch comedy podcast show. The one of a kind show where I Stewart rice, invite interesting people to have intriguing conversations and then improvise a comedy sketch based on what was talked about, visit sketch comedy podcast show dot com to subscribe, get links by merchandise and even apply to be on the show, enjoy the show. We enjoyed making it. Thank you so much for listening frank King is always on the verge of committing suicide. It is a feeling that has plagued him since he was young, passed down from previous generations when faced with the problem frank always sees an option. A lot of people do not see killing himself where most would see this as a detriment frank has turned suicide into a lucrative career as a comedian public speaker. And ted talker as the mental health comedian frank, confronts the standard taboos associated with suicide and speaks openly about it, letting people know that they are not alone and creating a dialogue that allows people to get the help that they need. On a personal note, this episode could not have come at a better time though, you may not hear in my voice. I was desperately struggling with these feelings myself and it was because of this discussion that I was able to get help for myself, frank in his talking about ending one's own life. Actually helped me overcome those feelings in myself and of course I need to put out a warning. This episode dives pretty deeply into depression, mental illness and of course suicide. My suggestion, don't be afraid to confront it. Knowing that there are others that struggle helps knowing that you can use it as a superpower is incredibly empowering if you are feeling those feelings. However, then please do the world a favor and call 1 802 738255. You are worthwhile and the world is a better place with you at least I think so you listen to my show and that makes you incredibly special to me. Thank you, You can hear and see more frank on his website, the mental health comedian dot com where you can listen to his ted talks. Subscribe to his podcast and even hire him to come and do a keynote for your company. This was one of my favorite episodes. It literally saved my life and now my conversation with frank king comedian ted speaker and suicidal superhero frank. Thank you so much for hanging out. By the way, we're at the,
[00:03:43] spk_0: I've got the Stockholm syndrome. I'm beginning to like him. He kidnapped was bad.
[00:03:47] spk_1: We're at the Holiday Inn. I'm gonna give it a little bit of a uh, plug plug. Thank you. Hi, I love the
[00:03:54] spk_0: show. It's, you know,
[00:03:56] spk_1: Holiday Inn in chemist Washington. It's brand new allowed us to use this beautiful meeting room. That's frigid.
[00:04:02] spk_0: But yeah, a lot of laws love, but hey, the price was
[00:04:06] spk_1: right frank. Yeah. What makes you interesting? Mm
[00:04:14] spk_0: Well if he, uh, noticed the, was ever mentioned a lifeline, their phone number, um, I've come close enough to killing myself that I know what the barrel of my gun days like.
[00:04:27] spk_1: That's pretty close interesting. That is, that is interesting. That is visceral like that. I can taste it.
[00:04:34] spk_0: Yeah, that's good. I, every now and then somebody said to me, because I've never actually been officially diagnosed with metal illness have to mental illnesses once called major depressive disorder, depression. What it means. Is it, um, it's last two days to two weeks for me. It's about two days and Rikers and it's generally not situation. Um, the other one is called chronic suicidality or chronic suicidal ideation, which means for me, people like me, my tribe. The option of suicides always on the menu as a solution problems large and small. When I say small, my car broke down a couple years ago, I had three thoughts on bit get affected by noon. I could just kill myself. Yeah, that's chronic suicidal. The thing about that is, um, when I speak, I always tell that story and almost always after I get done, I always tell people what will they look you and a generally for everybody. And if you got a question you don't want to ask in front of the entire group like, hey, I'm crazy, can you help me? I'll hang around and oftentimes somebody comes up, they have that chronic suicidality, they didn't know how to name. They just thought there's some kind of freak. And I've had people weeping, you know, a woman said to me, I enjoyed your keynote, but it made me weep. I go ahead and make you weep Because when I've had those thoughts, you know, when you said, get fixed by knowing you could just kill yourself. I've been having those thoughts all my life. And uh when I heard you say that a lot, I realized for the first time in my life, I'm not alone. Right? So it's possible that I steered her far enough off the path of suicide that she'll live a you know, whatever normal life would be the upshot of that is picture this and Billings Montana. Okay. Just just college, I do college suicide prevention as well. University of Montana. Billings, I just finished, I'm standing outside dusk starting snow. They're not far away is a river, you can hear the water kids going to get the truck to take back the hotel. So I think, I think, I think the scene actually triggered this in my head, so snow river dusk and I think about all the people who came up this parade of people who came up after my, it didn't know they had it. I thought they were a freak, you know, perhaps on the path to suicide and it hit me, I'm George bailey and it's a wonderful life because I've been shown with these people's lives, might have been like if I were not there to speak and just decode that for them to let them know. They in fact have something that has a name and there's lots of us and you can survive it and they're not alone. My second thought was oh my God, I can't kill myself because I take all the people with the right and that's
[00:07:21] spk_1: depressing in its own right.
[00:07:23] spk_0: Yeah. Oh God, yeah. My third thought was as a comic if I didn't kill myself, they would chase me through eternity. You couldn't wait a
[00:07:30] spk_1: week, right. So before we go any further, can I talk to you about this? Is that I ask you a question after,
[00:07:37] spk_0: Is that interesting
[00:07:38] spk_1: enough to know? That is really interesting. So um, now focusing on that, that you are a stand up comedian correct? 34 years full
[00:07:47] spk_0: time. Okay.
[00:07:48] spk_1: Um, that is so we were just talking about this that you know when you're a stand up comedian you talk in very violent terms, right? Killed, died. Yeah. And it's, but in your case you were actually, that was a consideration. It wasn't right. Yeah, yeah. And what age did you start to have that? Like that was a thing that started to happen for you.
[00:08:11] spk_0: Let's back up a little bit if you can. Sure. Absolutely. Comedy mom's funding. My sister's funny fourth grade, I told my first joke and the entire student body, the class laughed and I thought I'm going to do this for a living. Um, I did the senior high school talent show senior year. Nobody ever done stand up And that was 75 kind of the best. That's about the time that Leno drove out to L. A. In his car. I was living in his car eating oranges. So many oranges is the mouth cracked on either side.
[00:08:39] spk_1: Uh, not to year I was born, shut
[00:08:43] spk_0: up. And uh and um, then I told my mom I was going to be a comedian because I was going to go straight into comedy. And she comes from a long line of, well everybody the family had an education. The women especially all the all my aunts and all my you know everybody all the women especially had an education uh you know as a as a buffer against hard times. You know lose a husband, husband he's whatever. So she goes well uh you're gonna go to college, whatever you do when you get done. I don't care. You could be a goat herder if you won't be but you're going to be a goat herder with a degree. So what do you as a chapel hill Got two degrees. Actually easy to think I could find police. I you know why? Because there's no right answer bullshit. Hard enough you're going to be.
[00:09:29] spk_1: Um I got through business school using Maslow's hierarchy of needs. I wrote like 18 papers on massive hierarchy of needs. I think I just I went and found words and just switched them and then submitted the paper boy
[00:09:42] spk_0: did it. That's creative writing. So I did. And I had to go through all the way through high school and then she went to north to Arizona went to you and see. But we maintain that relationship four years wow. Yeah. And I was a virgin when I hit the altar bear in mind. Yeah I know how 10,000 women Southern belles 10,000 women at U. N. C. And I it and it was 1970 72 or 75 75 or 79 75 or 79. The reason those years are important. It was the last four years of the sexual revolution. Yeah. I never even got off a shot. Yeah. I mean I heart cries for you. I know I beat it like it owed me money. Yeah. Yeah. Which by the way is my ted talk coming up in november 3rd is okay mental health and the orgasm treat your depression singlehandedly. My, my smartphone is my second favorite handheld device. Um, so I graduated. It's okay for the podcast. We said, okay. I graduated and I don't know. We did always high school all way through college, maintain their relation and when you graduate, that's kind of a pivot point in your life. If you dated that long, it's either get married or you know, go your separate ways, correct? And that's how I got engaged. She goes, look, I'm not gonna keep dating. You're too old. 22. Oh my gosh, I'm not gonna live with you. Which would have been my choice lease with an option to buy, um, uh, marry me or I'm out of here. That's how I got engaged. Okay. Yeah.
[00:11:15] spk_1: Nothing like a shotgun
[00:11:17] spk_0: engagement man. I'm telling you, I'm going going down the aisle. I knew intuition was screaming. You know when he said, do you take, I said I said I do in my head. I heard I'll try, here's the deal. You don't try marriage. You try great metric, you drive Sports illustrated for mother. It doesn't work out right. You know, cancel across the bill. So anyway, the reason I tell you all that just we moved to San Diego. Uh I couldn't find a job. I interviewed 77 times. U. N. C. Has a fabulous placement. So they brought in, you know people from all over the country to interview graduates to get jobs. I interviewed 77 times, literally no second interviews, no job offers. Now I look back and I think well they're probably good at their job. They took one look at me is that this guy is a clown and they're right. Exactly. So her father is in the insurance business. He wrangled a job for me at his insurance company is embarking europe, which was a great job by the way and probably the best one of the insurance business. You're not selling anything. Just marketing.
[00:12:18] spk_1: Uh who knows how to measure marketing really.
[00:12:21] spk_0: Hey look, these are use our business owners policy, let's go to lunch. Um and you get a car and a little suspense kind of, I wish I had kept the job to this day because it was so easy. Anyway, uh in san Diego where we moved to, there was a comedy store. There's one on on on uh in Hollywood, on the male was on Hollywood boulevard. Yeah. Yeah. And so um every time I drove by there I felt this magnetic. Yeah. And so the reason I tell you all that is my third ted talk is called suicide. The secret of my success. Dead man talking. I at that moment after being married to my first wife couple years was doing insurance, hated it in that marriage where I didn't belong a wonderful woman, we just didn't belong together. Sure, miserable. And I realized if that I was going to kill myself sooner rather than later because it runs in my family. My grandmother died by suicide. My mother found her. My great aunt died by suicide. My mother and I found out I was four years old. Oh wow, involved a refrigerator, I'll spare you the details. The old lock type. Um My first ted talk if you go to frank ted talk dot com, you know that you're you are able to take your right to that first ted talk. I came out as depressed and suicidal age 52 in that first ted talk, nobody knew my family, my friends, my wife. It's
[00:13:43] spk_1: one of those things we tend to keep to ourselves right? We don't want to share it because it's a you know, you
[00:13:48] spk_0: don't burden other people with. Right. Exactly. Plus there's a stigma attached, there's a stigma attached to mental illness and a separate stigma attached to toss the suicide.
[00:13:54] spk_1: It's like a double stick.
[00:13:55] spk_0: Yeah, and you know, and I'm a happy guy and I got a great job and I love doing comedy and
[00:14:00] spk_1: people associate sadness with suicide and it's like, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.
[00:14:05] spk_0: I I was most impressed at some of the best times in my life. Sure, Okay. And then we'll get to that in a second. So I'm depressing because I was it was uh it was a winner of 80 four 83 driving on 163 in San Diego. So five o'clock in the afternoon is kind of a low point in my biorhythms. Probably going to some insurance appointment. It's overcast, it's raining and in san Diego. I know it does occasionally. Okay, uh have a range of southern California. Um And I had that the first time I've had that thought I had the thought, just get yourself, I'm like, what are it was the first time I've consciously had a friend of mine who has some condition says, you know the biplanes of the planes that pull the little banner behind them, like that, like that goes across your brain, why don't you just go out and kill yourself? And that was first time I had been depressed, I was depressed in college but didn't know that's what it was, I just thought was pining away from my girlfriend. Sure, but I was I'm sure it was depressed. Yeah, I'm cheating on um the so I realized uh if I didn't and I was not going to open mic night, which is I knew in my heart that's where I belonged. Uh intuition. And I've never haven't ignored my intuition since that first marriage, by the way, um I knew this rebel on. So when I realized I was going to kill myself if I didn't do something, I thought well damn, I could divorce my wife, quit my job. I can try comedy, which is where I think I belong. And if it doesn't work out, I can still kill myself. So
[00:15:51] spk_1: the fact that way it kind of take some weight off your shoulders.
[00:15:54] spk_0: Well you know, you know there's nothing more powerful on the planet that somebody with absolutely nothing to lose. Truth. The metaphor I use is or similarly as you're standing on the edge of a cliff, You're looking at maybe 10 stories beautiful like deep, beautiful. But coming up behind just a raging wild flower. So if you stay where you are, you were definitely going to die. But if you jump, Follow may kill you 10 stories. I mean your terminal velocity or you may hit correctly and swim away. And so I said to somebody, it wasn't really a choice. I mean
[00:16:27] spk_1: no. Yeah, you got to make the jump because you have
[00:16:30] spk_0: to because there's no because you don't die. That's how I opened the ted talk, what would you what would you what audacious thing would you do would you do if you knew for a fact, you have nothing to lose. What dream would you pursue? If you knew by staying put and not pursuing it, you would literally die. And what I've discovered since then is I've met a number of people, entertainers and entrepreneurs have the same basic thought process. I think kate spade and Anthony Bourdain. Both underlying mental illness. Both self medicating. Both of them came to a juncture in their lives. Um Bourdain was at Vassar setting. I don't even know what good school, probably good program. He's probably thinking I graduate, I'll get a good job. But he fell in love with food when he was eight years old and his folks stuck into France and from that moment as soon as he was old enough to get a work permit. As a teenager, he had been working in restaurants and when he went to college faster he was working in two different restaurants. He loved culinary, I'm guessing he came to the junction where he's saying, you know what good school, good major, probably get a good job, but it's not my life right? I'm gonna kill myself. And then I thought, well I'll just go to culinary school if it works out great, if it doesn't hell still kill me, I still do that. Yeah. And kate spade. Uh she was the editor of the accessories, department accessories, accessories at vanity fair by example? Okay, I believe she came to the same juncture, you know, underlying mental illness, self medication, which she said to herself, I'm not supposed to be reviewing other people's fashions. I'm supposed to have my own fashion line, I'm gonna kill myself. Woodman. I didn't establish my own line if it works great, it doesn't. And I've got a comedian friend. We had this conversation, I hope to get in the corporate market out of the clubs. Clubs tough on women because you're traveling, you're living in a condo. Clubs are tough on anybody, anybody. But the living, you're living with two other guys. Two guys. My wife and I traveled together actually. We were on the road 2629 nights in a row. Non stuff, wow, seven years. And she just came along for the ride, which is highly unusual at the time. And you know what? I bought their wife, that was, that was the whole point of going on the road was, you know, as soon as you leave the code, you know the marriage license anymore. Uh so, and I worked with Seinfeld and Dennis Miller and Adam Sandler and Rosie and Ellen de generous and Paula Poundstone and Foxworthy and Ron Hyman opened up, worked with them where they're just comics and live with them in those condos, you know, most times, not hotel, but we actually go home from the show, sit around drinking beer, watching Letterman anyway, um,
[00:19:04] spk_1: make fun and then critique whoever was on Letterman and
[00:19:08] spk_0: Lament The fact that we weren't there. I turned I wrote jokes for Leno by the way for 20 years by facts. Um And I submitted to Leno, Letterman and Conan, there were three at the time a dozen times. Used to do stand up and never got on. My jokes got on but I never do anyway. Oh I was talking to my friend female friend who helped get out of clubs into corporate comedy money is better. They're happy to see you you're special you know a combination like this like the Holiday inn instead of the you know the motel where they ask you are you sure you want the room for the whole night
[00:19:42] spk_1: or you know what county are you gonna be sleeping exactly,
[00:19:45] spk_0: That's comics. Yeah and I've got friends my age still doing it. I'm like you are every now and then if I'm gonna I mean holiday in this, holiday is lovely. Uh but I'll be in like the phoenician in phoenix like five star you know with the grey bathrobe and them and I'll take a photograph posted on facebook and I go if you're 60 years old or better you're still doing comedy clubs, you may be doing it wrong.
[00:20:05] spk_1: Uh
[00:20:07] spk_0: So she said do you want to know frank the real reason I got into stand up full time. I said you're telling me she goes now it's dark. I go I love dark. She goes well I'm working for an association in Washington D. C. And I'm just miserable. My only joy two nights a week open mics. And it hit me. She said that if I didn't get out of the association business it was a good job, I was gonna kill myself. And she she starts speaking to go let me tell you how this comes out. Then you said yourself well I could quit that job. Track comedy. Who works great if it doesn't I'll still kill myself. She goes how do you know that? No honey, I lived it. So I think there are because uh my ted talks the way I feel about Ted talk ted that um all the information is out there for a ted talk. It's what I do is I see a pattern by the way mentally ill people do this all the time. I see a pattern that nobody else is quite recognized yet. And think, wait a minute. And the pattern I saw was one third of entrepreneurs are Reportedly three studies. I read depressed and suicidal and the clinicians believe it's like asleep long hours and unmet expectations. I believe that's probably the case in most of them. But I bet there's a subset where they're not depressed and suicidal because they're entrepreneurs. They are in fact entrepreneurs because they were depressed and suicidal. I was that's what gave me the idea for the Ted X talk. That's all the information is out there. But nobody ever quite I saw it from that perspective. That's like stand up comedy. I can teach you to write jokes. I can teach you perform. I cannot teach you to see the world and process the way I process right? I want a plane delta. It's the day after they said you could use your smartphone and ipad on takeoff or landing if it's in the airplane. But okay, the legend is very southern. She's going through the spiel, you know, if I'm see cushion floor path lighting, oxygen mask. Well, the problem with the iphone ipad FAA thing. It's not written down. She's got to come up with something. So she gets the end of her normal spiel, she knows she's got to say something about the iphone. So there's a long pause and then she gets inspired. And I mean, I'm on the edge of my seat because you know it's him. Yeah, she goes late gentlemen due to new FAA. Regulation, you can almost hear thinking she gets inspired. She goes due to new FAA Regulation if you have small equipment, you can continue playing with it. I am bent over double laughing. No, that's amazing. Yeah. Well, my seat mate look at me like what I go, let's review before I can review. She comes back on. If you have large equipment, you got to shove that under the seat in front of you. So I'm down on my knees.
[00:22:54] spk_1: I
[00:22:56] spk_0: was the only person, everybody heard
[00:22:58] spk_1: that everybody, nobody else caught
[00:23:00] spk_0: that. Yeah because that's the way my brain
[00:23:02] spk_1: processes. I can't imagine I
[00:23:04] spk_0: can't, here's the thing my keep saying my my my second dead dog or third um was called mental of benefits. The evolutionary advantages of mental illness. Because again, I saw a pattern where nobody else that I don't think I've ever seen him. Every time I met a parent with a child who had whatever autism, A. D. D. A. D. H. D. Back or whatever. First paragraph is always about the illness. 2nd paragraph unfailingly was about their superpowers. But he's creative, he's smart, he's funny, he's artistic, he's athletic. And I thought it cannot be a coincidence. So I started doing some research sure enough. Um I believe that mental illness is not this is the opening of the what if those of us living with a mental illness or not living with a genetic mutation but an amazing evolutionary adaptation. And what if mental illness is as Malcolm Gladwell says of such things in his book, David and Goliath a desirable disadvantage. You wouldn't wish it on anybody. But I believe my comedic ability is just the flip side. My mental illnesses. Sure.
[00:24:12] spk_1: I I um I actually agree with what you're saying. I uh people that I know that are that have trauma in their past, right? They're hyper vigilant. And so they can see things that, you know, some of us can't write like that. Uh that blew me away. Was I had a friend were playing this is going to sound so smart, Call of Duty, right? The video game and I'm terrible at it because I'm like running around and the next thing I know I'm okay. Like that's how I play video games. He is like, you gotta watch out for that thing up there, you got to do this, you got to do that. And I'm like, I don't know what you're talking about, but okay. And he's just able to see things in the world anywhere that I can't see. And it's sort of like that superpower that kind of came from this, this place where it was traumatic or whatever it was that he went through, but he actually, it adapted into
[00:25:09] spk_0: like you said, a superpower because and the trauma, a lot of times we got a friend who was in a kind of a violent household, was household, this child and she just didn't talk about being in the household like that. You don't think her whole thing was on, you cannot you cannot make a change unless you can see as possible to make a change. And the problem being a violent household like that is you're not thinking about, Gosh, I wonder if I can fix that. We're not gonna change it. You are constantly on alert. You are not acting, you're just simply reacting. You you never actually proactive, you're always just waiting, you know, to react or whatever happens, you know, so two people walking on, everyone's been traumatized like that and rabbit comes out the, you know, the person has been drawn, but I was like, oh right, right. Or the other person like it's a funny,
[00:26:07] spk_1: yeah, but I mean you're up for the crane kick, you're ready to take out.
[00:26:12] spk_0: She said ever because you go from a one to a nine. All the hormones are dumping you just in your mind, it's an alligator that just came out of the, you know, by the time you realize, oh, it's a bunny, right?
[00:26:26] spk_1: Yeah, and I uh so my uh she's not, she's not gonna watch this, my daughter. Uh the ones you watch is right. Uh but she's got really incredibly high anxiety. She is, you know, using that scale of 1 to 10, she is normally at an eight and then just goes above that or whatever. Um but because of that, she is always super hyper prepared for everything. But there's never a situation she's like hasn't thought through and considered or planned for, it's really interesting because it's a superpower. It's a superpower, but I wouldn't wish it on
[00:27:06] spk_0: anybody. Yeah, well and at the end of my ted dogs, I always try to give you some action items like, you know frank. That's really interesting, but what do we do? One of the middle of benefits where the you know the kid was for example a kid with a D. D. Back in the day. Back in caveman times. These things were survival skills. For example, anthropologists believe most cave people were bipolar because you had four months in the summer to gather enough stuff for eight months in the winter. So they were uber hunters and gatherers. They were hyper sexual, which is a is a to this day. Women of childbearing age are susceptible to bipolar and that's because you have to keep the numbers up in the tribe. So back then bipolar was a survival skill as was uh A. D. D. You know back then pretty much anything to eat and or kill and or eu
[00:27:56] spk_1: it's like Australia.
[00:27:57] spk_0: Yeah exactly. A dangerous land. Uh So if you got a kid nowadays with squirrel, that's funny. However back then velociraptor vast his arrival scale. So they just unfortunately come forward in time to where they in our modern world, those are considered disabilities. But again, what I said then was look, you know that song called I. E. P. Individual education plan, What do you say? Just you know shits and grins. We really make them individual education plans. Got a kid with dyslexia dyslexic have better peripheral vision. They also tend to see things in a panoramic fashion. Most people tend to focus, its like on the news when you see the stuff down on the side like that's how most people see things but dyslexic generally see him in a panoramic view and they had the uncanny ability oftentimes to pick out the anomaly in anything. The joke I wrote for the ted talk was never play where's Waldo for money with a dyslexic because you're going to lose right there. So why not take a kid who's got dyslexia and don't put them in the stem program, science, technology education or engineering mathematics.
[00:29:05] spk_1: You're just setting them up because
[00:29:07] spk_0: every one of those has one right answer why not put them in humanities? And uh and they're great at multi level uh you know multi level complex tasks and art and where there's not a lot of numbers and letters and things by the same token if you have somebody who has O. C. D. And they are you know they are uh attention to detail and very precise stem is great because there's one right answer to every one of those and every one of those disciplines and then steer them in a career path like the O. C. D. To accounting. Where they value someone who has can focus and precision is important and to the penny is important and they'll be rewarded for that. They'll get more. They'll be paid higher than just an average human being because they are great at that. That makes sense.
[00:29:53] spk_1: Yeah it makes complete
[00:29:54] spk_0: sense. So make the I. E. P. Truly an individual don't put every six year old in first grade. Well you know some some six year olds belong in first grade but not all of them.
[00:30:04] spk_1: But I think it goes back to that stigmas that we put a stigma um on exactly that maybe the kids not prepared to go into school yet. There must be something wrong with that kid because now all of a sudden their seven year old in first grade and that kid over there is 5.5 like kids smarter than that. It's not necessarily the case.
[00:30:24] spk_0: Well when I was kid they held you back. There was a huge thing about that held back now if you think about being held back a year by the time you get to high school you're a year older a year bigger. Sure there's a reason the mormon send their their their kids on a two year mission. I know it's to spread the word of the you know the L. D. S. But also if that's a football player And he comes back two years
[00:30:48] spk_1: Later they're eligible pale place for four
[00:30:51] spk_0: years. That's good. Yeah so I mean there is but there's a stigma with being
[00:30:56] spk_1: Why doesn't bringem young not the number one team
[00:30:58] spk_0: in the nation. There's a friend of mine a joke. The because african americans were not allowed into the until they realized they needed a good front line on football and all of a sudden it's okay with everybody. Yeah so you know make it make it into a again, the stick being held back or whatever it is, or put this when, when I was giving special education in the short bus, you know, that kind of thing and their understanding of people I know who, who have a mental illness, who were diagnosed and end up in a special, you know, uh, trend had, It was in an automobile accident, he was 18 months old involved drunk driving and cause I should have never been driving. Um, but it gave him some brain damage and caused me some physical abnormalities. But he's sharp, he's a comic, he's sharp as a tack, but because he sounded a little different and he moved a little different back then, you know, he goes, listen, there's no, there's no pride in being the smartest guy on the short bus. Yes,
[00:31:58] spk_1: Yeah,
[00:31:59] spk_0: because, but he was just label that in the special. So anyway, so I'm sure I was going,
[00:32:04] spk_1: well, you know, it's just about thinking differently. There's just different ways of thinking. Every person has got a different brain that works differently. And right now we are, we're trying to stuff everybody in the square peg Yeah, right. Like that's that's what's happening and it would be kind of neat to see what would happen if we took this child that we actually think is just, you know, borderline, you know, whatever, yeah, whatever. And put them in the right kind of programs, see what happens with them
[00:32:35] spk_0: in my talk. I said, I needed to do your best to mitigate the negative, the issues with the middle of this, but you need to embrace, enhance and energize those special abilities. I met a guy, I was doing a training and had a kid, I was autism. Uh, and um, he said, I said, well, just a curiosity. It's a very special powers because home is amazingly athletic. I go, really here is that we bought a membership to us, um, swim club. But then like a weekend, a week, maybe 10 days, the kid had taught himself to do the Australian Crawl and Breathe on both sides. It took me a month as an adult to work out that breathing on both sides when you're doing the crawl. And uh, I said, I'm on land lightning fast. He said, I gotta tell you stories that were in the special olympics. They're all lined up there, 100 yard dash. The kid's name was Noah and the gun goes off and all the other kids take off toward the finish line. Well, noah doesn't know what the guns all about. It was like, what's that? Yeah. And so his dad said it was like a forest gump run forrest run. So the kid gets the idea run. They got a 20 yard head start. He beats everybody to the finish line, wow. I said, you know, you know what I'm gonna tell you? He goes, I know we're gonna say frank, we need to encourage any sports that he takes great joy in. That's where we need to put our our emphasis. And he said, um, There had been some problems in the neighborhood because he was different 5, 6 years old. And I guess some of the other kids been picking on it. And so gentlemen, I was talking to said, you know, I just went over to the kids house and said, I need to talk to your father and the father comes during and you know, in certain terms, uh listen, your kids are dick and it's got to stop and it did, you know when you, when you meet it, head on, oh yeah, no dance around. You know,
[00:34:29] spk_1: I'm sorry about coming and bothering, you know,
[00:34:33] spk_0: well, and I said to him was okay, here's the thing, he's five or six now lightning fast. Here's where it reduces stigma and bullying in the long term. The kids are good athletically. So let's say your saturday and you're standing on the sand lot and you're picking up teams for football, touch football and these guys are here talking and go, look, we got first pick. So I know this is going to everybody, but no, I know he's a weird kid, but pick him. I'm telling, I'm telling you guys like the amazing wide receiver. So you know it is when you're a kid being picked first has a whole different connotation than being picked last.
[00:35:07] spk_1: I wouldn't
[00:35:08] spk_0: know, nicely done. Yeah, I know I play basketball and I love the game, but I'm not particularly good at it. I got lungs and legs and heart, that's it. Uh And so every now and then we're picking up teams and somebody new has come to the court and their captain, they're picking up teams and they're about to pick me up 61, and they're about maybe a little. I go, no, no, no, hold on, Don't waste a pick. Just pick me number five. Just trust me, you're right. Somebody one day where the plane goes, I'm the worst player on the court. I go, hold on, that's my job.
[00:35:43] spk_1: Hold my beer.
[00:35:45] spk_0: So it's you know, it's you have no limitations. I love the game. Uh like I said, I was playing uh Centralia Washington were living there and there's a there's a loose ball. One of my teammates is pick up standing between me and the loose ball standing flat footed. So I knocked him down on the way to the ball. And I got the ball and he came over. He was past years, man, I'm on your team. You knocked me down. I thought you were standing still. You're not doing anybody any good. And by the way, the guy who knocked you down has an AARP card. Just live with that. Just so anyway, um That's uh c so so fast forward uh comedy for 87 years. Got a job in radio in Raleigh at the rock station. Um It was number one morning show in Raleigh because I've been through there a bunch of times said, hey, if you ever have an opening. So they hired me, I took a number one morning radio show and drove it to number six and 18 months, wow, it's
[00:36:44] spk_1: hard to do.
[00:36:44] spk_0: Yeah, I didn't drive into the ground. I go over to the middle Earth, got fired. Still friends with the program
[00:36:51] spk_1: director. That's not
[00:36:52] spk_0: personal. No, it wasn't. Fuck. He was one of those managers who uh was actually a leader. Okay. When he called me in to fire me, you could tell it pained him when I had my first heart valve replacement because my dad had a bad heart valve died at 40. I had the same thing turned out and I had to replace it. So I got a lot of replaces died at 40. Yeah. He had a bicuspid they already found And it just locks up at some point. I got mine fixed it. I was watching it and got a 60, 1st person through the door after my surgery was my former boss at the radio station, came in. And he's hired me since again for another project and we're still friends. Um And then when I left the radio session uh he said go back on the road doing comedy. Well the comedy road club was disappearing. Was seeking the lower plateau come back up since, Yeah,
[00:37:42] spk_1: This is after the 90s.
[00:37:43] spk_0: It's like mid nineties. Yeah, 94 95 was like this. And so, and I've always been clean, which cost me dearly in the clubs because you know, it's uh tell some jokes we can dance to. Here comes a slow and you can slow dance. I mean beer bars, full halls, honky tonks. Yes, because that was the glue that held the tour together. Not all the clubs all week long, Nice improv, funny bone. Right? So I thought, well I'll be I'll do corporate comedy, the rubber chicken circuit. And man, that money is so much better. I remember my first corporate gig, they flew to Indianapolis putting up in the Marriott. The bellman would come out to get my bags. This never happened at a comedy club gig. Um I'm going to order off the menu for dinner. They're paying for it and I can I use the f word on your podcast, you
[00:38:32] spk_1: can do whatever. Okay, frontal nudity.
[00:38:34] spk_0: Yeah. I said to the bellman who's taking my luggage up, I turned to my go fuck comedy clubs, he looks back at me and goes, yeah, fuck comedy played right along. Got a $10 tip. Absolutely. That's when I made a decision, I was just going to do corporate comedy from that point on. And and and it got really good until about 2000 and 7, 2000 and eight
[00:38:57] spk_1: when everybody didn't have any money
[00:38:59] spk_0: and much off 80% over. Yeah, boom. And we didn't, I didn't have a coke habit or flat screen TVs or see dudes, we just had add up condo in La Hoya has negative cash flow And we, we sunk $300,000 into a $600,000 farms hold all the other real estate figured if I had half equity, I'm bulletproof, but with a 23 $100 a month house payment, I just couldn't keep up. So we file chapter seven and and nearly killed my wife. I mean she was just, and I was in charge of the money. So I'm feeling guilty. I know the Lehman brothers had, you know, the big short and a little something to do with this. But, but I was in charge of the money. So, and mentally ill people tend to be more empathetic. They feel other people's pain more acutely. So, um, I got an ancient roof of my mouth. I can only scratch for the front side of my nickel plated 38. That's when I put the gun in my mouth and then I realized I had a million dollar life insurance policy. That was what I was thinking. See people say suicide too selfish act. It's almost always just a reverse in the mind because I'm thinking she's better off without me, she'll miss me $1 million dollars should be restored financially. Most people think the world would be a better place without. So, but I had told insurance, so I knew that they had two years suicide clause. Right, Okay.
[00:40:16] spk_1: Now they know this might be telling, I know about that clause. How
[00:40:22] spk_0: the hell do you know about that clause? Most people have no idea what they don't pay you to commit suicide, you know, two years. They, why would they have two years? Well, they just don't want you to buy the policy and boil your brain. Right? Yeah. They want you to have to wait. So, uh, call my insurance agent kind caring and obviously very soon soon to be obviously very, uh, you know, perceptive gentlemen. Hey Graham, which in turn away because people have the mental illness, a great actress. The reason I have a screen actors guild card because I'm a great actor. Um, and I said off handedly, Hey, how long about that policy? Because I don't know what check here blocking the keys comes back on. He goes 22 months and then then he goes and no, don't fucking do it. Do not do it because he had gotten those calls and delivered those checks in the past. And, and he said, uh, when he hung up, he told his wife, I think frank's gonna kill himself. So it was 22 months. So two months ago. So here's where chronic suicide is full circle because I was willing to pull the trigger in two months in a day, it allowed me to live to make it for two months. And because I knew that's the thing about suicide, people say to me, why did he want to kill himself? Probably didn't want to kill himself. Probably just wanted to end the pain. And I knew in two months a day, pain will be gone. So that allowed me as long as that's on the table long, my book is gonna be called live life in the exit row, starting the conversation on suicide because that's where I sit and then went to sit in the eggs are of life. Just too bad. Fuck it about, right? There's a show on showtime with Ricky Gervase after life, I think it's called Yeah, I think that's what his wife does. The cancer is terribly depressed, says his boss one day is trying to cheer him up. Look, don't bother, don't you know, if things get too bad, I'll just kill myself. It's kind of my superpower, which I'm looking at the screen going, oh man, somebody on that, they
[00:42:19] spk_1: took my material like what's going,
[00:42:21] spk_0: Somebody either he or someone on the staff has it. And then the next episode, two guys come up to rob him at knifepoint and he goes, well what if I don't give you the wallet and they go, we'll kill you. And he goes, you know, for a lot of people that would be an inducement. And while they're trying to figure out it's a square in the nose because you know, son soo do do exactly what your opponent would never expect, right? Yeah. It's just like what? And I've had those fantasies. I, I was having it yesterday. There's a 76 station near where I live, where I get my guess every morning. And by the way, I told this daydream, good friend of mine and when I got done, he goes, man, I got to get better daydreams because I didn't know not everybody they dream that way. I mean minds in living color with a script and sound bites and blocking and lighting and, and I know what I'm gonna say the news media when it's all over, you know, you shot and killed a guy, you know, good guys, one bad guy zero. And I got a problem with that. I mean, I got that sound bites and that's what happens. I'm in there and somebody comes with a gun robbed the place, I'm gonna make my coffee. You know, and he's screaming at me, I'm still making my coffee. I'm gonna go, you yeah, you know, I've been trying to do that for a decade.
[00:43:31] spk_1: If I can't do it. I'm really curious if you can.
[00:43:35] spk_0: Yeah. And and in my script. I said, you know, if I had known that on this day in this place, it was gonna be death by dumb ass. I would have relaxed for the last 40 years and just waited on, you know, right
[00:43:50] spk_1: man.
[00:43:51] spk_0: But that's, that's, that's how you know, and I've been through that scenario, I can't tell you how many times sometimes through the coffee his face always killed. Um, because I'm here, I mean, you know, you shot him. Yeah, I mean you had, you had the gun and you still shot him. Yeah, well here's, here's a sound bite. Well, you know, he thought the card, I just played my hand. Uh, so uh again, that's part of my superpower is that, you know, it's, it's that, you know, again, the power of somebody who has nothing to lose to stay relaxed in a situation in my mind or somebody's got a gun out there waving around, I'm gonna kill everybody, you know, God, God, bullet drink. Yeah, I mean that's, you know, my wife will get a million bucks. I don't have to commit suicide. You're going to be very socially acceptable. I'll be,
[00:44:38] spk_1: you know, I'll be a hero because yeah, everything's coming up frank taking away. Yeah,
[00:44:44] spk_0: I had the first valve job. I got a human heart valve from a donor, either cadaver or an attorney who wouldn't use it. And then uh, That lasted 18 years and which is a long time for a human value. And then I got, I got a replacement and um, 2012 and double bypass because it was two for Tuesday and Then 2014 had a heart attack. I've driven two miles from the House Park, the head of a warehouse trail, got the dogs out the car, half a mile to up the trail heart attack.
[00:45:17] spk_1: That's a bad place to
[00:45:19] spk_0: do that. Yeah, I mean I have my cell phone but I got t mobile so no service, no service and by the way I get to laugh no matter where. Oh gosh,
[00:45:25] spk_1: that's so true because comedy is based on truth. That's
[00:45:29] spk_0: it. So I realized if I don't get back down the hill, I'm toast, well I'm with the docks and we're pet centered family and I'm like, we're like the marines, we leave nobody behind cause it down that hill and they get back to the street. I mean it could just be really ugly. So I know for if for no other reason I gotta get back to the car, you're doing it for the doctor to get in the car. Um and it's killing me all man. It's killing me and people always ask, you know what you're thinking and you're my family and you know, see a light. I had two weeks ago I did my first ted talk, I'm walking down the hill, I'm crying because a all the time and effort I put into the ted doc and all the lives I could have said if I could have just every bet that dog, what I wish I had been doing down the hill which would have gone viral was even though the phone wasn't working as a phone. I should have recorded a video and saying goodbye to everybody jane. You're the best little sister ever and Andy her husband. You're a dick. I just got you know you love love love your right. Yeah love love because if I made it out and posted that it would have gone viral. God I can't believe I didn't do that. But if I had wanted to die because people think you're depressed and suicidal it's 24 73 65 and that's not especially the therapy and Medicaid. But if I want to die socially acceptable death I've been a bad place saturday. I could've sat down on the trail let the heart attack run its course only the dogs and no, I chose they would find me to think you know well obviously had a heart attack has uh T mobile couldn't get out of the woods and died.
[00:47:08] spk_1: This episode brought to you by Tv level.
[00:47:10] spk_0: Yeah. He's got a new commercials running about how I got this great new system is the best this that and the other like have you heard of Oregon Every time I complained about it for the last 10 years we're putting up new towers. Finally I said Okay name too. We'll have $100 credit. Okay. I know we're running
[00:47:30] spk_1: along. No, no, I know all this stuff is really really great. So, okay. So let's just say something. This is going to touch somebody. Oh yeah, I mean it's gonna, it's gonna definitely like, oh yeah, that's me. That's me. That might even just be me, But it's going to do that for somebody
[00:47:47] spk_0: well and it's not just the suicide reality. Um, had a friend, his wife stay at home, mom depressed on medication but at struggling. So I said, look, you guys sit down and watch my first head dog. He's watching her watching me when it gets done. She goes, hey, I didn't know anybody talked about that kind of thing out loud, much less on video on Youtube. And so we invite, invited to come to coffee. We do a crazy coffee. Klatch all my crazy friends get together and we take off our game faces. But it was a revelation to her that people are actually gave voice to those feelings out loud in public because she is so ashamed and she's improved. She still has depression, but she's improved ever since that day. So maybe somebody watching, who, I can't believe you guys talking about, you know, putting a gun in his mouth being depressed,
[00:48:34] spk_1: you know, whatever. Yeah. So if someone's got those feelings, if someone's experiencing this, what's the best thing for them to do?
[00:48:41] spk_0: Well, let's talk about both of you to do. Um, the depression by the way. If you think maybe so a couple symptoms. One is trouble getting up in the morning, rally in the afternoon. Let their personal hygiene go. Um, don't take joy in social occasions. They used to be a great joy and sleep too much heat to sleep too much. Can't sleep. Eat too much candy. Um, you don't say to them, pull yourself up by your bootstraps. Turn that frown upside down. Have you dried fish oil? Yes, I know. I can't tell how many times I've heard. Have you tried the essential oil? Yes, I'm with this company, please. You know, I'm so excited. Right? Alabama vein right here right now. Um, they say, I'm here for you and me. He said, look, I know you're not lazy. Crazy. You're self absorbed. Mental illness is an illness. Good news, time and treatment, things will get better. I will take time. I'll help you get the treatment. Now, here's the question you gotta ask. This is the one I even struggle with. You gotta ask him flat out already. Having thoughts of suicide, there's an urban legend. You should never mention the s word in front of somebody who's depressed. I love the reasoning. It might give the idea suicide.
[00:49:44] spk_1: What I never thought
[00:49:45] spk_0: of that. Okay, now, how do you know if you don't say the suicidal? How do you know? Well talking about death and dying, Googling death and dying. Death and dying appears as it seems in their artwork or music. Uh, gathering the means to die by suicide. Stockpiling pills, buying a gun, ammunition, giving away prized possessions. They wanna make sure they go to the people they want them to go to. And if they give away a pet, that's top of that pyramid, that's very dangerous. Here's a counterintuitive one. If they're depressed for a long time, that happy beyond measure for no apparent reason, they may have chosen time place, methodist we said, and the pain is finite.
[00:50:20] spk_1: You see the light at the end of the tunnel.
[00:50:24] spk_0: Exactly, right. And in this case train. Uh, but it's the end. I mean, the thing and the problem with that is people want them to be happy and they're happy that they're happy, they don't understand it? Maybe they're happy because like for me, I knew that it was coming to an end. Um, and See that's it. Uh, oh, and what do you say to somebody who is um, here's what you don't say. Somebody who is suicidal, you're being melodramatic. You're just looking for attention. Nobody talks about it ever does 90% of people who are rolling up suicide give hence director and director behavioral and the week leading up to it. So people who talk about it and do it. Um, your job, if you believe then you said you have a plan. If you have a plan. What is your plan? If it's detailed, you need to get them on the phone with the aboriginal lifeline. 100,
[00:51:15] spk_1: 2738 something something anyway. 88
[00:51:19] spk_0: to somebody like
[00:51:21] spk_1: We are doing a terrible job. 8 to
[00:51:26] spk_0: five
[00:51:27] spk_1: to know the other side. The other side. Okay.
[00:51:29] spk_0: 82555, I'm Sorry. Yes,
[00:51:31] spk_1: it'll be, it'll be in the notes to
[00:51:33] spk_0: yeah, if you're younger and there's now a text line because young people are more forthcoming into. Is
[00:51:40] spk_1: there an instagram line
[00:51:41] spk_0: yet? It should be. But text the word connect to 741741. That's the text line. 7417. Lastly they always ask, you always ask would not call the cops. If they're an immediate danger to themselves or others call the cops. Now that's going to buy them three days. Involuntary detention with no shoestrings are belt, they're gonna be pissed. But I'd much rather have a live piston unfriending me. Right? So you need to persist. And if you can't ask the question, are you having thoughts to find somebody who can? And if your intuition tells you, if you just have that random thought pops gonna come self go with your intuition. There's something you've seen or heard your brain is put it together on its own. Always go with your intuition,
[00:52:23] spk_1: that makes sense. Yeah, I mean err on the side of caution
[00:52:26] spk_0: come up. You
[00:52:28] spk_1: know, I mean the worst case scenario in that case is I'm so embarrassed. I'm so sorry.
[00:52:32] spk_0: Right. But
[00:52:33] spk_1: the the other option is you don't have this person
[00:52:38] spk_0: podcast. They list some symptoms and you know what you got like three out of the five or four out of five symptoms is possible. You haven't Thoughts of ending your life. I mean that's because 80% of people, eight out of 10, I want you to interrupt because they're ambivalent about doing it. They want to make a man look, no bullshit. What's wrong? Right. I'm fine. No, no, no, no, that's horseshit. Something is wrong. Let me close the door. You can tell me. Oh,
[00:53:07] spk_1: good stuff. Um, well that was awesome. It's been. I don't know how unusual. You know, that's what the show is. It's so unusual. That's good. Yeah, it's good. I enjoy doing this show because of this exact reason. But it's been, we've had a good conversation. Yeah. Now we gotta come up with a sketch and actually perform. How is that? I mean, I can speak for myself. The story about the flat tire really drew me in and for some reason really spoke to me. If you found frank as compelling as I do, then you probably want to find out more frank. Where can people find out more about you, the mental health comedian,
[00:53:52] spk_0: the mental health comedian, whether it's dot com or on facebook on instagram on twitter is the medical health comedian and all my ted talks are on youtube. I've been franking ted X talks.
[00:54:03] spk_1: No, there will be links to
[00:54:04] spk_0: everything in the, okay, I'll send you the long the clip where I lose the duck on
[00:54:08] spk_1: star search. If you loved everything you heard and you wanted to hear more. There actually is more. All you have to do is go to Youtube dot com. Look up, sketch comedy, podcast show and subscribe. We have all of the complete conversations, including us setting up the sketch coming up with the sketch and then actually recording the sketch. So you can hear the raw sound of what comedy sounds like when it's the sausage that we're making and you can hear it if you want Youtube dot com slash sketch com pod and you can hear all that good stuff. And now our sketch, not the X men with frank King previously on X Men. Mhm. Yeah. Yeah. Mhm. Mhm. Morning. Yeah. Hi Professor X. Yes. Hi. I um I saw the ad that you put out on instagram, which which add the one that you said that you could make you can make anybody into a superhero.
[00:55:27] spk_0: That's not a direct quote, but well,
[00:55:29] spk_1: it says you can you can unleash superpower.
[00:55:32] spk_0: Okay. All right, so here's the way we feel about that. Have you seen the movie wins? Well, when the wizards flowing away in the hot air balloon Glenda, the good Witch says you've always had the power. Exactly.
[00:55:44] spk_1: Oh, so it's within me already. It may be. So I'm a mutant.
[00:55:48] spk_0: What if the mutants? It's not really a mutation. You're not a mutant you're just an adaptation because of, you know, evolution? Tell me about yourself. Tell me. I mean, I like to do this. Message stresses successes. Okay, I'll tell you about your message, telling you struggle
[00:56:04] spk_1: with one of the things I do seem to really be successful. I'm not really good at my job.
[00:56:09] spk_0: Would you, do you feel like a superpower? Make you better at that job?
[00:56:12] spk_1: I don't know. I sell insurance. What do you think?
[00:56:14] spk_0: Are you passionate about insurance?
[00:56:16] spk_1: I don't care about insurance.
[00:56:17] spk_0: It's not going to make you a better insurance salesperson. Okay, Alright. You know what the stresses in your
[00:56:22] spk_1: life? This girlfriend that I dated for four years in college. We were both virgins when we got married, had sex for the first time and it was awful. Now she wants to have sex and I am scared of it. So is this
[00:56:34] spk_0: superpower? You're looking for sexual dynamo or
[00:56:38] spk_1: I mean, I'd prefer flight.
[00:56:40] spk_0: You know, being an ass kicking the good at foreplay. Here's my advice on that. Get some lesbian porn and watch the way the women work on each other. That's the key to turn your life around. Tell me what your your best at. I really like cooking and she was not a superhero competition? Yeah, I see what you're saying. Okay, okay, we'll make a mental state. Have you have you been ever been diagnosed with any sort of mental
[00:57:00] spk_1: element. I was always told growing up don't make your problems, other people's problems.
[00:57:04] spk_0: Sure make your problems are my problems. That what your problem is?
[00:57:07] spk_1: It's hard to make it through the day. I have a hard time waking up in the morning. Yeah, I lay in bed and stare at the ceiling where it's got the little dots and you can see pictures in it.
[00:57:17] spk_0: I'm almost embarrassed to admit I can
[00:57:19] spk_1: No, I'll stare at those for like, like an hour and a half in
[00:57:23] spk_0: the morning. Yeah, we'll talk about the afternoon. Do you rally in the afternoon? Do you
[00:57:26] spk_1: drink about five or 6 cups of coffee in the afternoon to get through the
[00:57:30] spk_0: day? Yeah. Well do you feel like you have depression?
[00:57:33] spk_1: Oh, I don't I wouldn't say that. What do you feel hopeless? I mean, doesn't everybody feel hopeless all the time? It
[00:57:38] spk_0: sounds like to me that you have major depressive disorder. And what's your superpower maybe is something called depressive realism, depressive realism. You see the world far more accurately than people who are neuro normal. It's almost like the matrix. You can see the matrix behind the facades that I believe is your
[00:57:57] spk_1: superpower? Whoa, That is a really cool superpower. I think I already have a code name. Well it is insight. What do you think? Yes, can I join the X men?
[00:58:07] spk_0: I told you before we start we're not the X men because all of us have a mental illness of some kind or other with the Xanax man,
[00:58:15] spk_1: Thank you so much for listening to sketch comedy podcast show. Lovingly produced in Portland Oregon. If you enjoyed the show today, I would love it. If you help me out in one of two ways. The first one's free, just share the show on social media or write a review on wherever you listen to your podcasts, that would be so helpful and so wonderful. And it costs you nothing. The other way you can support the show is financially and I'm just going to give you a little behind the scenes. Uh, there is no money in podcasting. I do this and it costs me money to do it. It's a passion project. But if you'd like to help offset those costs, which I would really appreciate, please head over to Patreon dot com and to reward you for as little as a dollar a month, you'll get all of the bonus material and let me tell you in this episode, there was a ton of things that did not make it into the episode that were still incredibly interesting. And now, for the fun part, sketch comedy podcast show is licensed under creative Commons attribution, noncommercial, no derivatives for the international license. If you'd like to use this work in any way, please contact the show and request permission. Look, life is made up of stories, find interesting people have an intriguing conversation and improvise an adventure all of your own. See you next week.

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