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Ep. 182 – Bury My Bones Beneath the Quarter Pipe w/ Andy Prince of Manchester Orchestra
426 Plays5 months ago
This week we’re excited welcome Andy Prince from Manchester Orchestra back to the show! Last time he was on, we talked about his upbringing in a Florida panhandle Christian community, and his involvement in an Evangelical movement know as the Brownsville Revival. This time around we discuss his early music career and change in lifestyle, as well as his work with an organization called Upward Intuition. Upward Intuition started as a group of people raising funds and support for a public skatepark in downtown Pensacola, which saw the opening of the Blake Doyle Skate Park. Now they hope to expand their reach and help create more places for kids in other communities to skate, hang out, and build friendships. It’s a really cool organization, and one that Andy has poured a lot of himself into! Follow Upward Intuition and Andy on Instagram (@upwardintuition & @andyprince), and keep an eye out for new music and tour dates from Manchester Orchestra (@manchesterorchestra)!
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Transcript
Why the Ollie failed: Physics lesson
00:00:00
Speaker
What's gonna happen? Are you going to Ollie?
00:00:03
Speaker
Something's going to happen, maybe, but it isn't going to look like an ollie. Why? You tried to do it your own way, but failed because you didn't follow the basic laws of physics, the basic movements of the ollie. If you keep choosing to do it your own way, you will actually find that you won't be able to use the skateboard in the same way that it was intended. You might even end up with a broken board. Oh.
00:00:33
Speaker
This is powerful stuff. This is rough, dude. It is so mad. He's like, I was pondering my existence, and now you've made me want to actually end my life. It's crazy. Oh, no. I just wanted to go black now, please. Another dead corpse under the Pensacola community half pipe.
Introduction to 'Growing Up Christian' podcast
00:01:13
Speaker
Hey everybody, welcome to another episode of Growing Up Christian. I'm Sam, and I'm here all by myself today. Casey's out gallivanting around.
00:01:24
Speaker
He had the privilege of seeing Sleep Token play Red Rocks last night, so I'm sure that'll come up next time we chat because that sounds dope. I mean, any band seems like it would be totally dope to see at Red Rocks. I feel like that's kind of a bucket list item for a lot of concert goers, but I feel like they're a particularly cool band to see.
00:01:47
Speaker
at Red Rocks with like the theatrical nature of what they do. So yeah, gonna make this one brief. I have one quick story to share about my eventful weekend.
Dog vs. Bearded Dragon: Pet chaos
00:02:03
Speaker
And I'm gonna let it introduce our guest here. But so I'm pretty sure I've discussed my bearded dragon on the podcast before.
00:02:14
Speaker
I've had a bearded dragon for a couple of years. Her name's Edie, named after one of the T-Rex's in Camp Cretaceous, Jurassic World Camp Cretaceous, a animated series based on Jurassic World.
00:02:29
Speaker
I watched it with my kids. They really liked the dinosaurs in it. They really enjoyed the show. They liked Edie, the T-Rex, and that's why our bearded dragon's name is Edie. So add this thing for a couple of years. We let it out a lot. It just kind of hangs out on the couch with us, does whatever the fuck.
00:02:53
Speaker
And this weekend, on Saturday, we let it out to run around for a bit. We usually put it on our couch or whatever, ended up jumping off our couch.
00:03:09
Speaker
And our little dog who has ignored it completely for the past two years decided it wanted to play. And in its attempt to play, it ended up ripping half of my lizard's face off. It has been crazy the past couple of days just trying to make sure this thing stays alive. It's wild. So like literally from right below its eyes,
00:03:38
Speaker
from like right below the eyes, a good like inch and a half, inch, inch and a half into its skin, it like pulled the entire like skin of the nose off. It broke into the nasal passages. And you can just see this like one inch gash going straight through its face and tons of blood. I was, I, I mean, I just,
00:04:04
Speaker
My dogs just sitting there like, oh, I don't know what I'm just playing. It's cool. Like not aggressive, just happy as fuck. And yeah, so I thought for sure it died. I mean, there was so much blood.
00:04:34
Speaker
I don't know.
00:04:36
Speaker
Playing dead, I mean, I'm obviously freaking out. My wife's like just bawling. She's terrified that this thing's going to die. My kids weren't home at the time. They were with my mom and they I'm like, I called my mom. I'm like, I'm going to be late picking up the kids. Here's what's going on. Don't tell them. We weren't sure if we were going to have to explain that their lizard was killed while they were gone. So all around, we're just like having a bad time. So
00:05:06
Speaker
We end up bringing the lizard to my in-laws down the street. My father in-laws get a pretty good handle on animals and he's not a panicker when it comes to stuff like this. So we think it's dead.
Building skate parks: Andy's nonprofit journey
00:05:20
Speaker
I mean, I thought it wasn't breathing. We go over the house.
00:05:23
Speaker
I get out of the car with it and now I realize it is breathing. So he takes a look at it and was like, I think it's missed any vital anything. Didn't get the brain. Didn't get, I mean, you could hear it trying to breathe through it's like broken nasal passages, but it was like, it's a, it's a weekend. So there's only, there's an animal hospital near us.
00:05:46
Speaker
Um, but they're just known for being a nightmare to deal with because it costs thousands and thousands of dollars to do an emergency visit with anything. And some of you might think I'm an asshole for this, but I just have a hard time spending thousands of dollars on a lizard. Um, if it was my dog, it would probably be a much different story, but you know,
00:06:13
Speaker
on a $50 lizard. Whatever. I don't connect with reptiles the same way I connect with my mammals. So I was just like, I don't want to do that. And I can't really afford to do that anyway.
00:06:27
Speaker
We kind of had that conversation. Luckily, my wife's cousin is training to become a vet. So we called her, sent her pictures. She gave us a list of things to do, things to buy. But all around it, I mean, my lizard might be a mouth breather for the rest of its life, but
00:06:48
Speaker
Two days, it's Monday. This all happened on Saturday. So two days in, it's looking better. We had to keep pushing like the skin chunk of face back on to the lizard. It still bleeds a little bit, but it's mostly dried out at this point and starting to heal. We have like an antiseptic, I forget what it's called, but basically just something to put in it to prevent infection.
00:07:15
Speaker
And at this point, it seems like we're in the clear as long as we can prevent infection. So we have to clean it a few times a day. We have to clean the tank constantly. The kids can't touch it. You have to wash your hands before handling or like you really have to. We have treating it like it's a fucking open heart surgery in there and.
00:07:33
Speaker
And last Saturday, no, Sunday night. So this happens Saturday. My kids get upset about it on Saturday, but it hasn't really sunk in. And we're like, I think she's going to be okay. So Sunday though, my son's just like keeps asking about her. And then after like a few questions, you can see him like the tears welling up and like the, like the frown drawing and
00:07:59
Speaker
He just starts bawling his eyes out. He's like, is she gonna die? And we're like, we don't think so. But we just held him while he cried for like 10 minutes. He's such a sweet kid. He's just it like it. Oh, it took a while for it to come out. And then he started thinking about it. And then just the floodgates opened. It's been a very sad couple of days in my house. But I do think we're in the clear. It looks way better today. So hopefully Edie makes a full recovery.
Pet attachment and loss: A family reflection
00:08:30
Speaker
uh my god that it just having animals to me is like stressful in and of itself we have too many stated that before but you're i'm attached to them i know as much as they drive me nuts i'm very much attached to all of them now and
00:08:47
Speaker
Uh, I think the hardest thing is even for me was like, I feel, I do feel less like emotionally attached to Edie, but then I was like, Oh, I'm pretty upset about this. So it made me realize I'm more connected to this thing than I maybe thought. But then, uh, man, just seeing the kids deal with it the way they are, like it just, that's what's really tough, uh, is watching.
00:09:09
Speaker
watching your kids process it, something tough and challenging and sad like this as a parent. And you're just like, it's heartbreaking to watch your kids have to think about concepts like death. So anyway, that downer of the story got that out of the way. I'll go ahead and introduce our guest now.
00:09:31
Speaker
We're about to jump into a conversation with Andy Prince, our boy in Manchester Orchestra.
Meet Andy Prince: Music and skate parks
00:09:38
Speaker
Andy plays bass for Manchester. We fucking adore Andy. He's such a sweet man. He's such a fucking wonderful, nice, kind spirit. I don't know. We absolutely love Andy. You'll be hearing more from him again, for sure. We stay in touch a bit outside of this.
00:09:56
Speaker
He's expressed that he really likes doing it, and it's just a fun place to process. There's a lot of stuff that we could have got into this time around that we just didn't have the time for. And he'll definitely be back, and we'll try to get it all in at some point. But he's just a really fun guy to hang out with. Right now, Manchester's about-ish, soon-ish, about to hit the road with their anniversary tour for their co-op.
00:10:26
Speaker
I highly recommend making it out to one of their shows. They're just phenomenal life. I get into it here on the interview and just talk about how much I truly enjoy seeing them above most bands. I think the energy they bring to the stage is unlike what I feel like I get out of most shows. It's special and it's a moment. It's absolutely worth your time, your money,
00:10:56
Speaker
So please go give them a shot live. Check, even if you hear it recorded and you go, that's not my thing. Last time I saw them, I was with friends who they were playing with Jimmy Eat World. And my friends weren't Manchester fans. They were there for Jimmy Eat World. They had never really listened to Manchester. And one of them had checked out a little bit before the show, but, you know, she was like, I didn't sound like my kind of thing. But the friends I went with were
00:11:26
Speaker
after the show were like, goddamn, that was fucking phenomenal. There's just something special about the way they all perform together. So definitely make it out to that tour if you can. We're getting some real cool shit with Andy. He's got some real cool stuff going on. He partnered with an organization to help build skate parks. He just tries to find rad ways to fill his time when he's off the road and give back to.
00:11:54
Speaker
I absolutely love this conversation. I absolutely love any time I get to hang out and talk with Andy for a little bit and looking forward to them playing through Boston, catching up again next time they come through this way. So you guys should definitely do the same. Tell him you listen to him on the podcast and that you love him as much as we do. So enjoy our conversation with Andy Prince.
00:12:24
Speaker
This is Growing Up Christian with Shannon Tacy. Today we're talking about problems with your parents. That's it.
Organizing a skate park event: Challenges & surprises
00:12:35
Speaker
Perfect. Thanks, Andy. How do you agree with enough of their ideas to make sure that you get your inheritance?
00:12:45
Speaker
Because your sister would be scheming. That only works for you. I don't know about you, Andy, but I know I'm going to inherit a lot of chores when my parents die out. Yep. Yeah. Similar. And so before we hit record for the people out there listening, we were, we just went into about 30 minutes of communication with our parents. Somehow we got started on that, but.
00:13:10
Speaker
Yeah, I feel like we're in a therapy session already. I know. We started out with like heavy shit. Like, well, the first time I connected my parent as an adult was when my dad started drinking a lot. And it's like, that was an interesting way to start with our first 15 minutes of chatting after. It's been a while since we, so we, all right. Uh,
00:13:31
Speaker
We're here with Andy Prince, our buddy Andy. It's been a while since we last talked. It was over a year ago since you were on, I think. Yeah, yeah, for sure. A lot has happened, my friend. I know. And we tried to figure out, we tried to have you on a bit.
00:13:47
Speaker
a bit ago and then you ended up having some pretty serious stuff go down. But since we last talked and rescheduled, you had what? Like major surgery, your house completely flooded. That looked fun to deal with. I saw you handling that like an adult. Meanwhile, I know if that happened to me, I don't think my reels would have looked as pleasant as yours. You started not- It was the gurgling incident.
00:14:15
Speaker
You started a cool nonprofit. You've been a busy man. Yeah. Well, to clarify that, I didn't start the nonprofit. I joined one that was in place. My buddy John started years ago. And once I moved back to Pensacola roughly three years ago, I immediately
00:14:35
Speaker
started hanging out with him again and realizing it was something that I could possibly help with. And that's been really cool. And he spent eight to 10 years building a skate park here or getting it done through the city, which was like, you know, jumping through all sorts of hoops and finally got it done. And now we have this like incredible downtown concrete skate park and, you know,
00:14:57
Speaker
once that was built i was kind of here right in time for the ribbon cutting when they opened it and then we started scheming and for what the first event should be because the city had the ribbon cutting and all these people came out and it was exciting but we were like we want to do something for the skaters and something for you know like the local bands and
00:15:17
Speaker
So anyways, it was kind of insane. Months went by and we just started planning what it could be. And then he wanted me to book bands. So I did that and found out that there's also a bunch of like sweet local punk bands. And I booked those, you know, like five bands here. And then we had a pro team come in, which was incredible. The New Balance team and like Andrew Reynolds was here and Jamie Foy and all these, you know, we're
00:15:44
Speaker
We're skate nerds, so these are like rock stars to us. It was so cool, dude, and had a big demo.
00:15:52
Speaker
We got a bunch of vendors and we completely overdid it. I was so overwhelmed and stressed out, but when the day finally came, it ended up being really cool. We had to go out and get sponsors to pay for everything. We slowly started getting little pieces from companies.
00:16:16
Speaker
Um, you know, then I finally got like figured out a local bar would sell, you know, beer and liquor and that helped make us a little bit money back. Cause we, um, it was scary. We're like, we're going to be in the hole, like 50 grand if we don't, you know, if we don't figure this thing out. Um, and we ended up, you know, basically breaking even and we had a little bit of cash afterwards. So for about six months of work, we, you know, we made a couple hundred bucks and we were happy.
00:16:43
Speaker
But then a lot of it went back into the nonprofit and now we're working on a new skate spot here. And this one is something that we wanted to fund ourselves and not ask the city for money because you have to go through all sorts of red tape with the city if you're going to get it funded by them and have public funding and people will fuss over it.
00:17:08
Speaker
which they still do, even if it's privately funded. Because if you bring in the skaters, you bring in the riffraff and the drugs, the marijuana. Yeah, those are all familiar conversations. We're still trying to rewrite that with people. It's going well.
Funding skate parks: Financial and community hurdles
00:17:25
Speaker
Me being involved, when I was out, I did a tour earlier this year.
00:17:30
Speaker
in July and I had put up banners on the, um, on the merch booth that said to help Andy Prince build skate parks. And it had a link to our website. And I feel like I've talked to them about this last time, but maybe I didn't, but, um, I don't think you did. I feel like the announcement for that came out after, um, I bought the shirt with the QR code on it and, uh, thank you. That helped my one, my one buy. I single-handedly helped build a skate park. It feels good. Um,
00:17:59
Speaker
Yeah. I feel like that whole thing came out literally like maybe a month or so after we talked. So I don't think it came up at all the last time we talked. Okay. Okay. Good. I didn't want to repeat myself, but.
00:18:10
Speaker
But yeah, the band was cool enough to support that too. I was like, can I make some band t-shirts? We can sell them as exclusive online thing and the money will go to Upward Intuition, which is the name of the nonprofit. So we did this collaboration thing. And then my little banner that was at the merch booth, we toured around and eventually we were playing Nashville and this lady saw the banner and was like, what's this all about?
00:18:38
Speaker
and then hit me up on Instagram and was like, what does this mean? What are you guys trying to do? And I had a FaceTime with her and had John as well, John Shell, the guy that I work with. And we talked to her and she's like, you know, I'm in charge of one of the family members of the Frist Foundation, which is in Nashville, and they give away a certain amount of money each year.
00:19:03
Speaker
to, especially when it's something for youth, you know, they give away money to different nonprofits and they're like, this sounds like the type of thing that we would love to donate to. And they gave us $150,000 grant. Wow. And we had it in like two months. And I was like, wow. It ended up becoming friends with the lady, this sweet lady named Melissa.
00:19:28
Speaker
And she just had like the right personality. Her and her husband were super cool. And when she talked to me and John, she realized like, you know, we were in the right mindset as well. And we just, we just want to build cool stuff in this city for kids and have the stuff that we didn't have when we were younger. Cause we had like one skate park and a warehouse, which was awesome. But, um, but now we want to turn it into more of like a location and have Pensacola be known for skateboarding and, you know, have events with
00:19:57
Speaker
local bands and give them kind of a platform too. So it's been a super cool passion project that I didn't foresee myself being a part of something like that, but I just help as much as I can. And now we're working to get another skate spot built and we need a lot more money, but that's a killer start.
00:20:18
Speaker
And we, you know, we work with these guys down in Tampa, the platform group that design and are actually able to execute all the things that need to be done to make it happen. So I'm learning on the fly of like how all this stuff works. And then we're talking, we're having meetings with like parks and rec and the city and the mayor and all the, I'm like, what the heck? Like this is so weird and outside of, you know, the normal for me, but it's, it's exciting. I'm like, sure. If I, if I can be that guy, then, then I'll do whatever I can.
00:20:48
Speaker
You got a real Hillsong art type thing going. You made your first successful park plant, and now you're looking to make it a mega park. And then it's outward, it's an outreach sort of thing. We're looking for satellite locations, franchise, franchise. Angelism. Thank God for Hillsong for, you know, all that inspiration and great music over the years.
00:21:12
Speaker
I just have a real passion for creating spaces where we can share positive messages with young people who are into skating.
00:21:21
Speaker
There's a great documentary I just saw about that church. They're killing it. I imagine the amount of funds required to build a skate park is pretty up there because I have a gravel driveway and I would like it paved, but I can't afford that. I imagine that you just multiply that by a significant amount and it gets pretty costly.
00:21:47
Speaker
It's so much, man. You find out these things that the city spends money on, a playground that in a neighborhood that pretty much never gets used and the materials for it will basically rust and fall apart within 15 years. Each one of those is like 750 grand. We were like, what? Damn. We're trying to ask for some help with the skate park and the cities.
00:22:15
Speaker
It's tough to get through and I get it. They have a lot they have to pay for. We'd rather children die on rusty monkey bars. Yeah. Just the argument of what's going to be used. The skate park here is like one of the most popular and used city parks in the city now. It's constantly in use and families like going there and watching their kids skate and it's been this positive thing.
00:22:36
Speaker
Um, and so yeah, it's just that it's John's a lot better than I am about it because he's been in this game for so long now, like having these kind of big boy conversations with, with the city and, um, and he's kind of like fed up at this point with dealing with, you know, how much money goes into these things that don't seem to really have much of a return. So.
00:22:58
Speaker
Anyways, I'll get off that subject. But it's it's I like this subject. I want to know with your first skate park, the ribbon cutting ceremony. Did like the mayor come out with giant scissors and shit? Of course. And hell yeah. And and that's awesome. Like literally.
00:23:15
Speaker
With me and John, if I can make city officials look good by doing this, I'm fine with that. We actually want to make them look good. If they want to come out and cut the ribbon and say, this was my project, I don't care. I just want to get it done. And that's the whole point, is how do we play the game to make this happen in the right way?
00:23:37
Speaker
and just get it built. That's been the hardest thing is figuring out how to not piss people off, to not do it the wrong way, to not step on the wrong toes. We've had all these ideas of different places they could be, but there's all these reasons why you can't build here and you can't do that. There's core samples and geotech. They're telling us all this stuff about the soil and all this. There's always some excuse of why you can't do it here or there.
00:24:07
Speaker
And it gets a little, there used to be a school here. There's already way too many, there's too thick of a layer of children's teeth. We killed too many Native Americans here and we've deemed it a Native American burial ground.
00:24:26
Speaker
But I feel positive about it. It takes time and that's okay. It's something that I spend as much time as I can doing it, but also it's like I'm not making any money from it and that's a little tough just because I wish there was a way to. Maybe there is a way someday.
00:24:46
Speaker
and not in a way of riches just for the time put in because if that turned into more of a job, I would be really, really amped. Also, I've realized I have certain blocks of time when I'm off the road. Not a lot of people have that. They have their jobs, they have their families. I don't have kids.
00:25:09
Speaker
if I can spend time putting it into something that is going to build a landmark that I can see kids use one day and that I can too, because I still skate.
00:25:19
Speaker
be pretty cool. And when I die one day, something will still be there and that stuff's important. I feel like that's a cool idea anyways. I love that you guys do shows there too. I think that's it. I feel like I can imagine there had been pushback on that, especially if you're going to walk into a conversation with the city about how you want to use it for that. Now they have to worry about how old people feel about loud noises near them.
00:25:46
Speaker
You know, it's like people don't necessarily want to hear a punk show at 10 o'clock at night or whatever. I don't, maybe you wouldn't do them that late. It's not like it's a real venue in that sense where they do everything at night. But like, like those two things go hand in hand. Like I think that pairs well. It feels like a classic like show at the skate park. That's sick. I fucking love that. But I can imagine there's a lot of challenges that come with also wanting to be able to do outdoor music at those locations too.
00:26:16
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. It's interesting. It's just, it all takes going to the city and talking to them and then getting a certain permit, you know, that has to run through their board. And it's going to be for a certain area at a certain allotted amount of hours. And then once you have that, you're good to go. You know, as long as someone doesn't like set something on fire or, you know, whatever, which you never, that's kind of the scary part about it too is like.
00:26:42
Speaker
nervous all day when the event went down because there's, you know, there's, we got also got an alcohol permit and people are getting drunk at the end. And there's like, I just hope someone doesn't get in a fight or, or whatever. And like two hours into the event that we're doing a contest, it was also a contest.
00:27:01
Speaker
this guy had a full on seizure and like, oh shit, really, really bad one. And everyone stopped what was going on and like circled around him. But luckily we had paramedics there. But like he kept having a seizure for minutes and minutes and minutes. And I was just staring over him and paramedics are trying to like get him back. And I was like, dude, this guy is going to fucking die at our event. And this is going to be the worst day of my life.
00:27:29
Speaker
and he finally came back that would have been really hard for you it was i know that sounds terrible that's exactly what anyone would think but it's it's the truth this guy is so selfish yeah i know what a jerk bite a stick and shut up dude
Punk band names: A humorous brainstorm
00:27:53
Speaker
Stop shaking, man. No. You're like, put him on his side so he doesn't drown on his vomit. Jesus Christ.
00:28:01
Speaker
I, you know, that did sound bad, but the truth is, is it was like this, you know, he was apparently from his, what his friends said, coming off drugs. And he decided to go clean like within that 24 hours and come to the event. And then it was like, man, you could have just kept doing drugs for one more day. Yeah. I'm just kidding. Okay.
00:28:26
Speaker
I do feel like the show side of it, though, presents some interesting fundraising opportunities. Just like thinking outside the box, like what if you tell the local punk band, like, hey, you can play at the skate park, but you have to sell 50 tickets. Oh my God. Sully, I'm just throwing things out.
00:28:50
Speaker
I mean, if it's punks, you might want to be like, here's a pass, here's a free pass. You can skip the next 10 showers. That might motivate them a little more. My wife will help you sew a patch onto your disgusting denim vest. We give out free, no gods, no masters tattoos at every event.
00:29:18
Speaker
I do have a really good idea for a punk band name that I was thinking about today, and I'm not attached to it. I would love to see somebody take it and make something out of it, but I was thinking about like meatloaf, caused indigestion, and what about- Sounds like you've really thought this through.
00:29:39
Speaker
the loose leaf beef queefs. I think just beef queef is great. You might only need the second part there. We have Andy here to refine it for you. This is a real like brainstorm session. I've done this for years. My buddy Steve in Nashville has a list of stupid band names that he's been keeping for like the past 10 years and like he'd pull it up on his phone and go through it and we would just keep it every night.
00:30:10
Speaker
That sounds so fun. Aardvark Fartbarf was a really great one. Yeah, a lot of stupid punk band names. Everything could be a punk band name. Anything can be, yeah. Oh yeah, anything. It's so good. It's like comical grindcore band. You haven't been on the... You've been off the road for a little bit, haven't you?
00:30:35
Speaker
Yeah. No, I'm just kidding. No, we've been, um, we just had a show in Atlanta at the Earl at the smaller venue for our Patreon subscribers. And, um, it was all new material though. Oh, that's really cool. That's a cool idea.
00:30:54
Speaker
Absolutely terrifying because we've been working on songs for the past couple years on and off and had a couple different sessions where we'd go to a cabin or whatever and have a writing session and record and have those demos, then go back on another session and revise.
00:31:12
Speaker
We finally got a handful of songs that were like still not done, but we picked 10 of them and we're like, let's go play this in front of an audience to see how they feel. Cause especially when you're writing in a room, it is a totally different vibe. You don't have, you know, when you get on a stage, like.
00:31:29
Speaker
during sound check for instance and you can feel the kick drum that's like super heavy and it's got that live setting it sounds so good on stage and you got your monitors that's when you like will try out a song like dude okay this sounds cool or this sounds like shit and there's no vibe um so we're like let's go try it out and we'll see which ones are stinkers and which ones you know might be potentials and
00:31:54
Speaker
So we yeah so we booked. Thank God we did two nights, one without an audience, and then one with, and we recorded that because we wanted the audio from that as well. And that way we can take that information into the studio and and see what they feel like live, and then, you know, it was just an idea that's like,
00:32:15
Speaker
that would be very helpful because every time you show up at the studio you haven't played those songs forever and you have to relearn them and there's no vibe and you forget what they really need to be because we're going to go record a little bit later this year and
00:32:32
Speaker
It was just a cool experience because this first of all is like our Patreon subscribers are diehard fans and they got we didn't put it publicly we were just like exclusively to you if you want to make it here's you know here's the show you can come see new songs at and like pouched up their phones did the whole thing which was so awesome so everyone's super engaged.
00:32:53
Speaker
I would love for any show I go to to pouch up phones. Fuck, man. I'm so sick of watching shows behind several phones. It's cool. I know a lot of comedians do it and some bands do it. The thing is, it's expensive, especially for bigger shows. Luckily, this is like a smaller venue and we negotiated and figured it out.
00:33:17
Speaker
did what it was so cool it was it was really scary but also we we took it easy we're like look we don't have to put on this like
00:33:24
Speaker
elaborate performance. Let's have, we're all going to have mics on the stage. We're going to talk in between songs. We're going to talk before songs and talk about, okay, is this bridge here? Like literally, if there's a thing we need to go through, we'll just do it in front of people. Like, and hopefully they'll, cause if I, if it was like my favorite band, I would love to see something like that. You know, so it was still nerve wracking, but like that kind of lightened the mood a little bit. And, uh,
00:33:54
Speaker
So that was the last show we did and that was super cool. So we don't have anything again until we're going to go record and then we have some stuff later this year that, you know, some tours we have and yeah, anyways, super exciting stuff. And we just put out, we did a show just like that a couple of years ago and it was the Cope record.
00:34:19
Speaker
And we played it live for Patreon, same exact thing at the Earl. And we realized that was so much fun that we had told them that night, we're like, we're going to do stuff like this again for our Patreon people. And so we wanted to hold true to that word as well. So I think each year, or year and a half, or two years, whatever, we'll have something at that venue that's kind of exclusive like that. Because that's one of the funnest shows I've ever played, or two of the funnest shows I've ever played. So cool. That's really cool.
00:34:48
Speaker
I love, I don't feel like I've ever, I mean, I'm not, I guess I'm not privy to a lot of what bands are doing with their Patreons if you're not a subscriber, but I feel like that's not, that's not something I've really heard
Patreon power: Engaging the band's community
00:34:59
Speaker
of. And I think that's such a sick, unique idea.
00:35:04
Speaker
Absolutely. Yeah. What a fun, you know, saved us. It started during like when the COVID shut down, we started it and you know, it was never insane. There's like, there's a good amount of people on there and they've just become tighter and tighter like this community. And we would do, we actually did podcasts or still do, um, like a monthly podcast. And then we always, you know, when we started, we would just go in the studio and do,
00:35:29
Speaker
like basically our entire catalog but we would do different versions of them like you know calmed versions that are a little more chill or just try to get a different vibe for the songs.
00:35:42
Speaker
We did Christmas songs too, like during the holidays, which was really fun and made these really pretty, you know, Christmas records and all of it was recorded really well. So now we're able to like, if we want to, we can print vinyl of it and have live records. And there's always things that it forced us to become creative and stay busy. Otherwise we would have just done nothing. Yeah.
00:36:05
Speaker
And cause now once we have people relying on us and paying us money to produce, like you have to show up and continually do that. So it was like, it really helped us a lot. And the, you know, at one point we thought about shutting it down just cause we've, we felt like we were running out of ideas or our podcast would just be bullshit. Like we would just sit around and literally talk like.
00:36:28
Speaker
shit for an hour and be like, that was horrible. Some of them were trash, some of them were so stupid, but people still wanted to listen to it and they thought it was funny. People like that. Yeah. People do, I mean, Casey and I do that every other week still. People want to hear from
00:36:45
Speaker
the people they're interested in. I'm the band that I like I want to hear from. It just doesn't matter. You feel like you're in, you feel like you're part of something. Honestly, to some degree, if it's a group, the more natural conversational
00:37:01
Speaker
less directed is sometimes you're like, I'm here too. And I feel that there's like, you're hanging out with them. Yeah, that's why I love podcasts too. Cause I'm like, a lot of the time I'm driving or doing something like I always, even when I'm walking around the house or doing whatever me and my wife do the same thing. We have one headphone and an ear, you know, with the podcast going and she does too. And so we both have to like,
00:37:26
Speaker
Oh, hey, what's going on? And we both go down our phone and be like, okay, I can hear you now. What's going on? It's like Andrew Tate's right here doing dishes with us.
00:37:38
Speaker
Was the Cope live recording that you guys recently put out? Was that the one from that Patreon show? So that was from that show. That's the live audio from that. And there's a video we just did a premiere to on YouTube so you can go watch it live. Oh, sick.
00:37:57
Speaker
I have like so I had never seen you guys play before until after we last talked but now that we're talking about live recordings and and you mentioning like You never know if the song is like this idea of like let's play some new shit for our patreon members and it like does it hit does it not has it feel live really interesting idea because like I I'd only ever listen to
Manchester Orchestra live: A unique experience
00:38:24
Speaker
recordings and I feel like the way your music hits live was like so much different like there's a power to it and there's like an energy to it that I'm like I know this song but it feels so much different here and in this environment and
00:38:41
Speaker
Because for the most part, the shows I go to are just like the metal shows. And so you feel that. You feel that heaviness. You're going to a metal show. That's what you're kind of getting.
00:38:56
Speaker
But it's not like you with the music that you guys make, you can be in like, I don't know, it can be chill and relaxing and like you can just throw it on and you can feel it. And then when you hear it live, you're like this, the energy live versus like some of the moods that I have when I listen to it, like in my car on my drive home or
00:39:16
Speaker
my house is like, it feels so much different. And I think that's one of the things I absolutely loved about seeing you guys live was like, sometimes you go to shows and you're like, I watched this band play the same song and it sounded the same and it felt kind of the same, just a lot louder. And I think the energy that it brings, so I feel like I can imagine why
00:39:39
Speaker
you guys had the idea to do that, to try to craft that experience and see how it felt for you guys. Because I would have loved to have seen something like that. I would love for a band that I love to offer that up in that way, just because
00:39:59
Speaker
Even still, I wonder what it would be like if you heard it and felt it and then heard it recorded. You might even be like, I don't even remember this song because it translates so different live, but I love it. I think the way you guys come off live is just absolutely phenomenal. Thanks, man. Because we saw each other when you came out on the tour. Which show were you at again? When you guys were out with doing the co-headline with Jimmy Eat World, it was in Boston.
00:40:27
Speaker
Boston, that's right. Yeah, the Boston show, yep. Yeah. Yeah, I just feel like there's different types of bands and some are locked in and play their records exactly like the records. And there's something to that as well. And then there's bands that just go off and go crazy and turn it into a jam thing. And I think we're somewhere in between that. But we've noticed that about ourselves, too. It's like you make a record.
00:40:55
Speaker
get done with the record and then you go on tour and tour that and then all of a sudden the songs really come to life and change and there's these transitions and different things you add to it. And a lot of times you're like, shit, like
00:41:08
Speaker
I wish we would have workshopped that or been able to workshop that more before we recorded it. And I don't know, there's something to it as well though. It's kind of fun to take what you have recorded and then be like, all right, how do we make this more interesting as an experience?
00:41:26
Speaker
Um, but yeah, you're right. That's exactly what we thought about when we were like, let's just, let's try to do that initially and see what comes out, play the songs and then see if that can transfer into the recording. So hopefully that stuff kind of, you know, finds its way into the new recording and we have, you know, the same vibe. It's, it's gotta hate saying vibe. It's like the worst. Sorry.
00:41:51
Speaker
I feel like it's such a, it's like, um, it's a vibe. Well, yeah, I feel like, uh, I feel like vibes been around for a while. Uh, it was hanging on. It's at the, it's at the point now where they probably have a wooden cutout vibe sign at.
00:42:08
Speaker
F. Homemade. Dude, it's like epic, you know? Yeah, that's when a term has reached its F. Let's go. There's certain things I say I catch myself saying, and I want to punch myself in the face. I'll catch an awesome fish or something, and I'll be like, let's go! And I'll be like, why did I just say that? I sound like such a douche. Let's go has reached that point. Oh, I hate it. Yeah, that's so epic, bro. What do you say?
00:42:39
Speaker
Dude, what is a band that you would want to see do something like that? Probably like Queens of the Stone Age or something like that. That's I mean, I just think there, you know, as far as rock and roll goes, one of the most technical and cool, you know, insane, like talented rock bands. There's a bunch I could mention, I'm sure. But just over the years, I've just realized like that's, you know,
00:43:07
Speaker
That's the band. That's the rock band for me. Are you a showgoer or do you get like, because you play so many, you get sick of that shit? No, it's not that I get sick of it.
00:43:19
Speaker
Uh, there's definitely an element of, you know, being at venues all the time where I'm not as excited or like festivals. I definitely don't like being at festivals. You know, I, I rarely would go to one unless like, you know, I went to, I went to shaky knees a couple of years ago in Atlanta and we were supposed to play and we actually had to cancel. Um,
00:43:41
Speaker
because our singer Andy had a ear infection that was like piercing pain and it's the only show we've ever canceled it was horrible and it was like hometown crowd it was going to be sweet sweet time slot but i went anyways because muse was playing and i grew up listening to muse and like i had to see them live with dude it was incredible like they had a little artist area was you know i had a good view of the band and was able to hang out with a couple friends and just have a drink there and like it was a very like adult experience for as far as festivals go
00:44:11
Speaker
Um, that festival in particular is kind of like that. It's like more geared towards people past 30. So, you know, it's not like a Bonnaroo where it's like younger kids kind of like, you know, going crazy. And, um, that that's all fun and awesome. And I would definitely do that if I was in my early twenties or whatever, but these days it's like, you know, you know how it is. You hit 33 and you don't want to get fisted in a mud puddle anymore.
00:44:38
Speaker
Yeah, exactly. But there's also like, you know, a festival is not the best live experience you're going to get with a band. You want to go see them in like a mid-size venue or something special and, you know, like a Wilco or someone like that. Like I want to see them on their tour with their production.
00:44:56
Speaker
Yeah. You know, I don't know. I haven't been to a show in a while now that you'd mentioned that other than local like punk bands, which is, is that, that's always really fun too. Or just like we have a little place called the handlebar here and the skate parks right next door and we'll go
Local music scene: Digital impact on live shows
00:45:10
Speaker
skate. And then I'll just go walk over and like not know what's going on and go get a beer in there and watch bands I've never seen. And that's, that's always a cool experience. Cause it's either like the weirdest Florida shit you've ever seen, or it's like.
00:45:22
Speaker
someone touring from, you know, like regionally and it's like, holy shit, here's some young kids that are doing what I was doing when I was in my, you know, late teens, early twenties. And you can see like, you could actually go somewhere with that. You know what I mean? Like, so I always like buy their t-shirt or try to like talk to one of them or something. And, you know, I don't go up and say, Oh, I'm in this band. And but I don't say who I am. You know what I mean? It's just like,
00:45:49
Speaker
I just like being there for that kind of natural experience. Because back in the day, I would go to shows without knowing who was playing. Like we would just go because we heard a show was happening and then you end up liking bands and following them organically like that. And if I still have an experience like that, I try to have it.
00:46:08
Speaker
Dude, it's so interesting to think about the shift in shows and live music and local music. I mean, I don't think I've gone to a, well, that's not true. I can't say I haven't gone to a local show since college, but maybe one, maybe two, like not many. And it just, it used to, I don't know if it's because of like how accessible music became, where you can just like access it anywhere, anyone, any artist at any time, but
00:46:37
Speaker
I don't know. There's someone I work with whose boyfriend is in a local music scene right now and he's kind of like burnt out on it. I like to play some shows, like to play some music, but that drive that you have in your early 20s to fucking make it is kind of like dissipating for him from what I hear from her. And it's like, you just get like,
00:47:02
Speaker
I don't know. I don't know any of it. I don't and you think about how important it was. I mean, I was in a local band in high school, even it's like you think about how important that is to you to go out to play to like have people care. And I'd love that. I think that's sick that like you'll still pop into places where they're doing that. And I don't know. I just feel like even to even get excited about it or to see something that's good is
00:47:28
Speaker
and let them, to me that would mean the world to people, I would think. I feel like the local music scene is probably struggling pretty hard right now, and maybe it depends on where you're at, but I just can't imagine that it's like what it, and it wasn't.
00:47:46
Speaker
I don't know. Maybe I'm idealizing it to some degree, but I just we would play VFW or some shit like that. But I just I really can't imagine that it's it's doing as well as it is. It's doing now what it was 15 years ago. Unless you go teed cover band playing saltons of swing at like the pickleball court brewery. If you're a cover band, you can book any brewery. We know that. Yeah.
00:48:13
Speaker
Still do it. Yeah, I'm playing a show at a brewery Friday night. Perfect. Is it cover me? I do do cover music. Yeah, it's cover music. My brother's a drummer and my buddy John Hart is a fantastic guitar player and singer from here. We have a trio and it's sweet because we just do select shows that we really want to do and as long as it's going to be fun.
00:48:37
Speaker
It's for money too, but it's like, we'll make a couple hundred bucks each or whatever. Unless it's like, we try to, I try to find them like corporate gigs sometimes just to like, you know, cause what we've done is we wanted every once in a while too, we'll go to the studio and we'll like, a lot of that money we'll just pocket and put it away and be like, you know, let's write a song or two together with John. And like, we've done it. We've gone to Atlanta to my buddy TJ studio and recorded. It was like three days and it was so much fun. It was like, there's no, uh,
00:49:07
Speaker
I'm not trying to start a new project either or have it go anywhere or tour it or anything. We're just making music. To get the fire to do that again is kind of tough these days because no matter how awesome it can be, there's still burnout in any career and in any
00:49:25
Speaker
especially in music and i have to do the things that are necessary to like make sure i keep myself in check and uh and just give myself a reason to want to play and and make you know make sure it's exciting so we do that every once in a while and um it's also like the music's hard for me because it's like it's a lot of like old soul stuff and john is this
00:49:52
Speaker
virtuoso guitar player and I have to keep up with him. And my brother's insane too. So like to even today, I was like, I just got back in town from a trip yesterday and I was like, I need to practice for a few hours for the next couple of days. And then when I started, dude, I was like, I had grandpa fingers cause I haven't played until I was kind of scared, but.
00:50:13
Speaker
like two and a half hours went by and I started like, okay, getting that confidence back. Cause it's, it's funny. It's like, I really was like, Oh my God, I'm going to suck. Like I'm, you know, I have this fear for, it's not even for people seeing it. It's just for like, for John and for me and for knowing where, where you're at with something that you, you do, that's your passion and you, you see yourself kind of fall off a little bit or like lose a little bit of that speed or dexterity or,
00:50:41
Speaker
whatever it natural feel whatever you want to call it like that for me is a scary thing because I don't think it's fair to myself to allow that to happen. When I've gotten the opportunities that I've gotten in life, and I don't want to just sit around like wait for the big show to happen. You know, I want to like, know that I can I can hang with, you know, whoever
00:51:04
Speaker
And that's just really for me. That's like a confidence thing. And, um, plus it's just fun. If I can get up there and we play for, you know, three to four hours, typically just really good practice. And, you know, we do that. And I also do, I don't know if I told you guys, we,
00:51:20
Speaker
We have, I have a friend named Ben White that is a guy in Atlanta that cuts hair and he's like kind of internet famous for it. And he also is like a big lover of nineties grunge music and kind of like, is it like an encyclopedia for that era? And so fun talking to him about it. And he has a Nirvana cover band that he's had for years on and off and he's plays in a bunch of bands and, um,
00:51:47
Speaker
But he does the full thing like with his band. He's like Kurt and puts the wig on and does the whole thing, but his voice sounds great. And I saw videos of him. I was like, shit, this is, this looks fun. And I was like, I want to book you guys in Pensacola at the handlebar. You know, if you're, cause he will come in town for the, like these, you know, like hair clinics or whatever that they put on. And I was like, next time you're in, bring your band and I'll book you at the handlebar. And you know, maybe I'll play with like my local band and we'll do something. He's like, okay, cool.
00:52:16
Speaker
So we picked a date and he told, you know, he basically told me like, I'm going to be there. I can make it, but my band can't, they're all busy. And I was like, what if me and my brother were your band? And we played as a three piece and did Nirvana covers. And so we did and we, we booked it and we called it beer Vanna. And it was like, we played, uh,
00:52:37
Speaker
We played at, it was like Manchester had a show here and it was a festival this past year and we did an after party at a venue. Well, we've done two shows now, but this past one we did was like a little bit bigger venue and people came over from the festival afterwards. It was called Night Moves.
00:52:56
Speaker
showed up drunk and late and like we played our Nirvana songs and we all dressed like we dress like we go to this place called Albans Island here, which is like the cheesiest beach where like, you know, complete like Guggen bro bullshit that you would wear into any see a bunch of guys in a line that look exactly like you do.
00:53:18
Speaker
Yeah, like cut off sleeve shirts with like, you know, anyways, we just saw life. Yeah, exactly. Pucuchel necklaces and all this stupid shit. And so we dressed like that and I just want to have fun with it. And so we got up there and then we're, but we're playing like heavy music and it ended up being really fun in the middle of the show. We would just be like.
00:53:38
Speaker
We ran out of songs or, you know, Ben knows everything. He would start playing like a Creed song or something. And we would always get the people going, dude. People would immediately just be like, yeah, dependable. Like, what do we do next? It'll hit every fucking time. Yeah. And people were drunk and they were in there. You could tell they were like engaged in what was going on. So we would we would just learn the song right then and play as much of it as we could. And then we'd go song to song like that.
00:54:08
Speaker
And we did it, we were supposed to play for like an hour and we ended up, the venue had to shut us off. And basically the guys were coming out that were, you know, cleaning up the venue or like, everybody get the fuck out. And they started screaming at everybody to leave. And we, we pissed them off, but it ended up being like one of the funnest shows I've ever played. And like, they shut the PA off and then Ben, like his amp was still on and you could hear his monitor from stage.
00:54:36
Speaker
And he just starts playing semi songs, starts playing closing time, you know, while everyone's getting like, it was actually a really beautiful musical moment in my life. And so we decided like, we're going to do that every now and then. So we're going to play one later this year as well. And just like pick a bunch of stupid songs and you know, that type of shit is like, it's more comedy for us, you know, even if some people don't think it's funny, it's very entertaining for us. So.
00:55:05
Speaker
We're going to keep that going. Oh, just picking out the outfits would be fun in and of itself. Oh, dude. We had a whole beach day. We went and got beers, and we looked stupid. What's the look that you're going for? I want to look like I have to blow into my lifted Silverado to start it.
00:55:29
Speaker
That's exciting though that 90s music is hitting that point because that means like new metal tribute bands are right around the corner and that's where I'm going to, that's my 40s. That's what I want to do.
00:55:42
Speaker
Like starting like three years from now, I wanna be a cover band vocalist and we're gonna do Skindrid and Korn and Static X and it's gonna be awesome. You can do it, man. Trust me. If we can do it, you can do it. I would play here for sure. Like Wichita has definitely got a bunch of people that would just love to hear somebody play like in the end.
00:56:08
Speaker
My buddy Jeremy Spring in the band. It's called a band in Kansas. I used to tour with still. He does cover songs and with his band. I forget which the brickyard or something. I forgot what it's called, but he posts videos of it and it's like, it looks like a blast. Like it's a party every time. And I'm glad he's still like out there. He like books shows and he's, it's kind of a simple vibe. He's like having fun with it and.
00:56:32
Speaker
That's the whole thing too is like you could be a serious cover band and play that stuff and that be like your thing that you're riding on or you can just have a little more fun with it and realize like don't take yourself too seriously and it can be a blast.
00:56:49
Speaker
We, uh, the first, the first time we did it, we, we did it at the handlebar, this little bar I keep talking about, and we had booked. I just, I called the promoters like we want to do this stupid thing and we want to do it with local punk bands. And he put us on this bill opening for a band here called ego death, which has like these young kids and they have a very like strict following of younger generation punk kids. And they're very like serious about it and love the band and know every word and it's, it's sick. Like.
00:57:19
Speaker
I respect that band and I can see them as my younger self. That's the type of band I would have wanted to be in. We had never met them and we showed up in our stupid ass Alvin's Island gear. I had a boogie board under my arm. We walked in and these dude, the looks these kids gave us was just like,
00:57:44
Speaker
Who the fuck are these assholes? It was the greatest feeling because I was like, y'all didn't even know we're about to go play a show.
00:57:55
Speaker
We got up and set our stuff up and everyone was just like, bomb, dude. Then we start tearing to these Nirvana songs. The next thing is all these kids are doing a circle pit and running around and freaking out. It was the greatest shift I've ever seen of like, oh, okay, this is what's going on now. I think I've been in one mosh pit in my life when I was younger, but that night I got in one with my boogie board when Ego Death was playing.
00:58:24
Speaker
All the kids were going nuts and I'd added some drinks. I was all pumped up and I jumped in the, in the pit with my boogie board and was like, I tried to surf it at one point and these kids were like going nuts, like tearing me apart. And I was like, this is awesome. I'm 35 in the middle of this. It was, it's pretty sweet. Dude. And the idea, it's so funny to think like, I wasn't a Mosh kid either. Like, cause I'm not tough.
00:58:51
Speaker
I am not tough. I can't, the idea of getting a bit, when you watch, especially when you're like even near the pit, I'm like, you know, you watch the tough guys do this thing where they put their hand out like that. And you're like, and they're actually like tough enough where like a kick comes their way and they block the kick. And I'm like, I put my hand out. If my hand gets kicked, all that's going to happen is my hand is going to get squashed between their foot and my forehead. Like it just lands.
00:59:17
Speaker
I don't stop anything, I don't blog anything, but I like the idea of being near the pit and there was always those moments where you're like, oh, I'm going to do it. I'm going to do it. I get in there. I remember practicing, right? You practice your moves. You're 17 years old. You're like, I'll go to my backyard and put my headphones in practice.
00:59:37
Speaker
you're out in the woods it's like that scene from hot rod where he's like fight dancing in the woods it's like that metal kids who want to learn to mosh on a rock just learning to mosh it's sick and
00:59:51
Speaker
I could never bring myself to do it and I'll never forget the time that I really tried to do it. This is when Casey and I were at Liberty. Shout out my buddy Tito who's just a massive hunk of like just meat. He's just a big ass man. He's an unstoppable force really.
01:00:11
Speaker
He looks out for his friends, like a good hardcore kid. Obviously, those are the people you want to have your back. And we had this kid, was it Kyle Brady, Casey? Was that that piece of shit that would just- Burned in my memory forever. Fuck that kid. Chris's name's Kyle, dude. What's up? He might be the original Kyle.
01:00:34
Speaker
started he was just such like a piece of shit crowd killing motherfucker and you would I'll I just remember trying here we go I don't even remember what band it was but I'm like I'm gonna do it and I would and I I think I had hit him by accident and that ruined his night I guess so he was trying to come after me and I got bold like he was doing his little fucking cool shit in the pit and I
01:01:00
Speaker
he was getting near me so I kicked him and then that you know when you're a weak person and you make a big boy move and you immediately are like ah fuck like that yeah shouldn't have and I knew I was dead I was like well this is the night that I get this is the night that I've never been in a real fight but this is the night that I get my first real ass beating and um
01:01:24
Speaker
He came after me like from the pit you know cuz it's always like you do it in the pit so it's like you don't get like. You don't really get in the fight and you kinda can maybe like shrug off legal implications that way and.
01:01:40
Speaker
But my buddy Tito just stepped in and would like just one hand. It was like, boom, level them. It was over after that. That's a good friend. That's awesome. That was it. He was coming near me. He stepped over, knocked him down and then just grabbed him and they pushed him out the door. Cause it was like,
01:01:56
Speaker
It would all perish on a church property. It wasn't zoned. You shouldn't have been moshing in there. You could feel the floors just bouncing. There's no security hired at these shows. He just threw them out. No one let them back in. He laughed. Tito saved me from a savage beating too. Tito fucking rules. Somehow I was the slowest one in the group. Everybody got away except for me.
01:02:27
Speaker
I was just shuffling along and it's like a giant hand grabbed the back of my shirt and was like, get over here, like scorpion style. And I thought that was going to be the end, that I was just going to be a mangled corpse on the east campus ditch. And then Tito came back.
01:02:48
Speaker
This guy is an angel. Yeah, he really was. He really wanted to fight people. Yeah, he was probably more it. It's been a long time since I've knocked someone's teeth out. I can't bludgeon someone. That's why he made friends. Yes, I'm just a boy. That's why he made friends with weak people like Casey and I. I'm gonna make friends with people who aren't strong but get themselves into precarious situations so I can
01:03:13
Speaker
defend them. I think we should talk a little bit more about your skateboarding charity because
Skate park evangelism: A satirical take
01:03:26
Speaker
I'm trying to figure out where the ministry aspect of this comes in. It's great for you guys to scoot around on your little wooden boards and whatnot. At the end of the day, are souls being led to Christ? That's what I want to know. How are souls being led to Christ? Have you put any thought into that?
01:03:51
Speaker
That's a great question, man. Man, we had so many, so many outreaches like that when I was a kid here, which ended up, they were awesome because it was like certain churches would have skate night and these big events like on Halloween. Listen to some Avril Lavigne. Yeah, they would set up ramps all throughout the parking lot and a lot of times they'd have like
01:04:14
Speaker
You know, pros come in or, you know, whatever and have a demo and made like Ollie over as many kids as possible. Let's start with one and then there'd be two and then there'd be three and then there'd be back to two. Right. He didn't clear the three. Yeah. I never saw a kid get clipped. Like I was always scared because they would end up lining up like, you know, eight to 10 kids and these guys would go full speed through the parking lot and Ollie like, you know, anyways, that type of stuff was awesome.
01:04:43
Speaker
That's not really what we're doing. Well, I mean, it's late in the game, but I did. We can talk more about it, man. I mean, if you got like an outline of how we can pull this off.
01:04:57
Speaker
I found several actually. I was like, I wonder what comes up if you just type in like, skate park evangelism. Oh, it's wild. I mean- I maybe broke Google. There's so many. Yeah. We're basically doing all of that.
01:05:21
Speaker
but not having like any other motive of like, all right, now it's time to everybody sit in a circle and like listen to, you know, where are you gonna go when you die? Do you know, raise your hand if you're all that stuff, you know? And it's awesome. It was a great way for the churches to do it. And they provided some ramps and some good times for kids. It's just, you know, my path is a little more straightforward and hopefully
01:05:48
Speaker
If kids get, you know, inspired by that in some way or see God in that in some way, that's up to them. But I've just, from the upbringing I've had, that's, you know, not what I'm trying to do. I was that kid and, you know, maybe one day I'll get saved and I'll go down that path. But for now, I just want to build some parks and see kids enjoy it.
01:06:10
Speaker
You could fill the skate bowl with water and do baptisms in there. Yeah, that's a great idea. Dude, that's a great idea, actually. It's funny, there's like, well, when you Google that, there's like a lot of blog posts come up from people who they're giving an update on their ministry to, I don't know, I guess they're funders or whatever, but you can
01:06:37
Speaker
Like they all kind of read the same and you can tell like as the person is recapping, like, you know, cooking hot dogs for children at the skate park and then inviting them to cry. They're called glizzies now, Casey. If you're not calling it glizzies, you're not reaching the children. Right. Well, that's why I can't be in charge of messaging here. Every single one of them, there's like, there's a vibe in there where you could tell like,
01:07:03
Speaker
Oh, they think that they're about to franchise this. You can tell like every single one of them is like, I think we may have stumbled onto something. Apparently there's kids at the skate park and they'll eat hot dogs.
01:07:20
Speaker
Dude, I'll still take a free Glizzy. That sounds great. Yeah, for sure. Hot dog carts. Mine. A buddy of mine in college started a hot dog stand near where I worked when I was working downtown and I used to show up and get hot dogs for him. That was sick. So I found a 52 week devotional from what is this called? Skatechurchmovement.com.
01:07:49
Speaker
They're trying to get a thing going here and a movement.
01:07:53
Speaker
Let me read you guys a little of this. This is lesson one. Why were we created? To skate. I was street skating in China and came upon a spot that had perfect quarter pipe shaped structures. They were so perfect that we started asking the locals whether they were intentionally made to skate or if it was just a coincidence. Like, how could something so perfect for skating have just been made accidentally? It seemed too good to be true. That kind of stuff just doesn't happen.
01:08:24
Speaker
For many of us here on Earth, greatest intro to a sentence. For many of us here on Earth, just like I was questioning why that skate spot had been made, we will at some point ask the question, but about ourselves. Why am I here and what is my purpose? To get grinded on, baby.
01:08:50
Speaker
Yeah, it's uh, it's 52 weeks of that. That's awesome. A lot of, uh, you know, there's some discussion questions and dude, I just, I love the, like, like the desperate, like reaching for analogies from the like given subject, you know, like you're talking at, you're at football practice and, and you have to like talk about how Jesus has blocking for you, you know, or whatever.
01:09:18
Speaker
The only blocking Jesus ever did, for me, was cock blocking. That was it. Sure, but he's the best. He's the best at it. He never let the opponent make a goal. Let's put it that way.
01:09:42
Speaker
Yeah, so from there it's like, the purpose or meaning of life is often perceived as a great mystery pondered by people across the globe for thousands of years. Our current culture believes we will find meaning within ourselves by pursuing our own self-interest. Things like money, fame, and possessions are seen as the ultimate goal. The message we find in the Bible, however, is completely counter-cultural to this idea, like that term.
01:10:08
Speaker
Scripture tells us in Matthew 16 25 that if you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for Christ's sake, you will save it. Sounds about opposite from what the world is telling us, right? The scripture is telling us the key to the good life is realizing that it's not actually about us, but all about something much bigger. And then he quotes Rick 1.
01:10:30
Speaker
Oh, the most punk pastor of all. He's pretty punk for sure. What's less punk than being purpose driven? Come on. What are you doing, Rick? Yeah, there's a lot of programs, things that you can pay to go be a skate instructor for kids.
01:10:58
Speaker
But it's very explicit that you don't have to know how to skate to be a skate instructor. That's insane. That's literally the most insane thing of all time. You just made Andy mad. He's like, what the fuck did you just say?
01:11:15
Speaker
The skating's kind of secondary in skateboard camp, you know? Right, of course. I mean, when it's like eternal salvation versus eternal damnation in skating, yeah, of course skating's a distant second. For real.
01:11:31
Speaker
the amount of weird analogies and things I've heard after being at those events over the years. In those guys' minds, they were trying to do the right thing and I get it, but there's so much cringe involved. Because skateboarding is the antithesis attitude of, all right, let's go, I'll sit down and pray. After we've eaten pizza, it's like these kids are here to skate and get gnarly.
01:11:58
Speaker
The people in charge just had no idea of what core skate culture was all about. It's just the funniest outreach thing to me is to pick that being, you know what I mean? There's a way to get kids there. You build a ramp in a parking lot, they're going to show up. That part was awesome because it was unfortunate that there wasn't just other normal
01:12:23
Speaker
adult skateboarders that were like, let's build something for the youth and just give it to them just because we can and let them enjoy it. It's like- Freely given. Right. Right. We heard all about things being freely given. Yeah.
01:12:40
Speaker
but without a uh you know what's funny actually that you're bringing this up casey and that we're talking about like the bait and switch for like for trying to like pull skaters into christian i mean that's just whatever that's everything that's every aspect of evangelical christianity is like how do we like present as normal they never do but how do you present as normal and then like just like pull people in
01:13:07
Speaker
And I saw an article the other day, so like, okay, music industry, even like evangelical Christian, like there's a there's a pretty big exodus from that, that world. I think there's plenty of people who are still maintaining a sense of spirituality or finding a new thing for themselves. But like,
01:13:49
Speaker
Over the past month or so, some people have come up that have gotten recently saved that are public people. The LA Ink or whatever, whatever that person's name. I already forgot her name. We've just talked about like- Cavandi. Yeah, Cavandi. People with notoriety being like, I'm a Christian now. And that's kind of blowing the minds of
01:13:49
Speaker
For the most part, we're all watching people exit over time.
01:14:14
Speaker
as people are leaving in mass scale. But the one I just saw this week was Russell Brand. And he got baptized this week. And I was like, Oh, that's really interesting. He wasn't overtly like, I'm Christian now. But it's like, he worded in his very Russell Brand type fashion of kind of pseudo spiritualism. But
01:14:37
Speaker
When I see stuff like that, especially paired with people like Russell Brand, you go, okay, I, it's not going to be long before this gets even weirder. I imagine that's going to go in a very strange direction, but I'm sure it was priced to fight the globalist. Him and Alex Jones will be like tag teaming in pretty shortly, but
01:15:02
Speaker
Andy, I imagine you over your career have watched a lot of people kind of like chill out on that and maybe move in other directions. Have there been like, within that world, have you seen some people make major shifts towards it that were like, whoa, that was unexpected and wild? I mean, I've seen a number of things, you know, it's like, I think about that a lot too, because
01:15:30
Speaker
You're right. I've seen celebrities do that. I think Shia LaBeouf did that at some point. Yeah. He was one of those you talked about. Yeah. Pretty hardcore. And I was always like really interested because I wanted to hear what they had to say about it. Like a later in life shift after this long and all the things you've been through and then all of a sudden you're like, you know, I found Christ and like it's, you know, that's my, I just, you know, it's the opposite for me because of course I was basically like
01:15:57
Speaker
from the time I was born surrounded by a family that already believed, I didn't go find it myself. It was always there. We always went to church, and I was indoctrinated from a young age and didn't have the experience of going and living out my life and then being like, oh, I'm going to walk into a church and go with a friend and being like,
01:16:17
Speaker
Oh, I feel something here. Like I'm going to go towards it. And I watched people do that too. Like there was a lot of younger kids and me and my brother at the church we went to, we would try to get all of our skate friends that were like, you know, pretty ratty dudes a lot of the time to come to church with us and get saved. Cause we were like, we don't want to see our friends burn in hell. And like, we're concerned for their, you know, the eternal salvation and we would bring them and invite them to church all the time. And we had this like, you know,
01:16:47
Speaker
big youth group, which I kind of explained last time I was on here. And it was like, all these kids would come and of course there were girls there too. So it was kind of easy to like lure them in and be like, you got to come check this place out. And, um, one of my friends, my friend Matt, I used to skate with, uh, he was just like the funniest weirdest dude. And he was like, even at a young age, like pretty profound atheist, you know, and he had a really broken family and all these problems. And,
01:17:17
Speaker
And he just walked into our church when we finally got him to come and he like straight face was like looking around and he's like looking from side to side and he just goes, ah, smell Jesus.
01:17:32
Speaker
Dude, where is he at now? It's like the funniest thing I've ever heard. So we had all these characters that we would bring in and try to get them converted or whatever.
01:17:47
Speaker
Anyways, I don't know. Like I said, it would be interesting to talk to someone. I haven't really talked to anyone that's converted later in life and had them explain on a personal level what that really looks like. It's interesting. Even me, I'm not a closed-minded person to anything anymore just because I can't say one way or the other that I know
Faith journey: Doubt, freedom, and mental health
01:18:14
Speaker
for a fact, what is and what is not. And that's kind of the whole point in faith or in my journey is like, all of that could still be real. I don't know. But when I was raised the way I was raised, I had to basically, you know, be confident in the fact that I knew that Christianity, the way that I had learned it was the truth and that that was I had to be sold out for that completely.
01:18:44
Speaker
And if I wasn't, there was consequences behind that. And when I got older, I was like.
01:18:51
Speaker
I started thinking, I was like, so scary to look the other way for even a second. Because I'm like, God is watching me and seeing my doubt. And me asking the question of like, what if all of this isn't real at all? And what about all the other religions? Is that real too? Or is like none of it real? And I just started thinking about it. And I was like,
01:19:18
Speaker
I don't know. And that was the biggest conclusion I came to is like, it's not that I'm against or bitter or, you know, angry or anti or anything. It's just the fact that I finally in my life could say,
01:19:34
Speaker
you know, I don't know what and it was like this weight lifted off of my entire, you know, existence of that's so such a freeing thing to say because I was under this, you know, umbrella of like, you have to know, you have to know.
01:19:52
Speaker
And that was, you know, that's where I've been for years, honestly, is like, I've been searching and I'm open. And I've even been to a church or two, you know, just in passing and visiting, I don't regularly try to go. But dude, you know, that's the whole point. I don't know. And I will tell that to anybody and have the same conversation. And when people
01:20:14
Speaker
have this conversation with me, but they are so definitive about like, no, like they have it figured out in this way and explain it to where their faith is so strong and unwavering. And I'm like, that is so awesome for you. I'm glad for you because I don't have that in my life. And maybe it would help me. Maybe I would have somewhere to go to when I have like deal with anxiety and all these depressive episodes and different things. And I could go to church and
01:20:43
Speaker
You know, God would lift me out of that and be around all these positive people and have that kind of energy, you know, bring me back. And, but the truth is I can't go do that because I know the difference between what, you know, I've been through that my whole life and I don't, I, I'm not saying it's
Belief honesty: Accepting uncertainty
01:21:01
Speaker
not real. I'm just saying for me, I can't use a facade anymore or something that is, that I'm not a hundred percent sure about as a crutch to lean on for.
01:21:12
Speaker
Something that I need and you know what I mean? I can't just go like I'll just give it to God like God's gonna take care of me and all this like what I do now is I will I still will like pray and and Speak to what I think is like could be out there if something created me and created the earth and all of this existence I will still reach out to that, you know when I'm out in nature and I do those things like I'm like, it's an open it's an open conversation rather than
01:21:41
Speaker
You know what I mean? Like, Oh, I know how to pray and I know how to go through the motions of things. Like I just kind of opened myself up to it. And, and I think that's a good place to be. And maybe eventually I'll find my way in one way or the other, but I, knowing what I know now in the way that I have finally been honest with myself after all these years, like I can't fake, you know, one way or the other.
01:22:08
Speaker
And maybe it's a scary place to be. I don't feel scared. I used to feel scared. Like, what's going to happen when you die? Like, what if I really go burn for eternity? That's always going to be there. You know what I mean? Because that's what I was trained to believe. But I feel more secure and more free than I ever really have.
Life, death, and existence: A spiritual reflection
01:22:28
Speaker
And I'm in a lot more peace in my life than I ever have been, just because I don't
01:22:34
Speaker
You know, I'm still just trying to figure this thing out. It's a huge world with billions of people on it. And, you know, my life is so small and tiny and I know it's meaningful, but still like I really look at things in a bigger picture if I can, and the things that other people go through in the type of lives that they have to deal with. And, you know, we're born, maybe born into a situation that's like impossible. They'll never get out of, and it's like a war torn country with like fucking, you know, horrible things going on.
01:23:05
Speaker
And then I just have to be grateful for my life and try to figure out what I can. And anyways, I'm kind of rambling at this point, but these are the thoughts that I have like day-to-day and kind of, you know, when I'm driving or if I'm out fishing and it's a good place to be of like, what, what is it? Like I'm always pondering it. I don't put it out of my mind. Act like, oh, I'm just going to be an atheist and be like, there's only this or there's only that. I just am still at a place where I'm trying to figure it out. I think that's okay.
01:23:33
Speaker
I feel like it's, it's hard to even imagine like what, so if you're one of these people that that are coming into Christianity late in life.
01:23:46
Speaker
You're approaching it from such a different angle than any of us grew up with. Most of the critiques that we have of the church are cultural in nature. I mean, it's not necessarily spirituality and stuff. I mean, you can make all the tired Instagram video critiques of like, God commissioned genocide and this and that. Sure. Yeah. Okay.
01:24:14
Speaker
But I think what falls apart for me and I think for a lot of people in our shoes is one, the importance of certainty and two, the notion that certainty could ever, is like an achievable thing. When somebody tells me they know for sure that
01:24:41
Speaker
Like I had a conversation, I don't know, a month ago or something with a friend and we were talking about some of the stuff going on in Israel and stuff and he goes, well, you know, um, all I can say is that if you read the Bible, you know how it ends.
01:24:56
Speaker
And it's like, well, okay. Like let's aside from that being super dismissive of like crazy, like terrible things that are happening right here. You know, like that is dismissive. I don't believe that you believe that 100%. Like, like I don't believe that you have this certainty about those things. I think that maybe it's comforting for you. Maybe, maybe you feel pressured to portray it, like your relationship with it in that way.
01:25:26
Speaker
But like, I just don't think that that certainty exists for like most people. And so. Not if they're honest with themselves, like really honest. Right.
01:25:38
Speaker
So it's just not a valuable, like that was always a part of like the message to us and like the message that we were supposed to deliver to people like when we were evangelizing or whatever was like this idea of like, do you know where you're gonna go if you die? Like you can know for sure. And like there's just no part of me that thinks that that's an unknowable thing.
01:26:05
Speaker
And it's like laughable to be sold that notion at this point, you know? Yeah. Especially with like the irony that like, for me, like so much of my like, well, actually, before I go that way, two things that you said, Andy, that resonate is like, one, this idea of like that breath of fresh air when you go,
01:26:23
Speaker
I don't know. There's like a paradox to that because we're told that like, that uncertainty is the scariest thing ever. And that's what keeps us from it. It's what keeps us from that admission. We go, I can't because we're all it's like being told like, I'll compare it to having sex even where it's like, you can't have sex like sex is like this thing that if you do it, now, you're talking to a couple of people who were virgins until they were married, like good Christians, but
01:26:52
Speaker
accomplished lovers. It's still like, after you have sex, you go, that's, that's, that was, that was great. But that's what everyone was so worried about or weed. The first time I smoked weed, I was like fucking 2829. And I finally just go like, the next day I woke up and I go, what the fuck is this make believe
01:27:18
Speaker
that game that like that everything's the same. It doesn't matter like and you're you're given these high stakes for all these things and then you and you're afraid of them and you avoid them and then you do them and of course then they have their their their quips for that which is that
01:27:35
Speaker
that's what the enemy wanted the whole time. That's why you shouldn't do it, because then you go, it's not a big deal, and now the enemy won. Just like Eve eating the apple. It's the exact same thing. So it's like, I don't know, you hear that, but that's all, it's like all from people, those are platitudes. Maybe those people used to do some things that they don't think they should now, but they haven't for a while. Or they do, because they're all still jerking off to internet porn, let's be honest. And it's like,
01:28:03
Speaker
You just get to this point where you can't keep saying that this is awful and horrible and everything changes after you do it and have that not happen. Your muscles just stop tensing up. And then same with that feeling of just the acceptance and acknowledgement of I don't know.
01:28:27
Speaker
is the, that's the truth that sets you free. And it's like, it's hard. It's like what I also will compare it to therapy where it's like, you know, there's no magic bullet for therapy, right? But the healing process is just the acknowledgement of what you really believe and not what you fucking have to say when other people are around. Here's a person that I can tell whatever the fuck I want and know that if they, they can't say anything to anybody and they can process that with me.
01:28:56
Speaker
They can ask me questions from a nonjudgmental perspective, and that's fucking salvific for people who have so much shit going on up here. Sam finally getting in a room with the doctor and being like, I really don't want to kill a lady, but the idea is hot.
01:29:18
Speaker
And the doctor writes furiously in his notebook. Right. But, you know, adding to that, too, is like, you know, starting with admitting the scary place of like, I don't know. And like you said, it could pertain to anything in life. You know, for me, the big one was like, it's always the question which no one can answer, which is what happens when you die. And that
01:29:46
Speaker
That is the biggest one that we all ponder as humans, no matter who you are, how definitive you think, you know, your, your faith is or whatever it is that you believe in. If you sit there at face to face with someone, even when they have faith, like in our hardcore about it, and you ask them that question and you see the answer of like, if they're immediately like, well, this is what's going to happen. And then I'm going to go here and then I'm going to, you know, go to this realm and then see, you know, go to heaven or go to hell or go to whatever it is that they believe they're going to go to.
01:30:16
Speaker
And, you know, and you could, there's a number of religions, you go to different places, do different things, whatever. I still am like, are you sure? Like, is that, do you know that? Cause if you know that, that is sweet. I wish I knew, you know, but the truth is, is that I don't. And that's when I started to ask questions in my mind of like, what if it all goes black and nothing happens and it's just, that's it.
01:30:45
Speaker
Like there's no more consciousness at all. And that's the other end of the spectrum I was never willing to come to terms with for most
Conformity pressure: Facing judgment
01:30:54
Speaker
of my life. Cause that's a scary, you know, it's a scary thing to think first of all, cause it's just bleak and kind of a dark thought to have, but especially when you're raised Christian and you're always given the, you know,
01:31:09
Speaker
like your life is just temporary and you are here as you know to prove this and that and there's always this like this goal in life and this this test maybe God's putting you through or this there's always this meaning to it it puts such meaning to it and when you don't have that and you go like well what if it's just not what if there's just like the lights go out and that's the end that is terrifying for someone that's like a Christian or someone in faith
01:31:38
Speaker
And that was the scariest question for me. And so when I started pondering that more and more, I was like, but for real, let's ask yourself that and see how you can answer it. And are you, would you be okay with that too? What if you have two ways you can live your life, you know, or several ways, but two of them mainly is like, go towards what you think is going to be an eternal life and the spiritual afterlife and realm you may go to and things you may see and, you know, or.
01:32:04
Speaker
You can live your, what if you lived your life as if the lights go out and that's it? Are you, do you still have like, you know, a meaning to your life? Are you still going to try to be a good person, even if there's not this like trophy at the end? And that's where I started getting, you know, like asking hard questions of like, if even, and I've accepted both at this point of like, if there's absolutely lights out and all I have is this little short amount of time.
01:32:32
Speaker
I still find it to be beautiful enough and meaningful enough to try to wake up every morning and find meaning and especially in other people and in relationships and in family.
01:32:45
Speaker
And in nature, every, I find once I look around, I'm like, this is all awesome. If this is all I get and the lights go out, it's still awesome. Like it's still beautiful. So let's start there and live life in that, in that realm. Instead of, I was always living on some other planet, thinking about my life as this like blip and that the real thing was the spiritual realm and everything afterwards. And I was losing sight of everything that was, you know, right there in front of me.
01:33:12
Speaker
And I wouldn't focus as much or care about certain things as much. I found myself like kind of just kind of dismissing a lot of things that I should have been facing and dealing with because of the idea of like, Oh, well, don't worry. Like this'll all go away. And once you pass on and like go with your creator and, um,
01:33:31
Speaker
So I don't know. I'm not saying it's one way or the other, but I like to look at both avenues and still find meaning either way. And yeah, that's kind of been an interesting path to go down as well. And a lot of, I just feel like a lot of people aren't willing to accept that or talk about it and maybe they think it, but they don't talk about it.
Community projects: Meaning beyond beliefs
01:33:50
Speaker
And it's.
01:33:51
Speaker
Yeah, they're worried about judgment too. If they're like in church and if they're surrounded by Christian people, their family, like they're going to, they're going to, you know, go under the gun with, with conversations like this. And it's like, you're lost. That's what you are. You need to find the Lord. And sorry, my wife is trying to call me.
01:34:17
Speaker
Hey, can you guys pause for one second? Yeah, sure. Sorry. Yeah. I texted her too. I was like, Hey, I'm on a podcast and she's like, Hey, you could have just texted me. I was like, I did. I love you. That's so funny. You can't be mad at her. She rules. Well, since you guys are disregarding internal punishment, do we want to kind of like close with, uh,
01:34:42
Speaker
You know, just some skaters thoughts on sin. I think that's a great way to round out because my understanding was that skaters just by being a skater were actively sinning constantly in their identity and their enjoyment. So.
01:35:00
Speaker
It's safe to assume. It's hard to believe that they could have thoughts on it that are credible. It'd be like, you know, your pastor having thoughts on sexual immorality while he's having sex with his secretary. It'd be like, that's kind of what it would feel like to me. But go ahead. You have a lot of business lunches at the casino, like maybe you're a degenerate gambler.
01:35:26
Speaker
So what is sin? This is lesson 12, 12 weeks in. The theological definition many scholars give to sin is that it is any transgression of the law of God. But that's a little difficult to understand. So let's look at it a different way. Think back to when you were learning to Ollie for the first time.
01:35:47
Speaker
You watched your friends or a trick tip video and practiced over and over. Now imagine, instead of popping the tail, sliding your front foot up the board and jumping up in the air, you decided to practice by slamming your back foot down in the middle of your board and pushing down on your front foot. Should I be horny right now? Maybe, maybe. What's going to happen? Are you going to Ollie?
01:36:15
Speaker
Something's going to happen, maybe, but it isn't going to look like an ollie. Why? You tried to do it your own way, but failed because you didn't follow the basic laws of physics, the basic movements of the ollie. If you keep choosing to do it your own way, you will actually find that you won't be able to use the skateboard in the same way that it was intended. You might even end up with a broken board. Oh.
01:36:44
Speaker
This is powerful stuff. This is rough, dude. It is so mad. He's like, I was pondering my existence, and now you've made me want to actually end my life. It's crazy. Oh, no. I just wanted to go black now, please. Another dead corpse under the Pensacola community half pipe. Nothing's more comforting than lights out for good right now.
01:37:14
Speaker
Oh man. I love that. That's a vibe killer. That's like, that is a, uh, you send me that please. Absolutely. Absolutely. I will publish this. It's free free use. Yeah. The worst things often are we read through a cool Christmas note. Yeah. Birth of Christ through Marvel characters, blending, uh, sketch that was available for free. Uh,
01:37:43
Speaker
Yeah, it was like superhero nativity. Yeah. Jesus is the real superhero and shit. It was awesome. Oh, well, that's cool. Yeah. It was maybe a little too long and didn't make for the best episode we've done, but we did the whole thing and we were committed to the act. So yeah, Sam did an excellent Batman voice. Yeah, everybody loved it.
01:38:10
Speaker
Well, where's the best place for people to go if they want to like get a better look at like what you guys are doing and, you know, get involved, make a donation, see if there's anything local going on. We have Instagram, Facebook, and then our website is upwardintuition.org is the website. And then the, you know, Instagram, you can kind of, we post all the clips of what we're kind of up to and even just skateboarding and stuff. And that's just upward intuition on Instagram.
01:38:40
Speaker
And then we, you know, we have Blake Doyle skate park, which is the skate park that was built here and named after a buddy of mine that passed away a few years ago, which is like, one of the coolest things to that we got, we got the city to name it that and
01:38:57
Speaker
It's a big deal for us down here and a lot of people were really close with Blake and every time we skate there and stuff like that is sweet. That's why we want to build more and there's different stories like that and people that are helping us now that have had like, there's this guy Russell that his son died and he was 13 years old.
01:39:22
Speaker
You know, we want to do a memorial for him as well. And it's just as unfortunate as it is now he's like, you know, helping us with our with our nonprofit and all the meetings and he's stoked about it. And it's given him kind of a new direction to go into. And it gives me, you know, the fuel to like to realize that this this stuff means a lot to people. And even if I can lose sight of it sometimes and
01:39:51
Speaker
It sounds just like skateboarding or whatever, but it means a lot more to people than just a little skate park or a little patch of concrete. I have to remember that. That's what we're chasing after. I'm just going to stick with it and see it through because you can get really discouraged with
01:40:15
Speaker
the pace of things as they go along and all the roadblocks you run into.
Building connections through skate parks
01:40:20
Speaker
But yeah, we've also seen a lot of great things. I've met a lot of awesome people. If you have questions or want to hit us up on our Instagram, give us a DM, or if you want to get involved somehow, just hit us up. Eventually, it'll move into a direction where
01:40:40
Speaker
You can go on the website and there'll be a little form. It's like, where would you like us to build a skate park in your area? Yeah. Enter it in. Yeah. I mean, do we're already, hit me up about that. Cause you know, they want to learn how the process works and in their city. And there's, there's a lot of online forums that outline that already. And I'll send, I'll send people that because we're so busy with what we're doing on our one spot right now that
01:41:06
Speaker
getting involved with another project is nearly impossible. But in the future, once we have proof of concept with this one, and it's publicly funded and it works, that means anybody could do this. And if you're the type of person that wants to get involved and do something for your community, even if it's something small, it doesn't have to be this huge landmark thing. It could be like, you could build a concrete mini ramp and have your community fund it.
01:41:34
Speaker
and get a permit from the city and find out a park that's not in good use and maybe an area where kids skate and don't have anything to skate and you can go through the motions and have that happen and it like.
01:41:50
Speaker
People are looking for something too, like searching for meaning to get involved with something and trying to figure out their day-to-day life and their work and jobs and just kind of like, what am I doing with my life?
Positive actions: Small impacts in daily life
01:42:01
Speaker
And when you start working and doing something and seeing other people get excited about it and can invest in other people, it really brings you a lot of,
01:42:09
Speaker
energy and meaning of like, okay, I've been living selfishly for a really long time and when I start investing in other people, all of a sudden, my life gets enriched and more fun, honestly, and more rewarding.
01:42:29
Speaker
Prolong this even more but I find what you said incredibly ironic and a cool way to end because We you know, we talked about all that certainty that people have about Christianity and shit and it's like you literally just said the thing that we were taught like invest in other people it's about other people and that's what is meaningful and invigorating and despite it being challenging like
01:42:55
Speaker
Yeah, you might need that recharge here and there, but that's what brings value and allows you to live your life aligned with values that we've all had that were instilled in us. And it's like, to hear that, I'm just like, that was it. In a lot of ways, our ethos has haven't really changed despite our questions and our
01:43:17
Speaker
And a lot of times the world that we grew up in, we were told those platitudes all the time, but I rarely saw other people do anything. I saw people volunteer once a week to hand out shitty pants to homeless people. I didn't see a lot of action and a lot of people getting involved in stuff that was deeply meaningful. It was like, I just do this alongside my life and it hasn't really impacted me on my day-to-day life. But I fucking hear shit like that where it's like, you and your buddy,
01:43:47
Speaker
And the others who have gotten involved are just like grinding for something that matters to give something to people just for the sake of it without anything in return. Like that's the whole, that's the fucking story to me. That was the fucking story. That's what still lives in me and matters to me. So I love hearing that. I thought the way you just explained that was like exactly it. Like that's the fucking point of everything.
01:44:15
Speaker
Yeah. Well, that's as beautiful, man. I mean, for hearing stuff like this too, you know, in the past I've like seen other people get involved with, you know, nonprofits and find like this meaning in life and something to go towards and they've been successful with it and got built. And I was like, man, I wish I could do that. And I would always, then I would have almost feel bad about myself. Like I haven't found that thing yet. But the truth is, is like,
01:44:38
Speaker
even the smallest thing when it comes to giving to other people, like talk to someone in your life that you care about. Like when you have a conversation, a lot of the times in the past are so selfish. I'd always talk about myself and be one of those people that talks at people and not really listen. And now, you know, with, with some of my friends, I try to consciously listen to what they say and then encourage them. Like think about a way I could encourage my friend. I was talking to my friend Simon yesterday on the road and I was,
01:45:06
Speaker
I was taking this eight hour drive from South Florida and I just listened to what he was saying and then I was like, I started encouraging him about his life. I was like, I'm proud of you and I've seen what you've done and it's amazing all these things you said you were going to do back in the day and now look, you're doing them and like, just start there. Like when you talk to other people, say one encouraging thing
01:45:27
Speaker
to them about even if they're like you know not doing great and you will the way you feel is like incredible you're like and don't be fake about it but like really just try to give for a second and start there you don't need to start a foundation you don't need to build a skate park just when you talk to other people try to look at it that way and then eventually you'll find your your way but that's given me a lot of meaning and like
01:45:53
Speaker
Just try to have your relationships flip a little bit instead of like, yeah, your situation may suck and like you just want to like air it out to somebody. But once you're done doing that and talking your piece, it's nice to have someone to listen to, then stop and listen to what they say and try to encourage them and be like, dude, you can do this. Like you, you can get through this. There's light at the end of the tunnel, whatever it is. Like, even if it's you just try it, like try to say something positive and encouraging to,
01:46:20
Speaker
anyone in your life or even some people don't know and it'll really give you energy that you didn't think you had. You'll come away from a conversation and be like, I feel like I have energy now, I feel lighter, I feel excited and it's because I gave something positive to someone else and watched them receive it and watch their face or watch them be like,
01:46:42
Speaker
Thank you, man. That stuff goes a really long way. I'm just trying to encourage people out there if they're like, well, I can't start a foundation. I got a job. Just do something really small. Try it out. Just say something that is real to someone else that means something and it may change your life if you continue going down that path.
01:47:06
Speaker
And we've all felt that we all know, everyone listening, all of us, we all know what it feels like when people have done that for us. And it's, it is funny. It doesn't often like you have to consciously make the effort to do that. Yeah. We're all kind of trying to solicit that again. I think you know how that feels and you, we all want that. We want to be validated. We want to be heard and understood. So it's like, if you just take a break.
01:47:31
Speaker
from yourself to give that to other people. It fucking goes so far. You don't have to make an Instagram reel about it. Just do it for real and don't post it online and you will feel much better. 100%. We start all our Instagram reels with just like girls twerking in thongs so people stop on it and then it just switches to our dumb bullshit. Yeah.
01:47:58
Speaker
Today, I woke up, I had my smoothie, and I decided that I was going to make somebody's day. So I went to Walmart, and I asked the first three people to guess a number between 1 and 10. And the winner got $1,000. The losers got tricked into shoplifting. And that weird Instagram AI voice, whatever that is. Oh, yeah.
01:48:42
Speaker
the vlogger cadence.
01:48:45
Speaker
ruining what that looks like to commodify it. Right. We'll just do it in private. That's the difference. That's it. I honestly think that most of sincerity now is just not making a video about it. Taking a selfie when you do it.
01:48:59
Speaker
That's really what it comes down to. You can do something nice without making a post out of it. You're most of the way there. That's good work.
Sincerity and motivation: Humorous reflections
01:49:10
Speaker
I'm very guilty of both sides of it as well. I think I'm trying to balance it out at this point a little bit. Every time you leave a tip and you don't tell somebody about it, you get a jewel in your crown in heaven. Oh my God.
01:49:26
Speaker
I mean, dude, even honestly, what I'm doing, like the little bit of work I've done, you know, people will say really positive stuff and be like, dude, I see what you're doing with like the skate parks and the kids and like, it's so cool. And I just, I feel like I haven't, I feel icky about it. I'm always like, I haven't done shit. You know what I mean? Like, let me just work and I'm not, I'm not trying to do it for that. I'm really not. I need to do something for myself so I can actually
01:49:52
Speaker
you know, go to bed at night and tell myself like, you're not a complete piece of shit, dude. That's what I'm going for here. Hell yeah. I feel that. The American dream. Yeah. I mean, if I can feel that for a little bit of the day. For the time that I'm not suppressing my feelings with alcohol and drugs, I want to not feel terrible. That's my motto. That's the gospel right there.
01:50:22
Speaker
Oh my God. Well, dude, it was great talking to you again. Thanks for hanging out again. You guys too, man. Thanks for what you're doing, brothers. I know you're going to... It's a little while before you hit the road, but I'm very much looking forward to seeing you guys when you run through Boston again. It'll be nice. I'll plan on catching up when you come through.
01:50:46
Speaker
Invites open for both of you guys. If you ever want to come see a show, you'll be on the guest list and come hang out. Thanks, man. Absolutely. Well, I'll take care, man. I'll be in touch. You know where to find me. Yeah, for sure, dude. We'll definitely be in touch. It was great talking to you, dude. Yep. Likewise. Peace everybody out there. Yeah. Thanks everybody for listening. We will see you next time.