Latest / The Delicious Culture with Jon Francois / Lost Was Delicious w/ Steve McHale

Transcript

Lost Was Delicious w/ Steve McHale · The Delicious Culture with Jon Francois

0:00
Delicious, grab a plate and taste the delicious
0:02
culture. I'm your host, John Francois. We are
0:04
feasting on food, pop culture and lifestyle with
0:08
Marine Corps veteran, meditation and mindset
0:11
teacher and host of the upcoming The Chaos Alchemist
0:14
podcast, Steve McHale. What is a delicious meal
0:18
that you've had lately? The first thing that
0:23
comes to mind is probably one of my favorite
0:26
dishes. It's chicken tiki masala. So good and
0:33
What irks me about it is it's so good and I want
0:39
to make it so good But I cannot make it the way
0:43
that the restaurant nearby like they just I don't
0:46
know the secret sauce, right? So Just have to
0:50
go there and get it and but it's man is it's
0:53
such a treat judging your reaction there Well,
0:56
yeah, not only that, but like me and a recent
0:58
guest, Caitlin Croker on this podcast, we talked
1:01
about chicken tikka masala being like favorite
1:04
dishes that we will eat over and over again.
1:06
There's just something about Indian food that
1:08
we could go crazy about till the cows come home.
1:12
And I feel like there might be different ways
1:15
of making it. Like, for example, the Indian restaurant
1:18
where I had chicken tikka masala recently, they
1:20
had like a sort of a red curry sauce with it.
1:25
It was more of like a marinara kind of thing,
1:27
more of like a spicy thing. What kind of chicken
1:31
tikka masala do you have? Is it pretty much the
1:33
same or is it different? Well, they and that's
1:36
the thing is I love spicy. But. Theirs is more
1:41
of like an orange kind of sauce. It's a lot creamier.
1:45
You can obviously taste the tomato in it, but
1:49
that cream and the different spices that I just
1:52
can't put my finger on. I love it not spicy because
1:59
you can taste the plethora of flavors, but I
2:03
always want to get it spicy too. But if I get
2:05
it too spicy, then it just... destroys all the
2:07
different flavors so I'm like torn you know I
2:09
mean like a lot of times I'll get one that's
2:12
medium heat and then one that's just plain so
2:15
that I have the best of both worlds but in general
2:18
it's it's more of like an orangey silky creamy
2:22
type of sauce versus like a chunkier marinara,
2:24
I guess. Yeah. You're reminding me of the friend
2:28
that I had that Indian lunch with. He had a spicier
2:32
mango sauce and compared with like the very mild,
2:36
plain red marinara like curry sauce. It was,
2:39
it was quite a difference. It was quite a kick
2:41
in my mouth. Um, but yeah, like I know what you
2:44
mean, like, because if you have something that's
2:46
too spicy, all you're thinking about is, Oh my
2:48
God, it's so hot and I want to get water or milk.
2:51
um, and you're not tasting anything. Like you're
2:54
really just tasting how hot it is in your mouth.
2:57
Whereas if it's not spicy, it's, you know, you
2:59
get a chance to taste all the flavors, figure
3:02
out what you like, what you don't like, what's
3:04
different about this compared to the last Indian
3:06
meal that you tasted. So yeah, yeah, yeah. That's,
3:09
that's, that's fabulous. So, um, yeah. So you,
3:12
so you have a great Indian restaurant over there.
3:14
I think you said you were from Northwest Indiana.
3:17
Yeah. So, uh, the one that There, there was a
3:20
couple other ones that I think have closed, but
3:24
they didn't have chicken tiki masala. They had
3:26
butter chicken, which is kind of similar. Yeah.
3:28
Um, and also good, but you know, it's not the
3:31
same as, as, uh, um, Tandoor is the, is the place
3:37
that we go to. And yeah, along with their, uh,
3:42
basmati rice and the garlic naan. And that, again,
3:47
that sauce, like I would, I literally will drink
3:49
that sauce. It's so good. Yep. Yep. Absolutely.
3:56
Drink it just like it's one of their mango lassi.
3:59
Do you like a mango lassi? Oh yeah. Those are
4:01
good too. For sure. That's another treat that
4:04
I sometimes I'll, I'll splurge on. I don't think
4:07
about it often enough though. So, but yeah, all
4:10
those, I don't know. I don't know what it is
4:12
about Indian food and Just like foods from that
4:16
area. Like it makes me think of like Vietnamese
4:20
too. Like Banh Mi is just a combination of cilantro
4:25
and pickled. What is it? Carrots or I know there's
4:31
carrots and cucumbers and like jalapenos or something
4:35
like just the weird variation that they put together.
4:38
And it's just like fascinating how it just comes
4:42
together in your mouth and. meld so well, like
4:47
not something that you would normally think about.
4:50
What was that Vietnamese dish that you just mentioned?
4:52
A Banh Mi sandwich. Wow. And I'm sorry, it has
4:56
cucumbers and what else? Yeah. So it's, if I
5:01
remember correctly, it's got cucumber, cilantro,
5:05
carrots, maybe pickled red onions and like jalapeno.
5:09
Like it's such a weird combination. A very veggie
5:13
like. Sandwich I would imagine. Yeah, but you
5:15
get with uh, you can get with meat So it's not
5:18
like that's the the salad part of the you know
5:22
If you get it with pork or whatever on there,
5:24
but yeah, just those veggie combinations. It's
5:27
it's wild How would you describe it in your mouth?
5:29
Like what kind of sensation does it give what
5:31
kind of taste? I'm you literally get just All
5:36
those flavors like think of all of those flavors
5:38
singularly You can taste like the carrot the
5:43
cucumber the cilantro like they meld but then
5:46
you can also taste them Singularly too and and
5:51
then with the heat and I think there's Like I
5:56
don't know if it's just straight mayo or some
5:59
kind of aioli Yeah, it's just a fascinating crunch.
6:03
So you got the crunchy the bread is is nice and
6:06
chewy the meat gives you the the substance to
6:10
it. So it's got multiple different layers of
6:13
flavor and texture between the soft and chewy
6:17
and crunchy and all of it. I forgot what the
6:21
aioli. So aioli, is that like a sort of like
6:24
a thousand island dressing version of mayonnaise?
6:26
I forget what aioli is. It's, I believe it's
6:31
just an aioli is just a kind of, it's basically
6:33
like a mayonnaise. like a gourmet mayonnaise,
6:36
but you can do so many different things to it.
6:38
I think it's like a mayonnaise base because they're
6:41
like garlic aiolis and chili aiolis and stuff
6:45
like that. I believe an aioli technically is
6:49
just like a mayonnaise base type of sauce. So,
6:53
but I could be wrong because I'm not a chef.
6:58
Uh, yeah, so definitely have to, uh, get on that
7:02
aioli and, um, the Vietnamese, I don't think
7:07
I've ever had Vietnamese other than like literally
7:11
when I used to deliver for DoorDash, I would.
7:13
deliver Vietnamese food to people. That's the
7:15
closest relationship that I have to it. So I
7:17
definitely have to try that Vietnamese restaurant
7:20
that I'm, that I'm thinking of me and my wife
7:22
have to make a date there sometime. Um, yeah,
7:25
as for the Indian food, I, I, I mentioned this
7:28
again on the Caitlin Crocker episode, but I loved
7:31
it so much that I made my wife essentially make
7:34
it at home and her butter chicken with the white
7:39
rice and then the pre -made garlic naan. The
7:43
best. I mean, especially when you dip the bread
7:45
in the butter chicken, the sauce, and you eat
7:48
it like so. Sometimes I make a little sandwich
7:50
out of the garlic naan and the butter chicken.
7:54
It's just, I mean, there's really nothing like
7:56
it. And like you said, I mean, something those
7:59
Indians are doing are right. Yeah. I mean, and
8:03
that's the fascinating thing. And that's what
8:05
I love about food is So many different cultures,
8:09
there's so many different ingredients. And again,
8:12
like it's ingredients that you, that most of
8:14
the time you think cilantro, you're thinking
8:16
Mexican food, right? Because that's what you're
8:18
normally, you're not thinking cilantro for Vietnamese,
8:22
or I think they even use it in the Indian food
8:26
dishes as well. I think so. I'm not a hundred
8:31
percent, but I believe there's dishes, Indian
8:33
dishes that use cilantro as well. So, you get
8:37
programmed to think that all these specific items
8:40
are just one note over here for a taco or whatever,
8:45
but man, you can make so many other things when
8:48
you just branch out. And that's the beautiful
8:51
part about all the different cultures is they
8:53
have their own things. And I think it's just
8:56
based on what's growable in each country, right?
9:03
Correct me if I'm wrong, but that's, I think,
9:07
how cultural foods got started as far as what
9:10
you could physically grow in your country based
9:13
on where you lived in the world, the Irish and
9:16
their potatoes and whatnot. I don't know any
9:20
Irish dishes with cilantro. I don't think they
9:22
can grow cilantro in Ireland. Does cilantro taste
9:27
like soap to you? I know that's a thing for some
9:29
humans. My wife, it tastes soapy in her mouth.
9:33
What about you? Not to me. I've heard that my
9:37
ex -wife was the same way and when I used to
9:39
cook on the weekends I would have to make like
9:43
three different salsas and three different guacamoles
9:46
because when people came over I had to make a
9:50
a plate like a non -spicy salsa and then a non
9:53
-spicy without cilantro and then a spicy with
9:56
cilantro and then same thing for the guacamoles
9:59
you know so she had hers without the cilantro
10:01
and anybody else that didn't like cilantro and
10:03
then like so yeah but anyway I, not to me, I
10:08
love cilantro. I can, you can have, can't have
10:12
enough of it in my opinion. Yeah. I was looking
10:16
online, like for some people, apparently cilantro
10:19
tastes like soap because it's like a genetic
10:21
variation. in their system that makes them highly
10:24
sensitive to certain aldehyde compounds in their,
10:27
in the herb. So that's just scientific speak
10:30
for some people are different than us. It's like
10:33
the difference between right -handed people versus
10:35
left -handed people. You're just born that way
10:36
just because. Right. Yeah. Everybody's taste
10:40
buds are different, right? Like, and, and the
10:42
funny part is I think I'm, I don't know about
10:45
you, but they kind of evolve as we get older
10:48
too. Things that you used to hate as a kid actually
10:53
if you try them again as adult actually kind
10:56
of tastes good At least that's my experience.
10:58
I don't know if you've had anything happen that
11:00
way, but I don't know about your experience,
11:02
but like sometimes You you develop a taste for
11:06
things that you hated as a kid Growing up, so
11:10
I don't know if you've experienced that or not,
11:13
but I've yeah Russell sprouts As a kid, growing
11:18
up in the 90s and 2000s, I think there was a
11:20
lot of places in pop culture where it was like,
11:22
brussels sprouts, ew, disgusting. And I actually
11:27
read something where it was like, brussels sprouts
11:29
used to have some kind of ingredient back in
11:32
the day that made them nasty the way they were.
11:38
Let me see if I can look this up. Why were brussels
11:41
sprouts nasty? I think it's in the way you prepare
11:45
it to even. Yeah, it could definitely depend
11:47
on the way you prepare them. But yeah, maybe
11:51
they just used to have like a like a natural
11:53
bitterness and odor that could cause discomfort
11:57
in both the taste and digestion, but My wife
12:02
made some Brussels sprouts a few years ago and
12:05
I don't know, like maybe you put a little bit
12:07
of salt on it. Maybe you dip it in ketchup and
12:09
it just tastes great. So that is good. Um, I
12:14
used to not be crazy about chocolate back in
12:16
the day, but yeah, you give me, um, you know,
12:19
it could be a scoop of chocolate ice cream, could
12:21
be definitely like a Reese's or a Kit Kat's and
12:23
I'm, and I'm loving, loving, loving, loving the
12:26
taste. So yes, I know what you mean. I mean,
12:28
there are certain foods where Back then it was
12:31
just gross to you. And then maybe you tried it
12:34
again a few years later and found out, Oh, okay.
12:37
This is actually not as bad as I thought. Yeah.
12:39
And that's what came to my mind too, is Brussels
12:41
sprouts. Like, but I, again, I think it's partly,
12:43
partially the way that it was served. Like as
12:46
a kid, it was just steamed, like steamer Brussels
12:49
sprouts. And I'm just like, no gross. And now
12:54
I'll actually cook Brussels sprouts, but I'll
12:57
roast them in the oven with salt, pepper, and
12:59
olive oil and garlic and Parmesan. And it's bomb.
13:05
Like you do have some of that bitterness, but
13:08
what I really like is you broil it and get a
13:11
char on the outside and then the inside soft.
13:13
And it's just, yeah, it's a game changer compared
13:15
to the steamed crap. Yeah. You described it perfectly.
13:19
You tell me steamed Brussels sprout and I just
13:22
have the image of wanting to vomit because it
13:26
just seems like it would be this, I don't know,
13:29
gooey, chewy, cabbage, nasty. tasting thing.
13:33
But, yeah, my wife does the same thing. She's
13:36
roasted Brussels sprouts. She's cooked them.
13:39
They've had that nice, crispy crunch to them
13:42
as a result. She's definitely put salt and pepper
13:45
and oils on it. And yeah, you'll be surprised,
13:49
going from the steam to that, how better of an
13:53
experience Brussels sprouts can be for you. Oh,
13:55
yeah. And then you get the benefits, because
13:58
they are pretty good for you. Unless you eat
14:01
too many of them, then you might have a hard
14:03
time with your digestive. Yeah. Then you might
14:07
be spending nine hours in the bathroom and that'll
14:09
be so much fun. What is a delicious piece of
14:17
pop culture you've consumed lately? So this could
14:19
be a TV show, a movie, music, book, play, a podcast.
14:23
Like, what are you consuming in the culture?
14:26
Actually, The most recent thing has been old
14:31
school. My son and I, he kind of got into Lost.
14:37
So we've been watching that and it's awesome
14:41
because I've seen it. So I get to see him, you
14:46
know, experience all the twists and turns and
14:50
stuff. And I think we're like halfway through
14:52
season three. But it's been really cool too because
14:56
it's been a while that since I've seen it and
15:00
Forgot a lot. So some of the twists I even forgot
15:05
The very last episode we watched was where Spoiler
15:12
alert like from 15 years ago Jack you find out
15:20
that Jack and Damn, I can't think of her name.
15:25
The Australian chick who was pregnant or our
15:28
brother and sister because Jack's father, you
15:31
know, knocked up the woman in Australia. And
15:35
then. So she she finally found out that Jack's
15:40
dad was her dad because her mom was in a coma
15:44
in Australia. And, uh, yeah, his, his reaction
15:48
to seeing that, well, I was just waiting. I was,
15:50
I wasn't even watching the TV. I was just like
15:52
looking over at him, like waiting for the. Yeah.
15:58
Wait a second. And, uh, so lost I'm I'm 34, by
16:04
the way. So lost was huge back in the two thousands.
16:08
When I was in high school, it was the show that
16:12
my. high school theater friends were talking
16:15
about, and I just never gotten a chance to watch
16:20
it. I mean, I remember watching The Office, the
16:22
other big show back from when I was in high school,
16:25
but Lost, from what I know, and I'll need you
16:29
to explain to me what the show is about, from
16:32
what I know, it started off really strong, and
16:36
then maybe it got a little bit too... fantasy
16:41
or supernatural -like along the way and that
16:46
has been up for debate as to whether that was
16:48
good for the show or bad for the show. Was there
16:51
some kind of monster involved, some kind of dream
16:54
monster? I know that the series finale, a lot
16:56
of people didn't like it. Maybe something about
16:58
like when they were all like being shot up to
17:00
heaven. Can you kind of explain to me the trajectory
17:04
of Lost through your eyes as to... what the story
17:07
is and whether you think it got better or worse
17:10
as time went by. Yeah. So I guess, uh, spoiler
17:13
alert for sure. Since I don't know how I would
17:16
see it. So why not? Well, now you know something
17:20
from it. Um, and yeah, if you want to talk about
17:22
it. So I, it, it did it, um, yeah, in the, in
17:27
the later seasons, cause I think there's only
17:29
six seasons of it. And I think after season three
17:33
is kind of where I'm not sure what I think there
17:36
was something that happened in terms of like.
17:41
The writers, maybe it was a strike or something,
17:43
but they cut the seasons back. Originally, there
17:46
was like 20 episodes or so, 20 something episodes
17:50
per season, and then it cut back to like 14 or
17:53
15 or something like that. And so it felt like
17:56
they they just had to crunch a bunch of stuff
17:58
into the rest of it and they started. They started
18:04
so many like what happened like in the beginning
18:07
there was just like all these things and Mysterious
18:11
and yeah, like you said there was the smoke monster
18:13
that you know Nobody knew what the hell that
18:16
was and eventually you come to find out and the
18:19
later seasons about the smoke monster Um, so,
18:24
so I guess, I guess this, uh, this question I
18:26
want to ask, does the show start off with the
18:28
basic concept of people being stuck on an island
18:31
and trying to get away? Okay. That's what I remember
18:34
from that starting point, but yes, go ahead from
18:36
there. The idea of like, Oh, people are stuck
18:40
on an island, kind of like a dramatic version
18:42
of survivor. How do we get to a smoke monster?
18:45
Uh, I, I don't know, but go ahead to tell me
18:49
how, how they got ridiculous. I mean, it's really
18:54
fascinating because they kind of made it limitless
18:59
in a way. But in that limitlessness, there was
19:03
a lot of overdoing, I guess. And a lot of things
19:08
didn't get explained by the end of the show.
19:10
And you're just like, well, what happened about
19:11
that? But basically, the premise of the show
19:15
is, yes, this flight from Australia to LA gets
19:19
knocked out of the sky. and there's 40 something
19:23
survivors that make it and they're stuck on this
19:26
island and nobody knows where they're at because
19:29
they were off course and so they just have to
19:32
learn to live on the island and as they're exploring
19:35
the island they discover all these weird like
19:39
things happening the smoke monster and then all
19:42
of a sudden well there's other people that actually
19:44
live on this island and you know they call them
19:47
the others and They actually live civilly, you
19:50
know, you find out down the road and, and then
19:53
there is like this, it turns into a, like the,
19:58
the. the island can time travel like so this
20:01
island has energetic properties and so there's
20:05
people that are trying to get to the island to
20:07
study it for its energy weird like energy properties
20:11
and so it can do all these crazy things and then
20:13
there's the protectors of the island and it's
20:16
it really gets kind of weird and honestly i don't
20:19
know how to explain it yeah yeah yeah i mean
20:23
it seems like it would work better as a movie
20:26
because then you could, I don't know, I feel
20:29
like it would, it would be a lot more contained
20:31
and sensible to figure out like, Oh, how are
20:33
we going to get off this island? What are the
20:35
weird things that we're encountering on this
20:37
island? But I think the fact that it became a
20:39
television series, it kept getting renewed because
20:42
viewership was through the roof. Maybe, uh, And
20:45
I think JJ Abrams was responsible for it and
20:48
his team, maybe along the way they were just
20:50
like, fuck, like we have this many episodes that
20:53
we contractually have to put out. So we really
20:56
have to go into the deep recesses of our brain
20:58
and find all the very imaginative ways we could
21:03
get these people on the islands doing whatever
21:06
the fuck they're doing on their way to get out.
21:09
while keeping the audience interested. And then
21:11
thus you have the smoke monster and then, and
21:14
then you just mentioned that there were some
21:16
plot holes that were never explained. Can you
21:18
give me some examples of that? I'm trying to
21:20
think, uh, cause it's been a minute, but I mean,
21:24
so at, at some point, like they do it, they do
21:28
kind of explain that they jump through timelines
21:32
and you don't, it's hard to tell. What is present
21:37
past and future? because at some point some of
21:40
them get off the island and they actually live
21:43
a normal life for a period of time and then they
21:46
have to come back to the island to try and save
21:48
the island from the bad people and Eventually
21:53
like you said Feel like if you're off the island
21:55
just leave it alone and go to your normal life
21:58
But I guess they found out normal life was boring
22:00
and they just wanted to have that thrill of going
22:02
back to the island Well, the problem is is they
22:05
have friends that are still on the island So
22:07
they're going back to try and save their friends.
22:10
But like dude, I really it's so fucking weird
22:14
It really is and and yeah to the Don't even really
22:21
think the smoke monster gets explained too. Well,
22:24
like you learn who it is and Like it's almost
22:28
like at the end I don't I don't even know what
22:30
they were trying to say the the show was but
22:34
there's like these two kids that were part of
22:37
it and they'd like became like almost the soul
22:41
of the island and one is like the evil and one
22:44
is the good so it's almost like good versus evil
22:48
and so the the smoke monster is the evil one
22:51
and then there's the other one and so the good
22:54
one brought manipulated people to get them on
22:59
this specific flight because he knew that it
23:01
was going to crash there and they were trying
23:04
to figure out which of the people were able to
23:09
be the next protector of the island like and
23:13
again like you said at the end a lot of people
23:15
had lot of qualms about how it ended because
23:19
it was kind of abrupt and it was just like oh
23:23
yeah, you kind of all experienced this and and
23:26
Some of you died there and some of you didn't
23:28
but that was like you're it was almost like saying
23:31
like you were all part of like this soul family
23:34
almost and and this was your whole life experience
23:37
on earth at this point in time and if you don't
23:40
think too much about it, it's an entertaining
23:43
show like if you don't if you're just like If
23:46
you don't get pissed off because it's just like,
23:49
well, what about the thing that you didn't talk
23:50
about? You know, like then it's it's it's it's
23:53
fun. It's entertaining. It it makes you think
23:58
it's weird because it is it's JJ Abrams, like
24:01
he does really kooky things, but they're always
24:05
pretty interesting, you know, so it's yeah, it's.
24:09
I don't know how to describe that show. It's
24:11
okay. It definitely sounds like a kooky show
24:14
that I have to check out. So let's just verify.
24:17
Do they all go to heaven or most of them go to
24:19
heaven in the ending? Do I have that right? What
24:21
happened in that series finale? They all end
24:24
up in a, I believe it's in a chapel together.
24:28
And that's when you learn like that was their...
24:35
They move, they move on whatever that means,
24:38
whether they're going to heaven per se or not,
24:40
like they move on from, I guess it was kind of
24:44
like a limbo, but they all had to be there to
24:47
move on. I think like I said, it's been a minute
24:51
since I've seen it and me and my son haven't
24:54
gotten there yet. So yeah, still working your
24:56
way through. Yeah. Yeah. So I'm just going off
24:59
of the stuff I remember from long time ago, but
25:03
I would, you know, I'd recommend it to anybody.
25:06
Just if you're looking for. A weird, interesting.
25:12
It's suspenseful. It's it's thrilling. It's it
25:16
makes you think. And again, if you just maybe
25:19
don't think too much about it when things happen
25:22
that are not explainable, like just enjoy it,
25:26
enjoy the ride. All right. I'll take your word
25:29
for it. Yeah, no, JJ Abrams, I think he's maybe
25:34
his first big break was producing Alias or having
25:38
something to do with the show Alias with Bradley
25:39
Cooper and Jennifer Garner and then Lost sort
25:42
of really became the big breakthrough. And then
25:45
I think he directed that Star Trek movie that
25:48
came out in the 2000s. And of course, he directed
25:52
the first big Star Wars movie to come out since
25:55
the prequels, the sequel trilogy. And he has
26:01
a daughter, Gracie Abrams, who's a well -known
26:03
singer right now. So, yeah, interesting trajectory
26:07
that J .J. Abrams has had since the big show
26:12
that everybody loves to debate about, Lost. You
26:14
know, it's kind of like Game of Thrones, where
26:16
it's like, starts off strong, and then along
26:18
the way, it tends to become very divisive in
26:21
terms of what the audience thinks about it. So,
26:23
yeah, yeah, that's something. Yeah. Again, like,
26:27
the first season, I think, is a lot... of story
26:30
plot and then you finally get more into it in
26:35
the second season and then the third season and
26:38
then it kind of you lose it you know what I mean
26:40
like they it gets it get it starts like getting
26:44
really good and then all of a sudden you've got
26:47
less episodes per season and trying to explain
26:51
things and and and it kind of just fell away
26:54
but uh Yeah, it's still an interesting show.
26:58
It's still a good thing. And like you said, JJ's
27:01
got a lot of... That's just his style. Yeah.
27:06
And I remember that writer's track that you mentioned
27:08
that kind of like killed or affected the momentum
27:11
of the loss storytelling. That was like November
27:15
2007 to January 2008. I was again in high school
27:18
at the time. And to go two months without new
27:23
episodes of... Pretty much all television shows
27:26
that involve scripts from your dramas like Lost
27:29
to your late night talk shows to your situation
27:32
comedies. That's really where reality television
27:35
got going because that was unscripted. That was
27:38
pretty much the only new episodes that could
27:40
be produced during that time. So yeah, Lost and
27:43
a bunch of other shows definitely got affected.
27:45
They either got canceled or they jumped the shark,
27:48
so to speak, in their storytelling because of
27:51
that two month gap. that two month delay of,
27:54
of just not producing any new stories for the
27:56
audience. So, uh, yeah, yeah, that's quite something.
27:58
That's quite something. Hey, uh, I want to know
28:02
what a delicious event is that happened in your
28:05
life, Steve, anything positive that's happened
28:07
in your life that you would like to share? Oh,
28:10
everything's positive. Give me one. Give me,
28:14
give me one that pops out. Um, I'm, I'm just
28:17
going to go with today being I mean, it started
28:21
Friday. It started a couple of weeks, honestly,
28:24
ago. My day job, I was losing the guy that I
28:30
was working with. And I couldn't find somebody
28:34
that, because everybody else's work, like work
28:36
is really good around the area right now. And
28:39
I just kind of put it out there that I'm going
28:43
to find the perfect person for this job to work
28:47
with me full time, right? and just let it go.
28:52
Like I decided that this, and this is a lot to
28:56
do with kind of the stuff that I work with and
29:00
like manifesting and stuff. I just decided that
29:05
I'm going to get the perfect guy for this job
29:09
that is on par with me, you know, isn't looking,
29:16
just looking for a home basically. A week later,
29:19
my boss hands me a resume. He's like, what do
29:22
you think of this? And I'm like, I mean, if he's,
29:27
if that's all good, if that's true, then that'd
29:30
be a perfect fit. If he's, if he's not looking
29:33
for big overtime job, like most people are. And,
29:36
and so it became like, it was a little bit of
29:39
a, a tricky situation I'm not going to go into,
29:43
but at the end of the day, everything worked
29:46
out the way it was supposed to. And I got a message
29:51
from him on Friday about coming out because everything
29:56
again worked out and I called him on Friday and
30:01
We shot the shit for an hour and a half and as
30:04
we're talking about the job and and everything
30:07
else You know, I was saying, you know, I've been
30:11
out there for 13 years and I got out there a
30:18
couple years after I got out of the service and
30:20
he again did the well When when he we were talking
30:24
again, he's like, you know, I forgot to mention.
30:26
Thank you for your service I I was in the Marine
30:29
Corps because I didn't specifically say that
30:31
I just said when I got out of the service So
30:33
he's like I was in the Marine Corps as a machine
30:35
gunner. I was like you son of a bitch I'm a fucking
30:37
marine to like you bonded. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah,
30:42
like so again and he came out today he just met
30:49
him today and the dudes awesome like so I think
30:53
that fits perfectly I mean in terms of something
30:57
that awesome that's happened in my life just
31:00
making things happen basically deciding that
31:04
this is the way that I want something to go and
31:09
that's been happening more and more often but
31:14
that's one of the bigger more positive ones to
31:19
your question is having this dude that is exactly
31:24
what I decided I wanted to be out there to work
31:27
side by side at this place and on top of it he's
31:32
a fellow jarhead so we've got all those things
31:35
going for us and I am excited to see how everything
31:40
goes from here so Um, are Marines nicknamed jarheads?
31:45
What, why is that? We're nicknamed a lot of things.
31:50
Um, I see just jarhead, devil dog with two full
31:54
hunden, which is also devil dog in German, um,
31:59
Leatherneck. So they each have their purpose.
32:02
Jarhead comes from crayon eater is the most recent
32:06
like thing that most people. go to um and they're
32:10
all basically supposedly derogat well not not
32:13
some of them but the the jar head is kind of
32:16
like a derogatory that you know you throw anything
32:19
at us we don't give a shit like we're gonna so
32:22
jar head means like your head is empty um basically
32:28
we take orders and don't think about anything
32:31
because we don't have a brain is kind of the
32:33
concept of jar head but again we take it and
32:37
make it our own. Same with, you know, crayon
32:40
eater. Crayon like crayons that you would draw?
32:44
Yeah. What is the story behind that? Well, Marines
32:48
are dumb and will eat crayons. And I've I've
32:55
literally eaten a crayon in front of somebody
32:57
just to, you know, prove the point. Like, I don't
33:00
give a shit. I have friends that send me boxes
33:06
of crayons in the mail. Can't your body get infected
33:12
by that? Like what does a crayon taste like?
33:16
Tastes like wax. Okay. It's all it is is wax
33:21
and it's non -toxic. So obviously it's safe.
33:25
Wow. Yeah. Did you poop weird? That must have
33:33
been a weird, weird poop. Well, you know, I like
33:37
to think of it as it's wax, right? So it's got
33:40
to be a little bit lubricating. Okay. If you're
33:45
constipated, eat crayons. That'll lube you up.
33:48
That'll loosen you up. Or maybe it does the opposite.
33:50
I don't know. I don't know if they did any studies
33:53
on how the crayons work. digestive system. I
33:57
did for a fundraiser for this pageant that I
34:03
did. One of the fundraising things was a bunch
34:08
of people on this call one night. That was part
34:13
of it was I'm a Marine, so I eat crayons. So
34:16
people are like, well, every crayon that you
34:18
eat, I'll donate, you know, actually it was like
34:21
a March of Dimes, like I'll donate a dollar.
34:23
And somebody else was like, I'll donate $5 or
34:26
50 cents or whatever. So the whole thing was
34:31
trying to raise money for the foundation and
34:34
doing this pageant that I was a part of. And
34:37
so I ended up, I think, making, I ate like five
34:40
crayons for like 150 bucks or something like.
34:44
Wow. Yeah. Okay. Waxing out. Yeah, I'm sure somebody
34:50
will tell me that that's not healthy, but guess
34:53
what? I'm alive, so you're wrong. Exactly. It's
34:58
for a good cause and you're alive. That's all
35:00
that matters. Why Leatherneck? What's the reason
35:02
behind that nickname? So that one comes from,
35:06
so if you've seen the dress blues, that strip
35:12
around our neck was actually a piece of leather
35:15
back in the day to prevent swords from putting
35:20
cut in the neck. So it was actually a leather
35:23
strip that was around the neck that we wore around
35:26
the neck. And that was to prevent back when they
35:30
used swords for combat as well from getting damp.
35:37
Why can't I think of a word injured from getting
35:40
struck in the neck from a sword or something
35:44
of the like. So that's where that comes from.
35:47
Wow. And that's just bizarre to me to think about
35:50
that there was. I mean, it makes sense that there
35:54
used to be a time where swords were a common
35:56
weapon of use. But yeah, this was I mean, how
36:00
many years ago are we talking like where swords
36:02
were the common weapon? I mean, I don't know
36:05
if they were the common, honestly. Because I'm
36:07
thinking of all the other Marines can talk now
36:09
for it. I don't remember what years it was, you
36:13
know, in the eighteen hundreds. Yeah, something
36:15
like that. Yeah. But yeah. So and obviously we
36:19
had guns back then, too, but. There was still
36:24
a lot of combat and even in the Civil War and
36:28
and and such where it was hand to hand and swords
36:32
and, you know, if your musket broke, you bayoneted
36:35
people. Um, so yeah, that's, that's where that
36:39
one comes and that's why it's still part of our,
36:42
our dress blue uniform is that, so if you ever
36:45
look at the dress blues and that just like two
36:48
inch, not even inch and a half like strip at
36:51
the top that goes around, that's the leather,
36:55
leather neck piece of the uniform that symbolizes
36:58
that. Going back to the job that you were able
37:02
to hire the guy for, the positive thing that's
37:04
happened in your life, can I ask what the job
37:06
was? Is that okay to say? No, yeah. So I do pipe
37:11
fitting. I work maintenance. Pipe fitting, a
37:14
lot of people confuse with plumbing. They are
37:16
two different things. Plumbers work on potable
37:22
water, drain, drain waste and vent. type systems.
37:28
Pipe fitting is basically everything else that
37:31
has to do with piping. That's not that. Non -potable
37:35
water, steam, air conditioning systems, service
37:41
techs that are usually in the pipe fitters are
37:44
the ones that do the copper tubing. So anything
37:47
that you can, gas lines, airlines, anything that
37:51
is pipe that's not potable water or wastewater
37:56
or something, you know, generally is going to
37:59
be fall under pipe fitting as a pipe fitter work.
38:04
So doing whatever it takes with it. Welding is
38:08
generally a big skill that you have to need for
38:12
pipe fitting as well as laying out, reading blueprints.
38:21
working with threaded pipe. So, you know, you
38:23
have to learn how to thread the pipe and prep
38:26
it, cut it, do takeoffs because when you thread
38:30
some, when you thread a fitting on, you know,
38:33
a piece of pipe, as you thread it on, it gets
38:36
shorter and shorter. So you got to know how much
38:38
that's going to take off so that you hit your
38:40
centers because the whole goal is to put everything
38:43
in plum square and level. You don't want it to
38:45
look like shit. So yeah, anything, anything piping
38:48
related. Yeah. So, uh, you had like a managerial
38:53
role and we're in charge of seeing out like a
38:57
certain type of position within the pipe fitting
38:59
world. That's, that's how you got this guy. Yeah.
39:01
So I'm, I'm a general foreman, uh, on the site
39:04
and, um, usually I oversee. It depends on the
39:09
projects that are going. I've had on our site,
39:12
uh, up to six guys. Usually it's just two, but.
39:18
Yeah, though the one guy that I had he was he
39:22
was always a filling guy and but he was helping
39:26
me out working full -time up until recently and
39:30
he he's got his own things that he was doing
39:32
so I had to I had to find another guy and Like
39:35
I said, it just it worked out exactly the way
39:38
that I wanted it to I set that intention and
39:41
decided it was gonna be and let everything happen
39:44
the way it happened so and You know in in this
39:50
in this job You know like any job there's guys
39:55
that know what they're doing. There's guys that
39:57
don't know what they're doing and It's it's hard
40:02
to find Guys that can do all the things that
40:07
we need out at this job that are good with just
40:11
like a 40 -hour week because so many guys like
40:14
to work overtime, which is why I lost guys, because
40:18
they wanted to go work because there's so much
40:20
work out there. They need the money, I assume.
40:23
They just need to pay bills. I mean, some live
40:27
outside their means because they don't know how
40:29
to do that. And some just like to, you know,
40:33
everybody's different. Some guys like to work
40:35
like crazy, take all the overtime and then take
40:39
half a year off. like just live off of and then
40:42
go work like crazy again or take three months
40:45
off or whatever, you know, everybody's different.
40:47
Generally, not a lot of people like to just have
40:52
that simple 40 hours. But as I've gotten older
40:57
and my kids have gotten older, I like having
41:01
the good hours, the 40 hour week, it's afforded
41:06
me. the time to spend more with my kids, start
41:09
working with people in the meditation and mindset
41:12
and, and, you know, fellow veterans that I do
41:14
with that. Do you mind talking more about the
41:19
meditation and mindset? Because I'm curious about
41:21
that. Like how did you transition from being
41:24
a Marine to teaching meditation and mindset?
41:28
So expand on that. So that, that was a journey
41:32
that started 11 years ago, 2015. My youngest
41:37
was born and I was in such a bad place. Like
41:43
I was, I was going to be a statistic. Like a
41:46
lot, a lot of veterans are staring down my shotgun
41:49
and trying to figure out why I should stay. And
41:53
then finally realize that my kids are, I want
41:59
to be around for them and I don't want them to
42:03
deal with wondering why I did that and left them
42:09
and you know all that it's a long I went through
42:13
so many things in my head there but when it came
42:15
down to is I need to figure my shit out and it's
42:21
been a long process it took years and one of
42:25
the most notable things was For a long time I
42:29
would have I had stomach issues and I would go
42:33
to the emergency room every so often because
42:36
of these stomach issues being so bad like I was
42:39
in so much pain and at one point in the emergency
42:42
room after they gave me some pain meds I realized
42:45
that the pain in my stomach and all the things
42:48
that were happening were happening in here psychological.
42:51
Yep, and once I realized that I What was happening
42:56
was actually panic attacks and the panic attacks
43:00
from the stress and anxiety and depression and
43:03
all the stuff that just built up over the years
43:06
was the actual problem. And so I learned about
43:10
meditation. And when I would feel these coming
43:12
on, I would literally take my phone and put my
43:16
headphones in and I would cocoon myself under
43:19
a blanket. So it was pitch black and I would
43:21
play this one 20 minute guided meditation. And
43:27
by the time it was done, like, I would feel a
43:30
lot better. And once I realized the power of
43:36
our minds, and literally they shape our reality,
43:39
which is, you know, why I was saying, you know,
43:43
making these decisions on what I wanted to happen.
43:48
And so they became that. I just went down the
43:50
path because I'm sure, you know, like when you
43:53
find something that Can help people you just
43:56
want to fucking put it out there and and help
43:58
as much as you can and uh, I think especially
44:03
for men and veterans like meditation and mindset
44:07
and and mindfulness and all of this stuff I'm
44:12
you know, not everyone a lot of guys out there
44:15
understand the power of it, but it it's It's
44:18
not well received Um, it's kind of seen as I
44:24
think I think a lot of guys and and this is again
44:27
my personal opinion I think a lot of people see
44:32
it as You know weak as it's a it's a you know
44:37
fake a lot of people think it's fake like it's
44:40
not even a real thing like I One of the biggest
44:46
things that I've learned and come to notice from
44:49
talking to people is A lot of people have heard
44:53
of meditation and a lot of people have even tried,
44:57
but I always hear, I don't know how to meditate.
45:01
And so I've been learning more and more how to
45:03
meet people where they're at with meditation.
45:06
And one of the easiest ways I've gotten to describe
45:09
it for a lot of people, because it makes a lot
45:11
of sense is, have you ever been to a bonfire?
45:15
Because most people have, right? You've been
45:18
to a bonfire and just sat there and looked at
45:21
the fire. Generally, I get a yes response to
45:24
that. Were you thinking of anything while you
45:27
were watching that fire or were you just there,
45:30
stuck, focused on that fire? That's great. Yep.
45:33
That's a good way to describe it. That's meditating.
45:36
And it's literally a form called fire gazing
45:39
meditation. So you know how to meditate and you
45:42
probably meditate more than you realize. You
45:45
just don't Know what it is or when you're doing
45:50
it. So let's work on it Let's expand your awareness
45:54
and that's really what all meditation is is a
45:56
focused awareness on whatever you're doing And
45:59
that's why I was telling you About eating meditation,
46:03
you know when we were talking before one of my
46:05
favorite things eating meditation and people
46:08
just look at me like I'm crazy What is that like
46:11
like eating food eating food? Yes. I don't remember
46:14
our conversation about that. Please describe
46:16
what eating meditation is. I think I mentioned
46:19
it, but maybe I forgot. Eating meditation is
46:24
literally being with your food, being present
46:27
with your food. And I like to take people on
46:30
a journey with it, like, hey, grab a strawberry,
46:33
right? Grab a strawberry, cut it in half, and
46:36
now look at that strawberry and just focus your
46:40
attention. Look at the veins inside of it. Look
46:43
at the seeds on it, like smell it, you know,
46:48
be fully present with this strawberry and focused
46:52
on nothing else but that. Like any thoughts that
46:55
are coming in your head. Just. Yeah, that's a
46:59
thought. Push it away. I'm just focused on the
47:01
strawberry and then feel the texture of it, like
47:04
the ridges and. And then eventually smell it,
47:09
take a little bite of it, focus. as you chew
47:13
very slowly the texture the flavor like everything
47:17
about it so you're literally just there with
47:21
that and it doesn't have to be a strawberry right
47:23
it can be whatever food you have and you're just
47:29
with it and so being with it makes it so much
47:33
more enjoyable because like we were saying in
47:35
the beginning when you can taste all those nuanced
47:39
flavors and that chicken tiki masala it's fucking
47:42
delicious absolutely so imagine just focusing
47:45
well I'm sure you do like again you're probably
47:49
eating meditation when you really are with that
47:52
like holy crap this is so good yeah and trying
47:56
to figure out what the flavors are coming from
47:58
but doing that every time you're eating something
48:01
can help people that have you know weight problems
48:04
because it gives you time to enjoy it it gives
48:07
you time to Be present with it. It gives your
48:12
mind time to say. Oh, well, we've probably eaten
48:16
enough now I don't need to eat anymore instead
48:18
of just like well that was 15 pieces of pizza.
48:21
It was good I guess I don't really remember how
48:23
it tasted because I was just like oh food Yeah,
48:27
you're like listening more to the grumbling in
48:29
your stomach rather than the taste sensations
48:32
going on in your mouth palette. You know what
48:35
I mean? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. You, you have a good
48:37
point. Yeah. Oh my God. Eating meditation. Yeah.
48:41
I, you know, so I have done transcendental meditation
48:45
for since July, 2015. So I don't know, like 11
48:49
years, almost 11 years. And, um, I remember like
48:53
when I was taught that that meditation, one of
48:56
the things that I would pick up is that like
48:58
when I'm eating meals, like I'll have more of
49:02
awareness of a sense of tastes, really appreciating,
49:06
really gradually just sitting with and processing
49:09
and just loving what I'm tasting. And I found
49:11
that with a lot of meals ever since I started
49:14
transcendental meditation, especially that Indian
49:16
meal that I had with my, with my friend, just
49:18
being like, Oh my God. this is so good just like
49:22
sitting with that not just oh yeah this is good
49:25
and let's talk about whatever is going on in
49:26
our life but just talking about like oh this
49:29
is so good and it's good because the bread and
49:31
the sauce and the chicken and like oh like just
49:34
sitting with that for a moment it was uh it was
49:37
really profound it was really profound it really
49:39
gives a deeper appreciation to what could otherwise
49:43
be a routine everyday thing which is eating our
49:46
meals Um, so yeah, no, that's, that's beautiful
49:49
that, that, uh, you have this, this meditation
49:51
that you're, you're doing. And, um, I know it's
49:54
helped me, uh, my version of it, Transcendental
49:57
Meditation with the stress, anxiety. I still
50:00
have it, but to be able to take those 20 minutes
50:03
to just close my eyes and breathe and be aware
50:07
of the space around me, the sounds, be aware
50:10
of the thoughts that are going through my head
50:12
and allowing them to come and go, not just saying,
50:15
Oh, I am gonna push that thought away. I cannot
50:18
think of anything right now except this meditative
50:20
mantra. Like no, just allowing yourself to think
50:22
and allowing it to come and go and pass through
50:25
and gradually find your way back to the mantra.
50:28
You were talking about the bonfire and I was
50:30
thinking like, oh, if I was gonna see like a
50:32
really like eventful big bonfire in front of
50:35
my face, I would see the fire and be like, oh
50:39
my God, there's a fire and then... Even still,
50:41
because I think so much, I'm like, Oh, wait a
50:43
minute, there was something that I had to do.
50:45
Oh, but this fire, the sparkly thing just happened.
50:48
So it kind of, it kind of works like that with
50:49
meditation. It's like. Uh, yes, you have this
50:52
mantra. Yes, you may be distracted by other thoughts,
50:54
but eventually something will pull you back to
50:56
that mantra. Something will pull you back to
50:58
that bonfire. So, um, yeah, this was a great
51:02
conversation, man. I'm so, I'm so excited that,
51:04
uh, you, you found this meditation and mindset
51:07
part of your life. I could only imagine, um,
51:11
what PTSD veterans like yourself, you know, have.
51:15
So I'm so glad that you found a solution towards
51:18
all that. Um, How can, how can people find you
51:22
if they want to know more about what you've learned
51:25
and what you like to teach to others? And also
51:28
this can extend to the podcast that you have
51:30
coming up. Like how can people keep in touch
51:32
with you, Steve? Yeah. So, uh, my Facebook is
51:35
Steve McHale on Instagram. It's the chaos Alchemist
51:39
and Tik Tok and YouTube. I believe they're all
51:42
the period chaos period Alchemist, but I can't
51:45
remember. I tried to make it all, you know, the
51:49
same but uh but yeah um and that's so the the
51:56
podcast is is supposed to be up on spotify when
51:59
it gets there and on on the youtube page as well
52:03
um so yeah you know reach out to me on on any
52:09
one of those and happy to to talk and and share
52:12
and all those good things because like i said
52:15
you when you learn something that powerful. You
52:19
just want to spread it as much as you can. And
52:23
like you said, you learn it, but you still have
52:26
to deal with the things every day. Like, it's
52:29
not something that goes away. You learn how to
52:33
use it to better your life. But, you know, it's
52:36
not a permanent fix. It's just a way to continue
52:42
growing yourself. So I'm glad that, you know,
52:46
you got the experience too, because so many people,
52:50
like I said, they've never really experienced
52:53
even just a simple breathing meditation, let
52:56
alone a transcendental. Like that's some good
53:00
stuff right there. So I'm happy to hear that
53:03
you've gotten that experience and been able to
53:06
use it for so long. It's really hard for people
53:07
to just sit and be quiet and just really take
53:13
in that Just that, just the quiet, the peace
53:19
that can happen with meditation. I remember one
53:22
of the sessions that I went to when I first learned
53:25
transcendental meditation, going back to your
53:27
comment about people commonly telling you like,
53:30
oh, I don't know how to meditate. Like, how do
53:31
you do it? Like I remember this one woman just
53:34
being like, I can't do it. I'm just closing my
53:37
eyes and I'm just thinking about so many things
53:39
going on with my kids and what I have to do later
53:41
on today. Um, if people would just allow themselves,
53:46
um, more grace, more patience, the fact that
53:50
it's okay that you're thinking these things,
53:52
nothing is wrong with that. And here's how you
53:56
can gradually find yourself back to a more peaceful
53:59
mantra state of mind. Um, yeah, I think people
54:03
just need to give it a chance rather than just
54:05
saying like, Oh my God, you're like sitting in
54:06
quiet and I'm thinking so many things. I'm doing
54:08
it right. I'm doing it wrong. Like, no, no, it's
54:10
just, just be. Yeah. Just be. That's all it comes
54:15
down to is just be. It is. That's all you're
54:18
doing is being right now. That's it. But to your
54:21
point, so many people feel like that because
54:24
they think it's the fix. And it can be to a degree,
54:29
but just like anything in life, and this is why
54:32
I tell people too, is you didn't start running
54:36
when you were one year old. You didn't lift.
54:41
315 pounds on the bench press the first time
54:44
you bench pressed learning meditation is just
54:47
like everything else do it for one minute and
54:50
then do it for two minutes and it's just a process
54:54
crawl walk run you just have to repeat it your
54:58
mind is a muscle just like everything else and
55:01
it takes time to develop that skill just like
55:05
you learned how to talk just like you learned
55:07
how to do anything in life so like you said give
55:11
yourself the grace to learn it and just watch
55:14
how it can change as you slowly progress and
55:17
get better with it. Absolutely. Give us the information
55:20
just one more time how we can find you Steve
55:22
McHale. Again, Steve McHale on Facebook or the
55:26
Chaos Alchemist period between the words there
55:29
on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube. So love that.
55:34
And Mikhail M -C -H -A -L -E. And yeah, Chaos
55:39
Alchemist, A -L -C -H -E -M -I -S -T, correct?
55:44
Yes. All right. Just want to make sure I got
55:46
the spelling on that correct. If you've never
55:48
read the book, The Alchemist, I highly recommend
55:51
that too, by the way. I'm just going to throw
55:53
that out there. I'll dive into that. Lovely.
55:57
And for the audience out there, listen to The
55:59
Delicious Culture wherever you get your podcasts,
56:01
Apple, Spotify, iHeart, Amazon Series XM. You
56:03
can also watch us on YouTube. Leave us a five
56:06
star rating on Spotify if you like what you hear
56:08
and see since we're also. video on Spotify, and
56:12
leave a review if you're listening on Apple Podcasts.
56:15
That's really helpful if you like what you're
56:18
hearing. TheDeliciousCulture at gmail .com is
56:20
where you can email any questions, comments,
56:22
concerns, feedback about this episode. TheDeliciousCulture
56:26
at gmail .com and find us on social media, Instagram,
56:30
YouTube, TikTok, follow, subscribe, comment,
56:32
like, share at The Delicious Culture. That is
56:35
at The Delicious Culture. All right. Until next
56:38
time, let deliciousness ring.