Latest / The Group Chat / Ep. 14 Inspiration, Immigrants and Letting Kids Eat Dirt
Transcript
- Carson: People are amazing. Brandon: A lot of times people focus on the negative, focus on the amazing, the good stuff. Carson: Yeah. It's it's just Paulina: you Carson: too easy to like criticize people, but in the end, they mean. Be yourself. Share your story. That's the inspiration. What's up guys? Paulina: Hey Brandon: was good. Carson: Hey. So what y'all been up to the last few weeks? Paulina: We're not doing the welcome to the group chat. Carson: Nah. They should know us by now. I'm Carson. Paulina: I'm Polina. Brandon: And I'm Brendan. Carson: And we're the group chat. Hey. Paulina: And welcome to the Cripple Chat. Brandon: If you did, no. Carson: If you didn't know, now you know. Paulina: What's going on with you guys? Carson: Nothing. I was gonna say I'm in the US right now. I'm in Utah. I've been here for a few days visiting friends and family. And y'all are at the beach where it's hot. Hot hot. Brandon: Tied everywhere. Paulina: Yeah, it's horrible. Carson: It's true. but here in the US, you know, i see everywhere, so just stay inside and freeze. In fact the other night I had a put a blanket on, I was so cold. But Paulina: I put on a blanket even at night, like here. Yes, I'm sorry, Brandon: Are you serious? Now? You Paulina: A very thin blanket, but yes, I just can't sleep when I'm not covered. Like, I feel like I need to be like protected Brandon: Alright. Paulina: from... You guys know I have a ghost in the house, so I need to be protected from the ghost. Brandon: From the ghost that thin blanket is gonna take care of you Carson: Like I I mean, haven't Paulina: Of course. Carson: you s haven't you seen movies? You just hide under the covers, they can't get you. Brandon: So it works. Paulina: Exactly, Carson: Don't look under the bed, then Paulina: that's how it works. Carson: not nothing pulls you under the bed. Paulina: It's like if I can't see them, they can't see me type of logic. Brandon: Okay. Carson: Type shit. Paulina: man. Brandon: Well, good luck with that. Carson: Yeah. Paulina: Thanks. Brandon: We'll know if Paulina's not here for the next week. The ghost got her. Paulina: Hahaha! Carson: It's like you were telling us a story and you know when you're telling a ghost story and it's like it's or it's an inside joke and you weren't there so you don't get it. You were trying you were telling us and the whole time I was like, uh-huh. Yeah, that sounds like you're, you know, maybe half awake, half asleep. Paulina: No, but it was a legit wasn't ghost. mean, what type of shadow do you see on your ceiling? like six in the morning that just passes through like there's nobody around the house except for the cats, but the cat. Carson: I mean, have you ever been having a nightmare? You wake up all of a sudden, you open your eyes, the room is dark, and you see patterns and colors just going all over the room that hasn't happened to you before? Paulina: No, I don't do drugs. Brandon: That was the Carson: I mean it doesn't last long, it's a few seconds, but yeah, I've I've seen something Brandon: ayahuasca. Carson: like that to where it's a little, you know, unsettling, but that's why I'm like, maybe she was just really tired. Paulina: No, because I woke up and I was like fully aware like of things that were happening. Tony left for work and I like checked something on my phone and I put my phone away and then like in the side of like in the corner of my eye I literally saw just something like on the ceiling. I'm like I don't know what that was so I'm just gonna you know take a quick look around the house and go back to bed and hope I don't die. So... Let's see, I'm gonna be fighting off, you know, like Ghostbusters type of shit. My new Brandon: Okay. Paulina: sidekick. Carson: Okay, well Brandon: sorry. Paulina: Yeah. Brendan anyways, how have you been with the heath? Brandon: Good, surviving the heat, air is sweating. I don't know how many alerts we have today. I looked at my phone and it was like a yellow alert, or orange alert, or red alert. They're just making stuff up now. Paulina: all the colors. Yeah. Carson: So how many times a day are you swimming? You have the beach right there. Brandon: Probably about twice. Usually Carson: Really nice. Brandon: once in the morning and once in afternoon. Carson: That's great. That's a good way to stay cool. If it's still cool, if the water's still is the water still refreshing? Brandon: And there's lots of showers. No, the water is actually cool. It's actually cooler now than it was like earlier this month. I don't know why, but the water's nice. Water's nice. Carson: That's good. Because in August Paulina: What is the water there? Is it like the Mediterranean already? Okay, that's Okay, yeah, because here Brandon: Yeah, no, it's better. Yeah, not Mum or Nock. No thank you. Paulina: in Mar Menor, if you put your toes in, it's like you're swimming in soup. Brandon: that had to know thank you. Paulina: Yeah. Carson: Marmano is Puto charcoal. Paulina: Exactly. Carson: Fucking hot. Yeah, I learned to kite surf there. I did I had two lessons of kite surf there and it must have been I don't know, is it June or later? And it was like you said, just soup with the giant jellyfish, the huevo frito jellyfish. Brandon: Yeah. Carson: So I like crash and land Paulina: Yeah. Carson: and face plant. It's hot, soupy water. Yeah, Brandon: I'm hit her, but... Paulina: Ugh. Carson: not not not the best. that's good. Brandon: No jellyfish yet. Not here at least, in Marmonore I'm sure they are, but in the Mediterranean they usually come later in August. Carson: Yeah. Do they sting? Brandon: The Wave of Freedom, no. Carson: No, but the other ones, the ones that come over to the Mediterranean. Brandon: No, it's usually those, big ones. Those are the ones that you hear. There's other ones. There's like a smaller, clear ones that are supposedly pretty, but not bad, but they sting. Carson: Yeah. Brandon: And then occasionally we get the, what's it called? The Portuguese Man Award. Those come also. Carson: Yeah, those are really those are deadly. Brandon: Yeah, those are bad. Yeah. Paulina: Okay, good to know. Carson: Okay, Paulina's not swimming anymore. She's she's got Brandon: Heheheheh... Alright. Carson: ghosts and jellyfish on the mind. Good luck with those dreams tonight. Brandon: She's not leaving her house, the ghost is in her house. Paulina: Yeah, I'll just lock myself in one room and that's it. Brandon: Okay Carson: Yeah. Paulina: And Carson, how are you staying over there? Staying cool, I'm guessing. Carson: Yeah, it's nice. I mean, yesterday was really cloudy and like not hot. I mean warm at best. And first night I arrived there was a big thunderstorm, like a lightning storm. No rain, just crazy lightning. I mean, it was it was cool to watch. but today is or was Brandon: Yeah. Carson: sunny at the moment. There's clouds. So that's why the the picture w looks better now. Before I was looking washed out like a ghost. That's why we're talking about ghosts, everybody. Brandon: I'm Carson: But no, it's nice here. Paulina: It was Carson humping me. Carson: It's nice here. I mean, you know, it's there were fires here in Utah, like a ton of fires. I think there's still a lot burning, perhaps, but at least here in Salt Lake City Valley, in the valley here, this the smoke is there's no smoke, it's clear. Yeah, the air is decent. So I can't complain. And it's summer, you know, you expect it to be Brandon: That's good. Carson: hot. So I guess in Fahrenheit it it's between ninety-five Say ninety five and a hundred, but in in Utah the beautiful thing is it's there's like no humidity. I think max thirty or forty percent humidity maximum. But you know just things Paulina: pretty hot. Carson: dry quickly and the it doesn't doesn't stick to you like it does there in southeastern Spain. So Brandon: Yeah, I was talking to my niece earlier this weekend and I was like, yeah, like, cause she's coming to Spain next week. I was like, prepare yourself. Like it's warm. And she's like, well, it's actually about a hundred out here and she's in Denver. So I was like, Carson: Wow done. Paulina: Yeah. Brandon: so it's warm out there too. But Carson: Yeah it is. Brandon: like you said, that humidity, no humidity. Paulina: Yeah, but there is an extremity. Carson: Yeah, Colorado's pretty dry too. I think it's still one of the driest states, one of the four driest in Utah. Or in in the US, I mean. Utah, Colorado, Arizona, Brandon: Okay. Carson: and New Mexico, I think are the driest. And no, I'm forgetting Nevada. Nevada's one of them for sure, obviously. Desert. But last time we talked about teaching, Brendan and I have been on vacation. Sorry, Paulina, you're not. Still Brandon: yeah. Paulina: No, no, no, still working. Carson: working, working hard, Paulina: Yeah. Carson: educating all the people in the English ways. Paulina: Yeah, exactly. I mean, working a little bit less because it is July and August, but still, Brandon: They gotta work. Paulina: still working, still got to work. Carson: Yeah, but lighter. Paulina: Can't come. Yeah, exactly. Carson: But like Yeah. But you have classes what, Monday through Friday? Paulina: Yeah, Monday through Friday, but some days I'm working morning and evening and then there are other days where I'm like today for example I just I had classes in the evening. So it's okay. Carson: That's Paulina: It could be worse. Carson: Yeah. Brandon: You get some free time do what you need to do Paulina: Yeah, for sure. Carson: That's Paulina: Exactly. Carson: huge difference from like traditional jobs. You get to have gaps, like you know, be a person, have a long lunch and a rest between the the shifts, which is nice. Paulina: Yeah, for sure. Carson: well, we I think we all had a teacher who was like really influential or really memorable, right? We all mentioned at least one teacher or principal Brandon, Brandon: Yeah. Carson: right? Brandon: Yeah. Carson: we wanted to kind of build off of that. today and talk about people who have inspired us, whether it's personal relationships, you know, people we're related to or friends or family or whatever, or maybe even celebrities. So who wants to go first? Paulina: Carson Brandon: Okay. Carson: Me, I don't know, no. All right. Well. Paulina: Why not? Carson: Okay, I'm gonna start with a celebrity. Brandon, maybe I stole it. Paulina: Alright. Carson: I don't know. You tell me. Dave Chappelle. Brandon: No, no, no. Carson: No? Okay. Okay, there's a chance. Because we both love Chappelle, Brandon: No no no no no. No no no. Paulina: It's like, not, definitely not. Carson: but Brandon: Chappelle's up there right now. Carson: Yeah. Well, my reasoning is, I mean, I I for those of you who don't know, Dave Chappelle is a comedian, but I imagine everybody who's watching this knows who he is. for me he's one of the greatest, if not the greatest. He certainly has his own style and he's mastered his craft. He's definitely the one of he's got to be the most comfortable, relaxed comedian I've ever seen deliver a performance. I mean, it's almost effortless. It seems like he planned very little. He just has something about him that gives it that natural. natural flow. But anyways, the the biggest thing he's done for me that that I would describe as being an inspiration was the fact that he walked away from a fifty million dollar contract with Comedy Central to continue to do like to air two more shows of the Chappelle show because he felt he was losing creative control. it's just a lot of pressure. Maybe his audience was misperceiving his skits. And I I thought that was really ballsy to walk away from a huge contract. I mean, and he was still quite young at that point. This was in 2005. he walked away just because he wanted to maintain, you know, the fact that it was his, his art. And I think he felt that slipping away. I think yeah, it took a lot of balls to step away. from from so much money and just, you know, focus on himself, live his life for a little bit without fame chasing him left and right. So I thought that was pretty badass. so I'd say that's an inspiration. He kept his soul in the whole thing. You know, he didn't sell out, which a lot of people do. It's really easy to sell out. Paulina: For sure. Brandon: I went, sorry. Paulina: Especially in industry that we have now. In showbiz, people just go after the money rather than really sticking to their own truth. Carson: Exactly. Brandon: That's the thing, like everyone thought he was crazy. He he was going crazy for it. He's how can you not take a $50 million contract to do like a TV show? And he's like, nah. He's like, no, if I can't control it, it's not my show. It's what I've been doing in the past. So I let it go and where I think he went out somewhere in Africa, like stay there for a few months. He's like, I need a break from all this. Carson: Yeah, South A I didn't know where was South Africa. It was there. Brandon: was it? I can't remember. Carson: It's Paulina: It's Carson: just wild. But you know, Brandon and I, we still quote Chappelle Show when it was purely his and it was just, you know, things that you you say you would say nowadays and risk being canceled. Or you would just flat out be canceled like right away. I mean, not just Chappelle Show, right? But of course, the the movies being made at that time, everybody was just a little more free to speak their minds without fear of Yeah, just everybody, you know, over analyzing it, taking it the wrong way. It's just comedy in the end. So I imagine that if he Paulina: Yeah. Carson: had stayed and and done those two years, you would have seen you would have seen a decline. You would have seen him, you know, scripting himself or being scripted or biting his tongue and so it's good that he I think it's good that he took some time for himself. Paulina: Yeah, I think the cancel culture nowadays is so real. sometimes it just gets, sometimes a bit annoying, to be honest. I'm Carson: So Paulina: all for, you know, people being woke and all of that, but I think it gets to a point. Currently I'm watching Supernatural and I don't know if you guys have ever watched it or heard of the show. Carson: Back when it first came out or around that time I I I remember it. Paulina: Yeah, I think it's from 2005 or 2006. around the same time as you're, you know, talking about the issue of Carson: Yeah. Paulina: how and the jokes that they make or like the comments that they make. And I'm like, this would like this would have been canceled like immediately. It would like just be one season. And then we're like, goodbye. Like that's it. And has like 15 seasons. So they did something right. But the more you watch it, start to see like throughout the years it gets maybe slightly more censored. Like it's not as dark or it's not as like disgusting or whatever like as it was in season one. And I don't know, I gave the show like the essence, you know, like. It's missing the flavor. Carson: When it's like starts feeling so scripted, I mean, what what you were just saying made me feel like when back in the day when there were movies, like I I don't know, if I had to guess, I'd say movies from the 70s and 80s. There was there were political messages, but they'd usually be something like a one-off, or it'd be product placement, it'd be some kind of you know, something just random. You'd be like, Well, that was weird. But now It's built into the whole it's baked in completely to the whole movie. You know, the whole plot, everything everybody says, the main characters, how things develop, that becomes so politicized, so like politically correct, right? It just seems so fake. It just seems like, okay, we're just pushing an agenda here. We're trying to not have a movie and create art. We're trying to push a message. And we were funded by this group of people who's aligned politically this way. It's just I don't know if it's about becoming an older, wiser adult and just seeing it deeper for what it really is. Or if really like Hollywood and just art, creative pursuits, that's all been kind of bought out. I don't really know. Brandon: Yeah. Paulina: Yeah. Carson: I think that's why we do this. We're so like free speech, speak your mind is probably what compelles Brandon: Bro. Paulina: Yeah, no, for sure. Carson: part of it. Brandon: Talk about whatever, no script. Carson: Right. Like I'm not afraid to say something I don't you know I don't know everything. I'm human. I make a mistake, I make a mistake. you know. Why we have a disclaimer? We shouldn't need a disclaimer, I don't think, you know, but Brandon: No, it's necessary though. Yeah, Paulina: Yeah, if not, we're gonna get cancelled right away. Like, they're gonna be like, mmm... Brandon: we need that. We need that for sure. Carson: But yeah, that's that's the state of things. So what y'all got first inspirational figures? What do you have? What do you have? What do you have? Brandon: Go ahead Paulina. Paulina: I don't have a celebrity, so maybe Brandon you want to continue with yours? You said earlier Brandon: Okay. Paulina: that you had a celebrity. I don't have any celebrities, so... Brandon: All right. All right. Mine isn't a celebrity. It's an athlete, but not a well-known athlete. Carson: Okay. Brandon: So obviously, I'm not the tallest person. Obviously, here you can't Paulina: In comparison to the person, nobody is. Brandon: really tell, but I don't know if you've seen the picture of us or you know us. Well, obviously, Carson's very tall, Carson: Ha ha ha. Brandon: Paulina's normal, and I'm short. Paulina: He's talking about normal. A little short chat about not normal. Carson: Paulina's short too. Brandon: Hey, what up man? But anyway, so obviously when I was younger playing basketball, I was always the smallest. And so my favorite basketball player was Mugsy Bogues. I don't know, Carson, you may know Mugsy Bogues was, I think he's the shortest person to ever play in the NBA. He's five foot three. Carson: Five three. Paulina: man, he's my height. Brandon: foot three yet so I'm actually taller than him but I Carson: Ha ha. Brandon: don't know it was always cool like to see him because I don't know it's truly inspirational to see someone who has a complete disadvantage in basketball because being smaller is a disadvantage and he made it to the highest level and he played I don't know how many seasons but probably probably 13 or 14 seasons in the NBA and I mean he did well and I don't know. Carson: Was he? No Brandon: I remember I used to have a... Go ahead. Carson: you you first. Brandon: I just gonna say, I had a poster, I used to have like a poster, a small poster in my room. And it was him like guarding Michael Jordan. And it's like, Jordan's the goat, at least in my eyes. And then you see like Mugsy there, like deeing him up. And there's a couple of videos out there of Mugsy getting the best of him. One or two. Carson: That's incredible. What's the app well, before I ask that, but like was he also doing the dunk contests? Or was that spud web? Brandon: No, that was Spud Webb. That was Spud Webb. So Spud Webb was a little bit before him. Carson: Okay, okay. Brandon: And Spud was taller. I think Spud was about 5'7", 5'8". But yeah, he was in the contest, All right. Carson: Ooh, a walking big difference. Paulina: Yeah. Carson: But but still, five three is very short. For for the NBA. I mean what's the Brandon: Yeah. Carson: average height? The average height in the NBA's gotta be six four, six five minimum. Brandon: It's a minimal has to be probably a six to six three at least Paulina: It's a whole foot shorter Carson: Yeah. And then there's guys over seven feet. There's plenty of guys. The centers and the power forward, power forwards. They're all minimum like six eight, six nine, minimum. Brandon: You know, people are very tall. Carson: That's crazy. Paulina: was going to make a comment, but let me not make a comment. Carson: Do it. Paulina: You said how tall they are? Like seven something? eight or... Carson: Who's? Paulina: I don't know, you said that their basketball players are six... Brandon: No, it's some people, yeah. Carson: Some some players are seven feet tall. Yeah, there's quite a few, right? I mean Paulina: Yeah, Brandon: Or more or higher. Paulina: the typical comment for that is like, you know, you can climb that like a tree. Carson: They basically don't have to jump to dunk. Brandon: You Carson: Their arms are long enough and they barely have to leave the ground if that get on their Paulina: Yeah. Carson: tippy toes and dump. Which is insane. Which is insane. I remember Paulina: my god. That's insane. Carson: I was working out when I was I was working at a gym and we had a trainer, a basketball trainer, who would train like, you know, NBA, what's the development? The D League. It's the D League, right? Where they're Brandon: Yeah, yeah. I think it was Carson: So there was a player who Brandon: called like the Gatorade or something, but yeah. Carson: They change their name sometimes. But yeah, he was he was training with this player and he wanted me to play defense. Granted, I did not have basketball shoes. I think it was just my work tennis shoe. But I was fit, I was strong. But this guy, I mean, I'm 6'4 for those of you don't know. This guy was probably 6'7, but big, strong. And he was guard. I think he was playing guard. I mean, I had not in like 20 minutes sweat or panted like a dog more of my life. This guy worked me. I mean I held my own, but he nearly dunked on me and he just warmed me. I didn't I don't think I scored. I don't think I got a single shot off. I was just like playing defense the whole time basically. And that guy was not in the NBA. You know, he was not the best of the Paulina: Yeah. Carson: best. And he was not that tall either. And I'm not sure. So I can just imagine like Brandon: Yeah, the level. Carson: You gotta be on your on your game to be five three playing in the league where you're just like staring at everybody's like belly button. It's just wild. Paulina: it's like me standing next to karson Carson: Yeah. Paulina: like that looks ridiculous you know Carson: It looks for good. Brandon: Okay. Paulina: it's like when the three of us go out it's like Carson: Is that his daughter? Brandon: Yeah, we thought like as kids, like, what kind of weird family is that? Paulina: man. Brandon: Okay. But yeah, I don't know. So that was my guy, Tyrone Muncie Bogues. Carson: And that's why you were able to dunk, because he inspired you. So you could dunk at some point, right? Brandon: No. I can catch an oom. Yeah, straight off by myself, no. But if someone threw it up or catch one off the rim, yeah, but those days are long gone. Carson: Nice. Probably for me too, man. Yeah. Brandon: Still jump, but the landing, it's the landing now. You don't know what's gonna happen. Paulina: Now we cross Carson: It's right. Paulina: the industry. Brandon: Some things. But yeah, that's it. Carson: Yeah. I don't remember my last dunk, so I mean I'm thirty five. I don't remember the last time I dunked. Easily ten years ago. The last time was ten years ago, it had to been. Ten plus. Brandon: no worries. Carson: Not saying I can't, Paulina: You guys are Carson: but Paulina: very inspirational singers. Carson: You know? Paulina: Sorry, could you repeat? Carson: No no. It wasn't important. Who's yours, Paulina? Who you who do you have in mind? Paulina: These are my notes for today. I wrote notes. The Carson: At least you took notes. Brandon: Okay Paulina: only time I take notes. Honestly, I don't have like any special like celebrities or athletes or anything like that. For me, I feel like, of course, it's wonderful if you can look up to an athlete but many of them, or at least celebrities, athletes is a different story, but celebrities, I feel like nowadays it's just so easy to, so to say, become like a celebrity in one way or another, you know, like the singers, actresses, like if you have the connections, like, Carson: Mm. Paulina: not saying that, you know, it's easy to have the talent to actually be a good actor or to be a good singer, but I don't know, I just don't feel, I don't have that connection with celebrities who say that like, my god, they like change my whole life. Carson: Yeah. Paulina: As some people do, know, which is fine. It's great that the people that we see on TV or on Instagram or whatever like can inspire people. I just, I don't know if I just see through a lot of bullshit with people and I know that... Sometimes the persona they put online can be very different from the persona like the actual person that they are So I'm always very cautious with like saying oh I really admire this person So the people that I have are more Actually like my my family Because you you should know your family to a certain extent hopefully And I have two inspirational figures, which is my grandma from my mom's So my mom's mom and my Carson: No, almost not. Paulina: great mom. Sorry. Carson: Mama's mama's mama. Paulina: Yes, exactly. Yes. And then my great aunt, who was my dad, well, my dad, my my grandpa's sister. both of them, I mean, they lived through horrible, horrible shit. Talking about like World War Two, you know, my grandma. Carson: Yeah. Paulina: when she was about, I think, seven years old. She was taken with my great grandma and, well, my grandma's sister, and they were taken to Kazakhstan. was like, I don't know how to explain it exactly because there weren't necessarily, like, prisoners, but... it was like some sort of like a punishment or something along those lines that they had to they took like a train there they went to Kazakhstan and if I'm not wrong because the the story or like the history that was told many many times like slightly changes because my grandma was quite old when she was telling me this my they went there by train and I think my great grandma actually had to work there like as like a so to say prisoner and my grandma the age of like I said seven or eight something like that was just running around there like trying to survive just being there with her sister meanwhile Carson: But they were taken taken from Poland to Kazakhstan. Paulina: Yeah. Yeah. Well, first they went to, if I'm not mistaken, first they went to Siberia and then from Siberia they went to Kazakhstan. Yeah. Carson: Wow. So it was like a it sounds like an internment camp, some kind of like re education. Brandon: Yeah, I was gonna say like a confinement camp or something. Paulina: Yeah. Meanwhile, my great grandpa stayed with the rest of the siblings in Poland. Carson: Okay. Paulina: Like, they didn't allow him to leave. Like, the punishment or something like that was for them to be separated. Carson: wow. It's terrible. Paulina: And I found letters that my grandma wrote about that time. and it like breaks my heart. Like when I first read it, like she was describing the journey there that there was like this woman that actually gave them bread because there was like, there was nothing to eat on this long train ride. That this woman got like later on caught and like punished for actually giving her away, like her rations of food for other people. And for like fun. So to say what my grandma did with her sister is tattoos on their hands. And like at the age of seven, like they had nothing to do. Like they literally put ink in their skin Carson: I am. Paulina: because they're like, let's see what this does. There's no toy, you know? So like you did whatever you wanted to do. You're sort of Carson: Maybe you could do. Paulina: like running around and After like for me what is so inspirational is that she went through all of that. She did not have an easy life. And then like as an adult she still like managed or tried to give what she could for her own kids back in Poland. know like when she finally got married to my grandpa and all of that. And for me that's like how can you get like so traumatized at such a young age? and still try your best every day and do your best every day to provide for your own kids and then later on grandkids because I was so spoiled like when I would visit my grandma like plenty of food like she would always give me like money for ice cream and a part of me feels like I wish that she had those opportunities when she was that age you know that she had that But she didn't. And yeah, it just makes me think like when I'm having a really difficult day that my grandma had a worse and like she managed like she survived. Living off of, I don't know, a piece of freaking bread once a day, you know? And to connect. Sorry. Carson: Was this a religious? Do you know if it was a religion? Was it like what was the reason for her being separated? Like what why was she being punished for her religion or her she was born? She was like, I don't know. Sounds Paulina: if I'm not mistaken, if I'm not wrong, this is what I heard from my mom. Like I said, this story sort of gets like almost like watered Brandon: So, pass down. Paulina: down and passed down and with each generation, like there are different retellings of Brandon: There's a new twist. Paulina: it, you know? my grandma never really told me the real reason. but from what I have been told from my mom, because my mom knew the story a little bit better. than any of her, like my sisters or whatever. From what I've heard is that they were helping out, if I'm not wrong, Jewish people, and people who were technically like in hiding or should like, you know, were trying to hide from the Germans or from the Russians or whatever. And someone snitched on on my grandparents because they come from like a very small village and if you snitched that means that like you're technically protected because you're the one who snitched right so they're not gonna come and look in your house because you snitched on somebody else so you have like info so somebody snitched and they found out that yes, they were hiding people. And so to say the punishment was that my grandpa actually stayed in Poland. He was being punished, my great-grandpa, Carson: Your grandparents were hiding people. Your grandparents were hiding people. Paulina: was my grandpa that was hiding people with my great-grandma. And later on, the story goes that they separated them. Carson: What a crazy time. Paulina: Yeah. And with Carson: Well yeah, Paulina: that goes, great aunt also lived, you know, through the wars. She was older than my grandma. And also lived through the war. then I think in the 80s, she moved 80s or 70s, I'm not 100 % sure. She moved to the United States, to New Jersey. with two kids with a husband like not really having anything like not really knowing many people there got on a freaking boat and and went to the states you know to start a new life and for me when i hear those stories of people moving back in like i don't know 60s 70s to the united states from europe like that long journey with the whole family not having anything i'm like It's it's wild like it's scary for us nowadays to move to a different country because maybe Carson: Yeah, I do yeah. Paulina: we don't speak the little words but Back in the days And she wasn't young, she already had two kids that were like 10 years old and I think 8 years old. So I think my great aunt was already definitely in her 30s, mid 30s, you know? We know how difficult it is to move to a different country when you're even in your 20s, late 20s. Carson: Yeah. Paulina: Imagine having a kid or two kids Brandon: Kids. Paulina: moving to a whole different continent. We're not even talking about a country, a whole different continent. Carson: Yeah. Paulina: different culture and starting Brandon: everything. Paulina: from scratch. Carson: Probably not knowing much English. Well, I Paulina: No, no, definitely not. Carson: Yeah. Paulina: Yeah. So those are my two people that when I'm having a difficult day and need a little bit of hope, I always think about them like it could definitely be worse. And if they have done it, I can do it as well. Carson: That's beautiful. Brandon: Of course. Paulina: a little bit positive message at the end. Carson: Yeah. Paulina: All right, now we can end it. Carson: said everybody, we're Brandon: Hope Carson: gonna stop it there now. Brandon: you enjoy the show. Paulina: Yeah. So that's that. All for me. Carson: So many people have done have gone through so much worse shit than us and they turned out all right and they stayed positive and they, you know, bettered themselves. They didn't say, you know, Paulina: Yeah. Carson: show me pity because my life is so hard. I mean, some people definitely like can't get over things, right? And they have a really hard time coming out of it. Depresses them and ruins their lives. But then you occasionally have people who are unfazed, right? Who are just like, you know what? No, that was bad those are bad things that happened to me, but it doesn't mean that's how I have to look at life. So amazing story. Really cool. Brandon: especially the older generations like they were definitely built different than us like they're so much tougher and they're going through so much so many different things that i don't know like things that we could imagine i mean a nerdiest grandfather he he passed away when he was 104 and the stories that he would tell us even when he was older like 99 and up the stories that he would tell or maybe he wouldn't tell him but like nerdiest aunts would tell them and it is just like, wow. From that Paulina: Like, how am I still alive? Brandon: and just all the things that you went through, like you said, with your grandmother, your great-grandmother. And this is like the things that happened during the Spanish Civil War and it was just like, it's rough. It wasn't that long ago and the Carson: Yeah about. Brandon: things that they were talking about what happened is insane. Carson: Can't imagine. Brandon: Like I said, our life is good. We can't complain. Carson: Yeah. Yeah. That's why I don't buy into the whole doomsday world's falling apart. You know, World War Three's here. Like, you would know if it were that bad. You know, I don't think we'd be having this free time Brandon: Exactly Carson: to do podcasts if things were really that bad. Brandon: Exactly. If we were preparing for war. Paulina: We would be hiding in bunkers right now if that was the case. Carson: Yeah. Knocking on Switzerland's door. I know you have space. Paulina: Let me in! Brandon: And I'm like, no. Carson: But yeah, the whole toughness Paulina: man. Carson: thing, the generational toughness thing, that's real. Have you all seen the the short reels on Instagram where it's like nineties kids when they like hit the door or something versus seventies, eighties, nineties and two thousands, like you know, crying about they're hitting their shoulder and then the eighties is like, just if you haven't seen it, you'll you'll see it now because I talked about it. Algorithms Brandon: He's like, this is there, it's gonna show up. Paulina: you Carson: listening, but No, but there is some truth in that. That's why it's funny, Brandon: Okay. Carson: you know. The funny things are the true things that we can relate to. And Brandon: Definitely. Carson: no, that's true. I mean, I I mean we're all millennials, right? But we've seen how people, even people our age, are getting behind certain movements, acting out, you know, becoming influencers, the things they're posting, the things they're saying. It's just the sensitivity is like way out of control. You can't say anything without pissing somebody off, but and now people can't just be pissed off. And share it with their close friends, they get pissed off and they share it online thinking that they have this platform to be, you know, outraged at the world. This is just such a Paulina: Yeah. Carson: weird time to be alive when you know it's like you're nobody. You're just somebody who got pissed off and didn't like something. Keep it to yourself. You don't if you don't like it, don't watch it. Like it, don't Brandon: Keep it moving. Carson: say what? Paulina: This is Brandon: Keep it moving. Carson: All that Paulina: why we have this podcast to talk shit like Tell you guys the truth what we think Carson: This is our echo chamber. Brandon: Yeah Paulina: Yeah. No, but it's true. Carson: But Paulina: I do think that people are a lot more like sensitive, you know, I look also like the way of like this whole like soft parenting. OK, on one hand, I get it. It's nice. OK, you want your kids to. But there is an extreme like there are some people that just take it to the extreme. I'm like, if your kid wants to eat dirt, let him eat dirt. Like that's it. Like I ate sand when I was a kid. I turned out pretty okay, I'm sure, you know, like... Brandon: Right. Paulina: No, I'm not saying anything, but just to give you guys an example, you know, like... Brandon: It'll make you see ghosts Carson: Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, you didn't die. But did you die though? No. Paulina: Exactly, right? It's like you go running to your house and you tell them, oh, I busted my knee open. Go outside. I don't want to see you. Go play. What are you doing here? Brandon: What does that have do with me? Paulina: Yeah. You take care of your own business. Carson: And yeah. And so and so what did you do? And it's not like what happened to you? Now it's what happened to you? my god. Back then I was like, What did you do wrong? What Brandon: Who did it to you? Carson: the fuck did you do? Paulina: Exactly. I remember when I cut my knee open. Was it knee? Yeah, it was my knee. Because I was doing some sort of stupid flips when I was a kid. On like, I don't know what they're called. I know the Polish word for it. I don't know if it even exists in English. It's like a monkey bar, but not exactly. But let's just go that was like a monkey bar. And I fell from from these like monkey bars and I had clogs. You guys know what clogs are, right? Like those type of shoes with the wooden bottom. and they had staples around it, like to hold the material. So I ripped the, like the clog ripped the moment that I fell and somehow like the staple like pretty badly like cut my knee. And I started bleeding, you know, and I'm like, my God, I can't go home because if my mom sees this, she's going to tell me to just stay home and not go outside and play with my friends. So I would literally, I just like spit on my knee. like rub this bit in to clean it, you know? Like put a leaf on it. I'm like, okay, I'm good to go. Carson: Two of Paulina: You solved your own fucking problems now, kids. I'm running with everything. Leave me alone. Carson: It's wild. I had a Paulina: We're a lot more independent. Carson: Yeah, I mean Brandon: Definitely. Carson: we it was well yeah, it was back in the day when you would go out and stay out until dark, you'd come home, you didn't have a phone, you just I mean, sometimes my stepdad would whistle, we'd be in the woods and we'd just hear the whistle, okay, it's time for dinner. Let's Brandon: Let's go. Carson: go. Paulina: Yeah. Carson: But I was gonna say that I had a student this year whose mom specifically or mother specifically requested that she not participate in the class, just observe the class. As in go in, read and write and listen, but not really have to speak and get involved. And I just laughed. I just laughed because I mean it's language, right? We're Brandon: You have to speak. Carson: not learning about history or literature here. This is a hundred percent you must converse, you must speak in order to to get better. So I just laughed and I was like, you know what? No. And if she's if she has a problem with the way things are going, she can come talk to me. I'll tell her that. that's just not okay. That's not how you're gonna learn. I think it was more it must have been, and and the only thing I can think of is it came from maybe a child sensitive comment that she made, which is a normal thing. Like we're all, you know, self-conscious, especially self-conscious, especially when we're learning a language and we're not so confident yet in the language. Maybe it was one time the kid said, I just get nervous sometimes because I really can't understand him. He speaks really fast. Who knows what the comment was? But maybe the parent just blew this out of proportion. It was like, you know what, sweetie, I just want you to go and listen. And but this is funny because it's coming from a mother who's a teacher. And not only that, but Paulina: Yeah. Carson: I think she's a language teacher as well. And I just it blew it blew my mind, but I I staunchly defended myself and I said, you know what, I'm not gonna change the way I teach. And my boss, my friend, was like, yeah, I get it. I mean, that's just ridiculous. I'm like, yeah, it is. And then so I mean, she participated Brandon: It's insane. Carson: and she did just as well or just as badly as the other students, because guess what? They don't have a high level. But how are they gonna get a higher level? They're gonna speak they're gonna have to, you know. So Paulina: Of Carson: There you go, soft parenting. Doesn't Paulina: Yeah. Carson: work. It's not not good for the kid. You gotta make these kids tough because No, no, it's not good for anybody. It Brandon: No one wins with it. It's a lose-lose situation. Carson: really is. Hundred percent agree. Paulina: Getting a bit sidetracked over here, man, boys. Carson: That's that's why it's a group chat. If we go down we're not we're not here Brandon: That's how it is. Carson: preaching anything, any one thing. Paulina: you Carson: but yeah, I mean that story about your grandmother, that's not like I'm trying to top it, but that's that's that's truly inspirational. I'm trying to think my stepdad passed away in 2015. He was fifty-two. It was a surprise to everybody. He had some kind of like heart thing, but it was pretty much innocent. It was a left bundle branch block. Nothing really serious, like we didn't know. He was just under stress. And basically he you know, he didn't wake up. the mom g had to give him CPR. he ended up being in a coma for over a week while family was visiting to see, you know, just to see him, to be with us. He ended up passing away and it was just a shock to everybody because we're talking about an apparently healthy guy, you know, cycles, hikes. He wasn't overweight, he was in great shape, just the nicest guy, a friend of everybody. Like you the first time you meet him, he becomes somebody you want to stay in touch with, somebody you want to do things with. So he was an inspiration for me because, well, not only being really positive follower figure for me when I was young, but as I got older, I just felt I always felt connected to him. I always felt like I could be myself around him. He appreciated appreciated me for who I was, never tried to change me, supported me. But aside from how he treated me, it was just kind of how he he treated other people, how he would be so interested in the, you know, seemingly smallest details of somebody's life, starting a conversation with a complete stranger, like, where are you from? Noticing they had some accent, wanting to know why like why are you here? What's your story? What's going on? Like not not really staying on the surface level, not afraid to ask those deeper questions. And so socially he in he inspires me to to strike up conversations with strangers, just to get into it or to entertain at least. You know, the the fascinating parts of people's lives, which maybe seem mundane to us, right? We the three of us live in Spain. We we at this point we're just so used to everything, but it's there's nothing small about what we've done. There's nothing small about the lives that we've That we've started and have continued. Paulina: Yeah. Carson: and so other people, of course, have those stories, stories similar to ours, you know, but but also different. And I think it's just so cool. It was just so cool to see how he touched people, how they instantly, their faces instantly lit up. Like he was a friend of everyone. I don't think anybody who ever met him had any bad things to say about him. So just his influence, like I hear his voice, whether he's encouraging me. To do something, or that I'm gonna get through the hard thing, or that I said the right thing, I did the right thing. or just to like, you know, ask questions, be curious, stay curious about people's lives and and and appreciate that people are beautiful and and interesting and and everybody has a unique story. So yeah, he's been Paulina: course. Carson: very inspirational for me. I still see him in my dreams sometimes. I hear his voice all the time. It's just somebody you'll never forget, you know? Even when I'm eighty, I'm still gonna think of him. Still gonna remember the times. Paulina: I think we all need those types of people in our lives, right? And we probably all have at least one person like that, right? And if we don't, I mean, that really sucks. Carson: No. Paulina: And I really hope that, you know, people actually will meet a person like that in their lives because I think it's so necessary to have at least one person that you can look up to. to give you that little glimmer of hope Brandon: Inspiration. Carson: As a people lover. Man, Paulina: and inspiration. Carson: I just think it's so n easy nowadays to to judge people, to hate people, to put people in a box in some kind of category, you know, because of their beliefs or whatever, but it's like there's nothing wrong with having a different opinion. I guess he was part of that for me. He's still he still kinda is part of that. And something we're all living with. We're all living with this whole like I gotta be careful, I don't wanna classify myself, you know. Your story is still unique. There's still places you've you've been, things you've seen, you know, experiences you've had that are unique to you and nobody else. You gotta share your story. It's important. Brandon: That's a good one. Paulina: Brandon, you have any other ones? Brandon: Yeah, I have one, but it's more of a in general. It's not any one particular person. It's a group of people. We actually kind of talked on it before we started the when we were talking before the chat. And then also it kind of goes along with what about your grandmother and your great grandmother Paulina. But for me, think inspirational group of people are immigrants. People that for whatever reason they choose to leave from one country and to somewhere else. It could be something political, could be like they're seeking asylum, or it could be just like us, like we decide, hey, well, let's go to Spain. But those people that are willing to, in some cases, risk it all, like literally like their life, like to go to try to better the life of themselves and their family. And then... their whole issue with the illegal immigration and everything. That's a whole different story. But the fact that there are people that are willing to risk their life to make their lives for their family better. think that's something. is inspirational and that a lot of times, well, people kind of look down on immigrants, no matter which country it is. But instead Carson: Yeah. Brandon: of looking down on them, we should be applauding them for what they've done. Because a lot of times it's something that we would never do, or the people in general wouldn't do. Like, we've done it, but we did it a different way. Came with our visas and everything, but... Difficult but wasn't risky, but there's people who do it because they have no other choice. Carson: Right. And they don't know Paulina: Exactly. Carson: what the results gonna be. They don't know if they're gonna find work. They don't know where they're gonna live. They come here sometimes, they come to, you know, they go into like you said, they have no choice. They have to leave, whether it's like personal safety or some kind of political motive. But Brandon: Whatever. Carson: yeah. I mean, we were lucky in the fact that we had people, we had support systems, we're not financially fucked. but some people have nothing Brandon: Exactly. Carson: and then they end up in a place where they know nothing. They don't know. what tomorrow looks like. That takes a lot yeah, that takes some serious brain. Paulina: Yeah. I want to add like a little anecdote here to this. In Poland at least, back in the days when a person was going to a different country, especially to America, because it was quite popular to go to United States 60s, 70s, 80s and so on. If you were from a small village, like a lot of people would chip in if they could, like they would give a little bit of money. I think this happened in Ireland as well, but I'm not 100 % sure, like I can't confirm that, disclaimer. Carson: Ha ha ha. Paulina: I think it happened in a lot of like small villages or small towns. If you knew somebody was going to the States, like as a little good luck thing, like people would chip in for the tickets for the ferry or something like that. for those people to actually say like, like this person from my village made it. And like, would I hope that maybe one day they'll like, I don't know, pay that, pay that back in a way of like paying back for the community or inviting somebody to the United States as like a thank you type of thing, you know? So it was technically like a nice gesture. But there was a little bit of like, hopefully, like one day, like, you can, you know, allow us to also come to your house, you know, like to United States. Because it would be like if one person made it, I mean, everybody in that village type of thing like made it, you know. Carson: Yeah. Well, I mean depends I guess how close close and knit the the community is. If it's, you know, it's like your Paulina: Yeah. Carson: neighborhood or something, maybe you've got five, ten really close neighbors, they're the ones who pitch in, maybe you would just naturally invite them to your place. I mean, if they had the means Paulina: Yeah. Carson: to get there, right? Like, I mean, depending on Brandon: Of course. Carson: like Of course, there are a lot of factors. And yeah, we do things altruistically, and then there's sometimes there's selfish motivations, and sometimes it's that mix. It's like, well, I want to help you, but I also wouldn't mind if you know later on you remember that I helped you and you wanted to help me enjoy my visit or I can get something out of you in the future. Like we're we're human, Paulina: Yeah. Carson: you know, we're human, Brandon: Thank Carson: we do that. There's nothing wrong with that, but the fact is like you're helping. financially, which is really hard in the beginning. especially any move, as you know. Financially there's things that come come out of the woodwork. You don't know, you can't expect every all the cost, you know. You can't you can't know all the expenses up front. So I Brandon: There's always something. Carson: think I went Paulina: that clean. Carson: to Spain with about three thousand, maybe a little over three thousand euros, maybe four thousand Euros. And it's close, man. It didn't get me very far. It didn't take me very far. I did it. Fortunately I didn't have to buy a new car. Fortunately I didn't have to spend much or any money on rent. I didn't have to pay rent, but before getting paychecks going and things like that. Yeah man, we need some money up front. Brandon: It's a difficult process. Paulina: Yeah. No, for sure. For sure. It's not it's not easy for those who right now, as you said, like for those people who judge right off the bat. That's not easy, right? It's like people go there and they think like, like they're coming here, they're going to steal our jobs. You don't want to do those jobs like. Brandon: Exactly. Immigrants go and they do the jobs that people in that country don't want to do and will not do. Carson: These are things Paulina: Yeah. Carson: that need to be done. Brandon: And if those jobs weren't done, the economy would collapse and everything, nothing would work. Carson: It's like, you know, instead of saying immigration as a whole is bad, let's get it to the point where we have programs and sure we can't let everybody in. I mean some cities maybe have yeah, Brandon: Definitely not. It has to be controlled. Carson: there's gotta be some kind of control, some kind of system, but also some kind of path to residency, path to citizenship that's realistic. So people who have skills or people who are looking to get skills. Maybe we find you know, maybe we can figure out the university problem that we have in the US, for example, 'cause just way too expensive to to get an education. Anyways, now we're going on. Paulina: sure. Brandon: It's a perfect. Carson: as we always do. Very easy Paulina: As always. Carson: to relate things together. Paulina: Yeah, I know. Brandon: for me that's good, that's it. Carson: Yeah. Brandon: For inspirational, it's basically, I have one specific, one general. Yeah, that was it. I always, like you Paulina: Yeah. Carson: All right. Brandon: said, there's always more people, Carson: Yeah. Brandon: family members. I could choose every single one of my family members and say how they inspired me and how I look up to them. Carson: For sure. I get that. Paulina: be a six hour podcast. Carson: It's true. Well I actually have five more people to talk Brandon: In a Carson: about, but I think it's just for me it's it's people in general. Sometimes people you know, sometimes people you learn about. It could be, you know. Paulina, you said you're reading this book about the athletes, right? They came from nothing. Right. Paulina: No, it's not about athletes. It's about, like, what's your dream? So sort of like chasing the dream and like how to make it like a reality. what I said is that when I was reading this, the first thought that popped in my mind was Nico Williams and his family. So I connected those two things. I've been reading this and how people have these dreams, whether it's to move to a different country or to start their business or whatever it is. And I've learned recently about Nicolai Williams' parents' story, how they had to walk from, where was it, Ghana? Ghana. Brandon: They're from Ghana. Yeah, from Ghana. Paulina: Through the desert and everything while the mom was pregnant. Brandon: Yeah. Paulina: Like, what? Like that's wild, like I wouldn't even step a foot in the desert, like I'm too scared to go outside right now in Murcia and she's walking around, Brandon: Exactly. Paulina: walking in the desert pregnant, Carson: Yeah. Paulina: girl. Carson: No. Paulina: So yeah, it's like, you know, when you have this type of dream, like when you feel so... like inspired by something that you want to achieve, like whether it's because you want a better life or whatever it is, or maybe you saw someone do something that really like took your breath away, then why not go for it? Right? It's like people, there are so many people that are so inspirational, like... It doesn't have to be a famous person, it doesn't have to be just family Brandon: Definitely. Paulina: members, just you look around and like you look at your friends sometimes and you're like, oh my god, like how do they have the balls to do that? Right? In a good way. Carson: Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Paulina: But... Yeah. Carson: Right on. People are amazing. So Brandon: You just need to focus on that, amazing things that they do. A lot of times people focus on the negative, focus on the amazing, the good stuff. Carson: Yeah. It's it's just Paulina: you Carson: too easy to like criticize people, but in the end, they mean. Be yourself. Share your story. That's the inspiration. That nowadays it's it's enough just to be yourself. Like you can be all these things, you can, you know, jump on some propaganda, whatever, but just really speaking your mind and you know, standing up for yourself or standing up for others, that's the inspiration. So I guess that's all I have to say about that. Paulina: Stay true to yourself. Carson: Patrick. Be yourself. Don't be afraid of what others are gonna say. Because there's always gonna be shit talkers. Brandon: always. Carson: A lot of people just don't understand, they can't understand, or they don't want to. But Paulina: Yeah. Carson: here we are. Paulina: Exactly. So, is that a wrap? Carson: So I think that that's a wrap. That concludes our episode for today. we hope it was inspiring. And we'll catch you on the next one. We're on all platforms, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Instagram. So please give us a follow, like, share, and subscribe, and give us your comments. We want to hear what you think, what you'd like to hear from us. We're all ears. And that's it. Until next time. Thank you. Brandon: Cheers.