Gray Carr Bridgers | Discussion Combustion Podcast | #279

[00:00:00] We'll have this discussion. Discussion? What discussion? This is a discussion. Combustion. Coming to you from Denver, Colorado, this is Discussion Combustion Podcast with your hosts Kevin Batstone and Arthur Rawe. Really? Congratulations. Thank you. Thank you. Yes. We've been going for a long time. I love that. I love that. It's been a fun ride. Well, and this is the trajectory, right? It's a hockey stick. You get people and they

[00:00:30] share it with their friends and they start following you. And so it compounds itself. That's for sure. You got to ride the wave because it does ebb and flow. And I'll tell you this, the week before we met at that Grit Together, I was done with the show. Just mentally. I was, I was, yeah, I was going to quit the show. That Grit Together completely changed my trajectory. And I started this whole great movement from it. Guts, Resilience Initiative, Tenacity. And here we are. I love that. That's cool. That was a cool night. Good for you. That got me redialed. You know, we met great people, got you on the show here. So I'm going to give you a fist.

[00:01:00] Pump on that. Oh yeah. Let's bring it in. Bring it. I want to get in on this. Yeah. Good job. Thanks for not quitting on me, Kevin. I know. I know. I'm here. So I would have given him such a hard time. Hey, for these four walls, everything's safe in here. And of course the world is tuning in. No, I would have given you such a hard time if you had tried to. Yeah, he probably would have. It would not have been easy. It wouldn't have been an easy walk away for him. No, I just love it too much. I get to meet great people, hear great stories. So yeah, I can't quit. Yeah, no. We're going all the way.

[00:01:30] We're going all the way. Full send. This one's going to give you a little bit of a boost. I think so. I can tell. Yeah. I mean, your energy is amazing. I remember when we met you at The Grit together, you had your cowgirl hat on. I did, yeah. Bring it. And you were looking sharp, had the energy there. So tell us a bit about yourself, or I guess the listeners, because you've been a producer in the past. I have, yes. For shows. You recently wrote a book, but it's not published yet. Not published yet. As a matter of fact, it's with the

[00:02:28] editor right now.

[00:02:30] Kratt, Kratt's Creatures, Zabumafum. Started with them at the inception of that idea, and we were called Earth Creatures at the time.

[00:02:40] Earth Creatures, okay. Yeah. And so this was back in the early 90s.

[00:02:44] I remember that show. Yeah.

[00:02:45] Yeah. And we, it was fledgling. I mean, we were all in our 20s, and I had a background in photography, and they, of course, were dabbling in videography, and, of course, it's two brothers that had super energy together.

[00:03:01] And so we started doing National Park little videos, and the first place was Chincoteague. I don't know if y'all have ever been there. Wild Ponies.

[00:03:10] I've got that one.

[00:03:11] Oh, yeah. It's awesome.

[00:03:13] Chincoteague?

[00:03:14] Chincoteague.

[00:03:14] Chincoteague.

[00:03:15] Okay.

[00:03:16] It's on the, it's right at the Delmarova area in the Outer Banks on the East Coast.

[00:03:22] Okay.

[00:03:22] So that's Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia area.

[00:03:26] I've been through that area. I don't know about that specifically.

[00:03:27] It's awesome wild ponies up and down the, the Outer Banks, and they originally came from the Spanish ships that, that wrecked off the coast, and those ponies swam ashore, and that lineage continues. Super, super strong.

[00:03:46] So they're wild ponies?

[00:03:47] They're wild ponies.

[00:03:48] Wild horses, like the Rolling Stones song.

[00:03:49] Yeah. And so we did our first, like, video on wild ponies, and we started a genre, like, we wanted hip, cool videos of animals.

[00:04:02] We wanted to be rich in information.

[00:04:06] And at the time, back in the 90s, it was, they were, the wildlife film industry, you had long clips, and you had flutes playing when swans were flying in the air.

[00:04:18] And we were like, bag that shit, man.

[00:04:20] No, we need to, we need to throw it out there and be really cool and hip.

[00:04:25] It was not taken by the industry very well at all.

[00:04:28] I mean, the wildlife industry didn't like us.

[00:04:31] So it was something completely different at the time.

[00:04:34] Totally different.

[00:04:34] Okay.

[00:04:35] Quick clips and everything.

[00:04:37] And so going back to your question, producing, we, yeah, we produced everything we did.

[00:04:42] We took the raw footage.

[00:04:43] I sat there and did all the clips and did spreadsheets.

[00:04:47] And we would put, all three of us would put the videos together, do all the research on the animals and so forth and so on.

[00:04:54] How was editing done in the 90s?

[00:04:56] Like, you didn't have, like, the video software that we have now.

[00:05:00] That we have today.

[00:05:00] Yep, VHS tapes.

[00:05:02] And you'd have to cut and cut.

[00:05:03] Oh, yeah.

[00:05:04] And brutal.

[00:05:05] And I, on the photography end of it, of course, I'm using 35 millimeter film.

[00:05:10] So, I mean, I'm blowing through Fujichrome film and having it to go get, you know, developed and bring it back.

[00:05:20] And so it was just such a long, arduous process.

[00:05:24] It sounds tedious.

[00:05:25] Yeah, really tedious.

[00:05:26] And then we were just kind of a little bit scoffed from the industry.

[00:05:33] And we were like, you know, dude, we got to make this big or go home.

[00:05:36] And so we hooked up with a professor at Duke University where Martin and I graduated and went down to the Amazon and did, spent about a half a year down there doing wildlife films and filming.

[00:05:53] And came back with about 40 hours worth of footage and some absolutely insane stories.

[00:06:00] Do you feel like you were prepared for the Amazon?

[00:06:03] Hell no.

[00:06:04] No?

[00:06:05] No.

[00:06:06] It was, it was, I mean, growing up in North Carolina.

[00:06:10] Yeah.

[00:06:10] Yeah.

[00:06:10] It was about as humid as it is in North Carolina.

[00:06:13] Okay.

[00:06:13] But it was, the animals, the insects, the ants.

[00:06:19] The ants.

[00:06:19] I could talk about ants for hours.

[00:06:22] They're really interesting.

[00:06:23] And they like communicate with the fungi and stuff.

[00:06:26] Yeah, yeah.

[00:06:27] And, you know, the book actually goes into this sort of idea of, you know, nature talks to itself.

[00:06:35] And you see this in like a mega way in the Amazon.

[00:06:41] Everything is just amplified beyond belief.

[00:06:43] And so trees talk to each other and lichen and, of course, the birds and the monkeys that are, you look up in the trees and monkeys are everywhere.

[00:06:54] But they're the alarmist.

[00:06:57] They'll tell you if something's going on.

[00:06:59] Yeah.

[00:06:59] So you can literally, after a while, you kind of get used to the ebb and flow.

[00:07:04] And you can look and listen and go, okay, something's going on over here.

[00:07:08] Ooh, that's not a good call from a monkey.

[00:07:10] And you start to blend in with their cadence.

[00:07:15] And that's a beautiful thing.

[00:07:18] It takes a little bit to do that.

[00:07:20] Well, and you almost have to release a little bit to allow it to listen to the intuition.

[00:07:27] You got to listen to nature and take the signs.

[00:07:28] Yeah, and we don't do that these days.

[00:07:30] And that was another premise that Martin and Chris, and they've just made this a global thing, which is amazing.

[00:07:38] But we wanted to teach children, go out in nature.

[00:07:42] Go out in your backyard.

[00:07:44] Go look at a squirrel.

[00:07:45] Go follow a caterpillar around and watch a butterfly for a little bit.

[00:07:50] And we just don't pause enough these days to actually love nature.

[00:07:56] And I have to say, though, Colorado, Boulder area where I am now, yeah, people are doing that.

[00:08:02] A little different.

[00:08:03] A little different.

[00:08:04] Than North Carolina.

[00:08:05] There's more tree huggers in that region.

[00:08:07] Yeah, for sure.

[00:08:07] For sure.

[00:08:08] And honestly, hugging a tree actually has a lot of benefits.

[00:08:11] I've seen Arthur do it.

[00:08:12] You know?

[00:08:12] For sure.

[00:08:12] Like, if you appreciate the tree, the life that it brings us, it gives us oxygen.

[00:08:18] So it's a life-sustaining organism.

[00:08:20] And then it's been around a lot longer than we have.

[00:08:23] So there's, like, history there.

[00:08:25] Go try hugging a tree.

[00:08:26] You can tell Art's from Colorado.

[00:08:27] You got to try hugging a tree.

[00:08:28] You got to hug them.

[00:08:30] Well, I mean, I think in the tree maybe give you some energy back.

[00:08:34] You never know where that's going to take you.

[00:08:36] Revitalizing energy.

[00:08:37] Right?

[00:08:37] What about our rocks?

[00:08:39] We would set them out in the grass to let them charge from the Earth's energy and bring them in here before a show.

[00:08:43] Oh, okay.

[00:08:44] Yeah.

[00:08:44] Yeah?

[00:08:45] So give you positive vibes, positive energy.

[00:08:48] I mean, you can't hurt, right?

[00:08:49] No.

[00:08:49] Well, you were in Lions at this thing where we met, you know, the grit thing.

[00:08:55] That thing was way out there, wasn't it?

[00:08:56] Yeah, and you might have gotten the energy from, you know, the trees and the rocks.

[00:09:01] Yeah, there was goats on the property.

[00:09:03] Yeah, it might have catapulted you.

[00:09:05] That might have been it.

[00:09:06] Yeah, that could have been it.

[00:09:07] It's revitalizing.

[00:09:09] Nature does have healing properties.

[00:09:11] We are from nature.

[00:09:12] Yeah.

[00:09:13] You know, so we're the only animal to tame nature in the extent that we have.

[00:09:19] Yeah.

[00:09:19] Like, sure, like, ants have colonizations in, like, these massive, like, ant cities.

[00:09:23] They're huge.

[00:09:24] Massive.

[00:09:24] So it is really interesting to, like, think about the Earth's journey within the universe and how everything is kind of connected.

[00:09:35] I don't know.

[00:09:36] I've been watching some documentaries on that, so I could easily go off on that subject.

[00:09:39] Yeah, I am.

[00:09:41] I'm right there with you because I think the Earth, she's expanding, and we are trying to resist that expansion, and we need to embrace that.

[00:09:53] And that expansion means we're learning more about nature.

[00:09:56] We're learning about how she's balanced, and we are supposed to be the stewards, right?

[00:10:03] We're apparently the smartest things on this planet, and we're supposed to be the stewards of our planet.

[00:10:10] And, unfortunately, we're not.

[00:10:14] We're kind of destroying it left and right.

[00:10:17] Pretty rapidly.

[00:10:18] Yeah.

[00:10:18] And I think everybody does need to take a pause and say, you know, what can I do in my little area that I can get back to nature?

[00:10:28] Yeah.

[00:10:28] So let me ask you this, because here in Colorado, you know, they reintroduce wolves, right, to nature.

[00:10:33] And people have very mixed opinions about that.

[00:10:34] So I'd be curious to hear, because I've heard both sides of the coin, and I understand both sides of the argument, because we've seen a lot of these.

[00:10:41] It's not going well so far.

[00:10:42] We've seen some things go sideways.

[00:10:44] Oh, yeah, it's out in, like, Grand Junction area, and, like, the wolves are attacking farm.

[00:10:49] Yeah, taking out the cattle and things like that, and that's why they were lobbying against it.

[00:10:53] But how much involvement do we really have by trying to remove these wolves out of Colorado if they were here naturally?

[00:10:59] I think it's a great question, and it's great that you say that.

[00:11:02] And, matter of fact, Martin, Chris, and I were in Alligator Refuge, which is in North Carolina, where they were, too, were doing reintroductions of wolves into the mountains of North Carolina.

[00:11:15] And that was also met with contention.

[00:11:17] And, really, it's, you know, the farmers, and they've got sheep and livestock, and the wolves are going to be attracted to that.

[00:11:28] But it's all about balance, right?

[00:11:30] And you've got an apex predator, like a wolf, that is going to be easy pickings for something that is in a fence line, right?

[00:11:42] I mean, you'd go for that, too, right?

[00:11:44] I mean, you can't blame the wolf.

[00:11:46] Right.

[00:11:46] The problem is, is that you don't have enough balance in the wildlife for the wolf to prey on.

[00:11:53] And let's just talk about, you know, fox, coyote, probably.

[00:12:00] Smaller animals like rabbits.

[00:12:02] I mean, I wouldn't mind having a little wolf here and there in Boulder.

[00:12:06] There are so many rabbits.

[00:12:07] I've never seen so many rabbits in my entire life.

[00:12:08] A lot of rabbits, huh?

[00:12:09] Well, and also, like, people don't eat rabbits like they do down in the south.

[00:12:12] No, yeah.

[00:12:13] We'll eat some rabbit and squirrel.

[00:12:16] Hey, there's nothing wrong with that.

[00:12:18] I've never had.

[00:12:19] I got some Bayou boys that are, like, close to the family, and they talk about how they get the squirrels and stuff, too, and, like, the rabbits.

[00:12:27] And one of them was telling me a story about how he couldn't believe how safe the squirrels thought they were in Colorado.

[00:12:34] Like, the squirrels are just like, hi, saying good morning to you, and they don't act like that in Louisiana.

[00:12:40] They hide in Louisiana.

[00:12:41] Yeah, they're too tame here.

[00:12:43] Matter of fact, I work at a school in Boulder called Watershed, and we had a student that wanted to grab a squirrel, and she got bitten, of course.

[00:12:54] But, I mean, you got close enough to a squirrel.

[00:12:56] It's going to defend itself.

[00:12:57] Yeah, for sure.

[00:12:58] But, you know, don't touch the squirrels.

[00:13:00] Yeah, don't touch the squirrels.

[00:13:01] Yeah, I mean, they could be pretty great.

[00:13:02] Was it a red squirrel?

[00:13:04] It was, yeah.

[00:13:04] It was one of those big, you know, red, big old tail and stuff.

[00:13:07] Yeah, they're big.

[00:13:08] Well, you know, kids, they want to chase after nature.

[00:13:11] At least I did when I was a kid.

[00:13:12] Yeah.

[00:13:12] You know?

[00:13:13] You get the hand bit, and I asked her the next day, I was like, so what are you thinking?

[00:13:17] And she's like, yeah, that wasn't smart.

[00:13:19] I was like, yeah, well, the whole school learned not to do that.

[00:13:21] It's a wild animal.

[00:13:22] Probably won't do that again.

[00:13:23] Exactly.

[00:13:24] It's like my mom used to say, you know, well, it hurts when I do this to myself.

[00:13:27] Well, don't do that then.

[00:13:28] Yeah.

[00:13:28] And then why do you keep doing it?

[00:13:29] You're like, duh.

[00:13:30] Yeah, you know, all right.

[00:13:31] I get it now, Ma.

[00:13:32] I get it.

[00:13:33] Yeah, it's exactly true.

[00:13:34] Yeah, I wish I could have just listened to most of these major lessons that people try

[00:13:38] to tell me before I made the mistakes myself.

[00:13:41] Are most people like that, would you say?

[00:13:43] Like, you know, they hear the advice.

[00:13:45] They hear what they should do in life.

[00:13:48] But then they have to go mess up to learn that lesson themselves.

[00:13:51] Is that normal?

[00:13:52] Yeah, I do think human nature is, well, I'm going to try it.

[00:13:55] And I do think that at certain ages in your life, especially when you're a teenager, you're

[00:14:00] like, I'm going to try a little bit more.

[00:14:02] And also, my parents don't know everything.

[00:14:05] And so I'm going to see if I can prove them wrong, you know, so to speak.

[00:14:11] But yeah, so I do think it's human nature to go out on a limb and try something, for sure.

[00:14:16] Especially in your teenage years, you've got to push the envelope a little bit.

[00:14:19] Yeah.

[00:14:19] At least I did.

[00:14:20] Yeah.

[00:14:20] You know, I wanted to see what I could get away with.

[00:14:21] And I learned some things.

[00:14:22] Yeah.

[00:14:23] You know, I grew up in the backwoods of New Hampshire, so that's my background.

[00:14:25] Up there in Lake Winnipesaukee, I don't know if you're familiar with that area.

[00:14:27] Oh, absolutely.

[00:14:28] I grew up on Lake Winnie.

[00:14:29] Oh, yeah.

[00:14:30] We had a lot of fun.

[00:14:31] Yeah.

[00:14:32] There are some stories about that.

[00:14:33] There was an NPR, Lake Winnipeg, in that area?

[00:14:40] Yep.

[00:14:41] Oh, yeah, the Lakes region, they call it.

[00:14:42] So there's so many lakes.

[00:14:43] Lake Wentworth, Lake Winnipeg, Lake Winnipesaukee.

[00:14:45] Okay.

[00:14:46] Lake's up there.

[00:14:47] Okay.

[00:14:47] Which makes for great fishing.

[00:14:48] Yeah.

[00:14:49] You know, so I enjoyed that.

[00:14:50] Did you ice fishing too?

[00:14:51] I would drive my car on the ice out to the ice houses, and my buddies would all drink beer,

[00:14:56] and they would fish through it.

[00:14:57] I would just go for the fun.

[00:14:58] Yeah, wow.

[00:14:59] You know, there's movies made about that.

[00:15:01] About people going through the ice?

[00:15:02] Yeah.

[00:15:02] I mean, it gets like three feet thick, the ice there.

[00:15:04] Yeah, it's rated.

[00:15:05] So you feel pretty good when you're driving your vehicle all night?

[00:15:07] I wouldn't do that again.

[00:15:08] No.

[00:15:08] Again, that was me in my teenage years.

[00:15:09] No, I wouldn't drive my car out there again.

[00:15:11] I mean, dude, if you see the F-150s, like, if it's in the middle of winter,

[00:15:15] if midwinter...

[00:15:17] It's got to be frozen solid.

[00:15:18] Like, I think you're good to go out midwinter, but if you're, like, going out there late winter,

[00:15:23] like early spring, like, that's...

[00:15:24] No, that's tricky.

[00:15:26] That's tricky.

[00:15:26] That's tricky.

[00:15:26] Well, look at the ice road truckers.

[00:15:28] You ever see those guys?

[00:15:29] Yeah, I've watched some of that.

[00:15:31] That's intense.

[00:15:31] That's intense.

[00:15:32] It's like negative 30.

[00:15:33] Yeah, I wouldn't do that.

[00:15:35] And an 18-wheeler, you know, screaming across some ice?

[00:15:38] No.

[00:15:38] No.

[00:15:39] Sounds like a recipe for disaster.

[00:15:40] Yeah, for sure.

[00:15:41] No doubt about it.

[00:15:42] Yeah, I don't know about that.

[00:15:42] And then North Carolina, they just got, like, a little bit of snow, I heard.

[00:15:45] Down in the Asheville area.

[00:15:46] I mean, well, yeah.

[00:15:47] In Asheville.

[00:15:48] God bless you guys in Asheville because...

[00:15:50] My cousin lives there.

[00:15:51] ...with Helena and now the winter coming in.

[00:15:54] And it used to be, when I grew up in North Carolina, it snowed even where I grew up,

[00:16:00] which was a little town outside of Raleigh on the eastern side of North Carolina.

[00:16:04] We would get snow every year.

[00:16:07] And now, of course, that is just not happening.

[00:16:10] And the miles of North Carolina will get a little bit.

[00:16:14] And there's ski resorts there that, you know, ice skiing.

[00:16:17] I didn't know that about the Raleigh area.

[00:16:18] Mm-hmm.

[00:16:19] Yeah.

[00:16:19] Interesting.

[00:16:20] So they get enough snow to support ski traffic.

[00:16:22] Yeah, for sure.

[00:16:23] Well, and you know, it's different skiing.

[00:16:25] What is ice skiing?

[00:16:25] Ice skiing means you're skiing on ice.

[00:16:27] Okay.

[00:16:27] It's just not going to get, like, here, like powder.

[00:16:30] Right.

[00:16:31] Like...

[00:16:31] Okay.

[00:16:31] So those falls are a little more serious if you're out there ice skiing.

[00:16:35] It's that crusty, icy, snowy...

[00:16:37] Yeah.

[00:16:37] Yeah, we used to, like, when it would sleet and freezing rain.

[00:16:39] Yeah.

[00:16:39] Probably get a lot of that down there.

[00:16:40] Yeah.

[00:16:40] That sounds brutal.

[00:16:41] It's brutal.

[00:16:42] It's brutal.

[00:16:42] And you go here, and you're like, oh, my gosh.

[00:16:44] Look at the powder.

[00:16:46] And, you know, your skin is beautiful.

[00:16:48] Mm-hmm.

[00:16:48] And, yeah, it's not making any noise.

[00:16:51] Mm-hmm.

[00:16:51] Yeah.

[00:16:51] Which I'm not used to.

[00:16:52] So it's usually, like, skiing.

[00:16:54] Yeah.

[00:16:54] It has to be kind of satisfying.

[00:16:56] It totally...

[00:16:57] You know, making, like, getting the ice to crunch.

[00:16:59] Yeah.

[00:16:59] Yeah, you got to do it at least once.

[00:17:00] Yeah, well, you feel like a kind of little bit of a badass when you're going down, and

[00:17:04] you sound like a truck, speaking of, as you're coming down the mountain because you're making

[00:17:07] so much noise.

[00:17:08] But, yeah.

[00:17:09] That's fine.

[00:17:09] But I'm not going to say I'm a skier.

[00:17:12] I mean...

[00:17:12] Okay.

[00:17:13] Yeah, my boys would say, Mom, seriously, don't talk about skiing.

[00:17:17] Are they skiers?

[00:17:18] Yeah.

[00:17:19] Yeah, they're good skiers.

[00:17:19] They're good skiers?

[00:17:20] Yeah.

[00:17:20] Okay.

[00:17:20] Yeah.

[00:17:21] So why can't you consider...

[00:17:23] You've skied.

[00:17:23] I've skied.

[00:17:24] Do you still?

[00:17:25] I'm a...

[00:17:25] You know, you see on Instagram the comparison between, this is what's like skiing with your

[00:17:30] mother, and this is like skiing with your dad, you know?

[00:17:33] And I'm just like the little skier.

[00:17:35] You go down the beginner hill or...

[00:17:36] Well, no.

[00:17:37] I'll do blue slopes.

[00:17:38] Okay.

[00:17:38] And, you know, I just want to have fun, maybe listen to music and that sort of thing.

[00:17:43] And, you know, they're in the woods skiing.

[00:17:47] Dodging trees.

[00:17:48] Yeah.

[00:17:49] And then they're coming back out.

[00:17:50] That's intense.

[00:17:51] I'm like, you should stay in the lane.

[00:17:54] You should say what they want you to say.

[00:17:56] And they're like, yeah, no.

[00:17:57] They're rebels.

[00:17:57] Yeah, they're rebels.

[00:17:58] Yeah.

[00:17:58] I don't know if I could do that if I would go into the...

[00:18:00] I think I'd get hurt.

[00:18:01] I'm not a skier.

[00:18:01] Well, sometimes they come out with no skis.

[00:18:03] I mean, you know, that does happen.

[00:18:05] Like it gets goinked off?

[00:18:06] And they'll fall and lose their skiing.

[00:18:09] And then I'll turn around and they're like, mom, mom, can you go get my skis?

[00:18:13] I'm like, no.

[00:18:14] No, I'm not getting your skis.

[00:18:16] Yeah.

[00:18:16] You lost them.

[00:18:17] You go get them.

[00:18:17] Yeah, exactly.

[00:18:18] You try to jump the hill and go get them.

[00:18:20] That's wild.

[00:18:21] So I'm a Colorado native and people always assume that like I must be into skiing and

[00:18:28] like being on the mountains.

[00:18:29] Yeah.

[00:18:30] That's not the case.

[00:18:31] Like I've only went a couple times.

[00:18:33] I tried snowboarding and it just wasn't my thing.

[00:18:36] You know, so...

[00:18:38] Snowmobiling now.

[00:18:38] That's my thing.

[00:18:39] That sounds like that could be some fun.

[00:18:40] Oh, okay.

[00:18:40] Okay.

[00:18:40] So we used to take, going back to the ice fishing story, we would take our sleds across

[00:18:43] the ice and ride those out there at max speed.

[00:18:46] Because it's just this wide open frozen lake.

[00:18:47] Yeah.

[00:18:48] Yeah.

[00:18:48] That's crazy.

[00:18:49] And so me and my dad would see who could go the fastest.

[00:18:51] Yeah.

[00:18:51] I love that.

[00:18:52] Yeah.

[00:18:52] So you don't ski?

[00:18:54] I do not.

[00:18:55] Uh-uh.

[00:18:55] Okay.

[00:18:56] I'm more like into the like summer activities.

[00:18:59] Nice.

[00:19:05] I'm big on those two things.

[00:19:07] Yeah.

[00:19:07] That's like the workouts for me.

[00:19:09] Good.

[00:19:09] Because it's tough to get into the gym.

[00:19:11] I mean, Kevin, when's the last time you went in the gym?

[00:19:13] Um, it's been a little bit.

[00:19:15] I was doing like the incline for a while.

[00:19:16] That was, I gotta get back on that once the weather gets nice again, which is supposed

[00:19:19] to be in like the 60s this weekend.

[00:19:21] Right.

[00:19:21] I mean...

[00:19:22] That's kind of unheard of in this...

[00:19:23] We're knocking on Christmas and it's gonna be...

[00:19:24] It's 60.

[00:19:25] Yeah.

[00:19:25] And then it's just gonna drop when we get to January.

[00:19:27] But I'm not much of a gym person.

[00:19:28] Yeah.

[00:19:29] You know, I'd rather be walking outside or doing something on my own.

[00:19:32] Yeah.

[00:19:32] Yeah.

[00:19:33] Yeah, the gym's kind of tough.

[00:19:34] Yeah, it's tough.

[00:19:35] It's tough for me to get in there.

[00:19:36] Yeah.

[00:19:36] You know, just...

[00:19:38] And anyone who's listened to discussion combustion or anything, they know my...

[00:19:42] I'm an advocate for walking and getting out into nature.

[00:19:45] Yeah.

[00:19:45] And hitting the stairs.

[00:19:46] Hitting the stairs.

[00:19:46] But yeah, there's something about even just walking on dirt and just being out there and

[00:19:51] re-connecting with nature.

[00:19:52] Just like the creature stuff, like trying to get people interested in going out and like

[00:19:57] experiencing time outside.

[00:19:58] So what do you think about...

[00:20:00] Because cell phones and like specifically smartphones with like the touchscreen and internet connection,

[00:20:06] those have only been around since like, what, 2006?

[00:20:10] Right.

[00:20:10] Right.

[00:20:11] Somewhere around there.

[00:20:12] So not that long, really.

[00:20:14] Right?

[00:20:15] So what do you think about the long-term effects of kids growing up with internet in their hand,

[00:20:22] basically, and like this detachment from nature?

[00:20:25] Yeah.

[00:20:26] Great question.

[00:20:27] I think it's...

[00:20:29] Well, research is showing now that it is adding to a lot of ADHD, depression, anxiety.

[00:20:39] And you even see that in adults.

[00:20:41] But in young minds that are...

[00:20:44] That brain is still developing.

[00:20:46] This is a tool that is really not a great tool for them.

[00:20:51] And they can barely sit down and read a chapter in a book.

[00:20:55] It's just, you know, life for them is going too fast.

[00:20:58] And I think it's a lot from the electronics.

[00:21:01] But I do think, on a positive note, I think the pendulum is swinging back to where...

[00:21:08] I think a lot of students like our school, they're trying very hard not to use it.

[00:21:15] Like our middle school students, sixth, seventh, and eighth graders, we don't allow them to

[00:21:18] have electronics.

[00:21:19] And they go out in nature.

[00:21:21] We have them go on orientation for high schoolers for a week.

[00:21:26] And they don't have any electronics.

[00:21:28] Those high schoolers come back.

[00:21:29] They're like, I actually don't want to see my phone.

[00:21:32] That's awesome.

[00:21:33] That's good.

[00:21:33] Awesome.

[00:21:34] And it is a super tool for them to go out and go into nature, converse with their friends,

[00:21:41] have fun.

[00:21:42] Like you said, go and feel the dirt, climb a rock.

[00:21:46] And they'll come back and go, I can't believe how much I'm missing by spending so much time

[00:21:51] on my phone instead of going out.

[00:21:54] So I call it time slows down when you take this away.

[00:21:59] Because I'm a victim of it as well.

[00:22:02] Oh yeah, I think we all are.

[00:22:03] Yeah, I'll sit on my phone and be like, uh, uh, uh.

[00:22:06] And then I'll look at my watch and be like, oh my gosh, I just spent 30 minutes on that.

[00:22:09] Or I'll close the app and then like 30 seconds later, I reopen it.

[00:22:13] Yeah.

[00:22:14] Would I just close?

[00:22:15] It's like, why am I doing that?

[00:22:17] It's like a cure for instant boredom.

[00:22:19] It really is.

[00:22:20] And I think that's become the replacement for boredom rather than going on a walk,

[00:22:23] going out in nature, doing stuff like that.

[00:22:24] So that's refreshing to hear though that the younger generation is coming back the other way.

[00:22:28] And I think there is, it's going to be like a hashtag put the phone down movement coming.

[00:22:31] For sure.

[00:22:32] And my boys are 20 and 22 and they are at, um, uh, James Madison University in, in Virginia.

[00:22:39] And literally they have asked for a flip phone.

[00:22:42] Oh, that's awesome.

[00:22:42] They're like, mom, I'm, I'm off of everything.

[00:22:44] I don't want to do social media anymore.

[00:22:46] That's terrific.

[00:22:47] Give me a flip phone.

[00:22:48] And I'm like, oh, I'll, that super.

[00:22:51] Still save me.

[00:22:51] Those are going to come back.

[00:22:52] Yeah, I think they're going to come back.

[00:23:02] So traveling now and trying to hook up with people when we were in the Amazon, yeah.

[00:23:07] I mean, you had no community, zero communication.

[00:23:10] Oh yeah.

[00:23:16] Yeah.

[00:23:18] That, that was it.

[00:23:19] You, you were, you were hurt and done.

[00:23:22] Um, we had a German.

[00:23:24] Did that happen?

[00:23:24] Oh yeah.

[00:23:25] People got hurt?

[00:23:26] Oh my gosh.

[00:23:27] We, and they.

[00:23:28] I'll tell you a crazy story.

[00:23:29] They stayed in the Amazon forever.

[00:23:30] You have to, you don't, you don't have.

[00:23:32] There's no way.

[00:23:33] We don't, we call them pecky peckies.

[00:23:35] If, if, uh, um, a canoe would come up the river, you could hear the little, you know,

[00:23:41] the five horsepower engine.

[00:23:43] Pecky pecky pecky pecky pecky.

[00:23:44] And you could hear that a ways away.

[00:23:46] And that was about your only way of communicating and getting in and out.

[00:23:51] So it was scary, but there was a German, um, research group that came in and this guy,

[00:23:57] I'll tell you the story, but, um, so he comes into camp and just to get from the

[00:24:02] river to the camp was like two and a half miles.

[00:24:05] And so you're, you're hiking in all your equipment all day long, speaking of hiking.

[00:24:09] And, um, so he comes in, he's got later hosing on and he's, you know, I'm the big

[00:24:13] German soldier.

[00:24:15] And he was just a little bit of a contentious dude, but they were doing research on xylem

[00:24:20] and phloem and trees.

[00:24:22] And so they had to get down at the base of these buttress trees and measure and bore holes

[00:24:27] in the trees and, and measure, um, you know, the, the flow of xylem and phloem.

[00:24:32] Um, but happens to be at the bottom of the base of the trees is where a very incredible,

[00:24:38] um, ant called the bullet ant, or we call them azulas.

[00:24:43] And they have been trapped.

[00:24:45] That ant species has been trapped between evolution of a wasp and an ant.

[00:24:50] So they have a stinger and a pincher.

[00:24:53] Oh, wow.

[00:24:54] And so the Indians and native Indians in that area would say, if like, you know, seven get

[00:24:59] on you, you, you'll die.

[00:25:01] You'll, you'll be killed.

[00:25:02] Well, anyway, these guys were doing this research and their feet are, you know, standing at the

[00:25:07] bottom of buttress trees.

[00:25:08] Um, and, um, this German shoulder soldier didn't, didn't know that four ants crawled on him

[00:25:14] and bit him.

[00:25:15] And he went into a coma for two weeks.

[00:25:19] And literally in the jungle, he's in this coma in the jungle.

[00:25:23] And I mean, when you, when you're with a group of people, um, that you're, it's survival of

[00:25:29] the fittest, right?

[00:25:29] Like if someone gets sick, you're like, stay away from me.

[00:25:32] And someone like that is, is being pretty obnoxious.

[00:25:36] You, you want to disassociate.

[00:25:38] It's a human nature.

[00:25:40] Like, don't get near me.

[00:25:41] You could attract anything to me.

[00:25:43] But so we, he got stuck in a tent for two weeks and I mean, in a coma, in a coma, we

[00:25:50] couldn't do anything about it.

[00:25:51] And his, his research team had to bag all the research.

[00:25:56] It was, it was really.

[00:25:57] So when he came out of the coma, was he like, what happened?

[00:26:00] He came out of the coma.

[00:26:01] Let me tell you something.

[00:26:02] He came out of the coma and he put duct tape around every piece of his body.

[00:26:08] Um, cause he was so, he was like this, Oh God.

[00:26:10] And he literally is like, I can't, he goes, I can't be here anymore.

[00:26:14] I cannot live here.

[00:26:16] I, I am going to die.

[00:26:18] And you, you, we were so humbled him a little bit.

[00:26:22] Yeah.

[00:26:23] And God bless duct tape.

[00:26:25] Um, but, um, I mean, he, he literally had done, he had his, he came and laid a hose

[00:26:29] in and then he ended up with jeans and duct tape around his, you know, jean legs and all

[00:26:33] that kind of stuff, which was kind of funny.

[00:26:35] But, um, but he, um, he says, um, this ant, this ant is like taking a fork and scraping

[00:26:43] it on your bones.

[00:26:45] And you're like, Oh, I'm going to throw up.

[00:26:47] But, um, it was, it was, we had, so yeah, there was a lot.

[00:26:51] So he, he bailed on the operation.

[00:26:53] He bailed out of here.

[00:26:54] He's, he, he peaced out and he's like, I'm out.

[00:26:56] We had, um, we had to swim in a lake that called Oxbow lakes, um, that are lakes that

[00:27:02] are, um, taken off from the main river stream, Manu river.

[00:27:07] And in those lakes are a piranha.

[00:27:10] Uh huh.

[00:27:10] So you have to bathe with piranha.

[00:27:13] Yeah.

[00:27:13] But yeah.

[00:27:14] And that's a leap of faith.

[00:27:16] Right.

[00:27:16] Um, and so, you know, our researchers were there and we're like, where I am.

[00:27:21] We got to have like a lookout or something.

[00:27:22] Yeah.

[00:27:23] Yeah.

[00:27:23] No.

[00:27:23] Yeah.

[00:27:23] And you're just like, no, you're just like fin for yourself.

[00:27:26] And we were like, am I not going to get in that lake with piranha?

[00:27:29] They were like, um, unless you don't want to bathe for, you know, for X period of time.

[00:27:34] But by the way, yeah.

[00:27:36] And, but they're not going to eat you because there is, it's plentiful.

[00:27:39] They don't need to, you know, chewing you and they're not desperate.

[00:27:42] Uh huh.

[00:27:43] Unless you are bleeding.

[00:27:44] And so, you know.

[00:27:45] Is that what does it?

[00:27:46] They're attracted to the blood?

[00:27:47] Yeah.

[00:27:47] So you can't, you know, if you've got like a mosquito bite and you've itched it and stuff,

[00:27:51] yeah, you're not going to go on there.

[00:27:52] You're not going on there.

[00:27:53] But there was a lady that had got shingles down there because it's extremely stressful.

[00:27:58] Yeah.

[00:27:58] Yeah.

[00:27:58] I mean, every moment of every day, you're part of the food chain.

[00:28:01] So you think stress can cause shingles?

[00:28:04] Oh, yeah.

[00:28:05] A hundred percent.

[00:28:06] Well, yeah.

[00:28:06] Because it weakens your entire immune system and everything.

[00:28:08] Well, and if you've had chicken pox or something like that, it's harbored in your spine.

[00:28:13] So, I mean, most people are going to get shingles because they're stressed out.

[00:28:17] Interesting.

[00:28:18] And you're stressed out a hundred percent of the time.

[00:28:21] And so she got shingles and it really is on half your body because it's on, it's harbored

[00:28:27] in your spine.

[00:28:28] So the flare will come on one side of the body or not, but she had it in her face.

[00:28:33] And like, she couldn't, you know, wash her face or couldn't bathe or anything.

[00:28:38] For weeks probably, huh?

[00:28:39] Yeah.

[00:28:40] Not cool.

[00:28:41] Now, would you be able to like throw some chum in the water to get the piranhas to go swim

[00:28:44] towards it and then do your business?

[00:28:46] Well, I wouldn't do that.

[00:28:47] But, I mean, yeah.

[00:28:50] But, yeah.

[00:28:51] So we, there are clips of us in that lake holding up caiman, you know, alligators, baby

[00:28:59] alligators and stuff like that.

[00:29:00] So we would go out and I was out on that lake a good amount because I'm, at the time, I don't

[00:29:06] know if I can, I might be able to say this, but I was the only person that habituated to

[00:29:10] a family of giant river otters while I was there.

[00:29:13] So a river otter would come and get me every day and I would canoe out and he would have

[00:29:18] his whole family there.

[00:29:19] And, um, there's been a lot of research on my photographs from, from all of that.

[00:29:23] So, so like you were chosen by a family of otters to like, they, they like trusted your

[00:29:28] energy basically.

[00:29:29] Pretty much.

[00:29:30] Yeah.

[00:29:30] Yeah.

[00:29:30] That's pretty cool.

[00:29:31] Yeah.

[00:29:32] And his, we coined him fantastic.

[00:29:34] Yeah.

[00:29:35] They, they're huge.

[00:29:36] They're like 80 pounds and his canines are large and they eat, you know, fish and piranha

[00:29:42] and catfish and so forth and so on.

[00:29:44] Um, super hunters.

[00:29:45] And he, um, yeah, I mean, I think that, um, we would, we, Martin, Chris and I were always,

[00:29:52] you know, kind of paddling out there trying to find, um, super wildlife that were hanging

[00:29:57] over the river.

[00:29:59] Great shots, right?

[00:30:00] You know, sun going down and everything.

[00:30:02] And I think he just kind of like, Hey, these kids are pretty cool.

[00:30:05] And the first day, um, we were out there actually, we were on this little dugout canoe.

[00:30:11] It actually leaked to, we had, we poured all of our money into our camera equipment.

[00:30:17] So, I mean, I probably.

[00:30:18] So your boat sucked?

[00:30:19] Yeah.

[00:30:19] And, and, and, and, but actually worse than that, we were all like excited and we were seeing

[00:30:24] the giant river artists for the first time.

[00:30:26] And, um, we just, we all found ourselves on the front bow of the boat and all of a sudden,

[00:30:32] and it leaked to, so three of us.

[00:30:35] Oh yeah.

[00:30:35] And it tipped over and Fantasma, who was the giant river rider, um, he just picked up and

[00:30:42] he kind of like telescoped his neck out, like looking at us like, what are you idiots doing?

[00:30:47] And we little, so we've got like all this camera equipment.

[00:30:51] We're swimming.

[00:30:52] The boat is, you know, really turtled and, and, um, we're, we're going to the screaming stream

[00:30:58] or to the edge.

[00:30:59] And, um, it's funny, Martin and Chris, I was like, you know, this is the way we're going

[00:31:04] to die.

[00:31:05] Oh gosh.

[00:31:05] Where, where, I mean, some alligator is going to come out here and eat us or that giant river

[00:31:10] rider is going to come out and eat us.

[00:31:11] Yeah.

[00:31:11] And, um, and I honestly think he probably is like those poor people.

[00:31:16] I don't know what they are, but they're strange creatures.

[00:31:18] They could tell you were struggling.

[00:31:20] But, and, and they're no threat.

[00:31:22] Yeah.

[00:31:22] Yeah.

[00:31:22] We were no threat.

[00:31:24] Crazy monkeys.

[00:31:25] Yeah.

[00:31:25] Crazy monkeys.

[00:31:26] Crazy monkeys.

[00:31:26] Yeah.

[00:31:27] There, there, there were some good, good, crazy monkey times.

[00:31:30] So, yeah.

[00:31:30] Did your equipment get damaged from the water?

[00:31:33] No.

[00:31:33] We, I mean, you know, we were so tough back then.

[00:31:37] I don't know how we did it, but, um, you know, I had a huge Nikon and a massive lens and we,

[00:31:44] you know, treads water up to the lake's edge.

[00:31:47] But, um, yeah, well, I mean, we would hike probably four miles a day and I must have had

[00:31:54] probably, you know, 45 to 50 pounds of camera equipment all day long.

[00:31:59] And, um, so yeah, we got, we got pretty fit pretty quickly.

[00:32:02] Yeah.

[00:32:03] And that's a long time to be out there.

[00:32:04] What did you eat?

[00:32:04] Like, what'd you guys eat?

[00:32:05] Um, well, in the beginning we had, um, you know, we brought in bags of everything you

[00:32:12] can possibly imagine, a lot of pasta and, um, tuna, fish and all that kind of stuff.

[00:32:17] And then we kind of slightly ran out of food.

[00:32:20] And so we started eating catfish, ate some piranha.

[00:32:25] Um, we would listen to the monkeys and, um, go and, and see where they were fruiting and

[00:32:31] eat some of the fruit they would eat.

[00:32:33] We didn't know what it was practically.

[00:32:35] Um, and yeah, that's a little risky move, but it's safe for the monkeys.

[00:32:39] And yeah.

[00:32:39] And here's an odd thing.

[00:32:41] We never got sick.

[00:32:42] That was my next question.

[00:32:43] Never got sick.

[00:32:44] And in that crazy.

[00:32:46] And we never purified our water.

[00:32:48] I mean, I had like a Nalgene bottle like this.

[00:32:51] I would look at, it would, it would be like brown, brown.

[00:32:54] And you could see stuff swimming in it and you were so thirsty all the time.

[00:32:58] You just drank it.

[00:32:58] And you just like, cheek, I'm going to drink it.

[00:33:00] And no one got sick.

[00:33:01] No one got sick.

[00:33:03] No Gerardia, none of that.

[00:33:04] Really?

[00:33:05] That's crazy.

[00:33:06] But we were in Manu National Park.

[00:33:08] This is the most pristine part of the Amazon.

[00:33:11] And, you know, we talk about, you know, preserving wildlife.

[00:33:14] When we got out of Manu at the end of us leaving, we passed the National Park and we were heading down on Manu River and there were no animals.

[00:33:31] And they knew.

[00:33:32] They, right down after or past the border to the National Park is mining.

[00:33:39] So they mine for gold.

[00:33:40] They eat everything.

[00:33:42] They eat giant river rotters.

[00:33:44] They use their pelts and so forth and so on.

[00:33:47] And macaws and parakeets.

[00:33:50] There was nothing past that part.

[00:33:52] It was all ransacked.

[00:33:53] Yeah, well, the animals are like, not going to live here.

[00:33:56] Yeah.

[00:33:57] I'm going to live over here.

[00:33:58] They can tell the difference.

[00:33:59] They know.

[00:34:00] They know.

[00:34:00] And so there again, this nature is speaking to itself.

[00:34:03] And so when we, we flew out of a little port town called Porto Madenavo and when the plane went up, of course, we'd been in the Amazon.

[00:34:13] We didn't see any of this, but there was smoke everywhere where trees were getting burned down.

[00:34:18] Wildfires.

[00:34:19] And we were just looking out the airport window, the airplane window.

[00:34:23] We were like, you've got to be kidding me.

[00:34:25] We, we thought we, this was, you know, pristine and now right to the south was just.

[00:34:33] All this human destruction.

[00:34:35] Oh, it was all arson.

[00:34:36] Yeah.

[00:34:36] That's terrible.

[00:34:37] And, you know, but this was back in, in, back in the, if you do your history, a little bit of Peru.

[00:34:44] This is back in the early 90s.

[00:34:47] And this is when the Shining Path, which is the guerrilla warfare group that was a Maoist communist group, was taking over Peru.

[00:34:56] And one, the tactics were to, you know, kind of scare tourism because that was a big part of the monies coming into the country.

[00:35:08] And so we happened to be in a war zone as we went to Peru.

[00:35:13] We did not know that that was going to happen when we were there.

[00:35:15] But the book, it pulls a lot of that, that history into, into the book.

[00:35:21] So, yeah.

[00:35:22] Okay.

[00:35:22] You guys dodged a lot of scenarios.

[00:35:24] We, it was, we could, we should have gotten killed before we even got down to the Amazon.

[00:35:29] Wow.

[00:35:29] And matter of fact, we used to joke that being in the Amazon was the easiest part of the trek.

[00:35:36] Like going and getting through Lima at the, at that time.

[00:35:41] And for a lesser part, Cusco was harder, the human piece of it.

[00:35:46] And we were gringos and, and we were, you know, kind of called out, if you will, and had a lot of equipment.

[00:35:53] Yeah.

[00:35:53] Which is worth a lot.

[00:35:55] So.

[00:35:55] Yeah, worth a lot.

[00:35:55] That has to kind of put some target on your back.

[00:35:57] I mean.

[00:35:58] For sure.

[00:35:59] Isn't that crazy?

[00:36:00] Like all the things that can get us, like we're the most dangerous thing for each other.

[00:36:04] Yeah.

[00:36:04] For sure.

[00:36:05] As humans.

[00:36:06] Yeah.

[00:36:06] Yeah.

[00:36:07] Well, I, I remember, you know, I, I, at the time, this is again, back in the nineties and

[00:36:13] my camera equipment costs about $23,000, which was almost my whole savings account.

[00:36:18] Right.

[00:36:18] Yeah.

[00:36:19] You went all in.

[00:36:19] I mean, I'm, I'm in, I'm in literally the first night in the jungle with the Pelican

[00:36:24] cases, which is, you know, those waterproof cases.

[00:36:27] I had it in the tent with me.

[00:36:29] I was practically sleeping on top of them.

[00:36:31] And Martin was like, what, what are you doing?

[00:36:33] And I'm like, well, I, I can't get this camera equipment.

[00:36:36] He's like, who's going to come and steal this stuff?

[00:36:38] And I'm like, well, that was a good point.

[00:36:39] And, um, and we were filming, um, McCall's, um, on a, on a clay blank bank, um, and did a

[00:36:47] lot of work with McCall's and, um, and we were on the main river and we had a blonde

[00:36:53] set up and all of our equipment, camera equipment was in a blonde, the size of, you know, smaller

[00:37:00] than the studio.

[00:37:01] And, um, and, uh, some of the Indians came down and they're very curious people by the

[00:37:09] way.

[00:37:09] And they got out of their canoe and we're sitting in these blinds and, um, and we're like,

[00:37:16] Oh my gosh.

[00:37:17] So it's like a camo thing, right?

[00:37:18] Well, no, we, I, you didn't have camo.

[00:37:20] We, we chopped down leaves and made like a lean to shelter kind of thing.

[00:37:26] Yeah.

[00:37:26] And, um, so all the camera equipment in there and we're sweating like crazy.

[00:37:30] And all of a sudden the three canoes kind of come up onto the river bank and we're like,

[00:37:36] Oh my gosh.

[00:37:38] So, and I, and do they have like bows or like some kind of weapons and stuff?

[00:37:42] Yeah.

[00:37:43] These are the Yamanalis and the Macho Gingos and they don't really walk around with, you

[00:37:47] know, what you think is on a movie series.

[00:37:50] Okay.

[00:37:50] Well, you know, they don't do any of that.

[00:37:52] Okay.

[00:37:52] And, um, and they know pretty much that they could kill us with probably looking.

[00:37:57] I mean, you know, it just is, then they're very, very short, tiny people and smiling

[00:38:03] all the time, by the way, they're very happy people, but, um, they got out and very curious

[00:38:08] and we're like, Oh, I got to get out of the blind.

[00:38:10] Yeah.

[00:38:11] So I got out of the blind.

[00:38:12] I'm like, Oh my gosh.

[00:38:13] And, and they're just, Hey.

[00:38:15] And you were like, please, if you take my equipment, this is going to be it.

[00:38:18] This is going to have to go home and didn't know anything.

[00:38:21] They didn't, they looked in the blind and saw y'all our tripods and everything.

[00:38:26] And they didn't care about that.

[00:38:27] They were more interested in a while we were wearing clothes and be what we were doing.

[00:38:32] And, um, so nobody can talk to each other hand language and yeah, you know, um, being

[00:38:38] a little bit submissive, but they were, they were really amazing.

[00:38:42] Um, and they knew what we were doing.

[00:38:44] They kind of gestured like you were filming McCall's and, and that sort of thing.

[00:38:48] But, um, yeah, that was, um, that was the closest call that we thought, I wonder if they

[00:38:53] want our camera equipment or not, but, you know, and they just want to know what you were

[00:38:56] doing and then they went about their business.

[00:38:57] Yeah.

[00:38:58] Yeah.

[00:38:58] So yeah.

[00:38:59] They're smiling.

[00:38:59] They're smiling because they live in nature, which we've already talked about as healing.

[00:39:03] Yes.

[00:39:04] And nobody gets sick.

[00:39:05] Nobody gets sick.

[00:39:06] No one gets sick.

[00:39:07] Yeah.

[00:39:07] And they're, they're using their natural, you know, herbs and everything that we're trying

[00:39:12] to medicinally find in the Amazon.

[00:39:15] Um, they've got that figured out.

[00:39:17] They, they know what to do when there's a stomach ache or someone's giving birth and it's

[00:39:22] a hard birth and they know all of those natural products.

[00:39:26] Yeah.

[00:39:26] But you can't, you can't copyright that stuff.

[00:39:28] You can't put a patent on it.

[00:39:29] No.

[00:39:30] It is amazing how many natural remedies there are out there for things.

[00:39:33] Well, and I think pharmaceuticals, um, and I actually ended up used to being in sales

[00:39:38] in the bioscience area and research and development of pharma.

[00:39:42] And, you know, I think some of our best products that we ever have out there are not synthesized.

[00:39:48] They're, they're from nature.

[00:39:50] Um, yeah.

[00:39:51] Right.

[00:39:51] I mean, so it's just one of those things that, um, we probably need to go back to do that.

[00:39:58] But at the same time, it takes people going down to prestigious places and together.

[00:40:05] Yeah.

[00:40:05] And it gets raped and you know, you don't want to go through that.

[00:40:08] So yeah.

[00:40:08] Cause then to, to have enough of that natural ailment, like you have to harvest it.

[00:40:14] Yeah.

[00:40:14] So then there's, there's that whole part of it too.

[00:40:17] Yeah.

[00:40:18] And so there's a balance, there's a balance.

[00:40:20] We want to, we want to have a balance of, you know, what nature can give to us.

[00:40:24] And also we don't want to take all that either.

[00:40:27] Um, and I, you know, again, going back to the wolves, where's that balance?

[00:40:32] Um, and that's why it's tipped a little bit over.

[00:40:35] And I love the reintroduction programs.

[00:40:37] Um, love programs that find medicinals that are natural medicinals.

[00:40:42] Um, but we, we, you know, we're big consumers and we like a lot of stuff.

[00:40:47] Yeah.

[00:40:48] Immediately too.

[00:40:49] Yeah.

[00:40:49] Instantly.

[00:40:49] People don't want to wait.

[00:40:50] So do you think we could recreate the environment to grow some of that stuff here?

[00:40:54] And like, you know, warehouse situation, greenhouse situation and grow some of those natural remedies

[00:40:58] here?

[00:40:58] Well, you know, I, you know, it's great that you asked that and I'll, I'll, I'll answer

[00:41:04] that in a, in a kind of a sideways because we were at this fundraiser for regenerative

[00:41:11] farming.

[00:41:12] Okay.

[00:41:12] That's great.

[00:41:13] I think that regenerative farming is critical to make sure that our bodies stay healthy and

[00:41:21] the more healthy we are, the less we start, we, we lean on pharma, um, to solve our problems.

[00:41:28] So I think it really starts with, you know, what you're putting in your mouth, you should

[00:41:33] really investigate and have a balance there.

[00:41:36] And then the tip, the scale is going to tip that we're not, our society is not leaning

[00:41:42] so hard on, on these pharmaceuticals to get us through.

[00:41:46] And I mean, it's everything it's, you know, sugars and making sure that children are not

[00:41:52] eating as much, um, of, um, processed foods.

[00:41:56] And, um, and, and we also want to make sure that the farmers are taken care of, but the,

[00:42:02] the foods that are coming out of good regenerative farming are, um, you know, are, are not costly.

[00:42:10] I mean, right now it's expensive, right?

[00:42:13] To do regenerative farming, to take care, to have ancient grains and so forth and so on.

[00:42:18] Um, it, it costs a lot of money and so, um, we need, we need government to help and we

[00:42:24] need, you know, that to be in a little bit more balance and also have a flip on the script

[00:42:30] on where, where we find our foods.

[00:42:33] I mean, I could find lots of coupons right now for Lucky Charms and so forth and so on,

[00:42:38] but let me, let me get some coupons for apples and so forth and so on.

[00:42:42] And so, yeah, that's when you wear it that way, that's, it's concerning.

[00:42:46] It is concerning.

[00:42:47] Because when you walk through the grocery store, you know, I've kind of learned to stay away

[00:42:50] from the center store, right?

[00:42:51] That's where all the junk is.

[00:42:52] You go, you get your meat, you get your produce, right?

[00:42:55] You grab your milk and your eggs and then you're out of there.

[00:42:57] It is so true.

[00:42:57] Right?

[00:42:57] Because I worked in the grocery business for almost 15 years.

[00:43:00] So I have a lot of background in it.

[00:43:02] And I've seen this industry change.

[00:43:03] I've seen the organic products try to come in and I've seen them get pushed right out.

[00:43:07] You know, you have to have the market forward.

[00:43:08] Of course, you got to educate the consumer on it.

[00:43:10] And that's a, that's a tall task.

[00:43:11] It is a tall task.

[00:43:12] And I mean, you know, I love the fact in recent times, I mean, we've got Whole Foods

[00:43:17] and we've got some natural product grocery stores, quote unquote.

[00:43:21] But they're, you know, it's expensive.

[00:43:24] Very expensive.

[00:43:25] And I, you know, in Boulder, it's got a beautiful farmer's market.

[00:43:30] And you got to, you got to weed through some of it to, to find what you want.

[00:43:35] I mean, I was with my partner and we bought some microgreens and I was like, you know what?

[00:43:39] We can grow this at home.

[00:43:40] This is easy stuff.

[00:43:50] Yeah.

[00:43:51] Start to learn.

[00:43:52] What can I grow in the backyard?

[00:43:54] What tomatoes?

[00:43:55] Yeah, we should, that's what we should be teaching.

[00:43:57] Yeah.

[00:43:57] Yeah.

[00:43:57] Yeah.

[00:43:58] I mean, let's get them, you know, growing stuff.

[00:44:00] And, and you're also pretty proud.

[00:44:02] You know, when you, you pull off a tomato.

[00:44:04] That is a good moment.

[00:44:05] Yeah.

[00:44:05] That is awesome.

[00:44:06] Like I grew that.

[00:44:06] Yeah.

[00:44:07] Yeah.

[00:44:07] I grew that.

[00:44:07] And you're like, look at that tomato.

[00:44:09] And when you slice it open, A, it does not look like the tomato that you get in the grocery

[00:44:15] store.

[00:44:16] And it is so succulent and so red.

[00:44:19] And you're like, and you grew it and you're just like, this is the best.

[00:44:22] One of the best beets I ever ate was grown in my mom's backyard.

[00:44:25] Say.

[00:44:26] Homegrown beet.

[00:44:27] Yeah.

[00:44:27] So it's like, there's like two pieces though, to what you're talking about.

[00:44:30] It's the type of consumption that people have.

[00:44:33] But I also feel like one of the other areas is the dedication and commitment aspect of actually

[00:44:41] committing to a healthier lifestyle.

[00:44:43] Because like what you were just saying, Kev, like people want even buying stuff, they want

[00:44:47] it instantly.

[00:44:48] So like people want to lose weight.

[00:44:51] They buy a pill because they want to hit the easy button, you know?

[00:44:54] So as long as it's like phantom, it's a phantom easy button.

[00:44:57] Like it doesn't really exist.

[00:44:59] No.

[00:45:00] Like, and if you truly want to see any results in your life, then you need to do something

[00:45:04] that is going to be sustainable that you can actually commit to and obtain daily.

[00:45:11] Like people set big goals, which is great, but you've got to come up with like the obtainable

[00:45:17] little goals that make up that big goal.

[00:45:19] And when diet and health come into it, and I'm no saint, like I still eat frozen pizzas

[00:45:23] and like this is the area I can improve most is my diet and not hitting the easy button.

[00:45:29] Like I do that all the time with my food.

[00:45:31] So I'll admit to that here.

[00:45:34] But I know it's an issue.

[00:45:35] Right?

[00:45:36] So I feel like there's two parts to that.

[00:45:38] Well, you know, I think it is.

[00:45:40] And I think it's just, you know, your behavior and doing the little things.

[00:45:46] And again, I go back to this slowing down time, you know, going outside and having a little

[00:45:53] garden or, I mean, gosh, grow some basil.

[00:45:58] I mean, you know, start with an herb.

[00:45:59] They're so easy to grow.

[00:46:00] Yeah, basil.

[00:46:00] And, you know, right?

[00:46:02] And then get bigger.

[00:46:04] And of course, we are a society.

[00:46:05] We're a little lazy.

[00:46:07] Right?

[00:46:07] We want the quick fix.

[00:46:09] Yeah.

[00:46:10] I mean, me too.

[00:46:10] Right?

[00:46:11] I mean, I'm right there as well.

[00:46:13] And, you know, like ice.

[00:46:15] I mean, you know, Europeans don't use ice.

[00:46:18] I don't know why they haven't figured that out yet.

[00:46:19] But ice is good stuff.

[00:46:21] But, you know, I really think that we just want to be conscious, a little bit more conscious

[00:46:27] eaters, and we want to be, I always tell people that, say to me, I'm a yoga instructor too.

[00:46:34] So I get a lot of students who are like, golly, Greg Carr, I really want to lose weight or,

[00:46:38] you know, I want to get more fit or whatever.

[00:46:41] I'm like, you know, the cool thing is you have all the power to do that.

[00:46:45] You don't have all the power if you have cancer or if you've lost a limb or if you are, you

[00:46:53] know, have lost a child or something like that.

[00:46:54] Those are big hit items.

[00:46:56] You have full capacity to change your behavior.

[00:47:03] Boom.

[00:47:04] Right now.

[00:47:05] And so that's kind of cool.

[00:47:07] And weight can...

[00:47:08] It's almost freeing.

[00:47:09] Right.

[00:47:10] Even just hearing that.

[00:47:11] Like, I feel like I know this, but even just hearing it out loud right now.

[00:47:14] Yeah.

[00:47:15] Like, it's kind of like, I can do whatever I want.

[00:47:18] Freedom.

[00:47:19] You know?

[00:47:19] Yeah.

[00:47:20] Right.

[00:47:20] Right.

[00:47:20] And, you know, if you pick up and your behavior is to go, you know, I'm going to have the mocha

[00:47:26] latte cream thingy that you get at your local coffee shop.

[00:47:32] And, you know, tomorrow, you know, I'm just not going to have the cream with it.

[00:47:37] Or I'm just not going to have all the calories with it.

[00:47:40] And I'm going to grab an apple when I get hungry at 9 a.m.

[00:47:45] And that little stuff.

[00:47:47] Yeah.

[00:47:48] Have your frozen pizza at 9 o'clock at night.

[00:47:49] Whatever.

[00:47:50] But then you maybe not the next day.

[00:47:53] Yeah.

[00:47:53] And so it's those little changes.

[00:47:55] So you feel like as long as there's a balance.

[00:47:58] Yeah.

[00:47:58] Yeah.

[00:47:59] Like the 80-20 rule I was talking about that Coach talks about.

[00:48:01] 80% of the time we're on.

[00:48:02] We're dialed.

[00:48:03] You're hitting the gym.

[00:48:03] Right.

[00:48:03] You're eating right.

[00:48:04] But 20% of the time, which equates to about six days a month, eat your cheesecake,

[00:48:08] have your Haagen-Dazs, you know, have some Skittles.

[00:48:11] Yeah.

[00:48:11] And then you're right back on the horse.

[00:48:12] I have to say, I watch, in full admittance, I watch Dwayne Johnson.

[00:48:18] Okay.

[00:48:18] We love Dwayne Johnson.

[00:48:20] The Rock is amazing.

[00:48:21] I also sell his tequila, Taramana.

[00:48:23] Okay.

[00:48:23] That's for another time.

[00:48:24] Yeah.

[00:48:25] That's for tequila times.

[00:48:27] Yeah.

[00:48:27] I was getting right.

[00:48:28] We should have a shot.

[00:48:29] But he, I love his philosophy in the sense that, you know, he really takes care of his

[00:48:35] body, obviously.

[00:48:36] But he has the Sunday cheat day.

[00:48:38] Right?

[00:48:39] And, I mean, the dude can eat some pancakes.

[00:48:42] Great guy.

[00:48:42] The only thing I can do is to make any ever.

[00:48:43] Wow.

[00:48:44] It's amazing.

[00:48:44] Yeah, it is.

[00:48:45] You guys are both familiar with his pancake eating?

[00:48:47] Oh, yeah.

[00:48:47] If you follow him on social media.

[00:48:48] How do I not know about the pancakes?

[00:48:49] He's on Instagram.

[00:48:50] Are you missing out on me?

[00:48:50] I don't know about the pancakes.

[00:48:51] Yeah.

[00:48:52] He eats.

[00:48:53] I mean, when he pulls up in that gorgeous kitchen and they, I mean, the stack of pancakes

[00:48:58] like this and we've got, you know, the dozen eggs and, I mean, he's got, I mean,

[00:49:02] he loads it in and he'll have, I mean, I don't know if he has a shot of tequila with the pancakes,

[00:49:07] but needless to say, he's having tequila that night too.

[00:49:10] But then, you know, then he gets back, obviously, in the gym and eats well.

[00:49:16] And, you know, he looks forward to that Sunday and he obviously is, you know, advertising

[00:49:21] it and stuff like that.

[00:49:22] So, I mean, that's kind of fun, right?

[00:49:23] Sunday fun day.

[00:49:24] Yeah, Sunday fun day.

[00:49:25] We love Sunday fun day.

[00:49:26] Yeah.

[00:49:26] You got to get on the rock.

[00:49:28] Yeah, you got to watch that.

[00:49:29] And actually, on Sundays, I'll look at that massive stack of pancakes and I go, I'm not hungry

[00:49:36] anymore because that is so much food.

[00:49:38] I don't know how someone could consume that much in one sitting.

[00:49:40] Yeah, yeah.

[00:49:41] I mean, but you look at how many calories he's burning in the gym.

[00:49:43] Yeah.

[00:49:43] I mean, he works out like four hours a day.

[00:49:45] His body mass index must be just rock bottom.

[00:49:49] Now, do you feel like that's all natural or do you feel like he's like taking steroids

[00:49:54] or like some kind of supplement?

[00:49:55] I'm sure he's taking some supplements that are legal along the way, right, that encourage

[00:50:00] muscle growth.

[00:50:01] Yeah, I mean, he's not doing like professional sports.

[00:50:03] I don't think so.

[00:50:03] So, it's not like he's not doing the Olympics like where he can't take enhancing.

[00:50:08] But his quads are.

[00:50:10] It's a beast.

[00:50:10] It's a beast.

[00:50:11] Yeah.

[00:50:12] I mean, he's a big man.

[00:50:14] He's big.

[00:50:14] I don't know.

[00:50:16] I mean, you know, he seems so nice.

[00:50:19] And he's got the world as his oyster, right?

[00:50:22] I mean, he has got resources out the yin-yang.

[00:50:26] He's worked hard.

[00:50:26] I want to say in my heart of hearts that he has not taken any supplements that are under

[00:50:32] the counter.

[00:50:33] Now, Liver King, a little different story.

[00:50:34] Do you know Liver King?

[00:50:36] No.

[00:50:36] He's a social media influencer that always shows us, you know, he's sitting there eating

[00:50:39] like raw eggs and all this stuff.

[00:50:41] And he's just unnaturally yoked.

[00:50:43] Yeah.

[00:50:44] And he's admitted to it.

[00:50:45] So, that's not, I'm not assuming anything.

[00:50:47] Yeah.

[00:50:47] Well, and I, then, you know, the human body is such a beautiful thing.

[00:50:51] And it's so responsive to so much stuff.

[00:50:54] But you start doing that and the heart is going to explode.

[00:50:58] I mean, and, you know, you remember what was the Olympic runner female that died of a heart

[00:51:05] attack?

[00:51:08] Jackie, double last name, Jackie Joyner.

[00:51:11] I'm not too sure.

[00:51:12] I don't know this one.

[00:51:13] She died really young, amazing individual and also an Olympian, big time runner.

[00:51:21] But she, I believe it was, she was also, you know.

[00:51:25] Taking supplements, like illegal supplements.

[00:51:27] I'm not sure exactly what it was.

[00:51:29] Yeah, I don't know enough about that story.

[00:51:30] Was that recent?

[00:51:31] No, this was way back in the 90s, I would say.

[00:51:34] Yeah.

[00:51:34] Yeah, and that was prevalent back then, you know.

[00:51:38] And I feel sorry for Olympians because, you know, you're, wow, they're breaking records

[00:51:44] every moment.

[00:51:46] And how do you keep up with that is amazing to me.

[00:51:50] Record breaking is amazing in general.

[00:51:51] We had David Rush on a few weeks ago.

[00:51:53] He holds the most active Guinness Book of World Records.

[00:51:56] And that's a man that is focused and dialed in and really understands the commitment to,

[00:52:01] like what we're talking about, making a change.

[00:52:03] Yeah.

[00:52:04] You know, so crazy stuff.

[00:52:05] Yeah.

[00:52:06] I learned in just moving here to Boulder from Virginia that, you know, Olympians will come

[00:52:13] here because of, you know, the low oxygen level.

[00:52:16] And I don't know if it's called oxygen dumping or something like that.

[00:52:19] But, I mean, you see crazy Olympians in the Boulder area.

[00:52:24] It's a good place to train because of the high altitude.

[00:52:27] You take that to low altitude.

[00:52:28] That's just an advantage.

[00:52:29] Yeah.

[00:52:29] I mean, growing up here, anytime I've ever went sea level, I feel a lot more energetic.

[00:52:34] I could drink and I don't even get inebriated.

[00:52:37] Isn't that weird?

[00:52:38] Have you noticed that?

[00:52:39] It's wild.

[00:52:39] Oh, I came out here and I, you know, love wine and I'll have a glass of wine and be like,

[00:52:44] whoa.

[00:52:45] That was a strong glass.

[00:52:46] Yeah.

[00:52:47] Is that a large pour?

[00:52:48] What was that?

[00:52:49] Cheap date.

[00:52:50] I'm like, oh yeah.

[00:52:52] Especially when you get up like 10,000 feet, like when we're camping, you know.

[00:52:55] Oh, yeah.

[00:52:55] It's dangerous.

[00:52:56] You're drinking beer up there.

[00:52:57] It's like, whew.

[00:52:57] Yeah.

[00:52:58] You got to be careful.

[00:52:59] You got to be hydrated.

[00:53:00] Yeah.

[00:53:00] Well, when we've been, I love camping and I love camping out.

[00:53:03] So much fun.

[00:53:05] And it's so easier versus camping in the Amazon.

[00:53:08] But, you know, you take the little bladders of, you know, a little wine at night.

[00:53:12] You've just been camping all day and you're tired.

[00:53:14] You can't have fire.

[00:53:16] A little campfire and stuff like that.

[00:53:18] And you take a sip and you're like, whoa.

[00:53:21] You know.

[00:53:22] Sleep good at night.

[00:53:22] Well, that's when I start talking.

[00:53:23] I mean, you know, I'll start telling stories.

[00:53:25] Do you?

[00:53:25] You like to sit around campfire stories?

[00:53:26] Oh, yeah.

[00:53:27] Have a little Pinot Grigio.

[00:53:29] Yeah.

[00:53:29] I used to get Kevin and I in trouble.

[00:53:31] We'd like, oh, just one more beer.

[00:53:32] And then it'd be like 12 a.m.

[00:53:33] And then, okay, all right, just one more.

[00:53:35] And then it'd be like 3 a.m.

[00:53:36] That's why I don't drink on the podcast.

[00:53:38] Yeah.

[00:53:38] I stopped drinking on here in April.

[00:53:40] Oh, really?

[00:53:41] Yeah.

[00:53:41] Yeah.

[00:53:42] Oh, you know, you watch Joe Rogan and stuff like that.

[00:53:44] And every once in a while, he'll have the energy of people.

[00:53:47] And they're like, yeah, let's have a shot.

[00:53:49] Oh, yeah.

[00:53:49] And that podcast.

[00:53:51] We used to party on Wednesdays.

[00:53:52] Oh, did you?

[00:53:53] We were a party pod for a long time.

[00:53:54] We'd be pretty buzzed by the end of the episode.

[00:53:56] You go back and watch some of those.

[00:53:56] I'm like, hey, listeners.

[00:53:58] You know.

[00:53:59] We love you, man.

[00:54:01] Yeah.

[00:54:01] Yeah.

[00:54:01] We've got to keep it tightened up.

[00:54:03] Yeah.

[00:54:03] Yeah.

[00:54:04] I could see that.

[00:54:05] 80-20.

[00:54:05] Have your fun.

[00:54:06] Yeah, for sure.

[00:54:06] Get it dialed.

[00:54:07] Right?

[00:54:07] No doubt.

[00:54:08] But, yeah, it's super fun to, you know, have a little glass of wine and start telling stories.

[00:54:14] And, you know, everybody, like, gravitates towards that.

[00:54:16] Oh, yeah.

[00:54:16] And then the hours fly by and you're like, we better go to bed.

[00:54:18] Yeah.

[00:54:18] We better shut down.

[00:54:19] Yeah, but why not?

[00:54:19] Let's just have one more.

[00:54:20] One more beer.

[00:54:21] Why not?

[00:54:21] Yeah.

[00:54:22] Only live once.

[00:54:23] Well, and y'all stories when y'all, when you're having these Wednesdays and what do you talk about?

[00:54:29] Any and everything?

[00:54:30] Like, are you jamming on a podcast and then you're just like, oh, we've got to go.

[00:54:35] We've got to run with that for a little while?

[00:54:37] Oh, no.

[00:54:38] We seem to talk about women a lot.

[00:54:39] Yeah, women are in the conversation.

[00:54:41] Yeah, we're an enigma.

[00:54:43] You could have a whole podcast just about that.

[00:54:45] Just about women.

[00:54:46] Well, don't women talk about men a lot, too?

[00:54:49] Yeah, I would say.

[00:54:50] That was a pregnant pause.

[00:54:51] Yeah, I mean, I think it's probably pretty balanced.

[00:54:54] A pregnant pause?

[00:54:55] Yeah.

[00:54:55] What is a pregnant pause?

[00:54:56] Let it develop.

[00:54:57] No, no, no.

[00:54:58] No, he's like, hmm.

[00:54:59] Hmm.

[00:54:59] Pregnant pause?

[00:55:00] I've never heard about that.

[00:55:01] I've never heard about that.

[00:55:02] Oh, never? Okay.

[00:55:02] That must be a Southern term.

[00:55:04] That must be North Carolina.

[00:55:04] Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[00:55:05] North Carolina term.

[00:55:06] I've got to ask you a question about North Carolina.

[00:55:07] All right.

[00:55:08] Shoot.

[00:55:08] So, banana and mayonnaise sandwich.

[00:55:12] Yes or no?

[00:55:13] No, I don't know what that is.

[00:55:15] What are you talking about?

[00:55:16] Do you eat banana and mayonnaise sandwiches?

[00:55:17] All my North Carolina NASCAR buddies are like, that's a North Carolina thing.

[00:55:20] Yeah, no.

[00:55:21] Well, no.

[00:55:21] Barbecue is a North Carolina thing.

[00:55:23] Okay, so now, this will determine everything.

[00:55:26] Best barbecue.

[00:55:26] Kansas City, Texas, North Carolina.

[00:55:28] Yeah, seriously.

[00:55:29] I mean, we're talking about this.

[00:55:31] It's vinegar based.

[00:55:33] Okay, so you're going to Carolina, of course.

[00:55:35] Got to.

[00:55:35] No Texas, huh?

[00:55:36] Well, A, Texas is not using pork.

[00:55:39] They're using beef.

[00:55:40] That's fair.

[00:55:40] Okay, so they don't know what they're doing.

[00:55:43] And it should not be called barbecue.

[00:55:45] It's just something else.

[00:55:46] Sorry, Texas.

[00:55:47] Because barbecue is basically pork, okay?

[00:55:50] You can call it something else.

[00:55:51] I have to say, St. Louis, I mean, they've got some good.

[00:55:55] Ribs.

[00:55:56] Yeah.

[00:55:56] Yeah.

[00:55:57] And their barbecue is good.

[00:55:58] It's got that tangy sauce that's more ketchup based.

[00:56:02] Yeah, a little on the sweeter side.

[00:56:03] Right.

[00:56:03] But North Carolina, well, we want it tangy, vinegar based.

[00:56:09] And the best is a clean pork, not a lot of fat, you know, so shout out to Parker's Barbecue.

[00:56:15] Yeah.

[00:56:16] What was the shout out?

[00:56:17] Parker's Barbecue, which is in Wilson, North Carolina, which is my hometown.

[00:56:21] I got to get down there.

[00:56:22] Yeah.

[00:56:22] Well, let me tell you something.

[00:56:24] They ship.

[00:56:25] Do they?

[00:56:26] They ship.

[00:56:27] That's smart.

[00:56:28] Yeah.

[00:56:29] And I've already had.

[00:56:31] You got it on the way.

[00:56:31] It's on the way.

[00:56:32] Oh, yeah.

[00:56:32] Yeah.

[00:56:33] And as a matter of fact, my boyfriend, we met each other, believe it or not, at a bar in Boulder.

[00:56:40] And he knew Parker's Barbecue.

[00:56:43] Okay.

[00:56:43] And I'm like.

[00:56:44] So that was points.

[00:56:45] He like scored a squish.

[00:56:46] Oh, he went straight up.

[00:56:47] I mean, I was like, you got to be kidding me.

[00:56:49] And I was like, how do you know Parker's Barbecue in Wilson, North Carolina?

[00:56:53] And he's like, oh, my gosh, my family.

[00:56:54] We go there all the time.

[00:56:56] And, you know, we were born and raised on barbecue practically.

[00:56:58] So one of our first dates, he came over and I had Parker's Barbecue delivered to Boulder.

[00:57:05] And it's Parker's.

[00:57:07] Parker's.

[00:57:07] P-A-R-K-E-R-S.

[00:57:08] Okay.

[00:57:08] Not Porker's.

[00:57:09] No.

[00:57:10] Well, yeah.

[00:57:10] Yeah.

[00:57:11] Well, I'm just making sure here.

[00:57:14] Well, I sound like I have like marbles in my mouth sometimes.

[00:57:18] So, yeah, Parker's Barbecue.

[00:57:20] Parker's Barbecue.

[00:57:21] Okay.

[00:57:22] It's that Southern drawl.

[00:57:23] It's the Southern drawl.

[00:57:24] Yeah.

[00:57:24] I like it.

[00:57:25] It's my favorite accent in the country.

[00:57:26] Yeah.

[00:57:26] Oh, okay.

[00:57:27] You know, New Orleans, they kind of have their touch.

[00:57:29] You know, they do things a little different down there.

[00:57:30] But that, you know, I'm around NASCAR.

[00:57:32] That's North Carolina guys.

[00:57:33] We have fun time.

[00:57:34] You know, I love that energy.

[00:57:35] Yeah.

[00:57:35] And they got the twang and just a little bit harder twang than I do.

[00:57:38] Yeah.

[00:57:39] Yeah.

[00:57:39] So I've been away from North Carolina enough to slightly get refined.

[00:57:44] But, yeah.

[00:57:45] But if you go down there, does it come out even thicker?

[00:57:46] Oh, yeah.

[00:57:47] You get around those North Carolina folk?

[00:57:48] For sure.

[00:57:49] And my mom still lives there.

[00:57:50] So I talk to her every day.

[00:57:51] Yeah.

[00:57:51] And then it's funny because people, you know, at school, at Watershed, they're like, oh, man, we can hear your accent get thicker 10 minutes into your conversation with your mother.

[00:58:02] Isn't that funny?

[00:58:02] So, yeah.

[00:58:03] So, yeah.

[00:58:04] She's got her very, very deep Southern accent.

[00:58:07] And so it's quite nice.

[00:58:08] I bet she's a good storyteller.

[00:58:09] So she's the – that's where I get this from.

[00:58:11] I was going to say, I had a feeling.

[00:58:12] Yeah.

[00:58:12] It's like listening to a British person narrate something.

[00:58:16] Right.

[00:58:16] And, you know, if people are not tuned in to the voice, into the accent, they're like, are you from Australia?

[00:58:24] I'm like, you got to be kidding me.

[00:58:26] Australia?

[00:58:26] No, I don't hear that.

[00:58:28] No, I wouldn't either.

[00:58:29] I don't even know how that's possible.

[00:58:30] But we have an Australian student at Watershed, and he was laughing with me the other day.

[00:58:36] He's like, you know, I mean, you do kind of sound like me.

[00:58:39] And I'm like, really?

[00:58:42] I mean, Anton, come on.

[00:58:43] But anyway, so it's pretty funny.

[00:58:46] But people are not tuned in to it.

[00:58:47] But in North Carolina – I'll go on for this forever.

[00:58:51] There are three accents in North Carolina.

[00:58:53] Okay.

[00:58:54] There is the East Coast accent where a little bit of this accent that I've got.

[00:58:59] Then you've got the middle part of North Carolina, which is Graysboro, Charlotte, NASCAR.

[00:59:05] That's NASCAR.

[00:59:06] That's a little twangy-twangy.

[00:59:07] Talk real fast.

[00:59:08] And then you've got Appalachia.

[00:59:11] And that's a little bit of a different accent as well.

[00:59:13] That's some bluegrass over there.

[00:59:14] That's some bluegrass, yeah.

[00:59:16] Some good old hee-haw, as I call it.

[00:59:17] Yeah, yeah.

[00:59:18] And then they're getting a little refined.

[00:59:20] But you can definitely tell different people in North Carolina where they're raised and stuff like that,

[00:59:27] but their accent.

[00:59:27] And then there's that Tennessee, Kentucky accent that is hovering in that Appalachian area.

[00:59:34] Yeah, it's pretty cool.

[00:59:35] I love accents.

[00:59:36] Yeah, they're fun.

[00:59:36] Yeah, they're super fun.

[00:59:37] I don't really have my New England one anymore.

[00:59:38] I kind of lost it.

[00:59:39] Some words will come out.

[00:59:41] When I was drinking heavy, it would come out.

[00:59:43] Yeah.

[00:59:43] Or if you've been talking to your buddies.

[00:59:45] Yeah, if I get on the phone, we potty, we could hide.

[00:59:47] Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[00:59:48] There you go.

[00:59:49] That's that New England.

[00:59:49] Yeah, for sure.

[00:59:50] When it used to be, you know, people on the radio and stuff, they would want the accent or that neutral accent that would come from the Midwest, right?

[00:59:59] And, you know, Colorado has a little bit of a neutral accent.

[01:00:03] Do we?

[01:00:03] Yeah.

[01:00:04] The way they say their O's, they're like Coors.

[01:00:06] Oh, Coors.

[01:00:07] Coors.

[01:00:08] Coors Light.

[01:00:09] Okay.

[01:00:09] Colorado.

[01:00:10] Colorado.

[01:00:11] Colorado.

[01:00:11] Colorado, Coors.

[01:00:12] I don't know.

[01:00:13] Since we don't have accents and everybody in this state is from out of state, basically,

[01:00:20] I feel like I have like a mixed accent.

[01:00:23] And if I hang around people with a different accent long enough, then I start to mimic them subconsciously.

[01:00:29] Like, I don't even realize I'm doing this.

[01:00:30] So I was in Texas for a wedding one time and I started like talking like, hey, you know, and my girlfriend at the time, she like got upset at me.

[01:00:42] She's like, why?

[01:00:43] It sounds like you're making fun of their accent.

[01:00:45] Oh.

[01:00:45] And I'm like, no, I'm just developed and I'm just around it.

[01:00:50] I love it.

[01:00:51] I kind of get in trouble if I'm around another accent.

[01:00:53] I start picking up on it and it's fun.

[01:00:56] It's fun, right?

[01:00:57] You shouldn't take offense to it.

[01:00:59] So do you think if you like were in London for like a couple of weeks, you'd be like, you know, speaking a little Brit?

[01:01:06] Maybe.

[01:01:07] I think I would.

[01:01:08] I'll get that.

[01:01:08] Because I love the Brits.

[01:01:09] I do too.

[01:01:10] They're great.

[01:01:10] Yeah.

[01:01:11] I mean, I've gotten really good at rolling my tongue because I'm around Espanol now all the time.

[01:01:15] Oh, yeah.

[01:01:16] So I got that tongue rolled down.

[01:01:18] Yeah, you're being good with your Espanol.

[01:01:19] Yeah.

[01:01:20] You're pretty good with it.

[01:01:21] It's just something I'm learning.

[01:01:23] Yeah.

[01:01:23] Well, and you know, Spanish is such a great language.

[01:01:25] It is.

[01:01:26] It's fun.

[01:01:26] It is super fun.

[01:01:27] Do you know other languages?

[01:01:28] You know, when we were in the Amazon, we were with about eight researchers that were from University of Lima, a couple of researchers from Cusco.

[01:01:39] And so every Tuesday night, we would all sit around and they would talk about their research in Spanish.

[01:01:47] Interesting.

[01:01:47] And I was, I guess, classically trained or educated in French.

[01:01:52] And so Martin and Chris both could speak Spanish pretty well.

[01:01:57] But it was just Spanish all the time in the Amazon.

[01:02:01] And so when we came out, yeah, I was actually conversing.

[01:02:06] I could definitely listen and know exactly what was going on.

[01:02:10] But that's faded away over time, which is really unfortunate.

[01:02:14] I love to like submerge myself back.

[01:02:17] And my boys are like, do you want to go back to Peru and, you know, kind of go back there?

[01:02:22] I'm like, no, I have PTSD.

[01:02:23] Yeah, I bet.

[01:02:25] You're not going back there.

[01:02:27] I had so much.

[01:02:29] I mean, we're all over the place.

[01:02:31] But anyway, I had so many dreams of ants.

[01:02:35] I can't tell you.

[01:02:36] It haunted you.

[01:02:37] Oh, you have no idea.

[01:02:39] They were everywhere.

[01:02:41] And the Azulas were everywhere.

[01:02:43] And every minute you're like, I'm going to die.

[01:02:46] And you would sit in these blinds for hours waiting for animals to come by or whatever.

[01:02:52] And so you're stuck.

[01:02:54] And so if, you know, your leafcutter ants had decided to come through your blind, you are.

[01:02:59] You're in their path.

[01:03:01] Yeah.

[01:03:01] Yeah.

[01:03:01] And, you know, I had a Jaguar track me going to the latrine one very rainy day.

[01:03:13] That was probably the scariest I think I've ever been.

[01:03:15] Oh, yeah.

[01:03:16] So you saw it?

[01:03:17] Well.

[01:03:18] Or like, how did you know?

[01:03:19] Yeah.

[01:03:20] So instinctually after a while you kind of.

[01:03:25] You can feel the eyes.

[01:03:26] Yeah.

[01:03:26] You know something's wrong.

[01:03:28] Yeah.

[01:03:29] I mean, you know it in your ethos.

[01:03:31] We don't get that while we're in, you know, in urban environments and whatever.

[01:03:35] But when you're down there for a while, your senses like pivot like hard.

[01:03:41] And you know when you're getting washed.

[01:03:43] But so I was going.

[01:03:44] It was one rainy morning.

[01:03:45] And to get to, we had to go.

[01:03:47] And we had a latrine that someone dug, thank God, a hole in the ground.

[01:03:53] And we put chicken wire around it.

[01:03:56] So when you're doing your business, you're not.

[01:03:59] Yeah.

[01:03:59] You're somewhat safe.

[01:04:00] Yeah.

[01:04:01] Yeah.

[01:04:01] Somewhat safe.

[01:04:01] And it had like a little, little tiny makeshift roof.

[01:04:04] But anyway, you, you had to straddle the hole and hang on to a piece of rope.

[01:04:12] And, and basically lean over.

[01:04:15] Okay.

[01:04:16] I'm going to tell you something.

[01:04:17] This is intense.

[01:04:18] Yeah.

[01:04:19] And scorpions, snakes everywhere.

[01:04:23] And so it was a little bit of a magnet because it probably for animals, it smelled, you know,

[01:04:29] right?

[01:04:29] Yeah.

[01:04:30] And needless to say, so I'm walking there and I'm like, I look back and I'm like, that was

[01:04:37] something.

[01:04:38] That's uncool.

[01:04:39] And so I go and I'm like, oh my God, do I run?

[01:04:43] Do I walk?

[01:04:44] What do I do?

[01:04:44] So I'm like, just slowly walking, not to make any kind of like crazy movements.

[01:04:50] And I get to the latrine, close the door and you're like, it's chicken wire.

[01:04:54] Right.

[01:04:54] But at the time you're like, okay, I'm safe.

[01:04:57] So I'm like, okay, well I'm in the shitter.

[01:05:03] Yeah.

[01:05:04] And that ain't cool.

[01:05:06] And there's like snakes.

[01:05:08] Yeah.

[01:05:08] And I'm like, I'm vulnerable here.

[01:05:09] I'm vulnerable there.

[01:05:10] So I'm sitting there and I'm like, oh my God, what do I do?

[01:05:12] And I don't know what to do.

[01:05:13] And, um, and I'm looking and then all of a sudden, bink, right across the trail, the

[01:05:18] jaguar goes across the trail.

[01:05:20] Yeah.

[01:05:20] I'm like, I'm done.

[01:05:23] I'm done.

[01:05:23] I'm done.

[01:05:24] You're by yourself.

[01:05:25] I'm by myself.

[01:05:25] Yeah.

[01:05:26] I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm way away from camp.

[01:05:28] And so, um, the, I'm in the latrine and I'm, I'm not safe, not safe here.

[01:05:36] And this dude has got me in his sights.

[01:05:40] And so I waited and waited and waited probably like 30 minutes.

[01:05:45] I'm like, nah, I didn't make a move.

[01:05:47] And so, um, I opened the door to the latrine and step outside.

[01:05:53] And I'm like, oh man.

[01:05:54] And are you just like walking as big as you can?

[01:05:56] Well, you just grab a stick.

[01:05:58] Did you grab a stick?

[01:05:59] No.

[01:05:59] I mean, you always carry a machete.

[01:06:01] Okay.

[01:06:02] Always.

[01:06:02] Okay.

[01:06:02] And so you have a machete, but you know, I mean, come on.

[01:06:06] I mean, you know what's going to happen.

[01:06:07] They're going to attack you from behind.

[01:06:09] There you go.

[01:06:09] So you're just like, okay, I'm just going to, I'm just going to walk and I'm just going

[01:06:13] to be death.

[01:06:14] This is me.

[01:06:15] And I'm walking.

[01:06:16] And I didn't, you know, I'm just going to, and I'm, I'm going to walk at a good pace

[01:06:20] and I'm, I'm a healthy human being and I'm walking.

[01:06:23] Yeah.

[01:06:24] And, um, and I saw his tracks and got a little bit faster, a little bit faster.

[01:06:30] And then, I mean, I'm all out running, running to camp.

[01:06:34] Oh yeah.

[01:06:34] I started running and, um, dove into one of the structures that were at camp.

[01:06:40] And I was like, I was like, Martin and Chris, I'm not kidding.

[01:06:44] I almost got killed by a jaguar.

[01:06:48] And they're like, we don't trust you.

[01:06:49] And I'm like, yeah, get your camera equipment.

[01:06:51] We're going to go out and y'all are going to see the, the paw press.

[01:06:55] And we did, but we never found the, that was, you never saw him again.

[01:06:59] Never saw another cat.

[01:07:01] Wow.

[01:07:01] The whole time.

[01:07:02] Wow.

[01:07:02] So no footage of the cats, no footage of the cats.

[01:07:04] We had to go to Belize to get raw footage to supplement, um, on jaguars and ocelots and

[01:07:12] that sort of thing.

[01:07:13] So that's crazy.

[01:07:14] Yeah.

[01:07:14] I was going to say, are you going to talk, uh, Rinky and how he says like leopard.

[01:07:18] So we worked with, we talked with some guy who, uh, uh, John Rinky, who was on tiger King.

[01:07:23] So he had like all this tiger King.

[01:07:25] You ever watch that show?

[01:07:26] And he said, he said, get out.

[01:07:29] Yeah.

[01:07:30] He said the big cat that he was most scared of was a leopard.

[01:07:34] Well, yeah.

[01:07:34] Because the leopards like would plan and they would hide meals.

[01:07:38] And they're like one of the only, uh, forethought big cats.

[01:07:42] He didn't even think about it.

[01:07:42] He's like leopard all the way.

[01:07:44] Really?

[01:07:45] Most dangerous big cat.

[01:07:46] Dag on.

[01:07:47] Yeah.

[01:07:47] I think a jaguar is kind of close to a leopard.

[01:07:49] For sure.

[01:07:50] Oh, absolutely.

[01:07:50] Very similar, I think.

[01:07:51] Yeah.

[01:07:51] Yeah.

[01:07:52] Pumas are, you know, and I, I'm fascinated by pumas or, or mountain lions or cougars.

[01:07:57] I mean, they've got all sorts of names, but they can live literally anywhere.

[01:08:02] Yeah.

[01:08:02] You can find a mountain lion, you know, in the Canadian Rockies and you can find a mountain

[01:08:09] lion in Patagonia.

[01:08:10] I mean, they are, they're like everywhere.

[01:08:12] They're really adaptable.

[01:08:14] Um, but, um, I didn't know that about a leopard.

[01:08:18] That's, that's a little scary.

[01:08:19] Yeah.

[01:08:20] Oh yeah.

[01:08:20] And that's what he does.

[01:08:21] He works with big cats.

[01:08:22] Yeah.

[01:08:22] He was, uh, Joe Exotic's right-hand man for years down on their, uh, what was that?

[01:08:27] That ranch in-

[01:08:28] In Oklahoma.

[01:08:28] In Oklahoma.

[01:08:29] Yeah.

[01:08:30] For sure.

[01:08:30] Yep.

[01:08:30] I never made it down there.

[01:08:31] I don't know why I want to call it Big Claw Ranch, but I know that wasn't it.

[01:08:34] Well, it got bought out by that, that guy, uh, just something, I can't think of the guy's

[01:08:38] name, but he, he pretty much ran it into the ground.

[01:08:40] Yeah.

[01:08:41] Well, you know, it's, it's funny.

[01:08:42] I, I, for years and I guess still today, I'm pretty, um, against zoos or anything like

[01:08:48] that because, um, seeing animals like that out in the wild, especially like McCall's,

[01:08:54] if I see a McCall in a, in a cage, I, I absolutely freak out.

[01:08:58] I bet.

[01:08:58] I mean, when you see flocks of McCall's fly up in the air, it almost looks like a Monet

[01:09:05] painting because, because the colors just sort of like wash and, and they are very curious,

[01:09:14] very smart.

[01:09:15] And then you see them in a cage all their life.

[01:09:18] Oh man.

[01:09:19] It is sad.

[01:09:20] They need to be free for sure.

[01:09:21] Yeah.

[01:09:21] You saw, you lived it.

[01:09:22] I mean, unless they're like injured and need rehabilitating.

[01:09:25] Well, there's that too.

[01:09:25] And there's some super like Raptor rehab places that do amazing jobs, but I'm just, you know,

[01:09:32] and they get imprinted too.

[01:09:33] So you've got that.

[01:09:34] So if they get imprinted and they can't go out in the wild, they've, they've, you know,

[01:09:39] they've been born and raised and around humans and they, they wouldn't make it.

[01:09:43] But, um, yeah, I'm, um, you know, that's probably, uh, I'm against it mostly in the zoo

[01:09:49] situation.

[01:09:50] Yeah.

[01:09:50] Same with SeaWorld.

[01:09:51] You know, after watching that, what was it?

[01:09:52] Blackfish, I think it was called, that documentary.

[01:09:55] I was like, no, I'm not, I would never go there ever.

[01:09:57] Yeah.

[01:09:58] Yeah.

[01:09:58] You kind of, and you know, I understand that some of their argument is, yeah, we're preserving.

[01:10:03] Right.

[01:10:03] But are you really?

[01:10:05] Because these animals could never go out in the wild.

[01:10:07] Yeah.

[01:10:08] Especially the orcas.

[01:10:08] They need to be free.

[01:10:09] Yeah.

[01:10:09] You preserve by taking care of their natural habitats, not putting them into cages.

[01:10:14] A hundred percent.

[01:10:15] That's how you preserve.

[01:10:16] Yeah.

[01:10:16] That's how you preserve.

[01:10:17] No doubt about it.

[01:10:18] But, and, and, you know, I think, um, curiosity of humans.

[01:10:22] I mean, I'm all for that as long as you stay away, you know, go to Yellowstone, you know,

[01:10:27] don't get close to the bison.

[01:10:28] Um, they'll kill you.

[01:10:30] They all try to take selfies with it.

[01:10:31] Yeah.

[01:10:31] I mean.

[01:10:31] What are they doing?

[01:10:32] Yeah.

[01:10:33] What are you doing?

[01:10:33] Yeah.

[01:10:34] Like animals end up getting killed because of these situations, you know, and it's, uh,

[01:10:39] it's, it's very irresponsible.

[01:10:41] Yeah.

[01:10:41] Like people out here for a picture, like, you know, just like the, the kid getting bit by

[01:10:47] the squirrel.

[01:10:47] Like sometimes you don't, you don't quite realize that nature is life or death.

[01:10:54] Like, like you go look at that field with all the flowers in it.

[01:10:56] Like that's a battleground.

[01:10:58] Yeah.

[01:10:58] Like there's life and death happening out there.

[01:11:01] And like, you got the Hawks coming in and like, you know, all this stuff has happened.

[01:11:04] And we just, like I was mentioning, like we happen to tame it and we're living during

[01:11:11] that in our hands and like, we're kind of removed from nature, even though that's where

[01:11:15] we're from.

[01:11:16] So, so it's an interesting period in humanity.

[01:11:18] I'm happy to be alive right now with like the amount of information that we have available

[01:11:23] at our fingertips.

[01:11:23] Yeah.

[01:11:24] But there's a lot of things that we can improve on.

[01:11:26] Yeah.

[01:11:27] Well, and you know, my, my family grew up, they were hunters, you know, my mom's a great

[01:11:31] hunter, by the way.

[01:11:32] And I mean, bird hunters, um, deer, and you know, actually it was the hunters who were

[01:11:38] the first conservationist, um, and wanting to strike the balance, you know, and, um, you

[01:11:45] know, I, so I'm all about that.

[01:11:49] Um, as long as it's balanced, you know, and you know, it's the same thing.

[01:11:53] It's just one, everything should be balanced.

[01:11:55] Should be balanced.

[01:11:56] And that's why they hand out, you know, 150 deer tags or whatever it is.

[01:11:59] You know, they, they try to allocate where it's going and how to, you know, maintain

[01:12:02] it all.

[01:12:02] Yeah.

[01:12:03] Hunting's great.

[01:12:03] And I hope they at some point get a balance between going, harking back when we talked

[01:12:08] about the wolves and the farmers.

[01:12:10] How do you, how do you create that balance?

[01:12:12] And, um, how do you rehab the wolf population?

[01:12:15] We do need more predators and, um, and, but the farmers need, you know, their, their livestock.

[01:12:22] So, you know, yeah, it's tough.

[01:12:24] It's catch 22 for sure.

[01:12:25] It is absolutely catch 22.

[01:12:27] But, um, you know, there's always, always improvement in that sense too.

[01:12:30] And, um, I can't believe how many dogs there are in, like in Boulder.

[01:12:34] How many people have dogs?

[01:12:35] I think all of them.

[01:12:36] And how many of those dogs would never exist in the wild?

[01:12:41] Not a lot.

[01:12:42] Yeah.

[01:12:42] They're all like man-made dogs.

[01:12:44] Yeah.

[01:12:44] People love their dogs here.

[01:12:45] Yeah.

[01:12:45] Big time.

[01:12:46] That's a big, that's a big one.

[01:12:48] Yeah.

[01:12:48] Yeah.

[01:12:48] Do you have a dog?

[01:12:49] Yeah.

[01:12:49] I do have a dog.

[01:12:51] I do have a dog.

[01:12:52] And of course mine is, is perfect.

[01:12:54] No.

[01:12:55] Yeah.

[01:12:55] I mean, you know, I've always had dogs and, um, we've had, in our family we've always had

[01:13:01] labs because they were bird hunters.

[01:13:03] So we always, you know, they were trained to bird hunt and they were super great.

[01:13:07] Um, and then I had an Irish hunt terrier, little tiny, little eight pound, but they, they were

[01:13:14] the precursor to the Jack Russell and they used to go down, um, when fox hunting and they

[01:13:19] go down into the hole and kill the fox.

[01:13:22] They were, I mean, big riders, big, um, killers of fox.

[01:13:26] And so she was, she, she, her name was Hooli, Hot Lips Hoolihan was her name actually.

[01:13:30] Hot Lips Hoolihan.

[01:13:31] Yeah.

[01:13:32] I got to go harken back to mash.

[01:13:34] Um, but anyway, so, um, I just, you know, dated myself there too, but she was awesome and

[01:13:39] she would kill every mouse around.

[01:13:43] Um, and super great.

[01:13:45] Never, I don't know how she did it, but never, it was never a bloody mess like a cat does.

[01:13:49] Um, so it's super fun.

[01:13:50] Um, but now my dog is, uh, Labradoodle and you know, so she's a little fancy, um, fancy

[01:13:57] thing.

[01:13:58] So likes being pampered a little bit.

[01:13:59] She gets pampered.

[01:14:00] Yeah.

[01:14:00] She goes to school every day.

[01:14:02] Oh really?

[01:14:02] And yeah.

[01:14:03] So, you know, she gets to play around with the kids and that sort of thing.

[01:14:05] Oh, that's nice.

[01:14:06] Yeah.

[01:14:06] That's a fun life.

[01:14:07] Do y'all have pets?

[01:14:08] I'm a fish guy.

[01:14:09] I have fish.

[01:14:10] We, oh, saltwater?

[01:14:11] No, freshwater, but, but, uh, African cichlids.

[01:14:14] Oh, whoa, snap.

[01:14:17] Okay.

[01:14:17] Yeah.

[01:14:17] It's fun.

[01:14:17] It's a 30 gallon.

[01:14:18] I mean, it's nothing too huge, but I got a little tiger cichlet in there and a huge placosomus.

[01:14:22] My front, my front toes had died.

[01:14:24] That was my favorite fish.

[01:14:25] Okay.

[01:14:25] All right.

[01:14:25] But, uh, African cichlids are beautiful.

[01:14:27] Yeah.

[01:14:27] Do you name your fish?

[01:14:28] I only named the, the placosomus.

[01:14:30] I named him Pringle with the help of Arthur.

[01:14:32] Okay.

[01:14:33] All right.

[01:14:33] Pringle the Pleco.

[01:14:34] Oh, I love that.

[01:14:35] Yeah.

[01:14:35] That's funny.

[01:14:36] Yeah.

[01:14:36] They're fun.

[01:14:37] Oh.

[01:14:37] That's fun.

[01:14:38] Yeah.

[01:14:38] You're not a pet guy.

[01:14:39] Yeah.

[01:14:39] Um, I got you.

[01:14:40] Oh, okay.

[01:14:42] He's, he's a wild animal.

[01:14:44] Say the least.

[01:14:45] Yeah.

[01:14:47] No, I love that.

[01:14:48] Well, what, this has been a really fun conversation.

[01:14:50] Yeah.

[01:14:50] This blew by.

[01:14:51] I consider myself a dog whisperer, but I just don't want to own dogs.

[01:14:54] So I love dogs to death.

[01:14:56] That's fantastic.

[01:14:56] I just don't want to own them.

[01:14:58] Yeah.

[01:14:58] You know, I like that freedom.

[01:14:59] I like that freedom.

[01:15:00] So this is the part where you can plug everything.

[01:15:05] Cool.

[01:15:05] Okay.

[01:15:06] Where do you want, and we'll put all this in the show notes so people can find it as

[01:15:09] well.

[01:15:09] Yeah.

[01:15:10] Um, you can find me on Instagram, Greg Carr Bridgers.

[01:15:13] Um, I am, um, going to start a website, um, and I'll let you guys know when it's up,

[01:15:19] which will be all my photographs.

[01:15:21] I've had several galleries, um, one in New York and down in Virginia as well, but these

[01:15:28] will all get published.

[01:15:29] Um, and since I've traveled all over the world with wildlife and then kiss the butterfly, um,

[01:15:34] the manuscript, we'll see where that goes, but I'll, I'll let y'all know when we, we get

[01:15:39] legs with that.

[01:15:40] Yeah.

[01:15:40] I'm, I'm really excited.

[01:15:42] It has been a life long journey and, um, I'm glad it's come to fruition.

[01:15:48] I feel like Colorado and Boulder kind of pulled it all together and made me go, just get it

[01:15:53] out there and do this.

[01:15:54] So, um, so I'm pretty excited.

[01:15:56] It's all about timing, right?

[01:15:57] Yeah.

[01:15:57] It's all about timing.

[01:15:57] It's the right time.

[01:15:58] Yeah.

[01:15:59] So, um, hopefully your listeners will want to read it and, um, learn more about it and

[01:16:04] go outside and, you know, don't pet a squirrel, um, go and enjoy life outdoors.

[01:16:11] I like it.

[01:16:12] Yeah.

[01:16:12] I like it.

[01:16:13] Yeah.

[01:16:13] We'll do, you know, whatever we can to help you and the book drops and all that.

[01:16:16] I appreciate it.

[01:16:16] Promo clips, you know, use this as a tool.

[01:16:18] Hopefully I'll be back and, you know, um, yeah.

[01:16:21] Read a little excerpt from them.

[01:16:22] I feel like we're just scratching the surface here.

[01:16:23] We got a lot more to cover next time.

[01:16:24] Like if your book is anything like these stories you're sharing right now, like it's definitely

[01:16:29] going to be a good read.

[01:16:30] Yeah.

[01:16:30] Thanks.

[01:16:31] Yeah.

[01:16:31] Yeah.

[01:16:31] It's historical fiction.

[01:16:33] So, um, the, the, the female character, uh, is a heroine, a little light Laura Croft,

[01:16:39] badass chick.

[01:16:40] And so, um, she takes on the shining path.

[01:16:43] So, um, you know, more to come.

[01:16:45] Okay.

[01:16:45] I like that.

[01:16:46] That's exciting.

[01:16:47] That's exciting.

[01:16:47] And then of course, our final question that we ask every guest, if you could offer one

[01:16:51] piece of advice that when humanity hears this tomorrow, they'll be better off for hearing

[01:16:54] it.

[01:16:54] What's that piece of advice?

[01:16:56] Yeah.

[01:16:57] I, I want to stick to the nature thing.

[01:16:59] Go outdoors.

[01:16:59] I have a feeling you're going to say just get outdoors.

[01:17:00] Go get outdoors and, um, hug a tree.

[01:17:04] Um, and, um, don't be shy about doing that.

[01:17:06] And then, um, just go observe nature.

[01:17:09] And, you know, like we talked about next time you sit down for a meal, um, make it a beautiful

[01:17:14] one and, um, have dinner with your family, um, around the table and, um, stop time for

[01:17:21] just a second.

[01:17:22] I like it.

[01:17:24] Slow down time by putting your cell phones down.

[01:17:27] That's another piece of advice I got here.

[01:17:30] Yeah.

[01:17:30] And going out in nature, like I've, I've talked about this a thousand times.

[01:17:34] I love this subject.

[01:17:35] Like you will feel refreshed after going outside.

[01:17:39] And especially if you go outside with the intent to appreciate the nature.

[01:17:44] And sometimes I have a hard time.

[01:17:46] Sometimes I don't want to go on a walk and then I'm looking at Tik TOK while I'm on my

[01:17:49] walk.

[01:17:50] But, but when I say that, don't take your phone, leave it behind.

[01:17:54] Yeah.

[01:17:54] Leave it behind.

[01:17:55] Make sure people know where you're going.

[01:17:56] Yeah.

[01:17:56] Right.

[01:17:57] And just actually tap, tap in.

[01:17:59] Tap in.

[01:18:00] If you could go on a real walk where you're not looking at your phone and stuff like that.

[01:18:04] Yeah.

[01:18:04] Takes a little time to appreciate, but once you start appreciating it's, it's priceless.

[01:18:08] Yeah.

[01:18:08] And listen, and the birds will, will sing to you and, um, you'll hear a little, little

[01:18:14] scratches here and there.

[01:18:15] Oh my gosh.

[01:18:16] There's this one, there's this one day I got to tell this story.

[01:18:18] I don't even think I told you this.

[01:18:19] So, so no, I'm on, I'm on a walk and sure it's a breezy day or whatever.

[01:18:25] And there's a lot of trees near me, but not all the trees are blowing.

[01:18:29] And, and so like, not all the leaves are shaking in the wind, but as I was walking down this

[01:18:33] path, like for some reason, a hundred yards in front of me, the tree just kept waving

[01:18:38] at me.

[01:18:39] And so I, I kept walking and then like the tree a hundred yards ahead of me would keep waving

[01:18:44] at me.

[01:18:45] And then I started like giggling almost.

[01:18:47] I'm like, Oh my God, the tree.

[01:18:48] Thank you for saying hi.

[01:18:49] Thank you for his good morning.

[01:18:50] And then I felt like all the trees are like, hi Arthur, how are you doing today?

[01:18:54] And then I'm all like, so good.

[01:18:55] You look great.

[01:18:56] You look beautiful.

[01:18:57] It was like this, this so like innocent moment that I had as a grown adult, like just out

[01:19:04] in nature having fun.

[01:19:06] And, and it's, it was, it was priceless.

[01:19:08] Well, and that's what we call a natural high, right?

[01:19:11] I mean, you are, you are so tuned in to nature that, you know, she started talking to you and

[01:19:18] I love that.

[01:19:19] And you know, most people will say, Oh yeah, well, you must've been on suicide.

[01:19:24] That's some good marijuana.

[01:19:25] Yeah.

[01:19:25] Yeah.

[01:19:25] Or something like that.

[01:19:26] Good, whatever.

[01:19:27] But there is such a thing as a natural high and it's, um, you just have to be attuned to

[01:19:33] it.

[01:19:33] And it's out there.

[01:19:33] It's there waiting for everybody.

[01:19:36] Um, just, um, listen and watch and it will come to you.

[01:19:41] It's very cool.

[01:19:41] That's awesome.

[01:19:42] We love the outdoors.

[01:19:43] We used to have a sponsor, wild outdoor adventures.

[01:19:45] So shout out to those guys.

[01:19:46] And what was their motto?

[01:19:47] Less dreaming, more exploring, get outdoors.

[01:19:49] Yeah.

[01:19:50] That's kind of the theme to end this show.

[01:19:51] Yeah.

[01:19:52] I love that.

[01:19:52] Yeah.

[01:19:53] So we're getting you back in in 2025.

[01:19:55] You're in the wheelhouse now.

[01:19:56] Yes.

[01:19:57] We're going to get you back in.

[01:19:58] It was such an honor and pleasure talking with you.

[01:20:00] We're super excited for your, for your book to come out.

[01:20:03] Yeah.

[01:20:03] Thanks.

[01:20:04] It's going to be good.

[01:20:05] Yeah.

[01:20:05] I'm excited.

[01:20:06] Bring it in for some knuckles.

[01:20:07] Yeah.

[01:20:07] Bring it in.

[01:20:08] Let's try knuckles.

[01:20:09] Glad you're back.

[01:20:09] Try knuckles.

[01:20:10] Yeah.

[01:20:10] Boom.

[01:20:11] Boom.

[01:20:11] Boom.

[01:20:13] All right, great.

[01:20:13] We're out of here.

[01:20:14] Thank you, viewers.

[01:20:15] We'll see you on a happy Friday.

[01:20:16] See ya.

[01:20:17] Thanks.

[01:20:17] Cheers.

[01:20:19] That was fun.