#102. Life After A Year

Mario and George reconnect after a year to share life updates, insights on stress, personal growth, and the importance of authenticity and peace in life.

 key  topics

• Stress management and acceptance
• The importance of self-awareness and authenticity
• Life challenges and personal growth
• The role of patience and timing in success
• The impact of relationships and community

 Takeaways

• Recognize what you can control and accept what you cannot to reduce stress.
• Being true to yourself is key to happiness and fulfillment.
• Life is a journey of continuous self-discovery and learning.
• Patience and timing are crucial in achieving goals.
• Small acts of kindness and authenticity can significantly impact others.

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Transcript

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speaker-0 (00:01.122)
Like old times. Back in business. Very ex What's up Mario? I know it's been a little well not for you and me but on the on the on the recording.

speaker-1 (00:04.629)
Yeah.

speaker-1 (00:10.926)
I think a little over a year about just about, but it's been good. Life's been good, eventful, still working in insurance. Went to Taiwan, did a I mean this year has been very eventful and I'm sure George and I are about to get into a lot of it, so I'm not gonna spoil a ton, but life's been good.

speaker-0 (00:27.746)
Yeah. I just wanna give a quick shout out to Chris Pallet, man. Remember I was telling you about him. we had him on the podcast a little while ago and he kinda brought the spark back. It was nice, you know. obviously yeah, we haven't done the podcast. It's been a while, yeah. Been yeah, over a little yeah, over a year, right?

obviously, you know, life has been busy. We moved in together, we got our own place now. and it's life has been eventful. There's there's a lot that has gone on. So you were saying, you know, you went to Taiwan, insurance, all of that. And it was nice seeing all those you know, all those steps too. You know, I got in the fire department but I messed up my pack the first week, so you know, it's life is life, right?

speaker-1 (01:22.834)
Life is a journey. And that's the thing you learn with a lot of things. You know, I came into life I mean, I in the previous episodes I'm sure I touched a bit on the struggles that I had early on as a kid and you know, you just learn to deal with the ups and downs and keep moving and that's what's been

Keeping me going in the sense, you know, despite all the hardships that one faces. I'm sure I could get into all the stresses that I deal with at work because work is always something that's stressful for most people. I mean, if you have a non stressful job, good for you.

speaker-0 (01:53.708)
Yeah, yeah, no, seriously. I really wonder what type of jobs that are out there that are not stressful. You know, but I feel like sometimes those jobs sometimes are very boring. Right. And then that would just cause stress for me, you know. It it Yeah, I feel like most jobs are stressful and then the jobs that aren't, I feel like obviously a lot of people are taking them. or they're they're you're they're gonna stay in those positions for a very long time, you know, and but there's always gonna be something, you know, w an issue that arises, you know, I feel like

Pretty much most jobs are like that. Yeah. you know, kinda same thing. We were talking of you it's funny 'cause we always have deep conversations but we never record them, you know. not all of them have to be recorded too, but it it the conversations that we have on the podcasts, we still had those conversations, but now we just have them more, you know, one Exactly. Exactly. Exactly. You know, we'll sit outside and enjoy the the you know, the rain or whatever and we'll talk or we'll go on walks and stuff like that and

It those are nice, you know, those are nice. But then this is nice too, you know, 'cause yeah, like what Chris was telling me, surprisingly, people you know, I I look at the numbers every week and you know, I just want to thank all of you that still listen just because it's it's insane, man, you know, 'cause obviously, yeah, we have deep conversations, you know, I feel like we have more deeper conversations and more casual conversations on this podcast. You know, obviously our goal is to try to impact someone's life, you know, whether it's

in a small way or you know, the things that we go through, people go through as well too. You know, 'cause we're human beings and sometimes people need the that reassurance of like, Hey, what you're going through

Other people are going through it too and there's ways of dealing with it and if they're you can't deal with it, you know, there's days there's ways of dealing with things you can't control. You know, I've we've experienced that, you know, a a good amount too, you know, and like we've said in life, you can fix things and if you can't fix them then, you know, there's not much you can really do about those situations, you know what I mean?

speaker-1 (03:58.23)
Right. I mean it goes back to the whole idea of you have to worry about what you can work with. I mean not stress over the things you can't control. Because in life there's things we can't control. And I know a lot of times we think to ourselves everything has a solution. And I've kind of been that way, you know, I think everything does fundamentally have a solution. But sometimes it's not up to us to solve the problem. Right. And recognizing that takes a lot of stress away. And

I guess I can go into this a little bit. So, you know, I got the sales manager position since I've been on the podcast and

I care about the agency, you know, I care at a deep level. I really take a lot of pride in what I do and I think that one should, you know, especially if you're looking into making a career out of whatever you're in. My goal's in five years to take over the agency and be able to run a successful business. And so I think I take the job a little more seriously than I should sometimes. And I get preoccupied on all the things that I'm not able to control.

You know, ultimately the business owner is the business owner and I have to do my part to enact your vision, but there's times that I'm like, I like to see things move in this direction or that direction because it comes from a place of I want the best outcome for everybody. But then again, sometimes it's not up to us. There's things there's weight for us to carry and then there's weight not for us not to carry. And since I've gotten better with that, a lot of my stress has gone down.

a lot of the n panic attacks, the stresses, the worries that kinda consumed me for the longest time just went away because I kind of just accepted that I am who I am and I just have to do my role. And as long as I do my role to the best of my ability I can say I did something right. And that's what keeps me moving. Now I now I don't let work dictate a lot of what I do.

speaker-1 (05:48.416)
Instead I've kind of picked up a new real hobby, and on music, 'cause I've always loved music, but now I b big and divinal, believe it or not. Now my sister's big and divinal too, so it's kinda cool to see that in finding something to give life a little bit of meaning makes a big difference. Moving out has been wonderful. You know, that's been a trip of its own and

I think this is going on to month five, believe it or not, which is crazy to think. It's it's become the new normal for me. I wake up every morning and I just think to myself, how lucky I am to be with such a wonderful brother, you know, truly. And that my mornings are always

Nice, the calm drive. I always look forward to that. I drive to work, you know, an hour ahead because I just like to coast. I don't like to think about, I have to be here in ten minutes. I I like to just drive, put on my music and get there when I get there and know that I have plenty of time to just get ready for the day.

And I don't take any of that for granted. You know, it's been just wonderful. And then a little bit about that trip to Taiwan. So as you know, there's a lot going on in that side of the world and I was told by a lot of people, don't go there, you know, and I was gonna probably buy into that idea. I was thinking to myself Probably I shouldn't go. But then I did. I took the risk and it was a wonderful risk because it was honestly

one of the places that I can recommend to all of you. If you're first time going to Asia, first time doing an international trip, that's the place to go. It's welcoming. The people there will do anything they can to come to your level and you don't feel like an outsider many times. So yeah, I mean that's kind of me in a nutshell, but what about you, George?

speaker-0 (07:43.042)
There's a lot that has been going on in life. I would say the first thing that happened was getting into the fire department. You were there along that process. And it was kind of surreal because at least with the Tucson Fire Department is there they're they're looking for people, right? And

speaker-0 (08:10.614)
It was so quick. Everything happened so quick that you know, working a full time job and then also doing the things for the fire department and it wasn't just like hey, take your time with these is we need these things done by a certain date once once I found out I had the job. You know, and everything just happened so quick.

And then I got there and it was a wake up call, you it kinda reminded me of military school. and then I remember that day where, you know, the day before actually I kinda felt a little bit off. And then one of my classmates, you know, even said, you know, you look a little off and then the next day

that's you know, I essentially hurt my back, you know. it is what it is, right? At the end of the day.

you know, I was talking to one of my classmates and he was a surgeon in Mexico. And the thing is too is, you know, obviously I went to like a workers comp doctor and God bless them, dude. You know, they they d they do a lot. You know, a doctor is already a hard job in itself and, you know, I feel like in those clinics it's there's someone always getting her at work. So they're just kind of moving along really quick, you know, and

you know, when you're hurt too, y y you're you know, you're it felt like I was I had a concussion. You know, that's really what it felt like. So it felt like things were just moving really slow and everything the doctor was explaining I didn't really understand and and then another family thing happened. Yeah, a family you know, thing happened during that time too and I got a so it's funny, when I was there, you know

speaker-0 (10:08.514)
the nurse or doctor, I forget which one it was, they were explaining to me that they wanted to give me a shot. And I was like, so they're explaining the shot to me and it just like went through one ear out the other. And so I was there like, Do you want the shot? And I was like, sure. And so I'm not the biggest fan of, you know

needles. I'm not gonna say I'm scared of them. Obviously you like if I have to get a shot for anything I get it but I'm the type of person when I was a little kid you know I would like move around and cry and whatnot and I've never had a shot below my arms that I remember. So the nurse came in and she's like, Alright, stand up, bend over and take off your pants and I was like what the fuck? in my mind I was like what the fuck?

And then she pulls out this needle and she told me, Don't look at the needle. First thing I look is the needle, and I was like, That's going where? And she's like, It's going essentially in your ass. And I was like, What the fuck? And so I started freaking out, dude. I was like, it wasn't it wasn't just like a normal needle, it was like a long fucking needle. So I was like, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. She I was like, No, you're not gonna put that in me. And she's like, I told you not to look at the needle. And so I was just like in panic, dude. I was like, What the fuck?

Fuck is that? So so sure enough, she puts the needle, it wasn't even that bad. But after that, it felt worse. So I ended up talking to the guy who was a surgeon, he's a surgeon in Mexico, and so I'm explaining to him because they gave me my my you know paper of everything that I had. I found out that I had scoliosis too, which I never knew. So I talked to him and I was like.

He's explaining to me, he's like, Dude, this is only gonna get worse. You know, if you were in like if you had like two weeks or something like that before you graduated, you know, I would say endure the pain as much as you can, but it's only gonna get worse. You know, we have another six months of this and you're only on the first week and it's it's it's gonna get it's not when or it's not if it gets worse, it's when it's gonna get worse. So I was like, you know what, dude, I just I gotta do this another time, you know?

speaker-0 (12:30.966)
And luckily they were very cool about it and I like, all right, this gives me more than enough time to prepare, prepare my body, know what my body can and can't do and prepare my body for the stress of the fire academy essentially. So, you know, it sucked, it sucked losing that, but I mean, you know, that happens in life, right? I mean, I feel like I'm I'm sure a lot of people think this things aren't easy. Right? Things will never be easy.

Especially like, why me and this and that and of course I felt that way. I'm like, damn, I had the job that I wanted. I was right there. I got the job. You second time trying and this shit happens to me. So I was like, you know what? There's nothing I can do. Luckily I have a job to go back. Let me heal up a little bit more and you know, don't get me wrong, I still feel it in my back, you know, days like today where it's very busy at work and just lifting and you know, and not to sound like a little bitch or anything, but it just

We we we take our health for granted and we were talking about that a little bit earlier, right before the podcast. Yeah. You know, we we were talking about that. We sometimes we take we you know, we we think you're we're young and we're healthy and you know things happen. You know, things happen and but the thing is, you know, we've talked about this too many times is things happen for a reason. Maybe it wasn't the right time. I thought it was the right time, you know, everything lined up the way I thought it was, but

speaker-1 (13:33.996)
I'll get into that.

speaker-0 (13:56.908)
Maybe the universe or God said, This is not the time for you. The time will come. You just gotta be patient, right? And sometimes patience is hard. It's not an easy thing. It's it's a virtue that we have to learn and and understand that we may want something as bad you know, as as bad as we want it, but sometimes

We just it's not our time, you know?

speaker-1 (14:23.402)
I agree with that a lot. I mean, it's one of those things that, you not doesn't directly pertain to this, but it's like don't meet your heroes kinda. Right, right. 'Cause sometimes we think to ourselves we want something when we really do and then when we actually attain it then we realise it's not as big as we thought it was gonna be and then we get in the cycle again of trying to get the next big thing. Yeah. 'Cause part of it I think is human nature is w we look for the most exciting thing, the next big goal, the next leap.

You know, and then you realize, this wasn't as big of a jump as I thought it was. Now I'm gonna go for something bigger. And sometimes it's just better to take the world in little chunks. Buy it a little bit at a time. Go at a a little bit at a time and then that's when it makes it so that the the experience itself is more interesting. Yeah. You know, for me, like I was man, if you in my early twenties I was impatient about everything. I wanted to do everything. I was like

Am I useless? Am I dead weight? What what's going on with me? I mean, that was really always on my mind. Seeing people, whether they'd be younger than me, older than me, they were doing things that I was like, if they can do it, I can do it too. But maybe it isn't my time right now. And honestly, looking back, it was for the better, you know? Let's say the milestone of driving. If I was driving back when I was in my early twenties, gosh, I probably would have crashed one too many cars.

Mainly because I was careless, mainly because my mind wasn't in the right mental space and you know, things just work out the way they do, you know, in the same sense that this insurance job. Maybe it wouldn't have been a good fit if I did that, you know, when I was in that time period 'cause I wouldn't have shown up on time. I wouldn't have committed. I would have thought, Well, that's just another opportunity. Yeah. But instead now I get to take it more seriously because I understand what it took to get there.

And I think that once one understands the sacrifices one had to make, the leaps and the things that we had to do and the choices that got us there, now we're ready for those decisions. Not to say that you weren't ready to be a firefighter, I think you absolutely were. You know, you aced the the mental part, the physical part, everything. It's just something happened. And sometimes things happen and it's up to us to make the most of the situation, no matter what. Like

speaker-1 (16:39.18)
You know, the most random thing happened to me the other day where I was eating a chimichonga and half my tooth falls out. Yeah. And of course, I was like, Damn, I was just eating a chimichonga and now I'm afraid I'm gonna have to lose my tooth. I could get mad about it, I could get frustrated, but no, I just said, you know what? I haven't been to the dentist to eight years which is a little embarrassing to admit, but I haven't been to the dentist. Yeah, yeah. And

I've decided to make that appointment. And part of me didn't want to make that appointment. Part of me was like, you know what? It is what it is. I'll just suck it up. Yeah. But then I'm like, What if it gets worse? I make that appointment, I go there, he tells me, No cavities, you clearly have been doing your part and I said, Well, that's good to hear. I haven't been in a dentist in eight years. He's like, Really? I was like, Yeah. I I'll be honest. Not that I'm scared of doctors, but I've always been a little apprehensive.

And when the whole c thing for the crown had to happen, they had a put some shots in my mouth, you know, with with needles and I'm like my God, man. But you just learn just, you know what, I'm not gonna stare at it, I'm just gonna look up and let them do their thing. And before I knew it it was over. Yeah. In the same way that, you know, there's there's just things that happen in our life for reasons that we may not know but then end up making sense.

speaker-0 (17:37.582)
I was used to that as a kid.

speaker-1 (17:58.418)
And I've learned to just make sense of things as I go along in life and it's been a lot better for me. Like with being an agency owner, believe me, I I'd love nothing more than that. but I'd know right now as it is, I don't think I have all the cards right away. I wouldn't there's things I don't know yet. There's experiences I haven't had yet that I have to have that when the time comes, then I can deliver. 'Cause a lot of us aspire for things.

way before we're actually ready for them. And that's good, ambition's good. But you also have to recognize one's limits and what one can do. And once you do that you work on those things gradually over time. And even when you get the role, sometimes you're not ready. Yeah. But you just have to take it for what it is. I g I the I mean not to go on and on I apologize.

speaker-0 (18:49.246)
Please do.

speaker-1 (18:50.338)
But with let's say when I got this role as a sales manager back in last July, you know, I got the f my f a phone call from my boss and I was kinda shocked because the sales manager at the time, you know, I thought he was gonna stick with it. He was he's very good, he's very smart, very computer savvy, you know, just a a guy that I thought he's already been with this agency for six years. What what's another few years he's gonna be here? But then suddenly he quit. Suddenly he's gone.

And now I get called up into a position that, yes, in the back of my mind I wanted, because I felt that I could do more good in that s that role. But also a part of me knew that I wasn't quite ready. But then you realize you're never gonna be quite ready for really anything. You can read up on books, do all your research, but the experiences that you have in that seat is what makes you ready. The decisions that you make make you ready.

And that's what really reflects to people, you know, whether they made the right decision in putting you in those positions. And I think that I I would hope to say that in the year that I've been in this role, that I have delivered on a lot of what I said I was gonna do. Not because it makes me feel better, but because it's better for everyone. And that's what I intend to do. What's that's been my mission since I was a kid is to help people do better for the community.

I know I've talked a lot about that on the podcast before and that's always gonna still be what I'm after. Because I care about people. I care about the well being of not only the people I work with, but everyone. The people I talk to about insurance, the people I educate, 'cause I want them to to be better in in the normal way, be educated. That way they don't get taken advantage of in the future. Because unfortunately we not to be cynical, but in the world we live in, some people

may not have the best interests, but it's up to us to make that difference. Up to us to put that effort in where others may not. And that way others pe people can reciprocate that and do that to others. And the message spreads from there. That's why I I'm always delighted to be on 'cause we get to do that.

speaker-0 (21:06.348)
Yeah. No, you're you're you're absolutely right. And you know, w obviously we've talked about what goes on in your job and it's not easy. I mean, like the same thing, you know, with my job too, you know, I've told you the the things that I have to go through and

You know, we've talked about this a lot where we work we're we're at work more often than not. You know, it's not just the eight hours that you're there. You know, you gotta take into account the getting ready for work, driving to work, going to work, being at work, you know. So we're there a lot. So it's a perfect place to try to make a difference, right? Because when you're home you wanna relax or you have

the other things that you have to deal with, you know, at work or I'm sorry, about life, you know, laundry, whatever it might be. So that's why at work kind the same thing. You know, I try to try to make a difference at work. Just because I get to I'm I'm when I'm there, I'm interacting with the multiple people. You know? And what better place to do it, right? You know, and it just it makes

Everything better. Makes my day better. It makes hopefully it makes the other person's day better. But, you know, we we also we've also said where yeah, some people don't have the best interest in mind, you know, and it's a sad thing because it's it's the reality that we live in, right? We can sit here and say, just because this little small spot in our world is safe, controlled, everything is good, doesn't mean out there

You know, just the other day there was a shooting here. There was people just minding their business and next thing you know, they they got shot. Right? So

speaker-0 (23:00.222)
Not that we should be fearful of what goes on there because we're never gonna know. We're never gonna know if our last day on earth is driving to work and God forbid an accident happens, right? That's not we're never gonna know that, right? So there's only so much preparing you can do. And that goes with people too, you know. Sometimes people aren't gonna have the best interest in mind. And, you know, there's different approaches to that where

You can

in terms h how how do I describe it where it's like w the way I look at it is it is what it is, situations like that. You know, if I make a friend, that friend does something that may not be the best, right? I can sit here and wallow about it and but, you know, that's just life. Luckily I have a good group of friends. I got you, you know, I have my friends in New Jersey as well too. I have a wonderful family. And I have to realize that, you know, some people

They're on their own journey. Right? Maybe that was a lesson for them. Hey, maybe not to do this again or whatever it is, right? But people are so beautiful at the end of the day. You know, I I can't see, you know, we we've been fucked over in life so many times. Does that is that gonna dictate the next friend? You know, like a good example. Like I've been in a lot of relationships, right? Like I broke up with my ex girlfriend when was that, Mario? In April, yeah. So

It it it ended perfectly and the best way that you can want it to end. You know, it is what it is, it sucks, but that doesn't mean that the next relationship I'm gonna have, I'm gonna be worried and are we gonna break up this and that, blah blah blah, whatever it is, you know. No, because at the end of the day that's something new. The the challenges and the happiness and all that comes with the relationship will be there.

speaker-0 (25:04.386)
And that's something to worry about when that comes. You know, the issues that come, those will be for whenever that is. You know, so it's nice having friends, it's nice, you know, being around people.

And not to say that I'm on my guard all the time, but sometimes you do. Sometimes you do have to be on your guard just because there's a lot of darkness in the world. You know, and I feel like you and I now can are in a point in our life where we can pick those things up. You can feel the energy. You can feel the the the the shift of tones. We can you know, you some people don't peop some people can't see that, you know, but luckily

we now have experienced so much where with people where

If those little f red flags start to approach and it's like, okay, now I got a little bit may yeah, sure, maybe give someone grace, but also be careful, right? Because yes, we are living in in some pretty dark times. But it's also up to us, like the podcast, the name of the podcast is to be that that shining light, to try to motivate people, to try to make people it's like, Hey, yes, even though there's darkness out there, you're that light for a reason. You know? When there's a dark room

Even that little small candle makes a big difference. You can see, you can move around, you can feel things. You're not going into something just blind, you know, and I think it's up to us as people, you know? But you know, like that light, you know, it's it's it's it starts dim, but then it starts to grow and grow and grow. And that's a reflection on us, you know, the things that we have to work on personally. You know, if you're going through things and and

speaker-0 (26:53.442)
you know, depression, whatever it might be, that light might not be shining as much, but then you also have a chance to to make that that light shine a little bit brighter. It takes work, you know, like I was talking to a coworker of mine, you know, who's going through some things as well too. There's help. But you you can't expect to be okay by the next day, you know, to heal the brain, to heal the heart. There's

Processes, you know, like it's when you break your toe, your toe isn't going to be fixed in a month or a week or whatever it is. You know, it takes time for for things to heal, and that's the same thing with the brain and the heart. It takes time for those things to heal. But when you start noticing, once those things start to to heal, you start to become a better human being. You start becoming more empathetic, you start being more kind. And then guess what? You're at a point in your life where.

Hey, I recognize that guy's going through something or that person's going through something. Hey, let me let me share my experiences with you. This is what I went through. You can go through, you can get help too. And to be there for people, right? Because we have to be there for people. You know, everybody's going through their things, right? I'm going through my things. You're going through the things. Mm Mick is going through his things, you know? we have to be there for for each other, you know, but we have to make sure that we're okay first before we go into those

you know, before we go out into the world. You know, it's like like me, I want to be a paramedic, right? I can't go save someone's life right now. You know, as much as I want to. There's studying, there's things that I have to go and experience before I can be able to finally be able to to save somebody's life. You know, if I go do it right now, I may be more I be I may be doing more harm than good, you know, and unfortunately I don't want to do that, you know. So there's there's things that we have to

process. There's things that we have to do in our lives before we go and do that to other people, you know, help other people essentially.

speaker-1 (28:59.756)
Definitely it's important to recognize kind of our limits of what we can do at a time and then just building up for those things. What I love also that you mentioned a little earlier was in regards to relationships with new people. A lot of people don't have that view. You know, a lot of people when they get into a new relationship, they carry what what I consider baggage. You know, where they can think, well this person did this to me, I'm sure this person might do this to me.

speaker-0 (29:18.584)
Yes.

speaker-1 (29:25.57)
And I love how you just said, No, it's blank slate because it's a different person, different beliefs, different everything. And that is absolutely one hundred percent correct. That's life. Every person is a unique human being with their own unique personality, their unique set of beliefs, and that's what makes the world wonderful. I'm sure we've said this on the podcast before, but the diversity of the world is what makes this world as colorful as it is.

I love that I can talk to somebody and they have some different perspective on something than talking and everybody being in unanimous agreement. I think that world would be pretty, you know good in some ways but not good in others because it limits creativity. And it's good that we can recognize that. Where a lot of people may not. And I kind of encourage others to always treat whether it not only just relationships, but people that you come into contact with your lives.

Treat them with that same grace because everybody is different. I George and I had a conversation the other day where we kinda talked about how we approach friendships. You know, the best analogy that I can kind of use for this is kind of imagine two hikers going up to a river and you see this path of rocks. I'd say George is more of the one who would just go across.

I would be more the one that kind of studies the water and observes the current and tries to make sense of what I'm about to walk under out of the fear that maybe I step on the wrong rock and I fall. I think there's nothing inherently wrong with either approach and it's beautiful that there's those differences because it allows us to have unique experiences. And what's better about unique experiences that we both can share something different that allows us both to grow equally.

In the same way that other people can do those same things amongst themselves. And I think that that's what we need to be doing more of in society is embracing those different experiences and different approaches because all of them I don't think are co are incorrect. They're all correct in their own way. And that's what I love about it. That's what I love about it. I mean

speaker-1 (31:33.782)
I've been opening up more to conversations to different people, hearing their perspectives. Like let's say vinyl. I go to record stores and they talk about their favorite albums or favorite mus you know, whatever they're into. And I'm like, wow, I'm I I can see why you're passionate about that. May I may not be the most passionate about that, but I can see why you are. I'm glad that it makes you happy. I'm glad it puts a smile on your face. Because that's what it's about. Whatever makes you happy should be something that you enjoy. And

Yeah. I mean, differences, all of it it's what makes us beautiful.

speaker-0 (32:09.744)
of course. I think you nail that on the spot, you know, and it's cool when like the way I think, right? The way you think. It's cool 'cause we can combine those. And we do that a lot of the times too, you know, and it's it's cool to like with the cooking, you know, I remember we were cooking one day, we were cooking the buffalo chicken and you know the way you added some things, the way I added some things and it came out and it came out very good.

You know, and that's what we need. That's what we need. And you know what's kinda cool is is the World Cup kinda showed us that, where you had a lot of these people coming from different countries over here. And you start realizing that

We're all kind of the same, you know, even though you're might you might be from a different part of the world

Yeah, there's little differences here and there, but you start realizing we're we're human beings first. And that's one of the things I always say at work. Before you're a manager, before you're a meat wrapper, before you're a meat cutter, before you're a bakery clerk, whatever, you're a human being first. And sometimes we forget that. Sometimes we get so into our roles and I'm a doctor, or I'm an engineer, or I'm a a a policeman, or I'm a firefighter, or whatever it might be.

But at the end of the day you're a human being first. You know, and I think that's changed my view of life a lot. Where you know, I sometimes get in trouble at work for for talking a lot. And it's not just because I wanna talk, it's I enjoy conversations, you know, the person that I'm talking to, they have something to contribute to this world and they're telling me about their day or whatever it may might be or whatever

speaker-0 (34:02.262)
Silly joke they're saying, whatever it is, you know. But that's still something to contribute, you know, and it's nice hearing those things. Especially, you know, like I'm helping somebody out, they might meet they might need some meat. And it's not just meat for them, it's for a restaurant. And then you go and try that restaurant. Like I remember for my birthday last year, yeah, it was last year. I helped this lady out and I asked her where her restaurant was.

And my grandparents came, was it? Yeah, it was last year. And I was like, I'll I'll go. It's you know, it's my birthday. And I went, we ate, the food was good, and she made me a little birthday cake free of charge. And I was like, This is cool, dude. Like, you know what I mean? Like it it just and obviously it's not that I was trying to get something out of her, but it's you know, it it was cool that interaction that we had, you know. She didn't have to make me that, but she did.

You know, and it was special 'cause my grandparents were there and it it was just a very beautiful experience, you know, and imagine if more people did that, right? Obviously it would be a better world, but sometimes you know, like I said, we get too involved with with our the things going on in our life and we we're too wrapped around those specific things and sometimes we have to remind ourselves we're human beings. You know, the person that I'm talking to, I shouldn't be rude to them.

But then also, you there there's different things. Sometimes you have to match the energy. You know, if someone's being rude to you, well, why is this person being rude to me? Are they having a bad day or they're not getting what they wanted? Well whatever it might be, you know, it's yes, treating people with kindness, but also, you know, there there's a certain level of respect that we have to have for each other. You know, and that goes back to being a human being, you know. If if you're mad, okay, well, what can we do to fix this? You know, with with any problem, you know.

What can we do to fix this? If there's no way of fixing it, then why are you mad? Right? Maybe you're mad for a different reason that you're taking that on me. You know, it might be that. You know, there's different little things, you know, and obviously each person we have to navigate different things, right? But it's you know, it's it's a beautiful experience, you know, and we're as much as yes, we should enjoy life, you know, there's times to enjoy life.

speaker-0 (36:26.264)
There's also times to treat life with respect. There's also times to treat life seriously, you know. It it like we were talking about our our our health, you know, if I keep injuring my back, guess what? I'm not gonna feel it right now. Which I do. But imagine when I'm fifty, what can happen then? You know?

And, you know, it's there's a time and place for everything. You know, for absolutely everything. You know, with my boss, you know, I understand he gets stressed out sometimes and this and that, but you know, what's the reason be behind that stress? You know? Is it work related? Is it not? What's going on in your life? You know, like I was telling one of the managers, I was like, I don't like working with people

that bring a bad energy or are stressed out or are angry, you know. Some people are like that. I understand that. You know, but I I I I don't I don't enjoy it, you know, because everywhere I go I wanna enjoy that experience, right? At work, it sucks. It's busy, you know, it's not fun. But we make it enjoyable, you know, and same thing here.

You know, not saying that it sucks here, but we make it enjoyable here. You know, like a couple weeks ago, we're watching the World Cup, we're enjoying it, you know? When we're cooking, whatever it might be, we enjoy it, you know, because it's better to make a place peaceful than to have a place that's just there's a bunch of havoc, you know, and some sometimes we get used to that. You know, I've been there where

There's so many sh shit going on at the house. So many problems that

speaker-0 (38:20.746)
It makes life difficult. You know what I mean? And and why have that? You know what I mean? And so that's why I I try I try to be peaceful everywhere I go. You know, like when I go on drive, same thing. I don't speed. 'Cause why? I might hit somebody. Something might happen and it can be my fault. So I'm gonna take my time where I go. You know, I don't go as early as work as you do, but I go with enough time. You know, and then I go and I sit down and I enjoy myself for a couple of minutes.

think, what's this day gonna look like? Kinda analyze a little bit of what's gonna go on in work. I go clock in and I do my thing. You know, when I'm at the gym, same thing. Is it busy? Is it not busy? What can I do? What can I not do? And then I go through my workout. You know and

That's what I try to do. You know, just just try to be at peace as many places as I can go.

speaker-1 (39:17.526)
That's important thing. I mean it allows life to just flow a lot better, to to be at peace with it. That's one thing that I've been doing a lot of, you know, in life as a whole, just like you. Is because that's the way to be. You know, there is a time to stress. There are time times to take things seriously and and sure they do call for it. There's times I'm inevitably gonna be stressed because things happen that are gonna be on the back of my mind. And as much as one could say, well

Leaving it at the door. You know, some things may not be able to as easily because we're human and we have those emotions. But I think no matter where we go, we just have to put our best foot forward, regardless of the circumstances, because it's not the fault of other people that things happen to us. Just as much as it's the other way around. And that's kinda how I live life. I never think to myself, it's their fault I feel this way. No.

I feel this way because I feel this way, but I'm not gonna make it their problem. I'm not gonna make them carry my problem just because I have a problem. In the same way that I'm sure they wouldn't wanna do that. But I do know a lot of people, you know, in previous work experiences that I've had that do have a bad habit of making their problem other people's problems. But that's a different category, you know. It's one of the type of people that you can kinda recognize. You know, who will talk about

speaker-0 (40:41.794)
Yes.

speaker-1 (40:44.856)
their issues, make it other people's issues and drama and all that. But it's up to us to just say, you know what, I'm not gonna involve myself in that. I'm not gonna give that the time of day that this person would hope that I would, because I self respect myself enough to keep my peace. And that that goes with life in general. You know, not just work, but anywhere. You know, if there's if you're at peace and someone else isn't and they want to make

you not have that because they see that peace and they're like, I c I just want to you know, whatever. Just don't let it affect you. Don't feed into it, go about it normally. Keep at a distance. That's just the things that you learn with time. You learn with experiences. And you know, it just gets better from there when you live that way. But live peaceful.

speaker-0 (41:38.122)
Sorry, I'm just looking at the mic. No, but you're right. You're right. And you start realizing there's a lot of people like that. You know, 'cause drama is nice. Talking shit is nice. Well, I don't want to say it's nice, but I feel like there's a certain type of dopamine to that. You know what I mean? I've been doing a little research because obviously I have ADHD, right? So I have to

This is something I'm gonna have for the rest of my life, whether I like it or not. So I started re because I started watching these videos and I started seeing shit, people had the same thing that I had.

speaker-0 (42:21.088)
So I started doing more research and more research and more research. You know, just because yeah, you know, i i it those things started to affect me a lot. You know, the when people talking shit, this and that and

It it it sucks being around those people. Like I remember when I used to work in Colorado, there was a guy that I worked with and not to mention his name, but from four in the morning to twelve in the afternoon he would just complain. And it got to the point where I was like, I can't do this, man. I cannot work with someone like this. And when I worked at the edible place, it's just constant talking shit about this person, that person. I was like, my god, dude, this is f

Fucking draining.

And sometimes we have to remove ourselves from those environments. Just because as much as we want to be that light, sometimes people diminish that light from us. And we don't recognize it. We don't see it. But the next thing you know, you start talking shit and then you start to spread drama. And then you start being that person. Especially if there's a lot of people, you know, people doing the same thing.

So sometimes, yeah, we have to remove ourselves from those environments because if we don't, we start we're naturally gonna go towards that direction, you know. as much as you wanna say, Hey, you know, yeah, you can say, Hey, I don't I don't wanna listen to these things. But guess what? They're gonna take it the wrong way. That's usually what happens, especially with people like that. They're gonna take it the wrong way. Then they're gonna get mad and then the situation becomes worse. You know, because then they're like, well, now something's wrong with me.

speaker-0 (44:08.022)
You know, and it takes a lot sometimes to recognize that we have issues. Right? Like we went on a walk one time and not to mention what we were talking about, but we were going through similar things. You know, but it's nice that we can do that. You and I we can sit or walk or have a conversation and say, Hey, this is what I'm struggling with. These are the things that I'm I'm going through.

How can I help you? Or sometimes we just need to let those things out. You know, that's what that one nice thing about this podcast, because we talk about the issues going on in our life. You know, because yeah, other people are going through the same thing. Maybe someone listening right now lost their dream job like I did. And maybe they're taking it, you know, it's rough for them. I understand. I've been there. I get it. You know? So

Yes, on it's it's

We can how would I say this?

Sometimes y like you were saying, stress is gonna come. But how do we deal with that stress? The way I deal with stress might be different than you, but we have to find a different a healthy way to deal with our stress.

speaker-0 (45:29.942)
And sometimes we don't. We don't deal with those things in a healthy way. But now we can sit here and recognize okay, what I'm doing might hurt me, might hurt other people, maybe I drink. Maybe when I drink too much I get a little aggressive. That's not gonna be good for anybody. Or maybe I go into drugs, maybe I into pornography, maybe I go into you know, some other bad habits, right?

Those things in the short term might work, but in the long term they're gonna hurt you. So, you know, going into okay, what's causing me stress, how can I deal with this in a healthy way, sometimes we don't know how to deal with that, you know, like I was telling my coworker.

When I was going through my panic attacks and all of that, I didn't know what to do. But what I found out was I needed professional help and sometimes that's what we need. We need somebody there that's a professional to help us nav navigate through life.

And that's that's you know, but not everybody has that opportunity, you know.

speaker-1 (46:39.0)
What I think is beautiful is being able to recognize that. A lot of times we don't allow ourselves to because we think, No, I can solve my problem. It it's fixable. It's manageable. You know. And to get into that, you know, I especially in my early twenties, I dealt with just a stream of depression, of feeling purposeless, feeling that what am I what's the point of living? Why am I living? And so my outlet to kind of

Be happy was to drink. Of their interest or my interest. But we were happy. We were enjoying ourselves. We were wasting away. Only because that was the only satisfaction that I had all day. The rest of the day I was to myself, lonely, depressed, spiraling, out of control, mad. But

speaker-0 (47:11.17)
What's

speaker-1 (47:34.86)
I thought to myself, what better outlet than to go out again, go to the bars, hit every place, drink until I couldn't make sense of anything, walk around with beers in my backpack, have no money left to eat anything for the next two, three days because beer is more important. And I realized I'm becoming w my environment. I'm becoming what I'm surrounding myself with. The people I surround myself with, like it or not, are very indicative of the kind of person I'm becoming.

And a lot of times we tell ourselves, No, yeah, this person has problems, but I'm not them and then you have another friend that's very similar to that other friend, and so on and so forth. You get this friend group. Little by little you start picking up a lot of their habits and before you know it you become like them because you just wanna meet them where they are. You wanna fit in. And that's kind of where I found myself. Always wanting to fit in and not quite fitting in because I was this

introvert of sorts. And then I realized I don't have to always fit in. I just have to be me and when I walk in a room, I better come in the way I am and leave the way I am, regardless of what room I'm in. And that's made me a lot happier because I'm sure of who I am and I know what I do and I'm not gonna allow bad choices to draw me in or draw me out. But that wasn't quite the way that I functioned back then. Back then I functioned out of

I need to fit in, I need to be part of the group because part of the group is safe. Being myself doesn't get me anywhere. Being myself gets me freaking depressed. And before I know it, back into pornography. Back into whatever vice I was dealing with. Because that's easier. But then when you face yourself and you realize that being yourself makes you feel better because then you're sure of who you are and you gain that self confidence, then life just gets much better.

Your choices get better, your decisions get better, your prospects get better, your ability to move up in the world gets better. Because now you you are you. You're not a product of what other people want you to be. You're a product of what you want to be. And that's the most important lesson is keep your own integrity, keep your sense of self, be yourself. And don't let other people try to mold you into what they think you need to be. Because oftentimes they don't know you.

speaker-0 (50:03.746)
That's funny that you say that just because

speaker-0 (50:14.52)
We we basically kind of I I never really drank that much, I would say. I mean I wasn't much of a drinker, but it the way I can definitely relate was s it's I felt it more when I was younger. I didn't really feel like I fit in a lot of places. I definitely felt it when I was going to church when I was younger. And I wanted to be a part of church. I wanted to

be this person and I just never fit in. Never fit in and I like I would try so hard too and I'd never fit in.

And for a long time I put this fake mask on my face, definitely early twenties.

And then you you nailed it on the spot where

You have to be yourself.

speaker-0 (51:14.882)
But we we have this fake image of who we are. I was reading this book called The Course of Love and it talks about the little S self and then the capital L S self. Or sorry, capital self S, yeah. And the way it describes it is the little self is this fake representation of who you think you are as a person.

And it's not. That's not the person who you are. That's this person that you've created in your mind, and you think this is who you are. And the big self is who you truly are as a person. And that person is a person of love. Right? And I know it sounds a little corny and whatnot, but it's true. We navigate life a lot of the times thinking, this is who I am. But it's not.

And sometimes we have to do that self reflection.

And sometimes people don't do that, you know. Sometimes people go their whole entire lives thinking this is who we are. You know, I had a really good friend who is a therapist and he was telling me about this person who

was about ninety years old.

speaker-0 (52:43.278)
And they were a judge. And this person took their job very seriously. And they worked in the court system for I don't even know, probably fifty years, for I don't I'm I don't know, for a long time. And this person came to them just because they were scared of death, because they retired and they were scared to die because they did this thing their whole entire life.

They skipped birthdays, they skipped family events, they skipped a bunch of important things that happened in someone's life. And now a lot of their friends and family don't talk to that person because they took work over them.

And now this person's gonna die. And they're scared because they don't know what's gonna happen. They don't know they've been doing this for such a long time that they don't know anything else. And that's a scary place to be in, you know, to of course we're not gonna have the answers. We're we don't know what's what's gonna happen when we die, you know. I'm sure if we knew, who knows what would happen, right? But

When you come to realize who you truly are as a person, the things you can provide to this world, the things that you can do to make this world a better place.

speaker-0 (54:06.156)
I think we're trying to get there. We're all trying to get there. We all some of us get there sooner than later. Some of us it takes a lot longer. Like I remember my friend Ty, who I met in Colorado, he was going through he he drank a lot. Sometimes he would call me drunk and tell me stories about shit that happened in Iraq and I would listen. Just because obviously he didn't have a lot of people to talk to. You know, a lot of it was just drunken talk, but

I remember when he called me one day and

And I'm not gonna say what we talked about, just 'cause that's more personal, but we talked and he was at the lowest point of his life. And then called me about a year, you know, we kept in contact here and there and you know, he he's gotten help and is living a healthier life. Now when he calls me, it's a complete difference. And every once in a while we'll mention it. We're like, Do you remember when you call me that one day? And then look at where you're at now.

You're married, you have a car, you have a good job, you live in a beautiful place. He lives somewhere near Yellowstone.

speaker-0 (55:22.254)
It took and I told him, you sometimes it takes us little bit longer to realize who we are as a person. The things that we can offer. That beautiful part deep inside you that sometimes we lock up just because we're scared of sharing it with other people. And yeah, it can be scary sharing those things. I'm at a point now where I am who I am. And I'm not scared to show it to other people. You know, sometimes I might guard it a little bit depending on who the person is. But this is who I am.

You know, I have a lot to offer just as you have a lot to offer, just as the person listening to this has a lot to offer. We all have something to offer to ourselves and to the world out there, you know. But it's a choice that we make. Do we offer these things? Do we not offer these things? We can reserve everything, but it's not gonna go anywhere. It's gonna bring more pain than anything. But then when you can offer those things out into the world

Yeah, it might not be for riches or for something grand. But you'd be surprised it might make a difference in someone's life, right? Like the people listening. There's people listening. You know, we haven't made an episode in over a year. You know. Who knows what they're going through? Hopefully this podcast has helped them. Maybe it hasn't. Maybe it has. You know, that's for that person to decide. You know. but yeah.

Yeah, no, it's it's the sooner you realize that, you know, I'm not gonna say it's gonna make your life easier, but i it you start to come to terms with a lot of things, right? Like I've I've talked a lot about my ADHD, right? I'm not someone to say,

I'm not gonna let the world reva revolve around what I have. You know, it's something I'm gonna have. Yes, I can make some accommodations for it, but why would I do that? You know, yes, I'm special in my own way, but the other person is special in their own way too, you know. If they don't need that combination and I can do something, then I'll do it, you know.

speaker-0 (57:36.142)
So, you know, i yeah.

speaker-1 (57:38.732)
No, I love that. That that's very true. That's kind of the way I take life too, is if someone else can do it, I can do it too. And that's helped me a lot, you know. This goes back to and I'm sure this is the story that many people may share, is you know, my both my parents who immigrated from Mexico, you know, they came with not knowing what was in front of them. Mm-hmm. Only knowing that they wanted to give a better opportunity to their children. And

To me that is something so grand. You know, something that is so special because it was very selfless. Very they didn't have to do that. They could have said, you know what, we have it okay over here. We can just stay here. They can grow up here, whatever happens, happens. But no. They made that decision and allowed me an opportunity to live a better life regardless of the conditions that I was born with.

speaker-0 (58:14.264)
Yeah, that is yeah.

speaker-1 (58:34.722)
You know, I I've told George about how hard of a childhood that I had and how much stress I put on my parents. Especially because my health was just not there. Whether it had been a collapsed lung, couldn't walk, whatever variation of the issue was, we were practically at the hospital all the time. And yet my mom never abandoned me on that, always stuck with me, always believed in me.

The therapists, the physical therapists, all the people that were there every step of the way believed that Mario could be someone one day. And I give thanks to that because I sure as couldn't didn't think that of myself. I was always like, Man, why am I still going about my life, given how challenging it is.

But then you realize people can sometimes see what you can't see in yourself. And they push you in directions that allow you to then be a better version of yourself. Make those decisions that you otherwise thought you weren't capable of being. And before I knew it, you know, I graduated high school. I went to U of A and I did my thing and then I went through a lot of jobs. Some good, some bad, but

All in all I can say that I'm proud of what I've done and I'm proud of what I'm gonna continue to do. Because it doesn't stop here. It's gonna only get better. And what is to say with that is while there are people who may not be the best to be around, there's also people who do build you up and people who are there for you and do care about you and believe in you in the hardest of times, just like you did for your friend and look where he is now.

And that's what we also have to remind ourselves, is that it's not all gloomy. There's people that are lighthouses in our lives. And help us see the things that we can't see because we're so blinded by what we think we are. But like you said, there's a bigger person in there, a bigger self that when it comes out, then you're able to be a lighthouse for someone else. I feel like that's a good place for me to leave it tonight.

speaker-0 (01:00:50.338)
I think so too, man. I think so too. I love that. I love hearing that, man. thank you for always, Mario. Thank you for everything. You know, it's it's always a pleasure. It always is. You know, it's it's a nice start to do this again. It's a nice I'm I'm happy. I'm happy to to start doing this again, you know, just because we need it, people need it, you know, and

I know I've said this before. We're we're we're gonna do some great things with this. You know, I was telling you about an individual that we'll have on a little bit later. Who knows exactly when that'll be, but I know it's gonna come. And I'm looking forward to to more episodes in the future, man. It was a perfect time, you know, to Yeah, we had a nice little break, but it's time. It's time to

Getting chills saying it too, man, just because we we do have to be there for people. And sometimes it's it's surprising just what a voice, a conversation, a presence can do to somebody else. You know, I remember one time I was having a really bad day in Colorado Springs, and it's horrible, horrible day, man. And I remember this lady came up, she bought some meat, she didn't say nothing, she just smiled. And I I shit you not, dude. The weight just felt like it.

it like this weight lifted off my shoulders. Like I know a lot of people talk about experiences like that. I felt that. I literally felt just this this lump

I don't know what it was just holding me back and it just like a mist. You know, it was very slow. It didn't happen all it happened within like thirty seconds and it just this weight completely and I was felt I filled with this warmth. And I was like, this person probably didn't even know what they did. And I was happy. You know, just as I'm happy right now, you know. but yeah, I'm excited.

speaker-0 (01:03:02.542)
I'm excited to to start doing this again and we'll see where the future takes us, my friend.

speaker-1 (01:03:08.686)
Wonderful. Always a privilege, George. Thank you so much and have a great one.

speaker-0 (01:03:12.61)
You two.