Sterling Spencer: Fan of the Universe

Episode Transcript
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SPEAKER_05 (00:00):
He used to stuff like socks in his wetsuit to

(00:03):
make his package look bigger.
Dude, I'm I'm telling you, heput something there, dude.
Well it worked.
Did he rattle you?

SPEAKER_02 (00:14):
I was like, You couldn't look away.
You couldn't look away.

SPEAKER_01 (00:21):
Welcome to Water People, a podcast about the
aquatic experiences that shapewho we become back on land.
I'm your host, Lauren Hill,joined by my partner Dave
Rastovich.
Here we get to talk story withsome of the most interesting and
adept water folk on the planet.
We acknowledge the BunjalongNation, the traditional
custodians of the land andwaters where we work and play,

(00:46):
who have cared for this seacountry for tens of thousands of
years.
Respect and gratitude to allFirst Nations people, including
elders, past, present, andemerging.
This season is supported byPatagonia, whose purpose-driven
mission is to use business tosave our home planet.

(01:06):
Today we're in conversation withSterling Spencer.
He's a pro surfer and mediamaker from Florida's Gulf Coast.
Following his lineage, Sterlingwas signed to surf sponsorship
by age eight and had asuccessful amateur career before
chasing the pro tour.
Sterling was an early internetadopter who found his stride not
in competitive surfing, but inmaking good fun of a largely

(01:28):
earnest surf industry andculture.
He's known for blendinghigh-performance surfing with
comedic skits in films like Goldand Surf Madness, and he's the
host of Pinch My Salt, a mash-upsurf and comedy podcast, quote,
where surf culture gets roasted,worshipped, and flipped upside
down.
Sterling was the subject of the2024 film Are You Serious?

(01:49):
that traces his diagnosis andrecovery from traumatic brain
injury, a health threat that'sbeen taken more seriously in the
last decade or so.
Pro surfers like Owen Wright,Alby Lair, Courtney Connolog,
and Coas Smith, amongst others,have all sustained traumatic
brain injuries.
Sterling's concussion was theresult of a fin to the head, but
we now know that violentwipeouts themselves can cause

(02:11):
concussion and traumatic braininjury.
We caught up with Sterling abouthis ongoing recovery, the
comedic brain, crisis ascreative fuel, making surfing
his own again, and the impact ofglimpsing mystical creatures.
We always begin with the samequestion, and that is about a
time or experience after whichyou were never the same.

(02:34):
Can you share a story like thatwith us?

SPEAKER_05 (02:36):
In my like early 30s, after Bilbong went under,
and everything in the surfingindustry kind of paused.
I kind of didn't know what tolike do with myself.
I got really into meditation.
I was doing Wim Hof breathing,and I was in the woods all day,
like breathing and meditating,and I thought I like became

(02:59):
enlightened.
And I was like really soulsearching.
And then not too long afterthat, I got into a really bad
accident.
I got a really bad brain injury.
And I re I'll never forget,like, when I had the brain
injury, my whole world changed.
Going through intense sufferingkind of woke me up to like, oh,

(03:24):
now I'm entering a new chapterin my life where now I'm like
really learning to be a human.
So that was for sure like thebiggest shift in my life.

SPEAKER_01 (03:36):
What felt hard before that brain injury?

SPEAKER_05 (03:40):
What was hard was my entitlement.
That was really the biggestblock in my life.

SPEAKER_01 (03:48):
And what in what ways?
What did you feel entitled to?

SPEAKER_05 (03:51):
Well, my dad was a pro surfer.
That world is the only thing Iever knew.
Like my chores were like, youneed to win East Coast
championships.
You know, like my world was soto be a pro surfer.
Where if I if I wasn't climbingthat rank, it was like, what is
life?

(04:13):
So I I didn't have a really goodgrasp of reality.
I felt like I had such awonderful life, but chasing to
be a great surfer, you'rechasing this perfectionism
that's unattainable to your egoand stuff.
So like it it's like you'renever satisfied.

(04:35):
And then I started to realizingI'm missing out on life.
Because the only reason ofliving is for the experience.
So it's like when you startgetting older, you're like, the
only thing that matters is likebeing with those people or being
present.

SPEAKER_07 (04:53):
Can I ask when you had that moment before the
accident and you know your brainbeing impacted by a freak uh it
was a freak accident, right?

SPEAKER_01 (05:03):
It was like wind caught a short board and it hit
you in the head.

SPEAKER_05 (05:07):
Yeah, it was like a knee-high day, and it was just
really windy, and it just caughtmy board and I didn't know where
it was, and then it just hit mein the back of the head.
My legs stopped working afterthat, and it was just it was a
huge wake-up.

SPEAKER_07 (05:21):
Did anything stick with you from that moment in the
bush where you felt like reallyenlightened?
Did that did that stay with youor was that gone?

SPEAKER_05 (05:34):
Even though that looking back at that now, that
was a super important part of mylife because if I didn't do all
that meditation, I don't think Icould have survived the brain
injury.

SPEAKER_07 (05:47):
Why?
What makes you say that?

SPEAKER_05 (05:49):
Brain injury is another level of it's really
hard to explain.
It's like doing ayahuasca, butit never stops.
Wow.
And it's just you'rehallucinating constantly, and
you're just for me, I wascrippled.
So a lot of people that aren'tcrippled, I think it's almost

(06:11):
maybe even harder because theycan keep walking around and not
know what they're doing.

SPEAKER_00 (06:18):
They look normal from the outside.

SPEAKER_05 (06:19):
Yeah, they look normal for me.
I I couldn't walk, so at leastpeople are like, I couldn't go
and be crazy anywhere.

SPEAKER_01 (06:27):
Can you talk about that, the process of getting a
diagnosis?
Because that I I've known quitea few people now who have
mysterious symptoms and have togo through the hell of
specialists and GPs and tryingto find the right person and
getting a diagnosis.
And what what change did thatmake?

SPEAKER_05 (06:45):
Well, when I hit my head, the the effects didn't
happen overnight.
Like the concussion or the braininjury, it just slowly kept
getting worse, and I didn'tunderstand how to treat a brain
injury.
Because I went and got scans,and normally they can't really
detect brain injuries.

SPEAKER_01 (07:03):
Oh wow.

SPEAKER_05 (07:04):
Unless there's brain bleeding of some sorts.
You know, I was having a hardtime talking.
I was having a hard time formingthoughts in the correct way.
I was having a hard time likewalking around corners.
It was losing comprehension ofeverything.
What I think what took me downis I got COVID.

(07:24):
It was right, it was right whenCOVID was happening, like a few
few months before COVID.
And I already have had a fewweird diseases in my life.

SPEAKER_00 (07:34):
Like what?
That you can talk about?

SPEAKER_05 (07:37):
I got malaria.
I had malaria as a kid.
That was fun.

SPEAKER_00 (07:44):
From where?

SPEAKER_05 (07:45):
What my first trip to Endo.

SPEAKER_01 (07:47):
Oh, it's like my worst nightmare for traveling
with a child.

SPEAKER_05 (07:53):
And then I got Lyme disease.

SPEAKER_01 (07:55):
Oh wow.

SPEAKER_05 (07:57):
There's this girl right now, her name's Becca.
I don't know if if y'all followher.
She's a surfer, but she had abrain injury, and her Lyme
disease came out after two yearswith her brain injury.

SPEAKER_01 (08:09):
Oh wow.

SPEAKER_05 (08:10):
So it's like if you have these diseases that don't
ever really go away, they'lljust resurface when you when
they were dormant.
So I I felt like I had like aconcoction of just when COVID
hit me, it was just like I couldbarely lift my arm.
Just that took me everything Ihad.
So I was just like, I don't knowwhat's wrong with me.

(08:32):
I went to like the hospital andthey're like, oh, he's
depressed.
I'm like, I didn't knowdepressant can like make you
completely crippled.
But when they don't when theydon't know something, they'll
just throw anti depressants atit.
That's usually their go-to.
Wow, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 (08:50):
Yeah.
And so you kept you obviouslykept pushing and and how how did
you get to a diagnosis?

SPEAKER_05 (08:57):
It it was wild.
It everything I learnedthroughout my life of just even
though it was so scary to gothrough.
I think I feel like if you gothrough something really gnarly
and you're able to come out,like you're one of the most
blessed people to walk the earthbecause you you just can't be
the same anymore.
You're lucky.
You're lucky you can like walkaway from like your selfish

(09:20):
life.

SPEAKER_07 (09:21):
That's so interesting.
Yeah.
That just makes me think of thatexperience of how I guess we
were as young kids and teenagersand getting pulled into the
surfing world and splashing thewater and having little tantrums
because we didn't m make acertain turn that you wanted to

(09:42):
make or whatever, you know, oryou you you missed a wave in
front of your heroes and youhave a little internal meltdown.
Yeah, one of those things whereyou you really do need a a slap
in the face to come out of thatkind of headspace, don't you
think?
Like you don't wish it on uponyourself and you don't wish it

(10:03):
really upon others in in aharmful way, but we really do
need that because that kind ofbehaviour is like cool when
you're you know seven to maybe14 years of age and you don't
know better, and you're just akid, you're finding your
parameters, you're finding youredges of how to be a brat and
not be a brat and all of that.
Did you ever have anyonemodelling that behaviour for

(10:25):
you?
Like when you were a kid, I I II'll be curious to know, like,
if you could look up when youwere a little fella and see
someone who was being a man butlike a playful man, not being
like a little boy.
Did you have any role modelslike that with that helped light
the way a little bit?

SPEAKER_05 (10:47):
Well, comedy was always my relief.
You know, like my dad was a verystoic person.
Like he was a 70s pro he's oneof the f first pro surfers.
He won the first pro surfingcontest in America in the early
70s.
So his whole world, he came fromnothing, you know.

(11:09):
So surfing was absolutelyeverything, you know.
It gave him a whole new life,and he was a super Christian, so
everything was just so serious.
Like it was so serious aboutGod, and then so serious about
surfing.
Wow.
I had the best life, but it wasalso like the pressure.

(11:34):
I I don't know if kids had toI'm su I'm sure lots of kids
did, but it it's like I was justkind of the classic, you know,
your dad's a famous star and hehears his pressure and everyone
puts it on you.
As a kid, comedy was always justlike an escape of it.

(11:55):
Because I'm a firm believer, ifyou if you don't find your
passion, if you don't like wantyourself and someone pushes you
to a passion, it's always thistug-of-war.
It'll always be a tug of war inyour life.
Because it's like, are am Idoing it for myself?
And if you if if you can't knowif you're doing it for yourself,

(12:19):
it's really hard to get fullfulfillment.

SPEAKER_01 (12:21):
Was that a bit of a renaissance in your surfing life
after the brain injury then?
Did you did you come back tosurfing with a renewed sense of
like ownership that it wasyours?

SPEAKER_05 (12:33):
What was what was so interesting?
Surfing gave me the braininjury, and surfing healed me
from the brain injury.
It was so hard to get my legsworking again.
That was the hardest thing tofigure out, getting that
connection back moving.
I could kind of like stand andget to the kitchen, and then
have like a yoga ball and get tothe yoga ball, and like and

(12:54):
everyone was like, just be in awheelchair, just stay in your
walker.
And I was just like, and itscared me to uh submit to it
because I felt like if I submitto it, I'm never gonna get out
of it.
So I went to Hawaii after twoyears of like laying in a dark

(13:16):
room.
I went to Hawaii and I rememberI like crawled to the water.
My friend Marshall, he he wouldhelp me paddle out.
I would hold onto his leash, andhe would drag me out to the
lineup we were serving VLAN andstuff.
And when a wave came, it waslike everything turned on.
My nervous system reacted to it,and it was like the the part of

(13:40):
my brain that knew how to surfwas like it was all there, so it
was like a different part of mybrain took over, and I was just
like, I would just stand up andsurf and I could ride it.
And I was I didn't have it muchmuscle, so that was the hard
part.
So when I started surfing, I waslike, oh my god, like this this
is it, this is how I'm gonnaheal myself.

SPEAKER_01 (14:02):
But that reminds me, that reminds me so much of
Pauline Mensor's story.

SPEAKER_07 (14:06):
I was about to say that.

SPEAKER_01 (14:07):
I just uh it basically exactly what you said
on on the North Shore before shewon her first world title.
She was struggling withdebilitating arthritis,
rheumatoid arthritis, couldn'twalk, had a friend basically
help her down to the water.
She couldn't brush her hair, shewas just all locked up, and then

(14:28):
got in the water and she won aworld title.

SPEAKER_05 (14:31):
Like, just that's crazy.

SPEAKER_01 (14:33):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 (14:34):
During that time I went and stayed with Rob
Machado, there was a brainclinic right next to his house,
and they were all just like,this guy's lying.
Because I'd be around the houseand like I couldn't help do
anything.
Like they would cook dinner andI felt bad because I couldn't
like wash a dish, you know, toshow respects.
But then they would take mesurfing and I'm like having a

(14:54):
hell time, and they're like,He's he's fine.
Wow.
And they're like, Are you lying?
So it was it was so it was sucha vulnerable place in my life,
like to just be dependent onpeople, and the people aren't
fully believing me.

(15:16):
And I'm already a trickster, I'malready a comedian, you know,
like I I don't have the bestreputation of being serious.
So it was it was like it was itwas kind of like the boy who
cried wolf a little bit.

SPEAKER_07 (15:30):
That's a challenge.
Can I ask?
Did your dad ever laugh at yourbuffoonery and your jokes?
So you said that when you were akid, that was your response to
that.
Would you do that around him andin response to him?
And did it ever land?
Was he uh was he laughing withyou and like grabbing you like,
oh, that was a good one, son?

SPEAKER_05 (15:50):
No, my mom loved my humor, and if I made her laugh
hard enough, he would startlaughing, and he's like, I'm not
laughing at you, I'm laughing ather.

SPEAKER_00 (16:01):
That's such a Florida man.

SPEAKER_05 (16:03):
That's a Florida man.
I grew up with a guy just likethat.
He once told me, he's like, Idon't like I don't like funny
surfers.
And I was like, what does thatmean?
I'm like, your favorite movie isEndless Summer 2, and it's the
funniest movie ever.

(16:23):
Like it's all about the comedy.
He was just yeah, we were polaropposites.

SPEAKER_07 (16:30):
Wow, what a trip.
I liked hearing the other day wewere listening to a bunch of
things you've made, and you saidthat when you were a kid you
tripped out on the fact thatwhen you would surf in contests,
you were more interested inmaking him happy than you being
happy.
Oh yeah.
Is that something you haveclarity around these days, or

(16:51):
did you know that at the time?

SPEAKER_05 (16:53):
I didn't know at the time.
I didn't figure that out tillafter he passed away and I
started doing like therapy andstuff.
Looking back now, I'm like, allthe like young kids, we were
like our dads treated us likethe roosters that fight each
other, cockfighting.
It's like we're kind of likewe're all live, all of our dads

(17:15):
are living through us and likemaking us hate each other to get
competition out, and it was itwas weird.
I remember I would surf in myheats, and I would be cheering
my friends on and stuff.
And I remember I came to thebeach, my dad's like, you don't
cheer, you don't cheer peopleon, like you want you want to

(17:38):
beat them, you want to like yellat them.
I was like, really?
Oh, okay.
In my next seat, I went and justyelled at my friend for no
reason.

SPEAKER_04 (17:49):
I was like, Whaaaa!

SPEAKER_05 (17:51):
Come to my island, and it rattled himself.
He lost, he like it took himyears to let it go.
I was like, I just my dad toldme to do it.
I don't know, it just felt kindof cool.

SPEAKER_07 (18:05):
So, so was it you that had the story about Kelly
Slater saying, Are you goingleft at J Bay?
So is he pretty much doing thesame?
Do you all do is that what youall do in Florida?
Like you just heckle each otherto rattle each other off of a
wave?

SPEAKER_00 (18:19):
It's not a Floridian thing.

SPEAKER_07 (18:21):
Is that true?
Was that him to you?

SPEAKER_05 (18:23):
Was that am I getting that right in my memory?
Yeah, the my first my first WCT,I was so excited to surf against
Kelly Slater.
This was it was one of the firstevents that was on the webcast
on Surfline.
It was kind of that era, theearly O's transition.

(18:44):
And I was just so excitedbecause my brother was good
friends with Kelly.
So I was like, oh, he's gonna,he knows he he probably knows
who I am.
He knows my brother.
Like he's gonna take me underhis wing, and we're gonna be
like good friends.
That's just so delusional.

SPEAKER_00 (19:07):
And I remember you would think that though.
I I can't see why.

SPEAKER_07 (19:11):
I can relate, actually.
I'll I'll join with this in amoment, but continue you,
please.

SPEAKER_05 (19:17):
And so becoming Kelly's competitor, it was like
entering a new realm.
This this is like Kelly'simaginary realm.

SPEAKER_04 (19:32):
And all of a sudden he's so stiff and he walks
straight up to me and doesn'tsay anything, just stares at
him, he's like just breathing.

SPEAKER_05 (19:41):
And I'm like, oh hey, hey Kelly, uh, do you know
my brother?
He's like, Yeah, I know yourbrother.
And then he just like walks byme, like hits my shoulder, like
Oh, like he shoulder bumped you.
Oh yeah, he like walked straightthrough me.
Had his he had his whitewetsuit.
It was his white wetsuit.

SPEAKER_01 (20:01):
And you're 19?

SPEAKER_05 (20:03):
I was probably 18 or 19.

SPEAKER_00 (20:05):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 (20:06):
And he used to stuff like socks in his wetsuit to
make his package look bigger.
Dude, I'm telling you, he put heput something there, dude.
Well it worked.
Did he rattle you?

SPEAKER_02 (20:22):
You couldn't look away.
You couldn't look along hisgnarly.

SPEAKER_05 (20:29):
But in the heat, I actually, my first heat was
against Andy, and he's like, oh,you have Kelly in your next
heat.
He's like, just make sure youcatch the first wave, and it'll
rattle Kelly.
So I like hid up the point andwaited for the heat to start.
And then when the heat started,he thought I wasn't out there,

(20:50):
and then I paddled around.
And then a set came.
And so I was just like, Andy putme in the perfect spot, dude.
Like, and I'm like paddling, andthen I like look this way, and
then when I like turn back, he'slike, he was like that close to
me.

(21:11):
And he was so close, I couldfeel his breath.
He's like, You're going left.
And I it just like and I caughtthe wave, and it was like all I
could think about is like, Am Igoing left?
Like it's a right.

SPEAKER_04 (21:25):
Like, what are you talking about?
Oh my lord.
Wow.

SPEAKER_00 (21:34):
Oh well.

SPEAKER_04 (21:35):
Yeah, that was my killy.
So did you lose?
Yeah.
Oh yeah.

SPEAKER_00 (21:40):
And what did what came of that event?
I feel like that would thatmight have been a turning point
as well.

SPEAKER_05 (21:47):
That was su such a cool experience because I was
such a kid in my mind, you know,like I drank everything up.
Like I that's what was so coolabout it.
I wasn't really, I was justreally drinking it up.
Like I it felt like I reallyunderstood where I was.
I understood how the magnitudeof Andy and Kelly.

(22:08):
And this is when you werefilming Blue Horizon.
It was that era.
Yeah, it was just a reallyspecial era.
And so I I just couldn't believeI got to that place.
Like I was just like, I justfelt like the luckiest person in
the world.
Like I was like, how did I gethere?

SPEAKER_01 (22:28):
Like that's amazing.
That kind of presence andself-awareness maybe doesn't
lend to winning.

SPEAKER_05 (22:36):
Yeah.
I I didn't have the compet Ialways struggled with the
competitor in me.
It was like as soon I had I hadthe competitiveness, and then as
soon as a contest started, itwas like the nerves, and by the
time I'd serve a heat, it wasjust like I just didn't.

SPEAKER_01 (22:58):
That was your first WCT event.
Was there something about likedipping your toes into that
level of seriousness that eitheruh pushed you away or made you
want to step into it further?

SPEAKER_05 (23:10):
That's that's what it actually made me really
confuse because I was like, itdidn't make me want to do it
more.
It didn't make me want to stop,but I I was expecting like when
you go to Endo the first time,you want to go back.
You know, like but somethingabout that I was kind of just it

(23:30):
was confusing for sure.
It was like because back backthen, I mean Rasta, you were
kind of the first person to likeyou have a great line, I think
it's in Blue Horizon whereyou're saying like you told
Billabong you just wanted to gosurf, and they like you're like
it just opened up this path.
And I remember watching likeyour hands, you know, like and

(23:53):
it I kind of was definitelyinspired by that because I was
kind of I wanted to be a proserver, but I just didn't want
to be kind of a slave to the ASPat the time.

SPEAKER_07 (24:05):
Yeah, it's a tricky space for sure, and that was
like unknown territory in a way,because really only those sort
of you know left-hand branchesof the surfing tree were just
sprouting then.
Like you said, you know, Margot,Frankie O in um South Africa,
who was sponsored by Rick Curl,really were the only guys who

(24:28):
had gotten backing to live atotally sort of loose, free
surfing life and dive you knowsuper deep into it without being
previous like world championsand stuff, you know.
Yeah.
Um so it was all very new, butthen like what those new sort of

(24:49):
branches looked like, no oneknew.
Like I was doing my thing, andyou know, it was probably just
you know, riding strange boardsand doing strange activism
things was enough of ainteresting point for me to do
this, but then it's like okay,was there a comedic sort of

(25:10):
genius to another branch comingout?
Well, no one had had grownsomething like that before.
There was no one to to follow,so you you know, going into the
person you are now with supernew territory.
Like, who who can you look at todo that?
There's lots of funny people insurfing and funny moments, and

(25:31):
funny moments, but like makingit something that you could like
devote yourself to it is verynew.
So, like when that was startingto happen, what did you use to
water that part of you and putsome light on that and start to
grow it?

SPEAKER_05 (25:49):
That was one of the most magical times of my life
because I felt like I had foundmyself and my passion.
And it and it and the internethad come and it was and it hit
this point.
You know, I I was I was liketrying to follow your footsteps,
I was trying to follow likeMachado's footsteps, but you

(26:14):
know, like to to create your ownpath, you have you have I can't
be Rasta.
I have to be me if I if I'mreally gonna make my own path.
So I kind of realized I waslike, well, I can't be them.
So what is me?
You know, like what's true tome?
And it was always, you know,humor and comedy, and just when

(26:39):
the internet was coming around,one of my friends was like this
super computer nerd, and he hewas just like, have you heard of
blogging?
And I was like, What's blogging?
Like, this was like this waslike before my sp uh MySpace
era, like and he was like, itblogging was this underworld

(27:04):
where everyone who like hadtheir their dial up computer
would tap into into theinternet, so I was filming Still
Filthy, or it was a little bitbefore Still Filthy, the Bill
Bong movie.
I I was kind of just doingcomedy stuff as a rebellion

(27:26):
because of my father, and I wasalso scared of what Bill Bong
would think, you know.
Like I kind of only feltaccepted in Australia with Bill
Bong because all I feel likeAustralians just have this super
lightheartedness, and like ifyou take yourself too seriously,
you're an idiot, yeah.
So all it was just kind of likea melting pot of all of it, and

(27:49):
I and I just it was kind of asecret for years, and people
would hear about it, and it whenI would I started just feeling
the energy, there was just anenergy to it.
It was just like I would gosomewhere, and like kids would
like, dude, I I watch your blogafter school every day, and like

(28:10):
and I just felt like I foundthis new secret world with the
internet.
I jumped head over heels in.
It took actually five years foranyone to actually see it.
And it was like like Andy was abig part of helping me get to
that spot.
Andy was actually really areally important person in my

(28:33):
life because you know, he wasfalling off tour and he was
feeling lost, and um, somethingabout my energy and his energy,
like, yeah, let's just have fun.
Like, you know, like he he waslike, he was soul searching too.
He was just like, because hisbody was starting to fail him,
and he he was he was kind oflosing his identity and stuff,

(28:56):
and he like told Billboard, he'slike, You got he's like, you
gotta give this guy what hewants.

SPEAKER_04 (29:02):
Like, you need to give him a movie or whatever he
does on the internet.

SPEAKER_07 (29:06):
Like, you need you sound exactly like him and look
exactly like him when you dothat.
That was um unbelievable.

SPEAKER_05 (29:17):
That's so good.
I just a lot of things came intoplace.
And Dan when Dane Reynolds tookoff doing the internet, that's
that's when I kind of wrote hiscoattails because I already had
a huge platform, and then I wasjust like, oh, this is insane.

SPEAKER_01 (29:35):
I feel like comedians are some of the most
intelligent people amongst us,and I also get the sense that
comedians tend to be reallysensitive and also prone to
mental health challenges.
What do you what do you know?

SPEAKER_05 (29:49):
That was the nicest way.

SPEAKER_01 (29:53):
With your You're all crazy, like in the best way that
we all need in our lives.
Like, what do you what have youlearned about comedians' brains?
Is there is there something thatsets you all apart from us
boring, mere mortal, earnestpeople?

SPEAKER_05 (30:10):
Maybe it's because we have broken hearts and you
know we're we're looking forhealing in a way we don't
understand, and making peoplelaugh, that energy brings
healing.
Being a comedian for me, youknow, when I was 27, I was like
really suicidal, and I didn'tknow why.

(30:31):
I feel like we all have to likestop what you're doing in life
and learn how to just work thismachine first.
And if you're a comedian, I feellike it's you're on the
spectrum, you know, like you'reyou you are thinking in ways
people don't normally think, andthat's really fun and exciting,

(30:54):
but if you don't know how toturn it off and go be a normal
har person, it destroys people.
And that's what I learned.
Like you can destroy yourselfwith too much fun.
I've learned to pick up comedyand then set it down and then go
be sterling, like just a normalhuman just walking around.

(31:16):
I think a lot of comedians wantto die for their art too,
though.
Like they don't want to benormal, they want to create they
want to be the funniest.

SPEAKER_01 (31:27):
And that energy is totally addictive, isn't it?

SPEAKER_05 (31:30):
Like provoking people, getting laughs, is yeah,
it's I really love like JackJohnson's life.
Like he's one of the most famousmusicians ever.
And then you see him on theNorth Shore, and he's just like
like he's just he's just twoeyeballs walking around like, uh

(31:55):
and I got a lot of inspo fromhim and his music, just you
know, s sometimes extremesaren't the best, even if you can
do them.

SPEAKER_01 (32:06):
Tough to manage almost no one does it well.
He's like one of very few peoplewho can manage those extremes
well.

SPEAKER_05 (32:12):
Yeah, so I I've I look for balance in life now
rather than you know chasingchasing.
I I just try not to chaseanything, I guess.
Like that that's where I'vefound more peace in my life.
Just I practice being a nobody.
Like I get scared watchingfamous people getting too much.

(32:35):
I'm like, dude.

SPEAKER_01 (32:36):
That would have been a major evolution for you,
having grown up with someonewhose, you know, your dad, whose
identity was wrapped up in beingsomeone.
Like that was the masculinitythat was modeled for you.
It's like you're you're a manwhen you mean something to other
people.
How do you well?

SPEAKER_05 (32:53):
I got to a place where I was like, I can't get
any more pictures in themagazine, or like I can't.
It's like we're gonna do anothertrip.
I can't do another air reverse,you know, like it's like there's
gotta be more meaning to allthis because not not I didn't
think I was like the biggest andbest, but I started like looking

(33:15):
at normal people and I was like,I wanna just like not have
anxiety, like to to to chasefame and to chase you know the
world we lived in, it you yousacrifice your sanity, I feel
like.
Like, I mean, look Andy's agreat example, he kind of gave
it all for the world titles, andhe had nothing left after.

SPEAKER_07 (33:39):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 (33:39):
How did you go with that?

SPEAKER_07 (33:40):
Yeah, that makes me think of what we were talking
about earlier, La about I guessknowing what to look out for
when we're kids and then intoour teenage years with that kind
of thing.
So, like I had a dad who is anextreme character as well, and
his he didn't place likepressure on surfing for me, but

(34:02):
he he kind of showed me what tolook out for in terms of like
mental struggles and then theinevitable physical struggle
struggles from that.
So I had like a bit of a warningsystem there for myself to be
like, okay, I gotta watch outfor some of the tendencies that

(34:22):
I have that are similar to mydad's tendencies, and so well,
you know, like dark clouds,extreme moodiness, or being
judgmental and extremism in anyway, like just extreme physical
stuff or any just extremism.
But what it did for me was likehe was having the hardest times

(34:44):
in his life, really, when I wasa teenage kid, young teenage
kid, and a way for me to getthrough all of that was to go
surfing.
It wasn't really to like hangout with people, to like talk it
out with my buddies or anything.
Like, I was just a loner guythat would just go surfing, and
just that was enough for me.
So then when I came into all thecontest world, which was, you

(35:07):
know, a lot of us get railroadedwhen you show technical skills
as a kid, you know, your parentsor your community, whatever it
is, but generally the culturehas had a history of putting you
on a track and just being like,this is you, and they railroad
you into commodifying and makingcompetitive your surfing.
But for me, as a teenager, Iknew that I couldn't actually

(35:31):
cope with life if yeah, in anyway, if I couldn't go surfing
and it'd be just simply surfing.
I couldn't handle any story ontop of it.
So I did the monkey dance, Iplayed the game and I did
competitions, I did good enough,as good enough as I had to to
keep being sponsored, but I keptit really at arm's length

(35:55):
because I knew I didn't have thestrength in me to deal with
challenges in my life if I lostthat, if I lost the surfing joy
and the ability to just go inthe water and kind of all of a
sudden stand up on a wave likeyou, even with your brain
injury, standing up and you cansurf even in the middle of all

(36:17):
the shitstorm of your life.
You could stand up on a boardand ride a wave, and somehow,
for some reason, at the end ofthe ride, you were better off.
And so I knew as a kid that thatwas something to look out for,
and I wasn't gonna trade it.
Like when I went to Bilong andasked to still be sponsored, but
to like basically be invisible.

(36:39):
Like I wanted to disappear, andpeople would send them some
photos every now and again, andthat would be enough to tick the
box.
But I just wanted to disappearand surf, and I was gonna be a
barman actually.
I was just gonna sling drinks atcocktail bars around the world.
That was my master plan.
They, you know, they said, noworries, give it a year.
We'll we'll see how you go.
Just give it a one year.

(37:00):
You're only 19, 20.
Let's see what happens.
And everything after that wasfine, but I didn't want to lose
my main coping mechanism.
And this is where I think ourconversation is really fun and
everything, but also very usefulbecause I feel like you also
have this story, or youespecially have the story, of

(37:21):
experiencing that fine line ofwhat you put at risk when you're
a kid and you get railroadedinto that world, and that you
potentially lose your maincoping mechanism in the
turbulent, inevitable turbulenttimes of being a teenager.
And we were really keen to justhear what you had to say about

(37:42):
that because you already speakof this when you do your
recordings and your chats andand everything, and I think it's
really awesome that you touch onit because it it bums me out
when I see kids in our area,which is a surf-rich area, and I
see kids being railroaded, and Ithink those parents are

(38:02):
wonderful people, but I don'tthink they realize the game
they're playing and the risksfor their child.
Yeah, when they when they setthem on that path.
So just wondering what thoughtsyou have around that, brother.

SPEAKER_05 (38:17):
If we could just focus on kids finding themselves
rather than being someone that'salready just trying to reach a
result, I feel like I I don'tknow if the new kids feel this
as much, but I feel like yourgeneration and my generation

(38:39):
it's like the whole KellySlater, it was like the magazine
to try to brainwash everyone,like who's the next Kelly?
Who's the next Kelly, you know,like and it kind of put this
pressure on every single surferof like, if you don't become
Kelly, you're not worthanything.

SPEAKER_01 (38:57):
And that's the purpose of surfing.

SPEAKER_04 (39:00):
As if that were the purpose of this.
Right.

SPEAKER_05 (39:03):
And it was just like, I think, you know, that
was what I was struggling with.
If you're just not doing yourpassion, nothing really means
anything.

SPEAKER_01 (39:14):
And it's not unique to surfing.
I think that's important to saywe were um, we went to a
jiu-jitsu comp a couple ofweekends ago.
Our our son, you know, he'seight, and he's just gotten
interested in jujitsu.
And so we're watching peopleroll, and it was so intense and
kind of scary.
Yeah, that that energy, but alsolike watching parents.

(39:37):
I was watching this littleblonde-headed girl go red in a
um a headlock.
She was pinned, and her mom wasyelling like, get out of there,
get out of there, come on.
And I was just watching thistiny girl's eyes and her body go
into this fight or flight state.
And I was just kind of like,What are we doing here?

SPEAKER_03 (39:58):
This is kind of literally.

SPEAKER_01 (40:00):
It's super gnarly.
And it just made me want to askyou about, you know, you had
expectations pushed onto youfrom your your dad's dreams for
you and also his dreams forhimself, I can imagine.
How does that go now that you'rea parent and you have a son?
How does that change how yousurf with him or don't surf with

(40:22):
him or parent him in general?

SPEAKER_05 (40:24):
Yeah, it's been tricky because it's like the
injured animal in me will comeout.
And it's almost like I want himto feel the torture I felt.
And I'll have to stop myselfbecause I want to push at him.
And when I was nine, I wassurfing all winter with no
wetsuit.
You know, it's kind of a naturalreaction.

(40:47):
And luckily, I put enough workinto myself to be like my goal
every day with him is just tolove them the way I wish I was
loved.
And that is just the mostfulfilling.
It's like I feel like I'mstopping the curse.
I'm stopping the generationalcurse for who knows how long has

(41:11):
been going on.
And just loving him for him.
It's super satisfying.
Like, you know, he doesn't surfand I wish he did.
Because I just want I would loveto spend more time with him
because you know I I'm a surfdog.
And but I'm just so proud ofhim.
I feel like we've kept abeautiful enough space around

(41:34):
him where he just what I'm soproud about him is I I can tell
he cares about people.
And I'm just like, you're soahead of the game, dude.
Like if you can care aboutpeople already, you're gonna
have a good life because you cancare about yourself.
You know, you can't care aboutother uh about yourself if you
don't care about other people.

(41:55):
It's it's you there's no youjust can't do it.
I just feel super proud of, youknow, for myself and you know,
for him.
Like every day I fight that partof dad in me.

SPEAKER_01 (42:10):
And we all have that.
We all have different demons andintergenerational tendencies
that we have to face.

SPEAKER_07 (42:18):
What are your Florida tendencies like?

SPEAKER_01 (42:21):
Well, I wanted to get to Florida.

SPEAKER_07 (42:22):
Oh yeah, let's let's dive into Florida.

SPEAKER_01 (42:24):
I wanted to get to Florida because I I remember
being 20 and going off travelingand surfing, like obviously
different than the way you twowere doing it, but going off
into the world from a smalltown, a small island off coast
of Florida.
And um, I remember telling myone of my aunties, and I was
like, Oh, I'm going to, youknow, I'm going to Thailand and

(42:47):
these other Southeast Asiancountries, and she was like, be
careful.
There's false gods out there.

SPEAKER_07 (42:54):
Oh, hell yeah.

SPEAKER_01 (42:55):
You know?

SPEAKER_07 (42:56):
Oh, yeah.
You two just connected dry lens.

SPEAKER_01 (43:00):
That was they'll get you.

SPEAKER_05 (43:02):
They laid hands on me before I went to Bali.
This pastor said the gnarliestprayer, like, he's going to
fight the devil, and it's gonnabe gnarly.
And so I'm like heading to Bali.
I'm like, dude, I'm ready tolike fight people.
And then I get there, and uh,you knew Dustin Humphrey, right?
Yeah, his guy first.

(43:24):
Yeah, do you remember him?
He's like the nicest guy ever.

SPEAKER_07 (43:28):
Yep.

SPEAKER_05 (43:28):
He comes, picks me up, and he's like, hello, like
doing everything for me.
I'm like, this is the nicesthuman I've ever met.
Like, no one's ever looked outfor me like this.
And I got immersed into the baliclub, like, I was like, dude,
take me to the temples, and andI just would follow him around,
and that opened my mind up, youknow, like, okay, there's like a

(43:52):
way bigger of a world than thebubble I grew in, and not
everyone's going everyone's notgoing to hell, it's gonna be
okay.

SPEAKER_07 (43:59):
Wow, but you came back with malaria, so was it was
there like an exit exorcism whenyou came back?

SPEAKER_05 (44:08):
I actually already had it.
I I went on a boat trip when Iwas 14.
I uh I went to Bali a littleolder.

SPEAKER_07 (44:15):
Oh, gotcha.

SPEAKER_05 (44:16):
Yeah, I went and stayed with us and Humphrey and
stuff, and I didn't go to Balithe first time.
Some reason they understood thatBali is like the devil, you
know.
It's got a island of the gods.

SPEAKER_07 (44:27):
Yeah, plural.
Yeah, that's the problem.
All right, come on, dig up somemore Florida gold for me, you
two.

SPEAKER_01 (44:33):
I'm just curious to know, like, so you moved to
California, had this illustriouscareer, forged a new pathway in
surfing, and then have ended upback in Florida.
And I'm just like, how how isthat for you?
And how how has the culturethere changed or not changed?
And what's happening in surfingin Florida?

(44:55):
I don't we go back sort of everycouple years, and I don't
necessarily yeah.

SPEAKER_05 (45:02):
You were lucky to get you were lucky to get out.

SPEAKER_00 (45:09):
You could have chosen that too.

SPEAKER_05 (45:11):
Well, I lived in Hawaii for like most of my
teenage to young adult life, andI didn't really want to leave
Hawaii, but you had to go toCalifornia.
Everyone has to be in Californiabecause that's where the mags
are.
Okay, like I'll go live in SanDiego.
And San Diego messed with me,dude.

SPEAKER_00 (45:30):
Like a lot of people, I think, I get that
feeling.

SPEAKER_05 (45:34):
It was like, are my shorts on right?
Do I have the right colorpatterns?
Do I have the right vans,slip-ons?
There was so much pressure tolook to be a certain way, and
the mags were watching you andlike rewarding you, and like I
really got that was the mostI've ever lost myself.

SPEAKER_01 (45:54):
Like the self-consciousness, huh?
I feel like that's a glimpseinto being a woman in this
world.

SPEAKER_05 (46:01):
For sure.
No, for sure, absolutely.
Like, it was just like weird,and I loved Hawaii so much
because it was like it was moreprimal there.
It was like who had thegnarliest sweatpants?
And you know, like it was likekind of the total opposite of

(46:22):
who's the guy.
You ride the biggest waves andyou wear the sweatpants, and
like who cannot wear a shirt thelongest, and so it was like a
really hard transition for mebecause I felt like from
Florida, that's our vibe too,you know?
Like the less you care is kindof the more core you are.
So California messed with mybrain, and I went back to

(46:45):
Florida and asked wh why ithappened.
And so it was like when I had achild here, it was just like,
you know, when you become aparent, it's like you gotta be
near family, you know, you'rekinda in the trenches.

SPEAKER_00 (47:02):
It's not just about you anymore.

SPEAKER_05 (47:04):
Yeah, it was and when I kind of got stuck in
Florida, that's when I was like,well, I'm gonna make the most of
this.
So I started meditating andyou're gonna just I was so
excited about meditation becauseI I finally got away from
anxiety for the first time in mylife and just really opened my
mind to just wow, like there'sso much to just being alive.

SPEAKER_01 (47:31):
I've I've heard you I've heard you speak about your
ex sterling.
And all good if you don't wantto talk about this, that's fine.
It's a little kind of personal,but it was so interesting to
hear you talk about someone wholoved you.
You got to experience someoneloving you, whether or not you
were successful as a pro server.
And you said that she didn'treally understand your mental

(47:53):
health challenges because shehadn't experienced them, but she
had a huge heart, and you feltlike she came into your life to
help heal you.
And and I'm just wondering fromwhere you're at now, do you
think that other people can healus or that we have to do that
work ourselves?

SPEAKER_05 (48:08):
Romantic love and your co-partner love, your you
know, child's mother love.
It's it's some of the trickiestlove because it doesn't always
come in a beautiful package.
You know, like getting alongwith someone.

(48:28):
I learned so much the firstyears of my son being born, and
then with the brain injury.
You know, they happened for areason at the time I needed, you
know, and I didn't understandit.
And that's what's so beautifulabout life.
You do you kinda make mistakesor do things you don't plan on

(48:51):
at a certain time.
But it's it's amazing how lifecan just bloom anything, you
know, like because I was like,Oh, I had a kid, and you know,
like this is gnarly, and that itI'm so selfish.
And then the brain injury, andit was just like, you know,
looking back, looking that timewith her, it's like even though

(49:14):
it was brutal and it was hardand it brought the worst out of
both of us and the best, andit's it's just it's nice to be
able to get to hindsight andjust be like, you know what, I'm
grateful for you, you know, nomatter what has happened, you
know.
It's like you can kind of I feellike the worst thing in life is
just holding on to stuffforever, you know.

(49:36):
Like I I'm I'm just kind ofgetting to the place in life
where it's like just kind ofreally learning how to forgive.
It's one of the hardest one ofthe hardest things I've tried to
do.
And it's almost like you justsurrender.
It's like I just don't I justdon't want my heart to feel this

(49:56):
way anymore.
Yeah.

SPEAKER_07 (49:58):
Forgiveness, that's so I feel like that's something
that's probably spoken on Sundaymornings all over Florida.
And you'd hope that's you know,at the core of those teachings
and that work, that that's oneof those pillars, you know,
forgiveness.

SPEAKER_05 (50:17):
And that was another circle in life, you know,
because Christianity really mademe not like Jesus.
You know?

SPEAKER_06 (50:24):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 (50:24):
And then and then you're like, oh, actually Jesus
is awesome.
It's just the people that buildthe buildings for it.

SPEAKER_01 (50:31):
Yeah, and make their own interpretations.

SPEAKER_05 (50:34):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 (50:35):
You've said that you're the most creative when
you're in crisis.
I feel like that really echoesthis archetype of the struggling
artist that a lot of us knowwell, know personally.
Do you still feel that way?
Or do you feel like in thispursuit of balance, you've found
creative practice through othermeans?

SPEAKER_05 (50:57):
I guess what I've learned is to try to plan as
much as you can, but it don'toverplan because you know the
art of comedy or the art ofsurfing is spontaneous.
Learning how to balance my lifejust enough to where I can still
be a mad scientist a little bit.
Because like with our podcast,we don't plan anything.

(51:19):
Like not one thing.
We just sit together and likeoh, and we just and it's so fun
because I don't know what'sgonna come out of my mouth, you
know?
So I'm almost in awe.
It's like it's not it's almostlike I'm in uh I'm a fan of the
universe at the moment, watchingit do its thing.

(51:39):
And I I'm like honored it choseme to translate it, you know.
Like it's a really fun and coolexperience, just like surfing.
It's the same thing.

SPEAKER_07 (51:50):
It's you just you know riding the energy to just
have an open mind on a wave isjust like and it's so obvious
when it's not like that, hey,because look at the cultural
cringe we all have when we seesomeone doing it in a contrived
way, and you can tell, oh, thatarm up there like that, oh yeah,

(52:10):
that's from Dora, spread throughthis guy, through that guy,
through that lady, through toyou.
That's an act right there, andwe cringe, but like at the
center of that cringe is thefact that we know that in that
moment when we are dancingbecause we know everyone's
watching, yeah, that that's notas good as it gets.
The the best it gets is when youlike you said, you're just a fan

(52:33):
of the universe doing its thingthrough you and everything else.

SPEAKER_05 (52:37):
That's all when you when you get the organic
feeling, it's just there'snothing sweeter.

SPEAKER_07 (52:44):
Like Yeah, and and and wasn't that um Andy's deal.
Like you look at Andy and yougo, Oh yeah, that's the way he
surfed.
Like you wouldn't write thatdown as like a textbook style
master thing, but it was so himthat then he became someone
who's like everyone wants tohave his style and his way of
surfing, but he was just theredoing that, like you said,

(53:05):
spontaneously.

SPEAKER_05 (53:06):
Oh, for sure.
I mean, I'm a I'm a huge Currandevotee.
It's like I will watch Curran,but I try to let him go when I
get out.
You know, let him go, man.
Because you you'll serve a wholesession being Curran, and you're

(53:27):
that's not it, you know.
Yeah, but he's such a he's sucha beautiful guiding light.
I I like to call him like theBuddha of serving.
It's like we can follow hiseightfold steps, but eventually
when we find it, we have to goon our own.
That's true.

SPEAKER_01 (53:47):
If you've enjoyed listening to the conversation so
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SPEAKER_07 (56:27):
At the end of the year, every year was the only
time I would encounter the restof the surfing industry
characters.
I pretty much would zig wheneveryone zagged all year, and
then it was like, oh, as if I'mgonna say no to a bedroom on a
beachfront house on the northshore with no rent for a month
or so.
So I would go.
But I always felt like I was onthe periphery.

(56:48):
I kind of felt a bit awkward.
I just do my thing and hang withmy closest friends that I hadn't
seen for a while or whatever.
And I actually remember feelingsimilar things with you where
I'd see you being on theperiphery and you were always
super kind and friendly andeverything, but I don't know, I
feel like you would steal awayinto your quiet zones or
whatever pretty often as well.

(57:10):
Yeah, anyway, I just wasthinking about how we would be
in that space, and now sorry, Ilost my track train of thought
because I'm looking at the ladyfrom um from North Shore whose
hair turns into the wave.
Oh man, I lost that train ofthought.
What were we talking aboutbefore that?

SPEAKER_01 (57:28):
You were talking about both being on the North
Shore and being on theperiphery.

SPEAKER_07 (57:33):
I wish we would have hung out more.
Yeah, I agree.
We would have had a lot a lot oflaughs.

SPEAKER_05 (57:38):
I feel like um what's funny, I remember this so
clear.
Because yeah, you were you wereyou're like always hiding.
I could tell you the scene was alot.
I mean the Bilboung house was itwas kind of brutal, even though
how lucky we were.
It's like every single day therewas a party and like Yeah.

SPEAKER_07 (57:58):
Cameras everywhere the whole time.

SPEAKER_05 (58:00):
Random people just walk through your house, like,
oh, is so-and-so here?
And you're like in yourunderwear, like open the
refrigerator, like, what?
Yeah.
But I remember we, I mean, Iprobably had known you for
years, but I was just kind of agrom.
And I shaved the funniestmustache.

(58:22):
And I remember I was standingthere, and you looked at me and
you're like, you walked up to melike real close, and you're
like, I get it.
I get it you know, I get younow.
He's like, there he is.

SPEAKER_07 (58:39):
Yep, the little bit of you that was inside is now on
the outside.
So I didn't tell you to be avegan.

SPEAKER_05 (58:47):
Well, we uh one night we're all barbecuing.
I was in the bigger house, and Ithink you're on the kind of the
smaller one in the middle, moreso.
Yep.
And we were all barbecuing.
We just surfed off the wallhuge.
I remember watching you surf offthe wall.
You were like a low-key charger.

(59:07):
Like you sat because we were allsitting I was sitting at like
back door, and you're sitting atlike outside off the wall.
And I remember you just rodethis one and then just got the
craziest barrel and came in.
And I remember we're like wewere sitting at off the wall,
and we're we're I had like 10pieces of chicken in my hand.

(59:28):
And I remember I'm like sostoked on you because I just
watched you like got that hugebarrel, and like I'm eating
chicken, and you're just tellingme why it's so bad for me.
Just messing with your head.
I remember just being like,maybe I need to stop because
he's freaking charging and I'mI'm scared.

SPEAKER_07 (59:50):
Oh god.
Damn it, I was one of thosevegans for a while.
You just can't help it when itwhen you uh when you get sucked
into it.
No, the reason I brought that upwas the centaur thing.
I remember it now.
So I remember that wascirculating around the the the
circle of friends at that timeand at that space, and I
remember Kendall.
Um at the time people startedcalling me Yeti because I was

(01:00:12):
living in a shack in the bush,and I don't know, I just had
Yeti like tendencies, long arms,and a bit of a scent to me or
something.
But anyway, I remember peoplecalling me Yeti, and then
Kendall was like, You're not aYeti, I've seen a real Yeti, and
he told us the story of beingchased by two Yowie's.

(01:00:33):
You remember that story?
Yeah, for real.
And he was like, Yeah, exactly.
Back beach and Gary.
He's like a funny guy, he's avery funny guy.
But also snorter and love withso yeah, Kenny, and but he just
went stone cold in that moment,was like, You're not a Yeti
mate, I've seen a real Yeti.
And and we all just were likesilent listening to the story.

(01:00:55):
It was unbelievable.
So I totally back the Centaurexperience.
And I think if you're sharingthose images with people, that's
great because it's a part of therealm that needs to be
acknowledged.

SPEAKER_05 (01:01:06):
Well, I saw I was like, Well, I used to live in
the woods growing up, and like afull-on beautiful centaur man
just walked up to the frontdoor, and I was so in shock, I
was like, uh so I startedscreaming.
My brother runs to the frontdoor and it scared him, and he

(01:01:27):
took off.
And my literally my whole life,I would just talk I I would
think about it and I was like,what was that monster?
And it's funny you bring Kendallup because I was in J Bay, I was
with Kendall, I was with LoriTowner, I was with Way Goodall,
we were with Andy, and I toldthem the story.

(01:01:52):
And Lori, because they they seenso many Yetis or whatever, he's
like, You saw Centaur.
I was like, What?
He's like, You saw Centaur, ahorseman.

SPEAKER_07 (01:02:06):
And uh you're friends with Hilton, right?
Oh yeah, he lives on the landwith us, and he's gonna be so
psyched that we're talking rightnow.
Oh my god.

SPEAKER_05 (01:02:16):
I'm so glad I had Hilton in my life back then
because he helped me so much inlife.
He would have just suchbeautiful wisdoms for me back
then, which my mind was verymaybe closed-minded, not on
purpose, but he really opened myeyes to it, you know, to the
world.
I just remember a lot of goodconversations with Hilton, like

(01:02:37):
we're just diving into theuniverse.
Awesome, like a 14-year-old kid,like and Hilton's just going to
the 12th dimension, like duh.

SPEAKER_04 (01:02:48):
Yeah, bruh.
Yeah, that's it.
We're going all the way.
I'm like, where are we going?

SPEAKER_05 (01:02:57):
I love Hilton so much.

SPEAKER_04 (01:02:59):
He loves it too.

SPEAKER_05 (01:03:01):
So Hilton, everyone just did shoeies, so everyone's
fired up, and you know howHilton will start singing songs?

SPEAKER_07 (01:03:10):
Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_05 (01:03:11):
He's like, Centaur, Centaur.
And they all start singing it,and then Kendall, he knows how
to turn anything into adidgeridoo.
He grabs his like uh vacuumthing, and he's just like and
this was the night before Iserved against Kelly Slater.

SPEAKER_00 (01:03:35):
Well, full circle bomb.

SPEAKER_07 (01:03:37):
Perfectly.
That's um he probably wasn'tdoing something that different
the night before.
He was in his underwear stuffingfor tomorrow.
Okay, so I'm hearing validationin this story.
Did they they they heard you andthey backed you up?

SPEAKER_05 (01:03:55):
Well, that was a big part of like kind of becoming me
because Surfline interviewed methat morning before my heat, and
I was just so scared.
I'm like, because it would havebeen two weeks of flatness, so
every day it's like Sterlingserving against Kelly, and I
heard Kelly did this and Kellydid that, and I heard everyone's

(01:04:17):
Kelly story, and like so.
By the time that day happened, Iwas just so nervous.
Where I just I remember Surfineinterviewed me.
It was GT when he used to do it.

SPEAKER_07 (01:04:31):
Oh yeah, oh god, and I just haven't heard in years
either.

SPEAKER_05 (01:04:36):
Okay, and I was just like, I couldn't handle the
pressure, and I was just like, Ijust want people to know that I
saw a centaur, and I mean thisis like my big break, you know?
And I couldn't handle so I juststarted talking about the
centaur because it was like sofresh on everyone's mind.

(01:04:57):
Yeah, totally, and then you werebacked up the night before.
That's totally valid.

SPEAKER_07 (01:05:02):
I get it, yeah.

SPEAKER_05 (01:05:04):
Dude, I told the story, and it was like it was
like I became famous overnightbecause it was like such a
random thing to do right beforeserving against Kelly, you know.
So everyone, the whole event'slike call me Centaur.
And I remember Dean Morrisonwalked up to me with like a tear
in his eye, and he's like, Didyou really see a centaur?

SPEAKER_04 (01:05:25):
Did you I'm like, dude, I saw something too.

SPEAKER_05 (01:05:29):
And he like hugs me and he's like, I saw one too.
It was kind of like, oh, thisbig huge icebreaker for me,
where it's like, okay, I canjust kind of be me now.
And that that that was for surethe beginning of kind of the
light bulbs in my head.
I'm like, man, like being myselfworks so much better than

(01:05:53):
trying.
Because I used to travel withGeordie, and Geordie's the
golden job.
Me, I have this funny story.
Me, Wade Goodall, and Geordiewent to South Africa together,
and Wade is like the biggestcore lord known to man.
Like, he's so core, andGeordie's the so opposite.

(01:06:14):
Geordie's like the MichaelJackson of the surf world, you
know, like so Wade couldn'tstand Geordy.
And I'm kind of this in-betweenguy because I'm like from
Florida, and it's like you'refrom Florida, like you're not
even supposed to be here.

SPEAKER_00 (01:06:30):
Doesn't count, doesn't even count.
Irrelevance.

SPEAKER_05 (01:06:37):
He was living his passion, and he was supposed to
be the golden child, and it wasbeautiful to watch, but it
created this crazy energy whereit was like, dude, I can't, I
can't handle this contestenergy.
And Wade was there, and Wade hadjust won the junior
championships, I think.

(01:06:58):
The the world or or the tot hewon the junior circuit, so he
was the guy.
Geordie had just won the worldjuniors.
It was like watching this clashof core lord titans, and I was
and I was trying to pick whichpath, like you know, like just
like Geordie's path seems kindof weird, he's kind of fruity.

(01:07:23):
Wade has pine straw for chesthair, but also comedic.

SPEAKER_07 (01:07:32):
So you look at Waito.
So I just surfed with Waito acouple days ago, and he was so
pumped to hear that we weregonna have a chat.
Oh man, I love that guy.
Um yeah, we all love hangingwith Waito, and he's just such a
a good, kind fella, but a just afunny guy too, you know.
And like you look at what he wasdoing, which was pro probably

(01:07:54):
just before you with Passion Popand his stuff.

SPEAKER_05 (01:07:59):
Yeah, I was I was filming with that stuff.

SPEAKER_07 (01:08:01):
Oh, you were okay.
So I just remember the tone ofhis his creations, his creative
destruction stuff.
He was like a dark jester.
He was like a good, you know,like he would make you laugh,
but he had this sort of dark,dark side to him that was like a
little angry and it was coolbecause it was just like, you

(01:08:21):
know what, I don't give a fuck.
I'm gonna surf this way and dothis this way.
And and then when water gotserious, he was always charging,
and you could see that he was afearless guy in a lot of ways,
not just in being himself at atime where the way he was
himself was not the common way,you know.

(01:08:43):
Especially in Oz, it was thisyou were sporty spice, you're
basically like everyone wasevery everything was sport, and
I can relate because I was like,I don't want to be sport, I
don't want to be one of thoseguys, and but it was largely a
culture that was celebratingsporting heroes, yeah.
Wade Wade was not that, but hestill got a culture, yeah.

(01:09:04):
He got backing and he wassupported to make fun things and
do trippy stuff, and I feel likesurely that rubbed off on you a
little too.

SPEAKER_05 (01:09:13):
Well, yeah, it was it was such an honor to be
around Wade.
I wrote his coattails too, um,because I I had my internet
thing going for a while, and hestarted creative destruction
with Jake.
People were so confused, they'relike, why is Wade and Sterling
like why are they buds?

(01:09:35):
Because Wade's such a darkcorlord, and I was wearing
glasses, and I was goofy, youknow, and it and people didn't
realize Wade and me were likethe same, but he I always called
him the uh Prince of Darkness.
He was like the Prince ofDarkness.
We were both rebelling in thesame way, where it's just like

(01:09:58):
kudos to Bilbong at the time.
I feel like they really didsupport all of us.
I felt like we had the coolestteam ever at one point, like
across the spectrum, like somany different characters, and
he kind of inspired me for sureto be myself because he he never
judged me.
That's what was so crazy.

(01:10:19):
Like I always felt judged aroundeveryone, and I I was so not as
cool as Wade, like I didn't Ididn't have the tats, and you
know, like he was so cool, buthe never looked at me.
Like, I I traveled with so manyguys, and it's like if I didn't
fit the hipsterness, it's likeuh we can't hang out with you,

(01:10:41):
and that felt so confusing forme.
Like, I think coming fromFlorida and where I live in
Florida is actually like I livein the Gulf of Mexico, so it's
even harder to be a surfer.
So I feel like I was kind oflucky for my own spirit.
I I didn't really judge peoplebecause I'm from the bottom of

(01:11:01):
the Gulf of Florida, you know.

SPEAKER_07 (01:11:04):
Makes me feel like thread that's through this yarn,
through this conversation.
I keep hearing you mentioningother people and your gratitude
for other people who have beenalong for the ride in your life.
What kind of advice would yougive to, you know, 12-year-old

(01:11:26):
little sterling starting on thisjourney when it really seems
like you've had a a lot ofmoments where people have meant
a lot to you, like the thingsthey've said or the things
they've done to you or with youor for you.
Like, do you think about thatmuch?

(01:11:46):
Because it seems like most ofour prompts here and the things
we've been talking about, youyou keep reflecting on someone
who was there at that point inyour life and the impact they
had on you.

SPEAKER_05 (01:11:57):
My mission just felt so impossible from where I was
from.
So if someone helped me, it waseverything, you know.
Like I couldn't, I wasn't thegoal, I I didn't live in
California.
I didn't live it.
I was just I just always feltlike for me to be able to have

(01:12:18):
gotten to where I was, it wasalways because someone put their
hand out.
So I just I don't I don't like Idon't really see myself like I'm
just so lucky to just have metthe people I've met.
And yeah, like I just alwaysfelt lucky every time I got to
go on a trip, it's like oh I getto leave.

(01:12:42):
Like there's no ways where Ilive, you know.
So it's like it's a little bitof my energy, you know, wanting
it and calling it, and a lot ofjust you know, meeting really
cool people, like and alsolistening to that in me, like of
who actually cares about you,you know, like following that
rather than trying to chase whatthe cool people are doing, you

(01:13:05):
know, like that could be onething ki if if I could tell kids
is just be careful of chasingcoolness because it it can get
you maybe it's a shortcut, butit's a dead end too.
It's I I just genuinely think ifyou can really be yourself and
find it, but not just like dickaround with it, like go for it.

(01:13:30):
You know, you you you have to gofor it.
It's not nothing's gonna justhappen for you.
A lot of us are kindred souls,like you.
Whenever I saw Margot I f Ialways felt that, you know, like
Margot always felt like maybelike he felt like a Gulf Coaster
of the Australian world, the wayhe made it sound to me.
You know, he wasn't on the GoldCoast, like maybe same for you,

(01:13:53):
I believe.
Like maybe that's why you're allsuch classic characters and kind
of found yourselves.

SPEAKER_01 (01:14:00):
I'm curious about what you see of surf culture now
in Florida, Sterling.
What's happening?
What do you see of the younger?
Well, a bit of both.

SPEAKER_05 (01:14:13):
The algorithm is killing serving.

SPEAKER_01 (01:14:15):
Please explain.

SPEAKER_05 (01:14:16):
The algorithm supports uh following trends,
you know, and the algorithm iskeen, you know, to these kids.
You know, if to make money isviews, clicks, yada yada yada.
And to me, that's you know, Ithink the magic of the early O's
was it was kind of like who'sdoing their thing the hardest?

(01:14:39):
You know, it's like you had somany like Deion Ages and Dane
Reynolds, and it it was justlike it really felt like we were
starting to really find our coreand then YouTube and the
algorithm.
Now people are writing softtops, like that's that's like
the board, you know, andnon-surfers are just like, oh

(01:15:00):
yeah, okay, like cool.
Like it's like how how do we usethe algorithm to bring the core
back, you know, without it beinglike pretentious.

SPEAKER_01 (01:15:09):
So if if the algorithm is killing surfing as
we know it, what what can be thesavior?
What can what can save it?

SPEAKER_05 (01:15:19):
If Kelly got hair, that would break the algorithm.
I think we have to learn how touse it and still cherish
uniqueness.
Like, did do you make Rasta lookat Instagram?

SPEAKER_01 (01:15:35):
No, I try, I really try not to.
I love he's so pure.
He's so pure.
I love I love that.

SPEAKER_05 (01:15:42):
I have no idea what's happening right now.

SPEAKER_07 (01:15:45):
No, I rely on these conversations to enlighten me,
so please do.
Well, on the podcast, we makefun of Gen Z a lot.

SPEAKER_01 (01:15:52):
Dave might not know what Gen Z is.
I don't know what Gen Z is.

SPEAKER_07 (01:15:55):
Who is what age is that?
How old are you if you're inthat?

SPEAKER_05 (01:15:57):
I'm I'm a millennial.
I think you are.

SPEAKER_01 (01:16:00):
I'm a millennial.
You you Dave would be Gen X, Ithink.
Just a bit older.

SPEAKER_05 (01:16:05):
So it's Gen X, Millennial, and then Gen Z.
They grew up with phones.

SPEAKER_07 (01:16:09):
Oh, yeah, yeah.
Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 (01:16:11):
So they don't really show their surfing, they're
always filming before they gosurf.
What cologne they're spraying onthemselves.
Like before.

SPEAKER_00 (01:16:22):
There's nothing worse than cologne in the
lineup.
Yeah, what are you the worst?

SPEAKER_07 (01:16:26):
You can smell when someone's had a shower recently
when you're in the water,they're alone cologne.
And I always turn my nose up atthose people too.
Yeah, so I'd be like, yeah, I Iactually make a point if someone
paddles past me with likeshampoo hair to call it out
because I'll now just be like,How did you know?

SPEAKER_05 (01:16:44):
It's so strong.
It's like you can smell a kookfrom so far with okay.

SPEAKER_07 (01:16:53):
So, what about those people then?
Is are they implicit in the doomof surfing right now?

SPEAKER_05 (01:16:58):
Well, their brains, they're captured.
They're captured on trying toget follows and likes.
And what's trendy is likelooking like a surfer and
showing before and doing aTikTok dance or something, and
now they're all doing it, andit's like it's it's taking away

(01:17:18):
the creativity.

SPEAKER_07 (01:17:19):
See, this is these are the kind of conversations
that keep me from starting aMySpace page or uh whatever you
guys do with your fucking timenow.
Because it just doesn't soundthat fun.
Like when I when I encounter I'mmaking fun of it, but in all
sincerity, most of the time whenI hear people speak about the
internet, it's in a whingingtone.

(01:17:41):
It's like fuck, I've got to dothese posts because I gotta
satisfy my sponsor thing, or Ibetter do one today because I
haven't in a few weeks and Igotta keep that thing bouncing,
or oh, this is the only way wetalk with our friends overseas,
or there's always like thismoment before it.
It's never with like true zest,it's never with like a deep

(01:18:05):
enthusiasm.
So my my way of getting out ofall of that is to just not
participate.
So, what do you do?
And I think of Wendell Berry,there's an amazing writer and
poet in America, Wendell Berry.
I urge you to read him, hiswriting is unbelievable.
But he he is an incredibleactivist for looking after
country in America and and allkinds of good stuff, but he

(01:18:28):
detests movements, and he says,as soon as something becomes a
movement, it's doomed.
You know, you've got peopleturning up for the sake of being
in a movement or whatever, notnecessarily, yeah, they're
venting things or they want tobe part of something, it's not
the the the actual center of theissue that they're there for
anymore, so he doesn't like itwhen things like movements start

(01:18:50):
taking shape, and I can't helpbut hear what you all are
talking about, these sort ofthings happening on the internet
with surfing and these movementof people in this certain way,
it just it doesn't sound likeit's vibrant and healthy and
that wonderful.
So, what do you do?

(01:19:10):
So, how do you not be how do youdo what you're doing without
being a part of that movement?

SPEAKER_05 (01:19:16):
I think why I can kind of thrive in this area is I
focus on making people laugh,not uh following whatever trend.
And that's kind of been thebeauty of the podcast.
It gives us a space to just makepeople laugh.
And I don't I don't look I don'tlook at Instagram for influence

(01:19:38):
anymore.
I only look to give.
So it doesn't control my mind.
I've already let it control mein my younger years, so it's
like I'll just post somethingand it's just like I kind of
treat it as almost a yoga, youknow, like I'm making people
laugh, this feels good, goodenergy out, and I don't I don't
check back in really.

(01:20:00):
And it's been really rewardingin that sense of using that way.
Like when I went to Hawaii, itwas like to be almost dead from
a brain injury to people soinvolved in my life again.
And something I said orsomething that made them laugh
took you know, they had a hardday and they needed that laugh.

(01:20:23):
It's it's kind of like like it'sspecial in that way, you know?
But it's it's a it's a it's aslippery slope.
It's a double-edged sword.
And it it's like if if we ifpeople can't learn to use it, it
will use them.

SPEAKER_07 (01:20:39):
Wonderfully said.
I don't know if this will makethe recording or not, but I have
to tell you about surfing Kiralast year with Kelly.
And uh because I can relate toyour going left story.
My mom she lives at Kira thesedays, so I go up there a fair
bit with family, and we love tosurf it on baby days with our
little boy as a family.

(01:20:59):
It's like Waikiki and stuff.
And so last year I was doing asurfboard test thing, and I get
there and the tide's high, andthere's no one out, and it's
fucking pumping, sunny,beautiful offshore, fast Kira.
And I freak out and I run.
Like old school.
Yeah, I I park in front of mymum's basically at Kira.

(01:21:21):
I run over the groin, I run downCool and Gatta Beach, jump in at
like Green Mount, float down,and I pass Andrew Kidman, and
then I pass Slater, and I'mlike, fuck, this is pretty
interesting.
It's like a little twilightzone.
Wow.
I get down to Big Groin, I lookdown the whole lineup to the end
of Kira.
There's there's like two otherpeople out.

(01:21:43):
One is my neighbor, and theother is like Jai Glinderman
from Lennox, who I also surfwith.
It was bizarre.
It was like we all just somehow,the four of us were just there.
Yeah, and so anyway, it's likeKidman stayed up at Green Mount.
Slater comes down the line, hegets a couple beautiful waves,
surfing like out of this world.
I'm like, wow, look at that guy,go, he's just incredible.

(01:22:06):
And I was riding this super odd,asymmetrical, downstairs mix-up
board.
Anyway, this beautiful set,yeah.
This vegan board, this thisbeautiful set comes through.
Kelly gets a wave, I get a wave.
I think I got the first one.
We're paddling back out, andhe's paddling full steam, and
I'm like, oh yeah, cool.
Okay, he's he's he wants thatinside position.

(01:22:27):
There's only three of us out.
I'm like, look at this beautifulday, isn't it beautiful?
Look at the sun, how's thisoffshore wind?
I'm like freaking out becauseit's just like, how could you
not be just spewing gratitudeswith it?
And he's just sort of looked atme and like nodded and go, Yeah,
yeah, yeah, and then sort ofcontinued like paddling and
scanning the lineup likeRobokoff, and I was just like,

(01:22:49):
Whoa, why why isn't he all happytoo?
Like, this is ridiculous.
Like, when does this ever happenin your whole life?
And then anyway, we keeppaddling up the line, and maybe
I got a lot of head noise, maybehe was thinking the same things,
I don't know, he just wasn'tshowing it on the outside.
But then a set comes, and thefirst wave comes, and generally,

(01:23:11):
most people who have grown uphere, like I have, we understand
which waves in a set are thebest ones, and rarely it's the
first one.
The first one's the burgery onethat takes the water off the
bank.
The second one is a drainer, andthe third one, if there is a
third one, is like subterranean.
And anyway, he's like, Look atthis first one.

(01:23:33):
Wow, look at this first one.
Oh, this one you're gonna go,this first one, and I'm like, I
know what I'm looking at.
It's the second one, and he'slike, Yeah, but look at this
first one.
He's like trying to sell me onthis fucking first one, and I'm
just like, Are you serious rightnow?
And then paddle over the firstone because he knows I know, and

(01:23:54):
you know, it's obvious that'snot the one.
The second one comes and I'mlike, Yeah, here we go.
This is the one.
I start to turn and he turns,and I'm paddling for it, and
he's paddling for it, and he'slike, he's the guy on the
shoulder, and and I'm looking athim like incredulous.
Like, do you not just feel likeletting someone have this wave

(01:24:16):
because they were the next inline, and it's okay if we both
miss it, it's one for thespirits, maybe.
Who knows?
Whatever.
It's just surfing.
Anyway, I catch this wave, andhe's there with me stroke for
stroke to the last second, justin case I miss it.
Which is if that's ever gonnahappen.
I grew up surfing these fuckingwaves.
So anyway, I catch the wave andit's a nice wave, and I come

(01:24:40):
back out, and I'm like, wow,that guy's just relentless.
And I watched him catch anothercouple bombs, right?
And then all of a sudden, peoplestart filtering down, and people
had realized, oh, it's goodalready, like you don't wait for
the low tide.
And the first person to comedown in the drainer of drainers
is Kieran Perro, another Byronkind of guy, and he gets spat

(01:25:03):
out, and I'm like, wow man, KV,how beautiful was that wave, and
he's like, Fuck man, I had towork so hard to keep Slater off
of it, and he was paddling melike to the phone pole, and then
I had like another person saythe same thing, and it was just
baffling.
I was just like, I wasperplexed.
I was like, holy moly, okay,you're in another dimension.

(01:25:24):
Like once a champ only is achamp.
So anyway, I when you saidyou're going left thing at the
at J Bay, I was like, oh wow,yeah, I can relate to that kind
of moment.
It's great.

SPEAKER_04 (01:25:35):
He's a special creature, dude.

SPEAKER_07 (01:25:37):
Yeah, yeah.
Yeah, 100%.

SPEAKER_04 (01:25:40):
We need a he's been doing a lot of ayahuasca lately.
Have you heard that?

SPEAKER_07 (01:25:44):
Well, he obviously didn't do any the day before
that swell because he would havebeen like, go, brother, go! Look
at these wavelengths, he wouldhave been psyched.

SPEAKER_05 (01:25:52):
Dude, I had I had dinner with him a few years ago
at Machado's house.
I never really sat down with himbefore.
He was really excited, he's stunayahuasca like 40 times or
something.
Wow.
Dude, it was so funny watchinghim talk about ayahuasca because
it was like he was turning itinto like catching waves.

(01:26:14):
Because he's oh, he's like, Oh,you haven't done it?
Like, no, you're supposed to doit like this.
And like, if you're gonna figureout the universe, you have to
and he he was drawing stuff, hewas drawing things, he's like,
here so if you're gonna know thewhole universe, and he's he's
like got arrows to like and Iwas like, have you ever like
have you ever tried meditating?

(01:26:38):
So he he he he like he doesayahuasca, like he surf waves.
Wow, yeah, it makes sense, yeah.

SPEAKER_07 (01:26:45):
Like he part he goes and systematizing, yeah,
systematizing.
Yeah, I love it.
Do you think into the future interms of like, well, I know you
must because the provider urgefor a lot of us when we have
children kicks in pretty strongin terms of being able to like
feed your child and house themand give them opportunities and

(01:27:06):
stuff?
Like, what are you gonna do withyourself moving forward?
Do you do your podcast and andother things?
Are you like, do you juggle manythings?

SPEAKER_05 (01:27:15):
I mean, I I'm just super lucky podcasting coming
from the surf world.
No one wants to give you money,and then when you in the podcast
world, people ask to give youmoney, and I'm just like, what
is this world?
Like, you want to pay us?
No, no one's ever said that inthe surf world.

SPEAKER_07 (01:27:35):
Yeah, totally.
It's true.

SPEAKER_05 (01:27:36):
Billbong would bring you into a small room, and so we
dropped, we dropped all yourfriends, and we were gonna cut
you, but we decided to give youa three-year contract.
You're like, okay, I'll take it.
20 grand, I'll take it.
So with pop with podcasting,it's it feels like a lot of

(01:27:58):
opportunity.
My cousin Ryan, he he does allthe editing and stuff, and we're
kind of just sailing the shipright now, and I just feel like
we're both our heads are good,you know, like we're doing it
for the right reasons, and it ismaking us enough money.
It's kind of nice actuallygetting paid for the art for the
first time instead of likefighting uh surf world.

(01:28:22):
I'm trying not to manifest toohard because be careful what you
wish for.
Because I I am feeling a lotmore eyeballs on me for the f
like for the first time in mylife, where it's like, I'm like,
oh, I haven't had I haven't goneto the grocery store, and people
are like and want to talk to youeverywhere you go, and like, so

(01:28:42):
I'm kind of like, how famous dowe want to go?
So we're kind of justnavigating, trying to stay core
lords, but be able to cash in.

SPEAKER_01 (01:28:56):
Time is precious.
Thanks for spending some ofyours listening with us today.
Our editor this season is themulti-talented Ben Jake
Alexander.
The soundtrack was composed byShannon Soul Carroll, with
additional tunes by Dave andBen.
We'll be continuing today'sconversation on Instagram, where
we're at Water People Podcast.
And you can subscribe to ourvery infrequent newsletter to

(01:29:18):
get book recommendations,questions we're pondering,
behind-the-scenes glimpses intorecording the podcast, and more
via our website,waterpeoplepodcast.com.
Do you have big Thanksgivingplans?

SPEAKER_05 (01:29:32):
I'm against Thanksgiving.
Why?

SPEAKER_01 (01:29:35):
I've never heard anyone say that.

SPEAKER_05 (01:29:37):
Because Rasta told me to never celebrate it.
Who's that guy?

SPEAKER_07 (01:29:45):
Are you still vegan?
No, we're a long way from that.
No, that was an experiment in my20s that I discarded.

SPEAKER_05 (01:29:55):
It was like me, Shane Doran, Donovan, Parko.
And you were like, you didn'twant us to eat turkey.
And you came in and you werelooking at us like, really gonna
eat that?

SPEAKER_04 (01:30:11):
Don't do it.
Rasta.
I have to.

SPEAKER_05 (01:30:20):
Because I cared about your opinion so much, but
I was so hungry.

SPEAKER_07 (01:30:27):
Yeah, I see.
I don't remember that becausethere was such a haze of
nutrition deprivation.
Exactly.
It was just functional brainbegging for omegas.
Yeah.
So sorry.
I apologize to anyone in thatperiod for anything I'm ever
said or done.
Yeah.

(01:30:48):
No, my heart was probablyfreaking out.
Like, give me some fuckingnutrition.
Eating tofu in the corner on myown, all lonely and shit.

SPEAKER_00 (01:31:00):
An aura of vegan judgmentalism just eliminating.

SPEAKER_07 (01:31:05):
That's funny though, because yeah.
Well, anyway, I'll I was

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