December 12, 2023 • 41 mins
NYC area author Doug Robbins talks about his latest release “Baseball Dreams & Bikers” as a collection of short stories diving deeply into the human experience offering thought-provoking canvas upon which to contemplate life’s puzzling complexities including the search for identity, desperation & aspirations, the fragility of dreams, human resilience and more! Doug began his writing career at a young age when one of his teachers asked the class to write a poem, later attended college, joined the workforce, and continued to write in his spare time plus his previous releases “Narican: The Cloaked Deception” and “Love in a Dying Time”! Check out the amazing Doug Robbins and his latest release at many major retailers and www.douglasrobbinsauthor.com today! #dougrobbins #author #newyorkcity #narcian #baseballdreamsandbikers #loveinadyingtown #writing #searchforidentity #dreams #humanresilience #poems spreaker #iheartradio #spotify #applemusic #youtube #anchorfm #bitchute #rumble #mikewagner #themikewagnershow #mikewagnerdougrobbins #themikewagnershowdougrobbins
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(00:00):
The Mike Wagner Show is powered bysonicwebs Studios. Hi. This is also
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Hero trific gentleman who began his writingcareer at a young age and one of
his teachers asked to class to writea poem. And he also attended college,
joined the workforce, and continued towrite in the spare time. And
his writing career reflects a deep senseof purpose and his stories garner critical acclaim,
(01:38):
and what they are we'll find moreabout that. He's got a brand
new book, Or Is a collectionof short stories diving deeply into the human
experience and offering a thought provoking canvasupon which to contemplate life's puzzling complexities.
He's also written a book Narsian IfI got that right, Khan, Yes,
(01:59):
The Cloak Deception and Love in aDying Town. And he's got a
new book out there called Baseball Dreamsand Bikers, And we're going to find
out what those baseball dreams are.If you're a Mets fan, Yankee fan,
Red Sox fan, you'll want tolisten up here Live Ladies and Gentlemen
of the Plus Studios from somewhere inthe Catskills of New York State as well.
And he's got a book of collectionshort stories diving deeply into human experience.
(02:22):
He's got the new book Baseball Dreamsand Bikers. Lais and Gentlemen,
the multi talented Doug Robins, Doug, good morning, good afternoon, Eaving.
Thanks for ting, Thank you forthat intro, Mike, you know,
thank you very much, glad tobe here. What It's great to
have you on board as well too. And I love that title. By
the way, we'll get more intothat, but first, you began your
writing career at a young age whenone of your teachers asked a class to
(02:44):
write a poem. You attended college, joined the workforce, continue to write
in your spare time. You alsohave a writing career there reflects a deep
sense of purpose and your stories havegained critical acclaim. And you also have
your book Narakhan, The Cloak Deception, Loving a Dying Time and your book
Baseball Dreams and Bikers. It's acollection of short stories diving deeply into the
(03:04):
human experience, and it's offering thoughtprovoking canvas which contemplates life puzzling complexities.
And before getting all that, maybea little bait baseball. Tell us how
I first got started, Doug,How I first got started writing? Just
overall in your career. You know, how'd your first guest start? Go
back to the beginning. Beginning?The beginning was, you know, when
(03:27):
I was a kid, I reallyrejected school and really a lot of the
institutions that we were sort of thrustinto, and I just felt like there
was something a little off in theoffering, something I didn't distrust. But
I was always fascinated with words andideas, and so I would often be
in the woods and just kind ofcontemplating things. But also I realized in
the woods there was no demands beingput upon me. I was simply being
(03:53):
and because of that, I hadthe space and the time to sort of
pursue some of these ideas. Soas I got a little older, I
was in a band and I startedwriting some lyrics. But really where I
found a power in the words wasin that poem that I wrote for that
one class. Now, I didn'tget a lot of out of boys from
my father, if you will,so I felt like kind of off an
(04:14):
unseen quite often with him, andso I had written this this little poem
and it was sort of one ofthe times that I see that he laughed.
He actually like kind of acknowledged it, and I thought one of the
lines, if I may say,it, was like religion is the lifelong
betrayal. All you do is puta lot of money in the mail something
like that. Whatever it was,just you know, that's that's a good
(04:38):
point. I like that one.That's rather clever too. Put it in
the mail and just pray against there. So that's right, that's right.
So I got, like, youknow, a nice response from him,
and then also from the class andfrom the teacher, and I thought,
there's something to this. And inthe words there there was a power in
the words that I didn't feel anywhereelse in my life. And so that
(04:58):
kind of started the trajectory of writing. Mm hmm. That's really interesting.
And what was that one precise momentbesides what you talked about that influenced you
into what you're doing for us ofyour career, especially with writing your first
book, second book, or anyof those books, you know, Mike,
It was really just it was morenecessity than anything, sort of that
(05:18):
burning desire, that fire in thebelly, if you will, that just
kept calling to me no matter whatI was doing, kind of burying it
or jobs or partying or whatever.That longing was always there calling to me,
and so at one point my mother. So I'd always I had written,
(05:39):
but I never knew what I waswriting for exactly, just more observations.
And then my mother had passed awaywhen I was twenty, and that,
you know, obviously put my lifein a tailspin, and my father's
and my sisters, and I startedwriting this sort of homage to her about
young love and a parent with cancer, but a contrand because you have the
(06:01):
kids who are in love and yetthe parent is sick. So how do
you love someone when you know someoneclose to is sick and dying. So
sort of that contrasting storyline. AndI never really finished it because it was
I didn't know how to write though. That's the problem. I didn't understand
story arc or character development or youknow, good dialogue. So I had
(06:26):
written it, and then you know, I'd moved to New York City and
sent the book out, thinking thesky was going to open and doves were
going to be released, and allI heard were crickets, and so that
was so disheartening. But you know, again, when you when you have
something that's yours, even if youbury it or let it go and if
it comes back to you, thenit must be yours and you must be
(06:47):
in So I'd stopped writing for acouple of years because I was in such
a dark place, just partying,you know, feeling sorry for myself,
feeling like the victim that that Godhad forgotten me, if you will.
And then eventually writing started creeping backinto my life, and so I started.
I finally finished a first novel calledThe Reluctant Human, which is really
(07:09):
about regrets and getting off the paththat you're supposed to be on. And
truly, that's what a lot ofstories are are is so easy to get
off the path of where we're tryingto go because pain gets in the way
or bad choices getting the way,and we find ourselves down the wrong road
and going how the heck did weget here? And how do we get
back over there? Oh? Exactly, I know exactly what you mean on
(07:31):
that one too. And of courseyou know you enjoy writing and everything else,
and you know everything else like thatby why we're not taking phone calls
on the show, and and andof course you did a little bit of
writing, you did a little bitof reading yourself, and I know you've
done, writing off on, readoff on everything else. Where are some
of your favorite authors and writers growingup? Herman hess was a big influence
(07:57):
of mine because he sort of spokein deep manner about general topics could be
war or relationship, whatever it mightbe, but there was always a deeper,
spiritual emotional sense to it, thatdeeper humanity, that kind of that
current that runs through the characters.Hemingway, Henry Miller was a big influence
of mine because he wrote this bluntsort of realist writing that really just grabbed
(08:22):
you by the collar and didn't letyou go. So those are some of
the heroes. Jack Kerouac, youknow, number of folks, but you
know, I like that kind ofrealist humanity that runs through stories, that
there's a deeper sense to the characters. And what are some of the stories
that you have mainly written about?Where are some of the stories that you
(08:43):
felt really stood out, you know, you know, besides life like what
particular are some of the stories you'vewritten about. Well, my last book
before Baseball, Dreams and Bikers,is called Love in a Dying Town And
I saw you might remember a coupleof years ago in Flint, Michigan and
they were really struggling with water,right, Yeah, I remember that,
(09:03):
and I did find out by theway I was gonna interrupt, But the
real cause of it, Keith Moon, twenty one years old, drove his
Lincoln Cottonell into the Halldien Pool,that star of the water problem right there.
So KEITHO was the starter, huhhe was. He was a truck
baker twenty one years old drove hisbrand new Lincoln cotton Nell into the Holdian
Pool, and that's where the waterproblem started. I tell people that nobody
(09:26):
believes me, right, right,right, that's a tough theory to porch
there. But so you know,I started thinking, like, you know,
it's not the story is not reallyabout Flint, Michigan. But it's
about a dying factory town. Butpeople still live there. They're trying to
raise families, and they're still showingthe kids right from wrong. So it
(09:46):
was sort of the American dream pittedagainst the American nightmare, if you will.
Uh. And so you know there'sa father's that he's really a single
father. The mother is in thepicture for the most proposus kind of crazy
and destructive and sort of competitive withtheir one child. She's a drinker,
and the father sort of has tokind of get her away from the child
(10:09):
because she's a bad influence and damagingthis sweet girl that they have together.
So the father's trying to keep itall together himself and be an honorable man
and show her right form wrong andnot go to the bottle himself. So
it's sort of that is like,how do you show someone right from wrong?
And so much is going wrong aroundyou, But because you're a father,
(10:33):
you still have to find the goodand you still have to show the
child the way. So it's reallyabout courage and sacrifice and community coming together,
and that's ultimately what it's We're alwaysabout, right is people coming together
in time of need. So Ithink it's a very sweet little story.
But so love in a dying townis sort of one of those stories that,
like I said, the American backdropof a dying factory town, foreclosures,
(10:56):
et cetera, but still trying tomake a life mm hm. And
also too that you know, youknow, besides Wint and everything else,
though it was just about Flint,Michigan or there are some other towns now
it's not about Flint, Michigan atall, it's really a made up town.
But you know, there are somany towns throughout the country, Allentown,
Pennsylvania, Flint, Michigan, youknow, places in Indiana, all
(11:18):
over the country where factories you know, have left and to go you know,
other other countries. And the townsare left dying basically because all of
the money has pulled out. Butwhere do the people go? Still people
there? Mm hmm. And Ithink that's a really interesting story as well
too. And of course we'll goon to Narcan the Cloak Deception and a
(11:41):
bit more about that one. Yeah, so Narakan is an interesting one.
I had never written sci fi,but I started thinking, like, you
know, there's all these sci fimovies and Marble and all that, but
what if there was a deeper sciencefiction, you know, science fiction slash
fantasy. You can really expand theboundaries of reality. Right. You can
(12:03):
only do that so much in aregular story, but when you're in that
genre, you can really expand itout. And so it's really about the
dark and light within each of us. But yet in this there are entities
fighting over that. So there areother worldly entities fighting over the good and
bad in America. And not America. Earth is the base or the bottom
(12:28):
of the sension beings evolution, Sothat's kind of what it's about. It's
really about the spiritual evolution of humans, and so the negative or the dark
forces are trying to stop that.So that beacon you have within that's always
trying to propel you forward, thedark forces are trying to crack that code,
if you will, to submerge humanityinto permanent darkness and thus stop the
(12:54):
evolution of souls. And that's araally interesting content as well too. And
we'll talk about your book of BaseballDreams and Barkers with Doug Robbins. But
first listen to the Mike Whiteners Showat the Mike Widners Show dot com powered
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PayPal, and The Mike Whitners Showdot com. But here were the
amazing author Doug Robbins of Baseball Dreamsand Bikers here on The Mike Whitener's Show,
(15:09):
and it all started writing up onhim and a couple of books later,
He's got Baseball Dreams and Bikers,and you know, tell us more
about that, you know, especiallyBaseball Dreams and Bikers. But first,
how'd you come up with a name? By the way, I worked at
that name because you know, itwas really about So. There are three
stories in the book. The longestone is the title. Book, you
(15:31):
know, is basically a novella BaseballJames and Bikers, and it's it's so
has Americana running through it, cornfields, baseball bikers, and I started thinking,
look what is It was actually calledThe Biker and the Kid. Initially
I was like, no, that'sthat's that was more just a working title
while I was writing it, andI said, okay, I need something
(15:52):
more that really grabs the imagination ofwhat is. So started working at the
title and just it eventually came outas Baseball Dreams of Bikers. Like,
that's it. How do you likethat? And how does the baseball you
know, intertwine with the dreams andthe bikers? How's all manage to intertwine?
Well, so there's a baseball prodigy, he's a high school baseball player,
(16:15):
and his parents, you know,he the father lose the job.
So the parents are now fighting andthey become separated, so that the kid
starts going down the wrong path,starts getting into partying, and he doesn't
realize that he's getting further away fromhis dream. And I think this is
what happens to everyone is they don'trealize it because the dream remains the same,
(16:37):
but you're not the same. Rightyou start doing things that are pulling
you away from it, thinking badthings, et cetera. And so he
starts going down the wrong road.Even though he's still playing, he's not
playing as well. Coaches like,what's wrong with you, guys, Like
you're taking a really bad time nowto slump. I'll be okay, coach,
I'll be okay. But he's notgonna be okay until an ex con
(17:00):
uncle who just gets out of prisonbasically starts intervening in a very tough manner,
if you will. And the kiddoes not like it at all,
does not like him, is notproud of his uncle. But his uncle
does not care. His uncle hasbeen there, done that, and he
sees what's going on because he losthis own dream as a kid. So
that's it in a nutshell. It'sa you know about family dynamics, like
(17:25):
I said, Americana, But it'sreally about holding onto those dreams and they
are so easily slipped away. Andso what if you had someone who was
aware of that and was saying,hey, no, no, no,
come back over here, let's correct, let's course correct a little bit.
But it doesn't happen, and thenwe realized ten twenty years later, oh
(17:47):
if I had only done X.And that's why the first story is called
someone Anonymous, which is about peoplewith regrets that they feel like there's someone
yet they feel like they're living theiranonymous lives because they did not fulfill the
dream. And it's also important thatit helps you reflag to multifaceted and of
(18:07):
course, you know self discovery beingso important, self for question, everything
like that, and it's all revolvingaround the South, yes, sir,
absolutely, and also too that youknow, having like aspirations and everything else.
And of course I'm thinking about baseball. I'm thinking about you know,
you know, baseball dreams, baseballteams and everything else. And by the
(18:30):
way, speaking of baseball, who'syour favorite baseball team? Well, I
grew up just outside of the Bronx, so the Yankees have been in I
know, they're a big empire andthey're big corporation and they make a lot
of terrible decisions. But still aYankee fan, Well, I got to
say that I think they were runningalone, neck and neck well with Boston,
(18:51):
Baltimore, Tampa Bay, and allof a sudden they had what the
heck almost franchise record walk twelve fifteengame losing streak and went down to last
place, like, oh my gosh. And I think were bad, uh
huh. And I think I don'tblame the team. I blame the front
office. Oh yeah, still alive, Billy Martin or whoever's in charge,
(19:15):
Joe Tory and all that, likeseveral times to get the message across.
Yeah yeah, but yeah, Imean it's just they were once proud.
I think they got a little arrogant, and Hubris kind of gotten their way
of good decisions, uh huh.And and I and I still enjoyed Aaron
Judges, you know, break breakingup, you gotta love him. Just
(19:37):
you might not like the Yankees,but you gotta love Judge period, you
know, right. Yeah, AndI remember the days of horm Pasada was
our ninety seven any Pettitt and allthose guys. I think that that was
where like the best here that youreally enjoyed watching Yankees? Oh that it
was like, yeah, everything waslike either Boston, Baltimore, Tampa Bay
and like, oh my goodness,you know yeah, yeah, no,
(20:00):
that was the quite an era ninetysix to two thousand. Yeah, fun
to watch. Oh, definitely too. And of course you know we all
have our dreams and aspirations as welltoo. And of course you also have
a story there called Charlie Hero inthe book and tell us why I do
I do? Well? You knowit's funny, Mike. When I was
(20:21):
writing, I wrote all these storiesseparately. There was never an intention of
putting them into an anthology together.And then I had them all finished,
I was like, hey, there'sa theme running through all of these stories,
and that is dreams being seen andliving that best life. And dreams
are not like, they're not disconnectedfrom who we are. They are built
(20:47):
within us, and if we arenot upholding or driving forward towards them,
we often have regrets. We feelsmall, we feel unseen, we'd feel
like we're not living the life weshould be living. So Charlie Hero is
a He's a middle aged writer whois a very sweet, innocent soul.
He lives in New York City,works at a bookstore. He wrote a
(21:07):
self published book, but he can'tget any respect. He doesn't have the
pedigree, he doesn't have the connections, he does not have an MFA,
he's not connected by any stretch.And so he just turned fifty and he's
getting desperate, you know, andso he takes matters into his own hands
(21:30):
to get on the New York Timesbestseller list. And I will leave it
at that. I see, Okay. I was hoping to give a little
word of encouragement and how to geton the New York Times best seller list?
Was it legally or illy? That'sthat's the only question I was going
to ask you. We'll have itas the ultimate left hanger. Legal or
(21:52):
illegal? Say that I could answerthe question, No, it was not
legal. Okay, we got thatright, So we can courage everybody to
get the book. Baseball Dream andBikers with Doug Rylin's on the Mike Wadner's
Show, and of course you talkabout the family dynamics, and of course,
you know, you know why it'sso important, family bonds and everything
else, and you know, maybea bit more with your experience or person's
(22:14):
experience, and you know the daysof social media, and you know,
we got Instagram, Facebook and well, I say, tech talk, threads
and just about everything under the sun. And it seems like that the family
dynamic has changed. And you know, how can families still manage to come
together or be stronger together despite allthe bombardment with the social media? Yeah,
(22:37):
I mean all of us. Youknow, it's a sickness if we're
on it too much, and itreally affects us deeply, kind of scrambles
our brains and puts a lot ofgarbage in there as well. You can
find some good stuff as well,but it's just random, you know,
random algorithms, you know, builtfor you. But you know, like
with anything, you have to youhave to put time into it. You
know, family, you have todo things. You have to have try
(22:59):
to have dinner together or take youknow, go to events together and just
make sure you have that bond,especially when you have a child. We
have a child who's fourteen, andyou know, she's on her phone a
lot, and it's so important todo things and get her off of it
and get her back to being akid. And I think there's a big
(23:21):
parsture as well too, that youalso have like the simple themes, but
you have the complex themes and youknow about just throughout the book and maybe
just how you manage to intertwine andeverything else. I mean, you've got
some like of course you have theability of making the complex issues into simple
ones. Well, thank you.That's very kind of you. I mean,
(23:45):
the stories are simple in themselves,but our day to day stories are
simple in themselves. But it's thecomplexities that are deeper down right, the
things that we're feeling and the thingswe're longing for in the struggle that we're
feeling and often feeling them alone.So that's the stuff I try to bring
to the surface, things that areoften maybe swept under the rug or not
(24:07):
addressed. And you know, mentalhealth is something. But you know,
just honoring each other. You know, it's so easy to tear each other
down. You see that a loton the news and social media, people
tearing each other down or presenting thattheir lives are perfect or whatever it might
be. But if we just honoredeach other a little bit more and honored
(24:33):
who we truly are trying to be. Instead of tearing down, how about
we lift up and encourage and acknowledge. Like I said, everybody is trying
to be seen. That's really Ithink what it's social media is about.
And when doing these selfies all thetime, it's not that. Really they
want to put a thousand selfies up. They want to be seen, And
(24:53):
I don't mean in a vain,superficial manner. I mean in that they
matter and that they have purpose inthis life. And where do you think
at what point life has gotten awayfrom its purpose? What point do you
think it has been like euro wiseor event wise, everything like that,
And what point do you think purposehas just escape from us? It's like
(25:18):
anything, Mike. I mean,if you keep like I was saying earlier
about the dreams, if you keepstepping away from that in the wrong direction,
it's going to seem like it's animpossible feat. But it's not.
You just start stepping back into thatdirection, you start course correcting. It's
not all at once, because itdoesn't happen, it doesn't unfold all at
once. So maybe a little bitless on the social media, a little
(25:41):
bit more on your health or eatingbetter, or just maybe listening to a
positive podcast or you know, hearingyou know whatever, or reading something or
going for a walk in the woods. Slight changes make a big difference.
So it becomes as incremental change forgood or for bad. And you look
at our politics right now. Imean the country looks like it's just ready
(26:04):
to, you know, implode.Correct. Yeah, And I see it
all the time, and I justsimply switch it off, do something else.
You just get bombard on all channels. Remember that Bruce Springsteen song back
in ninety two, fifty seven channelsand nothing on. Remember that song,
There you go, There you go. Yeah, that's right. And I
was thinking about the other day.I was going over with a friend of
(26:26):
mine and they said, remember BruceSpringsteen complained about fifty seven channels and nothing
on, and now all of asudden, we got about over a million
channels on all the outlets and there'sstill nothing going on. Well, Pink
Floyd even said it before that thirteenchannels of shit on my TV to choose
from. I totally forgot about that. That was was it nobody home from
(26:52):
the wall? Go? Oh mygosh, I can't. I'm glad you
brought that up. I totally forgotabout that line. I got to implement
that into my conversation. I'm soglad you brought that up. Oh my
gosh. Yeah. But you know, the thing is people think social media
is this immediate gratification, right,but that's not how life works. And
(27:17):
so it's fine when we're sad orwe want to escape, but maybe there's
something we need to address that we'retrying to escape from, because that's not
going to actually feed you or healyou or change your life, but constantly
escaping into whatever social media is.So again we need to kind of pull
back and spend a little time withourselves because you say, well there's a
(27:42):
little shit to garbage to choose from, and say, well, there's things
on if you just want to watchfootball, you want to watch a movie,
great, but what are you doingwith the rest of the day.
It's very easy to escape, butthe problem is you're not actually escaping anything.
Momentarily some discomfort, but it doesn'thelp you any time keeps ticking by
(28:03):
mm hmm. And of course youknow there's also a job. There's also
you know, working out of thehome, a hobby and everything else.
And I'll watching a football game,maybe it, Jesse would be a good
escape or maybe not. You know, depends on whose quarterbacking. You know
what the best escape is talking toa friend, laughing, being someone,
being with someone you love m hm. And also having a pet, and
(28:26):
also reading a good book as well. Yes, yes, right, and
that I know have a great bookfor people to read. That's right,
Baseball Dreams and Bikers. And beforewe get more into that, what you
know, actually, I think wewill contemplate on that. We'll return with
author Doug Robbins of Baseball Dreams andBikers just to a few more things to
(28:48):
listen to The Mike Whitner's Show atthe Mike Widner Show dot Com, powered
by SONCWAB Studios and brought to bearofficial sponsor The Mike Whitner's Show, International
Warring outhor Me and most of themissing. We'll be back author Doug Robbins
Baseball dream and Bikers after this time. The Mike Wagner Show is powered by
Sonicweb Studios. If you're looking tostart or upgrade your online presence, visit
www dot Sonicwebstudios dot com. Forall of your online needs, call one
(29:14):
eight hundred three oh three three ninesix zero or visit us online at www
dot Sonicwebstudios dot com. To getstarted today, mention the Mike Wagner Show
and get twenty percent off your project. Sonicweb Studios take your image to the
next level. Hey, everybody,my name is Forbes Riley and I'm an
American actress and a TV host.And I was delighted when I got my
(29:37):
copy of Missing, which is extraordinaryrelation of ordinary people based on a real
life relationship. It's just it's wellwritten. It's amazing, you know.
It talks about a man who haslost his wife and his daughter, and
it's very well done. I'm goingto highly recommend that you go get your
copy of Missing. It is apowerful, exciting read. Mister me and
Mosha Zia he is the author ofMissing, and I want to give a
(30:00):
big shout out and got a kissall the way half way around the world
to my dear friend. Check himout a MIA's website. It's called www
dot mea motion Zeia dot com.Missing available on Amazon again. I'm Forbes
Riley and I will see you againsoon. By Hey. Hey, this
is Ray Powers and boy, areyou in luck right place, right time?
(30:23):
Tuned into the Mike Wagner Show.You heard me We're back with author
Doc Robbins of Baseball Dreams and Bikershere on the Mike Wagner's Show. And
of course, if you think we'llbe talking baseball, well I think you'll
have to go to MLB dot com. You're talking dreams you've got right here.
And bikers, well, I guessthat's a different story. And have
(30:45):
you wanted to become a biker?I am a biker. I've been a
biker ever since I was a kid. I've had had many bikes and then
Hondas and I've been riding my wholelife. So right now I have a
triumph and just took a ten thwith my wife, she just started writing
this year. We took a tenday ride up to Vermont in New Hampshire
(31:06):
and Maine and pretty stunning. Soyes, that is fascinating. We encourage
every to do the same thing.And of course, you know, you
know, take it in a goodbook like Baseball dream and Bikers as well
too. And what are some ofyour favorite books you've written the past,
you know, speaking of good lurturethat I've read in the past, correct,
yeah, or your favorite books?I should say? Yeah, So
(31:27):
Tril I mentioned Henry Miller before Tropicof Cancer was was really prophetic to me.
It just, you know, asfar as writing, for me,
it was the bible of writing becauseit was so raw, so in your
face, but so well written.It wasn't the traditional Okay, you have
to have this perfect beginning middle landand this beautiful story arc and the character
(31:51):
needs to develop and all these things. And there was some of that,
but just the writing, the datedday observations and crafting of prose was so
prophetic. I carried that book withme everywhere I went and I probably read
it ten times. That is soamazing as well too. And what can
people get from a book baseball dreamsand bikers? What can they get from
(32:13):
it? I think a reflection oftheir own lives. You know, I'm
getting so many nice comments from peopleand just saying how it profoundly affected that
One woman was saying, So thefirst story is someone anonymous. It's sort
of a group therapy idea, sortof like a play on alcoholics anonymous,
(32:34):
but like I said, for someonepeople feeling that there's someone, but they
feel anonymous. And so many peoplehave said, like this book, I've
gone to therapy, I've done this. I've done that, and this book
made me cry. This story touchedme in these places that I haven't been
able to get to in the grouptherapies that I've gone to. So,
you know, I think why it'swhy the stories matter is because the universal
(33:00):
everybody has choices that they made thatthey are regretful about. Everybody has something
relationship wise that they feel like maybethey let somebody down or let themselves down.
But you know, the truth isthe theme through the book are dreams,
but there's always hope in these indreams. So that's really what the
(33:22):
story is. Why it's many peoplesee it's so compelling to so many people,
I guess is because it is abouteveryone. Okay, you know I'm
not writing about like spies in Norway. You know, like I'm writing about
again day to day people who aregoing through what they're going through. There's
(33:44):
one gentleman at the beginning of someoneAnonymous the first story in the book,
who feels like his life was awaste. He feels like he, you
know, he failed himself. Butthe moderator says, you know, really
is that true. Let's break downthat. Well, you have two kids
who are very successful. You hada great marriage. So maybe your life
(34:04):
wasn't a waste. Maybe just lookingat it wrong, hm that maybe your
dream is still there, you justgot to act on it or hasn't come
to you as of yet. Youknow, it just makes me think of
a song by Dire Straits when itcomes to you, and you know,
it just makes me think of itright there. You know some of the
Dire Straight songs just kind of relateto that when it comes to you.
That's what makes me think of it. Well, you have you have to
(34:28):
be a participant in your life,right You have to be an active participant.
You can't be passive. People arenot going to show but your door
and say, hey, you're great. You know, let's help help you
make this come true. But ifyou take actions, there is an equal
reaction. And that's why I think. Look, I said, the story,
the story Someone Anonymous is about sixdifferent people. There's one moderator and
(34:50):
one guy feels one guy is bitter, one guy feels like a loser,
one woman feels like her husband takesadvantage of her. There's an artist in
there. You know. People createthe constructs of their lives and they get
stuck in them. And we've alldone it. I've certainly done it,
and we feel like this is allthere is. But this is just a
creation of the mind. And onceyou start pulling at the strings of these
(35:15):
things, these constructs start falling awayand you realize, oh, I'm still
this same person with the same longing. And if I just take some actions,
it doesn't have to be some grandiosething. But if I start taking
some actions and start stepping in thisdirection of the light, your life changes.
Your perspective, changes the way youfeel, the way you wake up
(35:37):
in the morning. And that's wheredreams are found. It is not in
some abstraction. It is something thatyou are capable of being because that was
what you are meant to be.Mm hm. And I think that's very
important as well too. And wherecan we find your book Baseball Dreams and
Bikers And what's the website? Well, you can find an Amazon and Nobles
(36:00):
anywhere that sells books. And mywebsite is Douglas robbinsauthor dot com. If
anybody wants to sign up, youget a free story on my website and
then you start getting emails about youknow, new releases. I have a
podcast called The Den of discussion reallyabout the human condition, creativity, you
know, spirituality, mental health,et cetera. So yeah, can find
(36:21):
me at Douglas Robbins author dot com. We'll certainly do that as well.
We heard author Doug Robbins of Baseball, Dreams and Bikers here on the Mike
Waiener Show. Just a couple morethings. What else can we expect me
in twenty twenty three going into twentytwenty four. Am beyond well, Michael.
Excellent question, sir. So I'mfinishing up or halfway through Narakan two,
(36:43):
Rise of the Dark King, andthen I'm trying to finish up a
novella about Native Americans. Again.They deserve to be honored and to be
acknowledged, and I feel like thecountry has done such a disservice to them
in general for hundreds of years.And I feel like my voice is one
(37:07):
to bring the oppressed into the light. So I feel like people that are
not getting anything that's, like Isaid, swept under the rug or pushed
aside or something. Maybe that's adifficult conversation. Those are important conversations to
have, and certainly it do aswell too. We're looking forward to have
you on for that, and whodo you consider biggest influence in your career.
(37:34):
I'm gonna say my wife. Sheis a a she's tough, she
demands the most of me. Idemand the most of her as well.
So I think we really push eachother to be our best, because do
you want to be around someone who'salways feeling sorry for himself? And that's
that was me for for several years. And she's like, you're better,
You're better than this, and shewas right. I'm gonna say my wife.
(38:00):
And that's a really good answer aswell too. It's great to have
support. And what's the best adviceyou can give to any bote this point?
You know, it's easy to feelalone in this world and in our
lives. And that's the beauty ofbooks sometimes or music is you connect and
you don't feel so alone. Sothere are people like you out there,
(38:22):
so please reach out. And youknow, like there's so much love.
We all want love. Well,you have beauty in you, you have
loving you, please don't push itaside. And that's exactly a really good
point as well. We're with authorDoug Robbins of Baseball Dreams and Bikers here
on the Mike Widener's Show. DougA very big thanks you time. You've
(38:44):
been absolutely fantastic, Learned a lotfrom you, Looking forward to having him
soon, Keep us up to date, keep in touch, love avy back
again. What's your website? Howdo people contact you? Where can people
purchase or check out your books?Douglas Robins author dot com or you could
go to Amazon on or Brons andNobles Baseball Dreams of Bikers, or checkout
Love and a Dyntown or any ofthose books mentioned. But it's been such
(39:06):
a pleasure being on the show,Mike, and it's great to have you
on as well. Once getting DougA very big thanks me time. You've
been absy fantastic, looking forward tohaving again soon. Give us up to
eight, keep in touch live,ave you back, wish all best and
Doug, you definfe have a greatfuture have you? Thank you, sir.
I appreciate it you well now.The Mike Wagner Show is powered by
sonicwebs Studios. If you're looking tostart or upgrade your online presence, visit
(39:27):
www dot Sonicwebstudios dot com. Forall of your online needs call one eight
hundred three oh three three nine sixzero or visit us online at www dot
Sonicwebstudios dot com to get started today. Mention the Mike Wagner Show and get
twenty percent off your project. SonicwebStudios take your image to the next level.
(39:50):
Hey, everybody, my name isForbes Riley and I'm an American actress
and a TV host. And Iwas delighted when I got my copy of
Missing, which is extraordinary relation ofa ordinary people based on a real life
relationship. It's just it's well written. It's amazing, you know. It
talks about a man who has losthis wife and his daughter, and it's
very well done. I'm gonna highlyrecommend that you go get your copy of
(40:13):
Missing. It is a powerful,exciting read. Mister me and Mosha Zia.
He is the author of Missing,and I want to give a big
shout out got a kiss all theway half way around the world to my
dear friend. Check him out atMIA's website. It's called www dot Miamotionzia
dot com. Missing available on Amazonagain. I'm Forbes Riley and I will
(40:34):
see you again soon. Bye bye. Thanks for listening to The Mike Wagner
Show, brought to you by internationalaward winning author Mia Moss and Zia of
Missing Empowered by Sonic Web Studio.Be sure to join us again on over
(40:54):
forty podcast platforms and of course onthe Mike Wagnershow dot com, Hamilton Radio
dot nets and Diamonds FM. Don'tforget to support our program with a generous
donation at the Mike Wigner Show dotcom. Thanks for listening.
The Mike Wagner Show is powered bysonicwebs Studios. Hi. This is also
known as MEA No Time for Love. Check out my latest book, Missing,
available in print and eboofore match onAmazon. It's now time for The
Mike Wagner Show. Powered by SonicwebStudios and sponsored by international award winning author
(00:22):
Mia mosen Zia of Missing. TheMike Wagner Show can be heard on over
forty podcast platforms, as well asHamilton Radio dot Net, Diamonds FN,
and The Mike Wagner Show dot Com. We can be heard in over one
hundred countries, featuring over one thousandwell known and amazing guests throughout the globe,
(00:43):
and named one of the top onehundred global podcasts in the New York
Weekly Times, Hollywood Entertainment News,Los Angeles Weekly Times, Apple, and
Charterble. So sit back and relaxand enjoy another great episode of the award
winning Mike Wagner Shower Bytes Mike fromMike Whidner's Show, powered by sonc Web
(01:14):
Studios and brought to you by officialsponsor to Mike Widner's show, International warring
author Miamilton's The Missing, Available onAmazon and paperback in the book, We're
Hero trific gentleman who began his writingcareer at a young age and one of
his teachers asked to class to writea poem. And he also attended college,
joined the workforce, and continued towrite in the spare time. And
his writing career reflects a deep senseof purpose and his stories garner critical acclaim,
(01:38):
and what they are we'll find moreabout that. He's got a brand
new book, Or Is a collectionof short stories diving deeply into the human
experience and offering a thought provoking canvasupon which to contemplate life's puzzling complexities.
He's also written a book Narsian IfI got that right, Khan, Yes,
(01:59):
The Cloak Deception and Love in aDying Town. And he's got a
new book out there called Baseball Dreamsand Bikers, And we're going to find
out what those baseball dreams are.If you're a Mets fan, Yankee fan,
Red Sox fan, you'll want tolisten up here Live Ladies and Gentlemen
of the Plus Studios from somewhere inthe Catskills of New York State as well.
And he's got a book of collectionshort stories diving deeply into human experience.
(02:22):
He's got the new book Baseball Dreamsand Bikers. Lais and Gentlemen,
the multi talented Doug Robins, Doug, good morning, good afternoon, Eaving.
Thanks for ting, Thank you forthat intro, Mike, you know,
thank you very much, glad tobe here. What It's great to
have you on board as well too. And I love that title. By
the way, we'll get more intothat, but first, you began your
writing career at a young age whenone of your teachers asked a class to
(02:44):
write a poem. You attended college, joined the workforce, continue to write
in your spare time. You alsohave a writing career there reflects a deep
sense of purpose and your stories havegained critical acclaim. And you also have
your book Narakhan, The Cloak Deception, Loving a Dying Time and your book
Baseball Dreams and Bikers. It's acollection of short stories diving deeply into the
(03:04):
human experience, and it's offering thoughtprovoking canvas which contemplates life puzzling complexities.
And before getting all that, maybea little bait baseball. Tell us how
I first got started, Doug,How I first got started writing? Just
overall in your career. You know, how'd your first guest start? Go
back to the beginning. Beginning?The beginning was, you know, when
(03:27):
I was a kid, I reallyrejected school and really a lot of the
institutions that we were sort of thrustinto, and I just felt like there
was something a little off in theoffering, something I didn't distrust. But
I was always fascinated with words andideas, and so I would often be
in the woods and just kind ofcontemplating things. But also I realized in
the woods there was no demands beingput upon me. I was simply being
(03:53):
and because of that, I hadthe space and the time to sort of
pursue some of these ideas. Soas I got a little older, I
was in a band and I startedwriting some lyrics. But really where I
found a power in the words wasin that poem that I wrote for that
one class. Now, I didn'tget a lot of out of boys from
my father, if you will,so I felt like kind of off an
(04:14):
unseen quite often with him, andso I had written this this little poem
and it was sort of one ofthe times that I see that he laughed.
He actually like kind of acknowledged it, and I thought one of the
lines, if I may say,it, was like religion is the lifelong
betrayal. All you do is puta lot of money in the mail something
like that. Whatever it was,just you know, that's that's a good
(04:38):
point. I like that one.That's rather clever too. Put it in
the mail and just pray against there. So that's right, that's right.
So I got, like, youknow, a nice response from him,
and then also from the class andfrom the teacher, and I thought,
there's something to this. And inthe words there there was a power in
the words that I didn't feel anywhereelse in my life. And so that
(04:58):
kind of started the trajectory of writing. Mm hmm. That's really interesting.
And what was that one precise momentbesides what you talked about that influenced you
into what you're doing for us ofyour career, especially with writing your first
book, second book, or anyof those books, you know, Mike,
It was really just it was morenecessity than anything, sort of that
(05:18):
burning desire, that fire in thebelly, if you will, that just
kept calling to me no matter whatI was doing, kind of burying it
or jobs or partying or whatever.That longing was always there calling to me,
and so at one point my mother. So I'd always I had written,
(05:39):
but I never knew what I waswriting for exactly, just more observations.
And then my mother had passed awaywhen I was twenty, and that,
you know, obviously put my lifein a tailspin, and my father's
and my sisters, and I startedwriting this sort of homage to her about
young love and a parent with cancer, but a contrand because you have the
(06:01):
kids who are in love and yetthe parent is sick. So how do
you love someone when you know someoneclose to is sick and dying. So
sort of that contrasting storyline. AndI never really finished it because it was
I didn't know how to write though. That's the problem. I didn't understand
story arc or character development or youknow, good dialogue. So I had
(06:26):
written it, and then you know, I'd moved to New York City and
sent the book out, thinking thesky was going to open and doves were
going to be released, and allI heard were crickets, and so that
was so disheartening. But you know, again, when you when you have
something that's yours, even if youbury it or let it go and if
it comes back to you, thenit must be yours and you must be
(06:47):
in So I'd stopped writing for acouple of years because I was in such
a dark place, just partying,you know, feeling sorry for myself,
feeling like the victim that that Godhad forgotten me, if you will.
And then eventually writing started creeping backinto my life, and so I started.
I finally finished a first novel calledThe Reluctant Human, which is really
(07:09):
about regrets and getting off the paththat you're supposed to be on. And
truly, that's what a lot ofstories are are is so easy to get
off the path of where we're tryingto go because pain gets in the way
or bad choices getting the way,and we find ourselves down the wrong road
and going how the heck did weget here? And how do we get
back over there? Oh? Exactly, I know exactly what you mean on
(07:31):
that one too. And of courseyou know you enjoy writing and everything else,
and you know everything else like thatby why we're not taking phone calls
on the show, and and andof course you did a little bit of
writing, you did a little bitof reading yourself, and I know you've
done, writing off on, readoff on everything else. Where are some
of your favorite authors and writers growingup? Herman hess was a big influence
(07:57):
of mine because he sort of spokein deep manner about general topics could be
war or relationship, whatever it mightbe, but there was always a deeper,
spiritual emotional sense to it, thatdeeper humanity, that kind of that
current that runs through the characters.Hemingway, Henry Miller was a big influence
of mine because he wrote this bluntsort of realist writing that really just grabbed
(08:22):
you by the collar and didn't letyou go. So those are some of
the heroes. Jack Kerouac, youknow, number of folks, but you
know, I like that kind ofrealist humanity that runs through stories, that
there's a deeper sense to the characters. And what are some of the stories
that you have mainly written about?Where are some of the stories that you
(08:43):
felt really stood out, you know, you know, besides life like what
particular are some of the stories you'vewritten about. Well, my last book
before Baseball, Dreams and Bikers,is called Love in a Dying Town And
I saw you might remember a coupleof years ago in Flint, Michigan and
they were really struggling with water,right, Yeah, I remember that,
(09:03):
and I did find out by theway I was gonna interrupt, But the
real cause of it, Keith Moon, twenty one years old, drove his
Lincoln Cottonell into the Halldien Pool,that star of the water problem right there.
So KEITHO was the starter, huhhe was. He was a truck
baker twenty one years old drove hisbrand new Lincoln cotton Nell into the Holdian
Pool, and that's where the waterproblem started. I tell people that nobody
(09:26):
believes me, right, right,right, that's a tough theory to porch
there. But so you know,I started thinking, like, you know,
it's not the story is not reallyabout Flint, Michigan. But it's
about a dying factory town. Butpeople still live there. They're trying to
raise families, and they're still showingthe kids right from wrong. So it
(09:46):
was sort of the American dream pittedagainst the American nightmare, if you will.
Uh. And so you know there'sa father's that he's really a single
father. The mother is in thepicture for the most proposus kind of crazy
and destructive and sort of competitive withtheir one child. She's a drinker,
and the father sort of has tokind of get her away from the child
(10:09):
because she's a bad influence and damagingthis sweet girl that they have together.
So the father's trying to keep itall together himself and be an honorable man
and show her right form wrong andnot go to the bottle himself. So
it's sort of that is like,how do you show someone right from wrong?
And so much is going wrong aroundyou, But because you're a father,
(10:33):
you still have to find the goodand you still have to show the
child the way. So it's reallyabout courage and sacrifice and community coming together,
and that's ultimately what it's We're alwaysabout, right is people coming together
in time of need. So Ithink it's a very sweet little story.
But so love in a dying townis sort of one of those stories that,
like I said, the American backdropof a dying factory town, foreclosures,
(10:56):
et cetera, but still trying tomake a life mm hm. And
also too that you know, youknow, besides Wint and everything else,
though it was just about Flint,Michigan or there are some other towns now
it's not about Flint, Michigan atall, it's really a made up town.
But you know, there are somany towns throughout the country, Allentown,
Pennsylvania, Flint, Michigan, youknow, places in Indiana, all
(11:18):
over the country where factories you know, have left and to go you know,
other other countries. And the townsare left dying basically because all of
the money has pulled out. Butwhere do the people go? Still people
there? Mm hmm. And Ithink that's a really interesting story as well
too. And of course we'll goon to Narcan the Cloak Deception and a
(11:41):
bit more about that one. Yeah, so Narakan is an interesting one.
I had never written sci fi,but I started thinking, like, you
know, there's all these sci fimovies and Marble and all that, but
what if there was a deeper sciencefiction, you know, science fiction slash
fantasy. You can really expand theboundaries of reality. Right. You can
(12:03):
only do that so much in aregular story, but when you're in that
genre, you can really expand itout. And so it's really about the
dark and light within each of us. But yet in this there are entities
fighting over that. So there areother worldly entities fighting over the good and
bad in America. And not America. Earth is the base or the bottom
(12:28):
of the sension beings evolution, Sothat's kind of what it's about. It's
really about the spiritual evolution of humans, and so the negative or the dark
forces are trying to stop that.So that beacon you have within that's always
trying to propel you forward, thedark forces are trying to crack that code,
if you will, to submerge humanityinto permanent darkness and thus stop the
(12:54):
evolution of souls. And that's araally interesting content as well too. And
we'll talk about your book of BaseballDreams and Barkers with Doug Robbins. But
first listen to the Mike Whiteners Showat the Mike Widners Show dot com powered
by sound Quab Cdios. Visit onlineat soundquab Studios dot com. Full he
needs look at a professional website withoutbreaking and budget. Sonocrab Studios is the
(13:15):
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(13:37):
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PayPal, and The Mike Whitners Showdot com. But here were the
amazing author Doug Robbins of Baseball Dreamsand Bikers here on The Mike Whitener's Show,
(15:09):
and it all started writing up onhim and a couple of books later,
He's got Baseball Dreams and Bikers,and you know, tell us more
about that, you know, especiallyBaseball Dreams and Bikers. But first,
how'd you come up with a name? By the way, I worked at
that name because you know, itwas really about So. There are three
stories in the book. The longestone is the title. Book, you
(15:31):
know, is basically a novella BaseballJames and Bikers, and it's it's so
has Americana running through it, cornfields, baseball bikers, and I started thinking,
look what is It was actually calledThe Biker and the Kid. Initially
I was like, no, that'sthat's that was more just a working title
while I was writing it, andI said, okay, I need something
(15:52):
more that really grabs the imagination ofwhat is. So started working at the
title and just it eventually came outas Baseball Dreams of Bikers. Like,
that's it. How do you likethat? And how does the baseball you
know, intertwine with the dreams andthe bikers? How's all manage to intertwine?
Well, so there's a baseball prodigy, he's a high school baseball player,
(16:15):
and his parents, you know,he the father lose the job.
So the parents are now fighting andthey become separated, so that the kid
starts going down the wrong path,starts getting into partying, and he doesn't
realize that he's getting further away fromhis dream. And I think this is
what happens to everyone is they don'trealize it because the dream remains the same,
(16:37):
but you're not the same. Rightyou start doing things that are pulling
you away from it, thinking badthings, et cetera. And so he
starts going down the wrong road.Even though he's still playing, he's not
playing as well. Coaches like,what's wrong with you, guys, Like
you're taking a really bad time nowto slump. I'll be okay, coach,
I'll be okay. But he's notgonna be okay until an ex con
(17:00):
uncle who just gets out of prisonbasically starts intervening in a very tough manner,
if you will. And the kiddoes not like it at all,
does not like him, is notproud of his uncle. But his uncle
does not care. His uncle hasbeen there, done that, and he
sees what's going on because he losthis own dream as a kid. So
that's it in a nutshell. It'sa you know about family dynamics, like
(17:25):
I said, Americana, But it'sreally about holding onto those dreams and they
are so easily slipped away. Andso what if you had someone who was
aware of that and was saying,hey, no, no, no,
come back over here, let's correct, let's course correct a little bit.
But it doesn't happen, and thenwe realized ten twenty years later, oh
(17:47):
if I had only done X.And that's why the first story is called
someone Anonymous, which is about peoplewith regrets that they feel like there's someone
yet they feel like they're living theiranonymous lives because they did not fulfill the
dream. And it's also important thatit helps you reflag to multifaceted and of
(18:07):
course, you know self discovery beingso important, self for question, everything
like that, and it's all revolvingaround the South, yes, sir,
absolutely, and also too that youknow, having like aspirations and everything else.
And of course I'm thinking about baseball. I'm thinking about you know,
you know, baseball dreams, baseballteams and everything else. And by the
(18:30):
way, speaking of baseball, who'syour favorite baseball team? Well, I
grew up just outside of the Bronx, so the Yankees have been in I
know, they're a big empire andthey're big corporation and they make a lot
of terrible decisions. But still aYankee fan, Well, I got to
say that I think they were runningalone, neck and neck well with Boston,
(18:51):
Baltimore, Tampa Bay, and allof a sudden they had what the
heck almost franchise record walk twelve fifteengame losing streak and went down to last
place, like, oh my gosh. And I think were bad, uh
huh. And I think I don'tblame the team. I blame the front
office. Oh yeah, still alive, Billy Martin or whoever's in charge,
(19:15):
Joe Tory and all that, likeseveral times to get the message across.
Yeah yeah, but yeah, Imean it's just they were once proud.
I think they got a little arrogant, and Hubris kind of gotten their way
of good decisions, uh huh.And and I and I still enjoyed Aaron
Judges, you know, break breakingup, you gotta love him. Just
(19:37):
you might not like the Yankees,but you gotta love Judge period, you
know, right. Yeah, AndI remember the days of horm Pasada was
our ninety seven any Pettitt and allthose guys. I think that that was
where like the best here that youreally enjoyed watching Yankees? Oh that it
was like, yeah, everything waslike either Boston, Baltimore, Tampa Bay
and like, oh my goodness,you know yeah, yeah, no,
(20:00):
that was the quite an era ninetysix to two thousand. Yeah, fun
to watch. Oh, definitely too. And of course you know we all
have our dreams and aspirations as welltoo. And of course you also have
a story there called Charlie Hero inthe book and tell us why I do
I do? Well? You knowit's funny, Mike. When I was
(20:21):
writing, I wrote all these storiesseparately. There was never an intention of
putting them into an anthology together.And then I had them all finished,
I was like, hey, there'sa theme running through all of these stories,
and that is dreams being seen andliving that best life. And dreams
are not like, they're not disconnectedfrom who we are. They are built
(20:47):
within us, and if we arenot upholding or driving forward towards them,
we often have regrets. We feelsmall, we feel unseen, we'd feel
like we're not living the life weshould be living. So Charlie Hero is
a He's a middle aged writer whois a very sweet, innocent soul.
He lives in New York City,works at a bookstore. He wrote a
(21:07):
self published book, but he can'tget any respect. He doesn't have the
pedigree, he doesn't have the connections, he does not have an MFA,
he's not connected by any stretch.And so he just turned fifty and he's
getting desperate, you know, andso he takes matters into his own hands
(21:30):
to get on the New York Timesbestseller list. And I will leave it
at that. I see, Okay. I was hoping to give a little
word of encouragement and how to geton the New York Times best seller list?
Was it legally or illy? That'sthat's the only question I was going
to ask you. We'll have itas the ultimate left hanger. Legal or
(21:52):
illegal? Say that I could answerthe question, No, it was not
legal. Okay, we got thatright, So we can courage everybody to
get the book. Baseball Dream andBikers with Doug Rylin's on the Mike Wadner's
Show, and of course you talkabout the family dynamics, and of course,
you know, you know why it'sso important, family bonds and everything
else, and you know, maybea bit more with your experience or person's
(22:14):
experience, and you know the daysof social media, and you know,
we got Instagram, Facebook and well, I say, tech talk, threads
and just about everything under the sun. And it seems like that the family
dynamic has changed. And you know, how can families still manage to come
together or be stronger together despite allthe bombardment with the social media? Yeah,
(22:37):
I mean all of us. Youknow, it's a sickness if we're
on it too much, and itreally affects us deeply, kind of scrambles
our brains and puts a lot ofgarbage in there as well. You can
find some good stuff as well,but it's just random, you know,
random algorithms, you know, builtfor you. But you know, like
with anything, you have to youhave to put time into it. You
know, family, you have todo things. You have to have try
(22:59):
to have dinner together or take youknow, go to events together and just
make sure you have that bond,especially when you have a child. We
have a child who's fourteen, andyou know, she's on her phone a
lot, and it's so important todo things and get her off of it
and get her back to being akid. And I think there's a big
(23:21):
parsture as well too, that youalso have like the simple themes, but
you have the complex themes and youknow about just throughout the book and maybe
just how you manage to intertwine andeverything else. I mean, you've got
some like of course you have theability of making the complex issues into simple
ones. Well, thank you.That's very kind of you. I mean,
(23:45):
the stories are simple in themselves,but our day to day stories are
simple in themselves. But it's thecomplexities that are deeper down right, the
things that we're feeling and the thingswe're longing for in the struggle that we're
feeling and often feeling them alone.So that's the stuff I try to bring
to the surface, things that areoften maybe swept under the rug or not
(24:07):
addressed. And you know, mentalhealth is something. But you know,
just honoring each other. You know, it's so easy to tear each other
down. You see that a loton the news and social media, people
tearing each other down or presenting thattheir lives are perfect or whatever it might
be. But if we just honoredeach other a little bit more and honored
(24:33):
who we truly are trying to be. Instead of tearing down, how about
we lift up and encourage and acknowledge. Like I said, everybody is trying
to be seen. That's really Ithink what it's social media is about.
And when doing these selfies all thetime, it's not that. Really they
want to put a thousand selfies up. They want to be seen, And
(24:53):
I don't mean in a vain,superficial manner. I mean in that they
matter and that they have purpose inthis life. And where do you think
at what point life has gotten awayfrom its purpose? What point do you
think it has been like euro wiseor event wise, everything like that,
And what point do you think purposehas just escape from us? It's like
(25:18):
anything, Mike. I mean,if you keep like I was saying earlier
about the dreams, if you keepstepping away from that in the wrong direction,
it's going to seem like it's animpossible feat. But it's not.
You just start stepping back into thatdirection, you start course correcting. It's
not all at once, because itdoesn't happen, it doesn't unfold all at
once. So maybe a little bitless on the social media, a little
(25:41):
bit more on your health or eatingbetter, or just maybe listening to a
positive podcast or you know, hearingyou know whatever, or reading something or
going for a walk in the woods. Slight changes make a big difference.
So it becomes as incremental change forgood or for bad. And you look
at our politics right now. Imean the country looks like it's just ready
(26:04):
to, you know, implode.Correct. Yeah, And I see it
all the time, and I justsimply switch it off, do something else.
You just get bombard on all channels. Remember that Bruce Springsteen song back
in ninety two, fifty seven channelsand nothing on. Remember that song,
There you go, There you go. Yeah, that's right. And I
was thinking about the other day.I was going over with a friend of
(26:26):
mine and they said, remember BruceSpringsteen complained about fifty seven channels and nothing
on, and now all of asudden, we got about over a million
channels on all the outlets and there'sstill nothing going on. Well, Pink
Floyd even said it before that thirteenchannels of shit on my TV to choose
from. I totally forgot about that. That was was it nobody home from
(26:52):
the wall? Go? Oh mygosh, I can't. I'm glad you
brought that up. I totally forgotabout that line. I got to implement
that into my conversation. I'm soglad you brought that up. Oh my
gosh. Yeah. But you know, the thing is people think social media
is this immediate gratification, right,but that's not how life works. And
(27:17):
so it's fine when we're sad orwe want to escape, but maybe there's
something we need to address that we'retrying to escape from, because that's not
going to actually feed you or healyou or change your life, but constantly
escaping into whatever social media is.So again we need to kind of pull
back and spend a little time withourselves because you say, well there's a
(27:42):
little shit to garbage to choose from, and say, well, there's things
on if you just want to watchfootball, you want to watch a movie,
great, but what are you doingwith the rest of the day.
It's very easy to escape, butthe problem is you're not actually escaping anything.
Momentarily some discomfort, but it doesn'thelp you any time keeps ticking by
(28:03):
mm hmm. And of course youknow there's also a job. There's also
you know, working out of thehome, a hobby and everything else.
And I'll watching a football game,maybe it, Jesse would be a good
escape or maybe not. You know, depends on whose quarterbacking. You know
what the best escape is talking toa friend, laughing, being someone,
being with someone you love m hm. And also having a pet, and
(28:26):
also reading a good book as well. Yes, yes, right, and
that I know have a great bookfor people to read. That's right,
Baseball Dreams and Bikers. And beforewe get more into that, what you
know, actually, I think wewill contemplate on that. We'll return with
author Doug Robbins of Baseball Dreams andBikers just to a few more things to
(28:48):
listen to The Mike Whitner's Show atthe Mike Widner Show dot Com, powered
by SONCWAB Studios and brought to bearofficial sponsor The Mike Whitner's Show, International
Warring outhor Me and most of themissing. We'll be back author Doug Robbins
Baseball dream and Bikers after this time. The Mike Wagner Show is powered by
Sonicweb Studios. If you're looking tostart or upgrade your online presence, visit
www dot Sonicwebstudios dot com. Forall of your online needs, call one
(29:14):
eight hundred three oh three three ninesix zero or visit us online at www
dot Sonicwebstudios dot com. To getstarted today, mention the Mike Wagner Show
and get twenty percent off your project. Sonicweb Studios take your image to the
next level. Hey, everybody,my name is Forbes Riley and I'm an
American actress and a TV host.And I was delighted when I got my
(29:37):
copy of Missing, which is extraordinaryrelation of ordinary people based on a real
life relationship. It's just it's wellwritten. It's amazing, you know.
It talks about a man who haslost his wife and his daughter, and
it's very well done. I'm goingto highly recommend that you go get your
copy of Missing. It is apowerful, exciting read. Mister me and
Mosha Zia he is the author ofMissing, and I want to give a
(30:00):
big shout out and got a kissall the way half way around the world
to my dear friend. Check himout a MIA's website. It's called www
dot mea motion Zeia dot com.Missing available on Amazon again. I'm Forbes
Riley and I will see you againsoon. By Hey. Hey, this
is Ray Powers and boy, areyou in luck right place, right time?
(30:23):
Tuned into the Mike Wagner Show.You heard me We're back with author
Doc Robbins of Baseball Dreams and Bikershere on the Mike Wagner's Show. And
of course, if you think we'llbe talking baseball, well I think you'll
have to go to MLB dot com. You're talking dreams you've got right here.
And bikers, well, I guessthat's a different story. And have
(30:45):
you wanted to become a biker?I am a biker. I've been a
biker ever since I was a kid. I've had had many bikes and then
Hondas and I've been riding my wholelife. So right now I have a
triumph and just took a ten thwith my wife, she just started writing
this year. We took a tenday ride up to Vermont in New Hampshire
(31:06):
and Maine and pretty stunning. Soyes, that is fascinating. We encourage
every to do the same thing.And of course, you know, you
know, take it in a goodbook like Baseball dream and Bikers as well
too. And what are some ofyour favorite books you've written the past,
you know, speaking of good lurturethat I've read in the past, correct,
yeah, or your favorite books?I should say? Yeah, So
(31:27):
Tril I mentioned Henry Miller before Tropicof Cancer was was really prophetic to me.
It just, you know, asfar as writing, for me,
it was the bible of writing becauseit was so raw, so in your
face, but so well written.It wasn't the traditional Okay, you have
to have this perfect beginning middle landand this beautiful story arc and the character
(31:51):
needs to develop and all these things. And there was some of that,
but just the writing, the datedday observations and crafting of prose was so
prophetic. I carried that book withme everywhere I went and I probably read
it ten times. That is soamazing as well too. And what can
people get from a book baseball dreamsand bikers? What can they get from
(32:13):
it? I think a reflection oftheir own lives. You know, I'm
getting so many nice comments from peopleand just saying how it profoundly affected that
One woman was saying, So thefirst story is someone anonymous. It's sort
of a group therapy idea, sortof like a play on alcoholics anonymous,
(32:34):
but like I said, for someonepeople feeling that there's someone, but they
feel anonymous. And so many peoplehave said, like this book, I've
gone to therapy, I've done this. I've done that, and this book
made me cry. This story touchedme in these places that I haven't been
able to get to in the grouptherapies that I've gone to. So,
you know, I think why it'swhy the stories matter is because the universal
(33:00):
everybody has choices that they made thatthey are regretful about. Everybody has something
relationship wise that they feel like maybethey let somebody down or let themselves down.
But you know, the truth isthe theme through the book are dreams,
but there's always hope in these indreams. So that's really what the
(33:22):
story is. Why it's many peoplesee it's so compelling to so many people,
I guess is because it is abouteveryone. Okay, you know I'm
not writing about like spies in Norway. You know, like I'm writing about
again day to day people who aregoing through what they're going through. There's
(33:44):
one gentleman at the beginning of someoneAnonymous the first story in the book,
who feels like his life was awaste. He feels like he, you
know, he failed himself. Butthe moderator says, you know, really
is that true. Let's break downthat. Well, you have two kids
who are very successful. You hada great marriage. So maybe your life
(34:04):
wasn't a waste. Maybe just lookingat it wrong, hm that maybe your
dream is still there, you justgot to act on it or hasn't come
to you as of yet. Youknow, it just makes me think of
a song by Dire Straits when itcomes to you, and you know,
it just makes me think of itright there. You know some of the
Dire Straight songs just kind of relateto that when it comes to you.
That's what makes me think of it. Well, you have you have to
(34:28):
be a participant in your life,right You have to be an active participant.
You can't be passive. People arenot going to show but your door
and say, hey, you're great. You know, let's help help you
make this come true. But ifyou take actions, there is an equal
reaction. And that's why I think. Look, I said, the story,
the story Someone Anonymous is about sixdifferent people. There's one moderator and
(34:50):
one guy feels one guy is bitter, one guy feels like a loser,
one woman feels like her husband takesadvantage of her. There's an artist in
there. You know. People createthe constructs of their lives and they get
stuck in them. And we've alldone it. I've certainly done it,
and we feel like this is allthere is. But this is just a
creation of the mind. And onceyou start pulling at the strings of these
(35:15):
things, these constructs start falling awayand you realize, oh, I'm still
this same person with the same longing. And if I just take some actions,
it doesn't have to be some grandiosething. But if I start taking
some actions and start stepping in thisdirection of the light, your life changes.
Your perspective, changes the way youfeel, the way you wake up
(35:37):
in the morning. And that's wheredreams are found. It is not in
some abstraction. It is something thatyou are capable of being because that was
what you are meant to be.Mm hm. And I think that's very
important as well too. And wherecan we find your book Baseball Dreams and
Bikers And what's the website? Well, you can find an Amazon and Nobles
(36:00):
anywhere that sells books. And mywebsite is Douglas robbinsauthor dot com. If
anybody wants to sign up, youget a free story on my website and
then you start getting emails about youknow, new releases. I have a
podcast called The Den of discussion reallyabout the human condition, creativity, you
know, spirituality, mental health,et cetera. So yeah, can find
(36:21):
me at Douglas Robbins author dot com. We'll certainly do that as well.
We heard author Doug Robbins of Baseball, Dreams and Bikers here on the Mike
Waiener Show. Just a couple morethings. What else can we expect me
in twenty twenty three going into twentytwenty four. Am beyond well, Michael.
Excellent question, sir. So I'mfinishing up or halfway through Narakan two,
(36:43):
Rise of the Dark King, andthen I'm trying to finish up a
novella about Native Americans. Again.They deserve to be honored and to be
acknowledged, and I feel like thecountry has done such a disservice to them
in general for hundreds of years.And I feel like my voice is one
(37:07):
to bring the oppressed into the light. So I feel like people that are
not getting anything that's, like Isaid, swept under the rug or pushed
aside or something. Maybe that's adifficult conversation. Those are important conversations to
have, and certainly it do aswell too. We're looking forward to have
you on for that, and whodo you consider biggest influence in your career.
(37:34):
I'm gonna say my wife. Sheis a a she's tough, she
demands the most of me. Idemand the most of her as well.
So I think we really push eachother to be our best, because do
you want to be around someone who'salways feeling sorry for himself? And that's
that was me for for several years. And she's like, you're better,
You're better than this, and shewas right. I'm gonna say my wife.
(38:00):
And that's a really good answer aswell too. It's great to have
support. And what's the best adviceyou can give to any bote this point?
You know, it's easy to feelalone in this world and in our
lives. And that's the beauty ofbooks sometimes or music is you connect and
you don't feel so alone. Sothere are people like you out there,
(38:22):
so please reach out. And youknow, like there's so much love.
We all want love. Well,you have beauty in you, you have
loving you, please don't push itaside. And that's exactly a really good
point as well. We're with authorDoug Robbins of Baseball Dreams and Bikers here
on the Mike Widener's Show. DougA very big thanks you time. You've
(38:44):
been absolutely fantastic, Learned a lotfrom you, Looking forward to having him
soon, Keep us up to date, keep in touch, love avy back
again. What's your website? Howdo people contact you? Where can people
purchase or check out your books?Douglas Robins author dot com or you could
go to Amazon on or Brons andNobles Baseball Dreams of Bikers, or checkout
Love and a Dyntown or any ofthose books mentioned. But it's been such
(39:06):
a pleasure being on the show,Mike, and it's great to have you
on as well. Once getting DougA very big thanks me time. You've
been absy fantastic, looking forward tohaving again soon. Give us up to
eight, keep in touch live,ave you back, wish all best and
Doug, you definfe have a greatfuture have you? Thank you, sir.
I appreciate it you well now.The Mike Wagner Show is powered by
sonicwebs Studios. If you're looking tostart or upgrade your online presence, visit
(39:27):
www dot Sonicwebstudios dot com. Forall of your online needs call one eight
hundred three oh three three nine sixzero or visit us online at www dot
Sonicwebstudios dot com to get started today. Mention the Mike Wagner Show and get
twenty percent off your project. SonicwebStudios take your image to the next level.
(39:50):
Hey, everybody, my name isForbes Riley and I'm an American actress
and a TV host. And Iwas delighted when I got my copy of
Missing, which is extraordinary relation ofa ordinary people based on a real life
relationship. It's just it's well written. It's amazing, you know. It
talks about a man who has losthis wife and his daughter, and it's
very well done. I'm gonna highlyrecommend that you go get your copy of
(40:13):
Missing. It is a powerful,exciting read. Mister me and Mosha Zia.
He is the author of Missing,and I want to give a big
shout out got a kiss all theway half way around the world to my
dear friend. Check him out atMIA's website. It's called www dot Miamotionzia
dot com. Missing available on Amazonagain. I'm Forbes Riley and I will
(40:34):
see you again soon. Bye bye. Thanks for listening to The Mike Wagner
Show, brought to you by internationalaward winning author Mia Moss and Zia of
Missing Empowered by Sonic Web Studio.Be sure to join us again on over
(40:54):
forty podcast platforms and of course onthe Mike Wagnershow dot com, Hamilton Radio
dot nets and Diamonds FM. Don'tforget to support our program with a generous
donation at the Mike Wigner Show dotcom. Thanks for listening.
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