This is a departure. This podcast has just one, unedited conversation between thenewgreen and mk. I add no sound-effects, no splicing, only minimal editing for pauses.
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This was a great conversation, this is just a slice of it.
I was in Michigan two months ago and hung out with mk above his garage. It's a nice space, there's a comfy couch, his painting/art supplies, a large card/gaming table and beer. The conversation was meant to be part of a larger podcast with other participants on the topic of "fear." But I enjoyed this conversation so much on its own that I decided to post it as is. The result is a conversation between two good friends, slightly drunk and very candid.
Heavy stuff.
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There are three songs used in this. The first is an instrumental from cW, the second is a song that I (thenewgreen) recorded and the last is a song from Matt Jones. -Matt was kind enough to give me permission to use this tune Hand Out The Drugs after I cornered him and asked his permission at my cousins wedding. -Check out his music.
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shout-outs: steve, lil kleinbl00 insomniasexx -because they were with me from the get-go when this podcast was about drugs, fear, before and after...etc.
Gorgeous - moving, touching. Some random thoughts. My comments are somewhat abstract rather than grounded in some real-life thing. mk said he was scared all the time in this sense: "the what-am-I-doing scared" and "Is-the-time-I-spent-here-spent-well scared." (or that might have been tng's paraphrase) I ask the same question, but without the element of fear. I ask "What is worth doing?" -- maybe every day. And then trying to do it. Sometimes well, sometimes badly. It's worth asking those questions and being scared about, no matter how accomplished you are. On the other hand, there's a lot to say also for a sense of inner peace. How effective are you if you are motivated by fear instead of love. I think mk is motivated by love...but the early traumas that he speaks of must add an element of fear to the mix for sure. So the trick is to ask "What is worth doing?" and then trying to do it. Maybe when you add a fear into the mix, you ask the question a little more fiercely. Then tng asks: "What's been the scariest moment that you would not want to relive?" and was surprised that the conversation went to a dark place. When I think of any scary moment that I do not want to relive, it's pretty dark. I'm glad I don't have to go there. I also stay away from violent films and horror films... once you've been there in your own life, you don't need to go there for "entertainment." The two of you talked about the moments when your life changes, where you know there was a before and an after that will be different. Some of these result from making decisions, taking a stand, having a realization. Some of these, like mk's, are thrust upon you by the universe and you ... can't ... turn ... back. One particularly moving thing about the conversation was when mk said that, when you meet people, you just never know what they are going through or have just been through. They might have just passed through a before/after moment --- or they might have been through one when they were five years old, that still affects them -- and you don't know it - so - don't make assumptions about others.
She got very upset. She let me know all about the organizations she supports, there were many of them. She let me know about the troubles she was having with her marriage and in her home. Her husband was out of work and it was hard enough even WHEN he had a paycheck. I apologized. She taught me a lesson.so - don't make assumptions about others.
This is a lesson I learned when I was in my mid 20's. I was working at an office. I was in a band and was putting on a fundraising concert. Everyone in the office was buying tickets for the concert, which were $15. One woman hadn't bought any. She said, "I don't think I can make it." -instead of accepting this, I challenged her and said, it's for a good cause, you don't have to actually go. The money helps others in need.
Hey Dr. mk, PhD - do you find that speaking with such contemporary and relaxed mannerisms seems to create cognitive dissonance in folks (particularly acquaintances) when contrasted against your credentials? ^And nah dawg, I don't talk like that AFK. Edit: Except in formal-ish academic settings.
If you think I am casual, you should hear b_b PhD after he gets some whiskey in him. But to answer your question: I suppose it might, but I don't much mind if it does. My perceived value of an advanced degree is fairly narrow. I was a lot of things before I got a PhD, and I continue to be some of those things, and others.
"Pedigree" is my preferred term. I only ask because I found myself still a slave to stereotypes when I listened to the podcast and thought "Hmm, mk seems like a pretty cool guy. Was I not expecting that? Have Sheldon Cooper and co. fucked me up too?".My perceived value of an advanced degree is fairly narrow.