Blocks w/ Neal Brennan - Akaash Singh
Episode Date: December 12, 2024Neal Brennan interviews Akaash Singh ('Gaslit' special, Flagrant) about the things that make him feel lonely, isolated, and like something's wrong - and how he is persevering despite these blocks. ---...------------------------------------------------------- 00:00 Intro 1:05 Starting Standup 13:05 Confrontation with Wife 15:45 How do you ask for what you want? 19:45 Guy relationships 22:58 His Own Emotions 24:30 Alcoholism in Family 26:30 Boundaries with Schulz 28:48 Sponsor: Verso 30:35 Sponsor: Tushy 32:26 Sleep 37:00 Talking about Family Onstage 48:22 Sponsor: Mando 50:21 Sponsor: Aura 51:58 Eating Healthy ---------------------------------------------------------- Watch Akaash Singh: Gaslit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_HqJyq2SYU Subscribe to  @akaashsinghcomedy  Subscribe to  @OfficialFlagrant  Follow Neal Brennan: https://www.instagram.com/nealbrennan https://twitter.com/nealbrennan https://www.tiktok.com/@mrnealbrennan Watch Neal Brennan: Crazy Good on Netflix: https://www.netflix.com/title/81728557 Watch Neal Brennan: Blocks on Netflix: https://www.netflix.com/title/81036234 Theme music by Electric Guest (unreleased). Edited by Will Hagle (wthagle@gmail.com) Sponsors: Visit https://www.ver.so & use promo code: NEAL for 15% off your first order. Visit https://www.hellotushy.com/NEAL for 10% off your entire order. Visit https://www.shopmando.com use promo code NEAL for $5 off your Mando Starter Pack         Visit https://www.auraframes.com & use promo code: NEAL for $35 off your order. Control Body Odor ANYWHERE with @shop.mando and get $5 off off your Starter Pack (that’s over 40% off) with promo code [NEAL] at Mandopodcast.com/NEAL #mandopod Sponsor Blocks: https://public.liveread.io/media-kit/blocks ---------------------------------------------------------- #podcast #comedy #mentalhealth #standup Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Transcript
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Hello everyone, it's the Box Podcast, Neil Brenner.
My guest today has two YouTube specials.
The most recent is called Gaslit,
and he hosts a podcast that no one's ever heard of called, called Flagrant with Schultz.
And his name's Akash Singh.
Thank you for having me, man.
Thank you so much.
It's a pleasure to be here.
They call him the Indian Neil Brennan as well.
That is true.
You got rid of your glasses though.
No, I only wore those because on that episode,
we were dressing up as Sean King for Halloween.
We were doing white face and dressed up as Sean King.
And then somebody pointed out that I look like you
and it's really uncanny.
Really is.
I would take my glasses off, but you don't want it.
Well, it was nice to,
this will be the longest uninterrupted conversation
we've ever had.
And I appreciate you sending me.
All right, well, the thing I wanna talk about,
like the thing I don't know about you.
Okay.
When did you start standup?
The first time I did it was a freshman in college
and I didn't start.
I did it like two or three times that year.
Third time I bombed.
Where?
A coffee shop an hour and a half away from my college.
It was, so I-
Specifically?
Yeah, in high school, I moved in 11th grade to like a suburb like 20 minutes away from where I grew up
So I still had those friends, so I'm in this school in 11th grade. I don't know these people
I'm graduating soon, so I just started kind of acting like silly and weird
And then one guy was an anatomy and physiology with me and everybody in that class
You know it was gonna try to be a doctor, and he's like you're not gonna be a doctor
You're gonna be a stand-up
And then when I was a freshman in college.
Who said that?
Just kid, this friend of mine in high school,
we don't even keep in touch anymore.
But when we went to college,
we went to college like an hour and a half.
What if he's gonna talk to you like that?
Fuck this guy. Yeah, yeah, yeah, true.
But like he hits me up and he goes, hey,
there's an open mic, get five minutes of material together.
So I did, and in hindsight, it was horrible,
but it went really well. And high school.
In college, we went to okay freshman year
We go to college. Okay hour and a half two and a half hours away from each other
He hits me on a ol instant messenger. That's how old I am. He's like yo, there's an open mic near my school
Get five minutes material together. You're gonna do it
So I went like seven of my friends from college went to watch me and then that went well
And then that was when I knew did it go well because they were there cuz that can I was actually like a packed crowd, but it's an open mic in Denton, Texas.
So it's like, what is the bar?
You know what I mean?
And I'm an Indian kid doing standup,
which is like a novelty, I think, at the time.
This is 2003.
So I think that, and then the jokes were easy,
but easy jokes can go well early on.
So I remember, and my wife is so sick of me telling this story.
Were they Indian jokes?
No. There they Indian jokes?
Uh, there were racial jokes,
but they weren't Indian necessarily.
I addressed me being Indian, but I didn't like,
the jokes weren't about my dad or my mom or whatever.
Yeah, yeah.
You know, I didn't even talk about my family back then.
I grew up in a house with a couple alcoholics,
and so I just didn't.
We're getting to that, yeah.
Yeah, I just didn't even, yeah.
So the jokes are just like about race.
And yeah, I remembered, you know, you have a script when you first start you just memorize it
Yeah, and I remember at one point that were laughing so hard. I couldn't say the next line
I had rehearsed and I'm freaking out like guys you're laughing so hard. I can't say what I want to say and then in my head
I'm like, oh fuck like in further back in my mind. I'm like, oh, they're laughing so hard
I can't even say what I want to say and And that was- But at that point, you're,
because you've never done stand up,
you can't even hear your thoughts correctly?
I remember that thought.
I remembered grabbing that thought,
being like, this is the coolest thing that's ever happened.
Oh, great. All right, great.
And that was the moment I knew,
but I still didn't admit that I wanted to be.
You're an Indian kid, nobody's seen an Indian person.
It is funny that you don't want to come out.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Telling people you're a comic is a huge step.
Yes.
What was that like for you?
Because you're all the brothers of Stan.
Yeah.
Grew up around it.
That's why I ask, because it's like, I'm always curious when people come to it from like Denton,
Texas.
Yeah.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Grew up kind of in high school.
I'd come up here
and my brother was working the door with Attell.
Crazy.
Like, so I've known Attell since I was a freshman
in high school.
That's so crazy.
Yeah, that's so crazy.
And like Romano.
Yeah, legend.
And Louie and like Warren Hutchins, like really good Sarah.
Sarah lost her virginity to my brother.
That's so funny, I forgot that story.
I know, it's so crazy, I don't even remember.
Until I'm like, like Marin.
Yeah.
So John Stewart.
So then I did it when I was 18 once, one good.
At the Boston, one good.
Okay, that's really tough.
And then that's 92.
And so, it's insane.
Then I do it again in 97, me and Chappelle sell half baked
and I'm like, ah, let me just, I'm a writer.
I'm a screenwriter.
I was writing then.
And then got, as a screenwriter,
just like, you're kind of bomb, you Just like you just you're kind of
You're like being told you're not funny all day kind of so I was like I know I'm funny
so then in 2002 I did it again and
Then we did Chappelle show so it was kind of like I did it like some I did it like 40 times 50 times and then quit again until
2007 and then I haven't stopped.
Yeah, what was it that made you love it?
Because there's no, no one can say no.
It's the audience who say no and you go, cool.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
You don't like, I just wanted to make sure.
Yeah.
Even on the TV show, like we,
if Comedy Central was like, we don't like it, we'd be like, can we show it? Yeah, like, we, if Comedy Central was like,
we don't like it, we'd be like, can we show it?
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Cause then, we all have an opinion,
but like, you're saying your opinion's more valid than ours.
Like, so, that was a great thing to say,
I was just, go do it, and you can see like,
oh, I thought that was funny.
So after 10 years, I basically just, everybody's telling you what you can put out there.
Of like, going to like glory holes, basically.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
And then finally going like, no, this is,
and also I thought it was, as a writer,
I thought it was like a low impulse
to want to do stand-up.
Like, oh, it's so unsubmissive.
That's so funny.
Which is just a dodge within yourself to like,
after 15 years to go like, no, I'm,
I did a joke in blocks about like,
every writer was like, you're more of a comedian.
Oh really?
Which is people's way of saying like,
you're kind of aggravating.
Oh.
Oh.
Oh.
Like writers are like, you're a little sweaty.
Yeah, yeah.
But comedians were like, you're more of a writer.
So it just took me a while to like own it.
Yeah.
And just go like, no, I like,
and you still have to write.
Yeah, yeah.
So it's just, you just don't have to like
get it approved by somebody until you do TV.
Was it a low impulse thing?
Just I'm scared to, was that the block?
Like I'm scared to go up there and get rejected or?
It was honestly, it was a fear of admitting,
openly wanting attention.
Oh, yeah.
I didn't wanna just openly,
I'm realizing recently like a huge block for,
thanks for coming, thanks for hosting.
Um, uh, I don't, I have such a hard time
just accepting what I'm like.
Like, no, I, I don't know, have such a hard time just accepting what I'm like.
Like, no, I, I don't know, I like that.
Yeah.
It's all what I get like in my head about like,
you shouldn't, what does that say about you?
What kind of a person would be like that?
And finally I'm just like, no, this is what I'm like.
So I'm not even finally.
As of two days ago, I was like,
I still have an incredibly hard time.
Just going like, nah, I like that.
Me too.
Mine is still, I still get caught up
in what people might think weirdly.
Which is like, I didn't think I was like that.
Now I'm just kind of realizing,
oh, I still, moment to moment,
I like this or I don't like this.
I'll still be like, what will people think
on like a deep level that I didn't realize until recently.
I think it's one of the hardest things in life
is just like to divorce yourself from like,
what does it say about me?
What is it?
Because it doesn't say anything most of the time.
You can trick yourself into going like,
it means you're, okay, so you're immoral about this
or you're whatever it is, or you're just abnormal.
You're just not the most common thing,
but it's like, yeah, that's what the novelty of me is. You're a person, yeah. And I hate the most common thing, but it's like yeah, that's what the novelty of Me a person yeah, and I hate the idea of like I hate not being open about any immorality because then people think I'm like
Some pious like I'm not I'm just a guy and I like I should be more honest about like I like that thing
That's weird, or I don't like that thing
It's weird, but you're just so caught up with am I gonna look stupid if they do that
I can look like an idiot, and it's just that's a yeah
that's a Tommy Tarrinan said on this podcast,
If you're looking to be a well-known entertainer
and loved, you're not a real joker.
A joker is an archetype that stands outside of the culture
and performs some sort of other meaning.
He has some other value.
He's amoral.
He likes his comedians to be amoral.
And when I heard it, I was like, fucking thank you.
Like that'll stick with me.
Yeah, that's great.
That's just a great way to be in life.
It's like, I don't do amoral things for the most part.
I, but I don't know.
I would say most people are just C plus students in terms of morality.
Yeah, a thousand percent.
So like accepting that and not breaking most laws.
Yeah, yeah.
What else can you hope for?
And that's something I do, I hate in comedy,
even if I try to get serious,
the idea that I'm morally superior,
it's just, ugh.
I hate when comics do that.
Yeah, there was a lot of that for the last 10 years.
And I think the last two, three years
has been a blowback to that.
Yeah, like a correction.
Overcorrection, yeah.
Yeah, so then you realize, how many times?
So I did it, I did that set the first time
at that coffee shop.
Then my college, I went to a tiny college, 1200 kids,
but they had a stand-up night.
So I was like, oh, I'll just do the same set.
I didn't even know that was what people did.
I thought you were supposed to come with me
to the same set every time.
So I did the same set, felt guilty about it.
It went okay.
And then the third time I went back to that old coffee shop
with a new set that I thought was gonna blow everyone away.
And I bombed so fucking hard. I had like 12 people come see me this girl
I had a crush on was there. I got pulled off stage. Yeah, yeah yanked
Oh, dude
Yeah, cuz I'm running time and then like I say fuck the light or whatever that version of it is
Yeah, and then they definitely walk up on stage and be like, hey buddy, you're done. Oh my God, it's so bad.
That's happened to me twice.
It happened to me there and it happened at,
you remember Trippin' on Tuesdays in the Comedy Store?
Actually, third time, it happened to me in Harlem
at Mocha's, you ever do Mocha?
No. Mocha Lounge?
I used to only do hood rooms when I moved to New York
and then I did really well at Firstia
and then I started trying new stuff and finding my voice
and that was bombing and I got pulled off there too. Three times in career people have walked up on stage and been like hey, that's a no
He's days you got walked off. Yeah. Yeah, I was at the pre show or the show the pre show
I never made it to the show great. Yeah, I was a new I started in LA. Oh wow
Yeah, cuz I I started so I did it a few times in college
I did so after I bombed to the summer my freshman year. I didn't get on stage again for like a year and a half.
I was devastated.
I thought it was over.
And then junior year, my roommate was doing standup.
They asked him to do 20 minutes.
And he was like, that's, I don't want to do 20.
And I was like, I'll do 10.
So I did it and it went really well.
Did it again senior year, went fairly well.
And then I was like, when I was applying to medical school,
my best friend was moving to LA to be a cinematographer.
And I was like, subtly like,
I think this could be maybe my chance to try standup
for a year, because I didn't know you're supposed
to start in New York.
Yeah.
And then my mom gave me permission basically.
And so I moved out to LA.
That sounds real Indian.
Yeah. Well, I wouldn't.
No, I know it's not.
What she said, and I still appreciate this to this day.
She said, go, because I would rather you find out
even if you can't do it than wonder for the rest of your life.
Which is awesome.
Yeah, that's whited.
Yeah, yeah, no it is.
Dude, other Indian parents were like,
you're a bad mom for letting him do this.
That's so funny. What are you doing?
Yeah, and now those same Indians are kissing ass
and it's so funny.
They wanna get on the guest list.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Okay, so, and then what did, then you just struggle and?
Struggle and bomb.
I didn't understand how much you're supposed to get up.
I didn't understand like basic things.
Like there was nobody,
Shultz has done so much for me since moving to New York,
but when I first started,
there was no like vets taking me under their wing
and being like, you had the experience
of being around all these comics
and just seeing how it works and watching.
I didn't know.
I thought you just go when you have a big show,
you perform your one set,
and then you work on jokes at home and they're all good.
And you know what I mean?
Yeah.
So I bombed in LA at first a few times too,
and then I started to understand,
oh, you gotta get up five, six, seven, eight times a week.
Yeah, and now it's going good?
Yeah, now it's going well, I think.
All right, you have some good blocks here
that I wanna talk about.
Okay. Confront about. Okay.
Confrontation.
Yeah.
The more I care about you,
the more uncomfortable I am with confrontation.
If you're some fucking idiot in this show.
How are you married?
That's what I, that's what.
So I just suck it up for a while,
and then I put up with a lot,
and then I blow up down the road.
Oh, I know what you do.
Because I.
Because I do the same thing, gosh.
So what I'm like... Because I do the same thing, gosh. So what I'm saying is, how were you,
how did you do it with her?
My wife and I both come from kind of turbulent homes.
So when we fight, they tend to be big,
but then we both understood, if we want this to work,
we both gotta go to therapy, we did couples therapy,
we'll probably go again.
I was thinking about just,
you should just go every few years. I think
once Probably yeah, but like you've changed that was I was saying to my wife
It's like it's so I'm sure somebody else has said this but like you got a car you change your oil every 5,000 miles
You get a tune up every 75,000 miles then you get a new car in five years and marriage. We're like, yeah
You don't you got this. You're just gonna last forever. You don't need to do any worry. It's insane
Yeah, but like when we both kind of knew like we're starting to still learning but we kind of learn little triggers and like hey
If we just take ten minutes that could help us immensely. I like write little notes to myself while I'm angry
I think a lot of times when she would get mad
I would internalize it and be like she's telling me I'm not good enough because I think I'm not good enough, right?
And she's proving it so I would literally start little notes. This is so good. Okay. It's okay. I'm good enough. She knows that she's just upset about something else
What could it be and I'll try to figure out what it could be and then I'll go to her and be like hey
I think this might be what upset you here's what I was feeling and that if we can execute that I would argue
That's not a good method really being from in from the same. Yeah psychographic
the underlined psycho,
guessing is what gets me into trouble.
Guessing her and then I'm trying to,
just guessing is just a death knell for me.
Is cause then I get in my head and I'm like,
well, why do I have to guess what her issue is?
A lot of times if the fight goes on,
it's because I'm like, fuck that,
I don't need to apologize,
and then I'll just ignore her for as long as need be,
I don't care.
I've done that for like a couple of days, like recently,
and that's never good,
because then she feels like I don't care at all.
I've gone out of town,
like I do some crazy shit, dude, it's not good.
But- You'll look at apartments.
You'll look at other apartments.
Yeah, yeah, all the thoughts cross my mind.
This isn't gonna work. Who knows?
Yeah.
But then if I can empathize with,
you just get to know a person well enough,
and even if it's not correct, if I come with empathy,
she can be annoyed, but like,
if I approach it with a lot of empathy,
hey, maybe you were feeling this because I did this or whatever.
How do you ask for what you want?
That's the, that's the, That's what I've come to is
I have a very hard time asked for what I want because I'm afraid it's not what she wants. Yeah, and then
chivalry is basically
Doing what the lady wants the last 20 years of culture has been like you're bad
Yeah, anything you want is disgusting,
often illegal.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
And so I don't know how to ask for what I want
and be okay with it.
I'm still trying to crack that code.
There'll be times where I'll get better at it
and then I'll go back to slowly just kind of falling back
into I just do what she wants, it's easier.
I've, for me, what I've realized, it's not even
that I think I'm not allowed to as a man,
and I don't know about you, I think I use that
as like a cop out for myself.
I think the reality is, I'm afraid if I ask her
for what I want and she says no,
then I don't matter or whatever,
I don't know exactly what I think after that,
but my fear is, I ask you for what I want
and you say no and then what that seems like
Yeah hurt me so bad, but that's also like you can game it out to where the relationship ends
Yeah, I guess so
I think to me it's just like I don't matter if I ask you for what I want and you say no
Then that means my needs just don't matter. That's what my brain jumps to not that is logical. I
Well, I don't know when you're who's supposed to compromise when yeah, I don't I well, I don't know when you're, who's supposed to compromise when?
Yeah, I don't.
I think it's a constant, it's a constant communication.
And that's everybody that says communication is key.
Like you start to understand that
the more you get into it.
First of all, so many of our fights
are just miscommunication.
You said a thing, I internalize poorly, et cetera, et cetera.
But even just like, hey, here's what I need.
Oh, you can't meet that?
Okay, well, what can we do?
And she's a series of compromises.
Maybe we can't compromise this time,
but you know what I mean?
And I think I will compromise more.
I'm like a giving person, not because I'm good,
but because that's how I get validated.
I give to you, you compliment me,
I feel good about myself.
Is that a workable system?
Not in the long term, it's not as is.
If I start to be better about saying what I need
I think it is I don't I used to be very score-keeping
Everything needs to be 50-50 because I was really afraid of getting taken advantage of yep
But then I really was some of my scorecards that I printed out dude. I've sent those texts
Uh-huh, we I was a real bad at really bad habit of it
And I'm trying to work on a bit about this
But like what I realized you can't really quantify some of these things. Like, this is a part of the bit, and I'm sure there's a funnier version of it,
but like, this is real. If I ask my wife for advice,
she gives me fucking incredible advice.
Yeah.
Incredible. Stops everything, locks in, empathizes with me,
gives multiple sides, here's what I think you should do, and it's almost always right.
My wife asks for me for advice, every time I'm just like,
fuck that bitch, huh?
What a... She sucks.
I'm not even listening.
Yeah.
So the fact that I go to the grocery store more,
or I buy her better gifts than she buys,
more expensive gifts than she buys me,
that's...
She could easily look at that same situation
and be, I give... I change your life.
You give me a fucking purse every couple of months.
Like, what do you think? That's equal?
So I had to realize, you can't score a keep because you can't quantify the things that really matter a lot of times
Yeah, so that's helped me. I think a lot. You know what I realized is the past couple days
It's like the thing where I'm like I'm worried what she's gonna say if she says no to my needs
Yeah, yeah, it's only because I'm not cool with my needs. Yeah, 1000%.
That's the core of it is like,
I don't think I should ask for this.
Yeah, who am I to ask for?
Yeah, I've already prejudged it.
And most of the time when I ask her what I need,
she's like, I totally agree.
Like if it's in a relationship of like,
hey, can we stop doing this?
And she's like, I've been,
not I've been, not,
I've been hoping you would say that,
but like, she meets me halfway.
But in my head, I'm like, this is gonna be the end.
She's gonna punch me.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
This is gonna be a massive fight.
She's gonna, yeah, yeah.
How dare I ask for this?
And most of the time she's like,
even especially after we fight, she'll be like,
oh, that, yeah, that's, of course,
that's very reasonable to ask for that.
Yeah.
So it's tough.
How are you with guy relationships again?
The more the more intense the friendship or like the more close the friendship is the more I'm like
I don't want to talk about this. I shouldn't even have to ask or like that's
Let them do them. They got X Y & Z going on and like yeah, it's hard for me in any really close relationship
Do you pay a price? I mean, yeah, you swallow all your stuff and then like
You know, I've one thing that this is one of the blocks will get to like therapy really helped me communicate with other people
But not communicate my own needs it helped me navigate
Confrontation as opposed to having healthier confrontation if that makes sense. So it did it worked a little bit, but it worked
Yeah, I worked halfway
I know how to word things to where you won't get as upset.
And if you say something, I know how to take it home,
see your point of view. Right.
But then it's still really hard for me to say,
hey, here's, especially with guys, here's what hurt me.
You just feel so gay.
It's a stupid term to use or whatever,
but that's really what you're like,
believe that's gay. Yeah.
You manhurt your feelings, get out of here.
Well, yeah.
I mean, I think writing shit down
before you do a phone call is helpful.
Yeah.
Honestly.
Yeah, writing things is huge.
I write affirmations for myself.
It's like, I'd be so,
I'd rather someone find one of my dick pics
than one of my affirmations to myself
that I write all the time.
I've talked about this ad nauseum.
I have a notebook.
I have a gratitude journal.
Oh, that's awesome.
I don't call it a journal, I call it a checklist.
Yeah.
So it's masculine.
I remember this clip on Rogan, yeah.
And like, I do it four times.
I already did it once today.
That's great.
It's almost like a coach.
Yeah.
Like halftime, like what are we trying to do?
What are the points of emphasis that we're trying to,
cause I'm not calibrated for behavior. That's gonna benefit me long time. Yeah. Yeah
Yes, I just have bad like that the quickest thing so I have to repeatedly go like stop
Yeah, what are we trying to do today? Did you had a line in a special? That was something like I have no self-esteem
Like I don't have the architecture for good feelings. You give me a trophy, it'll just slide right down.
Like, I just don't have the shelving.
Anyway, that's people's favorite line.
And it's so good.
Because it's like, I think everyone relates to it.
Like, I don't even know...
So I'm...
I'm rudimentary.
It's just accept that you're rudimentary.
Yeah.
And you're not gonna, like, it doesn't, I'm not,
I can't, like, I need to write off stage
and bring it on stage and like, then I can improve,
but I need to have a plan.
Just accept that you're not, Terry Crews was on the podcast
and said like, he has to write down his lines
for a script for hours.
I prepare so much, you know, that my wife, she told me,
I think you have a learning disability.
But like, you just, if you have to do that, do it.
I've realized that about myself with standup.
It's like, I have to really remember,
repeat it, repeat it, repeat it, repeat it,
so that I can be more fluid.
So I'm advising you do the same.
Cause it'll, it'll, it'll up all all of it. Mm-hmm all your relationships
Yeah, if you're not asked for what you want and not getting when you had stuff. That's tough one
Yeah, very tough. That would be under your own emotions. That would be the block my own emotions. Yeah. Yeah, that's that's exact
So my wife is the one that pointed that out. She's like I think it took credit to her
It was very empathetic what she was like. I think you in in therapy really sounds great it's a shame the marriage isn't gonna
work but yeah dude she's she can be the most like demanding over like I'm not
honest everything over the top person but then she can also be so empathetic
and so smart and so like poignant and she said something like yeah I think
therapy really helped you understand like how to talk to me or
How to talk to your mom or whoever but you still don't really know what you feel on a moment-to-moment basis or a day-to-day
Basis even like I didn't realize I had anxiety and then she started saying that because she has like, you know, pretty bad anxiety and
Clinically and then she would kind of see me like I can't sleep and that's another one of the blocks and she'd watch my me physically just be anxious for a while.
And she like rubbed my back where to help me fall asleep.
And then I said that to my therapist who I'd been with for like six years.
I was like, yeah, maybe I have like some kind of low level of anxiety that I don't realize and my therapist goes, yeah, like it was insane to her that I was just realizing.
Meanwhile, it was her job.
Yeah, couldn't you tell me?
That's not a good. And maybe she did and I didn't catch it to be honest
But like I didn't even realize I can't sleep because I'm just one of the reasons is mine. It's anxiety
That's always making me think right or oh, I'm scared about this thing
I have no fucking clue what I'm feeling half the time you said a thing in passing about the
The out like having a lot of alcoholism. Yeah, is that what do you think that that could be a part of it? Is that a thing in passing about the,
like having a lot of alcoholism? Yeah.
Is that, do you think that, that could be a part of it?
Yeah, so I think I, you know,
my dad struggled with drinking,
my brother struggled with drinking,
it was just kind of my mom and me.
And then, you know, I don't want everything to fall on her,
so I'm trying to like, you know, in my mind,
I'm holding things together or whatever.
In reality, I'm a kid, I'm probably not doing much. but then he kind of does become like your needs don't matter as much folks
I could be very tuned to my mom
There's like abuse in the house so like you know be there when she's there and whatever
It's so you kind of don't ever worry about your own needs as much
Yeah, that's where I think the relationship can fit that for me. Oh, I'm so used to being attuned to you and what you need
Yeah, and I would get a giver. Yeah, I'm a giver and I kind of used to being a to and to you and what you need. Yeah. And I would get told.
I'm a giver.
Yeah, I'm a giver.
But I kind of don't think anyone's a giver.
No, it's just how you're programmed.
So that's why I even caveat that.
I never want to say I'm a good person.
This is how I was programmed.
Yeah.
And my wife is openly funny.
She's like, I'm selfish.
I don't mean that in a bad way, but I know what I need and I get it.
And that's okay with me.
Yeah.
Which is, I think, healthy.
But for me, I think that just it fell right in with a person who's okay being demanding.
And me, I got praised all. But for me, I think that just, it fell right in
with the person who's okay being demanding.
And me, I got praised all the time for being like that
with my family and the outside family.
What a sweet kid.
So with her, it's perfect.
Same dynamic.
I give you things, I don't ask for things,
I worry about what you need.
You praise me, God bless.
Are you actually worried about a long-term?
Not with your what, but like with all-
No, I'm not worried about it.
But yeah, this is a thing I know I need to work on
and we're trying to work on it it's not
easy it's fucking hard yeah it's very hard yeah as somebody who like talk
about the starting stand-up stopping yeah on that with this yeah thousand
percent done it and then stopped and then and I'm like I really need to focus
on this I'm like no I got it and then I'm like no you don't Robert Kelly has
a thing in his special where he says he's on his fourth fat.
Yeah, that's funny.
Because that's a thing with people
who struggle with weight.
They lose a lot, gain it back.
I'm similar, well, kind of with weight a little bit
to a smaller degree, but also with this.
I will be really good about asking for what I need,
be really on it, be really,
therapies about everything,
and then slowly slide back to where I was before.
And then I gotta actively try again. And it's hard to just maintain that healthiness.
Yeah.
Do you have boundaries with Schultz?
Yeah, dude, so many times, like,
if I ask him for what I want, he's so sweet about it.
And so, like, I've never asked him for something
and him being like, no, I can't do that.
But I hate asking him for something.
Right.
Also, I think everybody's asking him
for stuff all the time.
So I'm like- You're thinking for him. Yeah, he's so's asking him for stuff all the time. So I'm like...
You're thinking for him.
Yeah, he's so busy.
And then anytime I've been, or I've been,
and he can be so like, he's comfy with conflict.
He's born and raised in New York.
So in my brain, I'm like, oh, this could be a thing.
This could be X, Y, Z.
Anytime I've ever said to him, this hurt me,
or I need this, he's always been the most loving,
sweet, supportive.
But then I still in my mind, I'm like,
let's not bother him with that so often.
But you're pretty good about separating yourself
from him in terms of like,
you don't do the road with him.
Yeah, and that was one thing
that was like an uncomfortable conversation,
but I think, and in reality, again,
it's just how he's just the sweetest guy
when you think about it.
Like he does all this and wants to blow up,
and in his mind, it's like, he's like, I'm not,
it's not worth it if I can't bring my homies.
Yeah.
But I was like, well, I need to go make my own name as well.
So when I remember when he first went for infamy,
he was like, when are you gonna come open for me?
And I was like, ah, that's not what I'm trying to do.
And I think it hurt his feelings at first, like,
buddy, what do you think I'm doing all this work for it
so we can do this?
And I think eventually he was like,
he understood and we were good. But yeah yeah there's little moments where it's like you know he just
The guy gets calls from fucking whoever you know Mark Cuban is texting him but he just wants to hang out with his guys he don't care about going to a white party or whatever he just wants to hang out with his boys
Yeah, so that's where sometimes it's like yeah, but I gotta go do this show or I gotta go make my own name or whatever That's good cuz I worry about that. Yeah for you. Yeah, I mean from a from a from a from a I get it
Yeah, it's a very it's just a hard thing cuz you like are grateful and you love them
And at the same time you're like, I don't want to be I want to be known for it
But I know it's like yeah
And that's you're gonna relate to this is being really good friends with someone who's like blowing up or they have this
Magnetism or whatever this this energy that's huge,
it's very easy for people to be like,
well, that's his sidekick.
Even like some of these New York Times articles or whatever,
it'll be like Andrew Shelton, his sidekick, Akash Sinha.
And I always bristle at it a bit.
It's like, yeah, I get it, but I don't want that long-term.
I'm gonna go be, I love him, but I wanna be his equal.
Yeah.
Don't you want me to feel good?
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Anyone you give a bidet to will bring it up
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Dude, you got it.
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Thank you.
You got one sleep. Yeah, I don't sleep you sleep. Well, I do
I slept I slept it really well last night. Like I was proud of myself
What are we talking on last night was why last night was I think 10 hours son of a bit my my my
Garment said it was eight, but like, I know.
Yeah.
It was a 10.
Yeah.
But yeah, I've never, I have a hard time sleeping.
I have to be in a really bad fight with somebody.
But I've always needed, I can sleep on car,
I sleep on every airplane.
I think it's the healthiest thing in the world.
Like I think it's like a superpower for your health.
Oh, it is, yeah, it's incredibly helpful.
My dad, I've never seen exercise,
like, legitimately a day in my life.
Eats whatever he wants to eat.
Fat, but like, drank a shitload,
smoked cigarettes for 30 years.
Will sleep 12, 14 hours a day, no problem.
His blood work is perfect all the time.
My cousin who runs marathons and doesn't sleep well, said he's a doctor, he looked at my dad His blood work is perfect all the time my cousin who runs marathons and doesn't sleep well
Said he's a doctor. He looked at my dad's blood work and goes it was so good. It actually pissed me off
Yeah, like I'm doing everything. Yep, but I can't sleep as well as him and his blood work is better than mine
Can you do anything? Has it always been I started talking to a sleep psychiatrist?
And I've started some like lighter medications like there's one called trazodone that I'm trying which is I think like a probably an anti
It is an ant. It's an anti-psychotic. It started it got started in the game as an anti-psychotic. Yeah, it's how these things
Yeah, now it's it's a it's transitioned to yeah to a sleep med
Yeah, but yeah, and then I talked to a sleep the sleep psychiatrist is like yeah, it sounds like you have anxiety
And then I talked to the sleep psychiatrist, he's like, yeah, it sounds like you have anxiety.
So I started Lexapro.
And then he's given me a sleep medication to use while.
How do you like Lexapro?
I don't feel it yet,
but this is kind of what my wife talks about.
She's like, you take all these medicines
and I'll be like, did it work?
And he'll be like, I don't know.
I don't know, I think.
When did you start?
Three, two and a half weeks ago, maybe.
Yeah, give it some time.
Yeah, I'm very curious to know how that works
You'll just know it's like it'll be in the groundwater where you just be like, huh?
You know, it's interesting. So I'm try I try to eat healthy but on planes I eat non-stop and I was always like what is that and it's because I hate sitting still you'll see me in this chair
I move around a lot. I'm a very restless person
I think it's just anxiety but on a plane when I can't get up, I can't walk around
I need something to do so I just snack the whole time and I'm wondering even if the Lexapro
I think I'll know if it's taking hold if I'm on a plane
I don't even mind sitting still for can you watch movies and stuff?
I can you I mean, it's a really good movie blessings, but normally no
Normally like it's gotta good does it have to be?
If I'm sitting upright, if I'm lying down,
we're lounging, we're watching.
If I'm sitting upright, yeah, it's tough.
Godfather?
Godfather could hold me.
And honestly, since I've seen it before,
there's certain points that I'd be like,
yeah, fuck, come on.
I know, I get it. I need something.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, it was Luca, let's go.
You've, and you've never slept well. Even I remember as a Eat something. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. It was Luca, let's go. And you've never slept well?
Even I remember as a kid having nights of insomnia,
like being up, my brain is just thinking about X, Y, and Z
for like an hour, two hours, whatever.
But with the phone, it's worse for sure.
That's another reason I hate this iPhone.
It's my fault, I'm addicted to it.
But like, my brain is just always-
Have you tried blockers or anything for the phone?
I have, and I tried the black and white thing
and then you just just
Yeah, you gotta read you have to see something full color. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah black and white work
Yeah, I always forget about black and white
But that's why I want a phone that just takes those options out of my hands because I will overcome whatever I need over
If my brain wants to do something, you're not stopping me. It does nothing stopping me. It makes these blockers
Make a lot of nice assumptions about addiction. Like yeah, it, if I could, if a Coke head has to just type
in three numbers, it's gonna do the cocaine.
It's not like, oh, fuck, no, I have the Coke blocker on.
Okay, good sleep.
I feel bad for all these.
Not bad, bad, but like I, a lack of sleep is a,
that's one I don't have. so I'm like, ah, fuck.
The other ones I can,
I'm so happy for people who sleep well.
My wife sleeps well, I will never, ever mock her for it, or.
Do you feel like shit most of the time?
Because I don't, it's like,
certain people just don't need a lot of sleep.
I don't feel like, when I really wasn't sleeping, when I was on the road a lot, I kept gaining weight, and I couldn't figure out, I was't, it's like certain people just don't need a lot of sleep. I don't feel like when I really wasn't sleeping,
when I was on the road a lot, I kept gaining weight
and I couldn't figure out, I was like,
I'm not eating well, but like,
not eating that much worse than I normally eat.
What's going on?
And then I realized it's just a lack of sleep.
So it does affect me.
But I've also just kind of trained my brain to be like,
well, you still gotta get X, Y and Z done.
So get it done.
All right, this is a good one.
And one that I cannot relate to at all.
Talking, he has a block about talking about his family
on stage, not a problem for me.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, dude, this is-
But I can also tell you, sorry, go ahead.
No, you go, I need to probably do this.
I was gonna say, my thing with talking about my family
on stage is like, in some ways I regret it.
My girlfriend has a kid, so I see how hard being a parent is.
And I'm like, I shouldn't.
I'm mixed.
I have mixed feelings about it
because it's like impossible.
It's so, it tests your patience relentlessly.
And it's just the hardest thing in the world.
So I do regret criticizing their parenting in some ways,
but I don't think I was wrong.
I don't know. You know what I mean?
And then with my brothers and sisters,
I think a lot of my brothers and sisters
were afraid that they'd get judged for it.
And then it ended up just being like,
everyone would come and be like,
oh yeah, my family's like that too. It ended up just being like like, oh, I heard about your yeah, everybody's family's a little fucked
Yeah, which is helpful to remember, but I remember growing up my mom would tell me which is in
I love my mom. I'm very close to her but like this is insane to say she'd be like don't tell anybody what's going on in
This house people can use that against you and I was like, well, we're not
on in this house, people can use that against you." And I was like, well, we're not politicians.
We own a fucking vitamin.
So what are you talking about?
There's no, nobody's gonna destroy us.
It's like that Chris Rock joke.
You have bags of JCPenney.
Nobody's gonna destroy you.
But so then all the time,
if there's something crazy happen in my house,
the next day I would go to school and act more energetic,
more upbeat, more positive.
Everything is great.
And that was just how I coped.
But if you want to do comedy and be great at it,
you have to be vulnerable.
And that's something my wife,
Justine has been pushing me for years,
talk about some of the stuff your family's going through.
People relate, people relate.
And I couldn't, and I'm finally getting better at it.
But, and to your point earlier,
I don't look at my dad as some monster.
I empathize with like, this is a story that is insane.
So my dad is in India.
His family is like,
Are your parents first generation?
First generation.
So my mom moved here when she was 14.
My grandfather came over,
took about 10 years to get enough money to bring his family over.
He could only bring two of his four daughters.
The other two got married, arranged marriages.
So my mom and her little sister came.
My mom was, she didn't know her real age.
He just said she was 14, so she could go to all four years of high school.
So she's fairly...
So like an African basketball player?
Exactly, yeah. You know, it's so funny.
My grandfather passed away, but like he had no Mega Watch
and he would tell me the exact date and time he bought the watch.
And then I'd be like, okay, but yeah, when are your daughters born?
And he'd be like, huh, come on, what do you want from me?
Anyway, my mom fairly assimilated over here. My daughter was born in the year of 1929. He bought the watch. And then I'd be like, okay, but yeah, when are your daughters born? And he'd be like, hmm, come on, what do you want from me?
Anyway, my mom's fairly assimilated over here.
My dad is in India.
His family's politically connected.
And he passes this civil service exam
that's like one of the hardest jobs in the country to get.
His life is set.
He's gonna be fucking rich. In India.
In India.
He's so good in India.
He's really good at Hindi. Family's well connected, charismatic, charming, because he has such
a command of the language, can maneuver past this test that you're like, he's going to
be a millionaire, done.
His life is set.
And an alcoholic, so he's-
Not yet.
Okay.
But he's-
Not yet.
But he's, I think most alcoholics are charismatic.
Probably.
Naturally.
Yeah, that makes complete sense.
And like, really under, in India you talk to people differently than you talk to them
in America.
He knows exactly how to do it.
And so, at the very least, he's a millionaire.
It's quite possible he climbs, like, to the highest ranks of politics, legitimately.
And then one day, he's at another family member's wedding, and then two of his cousins come
up to him and tell him, you're getting married today, too.
You have to leave this wedding, go to your own wedding.
You're also moving to America
So he has to give up that guy. He's no saying the matter. It's arranged marriages in
1977 or whatever how
He's 24 years old they can arrange marriages in it in a different country
Yeah, well my mom was in India
So they're like we need to get this done now because she's going back to America. Oh, I okay, okay
My mom is visiting. Oh got it
So and I didn't even even when they tell other Indians their age this story
They're like what the fuck is that that's insane
My dad doesn't have a say in the matter his parents have decided are they my dad is 24
My mom is listed 21 again. She didn't know a real name real age red-shirted. Yeah, red shirt. Yeah
Yeah, so he he's getting fitted for clothes on the way to the wedding like for wedding clothes
Gets married has to move to America.
He's in Texas all of a sudden, so he goes from being like high caste in India, high status, to like, probably lower status.
Speaks English, but he's not funny or charismatic or charming in English. You know the language well enough.
And then my mom has been here, so she's just kind of kicking ass and taking names.
And then I think over time, he just like slowly kind of broke.
Mmm. So I don't, when I started to understand that,
when I almost went broke, I know the impact it had
on my psyche as a man, so I started to look at him as like,
oh, you're not a bad person, you're just kind of
a broken person, and that's what I would like to bring into,
that perspective I would like to bring into this special,
if I do it, any heartfelt moment I want,
it's not me as a hero, it's I think my mom is a hero,
this guy's a victim and then I'm just kind of here.
Yeah.
So I hope being able to present it like that,
they won't be as resentful,
but I have a feeling the family's gonna be like,
what the fuck are you doing talking about this?
It's also a better frame,
empathy is a better frame.
Yeah.
Or at least seeming like you're unsure and then, and then ending up in empathy, cause that is a better frame. Yeah. Or at least seeming like you're unsure and then ending up in empathy.
Cause that is a better, yeah.
It's like what my parents, it's this shit was barbaric.
Yeah.
The earth used to be bar until like three years ago.
Yeah.
And it's kind of just like what?
Yeah.
And to have these expectations.
Yeah.
Of having modern expectations of people
that weren't alive for that part.
Like, you know what I mean?
Like, of course I'm more of what evolved.
And by the way, and I pointed this out to my girlfriend,
she's a therapist, but I'm like,
and she agrees, none of this therapy shit's proven.
Meaning, what's the after photo?
Who is this incredible, well adjusted, healthy person
who's just on their way?
Yeah, yeah.
Like it just doesn't, and it's just like,
no, Freud said a bunch of stuff,
so now we all have to pretend that we're missing something.
Yeah, I wonder about that sometimes.
Yeah, like I think it's worth wondering about
because I think it assumes that like,
this is right, that was wrong.
That was wrong.
Yeah.
But there was also something to it
in terms of connectedness, community, et cetera, et cetera.
Like there's racism, it's like,
there's no solutions, only trade-offs,offs is the this guy Thomas Sowell says that it's like yeah, there are no so this is like a different
Set of issues. Yeah Eastern philosophy is so much not about yourself
Yeah, we are all one get rid of the ego the egos whatever and then right now Western
Psychology is just so much about you and what you need
and you are important.
And that's, I'm not saying either is wrong,
but I did grow up in a very diametrically opposed thing.
I would argue that the Eastern is writer.
Yeah, I mean, ideally you find the empathy
that in every person, even if you don't like them,
we share one consciousness.
But it does, yeah, they're diametrically opposed
and it's a weird adjustment to be like,
well, here's the Western philosophy
that I'm gonna try out for a while, psychology-wise.
Are you going for the Eastern?
Yeah, I'm Hindu and I'm happy that I'm Hindu.
I think it's a beautiful religion.
My wife is Sikh, Sikh,
and they're very similar in that way.
So it lines up with us, but there is,
we're also like, yeah, but we're in this society, this psychology does seem
to help us navigate the world
and our own relationship and all that.
So trying to find that balance, I think is-
What is the, what would be the more
Sikh or Hindu take on marriage?
Is it, is it like, the man is always right?
No, it's I think meditation and like that kind of elevated consciousness.
And God is, we try to remember God is most important thing.
She's much better at it than me.
She's like really truly religious
and not like an annoying preachy like.
I'm like here and I believe, I don't know much,
but I believe.
But that's ideally God is first and then we're meditating
and we're doing all these consciousness things
and then that's gonna help us navigate anything then we're meditating and we're doing all these consciousness things and then
That's gonna help us navigate anything that happens and whatever as opposed to so it's not there's no like it's not like the caste system
Culturally that stuff took hold but we're in the actual religion
No, like her her religion was founded because hinduism culturally
One of the reasons was it had gotten to be there was the caste system that they didn't like.
But again, that I don't think was in the initial,
I don't believe from what I've read
was in the initial parts of the religion.
And then the gender discrimination was happening,
which again, in the, like the actual texts of Hinduism,
I don't see anything like that.
But culturally that takes hold.
So they form her religion, Sikhi,
and then same thing kind of happens culturally.
They're not gonna be happy I said that,
but it kinda happens culturally.
Same gender issues, little bit of cast stuff,
but like, it's just,
the religion is different than the culture.
It's like Christianity is different
than the Bible Belt and the people there.
I see no difference.
I'm sorry.
I'm sorry.
I'm sorry.
I'm sorry.
Well, in order to talk,
do you think you could talk about your family on stage and in a comedy club? Do you know what I mean? I'm not gonna lie. I'm not gonna lie. I'm not gonna lie. I'm not gonna lie. I'm not gonna lie. I'm not gonna lie.
I'm not gonna lie.
I'm not gonna lie.
I'm not gonna lie.
I'm not gonna lie.
I'm not gonna lie.
I'm not gonna lie.
I'm not gonna lie.
I'm not gonna lie.
I'm not gonna lie.
I'm not gonna lie.
I'm not gonna lie.
I'm not gonna lie.
I'm not gonna lie.
I'm not gonna lie.
I'm not gonna lie.
I'm not gonna lie.
I'm not gonna lie.
I'm not gonna lie.
I'm not gonna lie.
I'm not gonna lie.
I'm not gonna lie.
I'm not gonna lie.
I'm not gonna lie.
I'm not gonna lie. I'm not gonna lie. I'm not gonna lie. I'm not gonna, fuck it, but until then, I gotta make it as good as I can.
So like, what I'm hoping for is it gets received well enough
that my parents are like, all right, fine.
Yeah.
That's really a weird, but that's like-
I mean, I guess the hard way would be,
I was gonna say show it to them, but if they say no.
Yeah, no, I can't show it to them.
Yeah.
And also it's not, I thought about that,
and I was like, it's not your place to tell me
whether or not I can and can't do this.
40 years I didn't talk about it
And now I'm gonna talk does it feel is it does it change the temperature in the room does it like are people like?
hey, hey, hey a little bit feel like a little bit of a be still and it me if I
Sometimes I wonder if I'm too like needy with it to not be uncomfortable
Right cuz I I feel like sometimes they start laughing at points
I'm like that wasn't supposed to be funny, but I think they don't know how to handle it or I'm making it too jokey
So I'm trying to figure out I don't want to do a one-man show. I fucking hate that but like hey, man
I'm kidding. Yeah, but uh you're a comic you get it, but like as a comic
There's a thing where you're like well
I want to keep it funny, and I want to try to put the the actual
Like whatever I'm trying to say in jokes and still make it.
It's also having done one man shows and then doing
just a standup show like they're of equal value.
It's just like grass is greener thing.
We're like, if only I could hit that note
and then you hit it and you're like,
all right, you know what's a good note?
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Just fun and merriment.
Yeah, that's how I generally feel
But yeah, I want to try to find a way to actually Schultz his new hour
Have you seen it? No, but I've heard what it's about and I'm saying that's good
And it's really he does a really good job of making it poignant without being over-the-top in the sentimentality of it
Yeah, and then picking his moments
And I think that's kind of what I'd like to pick the moments where it's like alright now
We're gonna be thoughtful or emotional or whatever. And then mostly it's gonna be stand up.
It's official.
If I were young, I'd say, it's a fish.
And you'd sort of resent me, but kind of respect me for it.
For my command of the language and young people's jargon.
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Eating healthy is a block.
Yeah.
Do you not like?
I don't, see, I don't mind vegetable. Like I don't, if you put the right like, see, I don't mind vegetable.
Like I don't, if you put the right shit on it,
I don't mind it.
Yeah, I feel like you don't ever over consume food.
I absolutely over consume food.
See, I got, yeah.
Probably, well, one day a week, I only eat sugar.
Oh, good for you.
You do like a cheat day?
Yes.
And I eat sugar all day.
What about the other?
And it's graphic. It's disgusting. And I eat sugar all day. What about the other?
And it's graphic, it's disgusting,
and I feel like garbage at the end.
That's me.
And I used to, when I would do that,
I'd be healthy the other six days,
and then I would love feeling like shit on that day,
because then the next two or three days,
I'd be like, ugh, I don't even wanna.
Yeah.
I don't even wanna look at it.
It works.
Now it don't work for me anymore.
I just, I can just keep going.
Yeah.
And I don't eat as much sugar
But like round about 9 10 p.m.. I'm like nah. I need something
I gotta do something and if I'm full I don't care people have been like have protein shake that no
I still want I want my fucking sugar
I want my junk food let's go and my wife can eat whatever she wants to because she's good at moderation
So it's just in the house. Yeah, I can't have it in the house. Yeah, and she's asked me,
do you want me to get rid of it?
And I'm like, that seems unfair to you
that you got to get rid of all the good food
because I'm a fat ass.
How much weight do you gain?
Oh dude, my whole family's overweight.
So for me, it comes on quick.
Got it. Do you have a scale?
Yeah, I think I can put on 20 pounds
within like four months pretty quickly.
That's not bad.
Max, I mean, yeah.
How quickly can you lose it? Oh that takes eight months probably it feels like it takes
Maybe that's false, but it feels like it takes twice as long to lose his game
I lost five pounds in a day two weeks ago see that I envy that so fucking much
I don't know if it's just like water like I don't know what happened
What do I do I did run 10 miles Well see there you go. I can never run 10 miles, but even that shouldn't I don't know
It just seemed like that was quick. Do you like running? Here's what's interesting about her
I used to think I couldn't run more than three or four miles like I just would because I was I
Thought it was uh, I
Don't know. I was like I'm not in good enough shape. I realized it's entirely mental.
I just stopped thinking, it was an intention span thing.
I just had to realize like, there's nothing better.
There's no better moment coming.
Like it's a weird thing of like, it's Eastern.
It's literally Eastern philosophy of like,
it's all the same moment,
and no one is better or worse than another one,
unless you're in physical pain, but whatever.
And even Eastern philosophy would say like,
that's still not bad.
So there's no-
It's two shall pass.
Yeah, like, so there's no better or worse moment.
I used to be like, I gotta get off so I can,
it's like, no, you don't have to do anything.
You're gonna be there.
It's the same person.
Maybe you'll eat or something, but that's been the,
and I went from, I was able, I can run 10 miles.
I could never run 10 miles until like literally a month ago.
Yeah.
And I was like, oh, okay, I guess I can just,
and I don't get like, my shit doesn't tear.
No, see, not me.
But it's, yeah, you.
Yeah, you could do it.
No, there's no better moment than when I stop running.
That's the best moment.
What I'm saying is...
Like the second I stop, I'm happier.
I feel better, my breath is back,
my chest isn't hurting, my legs aren't burning.
Oh, what a moment when you quit.
You know what?
Like mentally you hate it,
but physically, everything is better. You're right, and I moment when you quit. You know what? Like mentally you hate it, but physically everything is better.
You're right.
And I'm gonna stop running.
Yeah, just there is a better moment.
When you're saying that, my brain is,
even when I'm trying to meditate
and they're like, this too shall pass,
I'm like, yeah, but why do I need to sit through it?
I'm with you.
I mean, I'm with you,
but what I've, I currently can trick myself into believing
or actually believe that the moment I stop
is not better than the moment I'm doing it.
I just, something happened for me.
God bless.
Yeah, it literally just like something happened
where I was like able to get out of it.
It's not all, it's whatever, it'll probably stop soon.
But like, I just was like, no, I'm good.
If you have to 10 miles, you're good.
Yeah, like what, yeah, anything else,
then it's compulsive, then it's a different thing
I have to talk about. Yeah, it's gravy.
Yeah, cause I burned a thousand calories.
It's like, you know what you can do with a thousand calories.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
I mean, that's the other part.
It's like, you know what I'm gonna do with this.
Yeah, that's very true.
I'm getting, you wanna talk about a point system.
Yeah.
What are you gonna do about it?
Dude, now that I'm like, well, I'm making money,
but I'm busy.
So like I got a nutrition guy that's like,
if I'm on the road, he's like,
hey, here's what you should eat in this city.
Like I send him my calendar now.
This just started like a week ago.
And then-
Do you send him where you're staying?
Yeah.
Great.
Here's the hotel.
Now I'm going to go to India probably in December.
You cannot, it's not gonna be possible.
So realistically probably January.
I would think that would be easier.
Not with family at least.
All they know how to do is feed you.
Oh right, that's all they can do.
And it's all carbs.
And it's all like, if you eat a little bit,
we're still gonna feed you in an hour.
It's all they know how to,
it's the number one way to show love.
In your family, Italian family probably.
But just food, food, food.
So, and I've told him, I was like, look, it's impossible.
And he completely gets it, because he's from Mexico.
So he's like, yes, I get it.
But probably new year, it's gonna be like really
nutritionalized, here's what you can eat today.
Just send me your schedule.
They don't like you when you say, I shouldn't.
You know, he's good.
He's like, just most of the time, if you eat healthy
and you work out fairly hard, which I got a trainer
who's like actually good at the weight stuff.
So yeah, like truly good at it.
And I think I'm gaining a little bit of muscle, which has never happened in my life.
But that plus the nutrition guy and then maybe even like if I can find the meal system or
whatever for when I'm in New York, just have that so I don't have to think at all.
That seems like you should be able to find the meal.
Yeah, just remove every possible obstacle.
Do you will you do you eat your wife's garbage? Oh, yeah? Yeah, and she dude she will I remember
I bought a brownie bite for her at Prett. She likes those half happy anniversary. Yeah
Yeah, so this is nice little come home. Yeah, I thought you might be upset at me
I'll throw it at her face here's a little shit. Just like old tree. Uh-huh. She had half of it left
It's been like four days at this point. I'm a fat ass. so I don't care how stale this brownie is I'm like thing yeah
I'm like are you gonna finish this cuz if not I'll eat this in half a bite and she goes
I'm working on it, and I was like it's been four days. What are you fucking working on this is insane?
Yeah, insane, but she can do that I cannot so when it's just sitting there
She'll have half a pop tartTart every day or whatever,
the other half is sitting there,
I'm like, that's 10 seconds, it's gone.
I gotta, somehow, if I can stop doing that, great, I'm good.
I think she needs to lock it up.
I mean, I'm gonna be honest with you.
Yeah.
You deserve it.
Yeah.
I think she needs some sort of system.
Yeah, maybe.
By the way, with phones,
Aziz used to put his phone in a cookie jar that locked.
He told me about it and I did it.
And it worked?
Yeah.
And then I moved him, forgot that I broke the cookie jar.
A lot of stuff happened.
But like, he would have a system,
put it in the cookie jar.
Anything he wanted,
if people sent it, it would go to a different thing, pencil and paper, and like certain, yeah,
he had a whole thing.
Again, I think assuming you can't handle it is the best.
That's just a lot to do.
Why don't I just buy a flip phone? Great, I don't know, why can't handle it is the best. That's just a lot to do.
Why don't I just buy a flip phone?
Great.
I don't know, why haven't you?
Dude, the green messages and then my wife just keeps being
like, cause she has self control.
She's like, why don't you just not do it?
And then I'm like, yeah, why not?
But now I got this dumb phone coming.
Yeah, any day now guys.
Very excited, hopefully, yeah, yeah, yeah.
It should have been here.
I don't know where it is, but.
Yeah, I guess I will pray for you.
Will Eastern pray for you.
Will meditate for you.
That, yeah, you gotta just admit what you're like.
In every, I'm with you.
I'm saying this as someone who's in the exact same boat.
When you look at the out the weekly
Read out of how much you're on the phone for hours. I'm thrilled if I'm at four hours
It was ever done for hours. I've had I've had weeks from four six is the average
Yeah, I've had seven and eight. Yeah, it's six is where I usually hover if I'm at five or four
I'm like, let's fucking go dude. That's four. I mean I'd have to be
I'd have to I'd have to something'd have to, I'd have to,
something would have to be,
I'd have to have the cookie jar.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
But do you ever be on and then feel yourself getting like,
when you're scrolling so much,
you just feel your body tense up?
That happens to me.
By the way, I don't even go on Instagram and Twitter.
And I'm still, I mean, a lot of it is like YouTube,
just music and shit.
Look, podcasts, like, look, I'm doing this the right way.
I'm not sick, sick.
Well, it was great talking to you, man. Great being here, man. Thank you. Great. I'm glad
we got, now I know who you are. Likewise. What your problems are, which is all, I'm
gonna use it against you. Love it. Like your mother warned. And Akash Singh, everybody, watches special called Gaslit and the other thing that no
one's ever heard of. All you have to do is open, open up your hand, my man