The Chris Voss Show - The Chris Voss Show Podcast – Only So Many Shopping Days till Christmas: The Ultimate Guidebook on How To Have A Good Time Before You Go by Jane Grecsek, Haley Grecsek

Episode Date: November 18, 2025

Only So Many Shopping Days till Christmas: The Ultimate Guidebook on How To Have A Good Time Before You Go by Jane Grecsek, Haley Grecsek https://www.amazon.com/Only-Many-Shopping-Days-Christmas/dp/B0...DPPCDPWY "Only So Many Shopping Days Till Christmas" offers a refreshing perspective on the inevitable journey of aging, delivered with a blend of humor, practical wisdom, and candid reflections. This engaging guide encourages readers to face life's challenges with resilience and a hearty dose of laughter. The book opens by acknowledging the inevitability of aging through humorous anecdotes and relatable stories. It sets the tone for a realistic yet optimistic view of getting older, emphasizing that laughter is indeed the best remedy for life's trials. Profanity is sprinkled throughout the book, not just for shock value but because sometimes that's the best way to get the message across. Let's be real: it's about saying what many of us are surely thinking as we face the changes that come with aging. One of the central themes of the book is the idea of meaningful struggle. Life is filled with unavoidable pain and challenges, but finding purpose and meaning in these struggles makes the journey worthwhile. Through various life experiences and reflections, the authors illustrate how to navigate these difficulties with grace and determination, offering both humor and realism to show you how to take the next step. A significant portion of the book focuses on the concept of building the life you want. Drawing from their professional and personal backgrounds, the authors provide practical advice on shaping a life aligned with one's passions and values. This theme is explored in several chapters, offering readers actionable steps to pursue their dreams and aspirations. Another recurring theme is the importance of maintaining a sense of humor in the face of adversity. The authors share personal stories of confronting life's obstacles head-on and finding reasons to laugh even in challenging times. Each chapter is filled with creative ideas and solutions to overcome the perplexities of aging. From the exhilarating thrill of driving a Lamborghini to the audacious fun of planning a big, extravagant funeral party, the book covers a spectrum of activities that range from the practical to the extreme. Readers will find suggestions for taking dance lessons, buying a fabulous wig, and even going skydiving. These activities, while some more extreme than others, are all aimed at inspiring readers to embrace life fully and fearlessly. Throughout the book, the interplay between the authors' perspectives creates a dynamic and engaging narrative. Their intergenerational bond adds depth to the discussions, highlighting how different generations can learn from and support each other. "Only So Many Shopping Days Till Christmas" is a heartfelt celebration of life, resilience, and the power of laughter. It offers readers not only practical advice for navigating adulthood's complexities, but also inspiration to embrace life's journey with joy and optimism. This book is a guide on the attitude and actions you need to take to live fully and authentically. Whether you're seeking guidance or simply a good laugh, this book is a must-read for anyone looking to navigate the ups and downs of life with a bit of profanity, a lot of humor, and an unwavering sense of realism.

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Starting point is 00:01:29 success. Say we're talking to wonderful two authors about their book that came out January 28th, 2025, which is two days past
Starting point is 00:01:38 my birthday. Or no, hold on. Yeah, two days past my birthday. It is entitled. What was that about? It was entitled,
Starting point is 00:01:47 only so many shopping days still Christmas, the ultimate guidebook on how to have a good time before you go, January 28th, 2025. Jane Gressick and
Starting point is 00:01:57 Haley Gressick. Join us on the show. We're going to be talking about their book, their insights, and everything else. Welcome to the show, ladies. How are you? Good. Thank you for the invitation. Thanks for coming.
Starting point is 00:02:08 We really appreciate it. Give us your dot-coms. Any plugs? Where do you want people to find out more about you on the interwebs? Yeah, so people can find me on Instagram at Haley Gressick. I'm also on TikTok, too. And then you can buy our book across Amazon and Barnes & Noble. And Jane, anything for you.
Starting point is 00:02:29 you? Well, I'm a commercial photographer and with my daughter for 15 years, but I've done it for 30 years. So, yeah, so you just use my name and it'll come up under photography. There you go. Photography is a beautiful thing, capturing life's moments and people, being people. So give us a, give us a little bit of background on both you guys. I'm sorry, let's lead off with a 30,000 overview. What's aside the new book? so yeah yeah so basically yeah basically yeah the book is about it's called only so many shopping days still christmas and like you said we wrote it last year first time authors which was wild we had no idea we were how to write a book how to the process worked or anything and basically the book is about
Starting point is 00:03:19 how to have a good time before you go but this isn't your everyday self-help book it's brutally truthful and it's intertwined with humor and I mean you open up the first chapter and you understand what I'm talking about but it's the truth that meets you know it meets people where they are and it gives people ideas on how to live their life differently coming from someone who you know has experienced so much trial with aging and getting older and just like the everyday trials that people go through So it's just a, it's a self-help book, but it's, it's nothing like anyone's really ever read before. Jane? And, you know, the interesting part is it's not about aging.
Starting point is 00:04:06 It's about living. And I think the charm of what we did was that there, I mean, Haley's 22. And so there is a 60-year age difference between us. Oh, really? Yeah. And so I think what's really cool, I mean, it's intergenerational. I mean, we think it's a masterpiece because who has an age difference like that? Who can put together a book like this from where she sees it, from where I see it? I mean, it turned out to be a book about living. And it was a spinoff off of the movie that I saw with Jack Nicholson and Shirley McClellan. So the movie's called Evening Star. And in the book, Shirley MacLean is not happy. She's not happy with her love life, with her family, really not happy with anything.
Starting point is 00:05:03 And so Jack Nicholson is the old boyfriend. So one day, he picks her up and is convertible, takes her down to the beach, does 100 miles an hour on the beach, and stops the car. And only he can do this because he is as smooth as silk. So he takes his arm and puts it around her and says there's only so many days till Christmas, meaning that Christmas was heaven. So that's how the book got its title. And ironically, it has nothing to do with Christmas, but here we are in the Christmas season. And so I said, Haley, why not? We'll just go with it as a must-rease for Christmas.
Starting point is 00:05:50 Because it's got the same message. Yeah. And it sounds like you make a great gift for anybody of all ages then. Yeah. Absolutely. Yeah. So it came out of the proponent from a line from a Jack Nicholson movie. That's awesome.
Starting point is 00:06:07 He has some of the greatest lines, really. Oh, God. He is nobody can deliver the way he delivers. You know, he's not like the sexiest man in the world. And he's not like. I think maybe he used to be when he was young, maybe. He wasn't, I don't remember. But he, no matter what he does, oh, my God, smooth.
Starting point is 00:06:28 Smooth. Yeah, yeah. I mean, I've watched some of the background on some of the ad libs he does in movies and improv, and it's just. Yeah, but no matter what role, no matter what role he plays, he's hot. Yeah, I mean, he's, he comes up with some, he comes up some wild stuff on his own. He might pick's characters. So only so many shopping days
Starting point is 00:06:49 So Christmas and now you have a book that Would make a great shopping gift So a bit of tongue in cheek there, I like it And so the ultimate guidebook On how to have a good time Before you go Why is it important to try and make sure you have a good time? Like, why can't we just be miserable
Starting point is 00:07:08 Until the end and just die in the fetal position? I think funny you should say that because, like, someone did a poll. I don't know which channel CBS and BC that said 50% of the people living in the U.S. are depressed. But I think that's, you know, because of too much information, right, Haley? I mean, no matter which way you turn, you know, we're too much information. And people, I think, really have forgotten how to laugh. But, you know, we did this book using laughter and comedy.
Starting point is 00:07:46 as a performance to get the message across because you know you can't you can't write a book and expect people to do what you're suggesting you have to team it up with humor and get the humor to take the message the humor is a great way to deliver messages like this and would you say there maybe how are the stories in it that are shaped is it is it things from your guys's life and experience or other people you knew Who are some of the settings of the stories that are in there? Are they maybe parables or?
Starting point is 00:08:21 Yeah, so actually, we purposely outlined the book. So if you could open up any chapter and you don't have to read the chapter before to understand what's going on, it's every chapter is a different message. And the way this book kind of came about was my cease. I was, oh gosh, a senior at Clemson University. and she sent me this one page, just one chapter, and it was probably the funniest thing I've ever read. It was just the honest, raw truth.
Starting point is 00:08:50 Like, truly how I call her my cease, like how she speaks is how she writes. And that means like nothing is holding back. There's profanity put in there. There is just, it is absolutely hilarious. Like, it's like I'm talking to her on the page. And that's how the chapters are kind of outlined. like it starts with the humor like how she sees things and how what she's experienced but then
Starting point is 00:09:16 how like we work so well together because the back half of that chapter is the truth it's meeting people where they are and like okay like yeah I I know like this like for example one of the chapters is about like aging and what happens to your body when that happens and it meets people where they are but it gives people okay like yeah that's the truth but like this is how this is how you're going to live your life differently because of it. And I think it just gives people like the humor, but also like the honest truth. And I think people love hearing that because it's authentic and I don't know, it's, it's not fluff, you know, it's to the point.
Starting point is 00:09:54 Yeah, yeah. Who's the gal on the cover? We were talking about that pre-show. There's a little old lady on a ship and she's got her a life fest jacket on. She looks like she's cruising or touring. What was the, is that anyone in particular? I'm sure people will have that question. No one in particular.
Starting point is 00:10:14 I mean, Cece, you could probably speak on this too, but I think she just, she represents everyday people. You look at her and, you know, she probably should not be on that boat. Like, why is she's not dressed for it? She's got a life jacket on, but there's just something in her face that's like, I'm ready to take on what's ever about to come my way. And that's kind of like, it makes you laugh. It makes you stop.
Starting point is 00:10:36 Yeah, yeah. I'm going to enjoy whatever happens. She looks like my grandmother and Naomi, my grandmother. She does. Almost exactly. It's kind of funny. I mean, it's not a very, it's a blown out picture. But, yeah, it's a, I think, I think it says it.
Starting point is 00:10:56 I mean, that's not the first cover. Haley and I've been through a lot of covers. Okay. One first cover was a little ethereal. Next color was too many stars and lights, and it didn't get the message across. clearly when you see her you know you know she's thinking and this book is about changing your life no matter of how age you are and just as a safety she puts the vest on in case things don't work yeah well i mean she's safety first i like this girl she's smart especially when you're
Starting point is 00:11:33 older safety first right you bend at the knees not at the back right you know I've all seen that movie. Been to my hernia surgeries. The, you know, that is one thing about getting old. You know, some people, I don't know, I don't put on that people have this belief. But, you know, some people believe that as you get older, you should take it more easy. You should just, I don't know, go sit in your lazy boy recliner like people kind of used to do. And keep smoking those cool, those cool menthol cigarettes.
Starting point is 00:12:08 and I'm trying to paint a 70s picture of lazy boy recliners and console TVs. You know, you just watch, I don't know, Mari and I don't know, whatever other game show is going on, Bob Barker, who I grew up with, the Bob Barker, and you just, you just, that's the way you go out. But you guys are suggesting doing something different. I think one of the things you're mentioning the 70s, so back in the 50s, There was a real estate investor, and so he launched some city in Arizona.
Starting point is 00:12:48 And that's where the term the golden years came from. He caught, yeah, he was part owner of the Yankees. I don't remember his name, but I do remember reading this. And so they put a tag on there because they wanted to get people, senior citizens, senior citizen age starts at 51 and they wanted to get people there and that's where the golden years phrase came from and yeah so he was a little bit of a lunatic because there there isn't really you know the golden years are full of surprises they are awesome or i think i pull my knee out no i'm just kidding uh haley you have any thoughts on that question yeah i mean just like
Starting point is 00:13:36 bouncing off of her like how she said so much as like as you get older is so unexpected and I feel like just like hon in on this point like this book is not just about aging like it's so much it's just about all the trials people go through like even like writing this book as like a 22 year old like my mindset has changed and like I've experienced things that you know not a lot of 22 year olds have at this point in their life and it just doesn't represent aging but it's like so much more than that like what people go through and that's why I feel like the golden years like I don't know it doesn't really apply I feel like it it's it's more than that and it's whatever age like you're going to go through so many hard things and you just have to learn to cope with it
Starting point is 00:14:23 and I think it's your mindset you know like people lack the mindset these days to like you said like sit on their couch or a recliner and be like oh my life sucks you know but why don't you go do something about it you know yeah go do something about it you know do not go into that good night gently as the poet poem used to say and and i think that's important you know when i was haley's age you know you feel immortal i mean at least i did uh and i think a lot of people do you feel immortal you feel unbreakable you feel like you can take on the world you wake up every day with all that collagen in your system and you know all that all that uh tight skin and tissue and everything works and you know your knees hold up and your back holds and but
Starting point is 00:15:11 no one tells you that you know getting old is you kind of like I used to see people that we're in decline and I'd be like oh about 65 70 your body goes to shit everything goes to shit I can say that because I'm old 60 and and you know that's when it gets bad But no, it gets bad about 40. You know, and you're right because Haley, I mean, we've had this discussion. And she said to me, I mean, the best line in the whole book is the ending line from Haley when she puts down, the book changed her life. Because here's the deal. At 22, she knows what's coming.
Starting point is 00:15:56 And we talk about this because, you know what, then you're 32, then you're 42, then you're 42, you're 52, you're 52, you're 60. too but if you if you take this book to heart this thing that we've done then that's when you change your life that's when you move into the right position you don't wait until it's too late you don't wait you know if the balls come in you bat them out the balls come in you bat them out then one day you say what the eff that's too many balls yeah you know that's how fast it happens. Yeah, it is, it does go fast. I mean, you wake, you start out when you're about Haley's age and you get a whole day and you look at it and you go, oh my God, what am I going to, there's like a whole 24 hours here. Now, you know, you and I probably wake up, Jane, we're,
Starting point is 00:16:44 you know, we wake up and then the next five minutes later, we're crawling into bed and going, where does this day go? What happened? You know? Yeah, and my God, we wake up, all right? That's true. That's the good part. Yeah, as long as we wake up, that's a day of ground. But, you know, this is something I espoused to my young nephew, and I like that you guys have written a book to this, because one of the things I remind him and my niece, I wrote this big long thing, they probably never read, when they graduated high school. And it was basically things I wish someone would have told me when I graduated high school. And a lot of it was, you know, take time to look around, take time to enjoy the ride. Because so many people, you know,
Starting point is 00:17:27 they graduate high school, maybe they run into a career or they think they're running into a career and maybe it ends up something they didn't want or, you know, same thing with the marriage, you know, they go right into raising the kids and sometimes people don't really even spend time discovering who they are, what they like or what they might like. They're just kind of getting locked into the plans that society and life gives us. And, and you don't take the time to look around sometimes. You don't. don't get the time to take space and go, where am I, am I enjoying this? Am I having a good time? Is, am I learning, growing? Are I, you know, what, what are I doing with my life? And so I told
Starting point is 00:18:07 him, I says, you know, take time to look around, enjoy the ride. You know, one of the hardest things for me to learn was, it's not about the destination, it's about the journey because I was really big in, you know, goal setting, achieving goals and all that crap. And while those are good, I didn't have a goal set that said, you know, check some things off your bucket list. There's a lot of things that I would like to do on my bucket list that I can't do anymore because, you know, it's going to wrench my back or it's going to blow out this knee or blow out this hernia again and fixed. You know, there's certain things I just can't do anymore.
Starting point is 00:18:44 And I have to accept that because my body will just not do it. And so the times who've done some of those things that were crazy and wild and maybe fun, and create some great memories are lost to me where if I'd done it when I was youthful and I was probably more inclined to do them, I would have gotten them in my bank of experience. And, you know, as I age, I mean, some of the crazy and fun stuff that I've done in my life that I really can't do or don't want to do anymore, I have those beautiful memories to fall back on. I go, hey, I did that.
Starting point is 00:19:17 That was really cool. But man, if you live your whole life and you don't take control of what you want to do and how you want to do it, and enjoying the sights and the sounds as you go by, it goes by you real fast. Then you're like, what the hell happened? What do I achieve? Those are my thoughts. What do you ladies think?
Starting point is 00:19:34 Yeah, I just feel like it's what a shame it would be if you look back on your life one day and you didn't do the things you wanted to do, one because you were so stuck on another person's timeline or what other people would think or say, like what a shame it would be if you didn't get to do the things you did because you were living out of fear. You were like, oh, I have time to do it. Like, I think it's a wake-up call for people to start living by your own timeline and on your own timeline and not the timeline people expect you to be on.
Starting point is 00:20:07 Yeah. And that happens a lot. Jane, your thoughts on that? Yeah. You know, and this brings us to the point about the book because we pick things in the book that when Haley and I were writing it, we're like, oh, God, how are we going to get this message across? And so familiarity works with people. If, you know, if they know the subject and the topic, you can kind of change the goal. So a couple of the chapters that we spoke about
Starting point is 00:20:39 included world people like Elizabeth, President Bush, and a wonderful chapter about nobody puts a baby in the corner. Because these are things that people can relate too. So we put that up forward, and then we changed the goal a little bit in there. But Chris, you were just talking about physically not being able to do things. You know, the charm of this book is that you can do stupid, crazy, fabulous, staggering things. If you read this book, mentally, you can make a move. You can still make a move mentally. But, you know, people are so, you know, they follow the rules. and they follow the book.
Starting point is 00:21:23 And I think it's hard to move people out of what they think they've grown into and what is right. But Haley and I have always said two things about this book. One, we had an outrageous time and we don't care if we don't sell the book. But we've changed our minds since then, so maybe we care that we do sell the book. And the other thing is that there's an old saying that if you help one person, you help the world. So the goal of this book, Kelly, is for just one person to try one thing and we've done it. And people show multiple things, right? Yeah.
Starting point is 00:22:09 Do you believe in a bucket list? Do you guys talk about that in the book at all? You know, some people have those. I feel like our book is the ultimate bucket list. I mean, there are some wild things in this book, like rent a Lamborghini and drive around in a really, like, crazy things like that that you would never think of doing. But I think it's funny when you read it, but it really gets you thinking like, what are the things that I want to do it with my life, you know? And it may be crazy to some people, but hey, I mean, you have to make your own memories and experiences because life's too short. Yeah, life is too short.
Starting point is 00:22:47 And it goes by so fast. I mean, now, you know, I'm a photographer as well. I don't, I don't, I'm just an amateur. But one of the things I really like about photography is, is I go out on day joints where I'll spend, usually Saturday, I go wander downtown of a city. And I just randomly let serendipity take me places and look for things. And, you know, I'm just constantly looking around and capture the moment. And I really enjoy it because it slows down time for me.
Starting point is 00:23:15 And what happens. and say,ly, as you grow older, is there's so much time that you've been through, time moves really fast because you have kind of a weird perception of it in time. You probably heard people tell you that as you get older, it moves way faster. And when you've got, you know, kids and marriage or for me, you know, multiple companies and businesses and things you're doing, it moves even faster because your plates full every day as soon as you wake up and and you're going to try and you know sustain all the plates spinning but as you get older the time just moves faster it just it just your perception of time changes and so it gets harder to get stuff done it gets harder to
Starting point is 00:24:01 look around it gets harder to slow that time down and so one of the things I really like is you know people talk about being present I don't know if you talk about that in the book but being present was a big fight for me because I was so engaged in the machinery of my life, I wasn't being present anymore. Like I would sit, pet my dogs or try and, you know, spend quality time with them or with relatives, people I loved in my family. And I would just be sitting there realizing that I was in another place the whole time I was with them. I was thinking about my business or problems I had or whatever. And I wasn't present. And so photography helps me be present. it helps slow down that time because I'm crawling through time looking for moments and things
Starting point is 00:24:46 to happen and I think that's kind of maybe a healthy way to look at life in looking at life trying to be present trying to be awake trying to be aware because otherwise you're just going to get dragged life will just drag you and you'll just wake up one day and go where all those decades go right yeah it goes off of it because like so many people these days you wake up you drive to work you work you come home dinner bed maybe put the kids to bed whatever and then you do it all over again sometimes you know for me like it I feel like I live the same day every day sometimes and sometimes I'm like what am I doing like it's already Friday like it was just Monday like what did I do with my time this week and it just really makes you think about like being present
Starting point is 00:25:35 even if that's like taking the time to call someone or do something different every single day so you're not living this mundane life every single day and pushing yourself to stay curious and switch things up take a different route to work or buy someone coffee or do something different every day so you're always challenging yourself and I think that also helps me to stay present and also just staying off of social media I feel like these days it's literally you can get wrapped in this wormhole and I mean doom scrolling like yeah it's crazy especially like with you know people my age it's it's such a new age we live in and I think mastering the ability to unplug from that and step away from that and be so present with what's in front of you with your family
Starting point is 00:26:26 like be present at dinner like don't be so caught up and worrying about all the other million things on your to do list and just like really like practice being present. And I think that's a great message. A lot of things you worry about life don't ever end up happening anyway. You know, that's an important thing about focusing on presence. Your thoughts, Jane? Yeah, I mean, Haley just touched on our two favorite words of the book, which is staggering generosity. We have a section on there because it's so easy and it's those two words can mean so much.
Starting point is 00:27:00 But when you say staggering generosity, you don't have to like the super rich, you know, whatever level you are in life, you can do something that changes somebody's life. I mean, I had an instance once. And so, you know, every day I'm just so grateful for everything. I kiss the ground I walk on because I come across so many things that we put in the book that are real. So one time I was in a supermarket and there was a woman in front of me and she had, oh my God, maybe 20 cans of cat food.
Starting point is 00:27:34 and then she had a box of strawberries and so I heard her tell the woman could you ring it could you ring up the cat food and see what my bill is so she rang up the cat food and then she said to the woman thank you very much but I'm going to put the strawberries back
Starting point is 00:27:52 and then I was right behind her and I said whoa wait a second those strawberries look really good and I said how about this How about I get you to strawberries and kind of as something I want to do? And she said, I don't know you and I can't pay you back. Yeah, she was pretty honest up front. And I said to her, hey, someday you're going to buy somebody's strawberries.
Starting point is 00:28:21 And we laughed about it and she took them. But what a lesson that taught me. Because things are so difficult for people. things are so hard at any level they're hard yeah they're hard yeah and i love the attitude you guys convey in the book about this tell us a little bit about your each of yourselves give us a bit of bio on both yourselves what was your upbringing influence and when did you know you wanted to write this and how did it come together yeah so i can kind of start so i'm i'm 22 um and i grew up in New Jersey. And we grew up at our family cabinet upstate New York, which is where the book was
Starting point is 00:29:06 written. And this book kind of came about. I was a senior in college. And we, I mean, we wrote this book in one summer. It was the summer before I moved out to Austin, Texas, which is where I am now, right after college. And I mean, we wrote it in one summer. And it was, I put everything aside, and I was just so present. And we did the thing. And I never thought I would write a book before I was 22, which is really cool. But to do that with, like, my grandma has been literally the best experience, and I'm so grateful for it. Yeah.
Starting point is 00:29:39 Good family-building thing. Jane? Let's see. I've been fortunate. I came from a great family, and I have a family now. I have 14 grandchildren of which. Wow. Of which Haley is one, and 13 other marvelous kids.
Starting point is 00:29:57 And so they're great kids. What you see is what you get. And so, you know, you've done a good job. And so I was in marketing, but then I went to photography, which it turned out to be the love of my life because all you need in life, Chris, is one good picture. Ah, there you go. Or one good thing. And, you know, and photography goes on forever. So I loved hearing what you spoke about.
Starting point is 00:30:22 Oh, cool. Yeah. That's good to know, because I'm still looking for that one good picture. Well, I always will. Do you shoot in black and white? I hope it's black and white. Yeah, I'm a lot of street. I love street photography.
Starting point is 00:30:35 I love black and white. I think about 50% of my portfolio is black and white. Yeah. Because black and white is so, it's so forgiving. Yeah, I guess so. Yeah, it is, huh? To me, I have a harder time editing in black and white because trying to get the tones,
Starting point is 00:30:52 there's so many different shades and tones of black and white that you can utilize. And so sometimes just trying to get the right. setting of the black and white. But yeah, it is forgiving in a lot of ways. And it also, you know, you and I grew up in the age of black and white movies and TV, I assume. And so I've learned to see the use of color and light that was ingrained to me as a child and how they would use it. You know, one of my favorite stars is Humphrey Bogart. And, you know, when you watch those old movies, you know, they didn't have a lot to work with with color-wise. And so they made it up
Starting point is 00:31:31 with black and white. And in fact, last night, I sat and joined a bunch of Facebook groups for black and white street photography because I needed to have more in my, more ideas of my portfolio. But yeah, I usually want to tromp around downtown. There's a lot of black and white. And I love it. But it's such a challenge to get the lighting right, the shade of great. Do you shoot film? That's the way to do it. No. I'm not sure it is. I'm just lazy. I used to shoot film back in the day, but, but, yeah, now I'm just lazy. See, that's the combination is what you just mentioned, use of light and film and step aside. You got it. Yeah. I mean, when I was in high school, we used to do all that photography lab work with the red light and the fluids and stuff.
Starting point is 00:32:21 and that was a lot of work I've met some people recently that they both told me that they do film and you know I met them on the street and I was like hey you know you're cameraman you go hey what are you using there and I've met two people recently they're doing film and there's actually a shop
Starting point is 00:32:37 by a studio that I shoot at that they sell film hard real film and process the film it's pretty crazy it's just like the old days of photomat but to me it's it's it's capturing those moments one of my big fears in life is as i've lived a pretty uh interesting unique life and um trying to capture those moments so that you remember them uh and so i have these huge archival libraries of my life uh where i go back and and i'll see stuff and be like oh
Starting point is 00:33:10 i didn't oh i forgot i did that i did i oh that was really cool wow oh wow i i dated that one person And I forgot about that relationship. You know, you live a long life, and if you're busy enough, it's hard, you know, you don't have time to just sit around and go. Is there something I did that I forgot? And so being able to go through some of the archives and trickle those memories and you're just like, wow, you know, because it does seem like it goes fast, but there's a lot of stuff that you experience and goes by you.
Starting point is 00:33:41 And it's kind of nice to reminisce about those things. One of my biggest fears is that I would get, I don't, I mean, It's not a fear. It is what it is, whatever happens. But one of the things that I think would suck, let's put it that way, is if I ever got Alzheimer's, because I would forget all these wonderful memories I built and everything else. But the beauty is I experienced them. So maybe my mind can take that away from me, but you can't take it away from me.
Starting point is 00:34:07 I don't know. Maybe I'll remember stuff still in some way or not through. Or if you play a certain song, I'll remember stuff. Alzheimer's patients tend to do that. But, yeah, enjoy your life now where you can. I mean, it's like I told my niece and my nephew, take time to look around. It goes fast. Enjoy the ride.
Starting point is 00:34:24 And like I say, the hard thing for me was, for me, it was always about the destination, not the journey. I hated the fucking journey because I'm like, I hate this fucking journey shit. I hate going through, you know, hell to get to heaven, yada, yada, yada. And then, you know, enough people told me and that, you know, Chris, it's about the journey, not the destination. Because a lot of times you don't ever really get to the destination or at least the destination you think you want. want. You get what you, you don't get what you need. You get what you. Oh, what is it? You don't get what you want. You get what you need. The Rolling Stone son. So ladies, final thoughts as we go out, tell people how they can pick up the book and all that good stuff, et cetera, et cetera, and
Starting point is 00:35:02 pitch them out. Yeah, so people can buy the book or across Amazon and Barnes & Noble. You can also go to bookbaby.com and there's a bunch of ways you can buy it there. You can also follow me on my socials. I will be sharing the book more and just more about what Jane and I are doing as we get together. It's kind of hard because I'm in Texas and she's in Jersey, but when we do get together, we will definitely be talking about the book and everything. So, yeah. A great book you can give away at Christmas.
Starting point is 00:35:38 Jane, your final thoughts and pitch out to people? Oh, gosh. You know, you just have to listen, life. is hard. I've had a head-on collision and I've had a rare disease that's fatal and I've come out of both of them. And I think you've got to learn to kiss the ground you walk on. You have to learn to go outside the box. You have to learn to go outside the box and try things and do things. And you know what? Forget about leaving your money. Think about leaving something tangible. Because, you know, you don't get to say you leave the money.
Starting point is 00:36:19 You miss the joy of leaving something and going through the process of what you've done. You have to reward yourself. You know, you've got to change it up a little bit. You know, you saved it. It's yours. Go spend it. Go spend it. Ely, Jean's trying to tell you that there's nothing in the will left.
Starting point is 00:36:37 So I'll see you're aware of what's going on there. But, you know, I mean, a lot of people that way, you know, my mom will talk to me about things. and what she spends money on. I'm like, it's your money, mom. It's your life. You go enjoy it. Don't worry about me. I think one of my stepmother,
Starting point is 00:36:53 she's always, you know, talking about what she wants to leave us. And I'm like, don't, I'm really not worried about that. I really don't like those conversations. They're pretty macabre. You know, what am I going to do after you die? I mean, just come on, man. Let's enjoy what you're alive. And, and, yeah, go spend all the money.
Starting point is 00:37:11 Fuck it. You earned it. I don't care. You know, I'm a professional. person that's made, made their money in their life. So, you know, I knock on wood, hopefully will, you know, I don't plan on retiring until seven years after I die. So I love building businesses and making companies. And fortunately, I can do that until I'm old and decrepit. Wait, I'm that, I'm old and decrepit now. Anyway, it's too much partying of living in Vegas for 20 years.
Starting point is 00:37:39 So, yeah, I mean, thinking outside the box, I did that with my life. I, at 22, I got a Pesectomy. I decided probably wasn't going to ever get married. Probably wasn't ever going to have kids. And I lived a different life than most men do. And, uh, and I've had a great fucking time. In fact, a lot of men have said to me, I didn't know there was something outside of the box that society gave. I didn't know you could just go do that. You know, most, most men wait until they're in their midlife crisis. They're, uh, I think a lot of people do. They have a midlife crisis where they wake up and they realize they've been living someone else's life and someone else's game plan.
Starting point is 00:38:17 And I've got to tell you, my life has been wonderful. And a lot of men tell me that they would have gone and done what I did if they would have had a second choice. And I'm like, you did have a choice. You chose one way. And they lived beautiful lives as far as I'm concerned. I mean, to me, you know, raising kids and being a father, I mean, that's got to be a great depend this thing to do and
Starting point is 00:38:39 contribution to society and hopefully they find the beauty in what they did and what they contribute. They're going to have something I don't where they're going to have people trying to force them into retirement homes to take all their assets where I won't. I don't have anybody to force me in retirement home
Starting point is 00:38:56 except I don't know. Maybe I'll be living on the street or something. These are jokes folks. Anyway, I'm trying to round out positive. I'm just going negative, aren't they? Wow. Just the upside of you. So that's all the more reason we should all buy and read your guys's book. You're going to love it.
Starting point is 00:39:14 You're just going to love it. The book is entitled, folks. Only so many sleeping day, I'm sorry. Only so many shopping days till Christmas. The ultimate guidebook on how to have a good time before you go. Out January 28, 2025. Appreciate your day every day and all like this stuff. Thanks to Jane and Haley for coming to show.
Starting point is 00:39:35 We really appreciate it. Thank you. Thank you so much. You gave a book of voice. Thank you, ladies. Any dot-coms, too? We want to plug as we go out. Any socials or place you want people to look you up on the interwebs?
Starting point is 00:39:50 People can find my socials at Haley-Sik on Instagram and TikTok. A website is in the work, so hopefully we'll have that up soon. But, yeah, we'll keep you guys interested. There you goes. And look for the Chris Foss Show website. We'll have a link there when that website goes up. Thanks, ladies, for checking in with us and sharing your wonderful knowledge. And great, great advice, just great advice, because there's so many things I would have liked
Starting point is 00:40:15 have done in life that now I can't, you know, I can't become an Olympian weightlifter. Evidently, they tell me, my hernia doctor says no. Anyway, but I tried there in my 50s, but, you know, the things I learned may be better. So you learn by trying and getting outside the box. Thanks for tuning in. Go to Goodreach.com, Fortresschess, Chris Foss, LinkedIn.com, Fortezs, Chris Foss, 1 on the TikTokity and all those crazy places on the internet. Be good to each other. Stay safe. And we'll see you guys next time. And that should have us out.

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