What's up man? How you doing.
I'm pretty good yourself.
You know, I am trying my best. I am having new epiphanies about life every single day, some of them contradicting each other. Sometimes it feels like, you know, sometimes I feel like I have like a life epiphany, and then tomorrow I have the opposite one. In the day after that, I have the original one. And it's like I'm going in complete circles. But maybe maybe I'm like
going in circles. I'm trying to, like with words describe how I see this visually, Like you know, I'm like going in circles, but the circles are moving a little bit to the right every time, So it's like a loop that event Yeah, it's like a loop that just event that goes eventually moves forward in that way. You know, you kind of visualize what I'm talking about.
Yeah, I have different epiphanies every single day, so the light is always seeming to throw a little bit of a loop at you.
I see that you are not a plus one area code. Where are you calling from?
I'm calling from Australia. I moved to Australia about three years ago.
Okay, are you American.
Yeah, yeah, I'm from Kansas City.
Cool. Where and where in Australia did you move?
I moved to Sydney, so one of the most expensive cities.
In the world.
And why did you move from Why did you move from Kansas City, which is not one of the most expensive cities in the world to sid.
So I'm actually like one of your other callers that called it like a like probably like ten podcasts ago get the whole cool work steme and I ended up in Alaster and then I just started traveling around the you asked working at different places, different resorts, and that led me to eventually you know then like a few other people on here and been like, oh, I want to go to Australia. So I ended up in Australia. I'm a chef, so I've been cooking for about three years out here.
Cool. Very cool. You said you were like one of the other callers that did the what thing.
So you know the caller who went up to what is that Yellowstone and he was just working out there and yeah, so that same website. I went and got a job off when I was twenty one, so I'm well twenty seven, so I'm thirty four and now and I've been doing the whole traveling thinking about eight years.
Now, how's that going for you? Because I think a lot about what a fully nomadic life would be like, and I've been in periods of time in my life in which I felt very nomadic, and I'm curious, eight years, how does that work out for you? How are you feeling about it?
Oh? Man, you kind of uh, you really get used to traveling and just keeping the minimum amount of stuff. Like my whole life up until these last three years could fit in three or four suitcases and I would just get up and go. I'm driven across the US, like four times I used to live in Oregon, drove down to Florida, like the very tip of Florida, that
work down there. You really, uh, you really get to know outside of yourself that a lot of people won't know because they're never alone so much and celebrating holidays and all that stuff. You really got to grow a family outside of your family.
Do you have a family.
I actually just found out my girlfriend and here in Australia, is pregnant.
No way, yeah, so are you are you go? Are you having the baby?
Yeah? We are? Wait so I actually it was a whole spill. I just quit my job last week and I have another job lined up, and uh, pretty much two days after I quit my job, she's like, yeah, I'm pregnant and we're moving about eight hours away from Sydney right now, So we got a whole.
Where are you going to move?
We're headed up to Balina. I don't know if you made it up to like the Byron Bay, Ballina area while you were here.
No, but I heard about Byron Bays. That's like where all the no, I'm thinking of Bondi Beach, that's where all the like tours go to die.
Yeah. Yeah, Byron Bay is also another popular spot. It's where Chris employd and Hugh Jackman, they all live out there.
And so this, uh, this lovely lady. Did you meet her in Australia?
Yeah, yeah, so we actually met on the apps. I know a lot of people have a lot of trouble about meeting people on the apps, but it's it's more of a persistence game and a numbers game than it is you know, finding somebody right away. You know how many the apps for a long time?
How many appdates did you go on until you met your girlfriends.
Uh whoosh, Jesus, probably over one hundred easily over wow?
Really over one hundred?
Yeah yeah yeah, But I'm I'm an old man, so I've been using them. It's pretty much they came out and I've been in different cities.
And what was it about this one that made it different from the other one hundred?
She was just pretty awesome. Like, honestly, all the girl all the app dates that I've been on in Australia have been pretty fruitful, like updated somebody that I've pretty much met every single time. But she was she was just different man, Like I didn't have to be stone to be around her and like all that stuff. So it just kind of really worked out when I first met her. We met on Australia Day and we ended up hanging out for like six and a half hours.
Now, what is Australia Date? You guys don't just have like Hinge and Tinder.
Australia Day. It's like, uh, it's a holiday. So Australia Day is like Independence Day or like Columbus Day.
Oh oh oh oh oh wait you met up on Australia Day. Yeah, okay, I thought you said you met her on a website called Australia Date.
No, we we actually met on Hinge.
Okay you understand, Okay, you understand. You understand where that misunderstanding came from, right, Yeah, for sure, I was like, what, I guess there's a website where you can just date Australian. What was the other The other thing you said is you said that you felt like you had to be high to be around some of these people. Tell me more about that.
Well, I used to actually this year stop smoking weed as well. So, uh, I was just stoned all the time, man, and like just being around people, and I felt like that wasn't the only way I could communicate with people because I was constantly stoned, and maybe nobody would like me if I was constantly stoned. And yeah, the first time I was ever around her, I just wasn't stoned,
and it was it was a real eye opener. It was an epissan if you, like you said where I was like, okay, I can do this, m m. Yeah. Was as anxious?
Yeah?
Yeah?
Was it was it that you just kind of felt a constant state of anxiety and weed was like the only way to get past it.
Yeah, And actually, uh, once I stopped smoking and I got away from the weed. Actually the anxiety actually went down.
Yeah, so the weave.
Was actually making me really paranoid, at which I didn't notice because you know, I'm waking up smoking three or four bulls, going to work on my breaks, smoke some more, smoke some more before I go to sleep. So I was just like in constant marijuana hayes.
Mm hmmmm hm. Yes, what what made you want to quit? Recently?
I ran a marathon. I ran a marathon, and uh, in order to prepare for the marathon, I just cut back, cut back to back, and I, uh, before I had a kate, This is before I knew I was having a kid. I just didn't want to like smoke around my kid or you know, be a stoner. I don't care about like smoking weed every so often or whatever like that, but like I just didn't want to be like a stone dad. M So it all worked out, Yeah,
it was. It was. It was more so that I was smoking nicotine with the marijuana, and I wanted to play it away from that. So yeah, yeah, exactly, I wanted to get away from that. I always told myself I wouldn't smoke nicotine. But you know, we do things in life that we said we wouldn't do.
How long was your weed career prior to.
Quit, probably like thirteen years?
Yeah, every day?
Initially, no, but once so I moved out to Oregon when I was about twenty three, and the weed is so cheap out there and it's so good that you know, it just kind of let me down a rabbit hole and smoking more and more blah blah blah. So it's been it's been quite a journey.
Yeah.
Yeah.
The part about anxietyety like you smoke weed to alleviate anxiety, but then you find that this weird converse way. It's like you get high and then you get more anxious and more parentally exactly. But and I and I wonder, and again this is not the Andrew Huberman podcast, but I do wonder, is like, is weed making me is like a self fulfilling prophecy, where like weed makes me anxious on the days that I am not smoking as well.
Yeah, that's why I was fine in too. And it is because they say, like marijuana is an addictive and that was like in you know, the nineteen seventies where the weed wasn't thirty six percent and thc and stuff like that, and you know, it's just a lot more accessible, a lot more open. It's not what it used to be. So I think as it becomes stronger, it does become more addictive, especially you're young and you're using. I definitely think that your body can get like dependent on having that.
It may not be you know, uh, as physically of a bad addiction as like heroin or other opie images stuff like that, but like the mental addiction is what I think gets a lot of people in strays, keeps on from quitting and stuff like that, because it is. It was very hard, and a large part of it,
like I told you, was the nicotine for me. And then you're smoking blunts and stuff like that, then you're definitely getting like that constant like nicotine high to where you're not even noticing, and uh, it would be definitely a lot harder for you to quit.
Mm hmmm hmm. Have you replaced it with anything else, whether it's something negative or positive.
Well, honestly, I just been focusing on life, being able to run longer, like I said, I've been during marathon. So this year I'm training for an iron Man and just stuff like that trying to keep my body busy, trying to keep my mind busy. It's like you said, with masturvation, as long as you're out of the house, you're not thinking about it.
I love the fuck it. I love the things. I love the things that I just fucking say on this podcast, not really really not registering that anyone actually hears them. And then and then someone says, remember when you said that you should just be out of the house as much as you can so you don't masturbate as much, And I'm like, oh, yeah, you really did say that a lot. Yeah, and you know, and I fully stand by it. I stand by it a lot because it's true.
Whenever I'm in the house, you know, it's uh, it's a problem. But I don't do it outside because that's a weak. Yeah. I think I would. I'd like to think even if I'd like to think, even if it wasn't illegal, I still wouldn't do it outside. But I don't know. Who knows what life is like. It might be kind. I mean, people do it, people definitely, even though it's illegal, People definitely do it. People people do it.
I saw a guy jacking off on Venice Beach once, and you know what the crazy thing is is nobody cared. Nobody cared at all because it's what they expect. It's like when you see it's like if when you're walking through New York and you're on the subway, if you just see guy masturbating, you're kind of like, at least I'm kind of like, well that it's not It's like seeing a palm tree in Florida. You know, it's like, this is what it is?
This is it?
Nobody people are just on their phones. No one really they avoid them, but they just you know, everyone's just trying to get to where they want to be. So, uh, what do you what's your job now? You're still a chef, right, Yeah.
I've been a chef for about, yeah, thirteen years. So in the entire time i've been chefing, I've been smoking weed. Yeah. I never went to culinary school or anything. If anybody is listening, they want to become a chef, just get a job in a kitchen. Deep, So to go to culinary school.
What's your name again, I'm not going to forget this time.
My name is Ron.
Ron.
That's my dad's name.
Yeah, Ron, give me a map, So you graduate high school at eighteen, and then you're running around for a while.
Where all did you run around to?
So from eighteen twenty one, I stayed in Kansas City. When I was twenty one, I actually smoked a shit ton of weed one night and I ended up getting on a grade Hound and moving to Order and.
You just I don't breeze past the story.
So you just.
Got really like what you're in your mom's house or you're where are you like? And you just get really hot outside that night to move.
Yeah. So I'm I'm a hot box in the car with my friend. We probably smoked like five or six months. And I get home and it's like an Alexati experience and I'm like, I don't know, I can't be here anymore. I't my life is going to pass me by if I don't leave right now. So I packed the backpack full of clothes, drove down to the Greyhound station and bought a ticket to Organ because I was supposed to go with an ex girlfriend and we got broken up. And I'm like, yeah, no, I don't want to stay
in Kansas City. I'm going anyway.
Wow.
And I didn't know anybody. I didn't have a plan or anything like that. I ended up surviving out there for eight months before I had to go home. My sister told me, like, you could say, at my house for three months for free, or you can go back out to Oregon. And yeah, I ended up taking that three months learning to cook at waffle house, and then I went back out to Oregon and I ended up getting a job in six days working in the kitchen. So it was off to the races after.
Then the first those first eight months that you were surviving in Oregon, after just that night packing up and you just what you showed up with a backpack and yep, that's it.
Yeah, I had two hundred and eighty dollars in my pocket. I actually I had like couldn't cocted a plan on the bus where like after I woke up. Either it was Stony Hays where I'm like, oh shit, I'm on my way to Oregon. So I was like, Okay, let me see if I can you know, play nice enough or you know, show off my personality to eat to where somebody will let me crash on their couch. And yeah, that's exactly what happened. One of the chicks on the bus,
she's like, you look extremely young. I know you're coming out here to survive and try to figure it out. But if you ever need a place to stay, there's my number and give me a call. I stayed one night in the hotel, gave her a call, and then she let me crash on her couch for about two months until I got on my feet.
You met a woman on the Greyhound bus to Oregon that you ended up staying with for two months?
Yeah, on her couch. Yeah it was. It was one of the thirtiest places I've ever stayed. But you know, at the end of the at the end of the night, I was able to sleep somewhere with a roof over my head, and I was happy. They were some of the nicest people I've ever.
Met who was in this house.
It was her and her girlfriend at the time.
That's so wild. That's they just You've just got so you got really lucky on that one.
Yeah, I did. And I Oregon gives out food stamps like their water, so I was just paying for rent those first two months and food stamps. I'm like, I get two hundred and fifty dollars worth of food stamps. This is all I can afford to give you. You can have it all. Here's the cart.
Uh.
And then once I got a job, I got lucky again because my boss at that job was like, hey, I need a roommate. Cool, how much is rent? And rent was about three hundred dollars. So I'm working at seven eleven and working with my boss.
And what year is this?
This is two thousand and twelve slash thirteen.
Wow? And so when you all right, so you got on a Greyhound bus and go to Oregon. You meet this lady? How soon after you arrived did you get a job? And then how'd you get that?
Two months? And I was just walking around adding, as you know, going out giving out my resumes and stuff like that, because the internet isn't as crazy as it is now even ten years ago. So I'm just walking around giving out my resume. Hey, my name is Ron. If you need anybody to work, I'm your guy. The place was actually about two and a half miles from my house, so I'm walking to Mount two and a half miles to work two and a half miles back every single day.
Really.
Yeah. Eventually I got a skateboard to make it a little bit easier, so that was my car. But yeah, worked in eight ten hours every single day.
Damn dude. How long were you there for?
All?
Eight months?
Uh?
Yeah? Yeah? And then I went back home to Kansas City for a bit, and then I ended up going back out to Oregon and beginning my journey as a chef.
What did that look like? Beginning your journey as a chef? By the way, just so you know, Ron, I don't know what your plans are for tonight, but I'm fully prepared for this entire podcast episode of your life because I'm fascinated by you.
So yeah, thank you loud, thank you. Aud So, after I got back, like I told you, I had to start cooking at the waffle house. I know you're from like the Northeast area. I don't know if you've been to a waffle house.
Yeah, yeah, I used to. They have in Georgia where I was a lot.
Okay, Yeah, So I was working there, working nights, and I told my sister while I had been out in Oregon, I had heard chefs that were, you know, making thirteen fourteen dollars an hour at the time, I'm like, that's good money. So I told my sister teach me how to cook. And then when I got back to Oregon, I was working at a barbecue joint. It wasn't really fulfilling, so I started working at a restaurant called Goostops. It's closed now. It was a German spot. I had no
knowledge of them and food anything of the sorts. But my chef, she uh looked at me and she's like, you know, normally only hired people with a culinary degree, but you see, you got a little bit of cooking experience. You seem like you got your head on your shoulders. So I'm going to give you a trial. And I went in there and I just you know, killed. It followed everything and everybody was settling me. H went straight to the line. I wasn't doing dishes, I wasn't doing prep.
I was right on the line with the rest of the other chefs and just trial by fire and it was u it was an experience. H first night, I sliced my hand open, and uh, I still had to finish another six hours of putting my hand underneath the salamander and working and stuff like that. So like it was it. It was a intense first day and just that first day made me fall in love with working in the kitchen. It was a bunch of pirates and you know, people just yelling and just pure chaos, like
this is this is it? This is for me?
Fuck you, fuck you? And that was And you said that was eight years ago.
That was two thousand and fourteen, So about ten years ago.
Now, wow, And how long are you in Oregon after that? After you start working there?
So I lived in Oregon for another seven years. I ended up I ended up cooking breakfast and stuff, had a number of notable joints around there. And then me and my brother we were being roommates. He has been a piece of shit, so I ended up moving her out. I ended up finding the website cool Works, and uh, I didn't really like where my life was going at the time. You know, I had got this travel bug. It's where I'm like, Okay, I made it in Portland,
let's see if I can do it somewhere else. So uh, down that website and I ended up applying to go to Alaska and that was an amazing trip in itself. Like I was out there for about six months, living, working, and eating all for free. So yeah, did that. Then I came back to Oregon just didn't feel right after I had left.
So you said, I'm sorry. You said in in uh, in Oregon it didn't feel right, or in Alaska didn't feel right.
In Oregon. After I came back from Alaska, I still had this like deep burning passion to go out and travel and you know, see more of the world. Uh So I ended up taking a job in Wyoming, and that was an experience in myself. I actually got to work with a lot of celebrities and I cook that one of the fanciest resorts in the world, and just like really learning what it meant to be a chef,
not just cooking one cuisine and all that stuff. I got to work in a French kitchen underneath a very good chef and while being able to elevate all of my skills and stuff like that.
So you, uh, well, first of all, I just want to say, it's the fact that you spent seven years in Oregon is pretty crazy, because whatever was in that weed that night just fucking changed the entire course of your life. Like that's that's amazing. I really, I just and you initially picked that place because you were gonna go there with the next girlfriends.
Yeah, yeah, And one night.
I love I love it. You're just one night. You're just like, dude, fuck this, I'm not waiting anymore. I'm fucking going tonight. So cool. Yeah, and then you just fucking make it happen. Do you still keep in contact at all with the lady who's couch just left on? Or is she gone?
Uh Na? We haven't talked in years, but you know, I still send her like the random happy days for message and stuff like that, and her and her and the chick that she was day and they actually ended up breaking up and she just had her ex girlfriend just had a baby, So I congratulated her on all that stuff. So I made sure they knew that they were appreciated. I ended up going back after I got a job and moved out, and ended up giving them
like four or five hundred dollars just to say thank you. Cool. Yeah, they they they they really saved me. I could have been somewhere out on the street and really struggling, but you know, they gave me a chance, and every opportunity I've gotten while I've been on this journey, I've just made the best of it and taking a chance. That's really all it took.
I want to I want to get back to your wyomic adventure. But first I have a I have a question for you. If someone is listening to this right now and they're inspired by your your bold your boldness, okay, and they were to maybe do a bold move as you did, is there anything that you feel like you learned from your your bold move that you would tell somebody who's thinking of doing something similar.
Well, I learned this while I was in the military, went to food camp and stuff like that. If you're comfortable, you're probably doing it wrong. If you're uncomfortable, you're growing, you're changing. You know, you're you're learning how to work in a new environment. So my advice to anybody would be to just stay open minded. Like if you're in a new city, you know, you're somewhere that you're you're
doing something that you normally wouldn't be doing. Uh, just stay open minded, you know, and keep your mind on the goal. If the goal is just to get out of your city and be somewhere else, fall into that. Uh, don't don't be looking back in the past and say, oh, I missed this about home, blah blah blah, because at the end of the day you put yourself in this position, you laugh, you wanted to do this. Now that you're here, we live in it.
The I heard something I know. You know, I feel dumb because I heard this expression today and I didn't realize and it's got to be a popular expression. But the grass is greener where you water it. So if that was the choice, you know, you either because you go to Oregon and you're like, I should have stayed back in ke because what's going on there? But if you stay in Kansas City, go oh, what could have been an Oregon? And it's like, you know whatever, exactly
as you said, It's like you chose to do the thing. So, you know, just fucking leaning to what every shows. I suppose. So how did you go? How'd you get this job working at UH as a celebrity chef in UH Wyoming?
Well, dude, same thing. I told you. That website cool works has done wonders for me.
Go ahead, what is it again?
Cool cool works cool works dot com a free, free promotion for them, literally the best. It's the best website too. If you want to leave your hometown and you are you're scared to get a job and you work in hospitality, or even if you don't work in hospitality. Uh, there's a ton of jobs on there, from fishing guides to being a ski uh what a what a those dudes like a ski lift instructor or whatever. In Colorado, any any resort in the United States, they have there. They
have an ad on there. And if you want to go experience wise, even just for summer, excuse me, go on cool works dot com. Especially if you're young then you're in college, go on cool works. You'll get paid, you'll be able to go somewhere else for the summer, and it'll be a life change and experience. It literally launched my entire like traveling career.
Fu y yeah. I was gonna say, like, let's say somebody is like whatever, eighteen and maybe they don't want to go to college, or they just graduated college, but they graduated in something stupid like film and media arts, you know, and they don't have any like like uh, you know, hard skills or anything like that. Is this is this something that you know people can can do without a whole lot of experience.
Yep, yep. They they will teach you everything. Like the job that I worked at it was you know, We brought in new people every year, and uh we train them up the three weeks before the season starts. You know, you're in the kitchen, you're learning them and us giving you all the stuff. You don't have a knife, there's knives there. Like there's programs where like if you don't want to work in the kitchen, you could just watch kids. Anybody can watch a baby.
Not anybody, but some people. I'm gonna go, I'm gonna rebuff that statement. I'm gonna I'm gonna say, not everybody can can watch a baby, but I get what you mean. Yeah, I you know, that's okay. I'm gonna actually check this out because I was I was sitting around today being like I should go do some fucking shit, even though I just did a bunch of fucking shit.
But uh, all right, Yeah, even if you're in a film major, you can go there and do the marketing for them and do a photographers something like that. There's a ton of different jobs that.
You can do stuff.
And that's how you, uh became a chef at this this crazy resort place.
Yeah. Yeah, So I ended up going out there in two thousand and eighteen or seventeen and it was free housing. I did have to sleep in a room with three other dudes on bump beds, so it's like summer camp, but it was free. Uh, three meals a day free and then every single week I completed, I got a two hundred and thirty dollars bonus that was paid out to the MPUM this season. So with that bonus, I took that bonus and I went down and stayed in Peru for two and a half months.
What did you do in Peru?
I just hung out, man, I just hung out, sassa dance, enjoyed the scene and re enjoyed the women in the museums.
We're there by yourself.
Yeah, yeah, I spoke a little bit of Spanish. So but after after I came back and smoke a bit of Mount More Spanish.
Fuck. Yeah, so cool. Now, when you were in Peru, did you like stay at a hostel or something or you were.
Just like, first month, I had an Airbnb red day of redemption to it just came out, so you know, I just uh, and.
You spent them. It's so funny. You know it's so funny is that you just described like you were like, yeah, I had a fucking awesome time in Peru. It was rate the best two months of my life. All I did was play red De Redemption two. And by the way, by the way, I would believe you if that was the case, because red De Redemption two is an awesome is an amazing life experience. Yeah, the spent right. So
you're you're just in Peru. You bought a PlayStation four in Peru and got red Diredemption two in Spanish.
Oh no, I brought my PlayStation four with me on the plane. Already I was up to no good before I even left.
And then where'd you go from Peru?
From Peru, I went back to Oregon, and then I went back to Wyoming, and then I went down to uh the Keys in Florida. So I ended up living down in Florida for about six months, working at it another luxury resort down there, for it was a private billionaire's yacht club. Also another job I found off with cool Works, and it was it was miserable.
Why was that miserable? Uh?
It was just like it was. I'm not a fan of seventy degrees every single day. Uh, it's the same weather. I'm just gonna get with Florida it's like de japou.
So what's I gotta I gotta ask you what is the Because you're clearly a hard work and suffering builds character kind of a guy. But what is the what? How do you know if you're just fucking miserable and you need to change something versus your going through a hard time, that is molding your spirits.
If you hate you, if you if the thought of going into work gives you anxiety, and you know you just hate this job and it doesn't bring you much joy outside of getting paid, you need to move on. That's uh, that's that's the best way I can describe it.
If it isn't bring you anything else besides monetary gainst, and uh, you need to move on because if the people suck at the environment sucks, you're just you're just kind of uh killing yourself for a dollar and you can go somewhere else and be in a much better environment and enjoy yourself.
Have you ever been in a job that you identified that you just fuck hat and you quit?
Yeah, my most recent job.
What was it that you hated about it?
Uh? Well, like so like I've never I've been lucky enough to never been around like really abusive chefs, like Turgole abusive chefs and stuff like that, and this guy was just like the absolute worst. And I've worked for better chefs who are who have their head on their shoulders way more. So I just couldn't do it. It wasn't it wasn't conducive to me learning and growing. M hm.
And where'd you go right after you quit that?
Well, I'm going up to a kitchen up in Iron Bay. So that started my new job. Yeah, I haven't started my new job. I'm kind of on a break right now.
What are you doing with your break?
We are getting ready to celebrate Christmas is Christmas Eve today, so we are finishing up all of our dishes for tomorrow and getting ready to drive down to Canberra, the capital of Australia.
When you first came to Australia, I assume that was a cool works thing.
Oh no, so actually I actually applied to come out here on a work on holiday visa in twenty nineteen, and then obviously the entire world shut down. So I was out in Cali seeing a Kanye westconcert. I ended up getting robbed that night. The next morning, when I woke up, I had my visa for Australia approves. Just kind of told my job out in Wyoming because I'm back out in Wyoming at this point, Hey man, at the beginning of twenty twenty two, I'm gonna be taking a dive and moving to Australia.
That's sick. Damn. Yeah, you live a cool life. I'm very I'm very inspired talking to you. I've inspired that.
I'm inspired by a few things. Is that you just really seem like a guy who won't settle for being unhappy or being you know, comfortable in a bad way, even even the fact that it took you one hundred plus dates to find a woman you really wanted to start a life with and fucking you know, going so boldly to Oregon on a whim him and uh, sticking it out through difficult jobs, but in finding joy within
the difficulty. It's it's really cool. I really appreciate the way that you look at and live your life.
Yeah, I mean, that's all life really is. Like, I'm not a persistent guy when it comes to dating. That's why I've had so many dates. If you don't seem interested, then I'm not interested. So I think a lot of people they kind of they get too involved with one person who doesn't seem interested with them when they could just move on to the next person.
Yeah, that seems to be the better strategy instead of trying to let you know, you know what, you know what it is. I I it's so funny. I was talking to my friend's girlfriend about this, Like anytime you're like analyzing a text that someone sent you, or like you're showing your friends like what does what does this guy mean? Or what does this girl mean? What? Really?
I think what is really going on is like you in your gut like know what they mean, and you're like begging your friends and begging your ego for any interpretation that is not what your gut knows they mean. Because you're what your gut knows they mean. You don't like you know, but it's it's way easier to just you know, charge it to the game and keep going.
Yeah, that's what I did for a while. I was like an old Inns game One Life and you're out, Sorry to work for me. Maybe that that I passed up a lot of good people, But at the end of the day, I'm happy with the person that I'm with.
That's wonderful.
Man.
It just takes a lot of trial there. And honestly, I didn't I didn't want to date in my twenties. I put that on the back end and just really went and traveled and saw the world and new experiences and met people and oh that good stuff. I think that's what you really should be doing. I'm actually envious of you with your whole podcast and stuff like that. The fact that you are able to just do something you really love and make money from it.
Fuck. Man, Yeah, you're inspiring me because I I, well, it's uh here, I mean, here's where I'm at when my life is. Like I just I've went on like three tours and it was like so cool to get to see I really do I fucking really in my core. In my core is a guy who like fucking loves life and loves traveling and loves talking to people. And I get very disconnected from that core because of like depression and fall and uh just problems and things and
this long periods of time. I feel very disconnected with that guy in my core that like loves life and people. And then uh, and then something just comes where like I awake and I'm like, well, wait a minute, I wanna I actually I like things. I want to go out, I want to see the world. I'm gonna die all
this stuff. But then I don't know. I get there's a lot to enjoy about domestic life, like having clean laundry and uh yeah, going to the gym regularly and eating salmon and all that stuff, and I'm like, I wanna ultimately live a life where I can eat salmon and go to Australia randomly. But I don't know. It's it's used to be a very like adventure has always been a very core tenant of my life. But it's hard,
especially when you do it alone. It's really hard because sometimes when you go somewhere alone and you stay at a on some random guy this couch that you met on the internet, you get into these situations where you're like, uh, well, one, when you go alone, you experience like really deep fucking
melancholy and sadness. Oh my god, I'm lone's fun yeah, just loneliness, and you're like, I like, I was in Thailand and I was at a McDonald's by myself, crying at night, and I was like, I'm gonna cry, like I'm twenty six crying alone in a McDonald's in Thailand, which in the moment is it feels really pathetic, but then looking back on it, I'm like, like, when i'm you know, forty, and I have kids or whatever, I'm gonna be like, oh that was there was something poetic
about crying alone in that McDonald's. I'm like, I'm glad that sucked in the moment, but I'm glad I did that. Like there's so you get to kind of be in this poetic melancholy sadness. But then also there's really high highs where you meet some person at a thing and then you're at this thing and you're whatever, and you're like, oh, how the fuck did this even happen? This is crazy, this is amazing, Like oh my god, I'm like living like Walter Midty, like life is a movie kind of shit.
But you got to go through the the melancholyly to get there. I'm really with you, I really think, especially if you've if you're someone who's never left the country before, never done anything like that, you know you really got to. But right now I'm like, I gotta I gotta lose fifty pounds and eat salmon and stuff. What were you gonna say?
Wow, go ahead. When I was in Peru, I actually experienced a lot of this you're talking about, like been somewhere and just crying stuff in my face, like just being a streaming lonely. But while I was in Peru, I just took the time to really work out every single day outside stuff like that. Calisthetics is amazing. You
don't have to go to the gym. You can buy stuff at home where you're just doing push ups, doing squats and all this stuff like that to where you you know, I used to do one hundred push ups every single day.
Of course you do.
And that just kind of helped me stay focused and stay on the grind. I know weight loss. I struggle with weight gain. I'm extremely skinny and that really bothers me. I wish I could gain weight easy. So I definitely recognize you having a problem with your weight and wanting to do something about it. You just have to kind of stay on the path.
Yeah, I thought I could do it while I was on tour, and it's like, I really just can't. But then I think get bored. I don't know, it's it's it's it's good. It's good problems to have, you know, Well, tell me this. Yeah, so you just found out your girlfriend is pregnant or how did you How did that make you feel? Are you excited about the future. We talked about the past, we talked about the present, the present. We shall end this with the future of Ron's life.
Uh I am. I am extremely nervous, obviously, like every parent would be. Uh. I think it'll be good. I'm moving away from a job that was making me unhappy and moving somewhere else. It's kind of like lit a fire in the treat get out of the kitchen and do something that's a little bit more family friendly. So that's what I'm trying to do, honest, to maybe move into something different that I could spend time with my girlfriend and my future child.
What's what's on your mind? What are you thinking?
Well, I was thinking of electricians, but I might just do something on the computer, like cyberce security or something like that, something technical that I could do from home or not be at work all hours or didn't night.
So are you worried that you'll after so much time in this like fast paced environment that you really loved, are you? Are you worried about a career change.
No, I've been longing for a career change for about two years now. But unfortunately in Australia, I'm a sponsored I'm on a sponsorship visa, so I couldn't leave the job that I'm at. I'm at, but I'm I'm on my way to obtaining my p are, so they're not keen basically be an Australian citizen, get the medicare, get the cheaper school, all that stuff like that. So it's just all it's all.
Is it hard to becoming a can you? Well, are you not married to this lady? Are you?
No? No yet?
Oh so if you if you if you get if you get married, are you gonna do you just become a citizen or how does that work?
Uh?
No, you actually have to pay ten thousand Australian to apply for a partnership.
Us get the fuck out of here.
Yeah.
Yeah, but not only do you have to pay for the wedding and stuff like that, you have to convince the government that uh you are a legitimate couple and that you want to be together. So that typically means you can't leave the country for two to three years while they thereify all of that stuff. So, uh, I'm going the other route with my job, so that I basically have a job. Say yeah, we need this guy, we'd like to keep him around. We will sponsor.
And after living a nomadic life for so long, how are you feeling about settling down with a kid?
Uh? Like I said, it was, it was kind of that same thing, like I've done the chef thing. Got done everything that I feel like I wanted to do in the culinary world because I have no want on a restaurant. After that, I just kind of wanted to start reading a regular life. I wanted to experience what other people experience, have been off of work at five o'clock and stuff like that.
I'm gonna if you're down. I know, I know I've kept you on the phone for a long time here, but if you're down, I want to see if the chat perhaps has any questions for Ron. I'm gonna I'm gonna see if the chat I can read them out to you. Let me see here, let's see here. Uh, someone just said are you a fancy chef? That I only I swear to God, if there was enough that was the only question so far. If I saw a better question.
I would have asked, I've done high end work.
I've done I've worked so alt In Wyoming, I was in a French kitchen making the consummes and nokis and agnalodi pasta from scratch and stuff like that. I used to eat Wago beef every single day. Uh yeah, I guess you could say.
Has working in a kitchen caused you to trust less in the food that you're getting when you like order it? Like, are like, do you have you seen anything gross where you're like, oh god.
Uh no, it's I actually try not like it's actually like other people when they go into a restaurant, No, this isn't the best. And I just go into a restaurant. I prefer that, like it's it's just good. When somebody else is cooking for me, did you try?
Oh?
Sorry, what's what's your girlfriend cooking?
She can cook? She's no, you'll find it.
Oh she is?
She is?
She is that who's in the background.
Yeah, yeah, tell her.
I said, thank you for letting me steal you away for a fucking hour.
No, you're fine.
Someone said you have you tried ayahuasca in Peru?
No? But I've done a fair amount of ass. I never made it out to the jungle. While I was in Peru after ben out in Wyoming for six and a half seven months, I just wanted to be in a city, dance, eat good food, meet people. Actually ended up going on a tender date while I was there and met two of my really good friends.
Someone wants to know what town in Alaska did you go to?
I went to Craig, Alaska. I was on the Prince of Wales Island, so it was about an hour and a half away from Catchkan, which is like a big port area of cruise lines and stuff there.
Someone said, Oh, this is interesting. So how would not having to make money change your relationship to cooking? Like, would you cook even if you didn't have to?
Uh?
Probably not. I'm not going to lie to you. I'm a picky eater, so like me being a chef doesn't make sense because I am a strict, extremely picky eater. Uh. So I enjoy I enjoy the the joy that people get on their faces when they have good food. So I guess my love language is just doing for people and stuff like that. It doesn't have to necessarily be cooking.
So wants to know, Uh, well, a couple people will asked what your favorite dish is to cook, and then someone said, what is the weirdest thing you have ever cooked?
My favorite dish is chicken marsala, the Italian version, not the Indian version, and the weirdest thing God ever cooked. M Well, I don't know. I saw these this thing this lady made on Instagram. It was shrimp shrimp albundius, which is basically like shrimp meatballs, and I did them as an amuse for the restaurant that I was working at, and they actually turned out really freaking good.
Uh, this one. Uh, this is totally totally up to you. But somebody asked if you have a social media presence because they're very inspired by your lifestyle. Uh, if you want to be flooded with with gecko people, you're you're You're welcome to.
Uh yeah sure. My Instagram handle was Met on the Moon eight one six. My profile is public, so I just post a lot of memes and stuff like that. But it does have a fair amount of stuff that I've done.
I get Matt Man on the Moon, Man on the Moon eight one six, is that kid cutting reference?
Yes, sir, yes, sir, My guy live front.
Row, Like, all right, we gotta get him on the podcast. We got to get him in a get Go suit maybe one.
Day, Yeah for sure.
Well Ron, Ron, it was fucking seriously, it's awesome talking to you. Thanks for telling us the journey of your life. I really do like it would be so cool to me if like I get a DM like six months after this podcast airs of someone being like yo, I went on that website that Ron was talking about and uh, now I live in uh fucking Costa Rica or whatever, and I'm married and you know whatever, that'd be cool if someone like actually does some shit off of.
This, maybe I'll directtion it. Yeah, anybody, if you want to go travel, get on cool works dot com. Uh. There's all kinds of different states, Rhode Island, uh, freaking anywhere you want to go in the US. There's more than likely a job there that you can do. Uh. There's places that you can live and eat for free and just make money.
Ron, my friend, is there anything else you want to say to the people of the computer before we go.
I'm always just stay persistent in your and your goals and your dreams. You guys, if you got something that you want to through, see it through. You may be uncomfortable at the time game, but at the end of the day, it'll be worth it.
Ron You're hero, your legend. Thanks for thanks for your time and uh mozeltov On on the Beautiful life and the Beautiful family.
Thank you well, it was an honor talking to you. I've been trying for a long time, so thank you.
They have a good night. Oh what a call. What a guy. That was one of my favorite calls we've we've had in a while. That's really my favorite thing about doing this podcast is like, uh, I know that though the way this podcast is framed can sometimes be like that it's like an advice podcast, and it definitely uh exkews that way a lot of the time. But
I've said this before. My favorite thing about doing what I do is that I get to, you know, not only interact with people in a way where I'm like getting to soak up the lived experience of other people you know, all around the world, but also that you know, part of that conversation is broadcasted to a bunch of people, uh, such as you listening to this, who are also getting to learn from other people's learned experience, lived experience. It's
really cool. It's really cool. So thank you very much Ron for sharing your story. I'm gonna check out this coolworks dot com thing because really, like if I wasn't doing what I do now, that like serious, like if tomorrow it was just like my podcast was scrubbed from the Internet or whatever, like and I couldn't do this anymore, that probably is what I would do. It's like just be like, well fuck it, let's go to uh Alaska and see what the hell's going on over there. So
I don't know, maybe I'll check it out. Very nice. Do I have anything else to say?
Uh?
I could say that was cool again, that was cool. I did enjoy that, and thank you for listening. Hello.
How's it going?
Hey there? What's your name?
My name is Zach, Zach.
What's up, Zach? How you doing?
Not much? I just graduated at MTSU. He actually came and visited.
Us Falk dude. Ah man, you know, sometimes I feel like a piece of shit and then I'm like, oh wait, actually I've done a lot of cool things like that. That happened to me recently. I was like, I like I was talking to somebody about Middle Tennessee State University, and I was like, oh yeah, that was only like a couple months ago, and that was awesome. That was a great time. Had a great time at that show. Were you there?
Yeah?
I was.
I was in like the back. I showed up late with like one of my friends and it was it was It was a good show. I mean, your National show was way better.
I was also there really which Nashville, Yeah, the one where Insane Posse showed up? Oh yeah, the one the one was checking. Yeah, I love that one.
Man.
I had a good fun.
How did you hook that up?
How did you get Like?
Well, he and I had been talking about because they're in Detroit, and he and I had been talking about me doing something with them like on the podcast, but then it just both happened to be in Nashville at the same time, and so he came on. Oh my god, that was so cool. That was one of the sickest. I had a great time at that show. That was so cool. I think that was the only time we've ever had like a like celebrity guest on a live show before.
Well, that was like so impressive. I mean, and then we had like two marriage proposals, like right after.
Yeah, that one was like nuts, that was fun. That was fun. Yeah, I had a great time at that uh at that college show. Those are good. That was that was good. Well, okay, so you just graduated and yeah, how are you doing? Are you depressed?
No, no, no, don't worry. I'm on I'm on the good side of like calls today.
Okay.
I mean like looking for like a job and stuff, but I kind of just want to do uh a thing called like jet program. We're just like teaching English and like Japan.
Well, the guy we just talked to was uh like I feel like kind of talking about those kinds of things.
Yeah, I I applied in like November, and now I'm just like sitting around waiting until they get back to me, which is like they do uh they do it in waves, so like in like country by country, like South Africa like heard back first and then the UK people just heard about it, and then I'm just sitting around waiting around. But I want to do it with like my partner because we're both like just interested in living in Japan, like traveling around and stuff.
Really cool, really cool way Japan.
Uh, mostly just because of the culture and stuff. I mean, like I like the United States, but I want to dip, Like it's just kind of uncomfortable here in Tennessee. I guess I don't know.
Japan kicks ass. Japan's a great place to hang out in. I don't know a whole lot about Like I only learned like a few Japanese phrases. But I feel like with languages, it's like if you really kind of go at it for a year, you can you can do pretty good. Are you well, you're not trying to learn in Japanese? You want to teach English in Japanese in Japan?
Yeah, So they don't have like many requirements like if you want to like go to like South Korea or anything like that, they require you to like do like a TfL like course which is like one hundred and twenty hours, but like you can do in like six months. But we're also looking at those opportunities. But like all those conversations started from like oh maybe maybe like Peace
Corps or something like that. I don't know. And we've been applying around just saying what we want to put ourselves forward towards.
I think I think, yeah, with a lot of those like ESL programs, it's interesting because I am. I do know that a lot of them don't require you to speak the language that you're teaching the people to, which is crazy because when I was in eighth grade, I took a Spanish class and that lady spoke English. Well, well, no, you like you know, like like with like in America, like all the like, like when you were in middle school, you have to take like Spanish or French or some shit.
I took German at high school.
Okay, you're German high school teacher. She spoke English, right.
Uh yeah, she like grew up here in America then like went over to like Germany, and then I got like a second teacher that had like committed his whole life to like living in Germany and then coming back here.
But like that would be crazy. If they just had a just fully one hundred percent German lady come in and just speak German to the whole time, you wouldn't learn anything.
My girlfriend, when she took like French at the high school, they originally had like this like very country person teaching like French, and apparently like after she got replaced by a real French person, it was very very hard to like transition to students because they had like created like bad habits and stuff.
Yeah. I mean, here's the thing with like learning the languages. I feel like it's not that bad to like learn it badly, Like like the the grammar doesn't really matter. If you speak a broken second language, as as an American, then you're doing pretty good.
Yeah.
I had to learn a little bit of Spanish for working at like a paint.
Store that I worked at.
But like I'm like kind of adjusted towards like picking up like phrases and like, yeah, just like the culture surrounding it.
I guess when I feel like when you try to learn another language and then like you're talking to like foreign people who are speaking English to you, you're like, oh, this person's actually pretty fucking good at English.
They're all shy about it too, Right.
Well, that's cool, man. I'm glad to hear that your life is glad to hear that you're not depressed and you're about to do a cool thing.
Yeah, that's what I'm trying to do.
But it's hard.
I mean, like giving up like opportunities to like hang out with my dogs and stuff or like my family just to like jump ship.
Yeah, but you're right, you're twenty two, twenty four, twenty four. Yeah, but if yeah, I mean, but you know, life's for living.
Yeah, no, that last call was great for that.
Well, brother, my friend, is there anything else you want to say to the people of the computer before we go.
Get out there? And uh, actually we'll throw this out uh google the High Face. I grew up in that religion, the High One out there. Yeah, so it's a it's a religion that's like uh uh they believe in like the nine major religions, and I just want to put that word out there. Oh happy hankut to you.
Oh thanks man. Wait, they just rolled all their religions up into one fucking ball and it's just the High Face.
Yeah, pretty much.
They were like uh talking about like how uh uh the Word of God goes through many different prophets, and like how every like country or like culture has like had a prophet, whether it's passed down orally or like traditionally through like writing and stuff. And it was a really really cool religion to grow up in.
M hm, the hind Do you still believe? Do you still believe in? Do you still believe in the High Faith?
I would say yes, I'm definitely surrounded by like a lot of people that aren't like, uh, you know, super religious, but I generally believe that, like it's important to like share your voice and like all the values that they like taught early on. I guess, so I don't know, Uh I, I don't know. We live in like a perfect world with like perfect conditions for everything.
I don't know, do you really believe that.
Kind of I mean, uh, if I kind of that, that's a bad answer. I should say yes or no, but yes, I don't know. Maybe I'm watching too many YouTube shorts with like those science guys saying, uh uh, can you believe the the I don't know.
Well I will well hold on. I not to you lose faith in literally what you're just saying right now. But it's cool that your YouTube shorts algorithm is sending you videos about how the world is awesome and perfect because most I don't know if I'm probably not alone in this, but most of the internet content I get fed is about how the world is horrible and we're all going to die.
Yeah.
Man, I do watch a lot of car crash compilations.
Okay, yeah, you gotta balance it out, Yeah, Okay, I have one final question, why do you believe the world is perfect as it is?
I guess I've been just living life on like easy mode and I haven't really been like traumatized or really. I mean, I've talked to other people about like trauma and stuff, but it's ever been at like, I don't know, my own personal experiences have been amazing, and I always try to look at like saying yes to like opportunities
and those of like always because originally I didn't. I didn't say yes to like all the opportunities that were like presented to me, And I think, I don't know, I just I'm surrounded by amazing people and an amazing partner, good family that support me. I mean, I'm graduating debt free and I know a lot of people don't have that opportunity. But uh, I don't know, I just kind of live in like a pretty perfect world.
I'm happy for you, man. Maybe it's the maybe the High Faith is Maybe the High Faith is what led you to this. Maybe. Yeah, this episode, everyone's gonna check out the High Faith, and they're going to check out that other website cool works, Yeah, cool works, cool Works, and the High Faith.
Hey, you're gonna check it out too.
Yeah, I'm gonna check outn check out both of those websites. I don't want to do. I don't want to do while I'm on the phone with you, because I think that would be rude. But that sounds like a good I'm gonna do. I'm gonna do both of those things as soon as I get off of recording this. What's your name again, it's Zach, Zach. Zach. Thanks for sharing your life with us on this podcast today.
Well, thank you, Le.
Is there anything else you want to say to the people of the computer before we go?
I've said my words.
I like that it's confident, UH make may all of the gods of the nine major religions bless you, and UH have a good rest of your life.
Here you kill me?
Bye?
That was nice. That was really nice. Yeah. I also I thought about doing like English as a second language teaching shit too, But I always thought it was crazy that you don't have to, like, like, if you want to teach English to people who only speak Spanish, you
don't even have to know Spanish. But like, if I was in high school and I had a Spanish teacher, I didn't speak English, I'd be like, what is this lady talk about, never goes on the line, taking your phone calls every night, Everything goes to and and I I was
Teaching your cloud in the mean of your life that he's not really an expert.