0
SPEAKER_01
Hello?
0
SPEAKER_01
Hey, what s up man?
0
SPEAKER_01
Hey.
0
SPEAKER_01
I just got back from work.
0
SPEAKER_00
What did you do for work?
0
SPEAKER_01
I basically fixed... You know how every school kid has a Chromebook?
0
SPEAKER_01
I fixed those.
0
SPEAKER_00
Oh, that s nice.
0
SPEAKER_00
Do you ever see kids going on Pornhub and shit?
0
SPEAKER_01
I mean, of course.
0
SPEAKER_01
I ve never seen it myself, because I work... Sorry, I m just a little nervous.
0
SPEAKER_01
So I work like in the back office where we just get like a bunch of broken shit and I ll see on the notes, it ll say that the kid was on a movie site or the kid was watching porn.
0
SPEAKER_00
That s crazy.
0
SPEAKER_00
Do they get in?
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SPEAKER_00
Do you like, like, have you ever, um, like seen, like, like you check the history of the Chromebook and it s a bunch of porn?
0
SPEAKER_00
Like do you ever rat the kid out?
0
SPEAKER_01
Um, of course, uh, it s kind of tempting, but I don t really,
0
SPEAKER_01
Because I don t want to know what the kid is watching, you know?
0
SPEAKER_00
It s kind of weird.
0
SPEAKER_00
Yeah, I get it.
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SPEAKER_00
You said, here s what you texted me.
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SPEAKER_00
You said, my name is Ahmad.
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SPEAKER_00
I m 20 years old.
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SPEAKER_00
I want to talk about how I immigrated to America 10 years ago from Pakistan.
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SPEAKER_00
And you also added this.
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SPEAKER_00
You said, I also still sleep with my mom.
0
SPEAKER_00
Parentheses.
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SPEAKER_00
You added this parentheses.
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SPEAKER_00
You said parentheses, not in a weird way.
0
SPEAKER_00
What s up, Ahmad?
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SPEAKER_00
Tell me more.
0
SPEAKER_01
So do you want to know about the immigration part or the mom part?
0
SPEAKER_00
Are they related in any way, shape or form?
0
SPEAKER_01
I mean, I guess a little bit because you know how in South Asian cultures, families are like really close together.
0
SPEAKER_00
Sure.
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SPEAKER_00
Yeah.
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SPEAKER_01
So but that s not really the reason, I guess.
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SPEAKER_01
The reason is basically my mom has schizophrenia, so
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SPEAKER_01
She ll have involuntary movements and whatnot, so I do still sleep with her on the same bed, if you can imagine.
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SPEAKER_00
Oh, so you sleep with her in the same bed to help her out with her involuntary movements?
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SPEAKER_00
Yeah.
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SPEAKER_01
Well, I mean, it s not crazy.
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SPEAKER_01
She s basically a normal person, but sometimes, well, I don t know, schizophrenia is really unpredictable.
0
SPEAKER_01
to randomly have like moments, but overall she is just a regular person.
0
SPEAKER_00
Hmm.
0
SPEAKER_00
Do you sleep with her in the same bed like, like to help her out in case if she needs help?
0
SPEAKER_01
Yeah.
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SPEAKER_01
So, I mean, sometimes he will just like, I guess randomly start like swinging your hands and whatever.
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SPEAKER_01
And I don t know.
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SPEAKER_01
So that s why.
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SPEAKER_00
How often do you, uh, need to help her?
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SPEAKER_00
Um,
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SPEAKER_01
I mean, as I said, she s mostly a normal person, to be honest.
0
SPEAKER_01
That ll happen like once a month or something.
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SPEAKER_01
Or if something like triggers her specifically.
0
SPEAKER_00
Do you sleep in the bed with her every night?
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SPEAKER_00
Every night.
0
SPEAKER_00
I m curious, what s up with your dad?
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SPEAKER_00
Is he not around to help out?
0
SPEAKER_01
Well, my dad sleeps, so it s a queen size bed and then there s like
0
SPEAKER_01
a regular like a single mattress right next to it so I basically sleep in between my mom and dad oh my god it s so weird to say that out loud now because I ve never said this ever
0
SPEAKER_00
So wait, let me get this straight.
0
SPEAKER_00
I m... It s a queen-size bed, so you... There s a mattress by the bed, and you sleep on that.
0
SPEAKER_00
So you don t sleep in the same bed as your mom.
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SPEAKER_00
You sleep on a mattress.
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SPEAKER_00
But you said you sleep on a mattress by the bed.
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SPEAKER_01
That s my dad.
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SPEAKER_01
So I sleep in between my mom and my dad.
0
SPEAKER_00
Okay, so there s a mattress on the floor next to the bed where your dad sleeps.
0
SPEAKER_01
Well, it s not on the floor.
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SPEAKER_00
Where is it?
0
SPEAKER_01
Well, so we don t even have like a bed bed.
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SPEAKER_01
It s just like a frame.
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SPEAKER_01
I don t know if you know what I m talking about, but it s a metal frame.
0
SPEAKER_01
So we just put the mattress on that.
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SPEAKER_01
We re all on the same height.
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SPEAKER_01
Exactly, exactly.
0
SPEAKER_00
And another and a queen-size mattress I was gonna you have there s two beds a mattress on a bed frame is a bed.
0
SPEAKER_00
So you have two beds pushed together and On one bed your dad sleeps and then in them and then in the middle you sleep in the middle of your mom and your dad Yes, exactly Okay, I m curious.
0
SPEAKER_00
So first first of all, I
0
SPEAKER_00
Actually, I have a lot of questions about this.
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SPEAKER_00
Go ahead.
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SPEAKER_00
Why do you sleep in the middle of your parents instead of... If your dad s there, I understand that you re doing what you do.
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SPEAKER_00
I understand that you re sleeping with your mom to help her out, which I think is very noble of you to do.
0
SPEAKER_00
But why are you... Can your dad not help?
0
SPEAKER_01
Okay, so my dad, he basically...
0
SPEAKER_01
works like a very early morning job so he wakes up like at 4 a.m so and my mom obviously doesn t so that s why okay do you does your mom need help so much that you need to sleep in the bed with her like are you not able to like be in like it s not even to be honest it s it s not even that like i don t know i m just
0
SPEAKER_01
I m ever since I ve been a kid, as I said, in South Asian families, we do just, I always slept with my parents.
0
SPEAKER_01
And then when I grew up gradually, I guess, I don t know why, but I mean, I have siblings that have their own rooms, but I don t have a room.
0
SPEAKER_01
So I just kind of sleep with my mom.
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SPEAKER_01
That s all.
0
SPEAKER_00
Now your siblings, do they, are they all in, they have the same room?
0
SPEAKER_00
They each have their own room in the same house as you and your, and your parents?
0
SPEAKER_01
Yeah.
0
SPEAKER_01
So we have a three bed apartment.
0
SPEAKER_01
I have two older brothers.
0
SPEAKER_01
They re like in their twenties as well, but they re like late twenties.
0
SPEAKER_01
I literally just turned 20 like a month ago and I m still, uh, I don t have my own room yet.
0
SPEAKER_01
I guess we just have three rooms only in this apartment.
0
SPEAKER_01
So my older siblings got their own room and I m sharing the room with my mom and my dad.
0
SPEAKER_00
Do you at least like Okay, let me ask you this so so it sound it sounds as though It would be okay your mom you it would be okay if You were not sleeping in the same bed as your mom in terms of your need to help her, but it s just what you okay?
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SPEAKER_00
I mean
0
SPEAKER_00
So I m not, I m not like, I m not, I m just trying to understand the situation, but it sounds like, um, it sounds like it is not necessary to help your mom to sleep in the bed with her, but you do it because it s what you ve always done.
0
SPEAKER_01
Um, I guess so.
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SPEAKER_01
Most of like 90% of the time.
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SPEAKER_01
Yeah.
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SPEAKER_01
But there are, as I said, some days where her schizophrenia will like spike, I guess some like specific things trigger her.
0
SPEAKER_01
So then I will have to sleep with her.
0
SPEAKER_00
Okay.
0
SPEAKER_01
But mostly you are right.
0
SPEAKER_00
So let s get into this.
0
SPEAKER_00
Okay.
0
SPEAKER_00
Now, now that I understand the situation, how do you, how do you personally feel about the situation?
0
SPEAKER_01
So, I mean, I honestly don t even think about it negatively because it s not, as I said, it s not really in a weird way.
0
SPEAKER_01
I like, because, as I said, my mom has schizophrenia, so I have a very
0
SPEAKER_01
I guess special relationship with her and I love her to death basically.
0
SPEAKER_01
So I guess this is one of the ways that I can show my appreciation for her that every night I m there for her, you know, in case something triggers her.
0
SPEAKER_00
Okay.
0
SPEAKER_00
Um, and you re, you re 20, right?
0
SPEAKER_00
I don t blame you, it is kind of weird from the outside world.
1
SPEAKER_01
Do you go to school?
1
SPEAKER_01
Do you work?
1
SPEAKER_00
Yeah, as I told you before, I m doing an internship at the local public school.
1
SPEAKER_00
Where I fix kids  Chromebooks, and I go to college full-time.
1
SPEAKER_01
Oh, right, right.
1
SPEAKER_01
You told me all that, and we talked about porn.
1
SPEAKER_00
Dude, yeah, I m a normal guy outside of this.
1
SPEAKER_01
I m not... Ahmed, I m not saying that you re a weirdo.
1
SPEAKER_01
I m not saying that you re... Okay, so clearly... Of course not.
1
SPEAKER_01
So clearly, clearly, clearly... And again, I m not saying anything about...
1
SPEAKER_01
I m not saying, oh, this is weird, this is fucked up, whatever, but clearly you seem to be self-conscious that it is.
1
SPEAKER_00
Yeah, of course.
1
SPEAKER_00
As I told you, this is literally the first time ever this has ever come out of my mouth.
1
SPEAKER_00
It s always only been thoughts.
1
SPEAKER_01
Okay.
1
SPEAKER_01
Do you have, like, friends?
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SPEAKER_00
Of course, dude.
1
SPEAKER_00
I have, I don t know, I have college friends, I have work friends, high school friends that I still talk to.
1
SPEAKER_01
And you ve kind of kept this a secret from all of them?
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SPEAKER_00
Yep, yep, yep.
1
SPEAKER_01
Why are you keeping it a secret from them?
1
SPEAKER_00
I don t know, we never... We just never... I guess it never comes up, the topic of where we live and whatever.
1
SPEAKER_00
I don t know.
1
SPEAKER_01
That s true.
1
SPEAKER_01
I guess my sleeping arrangements also don t really come up in conversation that much with my friends.
1
SPEAKER_00
Yeah, there you go.
1
SPEAKER_00
And even if they did, to be honest, I wouldn t share that.
1
SPEAKER_01
Um, okay.
1
SPEAKER_01
So why tell me why you feel compelled or what made you want to come on here and talk about it?
1
SPEAKER_00
So, I mean, recently, um, so ethics at this college I m at, they offer free counseling, which is pretty amazing.
1
SPEAKER_00
And, uh, I ve recently started it.
1
SPEAKER_00
So in my culture, uh,
1
SPEAKER_00
Counseling isn t even really, like, believed in, or therapy, whatever you want to call it.
1
SPEAKER_00
So I recently started that, just out on a whim, because I saw a latrine and it was on campus.
1
SPEAKER_00
And after that, I ve been thinking about my life, like, as myself individually.
1
SPEAKER_00
And I realized, just upon reflecting how weird this is, and I was like, I m not going to let this be, you know, unknown.
1
SPEAKER_00
I m going to put it out there, because it just feels strange to
1
SPEAKER_00
to say it out loud, I guess.
1
SPEAKER_01
So that s an interesting thing that you re touching on.
1
SPEAKER_01
Like, culturally, where you come from and what you understand is very, like, communal, family oriented.
1
SPEAKER_01
And it s kind of been that way your whole life.
1
SPEAKER_01
And now you re examining your life as an individual and, you know, how you feel about things, what you want.
1
SPEAKER_01
Is that is that accurate?
1
SPEAKER_00
Yeah, exactly.
1
SPEAKER_01
So in examining yourself as an individual, what have you observed?
1
SPEAKER_01
What have you come up with?
1
SPEAKER_00
So my life is just really interesting, man.
1
SPEAKER_00
I don t know.
1
SPEAKER_00
It s really weird because I was like 10 when I immigrated to the U.S.
1
SPEAKER_00
and now I m 20.
1
SPEAKER_00
So I immigrated here like I guess at a really critical point, you know, so I don t even
1
SPEAKER_00
I understand like half my life is kind of, as I said, just cultural and then half is like, I don t know that it s complicated, but I m talking to a real therapist about that.
1
SPEAKER_01
Um, tell me about, uh, immigrating here.
1
SPEAKER_00
Uh, well, so I was 10.
1
SPEAKER_00
Um, I literally, so that s the big part is I was never really taught English, like formally in Pakistan.
1
SPEAKER_00
but I used to play Counter-Strike online, and I literally just learned English from the video game, if that makes any sense.
1
SPEAKER_00
So when I came here, I was able to talk to people, man, just by playing
1
SPEAKER_00
using my computer and stuff in English.
1
SPEAKER_01
And I ve talked to a lot of people who, um, they ve, they ve learned English from playing online video games.
1
SPEAKER_01
So, you know, all of them, uh, know how to tell you in perfect English that they fucked your mom.
1
SPEAKER_00
Exactly.
1
SPEAKER_00
That s, that is where it starts.
1
SPEAKER_01
Um, I interrupted you.
1
SPEAKER_01
Keep going.
1
SPEAKER_00
Oh yeah, so I was in fourth grade when I came here.
1
SPEAKER_00
I think they placed me a grade down, even though my age was like 10, but whatever.
1
SPEAKER_00
So I came here in fourth grade, went through all the high school, middle school, you know, whatever.
1
SPEAKER_00
It was, it was weird.
1
SPEAKER_00
I didn t really have, there s not really a lot of other Pakistani people where I live.
1
SPEAKER_00
So it was kind of weird, you know, I just felt like I was trying to fit in and whatever.
1
SPEAKER_00
But now that I m in college, there are other Pakistani people that I am relating with and just blending in with regular American people as well.
1
SPEAKER_00
So it s been a journey, but overall, I will say I m so grateful for it, man, because as everybody knows, Pakistan is not really, you know, the best place to live.
1
SPEAKER_01
Are you friends now with a lot of other people from Pakistan?
1
SPEAKER_00
Well, I mean, in America, yeah.
1
SPEAKER_00
It s funny, guys.
1
SPEAKER_00
Sometimes, because when I was in fourth grade in Pakistan, I had like a Facebook and shit.
1
SPEAKER_00
So I like look at my Facebook and see what my old fourth grade Pakistani friends are doing now.
1
SPEAKER_01
Interesting.
1
SPEAKER_01
OK, so how does how does life in America for you and like for your American friends compare to what you see on Facebook from your Pakistani friends?
1
SPEAKER_00
Oh, dude.
1
SPEAKER_00
So the one big, big thing is in Pakistan, dude.
1
SPEAKER_00
So, you know, in Muslim countries, like women and men are like kind of separated.
1
SPEAKER_00
So in Pakistan, dude, you can hug a guy and you go shoulder to shoulder down the street with them.
1
SPEAKER_00
In America, I ve noticed that like guys aren t like that close.
1
SPEAKER_00
I know that s one thing.
1
SPEAKER_01
Wait, okay, so in Pakistan, are you allowed to hold hands with your wife while you re walking down the street?
1
SPEAKER_00
Yeah, they do.
1
SPEAKER_00
It s not that you re allowed.
1
SPEAKER_00
They do.
1
SPEAKER_01
Wait, is it not allowed?
1
SPEAKER_00
It sounds weird because they are allowed.
1
SPEAKER_00
Kids hold hands.
1
SPEAKER_00
Guys hold hands while they walk down the street.
1
SPEAKER_00
hands around each other s neck while they walk down the street.
1
SPEAKER_00
That s like culture.
1
SPEAKER_00
It s weird because Muslim countries, they like hate gay stuff and whatever, you know, but it s I don t I don t get it.
1
SPEAKER_01
Wait, so so what I m hearing is that is that the Muslim countries hate gay stuff, but they love a good bromance.
1
SPEAKER_00
Exactly.
1
SPEAKER_00
That is exactly what I m talking about.
1
SPEAKER_00
That s one thing, dude, that I ve really noticed the lack of in America.
1
SPEAKER_00
It s hard to get, you know, like, like pros.
1
SPEAKER_01
Very, very interesting to hear that.
1
SPEAKER_01
So people in, in, in Pakistan are a lot more, um, touchy feely and, and, and openly.
1
SPEAKER_00
Like when I was in fourth grade, dude, I would have my friend group, you know, we would be,
1
SPEAKER_00
All touchy-touchy.
1
SPEAKER_00
Okay, I don t know what to say anymore.
1
SPEAKER_01
That s so funny.
1
SPEAKER_01
So wait, so you re allowed, so it s cool to walk down the street in Pakistan holding hands with another man as long as you guys aren t fucking.
1
SPEAKER_00
If you re, as an American, of course that s gonna sound weird, but I m telling you that is
1
SPEAKER_00
Okay.
1
SPEAKER_01
Um, so I don t know.
1
SPEAKER_01
Do you think that like, um, well, we kind of touched on, on, on this a little bit when we were talking about like, you know, maybe the reasoning why you you re sleeping in your mom s bed of like the cultural culturally there s a stronger emphasis on, on community and family and togetherness maybe than there is here in the United States.
1
SPEAKER_01
And so that s why there s less of a, there s less bromance here.
1
SPEAKER_01
Exactly, hit the nail on the head.
1
SPEAKER_01
That s fascinating.
1
SPEAKER_01
Okay, anything else that you ve noticed from observing your buddies on Facebook?
1
SPEAKER_00
Specifically my buddies on Facebook, I ve noticed that, let s see, I mean it is,
1
SPEAKER_00
I mean they re all graduated and stuff and I ve noticed that
2
SPEAKER_00
Like in Pakistan, dude, getting a job and stuff, it s like impossible unless you have connections and stuff.
2
SPEAKER_00
I ve noticed that even though they re all graduated now, like they re the same age as me, of course, so they ve graduated high school and they re in college and stuff.
2
SPEAKER_00
So now while I m in America and I can find internships and whatnot, dude, in Pakistan, it s a hell of a hole, dude.
2
SPEAKER_00
It s kind of impossible to make it just through hard work there.
2
SPEAKER_00
I mean, I love my country to death, man, but it s not fair.
2
SPEAKER_01
So it is true that there s greater opportunity for you in America than in Pakistan?
2
SPEAKER_00
Yeah, dude, 100%.
2
SPEAKER_00
Even though, of course, America has its own troubles, but I ve noticed that it is still better than Pakistan exponentially.
2
SPEAKER_01
So your homies that are all your age now, what are they doing?
2
SPEAKER_00
Dude, I... They take like... I guess they re trying to be a photographer, you know, they re in that phase.
2
SPEAKER_00
You know how people have that phase where they want to be a rapper or whatever?
2
SPEAKER_02
Yeah.
2
SPEAKER_00
In Pakistan, it s really common to have a phase where they want to be a photographer, dude.
2
SPEAKER_00
Go wear sunglasses, go out on the streets, you know?
2
SPEAKER_01
Is that a specific... Is that specific to Pakistan?
2
SPEAKER_00
Well, I don t think it s specific to Pakistan.
2
SPEAKER_00
It s specific to the friends that I knew, I guess.
2
SPEAKER_01
What s your version of that?
2
SPEAKER_01
What do you want to be when you grow up?
2
SPEAKER_00
I ll be honest, I don t even have a big plan.
2
SPEAKER_00
You know how people always say they want to be a millionaire or whatever?
2
SPEAKER_00
To be honest, I just want to live a regular life, dude.
2
SPEAKER_00
Sometimes I ll think about it and my ideal life is kind of
2
SPEAKER_00
graduating from college to working in IT in like a local public school or something where it s like a government job.
2
SPEAKER_00
So there s not really like pressure and just getting a house and buy some kids, dude.
2
SPEAKER_00
That s it.
2
SPEAKER_00
That s all I want.
2
SPEAKER_01
So going back to your, um, discovery of your individual or, or exploration of your individuality, do you, do you desire to leave your mom s bed?
2
SPEAKER_00
It s a good situation.
2
SPEAKER_00
I would say no, dude.
2
SPEAKER_00
Like I love my mom and it s just,
2
SPEAKER_00
And I just wanna, like, because of her condition or whatever, I don t even know, like, what the average lifespan is for somebody of that kind.
2
SPEAKER_00
I just wanna show her all the love I can, and just that is one form of my love, because of her schizophrenia, I can t really, you know, show her my love, I guess, through my words and whatever.
2
SPEAKER_00
Hmm.
2
SPEAKER_01
Hmm.
2
SPEAKER_01
What about your dad?
2
SPEAKER_01
Does he snore?
2
SPEAKER_00
Well, I m actually a pretty deep sleeper, I guess.
2
SPEAKER_00
Dude, my mom snores like crazy.
2
SPEAKER_00
I don t know about my dad.
2
SPEAKER_00
I don t think he does, because I m a crazy deep sleeper.
2
SPEAKER_00
I don t really notice stuff too much.
2
SPEAKER_00
But I do know sometimes when my mom is taking a nap, she s a crazy snorer.
2
SPEAKER_01
What s your relationship like with your dad?
2
SPEAKER_00
Um, well, he s kind of like a regular Middle Eastern dad, you know, straight A s at school.
2
SPEAKER_00
You know, he expects that.
2
SPEAKER_00
And, you know, just a typical Asian dad.
2
SPEAKER_00
He always, you know, goes home to work, as I said, super early, comes home late, only has like a couple hours at home.
2
SPEAKER_00
And in that hour, you know, we re just talking about school and shit.
2
SPEAKER_00
That s nothing really deep, to be honest.
2
SPEAKER_01
Are you out there trying to date?
2
SPEAKER_01
It sounds like family is important to you.
2
SPEAKER_01
It sounds like you want a wife and kids one day.
2
SPEAKER_01
Are you out there dating?
2
SPEAKER_00
I mean, that s something I ve recently started thinking about, I guess, after thinking about myself as an individual.
2
SPEAKER_00
In Pakistan, that s not an aspect of the culture.
2
SPEAKER_00
It s arranged marriage.
2
SPEAKER_00
You re not even allowed to date in Pakistani culture.
2
SPEAKER_00
You just, I guess when you re like 25 or something, you get arranged marriage and that s it.
2
SPEAKER_01
Well, now you re in the land of the free, baby.
2
SPEAKER_01
Time to make a Tinder account.
2
SPEAKER_01
There are actually, I actually, genuinely, genuinely, I, and I don t know, I only know one side of this, but sometimes you ll be, I guarantee that if you start a Tinder account, after about a day, you ll be like, ah, I should ve went with the arranged marriage.
2
SPEAKER_00
Yeah, dude, the dating suite, I mean, I ve just been looking at stuff on the internet, and yeah, it sounds pretty bad.
2
SPEAKER_00
It s really hard to get in the dating scene.
2
SPEAKER_01
Is so, um, I mean, is the plan for there to like, is your plan for there to be some kind of arranged marriage or?
2
SPEAKER_00
Well, I mean, for me, okay.
2
SPEAKER_00
So my brothers, they are in like the marriage kind of age right now.
2
SPEAKER_00
And my parents, I mean, my mom is kind of, but my dad is trying to get them to an arranged marriage.
2
SPEAKER_00
For me, though, I haven t decided yet.
2
SPEAKER_00
And I don t I don t know.
2
SPEAKER_00
I ll see after talking to my therapist and, you know, kind of using my American and Pakistani self.
2
SPEAKER_00
We ll see what I feel like.
2
SPEAKER_01
How does can you explain a little bit of how the arranged marriage process works?
2
SPEAKER_00
So, OK, so in Pakistan, dude, I ll be honest, like cousin marriage and stuff, they re still pretty common.
2
SPEAKER_00
Now, my family is pretty
2
SPEAKER_00
liberal Pakistani, I guess you can say, so they re not really into that.
2
SPEAKER_00
So basically, every family has that one auntie that you go to who has like all the connections with all the people, you know?
2
SPEAKER_00
Like, hey, I m trying to get my daughter married.
2
SPEAKER_00
If you know somebody, let me know.
2
SPEAKER_00
Hey, I m trying to get my son married.
2
SPEAKER_00
So everybody goes to that one person and they re like a arranged marriage, I don t know, hero, whatever you want to say.
2
SPEAKER_00
And they kind of hook you up.
2
SPEAKER_01
What s your personal view on arranged marriage?
2
SPEAKER_01
Because, I don t know, I m thinking about it, and again, this is a total outsider opinion, but like, after, you know, after paying for Tinder premium, you re kind of like, part of you does think like, you know, as like,
2
SPEAKER_01
You know, with all the infinite cons that could come with arranged marriage, there is the big pro of like, well, that s a giant quest in life that I don t have to think about anymore.
2
SPEAKER_01
You know, it s a giant challenge to navigate your romantic sexual life.
2
SPEAKER_01
And so maybe there is something appealing about having someone just fucking up and decide it for you.
2
SPEAKER_01
So I want to hear your kind of personal opinion on it.
2
SPEAKER_00
Well, I mean, as I stand, dude, I m kind of the same way as you.
2
SPEAKER_00
Like, if I m just kind of living my life, like, with me and that s it, I m not really looking out for anything.
2
SPEAKER_00
But if, like, during college, if something comes up and, you know, the relationship, the dating scene gets serious, you know, I might hop into it.
2
SPEAKER_00
But if not, you know, I always have that backup, you know, the peaceful mind, you know, the arranged
2
SPEAKER_00
I mean, then I will do have the arranged marriage option.
2
SPEAKER_01
So, you re telling me that you re one just really bad date away from being like, fuck it.
2
SPEAKER_01
Like, that s always in your bad pocket.
2
SPEAKER_01
It s always in your back pocket.
2
SPEAKER_01
Like, you ll give dating a try, but if it doesn t work out, you ll go to your auntie.
2
SPEAKER_00
Yeah, dude.
2
SPEAKER_00
But as I said, I m not really going out for dating.
2
SPEAKER_00
It s like, I m just me, and if somebody comes up in my life where I m like,
2
SPEAKER_00
Okay, this could get romantic, then I ll go with it.
2
SPEAKER_00
It s not like I m seeking dating in my current state.
2
SPEAKER_01
Sure, sure, sure, sure.
2
SPEAKER_01
Did you ever have a girlfriend in high school or a crush?
2
SPEAKER_00
That s one of the things that I ve always thought about and thinking like, should I have?
2
SPEAKER_00
But I ve never, I ve never.
2
SPEAKER_00
the only thing is that in like middle school a girl asked me out and i just kind of rejected her kindly i was like oh no you re cute but i just don t want to date and that was pretty much it in high school uh nothing really came up um what about uh what about
3
SPEAKER_00
What about career-wise, what do you hope for?
3
SPEAKER_01
So, I mean, I started off working at the local grocery store or whatever during high school, and now I m in college, so I got an internship in IT as you said.
3
SPEAKER_01
I mean, as I said before.
3
SPEAKER_01
And after graduating, dude, as I said, I just want to kind of get like a government job or something of that sort where I can just like
3
SPEAKER_01
do a tenure there for like 20, 30 years.
3
SPEAKER_00
Do you think you ll ever go back to Pakistan?
3
SPEAKER_00
Like, I assume not to live, but, uh, you know, just to say what s up.
3
SPEAKER_01
Of course, I ve been there a couple of times.
3
SPEAKER_01
I was just there like two years ago.
3
SPEAKER_01
Dude, my family is still, it s not like, uh, so my family, like just my immediate family, my brothers and mom, we moved here as a whole, but like my rest of the family is still in Pakistan, dude.
3
SPEAKER_01
We go there like every couple of years.
3
SPEAKER_00
Would you rec- I, you know, I, um, I have this dream of, like, doing my little gecko interviews.
3
SPEAKER_00
I do, I, you know, in addition to the phone call stuff, I do, like, on the street interviews and stuff, and I have this dream of doing it around the world.
3
SPEAKER_01
Dude, I watch all your stuff.
3
SPEAKER_01
Come on.
3
SPEAKER_00
Oh, hell yeah.
3
SPEAKER_00
Okay, so how would you, like, do you think I should go to Pakistan to do it?
3
SPEAKER_00
How do you think that would go over?
3
SPEAKER_01
Uh, dude, I think you should.
3
SPEAKER_01
Uh, if you go, though, I would recommend, uh,
3
SPEAKER_01
I mean, Pakistan is a pretty good English speaking country, but I would recommend you go to like a college campus or something.
3
SPEAKER_01
There you ll find like a bunch of, you know, young people from, cause Pakistan is weird, dude.
3
SPEAKER_01
Like some parts are super conservative and they re still into like cousin marriages and all that stuff.
3
SPEAKER_01
And then some parts are like super liberated.
3
SPEAKER_01
So I would go to a college campus.
3
SPEAKER_01
You ll be safe, dude.
3
SPEAKER_01
And you ll have a bunch of, you know, like a wide spectrum of people with you.
3
SPEAKER_01
and they ll all speak English probably because they re on a college campus.
3
SPEAKER_00
What s the other major language spoken there?
3
SPEAKER_01
It s Urdu.
3
SPEAKER_01
So it s basically like Pakistan or India were one like a hundred years ago or whatever and now so Urdu is basically the same language as Hindi but in Pakistan it s Urdu.
3
SPEAKER_00
Okay if I ever go there, alright if I ever go there I might hit you up.
3
SPEAKER_00
I actually got a DM, I don t know how many people in Pakistan listen to this show, but I got a DM once from somebody saying, hey I live in Pakistan, let me know if you ever want to come and I ll show you around.
3
SPEAKER_00
And I wasn t in a position to just like, you know, I was like in the middle of touring or whatever.
3
SPEAKER_00
So I wasn t in a position to just like say fuck it and go.
3
SPEAKER_00
But I m getting into a point where I can kind of do stuff like that.
3
SPEAKER_00
And so I might, I might say fuck it and go, who knows?
3
SPEAKER_01
Dude, you gotta go.
3
SPEAKER_01
It s like, screw all the gecko and whatever dude.
3
SPEAKER_01
It s just an amazing country to visit.
3
SPEAKER_00
Oh, of course.
3
SPEAKER_00
Yeah, of course.
3
SPEAKER_01
All the food is bomb.
3
SPEAKER_01
It s a little spicy though, so.
3
SPEAKER_00
Um, okay.
3
SPEAKER_00
You might see a being a gecko in Pakistan video.
3
SPEAKER_00
I like to do, I ll do like, usually if I take a trip like that, I ll do, I ll do half Lyle, half gecko time, but enough about the me and my stupid life.
3
SPEAKER_00
Um, I want to know this before we go.
3
SPEAKER_00
What is your like, so you, you have these two older brothers.
3
SPEAKER_00
Um, do they think and feel similarly to you on, on, on, you know, the stuff that we ve been talking about?
3
SPEAKER_01
Um, I ll be honest, bro.
3
SPEAKER_01
Like they re kind of busy, like in their own life.
3
SPEAKER_01
They have their own full time job.
3
SPEAKER_01
I don t really have like deep conversations with any of my immediate family.
3
SPEAKER_01
Like I ll be honest.
3
SPEAKER_01
So I m not even, they just have full time jobs.
3
SPEAKER_01
They come home and sleep.
3
SPEAKER_00
Do you, do you wish that you did have deeper conversations with them?
3
SPEAKER_01
Um,
3
SPEAKER_01
I don t, I don t know.
3
SPEAKER_01
I ll be, I don t know.
3
SPEAKER_01
It is, it is just kind of weird because like, uh, like when cleaning, like we re all in a one house and everybody s a grown adult.
3
SPEAKER_01
And because everybody s been like babied into being a grown adult, like they don t even like clean up after their own messes and whatever.
3
SPEAKER_01
So it s just a wild, wild world.
3
SPEAKER_00
Who s cleaning up around the house?
3
SPEAKER_01
Dude, it s me, because my mom has to cook at the house, but she can t.
3
SPEAKER_01
My dad has a full-time job, my brothers have a full-time job, and, you know?
3
SPEAKER_00
So you re... But you have a fucking full-time job.
3
SPEAKER_01
No, I have a part-time job, and I m a student, and being a student in this culture is basically looked at as doing nothing.
3
SPEAKER_01
So you... I m the youngest in the house, so I m just kind of automatically expected to...
3
SPEAKER_00
Bro, so you re 20, you re working a part-time job, you re a student, you re sort of taking care of your mom, and you re cleaning up after everyone in the house?
3
SPEAKER_01
Basically, dude.
3
SPEAKER_00
Goddamn, man.
3
SPEAKER_01
Well... Hey, as I said though, it s miles better than anything I would ve lived in Pakistan, so...
3
SPEAKER_00
Deep respect.
3
SPEAKER_00
Deep respect, Ahmad.
3
SPEAKER_00
Thank you, dude.
3
SPEAKER_00
Well, I mean, what if... Like, if you didn t have all these crazy responsibilities, like, what would you... Like, if you were to take some time for yourself, what would that even look like?
3
SPEAKER_00
What would you do?
3
SPEAKER_01
Dude, I don t even have, like, that many, I guess, hobbies or shit.
3
SPEAKER_01
Like, I just play video games on my PC, and...
3
SPEAKER_01
As I said, my goal in life is to just kind of be steady.
3
SPEAKER_01
Like, I don t really want to do anything.
3
SPEAKER_01
I just want to, you know, get a 9 to 5 job when I come home from work, play video games, and then go to sleep.
3
SPEAKER_00
Are you happy with life right now?
3
SPEAKER_01
Right now, dude, I m super happy.
3
SPEAKER_01
It s such a privilege, dude, to go to college and to have an internship.
3
SPEAKER_01
Oh, man.
3
SPEAKER_01
It s amazing.
3
SPEAKER_01
It s a privilege to drive a car, dude.
3
SPEAKER_01
Like in Pakistan, cars don t even... Nobody can afford one.
3
SPEAKER_00
It s a good perspective you re walking around with, man.
3
SPEAKER_00
It really is.
3
SPEAKER_00
Um... Well, you know what, man?
3
SPEAKER_00
Look, I know you feel, um... Look, I m gonna tell you this, Ahmad, before we go.
3
SPEAKER_00
I know you feel, um... Some sense of, I don t know if it s embarrassment or whatever, about, uh... Sleeping in your mom s bed, but...
3
SPEAKER_00
But but look but look that aside You re taking care of four fucking people And you re the youngest of them You re you re working your ass off cleaning porn off of all these Mac books Chromebooks whatever You re you re studying here.
3
SPEAKER_00
I mean you re doing so much man, so like
3
SPEAKER_00
and you re happy and you re you re you re doing it all you re doing it all also not you know walking around every day being like oh my life sucks it s so fucking hard i have to do all this stuff you re like grateful to do it all i mean you re you re a walking w man so i i hope you don t feel um
3
SPEAKER_00
Too, I don t know, ashamed is the word, but whatever.
3
SPEAKER_00
I hope you feel good about yourself and good about life because you re really doing it in an honest and noble way.
3
SPEAKER_00
And I have a lot of respect for that.
3
SPEAKER_00
And I appreciate you coming on here and sharing this stuff because I know it was, you know, hard to do and that you haven t done it with anyone before.
3
SPEAKER_00
So, you know, thanks, man.
3
SPEAKER_00
And it was really good talking to you.
3
SPEAKER_01
Dude, it was really good talking to you, too.
3
SPEAKER_01
And just, dude, I love your stuff.
3
SPEAKER_01
I watch you every day on my car ride to college.
3
SPEAKER_01
I mean, not watch, but listen.
3
SPEAKER_01
So it s been a pleasure being on here, man.
3
SPEAKER_00
Is there anything else you want to say to the people at the computer before we go?
3
SPEAKER_01
Just be supportive of everybody.
3
SPEAKER_01
I don t know.
3
SPEAKER_00
Beautiful.
3
SPEAKER_00
Take care, Ahmad.
3
SPEAKER_00
All right.
3
SPEAKER_00
Thank you, Geek.
3
SPEAKER_00
Bye.
3
SPEAKER_00
with no resentment at all.
4
SPEAKER_00
Um, the other day, I had, I drove an hour somewhere the other day and I was like so pissed off and like, I was stuck in traffic and I was like upset.
4
SPEAKER_00
I was like, I hate driving.
4
SPEAKER_00
I hate having to drive.
4
SPEAKER_00
Driving sucks.
4
SPEAKER_00
I fucking hate this car.
4
SPEAKER_00
I just was like pissed off and stewing.
4
SPEAKER_00
And then I m talking to this guy who s like, you know, the total opposite, like, oh my, like in bliss, like, oh my God, it s such a privilege to be able to drive.
4
SPEAKER_00
you know and like that that that is is an interesting perspective i liked that guy s perspective on everything and um you know even though he was
4
SPEAKER_00
Again, I don t know if ashamed is the word, I don t want to put emotions in this guy s mouth, but he felt the type of way about talking to people about the fact that he sleeps in his mom s bed.
4
SPEAKER_00
But on the same coin, when I asked him about it, his personal feelings about it were that it s not weird, that he actually wanted to do it because he doesn t know how much time he ll have left with his mom.
4
SPEAKER_00
None of us know how much time we ll have left with the people that we care about.
4
SPEAKER_00
in our lives and so he it was something that he was happy about and he felt good about even if you know other people might look at it a different way so i don t know i thought that guy was awesome i loved talking to him and um
4
SPEAKER_00
I m going to try to do it.
4
SPEAKER_00
I m going to try to go to Pakistan and talk to people.
4
SPEAKER_00
If you, while I m here, while people are listening, if you live, because this is something I want to do a lot more of in the future.
4
SPEAKER_00
If you live in like an interesting place, I ve gotten DMs from a guy who, a guy on the podcast who lived in Kuwait.
4
SPEAKER_00
If you live in, you know,
4
SPEAKER_00
I m gonna try to go to Vietnam.
4
SPEAKER_00
I m gonna try to go to Thailand if you live in Alaska if you live in like a Place that s not The United States or or Europe or Australia or Canada because I ve kind of covered those places you know South America or or Africa or anywhere in Asia and you Think it would be a cool place to go interview people
4
SPEAKER_00
Uh, let me know.
4
SPEAKER_00
Send me a DM.
4
SPEAKER_00
I m on the hunt for more cool experiences like that.
4
SPEAKER_00
So, uh, hit me up on Instagram at LyleTheNumber4Ever and I ll try to check those DMs.
4
SPEAKER_00
But, uh, thank you Ahmad.
4
SPEAKER_00
Appreciate it.
4
SPEAKER_00
And, um, Ghek bless you.
4
SPEAKER_00
This guy better pick up or we re gonna have a serious problem.
4
SPEAKER_00
Oh shit, what s up, man?
4
SPEAKER_01
How you doing?
4
SPEAKER_00
I m doing good.
4
SPEAKER_00
What s your name?
4
SPEAKER_01
James it says here that you re a neuroscientist that studies cannabis Yeah So I do have to preface I work in research, so there s some stuff.
4
SPEAKER_01
I cannot talk about however
4
SPEAKER_01
Yeah, it s pretty interesting stuff.
4
SPEAKER_01
A lot of people.
4
SPEAKER_00
Well, I mean, from the tone of your voice, it sounds like you do a lot of firsthand research.
4
SPEAKER_01
I am actually completely sober right now.
4
SPEAKER_00
I said that in a very... I said that like fucking Bill Maher or something.
4
SPEAKER_00
I feel embarrassed about the way I just talked to you.
4
SPEAKER_01
I know you ve been smoking recently on your streams and you smoked tonight.
4
SPEAKER_00
I m not watching... No, I haven t and I didn t smoke tonight and I don t know where you... Hold on.
4
SPEAKER_00
Where did you get any of this information that you re saying right now?
4
SPEAKER_01
Oh, you ve been smoking on streams.
4
SPEAKER_01
You started talking about it.
4
SPEAKER_01
I just listen to the podcast like religiously.
4
SPEAKER_00
When did I talk about smoking on the stream?
4
SPEAKER_01
You said something about you were getting a little too therapist-y
4
SPEAKER_01
And you are also kind of high, I forget who it was.
4
SPEAKER_01
It was one of your recent streams.
4
SPEAKER_00
I did say that.
4
SPEAKER_00
I did say that and I was kind of high and you re right and I m being defensive right now.
4
SPEAKER_00
And I m not high right now.
4
SPEAKER_00
Here s my thing is, I ll tell you this.
4
SPEAKER_00
For, I ve been doing this stream since June of 2020.
4
SPEAKER_00
That s like over, it s over three years.
4
SPEAKER_00
Pretty crazy.
4
SPEAKER_00
For like, and in those three years,
4
SPEAKER_00
I maybe the first three years I have maybe had been high on a live stream.
4
SPEAKER_00
one or two times, and I fucking hated it.
4
SPEAKER_00
It was really bad, I felt perceived, I felt like I couldn t just like, just talk, to rant and talk and not be thinking so much about the words that are coming out of your mouth and how they re being perceived and whatnot.
4
SPEAKER_00
You can t be high, because being high makes you paranoid, or at least for me it does.
4
SPEAKER_00
And so I never did it.
4
SPEAKER_00
And then there was a time, I wanna say a month or two ago,
4
SPEAKER_00
where I, just for, I don t know, for whatever reason, I think maybe I was really stressed leading up to a stream, and I was like, let me give this a try, maybe it ll mellow me out.
4
SPEAKER_00
And I had a nice stream.
4
SPEAKER_00
And so, but I also thought to myself, I m like, I do not want to make this a habit, you know, because that can only, I don t think that s a good habit to have.
4
SPEAKER_00
So now, you know, like, like, I ll, this is what I sort of have been doing a little bit is like, I ll stream for my normal two hours.
4
SPEAKER_00
And then maybe I ll take a little rip of a pen and the whatever comes after that is a total bonus.
4
SPEAKER_00
So like, you know, let me get in a couple,
4
SPEAKER_00
sober and that s like maybe once a a Week, you know, I stream two to three times a week and maybe for one of those streams After having done two hours, I ll take a little bit, but I m not I m not I don t want people to think I m high all the time on my stream, you know, that s why I did I made I made I made the mistake of
4
SPEAKER_00
I m not going to say it was a mistake.
4
SPEAKER_00
I don t take it back.
4
SPEAKER_00
I said that I was high to that guy.
4
SPEAKER_00
I was going to not say anything because I didn t want people to think I was high all the time.
4
SPEAKER_00
But I also don t like to lie.
4
SPEAKER_00
You know, so I would just be honest.
4
SPEAKER_00
I don t think there s anything wrong with being high a lot, but that s why I wanted to talk to you is because that s wrong.
4
SPEAKER_00
There s probably a lot that s wrong with being high all the time.
4
SPEAKER_00
And you would know the answer to those questions.
4
SPEAKER_00
So please, is it, am I going to, how long do I have to live?
4
SPEAKER_00
That s what I m, that s what I m really asking.
4
SPEAKER_01
I mean, I listened to your podcast religiously.
4
SPEAKER_01
You could die in the next five seconds.
4
SPEAKER_01
I mean, we don t fucking know, but like, no,
4
SPEAKER_01
I m high right now.
4
SPEAKER_00
I just hit my pin when I saw- You fucking- Okay, you fucking- I asked you if you were high right now, and you said you were sober.
4
SPEAKER_00
You re lying.
4
SPEAKER_01
While you were on that rant about how you don t get high, I got my pin out of my room and just smoked.
4
SPEAKER_00
Nice, that s sick.
4
SPEAKER_00
Yeah, absolutely.
4
SPEAKER_01
But yeah, so, so neuroscience research, so, um, I actually was at the start of the show, and I wanted to get on, um, on stage to talk, and it, uh,
4
SPEAKER_01
It might not be exactly about this, but yeah, so like doing research with cannabis, um, I actually started it out, um, at my college in North Carolina.
4
SPEAKER_01
Um, and we work with HIV and you don t normally put HIV and cannabis together, right?
4
SPEAKER_01
I don t know.
4
SPEAKER_01
I didn t at first, would you?
4
SPEAKER_00
What?
4
SPEAKER_01
Like HIV and cannabis, like using cannabis to help HIV patients.
4
SPEAKER_00
Oh, okay.
4
SPEAKER_00
I thought you were talking about injecting HIV into cannabis.
4
SPEAKER_01
Not exactly.
4
SPEAKER_01
However, we did kind of inject mice with HIV.
4
SPEAKER_01
That shit was kind of fucked up, but.
4
SPEAKER_01
You got the mice high too, right?
4
SPEAKER_01
Yeah.
4
SPEAKER_01
Oh, extremely high.
4
SPEAKER_01
That s what I do at work every day.
4
SPEAKER_01
And that s what I actually can t talk about because I m under NDAs and shit.
4
SPEAKER_01
It s a trade off.
4
SPEAKER_01
But yeah, no, I basically just inject mice with weed.
4
SPEAKER_01
That s my daily job.
4
SPEAKER_01
I listen to your podcast a lot.
4
SPEAKER_01
doing that, so you have been listened to while injecting mice with HIV, not HIV, with THC.
4
SPEAKER_01
So I hope that makes you feel great.
4
SPEAKER_01
Do you inject them with HIV or does somebody else do that and then you come in and you re like the good uncle, you re like the cool uncle and the other person is... Complicated topic, but it s actually through the food that they ingest, it changes gene codes and stuff.
4
SPEAKER_01
Um, but yeah, no, I m the good uncle.
4
SPEAKER_01
I m not the dick.
4
SPEAKER_01
I take care of them.
4
SPEAKER_01
I get them high as shit and make sure that they are, uh, well cared for.
4
SPEAKER_00
Wait, so you feed them like an AIDS hamburger and they get HIV?
4
SPEAKER_01
Literally, yeah.
4
SPEAKER_01
It s basically like a pizza, uh, pizza AIDS, like hamburger mashup type thing.
4
SPEAKER_00
That s fucked up.
4
SPEAKER_00
That s crazy.
4
SPEAKER_01
Yeah, it is.
4
SPEAKER_01
But, uh, we don t actually do that ourselves in the lab.
4
SPEAKER_01
Uh, we get that like from,
5
SPEAKER_01
from the actual place where, like, the mice come from.
5
SPEAKER_01
But anyway, that s not anything that really matters.
5
SPEAKER_01
I work with animals.
5
SPEAKER_00
That s supremely interesting.
5
SPEAKER_00
Let me, I have a couple more questions about it.
5
SPEAKER_00
So if I ate this AIDS burger that you give to these mice, would I get HIV?
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SPEAKER_01
So, no, because of the genetic code.
5
SPEAKER_01
However, and this is actually one of the fucked up things my mentor asked me.
5
SPEAKER_01
Um, but instead of doing that, you actually just come infertile, but it doesn t change your gene code, um, to the point where you get HIV, but you, if you eat it, you just come become sterile.
5
SPEAKER_01
Like, yeah, so not the best.
5
SPEAKER_01
Yeah.
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SPEAKER_01
I mean, I actually don t know that science.
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SPEAKER_01
I m not going to act like I do.
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SPEAKER_01
I m gonna be I m gonna be like you and actually admit that I don t know something.
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SPEAKER_00
Isn t it kind of crazy that there s a whole like we re such apex predators that we ve decided it s totally cool to just round up another animal and give it HIV?
5
SPEAKER_01
Dude, it is so fucked.
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SPEAKER_01
I mean, yeah.
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SPEAKER_01
And for research purposes, too.
5
SPEAKER_01
And then you just like give it something that s illegal and like a majority of the states
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SPEAKER_01
and then arrest people for that too, but that s neither here or there.
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SPEAKER_01
It s just fucked up.
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SPEAKER_01
We re, we re super, super weird if you actually think about it, but I don t like to think about it because then I start thinking about like,
5
SPEAKER_01
Everything else.
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SPEAKER_01
I m also higher shit now.
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SPEAKER_01
So you are always gonna like overthink.
5
SPEAKER_00
Yeah, so I Yeah, so I am I m a daily pot smoker not every time I m on the podcast now people are gonna think I m high all the time I m not high all the time.
5
SPEAKER_00
I mean, I m not high all the time when I am recording this podcast
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SPEAKER_00
Definitely.
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SPEAKER_00
I ve recorded 250 something episodes of this podcast.
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SPEAKER_00
I ve maybe been high for one of them.
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SPEAKER_00
All right.
5
SPEAKER_01
I ve listened to every single one of them.
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SPEAKER_01
But yeah, that s crazy.
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SPEAKER_01
That s crazy.
5
SPEAKER_00
Okay.
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SPEAKER_00
Anyway, um, but I get high every day and I don t even, I don t think about it anymore.
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SPEAKER_00
So like, I don t think about is this bad for me?
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SPEAKER_00
Am I going to, you know, when I m 40, am I going to not know my dad s name anymore?
5
SPEAKER_00
Like what, what is it actually, what is it doing?
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SPEAKER_00
Am I fucked?
5
SPEAKER_01
No, you re not fucked at all.
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SPEAKER_01
I mean, I m a daily, I m a daily user as well.
5
SPEAKER_01
Um, yeah, I m a daily user.
5
SPEAKER_01
No, you re not going to be fucked or anything.
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SPEAKER_01
And I actually don t do human science and the science that everybody does can t actually translate to humans.
5
SPEAKER_01
So I don t have a true answer for you, even though I do study it.
5
SPEAKER_01
But just from what I have seen, because I also looked at it cause I mean, I smoke a lot and it s,
5
SPEAKER_01
there s nothing that s going to negatively impact you unless you are getting to the point where you have CHS, where you re like throwing up, um, when you smoke and you, if you don t have, if you, if you re not doing that, you don t have it.
5
SPEAKER_01
Um, some people have mentioned it throughout the podcast, but, um, so CHS is really what will stop, make you stop.
5
SPEAKER_01
And then, um, if you ever have any started like type of, uh, psychosis or anything, obviously stop.
5
SPEAKER_01
But like, it s basically just like cracking your joints.
5
SPEAKER_01
Like, if you crack your joints and it starts to hurt, stop.
5
SPEAKER_01
You re going to get arthritis, but it s not actually going to cause it.
5
SPEAKER_01
So, in reference, and I can t really tell you if you re going to be fine or not, because I don t fucking know that.
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SPEAKER_01
I don t know you.
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SPEAKER_01
I just listened to you on a phone, right?
5
SPEAKER_01
But like, for the majority of people, and I ll put you in that category,
5
SPEAKER_01
you ll be perfectly fine.
5
SPEAKER_01
It s legal for a reason.
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SPEAKER_01
It shouldn t be illegal in some states.
5
SPEAKER_01
And so that type of thing makes people feel like you won t know your fucking dad s name when you re 50 years old, but like, you re going to be completely fine.
5
SPEAKER_01
There s people that have been doing it for way longer than you have.
5
SPEAKER_01
And I mean, you got to think about it.
5
SPEAKER_01
We re the most like sober generation that s ever been around.
5
SPEAKER_01
We could literally be smoking opium out of like fucking pipes.
5
SPEAKER_01
Like we re perfectly fine hitting a little pin like every day.
5
SPEAKER_01
It s not that big of a deal, but like, anyway, you ll be fine.
5
SPEAKER_01
It s not a big deal.
5
SPEAKER_00
You know what?
5
SPEAKER_00
I m gonna record every single podcast from this episode moving forward completely stoned.
5
SPEAKER_00
Because you said that just now.
5
SPEAKER_01
I hope so.
5
SPEAKER_01
Yeah, that s great.
5
SPEAKER_01
I mean, your content s pretty good when you re fucked up too.
5
SPEAKER_00
I m not actually going to do that.
5
SPEAKER_00
I m just joking.
5
SPEAKER_00
I m not going to do that at all.
5
SPEAKER_00
Yeah, that s fine.
5
SPEAKER_00
That s not a big deal.
5
SPEAKER_00
Well, I m going to be honest with you.
5
SPEAKER_00
I m going to be honest with you.
5
SPEAKER_00
I don t believe you entirely because I don t... I have this little vape pen that s creme brulee flavored.
5
SPEAKER_00
And you re not you can t just inhale creme brulee artificial flavoring into your lungs and get away scot-free.
5
SPEAKER_00
There s no way.
5
SPEAKER_00
There s no consequences.
5
SPEAKER_01
Now, now, Lyle, now, Lyle, you re just asking about THC.
5
SPEAKER_01
I studied THC.
5
SPEAKER_01
I studied the actual effect of cannabis.
5
SPEAKER_01
I don t study
5
SPEAKER_01
what is in your fucking crème brûlée vape pen.
5
SPEAKER_01
And I don t, and honestly, I don t know.
5
SPEAKER_01
That s why I stay away from certain things, because I see it in the lab and I know that it can be fucked up.
5
SPEAKER_01
But the actual thing that I was more so saying is the THC.
5
SPEAKER_01
Of course, you re probably building, you re caking that shit in your lungs because it s adding to your mucus layer.
5
SPEAKER_01
You re going to inhale it.
5
SPEAKER_01
That could be bad for you.
5
SPEAKER_01
But in terms of the THC, where I actually specialize,
5
SPEAKER_01
There s no problems there.
5
SPEAKER_01
I mean, if you started smoking five blunts a day, obviously you re going to start coughing more often because you re inhaling stuff or the pen.
5
SPEAKER_01
You re going to have more of that.
5
SPEAKER_01
But like for my more focus is the THC and that s where you re going to be okay.
5
SPEAKER_00
Okay.
5
SPEAKER_00
All right.
5
SPEAKER_00
I guess that makes sense.
5
SPEAKER_00
That s why people eat it instead of, you know, turning it into creme brulee smoke.
5
SPEAKER_01
Exactly.
5
SPEAKER_01
And eating, it s a little different too.
5
SPEAKER_01
Um, because it just changes, it changes how it develops.
5
SPEAKER_01
Um, and you re just like entire system in your cannabinoid system with the receptors in your body.
5
SPEAKER_01
And that s why, that s why there s more people like it s, say it s stronger when you eat an edible.
5
SPEAKER_01
Um, but it s cause it just works in different ways.
5
SPEAKER_01
But, um, Oh, there is something I did want to tell you if you don t mind.
5
SPEAKER_00
Oh yeah, sure.
5
SPEAKER_01
All right.
5
SPEAKER_01
So I was at your North Carolina Charlotte show, right?
5
SPEAKER_00
Right.
5
SPEAKER_00
Yeah.
5
SPEAKER_00
Yeah.
5
SPEAKER_01
After so after you took down the prompts The and like all that shit and I texted in after if I was scared I was nervous to get up because I was high as fuck I was nervous to talk to you So I didn t send it in until you came out on stage and I didn t realize that you Are you wrote him down before the show and then came out?
5
SPEAKER_01
Um, did you did you see any of the ones that were sent or do you just completely just like trash the rest of them?
5
SPEAKER_00
Um, I ve, yeah, I probably, I probably saw your message at some point.
5
SPEAKER_01
Okay.
5
SPEAKER_01
So I wanted to tell you, so I am a behavioral neuroscientist.
5
SPEAKER_01
Okay.
5
SPEAKER_01
I wanted to tell you about one time I conditioned myself to get horny when I smelled microwavable pot pie in middle school.
5
SPEAKER_01
Like I classically conditioned myself.
5
SPEAKER_01
Absolutely fucking not.
5
SPEAKER_01
It was on accident.
5
SPEAKER_01
I was a little fat ass kid that loved those little whatever, pot pies, little green box, whatever.
5
SPEAKER_01
They were delicious.
5
SPEAKER_01
I was a little fat child.
5
SPEAKER_01
And every time that I would make those in the microwave, I would beat my dick smelling the pot pies.
5
SPEAKER_01
And then I realized that it was a problem when someone in my family made a pot pie at one point.
5
SPEAKER_01
And I smelled it and I was instantly horny and I had a problem.
5
SPEAKER_01
And I somehow took that experience and became a behavioralist neuroscientist.
5
SPEAKER_00
This is what inspired your entire career?
5
SPEAKER_01
Yes, because I was literally classically conditioned.
5
SPEAKER_01
And I was I was classically conditioned to get hard when I smelled microwavable pot pie.
5
SPEAKER_01
And then I looked into it and I was like, holy shit.
5
SPEAKER_01
And now I m a neuroscientist.
5
SPEAKER_00
Um, what kind of pot pie?
5
SPEAKER_01
What the fuck is it?
5
SPEAKER_01
It s the green.
5
SPEAKER_01
It s the gray.
5
SPEAKER_01
If you ate it when you were a kid, you want to know either the fucking green box pot pie.
5
SPEAKER_01
I don t know.
5
SPEAKER_01
It s chat.
5
SPEAKER_01
Just chat.
5
SPEAKER_01
Know what the fuck it is.
5
SPEAKER_01
Uh,
5
SPEAKER_01
What would it be?
5
SPEAKER_01
I don t know.
5
SPEAKER_01
It was the, it s like a woman s name.
5
SPEAKER_01
It s green box pot pie, fucking delicious.
5
SPEAKER_01
Probably, probably the thing that kills me, not the THC.
5
SPEAKER_00
And to this day, when you smell pot pie, do you still get hard?
5
SPEAKER_01
No, because in classical conditioning, after a certain amount of time, either getting hard,
5
SPEAKER_01
and not smelling the stimulus of pot pie.
6
SPEAKER_02
have extinction period where you where you lose that learning like ability so you learn you lose the stimulus which in turn extincts the actual behavior itself so I no longer get hard and I tested it too because I was honestly curious and I no longer do it so I m not fucked up that fucked up anymore I had to fix myself I m still a little fucked up but I
6
SPEAKER_01
You really are a scientist.
6
SPEAKER_02
Exactly.
6
SPEAKER_02
Yeah.
6
SPEAKER_02
And and I thought it would be cool to talk to you about the thing you do all the time and tell you you re probably going to die in the next couple of days.
6
SPEAKER_02
But who fucking knows?
6
SPEAKER_01
How did you how did you decondition yourself from getting horny from these pies?
6
SPEAKER_02
By not so by getting horny without the smell of pot pie, which is the stimulus.
6
SPEAKER_02
So when you take away the stimulus, which is the smell of pot pies, and repeatedly get horny for a X number of years, it slowly dwindles away.
6
SPEAKER_02
So when I stopped eating those pot pies and I said, Hey, I m actually going to go for a run.
6
SPEAKER_02
I m a fat fuck.
6
SPEAKER_02
I was like, all right.
6
SPEAKER_02
And I got a little bit better.
6
SPEAKER_02
And this was like when I was in middle school.
6
SPEAKER_02
So I stopped doing all that shit.
6
SPEAKER_02
And I realized I probably need to eat a little healthier.
6
SPEAKER_02
Now I m a fucking fat ass again.
6
SPEAKER_02
I mean, but whatever.
6
SPEAKER_01
That s cool.
6
SPEAKER_01
What gets you horny now?
6
SPEAKER_02
Uh, listening to your streams.
6
SPEAKER_02
Yeah, I m just sitting there fucking edgy.
6
SPEAKER_02
Yeah, no, I m actually kidding.
6
SPEAKER_02
My girlfriend gives me pretty alright, but... What s your name again?
6
SPEAKER_02
Uh, my name is James.
6
SPEAKER_01
James.
6
SPEAKER_01
James, it was good talking to you about, um... most of this stuff.
6
SPEAKER_01
Is there anything else you want to say to the people at the computer before we go?
6
SPEAKER_02
Um, yeah, I want to say I really like those lamps that you can fucking like change like the LEDs of with your phone.
6
SPEAKER_02
I just think that they re really fucking cool.
6
SPEAKER_02
Because I just play with them like when I m super high and just watch them change colors.
6
SPEAKER_02
That s it.
6
SPEAKER_01
Enjoy the rest of your life, man.
6
SPEAKER_01
But you don t even need me to tell you to do that.
6
SPEAKER_02
Hey, you too, bro.
6
SPEAKER_02
Hey, keep smoking.
6
SPEAKER_02
Maybe you ll die soon.
6
SPEAKER_02
What?
6
SPEAKER_02
Maybe later.
6
SPEAKER_02
No one knows.
6
SPEAKER_02
Have a good life.
6
SPEAKER_02
Take care, brother.
6
SPEAKER_02
Hey, bye, gag.
6
SPEAKER_01
I think I m gonna go make myself a pie.
6
SPEAKER_00
Therapy Cat goes on the line Taking your phone calls every night Therapy Cat goes doing his right He s teaching you how to live your life But he s not really an expert