S1: #36 - Damien Is Not A Psychic

Summary

Podcast Summary: Smosh Mouth – S1: #36 - Damien Is Not A Psychic

Episode Information:

• Title: Damien Is Not A Psychic
• Host/Author: Smosh
• Release Date: October 23, 2019

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Introduction

In episode #36 of Smosh Mouth, titled "Damien Is Not A Psychic," hosts Shayne Topp (Shane), Amanda Lehan-Canto (Sarah), and Damien Haas delve into a range of intriguing topics. From personal paranormal experiences to fears of natural disasters and the intelligence of animals, this episode offers a blend of humor, storytelling, and thoughtful discussions. The trio also touches upon their journey towards 25 million YouTube subscribers, adding a motivational twist to the conversation.

---

Debunking the Psychic Myth

The episode kicks off with Damien clarifying his stance on psychic abilities, responding to online compilations that humorously label him as a psychic.

• Damien Haas [00:14]:
  "There are fun compilations online called Damien is a Psychic. They are fun to watch. I'm not a psychic. I think if anyone tells you they're a psychic, they're full of crap."

This sets the tone for a playful yet sincere exploration of personal beliefs and experiences related to the paranormal.

---

Personal Paranormal Experiences

Shane's Unsettling Encounters

Shane shares a series of eerie incidents from his past, ranging from unexplained noises to apparitions.

• Shane Topp [00:00]:
  "There was a time I woke up and I rolled over and I opened my eyes and there was a woman standing next to my bed... she was gone."

One of the most harrowing stories involves Shane hearing a loud scream in his apartment, leading him to suspect a supernatural presence.

• Shane Topp [20:49]:
  "There is nothing in this tank that can eat them... someone flips a coin, ... It landed at my feet."
  (Referring to an unexplained coin flip sound)

Damien's Family Encounter

Damien recounts a mysterious phone call that seemed to connect him with his late grandmother.

• Damien Haas [13:35]:
  "My dad got in a really bad accident... the receptionist said, 'your mom called.' She was like, 'tell him his mother called.' It had a German accent."

This story underscores the thin line between belief and skepticism regarding paranormal phenomena.

Sarah's Ouija Board Experience

Sarah details a chilling experience with a Ouija board during her teenage years, where the group experienced unexplainable movements of the cup.

• Sarah Whittle [28:15]:
  "The cup was going so fast that people's fingers were falling off of it. It was rotating so quickly across the table while also rotating itself."

The intensity of the event left a lasting impression, highlighting the group's fascination with the supernatural.

---

Fear of the Unknown: Scary Movies and Natural Disasters

Scary Movies: A Mixed Bag

The hosts discuss their varying experiences with horror films, highlighting how certain movies can leave a lasting impact.

• Shane Topp [07:34]:
  "I watch a lot of scary movies by myself in the dark... 'Texas Chainsaw Massacre' was really rough."

Natural Disasters: Tornadoes and Earthquakes

Shane shares his longstanding fear of tornadoes, exacerbated by movies like Twister, while Damien and Sarah discuss their real-life encounters with earthquakes.

• Shane Topp [57:07]:
  "I was in Arizona, one of my biggest fears was twisters. I watched 'Twister,' and it ruined my life. Anytime there was a slight storm, I'd be like, is that a twister?"

• Damien Haas [58:05]:
  "When we had that earthquake, Mark and I were in a restaurant and everybody was fleeing. The lights above us were swinging around."

These stories emphasize how real-life events can heighten our fears and sometimes blur the lines between fiction and reality.

---

The Mysteries of Dreams

Lucid Dreaming and Prophetic Dreams

Sarah and Damien delve into their experiences with lucid dreaming and how certain dreams seemed to predict future events.

• Sarah Whittle [39:49]:
  "I had a lucid dream where zombies burst through the door while I was trying to make it a sexual dream."

• Damien Haas [40:28]:
  "I had a dream that my ex-girlfriend was with another guy, and when I saw her the next day, she confronted me about it."

Shane shares a personal story where a dream seemingly saved his life.

• Shane Topp [35:28]:
  "I drowned when I was 18 months old... my mom heard a voice say my name and found me in the backyard."

These anecdotes explore the profound impact dreams can have on our waking lives and beliefs.

---

Intelligent Animals: A Source of Awe and Fear

Octopus Intelligence

Shane narrates an astonishing story about an octopus demonstrating remarkable intelligence by escaping its tank and returning, showcasing the creature's problem-solving abilities.

• Shane Topp [60:46]:
  "There was an octopus that crawled out of its tank to steal sharks from another tank and then returned to avoid getting caught."

Crows and Their Behavior

Damien shares how crows have shown intelligence through gestures like bringing shiny objects as tokens of appreciation.

• Damien Haas [62:43]:
  "There was a lady who fed crows, and they started leaving shiny garbage on her balcony as gifts."

These stories highlight the deep intelligence of animals, prompting reflections on their potential and our interactions with them.

---

Clowns, Mimes, and Cultural Fears

The hosts discuss their complex feelings towards clowns and mimes, blending humor with underlying fears.

• Damien Haas [50:26]:
  "Clowns are creatures that exist entirely to make you laugh, but culturally they're seen as scary."

• Shane Topp [51:30]:
  "I almost fought a mime in a video where I faced my fear of dolls."

These conversations showcase how cultural portrayals can transform entities meant to elicit joy into figures of fear.

---

Conclusion and Call to Action

As the episode wraps up, Shane passionately shares their goal of reaching 25 million YouTube subscribers. He humorously ties this milestone to personal challenges, like attempting to do over 200,000 push-ups.

• Shane Topp [66:04]:
  "I'm taking a quick break for this podcast. But when we were 200,000 subscribers away from 25 million, I started doing push-ups, and I am not stopping until we hit 25 million."

Sarah and Damien join in, urging listeners to support their journey by subscribing and engaging with their content.

• Sarah Whittle [65:15]:
  "Tell ghosts to subscribe. We need to grow our crow audience."

This segment blends humor with genuine enthusiasm, encouraging the audience to participate in their growth.

---

Notable Quotes

• Damien Haas [00:14]:
  "I'm not a psychic. I think if anyone tells you they're a psychic, they're full of crap."

• Shane Topp [35:28]:
  "I drowned when I was 18 months old... my mom heard a voice say my name and found me in the backyard."

• Sarah Whittle [37:02]:
  "Maybe you're making this up. Whatever. It's like, no. Everything that you see is not what's actually in front of you."

• Shane Topp [66:25]:
  "Do nice things for crows so that crows will start subscribing. We need to hit 25 million."

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Final Thoughts

Episode #36 of Smosh Mouth offers a captivating blend of personal anecdotes, humorous banter, and thought-provoking discussions. From debunking psychic myths to exploring the intelligence of animals and sharing supernatural experiences, Shane, Sarah, and Damien create an engaging narrative that resonates with both long-time fans and new listeners alike. Their heartfelt call to reach 25 million subscribers adds an extra layer of connection, inviting the audience to be part of their exciting journey.

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For those who haven't tuned in, this episode is a must-listen for its honest conversations, relatable fears, and the unique chemistry of the Smosh trio. Whether you're a skeptic or a believer in the paranormal, "Damien Is Not A Psychic" offers something intriguing for everyone.

Transcript

[Shane Topp]

Ramble. There was a time I woke up and I rolled over and I opened my eyes and there was a woman standing next to my bed. I just kind of, like, eventually rolled away, closed my eyes, and looked back, and she was gone.

[Damien Haas]

There are fun compilations online called Damien is a Psychic. They are fun to watch. I'm not a psychic. I think if anyone tells you they're a psychic, they're full of crap.

[Sarah Whittle]

You know, there's been a lot of coincidence in my life and little moments here and there that I, like, were very important moments. And maybe I don't have a dirty explanation, but I'll take it as it is.

[Shane Topp]

Sara. Sara.

[Sarah Whittle]

100%.

[Shane Topp]

Sara.

[Damien Haas]

Sarajo.

[Shane Topp]

Sara Juario. Sarawario.

[Damien Haas]

Sarawarlo.

[Shane Topp]

That's great. Oh, my God. This is my body. This is my blood. One of you will betray me, and that's the fucking tea. That's great. Judas is like Jesus T. The Christmas.

[Sarah Whittle]

The story of Christmas.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah. And anyways, so Damian and I then wrestled the crocodile down, and, you know, we ended up becoming friends. We talked it out after that.

[Sarah Whittle]

I believe it, Grandpa.

[Shane Topp]

Hey. Wow, guys. Welcome to the smoshcast. It's a very, very fun episode. I'm your host for today, Shane Topp. And with me are Damien Haas and Sarah Whittle.

[Damien Haas]

Hi, guys.

[Shane Topp]

Two of really my best friends. Like, honestly, me a little more.

[Sarah Whittle]

I'm more best friend.

[Damien Haas]

I'm going in for the high five. I'm giving this as a charity. Take the high five.

[Sarah Whittle]

I'm not taking a charity.

[Shane Topp]

Damian went for niceness, and you immediately were mean.

[Sarah Whittle]

I'm cool.

[Damien Haas]

So interesting that. What good friend material.

[Shane Topp]

We got to go do a little dog walk the other day, which was really awesome. A dog hike?

[Damien Haas]

Yeah, Runyon Canyon. And we had, like, what, 15 rescue pups.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah.

[Sarah Whittle]

Little fossil. The puppies were foster babies, and we took them up the hill, and it was so cute.

[Shane Topp]

It was great. I needed it because I can't have a pet right now, and I want one so bad. So to just go get to hang out with a bunch of dogs was so awesome.

[Damien Haas]

You can borrow my cats for the week and a half. I'm in Japan. I would do that for you.

[Shane Topp]

Maybe. Yeah, maybe. Honestly, maybe. I don't know. I'll think about it.

[Sarah Whittle]

You can't just borrow cats.

[Damien Haas]

You can. I can leave them in the house sometimes.

[Shane Topp]

Just borrow cats. You never just borrow cats.

[Damien Haas]

He doesn't have much fabric stuff in his home, so there's not much they could ruin.

[Sarah Whittle]

Oh, they will find something.

[Damien Haas]

They've started Picking under Mark's door, too. And tearing up the carpet there. Which means I want to die. Because that was the biggest issue with our last apartment.

[Shane Topp]

Just let them conquer every part of the house.

[Sarah Whittle]

That's what we do.

[Shane Topp]

They're doing that for you.

[Sarah Whittle]

It's a losing fight.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah. They are serving you. They are your soldiers. Let them slowly take over everything.

[Damien Haas]

Can't they just annex the apartment next to me? I would prefer that.

[Shane Topp]

Oh, my God. So, because it's Halloween time, it's October, I kinda wanted to talk about spooky.

[Sarah Whittle]

Stuff and my cool outfit.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah. For those of you.

[Damien Haas]

Let's talk about it.

[Shane Topp]

For those of you listening, Sarah came in dressed like a Fortnite skin. She's wearing a unicorn onesie.

[Damien Haas]

Yeah.

[Sarah Whittle]

Cause Finnerdew told me it was a Halloween themed episode and he said everyone was gonna dress up. And then I showed up and I looked like a real.

[Damien Haas]

Did he actually.

[Shane Topp]

Except Sarah. Sarah, you dress like this every day.

[Sarah Whittle]

I know. This is just what I wanted to wear today.

[Shane Topp]

I can't stress enough how much Sarah dresses like a complete psychopath every day. And I dress crazy, but Sarah dresses like. I don't know.

[Sarah Whittle]

Listen, listen. I don't have hobbies, so this is all I have. I don't have time for hobbies. So bright makeup and bright clothes are all I have.

[Damien Haas]

You're very good at, you know, putting together fashionable outfits, though. The thing that always surprises me is, like, if you're wearing a specific pair of boots and it is glittered and bedazzled or whatever, I look at your outfit and I think, this is the only possible outfit in existence where these boots can work. Like, do you buy a pair of shoes per outfit? That's my question. Cause it's so.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah, that's true.

[Sarah Whittle]

You know, a lot of people, when they're putting an outfit together, they might have one star piece. You know, like the shoes or a shirt or the onesie. I say, why not have multiple star pieces and put it all together and even if it doesn't make sense, it then makes sense.

[Damien Haas]

Okay.

[Shane Topp]

You end up looking like a middle school notebook. But you know what?

[Damien Haas]

Hashtag goals, hashtag Lisa Frank, hashtag steal more of your memes.

[Sarah Whittle]

I just go to Claudio and I'm like, how does this look? And he's like, insane. But you can do it.

[Damien Haas]

Delightful.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah.

[Sarah Whittle]

I'm a fashionista.

[Damien Haas]

Yeah. Lisa Frank steals from you. It's pretty dope.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah.

[Sarah Whittle]

Fact. Actually, Lisa Frank actually did steal from me.

[Damien Haas]

Straight up. Screenshotted a meme that she Made and was just like, this is a Lisa Frank meme now. I annexed it.

[Sarah Whittle]

I mean, it was based off of her products, but still, it was their most high engaged piece of content on their Instagram for a while.

[Damien Haas]

Almost like you're very talented at what you do.

[Sarah Whittle]

Almost like I am owed a consultant fee.

[Shane Topp]

Oh, man. This just became the tea cast.

[Damien Haas]

Tea? What are you talking about? We make coffee. Oh, my God, I'm so good at that.

[Shane Topp]

All right, speaking of guys, we gotta cheers.

[Damien Haas]

Clank.

[Shane Topp]

Damn.

[Damien Haas]

Facing this way, guys.

[Shane Topp]

We got a bunch of awesome merch at Smosh store, and we have the my favorite [e-mail]. it is Ian's passion project. He worked on it for months. Check it out. It's very, very good.

[Sarah Whittle]

Also fun fact. So if you live not in the US Shipping the cold brew is quite expensive because I think it comes out to like six or seven pounds of liquid.

[Damien Haas]

That's fun at all.

[Sarah Whittle]

But if you get the beans or the ground beans, it ships for a lot less money.

[Damien Haas]

Hells yeah.

[Sarah Whittle]

And you actually are probably getting more cups of coffee with that.

[Shane Topp]

Smart, smart. Very smart.

[Damien Haas]

Nice.

[Shane Topp]

The more, you know, very, very nice. And look, you know, I can't. This isn't advertised on the coffee, but I once saw Ian drink some of the cold brew and then run. He ran a 40 in five seconds. And, you know, I can't say that they're correlated. I can't say it's because of the coffee, but I'm just saying that it happened immediately after he drank the coffee. So look, if you're looking to win the Olympics, I thought it was because.

[Damien Haas]

I walked up to him and said, let's have an emotional heart to heart, and he bolted.

[Shane Topp]

Oh, my God.

[Sarah Whittle]

The Roast Ian podcast. Now that he's not hosting.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah, now that he's not here. Ian is currently excavating a new section of Machu Picchu.

[Sarah Whittle]

Had one full cold brew, and he's.

[Shane Topp]

Ready to go right now. Yeah, I'm not. None of us are exactly sure where Ian is. He disappeared this week into the woods. Yeah, he texted us and said, I'll be back. And we're like, cool, man.

[Damien Haas]

He pulled a book on a bookshelf, and all of a sudden it twists it around and we're like, we didn't even know the mythical office could do that. He's somewhere in a lair.

[Shane Topp]

He found a hidden pirate ship underneath our building.

[Damien Haas]

Oh, my God.

[Shane Topp]

Oh, my God. All right.

[Damien Haas]

That would be scary.

[Shane Topp]

That would be.

[Damien Haas]

Speaking of.

[Shane Topp]

Speaking of scary. Thanks. Damian. Just keep segueing our way around. Oh, my God.

[Sarah Whittle]

This is how the natural flow of conversation happens.

[Shane Topp]

Thanks, Damian, for hosting.

[Sarah Whittle]

Shane's getting demoted.

[Damien Haas]

Sorry.

[Shane Topp]

That's fine. Yeah, I wanted to talk about spooky stuff. I wanted to talk about, like, ghosts and scary movies and crap.

[Damien Haas]

Okay. I'm Sawee.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah. Since it's October. As some of you might know, I watch a lot of scary movies by myself in the dark.

[Sarah Whittle]

It's a psycho.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah, it's kind of fun. And it does ruin my life a little bit. I did the other day with Texas Chainsaw Massacre, which is Ryan's favorite movie ever. It was really rough. For a movie made in the 70s, that movie gets awful.

[Damien Haas]

Really? Really jinx.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah, yeah. Just like, it's a good movie. It's just, like, awful. Like, it's tormenting you for the last half hour.

[Sarah Whittle]

I don't like spoopy movies. I really don't fare well.

[Shane Topp]

What was the last scary movie you saw?

[Sarah Whittle]

Well, we all went to us together, but that wasn't like.

[Shane Topp]

That was like, a thriller.

[Damien Haas]

Yeah. I would say once the house gets off the ground with the balloons, it's not that bad.

[Sarah Whittle]

Stop, stop.

[Shane Topp]

You're drunk.

[Sarah Whittle]

You're drunk.

[Damien Haas]

I'm so sorry.

[Shane Topp]

The laugh, the laugh. Damian has just been nuts. This morning you guys asked for dark.

[Damien Haas]

Damian, and then when he's here, you can't handle it.

[Sarah Whittle]

That was like, hi, Damian.

[Shane Topp]

That was just like, I don't know. What's up?

[Sarah Whittle]

The one before was the first it. Because everyone was saying how cool it was, and I. It was. It was good, but I had a miserable time.

[Shane Topp]

I love that movie.

[Sarah Whittle]

So that movie's really scary.

[Damien Haas]

It's a comedy.

[Shane Topp]

It really is kind of half comedy.

[Sarah Whittle]

It's real. No. This is why it's so scary is that, like, the scary moment happens. And usually it's like, in typical movies, you have a jump scare, and then it, like, settles down after that jump scare. It like, the scary thing keeps going.

[Shane Topp]

Oh, yeah, keep scary.

[Sarah Whittle]

Like, that kid keeps going towards the lens. And that's like.

[Shane Topp]

It's really true.

[Damien Haas]

So are you scared of all scary movies or is it like.

[Sarah Whittle]

Well, I used to watch a lot more scary movies when I was in high school and just had no fear of anything. So I would watch, like, most of the saw movies and, like, strangers and, you know, House on Haunted Hill. I saw pretty.

[Shane Topp]

I remember that.

[Damien Haas]

That one messed me up.

[Sarah Whittle]

That one messed me up. The ring messed me up.

[Shane Topp]

Ring has the one shot the Hills.

[Sarah Whittle]

Have Eyes did not mess Me up because I'm like, I'm never going to be in New Mexico or wherever.

[Damien Haas]

You don't know that.

[Shane Topp]

You don't know that.

[Sarah Whittle]

I do know that. I drove through New Mexico. No, no, no, no, no. It's scary stuff, dude.

[Shane Topp]

There's more New Mexico that are beautiful.

[Damien Haas]

I drove across the country to come out here from Georgia to California. And let me tell you, when you hit, like, Texas, there's just nothing until you get to New Mexico. And then the rock formations are beautiful.

[Shane Topp]

I have that exact northern New Mexico has a bunch of antelope and just, like, rolling hills. It's really gorgeous.

[Sarah Whittle]

Good for you guys.

[Damien Haas]

Good for New Mexico.

[Shane Topp]

Honestly, good for New Mexico.

[Sarah Whittle]

I drove from Phoenix to Colorado and had to go through New Mexico. Thought I was gonna stop in New Mexico. And I was like, no, I'm good. I'm gonna keep driving.

[Damien Haas]

Wow.

[Sarah Whittle]

So I did. I used to watch a lot of scary movies. I think it's such a stressful experience for me because when I watch a movie, I'm, like, fully in it. And I just want to avoid all things in my life that cause extra stress.

[Damien Haas]

Oh, no.

[Sarah Whittle]

So I like to watch things like the Masked Singer.

[Damien Haas]

That's scary to me.

[Sarah Whittle]

And I had to stop off of real crime podcasts. Cause they were spooking me too much.

[Shane Topp]

So I have a hard time with true crime podcasts. True crime movies don't scare me too much because I just see it as kind of like a drama. And I'm like, oh, this is scary, people.

[Sarah Whittle]

Oh, yeah. Yeah.

[Shane Topp]

But when it's a podcast or when it's like an actual documentary about it, then that gets really scary. Cause I'm like, oh, this happened. And that's awful. Yeah.

[Sarah Whittle]

And for a while, I was listening to, like, Ted Bundy and, like, one about the Black Dahlia Killer. And it was a lot of violence against women. And I was like, I think it's time to just like, listen to podcast outside and smoshcast right now. Like, it was. I had to do a palate cleanse.

[Damien Haas]

That's like, the only kind of stuff to me that actually is scary because it's real. Like, I think a lot of the scary stuff that we think about can't really hold a candle to how terrible human beings can be. And that stuff, like, really happens. Like, sometimes if I'm watching a movie and it's just like, there's a monster in the lake. I don't care how good the shots are. I can appreciate the movie, but I'm never like, oh, man, what if there is a monster in the lake? It's like. There's not.

[Shane Topp]

I think what's weird is that I'm. I don't know if I necessarily believe in ghosts or anything like that, but movies about ghosts and demons and stuff scare me so much, really, because it's such a, like, twist of reality that I'm like, if something like that did happen, it's something that my brain is not ready for at all.

[Sarah Whittle]

That's why the Ring, like, freaked me out.

[Damien Haas]

The ring is free.

[Sarah Whittle]

The Ring was like. It was kind of like the first kind of horror film that I remember that really, like, talked about, like, technology. And it was like, if you watched this thing, which in theory you could watch anywhere, and then this, like, spooky girl's coming for you. It was like. It was very scary.

[Damien Haas]

That brings up a good point. It's kind of like the. The cop. The creepypasta of nowadays. Like the spooky memes that people share.

[Shane Topp]

Where you're not like, creepypasta, I don't know about. Oh, it would ruin your life.

[Damien Haas]

It's this term called copypasta, where people would. It was sort of like an early version of like, memes. It's like what you copy paste a reply in. In a forum. And, you know, everybody knows that you've seen that meme before. So creepypasta is like these urban legend kind of situations that, you know, people post in forums or just online on like WordPress or whatever, and they get sort of shared around, like, yeah, modern day urban legends. But I think so many of them, the thing that makes them scary, and it's interesting that you brought that up, is the one thing that touches on your everyday reality, whether it's the VHS tape there or it's like modern day ones might be like, did you get the text? If you all stand in a circle and eight people text this, one of you will get a text back. And that text back is from the blah, blah, blah, murderer. And you know, it's. It's that kind of stuff.

[Sarah Whittle]

Yeah, they have that new movie called the Countdown where you, like, download it. An app that tells you when you're gonna die. And it's real. Ooh, ooh.

[Shane Topp]

Oh, no. I only got 20 minutes left. Oh. But promise tomorrow.

[Sarah Whittle]

Yeah, but how do you guys feel? Do you guys actually believe in real ghosts or.

[Damien Haas]

No, I am on. I feel like spirits of some kind can exist. Right. Like my dad put it a good way when we were driving out from Georgia to California. Cause, you know, that's when you have the deep talks. But I was just like, how do you feel about such and such? And he said, everything is magic until you prove how it works. So if you think about electromagnetism, if you Talked about that 200, 300 years ago, you'd be burned at the stake. But now it's like, oh, yeah, there are invisible waves coming off of all these different things. That's electromagnetism. So is there some form of energy from a human life that can linger around in some way? Maybe it has to do with time or, you know, what have you. I believe that can happen. But when it's like this ghost is angry that you're in its house and it's gonna knock over that bottle, I'm like, okay.

[Shane Topp]

No, I think my issue is I. I think if I were to lay out what I believe, it's that I believe everything is possible, but I don't adamantly believe in anything specifically. Right? And what often happens is a crazy thing will happen, right? And I'll. In a second, I'll tell you, like, I've talked about it before, but I'll tell you, like, I had a string of weird instances that happened, like, a few years ago, but something will happen, like, right? Like, you'll hear, like, a person talking in a house or something. Or, like, you'll hear noises in a house. And people would be like, oh, my God, that's the ghost of this person. And he's upset about this. And I'm like, you're jumping to all these conclusions, right? Like, it's always, oh, that's for sure a ghost. I'm like, no, that's a noise, and you don't know what it's coming from. That could be a million things, right? And, like, reading up about schizophrenia, which is probably one of my greatest fears, developing schizophrenia terrifies me because I was reading a thing where a guy was talking about, like, yeah. How it started off for me is in the corner of certain of rooms, there would be a person standing there with no face, and they'd just be standing there. And I'm just like, well, if that's awful, like, that's a ghost story for, like. But I'm like. Because in instances where things have happened in my past, I'm like, could that have been a ghost? Yes. Could that also be. And using the term is my mind playing tricks on me is sounding like you're making this up? Whatever. It's like, no. Everything that you see is not what's actually in front of you. It's your brain's perception of it. This is a re. Imag. A re Imagining. A recreation of what's in front of you by your brain. If it gets something wrong, you will see, hear, feel everything. A thing that's not there. It's very possible. So I guess that's my mindset. But with saying that I believe it's possible that all sorts of crazy stuff is out there.

[Sarah Whittle]

Yeah, that's how I feel too. Is like I just say, like, oh, I believe in ghosts, but, like, I've just had a couple of experiences. And also it just, like, the thought creeps me out. But I'm never gonna go campaign that ghosts really exist because in actuality doesn't affect my everyday life. If I lived in a house that I thought was haunted, you bet your sweet ass I'm moving out tomorrow. But yeah, that's how I feel. Is like, it could be ghosts. And I used to love watching those reality shows of, like, Ghost Hunters and Ghost Hunters International, which I was confused about because I'm like, the ghost doesn't speak English, so how is he?

[Damien Haas]

Well, now you're getting into very specific ghost logic. My sister and I always talked about when we were, like teenagers, if our planned careers failed, we would just become paranormal investigators together. But also, I don't really believe it's a thing. So I guess it's gonna be the.

[Shane Topp]

Scully and the type of person that's a person who should be a paranormal investigator. Someone who doesn't necessarily believe in it.

[Damien Haas]

Sure.

[Shane Topp]

Because if you believe in it, you'll see all the connections and be like, oh, yeah, it's for sure.

[Sarah Whittle]

Well, it also doesn't make for good entertainment when you're a paranormal investigator and then you're like, but no, I think it's like, it's probably just a rat.

[Shane Topp]

You just walk into a house. That's bullcrap. No, not true.

[Damien Haas]

Yet another instance of wind. Join us next week, Wind strikes again.

[Shane Topp]

Wind investigators.

[Damien Haas]

That's pretty cool.

[Shane Topp]

That is pretty sick.

[Damien Haas]

It's that movie Tornado.

[Sarah Whittle]

Tell us your ghost stories.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah, okay. All right.

[Damien Haas]

Yeah, nerd, tell us your stories.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah, this happened when I was about, like, 18, 19, and I was living alone here in LA. This is like, shortly after my mom moved back home. So I was just finally doing my own thing out here. And I lived in this apartment that had a one bedroom with a loft. So it was a big, tall apartment, spiral staircase that went up to this loft. And I think it was generally new apartment complex, like, nothing weird. It's not like I moved in and they're like, oh, yeah, welcome to this apartment. Someone died here. Just like nothing like that. And I had been there for a couple years, everything had been fine. And then over the course of like, literally it was like a month or two, a bunch of weird stuff happened then. And then it was done. So one of. I'll do it gradually. Of like least creepy to creepy, right? So one day I was working at my computer and I'm sitting there typing and I have a sliding glass door. This is up in the loft, sliding glass door next to me. And I'm typing and all sudden, right on the window, right next to me, just bam. And like something smashes right up against, right where like my face is. And I look over and there's a bird lying on the ground. Pretty big sized bird. It had flown straight into the window, which I know this is not necessarily. This is normal. This is rather normal. This is like I said, I'm starting with.

[Damien Haas]

I'm not hooked, stupid.

[Shane Topp]

The bird's laying on the ground. I thought, it's dead. All of a sudden, after a second, it gets up and it just looks at me and it stays there for like a minute just looking at me and not moving. And then it just flies away. And I was like, okay, that was weird. That was just weird. Like a bird had.

[Sarah Whittle]

Okay.

[Shane Topp]

And it wasn't. There's no way the bird thought that this was more space. Right? Like it flew right into this building.

[Sarah Whittle]

But it wanted to fight you, obviously.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah, I think I pissed off Bir. There was another time where I was out on my patio and standing out there and I see a hummingbird like a ways off. And then all of a sudden it stops and it flies from very far away all the way up and I'm not kidding, a couple inches from my face and it stops right in front of me. And I'm literally looking into the eyes of this hummingbird and I'm kinda like stepping back. It keeps kinda following me. And then it does a perfect, like flies perfectly around my head, back to the front of my face and then flies off. And I'm once again, like I said.

[Sarah Whittle]

Are you a bird whisperer?

[Shane Topp]

I just think, like, that's very possible.

[Damien Haas]

I mean, we all believe in birds, Shane. You don't have to convince us of anything.

[Shane Topp]

You're not gonna believe these birds.

[Damien Haas]

I know that very well.

[Shane Topp]

It was just weird. I'm just like, that's just weird. And that's in the same month. I've never had instances where with animals like that Other than that month. Then one night I am. I open up my sliding glass door. It's like 10 or 11pm And I'm at the top of this building, right? No, nothing above me. I open my sliding glass door and like, it's right next to my ear. A coin flips. It sounds like someone literally flips a coin right next to my ear. And right in front of me, a dime falls and it lands at my feet and I'm just. I look down, I see this dime and I look, I look up, I look around. There is nothing. No one. And I just slowly close the sliding glass door and go back inside. Because I'm like, I don't know what that was. It's. It just saying my experience. It sounded like someone reached out their hand right next to my ear and flipped a coin. And like I said, it fell. I saw it fall from the sky and land on right at my feet.

[Sarah Whittle]

Okay.

[Shane Topp]

I was like, okay, that's weird. And then the instance that literally ruined me for a couple months. I didn't tell anybody about this for months because it was so scary. I was so this bird. So this bird, right? So all the birds. So I'm sitting on my couch and I'm watching TV in the downstairs area. All the lights are on in my house, watching tv. It's. Once again, it's like. It's late at night, all the windows are closed. The freeway is right next to my, my house. And it really muffles the sound of it. So no, like I had experienced people yelling outside. I've experienced all sorts of noises and it's very muffled and I'm watching tv and then suddenly it started off. I mean, it started loud, but it went on for a good. It felt like five to 10 seconds of just a grown man yelling so loud and angrily. And I'm talking. I'll. I'll step away. It was like this. It was. It started off. It started off almost like a ooh. Like, like, like I. I thought someone was peering into my window and like messing with me. Being like, ooh. Like. And I. So I. It starts and it goes like. And it just, it just went for so long. Long enough for me to stand up from my couch, look at every window in my apartment as this yell is muffling my tv, which is not. The sound is not coming from. I'm looking at my window, which it's a 16 foot space from my window down to the patio of the apartment below me. I'm looking everywhere, Nothing. And then it just stops and I mean, it was so loud. It was so loud that I'm like, someone's in my apartment yelling. And I started. At first, I was like, oh, a friend of mine is messing with me or something. And then by the end, I was like, that was the worst experience of my life. And I sat down at my couch, and I sat there for two hours, just, like, not sure what to do, because I was like, was that coming from the loft? Was that. I couldn't tell where it came from. And eventually I, like, went up to my loft and, like, kind of, like, slowly looked around everywhere, and there was nothing. And I had. I have. I have no explanation for it, but it scared the living garbage out of me so much that for months I was just kind of, like, weirded out in that apartment.

[Damien Haas]

Do you think it would have affected you the same way if you hadn't had those instances that you spoke about?

[Shane Topp]

I don't think those had an effect on it because you were maybe already.

[Damien Haas]

A little on edge about, like, that was weird.

[Shane Topp]

No, no, I don't think so, honestly, because those other ones were kind of. Every time they happened, I just chalked them up to being like, oh, it's just weird. The only reason I mention them now is because it all happened in an inst. But back then, I don't think that happened. And I was like, oh, but the bird stuff, it's just more that I'm like, something. I don't know what was up, you know, but it was just trippy. It was just really, really trippy. And I've had stuff happen that I more immediately chalk up to, like. I'm like, okay, that was clearly my brain, right? Like, in that same apartment, there was a time I woke up and I rolled over and I opened my eyes, and there was a woman standing next to my bed and a woman staring at me. And I just kind of, like, eventually rolled away, closed my eyes, and looked back, and she was gone. And I'm like, I think that's me waking up in the morning, and my. My brain still is.

[Damien Haas]

Yeah.

[Shane Topp]

Like, it was less. I wasn't scared. Like, I was just like that. But the scream, it was like I was like, I don't. I don't know. I just don't know.

[Damien Haas]

Interesting.

[Shane Topp]

And that's all I can chalk it up to. But, you know, I do think. Do I think the brain is capable of. Of making that sound internally? Yeah. Do I think I'm capable of. I'm actively searching for answers on that one. I don't know. So I chalk it up to. I literally don't know.

[Damien Haas]

The only thing I can think of is like, if you've ever been to a science museum and they have that thing where, like, there's this. It's kind of like a. Like a concave metal thing all the way on one side of the room, and then they have another one all the way on the other side of the room, and you can stand next to it and be like, hey, how's it going? And it sounds like somebody is right next to it.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah.

[Damien Haas]

Somehow, someway, odds are you will find yourself in a situation where that just happens to be the setup you're in without realizing it. So I think at the very least for the, like the coin flip sound too, because I remember your apartment. And when you're in a high up area of a building, like a two story apartment building, and there's lots of balconies everywhere, sound bounces in interesting ways when there's nothing to stop it other than the, like, patio doors behind you and stuff like that. I could definitely see someone on a different balcony flipping a coin, seeing how high they could do it. It's sounding like it's right next to you and then it landing in front of you. Heavy coincidence for sure. But, yeah, otherwise, yeah, I don't know.

[Shane Topp]

It's definitely weird.

[Sarah Whittle]

Super weird.

[Shane Topp]

You know, a lot of people I think would immediately be like, that was a ghost. That was. There was a. There was a ghost in there. And I'm like, I have no proof of anything other than I heard a grown man yell for a while that was just at me.

[Damien Haas]

It sounded like, I've got one I'm comfortable sharing.

[Shane Topp]

Okay.

[Damien Haas]

Yeah. So my dad got in a really bad accident when I was younger, like 11 or 12, I think. And so he was like in a physical rehab facility. And so one of those days he was like, off doing a group thing or like a physical exercise. I'm not sure what. But when he gets back, the receptionist says, like, hey, your mom called. And he was like, what? And she was like, yeah. And he's like, I don't think so, because my grandma had passed at that time. And the lady was like, yeah, it was like. I mean, it was real staticy. But I mean, I heard it was an older lady on the other end. German accent. And like, that's my grandma for sure. And so he was like, she passed away like a year ago around this time. And so that receptionist quit. But. But like, the fact that she was like, yeah, European accent, you know, staticky. It Was just like, oh, that's interesting. And the only thing is just like, you know, she just said, tell him his mother called or something, which is stall, you know, but again, that's. That's secondhand. And I don't know, it's. And if it was staticky, maybe she misheard something. I don't know. But that's just something that's in the family, like, huh. All right. You know, so that's sort of what I mean about, like, I don't know what it is, but I don't know if there's necessarily like, there's a ghost haunting the doorway. Cause it died in the doorway. But, you know.

[Sarah Whittle]

Well, when I was younger, I used to do a lot of community theater. And so in my town in Wyoming.

[Damien Haas]

No, I'm kidding.

[Sarah Whittle]

I did that all in theater. That's the scary part. That's all I did in my town in Wyoming. We would do plays in this, like, super old theater. And the super old theater was, of course, haunted. And it used to be like a candy store, and it used to be like a brothel. And it used to be a lot of different things. And so the first floor of the theater was the theater. And then it had a staircase going up and it had a second and third floor that wasn't renovated yet. So it was like real haunted looking. And so me and a group of friends and the group of friends were like, very into ghost stuff, like paranormal stuff, Ouija boards, like all that. So of course, like, you know, 15, 16 year old Sarah was like, yeah, that sounds fun. And so they're like, hey, we're gonna go, like, talk to ghosts tonight at the theater. And I was like, cool, I'm down. So never, never I would now. So we went up and there was probably like five or six of us, and we sat at a table. And I guess, you know, one way that you can do like a budget Ouija board is you just get like a glass cup and you turn it upside down. So the opening's like on the table. And then you have people put their fingers on it. And you can talk to the spirits that way. And you can almost like designate a person to be yes or no. So you can ask like, yes or no questions and the cups will go to those people. So but this particular night, they had asked the spirits to just make the cup go in a circle on the table. And so everyone, like, put their fingers on the bottom of the cup that was facing up. And the cup was like going in circles around the table in little circles. Circle circles. There's five or six of us. Just one finger, the index finger on the cup. The cup was going so fast that people's fingers were falling off of it. It was rotating so quickly across the table that people couldn't keep their fingers on it. And at the same time, while it was going in a circle, the cup itself was rotating as well.

[Damien Haas]

Whoa.

[Sarah Whittle]

And so people's fingers can't do that. Like, if you have your finger on a cup, you can't make it go across in a circle on the table while also rotating. So that was super freaky to me.

[Shane Topp]

Did it ever at any point, but someone's finger was always on it?

[Sarah Whittle]

I mean, yeah, everyone was like trying to keep their finger on it, but it was going extremely fast. And it was also rotating.

[Damien Haas]

Was there any person. And this is obviously a way back memory, but is. Did everybody's finger fall off at least once or were there a couple people who were standard on there the whole time?

[Sarah Whittle]

Yeah, I don't know.

[Damien Haas]

But either way, that's freaky.

[Sarah Whittle]

It didn't freak me out like, how fast it was going. Cause I'm like, oh, yeah, maybe someone just has a really sticky finger and can just go in circles fast. It was the rotating bit that was like. Cause like, even if that person, let's say say a person was making that cup go in a circle, for them to also rotate it at the same time is like impossible. Nearly impossible. Or maybe we just had like a magician on our hands.

[Damien Haas]

Yes, Another secret magician strikes again.

[Shane Topp]

Uh oh, secret magicians. They're out there.

[Damien Haas]

I've been found.

[Sarah Whittle]

Super big setup for that one lane trick.

[Damien Haas]

So that's interesting.

[Sarah Whittle]

That was interesting. And we also did like a couple of yes and no's. And you know, like, they'd be. It was like we were shooting like this little, like short film or whatever.

[Damien Haas]

Do you still have the footage?

[Sarah Whittle]

No. I want to say it's burned forever. No. So this girl was like the lead girl, and I was playing the best friend. And then there was. She was also dating, like the lead guy who I also previously had dated. Oh. Yeah. And so it was a little awkward. And so of course I felt like self conscious during the. Every time we'd all hang out. And the ghosts, they asked the ghosts to determine a person to be yes and a person to be no. She was yes, and I was no. And I was like, oh, shit, the ghosts see my insecurity.

[Damien Haas]

That's funny.

[Shane Topp]

That's hilarious.

[Sarah Whittle]

So, you know, I'm not gonna go debate that ghosts exist with that story. But it was just a little odd, right?

[Damien Haas]

Can I pitch a video now? Since you just gave me a great idea? I want us to do a ghost makeover. Because that ghost, like, saw your insecurities and was just like, oh, honey, I know exactly what you need.

[Sarah Whittle]

Paranormal eye.

[Damien Haas]

Paranormal eye. So I really want us to sit down on the Ouija board and be like, what kind of fashion choice? They're just like, oh, don't even worry about. I know exactly what you need. You need to. Burgdorf Goodman's. Wow. I've never even. Do we even have one of those around here? Saks Fifth Avenue. That's quite expensive. Ghost. Do you have anything in my budget?

[Shane Topp]

This is a Beverly Hills ghost right here, sweetheart.

[Damien Haas]

We're taking you to rodeo. I'm like, oh, I know I'm gonna.

[Shane Topp]

Make for a really good ghosts. If ghosts are real, I'm gonna be an insane ghost.

[Damien Haas]

Oh, yeah.

[Shane Topp]

Like, that's my.

[Sarah Whittle]

I'm.

[Shane Topp]

In some ways, I feel like there'd be more comedic ghosts out there. Like ghosts that are just messing with us.

[Sarah Whittle]

Maybe they're all funny.

[Shane Topp]

Maybe they all are just trying to mess with us. Because I don't hear about people getting killed by ghosts.

[Sarah Whittle]

I mean, because they.

[Shane Topp]

I guess you would know.

[Sarah Whittle]

Horror and debate, like, really happened and was, like, a ghost, like, haunting.

[Shane Topp]

I don't. Did people. People died.

[Sarah Whittle]

Yeah. Like, a family died.

[Shane Topp]

Oh, snap. Like, they know for sure a ghost killed him.

[Sarah Whittle]

Well, the guy might have had, like, I don't know, but, like, mental disabilities.

[Shane Topp]

The guy. The guy killed.

[Sarah Whittle]

Schizophrenia or something. I don't know anything about the story.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah, the dad killed, and then he.

[Sarah Whittle]

Like, heard voices and, like, killed his family. And then everyone that, like, moved into the house. Or is that just. Ryan Reynolds moved into the house would also kill her family. He was in a movie, Amityville Horror.

[Damien Haas]

Chocking it up to gas leak. Next question.

[Shane Topp]

Oh, man.

[Damien Haas]

I like to be, like, politely skeptical, and nobody likes the person that's just like, no, it's not real. But at the same time, if you offer a thing where, like, maybe it was this. Some people get really mad where they're like, why would you. Can't you just let a thing be a thing? And you're like, well, let's meet in the middle. Let's discuss.

[Shane Topp]

I think I instinctively have an issue whenever someone is like, this is 100% reality. This is 100% the case. Yeah, I have that issue with anything.

[Sarah Whittle]

Well, you know, memory is not a foolproof thing.

[Shane Topp]

Right.

[Sarah Whittle]

You know, I think it's healthy to debate it. However, you know, read your audience. Maybe they don't want to hear the other side.

[Damien Haas]

Yeah, but then it's like, you know, that's not fair. Because that's not a conversation. If someone's just like, this thing happened and you are required to not offend them and be like, uh huh, okay. Wow, that's crazy. That's neat. Like, that's not fair.

[Shane Topp]

I guess the reality is I've met people like that who are just like, I'm right always. And it's just like, all right, we don't have to talk anymore. We don't have to be friends.

[Damien Haas]

Yeah, I'm just here to receive your words.

[Shane Topp]

Cause there's so many people like that. And it's just like, you're right. It's not a conversation. You get to hear them tell you stuff. There's definitely an irony to me being skeptical though, when, according to the story from my mom, my life was saved by paranormal stuff.

[Damien Haas]

Oh, yeah, Tell us that.

[Shane Topp]

Cause I drowned when I was 18 months old. My parents were on the opposite side of the house. I snuck out. I was a little baby. I snuck out and I fell in the pool and mid argument, my mom said she heard a voice, a man's voice, say my name. And she immediately ran and saw that I was not where I was supposed to be and found me in the backyard and everything.

[Sarah Whittle]

Jesus. Jesus saved you. And Jesus saves us all. This is a Christian podcast all of a sudden, right?

[Damien Haas]

Well, I don't know. Cause you're also saying Jesus is a ghost, therefore, I don't know if anyone's happy about that.

[Shane Topp]

Holy Ghost. Yeah, I think it was the ghost of.

[Sarah Whittle]

What do you got?

[Shane Topp]

I don't have any. Joke. I was trying to think of some joke. Yeah, I have no idea. No idea. My mom doesn't either. She didn't come to any conclusions of what that voice was. She's never tried. She's just like, I heard a man's voice say your name and I immediately.

[Sarah Whittle]

You're here because of it.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah. So there is like, there is an irony of like, if there is stuff like, that's what saved my life, you.

[Damien Haas]

Know, so it goes back and I truly believe that could have happened. But it goes back to like what you were talking about. How the mind perceives things or whatever. And also hearsay from what is now, like 26 years ago. It's like, why did you think about your son? You know? And then it was just like, I heard a voice. It's like, all Right. The fact is, she heard a voice. You don't know if it was internal or if she actually heard it. Either way, I'm glad you're here. It's just, you know, you always have to question. Yeah, I don't know what my point is. Ignore me.

[Sarah Whittle]

But also. Yeah, I mean, I think, like, some things don't have to be fully explained in life. You know, there's been a lot of coincidence in my life, and little moments here and there that I like, were very important moments. And maybe I don't have a direct explanation, but I'll take it as it is. And that's just the weird part of life.

[Damien Haas]

That's the main point. It is to you what it is to you. And if, however you process that that happened, whether it was a ghost or a voice from beyond or like divine intervention or whatever, or just coincidence, it doesn't really matter. The thing happened as it happened and, you know.

[Shane Topp]

Well, and trying to come up with a rational explanation is jumping to the same conclusions. Right. Like, for instance, with Ouija boards, I could. One could say, well, clearly one person was moving it and they're just lying. But it's like I'm jumping to that conclusion, too. I have zero proof of that.

[Damien Haas]

Because that's what you generally believe either.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah, that's what I believe, and maybe that's what I want to believe.

[Sarah Whittle]

But also, if that's fun for them and they're not hurting anyone, it's.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah, it's Ouija.

[Sarah Whittle]

Board it up.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah.

[Damien Haas]

I think my only thing against Ouija boards is, like, most of them are manufactured by Milton Bradley. So it's literally like. It's as much of a spiritual conduit as Monopoly, so. Or Parker Brothers, I don't know. So if you get one from, like, New Orleans and, like, a voodoo shop or something, and it's custom, handmade, I'm just like, dope. That thing's probably legit, but if it looks like a Chutes and Ladders, I'm like, I don't know. I don't know about that one.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah, I have a lot of theories about ghosts and stuff. I think it's fun to think about what possible things it could be. One that I often think about is when you have an old TV with antennas on the top and channels kind of fade in and out. So you'll be watching something and then you'll get a little bit of a blip of something else. I often think, well, if there's a bunch of dimensions and stuff, it's possible that and it could even be your brain perceiving. What if you're perceiving something from somewhere else for a quick second? I mean, that's a possibility that you're not even seeing something that's dead. You're seeing something that's alive, but just not here. Boom.

[Sarah Whittle]

Interesting. When I was younger, I used to think that when my foot fell asleep that it was like my foot would turn into the TV static. Cause that's how it felt. Like.

[Shane Topp]

Oh, that's actually really terrifying to dreams.

[Sarah Whittle]

About TV static and be like, is it? No.

[Damien Haas]

I had dreams about TV static for the longest time. Like, it was always, like, things were like, it was pulling me into the tv. If ever I had, like, a dream about a tv. Like, I had nightmares for most of my childhood. It was rough, but it would literally be, like, someone I loved or cared about, like, in the tv. And then it, like, wasn't them, but it just looked like them. And they were, like, trying to pull me in. And I would, like, get sucked in forever. It was neat.

[Shane Topp]

What do you think's the worst nightmare you guys have ever had?

[Sarah Whittle]

Well, one time. Have you guys ever. Lucid dream?

[Damien Haas]

Yeah.

[Sarah Whittle]

Where, you know, you're in a dream.

[Shane Topp]

Only a couple times.

[Sarah Whittle]

Okay, so one of the very first times. This is embarrassing. Okay, so one of the very first times that I was like, remember lucid dreaming? I was in the middle of a dream and I was told, like, look for a light switch in your dream and try to switch it on and off. And if the light doesn't react how you think it should in the switch, then you know you're in a lucid dream.

[Damien Haas]

Interesting.

[Shane Topp]

I like how that's the reason. You know, it's like, well, you have to.

[Damien Haas]

You have to pick one thing.

[Sarah Whittle]

You have to have that control.

[Damien Haas]

If you think about it often during your waking life, then it'll be natural for you to do it in a dream. And that's how you use a dream.

[Sarah Whittle]

So somehow I got into this lucid dream. And so I was like, sarah, this is a dream. Like, stay sleeping. What do we want to do? We can control it. And I was like, ooh, I'm gonna make it a sexual dream. Let's do this. Who? Who, Who? Let's go down the line. Who do we wanna do this with? Then all of a sudden, a bunch of fucking zombies burst through the door. And I forgot I was in a dream. And then I had to fight the zombies.

[Shane Topp]

Damn, that's really tough.

[Sarah Whittle]

And it was so disappointing, and it was so scary. I Have a lot of zombie, vampire.

[Shane Topp]

I just wanted to smooch. Paul Rudd. Now I gotta fight zombies.

[Sarah Whittle]

I know.

[Damien Haas]

Haven't you seen Warm bodies? I'm assuming zombies can be romantic.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah.

[Sarah Whittle]

No, I don't think so. I'd prefer someone alive.

[Damien Haas]

I would always have dreams that, like. Like I said, it would be someone I trusted or cared about, and then it wasn't them. So I remember being a kid and having dreams where, like, I was like, if you imagine, like, a giant pegboard where, like, you. You put string or fabric on, it would be almost like a loom. But I was being, like, stitched to it by my mom with, like, there were dead animals all around me also being stitched to the board. Yeah, that was par for the course for Dream Damien for a long time.

[Shane Topp]

Holy God.

[Damien Haas]

And then I would, like, dream that, like, I'd watch a friend of mine get stuck in a trash compactor and, like, see the whole thing. Yeah, that was. My goodness, that was young Damian there.

[Shane Topp]

Damn.

[Damien Haas]

Yeah. Nightmares suck.

[Sarah Whittle]

I think one time I had a dream that, like, my mom got sentenced to jail.

[Damien Haas]

Oh, dang.

[Sarah Whittle]

And I, like, woke up crying, but that was like, that. And it was nothing like that. Intense. That's so intense.

[Damien Haas]

Yeah, stuff like that would happen, but I would also get really, like. I don't know, I would get kind of, like. Especially when I was younger, like, really? People say prophetic. I think it's. You know, we read into it a lot. But, like, dreams that are pretty specific about what would happen the next day, which is interesting. Like, I had a dream. I was in the car, and my mom and my dad was, like, driving. And he turned around and said, like, hey, just so you know, I'm not coming home for a while. I've got to stay out for a few more days. And I was like, oh, cool. Understand. So then when I was driving with my mom the next day, my dad was on a business trip at the time. So when I was driving with my mom the next day, she turns around and is like, oh, by the way, your. Your father called. He's going to be on his business trip for another few days. And I'd be like, oh, yeah, I know. And she'd be like, what? And I'd be like, yeah. Oh, no, sorry. That was a dream. And so that's not. But the dream stuff, I think, is. I don't know if I do believe in anything metaphysical or whatever. It's stuff having to do with dreams, because it's like, you're gonna tell me that 50% of the Earth's population all goes to sleep all at once. And there's no way anything can connect ever. Like. Like you were talking about with wavelengths.

[Shane Topp]

And, you know, It's a good point.

[Sarah Whittle]

Interesting.

[Shane Topp]

I'd have a lot of. I didn't have too many. I don't dream that often. I never have.

[Sarah Whittle]

I heard wearing socks to bed helps you dream more.

[Shane Topp]

I'm never gonna do that. Cause I'm not a psycho. I think wearing socks to bed is insane. Why would you do that?

[Sarah Whittle]

Because your feeties are cold and you want to drink.

[Shane Topp]

There's a blanket. You have a blanket?

[Sarah Whittle]

What are. Do you go to bed naked? Why are you wearing.

[Shane Topp]

Sometimes I wear shorts. Yeah.

[Sarah Whittle]

So there's a blanket.

[Shane Topp]

I don't know. I just. I think. I think I'm so eager to get socks off at the end of the day.

[Damien Haas]

Oh, I hate having socks on.

[Sarah Whittle]

Socks.

[Shane Topp]

That's why I'm like, why would you wear it through the night?

[Sarah Whittle]

How do you wear socks? Too much? And I try to tell him he needs to let his.

[Damien Haas]

He's gonna get gangrene.

[Shane Topp]

I feel like if I wore socks to bed, I'd end up having a ton of dreams about my feet being stuck in mud or something like that. That's the dreams that I would get. Yeah. At least it's something.

[Damien Haas]

Or you wa in Israeli mud and you're like, where did this come from? Ghosts.

[Shane Topp]

I would have dreams. Like, I remember one, a nightmare I had where I, like, was in my house. I walked to my room, and then a doll popped, like. Cause I'm terrified of dolls. A doll, like a ventriloquist dummy, peeks its head out from underneath my bed. And it was just like, hey, Shane. And I was like. I was like, oh. And I go to, like, I go to leave my. But now my bedroom door is shut. And it's just like. It said something like, you can't get help now. Like, you're in here with me. And I was like, it just ends. But the dreams that always mess me up are the ones that are, like, kind of harmless. Just like, it would be like a Friday. But my dream, it's like. It's like, oh, yeah, tomorrow's Monday. And then I'd wake up and be like, ah, no, no, God.

[Sarah Whittle]

I have those dreams too. I have those dreams that I'm in a play and I don't know the lines, and I'm, like, freaking out.

[Damien Haas]

For me, it's always a play that I had been in before where it was like, don't you remember when you were nine and you were in Snow White and the Seven Dwarves? And you. Don't you remember all your lines? You're going on, like, you should be able to improv.

[Shane Topp]

It isn't dream talk.

[Sarah Whittle]

Like, it's fun to talk about when you're talking about it, but do other people find it interesting? I always thought that, like, when you're like, oh, my God, I had the craziest dream last night, I think they're.

[Shane Topp]

Often crazy for you. I mean, everybody has really crazy dreams that are interesting. But for the most part, I think.

[Damien Haas]

You just have to accept dream logic. And then you get on the same wavelength with that person. Like, we've all, okay, this is gonna be familiar to everybody. Even if you haven't had this. That exact dream, you're gonna be like, okay. So I was in this, like, room, right. But it was also, like, a treehouse. And there was this baby there. And I knew it was my father. Like, it didn't speak to me as my father, but I knew that baby was my father. So, like, once you accept that kind of mindset, you can understand someone's dream.

[Sarah Whittle]

My mom and I used to have a dream dictionary.

[Damien Haas]

Really?

[Sarah Whittle]

So she. So we'd be like. She'd be like. I'd be like, mom, I had a dream about horses. And she'd be like, looking through the book, and she's like, that means you're gonna be rich.

[Shane Topp]

Everything is like, you're gonna be rich.

[Sarah Whittle]

But it's like, I don't fully believe that. Sure. I just think it's just something fun, like my zodiac. I'll just look at my zodiac, and I'm like, oh, something. I am gonna be profitable in business. What does that mean?

[Damien Haas]

I am trustworthy, but don't cross me. Wow.

[Shane Topp]

I actually do believe in the symbolism in dreams because I think it's your brain organizing all your thoughts and stuff. And there is. Your brain does interpret things in certain ways. So. And I think it's depending on culture. I think that's why, like, everything does mean everything. Like, oh, a horse means you're gonna die, but also gonna be rich because depends on, like, a culture will determine the symbolism of certain things. And if you're raised in that culture, you then see it falling for the.

[Damien Haas]

Language your mind speaks. Like, my mind thinks in English, so it would also think in specific cultural terms of, like, something good is coming. Oh, horses are here. As you know.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah.

[Damien Haas]

I did have one more interesting dream that I just remembered that was, like, in that same vein. I remember with an ex. Ex girlfriend, I had a dream one time that she was with another guy in a park, and she was, like, wearing a very specific outfit, and they were, like, kissing. And I, like, woke up all jealous and all that stuff. So the next time I saw her, she was like, hey, I have to tell you something. An ex boyfriend reached out and, like, we went for a walk together just to talk things out. And he tried to kiss me. And I didn't let him do that. But, you know, I just feel like I have to be honest that it happened and I was just like, o. Oh, snap. I feel like I kind of sort of saw this. Were you wearing your yellow sweater? And she just goes like. And, like, backs away.

[Sarah Whittle]

Damian's a psychic alien.

[Damien Haas]

No, I'm not. It's dreams.

[Sarah Whittle]

Hashtag, Damian's a psychic.

[Shane Topp]

What?

[Damien Haas]

But I, like. I remember her, like, kind of freaking out when I was like, yeah, were you in your yellow sweater? And I was like, it was fine. I know you stop. But it was just a weird moment of like, huh.

[Sarah Whittle]

So I am gonna be mad at you.

[Damien Haas]

Yeah. I always dream that Sarah's mad at me. You'll find the thing I hid.

[Shane Topp]

Sarah's mad at everyone. No, I. That's really crazy.

[Sarah Whittle]

Cause I was just gonna say about, like, if. Have you guys ever had girlfriends wake up mad at you because you cheated on them in the dream? Cause it's a pretty common one. Yeah. And I think Finnerty, too. Like, I've had a couple of those dreams. But I would say I had a dream where Claudio forgot my birthday. And, boy, was I angry when I woke up.

[Shane Topp]

Claudio. But Sara, Sarah Sarawadio. For the past week, Damian and I can now we keeps Sarah, Sara Juario, Cerro Wario, Sarah Luigi. That's great. Oh, my God.

[Sarah Whittle]

I was actually legitimately mad at him for a bit.

[Shane Topp]

I don't get dreams where I get.

[Sarah Whittle]

Angry, but I don't. I didn't. Like, I'm not the type of person that, like, has a dream that, like, he cheated on me. And then I'm like, you cheated on me? Like. Cause my mom and dad have been through that.

[Damien Haas]

Oh, no.

[Sarah Whittle]

And my dad's like, cloudy. Have you ever experienced. But for some reason, him not saying happy birthday to me really, like, hurt me.

[Damien Haas]

When's your birthday? Just so I know.

[Sarah Whittle]

It's in February.

[Damien Haas]

Okay. I forget.

[Shane Topp]

Okay, yeah.

[Damien Haas]

16Th.

[Sarah Whittle]

I don't know, seventh.

[Shane Topp]

We'll make sure to forget.

[Damien Haas]

I'll say it on the 16th to ruin your birthday.

[Sarah Whittle]

I did have an ex boyfriend. One time didn't say happy birthday to me until like 7pm oh, no. The day of my birthday.

[Shane Topp]

That's off topic. But is that. That's fine for the most part. Oh, by the way, a boyfriend. Unless it's a boyfriend or girlfriend. It's a boyfriend.

[Damien Haas]

It was her boyfriend.

[Shane Topp]

Okay, but I'm saying like in general, like if it's just a friend, how bad is it?

[Sarah Whittle]

If you're friend is fine, I think you're a friend.

[Shane Topp]

Anytime. Anytime.

[Damien Haas]

I would like you to text me at 9am on my birthday. Show me that you care, Shane. Show me.

[Shane Topp]

I'll remember. But you'll probably be in the office. I'll see you.

[Damien Haas]

I'm not coming in on my birthday.

[Shane Topp]

That's true.

[Damien Haas]

It's my birthday.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah.

[Sarah Whittle]

When's your birthday?

[Damien Haas]

The 23rd of November.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah, it's awesome.

[Sarah Whittle]

Oh. One month away from Matt Rob's.

[Damien Haas]

Oh, snap. Oh, hey, Matt Rob has a birthday.

[Shane Topp]

Matt Rob was born. I thought he just appeared. Emerged, emerged from the earth fully grown.

[Damien Haas]

There' that like 90s style, like purple and green painting you always saw on the side of cups. He just walked out of one one day and it's just like, yes, I'm the 80s 90s boy. Let's wrestle.

[Sarah Whittle]

No, he just walked out of a tv playing Nickelodeon as a full man.

[Shane Topp]

Oh my God.

[Damien Haas]

Yikes. He's like, double dare the person.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah, that is him. What other things scare us? Like, is there anything like. Cause we talked about ghosts.

[Damien Haas]

I love clowns the same.

[Shane Topp]

You actually do love clowns. And you have the scariest story about a clown that is not scary, by.

[Damien Haas]

Which you mean adorable. So here's my thought on clowns real quick. They're a creature, not a person. They're a creature that exists.

[Shane Topp]

I don't understand the point of clowns.

[Damien Haas]

It really does exist entirely to make you laugh. But the cultural zeitgeist is such that they are scary and that we don't like them.

[Sarah Whittle]

Their entire purpose with an actual clown that murdered.

[Damien Haas]

Look, ignoring John Wayne Gacy, ignoring Pennywise, all the other ones. Most clowns I've met haven't tried to kill me.

[Shane Topp]

I feel like most clowns are pointless. That's my opinion on it.

[Sarah Whittle]

My dream. And I don't know if this will ever happen, but real clowns and real mimes coming on an episode of Try not to Laugh.

[Damien Haas]

I would love that.

[Sarah Whittle]

That is my dream. Freaking dream.

[Shane Topp]

One time I saw mime at Starbucks and he had a Bluetooth earpiece in his ear and I was like, you're not allowed to use that. He was fully, fully made up costume mime, but he had a bluetooth in. And I was like, literally, you can face. You're allowed to FaceTime and like, mime out what's going on in your life. You are not allowed to use a bluetooth. That's just your voice.

[Damien Haas]

Mimes are even less scary.

[Shane Topp]

Well, mimes aren't supposed to be scary.

[Damien Haas]

You can't talk. Let's see if you can scream. And then you fight them anyway.

[Sarah Whittle]

You're classic.

[Shane Topp]

They haven't made a scary movie about mimes.

[Sarah Whittle]

Huh?

[Shane Topp]

You fought a mime. You almost fought a mime. I did almost fight a mime in the video recently in the doll room where I faced my fear of dolls. They decided to put me in a hellbox filled with creepy dolls. And there was a professional mime in a scarecrow outfit. And he slowly inched his way towards me for three minutes. And yeah, I threatened to fight him. And then as soon as he grabbed me, I gave up.

[Damien Haas]

Cause he put you in an invisible box.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah, he put me in an invisible box. And I was screwed. He lassoed me, and I was like, no.

[Damien Haas]

So spooky clown story. I remember when I was a teenager, I went up to our attic one time, and it was kind of hard to get to the light right off the bat. I just had to grab something real quick near the entrance. And when I get up there, I hear from the other side this, like, music box style, like, twinkly little music. And there's this clown doll that has like the crosses for eyes kind of deal. And it's playing that music and it's just kind of. It rotates its head as it does it.

[Sarah Whittle]

Absolutely.

[Damien Haas]

And it's like. So it's like a porcelain clown doll that also has, like, that aspect to it.

[Sarah Whittle]

It's just chillin in.

[Damien Haas]

And most people would have freaked out. And my thought was, see free clown doll.

[Shane Topp]

And it was in the middle of the attic. And it started playing on its own.

[Damien Haas]

Yeah. And it was. But it wasn't full on playing. It was playing like every now and then because it was sort of like, you know, when it runs out of juice, but it's still going a little bit.

[Sarah Whittle]

I love it.

[Damien Haas]

So I grabbed it and I brought it down to my room, and I'm like, this is dope. And it didn't.

[Sarah Whittle]

And then you had nightmares.

[Damien Haas]

No, that's when they stopped the clown battle.

[Shane Topp]

I think maybe Damian's psychic power comes from him befriending ghosts.

[Damien Haas]

There we go.

[Shane Topp]

Like ghosts Give signs. Damian's just like, oh, yeah, this is cool. And they're like, thank God. Like, everyone gets scared when we yell or leave clown dolls for them. We're just trying to make friends.

[Damien Haas]

Thank you. Disclaimer 2 disclaimers. One, I think that was a gift to my sister from a boyfriend, like, eight years prior. So it was just chilling up there. Other disclaimer. I'm not a psychic. I think if anyone tells you they're a psychic, they're full of crap. There are fun compilations online called Damien is a Psychic. They are fun to watch, but they are.

[Sarah Whittle]

But you are an alien.

[Damien Haas]

I am. But here's my real fear, though. I've gotten Instagram DMs from people who are just like, hey, can you tell me? I think I'm like you. And I want to. No, I want to. I don't know where to start. Can you tell me how to control what we have? And I'm like, nope, nope, nope. That's dangerous as hell. If someone thinks I have the answers to their psychic power. Holy crap. Get. No. So that's my fear. That's why I put out this disclaimer.

[Sarah Whittle]

So what are the winning lottery numbers?

[Damien Haas]

I don't know.

[Shane Topp]

This sounds like someone. If someone was a psychic alien, this is what they would say. They'd be like, please, I'm not. But we need to stress that Damian is not an alien.

[Damien Haas]

Don't do that.

[Sarah Whittle]

Not.

[Shane Topp]

He is not an alien.

[Damien Haas]

I don't have the answers to.

[Shane Topp]

I actually do have a question. So this psychic thing.

[Damien Haas]

God damn it. It's been going on for a long time.

[Shane Topp]

This is the first I've ever heard of it.

[Damien Haas]

Oh, yeah.

[Sarah Whittle]

There's compilations online of.

[Damien Haas]

They've got a fair amount of views.

[Shane Topp]

So if I was a psychic, the thing I would definitely say is, like, hey, you understand the power of it. So you'd want to say you weren't the thing.

[Damien Haas]

If. If I were a psychic, I wouldn't bring it up. I'm bringing it up saying, hey, don't mention, please. Also, like, our videos are edited. Maybe they just leave. In the fun times, when I say, I bet we'll roll of this number and they edit out the others. Like, I don't know.

[Shane Topp]

Last question. How many times has it happened? Like, the psychic stuff.

[Damien Haas]

It's not psychic stuff.

[Shane Topp]

This non psychic stuff.

[Damien Haas]

It's Damien's an Alien. There are four compilation videos that I know of.

[Shane Topp]

Damien's an Alien. That's a lot of compilations. None of us have had a lot of compilations. None of us have had compilations. I have screaming compilations.

[Damien Haas]

Yeah, that's the same thing. Are you a banshee? Because banshees are known for their screams.

[Shane Topp]

You get DMs of people asking if you're. I get DMs just being like, you suck.

[Damien Haas]

Shut up.

[Shane Topp]

Hey, you little dork. I'm gonna beat you up. I'm like, no, don't beat me up.

[Damien Haas]

You're like, guys, I have to accept this dm. Hey. Sorry. Please do not. Do not beat me up.

[Shane Topp]

My dad keeps making Instagram accounts. It sucks. You little dork. I'm like, stop it, dad. Stop making Instagram accounts.

[Damien Haas]

That's funny.

[Shane Topp]

Oh, yeah. But no, Damien. Damien's not. He's not psychic.

[Damien Haas]

I hate you.

[Sarah Whittle]

He's not not psychic.

[Damien Haas]

I hate you a lot. God, clowns are dope. Why does men in the.

[Shane Topp]

Clowns are dope. I just don't. I just don't get them. I don't get clowns.

[Sarah Whittle]

I think they're. You know, it used to be a cool thing. Now maybe not.

[Damien Haas]

What's up?

[Shane Topp]

It feels like it's old school.

[Sarah Whittle]

It's old school.

[Shane Topp]

It's Victorian era.

[Sarah Whittle]

Like, my grandma used to collect, like, clowns.

[Shane Topp]

Victorians, probably. Victorian era. People probably pissed their pants at clowns. They're like, oh, my God.

[Damien Haas]

Have you seen self defense?

[Shane Topp]

He did this thing where he tripped. What? What? He tripped. He had big. He had big shoes on. So he tripped. Cause he's.

[Damien Haas]

What did he land on? Get this.

[Sarah Whittle]

They're too high.

[Damien Haas]

Pie sitting right there.

[Shane Topp]

Oh, my God. I would have never thought of that. Why was there a pie on the ground? I don't know. He had big shoes on and. Oh, get this. He had tears. Like, fake tears. Oh, my God. Like he was sad. Yeah, like, he was sad. That's hilarious.

[Damien Haas]

Did he have a ridiculous Italian name? Pogliacci.

[Shane Topp]

Oh, my God, that's so funny. Yeah. Anyways, it was great. So what's up with you? Well, my whole family died of scarlet fever. That sucks, man. I'm sorry to hear that.

[Sarah Whittle]

Oh, my God.

[Damien Haas]

You know what? You could use a little bit of Pagliacci. But, doctor, I am scarlet fever. And that's how you botch that fable. Oh, Christ. The two people in the audience are gonna get that joke, but I'm making that free.

[Shane Topp]

I can say some stuff that I'm scared of. Okay, you know what? This is a fear I've not talked about. I don't think hurting people. One of. Yeah. Which is real. If I ever.

[Sarah Whittle]

Everyone has that fear. Shade.

[Shane Topp]

I know, but, like, it's the worst. I would rather get hurt. I'd rather hurt them emotionally. I'd rather die than, like, accidentally severely hurt someone. It just. I couldn't live with it.

[Sarah Whittle]

You just can't live like that.

[Damien Haas]

But, like, what about ghosts?

[Shane Topp]

Yeah, but, like, what about ghosts? So when I was young, actually, one of my biggest fears, and it was a completely irrational. Because I lived in Arizona, one of my biggest fears was twisters. Tornadoes. I was so I watched Twister. I watched Twister, and it ruined my life. And so anytime there was a slight storm, I'm talking, like, a sprinkle of rain. I'd be like, is that a twister? Do we need it again? Do we don't have a basement?

[Damien Haas]

They are terrifying. They're really scary.

[Shane Topp]

I've never.

[Sarah Whittle]

I lived in Dakota, and we would have, like, many emergencies.

[Damien Haas]

We had them in Georgia all the time.

[Shane Topp]

I've never experienced one or. Well, so one time, leaving the Denver airport, a. Not a serious one, but a tornado formed. Yeah, A lot of wind, but it was just like. It was a harmless tornado. I'm talking like a tornado.

[Damien Haas]

Big one. Scared.

[Shane Topp]

That scares it. Because just like, oh, my God, you just can't do anything.

[Sarah Whittle]

Weather events like that in general are super scary because even we were just talking before the podcast, like, about, we had a mini earthquake last night, and it's, like, freaking scary every time.

[Shane Topp]

Earthquakes don't scare me. For some reason they should.

[Sarah Whittle]

They scare me.

[Damien Haas]

This was the first one that scared me.

[Shane Topp]

Really?

[Sarah Whittle]

Really?

[Damien Haas]

Because, I mean, a couple of months ago when we had that, Mark and I were in a restaurant and, like, everybody's fleeing. And the scary thing about that is, like, people running and stamping over each other while Mark and I are just at the table being like, yeah, this is gonna pass. The lights above us are swinging around.

[Shane Topp]

I was seeing a movie. Yeah. And I didn't get up. Everybody else didn't.

[Sarah Whittle]

I wasn't gonna.

[Shane Topp]

I'm not missing this.

[Damien Haas]

Yeah. Ours was right by the mall last night. It was not the biggest magnitude we've experienced in recent years, but it was way closer than it usually is. And it's the first time I've ever been like, oh, got it. Earthquakes. Cause usually it's just like, jostling you around, but this was the first one where, like, both my roommate and I checked to see had crashed into our building.

[Sarah Whittle]

That's what we thought happened, too, because it literally was, like, one hit. It was like, boom.

[Damien Haas]

It was literally like, boom. It was like, whoa, guys.

[Shane Topp]

I Slept like a baby last night. And honestly, I think maybe I woke up and then that earthquake rocked me back to sleep.

[Damien Haas]

You must have been an easy baby to deal with and be like, good night. That's all it takes.

[Shane Topp]

Just body slam me into the bed. I'm just, like, passed out.

[Sarah Whittle]

No, I've slept.

[Shane Topp]

I've slept through almost all the earthquake. Like, there was the one a couple months ago where I was in a movie and the earthquakes are happening. Everyone started to get up and I was just like, no, this is a good part. What movie was it? It was like. I think it was a Marvel movie. And I was like, I'm not. I'm not getting up out of. No, I gotta watch this. I gotta stay for this.

[Damien Haas]

I had to have been endgame, right?

[Shane Topp]

I think it might have been endgame. Cause I was like, no way am I leaving.

[Damien Haas]

Yeah.

[Shane Topp]

Or no, no, it was Spider Man.

[Damien Haas]

Oh.

[Shane Topp]

And it was during. It was during, like, the epic final battle that I was like, I'm. I'm staying. And it made it. And it actually, ironically, the last earthquake that I'd felt previous to that was when I was seeing Dark Knight forever ago and an earthquake happened. They've happened in movie theaters, weirdly.

[Damien Haas]

I was watching a play one time at usc and it was. It was like this classic tale of, like, Herculean heroes and all that stuff. So there we were on these bleachers to watch it, right? And it was this point where Hercules was, like, coming out to the audience and was like, and I'm gonna go down into the underworld and bring her back from Hades. And like, it was this big monologue and the bleachers start to rock. And at first I'm like, w. They put in a hydraulic system for Hercules. Booming voice or something. This is really cool. And then later, everyone's like, no, dumbass, that was an earthquake.

[Shane Topp]

Oh, no. Three practical effects.

[Damien Haas]

I don't know what that is. Yeah.

[Shane Topp]

Another thing. I just want to. I've been wanting to tell this story for a while because I brought it up here. Another thing that sometimes I love animals, but sometimes they scare me because I think all animals are smarter than we think.

[Sarah Whittle]

Oh, for sure.

[Shane Topp]

And there's also a segment I kind of want to start doing is stuff I learned. And so this is Shane's. Shane's learning time. Or we'll figure out a better title. Octopus are geniuses. Right? And we. We really underestimate it. And there's this story I heard a couple years ago that it haunts me to this day because I'm just like, this is how smart stuff is. So it was in an aquarium in Dallas, I believe, and there was a octopus tank. And across the way, like, on the other side, side of the building was a tank that had, like, smaller sharks in it. Like. Like, probably like small nurse sharks or whatever. After every morning, they would come in there. There was often a missing shark from that tank. Like, sharks were slowly disappearing, and they're just like, I don't know what's going on. There's nothing in this tank that can eat them. So one night, someone comes in in the middle of the night to, like, for some reason, they were checking on something or whatever, and they found the octopus on the floor crawling back to its tank from the shark tank. And that means that it was smart enough to learn the schedule of the workers, to know that if it was caught, it would get in trouble. To know that it's gotta wait for people to leave, to crawl out of its tank, go across the way to go eat stuff. And then knowing it had to go back to its own tank.

[Damien Haas]

Ocean stuff actually scares the crap out of it.

[Shane Topp]

It really does.

[Damien Haas]

Yeah.

[Sarah Whittle]

How would it even know? The idea of the video.

[Shane Topp]

There's a. There's a video of people. They saved this octopus. It was beached. They saved it. They put it back in the ocean. The next day, they came back to that same spot. The octopus was there. There's video of this. It swims up to the person, grabs their leg very gently, like, kind of basically hugs them and then swims away. That stuff is. And that stuff's out. And, like, crows are known to hold grudges. There was an experiment. Crows gave gifts, and for months, they were literally like, yeah, they give gifts.

[Sarah Whittle]

Well, cats give gifts, too. Not the ones you want.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah, dude, it's terrifying.

[Damien Haas]

There's a story of a lady who would. There was, like, a bunch of crows on her balcony. So she started feeding them a little bit. And then after a while, she started to notice what looked to her like garbage on the balcony randomly. But it was always shiny. So after she would start feeding these crows, they would go off to find something shiny and bring it back and be like, we got you something. And this literally went on for, like, years. It'd be like a little bead or like a button from a coat, like an interesting coin. Like, they're just like, yeah, people like shiny stuff.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah. That stuff scares me because of how awful humans are to all animals. And I'm like, man, if animals ever decide to turn on us, they have Good reason.

[Damien Haas]

The dolphin uprising.

[Shane Topp]

Really? Yeah.

[Damien Haas]

It's Treehouse of Hover.

[Shane Topp]

Dude, that stuff scares me. And chimpanzees, like, they're so smart.

[Damien Haas]

I saw one skateboard the other day. I'm not gonna.

[Sarah Whittle]

It was on a. I can't even skateboard, so that's impressive.

[Damien Haas]

Ocean stuff is spooky for me. Like, it's what's lurking in the abyss and all that undiscovered stuff and, you know, you don't know what could be down there. Cause that's. It's so real, but it's still so foreign to us. And the fact that, like, Humboldt squids, like, I think I. When we were roommates, I showed you this video of, like, Yeah, a bunch of Humboldt squids, but it was in pitch blackness and you just see a giant squid pop in.

[Shane Topp]

Every now and then they put a camera on a squid, so it showed them communicating with each other, which is. They open up their tentacles and stuff, and it's. It's really weird.

[Damien Haas]

Scares the hell out of me.

[Sarah Whittle]

Yeah, I think I saw a video where a octopus, like, got out of a jar. I've seen itself, like, it was like a pickle jar.

[Damien Haas]

The thing from the bottom.

[Sarah Whittle]

Yeah.

[Damien Haas]

It understands twists.

[Shane Topp]

Bro, that stuff is so crazy. It's so crazy. They're little Cthulhus.

[Damien Haas]

Yep.

[Shane Topp]

They're just catalyhoolus. Well, I think we're getting close to wrapping this up here. A thing we haven't talked about is, guys, we are very close to 25 million subscribers on the Smosh channel. That's very not scary. That's very not spooky. It's very cool. But I am currently. I'm taking a quick break for this podcast. I'm taking a quick break for this podcast. But when we were 200,000 subscribers away from 25 million, I started doing push ups. And I am not stopping until we hit 25 million. I am trying to do over 200,000 push ups before we reach 25 million subscribers. And your arms are disgusting. My arms are. I'm turning to dust. You're like Popeye, except I'm turning into an octopus. Please save me. Please help us get to 25 million. Tell your family to subscribe. Subscribe. Get everyone to subscribe. In your dreams. Make sure to communicate that we need to hit 25 million subscribers.

[Sarah Whittle]

Tell ghosts to subscribe.

[Shane Topp]

Do nice things for crows so that crows will start subscribing. We need to grow our crow audience. We need to hit 25 million.

[Sarah Whittle]

Yeah. And we're trying to do it before the end of the month.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah.

[Sarah Whittle]

Because we have some super secret project that we want to announce and it's so freaking exciting.

[Damien Haas]

I keep almost spilling the beans and I don't want to.

[Shane Topp]

So please, we want to tell you guys so bad. Cause it's crazy.

[Sarah Whittle]

It's absolutely crazy.

[Damien Haas]

It's crazy like a crow.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah. And you think Damian being a psychic alien is crazy? Just get. Just wait. Buckle up.

[Sarah Whittle]

When do you think we'll get hit? 25 million.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah. Damien. What?

[Sarah Whittle]

Say it.

[Shane Topp]

What date do you think we're hit?

[Damien Haas]

September 19th.

[Sarah Whittle]

No, it's. We're in October.

[Damien Haas]

Some timtember. It's a.

[Shane Topp]

Just give us a date. Give us a date. And then if you guys can make it happen, make psychic ability real.

[Damien Haas]

I'm very bummed that this is the thing.

[Sarah Whittle]

October.

[Damien Haas]

October 29th is what I was gonna say.

[Sarah Whittle]

Okay, okay.

[Shane Topp]

October 29th.

[Damien Haas]

I don't know what.

[Sarah Whittle]

October 29th. We're gonna hit 25 million subscribers on Smosh.

[Shane Topp]

Boom. We're all predicting it. Maybe we're all psychic. Maybe just what you wait and see.

[Sarah Whittle]

Well, this is so exciting. But for real, I don't know if we've hyped it anywhere. It's actually a legitimate announcement that we're gonna make. It's not just like, oh, look, Shane has a hat. It's not any of that.

[Shane Topp]

It's a very real.

[Sarah Whittle]

It's a very real big moment.

[Damien Haas]

For what it's worth, Shane does have a hat.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah. And if we don't hit 25 million subscribers in that time, we're scrapping it. We're not doing it at all. We're never doing it again. In fact, you know what? I'm quitting if we don't hit 25 million.

[Damien Haas]

A friend of mine last like a couple weeks ago, like tweeted out like, alright, guys, if this gets 10,000 likes, I'm making a TikTok. Clearly planning to make a TikTok. And then it got nowhere near that. And he just. I just sort of tweet like, oh, okay. Well, I guess no TikTok. And then like a week later it finally hit it and he's like, all right, guys, here it is. But it was just that moment of like, do you want to tie an announcement to a. To a conditional.

[Sarah Whittle]

That's what we're doing. That's what we're doing.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah. So please subscribe. All right, guys. Well, we're wrapping things up here. The full audio comes out on Wednesdays as well as the highlight clip on the smoshcast. YouTube channel. And the full video comes out on Friday, so be sure to check it out. Be sure to like it. Be sure to hit that notification bell. Be sure to rate this podcast five stars. It's very important. It helps us keep this thing rolling.

[Damien Haas]

It is 2005. Oh, I thought you meant for YouTube. I was like, wow. The rate the five stars. I forgot that was a thing.

[Sarah Whittle]

Apple and the like.

[Shane Topp]

Spotify and the like. Yeah.

[Damien Haas]

Wow.

[Shane Topp]

Yeah, you learned something.

[Damien Haas]

I did that. I'm a big old duck.

[Shane Topp]

All right, guys, thank you so much.

[Damien Haas]

You later.

[Sarah Whittle]

Bye. Bye. Ciao. Wait, you just, like, mumble the middle part.