S2: #84 - Damien Finds a New Best Friend

Summary

Podcast Summary: Smosh Mouth - S2: #84 - Damien Finds a New Best Friend

Release Date: October 14, 2020
Host/Author: Smosh (Damien Haas, Ify Nwadiwe, and rotating guests)

---

Introduction

In episode #84 of "Smosh Mouth," titled "Damien Finds a New Best Friend," host Damien Haas navigates the bittersweet transition of finding a new best friend after his longtime friend Shane launched his own podcast. Damien invites Ify Nwadiwe, a close associate from Smosh Games, to participate in this heartfelt search for companionship.

---

Seeking a New Best Friend

At [00:49], Damien opens up about his recent change:
"I no longer have a best friend. He's made his decision, and that's okay. So today I'm going to be interviewing to fill the position."

Damien explains his intention to build a new friendship by adapting the "36 Questions to Fall in Love" into a format tailored for friendship, aiming to create a deep and meaningful connection with Ify.

---

Shared Interests and Hobbies

The conversation swiftly moves to their mutual interests:

• Japanese Snacks and Anime Collectibles:
  At [02:59], Damien reminisces about his favorite Japanese Cheetos:
  "Japanese Cheetos... they're sweet and they're pungent, and they're amazing."

  Ify shares his enthusiasm for Japanese snacks and anime figures, discussing the intricacies of collecting items like Gundam models and Studio Trigger merchandise. Their shared passion for pop culture and fitness becomes a cornerstone of their budding friendship.

• Fitness and Building Models:
  The hosts delve into their fitness routines, debating the merits of indoor versus outdoor workouts and sharing tips on powerlifting and equipment. Damien humorously admits his past struggles with building model airplanes:
  "I think I'd be good at building them."
  (Timestamp: [06:05])

---

Family Dynamics and Personal Stories

As the episode progresses, both Damien and Ify share personal stories about their families:

• Damien's Family Background:
  At [33:00], Damien discusses the closeness with his mother and the challenges after his father's passing:
  "I love my family so much, but we don't have the ability right now to be a very tight-knit unit."

• Ify's Family Dynamics:
  Ify recounts his diverse family background, highlighting the blend of Louisiana and Nigerian cultures:
  "My mom's side is very close-knit... my dad's from a polygamous family in Nigeria."
  (Timestamp: [36:50])

These personal anecdotes deepen the conversation, revealing the hosts' values and how their upbringing shapes their approach to friendships and relationships.

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Values in Friendship and Communication

A significant portion of the episode focuses on what Damien and Ify value in friendships:

• Honesty and Open-Mindedness:
  Ify emphasizes the importance of honesty and open-mindedness:
  "I never want to have any friends who immediately dismiss what I have."
  (Timestamp: [25:48])

• Acceptance and Support:
  Damien echoes these sentiments, highlighting the need for acceptance and honest support rather than blind agreement:
  "You can always be who you are around Shane and it's very comfortable."
  (Timestamp: [27:02])

They discuss different communication styles and the necessity of understanding and adapting to each other's approaches to maintain strong, enduring friendships.

---

The "Shoot Dude" Segment

In the lighter segment titled "Shoot Dude," the hosts share embarrassing moments submitted by listeners:

• Damien's Retail Mishap:
  At [54:21], Damien recounts a hilarious mix-up while working retail:
  "I meant to say, have a great day, guys. But it came out as have a great gay. They just laughed and said, 'We will.'"

• Ify's Embarrassing Moments:
  Ify shares similar experiences, highlighting their ability to laugh at themselves and connect through shared vulnerabilities.

This segment injects humor into the episode, showcasing the hosts' chemistry and mutual understanding.

---

Building the Friendship: 36 Questions Adapted

To foster a deeper connection, Damien and Ify engage in an adapted version of the "36 Questions to Fall in Love," tailored for friendship:

• Dinner Guests Discussion:
  Damien chooses Jackie Chan for his incredible blend of athleticism and comedy:
  "Jackie Chan's awesome. He combines incredible athletic talent and ability with comedy."
  (Timestamp: [09:24])

  Ify selects Kendrick Lamar, citing a personal connection through their shared ties to Compton:
  "Because of that connection, we can ease into conversation by having something relatable."
  (Timestamp: [08:26])

• Life Priorities:
  They discuss whether they'd prefer retaining their minds or bodies into old age.
  Ify opts to keep his body at 30, emphasizing his dedication to fitness:
  "I'm considering... my body two years ago was at its prime."
  (Timestamp: [12:27])

  Damien reflects on his desire for continuous personal growth, choosing to retain his mind:
  "I want to continue learning and getting wiser. This is not my mental peak."
  (Timestamp: [16:52])

Their answers reveal shared values and complementary perspectives, strengthening their bond.

---

The Eye Staring Exercise

In a playful yet symbolic gesture, Damien and Ify participate in a "four minutes of eye contact" exercise to cement their new friendship:

• Exercise Start:
  Damien announces, "The final step of this is to stare into each other's eyes for four minutes."
  (Timestamp: [46:55])

• Humorous Commentary:
  Kevin, the rotating Smosh friend, provides funny play-by-play commentary, adding levity to the moment.
  Damien humorously notes the difficulty of maintaining constant eye contact without blinking:
  "Can we blink?"
  (Timestamp: [51:26])

• Friendship Confirmation:
  Upon completion, Ify declares, "You're my best friend now."
  (Timestamp: [51:26])

This heartfelt moment underscores the success of their friendship-building efforts.

---

Conclusion and Final Thoughts

As the episode winds down, Damien and Ify reflect on their journey to becoming friends:

• Valuing Communication:
  They acknowledge the importance of communication and understanding different styles:
  "I have to walk away and then talk about it tomorrow."
  (Timestamp: [32:23])

• Encouraging Listener Engagement:
  Damien encourages listeners to rate the podcast and engage with their content, emphasizing community support.

• Charity Shoutouts:
  Ify proudly mentions raising over $12,000 for the Bail Project during their recent stream:
  "We raised $12,000."
  (Timestamp: [56:34])

The episode concludes on a high note, celebrating new friendships, shared values, and community accomplishments.

---

Notable Quotes with Timestamps

• Damien Haas [00:04]:
  "Was my childhood happier than most? I think in a lot of ways, I was really lucky."

• Ify Nwadiwe [02:30]:
  "Do you have a secret hunch about how you will die, man? Was this the funny one?"

• Damien Haas [09:24]:
  "Jackie Chan's awesome. He combines incredible athletic talent and ability with comedy."

• Ify Nwadiwe [25:48]:
  "I never want to have any friends who immediately dismiss what I have."

• Damien Haas [27:02]:
  "You can always be who you are around Shane and it's very comfortable."

• Ify Nwadiwe [29:08]:
  "I think without open-mindedness, you get stuck in a rut."

• Damien Haas [33:05]:
  "I love my family so much, but we don't have the ability right now to be a very tight-knit unit."

• Damien Haas [51:26]:
  "You're my best friend now."

---

Key Takeaways

• Intentional Friendship Building: Damien's proactive approach highlights the importance of taking steps to cultivate meaningful relationships.

• Shared Interests Strengthen Bonds: Common hobbies and passions serve as a strong foundation for building and maintaining friendships.

• Honesty and Open-Mindedness: Valuing honesty and being open to new experiences are crucial for healthy, fulfilling friendships.

• Communication Styles Matter: Understanding and adapting to different communication preferences can prevent misunderstandings and foster stronger connections.

• Humor and Vulnerability: Sharing personal stories and humorous moments can deepen bonds and create a sense of camaraderie.

---

This episode of "Smosh Mouth" offers an engaging blend of heartfelt conversations, humor, and insightful discussions on friendship, making it a compelling listen for both existing fans and newcomers alike.

Transcript

[Damien Haas]

Was my childhood happier than most? I think in a lot of ways, I was really lucky. My parents did whatever they could to make it feel like everything was fine.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

So, Snoop, you know, very famously in rolling 20s. For a while, I wanted to join the gang because they said, snoop is at all the parties. If you want to know the type of person I am, I will make large decisions based on, like, small perks. Do you want me to pick the one that I think will be funny? The one that I think will be wholesome?

[Damien Haas]

Dealer's choice.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Do you have a secret hunch about how you will die, man?

[Damien Haas]

Was this the funny one?

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah.

[Damien Haas]

All right. Ify, this is where it's gonna get dope. Final step of this is to stare into each other's eyes for four minutes.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Okay?

[Damien Haas]

Guten tag, gamers. It's me, Damien Haas, you know, from Smosh. If you listen to the smoshcast, you'll know that a few weeks ago, Shane had a podcast called Finding My New Best Friend with Jackie. Both of them are wonderful people. I wish them both the best, but it kind of leaves me in the lurch here. I no longer have a best friend. He's made his decision, and that's okay. So today I'm going to be interviewing to fill the position, and I think we've got a pretty solid candidate. Bring in the next person. I think it says there's a dumb bit iffy.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yes.

[Damien Haas]

With his catchphrase, it is I. How you doing, man?

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Good. And yourself? How you feeling?

[Damien Haas]

I'm doing just fine, thank you. Oh, if y'all don't know Ify, he's been hanging out with Smosh games for a bit, but we were friends before that, knew each other through mutual friendos and saw each other at events and such.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, we. The bond was strong.

[Damien Haas]

The bond was strong.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Someone say something's brewing. Hey, Something. Something's brewing.

[Damien Haas]

Hey. That's a strong start. So iffy. What we're going to be doing today is I. I want to. I want to cut the bull crap. I don't. I don't want all that fluff. We're going to be doing the 36 questions to fall in love, adjusted for best friendsmanship. We're going to be cycling through those. I'm going to be taking out all the questions that are hard or that I just don't feel like doing.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Okay.

[Damien Haas]

We're just going to become best friends.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

All right? And I do want to put it out there. I am open to falling in love as well.

[Damien Haas]

That's fair. I'm not. Okay, but that's okay.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Okay. All right. Just know, for me, the doors open. Like, that's okay. You ever been in those hotels where, like, it has the room to the other room and so you have to open your door and they have. So mine is open.

[Damien Haas]

You unlock yours. So you feel like you can get maybe a secret roommate at some point if you.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

If you're. If you're, you know, sitting on that bed eating Cheetos, you know, I am, you know, looking at that door, wondering what's on the other side. Just know if you open it, minds will be open.

[Damien Haas]

Dude, you just reminded me of something, because I'm going to immediately sidetrack us. When I was in Japan, you know, in the before times, in the long, long ago when we didn't have to wear masks, obviously, the sites, the food's wonderful, but some of my favorite experiences were sitting in a hotel room with the bag of snacks that I had just gotten from 7 11.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Oh, yeah.

[Damien Haas]

Specifically, Japanese Cheetos I've ever tasted. They're sweet and they're pungent, and they're amazing.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Oh, man. I'm in. Yeah, No, I have a. One of. One of the viewers for my. Twitch sent me a huge care package of all Japanese snacks. And, yeah, I. I ran through all the raw. Because he was like, what do you. What do you like? And I was like, well, I love Japanese curry because. Japanese curry.

[Damien Haas]

Oh, yeah.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Favorite curry.

[Damien Haas]

I've got a couple boxes in my.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

They don't just have boxes, but just, like, instant ramen noodles. They'll have instant, like, curry rice. Yes. So he sent me, like, three different ones. And, yeah, you just add hot water, let it sit for five minutes, and you stir it and you have like, Man, I just realized I have a friend sending me something from Japan. I should have asked for something more.

[Damien Haas]

No, it's. Yeah, I mean, that's okay. If they ever do it again, let me know and I will steal from you.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, yeah, I'll get you in on the order because I have. I have two buddies in Japan now, and so they know I'm a Weeb. And so all their, like, anime toys are way cheaper out there here. So I was asking. I started watching Hunter X Hunter, and I was like, if you see any Hunter X Hunter stuff, let me know. And so he. He sent me a gone and kill you figure. And they're great.

[Damien Haas]

Do you do the, like, the banpresto figures? The, like. Oh, no, the crane game ones, basically.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Oh, yeah, all of those are great. But these Ones were, like, pretty huge. It was. It was. It was like 50 each. So I'm like, I don't know how big they are for scale, but I imagine they're pretty good.

[Damien Haas]

Yeah. Finding those in. I mean, I remember being in Japan and like, buying up a bunch of and being like, I got to get, like, I'm bringing a second suitcase home. I got to bring home everything. And then when I got home, just for fun, there was like, one I didn't find. So I looked on Amazon and it's like $30 free shipping. And I'm like, oh, like, some of them, yes, way cheaper in Japan. Can't get them here. But I was just like, I feel silly.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Oh, yeah. There's so many things you do have to shop around. I mean, I'm a big robo guy, so. And there's.

[Damien Haas]

You mean like Gundam and stuff like that?

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Oh, yeah. Gundam big. Oh, you know, anything by Studio Trigger, because they love.

[Damien Haas]

Sure. That's. That's the Gurren Lagann one, right?

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, Gurren Lagann. Kill. Kill. La Kill DNA. Yeah.

[Damien Haas]

Nice.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Promare movie. So. But I feel like their goal is how can we sneak a mech in this story?

[Damien Haas]

Yeah, totally.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Because that was Promare. They're like, what if firefighters had mechs?

[Damien Haas]

Because they need them, obviously.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

So I'm waiting for that figure. But I did. I did pre order a alloy, like, Gorn Lagan figure. And that's cool. That's coming out in March. And those. Every time I get the alloy ones, they're a little much of pretty pity because they're usually big. Like, I have a choke. Soul of Chogokin. Big O. That's about this big alloy. You can raise it up so the missiles come out.

[Damien Haas]

That's super cool.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

I had to get that off ebay.

[Damien Haas]

I've never been a robot guy, but, like, seeing the collectibles with that, I've always been like, maybe I could. Maybe I am this person. I don't know.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

I mean, you can dip your toes in Gundams because you can get a couple of them for cheap. And you build it. It's fun. It's a fun quarantine.

[Damien Haas]

See, that's my fear. I don't think I'd be good at building it.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Really.

[Damien Haas]

I think as a kid, I tried to do like a model airplane one time, and it just failed miserably into a pile of glue and broken promises.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Well, that's why Gundams rock, because they're built to. They're made to be built without any glue. So they're all snapped together parts. That's cool. And they use, like, plastics and stuff like that.

[Damien Haas]

Okay.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

And then they have different levels. So you start off at hg, which is just the high grade case.

[Damien Haas]

Home and Garden tv.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, yeah. Home and Garden, Garden TV grade. And then you go to mg, you know, eight Ball, jg, Metal Gear Fires News. And then there's like, Perfect Grade. And it gets just wilder from that.

[Damien Haas]

I do get a lot of tick tocks suggested to me about those. Like, what's weird is I've never looked into the Gundam toys whatsoever. And when you were saying that there's like, HG and then MG and then Perfect Grade, I knew that. Yeah, because they're. Because people just explain it on TikTok unprovoked.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

They're trying to let you know.

[Damien Haas]

Iffy. I've got a bunch of questions for you. I want to get to know you. I say we can just probably spend, like, a few minutes on this and, like, trade the same question back and forth. I'll offer it to you and then.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah.

[Damien Haas]

Tennis it back.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

All right.

[Damien Haas]

If he. So this is from set one. These are the more chill questions. Given the chance of anyone in the world, whom would you want as a dinner guest?

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Anyone in the world. Is it living or dead?

[Damien Haas]

A dead person at your table would be disgusting.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

That is true. That is true. Let's stick with living. Okay.

[Damien Haas]

If that's okay. I mean. Yeah, we don't have to put that.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

No, no.

[Damien Haas]

I just wanted to make my tongue.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, yeah. And. And you. You're gonna have to live with it because now that's the stipulation. And I agree. I'm fine with that.

[Damien Haas]

Okay.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

And then this is. Yeah, this is a hard one because, you know, there. There's. There's the people that you want to kind of pick their brain and talk to them, but then it's also like a dinner, so you want to have a good time where you can kind of recollect.

[Damien Haas]

Interesting.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

So I'd probably choose Kendrick Lamar because. Oh, cool. Both. You know, we're both Compton boys, and he used to play basketball with my cousin in high school.

[Damien Haas]

Really?

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Centennial. Yeah. So because of that and because of that connection, that we. We can ease into conversation by having something relatable that we both know my cousin. And then we'll have a open conversation and he's a little disarmed because, you know, he's like, okay, I don't feel bad about magically appearing at this dinner.

[Damien Haas]

Yeah, yeah, that's. See what's Interesting. And, like, that actually did tell me a lot about you. Not just because you picked Kendrick, but like, the fact that you thought about the fact that it's a dinner, not just like, you're getting to meet this person. You're like, well, we're gonna be eating a meal. And the fact that you didn't magically be like, we're gonna be best friends. It was like, we should have something in common first. Yeah, that sounds like that could actually happen.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah.

[Damien Haas]

Because your cousin knows.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, I mean, he played with him in high school. We are their best friends. He's what? I'm like, who? Who? Oh, I kind of remember that. All right, let's.

[Damien Haas]

I didn't like that dude.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah. Yeah, well, well, me either.

[Damien Haas]

You know, take that. If he's present.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Who. Who would you sit at the dinner table?

[Damien Haas]

We actually talked about this the other day on the Smosh stream. There's two celebrities that I want to meet more than anyone. My runner up is Snoop because he just seems real neat and I've always wanted to meet him. But then. Jackie Chan. Yeah, Jackie Chan is my answer.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

That's. So here's a fun fact. Growing up in la, do you know Jackie Chan? No. This is, this is, this is your. Bout your runner up, Snoop. So Snoop, you know, very famously in rolling 20s. That's the gang he's from.

[Damien Haas]

Yes. And he murdered a man.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. And then for a while, I wanted to join the gang because they said, they said Snoop is at all the parties. So no way. If you want to know the type of person I am, I will make large decisions based on, like, small perks.

[Damien Haas]

Usually make decisions throughout my day regarding whether or not Snoop is gonna be at a location.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

So, yeah, I was gonna. Yeah, I was gonna join a whole ass gang just so I can meet Snoop Dogg.

[Damien Haas]

Damn.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

I don't know what my exit plan, my exit strategy was. If I was just gonna be like.

[Damien Haas]

All right, guys, I'm all done with gang now.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, you know, I, I, you know, I think the gang life isn't for me.

[Damien Haas]

Do we? Who do I see about transferring my 401k?

[Ify Nwadiwe]

You know who's doing this?

[Damien Haas]

Wow. Yeah, I feel like I got to know you way better through that.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Damien Haas]

Damn.

[Kevin]

All right, hold up now, Damien, you never elaborated. Why Jackie Chan?

[Damien Haas]

Yeah. Oh, because Jackie Chan's awesome. No, he. He was one of the first instances I saw that combined incredible athletic talent and ability with comedy. His action is impressive, but it'll also make you laugh. He's doing both Seamlessly. And he just. He's also a very, like, unproblematic celebrity, so he just seems like a really cool guy. And he's just someone I've been a fan of since I was a kid. And it's not like I'm, you know, I've seen all his movies. Like, no. But I just, every time I see, I'm like, all right, Jackie Chan's here. You know.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Are you aware that he sings the Cantonese and Mandarin version of I'll Make a Man out of you?

[Damien Haas]

No.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah. So for Mulan, I'll Make a Man of youf is Jackie Chan who sings the Cantonese and Mandarin versions of the song?

[Damien Haas]

He can sing.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, He's. He's trained. He's a singer. Oh, my God.

[Damien Haas]

What a person.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah.

[Damien Haas]

What a person.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Love me some Jackie Chan, too.

[Damien Haas]

So I'm a very hard worker as well. Goodness gracious.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

That was Snoop. Snoop's been. When you think about how long Snoop's been in the game, you're like, you've been in it a while.

[Damien Haas]

He's a thousand years old.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah. I mean, honestly, he's only, I think, 50 last I checked.

[Damien Haas]

What?

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah.

[Damien Haas]

That's crazy. He's going to be pickled from all that we.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, I mean, look, look, it's keeping him, keeping him healthy. Snoop Dogg.

[Kevin]

Snoop Dogg is 48 years old.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

No.

[Damien Haas]

Are you goddamn.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Almost 50?

[Damien Haas]

Almost 48 years old. He. But see, the thing is, like, he was the kind of celebrity where, like, if you told me he was 48, it's like, okay. Also, if you told me he was 70, I'd be like, yeah, yeah. Like, he' he's eternal.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Like, Snoop Dogg in his current form has looked the same for so long, and I think he will continue to do so, but it just is a reminder that, like, yeah, they were all kids when they started rapping like Drake.

[Damien Haas]

That is crazy.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Snoop, like, they were just kids, so they've just been in the game so long.

[Damien Haas]

I've always been a really big fan, so I do. I do want to meet him.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

That's fact.

[Damien Haas]

All right, Ify. Let's move on to the next question. If you were able to live to the ripe old age of 90 and for the last 60 years of your life. So 30 to 90 retain either the mind of a 30 year old or the body of a 30 year old, which would you want?

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Oh, body. Every day.

[Damien Haas]

Body. Yeah.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Because I'm considering as we're talking about my body at 30, and my body two years ago was at its prime, you know, I'm getting back to it. You know, obviously we had to stay inside and I finally found the coring times is tough. Oh yeah. Well, I finally found like this social distance gym because it was kind of a boutique gym to begin with and so they only have a certain amount of people who can train in two hour blocks.

[Damien Haas]

Oh, that's awesome.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Tape off everything. So you're like, like six feet apart.

[Damien Haas]

Please give me the details.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, and so I've been back at it. I've went in the second time. I think my body's going to break apart though because it's nice. Cuz I'm going. Cuz I. Yeah, I'm back to powerlifting from just kind of doing what I can with the weights.

[Damien Haas]

But no easing back in. You're just, you're ready, set, go.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, I mean I had to like lower the weight so I don't truly like be sore, but it feels good to be back and I was just talking about this with someone. It feels good to be active around people. Even though we're all interesting and wearing masks and everything, just being active in a communal kind of space is great. Also, I've always been pro lifting outdoors. I think really there's just something about lifting weights outside that just seems so much more intense.

[Damien Haas]

Like I think if we didn't live in Los Angeles, I'd be down for that. But like every time you breathe they're like swimming through City Punch and I'm like, I can't do this.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

But look, if you go to Muscle beach or actually preferably just go to the Venice Golds, they have that outdoor space and there's just something about just taking in fresh air. Maybe it's just because people stank in the gym.

[Damien Haas]

Maybe that is also true.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, maybe that's what I want to go outside.

[Damien Haas]

Well, bleep out the name so nobody doxes me, please. But the in is the most well ventilated gym I've ever been to. And it is just, it is just marvelous and bone cheap. Yeah, so I miss that.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

That's the, that's the trade off is this place, they know that it's a quality. So it's, it's, you know, it's about 100 bucks a month which is like for my old gym I was paying 45. So it's. Yeah, so it's an upcharge. But honestly worth it.

[Damien Haas]

Worth it. Yeah. And then important times, you got to do what you got to do.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

It's like also like not to sound like a meathead, but if you didn't guess if you couldn't guess. I am a meathead. It's like a serious one. So, like, they're like, okay. When they're giving me the tour, they're like, all right, here's all the bars. The bars with the black strap. That's only for deadlifting, that bar. That one's for squats, specifically, because it's longer. This list. So, like, you had specific.

[Damien Haas]

Very serious.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

And then they have these wood blocks specifically for recording yourself while you work out. I'm like, really? Yeah.

[Damien Haas]

I was like, that's funny. My gym, they want the fitness vloggers. I mean, hey, way to adapt. Yeah, that's fantastic. I've been. I've been doing. I'm down a couple pounds this week because I let. I let myself go, but I'm down a couple of pounds now. What I've been doing and to get that social aspect is I've been doing Ring Fit Adventure, but I've been doing it in my room with my two cats and trying not to step on them. And I'm like, this is socializing.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, yeah, you got to move out the way. You're like, oh, excuse me, girls.

[Damien Haas]

Come on. Yeah, I also just bought a weight bench for my house, which is nice.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Those are great. Those are good. Yeah, they. I mean, now, you know, nature is healing and weights are getting accessible again. So that, like, you're. Everyone should. Is going to be able to do it from home because the adjustable dumbbells are in stock. The only thing is, like, I'm trying to hit four, five wheels again. Four or five wheels for the non meatheads means 45.

[Damien Haas]

45 pound ones on the side.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

So I'm trying. I'm just trying to lift big. Mostly because of Natasha. Auggie on Instagram. You've been inspiring me to get in there.

[Damien Haas]

Shout out to Natasha, Auggie.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, shout out to you. Hope you're watching Smosh and you hear this. You know, I see you watching Hunter x Hunter 2. I'll give you one of my figures. Just wanted to put that out there. What about you?

[Damien Haas]

Yeah, I've also been inspired by Natasha. No, I don't. I actually don't know Natasha. I would say probably body, because I. I don't know. I think the mind still has so much growing to do. I don't want to stay mentally here forever. I don't know. I want to age naturally there. But I've already experienced things with the body where I'm like, oh, man, my knee kind of sucks right now. That's too bad. Like, shouldn't have done all that jumping in martial arts as a kid. Landing really hard on those knees. And so, yeah, I want to continue learning and getting wiser. Like, this is not my mental peak.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

I think I'll get better 100%. I agree with you that one. That's the other side of it. I think I focused on the body and forgot about the mind.

[Damien Haas]

No, that's fair.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

30 year old things, which is why I need to.

[Damien Haas]

I'm not quite there yet.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

I am a huge proponent of, like, all of the conversation, especially because that is kind of one of the things I've been liking about traveling and, you know, and also doing what we do. We travel, go to cons, meet so many people, have conversations, podcasts. And I feel like I learned so much just from those conversations and interactions that I think that that question's almost a gimme. Like, I'm very curious. To the person who wants the. The 30 year old mind, it sounds.

[Damien Haas]

Like it's formulated in a way that is attempting to be like, what is more important to you, mind or body? But it sounds like the people who actually do have more of a focus on the mind answer. Body.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah.

[Damien Haas]

Because they're like, no, I've got more stuff to do. I'm not done. Whereas body, it's like, oh, those were the days. Oh, yeah. So that's interesting to me.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah.

[Damien Haas]

Once again, we're in agreement.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yes.

[Damien Haas]

Do you wanna. I'll let you pick one of these set 1 questions to ask me first, if that's cool.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Okay. Yeah. Okay.

[Damien Haas]

We're swapping it up. I've gone rogue, Kevin. I'm a renegade.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Okay. Okay. There's one that's gonna be funny and then there's one that's gonna be wholesome. Oh, yeah. So I'll let you decide. Do you want me to pick the one that I think will be funny or the one that I think will be wholesome?

[Damien Haas]

Dealer's choice.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

All right.

[Damien Haas]

And I also reserve the right to be like, no, we're gonna cut that out. It's like, what's the saddest thing that happened to you in your childhood? Oh, my God.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Do you have a secret hunch about how you will die?

[Damien Haas]

Secret hunch about how I'll die? Man, is. Was this the funny one?

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah.

[Damien Haas]

Oh, do I have a secret hunch? I've never. I guess I haven't. I mean, I've thought about mortality and stuff like that, but I feel like it could just be something random and stupid.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah.

[Damien Haas]

Like, Like I go into a surgery and for some reason they're like the anesthesia just. You just. Just woke up in the middle and we had to kill him because it was weird. They're like, I just don't. I don't know. Yeah, that's odd hunch about dying. I would love for it to be of ripe old age.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah.

[Damien Haas]

And I guess I don't see anything being more likely than anything else. Yeah. It's not like I'm like a smoker and I'm like, oh, yeah, lung cancer, like, for sure. You know, ify do you know how you'll die?

[Ify Nwadiwe]

My top three. I have a top three list.

[Damien Haas]

Damn, dude.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

You know? So number. Number one.

[Damien Haas]

Number one.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah. Number one, the police. Number two, my house is on fire while I'm playing VR games and I don't notice.

[Damien Haas]

Okay, that is funny. Yeah.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

And number three, probably some type of organ failure from all the weird fitness drugs that I've done. Not steroids. I feel like when you say drugs, it sounds. But there's so many over the counter fitness things that I'm like, this can't possibly be good.

[Damien Haas]

Yeah, they're like, we mix BCA with creatine and then ocelot tummy, and you're like, ocelot tummy? What's. Why would you do that?

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Well, also, it's like, it's crazy when my doctor will tell me something and I'll know why. And I was like, no, I don't need to do this. I remember one time, they're like, oh, man, your kidney, the creatine levels are high. We want you to see a kidney doctor. I was like, no, I'm taking creatine. Oh, no, that's why it's high, because I'm not drinking enough water while I'm taking creatine. Thanks for letting me know. Know now I'll drink enough water. But that is why you're not supposed.

[Damien Haas]

To be able to chew the creatine powder. Like gum, make it in a little bolus and.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, I shouldn't know why my body was like, I shouldn't have an answer. Like, usually your doctor tells you what's wrong and you're like, oh, what am I doing wrong? Oh, yeah, no, I know. Yeah, no, that's me. That's all me.

[Damien Haas]

You've got high blood pressure. No, I drink salt. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

I'm trying to get vascularity.

[Damien Haas]

I don't want to take. What was it? What's the L Ll Arginitine. Yeah, that's the one that's the spice.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah. There used to be this look. We're gonna get into meathead. And when you realize how wild meatheads are, because, like, there are, like, pre workout powders I used to take that were discontinued for one reason or another. FDA finally was like, nah. Yeah, stop that. And. And you'll just go on, like, these forms. If you were like, yeah, those were the day. Super Pump 250 was. Was the. Was the. Was the pre workout. Like, I' I remember 2008, 2010, like, around then, it was all about super pump. And it was because your forearms would look so solid. No, it was tight.

[Damien Haas]

No, but it's like, Craig always used to take that. He was awesome. Pour one out for Craig. You can't.

[Kevin]

It used to be the wild west back in the day.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Oh, yeah.

[Kevin]

A guy come up to me in the gym one time, I was working out, and he comes up and has two giant green pills. He's like, yo, you want some Hulk pills?

[Damien Haas]

He's like, bend over also.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

So who. I'm thinking, and I would love now in my age to be like, oh, I would say no, but, no, you tell me these are Hulk pure.

[Kevin]

No, I said, yes.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

I would pop them immediately.

[Damien Haas]

I was like, you get halfway through the word pill.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah. Yeah. You don't name something after a superhero and don't think I'm about to put it in my body.

[Kevin]

So, Damian, question I have then. So if you gave some pretty good examples, like House on Firewall in VR, what would be the most badass way.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

You'D want to go?

[Kevin]

Give me that one.

[Damien Haas]

Oh, okay. Turns out Kingdom Hearts, it's a documentary. And so one day, I'm just chilling in my home, but then I wake up in the middle of the night, and I hear, like, the dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun, dun. I'm like, where is everyone? Darkness and light. And then I go outside, and, like, there's all these, like, little critters. And I'm like, oh, these aren't supposed to be here.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah.

[Damien Haas]

And then I fall down into darkness, and I'm like, whoa, this is spooky. And then the keyblade is like, hey, I'm choosing you. And I'm like, that's pretty neat. And so I'm the chosen. I'm the keyblade's chosen, and I have to fight off off these little things. But then I remember I don't. I'm not taking care of myself very well. I'm not very flexible. So they immediately swarm me and pull me down into the darkness. And I'm like, no. And then it's game. It's game over.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Oh, man.

[Damien Haas]

Yeah, that's.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

That's a. That's a funny concept that I'm putting in the ideas box. But, like, a chosen one who just.

[Damien Haas]

Isn'T in shape just is not ready at all.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

You think about it, it's like, you're the chosen one, and it's never based on physical attributes. It's like, oh, no, you're pure of heart.

[Damien Haas]

You've just got main character vibes.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah. Everyone who's pure of heart doesn't necessarily have a, like, 2/2 40, you know, that's true. Yeah. You could be pure of heart and you're just not taking care of yourself physically.

[Damien Haas]

And that's always. That's the sad thing where, like, if that did happen, it'd be like, I would be. I'm not gonna be the guy. I'm gonna be the npc. That's just like, how can I help you today? Yeah, thank you, Come again. And that's like, at best, I run the accessory shop.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Wait, I'm gonna be one of the weirdos in the gym in Fantasy seven.

[Damien Haas]

Yeah. Who are not actually using their strength or anything. They're just like, how many squats can you do?

[Ify Nwadiwe]

And I was like, yo, there is a worldwide crisis going on. It's like, yeah, no, I'm just in there boxing.

[Damien Haas]

You can buy rocks that let you do literal magic. Don't you want to do that? No.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Squats. Squats.

[Damien Haas]

It is a funny dynamic, though, because I'm not. I'm not that now, but I used to be very much an exercise fitness guy and also a nerd ed, which I currently am now. But it's a very specific combination. But we have three in this room. You, me, and Kevin. We feel that. We feel that vibe.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Well, it feeds into each other. I mean, that's how I got serious about working out was the moment I realized that I can look at my gains in the gym as leveling up.

[Damien Haas]

Oh, that's cool.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

It was a wrap. It was a rap. I was just as hooked to working out as I was. Wow. Because that's how I view it now is like, oh, I'm leveling up. And I was like. And you know, my body in quarantine is like, when you play counter strike go, and you don't do ranked for a while, so you derank and you have to rank back up.

[Damien Haas]

I feel that very much. No, I used to listened to video game music when I exercised as a teenager. Like my. I come from a fitness family. My dad was a bodybuilder. My mom taught aerobics. And so like I. But I was, you know, I was not super in shape. I'm just not. I just didn't get those genes necessarily. But I still tried really hard. So like the thing that motivated me was like downloading the Final Fantasy 7 soundtrack while I'm running and being like, all right, now I'm hyped for this. And yeah, you know, these characters can do this thing. Why can't I? You know, it's so. Oh goodness. I guess it does feed into each other.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah.

[Damien Haas]

Let's see here. Well, that we kind of just covered that question. Name three things you and your partner appear to have in common.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah.

[Damien Haas]

So there you go.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, we knock. See, we're knocking out questions. We don't. We didn't even know was there. That's the bond. It's strong.

[Kevin]

Let's go over to step two. I think it's time to step this relationship questions up. You guys are vibing really well, so thank you.

[Damien Haas]

Wow. Very strong front runner in this interview process.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Vibes they're right.

[Damien Haas]

What do you value most in a friendship? Ooh, that's set to see it's more serious.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

That's a good question. What do you value most in a friendship? Honesty and open mindedness. I see so many people who have their friend groups and they never get to do things that they really want to do because they feel like their friends aren't into it. And I never, you know, I never want to have any friends like that. Like, I don't mind if you're not into what I have, but if you just kind of immediately dismiss it, that's just never fun. It doesn't. Because I think the best friend groups are when you have, they're, they're, they're like webs because you have like your friend group and then they have the friend groups for the other things. But then they might toss something your way and get you into it. Like you. And you might not know if you like it or not. Like.

[Damien Haas]

Sure.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

I think that's how you get stuck in that rut. Like I know family members or like my sister would have a friend group and it just seemed like they would always do the same thing and she would always complain that like whenever she'd want to do something, you know, different or, or, or, or like extravagant or, or go, you know, to a better bar or something than that. They usually go to, they would always like shoot it down and be like, oh, this. And you try to be bougie. And I was like, yeah, that's, that's the, like, that's the open minded.

[Damien Haas]

There's a little judgment there.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah. You don't have that open mindedness to have new experiences where like, you know, or like, you're just like, man, I want to try camping. And then like your friends are like, all right, yeah, let's, let's do it, let's try it.

[Damien Haas]

That's cool.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

I feel like without that open mindedness you have the experiences. But then I also think it's harder for them to help you with. Maybe if you want to open up to them about like issues or something, you're going, yeah.

[Damien Haas]

And then they, if you can't be here for me when I want to try a different bar.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah.

[Damien Haas]

How are you going to be here for me? Yeah, yeah.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

When I'm going through something that might be out of your scope?

[Damien Haas]

Sure. I think that's a pretty relatable answer. I think mine would sort of dip into that. It would be acceptance and like honest support. You know, you take my former best friend Shane. I feel like, like I can always be who I am around Shane and it's very comfortable. You know, I can be in a bad mood, I can be in a good mood, I can be just jumping off the walls, insane and it doesn't matter. Like you see that friend in whatever capacity they're in and they can be there for you through that, whether it's easy, whether it's hard or whatever. And then what I mean about the support is like always agreeing with someone or telling them what they want to hear is not being a good friend. And I've had conversations with people in the past where they've been like, you know, I've, I've been honest and they've been like, you know, you never, you never support me. And I'm like, well, well, I disagree. I think I'm doing that right now. I don't want to see you get in a bad situation. And so I'm not immediately agreeing with you. But you know, again, former best friend Shane, he'll take me aside and be like, hey, you seem like you've been having a rough week, like, you know what's going on, it's been a little off. So I always appreciate that.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

I think that is a very important distinction too because I think there are so many people who are built around people who just agree with everything they do. Never Challenge them. Never. You know, even if. And you know, some people might be listening to us and was like, well, you know, I hate confrontation. Or that's scary.

[Damien Haas]

No one likes confrontation.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

It's just simply repeating what they gave you back to them. Because some, sometimes it really makes you listen to it differently when you hear your words said back to you in a question.

[Damien Haas]

Interesting.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Okay, so that's a tip. That's a friendship tip. Friend tip, friend tip, friend tip, friend tip, French tip, French tip, French tip.

[Damien Haas]

And I think the last. The last thing I would look for is like, so an example is I'm built very different. Like, you want to try a bunch of new things. I want to try a bunch of new things too, but I sort of have to be in like the mood for it. Oh, yeah, we're like, I'm very introverted in like, my space. So the other night on Twitter, you just messaged me the scariest question that can ever be messaged to someone like me. It's not like, hey, are you busy? Like, or hey, I've got this thing. Would you like to join? You asked, what are you up to right now? And I'm like, do I make it sound like I'm as busy as possible? So that if I cancel my thing to do his thing, I'm a hero. Hero. And if not, I have a built in excuse. I was just like, nothing. Just playing my games before bed. And you're just like, do you want to hop on this thing? We're doing a thing. And I was like, okay, I'll do it. But like, it's scary. I'm like, what do you need help moving right now? Like, what are you about to ask me?

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, I know. I'm notorious for that too. I'm notorious. I love, I love. Like, what are you up right now? What's. What's good?

[Damien Haas]

That's negative points. If. Yeah, yeah, say I want from. For me, I want to play this game right now. Are you up like that?

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, Yeah, I think that's a good tip. You know, being four, I think both friendshiply and romantically, like, here's why I'm texting you at 2am I don't know. Yeah, it is funny because I am also someone who loves, like, getting to the point. But when it's me, I'm like, all right, you around? Yeah, because also, I don't take it personal if someone just never replies. And that's kind of what it does where it's like around reply if you. If you want to chat and if Not I won't, because I know some. But I know some people do. They're like, I contacted you and you didn't say anything with me. I'm like, it's all right.

[Damien Haas]

I have a couple friends that, like, most of our conversations are me apologizing for not responding for, like, a long time. Yeah, I had a friend, like, not too long ago who I invited to. Actually, no, it was my last birthday party, and I hit him up. I was like, hey, you want to come? And, like, there was no, like, real response. And I was like, hey, just a reminder, it's tonight. And he was like, well, I was kind of mad at you for not, you know, responding to me last time. And I was like, oh, I didn't even know.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

That's so.

[Damien Haas]

I didn't even know we were fighting. Yeah, but. But we're built differently, right? Like, he's somebody that very much values that communication. For me, it's more casual. And so, like, I got it. You know, it's not who I am, but I understood, so.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, I know. But, like, that's a twofer for me because what my. My first thing is, I. One, I don't mind however long you take. I just always assume that you're busy. I never assume that. You just have to immediately do it. And the second thing is, if I have a problem, I confront it as soon as possible.

[Damien Haas]

Like, I. I'm the same way. I don't like sitting at it.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

I wouldn't wait till you hit me up and then be like, oh, this. I'd be like, hey, man, I. I hit you up. This is kind of, you know, that's.

[Damien Haas]

Something I've had to learn, too, because I very much want to fix things right away. And so I'm very much like, hey, I'm so sorry. I just noticed I did this. I'm so sorry. Are you okay? But I've had to learn, like, sometimes people need a minute to be mad. And they're allowed to do that.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, 100%.

[Damien Haas]

And I just have to, like, accept. I'm like, they're not going to hate you forever. I know it sucks feeling like it' yeah. But, like, maybe just gotta walk away and then you'll talk about it tomorrow.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

You know, you can just be like me and be completely aloof. And by the time they. They calm down, you're back, you're like, hey, yeah. I was like, oh, oh, yeah, I totally forgot. I made you bad. My bad.

[Damien Haas]

I'll let you pick a set two question.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Set two. Okay.

[Damien Haas]

Set Nuance. Fai.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

I'm trying to see these. These. These are all pretty deep.

[Damien Haas]

These are spicy.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Damien Haas]

And also you reserve the right to not. I mean, if you're not.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

I'm open. I'm just trying not to put you on a spot with me. I'm an open book.

[Damien Haas]

Do. Do what you. If there's an issue, I'll say like, hey, maybe let's swap it over.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

How close and warm is your family? Do you feel your childhood was happier than most other people's?

[Damien Haas]

How close and warm is my family? It's not as close as it was, but not through lack of desire to be. So my dad passed when I was 19 and I'd say we were very close before then. We loved each other a lot, but there was a lot of very difficult, specific circumstances that we had as well. Sort of rocked the family and made things hard for a long time. So I got. My dad was always my best friend, but I got really close with my mom while we were dealing with all that, you know, difficult stuff even before my dad passed. And you know, when he, he passed when I was starting my second year of college out here. So my mom ended up having to sort of like pack up the family home by herself or what she could. We abandoned it because we owed more than it was like worth and she decided to move out to California. But my sister stayed back in Georgia. She's older, so we're all kind of like spread out now. An extended family. You know, a lot of them have passed away that I've been close with. So it's, you know, my sister and I can't talk as much as we'd like because we're both busy full time adults with a three hour time difference. She's married and has a whole life there too. And my mom and I can't really see each other right now because of COVID So like, I love my family so much, but we don't have the ability right now to be a very tight knit unit. And then on top of that was my childhood happier than most. I think in a lot of ways. Yeah, I think in a lot of ways I was really lucky. I think my parents did whatever they could to make it feel like everything was fine for me and made me feel taken care of. But I, you know, you know, you can still tell and see when things are rough. But I was always grateful for that. But I think think I had a lot of like weird, specific, unique circumstances that made it a little, a little tougher than probably the average Childhood. So yeah, I don't know, I'm being, I'm being vague as hell, but kind of, kind of have to.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, yeah. No dude, do, do, do that.

[Damien Haas]

Yeah. How about you Iffy, how you are you close and warm with your. Oh, one. Actually one more thing before we move on. There is so much love there though. I don't wanna, I don't wanna make it seem like my mom and I love each other so much. My sister and I love each other so much. My mom loves my sister and she loves my mom so much. It is all there. It is. Don't never question that for a second.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

So yeah, I love that energy of. Let me just add this disclaimer in case my family checks this out.

[Damien Haas]

Well, my mom does listen to these. Oh, she does.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Hi mom.

[Damien Haas]

Hi mom. Hello. I love you very much. And, and we all loved my dad very much and he loved us very much.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

So now I didn't doubt that for a second because mine is, is kind of similar. I mean my, my family is both tight knit and, and, and open and huge at the same time. I mean, you know, my, from Louisiana, my dad's from Nigeria. And you know, my mom and dad, they broke up when I was pretty young, they got divorced and then my dad remarried, my mom didn't. And so on my mom's side, it's, it's very, it's very close because, you know, they're from the south, Louisiana, and so they, you know, even when they lived out here. So they, most of everyone except one of my aunts moved out to California when I was younger and they always lived like just a couple of blocks from each other. And then when my aunt, grandma passed away after my granddad did and they like my aunt decided to move back to Louisiana. So then it was kind of just my mom and my other aunt out here. It's always been the energy of like when we're all together and we come together, like we're close, we're super tight and all this stuff. But like when we're separated, you know, it's fine. Like my mom, she doesn't need me to call her constantly and all this stuff when we catch up, we call. It's like really great. We catch up on everything that's each other. We do. But it's never like I would always feel guilty because, you know, I'd be around all the, the transplants in like the improv comedy community and they would talk about how they call their parents every day and. Every day. Yeah, you know, growing up out here, my mom's like, down the street and.

[Damien Haas]

So you didn't feel that, that need?

[Ify Nwadiwe]

My dad on the other side, he is like, all about, like, he, if, if I could call him every day, he would love it.

[Damien Haas]

Okay.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

I just, I just picked up my mom's kind of affinity for the phone, which is not liking to be on it most of the time.

[Damien Haas]

It's tough.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

But he, he's so much closer. And I think what's so funny is looking at my mom's upbringing, you know, she grew up in the, you know, small part of Louisiana with a pretty tight knit, close family. And my dad, he's from, like a polygamous family in Nigeria. Like, my grandma was the youngest wife for my grandfather.

[Damien Haas]

Okay.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

So, like, going back, there's like a ton, like, a lot of family. A lot of family. They're like, okay, this is your aunt. This is your aunt from your granddad's wife. This is. And so it's so interesting that in the dynamic, like, my mom's side is the one that's like, oh, it's cool. But my dad is like, always, like, trying to be in touch. And I always, you know, feel bad because I try and be in touch too, but also I'm always doing a million and one thing.

[Damien Haas]

Well, it's hard. Yeah, you. I mean, you've got a lot of irons in the fire.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah. Too many. Too many, but still not enough, you know, that's what it feels like. It always feels like too many but not enough.

[Damien Haas]

My day usually ends at like 10:30 at night, and I'm like, who is it okay to relax? Like, have I done enough?

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Like, yeah. And then that part of your brain is like, no, you haven't. Keep going.

[Damien Haas]

You must grind, must hustle.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Grind or die.

[Damien Haas]

Grind or die.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

There is a lot of love there. And I try and meet everyone where they're at. That's kind of been my new, new vibe, you know, Like, I'm, you know, divorced now and kind of when you're, you know, I feel like you learn so much about yourself going through a breakup, but I think you learn even more when you go through a divorce because there's just so much. It just, you know, holds a little more weight because, like, you have to do so much paperwork to end things. And so really, like, you really have.

[Damien Haas]

You can't just disconnect. Yeah.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

You really have to, like, sit there and be like, okay, is this something you really want to do? And these are all the things that are going to have to happen. In, like, all this, and why are you doing this? And if you're doing this, what do you really want? What's the dynamic you want, especially, you know, having a daughter? Like, what's the home dynamic that you want to build? And that, in turn has. You do reflect on your childhood and everything. Like, it's so funny. Yeah. I've just been so introspective because of all of that.

[Damien Haas]

Do you find that you reflect on it more because you're responsible for a human life? Yeah.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

In ways. My upbringing made it easier because it's so easy to put so much extra BS on your relationship with your child from just how you kind of brought up. And you realize how, like, nothing matters except that relationship. Like you. And it's very unique to y'all, you know, like, it's like there's so many ideas of what makes a perfect, you know, relationship or what makes a good parent. There's so many of these exterior ideas, but really the number one thing you learn as a parent is no one knew what they're doing. No one. There isn't a rule book. Like, you can buy these books by these doctors and, you know, psychologists, but in the end, like, because you're raising a human who is an individual with their own identity. Identity, Their own way of thinking.

[Damien Haas]

Sure.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Never have a manual that works.

[Damien Haas]

And I think that's why, like, you know, short of somebody being outright, like, a terrible person.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah.

[Damien Haas]

It's important to forgive, you know, any. Anything from, like, with your parents or something like that, if you're able to. If, you know, everyone's circumstances are different. But, like, damn. I think about. If I had a kid right now, I'd be like, where do I start? Like, I'm. I'm responsible for this child's life, and I. You know, every experience is going to affect them somehow. Their brain is picking up what is normal is what is not. I feel like.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Oh, yeah, it really does. Like, you'll never be. That question is going to be. That question is never going to change because it is, because no one's going to give you that answer. Like, you. No matter. Even. Even if you think, like, get to a point where you think you have the answers, the moment you're holding that child, it changes. And. But the one thing we. I think that's a constant that we do know about, you know, kids is that, you know, the relationship. Relationship with the parent of the opposite sex. If you. If. If your child, you know, grows up to have a cis. Hat, you know, relationship, that's kind of going to influence them. So I, So that kind of is something that's always on my mind with how I interact with my daughter. Like, I don't, I don't yell at her because I don't want her to ever think it's okay for men to yell at her.

[Damien Haas]

Right, Got it. Wow. Perfect.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

And then even outside of romantic relationships, I don't. If I give her a rule, I give her an explanation because I never want her to blindly follows because said so.

[Damien Haas]

Yeah, yeah.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

I. And you know, there's nothing against our parents doing that, but I don't, I, you know, seeing where we are now, you know, as a country and just everything, I think it's very important to build that critical thinking aspect.

[Damien Haas]

Yeah, very much so.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

And because you have people who don't critical think, but they just feel it being wrong. So you have people pushing against like, I feel like there's two sides to it. You have people who just blindly follow. You have people who blindly go against things just because they know it's wrong. But you never have anyone. Well, you do, but like you, the sweet spot is like knowing why. Like, if you don't want to obey a rule, you should be able to say why.

[Damien Haas]

Sure.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

And that's, that's kind of the child I'm trying to build. But to answer the second half of this question, because I've drone on long enough, I think it was happier than most. I would say, you know, I had a very understanding parents. Like, if everyone's seen like the like cybersex video and saw that, like when my parents, you know, had the FBI hand me the catch me having cybersex, they were pretty understandable. They never. And I think that's why I'm actually.

[Damien Haas]

Not caught up to date on that one.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

You'll know. You'll. You'll know where to find it. You know, if you want to see the full explained version, type iffy FBI cybersex. You'll find a video me explain it. But for the gist, yeah. When I was like about 14, I went on a homework help site. It was a find your Internet girlfriend or boyfriend thread. I found my Internet girlfriend and we would have cyber sex every night. And then she disappeared one time and FBI. FBI agent showed up at my door, said that the language I was using was advanced for my age and he had to come and confirm that I was a child and not an adult. And all of the chat logs he handed to my parents. They read the chat logs.

[Damien Haas]

Oh no.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

And yeah. And like their kind of reaction to that was they kind of laughed at me. I was banned from the Internet for a little bit, but. But at the end of the day, they didn't, like, make me feel weird about it. Like, you know.

[Damien Haas]

Sure.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Both my parents have always been very open about, you know, sex and sexual things. And I think that's why it's so funny that I'm just also so open on the tl, because I feel like a lot of the, like, when you really, like, sit down and without going into detail and hearing all the weird things kids were doing because they were. There was no sex ed and they were told to practice abstinence and all the other things, I was like, you should have just did.

[Damien Haas]

You should have just told them what the thing. Yeah.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Because they're doing way weirder stuff.

[Damien Haas]

It is a bit of a compliment that they're like, we're gonna look into you because you've got really good vocabulary. That's exactly what you're using some SAT words in that. And I'm gonna make sure you're $4.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

I know. Yep.

[Damien Haas]

Well, all right.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

See?

[Damien Haas]

Yeah.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

So that's why, you know, I'm a good writer.

[Damien Haas]

I do.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

The FBI had to confirm. He's talking like a man. He talking like a man in these chats.

[Kevin]

I have one for you two that I think would be really fun for the last one for you guys to do because we're running low on time. So for each of you make three true we statements.

[Damien Haas]

The we fit was, for instance, we.

[Kevin]

Are both in this room feeling this, or we both do this, or we both do this. And this is going to be hard because you guys got to think about what you know about each other up to this point. But this is going to prove your friendships.

[Damien Haas]

We both have strong principles but are not afraid to challenge them or not afraid to confront it when challenged.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

I agree. Big, hard agree.

[Damien Haas]

See, Kevin, you said this behind. This is the easiest thing I've ever fucking done.

[D]

Sorry.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

We both enjoy having fulfilling relationships with people that might warm our hearts.

[Damien Haas]

I would agree with that. We both appreciate a good story and actually highly value a good story, especially when told through new and unconventional ways.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Oh, yeah. Yes, I highly agree. This. This. I'm gonna just take. I'm gonna take the easy freebie because we have to. And I think, you know, this is a known fact about us. We both appreciate engaging video games with deep lore that can help us escape the world.

[Damien Haas]

I agree. That's more or less what I was sort of talking about with the engaging stories. Yeah. Hell, yeah, that's perfect because we were talking about Hades before this. Oh, yeah. Okay, let's see here. We both value making others happy and have probably had to learn to focus on ourselves a little bit more sometimes.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Ooh, yeah.

[Damien Haas]

Is that right?

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, that was solid. I mean, that was kind of the realm of what I was going to say, which is we both get genuine joy and fulfillment from making others laugh.

[Damien Haas]

Ify what can I say? You've got the job.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Oh, well.

[Damien Haas]

You're gonna do this.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

We did it. We did it. I'll see you later, Shane. Pack up your bag.

[Damien Haas]

Oh, I thought you called me Shane. I was like, no, no, no, no, no. Did you not know where this interview was?

[Ify Nwadiwe]

No, I was talking to Shane to get him out of here.

[Damien Haas]

Yeah, get out of here also. Let's hang out later.

[Kevin]

Now, Damian, my final interjection for this one is at the bottom of that list. There is a final. The final thing you have to do.

[Damien Haas]

All right. Ify this is where it's going to get dope. And our podcast listeners, as opposed to watchers, are going to have just a. Just a grand old time.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Oh, yeah. Oh, I'm so excited for them. The most.

[Damien Haas]

The final step of this is to stare into each other's eyes for four minutes.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Okay.

[Damien Haas]

Four minutes is so much longer than you think.

[Kevin]

That's four minutes of silence.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Okay.

[Damien Haas]

And.

[Kevin]

And I mean, I'm going to be here, so for our listeners, I'll give a little bit of like, what's happening? I'm not going to give complete play by play. Are you guys ready? Do you. I've minute set on the phone. Okay, so when you're ready, I will start it.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

All right. Okay, Ready?

[Kevin]

Look each other in the eyes. And here we go. Four minutes. This is how you guys become friends. Starting now.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Okay.

[Damien Haas]

Can we blink?

[Kevin]

You may blink.

[Damien Haas]

Okay.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Okay.

[D]

So right now, they're both looking closely in each other's eyes. They're nodding their face heads. They're trying really hard, and they're doing so well. Yes.

[Kevin]

You can see.

[D]

You can feel their souls connecting. There's an aura in the room. For the listeners, we are at one minute so far. Oh. If he is propped, his hand on his chin, Damien just blinked for the first time. The silence is both deafening and permeating. And now for the listeners, we are just about halfway through this. Guys, this is beautiful. You can see their friendship just building off of this. You can feel the presence. If he rubs his chin so deep in thought, Damian might actually be dead. It's hard to tell. And ladies and gentlemen, we have one minute left. One minute of pure friendship. Who will these two emerge as afterwards? Who will they become? Will they be stronger? Will they be friends? And here we go. We are approaching our 10 second mark. 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.

[Kevin]

The four minutes is up, you two.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Wow.

[Damien Haas]

You're my best friend now.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, yeah, I feel it. I feel the energy.

[Damien Haas]

That was nice.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, yeah. Imagine if we transferred bodies after that.

[Damien Haas]

But I mean, you know what's funny? Funny is midway through your glasses, they're very like perfectly round and I saw. And they've got like a strong outline. So with your eyeball like smack in the middle of it. I sort of just saw it as like a singular like a beholder from like dnd. It was just like, like in my mind and also becoming friends.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Oh, yeah, I know, it was. It was interesting. I. This is when I realized you can't look into both eyes at the same.

[Damien Haas]

That's true. And I didn't flick back and forth. Yeah, I didn't do the Sally feel. Like, like, if you ever see her in a scene with a close up, she's just like constantly flicking back and forth.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Look, I'm trying to see both of them.

[Damien Haas]

No, can't do it. I really enjoyed it. I. I think. I. I don't know. I think the Smosh audience knows a lot about me already, so I was more interested in getting to know you and learning about you. And I guess that's not so fair to you because I didn't, you know, But I. I'm glad that we got to focus on a lot because I learned a lot about you and that, that felt really nice. And it's, it's more than the like, so any siblings. It's like how close and warm is your family? So I like that it' I've done those questions before and I dig it. I think it's a cool thing to do if anyone's interested in looking those up. It's 36 questions to fall in love. But I think it was great. How did you feel it?

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, I felt good. So I agree with you. It was. Those are more rich questions than you would normally have with small talk. Yeah, I'm definitely going to have to steal that for dating.

[Damien Haas]

No, totally.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

But I'm going to just sprinkle them in out of order so they can. So they won't be on them.

[Damien Haas]

Like, it's. You should just lead with like. Do you want to just like look at each other for like four Minutes really know what we're getting into here.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, yeah. I just gotta stare at you.

[Damien Haas]

Just gotta stare at you. She's like texting her friend underneath, like, please call me and say that it's an emergency and you have to go.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Hey, you're looking down at your phone and not into my eyes.

[Damien Haas]

No, I'm not too. Well, that was delightful.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Ify.

[Damien Haas]

Thanks for doing that. We do have one more question or one more segment. And. And that's called Shoot Dude.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Shoot Dude. Shoot Dude.

[Damien Haas]

Shoot Dude.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Shoot Dude.

[Damien Haas]

Shoot Dude. Shoot Dude. Shoot Shoot Dude. Shoot Dude. Okay, so we just played the jingle. So this is called Shoot Dude. Ify for those of you at home that don't know and you're new to this, thanks so much for being here. We appreciate you. So a shoot dude is a moment where it's sort of like an aw man. Like it's a cringe, like, I can't believe that happened moment. And so we can. We're just going to read this out because they're submitted by viewers and if you want to submit your, your own, it's shoot [e-mail]. that's S H o o t D o o [e-mail]. and I'm usually the curmudgeon. I'm usually like, this sounds like bs. You got this off of wattpad and you're like, yeah, but let's see here. So this one comes to us from Crystal.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

All right, Crystal, let's see.

[Damien Haas]

I tend to speak quickly when I'm excited and or busy, which means that I don't always get what I mean to say outright. A few years ago, I was working retail during the holiday season and was pretty busy in the register. I was checking out a couple who happened to be two women. And once the transaction was over, I meant to say, have a great day, guys. But it came out as have a great gay. They just laughed out laughed and said, we will. What do you think Ify is that a shoot dude moment?

[Ify Nwadiwe]

I mean, I think you brightened up their day with that mistake.

[Damien Haas]

I kind of feel like that too. The fact that they were like, we will is just like, we see what. What happened.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah.

[Damien Haas]

And it's funny.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah.

[Damien Haas]

I don't know if that for me is a shoot dude.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, that's not a shoot dude. That's a you, you, you. You brightened up their day. You know, you did okay. You did okay.

[Damien Haas]

Now if your mindset is anything like mine, that's going to be the thing that like at 3:30 in the morning, you just sit bolt up, right? And you're like, no, the thing I said in fourth grade. Yeah. It's. That happens all the time.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Oh, yeah. I. I will. I will be trying to go to sleep and think of the reason. Think of the reason that it didn't work out between me and my high school girlfriend and things I could have done better.

[Damien Haas]

It' Yeah, I did.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

I did. It was my fault.

[Damien Haas]

Yeah.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Was my fault.

[Kevin]

You guys ever done that before? Like them, where you mix up your words and you say something that you completely didn't mean to say?

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Totally. I talk super fast, so, like, anytime, especially if I'm getting excited and the excitement rises. No. So I definitely can relate.

[Damien Haas]

I think my problem comes from not necessarily the thing happening, because we can all relate to that that's happened. You should be like, I'm so sorry. I meant to say this. Anyway, I'm the one that goes like, I'm so sorry. I meant to say this and not because it would have been weird if I said. And it's not because you're like this. I meant because it's. And I, like, over explain it. And then I pause too much. It just. That's. That's the moment. That's the problem.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

They wouldn't have said we will if it was you. They'd be like, where's your manager?

[Damien Haas]

Yeah. Like, we will be talking to corporate about how to ruin your life. Ify. This has been lovely. If people are just like, man, I need some more iffy in my life. Where on the gosh dang earth can they find you?

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Oh, well, you could just go to Iffy Widey Way on Twitter and Instagram. And some of you smoshers. Is that. Is that what we'll call the audience? Smosher Smoshi.

[Damien Haas]

Is that. Is that canon?

[Kevin]

Sure, why not?

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Some of you smoshers have slid into my chat on. On. On Twitch, and that's fd, so come see. You know. Yeah, we raised money this past week for the bail project. I was shooting for 5,000, unsure if I could do that, and we raised $12,000.

[Damien Haas]

Good Lord, man. Congratulations.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

That's awesome. Actually. $12,000. $12,008.69.

[Damien Haas]

LOL.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Because that's what Chet wanted.

[Damien Haas]

Yeah, I remember. I did a. I, too, did a charity for the bail project. Not recently. It was like. It was maybe a couple. A few months ago. And I got plenty of 420 donations and $6.90.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Oh, yeah.

[Damien Haas]

I'm like, y'all are hilarious. Keep up a good work, work. Thank you.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

There were. There were people doing math to try and get the sense to line up. Because at first, before we ended it, it was like at $11,969.69. But someone wanted to make it a clear cut. 12,000 did it. And then after the stream, someone went.

[Damien Haas]

And added 69 cents. That's hilarious. Well, thanks so much, Ify. I appreciate your time. I feel like I legitimately feel closer to, you know.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah, I know. Same.

[Damien Haas]

And thanks so much, y'all. This has been a smosh cast. Hey, you know, you can listen to us wherever you choose to listen to a podcast, but when you do, please rate us five stars. That would be very helpful. It helps us get the podcast out to others and have them see and enjoy this. Thanks so much for sticking around. And you, you have a good day, you silly sillies. Big old smash sillies.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Yeah. Goodbye specifically to Shane.

[Damien Haas]

Goodbye, Shane.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

Out of Damien's life.

[Damien Haas]

Hey, man, this has been fun, but you've been recast.

[Ify Nwadiwe]

See ya. Bye, all Iffy reboot.