EPISODE 50: The Best Man There Ever Was

Summary

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Strangers on a Bench – Episode 50: "The Best Man There Ever Was"

Host: Tom Rosenthal
Date: August 25, 2025

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Episode Overview

In this special 50th episode of Strangers on a Bench, Tom Rosenthal continues his journey through London’s parks, striking up spontaneous, open-hearted conversations with anonymous strangers sharing a bench. Today’s episode features a deeply reflective, engaging encounter with a man whose life journey takes us from The Gambia to Bristol, from kitchens to calisthenics parks, from masculine ideals to the longing for artistic freedom. Their conversation, filled with humor, candor, and astute observations, centers around identity, belonging, growth, creativity, and the ever-elusive “perfect day.”

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Opening and The Nature of Openness

• Tom breaks the ice with his usual gentle approach, asking about favorite days of the week and quickly establishing trust and a playful tone.
• The guest expresses reservations about asking intimate questions within his family—especially about his birth. (00:31–01:37)

  B: "It feels a little bit intimate as well...I've never had the urge to inquire about my birth in particular."

2. Migration, Identity, and “Home”

• The guest is originally from The Gambia but moved to Bristol at age nine after periods of living apart from his mother and siblings, who had already emigrated.
  (02:33–04:36)
• Considers The Gambia a “motherland” to visit someday, but sees Bristol as home:

  B: “It’s not a place I perceive as my home...I consider Bristol to be my home. I’ve been here most of my life.” (03:06)

3. Accepting Life’s Mysteries and Being Present

• Not especially curious about reasons behind family migrations or life’s big questions, the guest is content to accept events as they come.
• Candidly describes his “average Thursday,” blending humor about “debauchery” with calm, ordinary routines. (05:23–07:13)

4. Routines, Self-Improvement, and Physicality

• Details a morning ritual of side-sleeping, “talking to himself” in the shower as a form of self-encouragement, and a shift to a healthier diet.
• Honest about former “sugary” habits and recent changes prompted by self-reflection and observing others:

  B: “I realized that I consume a lot more sugar than most people...now I’ve gotten it down to one sugar.” (08:03–08:15)

• Loves the discipline and community at an outdoor calisthenics gym, noting the pros and cons of social interactions there—including quirky conspiracy theorists. (09:03–17:44)

5. Body Image, Societal Perceptions, and Compliments

• Discusses the benefits of physical strength in work and daily life and how it affects social perceptions:

  B: "The world responds positively when you're big and strong.” (12:12)

• Talks openly about steering clear of vanity and “addiction” to self-improvement:

  B: “You don't want to focus heavily on this one endeavor where it eventually just taints your perception of the world...got to check myself.” (13:33)

6. Work, Creativity, and the Many Sides of Being a Chef

• Balances a physically demanding job as a chef with his fitness—and laments how chefs rarely cook “reasonable” meals for themselves. (20:02–20:13)
• Shares the camaraderie and sometimes chaos found in kitchens, with vivid stories of both teamwork and the lowest points (notably, a stressful shift with a volatile sous chef).

  B: “You constantly, in every kitchen, be chasing the perfect, great kitchen that you were in previously.” (22:30)

7. Passions Beyond Work: Art, Acting, Dancing

• Yearns to pursue art (especially driftwood sculpture), acting, and dance professionally, but struggles with the practicality of abandoning stable chef work.

  B: “I desire stability in my life. It scares me to give that up for certain uncertain endeavors.” (46:08)

• Tom offers thoughtful, encouraging advice on giving passions a fair try:

  A: “You can always return [to stability]...I think at a certain point of youth, you get a few free shots.” (46:14–47:15)

8. Masculinity, Friendship, and “The Best Man”

• The guest articulates the social pressure to be “the best man there ever was,” admiring the rare, uncompetitive male friendships that allow for vulnerability and authentic connection.

  B: “I guess expectation to be the best man there ever was, like, that's always a thing.” (28:09)
  A: “I think you just totally smashed that—the expectations of the best man that ever was.” (28:29)

• Favorite men? Two close friends, celebrated for their lack of competitiveness and genuine goodwill.

9. Romance, Trust Issues, and the Storage Room of Love

• Transparently shares that romance is “on pause” while striving for financial freedom and personal growth:

  B: “I've put romance on pause…in the deep dark corners of the cave, chained away.” (30:19–30:25)

• Has never felt true “in love,” possibly due to trust issues and self-protective instincts.

  B: “Maybe I just don’t trust people enough to reach that state.” (35:24–36:15)

10. Humor & Memorable Moments

• A riotous tale of boiling (read: exploding) eggs in a microwave, proving that even experienced chefs aren’t immune to kitchen disaster. (48:31–51:26)

  B: “Turns out if you put whole eggs in a pot of water and stick them in the microwave, you cause...Expl.” (50:55)

• Playful back-and-forth about bad picnics, council taxes, and tree-climbing adds levity throughout.

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Notable Quotes & Moments with Timestamps

• On belonging:

  “I get a sense of like a motherland that I will eventually return to...but I consider Bristol to be my home.” (03:06)

• On body and compliments:

  “That's probably the best compliment I've ever received, actually.” (12:53)

• On masculinity:

  “Expectation to be the best man there ever was…that’s always a thing.” (28:09)

• On adult friendship:

  “It’s so nice…they’re just really good people and it’s shockingly hard to find, actually.” (29:39–29:58)

• On romance and trust:

  “Maybe I just don’t trust people enough to hold a state like that.” (35:24–36:15)

• On creative risk:

  A: “You can always go back to stability...you build up enough money to give yourself a shot at something…” (46:22–47:15)

• On mistakes in the kitchen:

  “I blew up a microwave. Being open, honest about your egg catastrophe.” (51:26)

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Important Segment Timestamps

• [02:34] The Gambia, family migration, and definitions of home
• [09:03] Outdoor calisthenics gym community—encounters & social lessons
• [12:53] Compliments, body image, and “how big is too big?”
• [21:42] “The opposite also exists”—kitchen lows, the sous chef meltdown story
• [28:09–29:58] The societal expectations on men & rare, uncompetitive male friendships
• [30:19–36:15] Romance put “in storage,” trust, love, and personal shields
• [48:31–51:26] Exploding eggs and the hazards of chefly innovation
• [46:08–47:15] Tom’s encouragement: risking stability for dreams

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Conclusion & Final Reflections

The episode closes as Tom and his guest bask in the randomness and beauty of connection (“I’ve never met anyone like you...I didn’t think you were out there.” [54:09–54:27]), sharing gratitude for an unexpected, revealing conversation. The guest leaves us with poetic, spontaneous lines about open windows, self-affirmation, driftwood carving, and the joy of childlike play. The enduring themes are community, courage to risk for passion, unguarded friendship, and the search for meaning amid life's steady, sometimes stubborn routines.

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Episode “In a Nutshell”:

A gentle, funny, and oft-profound exploration of identity, passion, and the meaning of being “the best man”—delivered one bench, one Thursday at a time.

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Transcript

[A]

Hello. Sorry to bother you. Can I ask you a slightly odd question? I'm making a podcast called Strangers on a Bench, where essentially I talk to people I don't know on benches for 10 or 15 minutes. Are you up for that? Do you want to give it a. Is there a day of the week.

[B]

That you favor above all the others?

[A]

Yes.

[B]

Ah, Thursdays are quite nice.

[A]

There we go.

[B]

Not just because I was born on a Thursday, but because.

[A]

Oh, born on a Thursday.

[B]

Yeah, that's one reason, I suppose, but just because it just. It always seems like a nice day when I think back on it. More so than most other days.

[A]

What do you know about your birth?

[B]

I was told it happened at 4am and my mom was very annoyed.

[A]

Well, because it was.

[B]

It was in the middle of the night. Yeah.

[A]

Or she wanted just to get a normal night's sleep.

[B]

Yeah. Just to get through it. But besides that, I don't know much else about my birth, to be honest.

[A]

Could you ask? Could you ask?

[B]

No. No. Actually, I've never had the urge to inquire about my birth in particular.

[A]

Oh, really?

[B]

I suppose it's in the back of my mind. It feels a little bit intimate as well.

[A]

Yeah. I mean, you were there and you were being born, so it's kind of fair that you would ask.

[B]

It's not like, maybe later today when I see her, it would be the day as well.

[A]

Oh, you're seeing her later? Yeah, yeah. Oh, that's nice.

[B]

Yeah, we look at it, so it's quite convenient.

[A]

Have you always lived together?

[B]

Yeah, yeah. Actually, no. There was a time where her and my brothers were here in this country, and I was still back home with my dad and my other family as well.

[A]

Other family? You got two families?

[B]

As in, like, extended family? Okay, so in. In my country, we have, like, a big communal area that we have, like, the extended family living together in like, a, I don't know, gated housing thing. So essentially I was just living with, like, my dad and, like, cousins and all that stuff, and my mum and my two older brothers moved over here long before I did.

[A]

I see.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

What is this country?

[B]

The Gambia. Very thin, tiny country on the west of Africa. It's, like, surrounded by, like, a slightly bigger country.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Senegal, which. Which is essentially the same. Two countries split apart by colonialism and all that stuff.

[A]

What does the Gambia mean to you?

[B]

What do you mean by that?

[A]

I mean, so is it. Were you born there?

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Yeah. So. I mean, so. But, like, you know, when you think about it, do you consider it Home? Do you consider it favorably? Do you. I mean, do you have any. What do you feel about it?

[B]

I get a sense of like a motherland that I will eventually return to. It's not a home or it's not a place I perceive as my home. More so just like a location where my history is that I might want to visit at some point, just to take that in. But I mean, I consider Bristol to be my home. I've been here most of my life.

[A]

That makes sense. How does one get from the Gambia to Bristol? As in, how did that all happen?

[B]

I was what, nine years old when I came here. My mum and my two older brothers were already settled down here for a long time. I would come and visit every now and then and then I would go back again. Repeated a few times where I was like, why am I the only one that's always having to go back while my brothers and mom are staying here? So I guess from what my mum says on like my final visit, like I was complaining and shouting and like being very annoying about it and saying I refuse to go away and stuff like that. And eventually my dad was like, okay, let's make some plans to properly have you move here. I mean, to me right now it does sound unfair. Why are my brothers here and my mom here when I always have to return back home and all that stuff.

[A]

But did you figure that why that happened?

[B]

No, not entirely. Actually. I'm not a very curious person now.

[A]

That we just don't know why we don't have any.

[B]

I just accept it as it is, but I've never actually consciously thought of.

[A]

Does that mean you're just a very accepting person?

[B]

I suppose so. I mean, here I am, sat on a bench or something, proof I'm.

[A]

Proof the fact you said you're the first person ever to say yes to me. I often ask people, once they tell me their favorite day of the week, how they like to ideally spend that day. So in view, Thursday, what is a great Thursday for you spent on the earth? Within reason.

[B]

Okay. No debauchery or anything?

[A]

Well, debauchery, funny. Debauchery first.

[B]

That is my average Thursday. Actually. I wake up 6am straight to debauchery.

[A]

Straight into debauch mode. Okay, so Thursday, what we talking?

[B]

Time.

[A]

You're waking up.

[B]

I mean lately I've been waking up a lot earlier than I used to back in the day and I love it. So I would preferably wake up around seven o'. Clock.

[A]

Lovely. Have you been sleeping on your back on your Side.

[B]

Oh, you want deep detail. Oh, my goodness. Okay. Usually lying on my side, on my right side slightly with the window right there. So, like, I would preferably wake up when, like, the light is getting too strong. Naturally, organically, no alarms around and stuff like that. And. Yeah. Get up out of bed, take a quick shower, brush my teeth.

[A]

Do you sing in the shower?

[B]

Sometimes. Oh, I talk to myself in the shower.

[A]

Okay, what are we saying? Just have a good day. Have a good day.

[B]

Self motivation.

[A]

Believe.

[B]

Believe in yourself. No, I just things I would think about, but I just say them out loud.

[A]

You don't have like mantra or anything? I repeat after the shower, I will do debauchery.

[B]

Is that what you have?

[A]

I will meet someone from the Gambia today. That's what I said.

[B]

Are you from the Gambia? No.

[A]

Can you tell?

[B]

That would just kill you. If you're listening to this, he is as black as I am. All right. He's got the same accent.

[A]

Yeah. No. What was I saying? Yeah. No, I don't. Yeah, so, yeah, that's what I don't have. I don't have anything I say. Okay, so there's nothing you say. You do say something.

[B]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Just say random stuff.

[A]

Okay. We've already got a past shower. There's a lot of the day to go. We've already got stuck on what you're saying. When you come out of the shower.

[B]

Should we fast forward?

[A]

Yeah, keep going.

[B]

Faster.

[A]

Talking to yourself. Yeah, yeah.

[B]

So, yeah, I've been eating a lot more porridge lately.

[A]

Anything going on the porridge?

[B]

A bunch of grains and seeds and nuts and stuff like that. Because looking out for myself a lot more nowadays.

[A]

Oh, that's a g. Than you were.

[B]

Than I was. Yeah. A long time. What were you doing before then? What would I eat? Sweet as hell cereals. Nothing good. Some toast with chocolate all over it kind of Deal.

[A]

So it's pretty sugary.

[B]

So, yeah, extremely sugary. God, like most of my diet was just something sugary for every meal.

[A]

What was your sugar like? Moment of clarity. Did something happen? Debauchery.

[B]

That was my.

[A]

That was a debauchery.

[B]

No, it's just realizing that I've been. I consume a lot more sugar than most people usually do. Like talking to a lot more people. I realized that, oh, you don't add three spoons of sugar in your tea.

[A]

This is why it's good to talk to people.

[B]

Yeah. Now I've gotten it down to like one sugar. So I'd eat my porridge with like a cup of Tea with one sugar nowadays. Lovely. Switch on my PC, watch a couple YouTube videos.

[A]

What are we watching them?

[B]

We're watching commentary channels.

[A]

Commentary on what?

[B]

On just life. Videos that are either funny or surprising in some social way. Maybe the odd news program here and there, but nothing, nothing very intellectual. Just. Yeah, just passing the time for a bit while I'm eating. And nowadays I would go to the gym in the morning, so there's an outdoor gym in the park that's like five minutes away from me and I love it. Nice outdoor. Yeah.

[A]

Good on you.

[B]

It's fantastic. It's like a calisthenics gym essentially. It's got like everything you would need for like body weight exercise. It's like in this free outdoor gym. Wonderful.

[A]

Should be free.

[B]

Divine. So I just spend about an hour and a half to two hours trying to practice some exercising skills here and there, some body weight fitness skills.

[A]

And you're in whatever the weather.

[B]

Whatever the weather really like, regardless. Pouring down, rain, pour, especially pouring even more. Yeah. Try and power through it because progress in like this kind of workout endeavor relies on you having consistency to some extent.

[A]

Sure. Keep going, keep doing it.

[B]

It doesn't matter what you do or how much of what you do, as long as you just go there and do something.

[A]

What about snow?

[B]

Snow? Oh, that's Christmas period, winter time. That's when my motivation, motivation starts to wane.

[A]

So you weren't there on Christmas Day?

[B]

So I was not there on Christmas Day, unfortunately.

[A]

Disappointing.

[B]

I apologize deeply to you and the people who have come before me.

[A]

I think you're going to go Christmas Day. No.

[B]

All right, Saturday.

[A]

Well. And how are you feeling about your body now?

[B]

Oh, pretty good.

[A]

It looks good, I'm allowed to say that. Is that weird?

[B]

I appreciate it.

[A]

It looks strong.

[B]

Yes. That's cool. Thank you very much.

[A]

The right thing to say.

[B]

What's the wrong thing to say? I don't know. I don't know.

[A]

I don't know. That's a difficult question to ask. What are you looking for for a compliment about your body? If someone's compliment about your body to say good body. I mean, what. I mean, I don't know how to do it.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

What are you, what are you after?

[B]

And each person is slightly different. I mean, what am I looking for? Physical strength, Looking strong. Just a general physical strength. Yeah. Yeah. Just looking strong and being strong and doing cool things with my body, I suppose.

[A]

Yeah. Maybe this might be a weird question for you, but how do you use now that your body is good?

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

As we've established.

[B]

How do I use.

[A]

How do you use it? Not in a, in a gym setup.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

And do you feel like you want to use it more? Like, are you going around like, oh, you know, I'm gonna, I'm gonna help my neighbors move these boxes because I, you know. Yeah.

[B]

Because I'm a lot stronger than I was back in the day.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Okay. I mean I have a very slightly physical job. I work as a professional chef and that requires me to be running around constantly in a hot ass box of a kitchen. You have to lift a lot of bags of random stuff, move it here and there all the time. So that's a nice, nice boost just to be able to like not be strained physically by my job itself.

[A]

That makes a lot of sense in.

[B]

In the world as a whole. People think when you have big muscles, you're doing either important things or you're like, whatever you do is cool. I've noticed. So that's another positive, I suppose. Like the world responds positively when you're big and strong.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

That's so perceptions around.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Perceptions toward me have been leading more positively.

[A]

Also, one more compliment about your body before it gets too weird.

[B]

Okay. It never gets weird no matter how far you go. Okay. It's always positively appreciated.

[A]

Is it like, you know, some people like grotesquely muscly, y'.

[B]

Know.

[A]

That's not you. It's looks quite natural. Thank you. It looks like you might just be just a strong guy.

[B]

Okay. I was just born strong. Born strong.

[A]

Good genes. You just like, maybe you lift some stuff.

[B]

Not too. Try hard.

[A]

Exactly.

[B]

Okay. That's probably the best compliment I've ever received actually. Oh, there you go.

[A]

It'll be worth it.

[B]

That's fantastic. Yeah, I'll take that. I have actually been worrying about how big is too big.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And yeah. How far am I willing to go in this endeavor?

[A]

I think you don't want to look like from my perspective when I view anyone, I think no one wants to look like. It's like they don't have anything else better to do. Like they've gone to that point where.

[B]

It'S like it becomes their whole being.

[A]

And then you're like, oh God, that's a bit. Surely there's better applications for your time and your body probably.

[B]

It's also like a mental thing as well. You don't want to focus heavily on this one endeavor where it eventually just taints your perceptions of the world around you and yourself as well. Like you look at yourself in the mirror and you start questioning Am I big enough so I need to, like, check myself to a certain extent to make sure I don't, like, get too consumed by this possible addiction I should be developing.

[A]

Who knows, like a vanity monster or something?

[B]

Yeah, exactly. So I. I have tried to, like, control my. My attention towards certain aspects of myself. I hope I can never truly know that I have a good balance. I mean, I guess only time will tell. In general.

[A]

Do you have any. When you're outside, do you have any kind of fellow outside friends who come and do it? As in, you know, gym people?

[B]

One of the best things about having an outdoor calisthenics gym that anyone can walk into is that you meet so many different kinds of people. Yeah, you meet people and then they become regulars, and then you guys start to interact and work together and you start exchanging ideas and stuff like that. Sometimes you would go in the afternoon or the evening and you would meet other new people that you wouldn't have ever met again beforehand as well. So it's extremely social in itself. I wouldn't consider myself a very social person. I like to stick to my own stuff, mind my own business, sit on a bench of my own and just chill and read or whatever. But when I'm doing that, it's actually quite nice to see another regular. So it's actually extremely brilliant. It's wonderful. We need more places like this, more spaces like this in general.

[A]

Are there any you talked about characters you wouldn't expect. Expect to see? Can you detail one that maybe you've seen has become a regular who is quite different from you?

[B]

I can give you two vastly different characters.

[A]

Do it. Who are they?

[B]

It's crazy the kind of people you meet. I mean, of course, you would know that better than anyone else. So there's this one person, like, 30s, around my age. In general, he's the most Zen person you can ever meet in your life. Like, really chill, really accepting, really welcoming, like, extremely cool individual. You ask him a question and he's very open and welcoming and, like, answers it without any resistance or, like, holding back. And I love seeing him in general. Wonderful, wonderful guy. Contrast. A guy I met recently, about two days ago, first thing he says is, have you heard about the issues going on in, like, yada yada? Like, it's. I used to see him coming in here and there, but since I think I've become a regular or he sees me as a regular or knows me, it seems like he feels a little comfortable with the things he can say in general. So he starts to tell me about the new world order and who is controlling the globe and how as you're working out, as we're just exercising in general, and it's completely unprovoked. To this day, I'm not entirely sure what he did. What about me welcomed that kind of. That kind of information in general.

[A]

Approachable. I don't know.

[B]

So now I'm trying to figure out how I can avoid him slightly.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Like disguise that. Yeah. Wear a monocle. I don't know. And a fake mustache or something.

[A]

You could find a gym going. Conspiracy theorist who you take along with you. Who then will be. You could just dump.

[B]

He'd be anti.

[A]

Yeah. And then they could have stuff to chat about and you'd be free.

[B]

Oh, I see.

[A]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. And then you'll just be free.

[B]

Distraction. And then I'll be free to work out in peace and quiet.

[A]

Exactly.

[B]

So can't go wrong. You can't go wrong. Yeah, that's. That's the gym.

[A]

So irregardless of obviously these guys, this guy's particular views, you. You also feel like a genuine sense of community there.

[B]

Absolutely. It's the right amount of community for me.

[A]

It's right for you.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

So we've got to. What? Like what? So you finished? Only about mid morning now.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

In the day. Slow progress, but we're getting there.

[B]

It's gonna be a multi. Multi episode endeavor here.

[A]

So you finish that.

[B]

Yeah. And head home, Take a quick nap. Oh, here we go. Yeah, A cheeky quick.

[A]

Yeah, little nap. Mid morning.

[B]

Mid mid morning.

[A]

Really? What's the nap? What kind of nap? How are we napping?

[B]

Just leap in my bed. Full clothing.

[A]

Not to get any clothing off.

[B]

No, no, no. I just launch myself into bed.

[A]

When you say you launch, do you actually launch?

[B]

I steadily crawl into my bed.

[A]

I have a good friend of mine who does actually have this weird routine where he kind of does like a half flip into his bed each night. So that is like launching yourself into bed.

[B]

Yeah, that's anything but weird. That's pretty cool. Yeah, that's pretty nice. Have you seen him do it?

[A]

Here's the thing. We eventually got it out of him that he does this. Me and another friend of his, we've been asking for a video.

[B]

Oh.

[A]

And he's never sent one.

[B]

Okay. Sad ties.

[A]

So maybe he just, you know, he's just a bit. He. Maybe he regrets telling us.

[B]

It's a personal thing.

[A]

Yeah, exactly. It's a personal flip that he does.

[B]

Into that the outside world is a nice ritual.

[A]

It's A nice ritual. But then you don't. You simply just crawl.

[B]

Yeah, I simply crawl. I might begin launching myself. Now that I think about it. There's nothing stopping me, I suppose.

[A]

No, there isn't. You've just been to the gym, so I suppose it's not very nap tastic, is it?

[B]

Like the big launch.

[A]

But I mean, it might over excite you. You know, you start bouncing on the bed.

[B]

It might interrupt my sweet nap.

[A]

Yeah, exactly.

[B]

And then I have my lunch. Usually it's like some kind of protein heavy carb heavy kind of egg sandwich with, I don't know, either egg or sardine or whatever else I have going on. Fantastic. Around.

[A]

And you're a chef, so that should be no problem for you to sort a lunch out.

[B]

That's one of the other particularities about being a chef. Like you rarely cook anything reasonable for yourself.

[A]

What are chefs like?

[B]

Extremely varied. Emphasis on the extreme. Right. Like. Like you would never. Like you would understand. Actually, I have to remember that you've spoken to a hundred plus strangers.

[A]

I did actually speak to a chef the other day.

[B]

Really?

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

What did he say about his experiences in general? That's interesting.

[A]

Yeah. What did he say about his experiences? He told a story about how someone had pissed him off because they said he wasn't putting enough leaves in the salad. And that really made him cross. That was a big story. And we kind of. We kind of went into that a bit. Yeah. He sounded. Well, he made it sound like he. From what I learned from him, the shared collective work brought quite a lot of meaning to his life. You know, the doing stuff together.

[B]

There are definitely moments in the industry where you feel like you're in the zone. Togetherness. I don't know how to describe it.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

There have been kitchens where I would love to return to, where I reached a point with like the other chefs where we can just smash out a busy chef together. Like we'd read, one of us would read the ticket and we just start flowing, timing things together by like seeing what someone's working on and like synchronizing our actions throughout the entire process. Like it feels brilliant when, when you're in touch with the other people in the kitchen. But the opposite also exists.

[A]

Sure.

[B]

Very heavily.

[A]

Yeah. Like I can all go really badly wrong just.

[B]

Or just being in an environment with people who don't give. Can you swear?

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Who don't give a single shit about what they're doing. Like you. Your mind will explode. Trying to rationalize the actions of certain people and how they Manage to enter an environment where they're serving human beings. It's, it's. You can go from, like, the best, the highest of highs to like the extreme lows of, like, what the fuck is this person doing here? It's such a wild ride. It's such an extremely wild ride. And you will constantly, in every kitchen you work in, be chasing the perfect, great kitchen that you were in previously.

[A]

That long time ago, like a romance or something.

[B]

I vividly remember the people I was working with and the size of the kitchen and the menu that we were doing. So, yeah, to a certain extent, I can understand that. Chef's.

[A]

For you. What was the occasion where you feel like it's gone most badly wrong to just catastrophic traffic?

[B]

Okay, there was about, I don't know, a few years ago, I was working in like a pub kitchen. It was just me and my sous chef around November, like one of our busiest periods leading up to Christmas period. Like, for some reason we were just left on our own in that kitchen. Now, you don't meet many mentally stable people in this industry. A lot of people have their issues, good and bad, here and there. But my sous chef had, like, tendencies like strange bouts of unusual behavior and mental states. You never know how he was. And on this day, he was the worst I had ever seen him. Saturday, busy as fuck, Tickets coming in left and right, non stop. Every time a ticket would come in, he'd start shouting, fuck this shit. Why are we here? Crazed stuff. And it's like, oh, only the beginning of the day as well. Like, it's like 12 and we're just. The tickets are starting to come in. It's not even like the peak of the business. He's just already lost it. Like, he would try and like open. Open the fridge to grab something and if it doesn't close properly, he'd start smashing as hard as possible, denting that shit completely. But for some reason, every time I tell him to chill, go and step outside and control yourself, he say, no, grab the next ticket and start shouting again. Like, I don't know how we got through that day.

[A]

It was just you and him.

[B]

It was just me and him on that entire shift. I didn't even know what to do. Like, what did you do? Carry on to this day, I don't know what I could have done because I had never experienced something like that. I have never experienced something like that since. And I have no idea what the best thing to do is in a situation like that.

[A]

I mean, is there anything you would have done in the fullness of time now, thinking about it, like you would have wanted to do differently.

[B]

Oh, my God. I. I don't. I don't. I don't like to walk. Walk away, even if it's, like, completely shit. I don't like to, like, just give up and just disappear and dip out.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

So I. I probably would have just stuck it out again.

[A]

I love that. Having had many years to consider it, I've decided after exactly the same thing.

[B]

Oh, my God. I mean, as kind away as I could be to myself, I want to say I did the best I could in that situation, and at least I didn't walk away.

[A]

Do you want to be a chef forever?

[B]

It's one of my passions. Absolutely. Yeah.

[A]

What are the others?

[B]

I like creating art. I like dancing. I like acting. Yeah, that would be cool. Yeah. Yeah.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

Yeah, it's all coming out now in terms of, like, desires and passion. I'd love to, like, be paid to create art. That would be cool.

[A]

Yeah. What's your art like?

[B]

Sculptural.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

I lean towards cultural stuff, like using wood in certain ways. Oh, wonderful. I love working with driftwood, Piecing it together or carving it.

[A]

What kind of structures we talking about?

[B]

I mean, it just organic structures, human structures here and there, just figures and stuff. I love creating. Yeah.

[A]

So that's just something you've done in the past, or something you just do casually?

[B]

Yeah. Last year I did, like, an International Men's Day improvised show with, like, 16 other men.

[A]

Why so many men?

[B]

International Men's Day.

[A]

What Said International men. I'm just confused about what International Men's Day is.

[B]

Oh, a day to celebrate men in general.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Oh, okay.

[B]

Yeah. Like International Women's Day. You know that.

[A]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I didn't think we had a Men's Day.

[B]

Yeah, well, that's. That's one of the. That's one of the things.

[A]

And one of the things. And to celebrate. Celebrate with 16 other men, you did some improvisation?

[B]

Yeah, we did, like, a improvised theater show about men. Just. Yeah, about men and our experiences.

[A]

How do you feel about being a man?

[B]

I don't know any other experiences.

[A]

Would you like to be a woman?

[B]

I feel pretty good.

[A]

If you could be one for, like, a day, would you do that?

[B]

Yeah, sure. For a day. I'd definitely love to experience it. Would I permanently want to be a woman? No, I don't think so.

[A]

What are the challenges facing men? Men for you and how you personally.

[B]

Respond to any of those that separate men from women? I guess expectation to be the best man there ever was, like, that's always a thing.

[A]

I think he might have just absolutely nailed it. The whole of men there. I think you've actually just totally smashed that expectations of the best man that ever was.

[B]

Absolutely. You have to like, rise above everyone.

[A]

You're like the men of the men of the men to have been.

[B]

Be the one. Yeah. Be the chosen one. Be the king Arthur. Be the one to pull the sword.

[A]

So where are you ranking now in your men?

[B]

In my men hierarchy of all the men that ever were and ever will be.

[A]

Top 10.

[B]

Top 10. It's gonna go top five, actually. What are you trying to say? I'm doing all right. I'm doing all right.

[A]

Who is your favorite man? That isn't you.

[B]

Oh, my favorite man. That isn't me. Yeah, I've got two.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

Yeah, come.

[A]

Let's do it.

[B]

Yeah. I've got Seth and James. Those are my good friends. Really cool, really decent, wonderful people.

[A]

Yeah. And what makes these men good for you? I mean, what.

[B]

I guess I don't feel any sense of, like, competitiveness with them. I can just.

[A]

Just be you.

[B]

Yeah. If they hear a positive thing about me, they don't feel a sense of like, jealousy or envy or whatever and they can just be happy. Like it's. It's so nice. They're just really good people and it's. It's shockingly hard to find, actually.

[A]

Really good point. Finding a good man.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Is genuinely really hard. A great man, even. You know, like, it's absolutely rare.

[B]

Absolutely. Like one. One you don't feel like you have to prove yourself to or compete against in general.

[A]

And are you in love currently? How do you do romance right now?

[B]

I've put romance on pause.

[A]

Oh, in a storage room.

[B]

Yeah. In the deep dark corners in the cave. Back chained away. Yeah.

[A]

Why?

[B]

I just want to focus on getting my own place and being financially free. Both seeming extremely elusive, difficult, especially the second one. Financial freedom is like nigh impossible nowadays. But that's why everything and everyone feels like they want to take your money from you. So it's. Yeah, it's kind of hard to hold on.

[A]

It's capitalism, baby.

[B]

I suppose so. It's so hard to hold on. It just feels like the moment you make a certain little amount of money, there's something you have to pay for somewhere for some reason.

[A]

Yeah. That's how they get you.

[B]

That's always God.

[A]

And what's the most ridiculous bit of money you part ways with? Do you think I sound like you're a financial advisor now.

[B]

The most ridiculous.

[A]

Like, is it like, oh, I can't believe I give 20 pounds a month for water.

[B]

I mean, council tax is one thing.

[A]

To go in, but they are taking the bins away.

[B]

Yeah, for what?

[A]

Your gym. They do that.

[B]

There's screws missing every day. I don't know where the money's going, honestly. One great example. I would love to be able to do this. Just sit on a day like this, nice and hot in a park, chill and relax and not have any, like, mental burdens. Sure. Financially, you don't have to think about.

[A]

Council tax on the top of a hill.

[B]

Yeah, that's the dream, baby.

[A]

My only dream. Be on a hill and not think about council tax. One day.

[B]

One day. And that's impossible. What was that saying? The. The only permanent things in life. Oh.

[A]

Like death and taxes.

[B]

Death and taxes. So it's. Imagine the council coming up to my grave, come on, knocking on it, we know you're not dead.

[A]

So you parked the romance.

[B]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's like, on pause.

[A]

What if you. I mean, doesn't romance work in mysterious ways, though? What if you see.

[B]

Saw.

[A]

You saw someone?

[B]

No, I don't think that's.

[A]

What do you mean? You mean you just don't. You don't think you could see someone.

[B]

And want to talk to them? Oh, of course. Yeah, of course. Like, you see someone you think looks nice. Yeah.

[A]

Do you go up to people? Do you. Are you a. Yeah.

[B]

I mean, I don't believe in, like, love at first sight.

[A]

Or do you believe it?

[B]

I think I believe in talking to people that you're attracted to and seeing what happens.

[A]

Makes a lot of sense. It's not as catchy as love at first sight, though.

[B]

True, true. But it's probably a lot more effective, I would argue. Yeah, yeah, that's. That's. I don't think I've ever been in love, so I don't think.

[A]

Oh, really? Never?

[B]

No, I don't think so.

[A]

Is that. Is that a failing of them or you or neither.

[B]

Which is unlike that. I don't know.

[A]

Or is it because you put it in the.

[B]

In the storage room, I suppose.

[A]

Can't be in love in the storage room. That's a good slogan.

[B]

I think that's just a random line. I don't know what meaning to derive from it. No, I think. I don't know what love feels like. I've definitely felt attraction to people, but I don't know whether that's love or not. What is love?

[A]

Yeah. Well, I mean, it's a many layered beast and multiple.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And it's most. It's many colors, as I've been told.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

I mean, I think personally, it is being seen, you know, it's being really, like, completely understood. In my opinion, that's roughly where it sits. Yeah. I mean, what do you think you haven't, you know, when you say you have been in love, like, what do you.

[B]

What's.

[A]

What's been missing from the things you've experienced?

[B]

Yeah. I have no idea. I'm not sure what I've been imagining as love actually being seen. Sounds quite nice. Very nice.

[A]

I mean, this is a slightly difficult question to answer, but do you think you are doing anything to prevent it? Obviously, at the moment you're literally, you know, you're putting it away, but do you think on the whole you're doing anything to kind of shield yourself from any of that? Do you think there's any part of you which is stopping yourself somehow?

[B]

Ooh.

[A]

Well, that's a bit. That's a heavy question, isn't it?

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

I couldn't have asked that one at the start.

[B]

We couldn't. First one, we could have started off.

[A]

In terms of shielding yourself from love.

[B]

Is there anything I'm doing that's preventing me? Maybe I just don't trust people enough to reach that. That state. Yeah. Because I imagine it as like equal exchange of something. I don't know. So I don't believe it. If it might manifest or I don't see it if it might be there. I generally just. Yeah, maybe I just don't trust people enough to hold a state like that.

[A]

So maybe that's the next quest. Once you've, you know, you've got your council tax sorted, you run down the hill and be like, I'm free.

[B]

First woman.

[A]

I thought you are. My, my love. That's it. It's done. And there isn't any rush.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

One, you know, unless you just forget you know what you're doing.

[B]

I don't think I'll ever forget women, to be honest.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

That's good.

[A]

That's good.

[B]

Practically. Yeah. Impossible.

[A]

The ice cube van's gone. This is it.

[B]

I wonder how much they're charging for their ice creams nowadays. It's.

[A]

You know what? I can tell you because I bought one earlier.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Do you want to guess?

[B]

No longer. 79p.

[A]

Correct.

[B]

Cheaper somehow.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

Maybe that's what the council are directing their funding to.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Ice cream vans. Ooh. Let's say one cone for 150.

[A]

So far away.

[B]

Really?

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

I don't want to know anymore, actually.

[A]

I've gone up my speed for Life. If it's 160, then you're out. I mean, so much more than that.

[B]

Oh, really?

[A]

Yeah. £2 50? Yeah.

[B]

Oh, they added a 50 to that?

[A]

Maybe you should get an ice cream van. Maybe this is the future.

[B]

Maybe that's my financial freedom.

[A]

Yeah, maybe you don't need to be a chef.

[B]

He likes this big van. Extort children.

[A]

Exactly. Hundred pounds, you know, See that? Is that a child about to fall out of that tree? Oh, and the little tiny one's supposed to catch her. That's not gonna work.

[B]

Oh, God. Is she trying to catch her?

[A]

Is she trying to catch her?

[B]

Or is she just.

[A]

Where's the parrot? It's the classic, like, where's the parrots?

[B]

Yeah. I think she's still trying to climb up, so maybe she knows what she's doing.

[A]

Okay. She doesn't entirely know.

[B]

Her head is like.

[A]

It's not the best show. I mean, it's not a showcase of how to tie retreat.

[B]

I would say definitely not.

[A]

It's like leaning hat on the other little kid trying to chuck up a cuddly toy. Which, again, is not. Not a showcase for how to interact with someone in a tree. That's tree you climbed.

[B]

Oh. Oh, God. Wait. I can't even remember when was the last time I climbed the street. Wow. When was the last time you climbed the tree?

[A]

Yeah, probably. Oh, there's a parrot. There we go.

[B]

They saw enough.

[A]

They saw enough. That was it.

[B]

That demonstration wasn't very convincing.

[A]

Yeah, they were like, you know what? Oh, no, this is another story. There's the cuddly toys going down. Rolling down the hill.

[B]

Is she even trying?

[A]

Is she gonna get it? I know. She's enjoying it. She's enjoying it. That's lovely. That's very sweet.

[B]

Beautiful. No, I can't. Can't remember the last time I climbed a tree. That's disappointing. Maybe straight after this, I actually consciously thought I should probably climb a tree very soon, and I can chuck a cuddly toy on. Sounds like a plan.

[A]

And everyone would think we're really wearing it. What's been the hardest day of your life? Apart from that sous chef moment.

[B]

Oh, that's definitely top 10 there. But. Oh. Oh, that's. Oh, no, we're gonna go one down because I can't talk about it.

[A]

Oh, what do you mean?

[B]

I don't.

[A]

I can't talk about the hardest one.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

What do you mean? You can't talk about it.

[B]

It just hit my. It just too hard. Yeah. I mean.

[A]

Oh, no. Now we're gonna wonder what it was. So you did think about the hardest one.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And now you don't want to think.

[B]

And now I'm like talking myself down the ledge.

[A]

Oh, can we have a little bit of a hint? You're saying noises out. The noises are making me intrigued.

[B]

It's the level of like I haven't processed it enough.

[A]

Go on.

[B]

We've come this far, we have this journey. Oh, God.

[A]

I won't press you. Maybe just say what it is. I won't ask any follow up questions. Is that a good deal? Bad deal.

[B]

Oh, it was. In a relationship.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Yeah. Extremely messy. Yeah, yeah.

[A]

Brilliant.

[B]

Yeah, you're welcome. That's it. There you go.

[A]

Can I just. Can I throw some stuff out there?

[B]

Oh my goodness.

[A]

Can I start guessing that maybe that's a bit weird?

[B]

Ooh, sure. Sure. Hit me with like one guess.

[A]

Oh, just one. Two.

[B]

Oh, two. Yeah.

[A]

TV out the window?

[B]

No, no, nothing physically.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

No, definitely not.

[A]

Shouting in the street. Street argument?

[B]

No, no, nothing. Nothing.

[A]

So maybe it's not that bad.

[B]

Come on, it's a walk down the park.

[A]

So this difficult day, there's no TV out window, there's no shouting, like nothing outward. It was just painful loud.

[B]

Just. Yeah, yeah.

[A]

There was some kind of.

[B]

You had your two. We're going to close the book there.

[A]

Can I go? Three wishes, adultery.

[B]

Nah. Oh my God.

[A]

But anyway, I don't think would have missed here. Wasn't it wasn't just a bad picnic or something? The picnic was so bad. Have you ever had a bad picnic?

[B]

A bad picnic? I mean, I think a bad picnic is just a picnic without a good selection of foods and stuff.

[A]

Yeah, fair. What is a good selection of food for a picnic?

[B]

Oh, like biscuits and stuff.

[A]

There's the chef.

[B]

As a proprietor.

[A]

Like what you want is a meal of biscuits.

[B]

Ideally some hobnobs.

[A]

Yeah, just like 20 Hobnobs will do it. And then you've got a superb meal for your biscuit.

[B]

You're set for life. There you go. You've heard it here. All right.

[A]

Other than thought of a good coffee table book.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

This is the coffee table book I want to make at some point in my life.

[B]

Okay. Actually, well.

[A]

Well, yeah, I'd say yes. Why not?

[B]

We're theory crafting it now.

[A]

Yeah, no, no, but I mean it's. Yeah, it's been in my head.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

So it hasn't come out yet. So you could be the. You could be the. You could be the recipient of the idea.

[B]

All right.

[A]

The first recipient of the idea.

[B]

All right. I'll be here with all the.

[A]

So you know when you're like just coming into a park.

[B]

Yeah. Yeah.

[A]

And you know, imagine like imagine someone set up a pitney blanket which does happen, like right next to the exit, like by, you know, almost by the road.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

You know, like kind of really bad spot.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

Right.

[B]

Okay, I can see that.

[A]

And there's a coffee table book of bad, really bad picnic spots. You know, they're just not in a.

[B]

Good spot, like a genuinely good picnic, but in like the worst places.

[A]

Yeah. Like a serious picnic. Like people taking picnics seriously. But like not in, you know, you'd be buying out in the shop. I mean it's called Bad Picnic.

[B]

I would look at the front cover. I would.

[A]

If it was a good one. What you would consider.

[B]

It's not the kind of book I would buy. But I would encourage you to pursue your.

[A]

Thank you so much for encouraging my.

[B]

Dream desires you have in life. Thank you.

[A]

Is there anything you need to be encouraged to do? Can I give you any encouragement for anything.

[B]

Ooh.

[A]

Apart from getting out of that storage cupboard. Love wise.

[B]

That, that I will eventually get out of the storage cupboard for sure. It's just not the top priority. Anything I need encouragement for? I, I don't know. I. I don't know. I, I like to think I have a very practical mindset in general about life.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And, and the things we can actually practically achieve. So I, I tend to lean away from throwing it all away and trying to like become an actor like that. Like I lean more toward just practically having a steady job and pursuing these things on the side if I need to. So if I were to need encouragement, maybe it's like give up my practical mind and just risk it all.

[A]

Well, I can give you encouragement to do that.

[B]

Encourage me to give up the practical side of myself and just dive in, into my artistic desires. And I desire stability in my life.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

And it scares me to give that up.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

On certain uncertain endeavors and stuff.

[A]

I would say. So let's play devil's advocate. I mean the other side. Sorry.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

I would say one, you got to do these things when you're got energy and you're young.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

I believe you can always go back to stability. Like you're not going to be, you know, you're not going to suddenly lose your ability to be a chef. So you can always return.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

I think at a Certain point of youth, you know, you get a few free shots. Like, it's like not, you know, your people weren't looking at you and go, oh, he's absolutely massive mad. You know, if you do it when you're 47, which is still fine, you know, people are like, oh, you know, if crisis or whatever, you know, now it wouldn't be a crisis. You'd be like, okay, just to do it. I think okay is my thinking. And also I would say you build up enough money to give yourself a shot at something, you say, look, I'm going to try this for six months. And at the end of six months, I don't have enough breakthroughs. I have enough windows. But at least then at the end of six months, you know, you know what? I try really hard for that six months. And now I know, and I can just go back to being a chef and not. Not much has been lost, but at least, you know, you've given it a good bash.

[B]

Hey, I like that so much.

[A]

Okay, so that's what I say to encourage you on the encouraging side.

[B]

You're very good at encouraging.

[A]

I try my best. God, it's worth a go. I mean, like, you know, it's a very short and pointless life, this life. It's so weird. Yeah, it is a bit dreamy. Yeah, absolutely.

[B]

Absolutely.

[A]

And I feel like if you've got it in you, it should be. You need to. Need to try.

[B]

Yeah. Yeah. Sometimes, Yeah. I do get, like, a weird. There's like a sense deep in the back of my mind of, like, it all just do it. Like there's that constant, constant feeling.

[A]

Well, if it's constant, I think maybe it needs to be attended to at some point.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Otherwise. Otherwise it kind of. It eats, doesn't it?

[B]

Yeah. I just imagined everyone. Everyone had that, and it's just about controlling it. Yeah.

[A]

Something to ponder.

[B]

Yeah. Yeah. Holy. Okay. Holy shit.

[A]

Still happening. Still happening. Have you ever had a fun experience with an egg?

[B]

Oh, my God. Oh, my God.

[A]

What do you mean, what's happened?

[B]

This probably the most embarrassing situation as a chef I have ever had hit me. Embarrassing, but fun.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

I look at it fondly.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

In the kitchen that I loved deeply.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

When I was, like, early morning on my own, and I had to prep a bunch of boiled eggs and have them ready. Now I was rushing around, running around, trying to prep everything else around me. So I had this one bright idea. Brilliant idea. I thought, let me just save myself some time. I can boil the eggs in the microwave easy. So I Grabbed a plastic pot of water, filled it up all the way. Then I plopped in, like, three whole eggs, stuck them in the microwave, and shut the door, set it for about five minutes or something like that, and just, yeah, let them go. So I go downstairs to carry on with whatever I was doing, smashing out as best as possible, and I'm feeling good about myself. Suddenly, I randomly hear a loud explosion upstairs. My heart sinks because I immediately knew I'd fucked up. I didn't know how or in which.

[A]

Way, but I could tell you were connected to.

[B]

Yeah, I was in some way connected to that sound. So I run upstairs, look over at the microwave. Like, the. The screen, the front thing is, like, shattered, and there's, like, milky white water just dripping out of it completely. The mess of my pot of eggs is just sat there on, like, the shattered circle thing inside. Messed up the entire morning for me. Wasted so much time trying to clear that shit up. Turns out if you put whole eggs in a pot of water and stuck them in the microwave, you cause. Expl. But to this day, I have avoided mentioning that in its entirety because it's. Yeah, it's. It's just so.

[A]

Browsing eggs or it's.

[B]

How. How is that even possible? I've microwaved eggs before.

[A]

Like, there are just maybe too many eggs in there. Is that thing.

[B]

No, it's just. I don't know. I've never, like, researched it in any meaningful sense. Maybe one of the listeners could do an experiment for us. Like.

[A]

Try this at home.

[B]

Try this at home. Tell me what. You're confused.

[A]

Massive explosion.

[B]

Get a pot of water. Yeah. Yeah. That's my egg situation.

[A]

Respect.

[B]

Yeah. I blew up a microwave.

[A]

Being open. Honest about your egg catastrophe. Well, we've reached the end now. It's time for the last question. We only got about lunchtime, by the way.

[B]

True.

[A]

There you go. And that's life. Sometimes it's cut short.

[B]

Never finished my perfect day.

[A]

Sometimes you never get to finish a day.

[B]

I was gonna head toward the hookers and cocaine, to be honest.

[A]

The vault Drew was coming.

[B]

It was like five minutes daily Thursday.

[A]

It was right around the corner.

[B]

Right there.

[A]

We got so close.

[B]

Sad times.

[A]

Sad times. Yeah. So final question. In that girl still chasing after thing down the hill. She's loving that game.

[B]

Maybe she's found a meaning to life with that game.

[A]

I think it is. We should be doing that. We should be cuddly, toy out. Chuck it down a hill.

[B]

Just.

[A]

And I do roly poly.

[B]

The book I'm reading, like, mentions how children have, like, discovered the essence of life. Like they have it and then they just eventually lose it at some point. That's the way.

[A]

That was all us. That was us. But you doing your acting things, I mean, that's you. That's that.

[B]

Yeah. Gripping that.

[A]

The essence of life. The essence of you.

[B]

That's right.

[A]

Anyway, sorry, Baxter's last question. What are you going to do next? Is the question.

[B]

Listen to your other podcasts.

[A]

That's very sweet of you. Just straight off, it's home now. I'm just like, binge, binge, binge. Next one, next one, next one. Call into work. No, I can't go into work.

[B]

Very curious.

[A]

Finish the podcast.

[B]

I gotta let him know who else he talks to.

[A]

Yeah, I should go. Done.

[B]

I'm extremely curious.

[A]

Wouldn't it be amazing? You go, and it doesn't exist.

[B]

Oh, my God.

[A]

Imagine your heart thinking like, oh, my.

[B]

God, who is this?

[A]

What the hell happened? What has happened? It's one and only time that he chose me and it doesn't exist. And that's it. It doesn't exist.

[B]

Just walk away. For the rest of my life, I'll be wondering what that encounter was all about. He sounded so wise and he sounded so engaging. Oh, my goodness. What happened? All right.

[A]

I look to old people. Come out the hill. Oh, it's all people o'.

[B]

Clock.

[A]

They're shipping them in. They're shipping.

[B]

The sun is going down and they're approaching.

[A]

This is your future direct path.

[B]

They carry me away. One of them, essentially. I mean, I already talked to myself, so why not join the crew?

[A]

Exactly, yeah.

[B]

Wow. This is. I've never met anyone like you.

[A]

Well, I've never met anyone like you. And that's the beauty. That's the beauty of me, you know? That's it.

[B]

This is mind boggling. This is legitimately mind boggling because I never imagined someone doing this.

[A]

There you go.

[B]

I didn't think you were out there.

[A]

He was out there. He was out there. Well, there we go. Well, it's been an absolute pleasure. Yeah, Very nice to meet you.

[B]

Tom. Yeah.

[A]

Tom. You don't say it. Don't say it. Don't say your name.

[B]

Okay. Yeah, Pleasure.

[A]

You're just person x.

[B]

Wonderful. Thank you so much. Nice one, mate. This is.

[A]

What a day.

[B]

Honestly. Unexpected.

[A]

What a life.

[B]

Wow. I was literally just gonna chill here, read my book and then head home.

[A]

Oh, and now this.

[B]

And now this. Wow. Okay. Get up earlier than I used to Sleep on my right side Feel the open window Speak the day alive. I am talking to myself Lifting weights with time affirmations helping me get by.

[A]

Counsel tasks Take a nap boy.

[B]

Make a mess I have never been in love before But I sure have tried finally carving driftwood Climb trees like a child so friendly me dancing with the biggest smile Let me love through making.

[A]

Thursday most days Try Thursday.