324: Jim Florentine's Journey to Fatherhood—Inspired by a Legless Veteran

Summary

Podcast Summary: The HoneyDew with Ryan Sickler

Episode Title: 324: Jim Florentine's Journey to Fatherhood—Inspired by a Legless Veteran
Release Date: March 10, 2025
Host: Ryan Sickler
Guest: Jim Florentine

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Introduction and Guest Welcome [00:00 - 02:04]

Ryan Sickler kicks off the episode with announcements about his upcoming comedy specials and Patreon support. He warmly welcomes returning guest Jim Florentine, expressing gratitude for his continuous support and enthusiasm.

Ryan Sickler [00:00]: "Welcome back to the Honeydew, y'all."

Jim Florentine on Aging and Comedy [02:04 - 04:28]

The conversation begins with Jim revealing his age—60—and discussing his feelings about aging. Ryan humorously reacts to the news, highlighting Jim's youthful appearance. They delve into the challenges of approaching 60, with Jim reflecting on previous rough ages like 40 and 50.

Jim Florentine [02:06]: "Yeah, it's a rough age, man."

Ryan Sickler [03:14]: "Seinfeld made a good point. He said that comedians are like 25. If you're 42 minus at 25 years, and that's basically what you are."

The Turning Point: Inspiration from Legless Veterans [04:28 - 06:17]

Jim shares a pivotal moment that changed his perspective on fatherhood. During visits to Walter Reed Hospital, interacting with legless veterans who prioritized family over their disabilities inspired him to reconsider his stance on having children.

Jim Florentine [06:17]: "Every one of them saying, hey, man, I don't care that I got no legs. I got my beautiful kids right here. My wife. That's all that matters."

Ryan Sickler [06:21]: "That took legless veterans. I think I want to be a dad."

Deciding to Become a Father at 46 [06:17 - 07:13]

Despite previously not wanting children due to his demanding comedy career, Jim decides to pursue fatherhood at 46. He discusses the internal conflict and societal expectations, ultimately choosing to prioritize family over career advancements.

Jim Florentine [07:09]: "I need to make sure this kid is raised right if we're going through a divorce."

Marriage, Divorce, and Co-Parenting [07:13 - 19:18]

Jim recounts his relationship timeline, marrying his partner shortly after their son's birth and later divorcing due to infidelity on the ex-wife's part. They navigate co-parenting amicably, ensuring their son receives balanced support from both parents. Jim emphasizes the importance of being present for his son, even if it means sacrificing certain career opportunities.

Jim Florentine [13:31]: "This is more important as a kid, 100%."

Ryan Sickler [18:10]: "It's good to hear that you two can just even be here, supporting without conflict."

Adjusting to Single Parenthood [19:18 - 27:31]

Transitioning to a single dad, Jim discusses the challenges of balancing a comedy career with parenting responsibilities. He shares strategies for establishing routines, such as waking up early, preparing meals, assisting with homework, and ensuring his son maintains a healthy lifestyle. The emotional toll of missing out on certain events is acknowledged, but Jim prioritizes his son's well-being above all else.

Jim Florentine [16:18]: "It's brutal. It's real."

Ryan Sickler [27:04]: "You missed so many things. But you're right, being present is what matters."

Parenting Strategies and Financial Planning [27:31 - 36:20]

Jim highlights his proactive approach to parenting, including setting up a college fund, maintaining financial stability, and teaching his son essential life skills like video editing and sports marketing. He emphasizes the importance of not living beyond one's means to ensure his son can pursue his passions without financial burdens.

Jim Florentine [32:22]: "I don't live an extravagant lifestyle. I drive a used Honda Accord. I make sure money's for him."

Ryan Sickler [35:20]: "Video editing is a great skill that pays well."

Navigating Life Changes and Building Stability [36:20 - 43:20]

Reflecting on personal growth, Jim discusses the impact of his son's birth during the pandemic, which fostered a stronger bond between them. He underscores the significance of maintaining stability through consistent schooling and friendships, despite past challenges during his own upbringing.

Jim Florentine [40:27]: "That time we spent together was amazing. If I didn't have my son, I didn't know what I'd be doing right now."

Future Concerns and Legacy Planning [43:20 - 52:18]

Jim shares his concerns about the future, including the aging process and ensuring his son’s well-being long-term. He talks about legal preparations like living wills and trusts, and the importance of being healthy to stay present for his son’s upbringing. The conversation touches on the complexities of fatherhood at an older age and the potential challenges his son might face independently.

Jim Florentine [44:00]: "I want to be healthy. I want to make sure I want to be there for him."

Ryan Sickler [46:09]: "At 41, when I have my kids, I already feel like I'm the old dad sometimes."

Advice and Reflections on Parenting [52:18 - 55:11]

Jim provides heartfelt advice to his son, emphasizing the importance of financial responsibility, resisting peer pressure, and maintaining strong familial relationships. He recounts personal experiences to illustrate the challenges of balancing career ambitions with family commitments.

Jim Florentine [55:03]: "If I didn't have a kid, I'd probably live somewhere else. I stayed on the East Coast to ensure stability."

Ryan Sickler [55:11]: "Nonsense."

Closing Remarks and Promotions [55:13 - End]

The episode concludes with Jim promoting his latest projects, including his comedy special "You Can't Please Them All" on Amazon Prime and his podcast "Everybody is Awful." Ryan thanks Jim for his candid insights and regular contributions to the show.

Jim Florentine [55:50]: "My new comedy special, you can't please them all."

Ryan Sickler [55:57]: "Thank you as always, Ryan Sickler on all social media. We'll talk to you all next week."

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Key Takeaways

• Inspiration from Adversity: Jim's interactions with legless veterans at Walter Reed Hospital inspired him to prioritize family over his demanding comedy career.

• Balancing Career and Parenthood: Transitioning to single fatherhood required significant adjustments in Jim's daily routines and career commitments to ensure his son's well-being.

• Amicable Co-Parenting: Despite divorce, Jim and his ex-wife maintain a supportive co-parenting relationship, setting a positive example for their son.

• Financial Prudence: Emphasizing financial stability, Jim ensures his son is set up for future success without the burden of debt.

• Future Planning: Jim is proactive in planning for his and his son's future, addressing concerns about aging, legal arrangements, and his son's independent life.

• Parental Advice: Both Ryan and Jim stress the importance of guiding children with practical advice and setting realistic expectations for their futures.

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Notable Quotes

• Jim Florentine [06:17]: "Every one of them saying, hey, man, I don't care that I got no legs. I got my beautiful kids right here. My wife. That's all that matters."

• Ryan Sickler [03:14]: "Seinfeld made a good point. He said that comedians are like 25. If you're 42 minus at 25 years, and that's basically what you are."

• Jim Florentine [32:22]: "I don't live an extravagant lifestyle. I drive a used Honda Accord. I make sure money's for him."

• Ford Florentine [40:27]: "That time we spent together was amazing. If I didn't have my son, I didn't know what I'd be doing right now."

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This episode offers a profound exploration of Jim Florentine's personal journey to fatherhood, the sacrifices tied to his career, and the unwavering commitment he holds towards ensuring a stable and nurturing environment for his son. Through candid dialogue, Jim provides valuable insights into balancing personal aspirations with familial responsibilities.

Transcript

[Ryan Sickler]

I'm headed back to Zany's in Nashville. Friday, March 28, and Saturday, March 29, Madison, Wisconsin. I'm excited to announce I'm shooting my next special at your club, Comedy on State. I was there not too long ago, had such a great time, such a great club, that I'm excited to work with them and bring you my next special. Two shows Saturday, April 12th. Get your tickets [e-mail] the Honeydew with Ryan Sickler. Welcome back to the Honeydew, y'all. We're over here doing it in the night Pan Studios. I am Ryan Sickler thanking you for watching this show and supporting this show for all these years. And you know what? Whatever you do that supports anything I do. Thank you very much. I don't care what it is. Thank you. All right. This is one of my favorite things to do in life right here. And if you got to have more, then you got to have the Patreon. It's called the Honeydew with y'all. I tell you about it every week. It is this show with y'all, and it is the wildest show on Patreon. It's five bucks a month. If you or anyone you know has a story that has to be heard, submit it to honeydewpodcastmail.com if you sent it before, send it again, bump it to the top. We get a lot of them. We'd love to do an episode with you. We also have a $3 additional $3 tier. It's 8 bucks. All right? And on that tier, you get the way back a day early, ad free, nothing censored. And bonus content on that tier, not just extra stuff a day early, all right? You get bonus content there that you're not getting anywhere else. All right? That's the biz. You guys know what we do here? We highlight the low lights. I always say these are the stories behind the storytellers. And I'm very excited to have this guest back on the Honeydew. Ladies and gentlemen, Jim Florentine. Welcome back to the Honeydew, buddy.

[Jim Florentine]

It's always good to see you, man.

[Ryan Sickler]

You too, dude. You got good energy. You look good.

[Jim Florentine]

Thank you.

[Ryan Sickler]

How old are you now?

[Jim Florentine]

60.

[Ryan Sickler]

Are you really?

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

Get the out of here. You're 60, dude.

[Jim Florentine]

It's a rough age, man.

[Ryan Sickler]

Well, it doesn't look like it.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah, it's just, you know, I. I gotta get that. I gotta get past that, you know, 40 was rough. Like, man. 40.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah, because 40. Hold on, let's pause this for a second. Promote. Promote everything you want to promote.

[Jim Florentine]

Jim florentine.com. i got a podcast called Everybody is Awful. Comes out every Monday. I got a book called Everybody is Awful. It's out there. And. Yeah, that's it.

[Ryan Sickler]

Special.

[Jim Florentine]

My comedy special. You can't please them all. It's on Amazon Prime. I got three or four specials up there you can catch up there. And dates.

[Ryan Sickler]

Where can they go to see dates?

[Jim Florentine]

Jim florenting.com for my tour dates. And. Yeah, that's it. I'm out there. You could find me.

[Ryan Sickler]

I think going back to what you were saying, like, you know, when you were a kid, 40 sounded like 200. You know what I mean? And then you get to be 40. You're like, I mean, I'm 50, about to be 52 in March, and I still feel like, I don't know my 20s, you know what I mean? My knees and my back don't agree, you know, but my mind is still like, nah, we're still right there where we were like, no, we ate.

[Jim Florentine]

Seinfeld made a good point. He said that comedians are like 25. If you're 42 minus at 25 years, and that's basically what you are.

[Ryan Sickler]

That's interesting.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah, pretty much. Like, when I was 45, I'm like, okay, yeah, I'm. I'm. What is it? I don't even. I can't even do. Yeah, something like that. Yeah. So I'm really 60.

[Ryan Sickler]

45 minus 25.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah, I'm at 35.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah. I don't. I don't feel it or anything like that, but it's just 50 was rough too. Like, man. But when you get 60, I. Because this is a weird one, because I think by the time you hit 70, it's over. So it's like, all right, I'm. You know, I got maybe a few years left. This is it. But 60 is like, damn, I'm close.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. 50 for me was just rough because I'm just getting out of the hospital and I'm still just all banged up. And that's how I turned 50.

[Jim Florentine]

Wow.

[Ryan Sickler]

So then I became like, after that, I was like, you know what? 50 wasn't anymore. I'm just glad, you know what I mean? Give me 51. Yeah, give me the one no one gives a about. I'll take 51. You know what? I'm 53. Give me that one.

[Jim Florentine]

The 50s is fine. Like, once you hit 50, the whole 50s, that decade is easy until you're creeping up on 60. And then you're like, God damn.

[Ryan Sickler]

So you're 60. And how old is your. You have a son?

[Jim Florentine]

My son's 14.

[Ryan Sickler]

14. Okay, so you had him older? Yeah, like myself. All right, so let's talk about that, because you're. You were single. How. How old were you when you had your son?

[Jim Florentine]

I was 46.

[Ryan Sickler]

46. Okay.

[Jim Florentine]

And it's weird because I never wanted a kid for some reason. I come from a big family. Seven kids. Most of my brothers and sisters were all married. You know, kids and all that stuff. And for. I don't know, for me, as a comic, I always thought it would get in the way. I was just so focused on my career, I go, I can't have a kid and live in the suburbs. Then my career is going to be over. You know, I need to be out there every night doing this. I got to. I got to compete with everybody else, stay up with everybody else, how many sets they're doing. And I real. I really considered, like, you know, my late 30s are getting a vasectomy. I go, I just don't even wanted the idea of having a kid. And thank God I didn't do that. And then it came around, like, I hit 40, 42, 43. And I'm like, you know, okay, yeah, I'm still good. And then I went. It's weird because I went to Walter Reed Hospital to visit the. The guys there.

[Ryan Sickler]

The veterans.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah, the veterans. I got a pass to go do it. And every guy that I went, and first of all, half them, they had no idea who I was, which is hilarious. Like, who's this guy? Crank anchors? I think so. What was that? Yeah, I think I remember that. Howard Stern. Oh, I. Yeah, I never realist. Okay, yes, send them in. Which is weird, but whatever. But all of them just said, hey, man, the living. Two limbs missing. It's all about my family. It's my kid. He's got a picture of his wife and his kids. There he goes.

[Ryan Sickler]

That's right. That's the. That's the through line you're getting from every one of these guys.

[Jim Florentine]

Every one of them saying, hey, man, I don't care that I got no legs. I got my beautiful kids right here. My wife. That's all that matters. And that's when it hit me. It took me the go there to hit me, and I was like, man, that's what I need.

[Ryan Sickler]

That took legless veterans. I think I want to be a dad.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah. I'm like, man, I'm like, these guys, they're not miserable. Like, I'd be miserable. I'm like, what am I going to do?

[Ryan Sickler]

You're like, I'm going be out in the suburbs. They're like, I wish I had my legs. Like, all right. You know, I'm seeing things differently.

[Jim Florentine]

All I'd be thinking is, like, how am I going to get to the stage with no legs? You know what I mean?

[Ryan Sickler]

Y'all 88 compliant here.

[Jim Florentine]

I know. It's like. And I. Some of these gigs. Some of these gigs I do are shitty, then that's not gonna make an exception for me, you know? I'm like, what am I gonna do? That's what I'd be thinking.

[Ryan Sickler]

That's interesting. Yeah. So that really was like a. A shift for you, where you were like, huh?

[Jim Florentine]

That's really what it was. Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

So then, do you actively start to go find someone to have a child with, or were you already with someone where you were like, hey, you know what? I. You may have been wanting to. I wasn't. But now I. I do. Like, what was.

[Jim Florentine]

No, it was. I was with somebody that wasn't. Didn't want to have kids, was older.

[Ryan Sickler]

And I was like, you both were on it originally. The don't want to have kids page.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah. And then I realized I need to get out of this relationship and find somebody because I'm running out of time, you know?

[Ryan Sickler]

And then it's interesting. You're the man running out of time, because it's usually the lady. Yeah. Talking about how I'm getting older and.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah. And. And then I found somebody, and it happened quick, and, you know, we had a baby. He was born on my birthday. Nah, you share a month early on my birthday.

[Ryan Sickler]

You share a birthday with your son?

[Jim Florentine]

Yep.

[Ryan Sickler]

That's crazy.

[Jim Florentine]

A month early, two weeks premature.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah. No way.

[Jim Florentine]

Amazing.

[Ryan Sickler]

Is that. I mean, I guess for us as dads, that's pretty awesome. How does he feel about it? Okay.

[Jim Florentine]

It has nothing to do with me. I'm good. I'm like. Because I don't even like the birthday. I'm like, I never celebrate it, so I'm. It. It's your birthday, not mine.

[Ryan Sickler]

That's cool.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah, don't worry about that now.

[Ryan Sickler]

You got a reason to celebrate, though, too. Yeah, yeah.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah. So on that day. Yeah, on that day, you know, And. Yeah. I mean, I'm like, this is kind of. And then, meanwhile, you know, come to it. He's 14 now. He likes the same sports teams as me, same same music, same movies, same TV shows. He's like, having a Best friend. It's perfect. You know what I mean? Everything, you know, so it's. It's having a little buddy there constantly.

[Ryan Sickler]

So were you married when you had a kid or.

[Jim Florentine]

No, we weren't married yet. So, you know, I. You know, we got. She got pregnant. I say, well, you know, let's get married a couple years later. Look, you don't want to get married while you're pregnant. We'll have the baby and we'll do it. So he was about two and a half years old when we got married.

[Ryan Sickler]

Okay.

[Jim Florentine]

Somewhere around there. So we'll do the wedding later. It's no big deal.

[Ryan Sickler]

And then how long were you together before you split?

[Jim Florentine]

A total between about five years.

[Ryan Sickler]

Okay.

[Jim Florentine]

I. Two and a half years in a marriage. It ended.

[Ryan Sickler]

And what happened?

[Jim Florentine]

It was infidelity.

[Ryan Sickler]

Who?

[Jim Florentine]

I mean, who do you think?

[Ryan Sickler]

I gotta ask.

[Jim Florentine]

No, I know. No, it actually wasn't me. It was the other side.

[Ryan Sickler]

Is that right?

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

Oh, okay.

[Jim Florentine]

I just. Look, I just knew when I got married and, you know, committed to having the baby, I said that part of my life is over on the road, you know. You know, when I was younger. Yeah, of course, you're wild. And I didn't really go to college ago. It wasn't a dorm or anything, a frat or anything, so I never had that whole. So I was pretty wild on the road. And I was like, that part of my life is completely over, and I'm good with it. And I was. I said, look, I'm not gonna do that to the kid. I always thought. And it was always this weird thing, like, I'm sure when your daughter was younger, like, we'd be sleeping in a bedroom and he'd wake up early and he'd run down the hallway into our bedroom and jump into bed with us. I remember hearing those little feet, and. And I was like, I love hearing that. Even though I didn't want to get up, I hear those feet running in the room and he jumps in the bed with us. I was like, I can't. I don't want to ever miss that. I want that every day. I don't want that two days a week, a Sunday, and every other Tuesday. So that kept me from even thinking about doing anything on the road. I just wouldn't put myself in those situations anymore. You know? I said I had a pretty good career. Maybe not a Hall of Famer, but you know what I mean?

[Ryan Sickler]

Damn good.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah. You know, I might get a few. A few votes after five years.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah.

[Jim Florentine]

You know what I Mean, yeah, he's not. But, yeah, you know, I'll take that.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah. I'll take some All Pro Seasons.

[Jim Florentine]

Exactly. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So, yeah. And then ultimately. But then when that happened, I was like, I don't, I can't. I have to get out of this marriage.

[Ryan Sickler]

Did you try to make it work after that or right away? You were like, no, right away I.

[Jim Florentine]

Knew because I, I just, I, I, I have to have trust in a relationship, and I can't worry about that later on if something like that's going on. There's enough pressure on us as comics. Late show on a Friday someplace, you know, you got to kill. And I can't worry about what someone's doing at home. I can't have that on my mind. I have a clear mind. Going up. So, you know, you're on the road.

[Ryan Sickler]

I, so I say it all the time. Like, I, this is work. I'm working.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

You know what I mean? I'm working. I wouldn't drop a bomb like this on you at your, Right, your job. It just. This happens to be my job.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

And yes, it's gonna be fun. If I do a good job tonight, it's gonna be fun, but it doesn't mean I'm not working.

[Jim Florentine]

I know. Well, yeah, I know. No one ever considers it work. No one ever could. It's like when you put somebody on the guest list, friends and family, you know, you're going to, you're backstage, you're going to work, you're focusing, you're looking at your set, and then you're getting text. I just pulled up in the parking lot. What should I do? I don't know. Get the out of the car.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah. Where do I go?

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

Do I need an id? Like, just be a human being. Like you're going anywhere else. By the way, all you can drink is a suggestion.

[Jim Florentine]

What would you do if you didn't know me?

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah.

[Jim Florentine]

You know what I mean? Like, if you're going to see Metallic, would you try to text James Hetfield? Hey, man, I just got to the parking lot. I'm not sure what to do. Yeah, would you just drive home? So people don't consider it work because, but anyway, yeah. So I just said, you know, I, I gotta move on.

[Ryan Sickler]

But was it an amicable split? Did you know, like, on good terms at least? No, it was ugly.

[Jim Florentine]

No.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah, yeah.

[Jim Florentine]

It wasn't good.

[Ryan Sickler]

So how did you work it out?

[Jim Florentine]

Like, we just, you know, we, you know, went to a mediator, then we got a couple lawyers it was pretty over pretty quick, but it was just, you know, and then we had to figure out the time how many, you know, how many days I'm going to see him yours. And then I realized at that point I said, listen, I got to be around for this, for this kid. I can't just be an absent dad and just go on the road and do whatever. I said I need to make sure this kid is raised right if we're going to go through a divorce. It's tough on a kid. I mean my parents were married the whole time, but I just knew it would. So I had to cut back my, my schedule, you know, because I had to make sure. I said this is more important. It probably affected my career in some, you know, at some point maybe not being out there as much, but I just knew this was more important as kid, 100%, you know, later on in life needs to be raised right. Not that it wasn't she, he wasn't going to be raised right by his mom, but just that both parents were fully engaged with him, you know, So I had to cut back and I was like, this is what I got to do. This is more important as human being than going to do comedy gigs.

[Ryan Sickler]

So do you mind me asking, like, what is your, your split?

[Jim Florentine]

How do you like 50. 50. So it's perfect. I got them early in the week, my ex wife's got them later in the week and then I go work later in a week.

[Ryan Sickler]

I see.

[Jim Florentine]

So it works out perfect. We're good with it. We switch days here and all that. So we're on the same page. Yeah. So it work. It works out good 50 of the time, you know, and so let me.

[Ryan Sickler]

Talk to you about that because I know myself as a single dad. I mean it happened when my daughter was one. So I always say I'm a new dad still and, and a new single dad. Like I don't know anything.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

And I've got this little tiny girl that's one that I'm responsible for now. And then I start, you know, just future tripping about like, well, you only get 18 years. And of that 18, they probably don't remember the first two to three maybe. So now you got 15 years. And of those later years they're wanting to go do their own shit. So what do you got? About maybe 10 good years. And now that just got cut in half to five, you know, I'd start freaking out about that.

[Jim Florentine]

Right.

[Ryan Sickler]

And just wanting to be there and want, not wanting to miss any of it. You know. So how did you deal with just. No, you just said, I heard those feet coming down. I didn't want to miss that. Now you're missing half of that. How do you deal with that?

[Jim Florentine]

At first it was rough, but you.

[Ryan Sickler]

Know, he was five.

[Jim Florentine]

Five, okay, four and a half, five years old. So he was a lot easier to manage at that age. If he was one, I'd be out of my mind. I'm like, what do I do? So he's a lot more manageable at that time. He's just going into kindergarten at the time. So no, I, you know, I got a lot of family. My mom was still around at the time, all in the area, so they helped out, you know, and it's, I think it's easier for a boy. For me, For a boy, it would have been, you know, if I had a one year old daughter, I would.

[Ryan Sickler]

Be like, bro, I'm the dad taking her in the men's room and just like, sorry, everybody. Yeah, sorry guys. I need to, I need to stall guys. Yeah, that guy.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah, but I just, I figured it out. I said, this is what I got. I got to figure this stuff out. I got to be able. Now making them lunches, I'm, you know, fixing his breakfast.

[Ryan Sickler]

Let's talk about that. When, how long before you like hit that stride where you're like, all right, I got this routine and we got this now.

[Jim Florentine]

It took a while, probably six months or so, but then I realized this is the routine I got to do. I got, you know, got to make sure he's got his, you know, pack his lunch in the morning, get him on the school bus, help him with his homework afterwards, after school, all of that stuff. So get him in bed at the right time so he gets enough sleep. Get him up in the morning, you know. So all of a sudden I'm getting up at like 6:15 in the morning. Because when I was married, my wife would get up and, you know, take care of them and I'd get up at like 9 as a comic, you know. And then all of a sudden I'm up at 6:15. Is a 6:15, bro. It's brutal. It's. I said it's real. It's.

[Ryan Sickler]

I don't even like to do that to catch a flight.

[Jim Florentine]

No, I know. Yeah, I know. It's really a fact. It's still it. Now he's going to go into high school next year. They start later. So it'll be up like 7:30, but 6:50, it' it's killing my soul. 6:15.

[Ryan Sickler]

Anything with a six on? No, no, I'm. We're 7, 7:15. I couldn't do. Middle school starts earlier. And I was like, it better not. You know, I'm already getting mad about it. Like, it better not.

[Jim Florentine]

I know, because it's 6, 7 and 8 was middle school. And it's. He's, you know, an eighth right now. So I got like, till June, and then I get another. It's almost like the time change. I got an extra hour next year, and I could deal with that at 7:15, so.

[Ryan Sickler]

And are you, like. Do you live in close proximity?

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah, we're 30 minutes away.

[Ryan Sickler]

Oh, perfect.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

So even if on your day, it isn't your day, you could go see him or whatever.

[Jim Florentine]

Not really. We kind of just. That's separate, you know, when it's her time, it's her time. When it's mine, it's mine. If we have to, we'll do that. But pretty much we don't. We don't do it like that.

[Ryan Sickler]

And if necessary, you're both good with switching and being cordial with one another.

[Jim Florentine]

Yes.

[Ryan Sickler]

Are you able to be in the same. Like, do you go to sporting events together? Are you able to be there together without being ugly and all that stuff?

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah, in the beginning, it was a little awkward. There was some tension.

[Ryan Sickler]

You're laughing. Why? What happened?

[Jim Florentine]

No, you know, it's like, you know, you're like, oh, my God.

[Ryan Sickler]

But you never didn't show up just because mom was there.

[Jim Florentine]

I would. I would show up even more that she was there just to get under her skin at the beginning. But no, no, she would always show up and I would show up and we'd be cordial. Maybe sometimes we wouldn't talk. We wouldn't sit together usually, you know, because it was just, you know, a little too tense and stuff. But. And then it was fine. Now we. Now we'll sit together if we have to, you know, at some points. So it's all good. You know, it took a while to come around, though. This is 10 years now. I'm divorced.

[Ryan Sickler]

I had one of my daughter's coaches tell me. She said, I see you come to everything, and I see her mom at everything too. And she goes. I can just tell you as a kid that didn't get that. She's like, my parents hated each other so much that my dad wouldn't come to something or my mom wouldn't come to something, and I resented it. I'm telling you, as a child that grew up like that. The fact that you two can just even be here, and even if she's way over there and you're over here and you're not talking, which is basically what happens. I just mind my biz, she minds hers, but we're there supporting. She's like, it's huge, and it's everything. And I was like, that's good to hear. That's good to know.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah. No, I think I know he needs.

[Ryan Sickler]

Making it about you guys.

[Jim Florentine]

Absolutely.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah.

[Jim Florentine]

And she's good with that, and I'm good with that. We never not show up. Just because now we're at your point where. When he graduated from elementary school, we threw a party for him together. The birthday parties we throw from together and all that stuff. We work together on that. So it's come a long way.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah.

[Jim Florentine]

But it took a little while. But we always did, you know, set that hatred aside for his sporting events and show up, you know, that's all.

[Ryan Sickler]

We've always done that as well. Yeah.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

I'm gonna be there no matter what. And my. My biz and I'll shut my mouth. Yeah, right.

[Jim Florentine]

And we. There was never a scene. There was never. It was never a scene where we're yelling at each other at any of that stuff, you know, so.

[Ryan Sickler]

And then I go and I sit there, and I do see other couples doing that. And I'm like, look at us over here not doing that.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah, look at us over here not doing that.

[Jim Florentine]

But it's weird, like, where I live, like, nobody's divorced. Like, they. Like.

[Ryan Sickler]

Is that right?

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah. Every. All the marriages together, like, I'm the only. Pretty much the only one.

[Ryan Sickler]

You're. Is that right?

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

Picking a world where everyone's divorced.

[Jim Florentine]

No, they were all.

[Ryan Sickler]

Your neighborhood's all good to go, huh?

[Jim Florentine]

The whole Brooklyn and Staten island people moved in there. They married the high school sweethearts, and they just stayed. And they just stayed together and they're all. I'm like, man, nothing. This, man. There's no. There's nothing. Yeah. So I'm, like, pretty much the only one.

[Ryan Sickler]

What? At the time when you first split and you're a single dad, what was the hardest thing for you at first?

[Jim Florentine]

Well, not seeing him.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah.

[Jim Florentine]

You know, not, you know, on Thursday morning or whatever. He's with his mom till, you know, Sunday or Monday when I get him back. You know, just missing them and getting used to that. And even that, even today, it still. It still sucks, you know, that. I don't. But I had to make that decision at that point. Where, you know, I had to go, Okay? I. I can't be in a relationship like this. So I have to do this, even though it's going to affect how much I'm going to see him. And, like, I always Worry about the 18 years, too, like you were talking about before. He's 14. I got four years left, so I'm trying to spend every moment with him. You know, we have the routine every night after I cook dinner, we watch a movie or a TV series together, or sports on the weekends and stuff like that, because I know it's coming.

[Ryan Sickler]

I know. I think about it, too. Like, selfishly, I'm like, you know, stay close. Go to college close by or whatever. Close by. And then I think, what are you talking about, dude? You left Maryland, Went all the way to California. California. You can't tell her. She can't do that if she wants to.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah, I know.

[Ryan Sickler]

And then you're like, you could move to Germany. You know what I mean? I don't ever think about that. Like, oh, my God, you married somebody, moved to Germany. What? You know, then I never see you or my grandkids or anything. Like, what?

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah, I worry about that, too. I'm like, man, if he goes to Phoenix, I go, I'll fly out there to have lunch with him.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah.

[Jim Florentine]

You know what I mean? Like, so it's. Yeah, I'm worried about that. And also, what I got to worry about in a couple years is him driving and then all the other kids and getting in a car with a kid.

[Ryan Sickler]

I know. I say to my. My stepson, I went out and drove with him for a while, and I was like, look, I. You say I'm an old man all you want to, but I'm telling you, this texting, it didn't exist.

[Jim Florentine]

Right?

[Ryan Sickler]

I go, look around, look, pull up at the light. I. I see people. Nothing drives me crazier more than watching. It's always a lady, too, holding her phone, talking like this in a 2024 car that has CarPlay, where you can go hands free and talk in the car. And you're on speaker, driving and looking at it and stuff. Like, why are you doing that? Yeah, it automatically connects for you.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah, No, I know.

[Ryan Sickler]

So there's so much more out there now than there ever was. That's another reason. Like, today, motorcycle. Forget it.

[Jim Florentine]

No way.

[Ryan Sickler]

Forget it today.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah. But then also, you know, they got Uber, which is good that we didn't have. I mean, that's true. I probably was in a thousand cars where the guy was Drunk.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah.

[Jim Florentine]

And it might have been 200. I was driving. You know, I have a friend, and we figured out how many times he's drove drunk. He's 60. How we.

[Ryan Sickler]

Do the math on that?

[Jim Florentine]

Because we started when he started driving at 17. So from like 17 to 27. How many times? And then when he got married at 27. So 27 to 47 while he was married, not as much. And then. And then the last 10 years. So he's been driving 43 years. 3,216 times. No, I just had to change it to 3,217 because two weeks ago, he left my house after football. So I marked. I took. Crossed out the six and put a seven. So his wife found that about. So now she. Yeah, and his wife just got him. Finally got him the Uber app. He's like, I don't know what this thing is, but I got my wife. I got to take this. I go, I've been telling you about that for 10 years.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah, yeah. Now he's good about taking Ubers and shit.

[Jim Florentine]

He's not, but he does. But from 17 to 2070, figured out four days a week.

[Ryan Sickler]

Jesus.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah. Because that's what we do. We just get a case of beer and just hang out and drink and listen to music or do whatever, you know? So we always were doing that. So that's one thing I don't have to worry about. My son is like, he's going to have an Uber app. He's going to have an account, and he's never going to get in the car with somebody that's drunk. Which is easier said than done. I said, look, there's always going to be a hot girl that's going to offer you a pill at a party, going to tell you to get in the car and call you a pussy if you don't. And if you do listen to where you might get in her pants, you have to somehow resist that. It's going to be tough. It's going to be really tough.

[Ryan Sickler]

Really?

[Jim Florentine]

A kid with a boy with testosterone.

[Ryan Sickler]

The boner just leading them everywhere. Yeah.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah. You know, I told him I. And I had to be honest with Michael. Look, I was in a room with two strippers. They had cocaine, and they were both gonna. I was gonna be with them at the same time if I did coke.

[Ryan Sickler]

You're telling him this?

[Jim Florentine]

I did. I told him I had to because he's getting in that age. Listen, you know? And I go. And I didn't do it. They were calling me a come on, come on, we're gonna. All three of it. I go, no, I won't. I'm not doing it. And it didn't go down because of that. I said, I don't care. I go into me, that's when you know that's winning the Super Bowl. Yeah, but I didn't do it. I said, you. So you got, you're going to be in those situations. You got to just say no. It's going to be tough. You're going to be at a party. Take this pill. It's going to make you feel. Come on, we're all doing it.

[Ryan Sickler]

Four of them are dead over there and shit.

[Jim Florentine]

I told them, I said, this is your excuse. I can't do it. I went in my dad's medicine chest one time and I took one of those pills and I had to go to stomach hospital, get my stomach pumped. I was in there for three days. I can't do. I'll never go through that again. And I said, that's how you get out of it. So no one's gonna go this time. Oh, sorry.

[Ryan Sickler]

You might just save somebody actually.

[Jim Florentine]

Right. And that's what I do with, with drunks when they, when they want to offer me a shot after a comedy show. I go, nah, man, come on, man, just do one. I go, listen, I got three DWIs and I get a fourth when I go to jail for 10 years. Like, whoa, all right, so sorry, again. No problem. Believe me, I would do it, but I, I can't risk going to jail. Meanwhile, I have no DUIs, just a way to get out of it. No one's ever going, oh, come on.

[Ryan Sickler]

Just do the record up. Yeah, yeah.

[Jim Florentine]

Or they're not going to go, oh, you just can't do one. Yeah, they understand when you put it to that. So I said, this is your excuse. And we go over it in the car like once every two weeks. So I'm a girl at a party offer you or line. What do you say? I can't. I got a stomach pump. I tell all the parents. I go tell them what you're going to say. That's great. I go, yeah, you have to have that.

[Ryan Sickler]

It.

[Jim Florentine]

We've been in those situations too many times. So that's what I. But the car thing, I got to worry about in a couple years because I'm going to be up all night if he's out with his friends. I'm going to home at 1:00. I'm not going to bed.

[Ryan Sickler]

Never.

[Jim Florentine]

There's no way that's what they say.

[Ryan Sickler]

A real parent, you really never sleep. You go to sleep, but you don't really sleep.

[Jim Florentine]

But meanwhile it's very. To manage from, you know, six to now is so easy to manage, but it's once they're in that car and they're out and the parties and all that stuff, that's when you're really gonna have to wor.

[Ryan Sickler]

What. What was the hardest part about. I know you say missing him, but like just actually being a single dad for you, Was it more like adjusting your comedy schedule and work schedule to that? I'm home these nights, I'm not out now. And. And what are you doing those nights?

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah, and those are, you know, there's a lot of things going on where I have to miss because I got him. I gotta.

[Ryan Sickler]

You've also had this regulated schedule for what, 20 some years on your own where you're doing it this way and now it, all of a sudden it's switching.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah. And you know, you miss so many things. I'm like, I can't take him into New York for this thing because he has to get up to school in the morning. I can't have mouth till 11 o'clock at night, so I gotta miss this, you know, so it's tough, but, you know, it's. To me, it's more important.

[Ryan Sickler]

See, that got easier for me too. I would be like, I'm missing this, I'm not there. I miss. And then I would be like, I'm right here at my kid, though, where I'm supposed to be.

[Jim Florentine]

Right? No, that's true. But, you know, I wanted something for your career. Not that I need to, oh my God, I gotta be there. But, but something like, man, I should really should be there, but I can't, you know, But I have no choice. Like, you know, just recently Bill Burr and Shane Gillis were playing in L. A And I was going to come out a day earlier, but I couldn't because I had my kid and I couldn't. So I'm like, I'm going to miss that. Which I would have liked to be at. But, you know, you got to do it. That's way more important for me to, you know, be there, present for my kid, be around them and know that because I need, we need to set an example for him for when he gets married. I always go, I always tell him, I said, when he's over, like a friend's house, I go watch that couple that, you know, a great marriage and never putting each other down. They'll pass. Aggressive stuff. I go, that's what a marriage is. So just remember that. That's normal. You know, I always. And he knows those parents. I said, so that's the relationship you want to be in.

[Ryan Sickler]

That's good. That's really good advice. It's also good that you do have that, because I'm trying to sit here and think, like, a lot. Most of the people I know are probably not together.

[Jim Florentine]

Right.

[Ryan Sickler]

You've got good couples in your neighborhood.

[Jim Florentine]

Oh, yeah, everybody.

[Ryan Sickler]

And that's what I'm saying.

[Jim Florentine]

And there's no tension.

[Ryan Sickler]

Family.

[Jim Florentine]

There's never any tension in those marriages either, where you could tell, you know, man, this is just. They don't like each other.

[Ryan Sickler]

This one's gonna end sooner or later. Yeah.

[Jim Florentine]

So he knows that. So it's good he's got that. But, you know.

[Ryan Sickler]

And you both, you and your ex. Good about not shitting on each other around.

[Jim Florentine]

Probably not. I'm a lot better at it now. Of course, the gang came out early and stuff, so I wasn't. But now I know, you know, as he's older, he doesn't want to hear it. Yeah, I don't do it anymore. I always just say. I go, look, you got one mom and you got one dad. So just remember that.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah, I. A therapist told me one time that, you know, like, if you're on the other person, like, your child's half that person, and they could literally be like, oh, well, you don't like half of me. I was like, I never even thought.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

About that.

[Jim Florentine]

I didn't either.

[Ryan Sickler]

Like, you're. Yeah, I know you're that person, but I'm half of that and that. And you must. I was like. Like, yeah, I don't like that. So I. I've. I made sure. Even early on, like, just when she wasn't with me or when she was asleep, I'd go back and shut that door, like, you know, and go off about it then. But never in front.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah, it was. It was rough in the beginning. I was probably a little childish about it, but. No, I've gotten way better over the years, and I don't say anything anymore.

[Ryan Sickler]

And what changed?

[Jim Florentine]

I just think he just accepted it. Maybe it was, you know, it was angry, you know, so just time. Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

Instead of holding. Yeah, but that's what I'm saying. What change? Instead of holding it and still, you know. You know, those people still 14, 15 years later, like, this guy or this or whatever, and, you know, still holding on to that thing. What. What was it for you that you just were like, I, I gotta let this go.

[Jim Florentine]

I think just over time, it just did. I don't hold grudges, you know, I might for a little while, but I get along with everybody. I don't care what anybody else is doing as long as you don't fuck me over. There's nobody I'm not that I hate right now, like, and I just never, like, if something happens, whatever, you move on from it. You might be mad for a little while. So I just learned not to hold a grudge. It took a few years, you know, and then, you know, but then we worked it out. I'm like, look, I got to do this for the kids. So, you know, now my whole thing is I got to make sure that he's set up for the rest of his life. Like, I got to make sure, like, especially like a college fund. I make sure that I put money in that all the time. I don't want him to start his life in debt. That's the thing. I don't want him to take a shitty job at 23 or 24 because he has to pay all these bills and then he doesn't really want to do pursue what he really wants. I want to make sure that he doesn't, you know, have student loans for the next till he's 45 years old. Paying that off. Yeah, when I could. So I don't, I don't live an extravagant lifestyle. I never did. But I drive used a Honda Accords. I don't buy. I don't live beyond my means. I don't really buy anything, you know, and just make sure that money's for him to make sure that's, that's covered so he can figure out what he wants to do, you know, that's what my parents did for me. I only went to community college, but, you know, I had no debt coming out. I just figured it out. And even when I was making, when I first started doing comedy, it was like perfect. I wasn't, I didn't have all this debt there.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah, like $80,000 worth of debt you got to pay off for the next 50 years.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah. So I'm making sure that he's set up for that. Whatever he wants to do to me, that's really important, you know, to do that for him.

[Ryan Sickler]

Do you have living will and trust?

[Jim Florentine]

Yep.

[Ryan Sickler]

Good man. You have life insurance?

[Jim Florentine]

Yep.

[Ryan Sickler]

You, dude, you did it. All right then.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

That's it.

[Jim Florentine]

That's all.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah, yeah. Get a living will and trust. Get your life Insurance and then hope you don't cat he doesn't cash that policy.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah, I think there's some clauses in the, in the will at certain ages, you know, where you do all that stuff, but you know.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah. God forbid. You can't let a 18 year old kid have life insurance money. They're gonna piss that away.

[Jim Florentine]

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. No, there's no way. But I always tell them, you know, you know, I explain about the money, you know, you don't. I go, you're gonna have more. Any more friends if you buy the new Jordans or whatever, the Kanye sneakers. I go, people gonna. I go, I can have five Teslas in the driveway if I wanted to. Is anyone gonna like me anymore? You got to realize none of that means anything.

[Ryan Sickler]

Nothing.

[Jim Florentine]

It really doesn't, you know, so just know that you don't have to try to impress people with expensive stuff. And he's pretty. He just wears. He's like a T shirt, sweats. Same thing with me. So he's not high maintenance at all. Get him a Miami Dolphin jersey. Whoever a new good player is and that he's happy with, he's good to go. Yeah, yeah. And I like him raised like that. Where he doesn't. I go, that no one's going to care that you got the new Nikes. You know what I mean?

[Ryan Sickler]

Or that you don't. Right the other way. You know what I mean? Or that you don't. Nobody. I, I don't remember anybody. Shoes from fudgeing.

[Jim Florentine]

I don't either.

[Ryan Sickler]

See, we would get fucked up. We had Kmart back in the day and they had McGregor. That was like their line. And if you had McGregor's on, man, you were, you were probably going to get stomped.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

But now stores like Target carry Tony Hawk and you know all these popular lines where you can go there and get clothes and kids don't get clowned or, or beat up and over dumb stuff.

[Jim Florentine]

Right.

[Ryan Sickler]

I mean, they figured it out.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

Who cares if you have the new Jordans? Who cares if you have that?

[Jim Florentine]

Well, sometime, you know when you're insecure like that and you feel like you have to have a. Because some of his kids do it. But yeah, he, he's. He's getting raised like low maintenance and that's where you need to be. You pick your spots when, when you want to spend your money. That's all.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah, my daughter's into makeup and that shit's wildly expensive.

[Jim Florentine]

Right.

[Ryan Sickler]

And then she'll get an allowance and I'm like, you go in you take your allowance, spend whatever you want, I don't care. But you're not getting any more. And I'm not covering tax. You know, I teach her about tax. She's like, wait, that's $10 more. I'm like, yeah, well that's 10 on that right now. Basically out here she's like, what? She's like, that's not fair. I'm like, yeah, get, get in line with all these other people. Welcome to the show, lady. You think you got 75, you don't.

[Jim Florentine]

And now I got him. He's 14. So now I gotta, I'm starting, he's cutting the lawn. You know, I started working full time when I was 14. I had a job when I was 14, so. And then, you know, like for ninth grade, going in, there's a elective course, he could take his video editing. I said, take that, man. Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

Oh, bro.

[Jim Florentine]

And I go, take that. Because I go, what? I go, do you want to work as a busboy in a restaurant or you want to do video editing? You could do my stuff. Or I have other comics you could do if you're good at it. And so you don't have to go to be a bus.

[Ryan Sickler]

But it's a digital age now. Just have that skill and be able to. Like I say all the time, I wish I could go back in time. Well, no, I don't. It worked out for me. But either way, if I did, I wouldn't go back to college with the focus on this four year plan and this piece of paper and, and the curriculum that they set for said whatever you want to go. I would go back and diversify myself and I would take a video editing, I would take a finance class, I would take a business class. I would just try to learn a little more about, you know, business, money, editing and just be a little more well rounded instead of this, you know.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

Funneled into this one program with this thing and very focused on these and not whatever the else is going on out there.

[Jim Florentine]

Well, I found the community college that I went to. One my dad wanted me to go to finance. And he was in and out. I was like, after one semester, I can't. This is not for me. So I found a community college with communications. They had radio and tv.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah.

[Jim Florentine]

Film and feel, all this stuff. And I was like, this is part. And I excelled in that. I loved it. I was on the radio station at the, at the school there. Then I got an internship at another radio station. After two years I was already like a morning DJ at like 19 years old.

[Ryan Sickler]

Is that right?

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah. So I didn't even go. I didn't even do four years. A little small station, but I was already on a station at that point.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah.

[Jim Florentine]

But I love that once I found out what I really liked in those courses.

[Ryan Sickler]

That's what I'm saying I did. I had an AM radio show at my college in Towson. I had all those classes and courses too. And I'm saying like. But. And then everything evolved so fast. Like I was. I know you were. You were. We were cutting with a razor blade.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

Splicing tape to tape. And then two years later, it's like CDs and digital. It's like we don't even need to. I showed up on a Saturday to do that project in college. You know what I mean? And now it's just boom, boom, boom. So I was just telling a friend, like, we learned Ms. DOS and Lotus on floppy disks. And. And now it's. Every kid knows Photoshop.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

I wish. I wish I grew up. We were typing. Literally typing 101 asdf, jkl, semicolon. I still know the home row.

[Jim Florentine]

But.

[Ryan Sickler]

But I wish we had. Because we're a generation that. That didn't have it and then it did exist.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

You know what I mean? We're that hybrid. Like, I still forget sometimes I could just easily take a picture of something and have it in my phone and I don't need to take a business card or whatever, you know, like that.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

These guys, these kids today. So I agree. Like video editing, any of that stuff. Just even to know that's a great skill. That pays well.

[Jim Florentine]

I know it pays well. I go, you. You could do it from home. You could do it from marrying your mom.

[Ryan Sickler]

These days you could probably do it from your phone. You know, you really can't. And the more that evolves, he's going to be able to do it wherever he wants.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah. I go. And there's always a marker for that. Always. And I, you know, me being a comic. And then my friends. I got. My son will do it. 25 bucks a clip or whatever. No, you don't have to do that. I was a bus boy. I. The worst jobs ever, you know, and all that stuff. You know, unload and track the trailers.

[Ryan Sickler]

Where were you a bus boy?

[Jim Florentine]

A couple different restaurants this good. Just Country Grill was. I was. Right. And then I lived down in Florida. I was a busboy there. Make it 335 an hour was the minimum wage at that point. 3, 33, 35 an hour. And then I was like, all in the music. Like heavy metal. So, like, an import album was like 12 bucks. So it was four hours of pay to buy. Like Ozzy Osbourne, Blizzard of Oz. It worth it. Four hours of doing dishes. Just about an import record. But it just taught me a work ethic. And, you know, the only time I ever stopped working was during a pandemic since I was 14 years old.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah.

[Jim Florentine]

You know, and, you know, same.

[Ryan Sickler]

I've been. I've had a job since seventh grade. And during the pandemic, I really did almost lose my mind. I realized that, like, I'm not a big social person, but I'm a solo search. Like, I like to go out and be around it.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

And. Or have dinner by myself or a lunch by myself and sit and watch and observe and, you know, see how people are and things like that. And then you can't even do that in a time like that. Like, forget stand up. Stand up's great, but that's gone. But just anything. And I was like, man, I'm. I wouldn't say I'm like a social person, but I do like to go out and even if it's just take a ride by myself, go somewhere, grab something. You know what I mean? I. I'm not. I'm not better than going to a Home Depot and just strolling to look at.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

I like stuff like that.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah. Well, that one. That's when I really realized. I go, wow. If I didn't have a kid during a pandemic, I'd be out of my mind in my house, by myself, isolated, not seeing anybody. So it was just. This time we spent together was amazing.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah.

[Jim Florentine]

In those. Especially the first, like, four or five months, we're on the driveway playing basketball, which people would drive by and be yelling at us, why are you outside? It's my drive. I'd be screaming at him because I live on a busy road. I go, what are you talking about? Go inside.

[Ryan Sickler]

We were outside across the old studio, and there would be people across the street on the other sidewalk outside with masks on, yelling at us that we're outside without a mask. I'm like, you're 40ft away, bro. And we're outside. Yeah.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah. We play horse, but we call it instead of. And so. Yeah. And then we could be cranking music. We put music on and stuff. So. But just the time we spent, I was like, man, if I didn't have my son, I'd be. You know, I had friends that have no kids. They were like, man, I'm doing really bad.

[Ryan Sickler]

Is that right?

[Jim Florentine]

During that time? Yeah. But I just. That time that we spent together, that bonding was just amazing. You know, we did all these little projects. We decorated a whole room with all my stuff, posters and all that stuff he helped me with. So it was great, you know, so it's just. No, thank God. Believe me, if I didn't have a kid, I didn't know what I'd be doing right now. I probably live in somewhere else, you know, I stayed on the east coast. I made sure I'm in a good neighborhood with good schools. I knew I have to stay here till at least he's 18. It's important. I can't be moving around, you know, in different schools. I keep to certain friends. You know, I. My parents moved after sophomore year. I had all these friends. We moved down to Florida. We didn't know anybody. So junior and senior year, I was in a private Catholic school. I didn't know anybody. I had one friend for two years. It was really tough, especially in high school. The day I graduated from high school from Florida, I moved back. I hated it that much. But I made sure. I go, I need my son have a stable. Same friend, same school, same school. You know, you. I said, you. Most of these kids, you're gonna have friends. You're gonna have friends for life. I agree with these kids. I still have five guys that were over last Sunday are guys that I know since first grade. Yeah, I go to. Out of these 10, probably six are going to be your friends for life.

[Ryan Sickler]

I agree.

[Jim Florentine]

I go. And that's really important.

[Ryan Sickler]

It is.

[Jim Florentine]

It's really important.

[Ryan Sickler]

It's good that you're giving them that.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

Are your parents still alive?

[Jim Florentine]

No.

[Ryan Sickler]

Neither of them?

[Jim Florentine]

No.

[Ryan Sickler]

So he doesn't have. Does he have grandparents on his mom's side?

[Jim Florentine]

He does. They're both alive? Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

Are they in the area around? Yeah.

[Jim Florentine]

So he's close with them. They were just at his basketball game the other day. My mom was there for. Until he was about 8, I think. She passed away when he was 8. So he got to see, you know, and they had a really good, close bond and stuff.

[Ryan Sickler]

How did he deal with that?

[Jim Florentine]

It was tough for him, but kids deal with it, you know, they're on to something else right after. But he was. He was really bummed. He was really devastated over it. He was, you know, and he definitely misses her and stuff, but it's still, you know. And then our dog at the same time, like A month before. Passed away at the same time, too. So it was a lot for him at that.

[Ryan Sickler]

That is a lot.

[Jim Florentine]

I know. And now he's really close to his grandfather and his grandmother, and they're getting up there in age, so it's, you know. I know that's coming. My stuff didn't happen until I was, like, in my early 20s. All my aunts and uncles went like two or three years. It was crazy.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah. Same for one after another, after another.

[Jim Florentine]

After another ripped through them. And then my dad passed away when he was 58, so I was like, 28 at the time.

[Ryan Sickler]

Okay.

[Jim Florentine]

And that's another thing. Like, I want to be around for my son. Like, when I have my kid, I go, I got to be healthy. I got to make sure I want to be there for him. I told him, I said, listen, I'm probably going to be 80. I'm hoping. I think I'll last till 80. So you got me for 34 years. Is that enough? I don't know if I can go 85.

[Ryan Sickler]

I think about all the time. Like, if I check out at 75, right.

[Jim Florentine]

How old?

[Ryan Sickler]

That's like 25 more years. My daughter will be about 39. Like, you good with that? You're almost 40. You could handle that, right?

[Jim Florentine]

That's. I think about that constantly.

[Ryan Sickler]

You can handle that.

[Jim Florentine]

I'm like, 34. Is that good?

[Ryan Sickler]

And are you gonna have kids? Am I gonna be a grandfather? And am I gonna get to know him at all or see him or hold them at all?

[Jim Florentine]

I think, yeah. That's not gonn. I'm sure.

[Ryan Sickler]

I don't know if you make. If he could have kids at 30.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah, maybe, you know, he could.

[Ryan Sickler]

He might not wait as long as you.

[Jim Florentine]

It's funny, man, because I was just. After I got divorced, I got a vasectomy.

[Ryan Sickler]

Oh, you did go do it.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah, I was. I was 50, and I just said, I can't. I'm done. And, you know, I met somebody recently. You know, we were together for a couple years. We just recently broke up, and she. Because we. She wanted to have a baby, and I had the vasectomy so I can get it reversed. You know, we could start a family. And I was like, I want to be around for this kid. And my brother pretty much broke it down. He goes, listen. He's got logic. He goes, listen, by the time you have that baby, you're going to be 61. You'll be paying. You're going to be paying child Support when you're 79. He goes, you know, it's not going to work out, you know, Meaning on me, not her.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah.

[Jim Florentine]

Because you want to be paying child Support when you're 79. I didn't even think about.

[Ryan Sickler]

That's a great point. I never thought of that either. You're damn near 80 and still kicking out.

[Jim Florentine]

Imagine that. Because he'd be 18. He'd be 18 at that time. Maybe if he doesn't go to college, I still gotta pay. Yeah, yeah. So he's like. I go, you're right. I can. I'm not. My Social Security is not going there, but I do really want to be around. I go, I don't want to be 72 years old. My kid, my daughter's six.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah. And you can't do anything.

[Jim Florentine]

And I'm driving him around that. I got no energy and all that stuff. It's not fair to the kid.

[Ryan Sickler]

I agree.

[Jim Florentine]

It really isn't. And I realized that and we broke up. And I'm. You know, it sucks. And I said, you got to go find what you want. But, you know, that would have won. I would have got remarried, but I just couldn't do it. I said, if I would have met you in my early 40s, absolutely. Oh, I would do it, you know, but I had to let her go. Yeah, we broke up. I mean, mutual, but.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah.

[Jim Florentine]

I just couldn't do it. I couldn't. I want to be around.

[Ryan Sickler]

Well, here's the other thing, too. Like, you're older and you say maybe it could take two years to have a kid.

[Jim Florentine]

Right. Well, you know what I mean.

[Ryan Sickler]

Sometimes it just. It's funny, like, you know, if you don't want one, you're pregnant. And if you do, it's not the easiest thing. You would think it sounds so dumb because there's a gazillion people.

[Jim Florentine]

Right.

[Ryan Sickler]

But it really isn't the easiest thing to do, especially at our age. Now, if you're trying to have one older, it could take you a year before, Right?

[Jim Florentine]

And she's never had a baby before. She's never been pregnant.

[Ryan Sickler]

She might not. She might have. Have complications. You might need to take medications, all this. It could take two years to figure that out. Then you are paying child support in your AI.

[Jim Florentine]

And it was funny because I go, all right, let's just say.

[Ryan Sickler]

Great thought.

[Jim Florentine]

Imagine, like, what Joe Biden's 82. Magic. Like, yeah, I got. I got my child support.

[Ryan Sickler]

I got one more year. Guys of life or child support. You imagine dying and you didn't pay all your child support. You still owing that you're like, I didn't even make it to 18. Goddamn.

[Jim Florentine]

But I remember my ex said I, I go, all right, what if I do get the vasectomy reversed? And I. I go through all of that because it's a really tough operation.

[Ryan Sickler]

That's the other thing. It could take a while from that. I forget about the reverse.

[Jim Florentine]

Right? So I go, what if I do and I can't get you pregnant and you don't get pregnant? She goes, I'll take that in consideration. I go, oh, really?

[Ryan Sickler]

In consideration?

[Jim Florentine]

I go, go through all of that? I can't get you pregnant. You go, sorry, I gotta go. I go, go have a baby with that guy. Go. That's not fair. So it just didn't. But I, like I said, like, I look at Alec Baldwin, you know, the guy's got seven kids on the age of 10 years old. He's 68 years old.

[Ryan Sickler]

Is that right?

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah, he's got seven, seven under with the new with wife, and he's got one with Kim basinger. He's got seven kids under 10 years old, and he's 68 years old. Like, what are you doing, dude? I know you married a younger, hotter chick, you know, but you got to give her a baby. You don't have to give her seven. And what are those kids going to do? They're not going to have a dad. No, I mean, the rage that guy has in him. He's having a heart attack in three, four years.

[Ryan Sickler]

I'm surprised he's this old.

[Jim Florentine]

I know. Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

And like guys like McJagger that are doing it in their 70s or whatever, like, you might not even get five years with that kid. Might not even get to really even know who the you are.

[Jim Florentine]

I know. And it's just. I remember one of the moms I was talking. Yeah, but you're given life. Life if you have the other baby.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah, but what kind of quality.

[Jim Florentine]

I know, exactly.

[Ryan Sickler]

Giving that kid. Yeah, yeah, I'm with you on that.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah. I'm like, so, you know, I had to make that. I made. And I made the right decision getting that vest.

[Ryan Sickler]

I already feel like I'm the old enough is, you know, I already feel like I'm the old dad sometimes.

[Jim Florentine]

Right.

[Ryan Sickler]

You know, a lot of guys having kids in their 20s, 30s, whatever. I'm 41. When I have my kids, I already feel like, when she's 18, I'll be 15. I've been damn near 60 at the graduation. Yeah, that's old.

[Jim Florentine]

No, I know. And. But I just knew that I wanted to be around for him. And, you know, I wouldn't have been a good dad if I had a kid at 25, 30. 35. I would have been an awful dad. Yeah, I would have been all in my career. I'm sorry, you know, I got this over here, but I gotta go. And I had it at the right time, where I was pretty financially set, you know, my career and all that stuff. So I can take some time off and just, you know, make sure. And I got to where the point where I needed to be in comedy, you know, things happen and stuff. So I was happy with my career at that point.

[Ryan Sickler]

Do you think if you don't go to Walter Reed, you have a kid?

[Jim Florentine]

Probably not. And then today, like I said, I don't even know what I'd be doing if I didn't. But probably not. That really affected me when I saw those guys and I talked to all of them. They had the same stories.

[Ryan Sickler]

That's powerful to hear that every single one of them is like family.

[Jim Florentine]

They had the picture right there, the two kids with the wife. I'm gonna be out of here soon. Doesn't matter. I don't care. I'm missing a leg or whatever. I got my family. That's all it's about.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah.

[Jim Florentine]

He goes, that's all that. That's what I live for. This stuff is no problem. We'll figure it out.

[Ryan Sickler]

Was your dad the same type of man? Like, is that where you get this from? You said he wasn't you. They weren't divorced, but was he?

[Jim Florentine]

No, they were married 33 years. Yeah. You know, he passed away at 58 with seven. There's seven of us.

[Ryan Sickler]

There's 70.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

Wow. Okay.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah. And my dad, you know, was, you know, involved as much he could. You know, he worked my mom, stayed home. But then he would coach our sports team. So I coach my kids basketball team, you know, because I. My dad did it. I wanted to do that. So it's great, you know, coaching your own team. But, yeah, so I think I got it from him. But he was all about being a family man. It was all about family with him. Big Christmases, you know, everything, the gifts and all that. So, you know, but, you know, I was 28, so I had him for 28 years of my life. So I want my Kia. If I can make the 34 like I said, then, you know, it's about what I can do. His mom's a lot younger. Okay, obviously, so she'll be around longer than Me?

[Ryan Sickler]

Maybe.

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah, maybe. Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah. So let me ask you this. Then when he's out of the house, then what?

[Jim Florentine]

I don't know. I really. I'm worried about that. Like, for me, like, what am I gonna do?

[Ryan Sickler]

Like, if he goes to college, let's say in Arizona or something, you go out and do gigs and see him and what do you do?

[Jim Florentine]

I'll be the House MC at the Tempe Improv. Yeah, I just need 25.

[Ryan Sickler]

That's a great club, by the way.

[Jim Florentine]

I know, it's awesome.

[Ryan Sickler]

It is the house. See, I think about that too. Like, I'll just. If you're gonna go to college, maybe I'll just move there for a while. And then I'm like, who wants their dad following them around everywhere they go? No, I know. That's the other thing. You don't think about that. But that's our sentimental, not theirs. They're like, get the away. Look, can I have my own life?

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah, I know that's the thing. But, you know, maybe he goes to a college near me and maybe he still stays at home. You never know. There's Rutgers. I live near Rutgers University. So maybe he goes there. Yeah, you know, it's possible.

[Ryan Sickler]

Does he want to go to school? Do you know yet?

[Jim Florentine]

Yeah, he will. He's not sure where.

[Ryan Sickler]

What's he want to do?

[Jim Florentine]

He's not sure. He's taking a sports marketing elective course in. In high school, too.

[Ryan Sickler]

In high school. That's.

[Jim Florentine]

In high school, freshmen, they have a elective for sports marketing.

[Ryan Sickler]

So, yeah, video editing and sports marketing.

[Jim Florentine]

He's like, maybe I want to be a sports agent. I go, you got to be a dick.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah, you gotta be a real.

[Jim Florentine]

I go, he doesn't. He's not a dick.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah, you gotta be a.

[Jim Florentine]

He's a nice kid. I go, you gotta be a animal. You know, And I don't know, but, you know, but that's good. He's so. He's got two to. He'll figure it out. You know, he was doing stand up for a while, really doing music. He was doing great at both. But right before the pandemic, he just stopped. He said, I don't want to do it anymore. He was killing on stage.

[Ryan Sickler]

Was he really killing? Fearless?

[Jim Florentine]

He started at like 6. No, I was opening for Dice, a distress factory. And he went on at six years old. And Dice goes, first of all, you did better than your dad. And I'm not just saying that. 400 people killed. He has a little leather jacket on.

[Ryan Sickler]

Did he yeah, that is hilarious.

[Jim Florentine]

And he had a great joke. It was his closing joke. I said. He goes, my dad hasn't a girlfriend in, like, three years. I keep telling him, dad, get a girlfriend. He's like, yeah, I will. I will. At some point. He goes, I think my dad's gay. And the place would go berserk. And he got in trouble one time. I took him an open mic, and he was making fun of me on stage, and some old guy complained to the owner. He goes, how come, first of all, that dad taking his kid and hearing these other comedians curse, and he's just trashing his dad on stage? What kind of dad is that? I didn't come here for this. I just came for wholesome comedy. And. And the club owner called me the next day, and I told my son, Luke. I go, luke, that you're. You're officially a comic.

[Ryan Sickler]

You got a complaint.

[Jim Florentine]

You got a complaint. That means you're pushing buttons. He goes, who? I go, remember that? Okay. Goes that old. I go, yeah, that guy. I remember. Yeah. I go, you're a comic. You push your. But he goes, that old. I go, yeah, remember that guy?

[Ryan Sickler]

Dude, this was great, man.

[Jim Florentine]

But I don't want to push that lifestyle on him.

[Ryan Sickler]

I tell my daughter to stay out of comedy.

[Jim Florentine]

I tell her, because, you know, his friends are going to be all having fun parties. He's going to be at a Holiday Inn in Kansas City from Thursday through Sunday with nothing to do. He walks to the subway to get a sandwich and waits for the show at night. It's a lonely existence.

[Ryan Sickler]

It is a very lonely existence. Exist.

[Jim Florentine]

It is. And he's going to miss out. I missed out on a lot of stuff. And, you know, just that he's. I don't want him to. I don't want him to have that lifestyle.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah. I. I just tell my daughter, too, with entertainment, there's no. It's not. Like, if you want to be a doctor, it's a very set course, and then you become a doctor. And the entertainment is so fickle, too. And it's. There's people that could look at you and go, you remind me of a. A boy I dated in high school I don't like. So never mind. You know, that kind of dumb.

[Jim Florentine]

Oh, yeah, yeah. Absolutely.

[Ryan Sickler]

Nonsense.

[Jim Florentine]

And then, you know, also look. And I understand the whole infidelity part be, you know, just a separation. As a comic, every weekend you're away, she's in an empty house, I'm in an empty hotel room. I get it. And, you know, that's why it's really tough on people. So I understand why it went down, you know, So I don't want that for my son. I don't, you know, marry a good girl, raise a family, work a local job, have your friends do all of that stuff, you know, so we'll see.

[Ryan Sickler]

Dude, thank you for doing this.

[Jim Florentine]

Absolutely, man.

[Ryan Sickler]

Always a pleasure to have you here.

[Jim Florentine]

Great.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah. Promote whatever you want to.

[Jim Florentine]

One more time, my new comedy special, you can't Please Them All. I don't know. Amazon prime, my podcast. Everybody is awful every Monday.

[Ryan Sickler]

Thank you, buddy. Thank you as always, Ryan Sickler on all social media. We'll talk to you all next next week.