Friends - Episode 43

Summary

The Musers The Podcast – Episode 43: “Friends”

Release Date: May 13, 2026
Hosts: George Dunham, Craig “Junior” Miller, Gordon Keith
Theme: Friendship—how it shapes our lives, changes with age, and the dynamics among the Musers themselves.

---

Episode Overview

This episode centers on the theme of friendship—what it means, how it evolves, and the personal experiences of the three hosts. Blending signature Musers humor with genuine introspection, George, Craig, and Gordo candidly dissect their own connections, ponder cultural shifts in friendship, and invite listeners to reflect on the friends in their lives. The conversation also touches on the impact of technology, work, and family on friendships, and explores differences between male and female social bonds.

---

Key Discussion Points and Insights

Announcing the Sold-Out Live Show (00:44-02:24)

• The Musers celebrate the rapid sell-out of their upcoming live show at the Kessler in Dallas.
  • “Within hours, we sold the darn thing out.” (George, 00:44)
  • Gordo and Craig admit they doubted whether anyone would show up, expecting only 50 (or fewer) attendees.
• Reflecting on listener support and gratitude.

---

Absurd (and Real) Demonyms (02:24-07:20)

• The trio riff on the names for residents of various cities, joking about “Dallasinian,” “Kansas Cityite,” “Phoenician,” and oddities like “Berquino.”
  • "Albuquerque. A Berquino." (Craig, 05:35)
  • "That's the weirdest one you found... Not Alberqueno, but just Bercoeno." (Gordo, 05:38)
• Quick mention of the new Musers T-shirt based on a Jerry Jones quote about Bill Clinton.

---

Main Theme: The Nature of Friendship (09:09 onward)

Defining Friendship & The “True Friends” Question (09:09-11:18)

• George shares a story about his son defining a friendship, inspiring reflection on what makes someone a real friend.
  • “So, are we friends now?”—Conrad Schindler to George’s son, Brent.
• Craig raises the perennial question: “How many true friends do you really have?”
  • How many people would you let into your innermost circle?

Levels of Friendship: Men vs. Women (11:26-14:32)

• Gordo observes that male friendships are often activity-based (e.g. golfing, cycling), while women tend to share more of their lives and emotions.
  • “Men have very different friendships than women… men tend to have friendships based around activities.” (Gordo, 11:35)
• Craig says he feels fortunate to have about 13 close friends, higher than average.
  • "You guys made the list." (Craig, 14:15)

Friend Count & The “Loneliness Epidemic” (15:15-19:52)

• Most Americans have three to five close friends; however, a growing percentage report having none.
  • “In 1990, 3% of Americans had no close friends. By 2021, that number jumped to 12%.” (George, 18:04)
• The hosts ponder causes: social media and online connections aren’t a substitute for real-life contact.
  • “People are getting more and more lonely… even though we’re more connected online.” (Gordo, 18:27)

Making Friends Later in Life (20:27-21:22)

• The prevailing belief is people rarely make new close friends later in life, but George notes it’s possible, though it requires real effort.

  • “After the age I’ve reached—50—I’ve made... close friends. And I think it is possible, but you have to make a conscious effort.” (George, 21:06)

“Friends for a Season, a Reason, or a Lifetime” (21:56-23:53)

• George invokes the popular saying about friendships evolving or having different purposes.
  • Humorous banter as Gordo teases: “What’s happening over there? Is this a rap you’re doing?” (Gordo, 22:03)
• Hosts reflect on transitory versus enduring friendships, and the nostalgia for “best friends” from youth.

Oldest Friends & Staying in Touch (24:03-28:32)

• Craig details ongoing connections with childhood friends from Oklahoma, sharing a touching reconnection story via Facebook.
  • “I still keep in contact with probably four of them.” (Craig, 24:35)
• George mourns not keeping up with his “first best friend”—Kurti from Minneapolis—and regrets the decline of letter-writing.
• Gordo laments that texting cheapens the depth of old phone conversations and friend bonds.

Growing Apart & “Toxic” Friendships (29:05-35:28)

• The trio discusses friends whose personalities or politics change, causing strain.
  • “What about when someone becomes nothing but hot take guy?” (Gordo, 29:46)
  • Distinction between fighting for historic friendships and letting toxic ones go.
  • Gordo shares a story about the need to set boundaries with a “complainer” friend, and the guilt that sometimes comes with distancing.

Friendship & Longevity; What Makes Life Better? (32:22-34:44)

• Maintaining connections is shown to improve health and potentially extend lifespan.
  • “Three things that you can do to extend your lifespan... Get good, healthy sleep every night, avoid processed foods, and have a good network of social contacts, friends.” (Craig, 32:22)

Lifelong Friendships Through Change (35:28-38:33)

• George celebrates his friendship with Todd—over 40 years—and setting (and often missing) goals like “monthly golf.”
  • The group laughs about how easily you can pick up where you left off with old friends.
  • Collegiate and high school friendships resurface even after years apart.

Female Friendships vs. Male Friendships (38:45-41:00)

• Craig notes such friendships often fade after marriage; Gordo admits he’s often found female friends easier.
  • “I just always got along really well with girls...I don’t know what that’s about, but I always was fascinated with the girl world.” (Gordo, 40:13)

The Impact of Their Job on Friendships (41:02-44:24)

• The guys discuss how their showbiz schedule “killed” their social lives and made it harder to maintain (or create) friendships.
  • “Our job killed my social life.” (Gordo, 41:10)
  • George reflects on possibly missing chances to be a better friend due to focus on work and family.

Guilt, Regret, and Not “Maxing Out” (44:24-45:39)

• Craig and Gordo urge listeners not to punish themselves for not being perfect friends—no one “maxes out” their potential, not even Michael Jordan.
  • “Even Michael Jordan didn’t fully max out what he was capable of.” (Craig, 45:09)

“Best Friends” and Adult Dynamics (45:39-48:58)

• Touching story of the late Luke Laufenberg, who was described as “my best friend” by many after his passing.
  • Playful musings on the childhood ritual of asking, “Do you want to be best friends?”
  • “As you become an adult, it seems kind of a strange thing to say. Yeah, we're best friends.” (George, 46:21)

The Unusual Strength of The Musers’ Bond (47:31-49:41)

• The Musers reflect on evolving from “best friends” to “work wives” and the extraordinary feat of their 32-year collaboration.
  • “We've all three made it work for 32 years... I think over time, we realized, man, we’re part of something really special professionally. And from a friendship standpoint, too, of man, these guys are pretty special.” (George, 48:13)
• Light-hearted mention of their “browser history” pact if one ends up incapacitated.

---

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Defining Friendship:
  “Men tend to have friendships based around activities... Then you come back home and your spouse asks, ‘How’s Conrad doing?’ and you say, ‘I guess they’re doing all right’—you don’t talk about your life so much with guys.” (Gordo, 11:35-12:52)

• On Social Isolation Trends:
  “People are getting more and more lonely and more friendless even though we’re more connected online. But it’s not doing the same thing that being connected in person used to do.” (Gordo, 18:27)

• On Boundaries:
  “If their method to maintain a friendship is guilt and appealing to your sense of obligation to take whatever they dish out…that is your indication that person is no longer your friend.” (Gordo, 35:18)

• On Lifelong Bonds:
  “It’s funny, isn’t it, when you have that lifelong friend... anytime we get together, it’s like you pick up, it’s like you saw him yesterday.” (George & Craig, 36:47-37:23)

• On the Musers’ Enduring Connection:
  “We really are good friends… because that has mattered to us… I don’t know how far I could walk without them.” (George, 48:13)

---

Timestamps for Important Segments

• 00:44 — Announcement of the sold-out live show
• 02:24-07:20 — “Dallasinian” and the oddities of city resident names
• 09:09 — Framing the friendship discussion
• 11:26-14:32 — Male vs. female friendships and personal friend counts
• 15:15-19:52 — Loneliness statistics and social trends
• 20:27-21:22 — Making friends later in life
• 24:03-28:32 — Staying in touch with childhood friends
• 29:05-35:28 — Navigating toxic friendships and boundaries
• 32:22-34:44 — Friendship and health
• 35:28-38:33 — Lifelong friends’ influence
• 38:45-41:00 — Female friendships
• 41:02-44:24 — How work affects friendship
• 45:39-48:58 — “Best friends” in youth and adulthood
• 47:31-49:41 — The unique Musers bond and browser history joke

---

In the Musers’ Words: The Tone

The episode dances between self-deprecating humor, sharp banter, and genuine sentiment. It’s punctuated by mock-serious debates (poetry as rap, leftover cravings for “best friend” status), reflections on growing older, and hearty nostalgia. This balance of the ridiculous and the real is classic Musers, and the show’s warmth is as relatable as its wit.

---

Call to Action

[49:56] George:
“Hopefully maybe you call your friend today that you haven’t talked to in a while and say, ‘Hey, how you doing? Let’s get together.'”

---

If you missed this episode, you’ll come away reflecting on your own friends—and maybe, as the Musers suggest, you’ll fire off a text or call to someone special in your life.

Transcript

[George]

A friend for a season or a friend for a lifetime.

[Gordo]

Keep going.

[George]

It's not a rap, boy. Boy. Yes. Yeah. You don't need Craig rapping. It's the Musers, the podcast, episode 43. Hello again, everybody. I'm George.

[Craig]

I'm Craig.

[Gordo]

Hello. I'm Fake Harry Carrey. I'm gonna be with you all podcast, talking about all the foods.

[George]

I wouldn't mind it if you want to talk like Harry Carry for an hour.

[Gordo]

Every time I do Harry Carry, you always jump on me and say it sucks.

[George]

I have never said that to you.

[Gordo]

I think you have and usually it annoys you, but I like now that you're embracing it. Yeah, go ahead, keep embracing it.

[George]

Okay, yeah, fine. That's good. All right, we got a lot to get to this week on the podcast. First of all, thank you, dear listener, for supporting our Are the Musers the podcast, the live show. We announced that on the last podcast we're doing a live show at the Kessler in Dallas on Thursday, May 21, and within hours, we sold the darn thing out.

[Gordo]

Yep, sold out, that.

[George]

So we'll see you on May 21st in Dallas. Doors, 7 o'.

[Craig]

Clock.

[George]

The show somewhere after that. We're going to have a good time. It's going to be a live show. And no, we don't have any tickets left for you, so I don't know what to tell you on that, but thank you for supporting. And we won't say which muser, but there was a muser who doubted that people would actually want to come out and watch and listen to a live version of the pod.

[Craig]

That was me and that was Gordo.

[Gordo]

Yeah, there were two of us.

[George]

I was gonna keep everyone's identity.

[Craig]

I didn't think there's any way we would sell out.

[Gordo]

Yeah, I thought it was going to be complete failure, but we would have fun at least doing the show in a different room.

[George]

I thought there was.

[Craig]

I thought we'd be doing it in front of about 50 people.

[Gordo]

Yes, well, I didn't even think that many.

[George]

But see, I figured as long as we got 50 people, it'd be fine. And I figured we could get to at least 50 people.

[Craig]

Yes, we are looking forward to our the Musers the live show, the podcast brought to us by the good folks at DNM Auto Leasing, where they make leasing easy. They've been doing this for 50 years. 50 here in North Texas. And George and I have been DNM customers for 30.

[George]

Yes, thank you DNM for that incredible support and thanks to the emails that you keep sending us at the Musers Podmail. This comes to us from Ron, who listened to the last episode about time traveling and he says, after not getting my email chosen as email of the week for the 42nd time, I would like to go back in time one week and slip my email on top of the stack. So. Okay, there you go, Ron. For the first time you have been read.

[Gordo]

We don't just read them in chronological order. We select one.

[Craig]

We don't really have a stack.

[George]

Yeah, he says he's a former Dallasinian.

[Gordo]

What? I thought it was Dallasinianite. Dallasinianite.

[Craig]

Dallasinian. I've never heard of that. It's a Dallasite.

[George]

Are you being serious?

[Gordo]

No, it's Dallasinianite.

[Craig]

No, no.

[George]

Dallasite. I've never heard that lives in Tucson.

[Craig]

The term Dallasinian.

[George]

I don't think I have either.

[Gordo]

What city has the strangest name for its residents? I know there's a few of them that just don't make sense to me. Like if you're.

[George]

Yeah, there's one.

[Gordo]

If you're from Philadelphia, you're a Philadelphian. If you're a Kansas City resident. What do you call yourself?

[George]

Kansas Cityite.

[Gordo]

Kansas Cityite.

[George]

I'm guessing. I have no idea.

[Gordo]

Kansanite.

[George]

What's Oklahoma City?

[Gordo]

That sounds like a. Like some sort of mineral.

[Craig]

I think City and Oklahoma City and Kansas City. And I think that would be it for City.

[George]

Okay.

[Gordo]

Kansas City. I don't know. That sounds weird.

[George]

No one could. No one could know the answer.

[Craig]

So I have a list.

[Gordo]

Okay.

[Craig]

I actually do know the answer to some of these. So you're a New Yorker, Right? You're a Chicagoan, which is interesting because

[Gordo]

New York City, you're a New Yorker.

[Craig]

Right. But Oklahoma City.

[Gordo]

Oklahoma City, you're not an Oklahoman. I mean, you are, but that's not the new city reference, though.

[Craig]

Same thing for Kansas. Would you just be a Kansan if you're from Kansas City?

[Gordo]

But then how does that distinguish you from someone from Topeka?

[George]

Right.

[Gordo]

They're still a Kansan as well.

[Craig]

Houston, you're a Houstonian. Phoenix, a Phoenician.

[Gordo]

That's kind of weird.

[Craig]

That's really weird.

[George]

That's the one I was trying to think of.

[Craig]

Denver, a Denverite. Los Angeles, an Angelino.

[Gordo]

Yeah, that's a strange one.

[Craig]

San Francisco, a San Franciscan.

[Gordo]

Makes sense.

[Craig]

I think someone just said Philadelphian for some reason. They have Colorado Springs here. You're a spring site.

[Gordo]

Spring Zeit. What about like St. Paul? Minneapolis?

[Craig]

Let me see if I have that

[Gordo]

on Minneanapolis and Indianite. Minneapolisan.

[George]

You're from St. Paul. That's what you are.

[Craig]

D.C. you're a Washingtonian, right?

[George]

Heard that.

[Craig]

Portland. Portlandian.

[Gordo]

Yes.

[Craig]

New Orleans. New Orleans. New Orlean.

[Gordo]

Yeah. New Orleans.

[Craig]

Detroit. A Detroiter.

[George]

Jeep.

[Craig]

Albuquerque. A Berquino.

[Gordo]

All right, that's the weirdest one you found the weirdest one. Not Alberqueno, but just Bercoeno. That's just messed up.

[George]

That sounds like I heard that one

[Craig]

dish you'd get at a Mexican restaurant.

[George]

I'll take that with rice and beans. Okay. And thank you for the support for the live show and also, you're welcome. Yeah, I was talking maybe to the dear listener more than just y' all too. But yeah, thank y'. All. You. You guys have done a good job supporting it too, through the years.

[Gordo]

And I'm gonna be there.

[George]

And it's amazing. If you go to themusers.com you can order merch. We sold a lot of merch. And apparently this is a fast selling shirt. This was from the craziness when Bill Clinton visited the star and Jerry Jones almost fell down rushing to greet Bill Clinton at a news conference. And he really said this quote. This guy was recently named the second most American to have started with very little and to have accomplished a lot. Look at it, it's in Forbes. And that's a quote from Jerry Jones that's now on a T shirt. It's at the musers.com and one buddies sent it in with his kid wearing the shirt. What a long quote. Should a shirt ever have such a long quote on it?

[Gordo]

No.

[Craig]

So wait a minute because I was out of town when that happened. That's what Jerry said about Bill Clinton.

[George]

Yes.

[Gordo]

The way he introduced Bill Clinton.

[Craig]

The guy was recently named the second most American. To have started with very little and to have accomplished a lot. Look at it, it's in Forbes.

[Gordo]

The second most American.

[George]

Yeah. So now that's a T shirt. And just one of the items you can [e-mail].

[David Goss]

The United States Soccer Federation presents the U.S. soccer Podcast. My name is David Goss and I'm

[George]

joined by my co host Megan Kleinenberg. And now we're giving people an inside look look at the World Cup.

[Gordo]

Time's ticking.

[George]

I think you can feel the intensity. All the guys are wanting to really stake their claim and they want to be on that World cup roster.

[David Goss]

There's no doubt about it.

[George]

Hosting the World cup on home soil

[Gordo]

comes with its pressures.

[George]

But we're just really excited just as the people are.

[David Goss]

The US Soccer Podcast presented by Henco.

[George]

Follow and listen on your favorite platform. The NBA playoffs are finally here and Underdog is the best place to get in on the action. Playing on Underdog is easy. Just pick whether your favorite players will go higher or lower on stats like point points, rebounds, steals and more. Get your picks right, you can win up to 5000 times your cash. Last week I went higher on SGA's point total and won big. Definitely rolling with him again this week. Download the app today and use the promo code musers to score $50 in bonus entries when you play your first $5. That's promo code Musers on Underdog make

[Underdog Disclaimer Voice]

picks win money must be 18 or older, 19 or older in Alabama and Nebraska, 19 or older in Colorado for some games, 21 or older in Arizona, Massachusetts and Virginia and present in a state Dog Fantasy operates Terms apply. Concerned with your play, call 1-800-MY-RESET or 1-800-GAMBLER or visit ncpgambling.org in Arizona. Call 1-800- NEXT STEP 1-800-639-8783 or text NEXT STEP to 533-42 in New York. Call the 24.7Hope line at 1-877-8-HOPE NY or text hopeny246-7369.

[George]

Okay, this episode I thought we'd talk about friends and friendship. The three of us are friends. Have been for a long time. We're also business associates.

[Gordo]

That's weird. That sounds too official.

[George]

We weren't until this year when we got officially into business together. Yeah, the business world's not as easy as we thought it was, that's for sure. But two things come to mind about friendship. My son in high school had one of his friends approach him and there's actually one of his teammates on the golf team. And it's someone we've that you guys know now because he went, he made it all the way to PGA Tour. Our buddy, Conrad Schindler, former pro golfer and he and my son weren't really sure where they stood with each other when they first started, like, playing golf together. They weren't enemies, but they weren't necessarily friends.

[Gordo]

I was like a heated rivalry thing.

[George]

Well, no, it wasn't that. But, you know, they just didn't really hang out much. And then they started playing golf together and then, you know, went to lunch or whatever and would hang out. And so one day at school, Conrad went up to my son Brent and said, so, are we friends now? And so this day we call him, he's not Conrad. He's friend. Hey, is friend coming? You know, because he's been a long life friend. Another conversation comes to mind with a TV personality, former TV personality we knew in the Dallas Fort Worth area. He's since retired, but he's still around. His name's Dale Hansen. And several times. I don't know if you guys got in on this loop conversation. It seemed like it was late night at training camp. A bar room conversation of how many true friends do you really have? The key word there is true, or you can just throw it out. How many friends do you have? And I think a lot of people answer, 15, 20, 25. But how many do you really have close friends that you share details with, that you share a lot of time with? They know everything about you. You know everything about them. Intimate friends. What's yalls number?

[Gordo]

What would you say friend is such

[George]

a. I think that's another. Conrad was onto something when he said, are we friends now? What defines a friendship?

[Gordo]

Because, I mean, the way that we answer it in casual conversation just means that we know someone. Hey, you know, mention someone. Like if someone. You mentioned Dale Hansen. If someone from another part of the country said, yeah, I know. Do you know Dale Hansen? Yeah, I'm friends with Dale Hansen. I'm friends with Dale, but I mean, he's not one of my close friends. Obviously, I didn't grow up with him and, you know, have pillow fights with him when we were having sleepovers and all that sort of thing, you know, so, yeah, friend. The term friend changes depending on what kind of conversation you're having. But men have very different friendships than women. And you mentioned defining a friend as someone who knows everything about you. I think a lot of times guys would consider themselves very close friends with a guy and they don't really know that much about his life because. Yeah, the old saying is that women have these friendships that are based around their lives. They just share their lives with this other person, and that's their confidant. And men tend to have friendships based around activities. You know, you do things with them. Yeah, he's my golfing buddy. We always go golfing. Yeah, we laugh and joke around. And then you come back home from your golfing outing and your spouse asks, oh, how is, you know, Conrad doing? Oh, he's doing great and everything. Well, how's his wife and kids? I guess. I guess they're doing all right. Well, did he. Did he tell you they were.

[George]

I thought y' all were close friends.

[Gordo]

No, but I just assumed that if Something was wrong, he would tell me. So the default answer is, yeah, he's doing. They're doing great. Because. Yeah, you don't talk about your life so much with guys.

[George]

And yet for men and women, that a study says that it's about the same for those who consider. How many close friends do you have? Most Americans say from one to four friends, close friends that you have. And it's pretty much the same for men and women. I know in my own life, my wife has done, I think, a much better job with keeping a network of friends than I have. And maybe it's the whole details thing that they share more and therefore do a better job and they communicate a lot. So that's how they stay in touch. But much better than I do.

[Gordo]

Okay. Yeah. How much do you know that is going on with your male friends lives?

[Craig]

A lot.

[Gordo]

Like if you were to quiz them. I think that most guys, they know just a few things. They don't know as much as the women know about each other's lives.

[Craig]

That's probably, that's probably true. But I know a lot of what's going on in my close friends lives and they know what's going on in mine.

[George]

Are you in that number somewhere between three and five or you have more than that?

[Craig]

No, I've got close friends. I've got 13 close friends.

[George]

Wow, that's. That's really good.

[Craig]

That know pretty much everything in my life and I know pretty much everything about their lives. Not, not all of it because there are things we don't share. But I may, I consider myself fortunate because I've got so many close friends. You guys made the list.

[George]

Okay.

[Craig]

You know, they are people that I went to college with or that I've worked with or I've made a lot of friends through cycling and running. Really close friends. And those avenues allow you to bond a lot. So your wife, George, talks a lot on the phone with her friends. Well, when you're out on a training ride or a training run, you're out with these same people for hours and hours and you learn everything about their lives. So I've gotten really close with a lot of my cycling and running buddies. So I've got a list of 12 or 13 guys that I consider very, very close friends. And I think that I'm probably an outlier, but I think I'm pretty lucky to have that wide of a net.

[George]

No, I think that's great. And they say that that's good for you, especially as we get older. We need a group of Friends that if you are. And by the way, we'll get to this. But we're getting worse at this, at being friends with people, from a casual friendship to a close friendship.

[Craig]

What's your list, by the way? What's your two?

[George]

I would say mine's about. Yeah, maybe six or seven close friends.

[Craig]

DeGordo and I make the list?

[George]

Oh, absolutely. Yeah. You guys are on there. We have no choice. I'm around you guys more than anybody in my life.

[Craig]

Yes, for sure. Same here.

[George]

Yeah. So, I mean, we kind of had. We were friends before. Now, Gordo, we've explained that in previous podcasts. We. We met Gordon after we left college, but we've collectively, we've been friends for a long, long time. Gordo has its own set of challenges, but go ahead.

[Craig]

What's your number?

[Gordo]

What's below zero?

[George]

Is there.

[Gordo]

Are there negative numbers?

[Craig]

No, Gordo. Oh, dear. We don't even make his.

[George]

You're an interesting study because a lot of people want to be friends with you.

[Gordo]

Because who wants to be friends with me?

[George]

Because you're funny, you're fun to be around. They want to get in on the Gordo joke. But I do wonder about that, because you do seem to enjoy spending time by yourself, going through, you know, Jerry Reed videos, as we always tease you about, or something like that.

[Craig]

Writing a manifesto.

[Gordo]

Yeah, I'm not writing a manifesto. It's already finished. Need to proofread it one more time.

[Craig]

So we're on your list.

[George]

You have.

[Craig]

You have at least two friends.

[Gordo]

Yes, Yes, I. I would say that. Well, if you guys make the list, then I think that that expands it out to, I don't know, maybe five.

[Craig]

Okay.

[Gordo]

Something like that. It's very.

[Craig]

I don't know.

[Gordo]

I just have a hard time classifying it because I have these friendships that it's very easy to not talk for a while, but once I talk with them, it's right back there. It never loses ground.

[George]

I think you should count them. I think you should count them as a. Even if you don't know the day to day and you're not as up to date as maybe you could be.

[Gordo]

Right.

[George]

They're still close friends. You can share things with them that you couldn't share with just, you know, people you work with or something. Right?

[Craig]

Yeah. Let me put it this way. If you had a crisis in your life, how many guy friends do you have that you would pick up the phone, say, I need some advice on this?

[Gordo]

Well, I don't seek advice from anyone, so that's kind of a problem. I think there's a lot of people that. I could do that too.

[Craig]

Okay.

[Gordo]

Yeah.

[Craig]

Really personal, intimate stuff. And you just need some help with something.

[Gordo]

Yeah, I would say that's, you know, maybe six.

[Craig]

Okay.

[Gordo]

Yeah, let's say around six.

[George]

Yeah. And I think that's a, that's a healthy number. The, that's the average. Most Americans say they have three to five close friends. There are some, apparently I mentioned we are getting worse at this. There was another study in 2021 that 12% of Americans said they did not have even one close friend.

[Gordo]

Yeah. And this is. It is interesting the way that this has changed socially in that people are getting more and more lonely and we talk about this loneliness epidemic that's going on and there's been lots of think pieces written about that. But yeah, we are for some reason getting lonelier and more friendless even though we're more connected online. But it's not doing the same thing that being connected in person used to do.

[George]

That number was five. Sorry, 3% in 1990. So from 90 till 2021, that's a pretty big jump.

[Gordo]

Goes from 3% to what again?

[George]

12%.

[Gordo]

12%, yeah. That's almost four times as much. Almost four times as much.

[George]

I wonder even with those.

[Craig]

Exactly four times as much.

[George]

I wonder even with those people though, if they really do have close friends that they're just not thinking it through. They're just like, oh no, I don't have any close. But really they do.

[Gordo]

George, you'd be amazed. I have read stories about people who talk about. And they'll be sharing this online in some forum. Right. About how they have zero friends and everyone keeps asking them. Surely you're not thinking about this like.

[George]

No.

[Gordo]

They go through and tell their story again and detail it. Yeah. That they don't talk to anyone throughout the day other than what they have to do at their job. And then they're completely lonely and friendless the rest of the day.

[George]

Yeah. I could see how that could happen between your job. I think I went through a period of time when I wasn't always the best friend. When we were really involved in our kids lives. And you don't always. I think it's important.

[Gordo]

Well, yeah. Once you get married and have kids, your friendships kind of. They obviously take a back seat.

[George]

They become. Yeah.

[Gordo]

Or a third seat behind the kids seat that's in the second row.

[George]

Right. It's tougher to get together with friends, but I think your friend group changes then too. It's other parents that they might go to school with or on their baseball team or something like that.

[Gordo]

But how many people make friends later in life? It seems like most people I know, they go through the acquisition phase of making friends in their teens, early 20s, maybe a little bit into their 30s. And then those kind of become your core group of friends that will. Some of them lasting throughout your lifetime. But how many late in life friends really happen?

[George]

I think that is a challenge. But I've always wondered that too, because seems like we've been told, well, you know, you don't really make friends once you get to a certain age. I would say after the age I've reached 50, I have, I've made friends

[Gordo]

that you can make friends.

[George]

And I would say close friends. Maybe mine's up around 8 or 9. When I think about some of these newer friendships that I have that I would say are close friendships. And I think it is possible, but I think you really have to make a conscious effort.

[Gordo]

Yeah. I don't think that the stat was that it's impossible to make friends. They just say that most people don't.

[George]

Right. And that's probably true. And I think as we get older, we kind of just think, I don't.

[Gordo]

I don't want to take on.

[George]

You don't want the social part that goes along with it.

[Gordo]

Don't have time to download all their backstory, and then that's one more time obligation. And then people start feeling they feel pulled at different directions already. So then adding a friendship to that, you just feel like you don't have time.

[George]

Like the poem of Friends for a season, Friends for a reason, or a friend for a lifetime.

[Gordo]

What's happening over there? Is this a rap you're doing? What is that poem?

[George]

I don't know that. I don't know. Some goofy poem from not that long ago.

[Gordo]

I don't think the poet really appreciates.

[George]

Wasn't from, like, hundreds of years ago. I think it was written in the 90s. But think about that, though. You have friends that you have.

[Gordo]

I just want to take a moment. I'm just surprised that you kept up with poetry in the 90s.

[George]

Well, I did.

[Gordo]

You studied 90s poetry?

[George]

I didn't, but I came across that saying I've heard. You've never heard that before. A reason. A friend for a season or a friend for a lifetime.

[Gordo]

Keep going.

[George]

It's not a rap. You're acting like, yeah, boy. Boy, yes, yeah, boy. We don't need Craig grappling, that's for sure. You've never heard that saying before.

[Gordo]

No, I haven't. But I believe you that. That it is a saying.

[George]

Well. And when you think about it, there are. There are friends that maybe you had for a season. Maybe it was high school or college or the summer. Yeah, you had a kick ass summer together, and then you never really got disconnected. You do have a friend for a reason. The reason is you got put together at work and. Or maybe it's a neighbor or something. And then the friend that you have for a lifetime. I'm trying to think of a lifetime friend. I guess the furthest back I can go is high school. My first best friend, we just kind of lost connection, but I still consider him my first best friend. I've told you about him, Curtie, when I lived in Minneapolis. And that's a weird one, too. I've always wanted to. And I need to do this. I'm not on Facebook or anything, but I've always wanted to reach back out to him, just to see how life went for him, you know, because, I mean, we've spent every day together for two or three years. He was my best friend. We were, you know, buddies.

[Gordo]

And you're gonna get a call from him.

[George]

I hope so.

[Gordo]

I'm predicting.

[George]

I hope so. Call him.

[Gordo]

Call from an inmate at Cook County Correctional Facility.

[George]

Now he's got to be doing well. Do you guys have any friends from childhood that you still like? I mean, going back to elementary school?

[Craig]

Yeah. So when I grew up in Oklahoma City, I went to the same elementary school with the same kids, first through eighth grade, and then except for my second grade year when we moved to Enid, but then we moved back my third grade year and same kids again. And I was with them through the first two and a half years in high school. So same group of kids. And I still keep in contact with probably four of them.

[George]

Wow.

[Craig]

And I just reached out recently to. You've heard all these names. I've said these names on our radio show a million times. Danny Gandra and Mike Schmidt and Rich Chesley and Mark Wilmes.

[George]

Oh, yeah.

[Gordo]

All fake names.

[Craig]

There's all my St. Charles grade school buddies. And Mark and I text, you know, not often, but a few times a year. And I just reached out to Rich because Davey Lopes passed away, the Dodgers second baseman. And when Rich moved from Los Angeles to Oklahoma City, he came to our school and we bonded over sports and baseball. And he told me this story about he and his brother having a run in with Davey Lopes in the Dodger Stadium parking lot. And that Always stuck with me. And every time I saw Davey Lopes from then on, I thought of Rich and his brother and that story. And so I found Rich on Facebook, where we had messaged a few times over the years, and I said, hey, condolences on the passing of Davey Lopes.

[Gordo]

And he's like, who is this?

[Craig]

No, he said, hey, great to hear from you. And we exchanged cell numbers so now I can text him.

[Gordo]

I hope he turns out to be the biggest over texter.

[Craig]

Oh, I'd be fine.

[Gordo]

He's flooding it and he doesn't give you one complete thought per text. He splits it up into 10 different

[Craig]

text hearing from him, so I wouldn't mind texts from him.

[George]

I think that's so cool that you've kept in touch all these years.

[Craig]

Mike Schmidt, he and I bonded over cycling, and I'll hear from him every once in a while. He's now retired, and I think he moved full time to Colorado, and we've kept up over the years. And Danny Gandra, who I was also good friends with growing up, he's a preacher now. And anytime we were, we bonded over OU football. So anytime anything big happens, I'll. I'll shoot him a message. And so, yeah, we communicate a couple times a year. So those four kids, but I haven't seen any of them right. In probably 15 years. I think I had breakfast with Mark when we were up there for the Thunder mavericks series in 2011, and I think that's the last time I've seen him. But at least I'm in contact with these kids from grade school.

[George]

Yeah, that's cool. I think that's great that you've stayed in contact. I would like to think that I would have stayed in contact with my buddy CB Erickson from Wheaton, Illinois, if we had, I don't know, social media back in the day or email back in the day. I remember, I think we did write letters to each other, but that didn't. That didn't last very long. CB Erickson. It didn't sound like a civil war.

[Craig]

The weather here has turned.

[George]

We haven't eaten in the three days.

[Gordo]

Hopefully provisions will come soon.

[George]

What about you, Gordo? How far back do you go with a friend?

[Gordo]

Well, let's see. I'm trying to think if I have many. I had a whole Facebook that was dedicated to my friends before I moved to Dallas, Fort Worth. So I had, like, a separate Facebook for all my friends over there, and I was in contact with them, and then I lost access to that Facebook. So now I'm not in contact with them, so that kind of sucks. But I always find, like, the text thing feels like a downgrade from the friendships that we used to have when we would spend hours on the phone together, you know, now you can maintain a friendship, you know, in. That's a fluid term there. Maintain of. You know, I've got lots of friends from way back in my past that I exchange a few texts a year with. Yeah, you know, that's. That's pretty easy. And that's nice to be able to, you know, have a little message just here and there with them. But it doesn't seem to have the same depth as it has when. God, I used to talk on the phone with them, you know, for hours during the week, you know, and now that doesn't happen as frequently. I can't. There's only one friend I think that I have now that I would talk to for hours at a time on the phone.

[George]

Yeah. I wonder if that whole friendship dynamic is really changing now because of text. Because of, you know, your friends online and you spend time on your own. You spend time, you know, texting instead of in person with a friend. I think the whole dynamic in that indicates that, yeah, it's. It's changing. I don't know if that's a good thing. When you do have friends and they may not see the world the same that you. The same way you do, but you're still friends. And I think that, okay, have you

[Gordo]

had that experience of somebody who you used to be real close friends with, you get back in contact with them, or you start talking to them and they've gotten real political on you or something, and that's all they want to talk about. And then you're like, you know what? This friendship is just not. I'm not getting anything out of it anymore. It's more of a drain. Because I'm always trying to say, hey, can we talk about something else than this thing that's on your mind 24 hours a day, apparently.

[Craig]

Well, luckily, that hasn't happened to me.

[George]

Yeah, not really. I've had a few friends that we've kind of found that were different, but we've just kind of fought through it. Our friendship's more than important than, you know, some hot take we may have on some political issue.

[Gordo]

But if somebody becomes nothing but hot take guy, you're like, can we talk about anything else?

[George]

And I think that's another thing, too. Where do you start drawing the line of, this is not a good friendship. This is a Toxic friendship. And I guess I've had a few of those through the years where you just lose contact and that's okay that you've lost contact with somebody. Yeah. But I think that's a tough one, though. If they've been a friend for a long time. Do you think, well, yeah, he's hot. Take guy, but he's still my friend. So I guess I'll fight through his hot takes and just maybe try to temper him a little bit by saying, yeah, you know, we don't always have to talk about that. Let's talk about what the rangers are doing right now or something else.

[Gordo]

Just because something is a historical friendship, why should we feel compelled to preserve it?

[George]

Yeah, I guess you don't have to.

[Gordo]

Like, friendship is something that's supposed to nourish each person. Right. And if it becomes something that you're not getting much out of, you know, what's your obligation?

[Craig]

I don't think there is one.

[George]

No.

[Craig]

If you're not getting anything out of it or if it's toxic, I don't think you have any obligation.

[Gordo]

I know, but you always feel kind of guilty.

[George]

See, I. I've had those, too, where I've just kind of. Okay, that's toxic. I'm getting out of it. But then I thought, should I have been there for him as a friend and stayed in contact, tried to help him with this problem that overtook our friendship and all of his friendships?

[Gordo]

Yeah. Have you ever known that friend that every time you talk to him, it's nothing but them complaining about every problem that they have?

[George]

Yeah.

[Gordo]

And it's like there's just. You mean to tell me there's nothing positive in this world in which you are this miraculous organism that evolved and actually had a chance at life and got to experience Earth?

[George]

Yeah, that's true.

[Gordo]

Logically advanced age.

[George]

Let me tell you something. What happened to me, though, it's a.

[Gordo]

Yeah, but this woman cut me off at the parking lot and everything. Okay, all right, dude. All right. I gave it a shot to try to reframe your experience, but okay.

[George]

No, I think it is important that, you know, obviously not to hang on to the toxic relationships, but maybe fighting through some of those. And they do say that there are studies that show your blood pressure is better, you're less likely to have a heart attack, to die of a heart attack or stroke if you have at least a healthy amount of friends and even a smaller number, but still, we'll say three to six, three to nine close friends that you can depend on and that can help you through and help talk you through tough times.

[Craig]

I recently read that the three things that you can do to extend your lifespan, your wellness, Spanish, avoid processed foods. Get.

[George]

I'm gonna mark that one off there.

[Craig]

Get good, healthy sleep every night, getting

[George]

better, but still not good.

[Craig]

And have a good network of social contacts, friends.

[George]

Yeah, okay. No, I think it is important.

[Gordo]

Well, I'll let the next batter come up.

[George]

Three strikes, you're gonna take an automatic out.

[Gordo]

Don't take it.

[George]

Work on all three of those things. It may be okay. No, I think that is really important, as we do get older, and we have to be conscious of that within our own family to make sure that you're staying in touch with your older relatives. But it's that way for friendship, too. I know with a friend that I've made in the last 20 years, listening to one of our podcasts. After one of them, we were talking about potentially getting therapy or going through tough times, that friend reached out to me and said, hey, I heard the podcast. Are you okay? And I thought, yeah, I thought, wow, that's a friend that would step through and say, hey, I'm kind of worried about you. Are you okay?

[Craig]

Yeah. Because even Gordo and I didn't ask you.

[Gordo]

Yeah, you guys, we were really worried about you.

[George]

You guys are used to me just kind of walking that thin line of freaking out or going through a normal day.

[Craig]

That's great, though, because friends should be propping you up. Friends should be there to notice something like that, too. Hey, do you need a little help with this or that? And the friends that are always unloading on you or the friends that you consider may be toxic, That's. Those aren't necessarily the connections you need to elongate your life. You need friends that are there to always pump you up. You know, maybe some of it's blowing a lot of sunshine your way, but sometimes people need that. Yeah.

[Gordo]

And the people who. And I've seen this happen where a friendship. This didn't happen to me, but I witnessed it happen to another person. That friend was always a complainer to my friend.

[George]

Right.

[Gordo]

And then when my friend tried to set the boundaries, saying, you know, every time you talk, it's just. It drains me because everything. You're so negative. You are so negative. I'm okay with listening to your problems to a degree and trying to help you find solutions if you want to find solutions, but it just can't all be that. And they tried to stand up for themselves. Say this to the other friend and what did that other friend, do they guilt trip them? That's what friendship is, man, is listening to someone else's problems. And I said, right there, I said, that is your indication that person is no longer your friend. If their method to maintain a friendship is guilt and appealing to your sense of obligation to take whatever they dish out, it's up to them. They can determine what they want to dish out. And your job is to take it, because that's what a friend is. So that's bs. You're totally within your right to draw that boundary.

[George]

You know those old friendships that Craig talked about, those friends that he stayed in touch with since they were kids? My longest friendship is this is to be a bingo. My friend Todd, his daughter keeps track of this. She listens to the podcast and hey, Todd got mentioned again this week. But we have been friends since we were teenagers. And I look back at it and sometimes we'll go a month without talking to each other. And I know, I feel at least personally, man, I need to reach out to Todd. I want to find out, you know, what's going on. We need to go play golf. We've had. We've set goals for our friendship before. Like, okay, there's no reason why we shouldn't play golf together once a month. And since the day we said that, I think we've played golf together six times in the last 25 years.

[Gordo]

That's pre pretty good.

[George]

But we at least have the thought. And it is funny, isn't it, when you have that lifelong friend and we've known. He was, I guess, 14 when we met. He was like a freshman. I guess he was a sophomore and I was a senior. But anyway, to experience the changes in each other's lives, getting through high school, going on to college, getting married, having kids, it's been pretty cool to have someone that you can share that with through all the things that we've been through in the last going on 40 years.

[Craig]

Yeah. And it's great. My oldest friend, I think, would not be my grade school friends because as I mentioned, I haven't seen any of them in 15 or 30 years. My buddy from high school, Quincen, who you know, and he's probably my oldest friend because I knew him from high school and he befriended me when I moved to Dallas and the new high school. And we'll see each other two or three times a year. You know, it's not a lot, but. And it's probably the same way when you and Todd see each other. It's like you pick Up. It's like you saw him yesterday.

[George]

Yes.

[Craig]

And there's just an ease to that kind of a relationship when you've known somebody for that long.

[George]

Yeah. Yeah. I love those conversations that all of a sudden you can pick up right where you were five years ago. Oh, yeah, I remember that. Hey, we never finished that conversation. You know what happened to that guy? He did this and this. Yeah, I love that. And I'm thankful that I have at least one lifelong friend that I've known through all these phases in. In our lives.

[Craig]

And I feel that way about all of our college friends, too. And that was, you know, just a couple of years after I met Quince and I met our buddies from college, including you, when we met our freshman year. We should tell that story sometime. It's a great story, Gordo, but it's the same thing. You know, I may go a year or two without seeing some of them, but when you see our. Our buddies from school, it's. It's like in School was 40 years ago. I know, but it's like it was yesterday that we were there in the dorm.

[George]

Yeah, that was awesome. When we all got together a couple years ago, we all just picked up. Yeah. I hadn't seen Howard in forever.

[Craig]

Right.

[George]

And yeah, he was our teammate on the West Hall Hoopers.

[Craig]

So dominant.

[George]

So dominant.

[Craig]

Good two guard.

[George]

We actually won three games one year.

[Craig]

Year. We went three and four one year

[George]

and almost made the playoffs. Almost made the playoffs.

[Gordo]

What about female friendships versus male friendships? Do you have many female friends that go back?

[George]

No, I think you're the only one of the three of us that has female friends.

[Craig]

I've got one that I've had for about 20 years, and I confide in her a lot of stuff. But in terms of going back, like female friends from school, I mean, George's wife, you know, we all went to school together, so.

[Gordo]

You ever call her up and confide?

[Craig]

No, I don't.

[George]

Hey, what's up with George?

[Craig]

No, but when I see her, it's just. Same thing with our college friends, you know, it's like they haven't skipped a beat. But the girls that I went to school with in grade school or high school, I have one high school friend that I keep in touch with, but, I mean, I hear from her maybe a text from her every three years or something. Haven't seen her in a long time,

[Gordo]

but no, she sends you a selfie with duck lips shot from way above her head out by the pool, kicking it with a margarita.

[Craig]

But no, I think Once you're married or you have a serious girl, girlfriend, whatever the case may be, I think it's hard to keep those friendships alive. I think the wife would always think that's a little weird.

[Gordo]

She texting you again, right?

[George]

I'm together. But you did. You've even said that to us before, that you had sometimes an easier time making friends with girls than you do?

[Gordo]

Oh, absolutely. Yeah.

[George]

What do you think that is?

[Gordo]

I don't know. I just always got along really well with girls, I guess. I don't know. I don't know what. What that's about, but I always just was fascinated with the girl world, and so I was always very. Yeah, yeah. Getting makeup tips and things like that.

[George]

But you. But you still don't. You don't have a lot of those friendships anymore.

[Gordo]

Yeah, I still have, like, my. One of my good friends from high school, there was a whole group of those girls. We even met up with a few of them up in Colorado that time. Junior and I traveled up there. But Allison and all those. That. That whole group of girls, yeah, they still get together, and they're real good about inviting me out. And I only go about, you know, maybe 1/10 of the time I get invited. I need to be better about that. When the whole girls group gets together.

[George]

Yeah.

[Gordo]

But, yeah, they're funny.

[George]

Do you think our jobs in some way affected friendships from high school, in

[Craig]

college, positive or negative?

[Gordo]

I think our job killed my social life.

[George]

I think mine did. Yeah, it did with me a little bit, too. Just in terms of being busy, in

[Gordo]

terms of just kind of being peopled out. You know, there's something about when we're on the air, talking all the time.

[George]

Yeah.

[Gordo]

And then when we got off the air, I just kind of just didn't want to talk much anymore, which is very detrimental to friendships generally, because that's what you do when you get together. You're talking, you're communing. And so, yeah, it got to where it's just like I didn't want to do things because I had things I had to do all week. Going out and appearances or whatever we were doing that was. Seemed to be taking up a lot of the battery space.

[George]

I've tried to get better about that, but I think I did go through, and I mean, it's a long stretch, 20 to 25 years of just that, of, look, I've. You know how many words I've used this week?

[Gordo]

I've said all the words already.

[George]

I've said all my words between doing the show Back when we were doing games and it just. Yeah. And I felt like that balance too of I haven't seen my kids all week. I want to see them and I want to spend some time with them and maybe not go out and hang out on a Friday or Saturday night. And yeah, I wasn't. I guess I'm admitting I wasn't always the best friend through a long stretch of my life and I do regret some of that.

[Gordo]

But what is being a good friend in that sense? When you start having other obligations, you still. You didn't get hours added to your day.

[George]

No, but I probably.

[Gordo]

You have kids and a wife. You're gonna. They are your 1 and 1 a priority. And so when it comes time to allocate time, you're always gonna default to them and you have to make it a point. You have to make a decision to. I'm not going to spend time with my wife and kids today because I'm gonna go out with my buddies tonight. And you know that that is missing story time with those kids that night. That's not you tucking them into bed like you usually do. It's you going out with your friends. And you've got to make. It's a trade off.

[George]

There's no doubt. But I probably could have said yes a few more times. Sure of. Yeah, let's get together and really follow up on it. Maybe it's a lunch while the kids were at school or hey, you just had your first child. Why don't you bring them over, involve friends in our home life. I probably should have done a better job, but. But instead I've set comatose. Or at least maybe you sat in

[Gordo]

the recliner with a beer in your hand staring at a TV that wasn't on. Just zoning out.

[George]

Tomorrow's Monday. I gotta go back and do the same thing. But I guess I'm not ruled, you know, I don't spend a lot of time being troubled about that. But yeah, I look back at it and think, yeah, I could have been a better friend. I could have made a better effort through the years to reach out and to stay in touch, you know, and to make those calls and to write those notes too. We've talked about that before. I'm the worst at that thank you notes or just notes of encouragement or something like that. I wish I would have been a better communicator and writer through the years,

[Craig]

you know, you can't think that way though. I mean it's sure you strive to be the best and I think we touched on this maybe 10 episodes ago. But you could always have done a little better with your marriage or fatherhood or with your friends or at your job. Everybody can say that. Have you absolutely given it your ultimate best? I think we did kick that around a while back, so I don't think anybody should really beat themselves up over that, because you can't go back and change it. And you can change some things going forward, But I don't think any of us max out our potential. What, do we only use 10% of our brain? I think.

[Gordo]

I think that's a myth.

[George]

Mine's got to be lower.

[Gordo]

But the idea is we definitely don't

[Craig]

use all of our brain, especially most people today. So we don't really max out, really, in any. Even Michael Jordan, did he completely max out what was possible for him? No, because he didn't win a title every year, Took two years off to play baseball. That wasn't Max. That was not maxing out his basketball. So even Michael Jordan didn't fully max out what he was capable of.

[George]

I told the story on our radio show about an event that I went to that was really touching. It was about our friend Babe Laufenberg, who lost his son Luke to cancer a few years back. And he said that when his son passed away that he got all these texts, and he said, it's like 20 or 25 of his friends. And they all said, luke was my best friend. I guess maybe that's what we all want. We all want people to think, oh, yeah, Gordo was my best friend because that's what they thought of you. And that was a big thing when we were younger, wasn't it? That, hey, we're best friends. Hey, you're best friends, and we're always

[Gordo]

going, you want to be best friends.

[George]

And as you become an adult, it seems kind of a strange thing to say. Yeah, we're best friends. We're totally best friends.

[Craig]

You know, it's funny when my daughter will go up to someone on the playground, she's for her. One of her opening lines is, do you want to be best friends?

[George]

Not just friends.

[Craig]

Not just friends. Yeah, you want to be best friends.

[George]

Yeah. And I remember, too, with some of my friends, like, in elementary school, just thinking, yeah, we're friends, and we're gonna be best friends forever.

[Gordo]

Forever.

[George]

Forever.

[Gordo]

Yeah, Totally forever.

[George]

Fast forward four years, and we don't even talk to each other anymore, you know?

[Gordo]

But four years, they're on the meth pipe, and you're, like, trying to stay away from them.

[George]

We saw Eye to eye on everything. You are my best friend, and you're always going to be my best friend. Yeah. And I think it's been a weird dynamic for us to work through because, like, for Craig and myself, we. For a while in college, I mean, we were best friends. We were around each other all the time, and I guess that all the time. And that applies to the rest of our lives. We'll always have that relationship that we are. We are best buddies and always will be, but we've had to weave that into a career.

[Craig]

Right.

[George]

And yeah, I've always said that that wasn't always easy on our friendship.

[Craig]

Yeah.

[George]

You know, it was.

[Craig]

You've always characterized it as we're. We're work wives to each other.

[George]

And I guess that's the way we kind of resolved that after about 10 or 15 years of, hey, we're just married together at work, and we make it work. And with Gordo, we've all three made it work for 32 years.

[Craig]

Which is a testament, isn't it? Because none of us hit that meth pipe that you were talking about with your bff, you know, four years later.

[George]

Right.

[Craig]

That somehow we have made it work as very close friends in a work environment.

[Gordo]

Yeah. I know it.

[Craig]

That's amazing.

[George]

That shows that we. We really are good friends.

[Craig]

Yeah.

[George]

Because that has mattered to us that we've kept this. Relate. This working relationship going, because easily, you know, 10 years ago, 20 years ago, one of us could have said, yeah, yeah, I'm gonna try something else. This isn't working. But I think over time, we realized, man, we're part of something really special professionally. And from a friendship standpoint, too, of man, these guys are pretty special. And I don't know how far I could walk without them.

[Craig]

I feel the same way.

[Gordo]

Yeah, same. Absolutely.

[George]

See, I don't know if he doesn't.

[Gordo]

I think that we just now became best friends after you said, okay, now

[George]

we are best friends.

[Gordo]

Now, officially, we are best friends.

[George]

And we will be best friends forever. Just forever.

[Gordo]

We need to get the little necklaces that have part of a heart. We each three have one part of that heart. You put them all three together, and it makes one complete unit.

[George]

And we all made an agreement on a radio show that we all have a signal to give one another if we want them to scrub our browser history. If we're put up in the hospital.

[Gordo]

Yeah. Incapacitated on a ventilator. We can't speak, but we have to make an eye motion. We've got designated the I motion. That means delete my browser history so

[Craig]

our families won't know what's going on there, but the three of us will.

[George]

We know the signal.

[Gordo]

He seems to be trying to communicate. What are you saying, dad? What are you saying? He keeps looking at Uncle Craig. I'm not sure why he's looking at Uncle Craig.

[George]

We have an understanding. Don't worry about it.

[Gordo]

Kids, kids, I gotta leave your dad's hospital bed for a moment. Where is the computer? Where does he have his laptop?

[George]

And just give me an idea of what some passwords might be and I'll

[Gordo]

get a little scratch list. I'll figure it out.

[George]

You know, something that makes a little brute force it. All right, well, we had a good discussion of friendships there and hopefully maybe you call your friend today that you haven't talked to in a while and say, hey, how you doing? We haven't talked in a while. Let's get together.

[Craig]

Will you please call Kurti today?

[George]

I don't know his number or reach out, I think.

[Gordo]

How many of them are there in America? Yes. That's a very unusual name.

[George]

There aren't many Kurti Walter Stores. There can't be that many.

[Gordo]

That's right. So you get his cell phone number and just text him. First line should be put down the meth pipe. I want to tell you who this is.

[George]

He's doing well. He's doing well. He became a champion. And I think he's an insurance. I think he's done well in insurance.

[Gordo]

He became a champion? Yeah.

[George]

What do you mean he won a championship in hockey?

[Gordo]

Oh, he won a hockey.

[Craig]

It did sound.

[George]

He's a champion. It did sound a little, little bit like a wheels off funeral speech that we heard once. But now let's not keep moving. Let's keep that moving.

[Craig]

All right.

[George]

Thanks to Peter Welton for producing this again. You can contact [e-mail] and we'll talk to you next time on the Musers, the podcast. Yay.

[Gordo]

Jim Rome takes on sports. Why?

[David Goss]

Because I have a job to do

[George]

with rapid fire takes.

[David Goss]

So I don't want to hear from you lava pigs on this notion today. No idea what you're talking about. You're complaining more than you like to breathe air. It's like you get up in the morning only to complain and cry and moan on social media about things that you don't even understand.

[George]

He's the spitfire of sports smack.

[David Goss]

Take advantage of it. But get up in here.

[George]

The Jim Rome show podcast.

[David Goss]

What's your beef?

[George]

Follow and listen on your favorite platform.

[David Goss]

You've been warned.