91: The Wayback #91 | Thomas Araujo (Dope as Yola)

Summary

The Wayback with Ryan Sickler

Episode 91 | Thomas Araujo (Dope as Yola)
Release Date: September 25, 2025

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Episode Overview

In this nostalgic and comedic conversation, Ryan Sickler welcomes Thomas Araujo, known as Dope as Yola, back to "The Wayback." Together, they reminisce about childhood in the country, family quirks, misadventures with cars, family dynamics, old homes, and memorable pop culture moments. The episode blends humor, candid stories about growing up, and genuine reflections about family, culture, and the little things that shape identity.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Early Driving Lessons & Country Life

[05:06 - 12:24]

• Thomas' rural upbringing: He started driving at an improbably young age (around third or fourth grade) due to his family's truck-driving background.
  • "I was driving my dad's pickup at like maybe fourth grade... not even 8, maybe 10, but that's how you learn. My whole family's truck driver." — Thomas [05:29]
• Sneaking out with grandma’s car: Hilarious and risky tales of taking his grandmother's Cadillac with his friend Joe for “parties,” including the iconic moment when he successfully avoids being caught but accidentally crushes his prized pipe.
  • "I park it exactly how she parks... I get out of the car and I look down and I ran over my brand new pipe." — Thomas [11:33]
• The epic recovery: Years later, he dug up the shattered pipe on Instagram Live, a testament to childhood attachments and amusing regret.

2. Sibling Dynamics & Room Sharing

[12:26 - 13:41]

• Sharing a room with his sister: The shared space was fraught with sibling combat and early gender/sexuality insights.
  • "My sister's super...like she's Randy Monchman Savage and I am everyone else, dude. I swear to God, I walk in, and she's like, all right, beat your ass." — Thomas [12:41]
• Parental discipline: Thomas reflects on his mom’s approach to discipline and how it contrasted between him and his sister.

3. Old Homes, Nostalgia, and Family Legacy

[14:45 - 18:26]

• Touring old addresses on Google Maps: Both host and guest look up Thomas' childhood homes and recount the significance of each.
  • On seeing his old house: "Oh, man. I would throw up there all the time before I got home after parties. My grandma, grandpa. Oh, yeah, that's the house I grew up in. I love it." — Thomas [15:23]
• Failed efforts to buy childhood homes: Thomas tried to reclaim his past, inspired by childhood Christmases and a desire to revive family traditions.
  • "I want to keep the house. Build a new house in the back... so I can have Christmas like I did at my grandma's when I was a kid." — Thomas [16:09]

4. Family Vacations & Summer Memories

[18:26 - 21:22]

• No vacations growing up: The family only came together for funerals, not recreational trips.
  • "Vacations? No, you just go to school, you come home..." — Thomas [18:53]
• Summer routines: Cheap candy runs, bike rides, and childhood fights colored his days. Notably, Thomas shares the gross-out story of having slugs thrown at him after a fight.
• Tootsie Pop legend: Thomas uncovers a supposed tradition—get a Tootsie Pop wrapper featuring an Indian shooting a star and earn a free pop at local stores—a "myth" still believed by kids.
  • "You open a Tootsie Pop and if you get the guy with shooting the star... you take it back and get a free Tootsie Pop." — Thomas [19:47]

5. Favorite Childhood Stores, Weird Candy, and First Concerts

[21:35 - 24:51]

• Local corner stores: Thomas frequented a store called Best Buy (not the electronics chain), memorable for its lack of a sign and selling odd candies.
• Spice Girls lollipops: Both reminisce about gross, limited-edition Spice Girls lollipops—Thomas’ first concert was actually the Spice Girls!
  • "So I like girls, right? And then my sister's pretty gay. My sister also likes girls, but we didn't know that...so she's like, yo, we should go to Spice Girls concert." — Thomas [24:20]
• Ryan’s first concert: Ozzy Osbourne and Metallica—an epic rock origin story by comparison.

6. First R-Rated (and Accidental XXX) Movie Experiences

[25:03 - 29:13]

• Early exposure to horror: Thomas watches The Exorcist at a very young age, traumatized but also drawn to scary films out of familial necessity.
• Video rental mishaps and parental oversight: A memorable story where, due to a mislabeled tape, Thomas and his family unwittingly watched pornographic content. His mom returns it with a hilarious confrontation.
  • "We get home, we put it on, and there's just... it's just porn because somebody didn't rewind it... My mom just does this to us. You know how hard is to turn the vcr? And she turns the VCR up, pops it up. My child." — Thomas [27:41]

7. Family Movie Nights, Nostalgic Movies, and Scary Movie Debates

[29:13 - 36:16]

• Stand By Me, Porky’s, and other classics: Both discuss movies watched with (and accidentally in front of) parents and grandparents, the awkwardness of certain scenes, and generational divides over film content.
• The only real family movie outing: For Thomas, “The Wedding Singer,” a rare shared experience.
• Haunted houses and scary movies: Neither has much love for modern scary movies—Thomas, in particular, has a deep aversion to being scared for fun.
  • "I hate scary. I used to. I used to say, like, yo, scary, enough walking home. I don't want to walk. I don't want to be scared at home." — Thomas [36:05]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On learning to drive:

  • "I was driving my dad’s pickup at maybe fourth grade... As long as you don't go too fast. I learned how to downshift, you know, I was not even 8, maybe 10, but that's how you learn. My whole family's truck driver." — Thomas [05:29]

• On the loss of his treasured pipe:

  • "I ran over my brand new pipe. Because I put it behind the tile behind it. I ran it over. I scooped up all the pieces. I buried it." — Thomas [11:33]

• On sibling rivalry:

  • "My sister would get her ass whooped, come in, and beat the out of me. So I should have just sided with her..." — Thomas [12:41]

• Nostalgia and family traditions:

  • "I want to keep the house...so I can have Christmas like I did at my grandma's when I was a kid." — Thomas [16:09]

• First concert confession:

  • "Spice Girls." — Thomas [24:13]
  • "If you want to be. That's a hard song. I'll say that. The Spice Girls movie, pretty good, too." — Thomas [24:51]

• Tootsie Pop myth revelation:

  • "You open a Tootsie Pop and if you get the guy with shooting the star with a bow and arrow, you take it back and get a free Tootsie Pop." — Thomas [19:47]
  • "How the hell did I never hear about that?" — Ryan [20:30]

• On scary movies:

  • "I used to say, 'yo, scary enough walking home. I don't want to be scared at home.'" — Thomas [36:05]

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Important Timestamps

• [05:06] — Thomas recounts driving pickup trucks as a grade schooler
• [11:33] — How he ran over his first smuggled pipe
• [14:45] — Google Maps tour of Thomas’s childhood addresses
• [16:09] — Describes his dream for the old family house
• [19:47] — Tootsie Pop legend retold
• [24:13] — Thomas admits first concert was Spice Girls
• [27:41] — Accidental porn rental story
• [36:05] — Thomas explains his lasting aversion to scary movies

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Finale & Plugs

[36:16 - End]

• Thomas plugs his podcast: "Dope as Usual Podcast every Tuesday at 12:30 on all platforms."
• Ryan wraps the episode: Thanks listeners and reminds them to check him out on social media and YouTube.

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Tone & Vibe

Casual, humorous, and brimming with candid nostalgia. Both host and guest lean into vivid, sometimes outrageous childhood anecdotes while reflecting on how their upbringings shaped who they are. The camaraderie is palpable, with both sharing moments of humility, laughter, and old-school charm.

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This episode is a must-listen for fans of honest, funny, and raw recollections about growing up with little supervision, the power of found family, and the quirks that make home truly memorable.

Transcript

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[Ryan Sickler]

All right, y', all, big news. My new stand up special, live and Alive drops Friday, October 24th, right here on my YouTube at 9pm Eastern, 6pm Pacific. We shot at a comedy on State Madison, Wisconsin. There were two sold out shows, the crowds were unbelievable and I'm telling you honestly, it's my best work. All right, this special is special. I'm really proud of it. It's self produced, it's self funded, it's self released and straight from me to you, the way it should be. And here's the best part. During the premiere, I'll be live in the YouTube comments with you guys hanging out the whole time. I'll answer questions and I want to watch it all unfold in real time with you guys. Like we're there together that night. All right? So make sure you subscribe to my channel, hit that reminder and join me on release night. This one means a lot to me and I would love to experience that first watch with you guys. Friday, October 24th, 9pm Eastern, 6pm Pacific. Live and alive right here on my YouTube. Subscribe now and don't miss it. San Diego. I'll be at the Grand Comedy Club Friday, October 3rd. Get your tickets now on my website at Ryan Sickler dot com.

[Thomas Araujo]

Hey, baby, we're gonna be here all day. We're gonna be here all day, baby. I like that kind of party.

[Ryan Sickler]

Welcome back to the Way Back. Everybody. Ryan Sickler here. Thank you for watching this show. I love doing this show. This is a really fun show to watch and, and sit and be. So thank you for your support. That's it, man. Let's just get into it. I'm very excited to have this guest back here today. Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Thomas Araujo. Welcome. Thank you.

[Thomas Araujo]

Thank you for having me. Appreciate it.

[Ryan Sickler]

So I was talking to you before we got started here. You're 35, correct, sir. And you've never sat in this seat in your life.

[Thomas Araujo]

A turnaround seat. Like I said, we just have trucks and we get in the back of trucks.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah. So tell me, Tell us About that. The growing up, so. Because also, you're making me have flashbacks now. Yeah, you were. You weren't supposed to, but everybody rode in the back of a pickup truck back in the day. Yeah.

[Thomas Araujo]

Yeah. And my family's from the country, so it. I was driving my dad's pickup at like maybe fourth grade. Around the property. May 3rd grade. Just because. As long as you don't go too fast. I learned how to downshift, you know, I was not even 8, maybe 10, but that's how you learn. My whole family's truck driver, so. Were allowed to drive around as long as you stayed in eyesight. My dad was a drug addict, so he wasn't really like, you know, like, I don't do that. He would probably be like, yo, you're supposed to from 4 to 5. Like, he's trying to teach me how to drive more than. He's like, don't crash the car. I would take it to the store, which is like quarter mile.

[Ryan Sickler]

How old were you when you first.

[Thomas Araujo]

Me?

[Ryan Sickler]

My sister on the street. A real street.

[Thomas Araujo]

It's the. It's like a country road. Yeah, but maybe third grade. Fourth.

[Ryan Sickler]

Third grade, I think I say 13.

[Thomas Araujo]

Hell no. I was really stealing the car. That. That age right there. That's exactly how old I was.

[Ryan Sickler]

This kid's right. Is that your.

[Thomas Araujo]

That's my sister, but she.

[Ryan Sickler]

You two are in the car drive.

[Thomas Araujo]

She would come with me. Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

Where are you going?

[Thomas Araujo]

We just go to the store and get candy. But we would park behind the store so they wouldn't tell my grandma that we had a car.

[Ryan Sickler]

What are you driving? What kind of car was it?

[Thomas Araujo]

Little Dodge. Little blue Mexican working truck. The Dodge. It's a Dodge. I don't remember. It's a little baby cab with two. There's, you know, there's enough for a middle seat and that's it. There's no back seat or anything. A little baby, that one. But bright blue. Just like that.

[Ryan Sickler]

That guy right there.

[Thomas Araujo]

Yeah. But no back window. I don't know. Weird. Yeah. We never had a back window, but. Yeah, we just take that down the street. That's how I learned how to drive stick.

[Ryan Sickler]

That was a stick, that truck?

[Thomas Araujo]

Yeah. Well, that's how I learned how to drive it. But like downshifted and all that was in the diesel. My dad let me help him drive.

[Ryan Sickler]

Did you ever get caught? Yeah. What happened?

[Thomas Araujo]

No. Okay, so you said 13, right?

[Ryan Sickler]

I was. I thought you were going to.

[Thomas Araujo]

Stealing the car the whole time. Nobody knows. My grandma's Mexican. As Hell, and got the. The Cadillac with the gold trim all over it. You know, like the Italian but Mexican people. And she bought that one year was white. I remember like, wow, that's an amazing ass car. I'm going to take it one day. And I was like 14. My friend Joe Fisher, his mom is a personal trainer. She should be gone all day. And he's like, I have a ten sack. I'm like, oh, that's the party, I'm coming. And he's like, but I don't have my mom's car. Like, I will take my grandma's car. She's a truck driver. And my grandpa.

[Ryan Sickler]

And what did she drive?

[Thomas Araujo]

The little like Cadillac deville. It had the little. That's the exact car.

[Ryan Sickler]

Well done.

[Thomas Araujo]

That's exactly the car the white woman. But hers is a little. A little more pimp looking. I gotta be honest. My grandma got a really nice car one time. So before they built the gym by my grandma's, we're out in the country. There used to be a field. There would just be a field, right? And come on pickup trucks, people might throw a bonfire out there. Hi. And now there's a weed shop out there, which is crazy. So I used to cut through that field to go to Joe's all the time walking. But this time, like, you know, I'm gonna take my grandma's car. I'm gonna pull up to Joe. Not telling that. I got my grandma's catalytic.

[Ryan Sickler]

Time of day is this.

[Thomas Araujo]

This is a summertime. And it was like 11 in the morning. It's daytime. I know they're at work because it's tomato season. So I'm like, oh, I got hours, right? They're truck drivers, so they haul tomatoes. So I know they're going to be gone all day.

[Ryan Sickler]

All day.

[Thomas Araujo]

So I get the car, I cut through the field. I've. I think I'm the coolest guy. I'm driving a Cadillac. I'm about to be 15. I think I'm the coolest guy in the world, right? I get the Joe's, I smoke my. All right, I'm gonna drive the Cadillac back to my grandma's and I get back to the little trail. But a security guard at the end of my little route maybe because there's tweakers back there, somebody's checking the property, I don't know. But I see and go, oh, no, that's terrible. I see him. I take off as fast as I can. Like, oh, maybe he's waiting for me. I'm paranoid. I'M a child. I look like this. I'm 35. What do I look at? 13 or 15. I look like a baby. So I take off. The only way back is like three to four miles in the country to my grandma's. That's the only road. So I have to go all the way around. Like, no, someone's gonna get there. I have a feeling someone's gonna show up. I get there, and it's my stepmom. She don't speak English. My dad's wife, she'll speak English right now. I'm a good kid. I had A's right before this, right? Hi, pup. And I see her car. There's like, my grandma's on the hill. So I could see the car for a mile. So I'm just thinking about everything that's gonna happen. Like, no, there's no way. I pull up the driveway. It's a long gravel driveway. There's no way. She's not gonna hear me unless she's just not paying attention. So I get to the car. The garage is still open. I took it out of the garage because I was like, no one's gonna be here. I'm just gonna come right back in and close it. I had this pipe that I snuck from Mexico. I thought it was the coolest. I bought a little pipe, but they sold it to me. I'm like, no way you let me buy this. Here's the money. I wrapped it up, put it in my pants. I walked across the board with my Uncle Greg. I thought I was a smuggler. I thought it was the shit. I brought that over and a Cadillac. I was. I was the coolest guy in the world in my head. And she was like, you got a pipe. It had a naked chick on. Remember those, like, clay ones that. A naked chick with vines. I'm like, look at this. Look at her boobs are out. I was the man, right? So I get there, my. There's no way she's there. I pull into the garage, my head down. Just like, no way. I park it. And I know exactly how to park it. Because my grandma's. They park their car a certain way. I follow the lines on the ground. I park it exactly how she parks. I put the pipe down right behind the tire, and I just walk into, like, hey, Martha. It took the car. I was ready to, like, call my dad. I walk in, and she's changing. My little sister in the back. She's like, oh, I didn't know you were here. Like, oh, yeah, I was in the Backyard. No, ran right back out. I pressed the garage door button. I made sure I parked it right. And I pulled it in a little further. I know my grandma parks next to the tennis ball, and I pull the car out. I'm like, no, she's in the bathroom. Me. Line it up and close the garage. And I'm home free. And I'm trying to talk to her. I smell like, we in the backyard. You know, I'm doing that thing. I'm panicking. I drive. I drive the car. In a little bit, I hear, what was that? I was like, there's no time. Park the car, my closest garage before she comes out here. And I get out of the car and I look down and I ran over my brand new pipe. Because I put it behind the tile behind it. I ran it right over. I ran it over. I scooped up all the pieces. I buried it. My grandma's backyard.

[Ryan Sickler]

Buried it. It was so sad.

[Thomas Araujo]

I was sad. Maria, I name her. I had it for one day. No lie on Instagram Live. When Instagram Live came out, I dug it up during Thanksgiving. I was sitting there, was like, what's about the pipe? What about the pipe? And I was like, you guys don't believe me? And I dug it up on Instagram Live and got all the pieces. It was really weird to see, but she didn't know I took the car. So I got away with it eventually. Essentially, I got away with it, but I lost that pipe. I was. I mean, that was 20 years ago. I'm so, like, upset about it.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah, I could tell you still felt it.

[Thomas Araujo]

Yeah. But I dug her up.

[Ryan Sickler]

Did you. Did you ever have to share a room growing up?

[Thomas Araujo]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

You did? Who are you sharing?

[Thomas Araujo]

My sister.

[Ryan Sickler]

Always. Your sister? That's always. And you're how old? Two. Two years.

[Thomas Araujo]

She's a year and a half older than me. That's not a lot. No.

[Ryan Sickler]

Going through puberty. Probably pretty close to the same age.

[Thomas Araujo]

My sister's super, like, boyishly gay, butch chick, not looking, just acts like it. Like she's Randy Monchman Savage and I am everyone else, dude. I swear to God, I walk in, and she's like, all right, beat your ass. Like, oh. And my mom never beat my ass because I was always so polite. So my sister would get her ass whooped, come in, and beat the out of me. So I should have just sided with her, talk to my mom. Got hit by my mom once, but my sister beat my ass my whole life. So I shared a room with her. And I remember one time I was like, here. I made fun of her for. Because she was always. Can't say it on here. But she always called me a certain term they call gay guys. And in my head I'm like, you're gay and you're calling me this every day. And I said it back to her once, and my mom scolded me, you know, she's gay. I'm like, she's been calling me that for 14 years. And you didn't say a word. I use it once, and now I'm in trouble. So that's how I shared a room with her. And she would beat me up until I was like 12 and I got stronger.

[Ryan Sickler]

Do you remember any of your old addresses where people don't live anymore?

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[Ryan Sickler]

Oh, yeah.

[Thomas Araujo]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

Let's look some of these houses.

[Thomas Araujo]

Oh, yeah, I tried to buy this house off. Yeah, I pulled up in the wrong car.

[Ryan Sickler]

No, the wrong car.

[Thomas Araujo]

I pulled up. He goes, how much? Oh, yeah, I probably should have just uber deer. Yeah, he. He told me. No. 1142 W. 6th St. Y.

[Ryan Sickler]

This is the one you tried to.

[Thomas Araujo]

Buy many of drug right there. Oh, look, the mushrooms still grow in the yard. Go back to the right a little bit. Like, you know, like click to the right because for some reason it's not showing it again. Look in the yard. I just saw a bunch of mushrooms in the yard right there.

[Ryan Sickler]

There they are.

[Thomas Araujo]

The mushrooms grow every. That's why he threw up all the time.

[Ryan Sickler]

That's why they probably grew up.

[Thomas Araujo]

Oh, man. I would throw up there all the time before I got home after parties. My grandma, grandpa. Oh, yeah, that's the house I grew up in. I love it. It's great. I try to buy it, and the guy told me, get out.

[Ryan Sickler]

Really?

[Thomas Araujo]

I was right there. To the neighbors. I asked the neighbor. He was outside, right?

[Ryan Sickler]

You drove that car. You pulled up and out front. Yeah, you're right.

[Thomas Araujo]

I went back to do a meet and greet right at this park with. This was with an artist from Merced. Like, you know, it's like a give back at the park. Like a toy drive, all that stuff. I'm like, let me go check out the house. The neighbors outside. I'm talking to the neighbor and he's like, yo, the guy next door is an old man. He's not going to sell it. And I don't speak Spanish. Mike, can you ask him? Because I don't speak Spanish. So there's another red flag for them. Like, ugh, you don't speak Spanish? Nice car, bitch. And then the neighbor next door comes out. Super fan.

[Ryan Sickler]

Oh, no way.

[Thomas Araujo]

Right there. Guy comes out on the other side, comes out. What? I'm like, oh, you. What's up? He goes. He starts freaking out. And the guy's like, what is. What's happening? And the old man comes out and they're all. They're just. It was. It was the dumbest thing I could have did. I should have went there, sir. I need this for my children. I need to buy this house, but I just want it so. The backyard's huge. I want to keep the house. Build a new house in the back. Put a. Put a hallway that goes from the new house to the old house so I can have Christmas like I did at my grandma's when I was a kid. So when we come to town, we can like, oh, let's go to grandma's house for Christmas, because she's. She's been gone for a long time. So we can do Christmas again as like I did as a kid and keep it the same. How crazy. It's like this show, like the most nostalgic thing I can think of. I will re wrap stuff I already have just to do it. Yeah, but that's the only reason why I want it. So I can do Christmas in my grandma's. Dude. And. And also it's. It's our house. They. They made it all Mexican inside.

[Ryan Sickler]

Oh, yeah.

[Thomas Araujo]

There's tile everywhere.

[Ryan Sickler]

Mexicans love it.

[Thomas Araujo]

They love tile. Dude, all kids have silver teeth because they Smack their mouth on the ground.

[Ryan Sickler]

Any other. Any other places you remember, Any other dresses you remember growing up? Ooh.

[Thomas Araujo]

Oh, yeah. 305 West 27th Street. That's the push. That's where I started off doing all my stuff. Yeah. Merced, California. I actually, this is where I met. Hung out with Rosie. That's. We used to hang out all the time. I drew all over those trees with. When I was on mushrooms with a pencil. And then it grew.

[Ryan Sickler]

I love how this just parked right on the yard too. Driveway or anything. He's just right on the.

[Thomas Araujo]

That's right. Park my car every day where that white car's at.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah, the one up back there. It looks like where should be parked.

[Thomas Araujo]

Exactly. So I. Right there, next door is my. My wife's best friend lived next door. And behind me was my brother. Not this brother, my other brother. So we had the whole block. And every day I'd be outside doing those weed pictures. That's how I started doing weed stuff. Was at this house.

[Ryan Sickler]

Okay.

[Thomas Araujo]

And the push trees. Tree. This. The logo is that tree. Well, it's gone now, but the tree behind it, that's where I did the picture. This is where I started everything. And yeah, I proposed to Rosie right there. Right where the clicker's at.

[Ryan Sickler]

Really.

[Thomas Araujo]

I brought her back. I pretended we're doing a vlog of our old house, and I got her with, oh, look at that.

[Ryan Sickler]

And she turned around like, God, that's great.

[Thomas Araujo]

Yeah. I try to buy this house. They told me.

[Ryan Sickler]

No, they did too.

[Thomas Araujo]

Yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

Did you guys vacation at all? Are you a vacation family?

[Thomas Araujo]

Oh, you mean as a child?

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah, no, I. We ask all the time because some people are like, yeah, but we drove everywhere. What was a vacation for you then?

[Thomas Araujo]

We have never done anything.

[Ryan Sickler]

Nothing. Not even family reunions. No, nothing. Funerals is when you guys end up seeing each other.

[Thomas Araujo]

I was like, 16.

[Ryan Sickler]

Really?

[Thomas Araujo]

My grandma. My grandmother from the other house.

[Ryan Sickler]

Oh, yeah, yeah.

[Thomas Araujo]

So I know. So vacation. No, you just go to school, you come home, and then like, what's a.

[Ryan Sickler]

Summer day for you?

[Thomas Araujo]

Oh, hot, sweaty. I hope I have enough money to buy like a five bike. Oh, as a kid. Sorry.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah.

[Thomas Araujo]

All right. As a kid, I get on my bike, I find my friend that turned out to be a racist next door, and then I fought him. And then his brother threw slugs at me, like from the. From the gutter. And I'll never forget it when they hit me, and I'm like, they're slugs. And I threw up. I never.

[Ryan Sickler]

Oh, man.

[Thomas Araujo]

I was like, what is that? What is that? And they moved me through. I threw up because, like, stuff got in my mouth. He threw like the sludge of the. Of the. I beat his brother up, but he was brothers being racist toward me. So I would go to the store and buy lollipops from the liquor stores and hopefully I get the Indian with the star so I can get a free Tootsie Pop. Remember that?

[Ryan Sickler]

No, what is it?

[Thomas Araujo]

You open a Tootsie Pop and if you get the guy with shooting the star with a bow and arrow, you take it back and get a free Tootsie Pop.

[Ryan Sickler]

No, I had no idea.

[Thomas Araujo]

My mom showed me this because she said it's my favorite one right there.

[Ryan Sickler]

No, if you take it back to.

[Thomas Araujo]

The liquor store, they give you a free too.

[Ryan Sickler]

Oh, how? I'm 51 just finding out about this right now. That's my favorite. I've got. Bet you I had so many goddamn shooting.

[Thomas Araujo]

Three in a row. I walked back to the store cuz I won three times in a row.

[Ryan Sickler]

You knew about that?

[Thomas Araujo]

Yeah, yeah.

[Ryan Sickler]

Stores still honor that.

[Thomas Araujo]

I don't know about now. I stopped doing. I was maybe like.

[Ryan Sickler]

So if you go buy a bag of them, where are you taking them?

[Thomas Araujo]

I take it back to the store. I bought individual one yesterday.

[Ryan Sickler]

I got this.

[Thomas Araujo]

They can't tell you no and they.

[Ryan Sickler]

Just give you another.

[Thomas Araujo]

They probably don't honor it, but yeah, as a kid, that's all I would do.

[Ryan Sickler]

How the hell did I never hear about that?

[Thomas Araujo]

I was a fat poor kid.

[Ryan Sickler]

You know, Industries has never offered such a deal and considers it a myth.

[Thomas Araujo]

A myth. But all these Indians think it's real. So all these Middle Eastern dudes in Mercedes were like, damn. I guess America, all right, we're Americans now we got to give them a free Tootsie Pop.

[Ryan Sickler]

No shit.

[Thomas Araujo]

Yeah, dude. I buy a soda with Styrofoam. The soda. Styrofoam sodas then come back from soda the Styrofoam at the liquor stores.

[Ryan Sickler]

Oh, yeah, yeah.

[Thomas Araujo]

I was a little kid grabbing with both hands, walking back to my house.

[Ryan Sickler]

Look worse shit for the planet. Best thing for a drink for some reason, for some.

[Thomas Araujo]

It tastes like a. Like a. Like a barbecue. It tastes like I'm hanging out with people, man.

[Ryan Sickler]

Ain't nothing like a Styrofoam drink. I loved it. It's a big ice to the Styrofoam. Oh, yeah, that stays.

[Thomas Araujo]

Yeah, sorry. Biting it. Yeah, no, that summer day, man. That's it. And just hope.

[Ryan Sickler]

For you and the planet. We're potato kids.

[Thomas Araujo]

We're kids. I used to do. I used to eat the ice. It was all worth the money. Yeah, but no summer days. That's it, man. My mom would tell me to get out.

[Ryan Sickler]

Do you remember any, like, corner stores or did you go to that you went to or anything? What do they call. Let's look them up?

[Thomas Araujo]

Oh, I think it's called California Liquor or. No, Best Buy.

[Ryan Sickler]

The store Best Buy, it's called Best Buy. How?

[Thomas Araujo]

They're Indian people. They don't even have a sign.

[Ryan Sickler]

They don't even care.

[Thomas Araujo]

Yeah, Best Buy, that's where I used to buy my Spice Girls limited lollipops when they were popping.

[Ryan Sickler]

Spice Girls had lollipops? Oh, yeah, they had lollipops, man.

[Thomas Araujo]

Some I used to buy the stuff that came with a little fake tattoo. Spice Girl, what was your first concert of all time?

[Ryan Sickler]

Oh, man, I had a great one. I was lucky.

[Thomas Araujo]

What was it?

[Ryan Sickler]

Wait, real quick. Is this it?

[Thomas Araujo]

That is it.

[Ryan Sickler]

Curse divides it all right there.

[Thomas Araujo]

I got to where that van was, and I was like, I won. Came back, got to the van. I won, and. And just kept getting low light.

[Ryan Sickler]

Three in a row like that one.

[Thomas Araujo]

Day before I even made it. I used to live three blocks to the right. Damn, there's a taco truck there. Yeah, there was never a taco.

[Ryan Sickler]

All right.

[Thomas Araujo]

I mean, things change. The meat market to their back. Every Mexican meat market smells like fabuloso and blood.

[Ryan Sickler]

Fabuloso and blood.

[Thomas Araujo]

Oh, a copper pen, like, just smells like pennies and fabuloso. That place is awesome. Oh, it stinks in there, dude. Spice Girl lollipops. You guys don't remember Spice Girl lollipops? They were disgusting. Yep, that's the package. It was like, those are the cars they give you to get hookers in Vegas.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah, I was gonna say, this is real.

[Thomas Araujo]

I was buying this with the kids.

[Ryan Sickler]

Going in and sucking on this.

[Thomas Araujo]

The lollipops were disgusting. Yeah, they had their faces, see? Yeah, they weren't good. They weren't good at all. What was your first concert?

[Ryan Sickler]

First concert was seventh grade. We talked our parents into letting us go with another friend whose dad talked to it honestly.

[Thomas Araujo]

Oh, he let you go to train?

[Ryan Sickler]

He drop us? No, he just dropped us off and waited in the parking lot next to it. And it was Ozzy Osborne, and Metallica opened for him. It was sick. And Metallica. Cliff Burton was still alive.

[Thomas Araujo]

That's your first show?

[Ryan Sickler]

First ever. I mean, it was epic. Azie ultimate sin. Metallica was coming off Master Puppets. They were still very young. And I. I'll never forget. Cliff Burton's alive. James Hetfield had a broken arm from skateboarding. So the guitar tech played his behind the curtain. And he was just out there with a cast singing. And it was, how much more cool can you get?

[Thomas Araujo]

I broke my arm skating out there.

[Ryan Sickler]

Opening for Ozzy on him. And then you go on to be bigger than him.

[Thomas Araujo]

And back when he was mad competent and cool as hell. Yeah, you can still understand him back then.

[Ryan Sickler]

What. What was your first concert?

[Thomas Araujo]

Spice Girls.

[Ryan Sickler]

Nah, dude, how in the hell are you look.

[Thomas Araujo]

So I like girls, right? And then my sister's pretty gay. My sister also likes girls, but we didn't know that. So she's like, yo, we should go to Spice Girls concert. I said, she was.

[Ryan Sickler]

She was tearing those lollipops. She kept all of them.

[Thomas Araujo]

She used to keep all the rappers.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah.

[Thomas Araujo]

So I didn't. Nobody knew she was gay yet. So she was like, yo, let's go watch the spider school. I'm like, yeah, I'd love to go. I would go with you. You're a fan. So that was my undercover way of, like, I just want to go stare at these girls. I was a kid. I didn't understand. And that was the first concert I ever went to. It wasn't good.

[Ryan Sickler]

It wasn't?

[Thomas Araujo]

No, it was the Spice Girls. If you want to be. That's a hard song. I'll say that The Spice Girls movie, pretty good, too. Well, that's not a lot you didn't see. You know what? You're an adult.

[Ryan Sickler]

You know what. What was your first rated R movie? Do you remember?

[Thomas Araujo]

Yeah, I remember.

[Ryan Sickler]

What was it?

[Thomas Araujo]

Just remember my mom was on drugs, too, and a kid. So whatever she watch, I watch. So my first super bad one, I was. I think.

[Ryan Sickler]

And they know you're in the room or you hide.

[Thomas Araujo]

She watches with me. I was like, yo, we're gonna watch this movie.

[Ryan Sickler]

Okay.

[Thomas Araujo]

The first one that I remember vividly, I was, I think, right before I went into school because I remember I was, like, getting nervous to go to.

[Ryan Sickler]

School in the morning. You're watching.

[Thomas Araujo]

No, like, to start.

[Ryan Sickler]

Oh, God.

[Thomas Araujo]

First grade. I remember I was like, oh, my God, I'm start school. I was a kid. I remember my fifth birthday was coming up, and we watched the Exorcist, and it wrecked me.

[Ryan Sickler]

That's a lot of people's first one.

[Thomas Araujo]

Wrecked me back because she said, this scared me so bad as a kid. I had to Sleep in my mom's room for weeks. And so you're gonna show us. We had to sleep in mom's room for a couple days.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah. Dude, that's terrible.

[Thomas Araujo]

The first time she was like, I got you. I'm gonna nurture you. But after this, it's called Downhill from here. And then she was hella nice to us for like a couple days because we were scared. And then. Do you remember the movie Very Bad things?

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah, I remember.

[Thomas Araujo]

Very great movie, right? I just talked about this recently. We. You remember before Blockbuster or during, they used to have private video stores you can go and gym movie rentals. Right.

[Ryan Sickler]

There it is.

[Thomas Araujo]

So you know, behind the curtain. You know about this? Behind the curtain is where all the. The naked stuff said. So I knew like, I can't go behind the curtain at this rental store because you had to be 18 and over. That's where all the naked stuff's at. And you see all the older dudes come out with tapes.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah. Remember, Dang a man.

[Thomas Araujo]

Bunch of tape. Like, whoa, what's back there? So me and my mom and my sister went to go rent this movie because we heard about it, right? And I'm like, what 7 mom's like, let's go watch this movie together. So we go rent it. We ask the guy we want very bad things. And he looks at my mom like.

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[Thomas Araujo]

Say, you sure? And I remember everything. I'm looking up. I'm like, what the going on? Give us the movie because you're going to watch it with him. I'm their mom. It's okay. We want to rent this movie. And my mom was. My mom was mean. She's like, just give me the movie. And the guy's like, ah. And he gives it to us. It's in a black case. Like, where's the COVID Weird. We get home, we put it on, and there's just. It's just porn because somebody didn't rewind it. So halfway through it, it's already still going. So I'm sitting there like, oh, oh, oh. My mom just does this to us. You know how hard is to turn the vcr? And she turns the VCR up, pops it up. My child. Yeah, dude. That's why. He's like, you want to watch it with them? He asks with them. She like, they're my kids. It's okay. So he was like, this lady is disgusting. But also, he should have called the cops. If that's what he thought, he definitely should have called.

[Ryan Sickler]

He still gave it to her.

[Thomas Araujo]

He still rented it. We go right back to the store. Same guy is still at work. He. We're walking up to me goes, yeah. She goes, I want the movie, not the porno. I remember she said it to me, goes, what movie? Like, and we went and looked on the shelf. That one. He goes, oh, like that guy's a creep for even going, oh, you want the porn? That's a great one. It's not even around here.

[Ryan Sickler]

It is.

[Thomas Araujo]

I swear to God. Here, I remember that. I remember watching that. That was the first XXX movie I ever, ever witnessed.

[Ryan Sickler]

So I'm trying to remember. I want to say the first, the one I really watched that like blew my mind open was Porky's. Oh, you know about pork?

[Thomas Araujo]

Of course I do.

[Ryan Sickler]

So my. My dad had this one on and my grandmom is in the room and finally she's like, turn this all. Like. It got to a point where she's like. And my dad's like, I'm gonna turn this off. And this is another one too. I remember going to see. He took us and we were underage at the time. Time. But it was Stand By Me. Oh, is that a R rated movie? Because they're talking about Sutherlands over there.

[Thomas Araujo]

Just being a creep.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah, that's right.

[Thomas Araujo]

Pre Lost Boys 81. Oh, 86.

[Ryan Sickler]

So I'm 13. Yeah, 12. 12. 13 years old at this time. And my younger brother's like nine. He takes all three of us. And then my grandmom comes and my grandmom's like, kids didn't talk like this.

[Thomas Araujo]

And.

[Ryan Sickler]

And I. I'm like, I already talk like this. You know what I mean? My dad's like, yeah, they. And I remember that one being the one we went to a theater to see. The other ones were like, home at HBO or whatever. Come on. And it would be a. A booby.

[Thomas Araujo]

Did you ever go as a family, like a full family to watch a movie?

[Ryan Sickler]

Well, you can stop you right there. We never went as a full family.

[Thomas Araujo]

Okay, okay. I like, I went to the movie. My grandma came.

[Ryan Sickler]

I'm mistaken. I. I don't mean to cut you off. I do remember one. Look this up, Kirsten. This was. It was called Gus. It's a Disney movie about a horse that kicks field goals.

[Thomas Araujo]

And oh, my God, the guy from mash.

[Ryan Sickler]

Don Knotts is in there. And Tom Bosley, I want to say, from Happy Days was in there.

[Thomas Araujo]

I think that is like air bud with a horse.

[Ryan Sickler]

It is.

[Thomas Araujo]

Damn Airbuds. Not original.

[Ryan Sickler]

And Gus kicked field goals. And is Tom Bosley in that as well?

[Thomas Araujo]

He just kicks field goals. Is he starring Don Knotts?

[Ryan Sickler]

No, it's Don Knotts. Tim Conway. That's it. Look at the COVID These are all the guys from, like, Mama's Family.

[Thomas Araujo]

And Mama's Family's my favorite show.

[Ryan Sickler]

Oh, bro, I love it so much. Love Vicki Lawrence. So anyway, I remember seeing this at a drive in movie theater, really young, and I would have to say we were probably. My younger brother wouldn't have been born yet or just born. But I do remember seeing that with them. Oh, you know what I'm thinking? I'm sorry to keep interrupt. Herbie the Love Bug.

[Thomas Araujo]

Oh, I hate.

[Ryan Sickler]

That's the one. I never was a fan. Oh, that's the one with Tom Bosley.

[Thomas Araujo]

I'd rather watch Christine.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah, that was a good one.

[Thomas Araujo]

Yeah, I'll watch a killer car over a. A hippie lame car.

[Ryan Sickler]

What about you, as a family? Going to see a movie.

[Thomas Araujo]

The Wedding Singer is the only one we ever watched together.

[Ryan Sickler]

You guys all went as a family together. That's a good one. That's a good one. That's a funny one.

[Thomas Araujo]

Yeah, I remember that. And then my dad, like I said. Oh, it was earlier. Scary movie, too. Oh, God, that's such good. Chris Elliott. Yeah, he's the best one of the whole movie. 2001. Oh, yeah. I was a baby. I was like, dude, oh my God, I couldn't even. Oh, yeah, I could. But damn, that's such a good movie. I love that one. So Much.

[Ryan Sickler]

That's right.

[Thomas Araujo]

Wayne starts off with. Was it James woods being the priest from Exorcist? He tries to bang the kid.

[Ryan Sickler]

Dude going back to Exorcist for a second here. We used to watch. So that was a big thing with me, my cousins. Like, if we did sleepovers, it was always a scary movie. It was Friday the 13th. It was a Halloween. It was here's Exorcist, but the one. So we had a great aunt, my grandmom's sister, she was a nun. Her name was Sister Carmina. And she was hip. She'd come over, hang out with cool shit. She was cool shit, all right. And I remember one time she was staying at my Aunt Marguerite's. We're all there watching Exorcist and everything, and she's not phased. And then the Omen comes on. Will you look this one up?

[Thomas Araujo]

Oh, the Omen. Yeah, with. What's his name?

[Ryan Sickler]

Damien.

[Thomas Araujo]

Damien. Thank you.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yup.

[Thomas Araujo]

My friend name is Kid Damien because of the movie. Not just because he likes the name.

[Ryan Sickler]

This right here. What year is this one?

[Thomas Araujo]

Probably like 70 something, right?

[Ryan Sickler]

Right. All those. All 70 movies. So this one comes, this one's bad. And she gets up and she leaves. And I was like, you've been here through Freddy and Jason and even Exorcist, which they say is partially real, whatever, based on an event. And she got up and I went upstairs and I was like, why'd you leave the room for this one? And that's when she started talking to me on, like, a real level. She's like, do you believe in angels and all that? And I go, I don't believe in the trumpets and the. But I believe there's definitely something else going on. And she's like, all right, well, if you believe in that positive, then you have to believe in that current negative.

[Thomas Araujo]

Yes.

[Ryan Sickler]

There is no yin without a yang. And if you believe in that, then this exists. And she said this one right here was as close to the story as it really, truly got. And it freaked her the out. And every time she'd leave the room on that one.

[Thomas Araujo]

I don't want scary movies for that.

[Ryan Sickler]

This is the closest to the real story of, you know, what they believe to be the devil and all that. Like this. This one. This is based on a true story, too. Yeah, I believe so. Yeah, this one. And then it was two after it and all that, like. But the lady.

[Thomas Araujo]

I did it for you, Damien. I went, mom, no.

[Ryan Sickler]

Creepy. When you see that, your kid likes weird.

[Thomas Araujo]

As a kid, I would always Close my eyes. Like, I didn't like. What are they called? Haunted houses?

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah.

[Thomas Araujo]

But my mommy says, make me. And I would close my eyes the entire time, and she never noticed once.

[Ryan Sickler]

Really?

[Thomas Araujo]

I'll close my eyes, go, oh, she.

[Ryan Sickler]

Probably had hers closed.

[Thomas Araujo]

No, she's mean, dude. She was all hyped about it.

[Ryan Sickler]

My buddy Shannon Patter Anderson, man. He was. We still laugh about this. I tell my daughter, like, she does not like anything if a commercial comes on. She did not like it. You're watching football. And then they have like, a movie commercial comes on. Scary. She's not into it. My friend Shannon was super scared of movies. And that's what we would intentionally put a scary movie on. We've been like, eighth grade. He's in seven.

[Thomas Araujo]

I thought you meant now.

[Ryan Sickler]

No, no. He comes over, he said, your daughter.

[Thomas Araujo]

Like, no, he's still scared, huh?

[Ryan Sickler]

This is so he. We knew it, dude. We would put a scary movie on. He would hide behind his pillow all night. And then, like around 12:30 or 1, he'd call his mom, be like, I want to go home. And then Mr. Roy would come over pissed. And we had a small gravel driveway. This dude would Pull in hot. 1 o' clock in the morning. You can see you guys later. Like, see you, Shan. We're all still friends. He's in, like, seventh grade. He was, yeah. Way too old to be terrified. That's why we laughed at it. We're like, we're putting on Jake than tonight. He's like, God damn it.

[Thomas Araujo]

Did you get older? Like, put it on the weed and then put on a scary movie? He would leave immediately. I don't.

[Ryan Sickler]

There's no. I don't feel like there's a good. I don't feel like there's good scary movies anymore.

[Thomas Araujo]

I don't feel like these days it's.

[Ryan Sickler]

The gore and the gross out. It's not the jump scare. I like the jump scare. The. The Michael Myers, all that stuff. That first Halloween is a phenomenal.

[Thomas Araujo]

It's. I. I hate them all.

[Ryan Sickler]

Yeah.

[Thomas Araujo]

I hate scary. I used to. I used to say, like, yo, scary, enough walking home. I don't want to walk. I don't want to be scared at home. Dude. Dude. Dude.

[Ryan Sickler]

Thank you for doing this with us.

[Thomas Araujo]

Yeah, thanks for being here.

[Ryan Sickler]

This is fun Episode Promote one more time your podcast, whatever you'd like.

[Thomas Araujo]

Dope, as usual. Podcast every Tuesday at 12:30 on all platforms.

[Ryan Sickler]

Thank you, brother. As always, Ryan Sickler on all social media. We'll talk to y' all next week.

[Thomas Araujo]

You.