SMALL TOWN BIG MOUTHS PODCAST
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SMALL TOWN BIG MOUTHS PODCAST
27. The Impact of Early Concerts and Fashion Choices with Amber & Misty
Ever wondered how your first concert experience shaped your musical tastes and memories? Join us as Amber reminisces about her childhood adventure at a Crisscross concert at Great America, where she even wore her clothes backward in true Crisscross fashion. Misty follows with her exhilarating yet squishy experience of pushing to the front at a New Kids on the Block concert at Warner's Theater in Fresno, California. Together, we explore how these early concerts influenced the people we're drawn to and sparked epiphanies about our past and present selves.
We then take a hilarious journey through the fashion and beauty trends of our youth. From the baggy jeans and platform shoes to the quirky habit of using Crisco for tanning, we share laughs over our past fashion faux pas and the unexpected sources of our fandoms. Whether it's a unique attraction to diverse ethnic backgrounds or a long-standing loyalty to the Raiders, we reflect on how these youthful choices have left a lasting impact on us today.
Lastly, we tackle the evolution of high school reunions in the age of social media and the dynamics of modern relationships and parenting. Hear our personal anecdotes about the challenges of organizing reunions, maintaining friendships through significant life changes, and the value of spontaneous visits. We wrap up by sharing our first job experiences, the lessons learned, and the impact of wage inflation on today's youth, encouraging everyone to stay engaged and connected.
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Welcome back listeners. This is small town, big mouths podcast and this is amber here, one and only hey everyone, we are glad to have you here, and this is misty aka dolce. So today we're gonna start uh. I can't even talk, that's why amber has a buzz. We are gonna start off talking about Um our first concert.
Speaker 2:Yeah, we thought we'd do like a little nostalgic episode, because it's really fun to kind of reminisce on past times. Definitely.
Speaker 1:Cheers. So my first I'm going to say that I could remember was a crisscross concert.
Speaker 2:And tell wait first of all who got the tickets.
Speaker 1:I don't, even, I don't, even, I can't even tell you who I went with. It was at great america. Um, great, I grew up in the bay area, so having, uh, going to great america was like a ritual, you know. You just went there every summer because that's what there was to do. Um, but I remember even being in elementary school when they were popular, and wearing my clothes backwards because I thought it was like cool.
Speaker 2:Wait, you really did that.
Speaker 1:I did, like you, my overalls, my overalls.
Speaker 2:Oh, so you wore the square part in the back, yeah.
Speaker 1:Oh my God, how embarrassing right. Oh my God.
Speaker 2:I had you everyone. Okay, this is like a little kid.
Speaker 1:It is a little kid, and I think one of them died by now.
Speaker 2:Oh, my God, look how little. Yeah, you guys, you have to YouTube him if you don't know who Chris Cross is, but everyone knows this song.
Speaker 1:It's got a good beat? Yeah, so that was my first concert. I can't tell you who I went with, who took me? Um, yeah, because you can drive that song came out in 92, so I was only eight years old so that's a young to go to a concert like that. But they were all little kids, yeah it had to have been, because look how young they were, so, um, but I just remember, I like, I really like them, and then they just like, fell off the planet.
Speaker 2:But I'm older than you, obviously, and in 92, there was grown-ass men pumping that shit.
Speaker 1:I mean, did you hear the beat? I know the beat.
Speaker 2:It was a good beat it was.
Speaker 1:I just can't get over you wearing your clothes backwards Only a few times, I think, I don't know Did other kids in the school grounds have that. Yeah, Okay, and the teachers they allowed it.
Speaker 2:They didn't even get in trouble. Have to go change your clothes? No, oh my God.
Speaker 1:I mean, come on, think about it, In the 90s things were a lot easier compared to what they are today.
Speaker 2:In school, I think that's so funny. Yeah Well, my first. I mean not even like. It's kind of the same, like realm of yours, it's like new kids on the block. Nkotb, you know me, oh my God. And it was at a small venue in Fresno, California, called Warner's Theater, and I was like 12. And oh gosh, like you know, I'm like you. I don't remember who I went with, I'm sure my middle school friends, because I'm just 12, right. So sixth or seventh grade, probably the sixth grade summer, I think that's what I'm feeling, although I don't remember everything, but I do remember and I still do that to this day. I, I want to be at the front. I want to be at the front. You know what I mean, right? So I pushed my way to the front and that was like miserable, everybody's doing that. And they were up and coming Like new kids on the block. They blew up and I had everybody pushing me, pushing me, and I was like one of those little kids that couldn't breathe, like.
Speaker 2:I was getting squished you know what I mean At the, at the iron gate, like iron gate, and I was getting squished at it.
Speaker 1:Well now kids, with that happens, you know they're like falling to the ground and fainting. We were built a lot tougher back then.
Speaker 2:I believe. So I don't think it caused a trend for me, though, like it did cause for me to like or like, like or to like think a certain type of guy was cute, though, because then I kind of had a thing for like you know boy bands kind of, after that, like that boy band, look yeah, yeah, I don't know. I mean so wait after crisscross, because you liked them, you wanted to go. Yeah, did you go back to school and did you like, look at little boys, like, did you have a thing like for? Like like the war overalls?
Speaker 1:um no, I don't, I don't think so. Um, I mean, I liked, I've always liked boys so I was a little boy crazy.
Speaker 2:I was crazy too, yeah yeah, yeah, because sometimes I feel like music, I at least this is for me. Okay, this is, this is how we get epiphanies, even at this age of life. Like music spawns me to like a certain type of guy Cause, then I went through a phase where I liked to push mode and the cure and then I liked those type of guys, you know, creep, and then I liked those type of guys, you know creepers and docs and just like dark, like a little more, I guess what people would call emo.
Speaker 1:You know what I mean? Yeah, yeah, that's never been my type. I either liked white guys, mexican guys, and then my husband was mixed black white and Mexican, so I got.
Speaker 2:Oh yeah, he was all three. Yeah, oh, my gosh, yeah I didn't know that.
Speaker 1:So good-looking guy, yeah, very handsome. I've seen the photos. Thank you, thank you, but yeah, I've never really went for like I don't know.
Speaker 2:Did he have all the best parts of those three? He did. I mean, I just got thinking right now. He had the charisma.
Speaker 1:He had the charisma too, the nice Charisma. He had the charisma to the nice smile never no braces, which is weird because both my kids are in braces and neither one of us have had them.
Speaker 2:So let me ask you this, because we're going back in time and I know one of your things and with your husband, you, you like the Raiders, you like that, that jam Raider nation. So so back in time, did you always like the Raiders?
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's so weird. So the other day I don't know if you saw it I posted on Instagram a picture. Somebody was like oh, post a picture from you know, back in the days I found one of me when I was probably about 14. I had a Raiders jersey on. I don't know how I became a Raiders fan because I've been one since I was younger.
Speaker 2:How in the hell did you find a photo nowadays?
Speaker 1:I think it's something. I don't know where I found this photo, but I knew I had one of me as a young girl in this photo, so I knew where to look. Yeah, but yeah, even like my first boyfriend. My first real boyfriend was a 49er fan. I grew up in a 49er household. I don't know how I became a Raider fan.
Speaker 2:Wait, that's weird. And then I married one. Yeah, because usually there's like a grandpa or an uncle, somebody, no, no.
Speaker 1:Okay, I remember even making my grandma.
Speaker 2:Probably you like the colors. That seems like a lot of people you know whoops.
Speaker 1:I even made my grandma like a 49er pillow for Christmas one year because I was in sewing class.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Everybody was Niner fans in my household.
Speaker 2:I mean because I you know, I'm not a Raiders fan, I'm a Niner fan, but they got great colors yeah.
Speaker 1:I mean, I like wearing black yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I give you that, so maybe Interesting, yeah, and I mean I was kind of like a little thuggish.
Speaker 1:I had like a little bit of thugg, you think, like red is you know what I mean? Like I don't know. I don't know how I became a Raiders fan. I'd like to know though.
Speaker 2:You'd like to rewind the wheels in?
Speaker 1:the head. Yeah, sometimes, if you could remember everything.
Speaker 2:So I know like so Amber and I were kind of reminiscing about our youth and old times and we were talking about going back like first concerts, everything we're talking about. And then we thought, okay, fashion, since we are talking about the colors and stuff. So she was looking up, she's like, oh my gosh, you remember this. So we want to talk about some of the fashion maybe faux paws that we've had, because I am so dying to hear because you're about. She's like 10 years younger than me, so you're a little different generation, right?
Speaker 1:so I mean for me it was like baggy jeans um platform shoes. I remember wearing like dicky overalls or dicky pants um like a choker.
Speaker 2:I wore chokers, yeah yeah, chokers um maroon dark wore white lipstick I used to wear white eyeliner okay, yes, on the inside too, it's supposed to pop your eyes, yeah I've seen that for nowadays, but like I used to wear it on the top.
Speaker 1:I don't know. I wish I could find a picture of me like that, because what the fuck was I doing wearing white eyeliner? And how did I even know that was like a thing I don't? Was that a thing back then?
Speaker 2:uh, was white lipstick a thing back then? I've never seen white lipstick. I wore white lipstick because it made you look tanner.
Speaker 1:Oh my God, we had the worst tans.
Speaker 2:Oh my God, we would go on the roof with Crisco and I emphasize Mouth dropped on that one. What the hell? We would sunbathe on the roof, literally. We would put lawn chairs up there. We'd get a ladder and this is middle school. We'd go up there, put our lawn chairs down, we'd rub Crisco on us. And then do you guys remember our audience? Some of you guys will remember Amber, probably won't, but three's company yeah, it's a show. Okay, yeah, it's a show. Yeah, she's like. My mom watched it.
Speaker 1:Suzanne.
Speaker 2:Somers had this tinfoil thing that she made and she sunbathed with the tinfoil thing like under her chin. You took cardboard and you basically wrapped it in tinfoil because it reflected.
Speaker 1:Or a magazine.
Speaker 2:No, because the tinfoil oh, you put the tinfoil on the magazine. Yeah, because it bends, you know Exactly. And then the sun reflected, and so you, supposedly you didn't get a better tan, you basically got skin cancer. Is what you got, yeah, so don't you?
Speaker 1:hate that like when you're tanning today and then you're like you're out in the sun all day and then all of a sudden, like your neck and part of your chest is white, because your face, or you know if you're laying out a certain way, well, no, what I hate today, amber, is that I did that shit to myself and I go holy crap, look at all my wrinkles are coming out now. Well, at least nowadays, there's things that we can do to help with those.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I agree, and I will do it hey if it works and you can afford it, and why?
Speaker 2:not yeah, whatever makes you feel better. So platform shoes. When you say platform, what kind of shoes?
Speaker 1:I remember white leather shoes and they probably had a three-inch platform. They were just like a sneaker from Payless Shoe Stores.
Speaker 2:Payless Shoe Stores. Yes, I wore winos. They were black canvas with a tan bottom. Oh my gosh, they were called winos. That were black canvas with a tan bottom oh my gosh, they were called winos. That's funny. You probably never heard of them.
Speaker 1:I've never even heard.
Speaker 2:I'm like, I'm going to have to look that up. I actually Googled them one time. It was like a big era with the Cure, depeche Mode, abc. Oh my gosh, all of these bands, what about?
Speaker 1:let's punk. What about um beanie babies?
Speaker 2:I I bought one for my daughter amber probably owned several.
Speaker 1:Um, I've never been into them. I mean, I think I have some like random ones, nothing like encased or anything like that. But, um, my, my youngest maya would like. She likes them, and so like when she was younger my friend had a whole bunch and she was like here so, and then they were like Christmas ones or whatever, so like they're in my Christmas stuff and so like at Christmas time I'll put one out or something, yeah, but they used to have them.
Speaker 2:My daughter she was born Christmas 1998.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:And so I bought her the Christmas one and I encased it. Yeah, I encased it. Yeah, I have it.
Speaker 1:I got to give it to her. I wonder if it's worth anything I know.
Speaker 2:I don't want her to sell it. People were going crazy over those. No, like mania. Yeah, I remember, I was like does it have the tie tag? If it's not real, does it have a tie tag?
Speaker 1:Well, you could get them in your Happy Meals when they were $1.99. I mean, don't know, because I don't buy happy meals, but they still have happy meals. Yeah, okay, with toys. I mean they're probably not toys like they did back in the days, because a beanie baby's a good toy. Yeah, remember people used to go get happy meals and they'd have all these collector mcdonald's toys, yeah, oh my god, that shit's probably so worth something now yeah, probably I mean, but who would have that stuff? Still, I mean mean hoarders.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you know what Well, you remember. Okay, what was that movie? 40-year-old Virgin yes, do you remember? He was a hoarder of all of his toys. And then he met that really cool girl and she did eBay stuff and she's like, oh my God, you're sitting on a landmine. And sure enough he was like a millionaire. He ended up selling. She helped him to sell all of his stuff and he was. He became cool because he was nerdy guy, remember, never had sex or anything. And then he became cool. And you know what that is so true. Ever have you been to a high school reunion?
Speaker 1:No, so I went to a school in Fremont for my ninth and 10th grade. I met a guy that lived in San Jose and I started ditching school the second half of 10th grade and then, like the last quarter, I just like stopped going to school and then I finally moved back to San Jose with my mom because I kept running away. And then I ended up going to a continuation school for my junior senior year because I didn't have enough credits.
Speaker 2:Um, and that's okay If you guys haven't listened to our previous episode. Carly said what would you tell yourself? And she said don't have a boyfriend in high school.
Speaker 1:Yes, absolutely, um. And what's what's even weird today?
Speaker 2:because here I am, 25 years later today, because here I am 25 years later. Um, that guy's sister is my best friend today, oh my gosh, yeah. So so wait, do you see?
Speaker 1:him, I do. Oh yeah, I do. He has uh two kids.
Speaker 2:He's on his second marriage um when you see him, is there like any spark? No, okay, I'm just wondering no, no, we're way.
Speaker 1:I mean we're way past that. Um, obviously, like I've been married and everything too.
Speaker 2:No, I know what my high school. He's on my facebook like I know my high school and no interest whatsoever. Like I've got such a different type now.
Speaker 1:Yeah yeah, he's definitely not my type, isn't that crazy?
Speaker 2:and you were so into him that you were ditching school girl.
Speaker 1:He was the love of my life. You thought you were marrying him. Yes, I mean, it's crazy, because their mom is my second mom. She says this is my daughter and then I call her mama.
Speaker 2:That's so crazy. It's crazy, that is cool that you still have all that relationship though.
Speaker 1:Yeah, definitely. I mean I'm glad that things didn't end bad with us, like life happens. But yeah, I mean I'm grateful and plus, everything I've been through has taught me and it led me to my husband.
Speaker 2:Well, yeah, I do definitely believe everything happens for a reason. The reason too I was asking if you'd ever been to a high school reunion. Because, back to the nerdy thing, I have been, and it's so crazy because that is very true the nerds are the hot guys, oh my god they are, and the guys that were the athletes, and like the cool dudes, they're fat and bald I was gonna say fat or bald, you know, and I know bald you can't help right you know, and I know bald you can't help, right yeah.
Speaker 2:You know your genetics. Yeah, if you're fitness you can, but just that it's. It sounds so cliche, but it was real Like for our high school. There's very few and I don't want to put them all out, cause gosh, I have a ton on my Facebook and they probably listen. Sorry, boys, but um, I don't want to put them all out because some I'm highly impressed Like I see them and I'm like, oh my God, like he's really maintained or you know. But the nerdy ones, they surprise you because they kind of fill out. You know, yeah, they grow up, they grow up.
Speaker 1:They're late bloomers.
Speaker 2:They're late bloomers.
Speaker 1:I mean, I kind of wish that. I mean, I have friends from high school that I did go to like a regular high school with on my social media, um, and I have kept in contact, I, you know, over the years and it's nice to be able to see what's going on and people raising their kids and their families, um, but I just didn't get to graduate with them, so yeah, and that you know, if that rings true to something, because of social media we have.
Speaker 2:We, the first year we had a big 10 year reunion. There was not social media yet. And then our 20 year, we opted out. What we did was we just put like an event out on Facebook, you know, to meet at a local bar, um, the night before Thanksgiving when everybody goes out. We're going to meet early, let's all get together, and they actually comboed it like class of 90, 91, 92, like three years. So it was. It was so different than high school reunions, I think, are going to be a thing of the past.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think so too, because everybody could just keep up on social media and it's so easy to do an event and like, just show up and everybody you know does their thing or you know you mingle um, instead of having to rent a hall and coordinate and you know, it's like having a wedding, basically that was what I mean.
Speaker 2:I'm thinking body was for was your, your. That's why people had a class president and a vp and a treasurer, because those were the people that they would then do your high school reunions as a future forward.
Speaker 1:I never knew that. Yeah, interesting. Yeah, because we were poor with money in their adult age.
Speaker 2:No, we've had. We had that happen so we had the student body came forward because our class president was not following through with the 10 year, so we had to have other people. The student body. I was actually called upon and I was. I was part of it, but I was like I don't even know. I did arts and decorations. I was part of it but I was like I don't even know, I did arts and decorations. That's what I did. I was in the student body and I was my senior year and I got called to like be a main component and I was like this is what the vp supposed to be doing, like I didn't want to do it. You know what I mean.
Speaker 1:It's too much work I mean, I feel like that in many faucets of my life, yeah, no I know, I know Amber does a lot of work with our podcast. You guys no, I'm just not just this I'm any of my friends that listen, know, but it's.
Speaker 2:You know what, though? I'm going to say something about that because, like we were talking to Carly in the last one, she's a people pleaser. Yeah, I think when people, people, they step up and they do it, what then happens is other people like, oh, then they take a backseat because this other person's just doing it. I feel that way this is going to sound silly, but like when you get married and you have a baby and you're just taking care of the baby and you're changing the diaper, and then you get mad at the guy he never changes it. Well, cause you're always fucking taking care of changing diaper right.
Speaker 2:He's not having to right, like you're not letting him just. You know, you just kind of got to sit back, let those instincts kick in and let the shit happen and literally yeah, and it smells and it's stinky, and then he's like oh shit, I gotta change.
Speaker 1:You know, he's gotta do it, right yeah so that, especially in today's day and age I think things are a little bit should be more 50 50. You know, it's we're partners, not like man, woman, woman stays home, takes care of the kids, like today. I feel like relationships are more partnerships.
Speaker 2:Yeah, especially because you know most households full time both work, you know yeah definitely it's hard.
Speaker 1:My friend Sophia, she has been off. She got on, she was pregnant and had her third child. She goes back pretty soon here. She's been on for seven months and she's just like I know Well, she was off two months early and, um, she exonerated all of her stuff. She's like how do I stay home? This isn't fair, you know, and I'm like I'd be looking for a way to get out with three kids.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, yeah, because some people they can't leave, it's just their nurturing instinct. And then some people are like I am so ready to go back to work. They want their independence and stuff.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I mean we do get to do things and she does get some time, which is nice. I stopped by her house the other night and just had a beer with her and, just you know, hung out.
Speaker 1:The kids or her kids were swimming and she's like Thank you so much for coming by and you know because, as a new mom, like you, don't always get to go out and do the fun things with everybody. So I think it's important for your friendships. You know, with that, you know sometimes you have kids, when your kids are grown.
Speaker 2:Yes, I love when friends just drop by.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's nice, so I love that. I've known her for a long time, so you know I cherish all my friendships.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so back to the nostalgia episode. Friendships, which are longest friendship. How old were you Are?
Speaker 1:they still a friend. So I don't know what would you consider a friend, like somebody that I'm actively still speaking to somebody on social media? Because, for today which is weird that you ask this question um, a friend that a girl that grew up across the street from my grandparents house, where I was a lot of the time, um two years old. We were friends and I just messaged her today because I seen, you know, I I watch her on social media.
Speaker 1:Oh, so she's on your facebook type she is, and I I see some of her stuff and I'm like oh, I wonder you know, like, and I wonder what her parents are doing. So today I actually shot her a message and I was like hey, how are you? Like? I saw that you move like, how's your family? Um, different lifestyles, uh, and that's okay. But yeah, two years old, I mean we don't talk or hang out or anything, but like if she ever needed anything like I would do what I could to help her. But I'd say all my friendships I mean I've had friends forever.
Speaker 2:So what's the longest one with somebody that you do things with like you'll do a?
Speaker 1:girls trip with, currently um well, my ex's sister, my best friend.
Speaker 2:Okay, and you were friends with her. So you made friends with her when you were 15? Yeah, 15.
Speaker 1:So almost 25 years, I mean, although we weren't really friends right away, because she didn't like me, because you were dating her brother?
Speaker 2:Yeah, but she loves me now. Oh my God, that's so funny.
Speaker 1:Because her brother was ditching. No, he was 18. Oh, he was freaking 18. Nowadays he was 17, almost 18.
Speaker 2:Can you imagine nowadays, and you were 15, girl yeah, he had just graduated. That was a big deal back then. Yeah, yeah, if you're 15 and he's 17,. That was like freaking 20 dating 35 now.
Speaker 1:I met him in November 99. Oh my gosh.
Speaker 2:That is so crazy, yeah, super crazy. Mine I was, because I was a younger graduate, so I was 14, and my it's my bestie, melanie, and melanie lives in san diego, but melanie's her and I like she'll be at my daughter's wedding. You know, she stood up with me at ken's funeral, nice, yeah.
Speaker 1:So it's hard to find good people you know, and sometimes you don't need to talk to somebody all the time or see them all the time. You know, um, for instance, like my best friend, she wants to take Maya while I'm gone for the weekend and um, I was like, okay, that's fine. And then we were trying to figure out arrangements, cause she lives an hour away. So I was like I can meet you halfway, but I can only do it during this time, or whatever I said, or I can have Michaela do it and she goes. Well, I would like to see your face too, like I haven't seen you.
Speaker 1:So I was like, okay, well, does this time work, you know? And I said, but on Sunday, like Michaela is going to have to come get her. She just had a grandbaby and so she's involved, very involved, and gets to, you know, take care of, help, take care of her grandson when he's so cute and he's already walking. But like it's just like having a kid all over again and she has a family, you know, and kids two grown boys and then a daughter in high school. And that's just not where I'm at in my life.
Speaker 2:So it's hard. That's what happens. I think people wait, but I love her and I would you know.
Speaker 1:Separately, we would do anything for each other.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:And my kids are her kids and vice versa. Maya told me the other day she was like we saw a truck full of teenage boys and like the parents like traveling somewhere? You could tell, because they were pulling a fifth wheel. And I was like, well, what if you had a bunch of brothers? She was like, well, I already kind of do when I go to aunties. And so I called her and she was like, yeah, they beat up on her, they're you know they're her brother.
Speaker 2:Yeah, definitely she likes it. I have boy cousins and they did that. They would like, try to drown me in the pool and, you know, scare the shit out of me, see around me in the pool and, you know, scare the shit out of me, see.
Speaker 1:and going back to being younger like I think that was more. That's how kids played today's age like they do not play like that. It's like everybody's on their phone, nobody's like playing tag or like I've honestly let my kids doorbell ditch because I'm like just don't get caught and if you do, I'm like you're gonna be in trouble if they come over here, let them them be kids, yeah.
Speaker 1:Let them be kids. Like, obviously, if it's 10 o'clock at night and somebody's ringing a doorbell, that's not cool, but if it's like dusk and somebody raised your doorbell, like they're going to be on camera anyways most of the time, but like they're just being kids up like that.
Speaker 2:I so wish they could too. So, speaking of the hose, so speaking of when we had our friends, like our longtime friends, cause it was just reminding me of my longtime friend Melanie so when we're talking about like nostalgia and like fashion and stuff, obviously you have these friends and you grow up and back in the day do you borrow clothes. Remember borrowing clothes?
Speaker 1:So how did that work in your life? So my dad always told me not to borrow clothes because it's going to get ruined. And then you're going to get mad that some you know your friend ruined your shirt or whatever. So he was like anti, like do not share your shit.
Speaker 2:Okay. So when the girl wanted to borrow your stuff, you had to tell her no, you sneak it to her, hey, hey, yes, but you have to give it back to me and it looks good and my dad's gonna be so mad no, I don't ever remember that like being an issue.
Speaker 1:Well, actually, I take that back. I let somebody borrow um a down jacket. It was reversible one side was white, one side was black and okay, that sounds dope now right, it was like the thing to have back then yeah, and she got lipstick on the white part of course it was the white part. Yes, and it didn't. It never came out and my dad's like magic eraser was taken out well. I mean back then in the 90s, there was no magic eraser oh my gosh, I know my gosh, yeah, but so that was like the one thing that I can remember.
Speaker 2:So, melanie, she had a police chief of a dad in Clovis I know so he's very strict. So she had to come to school all looking one way and she'd go directly to the bathroom and she'd pull out her little small skirt in her little tank top type thing and she'd change in the bathroom for school and then she'd change back before dad picked her up. How, where'd she get these items then?
Speaker 2:Okay, just borrowing them there was a place called Contempo, Okay, and we would go to the mall and you know we'd get like 20 bucks, 25 bucks. And so everybody the parents, that was for food, right, Right, no girl ate food. And to this day we still don't eat food. We shop, we use our money. You know what I mean, Right.
Speaker 2:Other things, guys. They spend all their money on food and beer and we're buying other shit Even back then. So Melanie would save her money and you know we'd go to these little shops in the mall and she'd buy things or she'd borrow things. Yeah, but that was the fun. She was like the only friend that really had like that strict of a parent. You know that had to do that, but um, but I do have a story, because it kind of rings true in this, because when I said Contempo, that was like a name brand place and I don't. Do you remember a spree and all of those things.
Speaker 1:I remember like yeah, I guess what seal? Okay, well, there was another one like that too, and I don't remember the name of it.
Speaker 2:Oh, no, no, no, I know Um justice, justice.
Speaker 1:Justice is like a wet seal, and forever 21 has been around for a long time too.
Speaker 2:Yes, Um Pac-Sun.
Speaker 1:Yes, pac-sun, yep that one was um but um. But I think everybody can can relate with this one, so uggs okay, oh yeah, for I mean those are still a thing, still a.
Speaker 2:Thing most embarrassing story my daughter's gonna kill me. Okay, I did not believe a child under the age of 10 should have real uggs. Like their feet are still growing like. I'm gonna buy those uggs and those you Uggs last a lifetime.
Speaker 1:Right.
Speaker 2:But not for kids. They'll just grow right out of them, run around the playground or whatnot 100%.
Speaker 2:So I bought my daughter a pair of like the Bears I guess they're called Bears, yeah, and you can literally get them, like at Target, I think. So they're like 25 bucks. She was only five my God, this is so embarrassing five. And so I had a pair of Uggs that got damaged back then. They don't even make them anymore. They're on the back of the Ugg was a. They were a metal plate and it said Ugg in metal. Okay, so I was able to pull the metal plate off of that Ugg O-M-G. I glued them on the back of my daughter's Tatum, remember this. Oh my gosh, she's going to kill me. I glued them on the back of my daughter's side Tatum, remember this. Oh my gosh, she's going to kill me.
Speaker 1:Well, let's see, this will be the test to see if she really listens.
Speaker 2:Oh, my God, Right, okay, so she came, so I put them on. They look so good, girl, they look like real Uggs, okay.
Speaker 1:Nobody's going to know.
Speaker 2:No one's going to know, nobody's gonna know, no one's gonna know. And I think it was like her valentine gift, you know, I know so. But she's so cute so she goes, and maybe first grade, so she goes to school wearing her new bright, shiny uggs and then they do crisscross applesauce on the floor and her metal plate popped off. Her metal plate popped off, oh my god. And she grabbed it and she was like, and she kept trying. She said she kept trying to put it back on when she's a little girl, right. So then she was that small, that young and came home and goes mom, you got me fake eggs oh my goodness, but look at how.
Speaker 1:But bear paws aren't bad. I buy bear paws today. No, but they're not.
Speaker 2:Uggs, they're not. Uggs but no, no, and they might not have been bear paws. They like they were like 20 bucks. So bear paws, I think, are more right. Yeah they're like 60. Okay no, no, no. These are like $20 from Target, but you could not tell Like.
Speaker 1:I can't believe at that age she was so worried about that.
Speaker 2:I can't believe that she knew that they were fake. Well, somebody told her. I know, I know what's up. Probably the teacher ruined my game.
Speaker 1:I know Well at that age she could read. It probably said bear paw.
Speaker 2:You know what? I don't even know. I just tried my damnedest. I didn't think she was going to like sit on the ground it. I didn't think she was going to like sit on the ground, it was going to pop off. I thought I did a good job with gluing it on Gorilla glue next time. No right, I tried my dad. I probably needed like a fabric glue, is what I probably needed Right Super glued I know.
Speaker 2:So have you ever done anything like that when, like you had a knockoff or you tried to make something, it wasn't?
Speaker 1:I don't think I've ever made anything something that it shouldn't, and I'm not. I don't really care about brand names, Okay.
Speaker 2:Do you have friends?
Speaker 1:Anybody you knew. No, I don't. I mean, I think I've had a fake coach bag before, you know. Yeah, but now I'm like I don't know. I guess if something looked legitimate, I'd probably still buy it if it was fake, because to me it's stupid to buy spend a lot of money on things and I do have a lot of purses and purses I don't use, but never more than a couple hundred dollars yeah.
Speaker 2:So what about you have friends that you're like there's no fucking way, that's real um, yes, and I'm like, but I'm like, but where did you get that right?
Speaker 1:no, I would never ask, you know. I mean like I'd just be like whatever, like it's that thing, it's all materialistic shit it does not matter to me. That doesn't make you as a person. I know a lot of people want to, you know, present themselves to look like they have a lot of money, but in reality, do you think rich people or people that are saving their money spend money on that kind of stuff?
Speaker 1:no, actually the wealthy people are the ones you would like never know like seriously, yeah, I mean the bumbiest person can come in and be the richest fucking man or woman.
Speaker 2:Well, I work at a bank. So in college, um and that was the case I was a specialty teller, and so the specialty teller did the um, the boxes, what are they called? The safety boxes.
Speaker 1:Eight oh um, I know what you're talking about blank, you know blank.
Speaker 2:You know what I mean the boxes, you guys know the main. Yeah, security boxes, security boxes.
Speaker 1:Whatever, whatever they're called, I can't think of anything else. I can't think of the name.
Speaker 2:And I did like the higher end accounts and stuff and there would be like a lot of like old people you know what I mean that would walk in and you know they were in the raggedy stuff. You know they just held on to that muumuu forever, you know like, and that man had those slippers with holes forever and they probably had diamonds in their box.
Speaker 2:Oh my god I like literally went into their account and I was gonna like fall over because walking up to my, my window, I was like there's no way and I would look in their account and I'd go oh my gosh, okay, safety deposit box. There we go, exactly. I was just about to say it.
Speaker 1:Yes, safety deposit. I was waiting for a break.
Speaker 2:So they would come to me, they would have their key and I have to take them back. I would go into their account. They'd make a deposit and I would say I'm not gonna say nine times out of 10, but I would definitely say more than half, more than half, so 70%, I'll go with that. You would look at them and go oh my gosh. And then you would look at the rest of the line and you would see people that were flashy, you know, back then, like in a Fila tracksuit or wearing a Fendi bag, and a bad attitude, and they would be negative, negative $100 in their account.
Speaker 1:Right, and I mean, who doesn't like nice things? Everybody likes nice things, but I think, especially in today's world, we try so hard to keep up with the Joneses, right, like we want to have an image. But who are we doing that for? Yeah, for yourself, for other people to think something of you. You know what I mean, and a lot of people go broke.
Speaker 2:It's an insecurity I think I mean I'll go broke over vacations all day.
Speaker 1:But as far as materialistic things, I could give a shit about.
Speaker 2:I'm like that I'll go broke over vacations and my kids, yeah, I'll like. You know, my daughter going to dance killed us. You know, comp dance was so expensive it was just like drained us, right. But I just knew I was like these are memories that she's going to have for life. And sure enough, I mean, she's got freaking Kaylee, who's her maid of honor, she, kaylee, who's her maid of honor. She met and danced four years old and they're still besties. That's awesome, right? So that's so cool.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, yeah, Any kind of sports, anything like that one. It's time and money.
Speaker 2:Yeah, time and money, all right.
Speaker 1:Well, I think that you know. I have one more question. Let's talk about our first jobs real quick. Last one what was your first job?
Speaker 2:I was just talking about this. Okay, I have one like salty job. I'm going to say I was salty, I was 12. I should not have been working what the hell I know but I was like a hustler, I had to be a hustler. I lost my mom. Like my mom got sick when I was 10, right, so I just had to figure it out like early on, and I I remembered the name it was lambert's portrait studio and it was in fresno and I would call, cold call and give free eight by tens. How the hell do you gonna? Did you know somebody? I did? You know somebody? I did. Two other high school girls had a job there, and so my friend in my middle school was that was one of their sisters, and so they're like I think they have an opening. So I'm like I need to work, I need my own money. Like my mom's sick and you know, and I'm not even kidding at age 12. Like I was like ahead of the game, I was very mature.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I was like ahead of the game, I was very mature.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you had to grow up and I was already getting my nails done. I told you it was big, long fluorescent nails. I had to have money for my nails and I would wear LA gears, were they light ups? Oh my God, no, they didn't light up. So Lambert's Portrait Studio. But that was like short-lived because, oh my.
Speaker 1:God, you were 12?.
Speaker 2:Oh my God, and your cold calling is awful. So I did that. And then my real first job, which is so, so crazy, because it's weird that you're saying this um was at Baskin Robbins.
Speaker 2:I was an ice cream scooper, and in Fresno they have three locations and so we would rotate and work these three locations. Recently, like two weeks ago, I met, met campagna like a local bar restaurant, and coming up to me is a friend of mine and we had like almost every shift together. His name's eric. He comes up to me, hey, eric, he's like what the fuck? And I'm like I didn't recognize him. You know, he recognized me, but we've had a shot on, but he's not on there very much.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I ended up introducing him to my high school friend and they got together, got married, married 30 years. Oh, wow, yeah, they're going, I think, on a different path now, hence why he was out at Campania, right, right, but we were reminiscing about, like my god remember, we used to scoop ice cream and so, with this being said, we used to take, of course, the whipped cream cans and we would go to the vet, like at the end of the night, we save the cans, save the cans, and we would say like 10 cans and we go in the back before we'd close out, you know, and we'd hit them like whip it, yeah, right, yeah, I was 16 years old, oh my god, and I worked there like a year and a half, which is a long time for back then.
Speaker 2:Like a year and a half, yeah, yeah, I was a super scooper man and then when I got to be a cake decorator, that was like hell yeah oh, that's so funny okay so my first job was Papa Murphy's.
Speaker 1:Papa Murphy's. Yeah it was fun. It was fun especially because you could, like, make pizzas and take them home like however you wanted.
Speaker 2:It wasn't like no menu you know, yeah, Like however you wanted, you could have like extra, extra, extra cheese.
Speaker 1:Yes, yes, oh, my God. So that was cool few months, because then, you know, I had a boyfriend, ruined my life.
Speaker 2:You've been a man in your life.
Speaker 1:I know it's horrible, but we're gonna check your picker yeah, yeah, I think I need a new picker, um, but yeah, I like, I like that. But it's funny that you say that about the cake decorating, because michaela's been at cold stone for a year and she just learned how to do cakes and she sent me a picture, um, from work.
Speaker 1:I guess they take Polaroid pictures and they have like a board that they put people's pictures on when they do certain things. And so she's like, look, she sent me the picture and I'm like, oh, that's so cute she's proud of being a cake decorator so when you said that I was like oh my god, she was so happy, you know yeah, yeah, so pop them.
Speaker 2:Or how long did you work there? Probably? Three months oh my god, yeah yeah, I was more like I ran the streets.
Speaker 1:I was. I was a troublemaker. I was a very troubled teen. I worked at granny's. Do you remember granny's? No, is that like hot cookies or something?
Speaker 2:it sounds like miss oh, my god, this is so great. No, grannies was like they had fried okra. Yeah, grannies, now I gotta google it, but it was in clovis. But the only reason I worked there because, like dude, minimum wage back then was like, fuck, I don't know. Three, 50 an hour maybe, but grannies, you made $4 an hour.
Speaker 1:Of course it's like everybody wants to work at In-N-Out because they pay for it.
Speaker 2:You know, yes, so you made more money. Yes, grannies, I want, I want to Google, see if it um the restaurant.
Speaker 1:I think when I started working I was like $7 or something back then. But you know, now my daughter, as of April 1st, is making $20 an hour.
Speaker 2:What. Yeah, because they're wait you're right, yeah, all the fast foods? Right, yeah, but they're not even fast food.
Speaker 1:They're ice cream scoopers. Oh, but it's because, from what I understand I don't know if this is correct but any franchise that has 20 or more no, 60 or more locations has to pay that wage, which means they raise their prices that that well, but that means everything else.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, I'm sorry you guys, I was looking, and yeah, it's Granny's like soul food kitchen.
Speaker 1:Kitchen see.
Speaker 2:I like some soul food. Yeah, back in the day. Granny's it's gone, it's done, now Done son yeah. That's so great, but you know that's a whole other topic.
Speaker 1:And actually Nikki would be great to have talking about this minimum wage increase.
Speaker 2:You know we should talk about today, did bartenders?
Speaker 1:get that? I don't think so, because they're not franchises, okay, so just franchise?
Speaker 2:I think so. Oh, and only in california and only yeah, only california. But now everybody's gonna go go work fast food or they're gonna start not going and places are gonna close down like they already have. Yeah, there has been some places Because prices, either the business owner can't afford the employees, so have closed doors or they're going to raise prices to compensate or be short staffed and they're not going to get good service, right.
Speaker 2:And then people aren't going to go there, you know right. And they're going to more, cook from home or do whatever.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's crazy. It's crazy. I don't think 16, 17-year-olds need 18-year-olds need to be making $20 an hour. Yeah, no, I don't think so either. My daughter blows through her money, so I'm trying to talk to her about starting a Roth. You know, just trying to invest money, start young.
Speaker 2:Start young and then when you do this, it just makes everything go up, go up. So my thought is what? What? At some point in life, minimum wage can be $50 an hour, like, how are you going to reverse this? There's no way. It's hard to go back. You can't if you, if you look at time, we've never gone back.
Speaker 1:No, my grandparents bought their house for $60,000 and it's worth 2 million.
Speaker 2:Oh my God, where's it at San.
Speaker 1:Jose, oh the bay, I mean they don't. They sold it before it was worth that. But I always look it up because it's like my childhood home and two-story huge backyard, south san jose beautiful neighborhood and it's I gotta zillow my childhood.
Speaker 2:Yeah, everybody should zillow. Get on your phone, zillow your childhood home?
Speaker 1:definitely it's. It's amazing because then sometimes you see pictures of how it's upgraded. Oh, you're like, that was my room.
Speaker 2:I'm like, oh my God, I remember that they took down my wallpaper, you know the front yard looks different now or I don't know, or even maybe that same swing is still up, or something you never know. Oh, my God, I want to do that, I got look at it.
Speaker 1:So all right, well, let's wrap up this episode. I know we're missing Nikki tonight, but we were able to manage. So with that I'm going to say Roger, that, Roger, that everyone.
