All About The Joy

From Product Launches to Nostalgia: Exploring Joy, Non-Toxic Masculinity, and Parenting

Carmen Lezeth Suarez Episode 152

Ever wondered what goes into launching a new product line? We start off by sharing some laughs and heartfelt stories from our journey of bringing our All About the Joy merchandise to life. Inspired by the relentless support of Rick Costa and insights from content creators like Terry Kaye, we discuss the meticulous process of testing and selecting the best quality items. 

What does non-toxic masculinity smell like? Apparently, like Thor Bradley, the TikTok sensation known for chopping wood and promoting positive masculinity through his unique candle. Our conversation turns hilarious as we explore the intriguing world of social media marketing with stories of authenticity and engagement. 

We take a lighthearted nostalgic detour as we reminisce about everything from childhood "tattoos" to the long-lost joy of Saturday morning cartoons. We dive into the simpler times of Cracker Jack prizes, cereal box treasures, and the camaraderie of shared TV moments. Moving from playful memories to serious reflections, we discuss the evolving dynamics of parenting and education, advocating for a more equitable system that better supports teachers and critical professions. Tune in for a blend of humor, heartfelt stories, and thought-provoking discussions that promise both insight and entertainment, and always, so much joy!  

Thank you for stopping by. Please visit our website: All About The Joy and add, like and share. You can also support us by shopping at our STORE - We'd appreciate that greatly. Also, if you want to find us anywhere on social media, please check out the link in bio page.

Music By Geovane Bruno, Moments, 3481
Editing by Team A-J
Host, Carmen Lezeth


DISCLAIMER: As always, please do your own research and understand that the opinions in this podcast and livestream are meant for entertainment purposes only. States and other areas may have different rules and regulations governing certain aspects discussed in this podcast. Nothing in our podcast or livestream is meant to be medical or legal advice. Please use common sense, and when in doubt, ask a professional for advice, assistance, help and guidance.

Carmen Lezeth:

you. We'll make sure it's all about the joy. Hi everyone.

Carmen Lezeth:

Hi everyone. It's all about the joy. Welcome everyone.

Cynthia Ruiz:

We are laughing because of Rick, don't forget the chat, oh yeah.

Carmen Lezeth:

Wait, we got to put the chat up. Rick, you are killing me.

Cynthia Ruiz:

Oh my Lord.

Carmen Lezeth:

Rick is in the house with everything, all about the Joy merchandise.

Rick Costa:

Almost I ordered more.

Carmen Lezeth:

I know, but you didn't have to.

Rick Costa:

But I want to.

Carmen Lezeth:

I know I'm interested to see. Okay, so, cynthia, here's what you need to know. So, first of all, a few things. Let me first thank Rick Costa, because he's been very patient with me as I've gone through this process of going through every different store on the planet. I was just being too meticulous about. Meticulous about it is that the right word? Because and I'm gonna say this a content creator that we all love. I don't know if cynthia watches terry k, but we love terry k he's the one that's just like love you bye.

Carmen Lezeth:

You know he's always like. You know he has all those sayings. What's the other one that we always say too? Confusion, confusion. Oh my God, I say that all the time. What else, rick?

Rick Costa:

The church fan is broken down and the members will not be in attendance.

Carmen Lezeth:

When the food is really bad. Yeah, he's so funny.

Rick Costa:

I love him, I think it's and you can't forget police.

Carmen Lezeth:

Police, police. Yes, he does that all the time. But the thing is, I bought a t-shirt. He was my first TikTok creator person that I bought something from and I bought a t-shirt from him and it was like $40. It was like and I was like that's okay, I like, and I was like that's okay, I want to support him, I want to get, and it was it's love you bye. It's like on the front, and the shirt was so bad. I'm sorry. I'm sure he's changed it since then. It's been like a year or something, but I was like I will never, ever sell something like that. If I ever get to that place to buy sweat, you know what I mean, or whatever terry, if you're watching, this is no reflection on you would you just say oh

Carmen Lezeth:

no, we hope he's watching. He like big deal now. But yeah, no, I know all of his stuff is on point now because now we have the tiktok shop and we have all that stuff. We're not on tiktok shop. I'm not doing it. Everyone's like you should do a tiktok shop. I'm not doing that. I'm not doing any of that. But we do have swag at allaboutthejoycom. You can also go to and you'll see the store. Just go over to the store area. Let me just show at the bottom the ticker. This brings you to all of our links, my links specifically, but also to bring you to allaboutthejoycom If you want to check out the swag, if you want to buy a T-shirt or a hat or a. I think Rick's favorite is the pillow. I think it's so funny.

Rick Costa:

It's not as the favorite, it's just. I was surprised. It was good quality. I thought it was going to be maybe cheaper, but I was like, no, this thing is tough.

Carmen Lezeth:

I know I love the hat, though. Is that a dad hat or the regular hat?

Rick Costa:

I can't remember.

Carmen Lezeth:

I think it's a regular hat, right, I'm going to have to get one of those, but anyway. So I just want to say thank you to Rick Costa. Let me just get this out fully and completely, because you were patient with me. This has been going on for like a year. A year I've been buying t-shirts and testing them and washing them. It could be like nope, nope, and there's so many. And here's the thing there's so many places, but then you have to pay in order to do it, to get the really primo quality stuff, and I'm not there yet. You know what I mean? I'm not there yet, but we have t-shirts.

Carmen Lezeth:

If you want to support the show we're not sponsoring. We're not sponsoring a nonprofit yet, because I was told in a not so nice way that we're not there yet, we don't have to do that yet. So I didn't inflate the prices or anything. It's just to get the brand out there. And if you want to support us and the couple of dollars we do make off of the merchandise goes right back into all of the stuff I do for the show, which is let me, in case you haven't heard it before editing and editing.

Carmen Lezeth:

I did speak to a, a organization that helps they work with positive podcasts. Hi, melanie, how are you Positive type of podcasts that might be interested in working with us if we want to work with them for editing and stuff. But it's a little bit of money, but it's good to have goals. I'm just saying it's good to have goals. So yeah, so I'm interested in talking to them at some point in the future. So, yeah, I just wanted to say thank you so much, rick, and for your patience and for pushing me along, and then I will also begrudgingly say thank you to Joel Lava, who the other day I was so mad. He was like just do it, you're going to do it today, put it up on the website. I was like. And then I told Rick and of course I was like cause, at some point you just have to do it. Yeah, just do it, just put it out there. I keep wanting everything to be so perfect and yeah.

Rick Costa:

Perfectionism is a blockage to success sometimes.

Carmen Lezeth:

Thank you, Rick.

Rick Costa:

It's my quote for the day.

Carmen Lezeth:

So funny, anyways, okay, cool. So, cynthia, how you doing.

Cynthia Ruiz:

I'm good. So, cynthia, how you?

Carmen Lezeth:

doing.

Cynthia Ruiz:

I'm good.

Carmen Lezeth:

Yeah, you know what Can I tell you? This thing distracts me. I can't keep looking at it. I think I have HDD or whatever you call those things. I don't, let me not make fun of that stuff. Sorry, that was it. That was very unkind of me. Wait, this is my favorite. Look it. I'm not promoting anything, just so glad you're here. He's just testing. Okay, Cynthia go ahead, go ahead, girl. What's up, what's up, what's up.

Cynthia Ruiz:

This week work hasn't been too busy, so just really good. It's a little break, because I was busy the last two weeks.

Carmen Lezeth:

But I thought you had somebody who was away, so you were covering for them, weren't you? Yes, she's back.

Cynthia Ruiz:

Oh, she's back.

Carmen Lezeth:

Is this the one who wasn't teaching you fast enough? Yes, okay, I'm feeling. Maybe I'm wrong. Rick, are you feeling a little hesitant, or?

Rick Costa:

There's something behind there a little bit.

Cynthia Ruiz:

Oh, did you show, rick, what I got you, what I sent you?

Carmen Lezeth:

Oh, no, but I put it away. She sent me a really cool T-shirt from her trip to Greece, which was cool, but more importantly it was a bed bug light and package like wipes and Clorox. I had to throw away the Clorox because it was so smelly.

Carmen Lezeth:

My mom would have to have the bleach stuff, but it was like a whole care package of like for bed bugs. It was like cracking up. It was so funny. That is funny. Yeah, it was hilarious. So what else is going on with you? Cynthia Habla, habla. I'm telling her to talk in Spanish.

Cynthia Ruiz:

Not much this week, actually. I've just been exhausted. Not much is going on this week, though.

Carmen Lezeth:

Do you guys know who Thor Bradley is? Do you know who he is? Who this guy on TikTok?

Rick Costa:

I don't think so.

Cynthia Ruiz:

I haven't seen him.

Rick Costa:

Oh, does he sell stuff? He's the guy with the axe.

Carmen Lezeth:

Yeah, he's the guy with the axe. Yeah, he's the guy with the axe.

Rick Costa:

He sells stuff too.

Carmen Lezeth:

Oh my God. Okay, this is not an ad for him, because I don't know him at all, but okay, so the name of his candle he sells a candle. Okay, this is a guy who has so many tattoos, but he's really cool. It's not all he does, but he first really cool and all he does. It's not all he does, but he first started on tiktok doing what do you call it? Not axing wood? What do you say? What? Throwing the chopping wood? Chopping wood, melanie.

Carmen Lezeth:

His name is bradley I'm a thor bradley, and he is a person who lives in northern california and like in the woods and like not in the city. So he lives like in a beautiful part of Northern California and he chops wood with axes and he teaches people, but he's been on TikTok for so long. He also has like a lot of wisdom and stuff, but he's also very attractive. He has a beautiful body, but he has way too many tattoos for me, like just, I mean, cause I'm sure that's what he's worried about Like, what does Carmen think? I think he has 10 million followers on TikTok, and they're all probably women. I think a lot of men follow him too, though, because he has a good duality there of like masculinity and sexiness, you know, but he's not off-putting. Anyways, the reason why I'm saying is because, yes, sells a candle and it's called this is so funny non-toxic masculinity I see what you did there I see what you did there, okay.

Carmen Lezeth:

So I was like you know, and he's been selling it for a while and the other thing cool that he does is that and I'm not going to do this because I don't have a tikt and I don't plan on doing that but if you advertise his candle for him on TikTok he gives you a percentage of what he makes. That's so cool, okay. So one of the things I thought was funny is the way he's selling it is he's looking? I'm glad everyone likes the candle and I guess he has a spray too. I didn't get the spray, you know it smells like me so and I was like, ooh, that don't sound like a good selling point.

Carmen Lezeth:

I didn't say that You're watching him with the ax and everything. I'm thinking sweaty. I'm like I don't think that's going to be sexy. Let me tell you clearly I have never been with a man who's non-toxic. Clearly I have never been with a man who's non-toxic because I'm in love child. This thing smells so good. I'm not kidding, I have never smoked a candle like this. I don't even want to burn it.

Cynthia Ruiz:

What does it smell like?

Carmen Lezeth:

I don't know, non-toxic masculinity.

Cynthia Ruiz:

I'm telling you, it smells like Thor.

Carmen Lezeth:

Bradley, it's right, I don't know. It's about non-toxic masculinity.

Rick Costa:

It smells like Thor Bradley.

Carmen Lezeth:

Right, I don't know. I was trying to think like how I would describe it. Okay, here's the thing. I hate vanilla. I'm going to be honest with you. I do not like the smell of vanilla. This might have a little hint of it, but not in the way that makes me nauseous. You know what I mean? I don't know. I really do, and I was trying to look to see what is in it, but I don't know. It's good though, so just saying you need a candle. I'm not going to burn it though, but yeah, I'm in love child.

Cynthia Ruiz:

I want to open ittoxic masculinity man. Now, that's like the new standard Name a star Look at that.

Carmen Lezeth:

Yeah, but he's got a lot of tattoos. Are you guys into tattoos?

Rick Costa:

I don't mind them. I find them fascinating, but I would never get one. It's just not for me.

Carmen Lezeth:

Oh, I would never get one. It's just not for me. Oh, I would never get one. Cynthia has nine of them, right, yeah, I hate needles. You don't have. Who has one then? Oh, audrey, does Audrey. I was thinking Audrey, right, right, right, oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, I remember that. Okay, right. And Rick, you have how many secret places?

Rick Costa:

How many? Zero, zero. My son has a few I don't have any Really?

Carmen Lezeth:

Yeah, I don't. I could never get a tattoo, but I'm not even attracted to people like men who have tattoos. I don't care if you have tattoos, as long as you have good quality ones. I don't care Like I can tell a gang tattoo and a prison tattoo from artwork. You know what I mean. I can tell them, and it tells a story of who you are, so it's awesome. You know what I mean.

Rick Costa:

I saw a guy singing today and he had literally up to here.

Carmen Lezeth:

Oh yeah.

Rick Costa:

Complete tattoo. I was like that's too much.

Carmen Lezeth:

Yeah, I don't know what that's about, though. If you, why would you get it up here? There are people who have them, except for attention, which is sad.

Cynthia Ruiz:

Yeah, I didn't mean to talk about tattoos, I know a girl who actually has face tattoos.

Carmen Lezeth:

Yeah, oh, I know plenty of people who have them. Oh, melanie doesn't have tattoos. You know what girl? I know you do Me and Melanie, me and Melanie. I'm, you did Me and Melanie, me and Melanie. I'm just saying Me and Melanie.

Rick Costa:

Yeah, I mean the face tattoo thing and the neck thing, like what Rick was saying. It just I don't, it feels like too much. Yeah, I'm like beyond your arm, do you really need all that?

Carmen Lezeth:

I don't know if it's about need. It's about a self-expression thing. To me, you could use henna and do the same thing. Change it up a few days later if you'd like. You know what I mean. It just feels so permanent.

Rick Costa:

That's my thing. I don't want to do anything that permanent.

Carmen Lezeth:

Yeah, yeah, it is a permanent thing. Or if you got a lot of money you can take it off, but even then it's still's still like no, they haven't perfected that though, because then it looks like you got a welt on your body which I'm like. Keep your tattoo. And why anybody would tattoo like their boyfriend's name that's always a bad idea or your girlfriend's name? Just don't ever do that. I don't care if you get married, just don't do it yeah, I know a guy that now this was.

Rick Costa:

I thought this was cool. His dad passed and he has a huge tattoo of his dad's face on his shoulder. I was like that's cool, that's cool if it's done, well, it's cool.

Carmen Lezeth:

Was it done? It was like it was artwork, because I've seen some and they're like oh yeah, this one. I'm like oh yeah, this is really.

Cynthia Ruiz:

Or the ones that do like self portraits of themselves. I'm like okay you don't know what you look like.

Carmen Lezeth:

It's so weird. It's so weird, even ones that like where people have celebrities tattooed on them, like I've seen people who have Trump, I've seen people who have Barack Obama, I've seen people who have Brad Pitt like just stupid shit. I'm like dude, like it's a moment in time, you know what I mean.

Rick Costa:

Like it's just wrong, huh? I think it's sad too when somebody gets somebody says I'm gonna get a cool chinese saying and it's not what they think it's like and it's like I ate rice.

Carmen Lezeth:

Like they think it says like you know, especially people before the internet right Verify first, please.

Rick Costa:

Permanent damage to yourself.

Carmen Lezeth:

Yeah, those ones are funny, though, like when you see the funny tattoo oh my God, I've seen those you can't stop looking at them Cause you think how stupid could you be. Okay, but if you were to get a tattoo, you know what would it be. Let me think about it for a moment. Let me see what Molly just wrote. She wrote the washable tattoos that used to come in Cracker Jack boxes are okay.

Rick Costa:

Can I just say Cracker Jack boxes used to have cool little toys, now it's like stupid paper.

Carmen Lezeth:

Wait, do they still have Cracker Jack? Yeah, oh yeah, really, oh yeah. I saw Frosted Flakes in the grocery store the other day. I was like, wow, I didn't know they still had Frosted Flakes.

Cynthia Ruiz:

They call it something different.

Carmen Lezeth:

Yeah, but I think they call it just some, I don't know, no it's still. Frosted Flakes.

Cynthia Ruiz:

Is it?

Rick Costa:

All the old cereal is still there. Crack their Jack boxes they used to have prizes.

Carmen Lezeth:

Remember when you used to have the cereal boxes and you would get prizes at the bottom the cereal boxes. Then you would get prizes at the bottom. Or you would look oh, that was I used to love that. Okay, I'm having a nostalgia moment, just a nostalgic moment. Remember you would sit at the kitchen table and you'd have the box in front of you and you'd be intensely reading the back of it and it was like a maze or like little holes.

Rick Costa:

You were like so intense to me me, the coolest thing ever and I was like there ain't no way this is going to work. And it actually did, because it was a part of the box, it was a record that would play on a record player and it actually worked.

Carmen Lezeth:

Yes, I vaguely remember that yes.

Rick Costa:

Captain Crunch, better be still around.

Carmen Lezeth:

Oh yeah, it is. I used to love Captain Crunch, but that really was just cubes of sugar with milk, pretty much, but it was so good it was Captain Crunch. I vaguely remember that, rick, yeah, like you could play a record or something, and it was something weird, like Sean Cassidy, do Run, run or something, yeah, and I think there was like a Halloween one.

Rick Costa:

They had an Alfred Hitchcock story or something that's so funny.

Carmen Lezeth:

I do vaguely. I can't even believe. I just said Sean Cassidy and do run, run like I, just out of nowhere all the kids are like Sean who or do a run who well, sean Cassidy's a big-time director here in Hollywood People don't know that, but he really is and writer, but yeah, most people are going to be like Sean Cassidy. What Remember that, though? What was the show with him?

Rick Costa:

Detective right the detectives.

Carmen Lezeth:

They were teenagers, not.

Rick Costa:

Nancy Drew, the other one, the Boys, the Hardy Boys.

Carmen Lezeth:

The Boys, the Hardy oh my God, wow, I watched all them shows, all them shows. You know, we're old because we're like, yeah, yeah, because we're old, now Damn. Oh, my God, how did we get onto cereal boxes? Wait, how did we get?

Cynthia Ruiz:

to cereal boxes.

Rick Costa:

We're talking about tattoos and all the prizes, all the prizes, yeah, yeah oh my god.

Carmen Lezeth:

I'm laughing because I'm like how did we get there? That is so funny. Party boys, that's right, melanie.

Rick Costa:

Oh my god I saw a meme the other day. They said this was our remote control and it's a little boy in front of the tv getting ready to turn we had pliers at one point because the thing broken off right.

Carmen Lezeth:

Remember you would have the. What were those?

Carmen Lezeth:

rabbit ears, the rabbit, the antennas, and you would like they were so big and you would yeah, that was crazy. What else did you like about back then? Like what are some crazy things? I remember saturday mornings. I would still wake up really early. I know most people slept late, but I would watch cartoons in the morning. Parker Stevenson, that's right, he was the blonde guy, parker Stevenson. Okay, I used to always get confused too, because then later on there was Starsky and Hutch and the blonde guy on that was a blonde guy too, and I used to get those two confused. And then also Duke's of Hazzard. Okay, I never watched Dukes of Hazzard.

Rick Costa:

They had a blonde and a brunette also.

Carmen Lezeth:

Yeah, they were being diverse.

Rick Costa:

A lot of diversity. A white version of diversity.

Carmen Lezeth:

You just have a blonde guy.

Rick Costa:

We're diverse. What do you mean?

Carmen Lezeth:

But there was Starsky and Hutchin. The guy that played Starsky was Paul Michael Glazier. I'll never forget him. I actually got to meet him a couple of times when I moved out here and I had two dogs. I had Starsky and Hutch my dogs, and I didn't share that story with him, but I still wanted to.

Carmen Lezeth:

But I forget what the guy's name was. Hey, brian, bike riding with the boys to the arcade every Saturday. Bike riding with the boys to the arcade every Saturday oh my God. We used to go down to the bowling alley. Remember, cynthia, the bowling alley. Everybody would play pool or be bowling and we'd be in the arcade because that would be the other part of it. Melanie said we didn't have cell phones at the breakfast table. We had cereal boxes. That's right. What's the Fall Guy? The Fall Guy was awesome.

Rick Costa:

What's the Fall Guy?

Carmen Lezeth:

It's a TV what's the fall guy? The fall guy was awesome. What's? The fall guy tv show. I think I'm trying to remember what is it?

Rick Costa:

the fall guy. Isn't that a cartoon?

Cynthia Ruiz:

it's an action tv show I think no, you think of family guy oh yeah, I don't know that show either I don't know the fall guy.

Carmen Lezeth:

I remember bionic woman yeah, bionic man or something. I remember those steve aust yeah, oh my God, why is it I can remember these things? Right Come on Steve Austin. Why would I remember the character's name that is so random. Okay, I don't know the Fall Guy. Do we know what that is yet?

Rick Costa:

I think that's a show, I think, Speaking of random. I don't know why, but this past week Lee Majors was Lee Majors, yeah.

Carmen Lezeth:

Oh, he was so handsome too.

Rick Costa:

Lee.

Carmen Lezeth:

Majors was a fox. Yeah, go ahead, rick.

Rick Costa:

And for some reason this past week and you would think maybe you heard a trigger, a line of the song Nothing, just the most randomest old songs, all of a sudden pop in my head for no reason. I'm like.

Carmen Lezeth:

Did you hear them on the show?

Rick Costa:

No, that's what I'm saying. There's literally no trigger, no nothing. I'm like where are these songs coming from?

Carmen Lezeth:

Like what song Sing half of?

Rick Costa:

a verse so we can try to guess. No, just kidding.

Carmen Lezeth:

Had the time of my life, you got that one. That's a great movie and a great song.

Rick Costa:

That's one of my mom's favorites.

Carmen Lezeth:

Six Million Dollar man. You Didn't Know the Fall Guy. Epic Fail. What's Epic Fail, is he telling me?

Rick Costa:

I'm an epic fail. You don't know what the fall guy is.

Carmen Lezeth:

None of us know what the fall guy is.

Rick Costa:

After Steve, austin, lee Majors was the fall guy oh.

Carmen Lezeth:

Lee Majors was the fall guy. I barely remember that. Wait after Steve Austin, so after the Bionic man Lee Majors was a fall guy. I barely remember that. Wait after Steve Austin, so after the Bionic man Lee Majors did the fall guy.

Rick Costa:

But if he didn't have powers, I didn't care.

Carmen Lezeth:

And I don't think it was as big of a deal as maybe in your area it was.

Cynthia Ruiz:

Mork and Mindy.

Carmen Lezeth:

Oh, robin Williams, Mork and Mindy, and that show came from Happy Days from the Fawn. That's the show that came from happy days. From the font that came from that remember. Oh my god, okay, I loved happy days.

Rick Costa:

That was day tuesday happy days, yeah, I love that show.

Carmen Lezeth:

Yeah, and there's ever a better story of a young actor who started off in I forget the name of the black and white show he was on, and then was richie on happy days and is now one of the biggest, most amazing directors.

Cynthia Ruiz:

Ron Howard is one of the biggest. It wasn't Leave it to Beaver right.

Carmen Lezeth:

No, no, it was.

Cynthia Ruiz:

I don't know, I can picture him.

Rick Costa:

The Country Cop.

Cynthia Ruiz:

Wow, I don't know Andy Griffin.

Rick Costa:

Andy Griffin. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Carmen Lezeth:

Right right, right, oh, laverne and Shirley.

Rick Costa:

Yeah.

Cynthia Ruiz:

Shamil Shamiza. How's the something corporate.

Carmen Lezeth:

Oh my God, we're going to do it.

Rick Costa:

Oh, welcome back, Carter Welcome back.

Carmen Lezeth:

Okay, I didn't love that show. I didn't like the whole ooh ooh, ooh thing.

Rick Costa:

I guess it's more of a guy thing. I thought it was funny.

Carmen Lezeth:

Cynthia, how do you remember Welcome Back Carter when I barely do? I don't understand. I think you're so much younger than I am. The Andy Griffith show yeah, I didn't watch the Andy Griffith show, but I watched it in reruns a little bit, Mostly because I wanted to know who Ron Howard was back in the day. But what a perfect story of a childhood, Because you always hear the horrible stories right. Him and Jodie Foster are like the perfect child actors. Don Knotts was 43. I'm 43, y'all Come on now. Child actors. I'm 43, y'all Come on now. I don't know what that means. What does it mean that he's 43?

Rick Costa:

He's not very young, so he remembers these things.

Carmen Lezeth:

Oh, like I should. Some of us were busy Some of us were at rehearsal. Some of us were not in front of the TV all day.

Cynthia Ruiz:

Some of us were hanging out in the street. Carmen doesn't like Abby Lucy.

Rick Costa:

Carmen don't like Abby Lucy. I know Carmen doesn't like Abby Lucy. Carmen don't like Abby Lucy. I know she don't like her, okay.

Carmen Lezeth:

It's not that I don't like her.

Rick Costa:

And I try not to be offended by that, but you know.

Carmen Lezeth:

It's not that I just didn't watch it and then, when you forced me to try to watch it, I wasn't into it. I don't like slapstick comedy. You guys are mean I don't know Airwolf either. You, I didn't know Airwolf either. You guys know Airwolf. That doesn't really matter. Okay, good.

Cynthia Ruiz:

Are you going to call them?

Carmen Lezeth:

names. Brian Airwolf was awesome.

Rick Costa:

I don't remember that one. Yeah, saturday morning cartoons waking up as a kid was very fun. You didn't want to wake up to go to school in the morning, but Saturday morning cartoons you would wake up for that.

Cynthia Ruiz:

I was up. I was up and you sit there with your cereal and watch your cartoons.

Carmen Lezeth:

And the thing is it was all like the best shows too, like you were consistently watching it over and over again. So weird, I feel. Like it's not that I feel old in a bad way, like I just feel some of that has been lost. And look, I think a lot of things have been gained because we have social media, but then a lot has been lost, right? I think we were talking about it before. Like you don't have the same camaraderie over a TV show you watched last night. You have to watch the entire series or something. What did he say? Lord, help me. Okay, I'll go pray for you, brian. I know he's trying to throw it on me, but I was going to ask you guys another question too, about let me just see here. I was going to ask you about Chicago Fire, cynthia, I haven't seen it. No, let me just throw something out at you, okay, just so, brian. I mean, rick knows, sorry, I didn't mean to call you Brian, rick, oh my gosh.

Carmen Lezeth:

Sorry, apologies. Apologies, it's all right. So you know the show 9-1-1 that you still haven't watched, Rick, because Rick ain't going to watch it.

Cynthia Ruiz:

You never know. I don't know if Rick would like it.

Carmen Lezeth:

I don't know if he would like it?

Rick Costa:

Oh, I would give it a season.

Carmen Lezeth:

I think he would like it because Cap is so religious and there's that angle of it, with Cap being well. I guess Cap and what's her name, athena, are very religious, but in different ways because they have different religions. Yeah Right, he's Catholic, she's Baptist or something. She's like we don't go to church, we do church. Because he was like do you go to church? And she was like we don't go to church, we Baptist, we do church. That was such a great line because it's true, it's so true if you've ever gone to church, to a Baptist church. So here's the thing. So 9-1-1 is a show that Cynthia forced me to watch. She said she would never talk to me again if I didn't watch it.

Carmen Lezeth:

And of course I got hooked and then I watched the whole series and I fell in love with it and it's really some simple show, but it's fun, great characters.

Cynthia Ruiz:

To the point, we both got t-shirts from the LAFD.

Carmen Lezeth:

Okay, I did. I bought us t-shirts from the LAFD because I wanted to support them.

Rick Costa:

Was it as good as this t-shirt?

Carmen Lezeth:

It's not. It's not. It's not as good as this t-shirt. It's not as good as this t-shirt. Now can I just tell you, cynthia, I almost did a dorky thing, but I'm gonna do it anyway. I found out where my fireplace is here in los angeles and where I live. It's four blocks over and their firehouse is so beautiful. It's like a historical. Whatever they do and it has, it's just gorgeous. I'm gonna take a picture of it, send it to you. It's so beautiful. I have such respect now for the firemen.

Carmen Lezeth:

It's so weird don't women usually, though yes, but this is another level you gotta watch the show right you really gotta watch the show because it's like whole other level of love, whole, never level.

Carmen Lezeth:

That's what I'm saying. So I started, I accidentally, or whatever, was surfing and I was like Chicago fire, what's this Cause? I saw firemen. So the difference is they seem to focus more on each character, solely like their relationships, as opposed to the incidents that happen. And I it's interesting. You'll have to watch it. I haven't watched it all and I'm not going to watch it all, but it was interesting. It's better than Lone Star, but anything's better than being in Texas. I'm just saying, just kidding, I'm just kidding, I don't know.

Carmen Lezeth:

So this is the last season of 911 Lone Star. You know that. Yeah, and I think one of the people on the show is not coming back. They've talked about it the black woman who's at the call center. She's not and she's, I think she's the whole show in Lone Star. Yeah, I love her. She's not coming back. Whatever her name is, she's not coming back. Grace, that's right, she's not coming back. And then we have the premiere coming up for 9-1-1, I think in two weeks. So that should be good. So, yeah, check out Chicago Fire, it'd be interesting. The other thing, rick, I wanted to ask you I don't know if Cynthia's seen it yet Deadpool, you guys never had the conversation about.

Rick Costa:

Deadpool, they still haven't set it up.

Carmen Lezeth:

But nobody cares anymore. Everybody's seen it, we all know. Cynthia, have you seen it?

Cynthia Ruiz:

Cynthia hasn't seen it yet.

Carmen Lezeth:

I have not seen it yet, oh no, okay.

Rick Costa:

Okay, rick, tell me what you think of deadpool, so we can at least have something that we talked about it when it came out. That was hilarious. First of all because ryan reynolds is hilarious, he's just really I love him.

Carmen Lezeth:

Ryan reynolds and hugh jackman together, though, are pretty cool yeah, that's a cool bromance is.

Rick Costa:

Is that the word they use?

Carmen Lezeth:

Yeah.

Rick Costa:

It was really funny. A lot of cameos. I don't want to spoil that thing.

Carmen Lezeth:

But you can spoil it, because when's she going to watch it? She hasn't watched it by now.

Cynthia Ruiz:

I know about a lot of the cameos and he made a lot. I guess it's a scene where there's a lot of Deadpools and a lot of them are his family, family and friends.

Carmen Lezeth:

But we can tell you who they all are, because everybody already knows. Rick, we're not hiding anything, but who was your favorite cameo?

Rick Costa:

The one thing that I thought was one of the most hysterical things was when I call him Nice Pool, where it's long-haired Ryan Reynolds without the mask.

Carmen Lezeth:

Oh yeah, the nice guy, and he's with the dog.

Rick Costa:

Yeah, he has a nasty ugly dog that everybody loves he won most ugly dog or something in real life or whatever he is an ugly dog, but he's cute. He's so ugly, so one of the funniest parts is, of course, one of Deadpool's sticks is. He looks at the camera, he talks to the audience, right, and nice Pool goes. Oh, I could do that too. The Proposal I'm like, oh my God.

Carmen Lezeth:

And he's making fun of that movie with Sandra Bullock and having the proposal right, yeah yeah.

Rick Costa:

Yeah, the woman that played Elektra. What's her name? She was married.

Carmen Lezeth:

She was married.

Cynthia Ruiz:

She was married to Ben.

Carmen Lezeth:

Affleck, she was married she was married to ben affleck yeah yeah, yeah.

Rick Costa:

So it was another funny part where they were like saying like who was dead or alive, whatever? And they're like oh yeah, daredevil, he died because he used he, ben affleck played daredevil. And when he said daredevil died, she goes, that's okay because they're divorced uh Matthew McConaughey as Cowboy Dead. That's true. That's true. There are a lot of them.

Carmen Lezeth:

I think it was good. I think my favorite I'll say moment in the film I'm just going to say it, and it's not because Hugh Jackman is half naked in it at the end when they're holding on in his shirt, but it's Ryan Reynolds checking him out, I know, the way he looked at it. Was this true, you're like, this man is like 50, what? 55 or something?

Rick Costa:

yeah, he's around our age.

Carmen Lezeth:

Yeah, I mean my age, not your age, carmen and he's fine as all hell, and I just thought it was. It's just that perfect. Like you can't even be like oh oh, hugh Jackman is so sexy because Ryan Reynolds just kills that moment in the best, most purest, funniest way you know what I mean. So that was like one of my favorite moments.

Rick Costa:

And more than once Deadpool was like Marvel's going to make you be Wolverine until you're 90.

Carmen Lezeth:

Right, he's going to be Wolverine until he's 90, but he'll pull it off. I do think that it's very and I know we've all seen Deadpool, the first one, the second one, whatever it's extremely violent. Even as I sat there I was like this because I couldn't. I know it's supposed to be funny, but there is something really gross about it all. It's just so much the violence.

Rick Costa:

There's one part where Chris Evans comes in and they're thinking he's captain america because, he played so good he plays both. He played johnny storm in fantastic four way back when and then, later he became captain america and then deadpool's looking at him because he's covered up. He doesn't know what he's wearing I just want to know.

Carmen Lezeth:

Rick wasn't going to spoil this for you, but that was the best, the best part of the movie.

Rick Costa:

You keep saying she ain't going to watch it.

Cynthia Ruiz:

Rick's like well, this is probably the best part of the movie by the way it is a Disney production.

Rick Costa:

Cynthia, I'm just saying, you're a Disney head, so I'm just saying it's not Marvel she's into, but God he is.

Rick Costa:

Anyway, they're talking to Chris Evans, who they don't know is not Captain America, but actually Johnny Storm. And Wolverine is standing there with two swords inside of him, just standing there like it's nothing. You gonna pull them things out one day. But Deadpool's all excited because he's like Johnny Storm, who he thinks is Captain America. He's gonna say it, he's gonna say Avengers Assemble, he's gonna say it, and then he's like flame on and he's like huh.

Carmen Lezeth:

And then he goes into the air. It's just really funny.

Rick Costa:

So many funny parts. Oh my God, they did a good job.

Carmen Lezeth:

I was glad I went to the theater and saw it. It was good. I didn't see it with a lot of people. There were some people because I saw it days afterwards.

Rick Costa:

But very violent. So forewarning, I don't know why people were all again.

Carmen Lezeth:

I get so upset with the whole pearl clutching religious crap, like so many people were on TikTok, being like don't go see it because Ryan Reynolds calls himself Marvel Jesus throughout the whole thing. I am Marvel Jesus. He's being sticky, he's being funny, he's not being literal, but it's so weird how people take things. It's almost like the Olympics, the opening of the Olympics. People got all upset, all their panties in a bunch pearl clutching, because they're like they're making fun of the Last Supper. No, they were not. Not at all, not even a little bit.

Carmen Lezeth:

Different artists, different scenes. How did you miss the blue man in the front? There was no blue man lying down at the last supper with Jesus, from when I remember it all. But everybody is so angst, right, everybody's so amped up to be angry all the time. So instead of thinking like maybe I don't understand what's going on, would they literally be making fun of the last supper at the Olympics in France? Instead of thinking that through and being like maybe I'm making a mistake and thinking this is something other than what it was, they just went with it. I it just. It blew my mind. I couldn't even believe it and you know this was 12 years of Catholic school here. You know what I mean. Can you guys hear all that noise in the background?

Rick Costa:

No no. Okay, cool.

Carmen Lezeth:

Really, you didn't hear just that?

Rick Costa:

Mm-mm. All right, you have the noise reduction setting on Because mine's working pretty good. Y'all didn't even realize my air conditioner was on.

Carmen Lezeth:

That's probably why your stupid internet's going in and out.

Rick Costa:

No, I'm just kidding. Anyway, there's a lot more cameos I did not mention, so you won't be spoiled by everything.

Carmen Lezeth:

But it's so funny how rich I don't want to spoil anything. And then the minute I'm like, hey, everybody see these. Okay, let me tell you the most important part. It really is the one. I think that was one of the most surprising parts. I was not expecting chris evans to be in it, yeah, and then the flip that it wasn't captain america.

Rick Costa:

You know what I mean and then the end credit scenes. That was like whoa, okay, you know what?

Carmen Lezeth:

You know what was weird, though? I of course sat, Because I always sit through all credits of every movie, Because I live in this town and I want to be respectful. Plus, I always hope I can see a name I know or something. You know what I mean. But people actually got up and left and I'm like, ooh, you're not real Marvel people.

Cynthia Ruiz:

Are you new, right? Every Marvel movie has a scene at the end. You don't leave. Sometimes they have two scenes. Yeah, you don't leave.

Carmen Lezeth:

Yeah, so it was weird. So, yeah, that was good. It was good, though, mm-hmm, it was good.

Rick Costa:

I'm glad we got to talk a little bit about Deadpool, because I feel like we've been chasing Since late night.

Carmen Lezeth:

Parents can't do it. But they were all saying they were going to have a show, they were going to do it, they were going to get together. And then number one Friday or something I was like are you guys doing it? Because I was going to go and watch. And then you said you hadn't heard from Ted or anybody yet. But I wonder why.

Rick Costa:

I don't know, maybe just schedule conflicts, I don't know.

Carmen Lezeth:

I'm just saying that's one of those things you kind of want to do when it's out.

Rick Costa:

Yeah strike while the iron's hot.

Carmen Lezeth:

So I'm going to bring up this other thing. It's kind of a downer, but we can have a conversation about it. So I don't know if you guys it's not a downer, it's just something. Remember last week? Oh no, we weren't on last week, right? No?

Cynthia Ruiz:

Why weren't we on last week DNC? Oh, that's right.

Carmen Lezeth:

Democratic National Convention was on. That's right. The music was off the hook, Rick was it you Was it. You. You were like is it always so much music?

Rick Costa:

Are these things always so musical?

Cynthia Ruiz:

I love watching the TikToks when they were comparing the RNC and DNC.

Rick Costa:

Oh, yeah, carmen sent me one of those and I was like, see, that's how I thought it was going to be the other one.

Carmen Lezeth:

They had a DJ, they tested the waters and it worked to have just more music instead of all that kind of old school stuff. They did the church. The church, that's right. They did the church.

Rick Costa:

What was the controversy with Beyonce? Because they were like oh, she wasn't even there, it wasn't a controversy.

Carmen Lezeth:

Somebody leaked I'm doing quotes, air quotes that she was going to be there when Vice President Harris came out on stage to give her acceptance speech on Thursday night. But it was a rumor. It wasn't true and I think she was in New York or like with her husband or something, having dinner. And finally, her publicity. People came out and said we are not coming to the blah, blah, blah. So it wasn't. I think people were hoping that her or Taylor Swift it was like Taylor Swift for a minute we're going to come out. There were enough. We have enough celebrities. We don't need celebrities. What we need is what was happening, which I thought was the music was great For people who didn't watch the DNC.

Carmen Lezeth:

The roll call that happens, which is when the delegates announce what delegates, how many delegates, are being. It's really ceremonial. It's not really like we already know that she's the nominee at this point, right, but it's kind of a ceremonial thing and every state comes out and says we give you you know, we're from california we give you 434 delegates, or whatever it is this. Usually it's really boring, but you watch it because you wait for your state and somebody might say something cool because the person who speaks. That's like a voted on thing. It's an honor to speak and give the delegates and people who are really into politics really love this part of it. Like the geek people, I usually just sit through it because you know I want to watch it. This year they had a song that represented every single state. So, for example, michigan had Eminem song, which is you know? What is it? You guys don't know Eminem song.

Carmen Lezeth:

I don't know the name of it. We had Dr Dre and Kendrick Lamar. You know every state we had Dropkick Murphys.

Cynthia Ruiz:

Which one Dropkick Murphys?

Carmen Lezeth:

Yes, like everybody had a every state and all the artists had to say that was okay, which was the other thing that I can't believe. You know, bruce Springsteen, there was just every artist. Anyway, it was amazing and it was really fun to watch and listen to. And now the DNC has that whole playlist. You can go on Spotify or wherever you listen to music and get the playlist. And the playlist is actually really good because it's all these great songs we all grew up with and love. So, yeah, it was really fun. It was good, that's right, and I we didn't have the show that week, but two weeks ago about parenting, parenting. Remember, we said this is why, late night, parents should have actually, uh, they should talk about parenting once in a while. And I got upset about how parents really suck.

Carmen Lezeth:

Okay, so the surgeon general of the United States his name is Murphy, Last name is Murphy M-U-R-T-H-Y. If you saw his face you'd know who he is. But he did an interview and he was talking about they didn't there's an article, but they also did a podcast and he was talking about surgeon general addresses, growing stress and mental health struggles facing parents today, and he was talking about Surgeon General addresses, growing stress and mental health struggles facing parents today. And he said this is the quote I love. He said the truth is, parenting is and has always really been a team sport and what he's talking about is like neighbors and aunties and uncles, and I think we have lost a lot of that. I think that's why kids are so messed up right now. But I was wondering what you guys might have thought. I know you haven't read the article or whatever, but just going off of that little bit, did you guys grow up knowing that you had a lot of people around you you could go to or not? You guys know I did.

Cynthia Ruiz:

Yes and no. I did have some people that I could go to, but it was a very small amount of people, maybe three or four people that I could really go to. But who were they?

Carmen Lezeth:

always go to them but who were they in your life? I don't mean the actual names. Was it a teacher was? Was it your uncle? Was it your Teresa?

Cynthia Ruiz:

is one of them, mm-hmm, my godmother Teresa's your godmother?

Carmen Lezeth:

Yeah, I did not know that. Okay, I didn't know, I didn't know. Let's see One of my. She's actually your cousin. So that's the point. You have somebody else, but you see her as an aunt?

Cynthia Ruiz:

I do see her you don't have to name names. My siblings, yeah, mostly my, yeah, my siblings, my two sisters and my brother, but do you?

Carmen Lezeth:

feel okay. So this is what the article and the conversation was about. That it was more about. There were so many other people that had a say in how you were raised. So here's a great example.

Carmen Lezeth:

I remember when I was real little cause my mother was still alive I was at, we went to school Blessed Sacrament, right, it was like my first year of school. I went to St Patrick's. So second, third year I started at Blessed Sacrament and I remember I got in trouble and they called my mother and my mother came to the school, right, cause they, whatever. And my mother yelled at me because because I did something wrong, right. But now what it seems to be is the parents come into the school and they yell at the teacher for reprimanding the kids. Do you guys know what I'm talking about? Like it just always. It seems like the dynamic has changed. Like I got in trouble because I was disrespectful to the teacher or whatever. Blah, blah, blah. Like I thought I never thought for one moment my mother coming to the school was going to be my saving grace.

Cynthia Ruiz:

You know what I mean. Like thought I never thought for one moment my mother coming to the school was going to be my saving grace.

Cynthia Ruiz:

Like I was gonna be in trouble because growing up going and especially going to bless sacrament we had nuns so we were always getting reprimanded by our teachers, and so if the teachers are calling our parents and you know, and our mom comes to the school, like they obviously know we did something wrong so we're getting yelled at, it's like these kids are being taught by young teachers themselves. So these teachers are yelling back at the children kind of. I feel like they're kind of, I guess, in a better I don't know how to say it but basically lowering themselves to the child standard and they're arguing back rather than being the adult and reprimanding them in a different way.

Carmen Lezeth:

So you're actually taking the side of the kid.

Cynthia Ruiz:

Not, it's not really, but kind of, because I have seen videos and I have seen it for myself. Like a lot of these kids will defend themselves because the teacher can be rude, Like I've seen videos of teachers being rude to children in certain ways, yelling at them or whatever the case may be, rather than them being an adult and actually addressing the child differently, is it?

Carmen Lezeth:

possible that the teachers have? I'm taking the. I'm going to take the defense of the teachers for a moment. Is it possible that teachers have lost so much ability and authority to do anything? Because you can't reprimand any kids to do anything, you can't take away their cell phone. You know, in California they just passed a law that kids cannot use their cell phones in school anymore. Good, see how that goes. Yeah, that's going to be interesting. It's already being implemented this year, which will be fascinating to see how that happens.

Cynthia Ruiz:

But no, yeah, no, it is true. These teachers are getting frustrated that they can't say certain things to these kids because the parents will go in and yell at the teacher things to these kids because the parents will go in and yell at the teacher. Look, let's be honest when.

Carmen Lezeth:

I was going to school. I don't know about you, but I remember, like sister Alfonza. I'll never forget her. She would grab you by the ear and pull you. She used to take a ruler and slap your hand. She didn't slap my hand, but these were different times. You know what I mean. I remember being like these people are abusing us Nobody cared.

Cynthia Ruiz:

Our parents did not care. I got slapped in the hand because I'm a lefty.

Carmen Lezeth:

Yeah, no, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, I got in trouble because I was doing cartwheels, because I had shorts underneath my dress, because you had to wear a uniform. I went to school so you had to wear that checkered ugly outfit and remember that jumper thing. And then you wanted you couldn't wait till seventh grade because you could wear the vest, but I used to wear shorts. All of us wore shorts under our skirts. So I was doing trouble for that, like big time trouble for doing cartwheels because I wasn't ladylike. Yeah, it's definitely different times. I see rick being very quiet no, I was just thinking about.

Rick Costa:

My past was like very different. Let's say I was at a neighbor's house and I did something stupid and the neighbor said your son just blah, blah, blah. My father be like, beat him and let him know when he comes here he's gonna get beat again oh my god, oh yeah, yeah, that's what I'm saying.

Cynthia Ruiz:

Like nowadays, these parents are not allowing the teachers to reprimand them or put them in their place, rather than they can't get fired right exactly right, because now it's like all this stuff, oh, I'll call the cops on you and blah, blah, blah.

Carmen Lezeth:

The kids are threatening the teachers and the teachers are getting fed up, so they're lowering themselves to the kids, you know, and yelling at them or I'll say this and I hope Andrea doesn't get mad but Andrea was a teacher for a minute because she was so annoyed at the system and that was like 25 years ago, like she would have been the best teacher you could have ever had. But even she was there for I don't even know how long I want to say a year or two, and it might have been longer, but it was a short period of time. She's one of those people that you would want to be a teacher, really wanted to do it, and she really loves kids and she's really great at explaining things, blah, blah. All the reasons why and she was like this is not worth it. That was years ago. I can't imagine how bad it is now. I give love to teachers, but I do think that it's a tough profession, especially because we do not pay them well. We also I mean I think it was Snoop Dogg and everyone knows I'm upset with him right now but one of these is one of these celebrities was making a point I don't know if it was him, but was saying we should not be applauding that people are buying supplies for teachers on Amazon, like.

Carmen Lezeth:

You know how teachers have Amazon lists Like. So you can go on amazoncom and teachers all over the country have their wishlist for their classrooms. It really should not be that way. Teachers should not have to be asking the public to pay for general supplies for their school rooms. It's weird.

Carmen Lezeth:

And back when we were growing up and I was going to school, I know Alice McIntyre was buying stuff out of her own pocket. Right, she was one of our lay teachers at Blessed Sacrament. She was one of the best teachers ever and the classroom was always decorated. You know what I mean? We always had the best plays and books and all these things that didn't come with regular textbooks or whatever, because she would buy them out of her own pocket and make sure that we had a great experience. You know, ted just said my wife is a retired teacher. Talk about a thankless job. Wow, oh, ted. Yeah, the weird thing is I don't understand why we have such a bad attitude about teachers. Our kids are there for at least 8 hours a day. 8 hours a day, 5 days a week. They are really doing the job of raising your children.

Carmen Lezeth:

They are and not to be corny, not to be corny.

Rick Costa:

But I believe the children are our future. They are, and not to be corny, but I believe the children are our future, they are.

Cynthia Ruiz:

Yeah, absolutely. And look, during COVID, all these parents were stressing out because they had to be home with their kids and teach their kids and they were getting frustrated with their kids and it's so good. Now you know how the teachers feel.

Rick Costa:

Now you understand what a brat your little baby is exactly baby kids.

Carmen Lezeth:

It's just really it is a thankless job. I think it's a terrible situation. I look at I, I think teachers. I don't understand why we don't pay teachers more money. I also believe if we had higher criteria for police officers, we'd have better policing, if they got paid a decent wage and had to go to school first, instead of the six-month training that they take and then have a gun in their hand. These jobs that I think are the most vital in our society are the ones we pay the least and give the least amount of support to, and then we complain about it when all these things go wrong. Right, and so teachers and cops are on my list of things we do wrong as a society. So yeah, and then I know we're almost at 60 minutes.

Rick Costa:

Rick's about to be like one hour, I wasn't even thinking about it.

Carmen Lezeth:

Honestly, I know, but I just I think if, look, if you could make a hundred, $150,000 a year as a teacher, I would have been a teacher in a heartbeat. I love kids, I would have loved to do it. But the idea that you would make like $40,000 and then you're babysitting, really because you can't really teach. You can't teach 50 kids in a classroom.

Rick Costa:

No, not effective, Not that many.

Carmen Lezeth:

And that's why so many people have kids in private school, Like Billy has his kids in private school and I get it. He didn't want to. He wanted them to stay in public school, but it's. You can't risk that, and if you have the money to send them to private school. I'm not talking about Catholic school. That's not what I mean. I'm not trying to act like our school was that great. All we learned was what religion and math. I think that was it. That's it, and not even very well, by the way, cause I suck at math.

Rick Costa:

Me too actually.

Carmen Lezeth:

Yeah, I don't think we really learned, and I have a lot of questions about religion.

Cynthia Ruiz:

Thank you, thank you but.

Carmen Lezeth:

I mean, but you did learn something that I think a lot of people didn't learn, and I don't know where people learn this now but you did learn discipline. Yeah, you did learn about respect, you did learn about boundaries, you did, and those are the things, those are the skills we need. I'm not saying they're the only skills we need, but definitely lacking in those. Now, rick, what did you say? Because you froze for a second.

Rick Costa:

No, I don't think I said anything. I think a lack of respect for authority is huge nowadays. The kids just don't care. You ain't my mother, you're my father.

Carmen Lezeth:

Where do you think that comes from, though?

Rick Costa:

I think that starts at home, though. First you got to teach them, kids, to respect their elders, and they don't care because they're on this all day.

Carmen Lezeth:

This is their world and we're going back to where we started. Yeah.

Rick Costa:

My best friend. So his kids just started school this week and like this is insane, the buses don't know what they're doing. He's got two girls, one in one school, another another school, so and they get off at different times, but and they just went yesterday was the first day, I think and he calls the school. He's like where's my daughter? I don't know, and they're very he like, he was like they're very nonchalant about it. He's I need to be wherever my daughter's gonna be how old are they?

Carmen Lezeth:

how old are the kids?

Rick Costa:

he just started sixth grade, the oldest one one. Oh that's too young. Yeah. And then he's. I got to pick up the other one too. A little while you can't be just nonchalant about it. Where are they? I'm sorry, I'm no longer Christian, but I'm about to go off of these people, right now. And he was mad. So then, as a result, one of the women said just call her on her cell phone. She ain't got no cell phone. So now he bought her a cell phone.

Cynthia Ruiz:

Yeah, Let me tell you one thing that my daughter did with her son when he started Actually when he started pre-K she got an air tag and she pins the air tag on the inside of his pants so she can track wherever he is and on the bus.

Carmen Lezeth:

At all times yeah.

Cynthia Ruiz:

At all times, so she knows where he is. So any parents listening?

Carmen Lezeth:

get air tags, attach them to your kids pants for those people who don't know what air tags are literally they're for luggage. I think that's how they started. I don't know, but they're little things you can get and they you tag them to the clothing or whatever and whatever item you have and it's on your cell phone.

Cynthia Ruiz:

They have iPhones and Androids.

Rick Costa:

It's like a GPS tracker.

Carmen Lezeth:

Yeah, it's a GPS tracker. Ted just said both of my kids in these private school, expensive as hell never trusted public school. I think that's the struggle right. So, billy, I remember him having the conversation of we want to support public schools because every child should have a good education and our property taxes pay for a lot of things. This is the taxes that we pay. This is what you want your taxes to go to the public schools, so schools can be free, so everyone can get a good education. So we complain about taxes, but this is what it should be for. This is the thing that I don't think anyone would argue with.

Carmen Lezeth:

So, yes, if you can afford to send your kid to a good school, because the public schools suck, because we don't pay people enough, because we don't support them enough, of course you're going to send them to a private school. I ain't going to be mad at no parents about it. But this is the problem, this is the issue, and here's the great thing about public school is there's so much diversity in economic status, in people of different cultures and different ethnicities and different backgrounds, and that's what you want in this world. When you start going to private school, all of a sudden it's the haves and the have nots. So people who got the money are all in the, and this is how it begins. All the clicks begin here, all the networking begins here. But you do it because you want your kids to have the best education possible. But just see the logic right. So I, if I had children, they would always be in private school. But that doesn't mean I don't want to fix the public school issue. You know, and I agree with you, rick.

Carmen Lezeth:

I look at getting back to what the Surgeon General was saying, and I hate to use the cliche thing, but it does take can talk to them badly, no one can do anything to them, they are perfect and blah, blah, blah. They all get participation trophies, blah, blah, blah, and nobody else can say a thing about them, whereas when I was growing up, everybody and their mother had a say in everything any kid did in the neighborhood. Now I think there has to be a happy medium. You know what I mean. There needs to be like a balance there. But I think and again, I'm not a parent. This is why I feel very comfortable saying this I think the problem with our children today is all of our faults adults, parents and all the adults around them together.

Carmen Lezeth:

It is our fault. We're failing them. It's our fault. Kids are attached to their cell phones because we've made it so uninteresting to do anything else. Kids don't go outside to play. Kids don't hang out with their friends on the corner, or you know what I mean. Like they don't ride their bikes anywhere. Everything is a play date. Everything is so structured because you're all paranoid that something's going to happen to your kid. What's happening to your kid is happening in your own house.

Rick Costa:

Yeah, and a lot of parents. I understand we're all busy, but if your kid needs attention, for God's sake, you're their parent. Give them attention. But I see a lot of people like just grab your tablet and watch some YouTube. I'm busy right now. They need you and watch some YouTube. I'm busy right now.

Carmen Lezeth:

They need you. Yeah, I think one of the things that was great about Baata, who's one of my dearest friends and is the mother of Juliana they had Juliana trying everything Like first they thought she was going to be a musician because she loved playing this electric guitar thing and she got bored with that, then the piano, and then it was like she was going to do karate. And they never once they never got mad at her for wanting it, because kids do that. They got to figure out their thing. They got to figure out their thing, and it was always like it wasn't spoiling her. It was like okay, but if we're going to pay for this, you're going to loves it and it's like her thing.

Carmen Lezeth:

You know what I mean, and I thought that was also kind of a cool thing, whereas I've seen so many parents get so upset because you are, I guess, in a way, if you look at it that way wasting money. You know I'm going to waste all this money sending my kid to ballet lessons and then they're never going to go or they're not going to be, they're not really good or whatever, and I'm like you're missing the point. Give your kid an activity to do that has nothing to do with the screen, watching a movie or being on YouTube or whatever it is. You're missing the point. They're interacting with other kids. They're meeting people. They're learning pros and cons. They're winning and losing. They're learning how to interact with other people. It's not about they're going to become a cellist or whatever. Not everyone is born Mozart, play the piano. Just let them do these things and explore, not because you think they're going to become the next Beyonce or Whitney Houston, but because you want them to be good and decent, wonderful, beautiful spirits, and that's part of it.

Rick Costa:

And how do you know what you're good at unless you try different things?

Carmen Lezeth:

That's what I'm saying. Yeah, and I know people ain't got a lot of money, it's not about money. The most important things I ever did had nothing to do with money had to do with my mother asking me questions about the TV shows I had watched, because we were latchkey kids. Were you a latchkey kid? If you're gen x, latchkey kids were. Basically you came home, nobody was home. You had a key around your neck so it was like called a latchkey kid and you would come home and wait until your parents came home, whatever. So a lot of gen xers are latchkey kids. So you know my mom would come home and she would ask me questions about what show I watched and having that talk about what the show meant. And I knew what shows I could. And it's so funny because now I realize she could not, she couldn't tell what shows I watched, but because that's the discipline I had, my mother was like don't let me see that you were watching something else other than what I told you you could watch. You know what I mean.

Cynthia Ruiz:

And I was like okay, I would never turn the channel or anything. You always thought she was watching you.

Carmen Lezeth:

Even after that woman passed away. May she rest in peace. Yesterday was the anniversary oh was it. Yeah, yeah, and today is Steve's anniversary. Okay, I don't want to get sad, but I'm just saying yeah. But yeah, I used to think, even after she passed away for like years, that she could see me. It's people always like you didn't do drugs at all. I'm like to this day. I swear to God she would come out. I told you never, but yeah. I really had the fear of God in me.

Rick Costa:

Now this one is triggered. This song is triggered, but now I'm thinking of I always feel like somebody's watching me that wasn't Michael Jackson, but it was someone. Rockwell, no Rockwell. Yeah, that sounds right, maybe.

Cynthia Ruiz:

I think it was Rockwell.

Carmen Lezeth:

Yeah, rockwell, yeah, I remember that song. Yeah, but I used to think that, I used to think she could see me and, oh my God, I was so afraid. I walked in fear as a child. Let me tell you I really did, and that's what I want for all children today. No, I'm just kidding. I'm just kidding. No, there's got to be a happy medium.

Rick Costa:

I saw this video I want to discuss real quick, really cute.

Carmen Lezeth:

Is it the one you sent me? Because we're not going to talk about it because it was stupid.

Rick Costa:

No, I said it was cute. That was not cute.

Carmen Lezeth:

That was a mess wait have I approved of this message okay no, it's all right, rick, I will let you do this one time okay, so anyway because if it's about religion, I'm gonna be mad oh no, so it was a couple, the wife's are you gonna show?

Rick Costa:

it, just show it. No, I don't have it ready, I don't have it ready, I don't have it ready. Oh, look at me, I'm like I can just explain it. No, I'm just going to explain it because it was really cute. Okay, go ahead. So there's a couple and the wife's pregnant, and the water broke, so they're in the car. The wife is deaf, so she's trying, and he's driving in trying to like I'm going as fast as I can, I'm trying to hurry up and she keeps getting his attention. Did it? I know I'm trying to try. And then all of a sudden, next, the baby popped out right in seat. Oh no, and thank god she had a towel, so she wrapped it up in the towel quick, just like that, just like that must not have been her first I don't know okay, you and I have a different idea of cute.

Carmen Lezeth:

but okay, because, isn't it true? If you have, I think your first one is always the hardest right, and then your second child might be easier.

Cynthia Ruiz:

I don't know if that's necessarily true. Yeah they say, but it's different for everyone.

Carmen Lezeth:

Yeah, man popping it out just like that.

Rick Costa:

Yeah, oh, I had a friend that she went to the hospital and she was like I'm having the baby now. She's like, okay, we're going to get you. No, I'm having the baby now. She's like I understand. She grabbed the nurse's hand, put it down there and the head was crowning already. She's like, oh my God, get this woman in the room right now. She's like you're having it now.

Carmen Lezeth:

I'm never interested in having a child, and that was her third yeah, she said, yeah, she just slid out, she goes.

Rick Costa:

The first one was horrible.

Carmen Lezeth:

Yeah, I've heard most people tell me that their first was the worst and then after, Plus, you don't know what to expect.

Rick Costa:

It's your first, so that makes sense.

Carmen Lezeth:

You know what? We don't want to have this conversation. I just can't even imagine a child coming out of any area of me. That's what I'm saying. That's not my thing. My ex, I want my hand. That I can't grab. I know we're like. No way, my ex.

Rick Costa:

If you want to understand what it's like, imagine a watermelon coming out of your butt. There you go.

Carmen Lezeth:

I was like no, I don't want to imagine that. That's a weird thing to say. That's a weird thing to say. Why are we Rick? See how I give Rick a little tiny. That's why I want to talk about things before they come on the show. You're nasty, okay. You're nasty, oh, my God. I'm going to shut this down, unless you guys have anything else you want to chit-chat about for a minute. All right, it was great to talk with you guys. Thank you so much Again. I want to share with everyone. If you go to allaboutthejoycom, you can check out our store and our model here. Rick has the hat, the t-shirt, the cushion. I can't believe you moved your Marvel for All About the Joy. Wow, I'm impressed. Just for that. Yeah, go check it out. We also have cups. We have one mug, two mugs, I think.

Rick Costa:

Yeah, there's two. One's a little bigger than the other one.

Carmen Lezeth:

Yeah, I'll create some other stuff at some point. It took me so long to just do this, so we're just going to leave it at that for now. But anyway, thank you everyone. Thank you everyone for showing up. I appreciate you and remember. It really is all about the joy and we'll see you all next week. Bye everyone, thanks for stopping by. All about the joy. Be better and stay beautiful folks. Have a sweet day.