Aug. 6, 2025
What a Difference Appreciation Makes
We explore the transformative impact of appreciation in both personal and professional settings while preparing for a new adventure at the Skowhegan Fair.
• Appreciation makes a significant difference in how we feel about our work and relationships
• A stark contrast between DJing at an unappreciative biker bar versus a 9-year-old's birthday party
• Living in a school bus for 11 days at Skowhegan Fair while missing family milestones
• The "crunch season" of running back-to-back fairs and managing inventory/finances
• When employees feel valued, they're more motivated to perform and go the extra mile
• Appreciation strengthens bonds, improves communication, and reduces conflict
• Expressing gratitude helps build resilience during difficult times
• First-time events often yield first-time results, but create foundation for future growth
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00:00 - The Power of Appreciation
07:10 - New Fair Adventure in Skowhegan
16:07 - Living Solo in a School Bus
29:31 - Crunch Season for Loud Proud American
36:13 - From Biker Bar to Birthday Party
WEBVTT
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What a difference a week makes, or should I say what a difference appreciation makes.
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Today, we're going to explore the impact that appreciation has both on our personal and professional settings, and we prepare for a brand new event for Loud Proud American that I leave for in a few hours.
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Alright, that and so much more on today's episode of Share the Struggle Podcast that I leave for in a few hours.
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All right, that's so much more on today's episode of Share the Struggle Podcast.
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Let me tell you something Everybody struggles.
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The difference is some people choose to go through it and some choose to grow through it.
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The choice is completely yours.
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Which one you choose will have a very profound effect on the way you live your life.
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If you find strength in the struggle, then this podcast is for you.
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If you have a relationship that is comfortable with uncomfortable conversations, uncomfortable conversations challenge you, humble you and they build you.
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When you sprinkle a little time and distance on it, it all makes sense.
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Most disagreements, they stem from our own insecurities.
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You are right where you need to be Ooh ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh.
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What it do, what it do, what it hot did it do.
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Good Lord, almighty, am I so excited to be back for another weekly episode with you.
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Oh, it's true, it is damn true.
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That special podcast precisely properly perfectly named Share the Struggle Podcast.
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Because everybody struggles.
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This podcast keeps rolling, rolling, rolling In the words I believe that was Fred Durst we keep the consecutive streak rollin', we keep the home fires burnin'.
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Loud Pod American proudly brings to you Share the Struggle Podcast.
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Today, on Share the Struggle Podcast, we're going to dip our toes into appreciation.
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I got a fun little story that comes full circle on a Friday night.
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And before the fun begins, I must let you know that a new journey is about to begin because Loud Proud American has been accepted to a new fair, another fair in the great state of Maine, a fair that has yet to fit on our schedule.
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That finally fits on our schedule.
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It is one of the larger fairs in Maine I believe it is the oldest fair in Maine and it's in Skowhegan Skow Vegas as I like to call it.
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It's a couple hours north of here and I've gotten mixed signals and reviews about this fair through the years, but I've always kind of wanted to toss it a line and, you know, spend a little time and see how it goes and what would you know?
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But it made it fit into the schedule.
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A little pushing from friends.
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I'd say that that helps.
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Matt and Sarah from Ledgerway Farms said that they think this would be a good fair for us.
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They've been pushing on us.
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Kyle and Julia from Underdog Metal they're trying this fair out as well.
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Kyle reached out and said he got in and wanted to know why I hadn't gotten in.
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And I said I'm trying to get in.
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And then all things came together and here we are again trying something new.
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A few weeks ago we talked about you know, if the first time is your worst time, then pack yourself up, dust yourself off and try again.
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And I've also discussed the fact that this year there's been a lot of struggles because we're doing a lot of things for the first time where you are jumping into the deep end for the first time.
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And when you go to first time events you often get first time results, which means you're the new guy, you're the FNG, you get put in, you know crappy locations, you don't really get all the attention and by doing that the results are kind of watered down.
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You don't always get what you hope for, but, in the words of Mick Jagger, you get what you deserve.
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Apparently.
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Why is it a musical Szechuan this morning?
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It's so early.
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I haven't even listened to music yet this morning, so I don't know where all this musical influence is coming from, but I guess it just fills my body and my soul.
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Call it rock and roll, I don't know.
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Whatever, I'm losing it, clearly.
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What was I saying, squirrel?
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Anyways, we've kind of been dealing with some difficulties this year because we've been doing a lot of first time scenarios.
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But you can't be afraid of those.
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You must continue to dust yourself off and take off the velvet glove and smack yourself in the face with love and try again, try, try, try again.
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And that's what we are doing.
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So we are embarking on another spiritual journey over here.
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We are heading out.
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Um, this one's going to be a little bit different because I'm going to do this show completely solo.
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Things didn't work out as far as the camping scenario and all this and that, so I'm not going to get into the details on it, but what's going to happen this week is your boy's going to live out of a bus.
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Okay, I've done it before.
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It is what it is.
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I'm going to be living out of a school bus.
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I'm recording this on Tuesday.
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I have some last minute packing and inventory stuff to do today and then I'm going to roll out on Wednesday and hopefully do the entire setup by myself, which this is a big setup.
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It's 20 by 20.
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I will say, when I do a figure this large, usually setting up for it takes about two days.
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I'm going to give myself about a day, so that's perfect, and then I'm going to live in the bus, so I'll get there on Wednesday and then it's going to run all the way through the following Saturday.
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So I'm going to leave on Wednesday, thursday, friday, saturday, sunday.
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The fair is going to open on Thursday.
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So Thursday, friday, saturday, sunday, monday, tuesday, wednesday, thursday, friday, saturday that's 11 days.
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It's an 11 day fair.
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Each and every night I have to be open till 11 PM according to my contract.
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So, um, it's going to be, it's going to be a stretch.
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And um, I got 11 days, it's going to be a stretch and I got 11 days.
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So, 11-day fare, a couple of days, set up and tear down.
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You're talking two weeks that I'm going to be gone, that I'm going to be living out of a school bus Two weeks.
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Not going to be easy.
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I did a similar scenario in Florida, but I had some friends with me.
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This time I am going to be running solo, making things work In the bus.
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I have a fridge, a microwave, a toaster, an air mattress.
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I might throw an air conditioner in there.
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I just mounted a TV to the wall as well.
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So we're trying to make the best of it.
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But we shall see.
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I will say full frontal, confessional y'all.
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If I take that Cabela's catalog and I preach the truth from this guy right here, putting my beady little eyes to the sky and confessing my truth.
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I'm going to have a hard time being away from my baby.
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Okay, no offense to my wifey, she knows, she knows how this is.
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My wife doesn't change every day, my baby does.
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Okay, little Paisley Rain changes every day.
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And when you're gone for two weeks, I feel like I'm going to miss out on a lot in those two weeks, considering she's also on the verge of walking.
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So I just know she's going to take her first steps while I'm gone.
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Just kind of how that feels.
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But this is the life that I signed up for.
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It is what it is.
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I must make the best of it.
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So make the best of it and deal with the rest of it.
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That's how this is going to go.
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But for me this is kind of crunch season.
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I've been in full production mode pressing, making, designing, all that I can afford to do.
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So I worked all day yesterday night just kind of getting things ready, getting some inventory set, trying to put myself in the best possible position for success for this week.
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And the tricks of this scenario is going to be fair opens on Thursday.
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I must make as much money as I possibly can each and every day and then by Monday, or let's say possibly Tuesday, I need to place a design order for graphics for my next fair News, designs hopefully being included in this purchase, but also restocking designs because I have been rocking through some of my inventory.
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So I need to raise, I would say, $2,000 to $3,000 by Monday or Tuesday to order the graphics to get me set up for my next event.
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And then I would have until, let's say, friday to raise enough money to buy the apparel that goes to the next event.
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So you have graphics, so your designs, then you have your product, your apparel.
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I need to place the orders on those on Monday and Tuesday and possibly Thursday and Friday.
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That gets everything to me with enough time, hopefully, to print and press and get ready for the next one, because I'm going to be at this fair for, you know, two weeks, let's say, and then when I get home on Sunday, very soon thereafter, we'll be getting the camper set up at the Windsor Fair and then I will be heading out either Wednesday, thursday, something like that to Windsor to get ready for that fair, because that's going to open on Saturday.
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So you're talking maybe three days of steady, constant work to get all the inventory you can done and ready for the next event.
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So it's crunch season right there and then, according to my schedule, I would get out of Windsor, I would get home on a Tuesday and, man, a few days later I'd be traveling to another show in New York, if I can make that squeeze and then I would come home and get ready for Freiburg Fair, which is our biggest event of the year with the biggest display we've ever had, where I'm still trying to raise the money for the vendor fees for that one, which is quite a bit, and also raising the money to expand my shelter, to buy another tent and all those things.
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So many moving parts.
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That's just a screenshot.
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That's a little synopsis of Lauer Proud, american, and the task at hand, what stands before us.
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But I'm excited to embark on another journey and you add all the new elements to it, right?
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You're going to something for the first time, so it's a new event for you, it's a new trip for you, and it's new for you to be all alone for a couple of weeks without your wife and your beautiful child.
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So it's going to be a challenge, but that's where the growth comes from.
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Right?
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We've talked about this.
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You can't spend all your days sitting on your couch eating Fritos counting for this.
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You can't spend all your days sitting on your couch eating Fritos counting for Sundays.
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You know what I'm saying.
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You can't do it.
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You can't do it.
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Letting be prudent Can't do it.
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You got to get out and live life.
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You got to take chances or you're going to be sitting around, you know, pissing on your pants.
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That's all I could come up with.
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So this year has definitely been the year for big chances, for big risks, and I do know that this will all pan out.
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This is what I signed up for.
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This is what has to happen.
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These are the sacrifices that must be made, the commitments that must be completed for us to get to where we want to be, to provide and create the life I see for me and my family.
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Gotcha, gotcha, loud, proud American is a lifestyle brand dedicated and determined to represent the American spirit with an unrelenting commitment to provide made in the USA products If you would like to join the 2% of Americans that buy American and support American, head on over to wwwlalproudamericanshop.
00:13:01.379 --> 00:13:05.347
Together we can bring back American manufacturing.
00:13:05.347 --> 00:13:09.283
All right, all right, all right, welcome back y'all.
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Thank you for that musical interlude.
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Little Jeff Warren and the Gut Truckers mixed in there with your Lab, proud American infomercial, please find all things, buy all things, support all things American-made.
00:13:22.844 --> 00:13:27.480
You can find all those things at wwwlaproudamericanshop, don't forget.
00:13:27.480 --> 00:13:32.692
You can find all things podcast related over to wwwsharethestrugglepodcastcom.
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That's radio voice for you.
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I don't know where that came from.
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That is my casey casem, apparently.
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But uh, to segue into the next portion of today's show, we're going to talk about appreciation and it actually kind of goes hand in hand because we started off on a musical note.
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I just hit you with my radio voice and I'm going to connect all the dots.
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We're going to connect four and we're going to open the door to the next segment of the show where I talk to you yet again about musical stylings and profilings.
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Let's have another DJ conversation, y'all, because last week I talked to you guys about my final performance at the saloon, shall we say, where I said I bid farewell, if you do the old retirement speech I wrote off into the sunset, because I promised my daughter I would do so we had all of those things, all that conversation, and I heard from a lot of you guys.
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So thank you to everybody that reached out with the feedback on said conversation.
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But, as I kind of string together this little story here, we started off saying what a difference a week makes and literally one week later, a perfect seven days later, I found myself at yet another DJ event, this one not at a biker saloon, this one at a backyard venue.
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Okay, let me set the scene, to paint the picture, to pave the road.
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A few weeks ago, a good friend of mine, a great family that has supported us tremendously.
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They reached out and said I would like you to DJ my daughter's ninth birthday and something along those effects.
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But when I was reading the message, it kind of looked like my daughter wants to be a DJ or my daughter wants a DJ for her ninth birthday.
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So I was like your daughter wants to be a DJ or she wants a DJ.
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And the answer was both and I said get up.
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I'm so down, I'm totally down.
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Please, lord Almighty, hope this fits in my schedule, because this is exactly what I need.
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This is exactly what I want to do.
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Just if this fits the schedule.
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I'm in.
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I looked and it fit.
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We're in, I'm doing it.
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I'm stoked, I'm excited, and that set the conversation ablaze about how do you want to do this?
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I would like to show her a few things.
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Maybe I show up a little bit late and then she can help me set up and all those things.
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So I was excited about the fact that we had this nine-year-old, that she wants to be a DJ and she wants a DJ for her birthday.
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And we were the surprise.
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She knew she was having a party.
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She did not know she was getting a DJ for her party.
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We were the surprise.
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I was so excited about all of this.
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So one week later, just seven days after saying goodbye to a biker saloon, I'm rolling into a friend's house, headed to their backyard full of people where I'm going to be the to be the DJ birthday surprise.
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And slash instructor for DJ LJT that is her DJ name.
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And the cuteness over this whole scenario just doesn't stop there, because I was sent a set list that she had worked on, a three-page set list that she wrote up with some of the most eclectic blends of music that you've ever heard of or seen.
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So super excited about that.
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But her mother had asked hey, can you tell me what you'd like and I'll build like a playlist, I'll download some songs for you.
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But the truth is that playlist was being sent to me and it was incredible, man, she loves a lot of like the Disney soundtrack, musical stuff.
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Of course you know a lot of T-Stars, a little Taylor Swift, but 90s hip-hop dude Like Biggie Smalls, like the theme song from Cops, like like Bad Boys.
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I mean so much, so much coolness, laney Wilson, a lot of awesome stuff, right.
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So a very eclectic blend, the three-page song list that you would expect from somebody that truly loves music and inspires to be a DJ, because it's all over the place.
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So that was very cool.
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The wife and I, along with the baby, because they requested the whole family and this family is great man they have me do surprise birthday parties, christmas parties, all kinds of cool stuff.
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So you know what you're signing up for.
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But rolling in, heading to the backyard and there's kids all around and there's, you know, there's volleyball games going on and all this stuff bounce house or um trampoline stuff, whatever, all this cool stuff going on, and the um birthday girl is sitting around the dance floor they created and she sees us roll in with loads of gear and she just started crying with loads of gear and she just started crying.
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And that got me.
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You don't get a girl, you don't show no, not to a girl.
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Dad, no, we don't, nope, not today, don't need this Right.
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But I knew right then and there, like man, this is, this is special, this is amazing.
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We've made her day, her night, her birthday, and that's literally all you could ever hope for her birthday and that's literally all you could ever hope for.
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So we put her to work.
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We had her help set up equipment, plug things in.
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I showed her how everything worked and then I had her pick the first few songs, put the headphones on, learn how to transition from one song to the next and let her kind of set things, get things going.
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And then I could tell she wanted to get out there and play with her friends.
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So I'm like, listen, here's the going.
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And then I could tell she wanted to get out there and play with her friends.
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So I'm like, listen, here's the deal, this is the deal we're going to make.
00:19:38.440 --> 00:19:41.779
I know you'll want to learn this stuff, but I know you want to have a great time for your birthday.
00:19:41.779 --> 00:19:52.864
So you go out there, you have fun, you dance, do whatever you want to do when you hear, when you want to hear something, when you want to say something, when you want to try something to me, and you can take it from there.
00:19:52.864 --> 00:19:54.765
So she loved it.
00:19:54.825 --> 00:20:04.196
She went out there and she played with her friends and then every so often she'd come back and take the microphone and tell everybody get on the dance floor, it's time for cake.
00:20:04.196 --> 00:20:08.894
By the end of the night she said thank you to all of her guests.
00:20:08.894 --> 00:20:09.737
It was incredible.
00:20:09.737 --> 00:20:11.701
She would come over and tell me what song she wanted.
00:20:11.701 --> 00:20:16.317
I'd let her listen to it on the headphones, then would put it on At the end of the night.
00:20:16.837 --> 00:20:21.734
The last song of the night for her was a Lainey Wilson tune, kind of a slower song.
00:20:21.734 --> 00:20:31.542
I gave her the microphone and told her head on out to the dance floor and she karaoke-ed the song with her friends and family and it was tremendous.
00:20:31.542 --> 00:20:32.144
Literally.
00:20:32.144 --> 00:20:34.054
It was such a feel-good experience.
00:20:34.054 --> 00:20:51.140
I look over and my wife and my little one is dancing along and they're having a good time and all the families are jiving and you know we're just having a tremendous night, like literally just having an amazing time, and DJ LJT just killed it.
00:20:51.140 --> 00:21:04.431
She loved it, she had a great time, she did a great job, she had an amazing set list and it was just such a heartwarming, priceless event, something so special to be a part of.
00:21:04.431 --> 00:21:16.480
I loved every second of it to think that maybe someday, if this girl is a DJ or a musician or something, the fact that I was a part of her start, when I know she's going to be way better than me.
00:21:17.102 --> 00:21:23.940
Let's think about it If you start doing something at nine that I started doing in my thirties, you are going to kill it.
00:21:23.940 --> 00:21:25.365
She could be amazing.
00:21:25.365 --> 00:21:33.419
She could be the next Taylor Swift because, who knows, right, she's got this musical mind and she wants to play music, learn music.
00:21:33.419 --> 00:21:37.424
I mean world's at her fingertips, right?
00:21:37.424 --> 00:21:39.413
So amazing stuff.
00:21:39.413 --> 00:21:44.943
I was honored and flattered and humbled to be a part of such an amazing time.
00:21:45.970 --> 00:21:50.582
Now, by the end of the night, my buddy's like hey, man, how much do I owe you?
00:21:50.582 --> 00:21:54.337
And I said, dude, I'm more excited about being asked to do this.
00:21:54.337 --> 00:21:56.803
If you want to throw me a couple of bucks, that's totally fine.
00:21:56.803 --> 00:22:05.644
And he gives me way more money than expected, way more money than I would have ever asked for.
00:22:05.644 --> 00:22:09.817
And I said, nah, dude, take some of this back, man, like, take some money back.
00:22:09.817 --> 00:22:11.034
That's not what this.
00:22:11.034 --> 00:22:13.636
No, no, no, no, I don't need to do that.
00:22:13.636 --> 00:22:14.471
And he said what?
00:22:14.471 --> 00:22:15.316
No, no, no, I don't, I don't need to do that.
00:22:15.316 --> 00:22:15.837
And he said what did you?
00:22:15.837 --> 00:22:16.380
Were you expecting more?
00:22:16.380 --> 00:22:17.885
And I said, no, man, I was expecting way less.
00:22:17.885 --> 00:22:18.449
Like, take it.
00:22:18.449 --> 00:22:21.095
And he said, no, man, this is more than worth it.
00:22:21.095 --> 00:22:28.634
You've, um, you, I can't thank you enough for making this happen for my, for my little girl on her birthday, and uh, um.
00:22:28.634 --> 00:22:36.182
So I left there, you know, um, on an incredible high note and appreciation.
00:22:36.182 --> 00:22:38.726
That's what rings through is.
00:22:38.726 --> 00:22:54.156
Everybody came over and said I appreciate you doing this, I'm so thankful you're doing this, I appreciate you being here, and the wife and I were driving home and I said a couple of things Number one, what a difference a week makes.
00:22:54.156 --> 00:22:59.934
And number two, what a difference appreciation makes.
00:22:59.934 --> 00:23:13.115
I went from a situation where I am making people money Owners of a bar, staff at a bar, you know like.
00:23:13.115 --> 00:23:20.515
I'm making people money and some of the people that I'm making money for don't appreciate me.
00:23:20.515 --> 00:23:24.471
They're standing around arms crossed, mean mugging me, staring at me, giving me dirty looks.
00:23:26.334 --> 00:23:33.421
I went to that party or that gig I should say that I was hired for.
00:23:33.421 --> 00:23:50.662
You get there around six, you start at seven and um, you play till 12 and you get home at 1230, one o'clock in the morning and you don't feel appreciated by a bulk of the people that should appreciate you.
00:23:50.662 --> 00:23:54.478
You're appreciated by the crowd right To a week later.
00:23:54.478 --> 00:23:58.633
I'm at a little girl's birthday party that you know.
00:23:58.633 --> 00:24:11.796
I get there at 5.30, 6 o'clock, play for a couple of hours and hang out and share some stories and head home and you're home by you know, nine o'clock or whatever it is, nine o'clock ish or whatever it is.
00:24:11.796 --> 00:24:17.763
And uh, I made double the money.
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