Adult Talk 2: Catching Up With Jean

Zeke: You a better friend than me. You was like you want me to take a test, because you want to take a test?

Jean: Yo, I honestly like you’re right. I don’t know, I was probably a better friend to him than I’ve been. So a lot of people out. I don’t know what compelled me to do that. I really just took a test because my friends didn’t want to be lonely. That’s crazy. And this ain’t like a 10 minute test. That’s just sit there for like three hours.

Zeke: I like to welcome everyone to another episode of the Let’s Gather Podcast. I’m your host Zeke. And in this episode, I have a friend Jean to speak about his story. I like to give a content warning for any strong language used in this episode. And I hope you have a nice day and enjoy the show. 

[Music]

Zeke: So that so our actual origin story, as you were named, you name it, and then we ask the questions when they’re okay. Yes. Not a problem, not actually how you represent it. Okay. So in three to twice, like, I love you to join the podcast.

Jean: Thank you. Thank you.

Zeke: So the first question like that is, what’s your origin story. And I’d like to represent it.

Jean: I’m sure. So my origin story is a bit different for most people. I know. I was born in New York, in Queens back in 1997. But shortly after I was born, my parents actually sent me over to Haiti to live with my grandparents. So I think I was a couple months old on my first plane ride. And I spent the first eight years of my life living in Haiti. So I think a lot of who I am today can be attributed to those eight years, even though I don’t remember most of it, you know, given the age, but just certain disciplines that I’ve grown up with, like academic disciplines came straight from my grandmother during that time period. So as you might know, things in Haiti got a little turbulent around 2005 2006. We’ve never really been a stable country. But there have been periods that I’ve been better than others. And the sort of golden period that we’re having, at the time that my sister and I were there was coming store closed, and there was like an increase in violence and kidnappings and things. So my parents decided that that was the right time to bring us back here. So they’d been living in New York the entire time, you know, living their best American life and everything. So they had us come back to New York, to start living with them. And we didn’t really know English, all that well. They tried to put us in a couple English classes to learn the language before we came back. But, you know, there’s only so much that’s teaching somebody how to say good morning, you know, it can show you and prepare you for being a third grader, essentially an immigrant at the end of the day, like an immigrant, third grader in this country, even though I was a citizen and whatnot. So I came back here for third grade, I started that up. I actually lived over in Far Rockaway and I lived in Howard Beach, Queens, but I used to live over four rockway. So I went to ps1 a four out there. You know, I began in the whole ESL classes that everyone had to do that was another thing that I’d say shaped me because it just had it pushed me to have my drive up. As I said, my grandmother had developed this sort of academic driving me from the start. And so coming to this new country, obviously, my performance was going to go down. And like that pushed me to work harder back in elementary school. And I’d say elementary school is definitely the hardest working I’ve ever been in my life. But don’t tell my bosses that. But yeah, so I went through that. And then I ended up going to Scholars Academy over and Rockaway Beach for middle school. That was my first experience with sort of, I guess, what we call is some level of advanced education. In this country, it was a really good school, had to take a couple tests, do interviews and things to get in wild stuff. It was also my first experience, sort of dealing with my blackness. Because you know, back in Haiti, all I had around me was black people. And when I lived in Far Rockaway, all I had around me was black people. So for the first time, I was at a school that was 90%. White, and it was just a complete culture shock. And it was a very great period in my life, and that I was really trying to fit in with people that I didn’t fully understand. So, you know, I was trying to be something that I wasn’t, but I also didn’t know what that something was. So it was a real confusing period of my life, had to deal with some levels of bullying and difficulties just getting acclimated to that. And then after that, my, my mom made the decision for me that I’d be going over to Brooklyn Tech High School over in Brooklyn. So that was my first taste of New York away from Queens was definitely interesting. It was it was a school, it’s over 5000 students plus the faculty on top of that is it was monstrous. My academic performance definitely took a hit at that point in my life. That was, I’d say, my lowest performing art. If we’re going to be ranking, that’d be my lowest performing arts so far. And what that really drove me towards was sort of developing habits away from school and away from studying and things like that. Just, I guess, learning more about the world. Learning more about the people around me. Admittedly, a lot of that Time was really spent in video games. So I don’t know how much I did learn. But, you know, I was making an effort to get out there I got involved in different extracurricular activities. You know, I was learning about, I was a part of the Jewish culture club in law school. At some point, I was part of that speeder, which was like the, the Latino culture club. And I was part of like progressive student awareness, which was this political thing, which started a bit of my interest in certain political ventures. And then after that, I came to bruke, which is where you and I met each other. And, yes, I broke, I studied computer information systems with a minor in theater, sort of throughout now all art that we just covered, I developed sort of an interest for computer science and an interest for acting and an interest for writing. And all of these things were like in my face, and I didn’t know what to go for. But, you know, traditional Caribbean parents, they want you to sort of really secure something that is financially stable for the future. So I decided, you know, I’d be putting the computers first, that’d be my major, but I still would have an element of those artistic endeavors as a part of my minor. So I pursued that. And then after I graduated, Baruch, I came to work in corporate America, technology consulting. So that’s where I’m at right now. And then I guess that’s a high level overview of the arc of my life.

Zeke: Nice, nice. And then how would you represent it? What kind of media would you choose?

Jean: How would I represent it? That is an interesting question. You have asked. I don’t know how much information I should be given away right now. But there are certain things in the works. Let’s just say, if I were to tell stories about my life, I would write a book. Let’s just leave it at. Yeah. So I’d say for sure. Preliminary way I’d want to do that just because writing is such a big part of who I am now, is that I would write about it, write about two people I’ve met the experiences I’ve had. And then, you know, if the there’s just a lot of little arcs within that. So you know, if there would be opportunities to create, like, short movies, or short films out of those chapters are out of those arts, that would be why inventions and acts but definitely if I had to represent it, it would be through writing through poetry, on figuring out a way to make that work.

Zeke: Continue with the writing. So all that is kind of funny how you was born in the States and the parents like, not so this was bad thing. Yes. Compared to other parents. is usually the other way. Well, you know what, let’s get to this. Yeah.

Jean: Exactly. My sister and I used to joke, I was like, yo, they wanted this man, they’re like, we had, you know, let’s just take a little vacation from this for a few years. But I mean, I don’t blame them at all, there is certain that they’re definitely invaluable things that I’ve picked up from that, you know, the ability to speak multiple languages, that’s a privilege that I’m gonna forever be grateful for. Because you know, that opens doors for you. And it also made me better for like, the multiple years of Spanish that we all have been forced through in this New York educational system. So that helped me out there. But it’s definitely been a more positive impact on my life. But absolutely, they were definitely just not in the mood for it. And they’re like, you know what, y’all take care of this a little bit.

Zeke: Like the meme were you saying to parents take care of your parents, grandkids?

Jean: Yep,

Zeke: You know what? My mother says a good job of raising me. (inaudible).

Jean: She can. She can do it twice. What’s the problem? Yeah, I was actually just having this conversation with my dad. So my dad has three kids being my sister and my brother. And we’re just thought it was his birthday this past week. So we’re just talking to him. And we’re joking about when we have kids, you know, if we’re going to travel, that’s something we’ll leave a kid with him. Over the weekend. He’s like, why would you do that? Why would I take care of your kid? Why would you? I was like, you’re the grandparent. That’s your job. You take care the kid when I can’t. That’s, that’s all there is to it. So yeah, funny. You brought that up.

Zeke: Yeah, my mom was like, You know what? I’m gonna think, yeah, you could drop them off. But come back the same day. I’m just like, let’s see. Well, my grandma didn’t do that. I will stay at her house sometimes like, you breaking break up the cycle. Right,

Jean: Exactly. We have tradition for a reason. I’m not about every type of tradition, but that’s one that benefits me. So I very much for that tradition this. So the way we made the way we made him just give up on it. We’re like, so you’re going to tell me that you gave us to your mother for eight years, and you can’t take a child for two days. And he was just like, okay. Nothing stated that. So don’t break the tradition.

Zeke: Feel like that, but like learning the different identities and everything. So you went to like tech, how is that, like? I remember I applied um took the test. I was like, you know, what? Looked around like this ain’t for me.

Jean: Um, honestly, I didn’t think it was for me either. When I went there, basically, I didn’t know about tech until a few weeks before or a couple weeks before the deadline to apply for the test. I just remember, I think what it was in seventh, I don’t remember if it was seventh or eighth grade, I think one of those two where are we apply for it. And my friend was just telling me, Hey, I’m gonna take this test. And I’m really stressed out about it. His name was Jackie. So Jackie was letting me know, like, his parents have basically been on him and helping him prep for this test for the past, like five years of his life, which to me was insane. Because I had just heard about the test when he started talking about it. And he was saying, you know, he has to make it to Stuyvesant, he has to make it to Stuyvesant thats. Like if he doesn’t, then everything’s over. So obviously was something very important to him. And he wanted a friend to come along with him to take that test. And I was just like, it’s a weekend. I’ll have nothing going on. So yeah, let me go and take this test with you. But you know, I’m over here. Like his parents, have been prepping him for multiple years, I just found out about this thing. So I’m really just going in there to waste my time, but it’s whatever. I went in. And at the time, I was at scholars and I was planning on staying in scholars and going to their high school because they had a very good high school as well. And, you know, I had the grades for it. So I was just planning to do that. But then, when we got the results back, I saw that I got into tech. And I was in my mind. So like Yeah, whatever. I’m still going to scholars and my mom was like no, no, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity. You are going to go and I’m over here stressing because I’m coming from having an easy 20 minute bus rides to middle school so now I’m a have to be on the train for an hour for high school. Like that was a whole life shit, you know, and it’s not like the bus rides I used to take where the Q 52 or whatever it was the cheese bus. So it came to my house picks me up, dropped me off where I needed to go. Now I had to go to a train station to get to another one and find my way to the school. So admittedly, I was one of those kids who had his dad walking with him to school his first week I I was one of those. So if I was in high school drama film, I would be getting absolutely clowned on, but it’s okay because tech had way too many people for anyone to care, or remember that you were the one who had your dad with you. So that was um, that was how that experience started off. And you know, that’s why I went into it. But it was rough man. It was rough. Like I had good grades before. But now I was surrounded by people who all had good grades before. You know, they were all at the top of the class in their elementary schools in the middle schools like they did this. And I was not ready. You know, I had begun a really bad habit of slacking off on my homework in middle school in back in elementary school. My parents were really on top of it. But middle school came in they became a little more lenient on it. Parent teacher conferences were a nightmare. But, you know, I had, I had developed this bad habit with just not doing my homework. And when you’re doing that at Tech, that should shit not fly like it was not okay. So my grades started plummeting. I used to be really good at algebra geometry was kicking my butt like it was, it was rough. And it honestly wasn’t until senior year that I really just like found that switch and flipped it around. And I think part of it was because it was a matter of effort. You know, like it is a very difficult school. But I think with all types of school, like if you put an effort into it, you’re gonna get something out of it. And for me, I realized like, I’ve been really underperforming in school, I’ve been really disappointed my parents and next year, they’re like, I’m going to go to college, and they’re going to be paying for this. So do I really want to make them pay for me continuing to get the grades I was getting. So in that last year, you know, everybody waits for senior year of high school because that’s like I’m a go and chill out. I’m going to do whatever I want. But for me, I said okay, this is grind time. I still showed up like 15 minutes late to my 8am class, but it was the double period. So that didn’t matter. But um you know, I definitely applied the pressure there. And yeah, so it wasn’t really until my senior year that it turned around, but just being around so many people, so many smart people, diverse people like it was crazy experience really.

Zeke: Yeah, my experience is I heard about it middle school, I wasn’t paying attention because you know, as waiting to like, new to the (inaudible) like this ain’t for me, I remember sitting in the auditorium and they said look to your left and look to your right half of you won’t make it. And I was one of the ones who didn’t make it., It be funny, if we both in the auditorium that day, we didn’t know each other. With each other, if you make it, I won’t make this okay.

Jean: Nah I don’t like. I’ll think it happened like that. But Funny enough, though, I did have a friend who did want to go to tech. And he got the score to get into tech. But he puts some irrelevant school first on his list. And so you know how the shsat works, it puts you into whatever is prioritized. So he got into that irrelevant school, and there was nothing he could do about it. So he just had to stay at the school where he was at, but yeah, 

Zeke: You a better friend than me. You was like you want me to take a test, because you want to take a test?

Jean: Yo, I honestly like you’re right. I don’t know, I was probably a better friend to him than I’ve been. So a lot of people out. I don’t know what compelled me to do that. I really just took a test because my friends didn’t want to be lonely. That’s crazy. And this ain’t like a 10 minute test. That’s just sit there for like three hours.

Zeke: Like, it’s hard to have a group of 10 of us meet up together. But you can call them now. You they know what, let’s take a test.

Jean: Let’s just go take a test together. Because why not? I mean, 

Zeke: Did he end up getting into Stuyvesant?

Jean: Yes, he did. He did get into Stuyvesant. Yeah. He got in by I remember exactly. The cutoff score was 579. And he got a five. No, it was 569. And he got to 572. And then I think for me the cutoff score for Brooklyn Tech was 511. And I got a 515. I don’t know why I remember this? I just do okay. But yeah, he did get in. So everyone was happy. Well, I mean, obviously, there are people in the class who didn’t get in so they weren’t happy. But like, it was. It was pretty bad on his part, because he started going around to everyone in the class when he got in, like even the people who didn’t get the results they wanted to he was like, I got into Stuyvesant. I got into Stuyvesant. I was like, damn, bro, you really don’t make a lot of people feel pressed right now. I was happy for him anyway.

Zeke:  

I think that’s a good, end to the story. 

Jean: Yeah, I because, you know, for every person like him, there are equally people who spent that amount of time studying, you know, the five years and didn’t get in. So, you know? Yeah, I’m happy his story went well, I I just really didn’t expect that I would have ended up in that whole community within

Zeke: I remember getting a 312 on the test.

Jean: Okay, yeah. I don’t Remember, any of that thing worked. I just remember what the cutoff scores were. I didn’t hear about the conversations are going around last year, they kind of died down during COVID. But conversations about like revamping how the admissions works for the specialized high schools. I know I’m in an alumni group on Facebook, which I mean, I never go on Facebook anymore. But whenever things were popping, like people would be texting you about it. So I’d go check it out every now and then. So I was in an alumni group. And it was like the biggest heated debate I’ve ever seen in my life between alumni of a school just going back and forth talking about, you know, the sort of big inequalities that exists in the educational system and how certain things like these tests, disadvantage them and stuff like that. So that was interesting to follow, but not really sure where they’re at with that right now.

Zeke: I graduated so.

Jean: Yeah. We done washed our hands with all of that stuff, honestly. No, but some of the people arguing about this, like 50 years old going on about back in my day, you know, now blah, blah, blah. Everyone could get in you just had to study enough you just sad to be smart enough. So a whole lot of tone deaf people will usually be used to be in an echo chambers, just trying to talk over each other. But I think the reason why was a really interesting debate for me was because, you know, a lot of this was started because of our mayor, Bill Deblasio. And I went to school with his son. I actually had AP World. Yeah, had AP World History with Mayor de Blasio, son. So I’m thinking like he’s trying to change out this whole system that really benefited his son. So that was interesting to hear about. A fun fact, his son wore shorts and slides to graduation. All the parents were talking about it. My dad still brings it up to this day. He’s like, I can’t believe you’re running for mayor, and you let your son walk in with slides and shorts to his graduation. I was like, bro, it’s not our problem. Not our problem? Let’s not worry about other people’s kids. Okay, okay.

Zeke: Then we end up at the same college.

Jean: Yeah. Baruch a great school. Yeah. I don’t get paid to say that. But you know, maybe I should if Baruch Baruch if you’re watching this, you know, hit my line. Yeah.

Zeke:  

Yeah,

Jean: I mean, what do you feel about your experience at Baruch like, if you had to sum it up in like a sentence?

Zeke: I definitely have fun. (inaudible) Yeah, definitely, like started to open up. I learned more. And learned how to travel. I used to take the train bus. Just the bus to school. But then I had to start taking the train, I was like, Okay, now I learned the system I pretty much leranred the city.

Jean: Yeah, yeah. That helped for sure. You’re you live in Brooklyn, right? 

Zeke: Yeah. 

Jean: Okay, yeah, that was definitely my sort of introduction to the whole subway system. Because even for that one train ride I had to do I had to make a transfer. I take the A all the way from Mott avenue to Fulton Street or not, from Mott avenue to Hoyt and Schermerhorn and then I transferred to the G and take that to Fulton Street.

Zeke: Yeah. And then I met you because you’re playing basketball.

Jean: Back in the day before you weren’t injured.

Zeke: So almost every semester injury like I,

Jean: It really was like every summer I be like you Zeke, you want to play basketball again. You like nah, you know, I just injured my knee yesterday going up for a rebound. So you know, I’ll won’t doing that for a little bit. Every time I was like, bro, at some point, you just got to decide I’m not gonna go for rebounds anymore. You just gotta decide. That’s it. That’s the game.

Zeke: Yeah, first one I got knot in my head. I got elbowed in my head. Then I sprained my right I hurt my right foot. And then after that, I got a laceration under this eye.Then my nose got scratched. And then I sprained my left wrist. And then after that I sprained my left ankle. Then sprained my right ankel.

Jean: You remember the whole injury history. Oh my god.

Zeke: I mean, I was in out the nurse all the time.

Jean: Yeah, for me. The only thing I remember was something I did to somebody else. I don’t think I ever really got like I do occasionally get like a you know, a little pain in my wrist or a little pain in my ankle, but it was never anything that like put me out of commission. But this one time you remember Adams? Yeah. Yeah, I was playing defense on Adams. And then he he was holding the ball and he was just messing around with it. And then I went to swipe the ball out his hands. And then I think he moved the ball away and lean forward. And my hand came right across his face knocked his glasses down and the lenses popped out. And let’s just say I had to pay a good little amount of money after that was

Zeke: Just like hey, parent. I injured somebody.

Jean: You know, it came out of my pocket because, um, right after it happened, he was like, we’re going to the lens crafters and we’re getting this fixed. I said shit. Yeah. Yeah, I know what it’s like part of me wanted to say Bro, you know not to wear your Ray Bans when you’re playing basketball. But the other part of me was like, maybe he can’t see without his glasses. So you know, cuz there were actual prescription glasses. So I was just like, You know what? I was careless, I’ll just go with you and I’ll we’ll take care of it.

Zeke: Injuries.

Jean: Speaking of injuries my sister actually sprained her ankle a couple weeks ago. Well, she thought it was a sprain, because that’s what the ER had said, but she actually had a follow up this past weekend. And turns out it’s, I think they call it a nondescript fracture or something like that. But it’s essentially a fracture where the bone doesn’t come apart. So that’s why they had missed it the first time. So she’s gonna be out of commission for a while. So I’ve been picking up on some house duties. You know, it’s been quite an interesting time, because neither of us had ever gotten injured that badly before. And so the first week, she came in with her crutches, we were sitting here trying to formulate how we were going to get her up the staircase and down the staircase. So the whole ordeal, and she has to she’s working from home right now. So she has to come down the staircase that we have in the house to come sit at the computer and log on. And so figuring that out, was the whole other thing. Had some creative solutions for it. But yeah, it’s been very fun dealing with that.

Zeke: Start doing some geometry be like. Okay, cool. So we take the right angles to the top of the stairs. And then if you take a hypotenuse, because if you use the physics and the gravity

Jean: We bring in, what’s next gonna bring in the chemistry? No, we got we got it. So we have to think about sort of how the bottom of the cast is going to interact with the material of the carpet and you know, the bonds that will be formed as they pick up traction going out. Yeah. And once you write there,

Zeke: You want to get through the use of computer skills, make computer models, I take this case, scenarios that could happen.

Jean: You could one break your ankle again. Two bust ya ass. Yeah, it’s definitely dangerous because we got some steep staircases in here. So you know, I almost fell off. And I’m someone who I come down the staircase really recklessly. Like I just go down the staircase sliding basically. And so nowadays, whenever my sister years me that like she gets if she hears me doing that, she gives me the death glare, because she’s like, better not break your ankle, we can only have one cripple in this house.

Zeke: We can’t take care of each other. One of us got to be up.

Jean: Just like who’s gonna go get the food from outside? I said we just leave the door unlocked, you know, they can figure out the rest.

Zeke: Yeah, all those injuries. I know the first time I got injured. I can’t even go to the nurse because I was 17. So I couldn’t sign for myself. 

Jean: Oh, wait, so you can assign couldn’t sign for yourself to but back in middle school and stuff. Like people could still go to the nurse or couldn’t they? 

Zeke: Yeah, but then it’s like a different thing. Because probably, oh, no, I guess your parents times like, I guess like the school? What you call it like authority over you I guess? Like (inaudible). But when you’re in college, I guess since you’re an adult, you have to sign it.

Jean: Oh. So you mean when you were in college, and you were still 17?

Zeke: Yeah.

Jean: Oh, okay. I thought you meant like this was in high school when you were 17. Okay. I didn’t know that. But yeah, I guess that makes sense. Yeah. Because like, generally they’re dealing with only people who are legally adults. Yeah. When it comes to college, so that makes sense.

Zeke: Yeah. That’s all there is. One time I sprained my ankle to play for the next day. I was good enough.

Jean: I was like when LeBron sprained his ankle on the court a few years back, and he just saw him like rolling his foot in his in his shoe, and then he just stopped a couple of times and just ran back onto the court. Yeah, everyone was like, okay, yeah, I guess that’s all we’re doing. Just tighten up the shoe laces low bit and then we’re good to go.

Zeke: Back on the court. Yeah, all the school stuff. I don’t I miss it. I miss my friends. Miss seeing them every day for no reason. Right not going back to school. 

Jean: Yeah. I mean, with COVID now, like, I’ve missed everything. Even, you know, even if I wasn’t in school, like even when, yeah, even when I was in school, but I was working at the office in New York, I had my friends who worked within some blocks of me. And so we link up to like, get tacos, somewhere in the middle of Times Square, and we link up to get drinks after work. You know, so it to me, it was kind of like when we’d go back to the paws office at the end of the day, or to the team group office and just chill out for a little bit. But now, it’s just like, you’re done. And your home is, you know, you know, he, It’s not every day that she gets up a podcast with Zeke. So it’s not like he got some coming up, like, you just log off and you’re like, Damn, what now? What do I do now. So it’s taken some acclimate and getting used to definitely had to have become a far more interesting person in that process, figuring out different hobbies for myself that I didn’t partake in before. So that’s been, I mean, it’s been a good experience, honestly, sort of forcing me to be in situations where I’m exposing myself to new things, not necessarily being able to go out, but you know, still doing new things. So that once I’m out of quarantine, right, there’s just a lot more, I’ll be, I guess, knowledgeable about in a sense, and more people I’ll be able to connect with. And I was just saying this to someone the other day, but I think that it’ll be a lot easier to make friends and get into relationships after quarante not because everyone’s gonna be desperate for a friend or desperate for whatever. But more so because, you know, typically before in life, like when you’re in school, or you’re at work, that’s sort of what’s connecting you and another person like you either have the same class together. And that’s the, that’s the link that’s bringing you guys together, when you’re at work, you know, you’re working on the same project, or at the very least, you work at the same company. So you can make friends off of that. But when you go out into society, like you go to a bar, I mean, you can talk about the fact that you’re both at the bar right now. But that’s only gonna take you so far. There’s a game on, you can talk about that. But generally, there’s not a lot that brings people together. But now we’ve all lived through this experience. Every single person, you know, who believes in COVID, at the very least, has lived through this experience of being quarantined and being in this pandemic. And even if they didn’t believe in COVID, they still live in a world where this is happening all around them, right. So that’s something that’s going to link people together. And that’s an immediate conversation starter. Of course, I think, you know, once we’re out the question, so how was your quarantines don’t get real boring real fast. But there’s so many questions you can ask revolving somebody is quarantine, right? That, you know, just having that one linking thing that you can always fall back. So as like, this is what this person and I have in common. I think that’s going to be helpful for people trying to make friends.

Zeke: A conversation starter, like 

Jean: Yeah, how did you survive? Same thing, whenever there’s a zombie apocalypse, if that ever ends, you know, and you’re meeting people, that’s going to be what links you all together? How would you survive? And then friendship will blossom from there, you know,

Zeke: Like the Walking Dead. Being like, sickly as an elementary I’m used to stay inside, so I have a lot of inside hobbies anyway. I have my switch, which is right next to me. So you’re going to be able to compete (inaudible) that. 

Jean: I, Yeah, I mean, there are definitely ways to keep busy. Absolutely ways to keep busy. Like I’ve always been a big gamer ever since. Well, my first console was a PS1 back when I was six, but I broke it like one day and so we don’t talk about that one. But like the first console I really had was my Xbox 360. Back in sixth grade. So ever since I got that one. Like I’ve just always been into gaming, and I had, I’ve had days where I played a whole lot more games than I should have. But when quarantine started like, that gave me a reason to sort of dive back into it because as we went through college towards the end of it or not, towards the end of it more towards the middle. I kind of started playing games a whole lot less than I used to. I still played a lot during finals week in midterms league because for me, that was my way of like decompressing so it’d be either games or Netflix. But generally I wasn’t playing as much as I used to, but then with COVID coming in. I just had like that was right there, it was easily accessible. And I could just hop back into it. And it’s not like I had anything better to do. So I just easily got back into the flow. And then when the new console is dropped, I picked up an Xbox series x. And so, you know, I’ve been on that. In the past couple weeks, I’ve been winding down on my game. And again, because I’m just working on a bunch of things right now, and my mind is like, firing on all cylinders. And so you caught me at a good time for the podcast, because like, there are moments where all I really want to do is play games. And then there are moments where I want to be active, and I want to be talking to people. So you caught me out of one of those times. So yeah, right now I’m just working on a bunch of different things from moving from side to side. So I haven’t had as much time to play, but I still save like, like half an hour, an hour a day just to wind down at the end. Yeah. And I do have a switch as well. But I don’t play the switch as much.

Zeke: Yeah, I didn’t have money for a Playstation 5. Like I had money, but I that was all the money I had to my name at the time.

Jean: Not worth it.

Zeke: I don’t really need this.

Jean: Yeah, nah, over did it. Like for me, I kind of want to also get a PS5, like I have this series x and so and I have a ps4. So really, the PS5 is kinda redundant right now, because there’s not much on it that I want to play that I wouldn’t be able to play on a console I already have. But it’s also the PS5, so I want to do it, but the whole like, it’s just everywhere that it drops, it sells out almost instantly. And same thing happened with the Xbox on a free shot. But I was there like the first day they set up the pre orders. I had multiple tabs open I was just going through all the tabs like refreshing everything and I ended up getting into two of them bought two cancelled another already. So that’s somebody else’s goodbye. But for the PS5, like I have not been as lucky with that. And I’m not gonna sit around waiting for the job. See this like assignment. So I’m just like, if it happens, and like it’s available, and I can get it in my card, and I can pick it up, then I’ll do it. But it’s not something I’m actively like seeking out right now.

Zeke: Yeah. Yeah, I have money, I still have the money to that PS5 plus comes out. But now.

Jean: Yeah, I wonder how they’re gonna do that. Because I think this is the first time at least since I’ve been paying attention. Maybe that’s why I’m noticing it. But, um, for my friends who paid attention to this before I feel like this is the longest that the new consoles have gone without being like, at least semi consistently in stock. Like every single store that drops them, they sell out immediately. And part of it is because the scalpers have their bots constantly running like 24 seven ready to pick it up whenever a drop is announced. But yeah, it’s crazy. So I I wonder with all this demand that they have for the original version, how quickly they’re going to move on like releasing those slim versions that they usually do. Plus they came out with both the hard disk and the digital version on day one, the digital version being the more affordable one. So I don’t know if they’re going to go with the with the usual setup that they usually do but I know a lot of people are not happy with the white PS5 and they want to black PS5. So I feel like that’s something we have in the works. But yeah, we’ll see.

Zeke: Yeah, I see my friends who we reselling them like I actually got to play at my friend’s house um last one um January Yeah. Was chilling he had a PS5 oh word you got money money. Got the teaching money.

Jean: Bro I I saw someone we both know I’m not gonna say names. But I saw someone we both know reselling PS5s for $1,000. And I was so close on unfriending. I was so close because I was like you are the very person that’s making this a problem for people alright? Like their kids out there who wanted a PS5 for Christmas, but didn’t get it because somebody wanted to buy it and go sell it for twice the price. You know, so. I mean, nah go ahead. 

Zeke: My friend he got his for retail because his friend got it. Got two of them and he just sold it for retail.

Jean: Yeah Where are those friends that you know I go to take tests with people but nobody wants to give me a retail PS5 I see all these people who are funny these days okay.

Zeke: Well cool they are this this is different got to use the headset ah play some Call of Duty.

Jean: Yo I miss the days of playing like Call of Duty like a tryhard with my headset on I just be you know camped up in a corner waiting to hear somebody these footsteps and then the moment you hear those footsteps, you’re popping out the corner. Did you play Modern Warfare three? 

Zeke: Yeah. 

Jean: Yeah, so I got my first MOAB camping in a corner with a type 95 just listening for people’s footsteps. It was john I remember the name of the map. I think it was mission. But it was it was like one of those maps where that was kind of deserty, but add a lot of old buildings. And I was just camping on this ramp and people kept on coming after me and you know how I had the turtle beaches on and I was just like, I hear him coming from the left. I’m going for it. just kept doing that over and over. But how was it to play with the the dual sense controller I know that was like the biggest innovation they had in terms of the accessories the new controller

Zeke: I just played cod it felt normal playing cod.

Jean: I think it’s a technology that they’re probably like the the game developers might make more use of going forward. But it also might be something that maybe only the PlayStation exclusives makes you make use of because it actually is going to be more work for them to specifically designed like sound and everything for the PlayStations separately from how they did it for the Xbox and everything else. So yeah.

Zeke: We have friends.

Jean: Yeah, um, I think one of my friends has it. I might honestly just pop out to his house uninvited.

Zeke: Just like hey, hey, big head.

Jean: You know, I’ll bring him a little a little plate of cookies or something. I’m like hey, brought you gifts mind if I come in for a couple of minutes. Just want to say hi to the family. You know, haven’t seen him in a while.

Zeke: You know, a quarantine everything. Like work and college.

Jean: Yeah. Have you been meeting up with anybody during this time?

Zeke: Yes. Same group of 10 of us the first like three of us playing Fortnight together on a Switch Switch and computer.

Jean: Oh yeah, cuz they have cross play for Fortnight.

Zeke: And then after I finished work for the summer then we started hanging out like in person at a friends house like you know what this is cool yeah.

Jean: I get that. Yo my friends and I started playing Among Us on when it first came out but for me like I it it was fun for sure because I’ve always enjoyed like mafia games and resistance and things like that. So when it first came out it was really fun but like everybody got addicted to it and they wanted to play every night. Oh, I’m not going to play this game every night. So at some point I for me I just like if somebody is asking me to do something over and over, I get burnt out from it without even doing it so at some point I just completely stopped playing with them and they started getting mad at me they like they we have a discord group and we usually getting calls like throughout the day just because not because we’re doing anything specific. We’ll just be in there chillin with each other virtually. Um, so I get in the call and then somebody will make a joke and I’ll be like, Oh, I don’t get it in this day. Well, maybe you get it if you played among us with us, bro it’s not that deep. It’s really not that deep

Zeke: I keep getting imposter I checked the um stats I got imposter 22 times. Crew 53 times. Sometimes I get imposter three or four times in a night.

Jean: That’s like definitely not even statistics but yeah, they ever give me unposted because I was okay with that though. Because anytime I was imposter I was so stressed out. I was just like, Bro, I don’t want anyone catching me. And one of my friends is a master interrogator when it comes to among us, so like, he would just sit here and ask all the all the right questions and then you know, if he studied just a little bit, he’d be like, yep, that’s the imposter right there. Just Send it in the chat call Illa calling me out to everyone and then that’s the end of that. So I was a lot happier you know having somebody pull up from an event and smack me upside the head instead of me being the imposter because I would not survive as in

Zeke: My first for like, my first nine games I got past the four times. So when the sask what are the tasks you did? Like? I don’t know. I don’t know the tasks. I’m just starting.

Jean: Yeah, I, that we Yeah, that happened to be sitting out. But I wasn’t, I wasn’t an imposter. I wasn’t even an imposter for my first couple of games. Nobody explained to me that you had your tasks in the top left corner, and you had to be doing them. So somebody was asking me, what tasks did you have? And I was like, Oh, no, I don’t know what to ask. I had they said, huh, that’s real suspect that you already know what’s as he said, had I was like, Bro, I just started playing this game 10 minutes ago. I don’t know what you’re talking about. If you want to show me I’m cool with that. But I’m not the imposter. I just don’t know what you’re talking about. Okay.

Zeke: All right. I kill I cool. I’ll play the game. Kill. Okay. That’s it. That’s how you know. That’s it.

Jean: And then people started trying to take advantage of that too. Like people will just started playing the game. They come into the chat, dude. Like, I just started playing What does this kill button on my screen?

Zeke: That game, had us for, that game had those from month two month came out the same time as Fall Guys.

Jean: That was oh yeah, it did come out. That’s one way my presence was even more short lived. I think I played Fall Guys Twice. with my friends. And that’s another one that they got mad at me for. But I I was not good at Fall Guys. I was so bad at Fall Guys. Like, they’re I’m not gonna say here. The thing about me is, I mean, I can enjoy a game if I’m not good at it. But I usually don’t. So, you know, for me, if I’m pulling up and I’m just dying and losing over and over. I’m gonna wear off that game so quick. And I think it’s one of those games where the more you play it, you sort of pick up on the tricks and the mechanics of all the different activities. But I was not willing to invest that time. That game was not serious enough for me. So I just say, You know what? I have a fun. I’m gonna go play 2k because I’m kind of good a th that still. You can handle your business. But

Zeke: Yeah, I got one victory. So 

Jean: Oh, one. I mean, I have zero size better than me.

Zeke: But I can’t play it because my brother bought it when he had Playstation plus on his account. So then, for me to get it. I’ll have to buy on my account and say that makes no sense.

Jean: Yeah. Yeah, if you already add it. Nah, I wouldn’t do it either. Because I don’t even play did yeah. Oh, no. But like, every time an update comes out, my friends are like, yo, we have been on for gas for the new update. Right? And everyone’s like, Yeah, well, then you have to Yeah, and then a week later, they’re just like, Yo, I thought we supposed to hop off Fall Guys. I say you know I thought so too bro that’s kind of weird that that didn’t happen. Yeah, I was under that impression too.

Zeke: I tried to get a friend of mine to buy me a PS5 but she won’t buy me one. I’m just like we’re not a friends we’re not friends I see.

Jean: But it’s not the same. Like we’ll be going to people’s cribs like we used to when we’re younger. You know when you’re younger like all the time you’d be over at somebody’s house and you’d be playing I’ll use any even do that yet. For me I use Suba nowadays, I never go to people’s houses anymore and definitely don’t play their consoles but even then, like going to their houses and playing their consoles. I’m like damn I want this at my house. Now I don’t want to just do this when I’m over at your house I want it allows. So that’s how I got my first Xbox because I spend my summers down in Florida with my aunt and my cousin and my cousin had a 360 and like I fell in love with Halo and Su k during I think the summer of oh eight or summer well nine. Summer of oh nine for sure. I fell in love with Halo and suquet and when I went back home, I was like there’s no way in hell I am waiting a whole year before I could play that Xbox again. So from that moment on so Christmas, I was just begging my parents for it. I put together a nice little PowerPoint presentation as to how I was doing in school and why I deserved Xbox and where they could buy it from like I was dedicated.

Zeke: Yeah, my mom always bought my my mom or my grandma brought the console but my mom said she’s not buying a PS5. I’m just like you have failed me at this point. Bet I has PlayStation 1, 2, 3 PSP. GameCube DS Light, DSI 3DS, two the Wii.

Jean: You had the DSi and skiped the DSi I am. Yeah, I had the PS1 that I had the 360 than the ps4 and now the series x and then I had a Gameboy Advance SP, I had the DS light. I had the 3ds after that, and then I forgot to switch. But there are some games that I miss on Gameboy Advance for like, there was this one Dynasty Warriors game that I used to be obsessed with. And Pokemon Emerald. Yeah, and I, I would not be able to tell you where any of that is right now. I mean, I’ve moved houses. So I know. It’s definitely not here. Nestos I actually, I remember this one since game wants that I was in love to us on the Gameboy Advance. And we give our clothes to we will give our clothes to a laundromat and they take care of it. And this one time, we got the laundry back. And they just had something in a little bag on the side. And it was like a crumpled up cartridge of that sins game. Because I had left it in the pockets of my pants. And nobody like I hadn’t checked to see that. So just went into the washer and got completely destroyed. So thou was devastating day. Still not over it, honestly.

Zeke: Man, I take that pocket. But this is something different.

Jean: Yeah, yeah. Now that’s why every time now before the laundry gets done, you know, I’m checking every pocket of every pair of pants, every sweater, anything that goes in I’m checking every pocket, because I can’t go through that trauma again. Even though now the most valuable things I have in my pocket is like a chapstick or something. So I’d be fine. But yeah, 

Zeke: I got PlayStation 2 games. There’s a GameCube called um Panasonic GameCube whereas the GameCube was a DVD player. It’s a Japanese exclusive and when I get a lot of money I’m a buy it and something called PS X was PlayStation 1 and PlayStation 2 together another Japanese exclusive.

Jean: And is it more like is it like a modernized type thing? 

Zeke: Nah this is years ago in the early 2000’s. 

Jean: Okay, I mean, if it still works, then it still works. That’s pretty cool.

Zeke: It cost like a 1000, I’m just like err.

Jean: (inaudible) I mean before you buy it, I’d make sure that they have like an English language option that lets you put it in English otherwise you’re gonna have to learn how to read Japanese bro

Zeke: Be like hey T you know Japanese right?

Jean: She come through without for that honestly like watch anime teaches you a bunch of words in Japanese but it most definitely didn’t has not helped me learn to read any Japanese I’ll tell you that.

Zeke:  

I’m watching Japanese sub in Japanese subtitles just like. What are you learning then? I’m have to learn Japanese somehow.

Jean: You like you like associated the hand motion? Like, I think when somebody turns their body this way, they’re angry. So they’re probably saying I hate you. Right? So that means I hate you. Okay, they said that. And then those letters showed up in this order. So this must be hate. That’s I that’s u all right I got it. We’re figuring this out. And then turns out the whole time she was just saying I’m hungry.

Zeke: Yeah.

Jean: I mean, you could make it work. If you were basically willing to watch everything twice. So every scene that happened, you did the Japanese audio and Japanese subtitles, and then you replayed it with Japanese audio and English subtitles. The issue though, I think is that the subtitles are written differently in different languages. Yeah. And so they wouldn’t look up one. So one, but you get a good enough idea,

Zeke: I think usually write them for the audience.

Jean: Yeah. And I mean, at some point patterns would develop where you’d see a certain set of letters where the same word is being mentioned in the sentence and so you’d be like okay, so that one specifically has to be that word and then.

Zeke: Yeah, I think for the Panasonic GameCube, I think was system. But I had a Canadian version Canadian English. I’m like, that’s close enough. 

Jean: Yeah, I will follow what’s even Canadian English I don’t know what that is. But yeah, close enough. I guess. I’ve been to Canada way too many times in my life and I don’t think I’ve ever Well, I mean, they do have the whole a thing going on at the end of their sentences. Like the GameCube might just be pulling up on you like, you want to play Mario a. And then other than that, I think it’ll be fine now.

Zeke: Like, yes. Well, I need money for that anyway. I need two jobs to save one jobe to save up for that. The other job.

Jean: That’s really how it goes for us. Like I need two jobs. One free spending one for saving.

Zeke: Ah life is fun. 

Jean: Yep. I think that’s the outcome we can all take from everything we’ve experienced life is fun.

Zeke: You was the salutatorian. I was like oh my god, my man Jean: is that smart.

Jean: I don’t think I am. But, I mean, it was it was an incredible honor. Really to be chosen for that it was an incredible honor. Like when the process first started, I never thought in a million years that I would have actually ended up doing it. Like I was just like, I’m gonna go in this I’m gonna put my best foot forward. We’ll see whatever happens and I mean, I guess if there’s anything to be gained from that is really just the only thing you really can do in any situation is put your best foot forward and sometimes it will actually work out so you know, even if you don’t think you have a shot at something, just like you you’re not lose in anything by giving the best version of yourself and so I’m really happy it worked out. I know. My parents were finally happy that they’re lecturing after endless parent teacher conferences finally paid off. I was just really happy I make them waste money on a college education. So yeah, but trust me it was so surprising to me as it was see you so I did not see it come in.

Zeke: I was like oh word must be nice.

Jean: Must be.

Zeke: Your parents pay for college. I had a financial aid. I was like poverty.

Jean: Financial Aid did not want me.

Zeke: I remember looking at um in  high school look at the paper for the household income. And I wasn’t on the paper that’s how low the income was like, I going to college for free.

Jean: Yeah, exactly. Like, shit. Y’all better pay for my textbooks.

Zeke: Do the calculations in like, a single person household you not even on that level I’m just like. Thank you dad for leaving.

Jean: I was not expecting. Oh my god. Word shout out to him. Made shit happen.

Zeke: I got no debt. This content is trillions dollars. Somebody else’s problem.

Jean: So that truly is somebody else’s problem. So yeah, I’m very grateful to my parents for that as well like, because having to hear about my friends thinking about like, our, you know, my next student debt payment is coming up and blah, blah. I know I don’t want that stress for myself. And, you know, God forbid I were to lose my job. then something happens like and I had student loans to pay, I’d be in deep water. But if something happens now, at least I know I’m not paying for all of that. So it’s, I think it’s definitely there’s there’s a level of freedom that comes inside. They’re graduating without student debt or like once you finally put in that final payment, so pay off your student debt. I know my friend use some of his stock market winnings to pay off student loan debt. And he was like I don’t even care if it gets forgiven in the future. I just wanted that off my conscience now and then he just took care of me and I was like you do you bro? So I respected for sure.

Zeke: With that make this merch make this money.

Jean: Yeah, what you got to do, bro, like just figuring out the different things you can sort of associate with your name with your brand and then branch not in those trying to make businesses out of them. Yeah, I respect the hustle

Zeke: (inaudible). This one is for like school also had that you had that apathy. You get what you did at school and you don’t want to do no more. You got it, please my effort. But my mom, my mom told me to 50 so like I still had to put in work if I didn’t want to. 

Jean: Yeah, you’re gonna catch that woopn. I think I did develop a bit of that apathy back in middle school, which would maybe explain sort of how my high school experience went. But at some point I kind of went away so well, I guess at the point where I started not performing well. That went away. And for college. I never really got that. Like I just I think my first semester was my worst semester and then I just had the foot on the gas from there on.

Zeke: I think it was my second to last with a 3.2. 

Jean: My second worst semester my second to last was my second worst semester in my last one was tied for my best semester.

Zeke: Last one I had 3.7 that was a lot. So you’re almost failed class? Because I did forget some of the assignments. Oh, no.

Jean: Yeah. I I wasn’t doing too hot in physics. They’re not second to last semester, which is why I had that GPA there but it was yeah, physics was a struggle. Not because I’m bad at physics. Like I took three years of physics back at Brooklyn, I had  regions physics then I had AP Physics C then I had AP Physics D. But for this class he normally like in my life previously I would do physics with raw numbers, but he wanted you to do physics with just the variables and I just was not in the mood to do physics was nothing but variables. He was like no numbers just do the variables and so we were doing some algebraic physics and I was like bro I’ve been taking algebra since seventh or eighth grade you know our member this stuff so I struggled a little bit at the start but thankfully it was one of those classes where the final was worth half the grade and that I ended up with like 100 on the final so dragged all my crap test scores back up. Said bless you bless you

Zeke: (inaudible) fall asleep in class that’s the same as that car by after playing ball just knock out a little quick in the middle left and come back participate a little bit 

Jean: I don’t think I’ve ever done that i I would leave class sometimes to go hang out with people like in different offices but I never like left class what to play ball and then came back.

Zeke: I didn’t leave like I was asked as I don’t cover I was oh ended I guess I’d be exhausted and fall asleep in class. Everything okay.

Jean: All because you were playing ball before? Yeah. Yeah, I I used to fall asleep in class too. But it was it was just as a lunch. Like I just get the itis around 2pm every day. Even now at work, I get the itis like I’ve been even back when I was at the office I’d be in meetings kind of just like dose across themselves and I felt so bad about it. But it was like real quick second, and then I’ll just be back and then you know, I’d like profusely drink my water to keep myself awake.

Zeke: Yeah,

Jean: I just I just be going in

Zeke: Yeah. We need a new lifestyle. This is the 40 Hour Workweek single work, or 20 hours a week. Nah

Jean: If you will make it work, though, believe but everything you got  going on right now you got

Zeke: The other week I asked my $1,000 was funny, but that was all came out of nowhere. And plus me. And I’m like $1,000 I was like, Oh, well, universe it works.

Jean: You talk to the universe is there will be a response. I don’t know if it’s their response to you going light, but you’ll get a response.

Zeke: Now, it’s like, it’d be fun to be a billionaire. Know just the same at Jay-Z level.

Jean: Honestly, I don’t even know if I want to be that rich. That’s like too much money for me. It’s like, what am I gonna do with that? Just like I spend all my time trying to figure out what to do with it. instead of actually doing things with it. I feel like

Zeke: But you have to keep um money, I realized money does not stay. It doesn’t last that long. Yeah, keep it coming.

Jean: Yeah, but I mean, if you have a billion dollars, like, honestly, I think I could comfortably retire on 10 million post tax. Yeah. So if you have a billion dollars, you absolutely do not need an income to keep that up. I guarantee you do not need an income. Keep that up.

Zeke: You tell Jeff Bezos, that when he gets divorced, and he’s still the richest man, 

Jean: Well, they don’t need the money. They just make more money because they want a bigger number. They don’t need the money. You know, I’m saying like, at some point, you legitimately have already gained all the money you could possibly ever use. Like if I had a billion dollar, like just a billion flat, I would die. With hundreds of millions still left. There’s no way in hell like i’d feasibly be able to spend all of that. And, you know, I’m not exactly someone who’s like, automatically thinking about starting a family or anything, so I wouldn’t. It’s not like I’d be passing it on to my children. I’d probably just pass it on to my sister’s kids or something. Or my cousin’s kids.

Zeke: But here’s the uncle, use your uncle pay for your college for life.

Jean: For your college for your kids college, your grandkids college.

Zeke: Yeah, but that billy though, that’d be different. Yeah, we’ll do for you can’t go outside no more. Go place to place. 

Jean: Yeah, I mean, just don’t don’t let anybody know you got it. Man, really feel like,

Zeke: Huh, was gonna be like, this person got a billion dollars Who? You lying you lying

Jean: Yeah, I would live in a quiet house. Like, I would own a mansion, just for when I feel like havin a mansion type lifestyle. But I don’t think that’s something I’d want 24 seven. So I’d probably just live in a regular like, million dollar house out in Long Island or something. It’s chill, like drive a regular, you’re not maybe regular. But like, you know, type of car that a doctor could afford is something you don’t say I wouldn’t be whipping out in the Lambo and stuff like that, like that. Doing all that extra stuff does not interest me if anything I’d like try to figure out how to use that money. So build, to build programs and things to help our urban black kids get introduced to Arts and Technology and everything earlier on. Just so that they understand from a very young age, just how many options are available to them in the world, and, you know, making options available to them, as well. So that’s, that’s probably where most of that would be going. Because that just has a payoff, like paying to build a better world, I think is more valuable than paying for the next five yards.

Zeke: You know, how we get a next 1 billion is nice, but two is better.

Jean: And that’s that not that that really is the billionaire mentality right there like one billions nice but two’s better? So I mean, assuming that I could make my money walk for me and actually do you know the things that I want to accomplish in life, then he I’d want more money, but I do have to question to an extent how much just having money can realistically do because there are a whole lot of people in money. And there are a whole lot of problems not being solved. So surely there has to be something stopping all of these billionaires from solving problems. You don’t saying I don’t know if it’s regulatory issues? Like if you can’t just put money into whatever, but I don’t think that’s the case. I feel like as long as it’s being taxed, you can still make donations or whatever, or do charitable donations get taxed? 

Zeke: No, 

Jean: I know, it’s a tax deduction for the person who gives it. But I don’t know if the receiver, the recipient, has to give any of that to the IRS. I’m not sure. But yeah, I don’t know what the issue is because I read the numbers somewhere. I don’t know if it’s 100% accurate. So grain of salt. But it was something about how if a billionaire took a certain portion of his money, be able to build housing for all of the homeless that currently exists in the country or something like that. I’m like, if it’s that feasible, then why isn’t someone doing it? So? Because I have hope in humanity, I have to think that there’s some reason why they’re not able to just do that.

Zeke: But I’m not quite sure what that is, at the moment, video saying like, there’s a bunch of like, apartments and homes that are empty, because it’s financially better to keep them empty. For somebody else. Yeah,

Jean: I guess it’s about the money. If it’s not gonna make anybody money, then why do it right?

Zeke: Yeah. So then she gets to blame. So I look up to our private army. And they fall within private sovereign countries, and they start making own Wakanda whatever.

Jean: Look like FBI if you’re listening to this right now, I am not co signing any of the privatized military stuff that is all Zeke when you see what kind of pop up in 10 years I had nothing to do with it but I hear you brother I hear you.

Zeke: When they raided the um capital there was like Akon hurry up

Jean: Akon of all people Oh no, 

Zeke: He’s helping Africa with the solar panels all that stuff. He 

Jean: Yeah, he is helping about Africa a lot but I mean, Akon don’t go Wakanda money. Yeah, if he had Wakanda money. Sure. I guess that’d be one of the more likely people to do it. But he don’t got Wakanda Money

Zeke: I’m like we can help him out. Back to graduation, I had my Switch with me becuase I was like it is, two hours of me saying listen to my last lecture of my life.

Jean: Yeah, I you know, being on stage I had less options myself with I couldn’t really just take out my phone up there. So I just had to start people watching looking at everyone and that’s about all I could do.

Zeke: My friends, they won’t be caught with a switch on the jum on the jumbo screen. Nah I didn’t care.

Jean: They show it like hey, how is it going?

Zeke: I be like yeah.

Jean: Here’s my friend code. Add me everyone.

Zeke: Yeah, this was fun. Episode. Yeah.

Jean: What season are we on now?

Zeke: Five.

Jean: Season Five.

Zeke: Okay. Well,

Jean: Thank you again for inviting me know, we had a good conversation. You know, we hadn’t caught up in a long time. So this serves to sort of do that too. So yeah, that was good.

Zeke: The next question is what would you name your origin story? Or do you want to keep it a secret because your new book.

Jean: Whoa, Zeke hold up now there is no book What are you talking about? Like I’m what I named my origin story. That’s a good question. Damn you had to hit me what a deep one bro. I hadn’t really thought of It’s all up. Give me Give me a few seconds I got this. This might sound a little morbid. But there’s always this theme that comes out in my writing. Right? And I think if I were to have written a poetry book about my life, for example, this theme would likely have been prevalent in it. And it’s like this theme of drowning in a sense, not necessarily drowning in water, but like headspace type of drowning. And so, something related to that like maybe like into the depths or something like that, and it will kind of the double entendre, and that would be it would be like into the depths of my origin or my story, right? So yeah. I’ll see that for now.

Zeke: And that brings another episode or the Let’s Gather Podcast, to a close. Again. I like to thank my friend Jean for joining the podcast. For next week I have my Blessing to speak about starting her own clothing brand. I hope you continue to have a nice day and hope to see you there.

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