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Podcast by a Panhandle Surf Angler for all anglers of any level. We will talk weekly to guests that are anglers and also industry professionals. I want you to walk away from this podcast with some knowledge either refreshed or new for you to become a better angler. Though it will start in the Panhandle of Florida, it will be around the entire United States so we can all learn something about fishing in different regions.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Speaker 2 (00:30):
This week's episode of Finding D Most Surf phishing is being brought to you by DS Custom Tackle. DS Custom is a great website to go through. They got a bunch of good things up there for rigs, floats, hooks. They got one stop shop you can get up there. You can order pretty much anything you need for your fishing or endeavors. So ds custom tackle.com. They're also part of the pomp and easy cool apparel. Lots of fun things. This week we're going a little bit of a blast in the past. Um, if you go back a while back, you'll hear an episode that I did with Buck, uh, buck Bishop, the salty leprechaun and Buck, and I linked up again at Kids Can Fish. We, it was the first year he went and he was like, yeah, I'm going. I was like, cool. We're gonna see each other.
Speaker 2 (01:11):
And as soon as I saw him, we were just like, all right, we're good. We just hung out and enjoyed chewing the Fat the entire time. Um, the funny thing was Buck also took some time down. Um, he was hitting it hard on social. He was fishing hard, and he took some time away When we got, when we linked up a kids can fish, it was something him and I talked about. It was like, man, the break was good. And then we kind of decided, Hey, why don't we do another episode and talk about it? Let's talk about why we stepped away in mental health finding balance, because let's be honest, folks, the world's crazy man, and sometimes it's okay to unplug. So without further ado, salty Leprechaun Buck Bishop, welcome back to the show. Hi, Brian. Hi buddy. , what's going on, buddy? It's good to be back on here.
Speaker 2 (02:03):
Yeah, it got a little different in your setup than last time I saw you. Yeah, you know, I, I, I started accumulating more and more stuff and, um, you know, part of that downtime I took was like, holy, I got a lot . I need to, I need to do something with it. Um, so yeah, hang them on the wall. At least I can still look at 'em and they're not in the living room. Well, that's, that's good. I mean, , if, if you, now you've got 'em all set up in one place, right? No, no. I got a storage unit with the other ones. . These are just the, these are just the ones I actually take out and shoot with . Yeah, there is that , well, we talked about it. The kids can fish. We talked about like, dude, we should definitely discuss this. Like, what, what was it?
Speaker 2 (02:47):
What, what was the pieces? And so I kind of wanted to add, let, let's start off with you and let's just get right into it here. Um, fire away essay it. It's been a while, but how are you doing, man? Honestly, you know, I'm, I'm doing good, dude. I, I'm in a really good spot. Um, and we'll touch on some of the stuff that I was able to, to navigate carefully, um, to put me in this spot. Um, but, you know, I just, I had to, I had to get centered again, man. I had to get back to what was going on, like why, why I started surf fishing, even to begin with much less it, you know, the potentials of videos and clients and blah, blah, blah. All the rigamarole I needed to get back to basics. And I did that. You know, I took a time off and, you know, the fire was definitely re-lit when I went to that tournament.
Speaker 2 (03:44):
Um, 'cause I'm in a, I'm in a really niche market here on my island, and it, it's, there's not a lot of people that surf. And if they do, they're like super goog. And, um, you know, I just kind of got a little burnt out, but then I got to hang out with my tribe down in Georgia and everything re-lit, you know, I'm finding my groove at work. I got my truck, um, cart upgrades, all kinds of cool stuff going on. Um, and I, you know, this time last year or a couple months from now, whenever we had talked and did the show last time, I was honestly on the fence of do I want to keep doing this? You know, do I do I want to keep doing paperwork and worry about booking and all that kind of stuff. And, uh, I'm excited for what this season has to bring. It's gonna be a good one for you, dude. I really think so.
Speaker 2 (04:40):
It's, it's, yes. We're gonna, we're gonna go more on that. I really do. I want to, I wanna pound more on that. I got an interesting season, dude, with your previews and everything. I'm liking, I'm liking where you're going with stuff. Um, I've been enjoying some of your shorts. I, I will admit. Well, all right, so let's dial it in. We, we like you just, uh, you, you segued us. Perfect. Actually, so you were talking about right after the show that we did, you were already kind of on the fence. When did you first realize, you know what, I need to step back. Um, you know, life just started lifeing real hard and I've, I've been through the ringer more than once in my life, and I've gained good coping skills by having fallen on my face. So when I saw starting to get a little, a little hairy, um, you know, there was a little too many open-ended things and I, I just, I saw some red flags coming where I was either gonna get burnt out and burn it to the ground, or I was gonna, you know, ruin a relationship or ruin a job opportunity.
Speaker 2 (05:50):
I just, I saw myself getting ready to self-sabotage and I'm not ready to quit. So I needed to, I needed to hit the locker room, you know, I just needed to ice up for a little bit. And sometimes you just gotta do that. It's a funny way you put that, dude. I like, I like that nice sports analogy. Appreciate it. . Even that, even though I see your team there over your, your, your shoulder . Oh, yeah. Ride or die, baby. Yeah, it's a good on you, man. So day to day, you, you stepped back. What did it actually look like for you, uh, when you stepped back, bro, I, I mean, I was . I was, honestly, I was running trips with, uh, folding this back seat of my, my wife's Hyundai down and strapping stuff to the roof and sanding up her car. And it was just my, my truck had bit the dust and I was, it was a really low spot.
Speaker 2 (06:52):
I mean, bills were paid and I had my job, but I wasn't happy. Right. And when I, I had a heart surgery back in 2019, and I always promised myself, if something's not fulfilling me, I'm, I'm gonna remove it. And that's just how it is. Because I, I, I've felt crappy day to day to day in the past, and I don't wanna feel that way ever again. And for all intents and purposes, I probably shouldn't be here. So I'm going to make the best of what I got. And, um, if that means stepping back and pushing the pause button, you know, I, that's, that's what I did.
Speaker 2 (07:33):
I like that you really highlighted that part too, about if it's not making me happy, I need to get rid of it. Oh, yeah. Mean, that's for sure. Huge. So let's talk about obligation verse enjoyment. So we both love fishing. I mean, there's, there's no doubt about that. But on the other side of our fishing, we've also got, you've got charters, I've got content. You are doing content you are doing, doubled all of that put together is, it's not a great recipe. You, it's, it's almost, I don't wanna say impossible, but it is quite difficult, in my opinion, to match the obligation versus enjoyment in what we were doing in this whole world of social media and phishing marketing. Yeah, there's, it's definitely, there's a, a major give and take, um, especially with the, the saturation of, you know, the social media, the YouTube, the Facebook, the shorts, the Instagram, all that stuff. Um, you either, if, if you wanna strike it big quick, you either have to be perfect or loaded. I'm neither of those. So , you know, one of my buddies, um, who makes videos here locally, but he does a lot of freshwater river fishing. He, he was like, dude, just make the video that you want to put out. Like, don't worry about your algorithm, don't worry about photo angles. Like, if you've got the footage, put it out. You'll get better over time. And, um, oh, there goes the soundbar. There it goes. .
Speaker 2 (09:13):
Um, I'm sorry, I got sidetracked on that one. And we love the squirrel man, that that's, that's, that's part of our life. That's part of the next segment. The, some of the, uh, some of the acronyms that I have. , sorry, . Um, so you were talking about the, with your buddy talking about the, the angles, and then you kind of dove in a little bit further. Oh yeah. I mean, it doesn't have to be perfect. It was, it was kind of like his way of saying, yeah, you could be better, but at least you're doing it. Yeah. Right. Um, and if you're doing it for anybody other than yourself, like why you're doing it, like put the videos out that you wanna put out, if you get the following, then great. But don't, don't forget why you're doing it just to get the clicks and the views and the everything.
Speaker 2 (10:05):
'cause I, I might have like a hundred followers, dude, on YouTube. I'm not, I'm not worried about making money. I mean, I don't make money from social media. Um, it's, for me, it's more of like a, here's some information about what we do here. Here is, um, you know, what you can expect on one of my trips, that kind of vibe. You know, just putting out entertaining stuff that I think my buddies would wanna watch. Um, and getting back at it, you know, I didn't have a laptop for a while and then it became obsolete, and now I got a, a PC rig. That's pretty, pretty nice. .
Speaker 2 (10:46):
Yeah, it , uh, we remember we were talking about that. Yeah. So, so we tied it in there with people see phishing content as relaxing, but creating, maintaining it can be pressure. And we were pretty much in that sphere of what we were just discussing. What did that pressure feel like for you? Um, it just, it got a little overwhelming. Um, part of, one of the symptoms of my A DHD is getting task paralysis, um, where I will just subconsciously do nothing. Like, and it's, it's, I know a lot of people doom scroll, but it is so much deeper than a doom scroll. I will sit there and be like, oh, I should edit this video, or I should work on a promotion clip, or I should, you know, redo my website. I, these are things I need to be, I know I need to be doing. And I'll tear apart a phishing reel and just lose four hours in it, you know? Or I'll be like, no, I, I'll just play one race on this simulator game, and I'm done till six o'clock when my wife comes home. She's just like, dude, what'd you do today? I'd be like, ah, I mastered this drift around the chicane .
Speaker 2 (11:56):
It is awesome. Come watch . Like, uh, not a whole lot, honey. But dude, that's,
Speaker 2 (12:09):
You made me think of something from my Marine Corps days, and it's, it's kind of funny. Um, there's a, there's one of the creeds that go with the Marine Corps, but I know it's in the staff and co creed, though I know perfection to lie beyond, or what is it grasp, though? I know perfection to lie beyond the grasp of any mortal hand. I shall get, strive to attain perfection that I may be ever aware of my needs and capabilities to improve myself. Amen. And dude, that is, that one I've had to like, pull up when I started getting back into this because it was perfection was what I was always striving for. The enjoyment was like, there's no where, where'd the fun go? It was fun having conversations and in the conversation, it's a great time. Yeah. But it's that background stuff of, alright, I gotta make reels.
Speaker 2 (13:04):
Oh, I gotta make shorts. Oh, I gotta do promo posts. And you know, it was the same with when I was running my RV business. You gotta do promo things, get it's marketing, because no one's gonna find you because everybody's, you know, doune scrolling. Yeah. And it's just, and then you have to capture it. But I do love that you said, I'm not getting money from social media. Like, I, I've been monetized with Facebook for, I don't know, two, three years. I, I laugh when I say pay, it says PayPal. You got 7 cents . Aw, that's great. I'm so glad that I made seven. Why are you sending me money? ? Yeah, right. Like, just, you can't put in the algorithm. Exactly. And it's, it's exhausting. It really is. It's a good word. It's a hor It's horrible, isn't it? It's like, it, this is fun. God, I'm juggling this. I'm juggling this. And please, those of you that are listening to this, I know you're probably like, well, you about me and you're talking on a podcast and I'm talking to a buddy and I'm having a good time with it. Yeah. Right. ,
Speaker 2 (14:13):
I mean, I still gotta get up and go to work at six o'clock in the morning. Exactly. Yeah. That alarm's gonna go off and say, Hey, you gotta go make that real money. You got a mortgage . Yep. Well, I mean, and that's one of the things I, I dealt with also was, there's, there seems to be a misconception on both sides of the coin where like at work they think, oh, you don't wanna work. 'cause I, I work during peak season, I, I'm fortunate enough to have a four day work week. Right. And that's solely because I'm on the other three days. I'm up at four o'clock in the morning running the beach. Right? Like, so it, and then the people that take fish, they don't understand that, Hey, when I'm not fishing, I'm a supervisor at X resort. Like I, I do things every day of the week.
Speaker 2 (15:03):
And you're right, it gets, it gets exhausting because you have to put on both hats and just like, whew, like Superman jumping in and out of the phone booth. It's like, not to, not to, not to say I'm superman by any means. Don't, don't, don't sell yourself short. What are you doing? Don't lock that off. You, you are, because I mean, it is, dude, it's multitasking in life is, it's one of those crappy traps of adulting. You know, it's not fair. I'm sorry if my dog's pass or coming through the microphone, everybody, my small little rat dog is just walking around me here. Um, you can't, you can give it a hundred percent into one thing and people are like, oh, I'm the best at multitasking. No, you're not . Yeah. If you give a hundred percent to one thing, you're not gonna be able to give 5% to the other because you just lost 5%. It's, I'm, I'm proud of you. You can handle the, the load, but come on. Yeah. But that is, it's, both of those things require a hundred percent of your attention. You can't be half in. Yep. You, it's not, it's not sustainable. Not in the long term. Mm. No, I mean, you could sprint it's good . Yeah. Right. But then you're gonna have jelly legs. Yeah. . So, so how do you structure expectations and identity play into pressure pressures into identity play?
Speaker 2 (16:33):
Um, I just, I have to compartmentalize. Like, you know, when it's fishing day, it's fishing day. These people have, are paying me money to have a good attitude, be ready to work, um, teach them things. So it's, I'm not just out there like fishing. And then here you go, kid, reel it in. You know, I, I have to actually know stuff. I have to, you know, and then when I'm not fishing, I have to go check, check the beach. So these are, that's, you know, that persona of being the beach dude, the surf fishing guy on the beach. Like, I have to maintain that, even if I don't feel that great. If I didn't get some sleep, if I just pulled a 14 hour day and I got a trip on Tuesday, I, I, I'm up at four and I have to have enough coffee and enough nicotine to be buck the salty leprechaun.
Speaker 2 (17:29):
And then come Friday I have to have the tur shirt tucked pressed and be ready to be the supervisor buck and get done. Yeah. It gets tiring. It, it's, it's a juggle, bro. This next question though, I think is the one that's gonna just put the super slammer into it. Did you struggle at all with the feeling that stepping away might look like failure to others? Absolutely. Huh. Absolutely. Um, because like I said, I'm not making money. I don't have a lot of videos on my YouTube channel. It's just a couple videos that I pieced together and I liked them. Um, I don't have a huge falling on Facebook, but it definitely felt like, okay, so it felt like another go around with an a, DD hobby. Right? And that's what I didn't want it to be. So that's, that's why it was like stepping back.
Speaker 2 (18:27):
I still took trips this year and they were all repeat customers, you know, that I didn't wanna say no to, that I already fished with. I know they're great. Um, but yeah, dude, it definitely felt like, am I a failure? Like do I, am I giving up? Like am I, am I wimping out? Should I give it more? And then do I really wanna pour into it right now? Um, yeah, there was, there was a, a nice hot minute of due to my failure. Like, I, I put all this in there to make a name and be clever and the business license and the town and all this stuff. But I gotta tell you, dude, when I, like I said earlier, man, when I got to that tournament and I saw how many people like, are into the same stuff the same way I am, it just re-lit it. It was like, dude, I'm not alone in this. Um, I mean, talking to you, dude, I, I know I'm not alone in the, the feeling of the limbo of like, what am I doing? Like, what are we doing here?
Speaker 2 (19:34):
I really enjoyed that conversation. , because it did, I, I enjoyed it too. And I know my wife, she wasn't there for like, I earshot, but watching you and Julie go back and forth for 45 minutes, was, that was like free cable, bro. It was amazing. Oh, yeah. I kept it. She was like, should we leave? Like, it's getting late. I was like, I'm not leaving. I, I gotta stay on the day. I'm invested , I'm invested. I wanna know who wins. Oh man. Hold Julie. And, and I love Brent and Julie. I do. I I wish you could have met him. Unfortunately, he didn't get to go to the tournament this year, but I mean, real coastal is . They're both so much fun. Yeah, that was a good, that was a good round between friends. I, I did not expect it to take the turn it date.
Speaker 2 (20:21):
It was like, dude, stop it. . Yeah. Once we, once we hit the thousand dollars, I was like, Julie, what are you doing? . Yeah, . Oh, yeah. See, there was conviction there, there was for sure. She was, she was making her point. She was just reminding me. But it's the, the whole, the whole piece with being at Kids Can Fish, that environment is so inviting to make, it just makes things better. I mean, you're around people that are happy. And it's not one of those standard tournaments. It's not, you know, a bunch of guys standing around, oh, I bought this money. There was no, there wasn't much brow beating, I guess is the best way to say it. No chest pumping. Yeah. Yep. It was just families and happy to be there and pumping up kids and pumping up the foundation. And that's what I love the most, is that I never really got a, Hey, there's the kids table vibe from anybody.
Speaker 2 (21:16):
Right. I feel like every person there was treated equally as an angler. Right? Even, even the eight year olds, my nieces came down and they loved it. Of course, they, they didn't get how, how aggressive we need to fish for two days. But once they saw my brother land a big fish, they were, they're in it. They're already talking about where are we gonna stay? We want to make a week of it. And Oh wow, that's gonna be a fun trip. Yeah. I'm, I'm stoked, man. Dude, there's so much to do there. I, I, I, granted, granted we're only in for a couple days, but it's, there's all so many things you can do in that whole area. Brunswick is beautiful. Oh yeah. That, that was my first time down there. And it was, you know, we spent the first night walking, and then I think the first day the weather just got super nasty.
Speaker 2 (22:10):
Yeah. So we ended up, we were like, dude, we don't wanna fight this. So for an hour at High Tide, we just went and checked out Driftwood Beach and was like, oh yeah, no, there's no way we were gonna fish here. No. 'cause on I, we've never been there. So on Google Maps it looked like, oh man, that's gonna be money we got there and we're like, oh, we don't have enough money. to, to lose our rigs here, , you need a hovercraft. That, that was rough. Oh man. Um, oh, hey, actually it's been a 20 minutes. I didn't see. That's just what happens with these conversations. It just flies. And you're like, oh crap, it's this long. I gotta do this. So it, it's time. If you're listening to this on the beach and you haven't checked your bait yet, you really should, because every 20 minutes is a good time to check, because you never know if it's gone. Check your bait.
Speaker 1 (23:02):
Step up in the game, put your gear on Tight Ninja tackle in the zone, ready for the fight. The water's calling in. I arm with the best. With those ninja dagger rods. You know, we ain't stressed from lakes to the rivers. We are slaying the scene. Casting lines feeling fine. Living that dream Ninja tackle got fines made for the pros. Light is a feather for when it bend, it glows. Stick to the rhythm, let the tackle on unfold. Every single cast a new story told high tech precision. Can't miss the aim from game.
Speaker 2 (23:55):
You can get your gear for ninja tackle va.com, great website, love all the stuff. I love My rods from Ninja. I've, you guys have heard me talk about it for years on this show, since I love those rods. I use them. So, uh, great website to take a look at. Go check it out. Okay. Ninja Tackle. I see you. Yeah, that was a pretty jamming song. . Yeah. He, uh, oh, is that Matt or no, John. John Scheel. John Scheel. I did the music for that. That was Oh, your b of my head. Like, and then he let me, Matt, Matt, let me do the old grandpa, you know, photo ads to it. And he was like, actually, that's good, dude. Run that. I was like, okay, if you want me to you, you are friends with people that are so much better at video editing. Right. Like, please let them do, don't, don't, don't take this. Anyway. Uh, yeah. That, that was a vibe. That's really is. Oh, all right. Let's get back into the fun stuff here. Sorry. Sorry. Squirrel. Yeah. Woo. What, what, so now let's talk about, let's, let's turn this absence thing around here. What's Stepping Away has taught you? So what did you learn about yourself during the time away?
Speaker 2 (25:05):
That I'm a lot more like Superman than I gave myself credit for. Good man. I like that. You know? Uh, that's the short answer. I mean, I learned that I really am good at it. I stuck to my guns at work and was able to catch a promotion and maintain my schedule. So that was reaffirming in the fact that, you know, under that hat, I'm doing good too. Um, I didn't do any advertising. I stepped way back and was able to still run trips and I mean, I didn't make a mint, but I was comfortable all summer. Um, so I, I learned that just on what I've done already. I'm able to float the boat still. Um, and I can really only go up and it, I mean, if I just do what I was doing before, it can only get better. Yeah. So, are there things that you'll never do again because of what you learned?
Speaker 2 (26:13):
Um, if it's cold outside and I have to wear waiters, we're not going . You know, that's a life lesson right there, . Yeah. And you know, it's okay to be your own boss. It's o it's okay to, to say no. Um, you know, life life's on you sometimes, and if that means that, you know, we got a trip, but sorry, man, I got stuff to do with my, with my wife. My wife's sick. I gotta take care of her. Then I'll do what I gotta do. If I gotta refund you, your, your deposit, I'm sorry. I'll give you a discount on the next trip, whatever. But priorities, you know, I, I'm, I'd love to take you and your kid fishing, um, but I, I gotta take care of my wife. Like, that's what's gotta happen. Um, and on the same token, Hey Buck, can you come in on Wednesday?
Speaker 2 (27:10):
No, sir. I cannot, nope. I gotta take these six people fishing. So that's where I'll be, don't call me. I won't answer. And it's, it's worked out. Everybody . It's so weird that in my work environment, every time that's come up and I'm just like, no deal with it. Like, either you let me do what the situation that was everybody knew about when I was hired, or you no longer have me as an employee and I'll go back to Ubering or bag groceries or something. But everybody's like, you know what? Good on you, man. We'll make it work. I'm like, it's that easy.
Speaker 2 (27:59):
Oh dude. How hard. I mean, it is such an easy slope to get into that working grind where it's like, Hey, can you do this? Yes, yes, yes. Yep. And you don't think about the other thing. You don't think about the end piece. What is this overtime costing me? Yeah. I'm making money. What does it cost me though? Yep. I, I I, I, I wish more people could have that feeling. And then, I mean, the flip side to that though is like, yeah, the overtime's gonna cost you, but at the same time, like everybody's like, you know, all you do is fish, you fish, fish, fish. It's like, yeah. But people spend a save and spend a lot of money to come to this island and just pretend to do the things that I'm able to do and often take for granted for just a week.
Speaker 2 (28:51):
And even if I don't have a trip, I make it a point when, at least when the water's good to spend a day on the beach, whether it's with clients, whether it's with a camera, or whether it's just me and my wife once a week, I'm out there and I give it the solid four hours. And it's a lot of times that those are my best days of fishing man. At least for my mental space. Because it's like, I have people come up, ask me questions, and I'm not like, Hey, I'm on the clock, lady. I, here's my card. Um, I just talk to people and re remember that dude, I live in paradise. Like, if any beach you live at, if you can fish on it, dude, you, you're in paradise. Mm-hmm . That's it. Like, I get hung up in the, the nine to five, the, the drama at work, the rush hour, you know, the political mambo jumbo, everything that's going on, it's easy to get hung up and get a little pessimistic, but it's really hard to stay that way if you go spend six hours on a beach and catch it .
Speaker 2 (29:52):
Yeah, it does. And there's something healing about the water in the forest. I'll, I will always say that. Oh yeah. There's some goodness in those mother nature's definitely my first love. Yeah. Yeah. She's been drunk in my lawn the last couple weeks here. in Virginia, apparently. But, you know, she's, she's still nice. I like her . Wisconsin, your weather's drunk. Yeah. Why, why do I have, why do I have an inch and a half to, why do I have two inches of snow now? Excuse me. Ma'am. Ma'am, we don't get that here in Chesapeake. We're not supposed to. Why? Right. . I mean, it snowed here on Hilton Head. It was wild. Yeah. I couldn't believe you guys got any, I couldn't believe that at all. That was nuts. Well, we learned our lesson. The town learned its lesson last year. 'cause this place shut down for like four days and they, I guess they rented some salt trucks this year when they heard it coming. So the roads were great. It was pretty, it wasn't dangerous. You cross that bridge and get to the mainland. It was a ice skating rink, .
Speaker 2 (30:54):
And of course, everybody from the north lives here, but when they move here, they forget how to drive. Oh, of course. I mean, it's standard. It's a requirement to forget once you get down there. Yeah. It's like going on summer break in school. You just forget math. . Aw, that was a trip down memory lane. . So now that you're back, you, you, you decided. All right. So when you decided to come back, what rules did you set for yourself? Um, just, I haven't really set any rules really. It's just more of like, keep my feelers out and try to be reminiscent of like, when I start feeling like I was feeling a year ago, pump the brakes. If I start to even feel it a little bit. 'cause I don't want to get to the spot where I'm putting it down again. 'cause if you put it down, you pick it up, you put it down, you're gonna put it down for longer. And then that is kind of like a soft quit. And I'm not ready to quit yet. Nice. Good one. Well, uh, now that you have balance, 'cause that's where you've, you've definitely found that again, what does it look like now compared to Depo to before?
Speaker 2 (32:08):
Um, more excited about it because now I know where I need to shift gears, what tiny adjustments I need to make as far as myself, because the o operationally, it, it wasn't really flawed, right. I was getting in my own way and like self-sabotaging, um mm-hmm . So I think that, you know, just right foot, left foot, dude, you got this, you've, you've done it. Like, just do it again. Like I always say, when we catch a fish and I'm getting ready to cast it back out, let's do it again. Let's, that's kind of my mindset right now. I'm itching like a crack head to, to get back on the beach and go fishing because I, I want to, I wanna do it again. And I again and again and again, tugs the drug, man. Oh yeah. For sure. ,
Speaker 2 (33:02):
You kind of mentioned this, but I guess I gotta ask it straight out. How do you protect phishing from becoming work? I would have to say that it'd be the, the one day a week go out there and get back to basics as far as, not as far as tactics or skillset is concerned, but like, get back to fishing, right? Like with the mentality. I don't want to, you know, say this wrong, but like with the mentality of an 8-year-old, I just wanna fish. Like that's, I just wanna fish. So if I can, if I can make money at it and get somebody jazzed up about the sport in the process of that, then awesome. That's great. But I'm fishing because I love to fish. Not because I want to make money or not because I want views or any of that stuff that, you know, everybody, when you get into something and you see that, oh man, maybe I could do it like that. Or maybe I could have that. I don't, I don't need that. 'cause chasing that, I, I set too high of a goal and I, I, it didn't, I don't wanna work that hard. , I'll be honest, I don't wanna work that hard. Fair. It doesn't seem like the payoff is worth it. I'd rather get a 10-year-old addicted to surf fishing and have his dad spend 400 bucks on gear at.
Speaker 2 (34:28):
That's kind of how it starts. . Yeah, exactly. Yep. That's, so let, let's talk general population here and we'll talk to, to the listeners. For someone listening who feels burned out but doesn't want to admit it, what would you tell them? Suck it up. Not in the way, not in the way you think. Suck it up and admit that you're burning out. There it is. Suck it up. Admit you're burning out before you have to admit defeat. Because admitting defeat doesn't, that sting doesn't really ever go away. But if you say, dude, I, I'm burnt out. Like, I mean, even video games, they tell you to take a break every 45 minutes to let your eyes rest. So why can't you do that? I mean, whether it's work, whether you're a mechanic, whether you're a fishing guide, whether you're a YouTuber. I mean, if you start to get burnt out, then it's going to reflect in your efforts, in your work, your final product. It's going to. Um, so don't be afraid to admit that you, you need help or you need to break. Um, I think that that is, for some reason, I think that that taboo is still out there. That it's not okay to ask for help or it's not okay to admit vulnerability or weakness. Um, when in fact, if you think about it existentially, it takes a lot more to be able to say, Hey, dude, I ain't got it like that. I, I ain't got it like that. Not this week.
Speaker 2 (36:12):
It's all right to be tired. I mean, God, 40 hour a week. Sure. You know, 40, 50 burning the candle at the other end. 'cause I want to do X, Y, and Z. Oh, hey, the kids, oh, hey, spouse. Oh, hey girlfriend, boyfriend. All these pieces. Burn the candle and make it, it sounds cool to burn it at both ends, but good lord, does it drag your soul? Oh yeah. , it's, yep. And it's, I love that you brought that up. You know, admit it. It's okay. I mean, call a friend. Call anybody you want. Just be like, Hey, I gotta vent. I'm, I'm burning out. I I keep going like this. I mean, nothing's gonna, I'm just gonna end up sitting around all day. Yeah. I mean, I, there's plenty of times where my buddies will call me and they, they do contracting work and they'll just be like, Hey man, what are you doing?
Speaker 2 (37:02):
I know you're off early because I, I work at six. I get off at, I'm off before three and I'm at the house. They'll be like, dude, I'm off. What? Tell me if I'm off the wall here. And I'll be like, dude, you're good. You're okay to be mad, dude, you've been working a lot. Like, you're good. You're not crazy. I would probably walk off that job site. So, good for you. Um, you, you need a friend like you, you need to come by. And usually after about 20 minutes of hearing, dude, you're not crazy. It's okay. I, I respect how you feel. Like I'd, I'd be off too, by the end of the 30 minute conversation, nine times outta 10, forget like that. They were even that off. They were just hung up in the moment and needed somebody to say, I feel you. Like you're good. I hear you.
Speaker 2 (37:51):
Ah, isn't that refreshing, ? Yeah. Yeah. This question, I, when I wrote this one, I, uh, it took me for a pause too, but what's one thing you wish people understood about stepping away in mental health? Uh, well, that it's okay and sometimes it's necessary. It's not a weakness. Yeah. No, no. I think it, it shows actually to be able to be so self-aware, to understand that you need to recalibrate shows a lot more mental fortitude than destroying yourself stuck in a rut. Um, 'cause I've seen that happen to a lot of people. I mean, it's almost happened to me before, so there's nothing wrong with it. Like, just take a break, push the balls button, go make some pizza rolls and get back at it. Oh, pizza rolls, .
Speaker 2 (38:54):
They're different now that you have air. Like we have this Ola air fryer craze and happiness that, you know, nah man, there's still two minutes and 30 seconds in the microwave, bro. Are you trying to weld your tongue to the roof of your mouth? . If it ain't broke, don't fix it, man. Oh man. You, you, you said that and I just felt the pain. . Yeah, it's definitely a crapshoot. 'cause you know, half of 'em are cold and yeah. Half of 'em you could fry an egg on. Yeah. But that reminds you that you're alive, dude. Oh yeah. There it is. .
Speaker 2 (39:29):
So for you, what does taking care of yourself actually look like practically and not in a slogany type of way? So without using catchphrases or buzz words, um, uh, at this point it's like, it's almost like second nature. Um, 'cause like I said, I've been through the ringer, um, as a teen, I, I went through a whole lot of tumultuous stuff and I've got acronyms from doctors, like PTSD and A DHD. Um, my doctor, I don't know what HHD is, but my doctor says I got 80 of them. I love that one. Going around TikTok, . So, um, you know, I just, there's the A DED again. What was the question? . .
Speaker 2 (40:29):
What does taking your sick care of yourself look like? Oh, yeah. What does it look like? Um, just doing a, doing an inventory regularly. Um, you know, bouncing stuff off. My, my wife is my best friend and my biggest supporter. Um, so if I start feeling in my feelings, then I'll be like, Hey, here's how I'm feeling right now. Like, am I, am I crazy? Should I be off about this? Or should I just let this ride? Or, Hey, I'm, you know, she was a major grounding force about me deciding to step back, honestly was, Hey dude, this, this isn't fun. Like, and that was heavy to, to, to have to say out loud, this isn't fun anymore. Was was hard to do. It was hard to, you know, like in the sitcoms where they can't say, I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Like, having to say surf fishing wasn't fun.
Speaker 2 (41:22):
Killed me inside. Yeah. But I, she validated me and was like, dude, just take a break, man. Ain't no, you're the only one. You'd be disappointed if you quit. And , don't disappoint yourself. Take a break. It's okay. Sit down, catch your breath. And since then, you know, I just, every now and then I, I do little mental inventories of like, how am I doing? Am I slacking? Am I feeling a little manic? Am I all over the place? You know, am I, am I neglecting bills? No, I'm good. Am I manic? Am I all over the place? Uh, maybe a little bit. I need to dial back on the new hobbies. Um, , but for the most part, dude, it's just doing a, it's just doing an inventory and checking on yourself and, you know, checking on your brothers. Mm-hmm . Yeah. Oh, hi to you dog. Huh? Getting on the microphone. . I know that came through. There's no way. It didn't. Well, it's been 40 minutes now. We're gonna do the final ba check and then we're gonna do the closing questions and, uh, gets you away for the night. So yeah, 25, uh, in about another 20 minutes, check that bait. This ba check's being brought to you by Kids can fish.
Speaker 2 (42:35):
This paycheck is being brought to you by Kids Can Fish head on over to the website. Kids can fish.net and take a look at all the great things that they're doing here. You can see through the website, they've got all the information right here. They are a state and federal recognized 5 0 1 C3 charitable foundation. All the camps and clinics all get funded back in to the organization to help these kids go out and go fish. If you also want information on the running of the Bulls tournament, it'll be updated right here up on top. And if you want to learn more about the entire team, you can take a look at the Pro staff links and learn all about Caroline, their partners, how to get in touch with them. And the photo gallery is always great. If you'd like to help them further, you can do one more.
Speaker 2 (43:14):
You can go over to Promar Ahi and take a look at that website and you can buy into the cast net. This is the specialized one. This is the one that you hear a lot about. Caroline has talked a lot about it. And a per, uh, portion of the proceeds go back into Kids Can Fish. They have the three foot, the four foot, and the five foot. All these things are great. And it all, again, it all goes back into the Kids Can Fish Foundation to help these kids continue to do great things with these camps. Keep your ears open. 'cause there's gonna be a lot more things coming from them. It's always great and always great to be a part of it.
Speaker 2 (43:50):
So now that you're back in the game, things are lining back up. What does fishing mean to you now? More than ever, you know, um, I got into surf fishing. Like, I, like I said, when I had my heart surgery, um, 'cause I was super depressed. I couldn't lift a gallon of milk for like six months. Um, and my wife was like, get out of the house, go do something. And I was like, all right, I'll go get on the beach. I'll go walk. Um, I'll do something. I'll get outta the house. And then I, you know, what kind of brought me out of a major funk? Um, and then I started to, you know, self-sabotage. And I, I'm coming back out of it again. Um, I'm just super excited for this season.
Speaker 2 (44:37):
I think it's gonna be great for you, dude. So, I mean, you already nailed the next part about what you're excited about without pressure. So way to go. Geez. Oh no, there's more. Oh, you got more, dude, tell me. Oh yeah, we are doing, the town is actually doing beach renourishment right now. Um, yeah. Yeah, dude. Um, and the last time they did it was 2016, I wanna say. And I was not surf fishing back then, not like I am now. So I don't really have experience with this new beach. Um, we have historically a really shallow beach, and there's a hundred yards difference between high and low tide, um, eight foot tide swings. It's, it can be pretty, if you don't know where you're going, you could be fishing on a desert with no structure whatsoever. Um, but I just went out two weeks ago and flew the drone over their operation.
Speaker 2 (45:32):
And I'm just, I, there's so many questions of like, what's the, what's the drop off gonna be? Like, is there gonna be a drop off? Is it gonna be just eight feet higher and still 200 yards out? Like, what's, what's gonna happen? And that, I'm really excited because it's, it's taken me back to when I first learned how to surf fish of like, all right, what the heck am I even doing right now? Like, I don't know this beach, for all I know, it could be a nice drop off and the Spanish in the blues will be up close, like they were in the outer banks. Or it could just be a bigger mound and same old story. And I have to wait till a storm blows through to get some structure with the unknown and the trying to outsmart mother nature. Brian, let me tell you, I am jazzed about it. ,
Speaker 2 (46:24):
She's gonna throw you curve balls. . Oh yeah. I, I'm ready to swing. Dude. I'm swinging for the fences. Didn't know you. I'm excited. Are you using the drone for fishing? Are you, can you use your drone for fishing? I dunno if you could. There, it, it depends on who asks you and what questions they ask you while you're doing it. If you're doing it. Yeah. So we have an airport here on the island, so the north end. You can't fly above a hundred feet past a hundred feet away from you, which you're not dropping Bates like that. It, it's, no, you could cast that far. Um, and then there's also an ordinance where you can't launch a drone or land a drone from public. And the beach is public. Um mm-hmm . And that's a, that's a town thing. So it's kind of a, a weird area.
Speaker 2 (47:14):
I, I could, but then I, I, you know, I'd be arguing semantics with code enforcement on the beach and I've already got a good relationship. So that's not worth burning that bridge. Yeah, no, I, I, I had some people actually pull up on me in their red trucks when I was filming the, the beach operation. 'cause they know me. And they were like, Hey man. I was like, dude, I'm just, I'll be out here in 20 minutes, man. There's nobody here except bulldozers. It's okay. . And then they rode back by and I was packing up. They were like, good. We were gonna, we were gonna press you this time. I was like, I'm out. I'm out guys. I'm, I'm going home .
Speaker 2 (47:50):
And you're gonna have a good year fishing. It's, it's gonna be good. I look forward to hearing about it. I know I will. So, 'cause I'll stay in touch. Like, or what do you, what did it turn into? Oh yeah. And now that I got, now that I got the PC and I got my fire re-lit, I'm definitely gonna be documenting it. I probably won't be doing so much filming with clients because I have noticed that I get a little hung up in the work and not the photography and the cinematics. Um, but I definitely want to document this, this new beach. I get to fish, like, I'm so excited. That's gonna be fun, dude. It's, it's just, you're gonna have a good time with it. I already know you will. All right, last question. We can get you outta here. Where can people follow you, follow along with you if they want to?
Speaker 2 (48:37):
Um, I got a really unique name, man. I'm pretty sure I'm the only salty leprechaun on the planet. Um, so YouTube, salty leprechaun, Facebook. I gonna try to figure out Instagram this year. I have one, but we'll see. Um, yeah, Facebook le uh, salty leprechaun.com. Got a little website. Um, Google it. It's there. It'll all be LinkedIn at the end if this show is episode notes people. So you can go back that one too. Uh, dude, I'm glad you're back. I'm glad you're back, Brian. I was talking to somebody the other day and, and I am gonna gas you up. I was almost gonna say, not to gas you up, but I'm gonna gas you up. I was talking about, um, he was like, oh, you're doing that podcast thing again. I was like, bro, you might not know him, but this dude is the Joe Rogan of surf fishing and he's my . So I'm feeling a lot like Burke er on this thing right now. Oh God. . So I, I was thinking back to what you had told me about the, the kid that heard you on the beach and stopped you from like 20 yards away was like, oh my God, I know that voice. You're, you're, you're demo, right?
Speaker 2 (49:49):
That was, dude, that was, that was something like gut wrenching, happy, sad, like so many emotions when he did that. Yeah. I was like, dude, that's, that's killer. Like that. Amen. That's that solidification of like, you're you're doing the right thing. You don't have to put it out every week. Brian, don't burn out. Oh, dude, believe me, , that's so tempting. Oh, it's, but that's the easy way out, Maureen. Uh, yeah. Easy. I wish I knew that one. Uh, dude, I, I have, so I, I really wanted to get back to doing one a week. I really did. And then I was talking to Jen about it and we were, we were talking about like, oh, how can you do it? And then she brought up a really good point. 'cause like, your wife, my wife's my best friend. , I've been with, I've been with that.
Speaker 2 (50:44):
Well, that poor lady's been with me for 20 years. I mean, so, uh, you guys can blame her. That's a, she, she's, that's a bid man. She's, she raised me like this now. So there you go. It's her fault. . Um, , the, uh, but we were talking and she goes, gotta think when you were doing the podcast weekly, what were you doing? And I was like, uh, I was running the RV business. She goes, yeah, some days you worked 12 hours, some days you didn't work. Some days you were like, eh, whatever. I don't feel like doing that today. And then you jump on a podcast with somebody and you could launch and then you'd spend five, six hours on social getting your plan together. What's your work like now? I was like, ah, okay. Point made like tonight. Good example. I was supposed to be, I mean, I went at work, what? I got outta work at 6 45. I was supposed to be done with work today at 2, 2 45. I was supposed to be done. And, you know, then Mr. Murphy showed up and said, no sir, no sir, you are working until six . I'm like, sit down. I get in the door and I look at my phone and I'm like, oh man, I got five minutes. I haven't even had dinner yet. So, you know, I was glad you were like, dude, don't worry about it. Just call me when you're ready. I was like, okay, cool.
Speaker 2 (51:57):
But yeah, no, there, there'd be no way for me on that. Yeah. Life, can we, we don't have that luxury anymore. It's not like that. And it's okay. It's evolution. Life. Life. Be life in, man. Yeah. It does life. Be life in. Well, thank you for coming on, brother. It was good to have you fun to share your story again, a little bit there. And, uh, I'm glad that, uh, glad you, you did. Thank you. Yeah, thanks for having me back, Brian. And I'm glad you're here, man. We'll be, I'm really glad you're back dude. , we'll be talking again. It gives me, it gives me something to, to kill an at least an hour on my Friday. At least. At least, at least. help on one of those bad drives. . Yep. All right. Get back in the green room. I'll talk to you in a second.
Speaker 2 (52:38):
All right. All right, ladies and gentlemen. There you go. Hey, look, we said it through the episode a bunch of times, and I'll say it right here, face to face with you, if you got something going on, it's completely and utterly okay to not be okay. It really is. It's not a bad thing to get mental health. It's not a bad thing to call a friend. None of that. Don't worry about what the other people are thinking. 'cause guess what? They're not the ones paying your bills. They're not the ones seeing you every day. You or you, if you got stuff, handle your stuff and come back at life stronger. I'm always glad you're here. Every, uh, couple weeks that I have an episode drop for you. Take good care of yourself wherever you are and, uh, keep rocking it out. So until next time, we'll see you then. Yeah. Uh, I, I guess I, I'm outta here.