Episode 97 features the multitalented Jacob Burgess.
He not only Makes Words Happen, but he can also inspire thought and reflection as he did for me in the following conversation about traveling, theatre, seeking, learning, personality, and authenticity, plus we trade some platitudes and much much more.
Throughout the conversation, we discuss:
- Person v. Personality
- ADHD
- From the East Coast to the West Coast
- Travel and Journeys
- Looking for a voice
- Seeking
- Expectations
- The need for the unexpected
- Touching IPs
- Being surrounded by creators
- How precious our time is
- Overachieving
- Curiosity
- What’s wrong with easy?
- Toxic productivity
- Authenticity
- And much more
Mentioned and Helpful Links from This Episode
Music created and provided by Henno Heitur of Monkey Tongue Productions.
–End Show Notes Transmission–
–Begin Transcription–
00:00:00:01 – 00:00:22:59
Agent Palmer
Previously on Agent palmer.com. Human condition is the subtle neon glimmer of downtown owl. Have faith that this date and trilogy has more secrets to reveal. And since just last episode, Charles has released two D&D editions, a diss track, and a few podcast episodes. The man is a creative force of nature. This is the Palmer Files episode 97 featuring the multi-talented Jacob Burgess.
00:00:23:08 – 00:01:10:02
Agent Palmer
He not only makes words happen, but he can also inspire thought and reflection as he did for me in the following conversation about travel, theater, seeking, learning, personality, authenticity. Plus, we trade some platitudes and much, much more. Are you ready? Let’s do the show.
00:01:10:07 – 00:01:32:49
Agent Palmer
Hello, and welcome to the Palmer Files. I’m your host, Jason Stershic, also known as Agent Palmer, and on this 97th episode is Jacob Burgess. He is a man of many talents and voices, jokes and stories. But above all, he is a genuine person who may be one of the best listeners I’ve ever met. I encountered Jacob through Desert Bus for Hope, a charity fundraiser for Child’s Play, which we discuss.
00:01:32:54 – 00:01:52:28
Agent Palmer
But as this played the first time I saw him and many times since, Jacob is a storyteller. Of the many stories, you’ll hear us talk about transitioning from the East Coast to the West Coast. Travel and creation is journeys. Looking for a voice, doing the best you can with what you’ve got. Wanting more fresh stories to tell. Doing live theater.
00:01:52:28 – 00:02:14:45
Agent Palmer
Overachieving. Seeking balance. Learning to say no and guarding your yes. Curiosity. And along the way we trade quite a few platitudes. No fortune cookies were harmed in the making of this episode. All of that and a whole lot more is coming your way shortly. But first, if you want to discuss this episode as you listen or afterwards, you can find all contact information for Jacob and myself in the show notes.
00:02:14:50 – 00:02:36:27
Agent Palmer
You can visit Jacob’s website, make Words happen.com to see what he’s done and where he’s been. Don’t forget, you can see all of my writings and rantings on Agent palmer.com. And of course email can be sent to the Palmer files at gmail.com. So without further ado, let’s get into it.
00:02:36:32 – 00:03:02:55
Agent Palmer
Jacob, you are a person. And, from from where I sit, having, encountered you on the internet, a personality. And I, have watched not I’ve not seen everything you’ve done, and I’ve not taken part in everything you’ve created. But I know that you are a person and a personality. And I just wanted to ask, there seems to be quite a bit of crossover.
00:03:02:59 – 00:03:08:06
Agent Palmer
Is that on purpose, or is that just your person bleeding through?
00:03:08:10 – 00:03:13:06
Jacob Burgess
Quite a bit of crossover between me as a person and the personality that I put forward.
00:03:13:11 – 00:03:14:48
Agent Palmer
Yeah.
00:03:14:53 – 00:03:41:59
Jacob Burgess
I get really tired trying to put on an act, which is why I like a lot of what you see is is what you get. It’s just who I am. Like, some parts of it is who I am. Turned up to 11. But if I equivocate when I’m all. When I’m not telling the truth, it makes me very tired.
00:03:42:04 – 00:03:58:03
Jacob Burgess
Like, I just get exhausted. So a lot of times what you see is on me, and I try not to because a lot of what I do is on the internet. I try not to say or do anything that I won’t be able to live with in ten years. You know, 20 years, 30 years.
00:03:58:03 – 00:04:21:07
Agent Palmer
That’s a that’s a very that’s a good way of putting it. I just, I will say I, I don’t have a pretense because I’m, I don’t believe I’m creative enough to keep one up. It might be tiring for some. I just don’t know if I. If you ask me a question, I can give you an answer.
00:04:21:07 – 00:04:29:40
Agent Palmer
I don’t know if I have the mental faculties to manufacture some other thing.
00:04:29:45 – 00:04:50:25
Jacob Burgess
Yeah. I mean, I’m, I’m I’m a classically trained actor. Like like if I actually, like, trained in the classical style in a bunch of different styles of acting and one of the major, one of the things that that, that I hold to as an actor is you’ve got to tell the truth. It doesn’t have to be your truth, but it has to be the truth.
00:04:50:26 – 00:05:06:39
Jacob Burgess
It has to be the truth of the character. And if it’s just me on the internet, I’m not. I can’t I can’t lie about myself. Yeah, I just I don’t want to. It gives me gas. It’s just awful. So you devil talks out of my plight that.
00:05:06:44 – 00:05:40:51
Agent Palmer
You are classically trained actor, but, like, I know you as, an internet personality is what I’ll go with. But you’re also a writer and a, teacher, and, like, you wear many hats. What? Like, it’s. And this is a thing that I think I’m coming to terms with myself, which is just as life has gone along, I have collected hats and for some reason, I have decided not to put them down.
00:05:40:56 – 00:06:14:40
Jacob Burgess
I blame undiagnosed ADHD, for a large part of it. Because, and trying to just, you know, build my own career, for lack of a better term. Sure. Because I didn’t get diagnosed with ADHD until I was 40. I’m currently 42. I’m going to be about 43 at the the year of this recording. And a lot of it has been I just want to see if I can do it because I’ve always wanted to I’ve always wanted to try, and I’ve gotten quite good at the things that I do.
00:06:14:41 – 00:06:39:50
Jacob Burgess
I’ve narrowed down a lot to, to what I do. I try to limit it to words. If it has to do with words, I can do the thing with words. Yeah. You know, voice acting, writing, voice direction. I’ve been a teacher in the past. I am not. I’m not currently a teacher. I have had, voice acting, students in the past, but it’s, I’m a much better mentor than a teacher.
00:06:39:55 – 00:06:56:13
Agent Palmer
Okay, okay. Yeah, I it’s just like, I. I would rather be your friend than your coconspirator. Right? Like. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I the the the one thing I know.
00:06:56:13 – 00:06:57:22
Jacob Burgess
It’s that kind of a.
00:06:57:27 – 00:07:06:28
Agent Palmer
Yeah I the, the one thing I wanted to ask you because it, it, it astounds me is, you’re are you, are you native to New York?
00:07:06:40 – 00:07:19:32
Jacob Burgess
Is that I’m native to New York State. I spent a lot of time living in New York City. Okay. And, part of my heart will always be there. And there’s a part of that city that will always be carried with me.
00:07:19:41 – 00:07:26:51
Agent Palmer
Okay? Because I I’m I’m in the, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. So I’m, I’m, I’m, you know, 60, 90 minutes.
00:07:26:51 – 00:07:27:47
Jacob Burgess
You kidding?
00:07:27:52 – 00:07:29:12
Agent Palmer
No, that’s where I’m at.
00:07:29:16 – 00:07:34:00
Jacob Burgess
I love Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Yeah. The magical hedgehog is one of my favorite ice cream shops.
00:07:34:00 – 00:07:36:21
Agent Palmer
Okay. Yeah, yeah, I, I.
00:07:36:21 – 00:07:37:54
Jacob Burgess
Just I love Atlanta, Pennsylvania.
00:07:37:54 – 00:07:56:46
Agent Palmer
I, I, I have, I, I’ve picked up on the East Coast humor sometimes. Right. Because there’s very much and an East Coast humor and, and you are, decidedly not on the East Coast anymore.
00:07:56:51 – 00:08:00:32
Jacob Burgess
I am not. No, no, I’m on the west coast of Canada.
00:08:00:37 – 00:08:17:43
Agent Palmer
Was it was it, easy to, like, transition because obviously, as in speaking just from the humor, like, there’s, cultural differences.
00:08:17:48 – 00:08:37:40
Jacob Burgess
That is correct. No, not no, it wasn’t easy to transition. It still isn’t. I still run into, I still run into communication problems. I still run into the issues and and cultural things. And again, I don’t want to ever say, like, you know, one coast is better than the other. Like, one is better than the other.
00:08:37:40 – 00:08:54:42
Jacob Burgess
It’s just it’s where I was raised. It’s part of who I am. And I still run into, I still run into issues here. One of the best phrases that I ever heard of, one of the cultural differences between the two coasts I personally have found this to be true is that in New York will say fuck you to say hello.
00:08:54:47 – 00:09:11:15
Jacob Burgess
In California, for example, like the West Coast will say hello to say fuck you. And I, I have found that to be, and again, in my own personal experience, salt and pepper to your own taste. In my experience, I have found that to be quite true.
00:09:11:20 – 00:09:38:03
Agent Palmer
Has the, what I would call learning experience, the growing pains of changing, the cultural culture that surround you, has that helped in the rest of the the words stuff? Because obviously you’re not in this what I would call New York cocoon where like, it’s all kind of what you’re used to. And now all of a sudden, well, not now, all of a sudden, but then all of a sudden at a point, you’re not.
00:09:38:09 – 00:09:38:58
Agent Palmer
Yeah.
00:09:39:03 – 00:10:12:01
Jacob Burgess
It’s a I’ve traveled a lot, like, a lot. And, I’ve lived in a bunch of different countries and, bunch of different places in, in, both Canada and the United States and travel, travel, add seasoning to your life and it absolutely helps expand your horizons. You cannot travel and not be changed in some way. If you manage to travel and not be changed, you are either the Vitruvian Man and perfect in every way.
00:10:12:06 – 00:10:33:48
Jacob Burgess
Or I were just thick. Thick as opposed and just just completely self-assured. And in who you are, if you have traveled and are not able to change, and have not changed and have not let that affect you, yeah, it helps with everything. And my opinion.
00:10:33:53 – 00:10:34:48
Agent Palmer
Yeah, I.
00:10:34:53 – 00:10:35:40
Jacob Burgess
It’s.
00:10:35:45 – 00:11:08:49
Agent Palmer
Yeah, I don’t, I don’t get out much for me of late. It’s been all about creating the thing has kind of been my own. It’s a different kind of journey. Obviously. It’s a different kind of travel. Travel, so to speak. But as I’ve been creating things, I agree it has been, it I’ve, I one of the things that I’ve been looking for is my voice, and I don’t know that I’ve found it yet.
00:11:08:54 – 00:11:32:20
Agent Palmer
Despite the fact that, like, I’ve been a, like a an active blogger on the internet for over a decade, I’ve been an active podcaster, talking, you know, being me, you know, I was cast in, one audio play, and they were like, dude, just do it yourself. We know you’re not good with voices. And I’m like, oh, okay, that’s perfect for me.
00:11:32:25 – 00:11:58:32
Agent Palmer
I just don’t know that I’ve found the the thing and I. Yeah, I’m okay with that. But like, I do have that like, envy and jealousy where like, I’ll watch like some other creator and I’ll go, oh my God. Like, I know it didn’t happen overnight, but like, I think this guy’s got his voice.
00:11:58:37 – 00:12:24:21
Jacob Burgess
Well, I want to be very clear in that I don’t think travel is a necessity in life. And I absolutely agree with you that creating a journey for yourself and creating your own worlds in order to do that, that journey of self-discovery. And then this may sound just trite as, as hell, is that an inward journey?
00:12:24:21 – 00:12:41:32
Jacob Burgess
And and soul searching is still it’s under what I would consider that kind of travel, that thing that had space. It’s you’re looking for something. You’re seeking something. You. It’s not the necessarily the destination, but it’s allowing the journey to change you.
00:12:41:37 – 00:12:41:59
Agent Palmer
Yeah.
00:12:41:59 – 00:12:44:19
Jacob Burgess
It’s I sound like an Instagram reel.
00:12:44:19 – 00:13:12:15
Agent Palmer
No, no you don’t because it’s, it’s it’s one of those things where like, I, I, it’s the fortune cookie of, like, I don’t know what it is, but I’m sure I’ll know it when I see it. The problem is, I, I think I enjoy the wandering, like, I don’t know that I want to actually. But, yeah, I do get jealous.
00:13:12:15 – 00:13:33:00
Agent Palmer
And I’m still jealous of those people that were like, you know, got out of high school and were like, I’m going to be an accountant and went to school and got a degree. And then became accountants. It’s like, good, good for you. But like me, I’m just going to be the guy that while I could go from A to B, I’ve wandered way off the beaten path many times.
00:13:33:05 – 00:13:57:55
Agent Palmer
And, I think one of the reasons that I, connect with you as a, as a viewer when I see you on, on things. Is that you are speaking to that part of me that’s like, not rested. That part of me that’s like. Yeah, just keep like, for lack of a better term, roll the die.
00:13:57:57 – 00:14:02:29
Agent Palmer
Like, it’ll, you know, you’ll you’ll get what you get. Who knows.
00:14:02:43 – 00:14:23:41
Jacob Burgess
I yeah, that’s a large it’s doing the best you can with what you’ve got. Like that’s I think that’s the juice. Like that’s the secret sauce is just doing the best with what you got. And using what you’ve got to try and get what you want.
00:14:23:45 – 00:14:26:30
Agent Palmer
Yeah, yeah yeah I.
00:14:26:35 – 00:14:29:15
Jacob Burgess
But thank you. That’s that. That means a lot to hear.
00:14:29:16 – 00:14:48:10
Agent Palmer
Well it it, I, I’ve kind of like, what’s the word I, I’ve sequestered myself, for a bit, over the last decade where it was like I wasn’t.
00:14:48:15 – 00:15:06:38
Agent Palmer
Looking abroad, so to speak, on the internet as a world, and it was kind of like, I’m going to read this book. I’m going to listen to this album, I’m going to watch this movie, and I will write about it, talk about it, what have you. And then it it was just kind of like that was that was it.
00:15:06:42 – 00:15:35:06
Agent Palmer
And while there are journeys to be had in movies and books and music and all the like, I think you need or I’ve come to this like, I think you need to find. I don’t I, I and this is where I hate labels, but like small independent creators that speak to you or at the very least inspire you to either want more or do more.
00:15:35:11 – 00:16:07:31
Agent Palmer
And I, I just I’m at a point now where, because I’m not sure what I’m looking for. I almost need to be looking at the other independent creators because, like, I, I not that there are a lot of people who know what they want to do, but I don’t know what I want to do. Although, you know, I always grew up thinking that 40 would be, like, like a static thing, right?
00:16:07:31 – 00:16:33:21
Agent Palmer
Like you’re 40. You have a job, you have a whatever you have or whatever. And then, you’re good. And while I don’t look, I don’t I don’t feel 40, I don’t in my mind’s eye, I’m still an idiot at, like 20 something, right? Like, I think in our mind’s eye we’re all, yeah, just pure idiots. But, like, I still keep looking for something.
00:16:33:26 – 00:16:37:03
Agent Palmer
Thank God it’s not trouble as much as it used to be.
00:16:37:07 – 00:16:40:58
Jacob Burgess
Oh. Yeah.
00:16:41:03 – 00:16:46:22
Agent Palmer
I don’t. Do you find that the trouble has kind of gone away from your wandering?
00:16:46:27 – 00:16:50:17
Jacob Burgess
No, because I’m an idiot.
00:16:50:22 – 00:16:52:23
Agent Palmer
In your mind’s eye, or.
00:16:52:28 – 00:17:09:01
Jacob Burgess
My risk management skills have gotten way better. Okay, but every once in a while, I need to be able to just walk into a room full of strangers and just not know what’s going to happen that night.
00:17:09:06 – 00:17:10:35
Agent Palmer
Okay?
00:17:10:40 – 00:17:42:28
Jacob Burgess
It doesn’t have to be strangers, but somewhere, I don’t know, somewhere I’m completely unprepared for what might happen and being able to be open and accept it. Can I go out and get kidnaped by an Irish bachelor party and drink the night away? No, I can’t do that anymore. Would I go and introduce myself and like, have a drink and then set a boundary and be like, well, good night gentlemen.
00:17:42:33 – 00:17:57:02
Jacob Burgess
This is great. But I like, the way that I like to the way that I like to think about it for myself is I don’t I don’t ever not want to have a fresh story to tell.
00:17:57:07 – 00:17:58:43
Agent Palmer
Okay.
00:17:58:48 – 00:18:07:40
Jacob Burgess
Yeah. And whether or not that involves trouble or not, I’m okay with that. I’m okay either way.
00:18:07:45 – 00:18:20:34
Agent Palmer
Now, I. I know that you, First of all, I forgot to mention I love the website. I wanted to tell it. I like, make words happen. Might be my favorite domain.
00:18:20:38 – 00:18:25:35
Jacob Burgess
Thank you. Thank you very much. I really appreciate that. I’m really proud of it.
00:18:25:44 – 00:18:41:11
Agent Palmer
Do you have a favorite medium for the words like is it, is it text? Is it audio? I’ll even include video. Like, do you have a favorite medium for for I don’t know, conveying those words.
00:18:41:16 – 00:19:03:18
Jacob Burgess
It really depends on how tired I am and if my meds are working that day. But if you’re out of everything that I do between, like, the writing and, and the online performance and stuff, they all occupy different spaces. And I use skills from each in each because you got to use what you get. Yeah.
00:19:03:23 – 00:19:29:28
Jacob Burgess
You know, you use what you got and I don’t think I have a favorite. It really depends on timing, mood and energy levels a lot of and how much I like the project. Like if it’s for a big IP or something, then at that moment that’s my favorite thing. Like, especially if it’s like an IP that I really love.
00:19:29:33 – 00:19:50:35
Jacob Burgess
Then that’s my favorite way to do it at the moment. Because I love getting my fingerprints on on IPS that I love just to have that one. Like little thumbprint be like that little thing in the corner. I did that at school and I made that trash can. Yeah. Yeah. So I think it. Yeah, unfortunately, my answer is it all depends.
00:19:50:35 – 00:20:15:53
Agent Palmer
No, no. That’s fine. I mean, I think that we all want that because, like, I, when I was 14, I had the best job a 14 year old geek could ever have. I worked in a gaming shop. There was Magic the Gathering. There were networked quake, Diablo, Warcraft two, Tides of Darkness, computers. And there was daddy to be had whenever.
00:20:15:53 – 00:20:29:21
Agent Palmer
Right. And so, because of, I don’t know how it happened, but we got to playtest one of the Star Wars role playing games for West End games. It was like one after new.
00:20:29:22 – 00:20:30:40
Jacob Burgess
That brings me back.
00:20:30:44 – 00:20:49:23
Agent Palmer
There’s like one afternoon we got to do it and like, it’s not like our names were going to go in the printed book. We were just like a nearby gaming store that like, I guess the owner was like, hey, I have some people, I have some kids that might be interested in this, but like, that was decades.
00:20:49:23 – 00:20:59:53
Agent Palmer
Like, I still remember that, like, I, I didn’t get my fingerprints on it necessarily, but, I got to play test a Star Wars gig. Yeah. Like.
00:20:59:58 – 00:21:07:08
Jacob Burgess
Yeah. And you got to do something that not many people get to do, and you remember it and appreciate it. Yeah. It’s huge.
00:21:07:13 – 00:21:28:10
Agent Palmer
It it’s also kind of where my gaming, like, hit its peak. I think I’ve always been trying to get back to that place where at 330 I can go to a place and just hang like I know there are stores around me, but like, it’s not my store. I think I want, I will always be searching for that.
00:21:28:12 – 00:21:30:55
Agent Palmer
Like, that was my cheers, right? Like that was.
00:21:30:55 – 00:21:32:47
Jacob Burgess
Yeah.
00:21:32:52 – 00:21:40:37
Agent Palmer
And I will always be looking for that. But. It’s so formative and I. Yeah.
00:21:40:41 – 00:21:41:44
Jacob Burgess
It’s hugely formative.
00:21:41:49 – 00:21:55:50
Agent Palmer
You’ve you’ve had your hands on quite a few ships. And I don’t want to pit one against the other. I just want to say this. There are plenty more ships you haven’t had your hands on.
00:21:55:55 – 00:21:56:27
Jacob Burgess
That’s true.
00:21:56:29 – 00:22:08:00
Agent Palmer
Is there? Is there one in particular you haven’t touched that? You’re like, well, I, I, I if like like pie in the sky, like doesn’t matter like that. You, you really want to put your.
00:22:08:00 – 00:22:36:12
Jacob Burgess
Fingerprints mass effect. Okay. Mass effect, mass effect. All right. Absolutely. Oh my god. In any way, a BioWare game, has always been my mountaintop. When I started my voice acting career, I set my sights on BioWare because I figured it was a tall enough mountain that if I just ended up going for it, I would end up somewhere good.
00:22:36:17 – 00:22:36:40
Jacob Burgess
Okay.
00:22:36:40 – 00:22:37:10
Agent Palmer
Yeah.
00:22:37:15 – 00:22:57:33
Jacob Burgess
You know, if I just. If I aim for it, you know, it’s it’s the, shoot for the moon. And even if you make your mind among the stars like that, like, I kind of took that idea and just went, okay, BioWare. But, yeah. Yeah, a being BioWare game is, was was my thing, but, like, Mass Effect would be the.
00:22:57:37 – 00:23:03:46
Jacob Burgess
Oh, man, if I get to put my fingerprint on that. God, that’d be so cool. Oh, gotta love Mass Effect. Yeah.
00:23:03:46 – 00:23:04:09
Agent Palmer
I mean.
00:23:04:24 – 00:23:06:45
Jacob Burgess
It’s every Codex entry to every damn game.
00:23:06:49 – 00:23:18:46
Agent Palmer
Isn’t there? That thing of, like, you have to put it out in the in the in the universe, right? Like, this is just me furthering you putting it further out in the universe, wherever I, I appreciate that.
00:23:18:51 – 00:23:24:00
Jacob Burgess
Yeah. Oprah tells me it’s the secret. So, you know, Oprah’s never wrong.
00:23:24:05 – 00:23:40:17
Agent Palmer
You you, I get to hide behind, a microphone when I do this. And when I do my blog, I get to hide behind a keyboard. You are live on the internet. Sometimes.
00:23:40:22 – 00:23:41:36
Jacob Burgess
I,
00:23:41:41 – 00:23:49:33
Agent Palmer
This is, for our generation. We kind of grew into this. We didn’t grow up with it.
00:23:49:37 – 00:23:50:35
Jacob Burgess
Yeah.
00:23:50:40 – 00:24:22:56
Agent Palmer
Do you I, I almost want to be like, what would 12 year old you think of, like, just playing games on the internet and having people watch, but I won’t. What I’m going to do is say, what is it like being live like because I’m not a performer by nature? I would call myself a host if anything, or a facilitator, but not a, an entertainer, but, like, you’re literally like, you’re you’re center stage.
00:24:23:01 – 00:24:42:28
Jacob Burgess
I mean, that’s that’s how I look at it is when I live, it’s just theater. And even if I’m doing like a stream and there’s like, say, 20, 20 to 50 people, up to 100, I’ve, I’ve been in front of audiences of 6000. It’s theater. It’s just theater with the camera. It’s a black box. Like that’s how I see it.
00:24:42:28 – 00:25:06:23
Jacob Burgess
And I’m there to facilitate. Have. Just to borrow your word briefly, is to facilitate everybody’s good time like it’s, it’s just a black box theater and. Excuse me. Sorry for burping there. I just got I get so excited the ghosts come up. Is I, and that’s that’s how I kind of try to measure, measure my success.
00:25:06:23 – 00:25:27:54
Jacob Burgess
Like, I try to keep it in theater terms for myself. Like there are some people that are like, oh, only 20 people showed it to my stream. I was like, you, you have filled some Off-Broadway theaters. Like, that’s just that’s what you have done, like, and and I try to keep that perspective on it. Did. Yeah. But it’s, it’s it’s for me it’s just theater.
00:25:27:54 – 00:25:33:37
Jacob Burgess
I try to use as much of my theater training, for online performance as I possibly can.
00:25:33:42 – 00:25:53:51
Agent Palmer
Do you I, I, experience I know about desert Bus being like, stage of sorts. And obviously you just talked about, Twitch or, you know, being live on the internet as a stage, but, like, do you do theater? Do you get that opportunity?
00:25:53:56 – 00:25:56:36
Jacob Burgess
Any. But I don’t have that time, fortunately.
00:25:56:47 – 00:25:57:10
Agent Palmer
Is it.
00:25:57:21 – 00:26:21:23
Jacob Burgess
Theater doing? Doing live theater takes a lot of time. It’s great and wonderful and rewarding. And I grew up doing theater. I’ve been a professional actor for a very long time. I will always love theater, but it takes up so much time. Because I’ve been doing a show for three months. You’ve got four months of rehearsals.
00:26:21:23 – 00:26:37:34
Jacob Burgess
You’ve got to if you’re fortunate enough to be part of the principal cast, you have to memorize all the lines. You have to, you know, you’ve got to make it to every rehearsal. I mean, you have to a lot of times you’ve got to you’ve got to love it if you want to do theater and something else because it’s going to take it.
00:26:37:34 – 00:26:43:21
Jacob Burgess
It. I love theater, but boy, theater. Theater can be really selfish.
00:26:43:21 – 00:27:04:15
Agent Palmer
I, I was a sound and light engineer, so, like, I feel like I have no idea what you’re talking about, because while it’s stressful during the performance. Yeah, it’s it’s it’s pretty laid back when when you’re just all in black sitting at a board, right. Like super.
00:27:04:20 – 00:27:05:35
Jacob Burgess
Yeah.
00:27:05:39 – 00:27:06:24
Agent Palmer
Like chill.
00:27:06:33 – 00:27:30:16
Jacob Burgess
Oh, yeah. I don’t I mean, I’ve done shows, I mean, it my, my first job adversity was as a rigger, for theater, like putting the drapes up and hanging pipe and things like that. So I’ve got, I’ve got training, on, on both sides of the, the backdrop, but yeah, I would love to have the opportunity to actually do more live performances.
00:27:30:21 – 00:27:47:19
Jacob Burgess
But like, actually, like in person. But, again, it just, it takes, it takes a lot of time even just to do improv or like a one man show, like, even if you’re just part of an improv troupe or you don’t have to memorize lines, there’s nothing on the stage, you know, getting getting together with with folks.
00:27:47:19 – 00:27:56:08
Jacob Burgess
It just it’s it’s unfortunately more time that I have right now, but it’s definitely something that I would love to get back into if the opportunity presented itself.
00:27:56:13 – 00:28:25:14
Agent Palmer
Yeah, I, I feel like it. It’s going to happen for you because like, you, you seem to be And I’m going to I’m going to paraphrase with myself. I guess I find myself surrounding myself with fellow creators in a way where I will never, ever, ever have enough time. Like there will always be. Hey, Jacob. How you doing?
00:28:25:14 – 00:28:40:47
Agent Palmer
Great. I just started this thing like that will, like, I won’t be able to go more than a couple days, maybe a week, if I was really a hermit. For that week without somebody being like, oh, I just started this thing.
00:28:40:52 – 00:28:41:38
Jacob Burgess
00:28:42:17 – 00:29:11:20
Agent Palmer
Do you, I, I find it many things like that. That is my, Kryptonite and my energy because it’s like I, I kind of want to help, everybody do all their things. And yet at the same time, I’m like, that’s a cooler thing than what I’m doing, and I don’t I’m I’m always in a headspace kind of where I don’t know how to balance those two things.
00:29:11:25 – 00:29:26:46
Agent Palmer
With the exception that one time for about a two year span, I did say yes to everything, and I didn’t sleep at all. And I, I, I learned from my mistake and I went, oh, I have to learn to say no.
00:29:26:51 – 00:29:59:04
Jacob Burgess
Yeah, that’s rough man. It’s, it’s especially with, with the ADHD. It’s learning to say no. And like, really guarding my. Yes. And understanding how precious my time is has been a very difficult lesson to learn. And I still haven’t fully learned it. I’m still I’m still learning, because of the impulse control problems and everything that comes up, it’s like, oh, that’s a cool thing.
00:29:59:04 – 00:30:19:49
Jacob Burgess
Yes, I’m going to say I’m going to commit to that. Oh, no, I’ve triple booked myself. What have I done? It’s a it is a very difficult skill to learn, but it’s one of the most important skills a freelancer can learn is realizing what they’re worth and realizing how precious their time is. More than anything else, almost.
00:30:19:54 – 00:30:42:12
Jacob Burgess
It’s one of the most precious things that you can give somebody and imagining that you’re handing over when somebody asks for a couple of hours or something like that, imagining you’re handing over a couple of gold bars, because ultimately you have a vault and it’s a very deep vault, and it’s filled with gold bars, and that’s all the time you have, and you cannot replenish it.
00:30:42:17 – 00:30:46:06
Jacob Burgess
It’s one of the most precious things you can give somebody else.
00:30:46:11 – 00:30:51:42
Agent Palmer
Do you find time for yourself in all of this?
00:30:51:47 – 00:31:21:16
Jacob Burgess
I have to, or else I can’t do anything that I do. Okay, I, I have to it’s that’s not a choice anymore. It used to be. It used to be where I was just like, yeah, I could. I’ll just do anything. It’s fine now. But then I really understood. Started to understand what feeling tired was like being emotionally drained and being, and learning what a spiritual drain felt like.
00:31:21:23 – 00:31:47:03
Jacob Burgess
And I only know what those things are because I started surrounding myself with some excellent, excellent people that are better than I am in a lot of ways, and make me want to be better and change myself for the better. That challenged me to push myself not in a terrible, awful get off your ass kind of way. Or no like.
00:31:47:03 – 00:32:03:44
Agent Palmer
That. It sounds like they’re challenging you to find the, balance. Right? Like that’s the the I mean, it’s it’s it’s not just a word, and it’s not just a board, like, you really need to find that space. Yeah. And.
00:32:03:44 – 00:32:05:04
Jacob Burgess
Quality over quantity.
00:32:05:09 – 00:32:34:56
Agent Palmer
Yeah, I, I don’t know about you like, I’ve, I’ve found I’ve had to sacrifice things. That I didn’t expect, like, just you, you know, maybe, just maybe don’t watch the movie because you want to write about it. Watch the movie you’re not going to write about because not everything has to be work, right? Which is. Yeah, I understand that.
00:32:34:56 – 00:32:36:30
Jacob Burgess
That’s so hard to learn.
00:32:36:30 – 00:33:02:11
Agent Palmer
Not a thing a lot of people think about. But like, anytime I consume content, I can. I’m a I am a blogger, so I can always be like, oh, I this could be a thing. And it’s like, no, no, no, this, this one is just for me. And that’s a it’s it’s such it was it’s probably been the hardest decision I’ve been making, but I’ve been making it more often.
00:33:02:11 – 00:33:08:31
Agent Palmer
And every time I make the decision, it becomes less and less hard to be like, I’m.
00:33:08:36 – 00:33:09:17
Jacob Burgess
That’s really good.
00:33:09:30 – 00:33:36:14
Agent Palmer
I’m not going to write about this one. It’s, and then, okay, so there’s the other side, which is the overachiever that I think most of us on the internet, in any capacity have where I am currently. And my audience is going to get sick of hearing this, but like, it’s just going to be a thing. Like, I’ve decided to watch all of Star Trek because I never did.
00:33:36:19 – 00:33:37:02
Agent Palmer
And so.
00:33:37:04 – 00:33:39:28
Jacob Burgess
When you say all of Star Trek.
00:33:39:40 – 00:33:40:25
Agent Palmer
What do you.
00:33:40:25 – 00:33:48:27
Jacob Burgess
Mean? Every piece of Star Trek like cinema and show out there? Yep, yep. All of Star Trek.
00:33:48:29 – 00:34:05:15
Agent Palmer
All of Star Trek. And as I as I talk to you here as we record, I’m a I’m, I’m watching next gen having watched all of the original series, the animated series and the original series movies.
00:34:05:20 – 00:34:06:02
Jacob Burgess
00:34:06:06 – 00:34:10:11
Agent Palmer
And I’m writing I’m documenting my journey.
00:34:10:16 – 00:34:11:16
Jacob Burgess
00:34:11:21 – 00:34:14:28
Agent Palmer
Because that’s of course, what I decided to do.
00:34:14:41 – 00:34:16:58
Jacob Burgess
00:34:17:03 – 00:34:43:35
Agent Palmer
And I am doing the extra work of trying to pare down every series, gets a post and every movie gets a post because I wanted my blog to remain. I just didn’t want to turn it into a Star Trek blog where everything got, a thing. But it is also this very weird conundrum of like, you’re going to write about seven seasons in one post.
00:34:43:39 – 00:35:16:52
Agent Palmer
You have to learn what not to make a note of, because that’s a lot of content. And so I find that it’s actually been helpful in, figuring out what’s important, at least to me, and what’s speaking to me. But but I go back and I go, well the balance I, I really screwed up the balance on this one.
00:35:16:57 – 00:35:23:15
Jacob Burgess
Yeah. Yeah I that’s that’s bananas man. That’s really like God’s bless you.
00:35:23:17 – 00:35:53:35
Agent Palmer
Well I, I found it. It all started honestly. Truthfully it was one of those things where like I get some of the references because just like if you’ve never seen Star Wars, you’ll know, do or do not like. There are some things that just transcend the show. But like, I’m starting to get to a point where like I’m hearing things, where I go, I know that’s Trek, but I have no idea what it means.
00:35:53:40 – 00:35:58:42
Agent Palmer
I’m at a point now where I want to know. And so that’s.
00:35:58:46 – 00:36:01:10
Jacob Burgess
Curiosity. The hell of the drug.
00:36:01:15 – 00:36:29:13
Agent Palmer
You know, it’s, it’s. I think it might be a second to caffeine. My my true drug is curiosity. Now, I think that’s the, Because I just want to. I don’t want to learn. I just want to know. Which I think is a very important distinction for people to understand. Yeah. Not trying to make myself smarter. Just trying to, like, catch a few more things.
00:36:29:18 – 00:36:32:42
Jacob Burgess
Yep. Trying to scratch that itch.
00:36:32:47 – 00:36:34:23
Agent Palmer
And it’s been. Oh, the the.
00:36:34:33 – 00:36:40:04
Jacob Burgess
Pursuit of law is something I deeply understand. Yeah.
00:36:40:09 – 00:37:07:44
Agent Palmer
Yeah. I feel like I’m, slowly rewriting my own, actually. But I think that’s kind of what we do for ourselves. Especially as creators and, I. I, I, a couple of years ago. I don’t know about you, but I’m very bad at anniversaries and celebrations for myself.
00:37:07:49 – 00:37:10:08
Jacob Burgess
Same.
00:37:10:13 – 00:37:29:40
Agent Palmer
Episode 52 of this show is my friend coming on to celebrate one year with me because he said, wait, you’re not going to do anything special for one year? And I was like, we’ll come on. We’ll talk about it because you do things like that and I don’t. It’ll be great. But like, I’m not someone who thinks like that.
00:37:29:42 – 00:37:46:30
Agent Palmer
I don’t, I mean, I can I can turn that around, but I’m not looking for like the easiest. I don’t know. I don’t know for some reason, I just it looks to me like the easy score. And I don’t want to do that. I’ll just write a new thing.
00:37:46:36 – 00:37:55:15
Jacob Burgess
That’s that’s tough. That’s tough. I, I, I think I get where you’re coming from, but I don’t think I can agree.
00:37:55:30 – 00:37:58:12
Agent Palmer
Okay.
00:37:58:17 – 00:38:03:21
Jacob Burgess
Because what’s wrong with easy?
00:38:03:26 – 00:38:21:19
Agent Palmer
It’s true. I mean, I guess, Okay. So I’m going to say something that is going to make me seem, ridiculous. Which, by the way, this won’t be the first time, but,
00:38:21:23 – 00:38:23:28
Jacob Burgess
Oh, a preamble.
00:38:23:33 – 00:38:53:11
Agent Palmer
I, I think one of the reasons that I don’t want to do the easy thing is because scrolling through whatever feed of your choice, you will see what I like to call lowest common denominator journalism. And I just kind of, I, I, I see that as easy. Now, it may not be it may be hard for other people, but for me I see that as easy.
00:38:53:11 – 00:39:09:10
Agent Palmer
Like, the example I love to give is Marc Maron has a 90 minute podcast, and there will be articles written about one sentence of that entire thing. It’s like, well.
00:39:09:10 – 00:39:10:58
Jacob Burgess
00:39:11:03 – 00:39:29:58
Agent Palmer
There’s a some missing context there. And so I, I see that as easy. And maybe I’m conflating easy and lazy, but like I in my head, I can’t split in my head, I can’t split them. I don’t I don’t I can’t split it for me I don’t know. Easy’s lazy. I.
00:39:30:03 – 00:39:52:21
Jacob Burgess
I get that and that, that sounds like the culture of toxic productivity got into your brains and started dancing a merry jig and superglue and a whole bunch of crap to a bunch of other crap. We’ve just met. We literally have only been talking for about 40 minutes, but that would that that’s that’s that’s what it looks like from the outside here.
00:39:52:23 – 00:40:02:00
Jacob Burgess
Well because there’s nothing wrong with easy. If that’s the only thing that you look for, then there’s something wrong with that. But no.
00:40:02:00 – 00:40:07:21
Agent Palmer
No, I’m not I mean I mean, I’m definitely not just looking for hard.
00:40:07:25 – 00:40:12:28
Jacob Burgess
Yeah. Sounds like my 20s.
00:40:12:33 – 00:40:46:08
Agent Palmer
That’s, Let me let me ask you this. Because I think it’s important. You, talked about giving your time is precious. And I was introduced to you on, Desert Bus for Hope because you were giving your time and being generous for for gener, for generosity sake. I I’ve I’ve done some fundraisers.
00:40:46:09 – 00:41:06:25
Agent Palmer
I don’t know that I’ve ever done anything on that scale, and I was just wondering, like, that’s got to be like for the for the gold bars you’re giving to Desert Bus for Hope. That’s got to be one of the higher return on investments of your gold bar.
00:41:06:30 – 00:41:27:56
Jacob Burgess
Desert bus for Hope is one of the one of the best things that I feel like I can do with my time. Absolutely. Because at the end of that week, I am spent. There is nothing left of me for nothing. I am done. And it’s worth it. Every time it it’s it.
00:41:28:01 – 00:41:53:08
Agent Palmer
I only bring it up because I it allows me to ask this one question. Jacob. You could walk into a lot of places and be anonymous because you are very much behind the scenes or a voice sometimes, but there are other places where that thing you did on the internet, on Desert Bus five years ago is going to be yelled at you from across the room.
00:41:53:13 – 00:41:57:40
Agent Palmer
And I’m, I don’t know about you, but my memory’s not that good.
00:41:57:45 – 00:42:11:43
Jacob Burgess
That happened to me. I was 110% happened to me. Somebody has been like, Snooki boo cheese. And I’m like, oh, I’m pretty sure that’s something I said some time. I don’t know what the response is.
00:42:11:48 – 00:42:27:52
Agent Palmer
Yeah, but it’s got to be you. We talk about that theater aspect of like, you having an impact and ignoring the charity aspect for a moment. Like you have an impact on people for that week. And you, you make people’s week better.
00:42:27:57 – 00:42:31:35
Jacob Burgess
I’m I’m fortunate enough and privileged enough to be in that position.
00:42:31:40 – 00:42:47:07
Agent Palmer
Yeah, I, I, it’s it’s become my favorite week of the year. It’s the one time of year where my insomnia is rewarded.
00:42:47:12 – 00:42:50:08
Jacob Burgess
I’m going to feed you for one week, you little bastard.
00:42:50:19 – 00:43:30:29
Agent Palmer
Yes, yes, yes. I, I, I I appreciate that you share yourself. And everywhere you are, which is kind of how we started this because, like, I literally was thinking about, what to start the conversation with, and I literally just wrote down person versus personality because I, I, I think for some of us and this conversation kind of just enhanced it like, you are the person and the personality.
00:43:30:30 – 00:43:34:05
Agent Palmer
And I think that,
00:43:34:09 – 00:43:35:57
Agent Palmer
Rare.
00:43:36:02 – 00:44:02:26
Jacob Burgess
I thank you. I feel like I would be a lot more successful if I had the wherewithal or the drive or the ambition to be more of a personality than a person. Because, quite frankly, that’s what sells. But I. And none of it has ever sat right with me. And it you know, you spoke earlier about jealousy and I used to get very professionally jealous.
00:44:02:31 – 00:44:33:19
Jacob Burgess
But I’m good with where I’m at because I took me here without having to compromise. And I haven’t achieved, you know, incredible heights. I’ve had some really good spikes and some great spikes. But I haven’t achieved the heights that I used to be jealous of. But I do my best to not be secure in myself and to be good with where I’m at, and to always try to get to where I want to be.
00:44:33:19 – 00:44:46:00
Jacob Burgess
But if I never get there, it won’t be because I didn’t try, and it won’t be because I gave anything up. Wherever I get it’s going to be because of me.
00:44:46:05 – 00:45:13:06
Agent Palmer
There is a phrase that when looking for a job, I have gotten side eyes from like friends and family for bringing up this phrase. And they’ll be like, well, why didn’t you look? Why didn’t you apply for this job? And I, I, I, I the answer that I would give which would get the most glaring like, wait, what is.
00:45:13:11 – 00:45:41:22
Agent Palmer
I want to be able to go to sleep at night. And this is an insomnia thing. And and this isn’t about, like, big business and whatever, whatever. I just want to know that I did some good work for a good company or a good person or a good whatever. And that’s it. I don’t want to just punch a clock for big, nameless corporate whatever.
00:45:41:26 – 00:46:05:47
Agent Palmer
I worked for a good eight a good. I worked my last professional job was great until there was new management. And I remember what it felt like knowing I was going to get let go, but doing the job anyway for a company that had, for lack of a better term, lost its soul when it got a new corporate entity and.
00:46:05:52 – 00:46:31:48
Agent Palmer
I that look, I’ve had insomnia on and off for years, so it wasn’t like that was the reason I wasn’t sleeping. But it doesn’t help that it’s like, oh, I just helped somebody I don’t really respect make money. Like I don’t want to do that. And it’s kind of what you’re talking about, like when you get to do it for yourself.
00:46:31:53 – 00:46:39:09
Agent Palmer
It’s more fulfilling and that’s, even more tiring. And then I get to go to sleep.
00:46:39:13 – 00:47:06:13
Jacob Burgess
Yeah, well, there’s a difference between being tired and being exhausted, and I want to be. I want to be very clear. Is that even when I choose to work for somebody else or hold the day job while I’m doing all of the other stuff, and I don’t want to give anybody the misconception that I’m only on the internet, and I make my full living from writing and voice acting and things.
00:47:06:14 – 00:47:26:39
Jacob Burgess
I have had some things happen in my life that has necessitated me having a higher income than I was earning at the time, so I’ve had to take day jobs. I’ve had a day job for quite some time at the time of this recording. I will continue to have a day job for the foreseeable future, because there are certain things that I want out of life and that is the way for me to achieve that goal.
00:47:26:43 – 00:47:48:05
Jacob Burgess
But I’m not going to stop doing any of the other stuff that I’m doing, and it doesn’t mean that I am giving myself to anybody else or giving up anything. My time is the most precious thing that I can give someone, and if I choose to give it to a job in order to earn income so that I can achieve my goals, then that is worth it for me.
00:47:48:06 – 00:48:24:11
Jacob Burgess
I am still doing it for myself and it’s it’s a horrible, horrible trick of capitalism that we have this neo feudal system that we feel like we are not empowered enough, that we’re just drones in certain cases. But in those cases, you are still doing it for yourself, even though your labor is going to someone else. You are using that time and that energy in order to get something for you as much as you’re able.
00:48:24:11 – 00:48:39:37
Jacob Burgess
And I understand everybody’s circumstances are different, but that’s a, it’s it’s a mindset thing that that capitalism is just hammered into people and it sucks ass.
00:48:39:42 – 00:48:40:07
Agent Palmer
Yeah.
00:48:40:07 – 00:48:42:56
Jacob Burgess
It’s everybody should be doing the best they can for themselves.
00:48:42:56 – 00:48:43:27
Agent Palmer
And, and.
00:48:43:27 – 00:48:44:29
Jacob Burgess
It’s I feel.
00:48:44:33 – 00:49:05:42
Agent Palmer
It’s very weird because I feel like it’s a different kind of mindset exercise that I have to do to get there, different from the not everything has to be content. And, maybe you should just relax.
00:49:05:47 – 00:49:19:59
Agent Palmer
Which, like, there’s all these things and I, I don’t blame anyone for the fact that, like, growing up, these were not things we were taught, because I don’t think.
00:49:19:59 – 00:49:20:37
Jacob Burgess
Yeah.
00:49:20:42 – 00:49:35:51
Agent Palmer
Anyone thought the. The two opportunities that you and I have and that we avail ourselves of to be on the internet, to write on the internet, to talk on the internet, that this.
00:49:35:52 – 00:49:37:46
Jacob Burgess
This.
00:49:37:51 – 00:50:02:11
Agent Palmer
It was it was 48 K maybe. Right. Like I, we were talking about networked computers being the thing when I was 13. Like not the internet at large, not video, not audio. So there’s a lot more. The balancing act is not 5050 and it’s not left and right and it’s not work. And don’t it’s very much a pie chart.
00:50:02:11 – 00:50:09:28
Agent Palmer
Now. And how evenly can you cut your slices. Oh God I don’t like when I go fortune cookie.
00:50:09:28 – 00:50:19:55
Jacob Burgess
But it’s also important to recognize too, that as white dudes, we have a lot of privilege. And we have been.
00:50:19:57 – 00:50:21:53
Agent Palmer
It’s true.
00:50:21:58 – 00:50:53:30
Jacob Burgess
We have been afforded opportunities that we didn’t even know were opportunities that some other people would absolutely kill for to have. And even though I grew up curious, poor, or I still have to recognize that shit’s easier for me, even though it might be hard within the context of my own life when compared to somebody else that grew up with a different ethnicity or gender.
00:50:53:35 – 00:51:02:44
Jacob Burgess
It, it sometimes it can pale in comparison. It doesn’t mean that I don’t deserve my feelings, but it does mean that I have to hold them in context. Yeah.
00:51:02:49 – 00:51:12:33
Agent Palmer
And I, I think it’s it’s part of the evolution of our. Society as a whole. And.
00:51:12:33 – 00:51:14:19
Jacob Burgess
I, I hope so.
00:51:14:24 – 00:51:20:41
Agent Palmer
I, I just, I just hope we keep moving forward.
00:51:20:46 – 00:51:49:34
Jacob Burgess
Yeah, yeah. And that’s, it’s largely up to. It’s largely up to the individual and to educate yourself and to want to, to want to be able to do that and feel that it’s necessary. Yeah. I feel.
00:51:49:39 – 00:52:15:08
Agent Palmer
Musical traveling adds spice to your life, as does metaphysical travel, which I equate with the journey of creating things, among others. I like this idea, but to me, the most important thing Jacob and I discussed was that you need to learn to say no and guard your yes, because to quote Jacob, you only have so much time. It’s the most precious thing you have.
00:52:15:13 – 00:52:37:57
Agent Palmer
I’m still working on the guarding of my. Yes, but I’m getting better. In the meantime, the time I spend on this podcast and with guests like Jacob is not only worthwhile to me. I hope that as you are still listening, it’s worthwhile to you. I never aspired to this. This is where I have ended up after making a series of decisions based upon my experiences and circumstances.
00:52:38:01 – 00:53:06:06
Agent Palmer
That’s how life works. We’re all moving and time that most precious of commodities is always ticking away. Use it as you see fit and as best you can. Optimization isn’t always about doing the most. Sometimes it’s about doing nothing at all. Thanks for listening to The Polymer Files, episode 97. And now for the official business. The Palmer Files releases every two weeks on Tuesdays.
00:53:06:06 – 00:53:24:09
Agent Palmer
If you’re still listening, I encourage you to join the discussion. You can find all related ways to contact myself and my guest, Jacob Burgess, in the show notes. There you can find links to Jacob’s website, make Words happen.com to see what he’s done and where he’s been. You can also find a link to Desert Bus for Hope, which is Desert bus.org.
00:53:24:23 – 00:53:49:43
Agent Palmer
Email can be sent to this show at the Palmer Files at gmail.com. And remember your home for all things Agent Palmer is Agent palmer.com.
00:53:49:48 – 00:54:07:44
Agent Palmer
See?
00:54:07:49 – 00:54:18:24
Agent Palmer
Me?
00:54:18:29 – 00:54:20:56
Agent Palmer
All right. Jacob, do you have one final question for me?
00:54:20:56 – 00:54:27:15
Jacob Burgess
What is your favorite food and why? What is your favorite thing to eat?
00:54:27:19 – 00:54:32:49
Agent Palmer
Oh man. Like my favorite thing to eat. I mean.
00:54:32:54 – 00:54:37:00
Jacob Burgess
Yeah, you should ask me a question. How did fucking mess with the bull? You get the horns.
00:54:37:00 – 00:54:52:41
Agent Palmer
Yeah, yeah, I think, like, Well, it’s funny because, like, in my head right now, I’m thinking of all of the things that used to be my favorite food.
00:54:52:46 – 00:54:53:19
Jacob Burgess
00:54:53:56 – 00:55:14:15
Agent Palmer
That no longer are, I think right now it is, it has evolved into my peppers and eggs scramble. I think that is my favorite thing to eat. Oh, and it’s.
00:55:14:15 – 00:55:16:21
Jacob Burgess
How do you make that take, take, take me on a journey.
00:55:16:21 – 00:55:23:58
Agent Palmer
Okay. Olive oil, some, diced peppers and onions and.
00:55:24:05 – 00:55:25:01
Jacob Burgess
Like, bell peppers.
00:55:25:08 – 00:55:48:29
Agent Palmer
Yes. Bell peppers. Whatever. I have available. And, okay, this is me being like, I make chili during the winter, and I will, save the ends of the chilies, the top of the peppers, the top and the bottom. And I’ll cut them up separately and save them so I can make this, without, like, actually having to chop everything up.
00:55:48:29 – 00:55:50:20
Agent Palmer
It’s already done when I made the chili.
00:55:50:31 – 00:55:51:10
Jacob Burgess
Nice.
00:55:51:14 – 00:56:20:55
Agent Palmer
And so it’s, depending on how many I have and how I’m feeling, there’s no, like, rhyme or reason. It’s literally just. Here’s some olive oil in a pan. Here’s a bunch of peppers, here’s a bunch of onions, and always about a, teaspoon of minced garlic. I don’t I don’t know why, but always, always. And so that soften.
00:56:21:00 – 00:56:47:40
Agent Palmer
Soften everything up a bit. Not necessarily. I don’t like, Caramelizing. The onions. I don’t go that high or that long, but just get it going, get it warm, and then usually because I’ve, I’ve been on a healthy cake, it’s usually about like a teaspoon of, like, smart balance or some kind of butter substitute strictly for the flavor.
00:56:47:40 – 00:56:58:37
Agent Palmer
It’s not, it’s not. It’s just like I want a little bit of butter flavor and then it’s rosemary, some paprika. And like.
00:56:58:37 – 00:57:00:09
Jacob Burgess
Dried or fresh.
00:57:00:14 – 00:57:01:55
Agent Palmer
Usually dried.
00:57:02:00 – 00:57:03:29
Jacob Burgess
Dried. Yeah.
00:57:03:33 – 00:57:13:56
Agent Palmer
And then I’ll, I’ll let that settle in and then I will scramble 2 or 3 eggs, depending on how hungry I am and how many peppers and onions I put in the thing. And then.
00:57:13:56 – 00:57:15:20
Jacob Burgess
Oh, wait wait wait wait wait.
00:57:15:20 – 00:57:15:51
Agent Palmer
Wait wait wait.
00:57:15:51 – 00:57:21:50
Jacob Burgess
Wait wait wait, hold on. I’m sorry, I’m sorry. Two separate pans for a scramble. Am I hearing this?
00:57:21:50 – 00:57:25:57
Agent Palmer
No no no no no no no no. So the so the the thank god.
00:57:26:04 – 00:57:26:56
Jacob Burgess
Yeah thank god.
00:57:26:58 – 00:57:37:19
Agent Palmer
No no. So the peppers and onions and everything’s in the thing then I, you know, I scramble in like, I don’t know a measuring cup. The eggs.
00:57:37:24 – 00:57:38:15
Jacob Burgess
Okay.
00:57:38:19 – 00:58:05:27
Agent Palmer
To, to get them mixed together. Then I put them in the pan and one of two things happens. I’m lazy and it becomes a frittata, or I’m not lazy and I scramble it in, and then, that’s, that’s that that’s been my favorite. Now there is a, there are two variations that are very important to tell you about of late.
00:58:05:32 – 00:58:21:52
Agent Palmer
Okay. I have started taking any leftover French fries from like lunch and throwing them in with the peppers and onions or, meatballs, which means I can leave out the salt, usually because there’s salt in whatever those are.
00:58:21:59 – 00:58:23:11
Jacob Burgess
00:58:24:27 – 00:58:34:19
Agent Palmer
And if I’m really feeling it, I will do the scramble, but I will serve it over top of corned beef hash.
00:58:34:24 – 00:58:40:10
Agent Palmer
That has become my favorite thing to eat.
00:58:40:14 – 00:58:41:01
Jacob Burgess
That sounds awesome.
00:58:41:05 – 00:58:42:10
Agent Palmer
It’s been an evolution.
00:58:42:10 – 00:58:44:57
Jacob Burgess
By the way, how much do you leave your eggs?
00:58:45:02 – 00:58:47:21
Agent Palmer
Oh, no. I want them fluffy.
00:58:47:26 – 00:58:48:06
Jacob Burgess
Yeah. Fluffy?
00:58:48:06 – 00:58:48:54
Agent Palmer
Yeah. Fluffy.
00:58:48:54 – 00:58:56:48
Jacob Burgess
Fluffy. Okay, so you just. You, fork is. Do you scramble with a fork whisk or chopsticks?
00:58:56:52 – 00:59:19:05
Agent Palmer
Fork. If being very specific, a dessert fork for some reason, I don’t know why, I started I look, I have a, I have a set of, of, of cutlery and silverware, but like, yeah, I, I always chose the dessert fork. I never chose a regular for. I don’t know why.
00:59:19:10 – 00:59:21:18
Jacob Burgess
Just this is the egg fork.
00:59:21:18 – 00:59:27:52
Agent Palmer
Now, this is the that’s the egg for like somebody literally bought me one of those, like, mini whisks.
00:59:27:57 – 00:59:29:10
Jacob Burgess
Yeah.
00:59:29:15 – 00:59:34:55
Agent Palmer
I think I used it twice, and I went, I had a fork sling. Must the forks. Fine.
00:59:35:00 – 00:59:49:29
Jacob Burgess
So here’s a little a little trick that, I, I saw a friend of mine do this, and I was just like, that’s that’s psychotic. What you’re doing is, you know, those little, like, the milk frother.
00:59:49:34 – 00:59:51:06
Agent Palmer
Yeah.
00:59:51:11 – 01:00:13:56
Jacob Burgess
Yeah, they took a milk frother, and they beat their eggs in a cup with them. And I was like, that’s banana. That’s just banana pants. And then I tried it and I was like, well, this it’s kind of this works really well. Wow. Yeah. So if you like, if you like a nice fluffy aerated egg, just getting one of those like cheap ass dollar store like milk frother things works out pretty well.
01:00:13:56 – 01:00:19:25
Jacob Burgess
I’m not saying that’s what I do, I use I, I tend to use chopsticks because I like the, the menu reality of it. Yeah.
01:00:19:30 – 01:00:20:31
Agent Palmer
01:00:20:36 – 01:00:25:25
Jacob Burgess
But I’ve used it a couple of times and it blew my mind.
01:00:25:30 – 01:00:56:21
Agent Palmer
I gotta tell you, man, it’s, very weird the the mental journey I went on when you first asked me the question. Because, like, I, it used to be steak. Steak would have been my answer as, like, a ten year old. And then it became burgers at one point. And then I stopped eating beef. For long enough that when I went back to beef, beef didn’t like me anymore.
01:00:56:26 – 01:00:59:25
Jacob Burgess
And that happened sometimes. Yes. Yes, indeed.
01:00:59:33 – 01:01:19:30
Agent Palmer
It’s so now I was like, what is it like? And I, I’m not like, I, I’m very comfortable in the kitchen. And like I could have said chicken parm, but if I’m honest, I love chicken parm. I just don’t want to make it that. Like, I could probably eat peppers and eggs all the time. Like a favorite.
01:01:19:30 – 01:01:29:54
Agent Palmer
It seems to be one of those type things. And I, I don’t want to get you started on pizza, but like, I’ve got my one pizza place.
01:01:29:58 – 01:01:30:34
Jacob Burgess
01:01:30:39 – 01:01:32:20
Agent Palmer
Yeah that’s my one.
01:01:32:22 – 01:01:38:10
Jacob Burgess
Yeah I get it. Yeah. Please don’t get me started on pizza I have opinions.
–End Transcription–
This transcription was processed by PalmerTech 3.1 and may contain errors for HUMINT (human intelligence).