Episode 27 features a friend of Agent Palmer’s Bill Sweeney as the third of a four-part series on friendship by examining one up close.
What you are about to hear is simple and yet complex. This episode and the others like it all contain four main questions.
- Why are we friends?
- How did we meet?
- How did we become friends?
- Why are we still friends?
Through the answers to those questions, the discussions, and the stories that ensue, Bill and I will dive deep into our shared past, and the meaning of and perhaps the reason for our friendship.
Mentioned and Helpful Links from This Episode
Episode 1 of The Palmer Files – The Dip with Bill Sweeney
You can also hear more Palmer in the meantime on Our Liner Notes, a musical conversation podcast with host Chris Maier and as mentioned on this show as co-host of The Podcast Digest with Dan Lizette.
Music created and provided by Henno Heitur of Monkey Tongue Productions.
–End Show Notes Transmission–
–Begin Transcription–
00:00:00:05 – 00:00:17:57
Agent Palmer
Previously on Agent Palmer dot com. How to make a difference. A review of Alan Jennings The Pursuit of Fairness a look into how a collectible card game gave me an appreciation for Twitch and Chris and I are still looking to work on that next, next big thing for us. This is The Palmer Files episode 27 with my friend Bill Sweeney.
00:00:18:07 – 00:00:58:10
Agent Palmer
This is the third of our four episodes discussing friendship by examining one up close. Are you ready? Let’s do the show.
00:00:58:15 – 00:01:24:50
Agent Palmer
Hello, and welcome to the Palmer Files. I’m your host, Jason Stershic. Also known as Agent Palmer. And on this 27th episode is the third of four episodes about friendship. Continuing with a friend from the internet. In life, we don’t listen blankly to someone else making a speech with no thoughts in our head, simply waiting for them to stop so that we can say our piece and we don’t interrupt every time we have an interesting thought.
00:01:25:05 – 00:01:48:32
Agent Palmer
Or if we do, we won’t end up with many friends. That quote comes from Michael Caine’s third autobiography, Blowing the Bloody Doors Off, which fits well for my friend and guest of honor, Bill Sweeney. It’s not that we interrupt each other, it’s that we tend to talk over each other, which is actually just a nice way of saying we interrupt each other.
00:01:48:37 – 00:02:10:28
Agent Palmer
Well, you’ll get the idea as this episode rolls on. What you are about to hear is simple and yet complex. The episode and the others like it all contain four main questions. Why are we friends? How did we meet? How did we become friends? Why are we still friends? Through the answers to those questions, the discussions and the stories that ensue.
00:02:10:32 – 00:02:35:33
Agent Palmer
Bill and I will dive deep into our shared past and the meaning of, and perhaps reason for, our friendship. Before we get into it, remember that if you want to discuss the episode as you listen or after, you can tweet me at Agent Palmer. You can tweet the show at the Palmer Files, and you can tweet Bill at Wicked Theory, or check out his endeavors of both the audio and written guide on Wicked theory.com.
00:02:35:38 – 00:02:53:51
Agent Palmer
Email can be sent to the show at the Palmer Files at gmail.com. And don’t forget, you can see all of my writings and rantings on Agent palmer.com. So without further ado, let’s get into it.
00:02:53:56 – 00:02:57:02
Agent Palmer
Bill, why are we friends?
00:02:57:07 – 00:03:29:47
Bill Sweeney
Oh, are you just going to jump in? I have no idea, man. We met and we decided, I guess, without officially deciding that, we don’t dislike each other. I mean. I it’s an odd question, now that I think about it, like, it’s like, am I supposed to kind of, like, knuckle down, get granular and say, we have, similar enough views on the world and the things that we’re into.
00:03:29:47 – 00:03:38:48
Bill Sweeney
I guess that I think that’s what it comes down to, maybe in a way. If you think if you want to really analyze friends and like how friendship works, like.
00:03:38:51 – 00:03:59:18
Agent Palmer
It’s not only is it a loaded question, but for you it’s more of a loaded question than the previous two guests, right? Zapata I knew in high school, like, you make friends in high school because you’re in high school like, otherwise you’re going to have a lonely existence in college. I met Chris, so you make friends in college again?
00:03:59:18 – 00:04:26:27
Agent Palmer
It’s like. But you and I, how we meet, and we’ll get to it. We meet later in life, right? Like I’m not at the point when we meet. I don’t think either of us is looking for more friends, which is why this becomes a little more different than others. Because I’ll be the first to admit, I thought I had all the friends like before I met you and the entire circle.
00:04:26:27 – 00:04:30:01
Agent Palmer
Like I thought I had all the friends I not that I needed, but like I thought, I know.
00:04:30:01 – 00:04:53:38
Bill Sweeney
I felt like, yeah, you don’t expect that you’re going to make new friends that like last. Yeah, in a way, like, I mean, oh, you make new acquaintances or whatever, but I look at, I had like, two thoughts, while you were talking, I think it does go to the mechanic of why friendships work. And, like, there’s acquaintances, right?
00:04:53:38 – 00:05:15:24
Bill Sweeney
Like, there’s people you meet in college, but there’s only a couple that, like. Or like the friends that you like to hang out with or be around or talk to or like they’re not the people that you just, like, put up with or just kind of know, like you seek them out. You like, I think something about that person, they’re tuned into my frequency.
00:05:15:24 – 00:05:46:03
Bill Sweeney
So it’s like I get a kick out of talking to them or, you know, whatever it may be, you know, subconsciously even of like, why they kind of appeal to you, you know what I mean? But I will say that this is the second thing. I will say that for me, the problem for people who want to be my friend is that I’m bad at being like the friend who stays in touch on, like, any level, because it’s like because it’s like all the friends I don’t talk to.
00:05:46:03 – 00:06:07:22
Bill Sweeney
If they came around and just called me like, yeah, we’d probably hang out all the time. Like it’s it’s a really messed up, one sided kind of friendship, a little bit of a way. Like, how often do I call you? Let’s put that out. Right. So because you know, we’re going to go with the other number. Right. So let’s just make it like a kind of random eye structure of a of a measure.
00:06:07:22 – 00:06:32:38
Agent Palmer
So you call me, we’re not talking returning calls. Right. We’re not talking like, oh, I called you and you missed the calling called. We’re not calling that. We’re talking like you called me on prompted. Right? I would say it’s whenever I go dark. Like if if, if you don’t hear from me for like a ten days, two weeks, then you’ll call me.
00:06:32:43 – 00:06:54:07
Bill Sweeney
Yeah. I’ll be like, are you okay? Because of how often you call me, right. So this is what I’m getting to actually like the benefit for the benefit of the listener. Like it’s I don’t call you every week. I certainly you can’t say every month, but in a month, you might get one call. Yes, but you could go several months before I call you at all.
00:06:54:09 – 00:07:16:22
Bill Sweeney
Because like you said once, I haven’t heard from you. Then I’m like, oh, what’s up with this guy? Is he okay a or B? Did I maybe piss them off? Or like, I should probably just check in because this person calls me all the time. So. But it’s similar with with Ed. Ed’s the only friend and you are the only two friends I have that call me on a regular basis.
00:07:16:27 – 00:07:20:48
Bill Sweeney
Like he doesn’t call me every day and neither do you anymore.
00:07:20:53 – 00:07:23:19
Agent Palmer
Yeah, it was a daily. Yeah. Okay.
00:07:23:24 – 00:07:48:09
Bill Sweeney
Okay, we’ll get to the daily check ins. Okay. But, as far as, like, how it works in the, in the friendship, you know, mechanic, of this, of these friendships, that’s how that plays out. So like you may have conversely, you know, called me several, many times a month. And at this point, we’re to a point where, like, you actually call me, like a few times a week.
00:07:48:15 – 00:07:50:17
Bill Sweeney
Yeah. Every, every couple of days, actually.
00:07:50:22 – 00:07:57:42
Agent Palmer
It is it is definitely paired down from what we’re about to get into.
00:07:57:46 – 00:08:19:10
Bill Sweeney
What’s funny, you know, is that how like because you’re not. It’s a testament to how un annoying you must be, at least to me, because I can’t imagine. Besides you or Ed or maybe a couple of people in my life. People that I know that are friends. If they were calling me as often as you used to fucking call me, like it would have driven me crazy.
00:08:19:10 – 00:08:19:58
Agent Palmer
I mean.
00:08:20:02 – 00:08:21:19
Bill Sweeney
So we kind of did it.
00:08:21:20 – 00:08:26:36
Agent Palmer
We will get there in the timeline, like, but but first, just to stay right now.
00:08:26:40 – 00:08:27:45
Bill Sweeney
Get back on topic.
00:08:27:45 – 00:08:41:49
Agent Palmer
No, before, before before we get there, before we get back on topic, I just want to say yes. At a certain point, like at the height, it was multiple times a day on average, multiple times a day. That was the that was what it was,
00:08:41:54 – 00:08:44:25
Bill Sweeney
Minimum of two calls.
00:08:44:30 – 00:08:47:44
Agent Palmer
It’s true. Where you pick up I mean, that’s.
00:08:47:44 – 00:08:52:50
Bill Sweeney
Yeah. What was. It’s all me then, right? It’s my fault.
00:08:52:55 – 00:08:53:21
Bill Sweeney
Right.
00:08:53:26 – 00:08:54:18
Agent Palmer
What you say? Yeah.
00:08:54:18 – 00:08:56:55
Bill Sweeney
It’s depends on how you look at it. Right.
00:08:57:00 – 00:09:01:03
Agent Palmer
All right, so let’s go into how did we meet.
00:09:01:08 – 00:09:30:01
Bill Sweeney
Through the joys of the internet, the power of Twitter. The one decent thing. Well, there’s a there’s a few. I was going to say it’s the one good thing Twitter’s ever done for me. But that’s not true. I mean, I have made some other friends and, had some good experiences that came out of it all, you know, related to the podcast circle that we found ourselves at first on the fringe of it, then somehow in the middle of.
00:09:30:16 – 00:09:31:05
Agent Palmer
Yeah, we’ve.
00:09:31:10 – 00:09:32:11
Bill Sweeney
Been we’re.
00:09:32:16 – 00:09:53:23
Agent Palmer
Like, if if we were typical wallflowers, like, we tend to be like, we like, well, you’re not podcasting right now and and I am. But you did have a podcast. We aren’t those. Hey, look at me. We very much are the Wallflowers. We are those like people.
00:09:53:28 – 00:09:56:23
Bill Sweeney
I’m a fucking hermit. I’m not even a wallflower.
00:09:56:27 – 00:09:57:09
Agent Palmer
Okay, fine.
00:09:57:09 – 00:10:00:57
Bill Sweeney
But I’m the salamander under the rock, like, you know, so I go on.
00:10:00:57 – 00:10:27:54
Agent Palmer
I’m so small again. So for the most part, so am I. Right like that. But but I’m saying, like, in a social scenario, we are the wallflowers. Like, we’re not going to be in the center of attention. And I’ve been thinking about this, I think, and this puts a very fine point on it. But I do believe that you’re the first substantial Twitter interaction we had was after your guest spot on The Stranger Conversations with Grant Marcum.
00:10:27:59 – 00:10:28:33
Bill Sweeney
I believe so.
00:10:28:35 – 00:10:42:07
Agent Palmer
I mean, we were both kind of around Grant in the seven days of Geek Circle, but I feel like at the time I was live tweeting to the tune of like 5 or 12 or 15 or 20 tweets per episode.
00:10:42:11 – 00:10:48:33
Bill Sweeney
Yes. That was your that was your M.O. you were listening to shows and then like, just comment as if we were all in the room with you.
00:10:48:33 – 00:10:55:59
Agent Palmer
Yes, exactly. And I so this is where it gets really fuzzy. Is,
00:10:56:04 – 00:11:16:12
Bill Sweeney
I wouldn’t be surprised if we had like one into. I feel like when, like wherever it is you want to kind of go to, I feel like there was 1 or 2 interactions maybe beforehand where at the very least you might have commented on something, because I think it kind of goes where I had started listening to seven dag or following seven dag.
00:11:16:12 – 00:11:44:12
Bill Sweeney
At the very least. And I think that’s how Grant kind of found me. And it might have been a couple interactions with Grant, like, like the setting up of me being on Stranger Conversations, and you might have been chiming in on that as just kind of because you, you knew of Grant and it was you were following Brad because you listened to seven Dag at the time, seven days a geek podcast with J and Grant, amongst others.
00:11:44:17 – 00:12:00:57
Bill Sweeney
And so so I kind of feel like there was a point where I was like, oh, who’s this guy chiming in? And like, I was like, oh, it’s a guy like he’s. I think you were like, sending emails maybe already or something, or it’s all or it’s all. So like within like a three week period that.
00:12:00:57 – 00:12:01:52
Bill Sweeney
It’s, well or.
00:12:01:53 – 00:12:02:22
Bill Sweeney
Something.
00:12:02:22 – 00:12:30:39
Agent Palmer
They were they were doing live shows still or at that point. And it was one of those things where the first few live shows where I was in the chat, and I have since listened back to seven Dag but like those two, Grant and J never, never picked on somebody like, never shot a target. So juicy as.
00:12:30:39 – 00:12:32:47
Agent Palmer
Me in the chat.
00:12:32:49 – 00:12:47:55
Agent Palmer
Like like I and I challenge. I mean, I’m not going to challenge everybody, but like, if you want listen to like, the 25 episodes, right before episode one, go from 75 one and listen, because.
00:12:48:00 – 00:12:49:00
Bill Sweeney
This is all coming back.
00:12:49:07 – 00:12:51:35
Agent Palmer
In hindsight, it’s like.
00:12:51:40 – 00:13:10:58
Bill Sweeney
I do. You want to you want to know what your persona was to me at that time? Yeah. It’s all coming back to me now. You were like the like the annoying is not the right word because you weren’t annoying, but you were like a Chatty Cathy kind of fan. That’s what it seemed like to me. That’s the vibe I had got in the very beginning, I think.
00:13:11:03 – 00:13:33:30
Bill Sweeney
I think I had heard your name get mentioned on the show somewhere within this narrow window of time, and it was like, Grant. Yeah, being like this guy and his agent part, God damn it. Or something. Semi exasperated. But then immediately it was like, I didn’t know what was bit and what wasn’t on that show yet.
00:13:33:30 – 00:13:50:10
Bill Sweeney
I had just started kind of checking it out. Sure. So I didn’t know how much of Grant was like, maybe him just kind of like, goofing on this guy, but playing a completely straight, like, you know, I didn’t know what the vibe was of the show. You know? I didn’t know that, like, 90% of the time, Grant is.
00:13:50:15 – 00:14:26:43
Bill Sweeney
Or I was like 95, 90, some number like that. I’m imagining him listening to this and telling me I’m wrong. I’m. That’s what that’s just happened to my head. But I kind of feel like it was a thing where like, oh, oh, so he’s like the fan. That’s like kind of like wants to be in the middle and like, got like started kind of like getting into the mix, like too fast and too verbose, like, you know, and so it’s kind of like irked these guys a little bit where it was like, maybe they weren’t ready for like, a fan like you who was going to be like, oh, sending emails and then also
00:14:26:43 – 00:14:32:18
Bill Sweeney
in the chat room and then also like live tweeting and then also like asking like, hey, what’s up? You need somebody to help out, you know what I mean?
00:14:32:19 – 00:14:34:00
Agent Palmer
And well, that was but but it.
00:14:34:00 – 00:14:40:52
Agent Palmer
Wasn’t at that point there wasn’t. Hey, let’s let me help you out like that. That doesn’t happened early on.
00:14:40:52 – 00:14:43:52
Bill Sweeney
No, no. And then I couldn’t think of another thing, but.
00:14:43:52 – 00:15:05:43
Agent Palmer
Because but it is the scenario where like, so so we’re in this I’m going to call this this nebulous kind of connection for now. Right. Because then you and I start tweeting, after your stranger cousins episode, and again, and it’s funny, at the time, my Twitter handle is Agent Palmer, but my name is still Agent Palmer.
00:15:05:43 – 00:15:09:19
Agent Palmer
Like, I hadn’t gone with who I really am.
00:15:09:24 – 00:15:12:10
Bill Sweeney
Yes, that’s right, you were. You were doubling down for.
00:15:12:15 – 00:15:21:51
Agent Palmer
And it wasn’t until my stranger cousins episode that anybody here’s anybody from the internet from that era, hears that my real name is Jason at all.
00:15:21:56 – 00:15:22:38
Bill Sweeney
Right.
00:15:22:43 – 00:15:23:37
Agent Palmer
And then.
00:15:23:42 – 00:15:25:21
Bill Sweeney
And that you’re not actually a spy.
00:15:25:30 – 00:15:51:36
Agent Palmer
But you fast forward because from that moment, it’s only like a 4 or 5. It’s less than half a year before the idea for the first pod tober fest happens. And you and I, this is where we somehow get sucked into the middle, right? Because look, look, I remember being this. Do you do you remember more? Because I remember being there.
00:15:51:36 – 00:16:02:51
Agent Palmer
And then I remember being like, sure, I’ll help out. And after that point, it’s a blur to when it’s just like, I’m calling you. And like, Bill, we don’t have segments. What do we do now?
00:16:02:56 – 00:16:29:17
Bill Sweeney
Well, here’s the thing that you kind of, might be jumping over is that you became the guy who was willing to do, like, not the grunt work, but, like, producer ish. Kind of like, do you want me to take minutes? Do you need someone, like. Like you were already without without offering a producer a position ish kind of, like, interest or anything like that.
00:16:29:22 – 00:16:45:37
Bill Sweeney
You were already, like, helpful, Harry. Because we have call because we will call you Harry Palmer. And it was, like helpful. Harry was a thing, too. You were always offering. Because I feel like when the whole thing happened where it was like, oh, let’s do a part or a fast thing and let’s include some people this is Jane Grant.
00:16:45:42 – 00:17:12:55
Bill Sweeney
And then once, you know, it seemed also two maybe even in those meetings you had, you know, just helpful eagerness to take on a certain amount of work. And I think when it was for me and my head was like, okay, I could see how to structure it a little bit, I thought, and also, I think it kind of went down as I like, for lack of a better terms for both of us.
00:17:12:55 – 00:17:38:24
Bill Sweeney
Like, I’m the creative and you’re the taskmaster in a way. Like, oh, not Taskmaster, but like you know, the guy who will take my jumbled up thoughts and then be like, let me bounce more of you or whatever, this kind of thing. And so as far as, like how we worked together, I think it worked together well because I don’t have resistance conversationally with you.
00:17:38:28 – 00:17:41:16
Bill Sweeney
It turns out, in those creative back and forths.
00:17:41:21 – 00:17:49:25
Agent Palmer
That’s like, yeah, no, that’s fair. Like you don’t have to finish a thought and I can still get to the end of your thought.
00:17:49:30 – 00:18:10:15
Bill Sweeney
Well, that and I just mean, like, maybe it’s a personality thing for me versus like Grant and J. But it also felt to me like they and because it was their show, so they wanted to maybe have more control of the ideas or whatever, whatever the instinct is. I’m not saying that they were like maniacal in any way.
00:18:10:20 – 00:18:19:59
Bill Sweeney
I just mean, like, you know, sure you would. It seemed to me like you would throw out ideas and get a little bit more pushback or bump up against it from them.
00:18:20:08 – 00:18:20:35
Agent Palmer
Oh, no.
00:18:20:35 – 00:18:24:38
Bill Sweeney
Like I and I think I did too, a little bit, but not as much as.
00:18:24:38 – 00:18:25:09
Agent Palmer
You know.
00:18:25:17 – 00:18:26:09
Bill Sweeney
It was like because.
00:18:26:15 – 00:18:27:06
Bill Sweeney
Because, you know.
00:18:27:07 – 00:18:29:19
Bill Sweeney
Ether with you like.
00:18:29:24 – 00:18:31:49
Bill Sweeney
Yeah, you know. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Like okay.
00:18:31:49 – 00:18:40:11
Bill Sweeney
You know. Yes. Obviously Palmer we have, we know we have to do x, y and Z okay. And it’s like for me, I would have just been like okay. Right. Sure. Yes. No.
00:18:40:11 – 00:18:48:03
Agent Palmer
The nice thing in hindsight, I remember it taking me about two meetings to be like, Bill needs to pitch everything.
00:18:48:07 – 00:18:49:55
Agent Palmer
Like because for whatever reason.
00:18:49:55 – 00:19:01:05
Agent Palmer
Like at that time, if I said something and then you said something, they would be like, let’s go with Bill’s idea. And I would be like, that’s what I just said.
00:19:01:10 – 00:19:05:08
Agent Palmer
I don’t well, you know, I don’t I don’t know what do.
00:19:05:09 – 00:19:30:43
Bill Sweeney
But not to toot my own horn, but I think the thing is that like a lot of the stuff, maybe you were throwing in would be like structurally sound, but it may not have been, like, dialed in all the way, you know, where a lot of the stuff that would come out of my head is just it’s for that whatever it is for, for their personal tastes or for what we were doing, I was a little more automatically dialed in.
00:19:30:43 – 00:19:44:48
Bill Sweeney
So like, you would come, we could both come with the same idea. But I think the thing is that, like, my idea was going to have that next little piece that if you had pitched it, they’d be like, okay, but I need something else.
00:19:44:53 – 00:19:46:50
Agent Palmer
Yeah. That’s fair. I was it’s hard.
00:19:46:50 – 00:19:53:36
Bill Sweeney
For me to kind of like put my head around it. You would sit down and be like, let’s do top ten list. I would pitched a top ten list.
00:19:53:36 – 00:19:54:16
Agent Palmer
Yeah, okay.
00:19:54:16 – 00:20:09:12
Bill Sweeney
That you don’t I mean, not not just the concept, but I would also be like, we should do a top ten list of all the, failed Batman gadgets, like, you know what I mean, or something like that, where you’d be like, let’s do top ten lists. And so to these guys or to anybody, it’s like, you know, all right.
00:20:09:21 – 00:20:17:55
Bill Sweeney
Yeah, sure. Top ten lists, you know, and that’s just because I’ve gotten used of like the creative pitch meeting thing a little bit more.
00:20:17:57 – 00:20:28:16
Agent Palmer
Well, what’s funny is all of this is happening in that first pod tober fest. And at this point, I’m not going to say we’re friends yet.
00:20:28:21 – 00:20:32:24
Bill Sweeney
Oh, sure. We to be on topic, by the way. Good, good, good of you to bring it back.
00:20:32:29 – 00:20:56:40
Agent Palmer
But we know each other. We’re we’re at a certain point, especially because you and I have, schedules that lined up, you know, Jane Grant weren’t necessarily working 9 to 5, but they also have kids and families. So you and I that are working nine to fives at that point are just like, well, it’s 7:00 and I, I, I can we can work on this like we can do this.
00:20:56:45 – 00:21:15:49
Bill Sweeney
Yeah. And I think that’s where I changed, you know, I mean that’s where if I had to look back over at all, that’s where it’s like, well where did you guys kind of become like more than just a couple of guys who, like, knew each other? It’s it’s it’s literally the whole behind the scenes Pat tober fest because of Tober Fest one.
00:21:15:49 – 00:21:35:02
Bill Sweeney
Because it’s it’s literally that it’s literally we were just guys who both listened to the show and both had a similar relative experience with it. And it’s like, oh, you know, because we’ve interacted with them, they see some skill sets for both of us. And it’s like, let’s pull this one and let’s pull that one in. Let’s pull Stephan, let’s pull in.
00:21:35:14 – 00:21:48:28
Bill Sweeney
The Canadians, you know, whoever I kind of get to forget the whole roll call, but, Gordon Poutine, was there. Yeah. Gordon. Gordo, as as I like to call him.
00:21:48:33 – 00:22:18:57
Agent Palmer
Well, it’s funny, because I, I go a step further because that first pod tober fest, my partner of four of seven years, right, left me and you were not only was working on pod tober fest a like a solace, like an escape, but like, traction. You you, my availability. You actually put up with me, like, whining about it, like.
00:22:19:01 – 00:22:35:18
Bill Sweeney
You know what? You know, it’s funny, for as much as, like, we spoke, you didn’t whine about it. You didn’t bring it up much, I should say. Get me wrong. I think it was fresh wound ish kind of thing. So, like when it did come up, we talked about it for a length, you know. Yeah, a healthy length.
00:22:35:23 – 00:22:54:27
Bill Sweeney
Because when I got tired of it, you know, I mean, I’ll fucking because we’re like that now where it’s like, if I’m tired of whatever we’re talking about, I’m like, I’m done to move on. I will just pull the eject button on you. Which is the last of a railroad kind of, being a jerk to you is, I think, sometimes.
00:22:54:32 – 00:23:15:04
Bill Sweeney
But, Yeah. You didn’t bring it up that much. I feel like when we talked about it, we did kind of go over it a little bit. But for a guy who, like, when we did go over it, you know, had some layers to it, like, you know, if it probably would have been something that came up more often when you look at the amount of calls.
00:23:15:08 – 00:23:16:46
Agent Palmer
Yeah. Well, we, I think.
00:23:16:50 – 00:23:21:14
Bill Sweeney
We only I mean like on a per capita volume type of thing, like, you know, I mean.
00:23:21:22 – 00:23:40:42
Agent Palmer
I but I’m a workaholic by nature, which, you know, about me even more now than then. So it was not that hard to pivot. Like I could be like, hey, Bill, how’s it going? And then after five minutes of like, oh, I watch this show, or I saw this movie, it’s like, hey, we got a like, we don’t have any.
00:23:40:47 – 00:24:10:49
Agent Palmer
We have nine gadgets for the top ten. Like it was not hard for us. What happened? What’s what I’m curious about as far as like remembering is that first Pod Octoberfest happens like you’re there. I’m not. But we don’t like it. Doesn’t stop after that first pod tober fest, and I don’t, I do not, and you. This is where you like.
00:24:10:49 – 00:24:25:14
Agent Palmer
Your memory comes in like I don’t remember saying. Bill, I’ll help you with your show. And I don’t remember you saying like, Palmer, come help me out. I just kind of remember, like, we moved on to the next thing, like.
00:24:25:14 – 00:24:40:38
Bill Sweeney
Well, you always offered to help in such a honest and genuine and and, like, totally like blasé. Hey, like, it’s totally cool. Like, if you don’t want to way without even like that, you were offering to help.
00:24:40:43 – 00:24:41:10
Agent Palmer
Okay?
00:24:41:10 – 00:24:44:44
Bill Sweeney
I don’t that kind of thing. You don’t remember me resisting. You don’t remember me resisting.
00:24:44:46 – 00:24:45:36
Agent Palmer
I remember, look.
00:24:45:38 – 00:24:49:07
Bill Sweeney
Not with the launch, but like when it was running for a while and it was like.
00:24:49:14 – 00:24:53:53
Agent Palmer
I know you’ve resisted a lot of things, Bill. I just kind of keep going. Like.
00:24:53:53 – 00:24:56:06
Agent Palmer
Yeah, you’re right. You don’t remember at all.
00:24:56:11 – 00:25:05:31
Agent Palmer
Your resistance is the immovable object that I just keep hurling myself into. And occasionally I somehow get through like.
00:25:05:36 – 00:25:22:41
Bill Sweeney
That’s. Yeah, I think that’s fair. I think that’s fair. But that’s the thing, right? That’s. I think that’s how that started. I think it was very much you offering to help out, you know, I mean, and because you could see stuff on the back side only because we would have conversations about the show.
00:25:22:43 – 00:25:23:27
Agent Palmer
This is true.
00:25:23:27 – 00:25:38:19
Bill Sweeney
So you would offer it as a genuine like, oh, well, you know what you could do? You could be doing this that the other I would probably shoot it down because I would see it as more work. And you’d be like, well, I could do it for you. It’s not a big deal. It’s not hard to do. I could listen live and take notes.
00:25:38:19 – 00:25:46:50
Bill Sweeney
Then you don’t have to write or you don’t have to write a description of your episodes anymore, Bill, because I’ll just have it all done for you by the end of the episode. And I was like, and what am I going to say no to that?
00:25:46:50 – 00:25:48:24
Agent Palmer
That will I mean, that’s.
00:25:48:29 – 00:25:50:19
Agent Palmer
That’s that’s another step like.
00:25:50:22 – 00:26:22:00
Bill Sweeney
But it’s stuff like that. Okay. But I feel like that’s the that’s maybe like a larger step, but there are smaller, much more incremental steps that kind of happen. I was talking all the time with you just kind of being a guy who offered to help, you know what I mean? So is it. And because and you were offering to help because a like, you know, we were we were getting along, but be like, you were, you know, you were into this fucking scene, you know, the, the, the podcasting stuff of it all, you know, in the grand royal sense.
00:26:22:05 – 00:26:52:11
Bill Sweeney
You know what I mean? So it was like, hey, I’m eager, I got time. I can do it. You know what I mean? This all seems like nothing to me, so, But I can’t remember exactly where, like it started. But I do remember, like, being like. No, no, I got it. I’ll a bunch of things early on not to do a heavy lifting for you, but it was just like my own guilty conscience of, like, how much work I should be doing myself that I knew I could do if I applied myself.
00:26:52:16 – 00:27:00:23
Bill Sweeney
You know, I didn’t want to. Like, I wasn’t comfortable with doling out, I wasn’t comfortable delegating even small things in the beginning.
00:27:00:23 – 00:27:18:39
Agent Palmer
I think that’s the answer to the question, how did we become friends? Is because, when you like and I still remember you did a live episode for episode 50. But around episode 46, 47, you started actually,
00:27:18:43 – 00:27:19:42
Bill Sweeney
I, I.
00:27:19:46 – 00:27:52:47
Agent Palmer
I don’t want to use this word, but it’s the only word I’ve got collaborating with me on some wicked theory stuff. Now, it wasn’t like we hadn’t even gotten to the cog in the machine joke and the remote assistant, like, we hadn’t even gotten there yet. But I think that’s when we became friends, because that show, and even in all the incarnations that, and I hate to say you, but like that, we kind of tried after, towards, you know, what is now the end.
00:27:52:52 – 00:28:15:36
Agent Palmer
That was such a personal show, like, yes, you shared the mic with three other people or two other people or four other people depending. But like when you started bringing me on the inside, like, because it was your baby, you don’t. Right? I mean, yeah, I, you know, for, for a creative person, you don’t invite any.
00:28:15:36 – 00:28:16:52
Agent Palmer
Just anybody.
00:28:16:52 – 00:28:35:58
Agent Palmer
In your circle to be like, all right, this is this is my ship. You can drive it for a little bit. Like that was when I knew. And and and what’s funny is that happens before we were trapped in a metal box together for, like, 14 hours.
00:28:36:03 – 00:28:59:43
Bill Sweeney
Well, that sounds much more interesting than what really happened. We were trapped in a shipping container for 14 hours. We were trying to travel cheap and, no, it was just us. And like, just Furbies, like Furby. Recall just hundreds of Furbies down count. Yummy. I don’t even know what they do, but they make noise. No, but I see.
00:28:59:43 – 00:29:37:07
Bill Sweeney
Well, I would say that that’s interesting that you say it’s there. I think it’s I think it’s one of those things where we became friends without like actually having like a specific moment or time. To me, it’s like it happened in a gradual way where it was, you know, like. And that’s why I say it started I feel like it started way earlier because I know if I had to look back and pick a point, like for me, like, and how I, I guess, bond with people, it seems like to me like I let you into my world in my head early on.
00:29:37:07 – 00:29:48:27
Bill Sweeney
And if anything, I guess like after October, fast way like you when you point out to like, oh well, we kept on talking all the time anyway. Yeah, yeah, the phone calls didn’t really stop.
00:29:48:29 – 00:29:51:29
Agent Palmer
Yeah, punch over. But yeah, the first pod tober fest happens.
00:29:51:29 – 00:30:08:30
Bill Sweeney
And like, the reason to get all the calls, your reason, quote unquote, to be calling me all the time originally. Yeah. Was because of the work on October Fest. But several of those calls would also be like, oh, hey, you know what? I was just thinking. And it’d be something like, I don’t know, I just I’m unrelated to podcasting.
00:30:08:31 – 00:30:25:05
Agent Palmer
I will say this, right now and I’ll probably say it a few times, before this is out, the conversations you and I have when we are not working on something could be recorded and a podcast unto themselves.
00:30:25:10 – 00:30:25:44
Bill Sweeney
Yeah, because we.
00:30:25:45 – 00:30:26:12
Agent Palmer
Hear.
00:30:26:17 – 00:30:27:14
Bill Sweeney
People say that we.
00:30:27:14 – 00:30:46:04
Agent Palmer
Are both those people, but, like I am. It’s a personality thing because, well, you are comfortable being like, no, I’m out. I’m still comfortable cutting you off, which you absolutely hate.
00:30:46:09 – 00:30:47:30
Bill Sweeney
But like, my worst thing is, yeah.
00:30:47:39 – 00:31:08:18
Agent Palmer
You don’t hang up, like, you know what I mean? Like, we still. Yeah, yeah, there’s still a give and take there, but like, there’s a real honesty. And it developed during that, that first pod tober fest. So I can see where it would have happened earlier. I just, I picking up the phone, I didn’t at that time.
00:31:08:18 – 00:31:11:56
Agent Palmer
I didn’t realize you picking up the phone was such a big deal.
00:31:12:01 – 00:31:26:51
Bill Sweeney
Well, the continued. Yeah. Picking up the phone, that’s for like, you know what I mean? Like, And it’s not even like that. We’re friends. Do call. Like I answered the phone for people when they call.
00:31:26:56 – 00:31:29:16
Agent Palmer
Yeah, but you didn’t have to answer the second time I called that day.
00:31:29:27 – 00:31:49:55
Bill Sweeney
No, but I also could have, like, if if, if I had, like, found you annoying or something like that, or, for some reason was like, all right, look, we were like, on the patio protesting, so, like, this guy’s gonna dial it back, like, like, I don’t even know. What the hell do you even said do that.
00:31:49:55 – 00:32:05:26
Bill Sweeney
Like, how do you even, you know, like, dude, you got to cut down. Actually, I probably could have just come out and said it to you because I had that kind of a friendship with you at that point. Yeah, I kind of association. I could have been like, dude, you know, let’s dial it back on the on like ten phone calls a day, like a day or two.
00:32:05:30 – 00:32:07:13
Bill Sweeney
Well re you know, the.
00:32:07:13 – 00:32:08:10
Bill Sweeney
Internet saved it.
00:32:08:11 – 00:32:11:49
Bill Sweeney
So before wouldn’t save it for when you got something good, buddy. All right. Actually.
00:32:11:53 – 00:32:23:50
Agent Palmer
That’s the thing, right. It could have been we could have used the internet for good there. It’s like, hey, Bill, I put a pitch in the thing, and that could just be a text I used to call. You’d be like, Bill, I got an idea. Like, yeah.
00:32:23:54 – 00:32:27:07
Bill Sweeney
I want to. I don’t.
00:32:27:12 – 00:32:28:39
Agent Palmer
So many ideas.
00:32:28:51 – 00:33:03:25
Bill Sweeney
Pro you, you came at me with so many things that like, you know, segments, some bits, some just like, here’s like half an idea, like, what do you got? What is that one of the. Because because you keyed in to my sensibilities really quick. That’s another thing too, I think in a way where which was which is the thing I do dig about being having you as a friend is that like, oh, well, this guy kind of does has figured me out a little bit as far as like my where my sense of humor lies or where my head kind of goes.
00:33:03:30 – 00:33:23:13
Bill Sweeney
But, it did take you a while to get there. So you did pitch me, like, a lot of stuff, but they were all like, close, but not exactly it. And then, you know, you know, that was always the thing about me, like, oh, I wanted more from my show. But like, I don’t know what that was about.
00:33:23:13 – 00:33:44:59
Bill Sweeney
Where, like, you know, because even the guys in the show, like, offered to do more and like, yeah, I kind of like, know would like, I don’t know. I want to say that I don’t mind other people’s ideas, but the pattern wouldn’t show that, like, you know, it would seem like, no, you don’t want nobody’s help. Like, you know what I mean?
00:33:45:04 – 00:34:00:11
Bill Sweeney
Like, I wouldn’t have been surprised if you had called me out on that. Now that I think about it, like back in those days and been like, you know, dude, I keep on offering to suggest stuff. We actually, you know what? You’re so fucking maddening sometimes that I bet you we did have a conversation about.
00:34:00:12 – 00:34:01:08
Agent Palmer
I’m sure this is.
00:34:01:10 – 00:34:11:17
Bill Sweeney
Where it might have been for you. Like, hey, am I am I hitting you with too much? Is it like, you know, because you do ask me that stuff, like, you know, do you want me to do this? Should I not? Yeah. That’s, you know.
00:34:11:26 – 00:34:35:18
Agent Palmer
So. So right now, the most recent version of that was Bill. You’re not podcasting. And for a while, right? For a while was Bill. When you’re going to when are you going to start recording the show again? Like when you, when you, when you get it back up. And at a certain point I was like, Bill, I’m going to I’m going to dial it back and just, is it all right if I just ask you once a month because I feel like you’re just like, I don’t need to ask you every day and anymore.
00:34:35:20 – 00:34:59:16
Bill Sweeney
Yeah. I’ve allowed I’ve set it up with you where it’s like, hey, sometimes you know what? I need reminders and or prodding, so don’t worry about, like, asking me that stuff. But you don’t have given me a nudge because, you know, it’s it’s still up to me. What do I do to not. You’re not coming at it like a you’re like a you’re like, I’m like a Microsoft kind of like app that kind of like reminding you of certain things, like, you know what I mean?
00:34:59:16 – 00:35:18:27
Bill Sweeney
Like, you were kind of just like, hey, I’m just Clippy. I’m just coming in, like, are you sure you want to write that? You know what I mean? Or, hey, just a reminder, you know? I mean, no harm, no foul. Do what you want. Just a reminder. And so at a certain point, with those reminders and things you have said, do you want me to stop you check back in, like, you know what I mean?
00:35:18:27 – 00:35:22:59
Bill Sweeney
It’s like, okay, I’ve been asking you this for three months. Do you want me to keep asking you?
00:35:23:04 – 00:35:48:37
Agent Palmer
So I want to talk about that second pod Tober fest. Because if we become friends before the second pod tober fest, it’s still a scenario where we’ve only met once before. That second pod tober fest. And that was because you brought your entire podcast to my house.
00:35:48:42 – 00:35:54:20
Bill Sweeney
Our one and only remote recording. That’s true. Yeah. That’s true. You should feel fucking honored.
00:35:54:20 – 00:35:57:39
Agent Palmer
That was the first time we met though as well.
00:35:57:52 – 00:35:58:47
Bill Sweeney
00:35:58:49 – 00:36:22:55
Agent Palmer
So when the second pod I don’t know if you want to dive like because that was the thing where it was you and the guys came, it wasn’t just you, but like the ideas for the second pod tober fest start coming around and Grant is I going to say he’s banging the drum like Palmer Sherman here.
00:36:23:02 – 00:36:24:15
Agent Palmer
You are not.
00:36:24:20 – 00:36:26:06
Agent Palmer
Remoting this.
00:36:26:06 – 00:36:28:10
Agent Palmer
Year. Everybody’s coming.
00:36:28:15 – 00:36:29:06
Bill Sweeney
Yes and yes.
00:36:29:18 – 00:36:45:22
Agent Palmer
I don’t I said I wasn’t going to fly, I don’t did I ask you like did was I like build. You want to drive with me like I don’t remember how. I just know that at a certain point you agreed to drive to come with me because you don’t try.
00:36:45:23 – 00:36:46:57
Bill Sweeney
To be the to be the passenger.
00:36:46:57 – 00:36:50:23
Agent Palmer
Yeah, I don’t, but do you remember any of that part?
00:36:50:28 – 00:37:03:46
Bill Sweeney
Not really, but I’m sure we talked it out, the logic of it and for whatever reason, that must have been the more logical or just plain interesting thing to do.
00:37:03:48 – 00:37:04:22
Agent Palmer
Well, see.
00:37:04:33 – 00:37:23:33
Bill Sweeney
Because, because, because ultimately I’m only an hour and a half away from you. Yes. By, by drive. You’re in Pennsylvania. I’m in Staten Island, New York. So it’s kind of felt like, oh, well, if we drove, you would just be able to come scoop me up, and then we hit the road, you know what I mean?
00:37:23:33 – 00:37:30:27
Agent Palmer
And you put. You put pressure on me, though, because, however, we agreed that you would come with me.
00:37:30:32 – 00:37:31:23
Bill Sweeney
00:37:31:28 – 00:37:58:48
Agent Palmer
All of my like, machinations about like maybe I won’t show up are gone, I don’t have, I can’t it’s not that I can’t show up now. Like I can’t like whatever it’s that I’m, I’m bills transportation now. So now pod tober fest is not hinging on. Well they can do without Palmer. It’s. Well they can’t do without Palmer and Bill because at the squadron we were so integral.
00:37:58:49 – 00:38:00:02
Agent Palmer
It was like.
00:38:00:07 – 00:38:07:38
Bill Sweeney
What you’re not clarifying for people is the fact that you hammered in hard about going period.
00:38:07:38 – 00:38:08:26
Agent Palmer
The end. Yes.
00:38:08:30 – 00:38:16:18
Bill Sweeney
Period the end. And it wasn’t about like, oh, I don’t like those people. It was about like the, the, the, the home body.
00:38:16:23 – 00:38:19:07
Agent Palmer
Well, well, that was resistance. But it was.
00:38:19:21 – 00:38:23:19
Agent Palmer
It was the travel. It was the anxiety travel. It was this, it was there was the.
00:38:23:19 – 00:38:39:26
Bill Sweeney
Whole kind of thing like, oh, this is this is kind of like a nutty thing, like just going to do it. Yeah. And, like, you know, that’s how I feel about, like, a lot of, things to, like, I get like that to where it’s like. Like there’s a bigger voice in your head. It’s saying that.
00:38:39:27 – 00:38:58:28
Bill Sweeney
I mean, just just just just walk away from it. Just just just just just, you know, like, you don’t you don’t have to. You don’t have to do that. You know, you can you can not do that. You know, which is a voice I’ll get in my head like, you know, when it’s about like any big thing that’s too that feels for whatever reason, the anxiety makes it feel bigger than me.
00:38:58:30 – 00:39:16:29
Bill Sweeney
Yes. Like, you know what I mean? It’s like serious life decisions or stuff that like, it shouldn’t feel like a serious life decision because other people just do it like you. I mean, but to me, this, this going to the DMV or this jury duty or some simple fucking thing like, you know, so I get those anxieties too.
00:39:16:29 – 00:39:32:31
Bill Sweeney
So I when, when we were trying to get to the root of, well, if you’re going to go, how are we going to get there? And you were like kind of like not feeling it. It did come to a point where like I was like, well, you have to like lock it in by a certain point because if I’m going to buy a fucking ticket.
00:39:32:40 – 00:39:48:43
Bill Sweeney
Yeah. Like I kind of got to know, like, you know what I mean? So the nature of it did kind of put a little pressure on you. On top of that, I’m glad that you said yes. I’m glad you just said fuck it. Like you know, or gave in to if I was berating you.
00:39:48:54 – 00:40:22:26
Agent Palmer
It really wasn’t just you like I had. I do not like, up to the. There were two things, up to the point of making the decision for whether you were buying a ticket or coming with me, and then up to right before I went to go get you. I never heard from Grant through and and and and Ginger like and Jason and, like everybody, you were the only one who wasn’t on me.
00:40:22:26 – 00:40:46:11
Agent Palmer
Like, are you going to go get Bill? You’re coming. Right? Like we’re going to this is going to happen. Like, because everybody was so nervous, which didn’t make it any easier for me. But like at a certain point, you’re right. I was just like, I, I fuck it, I’m in like, and and I, I remembered leaving work and going to get you because, you know, I did that.
00:40:46:16 – 00:40:57:12
Agent Palmer
And then so we could start from my house and go right to Michigan and then like, we just kind of got up and went like, yeah, it was just. Yeah.
00:40:57:25 – 00:41:14:43
Bill Sweeney
And what’s hey, it was easy. It was easy for me, man. I just got to sit there. I didn’t have to drive. You seemed like an okay driver. Within the first ten minutes or so, I was like, okay, this guy’s not crazy. He’s definitely like a ten and two on the wheel, which, you know, it’s good, it’s responsible, but it doesn’t show a whole lot of confidence in the world.
00:41:14:48 – 00:41:16:06
Bill Sweeney
Okay. Yeah.
00:41:16:11 – 00:41:28:37
Agent Palmer
Well, what’s funny is I’m like, well, no, what’s funny is like, we get up in the morning and we go and it’s literally the second time we’ve met and there’s no.
00:41:28:42 – 00:41:32:47
Bill Sweeney
We didn’t do anything. We. You just got me and we went, yeah. It’s, you know, like.
00:41:32:47 – 00:41:38:56
Agent Palmer
It’s it’s like we’d known each other for like 20 years. Like it was just kind of like, oh, yeah, this is and.
00:41:39:01 – 00:41:39:16
Bill Sweeney
But.
00:41:39:24 – 00:41:53:11
Agent Palmer
Look, first of all, for me inside it was not just another road trip, but looking back at the things we actually did, it was it was literally just another road trip. Like we just grabbed coffee and we went, yeah.
00:41:53:22 – 00:41:57:28
Bill Sweeney
And then got a lot like a smoke. Yep. And then, you know, I think.
00:41:57:28 – 00:42:00:23
Agent Palmer
It was 14 hours later, we arrived in Michigan.
00:42:00:28 – 00:42:06:51
Bill Sweeney
Yeah. Which is probably a lot longer than I need to be because we stopped so many times for me, but, well.
00:42:06:51 – 00:42:08:47
Agent Palmer
I didn’t have smoking in my car.
00:42:08:52 – 00:42:12:26
Bill Sweeney
And you were saying to that you were. You were taking the brakes.
00:42:12:28 – 00:42:13:00
Agent Palmer
Oh, no.
00:42:13:00 – 00:42:21:02
Bill Sweeney
The brake because of the driving. Because the driving, you know, that long is not something that you’re, you know, you’re accustomed or. Yeah, however it.
00:42:21:02 – 00:42:28:01
Agent Palmer
Was working. Yeah. 90 minutes was the longest I was. I mean I could go longer but 90 minutes was the average for me usually.
00:42:28:01 – 00:42:31:34
Bill Sweeney
So yeah the breaking it up was good, you know.
00:42:31:38 – 00:42:56:01
Agent Palmer
So yeah, we, we get to, the that we get to the second pod tober fest and it’s, I hesitate to say this for everyone, but for me, it was just like meeting you for the first time. Like it? It was. There’s all these internet people. I’ve never met them before in my life, but I don’t feel out of place.
00:42:56:06 – 00:42:56:40
Bill Sweeney
00:42:57:12 – 00:43:06:29
Agent Palmer
Which I know we never talked about it because the one thing about that drive, while we did stop a lot, was we were still putting the show together.
00:43:06:33 – 00:43:08:01
Bill Sweeney
Right. Yeah. Yeah.
00:43:08:01 – 00:43:15:15
Agent Palmer
You weren’t driving Bill, but you had the binder and a notebook open like the entire way.
00:43:15:20 – 00:43:23:54
Bill Sweeney
That’s true. Yeah. You’re right. I kind of forgot that we were. We were working on it that much on the way up. I wonder if we actually got anything done.
00:43:24:05 – 00:43:30:47
Agent Palmer
I don’t I mean, we must have because the setup, it did come out like we I mean, we pulled it off.
00:43:30:52 – 00:43:32:18
Agent Palmer
I mean, as we sit here now.
00:43:32:18 – 00:43:55:10
Bill Sweeney
Like we know we did, we did get our work done, you know. Yeah. But yeah, yeah, yeah. You know, and it also to like when you said that, you know, it’s like, oh you we grouped up at all these people when we get there and it’s like, you know them, but you kind of don’t. And it kind of reminds me a little bit of, like, because I when I went back to school.
00:43:55:24 – 00:44:14:21
Bill Sweeney
Right? So the initial thing there is like, are you going to tell everyone we don’t know anybody, but then like, oh, like by that Friday. Yeah. Like you’ve kind of settled in a little bit like that first tip of the toe of settling in to like, okay, I know some of these people now because, because in that school you were kind of like moving in a pack, you know?
00:44:14:30 – 00:44:16:22
Agent Palmer
Yeah.
00:44:16:27 – 00:44:34:53
Bill Sweeney
So, you know, that’s what kind of felt like to me, I could compare it to, in a way where it’s like, oh, okay, I kind of, I, I know all these people a little bit. I got, I got a good vibe on them coming in the door, which is an unusual thing to kind of have when you quote unquote, meet people for the first time.
00:44:34:53 – 00:45:01:28
Bill Sweeney
Like, you know what I mean? Like, oh, you know, there’s Paul, you know, I know her from her tweets, only really like, you know, maybe 1 or 2, like, group chats, group scapes, you know, then everybody else like, to varying degrees, you know what I mean? But, yeah, yeah, yeah. I mean, there’s it was a little weird for the first day or so, but luckily, you know, I had known Grant already from the first visit, so, like, you know.
00:45:01:33 – 00:45:15:36
Agent Palmer
And I think that vibe, one of the things that you and I have in common is we we can put in the. We’re not afraid to put in the work if we’re passionate about it. Sure. If it’s a thing we want to get done, we’re going to do it.
00:45:15:36 – 00:45:16:21
Bill Sweeney
And yeah.
00:45:16:36 – 00:45:34:33
Agent Palmer
That first day after we arrived was like, we didn’t leave the podcasting room, quote unquote, for like the whole all I remember about the day prior to going live is sitting with notebooks. Yeah. Well, I was just like, yeah.
00:45:34:38 – 00:45:53:01
Bill Sweeney
We were sitting with notebooks and we were making, not copies, but we were kind of fine. We were finalizing a bunch of things and kind of going over stuff, and we went late with it, if I remember correctly. I don’t know why that. I can’t remember what we were doing to all of those hours that we were like really crunching.
00:45:53:15 – 00:45:54:36
Bill Sweeney
I just remember that we were crunching.
00:45:54:36 – 00:46:05:05
Agent Palmer
So it was it was go, go, go from like, I don’t know, 8:00 in the morning until like 1 to 1 a.m.. And then it’s like, well, we got to be live in six hours like we got, I.
00:46:05:05 – 00:46:20:23
Bill Sweeney
Guess, I guess, I guess we’re done. And it’s like. And then conversely, it’s like, how much of that stuff even got used, of course, on air or whatever, but like, and for all the work quote unquote, that we put in like, you know, it’s like, why were we still fucking doing shit the last minute?
00:46:20:24 – 00:46:21:29
Bill Sweeney
Why it should.
00:46:21:29 – 00:46:30:49
Bill Sweeney
Have had that we like think about it. Think about how much time, like how many meetings and conversations. But still at the very end, we were like doing that shit for.
00:46:30:53 – 00:46:43:41
Agent Palmer
Think about it this way. Crazy. It was literally like 24 hours. We had 14 hours in the car where all we were doing was talking about it. And then the day before, we’ve got another 12 hours. We could have, we could have done, but.
00:46:43:41 – 00:46:46:36
Bill Sweeney
Also two months, but also like two months before that.
00:46:46:41 – 00:46:55:01
Agent Palmer
We could have done nothing for two months. We probably could have done all of that work in those 24 hours. Like, we’re not those people. Like we’re going to talk about it.
00:46:55:12 – 00:47:06:09
Bill Sweeney
Well, I am like the worst when it comes to like, I do my projects for school the day before, you know what I mean? That kind of or the morning of. But I think every.
00:47:06:14 – 00:47:09:22
Agent Palmer
To an extent everybody’s done that. But sure.
00:47:09:22 – 00:47:28:18
Bill Sweeney
And I think there was a certain amount of volume of figuring things out for a lot of those hours. Now I’m thinking about two. It’s like like we had lists and things like that. Like we had a lot of go to small things that had to kind of be filled out like the rest of them, like, you know, it was like, oh, if we were doing a list, it’s like, do we have enough?
00:47:28:22 – 00:47:42:06
Bill Sweeney
Like we only have like 7 or 8 or like, you know, what is this bit, what is this thing we have set up? You know what I mean? So I think there was a lot of like dotting the t’s and crossing their eyes, but there was probably that on every single item. And I mean.
00:47:42:06 – 00:48:02:40
Agent Palmer
I know that, and it was talked about on episode ten of this show when Paula was on that you and I hadn’t. I don’t want to call it like a boys club, but you and I had it was not just a friendship at that point. You and I had a quote unquote partnership, is what I’ll call it, because you and I could work together.
00:48:02:45 – 00:48:09:39
Agent Palmer
And Paula was like, well, you guys weren’t open. And I was like, well, we we weren’t, but we had a we had a process down.
00:48:09:44 – 00:48:28:09
Bill Sweeney
And our problem was that we or she already had a shorthand. And so it would definitely be a thing where like, we got that will take care of that or we did that already or like, you know, I mean, so it was like they were like, hey, we’re here to help to like, hand us stuff like, you’re, I mean, and I guess in the end, we weren’t really handing them work.
00:48:28:10 – 00:48:43:27
Bill Sweeney
You know, we added at the end, at the end it was like, oh, we agreed that we would handle like each because each thing would come in and it would just internally feel like for me and then for you probably two that like, oh, I know exactly what that thing is or what that needs to be, I got it, I’ll handle it.
00:48:43:27 – 00:48:52:50
Bill Sweeney
No big deal. It’s ten minutes worth of work. And so that list probably was just so big by the end that that’s probably why we brought fucking work to the last minute.
00:48:52:57 – 00:49:22:07
Agent Palmer
Well, and it was also like an it was an East Coast bias of a sort because you and I had you know what I mean? Like at the time, you know, we were both single. Well, we’re, we have all, you know, all night, you know, whatever. Like everybody else was either out West or whatever. Like we, we had our thing down and it’s for us like in hindsight, it’s just a continuation of the pitch meetings quote unquote.
00:49:22:07 – 00:49:28:44
Agent Palmer
Like the regular like the because because I’m sure at some point I pitched you other shows too.
00:49:28:44 – 00:49:30:13
Bill Sweeney
Yeah.
00:49:30:17 – 00:49:40:47
Agent Palmer
In general, like the work that we were doing, like you’d be pitching you ideas for Patch Over, it’s no different than before, that of just being like, hey, Bill, what about this? Hey, Bill, what about that?
00:49:40:52 – 00:50:02:38
Bill Sweeney
And I was short handed kind of thing, like, you know, like, is all that. It was like, I would hate for anybody to feel like, oh, you guys were like, really boys club and just kind of like excluding the girls or anything like you. I mean, because excluded, because we exclude everybody and be all those people, the ladies especially can all fucking hang.
00:50:02:49 – 00:50:25:41
Bill Sweeney
Yeah. They all got, you know, they don’t take any shit. So they’re all fucking funny and they’ve all got great ideas and you know, they were just looking for direction, you know, and we, I think that had come up for us to at a certain point where it was like somebody must have mentioned it or whatever, or we just noticed that that that was happening and it was like because it was getting near the end, or something.
00:50:25:41 – 00:50:46:29
Bill Sweeney
I remember kind of coming up between the two of us where it’s like, oh, man, I guess we’re not really handing them stuff or somebody feels like we’re not handing them stuff. And, we didn’t do much to fix it. Although I do remember it was like me, you and Steph. Yeah. Up late, kind of, you know, working on that, being the last kind of people chipping away at that.
00:50:46:43 – 00:51:08:24
Agent Palmer
And then from. I mean, that ends and it this is the part I remember that ends and we go back and in the car ride on the way back about a half way through that first day, because we split the second the way back into two, like I think I was like, so what do we do in next year?
00:51:08:28 – 00:51:11:31
Bill Sweeney
And you were like, yeah, because.
00:51:11:35 – 00:51:19:25
Agent Palmer
You know, in full disclosure, like we’ve kind of taken a little less and less and I haven’t even been in it.
00:51:19:30 – 00:51:21:24
Bill Sweeney
No. Yeah. Me too.
00:51:21:29 – 00:51:25:38
Agent Palmer
And I think part of it was that we were so burnt out from those two.
00:51:25:42 – 00:51:56:49
Bill Sweeney
Yeah, we we we poorly managed that. Yeah. For ourselves. Looking back on it now, it’s everything that we just said. It’s that we, we, we had blinders on during the work and kept on, you know, putting ourselves on the list for to do the work and then had it up until the last minute, didn’t get a lot of sleep, drove, you know, and it’s like, you know, the whole experience is, is, is on the moment for the both of us.
00:51:57:01 – 00:52:17:30
Bill Sweeney
They expect this whole weekend experience is on the minute we get in the car, right? Like, oh, okay, here we go. You’re hanging with me. I’m hanging out with you. The fucking, you know, the energy level comes up a little bit because it’s like, you know, I get to hang out, fucking around, you know, and and then that just goes for the next three days.
00:52:17:30 – 00:52:40:05
Bill Sweeney
Yeah. You know, hell of a long six months, however long we were there. You know what I mean? But, like, you know, so by the end of it, you know, because of the car trip, more than anything, probably me and you are feeling kind of, you know, okay, like, I need a break from this. It’s like, you know, I cook, goes home, and I don’t think they all want a Coke as soon as they get home, you know what I mean?
00:52:40:05 – 00:52:42:44
Agent Palmer
But how do we get to.
00:52:42:49 – 00:52:43:34
Bill Sweeney
Yeah. Let’s move it along.
00:52:43:34 – 00:53:08:03
Agent Palmer
Cog in the machine Palmer. Because it’s after that second pod tober fest that I really start to become a part of the Wicked Theory podcast. I because I mean I was around. Yeah. But I feel like it was after that that I became a part of it. Because that first episode back I was on and we talked about the road trip and we talked up Octoberfest.
00:53:08:18 – 00:53:17:28
Agent Palmer
And from that point on, I’m, I hesitate to say the loudest, but I’m one of the loudest in the chat.
00:53:17:33 – 00:53:18:03
Bill Sweeney
I’m.
00:53:18:07 – 00:53:20:50
Agent Palmer
I’m basically moderating the chat.
00:53:20:55 – 00:53:40:50
Bill Sweeney
Well this all starts to your involvement with this with Wicked Theory starts with you being one of the people that was volunteering to send in emails like as much as it was like, hey, I’m sending emails. It was a thing. We were like, do you want me to send an emails? And I was like, yes. I was like, I want to make sure that the emails are coming in.
00:53:40:50 – 00:54:06:02
Bill Sweeney
And we had a few emails coming in in the beginning from other people too. But by having, you know, always knowing there’s at least one, but because there’s always like, you know, we had a minimum of like three, you know, like almost from the jump when, you know, we started kind of like getting a couple people to listen, you know, and then eventually that would lead up to like, you know, five or 6 or 7 regular, but,
00:54:06:07 – 00:54:06:33
Agent Palmer
Yeah, I.
00:54:06:33 – 00:54:18:54
Bill Sweeney
Was the first one that was hired. You graduated from a person who, like, will just say, you know, like, I like it wasn’t like, formulated a bit. It was just that you would send in an email. It would be whatever it is.
00:54:19:05 – 00:54:20:01
Agent Palmer
Yeah.
00:54:20:06 – 00:54:38:01
Bill Sweeney
Only when you were, like, curious and questioning would you let me know what the email was going to be. Yeah. Beforehand. And then more often near the end, you were constant telling me what the email was going to be, and you were constantly like, hey, look, in this week’s email, all right? The whole idea is it’s going like this, right?
00:54:38:01 – 00:54:58:10
Bill Sweeney
And then there’s a shift, and then I got you know, like, like taking me through it. They went from being, I’m going to send you a three questions this week. The last one’s a goof, you know? I mean, whatever, kind of like, preambles you would give me, like, during the week and then got down to, like, you were breaking them the fuck down, these kinds of things.
00:54:58:10 – 00:55:20:42
Bill Sweeney
But, I think at that point two, it was a thing where it was when I retired you from emails, it was a couple things. It was like, well, you were helping out a little bit, I think. And B, we had a lot of emails and it was like, and it was like it was. And I was, well, part of my rationale, I remember being that we were getting a decent amount of emails and it was going to be one less if there were other factors, I’m sure.
00:55:20:42 – 00:55:24:10
Bill Sweeney
Sure. Which, which which I think you were about to allude to, I don’t know.
00:55:24:10 – 00:55:37:13
Agent Palmer
No, I just I just like the idea that towards the end, my emails were a way for me to do my own bit on the show because I would, I would write emails that you would have to read. And it was.
00:55:37:13 – 00:55:39:17
Bill Sweeney
Like, you know what I mean? So it was like, I, I was like, so you.
00:55:39:17 – 00:55:42:50
Bill Sweeney
Could create a scenario where, you know, we were like, you little puppets.
00:55:42:51 – 00:55:45:08
Bill Sweeney
Here we go, here we go. I’m going to start a fight.
00:55:45:08 – 00:55:47:12
Bill Sweeney
Let’s let’s get it going.
00:55:47:17 – 00:56:08:34
Agent Palmer
So, you know, and then honestly, the rest is a blur. Like from from no emails to LA to being in the dock with you guys while the show was going and then writing the show notes at the same time, all of that feels like, well, I just stopped writing emails and and started doing the show notes, so.
00:56:08:41 – 00:56:25:56
Bill Sweeney
I think those two might overlap. I think the show notes and being in the dock might overlap, because I think that was part of it for me too. Was that like, well, now you help it out with the show too. Like you don’t have to do the email anymore. It was like, well, it was like I was giving you two.
00:56:26:00 – 00:56:46:03
Bill Sweeney
You had like these two tasks to do your, I mean, to do every week or whatever. And it was like just some weird, like small rationale of like, I don’t know, it feels like he’s, he’s, he’s, he’s doing this notes thing. It’s much more involved. Granted. Like, you know, the email can be sent any time during the week.
00:56:46:03 – 00:57:04:40
Bill Sweeney
Like it’s not a lot of heavy lifting, but it was a thing where, like, I kind of feel like that was part of it because I do remember it being like there was a like a few reasons to not that you didn’t have to do it anymore. And you know what? You know, if you’re cool with it, because I don’t remember it being a thing like you felt, well, at least you didn’t seem like it.
00:57:04:42 – 00:57:10:58
Bill Sweeney
Like you felt like, you know, something was kind of like, oh, I was having fun with that, you know what I mean? Taking it away, you know, I mean, no.
00:57:10:58 – 00:57:16:47
Agent Palmer
Well, at the time, I was like, well, Ed can do take up where I’m leaving off because at that point Ed was still.
00:57:16:52 – 00:57:17:36
Bill Sweeney
00:57:17:40 – 00:57:31:49
Agent Palmer
I think, I think I got told first might have been Ed now that I’m thinking about it, but I always felt like well Ed’s there. Like yeah I’m kind of covered because Ed and I in at least an email did similar bits. Yeah. Or they, they.
00:57:31:49 – 00:57:51:59
Bill Sweeney
Were both dialed into the shows personalities very well where like, you know, I mean, it was like, okay, I think I know what you guys work towards, like, you know, how to phrase a pop culture goofy question and also like, you know, Ed is definitely doing like hard shtick, like, you know what I mean?
00:57:52:08 – 00:57:53:39
Agent Palmer
Yeah, I was definitely doing well.
00:57:53:40 – 00:57:58:13
Bill Sweeney
You were definitely, like, fun, like just trying to be fun and funny and just make.
00:57:58:14 – 00:58:10:00
Agent Palmer
You’ll take pride in the fact that one of the most talked about episodes you ever did was because of an email question, and Bob’s answer, because that’s how we get American Tacos, which.
00:58:10:00 – 00:58:11:13
Bill Sweeney
Is.
00:58:11:17 – 00:58:27:07
Agent Palmer
The like, look, there were a million questions that I had lined up for that show, right? And I just happened to ask, is a hotdog a sandwich, which it. And that’s where we get American tacos, which you guys ran with. Yeah, we.
00:58:27:10 – 00:58:27:59
Bill Sweeney
Ran out to the ground.
00:58:27:59 – 00:58:29:06
Agent Palmer
I was just kind of,
00:58:29:11 – 00:58:33:02
Bill Sweeney
But I think I put a brakes on that, too. I think I kind of did a moratorium on that.
00:58:33:08 – 00:58:33:48
Agent Palmer
You did?
00:58:33:57 – 00:58:56:44
Agent Palmer
But what I want to. We need to go back because at this point, what we’re talking about when I’m kind of helping with it. And at a certain point, I was putting news in the doc with everybody else, even though I wasn’t on on mic. But, this is the height of everything. This is I’m calling Bill at 530.
00:58:56:49 – 00:59:17:45
Agent Palmer
And then maybe if I’m not recording that night, I’m calling again. Hey, I got another idea for the show, and it’s probably, I want to say, at its height, it’s at least I if 12 phone calls a week, probably like at least almost two a day, maybe more.
00:59:17:49 – 00:59:31:52
Bill Sweeney
Yes, more. Yes. If you said 12, but I’m thinking like eight. And then you said 12, and then you said for the week. And I was thinking day.
00:59:31:56 – 00:59:54:39
Bill Sweeney
You understand like, all right. I like when you reminded me about the, the 5:00 phone calls, it was like the 5:00 whistle on C100. It’s like all right, let’s, fucking study. We’re done with work. Let’s play a cool song. You know, kind of like I’m a dad. Like. And I think I told you I was like, you can’t call me at 505, 515, 530.
00:59:54:39 – 01:00:05:41
Bill Sweeney
I need a fucking hour. I don’t care what time I get home, but you would just kind of have something burbling and you’ve been chomping at the bit, you know, thinking about a thing and be like, hey, I just want a hit. You want something real quick?
01:00:05:41 – 01:00:16:50
Agent Palmer
I did know that. Okay. Daytime phone calls during the workday were out. Like, I think if I called you twice, yeah, during the workday over the course of like, that would have been.
01:00:17:04 – 01:00:24:06
Bill Sweeney
Yeah, I don’t want work calls, I don’t want I don’t I’m not that guy. Like, if I had if I was dating I would tell my check out Mike unless the house is on fire.
01:00:24:11 – 01:00:37:48
Agent Palmer
So I meet Steph for the first time at the second pod tober fest. And when Steph moves in and you and I had this conversation before Steph moved in, it was like, I don’t think you’re going to be calling me that often. And I was like, I probably not like that.
01:00:37:52 – 01:00:40:52
Bill Sweeney
Well, you would, you would imagine. So yeah, imagine, imagine.
01:00:40:52 – 01:00:43:08
Agent Palmer
And it has paired down.
01:00:43:13 – 01:00:46:33
Bill Sweeney
Sure. But but that took a while. The pair down took a while.
01:00:46:38 – 01:00:54:44
Agent Palmer
Yeah. We’re still off. And you know what. The rest of the world has moved to video calls and.
01:00:54:48 – 01:00:56:04
Bill Sweeney
I we haven’t.
01:00:56:04 – 01:00:57:31
Agent Palmer
We still haven’t.
01:00:57:36 – 01:01:17:34
Bill Sweeney
No no no. And I don’t think it’s that I don’t think the video calls is that pervasive I think I mean, you do see it more and more. I think it’s a little bit more generational. But, I don’t think most people want to be fucking looked at for calls like out of the blue, like a lot of people are like, if you’re going to FaceTime me, you better, you better tell me first.
01:01:17:39 – 01:01:25:53
Bill Sweeney
Like, I’ve seen that go around on Twitter like, you know, if you’re going to FaceTime you, you better let me know first. And I’m like, you know what? You absolutely right. Like, you know.
01:01:26:00 – 01:01:50:28
Agent Palmer
But I do like that. Despite still keeping up the phone calls like, I will now call you based on your tweets, like, like we’ve now gotten to a point and you’ve called me at least twice in the last six months based on a tweet and like, everything, all right? Like, it’s one of those things where none of the tweets that prompt a phone call for either of us are like, I’m so sure.
01:01:50:33 – 01:01:51:59
Agent Palmer
Like, it’s not like that.
01:01:52:10 – 01:01:53:10
Agent Palmer
But we’re reading.
01:01:53:10 – 01:02:11:21
Agent Palmer
Subtext that either is or isn’t there. And I think, yeah, we’ve been we’ve been pretty spot on. And that’s how I know. It’s like he’s in the inner circle, like we’re we’re close enough that like, yeah, even something he’s putting out to the public, I can read something into it. I’m not imagining it.
01:02:11:32 – 01:02:35:27
Bill Sweeney
Yeah, well, that’s also true. It’s like if anybody’s going to be able to read into it like it would be one of us and be, who else is going to do the call, you know, but, you know, pound for pound, I would say like when my, my downer tweets go out, they are more downer than yours. But I have but I have not put them out in a long time.
01:02:35:27 – 01:02:58:17
Bill Sweeney
That’s fair. I’ve there was a point. It was a point. I think I was doing a Facebook that I was doing on Twitter where I was just tweeting a number and that was like my anxiety level for the day or my like my depression for the day. And, that actually had peaked right before I started the podcast.
01:02:58:17 – 01:03:14:07
Bill Sweeney
I think, or in that time in that zone, actually, I started doing it before that because I remember my ex asked me what that was about, and I explained it to her and I was like, If I’m out of ten, like, like I’ll never tweet a ten was my idea. Because like, because ten means like.
01:03:14:12 – 01:03:14:55
Agent Palmer
I can’t take it in.
01:03:15:00 – 01:03:35:23
Bill Sweeney
For no, no, 1010 was I’m done. Like I’m, I’m off the roof. Like, if you ever saw ten, you should actually just send police to the house. Like on a serious note, like just, you know, I was getting like that once in a while, so, like, you know, it was it was this, like, you know, stupid, like, restrained call for help in a way.
01:03:35:23 – 01:03:54:48
Bill Sweeney
You know what I mean? Kind of thing. Because it’s like, I hate those tweets from other people, and sometimes I like them from other people because it’s like an insight into how they’re feeling and all that. And it’s like, oh shit, I didn’t know, like, you know. But at the same time, like when I go to do it and I go to like tweet out some like real like I fucking like I hate the world and I hate myself and I, you know what I mean?
01:03:54:48 – 01:04:21:49
Bill Sweeney
Or whatever. Some real like internal vomiting, you know what I mean? Like, I can’t bring myself to do it because then I get this, this counter guilt of like, but you’re putting it out into the world for what, like for performance or something, or like, you know, it’s going to read as that or whatever, like, you know, and so all this double thing comes through and I end up deleting the email or the tweet, you know, nine times out of ten.
01:04:22:03 – 01:04:39:01
Agent Palmer
So before I get to what would be the standard question, I want to dive into two little side things real quick. First, you were a big proponent of this show.
01:04:39:06 – 01:04:45:15
Bill Sweeney
It seemed like a good idea at the time. I don’t know about that anymore.
01:04:45:20 – 01:05:04:11
Agent Palmer
But you were one of the few people that I asked the following question to when I start my own show, am I Agent Palmer or am I Jason? Now, this is a very weird question to ask you. Who knew me as Palmer before.
01:05:04:24 – 01:05:08:05
Bill Sweeney
You knew like it because I was like, who’s Jason? Yeah, I mean, that’s.
01:05:08:14 – 01:05:27:58
Agent Palmer
That’s the thing, right? So, you know, and I joke, but it’s a serious thing. Depending on who we’re around, Steph will or will not call me Palmer or Jason. I think for a while when she first moved in, it was a struggle to not just always call me Palmer.
01:05:28:03 – 01:05:29:39
Bill Sweeney
Are you more of a Jason than AJ?
01:05:29:42 – 01:05:31:21
Agent Palmer
Oh, no, it doesn’t.
01:05:31:26 – 01:05:33:13
Bill Sweeney
Oh, you’re not like it doesn’t know.
01:05:33:17 – 01:05:37:33
Agent Palmer
I don’t get fazed by it at all. But I do know I still get Palmer from her.
01:05:37:38 – 01:05:42:33
Bill Sweeney
But I’m. Well, how about this. When you introduce yourself to people to new people.
01:05:42:33 – 01:05:43:32
Agent Palmer
Jason it’s.
01:05:43:32 – 01:05:57:06
Bill Sweeney
Jason. Yeah, it’s always Jason. Yeah, yeah. Okay. Because I’m always Bill. Okay. You know what I mean? Like, I feel like I feel like some people are always like, hey what’s up MJ? Like, can I meet some people? Like, hey, I’m just I’m just curious. And I mean, I’m learning about you.
01:05:57:10 – 01:06:25:36
Agent Palmer
But my question to you is like, if somebody was like, call him, are you calling Palmer or Jason? Like, who am I? Because we’ve known each other, you know what I mean? Like at a certain point, I became Jason and even on Twitter now I’m Jason, right? So, like, am I still Palmer? Because, like, you’re the one, like, not the only, but like, you’re one of those friends I have that, like, didn’t know me as Jason first, right?
01:06:25:43 – 01:06:47:18
Bill Sweeney
Right. Yeah. But that’s I think that’s a thing where like, I think it goes into that category of, you know, if I met radar from Mash, you know, I don’t even know what the fuck his first name really is. But, you know, I’m probably never going to call him that, you know what I mean? It’s like, whatever that first name you latch on to somebody with for whatever reason.
01:06:47:22 – 01:07:14:42
Bill Sweeney
It’s the same reason why some people call me Sweeney and they never really call me, you know, Bill or whatever. And, you know, I don’t know why, but like me and my brothers, we’ve talked about that. Like, we get a lot of that from a lot of our friends. And I’ve gotten it through the years. Our last names is one of those those last names of some people, just like the just to throw like, I mean, but, yeah, I kind of think of it like that.
01:07:14:42 – 01:07:35:23
Bill Sweeney
I think. Yeah, like because I, because there’s no real delineation. It’s not like, oh, your personas are so radically different or something. No, it’s the same dude. But, yeah, I think it’s just more like that where it’s like, you know, like, you know, if I had met you and this was a nickname that everybody called you because it’s a nickname you had gotten before I met you.
01:07:35:23 – 01:07:52:55
Bill Sweeney
You know what I mean? Yeah, they probably would have latched on there, too. And also, everybody called you Palmer. UN seven. Dag, when I first got to know of you. And then behind the scenes, too, like it’s behind the scenes. Suddenly you were Jason. Jason. Jason. Jason. Jason like that.
01:07:52:55 – 01:07:58:10
Agent Palmer
What else? Yeah. That’s true. Even on the first few phone calls, it was like, all right, let’s take a roll call.
01:07:58:15 – 01:08:16:34
Bill Sweeney
You will you? You allowed and let the whole world, like you never kind of set any standard for it. Like you. I mean, because you were cool with it. Yeah. Are you like, to the ring of it or you liked the ring of it, plus the anonymity, the slight anonymity kind of allowed you. So like behind the scenes, you know, you were never anything else.
01:08:16:34 – 01:08:20:45
Bill Sweeney
You know, I mean, I mean, behind the scenes. I make you call me sir, but we don’t have to get into that, right?
01:08:20:46 – 01:08:25:54
Agent Palmer
No no no no, no, I mean, I’m just glad I’m not a cog in the machine anymore. It’s.
01:08:25:59 – 01:08:33:07
Bill Sweeney
Yeah. So that was, that was your first, semi producer title because I refused to allow you to be an official producer.
01:08:33:12 – 01:08:37:34
Agent Palmer
I was a producer on so many other shows. Bills like. Yeah, you can’t have mine.
01:08:37:47 – 01:08:52:40
Bill Sweeney
No, no no no. Well, also to I was like, I need a producer. I need a producer in studio. And until you’re fucking here physically every week, like doing something, handing me pieces of paper with little scribbles on them, or something. Is that what you think?
01:08:52:40 – 01:08:54:00
Agent Palmer
You’re a producer? No, I’m just fucking.
01:08:54:00 – 01:09:04:30
Bill Sweeney
Yeah, I you know, when I picture Baba Booey, I picture Baba Booey, like, before. Like e like before. Like when IEG first landed in there, and it was a real radio studio. Okay,
01:09:04:35 – 01:09:07:30
Agent Palmer
Bill, why are we still friends?
01:09:07:34 – 01:09:32:20
Bill Sweeney
Wow. I mean, neither one of us has fucked it up yet. That’s all we. Because, I mean, I mean, when you think about it, why is anybody still friends with the people they’re friends with? Either either one of you is keeping it going because they’re the person who reaches out more often and doesn’t feel offended that they’re the one that reaches out, because I think that’s a thing, too.
01:09:32:25 – 01:09:46:49
Bill Sweeney
I think I have had friends that kind of like, we’re reaching out and talking to me all the time, and then like, they kind of like, oh, like, well, you you seem like you don’t call me. So I don’t know, like, you know, I mean, and I’m like, I just don’t call anybody. Yeah. You know, and I try to explain that to them.
01:09:46:49 – 01:09:50:00
Bill Sweeney
I’m like, that’s just like my fault. Like, you know.
01:09:50:04 – 01:09:53:29
Agent Palmer
We have mutual friends that, you know, ask me about you.
01:09:53:44 – 01:10:24:15
Bill Sweeney
Like, it was hard for me and my, my and all my previous relationships with girls, with women, I should say adults. Yeah. That, like, you know, it was a miracle that I was able to stay on top of calling all the time. And it’s not because, like, oh, I hate the phone. It’s just more of like this thing that, like, I’m just not super, super duper cognizant all of all the time, like, you know, I mean, I like a lot of times, too, my anxiety keeps me from calling people.
01:10:24:20 – 01:10:44:42
Bill Sweeney
A lot of times I will text people before I call because I always feel like I am bothering somebody or interrupting like I like almost. Except for like you and Ed. And because nine times with you guys, I’m returning your call. But like, you know, like, I always kind of get this anxiety of like, I know, I know, it’s probably a bad time.
01:10:44:42 – 01:11:05:03
Bill Sweeney
They’re going to be doing something, you know, and then if I really have to talk to them and it’s not just, and that that anxiety that whatever that is, you know, sometimes will keep me from doing that. Hey, I’m just calling for no reason. Dial, you know, and then I’ll like, I’ll, I’ll text them. But I mean, that’s just my psychosis.
01:11:05:03 – 01:11:29:43
Bill Sweeney
So I always think because and, and I got really bad in my last relationship where I was like, there was like this kind of like hanging issue of like, certain times are had to call and others and I don’t know what it’s like, you know, not to get into it. But so I did have like with that one like some anxiety, but it was like, I just don’t know if that was a good time to call.
01:11:29:44 – 01:11:44:05
Agent Palmer
And, and, and, I mean, we don’t have to we’re not going to get it. Like, I’m not going to put you on the couch, but like, we’ve we both have different anxieties. So I feel like that’s a, that’s a bonding thing in and of itself I think.
01:11:44:06 – 01:11:44:24
Bill Sweeney
Yeah.
01:11:44:24 – 01:12:18:53
Agent Palmer
Because it’s not we don’t we don’t hide it. Number one, we don’t share it necessarily. Like it’s not like we have the same, but it’s kind of like but you still do your stuff. Yeah. And I still do mine. Like, we just, we, you know, there’s a certain amount of working through it. And there’s a, there’s a finding a rhythm to it, you know, but before I let you go, you are responsible for some of the nicest things ever said about me on the internet.
01:12:18:58 – 01:12:20:52
Bill Sweeney
Oh, wow. I mean.
01:12:20:56 – 01:12:22:43
Agent Palmer
So if you would like to take them back.
01:12:22:52 – 01:12:28:26
Bill Sweeney
So those two nice things written about you on the internet, those two times I said something decent.
01:12:28:39 – 01:12:32:31
Agent Palmer
I mean, I don’t think they’re written, unfortunately. I think it’s.
01:12:32:31 – 01:12:39:43
Bill Sweeney
Well, let’s get this straight. Let’s get this straightened out. Is it about you or about your show?
01:12:39:48 – 01:12:44:55
Agent Palmer
It’s not. Okay. So then it’s not about me. The two nicest things about me on the internet.
01:12:45:02 – 01:12:50:10
Agent Palmer
Are you talking about my show and my blog?
01:12:50:15 – 01:12:51:06
Bill Sweeney
Actually.
01:12:51:11 – 01:12:53:26
Agent Palmer
It’s my work ethic. You didn’t compliment.
01:12:53:26 – 01:12:55:39
Agent Palmer
Me. You complimented my work ethic.
01:12:55:39 – 01:13:03:05
Agent Palmer
Like, oh, man, that dude just really puts a lot of work into his podcast and he keeps the blog going. Those are the two nice things you said. They aren’t.
01:13:03:05 – 01:13:08:11
Agent Palmer
About me. They’re about my work ethic and the two things I put out.
01:13:08:16 – 01:13:25:50
Bill Sweeney
This guy’s a mule. Let me tell you, folks, if you ever want a friend to help you, he’ll just keep on helping you. This is the guy you need. I stand by those tweets. I stand by those tweets. Those tweets are all genuine and true and not just fluff like, you know, give you a shout or promote.
01:13:25:50 – 01:13:29:06
Bill Sweeney
You have a show, which I think is great.
01:13:29:11 – 01:13:34:06
Unknown
By the way.
01:13:34:11 – 01:13:38:40
Unknown
You.
01:13:38:45 – 01:14:13:59
Agent Palmer
Wikipedia defines friendship as a relationship of mutual affection between people. My trusty funk and waggles defines it as a mutual regard cherished by kindred minds. Both are accurate and while the 2nd May be more to my liking, and not just because it’s much more poetic friendship, well, it can be defined by definition is mainly defined by experience. Whether you are still, as I am, friends with someone from high school or college, or someone from long ago, or more recently, you don’t need a definition to know who your friends are.
01:14:14:12 – 01:14:43:11
Agent Palmer
You just know. But how do you know? That’s the whole reason for this four episode series. Perhaps there will be some commonality between my four closest friends, but perhaps I’m the only common theme. No matter the theme, the consistencies, or the aberrations, one thing remains true. These are my friends. By any definition. Thanks for listening to The Polymer Files episode 27.
01:14:43:16 – 01:15:02:56
Agent Palmer
As a reminder, all links are available in the show notes. And now for the official business. The Palmer Files releases every two weeks on Tuesdays. If you’re still listening, I encourage you to join the discussion. You can tweet me at Agent Palmer, the show at The Palmer Files, and my friend Bill at Wicked Theory. You can see more of what he’s up to it.
01:15:02:56 – 01:15:42:01
Agent Palmer
Wicked theory.com as well. You can also see more of my writings and rantings on Agent palmer.com, and all links will be in the show notes. Email can be sent to the show at the Palmer Files at gmail.com. If you have any feedback on this or any previous episode, or if there’s a topic or guest you’d like me to consider, or you know how you’re liking this series, be.
01:15:42:06 – 01:15:49:13
Unknown
Be.
01:15:49:18 – 01:16:04:14
Unknown
Me.
01:16:04:19 – 01:16:08:03
Unknown
See? All right. Bill, do you have.
01:16:08:03 – 01:16:11:13
Agent Palmer
One final question for me?
01:16:11:17 – 01:16:24:20
Bill Sweeney
Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Where do you see yourself for the next five years? The classic interview question. Job interview. Really?
01:16:24:27 – 01:16:33:50
Agent Palmer
Well, see, here’s the thing. As we record this, I’m unemployed, so if this was an, like, an actual interview, I’d be like, here.
01:16:33:55 – 01:16:40:47
Bill Sweeney
Well, you know, I’ll it’s it’s it’s not an interview. Interview. You know, we’ll allow for some creative dreaming, but I think I.
01:16:40:52 – 01:17:07:10
Agent Palmer
Look, I think as long as. I, I would love to say that, outside of bills being paid, which is like a given, like, you know, I hopefully that’ll happen. I think I’d like to still have a passion for something. Right. Like, I know the blog is, you know, going to be approaching like eight, 9 or 10 years soon.
01:17:07:15 – 01:17:30:25
Agent Palmer
And I don’t pay attention to that as much as maybe other people would. It’s just, hey, it’s Thursday. Here’s the next post, you know? Right. And, the podcast is every two weeks. And so far, I’m still kind of just like, hey, this is great. I think in five years I’d like to be passionate about something. If it’s still the blog and the podcast, fantastic.
01:17:30:37 – 01:17:38:43
Agent Palmer
I don’t have to do anything else. But if it, you know, but it’s going to have to be something I don’t know if I can exist.
01:17:38:48 – 01:18:01:20
Bill Sweeney
Without these these kinds of side things. It’s why I well, I don’t these out, these side out like. Yeah like yes you’re right. I mean they’re, they’re, you know, creative endeavors to a degree. But they are, you know, you know, it’s not your job. It’s not what’s not paying your bills. You know, you talking about having a 9 to 5 job and these things, in addition to them?
01:18:01:33 – 01:18:26:47
Agent Palmer
Yeah, I although I mean, I do wonder if if somebody gave me a 9 to 5 to create a podcast. Right. And to, you know, to I’ve never had a 9 to 5 that fulfilled the creative itch. Right. So it’s possible, you know, the shine comes off of the Palmer files because I can because I’ve got money to spend.
01:18:26:47 – 01:18:56:40
Agent Palmer
Right. Like, I mean, it would be, you know, if you came to me tomorrow because you hit the lottery and we’re going to we’re going to revamp Wicked Theory, but we’re going to have money to spend on it. That might fulfill that creative itch and even in a more substantial way, because, like, there are plenty of things I would love to do with this show or the blog that I just can’t because I’m I’m working within the environment, you know, I’m working with constraints.
01:18:56:45 – 01:19:23:20
Agent Palmer
And it’s not look, we we are in a pandemic, but I have constraints that are regardless of that. Right? Like, I do have anxieties, but I’m also like, you know, even when I had a 9 to 5, it’s not like I could throw money away. So it’s like, all right, I’m I’m going to be selective. Like it’s I don’t miss on books that I review because I spend a lot of time making sure that the 20 bucks I spend on a book is like, well spent.
01:19:23:20 – 01:19:51:54
Agent Palmer
And it’s not penny pinching. It’s like, well, if you make five mistakes, it’s 100 bucks. It’s not unsubstantial. So it’s those kind of things where I think I’d be more willing to take a flier on, like a book I may not like, or a movie I may not like and like spend money on them if I could. So there are aspects of that that are missed out, but I think I just as long as I have the output and I’m, you know, I don’t look at numbers anymore.
01:19:52:03 – 01:20:01:38
Agent Palmer
Really, the only reason I look at numbers is, is the feed still active? Like as long as I get one tick in a week, then I know that everything’s still works, right? Like, okay, it’s.
01:20:01:38 – 01:20:03:35
Bill Sweeney
Got a heartbeat. We we’re.
01:20:03:35 – 01:20:21:41
Agent Palmer
Good. Yes, I because I’ve actually in the early days of the blog, there were occasions when it would the server would go down or a code would break and it would be like, I’ve had no traffic for four days. Okay, I got to check on the site and it’d be like, all right. So that’s why I look for the heartbeat, but I don’t actually know what the numbers are anymore.
01:20:21:41 – 01:20:46:04
Agent Palmer
And I’ve been, you know, comfortable where, And I know it’s the same for you as long as I’m fulfilled when I hit publish. Right. I don’t need people to be like, yeah, that was great. I mean, look, you’re one of the you’re one of those people. Hey, did you listen to the episode? Did you like it? Like, what did you think?
01:20:46:09 – 01:21:05:03
Agent Palmer
But I’m genuinely asking for your feedback, not your affirmation. And I think that that’s one of those it ties into the friendship aspect of it. Like, I know I can count on you to be like, didn’t sound right. Or, you know, hey, you, you fucked up like I know.
01:21:05:03 – 01:21:19:55
Bill Sweeney
Yeah, yeah. I mean, you know, sometimes you take those notes, sometimes you don’t. You know, there’s been a couple I offered you for this that you’ve chosen not to, you know, follow through with. It’s fine. No it’s fine, no. It’s fine. Well, I deserve that. What we learned in this episode is that I would deserve that bit.
01:21:19:57 – 01:21:31:40
Bill Sweeney
For all the ideas that you’ve given me, that I’ve rebuffed, you know, so. And by the way, yes, you should be nervous if, in case I ever do win a lottery, because things will get turned upside down.
–End Transcription–
This transcription was processed by PalmerTech 3.1 and may contain errors for HUMINT (human intelligence).