Leonard Zimmerman, Artist, Human, Porkchop

00:00
If you can laugh in the middle of heartache, then you've just kicked its ass.

00:13
Welcome to another episode of Chewing the Fat. I'm your host, Big Robb. Thank you so much for following and downloading, listening to the episode. I really do appreciate that. Thanks for the folks that have bought me a coffee at chewingthefatbr.com. I appreciate your financial support. And also welcome to our episode sponsor, the Black Cat Picture Show International Film Festival that'll be happening here in Augusta at Le Chat Noir in

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August from the 19th through the 21st. If you are a filmmaker, I encourage you to go ahead and get your film entry in now at blackcatpictureshow.com. I am so excited about my guest today. We have been trying to get together for a while. He is an artist. He is a graphic designer. He is an amazing, very non-robot human. Please welcome Leonard Porkchop Zimmerman. Hello. Hello.

01:09
Leonard, thank you so much for being here today. I really appreciate this. To gush a little, I've been a fan of your work for quite a while. Anyone that's in the Augusta area and not a fan of your work at this point, I just have no use for you. No, I'm just kidding. Uh, your art just has so much life and so much energy and joy in it, but also very reflective. And,

01:39
I was just a big fan. I remember being nervous reaching out to you one time to be like, hey, can we just, you wanna go grab some lunch at Sunshine Bakery or something like that someday? And you were very generous and agreed. And I've appreciated your friendship ever since then. Thank you. Um. The gushy stuff just kind of, yeah.

02:05
You know. I know, it makes you all fidgety and nervous and all that stuff because. But I appreciate it, but yeah. You know, you're a very humble person, you're a very humble artist, and it definitely shows because you don't like the accolades. You appreciate them, but like, all right, let's move on. Let's move on, next segment, so. Coming up next. Coming up next. So Leonard, you're from.

02:33
the Augusta area born raised here? Yeah, I was born in the same hospital as Amy Grant. Oh, very nice, St. Joseph. Exactly. My mom was an OR nurse at St. Joseph for like 30, 35, 36 years or so. So yeah, it's a great town. And I assume that you've done some traveling around though. Yeah, so it's...

02:57
I was born and raised here, went to school here, went to Davidson fine art school. That's where I graduated from high school, went to scat in Savannah, then went to Atlanta and did some job stuff and stuff. So there was a 17 year gap that I wasn't in Augusta. And, um, I think a lot of people who are from here, who go away, all are like, I'm never going back. And then when you do, you're like, I'm not going to stay. And then you realize actually really like it here.

03:23
So I mean, when I came back, I fell in immediately with the right people who, um, we were instrumental in keeping, well, keeping me alive. So cause yeah, but, um, yeah. Yeah. So had you always had this, uh, artistic, uh, leaning bent? I mean, we were always scribbling on napkins or you always, uh, I was, I was, um, my mom, um, used to say that, well, she said,

03:53
hyperactive wasn't a thing back then, but I was. And short attention span and during church, they would let me draw on the... Back in the day, I was Catholic. So I'd sit, stand, kneel, sit, stand, kneel. And so I would sit on the kneeler and draw all through the service just to keep me from being obnoxious. And then I would distract the other people who were

04:22
like in the road behind me, because they wanted to see what is he doing? But my mom, yeah, she let me do that, because it's better than the other. Right, better than running around the church or standing up or talking. Trying to take some money out of the communion plate, not the communion plate, the offering plate. Yeah, yeah. I bet you had the best looking refrigerator in all of Augusta though. It was Harvest Gold. Yeah. Nice. So in deciding that you

04:52
you know, obviously I'm assuming that's what you went to Davidson for as well as for the artistic side. Yeah. Yeah. And my parents, I have to say, I'm very thankful and grateful that they encouraged my art leanings all along. Um, I had classes at Gertrude Herbert, old Gertie Herbie. So that was, um, so Gertrude's been in my life all my life. Um, well, you know, since the sing, I think I was probably singled it. No, single or double. Anyway, I was, I was a kid.

05:21
Yeah. So and then yeah, the Davidson Fine Arts School, my mom had heard about it and that seemed like that needed to be the place for me. So I went and auditioned and I got to plug some people right now. So since I wasn't, I was never good at the grammatical stuff, my sister, she got all that talent and I'm glad somebody did. So where, where, you know, so she makes up for my lack of that. But

05:50
I remember I did the audition and it was sixth grade and there were, I think it was like fifth, there were, all the slots are filled and I was fifth on the waiting list. And by the fourth, sixth weeks, that sounds like a bank name. Yeah. By the fourth, sixth weeks, the fifth slot opened and I went in and if it wasn't for Ms. Barnhart tutoring me and giving me extra help in English,

06:17
after school, I wouldn't have been able to stay there because my grades were low in that area. Right, right. I still can't play Mad Libs. But, you know, but it's because of her and also Miss Stutz, we all know Miss Stutz, but she, man, she really, she helped.

06:35
get me where I needed to go. And she was able to clear a path, and I just had to do the work, which I did do the work, so. Yeah, that's great though. I mean, you know, there's so many people along the way, when you start to reminisce and think about those people, that if they were not there, how different your life would be. And the hearts of teachers, I believe, are some of the biggest in the world.

07:03
for what they have to put up with from noise making, boisterous, don't wanna follow the rules, don't wanna learn the lesson, kids, I'm speaking of myself, but to be able to still put the care into you and to see the potential in you, I think that's amazing. I think it's the ones who do see the potential, that's when they're like, okay, this one right here, they need, yeah.

07:32
And they're okay spending that extra time and giving that extra effort into making sure that that that seed Blooms and I think by them I think when it actually does that's the big payoff for them. I would share so yeah

07:49
So, and then, you know, if you're my high school art teacher, then you get to be in a movie and stuff like that. But, but, you know, Oh, I mean, you know, little things like that. You are, you, if you speak, I mean, speaking of being in movies and things like that, you have your own movie, the red face returns with the happy movie documentary. Yeah. And it was funny when, when Michael Patrick McKinley approached me about it,

08:17
because he knew me through social media and I hit the microphone. That's okay. I do talk with my hands. If you can't see it, you'll hear them. But he had seen my TEDx talk and contacted me and the first question I asked him was, do I have to be in it? And I was serious. And of course his first answer and quick answer was yes. Anyway.

08:46
Can it just be all kind of over the shoulder shots? Can we do that kind of, what is it, the secret confessor, all in shadow? The blotted out face, how they talk like it is. Right. So with the movie, how was that process? I mean.

09:08
It seems I mean it's been how many years ago now? Okay, so now it the the world premiere was in 2016 June lie 14th I should know the date, but it was it was it was mid early July after the tenth it was anyway, anyway, it was yeah July 2016 at the Imperial and We almost had the place sold out which would have been that

09:37
blew my mind that people came, but that many people came. It really, you know, when you go into things without expectations, you can always be surprised. Exactly, exactly. So, but yeah, what did you want to know about? Because like we filmed it in increments. It was all crowdsourced. So it was funded by viewers like you. Yeah. And,

10:00
and we did it incrementally. Oh, and then we got to go to film festivals. And it's an international award-winning documentary. Nice. Which sounds really kind of snotty, but it's a fact. It's a fact. So, but yeah, that was bonkers. And I remember Michael was telling me that some other directors said, so how long did it take, how many years did it take you to make this movie? And he's like, nine months.

10:29
or something like that, because he had it planned out. He knew what he wanted to get done in his blocks of time. So well organized with that. And if people want to watch the movie, it is available online now? Yeah, it's as anything usually is happy, or happy related, it's free. So you can go to, well, you go to makemyporkchop.com.

10:55
That's my overall site that can give you links to other things and the movie's one of the links. Or you can just go to happy.movie.com. But the Make My Pork Chop will take you everywhere. Yeah, and now that you've mentioned Make My Pork Chop, where did the nickname Pork Chop come from? I had a partner, Brian, who passed away in 2006, and he used to call me Pork Chop. So it just...

11:24
when I moved back to Augusta, there was already an LZ, Lou Ann Zimmerman, and that's how she signed her work was L. Zimmerman, so I couldn't find any variation of that. So I was like, oh, pork chop, done. Perfect, perfect, and what a great memorial to Brian as well, I mean. Yeah. And in your work, like I said, it has this

11:53
Childlike joy about it, depending on which kind of series you have. I mean, you've got the happy robot with the light bulb. You've got Tommy, the more square robot. He's like a Bakelite radio. I always think of. Yeah. Yeah. Where did the, has the robotic fascination always been there from childhood too?

12:17
Well, I mean, you know, everybody, well, our generation, hello, Star Wars. So, I mean, I even, I think I called your microphone here, C-3PO, so. But it was one of the first things I did when I moved back to Augusta. I participated in Art 45, which became Artzilla, and that was, and Jason Craig and Jay Jacobs were, I met them,

12:43
back then, so they were two of the people who helped me get on my track and stay on it. But that was, the first painting I did was two robots hugging, one was kinda giving like a big bear hug to the other one, but it just, you know, it did what I needed to do, which was just show that this guy needs a hug. But...

13:09
And also I was gonna write on there, in the middle of the night I'll hold onto you tight, in the middle of the night I'll hold onto you tight so both of us can feel protected, which is a line from a garbage song, Tell Me Where It Hurts. I don't know if I actually wrote that on there, but I think that's what I called it. So, yeah, it's a mouthful. Yeah, no, no, that's, I mean, I mean, for me it's fascinating to see how the artistic mind works.

13:34
It's a hamster wheel with a cracked down hamster and they're going... Just kind of slinging things out of the side. And sometimes it's all... So in your style, because like I said, that's your personal idea. Like I said, you're a graphic designer as well. You work for...

13:57
a great company here in town doing all kind of, you know, artistic pieces elsewhere. And I would assume that it's more freeing, uh, in doing your own stuff because you kind of don't have those boundaries. You don't have the lines on the, on the comic book. Yeah. And, and, but sometimes I feel very fortunate to work at where store. Cause I think this will, this will be my 13th year or 14th, 14. It might be 13.

14:25
I can't do math in my head right now, but, but, um, yeah, I mean, that's longer than any relationship I ever was in. So, um, yeah. Um, but I, there's been a lot, a lot of freedom there too, because if I have some wacko jacko idea for something, they'll, they'll gladly hear me out. And, and sometimes, you know, we'll end up doing the, the

14:49
the deck of strip poker cards because it's appropriate. Right, right. That's awesome. I mean, and speaking of some of the projects that you guys have done, you're wearing one, I'm wearing one, the We Give a Shirt project that came about as the pandemic kind of raged on and once they went past the, oh, three weeks, three months, okay, we're still in this. And you guys decided to help these local businesses

15:18
different one-off design t-shirts from your art department. You know, all of your designers and stuff had hands in different things, but to then sell them to help these small businesses stay alive. Yeah, and all the business had to do was agree to let us do it because then we designed it and that was, oh my God, it was like running with scissors. Yeah. Because it was just like. I'm.

15:43
Oh, I'm getting excited. Boys and Girls Club, they had the burger battle and I'd always wanted to do something with Angus O'Patty, who's their mascot, who's the angry hamburger. Yeah. Angus O'Patty. And so there we give a shirt. Shirt was about, well, it was for the Boys and Girls Club but it had Angus O'Patty on it. And I finally got to get an Angus O'Patty shirt. But that's just one example. And we're,

16:13
We haven't talked about it yet, but we've been, we're doing a, we give a shirt for the water tower project too, but we can, we can talk about that later or. Yeah. So, yeah, no, I, again, I just wanted to say, you know, kudos to you guys for that idea for, for, um, having the heart to look outside of yourself and your own four walls or how are we going to survive? It's like, how can we help others survive in this town? And I think,

16:40
Some of these businesses here in town are so much like that and have that same type of heart. Even you as an artist, you have that heart to give back to this town and to these places that are here from your mural work.

16:58
to all of the different things that you're a part of, including the Happy Button series, the Happy stickers, you know, you've got the post office box where people can just send that Sazy into you and- If you don't know what it is, Google it. That's right. And get, you know, Happy stickers that go all around the world and as you said, the next project you have coming up is the Happy Water project, right? Yeah, so-

17:25
Project Happy Water actually the idea has been around for years because if you look at my paintings all the way back, I put a smiley face on a warden tower many, many years ago and I think it was coupled with the Space Needle. I think there were two paintings that went together. I think that was the first time I ever painted that and I was like, man, if I could get...

17:47
my hands on a water tower. I would, you know, I'd turn it into a big happy robot. But that also goes back to my childhood because I lived on a dead end street. And in the fall, particularly in the fall, you could sit on the front porch and look out and there was a parting in the trees and there was this water tower that was looking at me. And it was one of the ones behind Dixie Cup. Yeah. So, cause we lived off of Herd Avenue on Spring Hill Terrace with the last house in the dead end.

18:14
You know, I mean, I had to make up my friends because, so I guess I've been doing it all my life. But, so when it came, I got a, I submitted the idea to the Porter Fleming Foundation and got a Porter Fleming grant to paint the water tower. I actually got money to do that, but then the way they want their ideas or when you pitch an idea, they want.

18:37
An idea, not a fully fleshed out idea, one that can be malleable and bend as it needs to. So you don't need to go get all the specifics. Well, I had no idea how much money it cost to paint a damp or sorry, you're good. Paint a water tower because it was a lot of money. Yeah. So, um, so long story short, too late Leonard. Um, I, we ended up having to get, um, a nonprofit organized. And so now I work with a team of people there. There are five of us.

19:07
who all have specialties and because organization is not mine, talking to strangers is not mine. I mean, I can, but I mean, I'm all cringy anyway. But so we have a media person who sends out press releases, Pierce with the good hair, he is so good with that stuff. And he's been able to get information in front of people, hit the microphone again. But.

19:36
Yeah, and then we have a treasure and all this. So it's like all these things and I can't even touch the money. So there's, we just recently had our first kickoff fundraiser and we made, I think the first number we sent out was $11,000 and we ended up, I think it was actually closer to 12.

19:55
So we're at 15% of our goal right now-ish. But, and then we have the We Give a Shirt thing where we just launched that on a Friday, the 6th of May. So it'll run for two weeks and then by June, people will be getting their shirts. That's awesome. Which I'm excited about that, but it's just, yeah, I was making the joke that it takes a village.

20:22
you know, to get some stuff done and that's it. You're looking for the idiot. So, but somebody's got to dream the big stuff and try to do it. And Neil Gaiman says that if you don't know what's impossible, it's easier to do. Absolutely, absolutely. Yeah, I mean, you know, until someone says you can't do that, there's no reason to think that you can't. And even if somebody says you can't do that, why should I take your report? Right, right, who are you?

20:52
That's awesome. And so, backtrack just a bit. The original, your original water tower that you used to watch as a child, I didn't realize, I used to watch that same water tower. I used to live off of Freeman Court, which is down the railroad track side. And so we used to, we used to see that same water tower behind Dixie Cup from.

21:17
from our little cul-de-sac that was there. That is so cool. You know what the plural of cul-de-sac is? Cul-s-de-sac. Cul-s-de-sac, okay. That's French, unless the Gilmore girls were lying, because that's where I got that fact from. That is so cool. And so Dixie Cup, there's actually, there's the one squat kind of short and fat one with the little lid on it, water tower. Then there's another one kind of off just a little bit on the other side of the train tracks, and then there's a tall black one with no top.

21:47
That's the one that that and if you do Google Maps you can look inside and see what's inside of it. Oh, wow I mean no, it just just stuff like that like empty anyway Have a funny funny thing about interior closed off interior spaces or unenclosed interior the Sacred heart that big space inside wigs me out

22:13
Really? Just an, Oh, Oh, and the swimming pool and tax layer. Well, which used to be the YWCA. Yeah. That swimming pool is still under the floor. Oh, wow. Well, I mean, I assume, I'm assuming that they just drained it, but they didn't fill it in. No, it's, it's, it's drained. It's, it's completely dry. Um, it is not filled in, but it is. So there's a void there. Right. But it is structurally sound and they built, um, you know, so it's, it's

22:39
It's up to OSHA code and everything. So it's totally safe and fine. But me just knowing that there's an empty space down there. There's a void below the floor. Wow. That's crazy. I won't tell you about the void below the floor in this house then. Whoops. Okay, I'm out of here. I got suggested. So with the water tower.

23:02
So the, you guys, is there a specific water tower you guys are looking at doing, or is that part of the process? So the one that we've honed in on, and the one that we have estimates on, and the one that we have talked to the building owner, and et cetera, et cetera, and I believe that there's so much red tape. Oh, I can imagine. But it's the J.B. White's building ward. Oh, wow.

23:30
So, cause we figured, which was not my original one, cause I'm just going to do the one for my childhood. And then, but that one since has been purchased by, I forget who it is, but they're renovating the area over there. And those will be new apartment homes. And so I believe historic guests have said that they can't paint that water tower for five years. I don't know the reasons, but I'm sure that there's a-

23:55
Some sort of age or something like that or whatever falls out of whatever. Yeah, so I couldn't even paint that if I wanted to. Right, right. And in me saying paint it, I am not going up on a ladder in painting. We are hiring a company that what they do is they repair, update, fix, and paint, prime, sandblast, all that. So it will be professionally done. And one of the reasons it costs so much is because it's

24:21
this should be a 30 year paint job. Right. 20 to 30. I don't think I've made that number up, but I've looked at a lot of paperwork, so I can't remember, but it's 20 to 30 years. And it would be truly a beacon of how to how in downtown Augusta. That's awesome. And so anybody coming from South Carolina or from the hill, that's gonna be looking right at him and smiling at him. That's awesome. So will it?

24:51
Obviously the water tower itself, this is just me nerding out on technical parts right here. It's a three-dimensional object. Or is it going to have multiple smiles on it? Like on all the compass points or something? So since you can basically see half of it at one time, the way that the current design or what I proposed is one side is the face.

25:20
and I've chosen the west side, the one that faces west. So it'd be looking at Atlanta and up the hill and Calhoun Expressway. And then the opposite side, I had proposed to have the J.B. White's, the old J.B. White's logo on it. Or I think it just is White's. And then there was something else under it, but yeah, I think it might just say Augusta, Georgia. But so that way it's honoring

25:48
what it was a part of, because I feel that that was important, and while it being yellow, it would not be historically correct, it would be giving homage to your, or saying, yeah. Right, to its original kind of purpose and all that. And that's really cool, that's really cool. And that's another one of those things about like your, your style, your artwork, again, the care you have in all of the little bits and pieces that you put into it. It's not just,

26:18
you know, slap and paint on canvas or something. There is so much thought that goes into it and so much heart that goes into it. And for the people who don't see like an underlying message in some stuff or see those details, that's fine. But for the people who do, it's just, it's a little bit more, you know, that's the reason I do this stuff. Right, right. It's kind of like, you know,

26:48
you know, Tom and Jerry cartoons now as an adult, you notice all of the things that were in those cartoons that were definitely not for children at the time. When you were watching them, you know, sitting cross-legged, eating a bowl of cereal in front of the TV as a child, you're like, I didn't get it then. It's layers. And how many times was Bugs Bunny in a dress? Right, right, yeah. So, but yeah, so I love that. And so that just again makes it more, gives it more universal appeal.

27:17
so that it can be enjoyed by everyone. And again, I think that's just, that's a hallmark of you, Leonard. Yeah, and when it comes to stuff like that and the murals, it's like, this is my hometown. You know, this town has, when I was broken, this town hugged me and made me feel okay. And so it's like, I feel, and

27:47
I felt the love from the community and so I feel like it's wrong to not give that back.

27:57
Alright Leonard, this is the second segment of the show. This is where we dive a little bit deeper into you, talk a little bit more about mental health. Everybody goes through, I believe, everybody goes through days of depression, anxiety, just down days, sad days, sometimes you just gotta cry. I have those days. And I think what's important is that people know that they're not alone, that everybody kinda has those days.

28:21
And you know, sometimes as artists, we feel that deeper than other people. And again, those are things that then spew over into how we present our art. For you, how do you keep the darkness at bay? Well, sometimes, what I learned, especially after Brian died, one thing I've...

28:49
One thing that took me a while to figure out was that if I was going to be happy, then that's something I have to do. Nobody else is out there going to just go make me happy. But it's also not something that you can just flip a switch. It took me many years to be able to switch my attitude around to look for the...

29:11
bright side or the positive and stuff because I was a big negative Nelly for a while. Well, that's really hard for me to believe. One of my exes said, I hate you like this. I can't wait for you to be happy again. I'm like, oh. So I actually remember him saying that to me. I was like, ooh, girl. But I have different mechanisms and things. I had.

29:40
I had years of therapy. So, um, and I, anybody who is, doesn't think they can go talk to somebody or they don't see the worth in it. Let me tell you, it's totally worth it. Especially be fine. So when you can connect to and you can be completely honest with that's the thing. It's like, you can't gloss over stuff or tuck stuff away. You can just, if you can believe can be completely transparent.

30:05
that makes it so much better. But even with that transparency, you can't always be transparent with, or completely transparent with everybody. You know, like there's, like some people in your family don't need to know everything, but somebody needs to know. But, you know, and some people aren't made or able to handle, but like, and also like with my family on certain subjects, we have agreed to disagree. And so we actually get along really well because we know what topics are just moot.

30:34
And I love you anyway. Right. So, but I used art therapy for many years to help me when I had heavy stuff going on. And even to this day, I have a sketchbook right here that I could probably flip to a couple of pages and say, this is, yeah, I...

30:57
They're my sketchbooks. Ooh, if y'all knew how to read those pictograms, all of them, I mean, everything's in there. But I found that on some days I can use going outside and looking at the clouds. If I can catch a sunset, if it's been a lousy day, if I can just see that sky and please, Scott, give me a couple of little puffy clouds with some oranges or some something, or maybe some God's fingers, you know, when you get the shadows going across the sky.

31:27
All of that stuff, it just kind of resets me. That doesn't always work, but it usually helps lighten stuff. And I've also found if I can change my scenery, like if I've gotten into a way of thinking, like May 19th is Brian's anniversary date. And I think this year is 16 years. And I already know that that's gonna, I know what's coming for me. And

31:57
But if I can prepare myself by giving myself something to do or, or, or have a goal of, of, you know, well, we're going to, we're going to go have, um, well, I have peeps Brian's favorite candy. That is a lie. He hated peeps. I hated him too. That's a story all in itself. But, but, you know, if, if you have things to look forward to, that can help offset some of the holidays or anniversary dates, you know, that are coming up.

32:27
Um, my dad passed away.

32:32
That one's so fresh. Um, and, um, so I, I still find, um, that one hits me the weirdest because I can just be sitting at my desk doing, and then all of a sudden it's just like, it, the motion just hits and then it's like, I just feel like, and when it hits me at work, people know that if I get up abruptly and just excuse myself, um,

33:02
that I'm having a moment, I'm having one now, but it's like the head stuff is real. And just being able to feel your emotions, I think that's one of the things is you need to feel this. And while it's not always convenient, if you can allow yourself to grieve,

33:28
Um, allow yourself to feel, but also allow yourself to feel it for only, you know, be able to compartmentalize if you have to it's, but yeah, I mean, this is all stuff I learned in therapy compartmentalization. Wow. But I was also told by one of my therapists that I seem to figure things out faster emotionally if I'm drawing them, um, then I do just, um, sitting there thinking about it, but.

33:58
So did I answer the question? You absolutely did. And when you talk about getting hit with those emotions, just out of the blue, it reminds me, and this is so weird because I mean, as a child of television and music, the song lyrics will hit me when those things hit. One of my favorite kind of quotes that have been here in the recent,

34:28
recently about those emotions and that feeling of grief, when it hits you is from WandaVision, when Vision talks to Wanda and says, but what is grief if not love persevering? And it's like, shut up you Android, because that's so true.

34:57
Everything and yeah, whoa. Yeah. Yeah. I cried so hard during that episode Yeah, but it's but it's true, but it's true and it's like I just want to I just want to find that writer Wrote that and be like I need to you know, I need to give you a hug There's a child inside me that needs to give you a hug for that because it's I think that's empowering though and to be able To think of that though that the grief is just it's still the love that's there

35:26
And that's why it, you know, it just affects us so much. Cause that, you know, just because they're gone, that emotion is still there and it's, it, it has to transform into something. Exactly.

35:41
I think I was thinking of something funny and then I think my brain just farted. Sorry. It's okay. What was that sound? Just my brain. Like when the fart sounds like a question. Right. What? What? What? What? What? What? What? What? What? What? What? The question's like, I didn't know if that was just a fart or if there was more to it.

36:10
I might have to run to the bathroom real quick. Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha

36:39
Yeah, this got cut from the movie. Let's see if you keep it in. So I remember I was, when Brian passed away, I was living in a house in Decatur. And I would come home to Augusta and stay the weekend. And then Sunday, I'd begrudgingly put the dog in the truck and we'd drive back to Atlanta. And I knew when I saw that exit, which the camera, what it's called now, doesn't matter. Just.

37:09
carry on with the story. When I'd finally get home this one particular time, as soon as I turned off of Aldea Drive into the driveway, which was along, we lived in the middle of the, it was a residential area, but we had five acres of land in the middle of, you didn't know that house and all that space was there. And so as soon as you turn onto that driveway, you were in your own world. And you went down the dirt road and,

37:38
Um, so I just started, started crying, just started, it was the healing and, and then I got out of the truck. This one particular time I got out of the truck, went up the front door and just started just ugly sobbing. I opened the door and then I fell through the doorway, over the threshold, onto the floor. Um, and I'm just, and just the ugly crying and, and I kind of, and this sounds dramatic,

38:08
Anyway, I pulled myself in, crawling across the floor, just sobbing. And all of a sudden I went, and this big snot bowl. Physics, the laws of physics were did not, did not apply this. And I'm like, oh my God. And then we're like, oh, all right, I have a beard. So this thing was all, all over me. And I was just, I'm just now I'm stunned. I'm like,

38:37
And then I thought, if Brian's here looking at you, he's gonna be like, dude, that's gross. And then I just started laughing. So I went from, ooh, and then I had to go wash my face. But the fact that I nipped it right there, I'd gone through the agony and then anyway. But yeah, if you can laugh in the middle of a.

39:02
bad emotional situation, a natural laugh, something that if you can find, because there is a lot of funny stuff out there, then there's a lot of funny things and sad stuff. Those are not mutually exclusive.

39:21
Alright Leonard, this is the third segment of the show. This is the Fast Five! Fast Five! It's time now for the Fast Five! Fast Five! Freddy told me everybody's fly. Chk chk chk!

39:32
Woo! That's right, he's Fast Five. Sorry, I'm working on a theme song. We'll get it one day. Fast Five is powered by Poddex. It's an app created by Fred Travis Brown. It's great for conversation starters. He's got an app. You can just ask these questions, keep the conversation going. It's great for pod. He made an app for that. He did. It's made for podcasters, but anyone can use it. It's also physical decks as well. I know you like cards. He's got some physical decks, and you can carry some of those in your pocket in case you just need to ask somebody a question.

40:02
I'm gonna use the app and it's five questions. First thing comes to top of your mind, no wrong answers, okay? And here we go.

40:15
Burger or hot dog? Yes. Perfect. Corn dog actually, but. Makes me want corn dog real bad. It can't be like a bready corn dog. It needs to have that crunch on the outside. And especially that thing right at the stick, that little. Yes, that's the only reason you eat the rest of the corn dog is to get down to the little crusty bit on the stick, because that is the best bite, 100%. I am down for that.

40:46
Hey, question number two.

40:51
Where is the weirdest place that you've gone to the bathroom?

40:57
I feel like you have an answer as quickly as you laughed. I'm trying to think of what I can actually say. I mean... I'm... I'm... I'm...

41:09
Cause everybody's like done it in the yard or behind your truck or. Wow. I've got the coolest place I've gone to the bathroom was the Guggenheim. That bathroom was round. Oh, wow. Yep. Okay. Okay. I think it was rounds.

41:29
The coolest bathrooms though, were in London, England. Those bathrooms are bad ass. I mean, yeah, everybody had a cool bathroom. I actually have videos on my phone of all the bathrooms I went to. Not you using the bathroom, just the bathrooms. No, no, no, just the bathroom. Just the bathroom. Okay, great. That's awesome. Mission number three.

41:56
Who was your biggest mentor or teacher this year?

42:03
What year is this? I know we're not far into the year, we're just into May, but you had like a real big teacher in the last five months or a mentor that's really meant a lot to you. Oh man, and this is not fast and this is not, yeah, this is a tough one, because I'm...

42:28
You know, the other day somebody really aggravated. I'm like, well, they taught me a lesson. So I'm trying to remember specifically what it was, but I felt like I'm bombing this question. No, no, I mean, it's. And seriously though, if you can walk away from a bad situation feeling like you've at least learned something, yeah, because.

42:53
If you're going to legally be tied in with somebody, you need to not know a lot more about them than just that you think they're nice. So how's that for some advice? Okay, okay. And that's also vague. Yes, vague, but that's fine. That sounds like a very non-legally binding answer. So that's good, that's good. No, I definitely understand what you're saying. So sometimes life can be its biggest teacher and mentor.

43:18
And just like agreeing to do a movie, I didn't think it all the way through. There are other things that you just need to really think stuff through more. So that's actually one of the things I've been learning is to find out all the answers. There you go, there you go. All right, question number four.

43:40
If you could go back in time and give your younger self one piece of advice, what would it be? Invest in plastics. No, I would, I've actually already thought about this and I would just tell myself that you will be okay. Yeah. No matter what you think has just been thrown at you, you're gonna be okay. Yeah, yeah. I think that's a lesson that everybody.

44:09
needs now, whether you're, you know, maybe you're your youngest self now that you need to, it doesn't matter what time you go back and learn this lesson. I think that's a great lesson that everyone needs to know. All right. And question number five.

44:25
What brings you joy? That delivery person who's bringing that pizza or that Chinese food. Nice. New Minghua is, I just had to give them a plug. That's good stuff. Yeah, that's my comfort food right there. Yeah, do they deliver? They do, because I've been able to order it from the house downtown and have it delivered to my mom's house.

44:52
Um, who lives in Augusta, but it's, uh, she's out by target. Yeah. So they're close enough to deliver to her and then you just go get it. That's like a two for, for you though. You get mom and new minguan. Oh yeah. And then I do laundry. Whoa. It's a weekend. That's awesome. That is awesome. Then we will do the happy meal. So that's, yeah, that's I've been trying to do that.

45:17
at my mom's. I try to keep the happy stickers and stuff up there because it helps me focus. Because I'm like a glamour shot. I'm focused like a glamour shot. And if you ever look at a glamour shot, things aren't focused. There's so much stuff on that lens. But my mom helps keep me on track when it comes to stuff. That's awesome.

45:42
That's awesome. Leonard, that's our Fast Five and that is the show. Thank you so much for being here today. You know what? It took all that to get here, but I feel this is totally worth it. I really got to get a couple of laughs out of this too. I appreciate you being here. Like I said, I know it took a lot of rescheduling and all like that, but it was really a, the pleasure to have you here. If folks want to keep up with you, what's the easiest way for them to find you?

46:06
Um, well, there's, um, um, I'm usually very vocal on Facebook. I know a lot of people don't deal with Facebook anymore and I totally don't blame you, but, um, otherwise, um, there's, um.

46:19
doing my fingers I'm pointing at the web oh yeah make my pork chop dot com and that that has links to our information on how to get stickers because I will send you stickers and usually and the happy stickers I'll send you usually there's a surprise and I usually will draw on the envelope and all it takes is a self-addressed stamped envelope and we don't know what that is Google it and I have an FAQ on the website that tells you what these things are and and answer to many other questions you might have

46:49
check out the website, MakeMyPorkChop.com. Of course, we'll put that link in the show notes and you can always find more about the guests on my website at chewingthefatbr.com in the guest section. Again, Leonard, yes? Oh, I was going to say that usually also there's this, oh, this year it's the 10th anniversary of HAPPY and so to... Yes.

47:09
I've been reissuing buttons because I said I would do 10 reissues this year because usually there's some old ones that people want. Yeah. And just came out Friday was the reissue of the David Bowie Inspire button. Nice. So instead of saying happy it says inspire, and so those are already out and about downtown.

47:30
Art on Broad is usually the location to find any any buttons or stickers if you want tangible ones immediately That'd be the place to go. Yes, and also I will say this if you want to own a piece of Leonard's art Art on broad you need to follow them on instagram facebook as well as following Leonard on facebook because he will let you know When he drops something off and it usually sells in about five

47:52
minutes. So about 15. Well, okay, you're being modest right now. So. So check out that stuff. Again, links on the show notes and on the website. Thank you so much for being here. Leonard, it really is a joy to have you here to talk to you and to call you friend.

48:10
And thank you for having me and thank you for asking the stuff about, you know, how to keep the darkness at bay and stuff. Cause that's important. And I, I know I still go through stuff. And it's like you said earlier, it's nice to know that you're not alone in that. Cause yeah, the happy guy cries then, you know, he's human and you are too. So absolutely, absolutely. And if you would like to support this podcast, I would appreciate it.

48:40
if you buy me a coffee at chewingthefatbr.com but until next time I look forward to when we have a moment to sit a spell and chew the fat.