Joe Rogan Experience #1524 - Ron Funches

1. 0:03 – 0:50

   Settling in + weight-loss mindset: losing is hard, keeping it off is harder

   1. JRJoe Rogan0:03

      Hello, Ron.

   2. RFRon Funches0:04

      Hello, Joe.

   3. JRJoe Rogan0:05

      How are you?

   4. RFRon Funches0:05

      I'm good, man.

   5. JRJoe Rogan0:06

      You are good. You got double water bottles.

   6. RFRon Funches0:08

      One water, one protein shake.

   7. JRJoe Rogan0:10

      Oh.

   8. RFRon Funches0:10

      Mm-hmm.

   9. JRJoe Rogan0:11

      You're not fucking around.

   10. RFRon Funches0:12

       No. And new... You know, last time I wasn't aware how long I would be here.

   11. JRJoe Rogan0:16

       Ah.

   12. RFRon Funches0:16

       Now I'm prepared, I'ma settle in. I'm not gonna be hungry. My wife got me all set up.

   13. JRJoe Rogan0:20

       Nice.

   14. RFRon Funches0:20

       Water, protein shake. We're all good.

   15. JRJoe Rogan0:21

       Make sure that your blood sugar doesn't drop.

   16. RFRon Funches0:24

       Mm-hmm.

   17. JRJoe Rogan0:24

       Maintain energy levels.

   18. RFRon Funches0:25

       Mm-hmm.

   19. JRJoe Rogan0:26

       You are, uh, a man who has done one of the most difficult things a person could do. You lost a ton of weight.

   20. RFRon Funches0:31

       Yeah, and then maintain, keeping it off.

   21. JRJoe Rogan0:33

       Yes.

   22. RFRon Funches0:33

       That's the harder.

   23. JRJoe Rogan0:34

       Right, that's the hard part.

   24. RFRon Funches0:35

       Yeah.

   25. JRJoe Rogan0:36

       Yeah. The momentum of losing the weight is f- good but most people, they get to a point and they wanna take a break.

   26. RFRon Funches0:41

       Mm-hmm.

   27. JRJoe Rogan0:41

       And then once they take a break, then it all slides.

   28. RFRon Funches0:44

       Yeah. It's a bit of both. Sometimes I wanna take a break, but then I wanna get to that next level.

   29. JRJoe Rogan0:48

       Mm-hmm.

   30. RFRon Funches0:48

       So then-
2. 0:50 – 2:47

   Training routine, treadmill discipline, and using compliments as fuel

   1. JRJoe Rogan0:50

      Well, we were talking about Gucci Mane before the, we started the podcast. Gucci is a guy who's done that.

   2. RFRon Funches0:54

      Yes.

   3. JRJoe Rogan0:55

      He's maintained and looks fucking amazing.

   4. RFRon Funches0:57

      And took it to the next level.

   5. JRJoe Rogan0:57

      He was a big fella-

   6. RFRon Funches0:59

      Yeah.

   7. JRJoe Rogan0:59

      ... at one point in time. When he had burr tattooed on his face.

   8. RFRon Funches1:02

      Mm-hmm.

   9. JRJoe Rogan1:02

      You know, with the-

   10. RFRon Funches1:02

       The ice cream cone.

   11. JRJoe Rogan1:03

       Yeah.

   12. RFRon Funches1:03

       Yeah. (laughs)

   13. JRJoe Rogan1:04

       (laughs) And now he's shredded. And-

   14. RFRon Funches1:06

       Yeah.

   15. JRJoe Rogan1:07

       ... nothing but some amazing-

   16. RFRon Funches1:07

       He got rid of that ice cream. (laughs)

   17. JRJoe Rogan1:10

       (laughs) .

   18. RFRon Funches1:10

       (laughs) .

   19. JRJoe Rogan1:10

       Well, you were saying he was lean, right?

   20. RFRon Funches1:12

       Yeah.

   21. JRJoe Rogan1:12

       Yeah.

   22. RFRon Funches1:12

       For sure.

   23. JRJoe Rogan1:13

       Drinking.

   24. RFRon Funches1:13

       Yeah. T- codeine will put a lot of weight on you.

   25. JRJoe Rogan1:15

       Yeah. Look at the difference, man. That is crazy. Well, he wasn't too fat in the other one.

   26. RFRon Funches1:18

       Yeah. That's, that's like...

   27. JRJoe Rogan1:20

       Actually, he looked-

   28. RFRon Funches1:20

       Yeah, that's got kinda like him mid losing weight in that one. You can find some real chunky pics of-

   29. JRJoe Rogan1:24

       Yeah.

   30. RFRon Funches1:24

       ... of him.
3. 2:47 – 4:35

   Staying positive, avoiding the negativity spiral, and career ambition anxiety

   1. JRJoe Rogan2:47

      Yeah. The positive feedback and positive energy. That's one thing that I like about what you do. You are very positive. Like, you're, you're very warm and friendly. Like, all the shit that you do online, you're all smiley-

   2. RFRon Funches3:00

      (laughs)

   3. JRJoe Rogan3:00

      ... and positive, and friendly. It's cool. It's, it's got... It gives off a good vibe. Like, when I look at your Instagram posts or, or read something that you post, it's like-

   4. RFRon Funches3:09

      Mm-hmm.

   5. JRJoe Rogan3:09

      ... Ron is on the good path.

   6. RFRon Funches3:10

      Yeah, I try to.

   7. JRJoe Rogan3:12

      You're on the good path.

   8. RFRon Funches3:12

      You know, 'cause it's just, it's so easy to go the other way. And, and-

   9. JRJoe Rogan3:15

      Yeah.

   10. RFRon Funches3:15

       ... you get caught up in what other people are doing and h- what you think you should be doing.

   11. JRJoe Rogan3:20

       Yeah.

   12. RFRon Funches3:20

       Which I battle all of that too, so I don't ever try to act like, "Oh, I'm just like, oh, everything's great." It's like, of course, I go through shit all the time, but like, I think I choose to support my friends, I choose to support positive things because that's what I can control. And that's, to me, fighting against that negative as, as opposed to like just joining everybody in the fray.

   13. JRJoe Rogan3:42

       Yeah. What do you mean? But like how do you feel, like when, when you say like you feel that too? Like, the feel... You feel the, the draw to the negative.

   14. RFRon Funches3:49

       Oh, I mean, 'cause we all like, you know, we just want things, you know?

   15. JRJoe Rogan3:53

       Mm-hmm.

   16. RFRon Funches3:53

       So I wanted a Netflix special. I wanna be a lead in a show. I want my own show, you know? And I've already do a lot of great things, but... And that's why I have to balance it all. 'Cause I'm like, "Oh man, I'm in such a great position. I do so many wonderful things." I... What always helps me actually is talking to people like you, or talking to people like Burt, talking to any comedian that's been doing it like 20 years plus, when I'm at like 14 now.

   17. JRJoe Rogan4:18

       Mm-hmm.

   18. RFRon Funches4:19

       And when I talk to them and then they are like, "Oh, hold on. Slow the fuck down, man."

   19. JRJoe Rogan4:22

       (laughs)

   20. RFRon Funches4:23

       Like, "You g- look at where you are and what you're doing, for how long you've been doing it. You're fucking aces, man. So chill the fuck out and play it out."

   21. JRJoe Rogan4:31

       Yeah.

   22. RFRon Funches4:31

       "Don't freak out." And that that always... You know, having faith, that always helps me out.

4. 4:35 – 10:34

   Standup as a long road: early highs, low days, and quarantine adaptation

   1. JRJoe Rogan4:35

      Well, we're all stalled right now, you know-

   2. RFRon Funches4:37

      Yeah.

   3. JRJoe Rogan4:37

      ... unfortunately, 'cause we can't work. But, uh, d- standup is a long haul. Like, you're a... At 10 years people start taking you seriously. You know, if you're really precocious, people start looking at you at seven like, "Damn, this motherfucker's good." But at 10 years they go, "Okay, that guy's a pro." Or "She's really got it. She's legit." At 10 years usually.

   4. RFRon Funches4:57

      Mm-hmm.

   5. JRJoe Rogan4:57

      So for 14, man, you're cooking, you know? 14, you got things happening, you know? You're putting together like real sets. You got str- like you get off stage, you're like, "Damn, that's... That was legit."

   6. RFRon Funches5:08

      Mm-hmm.

   7. JRJoe Rogan5:08

      "That was legit." It's fucking... It's a long road to get good at standup, you know? It's like that AC/DC song, "It's a long way to the top if you wanna rock and roll." (laughs) I was on stage, or not... About to go on stage rather, at The, uh, Improv once. And there was this lady who was on stage and she... You could tell she's real recent. And, uh, she was just eating it, just eating shit up there. And me and the DJ were just like, "Whew." And I just looked at him, I go, "It's a long way to the top if you wanna rock and roll." (laughs)

   8. RFRon Funches5:39

      (laughs) .

   9. JRJoe Rogan5:42

      And then the DJ played that song as I went on stage.

   10. RFRon Funches5:45

       Nice.

   11. JRJoe Rogan5:45

       << It's a long way to the top >> It is, man.

   12. RFRon Funches5:48

       Yeah.

   13. JRJoe Rogan5:48

       It's a fucking long way.

   14. RFRon Funches5:49

       Yeah.

   15. JRJoe Rogan5:50

       You know?

   16. RFRon Funches5:50

       No, and I'd agree. I... And that's what... I had to change my mindset very early 'cause, you know, I came from not having money, not having anything, and having my son really early. And so I was like, "I need to make it. I need to da, da, da."

   17. JRJoe Rogan6:02

       Mm-hmm.

   18. RFRon Funches6:02

       And then like I remember...Um, I got on Conan the first time, and, and I rem- they were like, "Oh, what are you promoting? You gotta promote something, you know, when we introduce you." And the only thing I had to promote was a open mic that I was doing in Portland the next day. (laughs)

   19. JRJoe Rogan6:14

       (laughs)

   20. RFRon Funches6:14

       You know? (laughs) And I was just like-

   21. JRJoe Rogan6:17

       Ugh.

   22. RFRon Funches6:17

       ... this is always gonna be a part of this. This is always gonna be here. It's always gonna be a n- there's, will be highs and then there'll be another day.

   23. JRJoe Rogan6:23

       Yeah.

   24. RFRon Funches6:23

       And so, I gotta g- learn to not, you know, fear that next day and just be like, "This is, I mean, this is just my life." And that's what's helped me through all of this quarantine stuff-

   25. JRJoe Rogan6:32

       Yeah.

   26. RFRon Funches6:32

       ... is why I'm back doing weird Zoom shows. I'm doing my own livestream show September 5th. And-

   27. JRJoe Rogan6:37

       People adapt.

   28. RFRon Funches6:38

       Yeah, exactly.

   29. JRJoe Rogan6:39

       Yeah.

   30. RFRon Funches6:39

       Exactly.
5. 10:34 – 16:49

   Comedy Store camaraderie: meritocracy, pressure, and missing the hang

   1. JRJoe Rogan10:34

      Yeah. Well, that was one of the best things that we had at the Store.

   2. RFRon Funches10:38

      Absolutely.

   3. JRJoe Rogan10:38

      We were all working together. And, you know, we'd have a show on. It'd be you and me and Burr and, you know, and Iliza and Whitney and, uh, fucking Ali Wong and bang, bang, bang, bang, bang. These shows were fire. It was just ... And you had to warm up in the back. I'd be in the back, I'd be jumping up and down on cushions and shit and-

   4. RFRon Funches10:56

      (laughs)

   5. JRJoe Rogan10:56

      ... shadow boxing and touching my toes and (exhales) taking deep breaths. And you, you gotta, you know, you gotta get your body charged up, you know. I miss that. I miss that a lot.

   6. RFRon Funches11:06

      Yeah. Yeah, yeah.

   7. JRJoe Rogan11:06

      I miss that a lot. I miss that feeling of being in the main room, green room, getting ready to go on. (claps hands) Woo! And just the hang, man.

   8. RFRon Funches11:13

      Yeah.

   9. JRJoe Rogan11:13

      I miss the hang.

   10. RFRon Funches11:14

       Oh, truly. I mean, espe- for me especially 'cause I was still always looking at it as like, "Oh, I'm g- the young guy on the totem pole here," and it's cool that n- you know, 'cause one thing ... The original room is awesome, but when you're doing these main room shows, you know, like, "Oh, they're putting me on here because they also think I'm w- a part of a draw." And so, to be on that wit you guys, but being younger in the game than you guys and, and being like, "Oh, fuck, I have to follow Ali, Joe, Joey Diaz, you know, Whitney."

   11. JRJoe Rogan11:42

       Mm-hmm.

   12. RFRon Funches11:42

       "I have to follow them all and then I don't have the credits (laughs) that these people-"

   13. JRJoe Rogan11:47

       Mm-hmm.

   14. RFRon Funches11:47

       "... are gonna care about." It was the thing I've learned to crave of being like ... Because when I got them, I was like, "They are on my side because I'm fucking good."

   15. JRJoe Rogan11:55

       Mm-hmm. Yeah.

   16. RFRon Funches11:56

       "They don't know anything else. They don't know what I've done."

   17. JRJoe Rogan11:59

       Right, right.

   18. RFRon Funches11:59

       "They have now figured out I'm good." And that-

   19. JRJoe Rogan12:01

       Yeah.

   20. RFRon Funches12:01

       ... I miss so much.

   21. JRJoe Rogan12:03

       (laughs) I was there once, and, uh, I brought you up and you, you said something to, along the lines of, "Joe reminds me of that teacher that got arrested for having sex with a..." he said, "with a senior." (laughs)

   22. RFRon Funches12:15

       (laughs)

   23. JRJoe Rogan12:15

       Or something. Like, he's like that cool teacher-

   24. RFRon Funches12:20

       Yeah.

   25. JRJoe Rogan12:20

       ... that you find out-

   26. RFRon Funches12:20

       He tells you all the cool stuff. He tells you how the real world works, and then you find out he was having a relationship with- with... the teacher's aide.

   27. JRJoe Rogan12:30

       Oh. I was crying. It was-

   28. RFRon Funches12:32

       It was-

   29. JRJoe Rogan12:32

       I was crying. But it's, like, those kind of moments, man, it's like the c- the, the comradery of the store. Um, one of the best things about the quarantine is being able to do this podcast and have guys like you on and have all, you know, all of our friends come here and, and just sit down and just at least spend time together.

   30. RFRon Funches12:49

       Yeah.
6. 16:49 – 29:37

   Diversifying income: podcasts, voice acting, and DIY/live-stream shows

   1. JRJoe Rogan16:49

      And then I also have the podcast and I also have this standup thing, which is just on hold indefinitely, you know? You could do it right now. I mean, uh, have you thought about doing one of those, uh, drive-in movie shows?

   2. RFRon Funches17:03

      I talked to my Bert about it. He made it sound interesting.

   3. JRJoe Rogan17:06

      He loves it.

   4. RFRon Funches17:06

      Yeah.

   5. JRJoe Rogan17:06

      He loves it.

   6. RFRon Funches17:06

      He, the way he sells it-

   7. JRJoe Rogan17:07

      Yeah.

   8. RFRon Funches17:07

      ... made it sound fun. Uh, but, but-

   9. JRJoe Rogan17:10

      You gotta realize he's drunk though.

   10. RFRon Funches17:11

       Yeah. D- I do, and I realize it's a thing. (laughs)

   11. JRJoe Rogan17:14

       (laughs)

   12. RFRon Funches17:15

       I do realize that.

   13. JRJoe Rogan17:18

       (laughs)

   14. RFRon Funches17:18

       (laughs) And he's like, "Horns, yeah!"

   15. JRJoe Rogan17:19

       Yeah. He likes, he likes horns and people high beaming him. Like, "What?"

   16. RFRon Funches17:24

       (laughs)

   17. JRJoe Rogan17:24

       Like, "Explain." He's like, "Dude, it's like a UFO."

   18. RFRon Funches17:27

       Well, I'm actually, um, I've been talking with Chris Titus because he, you know, he has his own little production studio. I shouldn't call it little 'cause he has his own production studio. I don't got no- I don't have no fucking production studio. He has his own big ass production studio and he's been shooting his own specials and his own, he's doing a reunion of The Titus Show through it. And so I reached out to him and I'm gonna do, like, a live stream show where we have 10 people in the audience and then we'll be live streaming it out on YouTube on September 5th if people wanna get tickets to that.

   19. JRJoe Rogan17:54

       So-

   20. RFRon Funches17:54

       RonFunches.com. Don't stop my promo, Joe.

   21. JRJoe Rogan17:57

       Sorry. Sorry.

   22. RFRon Funches17:58

       (laughs)

   23. JRJoe Rogan17:58

       Sorry. RonFunches.com. So there's 10 people in the audience?

   24. RFRon Funches18:01

       Yeah.

   25. JRJoe Rogan18:02

       So what do you, do you test those folks?

   26. RFRon Funches18:04

       Yeah.

   27. JRJoe Rogan18:04

       How do you do it?

   28. RFRon Funches18:04

       Yeah. Well, you know, there'll, there'll be wa- not like you where you ha- where I took the full test, but it'll be temperature checks and waivers.

   29. JRJoe Rogan18:11

       Mm-hmm.

   30. RFRon Funches18:12

       And they have, they'll be wearing masks.
7. 29:37 – 33:16

   CBD, weed, trainers, and the Netherlands/Ams­ter­dam vibe

   1. JRJoe Rogan29:37

      You want a Kill Cliff on one of these?

   2. RFRon Funches29:39

      What is it?

   3. JRJoe Rogan29:39

      CBD drinks?

   4. RFRon Funches29:40

      Sure.

   5. JRJoe Rogan29:40

      Grape CBD drink. Delicious, good for you, no THC.

   6. RFRon Funches29:45

      Well, that's a ... Okay. (laughs)

   7. JRJoe Rogan29:47

      Well, you can ... I can get you some THC if you'd like that too.

   8. RFRon Funches29:50

      (laughs)

   9. JRJoe Rogan29:50

      We have plenty of that. But I got those for us.

   10. RFRon Funches29:55

       Oh, them not bad.

   11. JRJoe Rogan29:56

       Delicious, right?

   12. RFRon Funches29:56

       Yeah.

   13. JRJoe Rogan29:57

       Good for you. 25 milligrams of CBD. Do you, do you take CBD at all?

   14. RFRon Funches30:02

       Yeah, a bit. Yeah. I'ma get my, get some to my wife whenever her back is hurting.

   15. JRJoe Rogan30:06

       That's one of my daily things, which is a thing that's so good for you. CBD is so good for you. Just anything you can do to reduce inflammation.

   16. RFRon Funches30:15

       Mm-hmm.

   17. JRJoe Rogan30:16

       It's fantastic for the body, for the brain. I didn't even know I had anxiety till I started taking CBD.

   18. RFRon Funches30:21

       (laughs) I'm telling you.

   19. JRJoe Rogan30:25

       How do you know?

   20. RFRon Funches30:26

       Well, maybe you didn't. (laughs)

   21. JRJoe Rogan30:29

       Well, it's relative.

   22. RFRon Funches30:30

       (laughs)

   23. JRJoe Rogan30:31

       I mean, I didn't have anxiety compared to people who have anxiety.

   24. RFRon Funches30:34

       (laughs)

   25. JRJoe Rogan30:35

       But, uh, I took CBD, I was like, "Man, I feel really relaxed." And I was like, "Oh, okay. I see what's going on."

   26. RFRon Funches30:40

       Yeah. No, I like a good CBD. I'll just smoke just a straight CBD sometimes.

   27. JRJoe Rogan30:44

       Oh, yeah?

   28. RFRon Funches30:45

       After a workout or something.

   29. JRJoe Rogan30:46

       Yeah. I always say, "I'm gonna do that," and then I grab a regular joint.

   30. RFRon Funches30:49

       Yeah. Well, sometimes I'll mix them up too.
8. 33:16 – 39:02

   COVID realities: U.S. response, symptoms, vitamin D, and health routines

   1. JRJoe Rogan33:16

      Well look at what, what's happened with COVID.

   2. RFRon Funches33:18

      Yeah.

   3. JRJoe Rogan33:19

      That's the best. I mean if you look at what... We're so bad at it.

   4. RFRon Funches33:22

      Yeah.

   5. JRJoe Rogan33:22

      America is so bad. Our response to COVID and how, how we've handled it and allowed it to spread, we're the worst.

   6. RFRon Funches33:29

      Yeah. Well I mean, you know, I'm a big pro wrestling fan and that's the thing that's been making me angry because just as much as I miss comedy I miss... I used to go to my wrestling shows with my friends and my buddies and-

   7. JRJoe Rogan33:39

      Mm-hmm.

   8. RFRon Funches33:39

      And now I'm watching the Japanese wrestling that I love and seeing that they have full crowds all sitting there in masks just hanging out because they are c- good at handling their fucking business.

   9. JRJoe Rogan33:50

      Yeah.

   10. RFRon Funches33:50

       And I'm just like... That's when it... 'Cause when you're just sitting here you're like, "Oh, well we're all falling apart and it's just how it is." But then you start looking over at other countries and you're like, "Well no, they, they, they figured some shit out."

   11. JRJoe Rogan34:01

       Well this virus is so sneaky man. Even Japan has had a resurgence recently.

   12. RFRon Funches34:05

       Yes. Mm-hmm.

   13. JRJoe Rogan34:06

       It's so weird man. It's the weirdest fucking virus. It's just like New Zealand even had a resurgence. New Zealand had over 100 days with zero cases-

   14. RFRon Funches34:15

       Zero. Yeah.

   15. JRJoe Rogan34:15

       ... and then they just got a, they got about, I think it was, was it four or something like that?

   16. GIGuest (third voice, likely Jamie reading/providing info)34:18

       They got it in one f- one family got it.

   17. JRJoe Rogan34:21

       One family.

   18. GIGuest (third voice, likely Jamie reading/providing info)34:21

       They're trying to figure out how that happened.

   19. JRJoe Rogan34:23

       Mm-hmm.

   20. GIGuest (third voice, likely Jamie reading/providing info)34:23

       So they shut down the city where they're at sort of, like they are at-

   21. JRJoe Rogan34:27

       Hm.

   22. GIGuest (third voice, likely Jamie reading/providing info)34:27

       ... stage three or something.

   23. JRJoe Rogan34:29

       One family?

   24. GIGuest (third voice, likely Jamie reading/providing info)34:30

       Yeah. It's one family of four has it.

   25. JRJoe Rogan34:31

       Sneaky fucks. What have they been up to?

   26. GIGuest (third voice, likely Jamie reading/providing info)34:34

       Maybe they got some bad tests, but probably not.

   27. JRJoe Rogan34:36

       Yeah.

   28. GIGuest (third voice, likely Jamie reading/providing info)34:36

       Maybe they're trying to trace how it happened.

   29. JRJoe Rogan34:39

       It's such a weird, weird, weird disease man. I know so many people that have gotten it now-

   30. RFRon Funches34:44

       Yeah.
9. 39:02 – 44:03

   Missing travel + creative process: love/hate/fear grid, muse, and daily rules

   1. RFRon Funches39:02

      Yeah, actually I do. I was talking about that with my wife, uh, a couple of days ago 'cause we were watching some 90 Day Fiance, and they were-

   2. JRJoe Rogan39:08

      What is that?

   3. RFRon Funches39:09

      You've never seen it?

   4. JRJoe Rogan39:10

      No.

   5. RFRon Funches39:11

      Oh, it's just a show. They... It's a whole... It's actually... It's a whole complex of shows, where people from other countries meet people in America, and they get married. And they have to get married within 90 days once they move to America. But then also we've been watching the other way, on the recommendation of Erik Griffin, where Americans move to other countries for their significant others, and that's been insane, uh, and beautiful. It's been beautiful to watch together 'cause-

   6. JRJoe Rogan39:36

      Why is that?

   7. RFRon Funches39:36

      ... it makes our relationship look so much stronger when we... (laughs)

   8. JRJoe Rogan39:41

      (laughs)

   9. RFRon Funches39:41

      I go, "Baby, we never said we had to... We should start over. I never had, lied to you about a gambling problem that I had." You know?

   10. JRJoe Rogan39:48

       (laughs)

   11. RFRon Funches39:48

       I mean, it just makes o- us look a lot better when we're watching those relationships. Um, and but... They were at the airport a lot, and I would go, "Oh, that's PDX. Oh, that's duh-duh-duh. That's... That's..." And she's-

   12. JRJoe Rogan39:58

       Mm-hmm.

   13. RFRon Funches39:58

       She's just like, "Oh..." She's like, "Why are you getting so excited about seeing these airports?" (laughs) And I'm just like, "I think I just fucking miss the, the whole pr- process."

   14. JRJoe Rogan40:08

       Yeah.

   15. RFRon Funches40:08

       I just miss knowing like, "Oh, I'm going to a new city."

   16. JRJoe Rogan40:11

       Mm-hmm.

   17. RFRon Funches40:12

       "New people are going to see me. I might meet some new friends," like-

   18. JRJoe Rogan40:15

       Yeah.

   19. RFRon Funches40:15

       ... you know? I miss that.

   20. JRJoe Rogan40:16

       Have you been writing?

   21. RFRon Funches40:17

       I've been writing a bit, yeah, yeah.

   22. JRJoe Rogan40:20

       What-

   23. RFRon Funches40:20

       Uh... Go ahead.

   24. JRJoe Rogan40:21

       What's... Oh, sorry. What's your process?

   25. RFRon Funches40:23

       Uh, my process is usually... From, like... If we're talking about from the start, um, I kind of work on this little grid, where I just break it down into, um, love, hate, and fear. And then I just kind of get stoned or, or just sometimes not stoned at all, and I'll just play some instrumental music. And I'll just write about what I'm scared about, what I'm pissed about, what I'm in love with. And then I then take those topics and try to figure out jokes about what's going on in my life.

   26. JRJoe Rogan40:53

       That's interesting. Have you always done it that way?

   27. RFRon Funches40:55

       Yeah.

   28. JRJoe Rogan40:56

       Love, hate, fear?

   29. RFRon Funches40:57

       Mm-hmm.

   30. JRJoe Rogan40:58

       What, what, uh... Where'd you get the inspiration to do it that way?
10. 44:03 – 59:16

    Representation that protects the long game + vision boards and big goals

    1. JRJoe Rogan44:03

       Have you had that issue with like representation, like agents or managers trying to tell you what to do, or guide you into a way that you didn't think was you?

    2. RFRon Funches44:11

       Oh, no, no, not for me. I, I have been truly blessed in that. Truly blessed. I have, like... I think I have, like, one of the best managers in the, in the fucking world. Like, she, she's amazing. She's, um, married to the game. She's, um... My name's Melanie Pas- Truit, Brian Posehn's wife, and she's been my manager since before I moved outta LA. Like, she paid my fucking rent when I couldn't afford to pay my rent. Like, she's looked out for me every step of the way.

    3. JRJoe Rogan44:38

       That's awesome.

    4. RFRon Funches44:39

       She's ta- There's been ga- There's been fucking, like... "This show is going to series, they are making an offer on you. This will give you a bunch of money, but it's not the right project. Let's fucking pass."

    5. JRJoe Rogan44:51

       Wow.

    6. RFRon Funches44:53

       You know? And that was like, in the past and... I mean, that happened a couple of weeks into COVID. We were both scared shitless. I know she was scared shitless about that 10%.

    7. JRJoe Rogan45:03

       (laughs)

    8. RFRon Funches45:04

       A guaranteed season.

    9. JRJoe Rogan45:06

       Yeah.

    10. RFRon Funches45:07

        And she was like, "No, this isn't..." She's like, "This will..." She's like, "You've already done parts like this three or four times. You, you, you can do this. This will be there for you. We're shooting for bigger things for you." And just, like, her belief in me and, and drive for me have always been there. Like, I never ever feel like she's ever sold me short so that she can get a check. Ever.

    11. JRJoe Rogan45:28

        That's huge. That's huge. It's rare.

    12. RFRon Funches45:31

        Yeah.

    13. JRJoe Rogan45:31

        You don't get-

    14. RFRon Funches45:32

        I do, I do know that.

    15. JRJoe Rogan45:33

        I have many friends that have really bad managers that give them terrible advice, that take projects that are just short-term financial gain for... At the sacrifice of long-term career options.

    16. RFRon Funches45:43

        Mm-hmm. Oh, my manager, if she sees the word exclusive in any contract, (laughs) she's just like, "We ain't fucking with them." (laughs)

    17. JRJoe Rogan45:51

        (laughs)

    18. RFRon Funches45:51

        "You are not exclusive to anybody. You are dating around." (laughs)

    19. JRJoe Rogan45:56

        (laughs) That's great. That's, that's a great attitude, man. That's what's interesting about today's climate. It's like, you don't get a lot of real managers anymore.

    20. RFRon Funches46:05

        Mm-hmm.

    21. JRJoe Rogan46:05

        You almost get... Y- you almost have, like, comics who have two agents. You have your agent-agent, and then you have your manager who's kinda acting as an agent instead of acting as a manager, because they're all desperado. Or, maybe they don't really have faith in you so they just want that money.

    22. RFRon Funches46:20

        Mm-hmm.

    23. JRJoe Rogan46:20

        They, they, they don't really think that you're going to be that person who has a, a long career or that you could keep accelerating and-

    24. RFRon Funches46:28

        They don't believe in the development.

    25. JRJoe Rogan46:29

        Yes. Yeah.

    26. RFRon Funches46:31

        Yeah. I feel like, yeah, m- my manager's always been the... Uh, she's always kinda seen me two years ahead of where I've been at. Like, I'm, I'm... I have that story about recently, but I remember when I first was in Portland and there's this commercial that reached out to me and they wanted me to play a roach in a fucking bug spray commercial. And I was broke as fuck, and she was just like, "No." She's like, "Because we don't know what you're gonna be in the next couple of years, and that commercial could be around forever."

    27. JRJoe Rogan46:57

        Smart woman.

    28. RFRon Funches46:58

        "And so if you need the money that bad, I'd rather just give you the money." (laughs)

    29. JRJoe Rogan47:03

        (laughs) Wow. Good for her, man.

    30. RFRon Funches47:05

        Yeah, she's dope. And I have many friends who, like, they just are tremendous, tremendous comedians, tremendous joke writers. One friend who's, uh, comes to mind immediately, and I've always told him, I was like, "You need to... You need to dump your manager and get a better manager because you're doing... You're doing your part, and I don't see why you're not getting more money, you're not getting more chances, you're not advancing at things, they're not putting you on these talking head shows."
11. 59:16 – 1:28:49

    Marriage during COVID + vaccines/autism uncertainty and parenting reality checks

    1. JRJoe Rogan59:16

       I wonder when this is gonna end, the, the lockdown.

    2. RFRon Funches59:19

       Mm-hmm.

    3. JRJoe Rogan59:20

       When are we gonna get back to normal? Are you gonna be one of the first in line for a vaccine? Are you gonna wait it out?

    4. RFRon Funches59:24

       I gotta wait in the middles. I gotta be-

    5. JRJoe Rogan59:26

       Oh.

    6. RFRon Funches59:26

       ... somewhere in the middle. As a parent of a child with autism, vaccines scare me in, in some ways, but still obviously b-

    7. JRJoe Rogan59:34

       Do you think that vaccines cause autism?

    8. RFRon Funches59:36

       I don't believe they cause autism. I believe they can accelerate certain things in people who maybe are predisposed to, um, to having, to, to having it. I, and I can only just tell you my... I will tell you a personal story, and people can choose to f- like it or not. Um, but I just remember the day that we got my son his first vaccin- vaccinations. And he had been developing normally and just been chill and been talking and doing all the things pretty normally. And then we got him the vaccine, and me and my ex-wife, and we just remember he just kinda, like, was out of it. And we even... 'Cause me and my ex-wife are big potheads. We were both like, "Oh, he's... Look how stoned he looks. Look how fucking... He looks so stoned, and he's out of it." But he fucking never came back. And so that was a moment where I was like... You know? I was like, "I don't know if it caused it or that," but I was like, this is... That's the story I can tell you.

    9. JRJoe Rogan1:00:31

       Wow. It's not the first time I've heard that. You know, I have a, a friend, my friend Johnny, had a very similar situation. I don't... Yeah, I don't know. Uh, I know how adamant the people that make vaccines are that vaccines don't cause autism. And I know it's a fiercely debated issue. And in, in fact, uh, Dr. Peter Hotez, who is an expert in vaccines, who actually has an autistic daughter, um, is adamant about the fact that there's apparently, um, different environmental factors that contribute to autism. And, uh, they think it, all of it takes place during the womb, but I don't know. There's-

    10. RFRon Funches1:01:14

        Yeah.

    11. JRJoe Rogan1:01:15

        I, I don't know if-

    12. RFRon Funches1:01:16

        I'm not... I, I can never be like, "Well, the vaccine gave my son autism." I would never say that. But I will just tell you that story.

    13. JRJoe Rogan1:01:23

        Yeah. The, the thing is, if that story... If that was the case, how much do you think would ever get out that all these people-

    14. RFRon Funches1:01:36

        Mm-hmm.

    15. JRJoe Rogan1:01:36

        ... who have this similar story all have a case?

    16. GAGuest (fourth voice, reading a quote/clipped audio)1:01:40

        ... against the pharmaceutical companies.

    17. RFRon Funches1:01:42

        Hmm.

    18. GAGuest (fourth voice, reading a quote/clipped audio)1:01:42

        I mean, do you... Just, just wrap your mind around the legal troubles.

    19. RFRon Funches1:01:48

        Hmm.

    20. GAGuest (fourth voice, reading a quote/clipped audio)1:01:48

        And I'm not saying that vaccines cause autism. But what I am saying is, if they did, there would most certainly be an effort to conceal that.

    21. RFRon Funches1:01:56

        Yeah. Absolutely.

    22. GAGuest (fourth voice, reading a quote/clipped audio)1:01:58

        Most certainly.

    23. RFRon Funches1:01:59

        Absolutely.

    24. GAGuest (fourth voice, reading a quote/clipped audio)1:02:00

        That would be, uh, that would be a crazy lawsuit 'cause, I mean, how many children are autistic in this country? Do you know?

    25. RFRon Funches1:02:08

        I don't know, but I know it's a, it's a lot.

    26. GAGuest (fourth voice, reading a quote/clipped audio)1:02:11

        It's a lot. And the question is, the question has always been, are there more now because fathers are older, mothers are older, environmental factors, or that we're diagnosing it now and we didn't diagnose it before-

    27. RFRon Funches1:02:25

        Yeah.

    28. GAGuest (fourth voice, reading a quote/clipped audio)1:02:25

        ... we didn't understand it before? I mean, the first that I even heard of autism was Rain Man.

    29. RFRon Funches1:02:30

        Mm-hmm.

    30. GAGuest (fourth voice, reading a quote/clipped audio)1:02:31

        Remember the Dustin Hoffman movie?

Episode duration: 2:12:33