Season 2 Episode 7 Tony Jacobsen

0:41 What's up, everybody, there's another episode of bull I've Uncensored, Season two, Episode seven. Today, I have with me hashtag unbreakable. You bet you, mister Tony Jacobson personal trainer extraordinary and also oh uh Asian with OI. So we're going to talk about that today. Tony, how are you good? Good? What up? What up? Hello everybody. It's good to be here today. Glad to have you. Yeah. So, Tony, tell me a little bit about your lie journey when you were diagnosed, et cetera. Yeah, my OI journey started in the warm summer of nineteen seventy one when I was born pretty much. You know, I wasn't diagnosed until I was about sixteen months old, somewhere around there. You know, I had a few breaks leading up to that, broke it, you know, broke one femur and then had that cast. It came back like six months later after breaking the other one. And then that's when the doctors and everybody were questioning what was happening.

1:52 And fortunately for me, there was a doctor. This was in Los Angeles, That's where I'm from. So luckily there was a doctor at LA Children's Hospital who knew the signs and was like, oh yeah, let's have a look and see if he might have OI, and hence I was diagnosed at that point. So yeah, it's been I like to call it, you know, I just kind of briefly call it the OI FAB four, which is the type I have OI Type one. I've had about seventy ish seventy five ish breaks throughout my life, twelve surgeries, and I have steel metal rods in both femurs and both tibias. So yeah, and I used a wheelchair when I was a kid, went to crutches in my teens, and started walking in my early twenties.

2:40 That's fantastic. Yeah, No, it's funny because I'm a type of type two. I know, like back in our day, the FAB four, as you say, were you know, kind of the standard. And now we've got almost eight types documented. Oh there's so many. Oh it's insane that I don't even know what the hell I am anymore. And it's true that there's so much overlap of the types now, I mean, I know it depends on the DNA the actual DNA string, but there is so many, so much overlap in the severities, so you never know where you're gonna fall. Yep, So I too have titanium in both my femurs and tuvus upper and lower leg. For those of you that don't know all the medical jargon out there, I apologize like sound like we're talking in code, but I promise you were not. So. Yeah. So I was diagnosed with birth in nineteen eighty eighty eight out here in Massachusetts.

3:41 And you know, they didn't know anything was wrong until they wanted to do an ulder sound that my mother after her water broke. I ended up being breach and I had fourteen breaks at birth. Oh my gosh, had both times and seven ribs and they broke my collarbone. Take me out. Wow. So I had a rough start, Yeah, a little bit, a little bit, a little bit, but you know, you know, just. Just even being somewhat of a type too. You know, it's good you're here because you know that's the one that they say isn't gonna make it.

4:21 So yeah, that's uh, it's crazy. Like you know, I didn't really find out, not that anything was withheld from me per se, but this wasn't something my parents talked about all that much. But now that I'm thirty six going on thirty seven, Uh, you know, we've had those conversations and hard talks and you know, knock on wood, thank God. Like I'm really reasonably in good health all things considered. You know, we'll share Brown. I don't see that changing anytime soon. But uh, you know, for those that watched the show or listen to the show, and yeah, well know, i'm you know, concert promoter, and I also play it in a heavy metal band. So that's pretty bad as I think, at least that's what I've been told anyway. So how did you end up getting into being a personal trainer? I mean, you know, oh, I folks have our limitations obviously, but was that kind of due to your own frustration of trying to get any physical assistance with h you know, bettering your physique?

5:41 Yeah, I mean my personal story really came because I went through like my own personal transformation later on in life too. So, you know, because of the OI, I was very much not an active person, you know, which most oires aren't. And so even when I started walking on my own in my early twenties, I was still being very careful and I didn't want to break any more bones, so I didn't move and my health declined. So over the next twenty years it even got worse. So coming up on my fortieth birthday, I was in the worst health that I had ever been and just beyond the OI you know, I hadn't broken many bones between twenty and forty, but I was still just you know, suffering all the consequences of everything. So in addition to that, I was overweight, you know, facing like chronic fatigue, chronic pain, all the good stuff, you know, all the fun stuff.

6:40 And so when I was coming up on my fortieth I was like, you know, really in bad shape, and I started kind of thinking about doing something, but I just couldn't get there, you know, because I was still dealing with a lot of stuff that was oh I related as far as mentally right, all my mental blocks, and so when I was but when I turned forty one, I ended up going to the doctor because I had pain in my stomach and he was like, well, let me do an EKG on you to test your heart, and so he did that and he told me that I might have had a small heart attack. So at that point, the good news is I didn't have a heart attack. That's first of all. The second of all, it ends up. I have a bicuspit valve, a order valve.

7:23 That's why I was kind of reading the way that it did. But it was basically that incident that made me realize I needed to do something because I was like, well, this isn't gonna fly. I need to do something because you know, I don't want to die young, and I want to get in some sort of better shape for myself. I want to do things I haven't ever done. So for me, that was the point when everything changed. I had to start, you know, really doing the mental work of figuring out how to work with the OI to start exercising, and you know, I at that point I hired a personal trainer, and so it was a it was a great move on my part. He was really cool. He he understood, he learned about a why, he worked with me in the right way, and you know, over the course of like eight months, I got healthier than I had ever been. So I went through a full transformation.

8:14 I lost a lot of weight. I dropped a lot of weight. I ended up running, I ended up jumping. I ended up doing like really like big physical things that I had never done before. Yeah, it was like I couldn't believe it. It was really like a huge moment. I talked about it in my book and that was like kind of the impetus for me to say, you know, what I've been through was it feels really good. I know it's very important what I was able to accomplish, and I want to be able to share this with others. So that's why I wrote my first book, disab Your Disability. Kind of was like, well, now I have a story to tell, So I'm going to tell this story and I'm going to help as much as I can, not only my fellow a Wires, but just anybody that is dealing with the physical discs ability. So through that I wrote the book and actually I got my certification to be a trainer before that because as I was coming out of my transformation, you know, I knew I wanted to help and I wanted to do it the right way.

9:13 So I wanted to get the training. I wanted to you know, know, how to really do what I could do and do it officially. So that's when I went and got my certification and did all the training and you know, really stepped into the world of personal training. And it started with the Wires and then kind of started branching out to other people with other disabilities and ever since then. That was two thousand and fifteen, I think when I first got my So just coming up on ten years this year, I just congratulations. Yeah for sure. No, wh when I was surfing through the OLIF message board or whatever on Facebook, I saw your post for your book or disabled your disability. And that's always kind of the mentality I've always had in general, you know, being in Massachusetts and Central mass I was kind of a big fish in a small pond, shall we say, when it came to ah in my areas.

10:16 So I didn't have a ton of friends with it growing up. So I kind of learned how to live in spite of my situation. And you know, my parents always gave me a very can't do mentality, and you know, if it was unsafe, and we were like, you know, Josh, you know, cut the shit, it's not a good idea, right, you know. It was all kind of common sense based, and I was really lucky to have the support system I did in my younger years growing up as a kid, you know, I know, we all kind of have different severities and whatnot. Did you deal with a lot of you know, getting picked on at school or anything like that, or were kids pretty decent.

11:09 No, I had my fair share. I had my fair share of bullies and kids that didn't understand. And you know, now now that I'm wiser and more seasoned, I understand that they're just they don't know, they just don't know what to do, right, But back then, it was really painful and hurtful. And you know, I spent a lot of time as O wires. I see that through line that we spend a lot of time on our own, right. We we really days being laid up, either in the hospital or at home, in casts and all that great stuff. So I spent a lot of time alone. When I did, you know, go to school, I had I had friends that had other disabilities too, which was great. I only knew one other person with OI and then we lost contact, and then I didn't talk to anybody else with OI until I was in my forties. But yeah, going through my childhood, it was very much me just trying to deal with it on my own. And you know, there's two camps in the OI world. I feel where either the parents are very much maybe like your parents, where they're like, yeah, just go and do it, man, Just you know, do what you gotta do. And then you have parents like mine who were like, don't do anything.

12:17 They careful, don't move. And I have type one, which is mild, right, and so I had but I had enough breaks early on to concern my parents. Of course, I was having like most of my breaks in those first like five six years, so I can I know why they were like that, but they were that way. They wrapped me in bubble, They told me don't do anything. They were very protective of me. So you know, there's those two camps. So I definitely was brought up in the breaking is a bad thing, don't do it, avoid it at all costs, right. Yeah. Now, it was just quite the contrast from growing up in that kind of an environment to you know, pushing your physical limits and you know, getting into the shape that you got in later in the life. Yeah, what was that like for you? Like? Mentally, man, it was.

13:14 It changed my entire life. Like I literally feel like I'm living a second life ever since my transformation, because it's you know, I talk about it in the book too, and there's a story I share about my mom. I don't want to spoil it for anybody that's gonna read the book, because it's a great story. But I can just say that, you know, the perception of everyone around me and how they perceived me prior transformation. Put it that way, everything changed, you know. So it had a significant change in how I operate in the world. And so not only for myself, but it was for everybody around me too, my wife, my kids, like my friends, people that have known me all my life. You know, they're like, wow, I mean this is it's like you're a totally different person Tony and I and I am a totally different person. I totally feel like I don't have the same mentality. I don't have the same thoughts.

14:09 I'm much more outgoing, I don't have the same fears around they stuff, especially, I'm just more mindful of how I move. So there's a lot of a lot of different things mentally and emotionally. It feels great, like I'm much happier just not being in pain every day. That that alone is awesome. The fact that I can do things that I wouldn't have ever thought about doing before, that's awesome too, because then I you know, it opens up my world and so it's those things that I want to help other people with. That's why I'm like doing my coaching and really trying to help people get really put put their health as a priority. Because as soon as you do that, like when I did that, my whole life changed for the better.

14:53 So no, absolutely, anytime anyone can focus on there will be before anything else that I always ended up being worth it in the long run. I think a lot of people will underestimate that. So I'm curious because I have not had any personal trainer work with me so far. I've done free weights off and on from my twenties onward. I'd say once I hit thirty, I kind of got out of shape and put on some weight, and just within the last years or two I started on a carnival diet and have been able to shed them back down to eighty five pounds, which is good for me.

15:44 My top way was more all three, so being three foot three with olive at one hundred and three pounds no good. And so you know, like I said, it was just kind of one of those things that I had to find something that was low impact enough to get the weight off so that I could move enough to actually start working out again, and it's still kind of a we're working progress, but I definitely feel a hell of a lot better. So for somebody in our situation, you can give me like a small, like a basic overview. What sort of things do you recommend pro white patients for just basic either weight training or mobility or what have you.

16:27 Yeah, I mean, first of all, everything is personalized. Let's just be clear on that. I can give some general ideas, but you know, anybody who's watching or listening, you know, of course, consult with your doctor before anything. I gotta like say that, but you know, like like with you, I think the number one thing to do is start to look at what you eat first. So anybody dealing with any weight to issue or any even before you begin to exercise, you know, really it all starts in the kitchen. It all starts with your nutrition, because those two things will not only dictate how you're you know, how much, how many calories you're taken in, but also, like you said, you want to get to a point where you feel you can exercise. So a lot of people who are just overweight, they'll just start exercising, but they don't change their diet or it's a very slow change, and then they get burnt out. Yeah, they just don't have the energy. They're not eating for working out, they're not eating for exercise. So number one is really start to look at your food number one. Number two you got to just start moving. And there's no you don't have to wait necessarily for that, but you want to start slow. You want to start with something simple. You want to get your but you want to kind of study your body and your functions and look for a trainer, you know, contact me, let's talk about it, because like

17:58 those are the things where people just kind of you know, look for stuff maybe on social media or they go on YouTube, and they end up trying to do moves that they see and those aren't adaptive and they're not modified. So you know, our bodies don't move like that. Even for me, I have Type one, I still have like mobility issues, so I can't do all the exercises like I see someone doing it that maybe doesn't have those issues, right, So what happens is a lot of people just kind of go in and just start trying to do stuff. And again, if you're not doing it right or if you start too too much, then you're gonna hurt yourself, number one, And that's the first thing we want to avoid. And the second thing is you're gonna just get burnt out.

18:42 So you got to have a program, You got to have some sort of guidance because like for me, I know, there was a couple times during my like twenties when I worked out with a friend and he didn't know how to tell me how to train, and so I remember I hurt myself one time, and another time I think I worked out for like two weeks and I burnt out and never went back. So those are the things that happen regardless if you have a disability. But with dealing with the disability especially, oh why there's considerations. You want to make sure you're progressing into the right intensity of workout, got to make sure that you're eating right, and you know, everybody's different. Everybody's different, so it just depends on where you're at. So if you use a chair, if you're able to walk around, all those factors kind of come into play. But you just got to take it slow. Look for a trainer who knows what they're doing, who's willing to kind of learn and talk with you instead of just like trying to make you do stuff. Yeah, and that's kind of the I would say, that's a good foundational way to approach it.

19:51 Oh, that certainly seems practical for me. Yeah. Yeah. So obviously you put a book out and doing plenty of podcasting and whatnot. Do you have any other personal goals right now? They are working toward? Well, gosh, right now. The big thing is my coaching business. So you know, I just launched recently at the end of last year, the Stronger Bones coaching group. So for the last like ten years, it's been off and on as far as what I've been doing with coaching. So I've been doing like one on one stuff. I do a lot of virtual because you know, all wires are all around the world, so I deal with people and other people that have disabilities too, So it really has opened my reach as far as who I'm working with.

20:39 So I do a lot of virtual stuff. And I was doing one on one and then I built a platform that was kind of membership. It's called Unbreakable Body, and you know, some people joined that and people were coming and going, but it was really a self guided kind of thing. So coming into last year, I was like, you know, what, I want to do more personalized, but I need to put it in a framework that works for everybody, especially so I could deliver it to more people. So I said, well, let me do a group coaching. So Stronger Bones Coaching Group was born throughout last year and I launched it at the end of twenty twenty four, and that's really my focus for this year as far as growth for the business and to do more coaching. It's, you know, basically the programs set up to where you come in. You get access to a weekly I do a live workout every Monday that's virtual on Zoom, and so you get access to that. You get access to all the replays of all the workouts. We do a group coaching call every single month, so everybody gets personalized training.

21:42 So I, you know, basically I'm guiding everybody and giving them giving them specific things to do. I have workout calendars that I that I give to people depending on their abilities and what their goals are. And I do a pod member's on my podcast. In there, I do motivational stuff. So there's a lot lot of things involved in the Stronger Bones Coaching group, but the main thing is that keeping you consistent, keeping and keeping you accountable so that you really show up and you do it, because that's been the biggest thing that I've seen that people need the most, you know. So the big goal right now is to continue building Stronger Bones coaching group Unbreakable Body. I'm working on my third book now because I put out my second book last year, which was Advice to Be Unbreakable, and so I've started writing the third book now. So my goal was for this year on that one, but we'll see how that goes. And yeah, and I continue to do music. I'm a DJ, so I'm out night and I and I play a do a live show every week online and yeah, so it's like as far as goals right now, those are those are the big things that are kind of happening.

22:53 Right Yeah. So the Unbreakable Bones that you said is like a subscription online. Yeah, Unbreakable Body, Unbreakable Body. Yeah, so that's like a membership. So uh, basically it's like two tiers. So Unbreakable Body is kind of like the self guided portion of the training where you can go in and it's just a monthly membership. Uh. And then Stronger Bones coaching groups takes it a step up to where you get the personal training. Now, now you're getting the group coaching call. Now you're getting you know, the live workouts every single week. So you know, it's just added benefits and and and more features in that in that program, but both in monthly subscriptions. Yep.

23:38 So would you like how how would you say your program would differ from say, you know, if somebody was I got a PT script or something like that to go to physical therapy and whatnot. Are there much different from that? Yeah? For sure. My my coaching and programming like is the the step after you get out of PT. So it's like, you know, you go to PT and they're giving you you know, really it's just a different program. They're just trying to get you to start moving and get your whatever. Maybe you know, you had an injury or you had a surgery, so they're just they'll actually put their hands on you and move your your limbs and whatnot, and they're gonna give you certain exercises to do. But my program is a step above that. So it's like now you're gonna move on your own. Now you're gonna do a little bit more intense Now you're going to start to progress so that you can start to get stronger, and you know, so that's kind of where I where I come in. And then and then the main thing is that it's fun. So like when you come and do my program, you get you get to train with me.

24:47 I'm gonna be your coach, and I make all the workouts fun. So it's not gonna be you know, just like, Okay, do ten reps of these leg extensions, like you know, and you're doing it with other people too, Like in the live workout of the room, it's called the energy Elevator, So you know, there's music I'm doing, I'm doing all sorts of different exercises and we're just having fun. We're just having fun. And so it's not just you know, okay, guys, ten reps of a bicep curl like you know, it's it's different. So yeah, that's kind of how that's kind of the difference that I'm that bridge, I'm that step after PT. Okay, that's certainly paints a clear picture I think of what folks can expect. So other than doing the Unbreakable Body, programing your books or whatnot, are there other shows that you do or you know, specific podcast you go on other than you know, gracings with your presence here.

25:51 Yeah, I mean, you know, I try and keep the podcast schedule consistent, you know, wherever I can jump on and and share about my books, and share about the coaching, share about my DJing. I go on all different types of podcasts, which is great because I you know, I love to talk music. I've been involved in music my entire life, so you know, I do that. I've been involved with you know, acting in the entertainment industry, you know, in front of him behind the camera. So I I'll show up on shows like that, you know, wherever I can like you know, find that in to just kind of talk about it, you know, fellow aires that have shows. It's like, let's go, you know. So I'm doing a lot of advocacy for the OI community also. So right now, I'm currently a board member of the OIF Great. So, like I'm on the board. I just started last year, and that's a that's a big step too for me because I've been doing like for the past gosh, I don't know, maybe like four or five years. I wanted to do more for the community beyond like the training and the coaching. So I started doing different events that I call the OI Life Events. And so through that work, I started doing a monthly meeting called the OI Life Group, and so it's still going on. It's like going on two and a half years now, and so it's great because I'm being able to provide a different kind of space for the OI community where it's not so it's

27:22 not so medical based, like, it's more lifestyle like it's just for a place for Wires to come and like hang out and we have this common thread that it's OI, but we're not necessarily talking about just that. We're talking about like kind of everything that's happening in life. So I've got OI Life and I do groups, and I've got the YouTube channel for that, and that's that's been going really strong. Where I do I do interviews with the wires there by the way we should do one for the Life channel, and you know, I do different videos, educational stuff, just informational things, lifestyle things on that channel and that's been a lot of fun. So anywhere where I can like really spread the message of of you know, music, music, movement and motivation, that's what I like to call like my mix show. It's called the Unbreakable Mix Show, and so that's what it's all about. So anywhere where I can go and kind of plug in those elements is are the things that I do. So I'm DJ in every week, I'm you know, promoting the books, I'm doing the coaching and you know, helping the OI community where I can. So you know, I keep the plate full.

28:26 I keep the plate full, and we just kind of we do it up. Yeah, I mean it seems like a common thread with those of us with oh, we seem to be multitesters on certain levels when it comes to at least the ambitious ones. You know, like I said, I do concert stuff like playing a band. I do the ploodcast. So obviously the plodcasts started right around covid when obviously it wasn't gigging and all that, and I just wanted to maintain contact in the business and entertainment world like you just said. You know, I haven't had the opportunity to get up to LA or anything like that yet, but I've done some indie stuff around here and whatnot off and on, so I enjoy that as well. Tell me about your music influences, like what do you gravitate towards besides the DJ end. Well, my music career started like in my teens. I was a drummer to start, so yeah, that was like my first foray into music. I've always had rhythms, so like I kind of think that was my thing, getting into drumming and then playing some guitar, some keyboard, mostly from by ear. I never really was formally trained on anything, but once I was exposed to hip hop, then that was kind of it.

29:55 That's when my and that was around my teens, you know, so it was really the formidable year where when hip hop really started to come into play, and so I gravitated towards that. I started DJing and producing and rapping and being an MC, so like that was kind of where everything headed in my teens. And so yeah, for gosh, for many years, I did a lot of MCing, I did a lot of production, a lot of producing on my own songs, worked with a lot of people, and you know, put out a lot of indie records. And then most recently when I met my wife, even later on, we got together and we started an indie hip hop group called Dynamite Jive, and so we put out three independent records and a single. Our last single was twenty eleven.

30:46 But we did the whole thing. Man. All through the early two thousands, we put out records, we were touring around the Southwest doing our things. So yeah, and then through all that, I was DJing no matter what. Like I was, you know, professionally DJing clubs in LA back in ninety six ninety seven. That's when I started. So that was a big bloomer area, you know, like you said, with Hiplop and yeah, California, Like it wasn't exactly my demographic, but i mean obviously everybody knew it was going on in the nineties and too black and all that. Yeah, exactly, time to get into that. That's great. Yeah, So I've been djaying and since then, I've been djy. So I've you know, just always had a steady, kind of steady gig of just DJing wherever I can because I just love it. It's it's at that point now where I just love to play. You know, Before it was like more money based and I was like doing gigs to get paid. But you know, eventually it got to a point where I'm like, man, I just want to play. I just want to spend So I play all different genres of music. My heart is in like hip hop, R and B stuff, especially like Golden Era, right, you know, hip hop, R and B. But I like everything.

31:59 I love all types of music, So you'll catch me playing all sorts of things in the mix show. Nice. Yeah, I definitely a DJ is. I wouldn't say it lost art form, but it's definitely special. Yeah. Yeah, And there's uh, you know, it's kind of anybody can do it now, but you know, it takes It's about the music, you know, it's about the music and really how you're kind of putting things together. And there's so many different again, there's like a lot of genres of DJing, a lot of different types of DJs and producers and all that stuff. And I've seen it evolve, you know, from you know, working on turntables. I still have my turntables and they're back there right there, and so you know, I'll pull them out and I'll play on those once in a while too. But you know, I just love watching DJs, listening to DJ's play, and it's a it's an art form that you can do no matter how old you are, you know, I feel like it's hip hop's are very kind of like as an MC, it was a very young person's game. But you know, with DJing, I was watching DJ's play until you know, they're they're much older, and so it's inspiring for me because I'm like, yeah, I'm just gonna keep playing.

33:12 I don't care, like I'm gonna do this until I'm done, you know what I mean. Yeah, yeah, that's exactly how I feel about. You know, I've been playing guitar for shit now, twenty five years plus and you know, just starting to get to the I wouldn't say pro level, but we're just slightly below that at this point on a Dye label and all that fun stuff. So that's awesome scratching the surface of after fifteen years in the music business things that are just starting to open up now. So it's just one of those things. You got to stay the course. Yeah, you gotta keep going. Yep, Are is your goal to to get? Are you gonna stay Indy or are you looking to like move to a bigger label type thing?

33:58 I mean, ideally, you know, it's for me, it's all about kind of breaking through the last soiling and getting out of the system. And not living on disability anymore. So whatever it takes to get to that point. You know, I'm trying to use what I'm good at getting me out of this hole. Yeah, yeah, you know, it's one of those things. I think anybody with a disability has to get creative with how they live, how they survive, and how they grow. And I think that's just a constant thing for us. Yeah, but I think it's I think it's good too for you know, more people with disabilities to explore their creative side. Yeah, because you know a lot of people feel maybe they don't. And I think we inherently have a more creative side. Again, just from you know, years of dealing and especially amongst the O wires, I've seen that where it's like, yeah, you know, we spent so many hours and days and weeks laid up like we had to learn how to use our imaginations right or we were watching a lot of and films and listening to music. And so there's that creative side that I feel a lot of people may not tap into. And you know, because I encourage everybody, Like when I put my book out, I told everybody, I'm like, you got to write a book, now like now it's your turn.

35:15 So you know, the more books we have even on this subject, the better. So I always encourage people like, yeah, write your book, man, It's important to get your story out there too, and it's a creative outlet. Yeah, I mean, I can honestly say that, like between video games and pro wrestling and music like that's that's what kept me going for my younger years when it was the hardest. I've been very fortunate in my older decades, you know, to not nearly have as many breaks and you know, traumatic events per se. I mean, I still get sick and crack ribs and all that heavy horseshit, but you know, it's a tough one sometimes, but we get through it. Yeah, I played rock shows with broken femurs and it just kept going. I gotta do what you gotta do to keep keep that bus rolling.

36:12 It's so awesome because like, yeah, I think a lot of a lot of us have done that, where we've had broken bones and still had to like do stuff right, like whether it's a job or whether it's I remember a couple of times DJing on my crutches and it's like, yeah, you just gotta you gotta do it, man, you gotta you know, especially if you getting paid for some Yeah. Absolutely, Yeah, commitments, commitment, no matter what it is. Yeah, and it's great because a lot of people that you know, maybe don't have a y or don't you know, have a disability, they would they would call in sick or they would you know. Yeah, I think we have a different tolerance level for the pain and for the commitment when it comes to that sort of thing. Yeah. I think we're hungrier than the average bear. Yeah.

36:56 We work harder because we know it's going to take a lot more, that's for sure. Yeah. So yeah, like like Tony mentioned, for more information on osteogenesis in perfecta like a olif dot org, it's probably your best source for information across the globe to learn more about it and learn about yours through it. And you know, this is what we're about. We're about connecting through the wonders of technology and making the world a much more livable place and you know, finding out let's to get us through the hard times. I think not enough people to try to do that.

37:38 Yeah, Absolutely, connecting with the community, and you know, I always encourage people that, like through the OI Life group, the meeting that I hold every month. You know, I promoted out there pretty much everywhere. It's not just within like OI groups. So it's great because I've had quite a few people come in that are brand new to the commune where they're like, yeah, I haven't met an Oire before, you know, I haven't met anybody else with the I before. And it's really a great thing. And I always encourage people to, you know, get connected to the community. I wasn't connected to the community for so many years, and I so wish I would have been, because it would have, you know, kind of given me the support and shown me some stuff that maybe, you know, because I had a lot of questions or maybe some doubts or ideas or fears or whatever we're kind of feeling.

38:28 When you connect with the community, you know, you see the stories, you get to hear the stories and meet the people, and sometimes it'll be you know, oh gosh, you know, yeah I can do this, you know, if you just get motivated and inspired to do something different than cool. And so I think it's really important to connect with the community whenever you can, no matter what. Disability too, because even in the rare disability world, sometimes it's such a small community and we are right. So it's like you just got to connect with people because you'll see there's more of us than you think and and it's and it's for the most part, very supportive. So it's good to meet meet fellow a wires. No, totally. I couldn't have said it better myself. My my earlier days, I wasn't quite focused on that. But now that I kind of you know, I wouldn't say past my prime, but you know, no way there.

39:23 Yeah, exactly, you're just getting in the prime. Age is just a number. Age is just a number, trust me. So I mean it's been much more rewarding in my adulthood, uh, to get connected in the community and the way I have in the last few years. Yeah, yeah, yeah, it probably would have helped out a little bit, but I think I appreciate it more now. Yeah, And I think that's what happens because even if you know, we're younger, you know, through our twenties, we're just trying to live our life, right, We're just like to deal with any of this, you know. Yeah, I'm just I'm just having fun. Man. You don't want to deal with that stuff. And so I think that's a natural human thing that people go through where you're just kind of trying to find your way.

40:07 But you know, for anybody that is watching or listening and you know you've you haven't met any other or any other oires, you know, come to the OI Life Group, reach out to the OIF dot org, or come to my website and you come to the OIF OI Life Group and just get connected because it's a lot of fun. It's a lot of fun too. Yeah, and like I said, you know, this is where Tony and I corresponded first, and m m that's how this whole thing came about. So yeah, or know what kind of opportunities you're going to get when you tap into that. That's right. Yeah, I've connected with so many oires and we've done great things. You know, We've created content, we've you know, referred each other to different resources. You know, you just never know, you just never know beyond the OI.

40:53 You know, maybe it's our through line. But again, you know, I may know somebody that you need to know and so you're gonna get connected. So a networking has always been my number one. Yeah, you know, survivors skill. I think that's great. Mine that's about mine that has not been mine. I'm just you know, the last maybe ten years, I've really started to learn how to do that. But yeah, it's a great thing though, it's a great thing. Well, before we wrap up here, today's episode is brought you by Boiling Guitars, What Dose, Barbership and Let's More. Go to puld on gunsensored dot Com slash sponsors for more details. Tony, I want to thank you for coming up on the show. Look forward to chatting a little bit more in the future and getting more involved with Alif now that I have the time into the technology, uh to make it happen. So let's keep in touch my friend.

41:48 Yes, definitely, I want to see you in one of the workouts. So I want to see you on a Monday morning coming to work out and I'm gonna and soon I'll get another drum set and then we can jam together. Absolutely, that sounds great, awesome, Thanks for having me. I appreciate it. Yeah, definitely. Well we'll see you next time, folks. And like I said, bothegunsensored dot Com For every week and every episode you get something different, so check it out. We'll catch you next time.