The Scoop with Tanya Flanagan

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You're listening to locally produced programming created in KU NBC Studios on public radio K, u and v 91.5.

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Good morning. And thank you for joining me for the scoop with Tanya Flynn. And again, I'm so happy you decided to wake up and start your day with me. Here on the scoop, where we talk about life, joy, funny moments, trending topics, and so much more. We promise to keep you in the know and find out what you know. So let's get started.

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Good morning, Las Vegas, and welcome to another edition of the scoop here with me on KU envy Public Radio 91.5. Thank you once again for rising early on the Sunday morning and joining the conversation. I'm glad you decided to tune in. I can't believe we're already this far into the new year 2024. But I'm excited about the topics we'll discuss this year, and today is going to be no different. I'm welcoming to the studio, a dear friend, a longtime friend, and community. Volunteer partner really? Mr. Eric James.

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Good morning. Good morning, everyone.

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Thank you for joining me here today. In the past, we've done these man on the street segments. And so Eric is gonna be kind of the first 2024 Man on the street. And that's where we just get to know someone who you wouldn't think does all the interesting things that they do that is maybe your next door neighbor, but has layers when you pull back the pieces of the onion that you find out are just intriguing. And so for as long as I've known air key has juggled so many balls that I couldn't even understand and believe I could do it from you volunteer in the community, you support organizations you help run organizations serve on boards and committees, you run your own business. And you've even created board games. And so I want to talk about a little bit of all of this the bad. You're an entrepreneur. So you know what made you decide your destiny was to be your own boss? Well, first

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of all, I want to say Tanya is a wonderful long term friend of mine, and only a good friend like her give me up on the Lord's Day at this time the morning. You know, he's supposed to be a time of rest. Time? To answer your question, and I've been asked to speak before a different at the university here, which I graduated from and other places. But the simple answer is I was tired of being fired. I always thought I was smarter than the person I was working for. And I always had a vocal mouth. And I always knew who I was opinionated about my beliefs on how things should be done and how things should be working into one day. One of my bosses say that be so smart, how come you're not sitting in my seat. And two years later, I was sitting in his seat, just like his own in my own business. Same as his.

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Wow, talk about motivation. I mean, I think a few of us have at different times in life being kicked in the back. But not all of us have said, I am going to not work for someone anymore. I'm going to work for myself and really figured out so was StateFarm was insurance the first venture into being your own boss, or did you do something? Did I miss a chapter?

Unknown Speaker 3:40
Well, the the original plan was to become a firefighter and hit several friends on the force. I had been a paramedic in the military. And so at the time, the departments were merging fire department and paramedics. So they were looking for folks like myself that had the medical background. So few friends on the force was going to do that knowing that they only work 10 days a month. I my my plan was then to do financial products on the side work with the families of the firefighters or individuals in the department that I worked with. And since my degree was in economics, and I had worked with the life insurance companies and was at the time of Rick being recruited by the department, which I was on to shortlist. I was working for a State Farm agent. So I knew the insurance background and I thought it would be a good dual career path. Then one day StateFarm came to me and said, asked me if I'd like to bet on myself and open up my own agency. The query is that that's a very competitive market. About 75% of people that I started with failed. And you know, you're dealing with so many other companies that advertise and market plus the agents that other agents in your community that that have contracts with the company. It's very competitive and you really have to Have a entrepreneurs mentality to really make it work?

Unknown Speaker 5:03
Yeah, I have to applaud you. Because over the years, we another caveat started the Urban League young professionals organization together, which created a great additional platform for networking, meeting people, and always talking about what you do. But you were so friendly and so outgoing, and I would watch you engage with people. And it takes that very extroverted, extroverted personality, to succeed. Because you're basically in sales and you're constantly meeting people you're always on, it's like you're never off. So I tip my hat to you for that. Perseverance and just the drive that you possess to do things that you've done. And then I've watched you, in real estate market and home health care market, just you have done a variety of things. True. When

Unknown Speaker 5:55
I was a young boy, I learned because I'm a natural loner, actually, most people don't know that about me, because I'm so extroverted when I have a party. I'm very extroverted when I'm out around people, but I'm also very much at peace, of being home alone. But what I found is I would get in trouble in school. And then one day, I realized that I made the teacher laugh, instead of making people laugh at the teacher, I could get away with more jokes and get it getting stay in emulation. So figuring that with my father at home, military, tough military father, not wanting to go home and get the village treatment, you know, it takes a village to raise a child treatment, I decided I should find a way to stay out of trouble will so charming, the teachers led to charming girls and me trying to be more charming. That opened up my ability to speak and talk in the network or among other things, so it kind of had a gradual evolution. But the core was, it was keeping me from getting my butt whooped. Because Mama says she wasn't picking me up from being suspended one more time without telling my father, but she never would rat on me, because she knew I would catch a big beat down. And mama had a soft spot for her son. So she would always one more time. I'm gonna tell you father one more times, and I figured she's gonna let her mom's gonna tell me tell him, I better figure out a way to keep my butt out of trouble. So

Unknown Speaker 7:23
the charm turns into the consummate salesman. Okay. I'm impressed. Now I know the real truth, the real deal. I get that though. Because as kids, we're trying to figure out how to navigate, I suppose. And being fair as a female women have their ways of being charming as well. And so true capitalizing on, you know, moments and circumstances,

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batting out the eye and a little twist of their hair, little smile in a cheek. It all works, that

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stuff works. kind of brings me to winding for a little bit to what you do now are the additional piece, which is this new board game. And that's really like, here's insurance. And then here's a board game, right? And they're completely different. So as you and I mean, I know years and decades have passed, not that you're old, because you're still really young. But no, we both lived decades, right? And so you go from what I'm doing in my 20s or 30s, to what I'm doing now. But why a board game? And this one is called paradox of morality. So what's it about?

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The game was not a rigidly a game, it was actually going to be at a coffee table party conversation, kind of booked with dilemmas and stuff that people could chat up about in a party and debate and argue about so I took an old method from some rappers I'd seen on a TV show that they would type a lot of their lyrics into their phone, we all have cell phones on us at all times. I'd be out some situation would catch my attention. I would put notes into my phone. So several years back a few years back, I was in Panama on vacation and I had my phone on me and I was on a what they call sandblast islands look it up beautiful, really cool experience. And they were coming to pick us up in a little boat. I got in and the seawater got into my cell phone, it destroyed all my notes. And so I thought maybe I'm just not serious about this. And about six months later, information just came flooding back. My friends were asking me, Hey, what are you always typing back in your phone? I'm like, I'm recapturing mental notes. And then one day, a girlfriend of mine said is it it's a show or a comedy or a game? And it dawned on me that I could turn this into a it's considered a card game. And so by by definition, so the game is a bunch of crazy over the wall scenarios. Some of the things what would you do in this situation? What would you do? You know, in that situation or complex thought process things, you know, how would you, if you like, a more serious one would be, if you could find out the time and date of your death would you want to know, but light hearted ones are, you're at a big ballgame and you go to the porta potty and you drop your brand new $3,000 cell phone into the blue goo that most porta potties have, what would you do? So there's all kinds of psychological complexities or things are said and a lot of what you have to play out your team has to act play out the scenarios, and the team that does the best, or the funniest rendition or explanation of their, their beliefs or their what they came up with wins the points and you know, there's drinking versions and other things for us grown folks.

Unknown Speaker 10:55
That's funny, and it's really creative. That first question made me go, pause. If I could find out my death date, would I want to know? No, but I mean, that's an immediate, initial immediate question that I want to answer with a no. The other one would make me sit there and really, really pots for a long time. What would I do if my really expensive anything? fell in to a porta Potti? Like it's a daily thing, right? Like say, you go to the ladies room, or whatever the restroom, and your air pod is in your ear. And you're like, oh, like as a thought, like, it's an instant thought. And I have to be honest, I actually lost jewelry that way. And was like, Well, I guess that ring is gone. That happened to me once I was like, Oh, I think that ring is gone forever.

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Let's see what the game I always upped the ante to where it each level around makes forces you to reevaluate your choice or rethink your answer because I add an extra change or an extra piece of information.

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So I imagine that you would, I can't imagine it would be so simple that you You've asked me my potential death date, and then it didn't come with. But this is going to happen, you know, five years from now, or in 10 years, this is going to be the scenario or knowing what your date is. If we could take if you could take five or 10 or 15 years off when whatever was the most excruciating thing happened in your life as your child as a child, or what corner would you turn differently? You know, I think it's like that moment as we in this is a great conversation for the beginning of the year as we're examining where we are, it's the type of game that may make you pause and think about life experiences because obviously you're bringing them to the conversation when you're playing paradox of morality. You're bringing life experiences to this conversation of what you thought what you believe what you experienced, how it shaped you, and over time, we're influencing it in this game to shape other people because you're persuading them right to be and to see it your way

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the definition name is and why I named it what I did paradox and morality paradox means there's no right or wrong answer. So whatever your belief or your background your history brings forward your answer or your team's answer and that's what morality means your morality are you are you religious non religious, straight gay, are you you know, Republican or Democrat? So what's a fun and we found amazing that we read into people were playing it is the game is not repetition. A lot of games. If you play a trivia game. If you answer the question once the next time you play it, it's still the same answer. So at some point, the game loses its its flair with our game. There is each time you play it, depending on the group of friends in the wild have friends the Wilder the game gets trust me folks, this ain't for your kids don't be buying as president and talking about you're gonna play with the kids on a on a Friday, CPS is gonna come walking out your door, because this is really a grown folks game. We've grown folks subject matters and grown folks scenarios and fun. But each time depending on who you play, you will have a totally different experience in Alaska as the friends you will find out things about your friends and, and and stuff will come out that you would have never thought about somebody's belief system or what they think or what they would do. And people start using props to act out the scenarios that we never even imagine. We've had, we've seen games get pretty wild, and folks seem to really like it.

Unknown Speaker 14:39
That's funny. I was making as you were talking, I was thinking about what about the super quiet person, like I have somewhat of an introverted nature at times. And so I'm selective in thoughts that I share. I guess for lack of a better description, I filter a sensor and I think about the sensitivity of other people to thoughts that I may have. Have I think there was some comedian who said, If you said everything that you were thinking, think about how many friends you lose on a daily basis. Right? So people were cautious. But this game sounds like it takes you to your limit where caution is really something that falls farther and farther by the wayside, because you're just the amped up factor. It's provoking you.

Unknown Speaker 15:27
And that's a great word it provokes you, pushes you to bring out the quiet side or that open side. So you're in a group of your friends and the way the game is played the team that has the funniest or best response to each question or acting out, think of who line Whose Line is in any way or Impractical Jokers and that type of thing. But then the other team gets the point. So you quickly realize, if you're shy or reserved what your opinions or your play, you're going to lose quickly. So the next round, each round the point totals Ante up so you can catch up. But you quickly see that people start to open up, they start to get a little bit more into the game, and let loose because they see other people letting loose in and I know it's okay for them to let loose. And the more you let loose, the more likely you are to win that round or have more fun. And then the scenario was funny in and of itself. And then the other teams answer is funny, then your team has to out funny or out answer them. So the level of competitiveness, and what brings out now and the drinking version of the game for the adults again. And now because it's legal. If you'd like to, you know, puff puff pass, then the losing team of each round has to take a drink or a a puff. And then you see people's inhibitions fall away very quickly after a few rounds of losing. And they realize they're about to be really drunk so they want to win. So then they let loose and go over the board the other team did to win the round and and push that momentum back their way. So you see folks, especially the competitive people so crazy, your friends are too crazy the game gets. And again, we just saw people do things we never imagined even writing and some people say there must be something wrong with me because I come up with some some stuff that you know some Lorena Bobbitt type situation for your folks. It's just frightening.

Unknown Speaker 17:21
I was kind of curious about how you come up with it. And I suppose I'm thinking that it continuously evolves what a thought that crossed my mind was I was sitting there going, it would be an odd you know how you have those movies. The ones that are frustrating Africa, the word that you really use to talk about them. But remember, a long time ago, there was a movie Pacific Heights. And then there was the one where I think Samuel Jackson was in it where he was the next door neighbor, but he was a police officer, and he was harassing the people, but he could get away with it. Okay. And so it's like, Have you ever thought this could morph into a movie that's like, the kind that is intense? It's frustrating. And you're waiting to see the outcomes play out. But almost like it's a mind mental movie, in a way right where the game is being played in the movie, but the people in the movie don't quite realize that they're playing the game. But the whole life, the whole movie is a game, there was a recent show that I saw that reminded me of

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the concept. I love the concept. Now. I do know when

Unknown Speaker 18:31
you take my idea. So yeah. Can I get some royalties from my ideas just

Unknown Speaker 18:37
because I do own an entertainment company called Black Rose LLC. We do have, we're pre production. And we were before Hollywood shut down last year in some talks to make the board game into a game show. And we develop a whole set and design and we use an influencers and other things. To make the game work even we have an app on Apple Pay, and on Apple Store and Google and you can download the app to play the card game as well. And that was going to link people to the game show. So we're still working on that and have some other projects as well. But going back I love your idea. I love that concept. Taking an out of a a game show and making it a real life like scenario movie type squeak game type of mentality.

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I can't give it to you all here this morning on the radio because I wouldn't want anyone out and radio

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stealing our ideas. Right? Our

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ideas so we can talk more about this great idea offline. I'm excited for you and this space and proud of you for the creativity and the courage because a lot of people would think of something and never make a move. If someone's interested in knowing more about the game, how do they find out or read about it? If they're interested? In

Unknown Speaker 19:55
course we do the you know your IG and your Facebook's and tick talks and stuff like that. So you can follow us at paradox of morality on those platforms. But also if you're just interested in check out the game looking at it a little more content about it, you can go to our website, WWE dot paradox morality.com Or you can go to our site PLM swag shop.com We have a clothing line as well that goes along with it and other things that you can purchase that have our logos or you know, stuff that we're working on. But the game it can also be found there ladies love our leggings that we got some really cold because our design for the game and hieroglyphs the African hieroglyphs, the Eye of Horus and other things, women really seem to like that. So we wanted to, you know, kind of create a platform so much but we're also on Amazon, you just have to type in paradox morality, the game, because there's a lot of history or other products that use the word paradox. So it's a paradox morality, the game pop up, and you can buy it on Amazon or right from our website. PLM swag shop.com or paradox morality.com. And again, you can find us on Facebook IG are we working on some Twitch streams again, currently, but also, you can find this on tick tock?

Unknown Speaker 21:16
Well, folks, there you have it, you can find paradox, morality and a lot of places. We're gonna stay tuned to find out more about this. I'm excited to see this is what are we on edition number one, and they'll be like the second volume or third volume. Yeah,

Unknown Speaker 21:32
this is the original one. And then you do what's called expansion packs where I've already in my head written over probably 200 new scenarios are possible games, questions to the game, there's a speed round to it, if you want to do a quick short, fun round. And then the regular game takes about an hour, hour and a half. Man about hour and 15 minutes to play a full game. So just depending on the

Unknown Speaker 21:56
way to spend a Friday or Saturday night or something with friends. I know you travel a lot, too. So most interesting place that you have been to are your top three, top three destinations. This point,

Unknown Speaker 22:08
that's that would be hard for me to say. Because I've done a lot of traveling, I've probably been to about 35 countries. I would say recently, I just came back from Greece, Turkey and Jordan. And I got to swim in the Dead Sea. When Okay, some of y'all might realize I'm a brother. So swimming and Dead Sea is not how you think because those brothers would big butts, their butts float. So it is very hard to swim with your butt popping up above the water and your face, face down. But it's not, you know, it's not the easiest task in the world. But it was interesting to see the world and see the Gulf the conflict in the Middle East from a different perspective, because Israel is right next door across the Dead Sea. And the Dead Sea is the lowest point on the planet. So it's a very interesting, unique environment, the political environment. So for me learning different cultures and seeing different perspectives of the world, through different lenses is has been a fascinating thing. But I've done everything from the running of the bulls, when they told me black folks didn't do that. And I call

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you going. And I remember thinking he's crazy. I think when I first met you you did that years ago, because we did the Urban League together in 2000. And we started in 2006. And we launched in 2007. And that was right around hexagon just before just after. I'd

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have to really look at my calendar to remember the dates but it's been about 15 to 17 years ago that I did that whitewater through the Amazon. Can

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you rephrase me? I was like what ran away from some bowls. Where else have you been? So we've got the Dead Sea. We've got the running of the bulls. Another amazing trip. I would

Unknown Speaker 23:59
say Costa Rica if you ever get to go to Arnauld near the volcanoes in Costa Rica. You can whitewater down the Amazon there. Thailand. Vietnam if you Vietnam has some incredible place especially up north near China, who Long Bay is probably one of the most beautiful places in the world. Medellin Colombia is a really fascinating place think. New Orleans Mardi Gras Latin Quarter style. Like there's areas that New Orleans when you have the the district there in New Orleans, the French French Quarter, but Latin, all Latin bars, restaurants and clubs but mixed outdoor indoor, where the palm trees and the plants grow in the restaurants and throughout them and open air bars and party areas. And then some of the most beautiful countryside where they created hydraulic dry like that dam and flooded these territories and others, multimillion dollar homes, you most people that you know have taken a gun with me think third world country they're not. And they they're amazing,

Unknown Speaker 25:10
right? Because you'll go to the third world country and you get the impression that you're gonna go into this space that's just absolutely war torn, and it's just an arm your armpit for lack of a better way to say it. But when you get there because we did that we went to Santiago, Chile, South America, right, which was considered a third world country. And I remember getting there and just being like, wow, you know, surprised and yet impressed. All the high rise buildings and you're like, wait a minute, that's a third world country. There's so much development is what I'm saying. Right. And it's absolutely beautiful. It's breathtaking. To go to these places. It was summertime. We went in November going into December when I went many, many years ago at this point. But it was just it was a beautiful place to be so added to your travel. Because you've been all these places. The most interesting food or something that you love, maybe a cuisine you prefer the most or just what was some of the most interesting foods you've tried?

Unknown Speaker 26:12
I would have to say, I got to try deep fried grasshoppers and crickets in Thailand. So so.

Unknown Speaker 26:19
Okay, so here's here's the question, since you have alluded to the African the melanin did it as people say tastes like chicken? actually did. Oh my gosh, I knew you were gonna use that when it's just like when people have frog legs now like, elegant like frog legs. Tastes like chicken does not taste like chicken, too.

Unknown Speaker 26:39
When was it really like two in the morning? We were coming out of a nightclub. So instead of having to prick it somewhere restaurants opposite instead of having a hot dog vendor out there they had man with a cart so you hungry? They okay when in Rome to Rome and they were deep fried the batter tasted like fried chicken bad and crunchy and whatnot. But you didn't taste the wings still there? You know we I don't think the wings are but you don't see that because they're deep fried and crunchy. But it just tastes like crunchy chicken. So the legs there to me. I don't think they're plucking the legs too

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drunk to realize you're reading a grasshopper or cricket. I

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knew what I was trying. You know, I'm the firm believer. You're going to take the time to go halfway around the world rather foolish no matter what. Yeah. Don't go to McDonald's. Have

Unknown Speaker 27:27
you ever been I remember a cousin going and they had a beer with octopus in the beer. Have you ever seen that one where they have all this? I guess like seafood or sea animals. And like this beer and I want to say he was in Vietnam. I

Unknown Speaker 27:42
don't I haven't seen that one. I do have a bottle of corn rye whiskey at my office that has a a was first snake with a scorpion in its mouth inside the bottle of the whiskey and sitting in my office, my Insurance Agency office because I also own a State Farm Insurance Agency. Again, I'm a serial entrepreneur, but 23 years in the insurance game, but I have a bottle that I bought there. And I had trouble getting it through customs because they thought I was trying to smuggle. Creech animals are creatures that weren't allowed to be moved out. But it has a full large scorpion and a snake it looks like a rattlesnake would it's you know next world out with the with the scorpion its mouth, and it's in the bottle. I've never opened the bottle, I'm sure one day before I die. I will try it. And maybe it'll taste horrible. But the bottle itself is amazing. So different places. I've tried different things. And the one thing I can say, I've never gotten sick. The only time I've ever gotten sick from food overseas is in Mexico. And that was like in Tijuana. But what I have found because I have been to places in Morocco or other countries where people's feet are up near the food. The food is flies and there's animals around there's everything. But the food is so fresh, that it doesn't my theory at least it doesn't have time to develop the bacteria that the E coli is and stuff like that because you're taking it right from the cage to chopping his head off to being cooked. And so the conditions may not be as sanitary as you would like or think or in your mind. But because of the freshness. It doesn't allow for the bacteria and like our food supply system. So go ahead and venture, try new things in new places and you'll probably be surprised.

Unknown Speaker 29:39
Well folks, we have run out of time. This is Eric James man on the street this month is this Sunday 2020 For our first one. We've talked about everything from the paradox morality to how he got into business for himself and travelled a little bit and been fascinated by the things he's seen and tasted. Thank you for getting up This morning and joining me Eric. Anytime

Unknown Speaker 30:02
I'd love to always come back and remember Find us on Amazon at paradox Murali the game and also at paradox morality.com and PLM swag shop.com Have

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a great week, folks.

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Good morning

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we check that right to the minute I've never gone right to the minute

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I want to thank you for tuning into the scoop with me telling you Flanagan and I want to invite you to get social with me I'm on Facebook and Twitter. My name is my handle ta en YAFL a na ga n. You can also find me on Instagram at Tanya almond eyes Flanagan and if you have a thought and opinion or a suggestion, don't hesitate to shoot me an email to tanya.flanagan@unlv.edu Thanks again for joining in. Stay safe and have a great week.

Transcribed by https://otter.ai