S2E7 - I Married My High School Sweetheart

Episode Description:

The date this episode goes live will be my 14th anniversary with my husband. So, in celebration of our anniversary, I asked my husband to join me in this episode to talk about how we first met, and the pros and cons of marrying your high school sweetheart.

https://www.reddit.com/r/instantbarbarians/

Disclaimer:

Some parts of the transcript may be edited for better readability, but the content remains the same. Mostly removed duplicate words, vocal filler words, and added/removed some words for clarification.

Transcript:

Hey, everyone! This is Meliza, and I'm the Talkative Introvert.

Today's episode is about what it's like to marry your high school sweetheart. I wanted to do this episode because when this goes live on Monday, it will be my 14th year anniversary with my husband Brandon, who will be joining me today in this episode. But before we can get to what's it like to marry your high school sweetheart, I thought we could talk about our relationship and how we met and stuff.

Brandon 0:41

Okay.

Meliza Manalo 0:41

Okay. So, I'll just ask you questions.

Brandon 0:45

Okay.

Meliza Manalo 0:46

Okay. Are you ready?

Brandon 0:47

Oh, I'll answer them.

Meliza Manalo 0:48

Okay. Do you remember how we first met?

Brandon 0:54

Umm... Sort of. It was a long time ago.

Meliza Manalo 0:59

Yeah, 14 years ago.

Brandon 1:00

Yeah. I remember that we met. (Laughter) And it was really awkward, I think. Almost about as awkward as I'm feeling right now. (Laughter)

Meliza Manalo 1:19

Just pretend we're just talking normally.

Brandon 1:22

Yeah.

Meliza Manalo 1:22

Okay. So, background. Well, obviously, the title of the episode is... what is the title? 'I married my high school sweetheart'. So, we met in high school. And I was a freshman and you were a sophomore, right? And...

Brandon 1:39

Yes. That's right. I remember that.

Meliza Manalo 1:42

And so, we met in high school. And you were actually, Mikie, my brother's best friend.

Brandon 1:49

Yeah, we were just friends at the time because we just met. Kind of, right? Yeah.

Meliza Manalo 1:55

I think so. Right? I don't know.

Brandon 1:57

Yeah. That's how we met in this kind of class. And that was sophomore year.

Meliza Manalo 2:02

Yeah. And then you were coming over to sleep over.

Brandon 2:06

Yeah. So, we played video games all night.

Meliza Manalo 2:09

Yeah. So, we were waiting out at the marquee for my dad to pick us up from school. And then Mikie wanted to go talk to other friends but he didn't want to leave me alone. So, he asked me to go and talk to you.

Brandon 2:22

Oh, yeah. Yeah, I remember. And I didn't know what to say. (Laughter) Cuz you're a girl.

Meliza Manalo 2:32

But I was kind of... it was kind of cringy when I think about it. Because... what is it? I went out to talk to you. And then I asked you for a hug. Can you remember that?

Brandon 2:45

Yeah. I remember.

Meliza Manalo 2:45

I just wanted to hug you. I don't know why. And the first time...

Brandon 2:50

Yeah. I do remember that. It's all coming back to me now.

Meliza Manalo 2:55

You were wearing... I remember what you wore.

Brandon 2:57

I wear the same thing every day. I still wear the same thing every day.

Meliza Manalo 3:01

No, not really.

Brandon 3:02

Blue jeans and a black shirt.

Meliza Manalo 3:04

Back then, you wore your puffy Etnies shoes. You remember that?

Brandon 3:10

Yeah. Cuz they were on sale.

Meliza Manalo 3:14

And then you had baggy blue jeans and you had a band shirt. I think you were wearing a Led Zeppelin t-shirt.

Brandon 3:19

Yeah. A Led Zeppelin shirt that I still have.

Meliza Manalo 3:22

You still have it?

Brandon 3:23

Yeah, it's in there. It doesn't fit anymore. I got too buff.

Meliza Manalo 3:27

Is that the... Okay.

Brandon 3:32

My stomach got too buff.

Meliza Manalo 3:34

Yeah. So, I wrote a list of questions. So, when did you realize that you liked me?

Brandon 3:41

That's hard to answer, because I'm not really sure. Because I can't really remember. Because... how do I answer this? I guess it's after we got to know each other, but I don't know when or how I knew. I don't know how to explain it.

Meliza Manalo 4:00

There wasn't like a specific event. It's just because we were...

Brandon 4:03

It' just more like after we hung out a little bit. Like when I would come over and we would hang out and talk and stuff.

Meliza Manalo 4:12

Because you came over a lot.

Brandon 4:13

Yeah.

Meliza Manalo 4:14

You came over almost weekly. Didn't you?

Brandon 4:18

Yeah. Sometimes. Sometimes it would be to come over if you were there. I didn't tell anybody that. And sometimes I would ask to come over and I'd come over and you weren't there. And then I'd ask Mikie, where you're at. You're at a friend's house or something. And then... I don't know. Just be kind of bummed out, I guess. I don't really know when or how I knew. I just kind of...

Meliza Manalo 4:46

You just knew?

Brandon 4:46

Yeah.

Meliza Manalo 4:47

It just gradually grew.

Brandon 4:50

You just kind of know. I mean, that's all I can really say. I don't really know how else to explain it.

Meliza Manalo 4:56

That's fine. I'm trying to think because I don't think I know either

Brandon 5:00

I don't really know cuz it's not something you really think about, I guess. It's just something that just happens.

Meliza Manalo 5:12

I think I knew because you're a lot like us in a school full of...

Brandon 5:21

I think that's a good way to put it because I didn't really hang out with anybody else because I felt comfortable around you guys. I guess that's probably how I knew because I feel comfortable around you guys. Like, in a different way.

Meliza Manalo 5:37

Yeah. Cuz in the high school that we went to, it was a lot of rich kids. And a lot of like non-Asian kids.

Brandon 5:52

Yeah, we were like the...

Meliza Manalo 5:54

We were like the minority.

Brandon 5:55

The group of awkward, antisocial people. I don't really know how to put it but it's out of place, I guess.

Meliza Manalo 6:04

Yeah. Because compared to everybody else in the school, there's a very small handful of people who were into anime and who were Filipino.

Brandon 6:20

Are you talking about the art... the art kids or?

Meliza Manalo 6:23

Oh, yeah, I didn't hang out with them, though.

Brandon 6:25

Yeah, I didn't either. That's the thing is I didn't really have a whole lot of other friends if any at all really. Other than like, you know, people that you sit next to in your classes that you just talk because you sit around them. But with you and Mikie, it's more of like a real friendship, I guess.

Meliza Manalo 6:44

Yeah. I didn't have a lot in common with a lot of kids in their school. Do you think that was another reason too?

Brandon 6:51

Yeah, me neither. That's probably why.

Meliza Manalo 6:55

Yeah. It makes me kind of wonder.

Brandon 6:57

Yeah. Wonder what?

Meliza Manalo 6:59

Like, if there were more kids like us. If we would have more friends.

Brandon 7:04

Oh, in that school?

Meliza Manalo 7:05

Yeah.

Brandon 7:06

I guess so. I don't know.

Meliza Manalo 7:08

I don't know either. Do you remember when you told me you liked me?

Brandon 7:13

Yeah, because we just talked about it. (Laughter)

Meliza Manalo 7:18

I asked Brandon some of these questions before.

Brandon 7:20

I'm pretty sure it's MSN chat room thing or MSN...

Meliza Manalo 7:24

No. It was Myspace.

Brandon 7:26

I'm pretty sure it was MSN chat.

Meliza Manalo 7:28

I think it was Yahoo chat. Because I didn't have MSN. I had Yahoo, but it was called RocketMail.

Brandon 7:34

Oh, well, some sort of chat, something on a computer.

Meliza Manalo 7:38

Yeah. And we used to chat almost every day after school.

Brandon 7:41

Yeah, you kept asking me about... if I like anyone, and I was describing this person that I like. I don't know how much more obvious it could've been.

Meliza Manalo 7:52

Well, it wasn't obvious cuz you had all your friends mostly were girls in high school.

Brandon 7:58

I guess. I don't know. I don't know if that's really true. I mean, it's just...

Meliza Manalo 8:03

Oh, your close friends were mostly girls.

Brandon 8:06

I don't know. I would probably wouldn't really say that. I mean, the only girls that I really talked to were just the ones that sat around me in school. In classes and stuff. And just very usually the ones that talk to me, because I'm always the quiet one that doesn't talk to anyone.

Meliza Manalo 8:23

You're not quiet anymore, though.

Brandon 8:25

Well, because I'm not in school anymore. (Laughter)

Meliza Manalo 8:32

But basically, the story is we were on Myspace or Yahoo chat or MSN, whatever, some type of a chat. We used to chat every day. And I kept trying to ask you who you liked. And I was naming off all the girls that we knew that I thought you would like. And he just kept saying no, until finally, you said it was me.

Brandon 8:55

Yeah.

Meliza Manalo 8:56

But the problem was I was dating someone at the time.

Brandon 9:00

Yeah, he who shall not be named. (Laughter)

Meliza Manalo 9:06

And the only reason why I dated him is because I didn't think Brandon would like me back and he was my brother's best friend at the time. So, I didn't think he liked me the same way I liked him. And I thought you thought of me as just like a little sister and other little sisters.

Brandon 9:20

That's really weird. Definitely not. (Laughter)

Meliza Manalo 9:25

Clearly. How did you feel when I decided to break up with my ex?

Brandon 9:32

Okay. So, okay. My answer to this is, if you go on Reddit...

Meliza Manalo 9:39

My goodness.

Brandon 9:40

If you go on reddit.com and you check out the subreddit called Instant barbarians...

Meliza Manalo 9:44

What? Instant?

Brandon 9:44

It's basically... Instant barbarians. Yeah, it's basically just videos of people getting really, really excited over something not... I mean, it's usually pretty amazing, but it's usually coincidental or something or some kind of, I sent you guys the video of that, like the guy doing that trick shots and stuff. And it would just be like someone going really crazy over some...

Meliza Manalo 10:09

Like Tom Cruise?

Brandon 10:10

Trivial thing.

Meliza Manalo 10:12

When he got excited.

Brandon 10:12

Oh, yeah, I guess like that. I guess that could be considered an instant barbarian video. But yeah, I mean that's... I guess that kind of sums it up. But imagine that but in your head and not actually doing it out loud. Just don't do that.

Meliza Manalo 10:30

Did I tell you I broke up with him? or how did you find out that I broke up with him? Do you remember?

Brandon 10:36

I don't remember.

Meliza Manalo 10:37

I don't remember either.

Brandon 10:39

That's the problem is that we're doing this podcast too many years...

Meliza Manalo 10:43

14 years later?

Brandon 10:44

Yeah. It's hard to remember any of that.

Meliza Manalo 10:47

It was a very amicable breakup though. It was very... Cuz he asked me why I'm breaking up with him, I think. And then I told him, "Well, you know Brandon?"

Brandon 11:00

Oh, you told him that?

Meliza Manalo 11:01

Yeah, I told him that. I've had a huge crush on you for a long time. And then I recently just found out that you liked me.

Brandon 11:09

I'm surprised that you did. Because he had a cool old Mustang.

Meliza Manalo 11:14

Yeah, that's not a part of my criteria.

Brandon 11:16

It could have been your Mustang.

Meliza Manalo 11:18

I doubt it.

Brandon 11:18

And then you guys could have got married and then you guys can get a divorce. And then you can take the Mustang in the divorce. And then you can be with me, you know, this would be like a secret plot that you and I have so that we could have the Mustang.

Meliza Manalo 11:29

That's way too long term of a plot. I would still have to graduate high school, go through college, marry him, then divorce him.

Brandon 11:39

Yeah. And it would be our little secret so that we can get the cool old Mustang.

Meliza Manalo 11:45

Assuming that he didn't break up with me during this time period.

Brandon 11:50

And then we'd have to get a really good lawyer so that you can get a Mustang. And then I could drive it.

Meliza Manalo 11:59

Okay. (Laughter) It wouldn't happen. It wouldn't have lasted. Anyways, I didn't really like him the same way I liked you.

Brandon 12:11

Well, clearly.

Meliza Manalo 12:12

Yeah, obviously. But he was really nice about it. He just said, "Well, I just want you to be happy." And then that was it. That was the end of our friendship. And I think I remember him saying, "If we break up, just promise...." what did he say? Something like, we'll still be friends or something like that. But I haven't talked to him since then.

Brandon 12:36

You should ask him if he still has the Mustang.

Meliza Manalo 12:39

I'm not even friends with him. I haven't talked to him since high school. I don't even know where he is, or what he's doing. I don't know if he's even still here if he moved out of Sacramento.

Brandon 12:49

Oh, well.

Meliza Manalo 12:50

Yeah. (Laughter) Okay, what is the next one? Oh, what were your thoughts when you decided to ask me out? Do you remember?

Brandon 13:01

Well, my thoughts were to be with you. I mean...

Meliza Manalo 13:07

Well, yeah. Obviously.

Brandon 13:08

I don't really know.

Meliza Manalo 13:09

What was your thought process when you were about to ask me out? Did you know like what day? Did you pick this day, specifically? Or?

Brandon 13:18

No, usually, it's just... I mean, you kind of know how I am. It's just whenever I feel like I need to do something, I'll just do it. Basically, you know, there's no planning or scheduling or anything. It's just I'll think about it constantly until I get to a point where I just need to do it, and I just do it.

Meliza Manalo 13:42

Yeah.

Brandon 13:44

That's kind of how it went. Just thinking about it constantly, and then figuring out how I'm going to do it. And then I started overthinking it and then realized that, what's the point of overthinking it and then I should just do it. And then that's how it happened. That's why it happened in the middle of a doorway of a classroom, right?

Meliza Manalo 14:07

No. It was outside of photo class.

Brandon 14:11

Yeah. Yeah.

Meliza Manalo 14:12

You moved Link's peanut into the room.

Brandon 14:14

Okay, what? (Laughter)

Meliza Manalo 14:17

It was during lunch period, I think, right? When you asked me out? I think it was during lunch, because I was just roaming the hallways. And then for some reason, your friends kept asking me where you were, but I didn't know where you were.

Brandon 14:35

Oh, did they know? I can't remember.

Meliza Manalo 14:37

I don't think they knew. Because they kept following us because they wanted to hang out with you. But you were trying to get me alone so that you can ask me.

Brandon 14:47

Oh, okay.

Meliza Manalo 14:48

So, we were in a hallway at first and I think you were trying to look for me. And at the time I spent a lot of my lunch, like during, in the photo class. Because I was always developing photos or something. So, your friends followed me to photo, because I was gonna go and develop more film. And then you finally found me. And then you said that you needed to ask me something. And then I was like, okay. So you... He's like, "Is there somewhere we can go?" And I was like, we could go in the dark room. And so, we went to the dark room. So, you know how when you go into the dark room, there's a room first, because you go into this small room first.

Brandon 15:29

Yeah. Like an airlock.

Meliza Manalo 15:29

Yeah, you have to close the door so that no light goes into the dark room. And then you go into the actual dark room. So, we went to the darkroom, but then right when you were about to ask, the door opens, and then all your friends were in that tiny little room. And they're like, "Oh, there's Brandon." And then they went inside.

Brandon 15:50

Okay, yeah. I think I do remember that. Now that you start talking about it, I remember that.

Meliza Manalo 15:56

Yeah, cuz you were getting frustrated. And then we had to leave the darkroom. Because everyone kept following us for some reason. And then we went in front of the photo class and the bell's about to ring, and then that's when you asked me to be your girlfriend.

Brandon 16:16

Right. Yeah. Thinking about it now, it seems pretty silly. I could've just ask you in front of them. But just... I'm a private person. I don't do that in front of people.

Meliza Manalo 16:25

Yeah. And that would have been weird.

Brandon 16:27

Yeah, I guess I would have been weird because it would have forced you to say 'Yeah'.

Meliza Manalo 16:30

Yeah. That's why I don't like public engagements.

Brandon 16:33

Oh, yeah.

Meliza Manalo 16:34

I hate public engagements. I think it's so... no offense to people who get it. But it's like you're on the spot. And then everyone's watching you. And then nowadays...

Brandon 16:45

And then if you say no then you're the bad person.

Meliza Manalo 16:47

Yeah. And that's embarrassing. And then usually people have a phone out. So, they're recording it at the same time. And then it's on the internet for everyone to see. That's not how ours went.

Brandon 17:00

No, that's because all of our stuff is private. That's why it works so well. Because we both like that.

Meliza Manalo 17:09

And so that was it. And that's when we started our relationship.

Brandon 17:13

Yeah. Wow. I haven't relived that since it happened.

Meliza Manalo 17:17

Yeah. I don't really think back on it. So, that was our backstory. Yeah, I just wanted to do a little, like, intro to our backstories. Basically, we were friends because you were friends with Mikie first. And then I started dating someone because I didn't know that you liked me. And weren't you dating? Well, you weren't really dating someone. Weren't you seeing someone, though?

Brandon 17:42

No. I didn't have a girlfriend since middle school before I met you.

Meliza Manalo 17:48

But you were hanging out with someone at the time.

Brandon 17:52

Yeah. But we weren't together or anything.

Meliza Manalo 17:55

Yeah. And then we got together. And then that was it. That was all in the span of like a few months

Brandon 18:02

Was it? Felt like an eternity.

Meliza Manalo 18:05

Cuz there was only... What is it? We met in October, and I forgot why I know it's October. Something happened in October.

Brandon 18:13

Well, school started in like, September.

Meliza Manalo 18:18

School started in either August or September. And then that's when you had your first class with Mikie, right? And that's how you became friends. And then a couple of months later, you came over to sleep over.

Brandon 18:31

Yeah.

Meliza Manalo 18:31

Oh, I think I remember that because that's when I started wrestling.

Brandon 18:37

Oh, yeah. You used to wrestle.

Meliza Manalo 18:37

It was in October. Yeah. I try not to relive that. I didn't do very good in wrestling. And then that's when we started dating. And that was it. And then 14 years later, and now we're here.

Brandon 18:51

Yeah.

Meliza Manalo 18:51

So, that's just like a little prelude to our actual conversation. So, you're ready for these questions?

Brandon 18:59

I guess so.

Meliza Manalo 19:00

Okay.

Brandon 19:01

Sure.

Meliza Manalo 19:02

So first question is, what are the cons of marrying your high school sweetheart? What do you feel like you missed out on?

Brandon 19:11

Um, I don't know. I don't really think about that much. But I guess if there's one thing I had to, that I think I might have missed is maybe just living by yourself after moving out. That's really the only thing. Otherwise, I can't really think of anything else other than that.

Meliza Manalo 19:30

That's it? Just not being able to live on your own? I mean, that's my biggest thing.

Brandon 19:35

Yeah, I would say dating. But I mean, seeing what other people go through, trying to date now makes me glad that I never had to go through that.

Meliza Manalo 19:47

I mean, I'm curious.

Brandon 19:48

And dating as an adult. Right about it.

Meliza Manalo 19:51

Alright. I don't think I would do... Well, let's see. Because if we were single right now, it would be different from when we were single back then. Like right after high school, that was like 2010 or something? And they don't think they had... Because when did Tinder come out?

Brandon 20:11

I don't know.

Meliza Manalo 20:14

A few years later.

Brandon 20:15

Tinder?

Meliza Manalo 20:16

Yeah, but even that was kind of like a taboo and everyone was like, they didn't think that was cool when you found someone on Tinder, would make fun of you if you found someone on Tinder. But nowadays, finding someone on an app is pretty normal for the average.

Brandon 20:30

Or eharmony? Is that still around?

Meliza Manalo 20:32

Yeah, but eharmony... Yeah, they're still around. But that one was always catered to older people. Like people who wanted to start families. But they're not having luck dating. You know, like women reaching their clock, their maternal clock, and need to find a guy or a guy who's getting old but wants to start a family or something. But now they have all kinds of apps. I think that's the thing that I... well, not dating but living or having my own place.

Brandon 21:07

Yeah, I want my own place so that if I don't want to do the dishes for a week or something, I don't have to.

Meliza Manalo 21:15

That's so gross.

Brandon 21:16

But if I just don't want to do it, then I'm not going to do it. And no one can tell me otherwise. If I want to throw my clothes on the floor, fine.

Meliza Manalo 21:25

Brandon's salty because I always tell him to do the dishes.

Brandon 21:28

I hate doing the dishes. I hate it.

Meliza Manalo 21:33

So if you were living on your own, would you just get paper plates? Disposable?

Brandon 21:41

Okay, here's what you do. This is what you do. You go on Amazon, or I mean, you can you can go on any other website, you can buy a pallet of MREs, or any kind of ready-to-eat foods, order a whole pallet of them, make sure you get something that's got at least three, maybe four different types of meals. So, you won't get bored of the same thing. And you have it delivered. When it shows up, throw them on your cabinet. And then every day you just, you know, warm one up. And it's already like... usually it has its own tray and stuff and utensils and everything. You just warm those up, eat them. And then you just throw everything away. You don't ever have to do dishes, you have to buy food, you just order a pallet every few months. And then just make sure you get some of those gallon jugs of purified water. Or I guess if you have a fridge with the filter or something. Or, I mean, you could drink tap water, I guess? I don't know if I would. But you can do that. Or you could boil your own water. But that's too much work.

Meliza Manalo 22:45

You still have to buy a pan.

Brandon 22:46

Yeah, that way you can maximize your time. Minimize the time it takes for you to put sustenance in your body so you can maximize the amount of free time you have.

Meliza Manalo 22:57

That's a lot of waste.

Brandon 22:59

It's not waste. That stuff's already made. You're just buying it and using it.

Meliza Manalo 23:04

I guess we would live completely different lives if we didn't live together.

Brandon 23:08

Yeah, or you could just DoorDash every day.

Meliza Manalo 23:10

Yeah. You could do that, too. That's really expensive. I think I just want to have my own place so I can decorate it or have it be exactly how you want it. Because we've lived together for since we moved out of our... Yeah, since high school. After high school. And we always have to compromise.

Brandon 23:33

We don't have to compromise. I don't even want any decorations. You get total freedom of that for the whole house.

Meliza Manalo 23:39

But I've to ask you. Do you like this colour?

Brandon 23:41

You don't have to ask me. You just ask me because you want to ask me.

Meliza Manalo 23:44

Yeah, cuz it's our place. You have to like it, too. You have to see it every day.

Brandon 23:48

It doesn't matter to me. I just want nothing. (Laughter) No decoration.

Meliza Manalo 23:53

Your apartment or house or whatever will have zero decor or anything? Just like a couch and a bed?

Brandon 24:00

Well, yeah. I mean, probably just a mattress on the ground like old times. And then a used futon or something. But I would have a really nice TV though. That's where the money would go. The TV, the electronics, Xbox, and the computer.

Meliza Manalo 24:19

the computer?

Brandon 24:20

Probably not even console, it would just be a computer hooked up to the TV. And maybe no couch so that you could set up a VR in the living room. And then you don't have anything to bump into. No coffee table or anything.

Meliza Manalo 24:33

You can still have a futon because there'll be a couch and a bed at the same time.

Brandon 24:37

Yeah, but if you're playing VR games, you don't want to have to worry about a couch being there or having to move it.

Meliza Manalo 24:42

So, it's just gonna be an empty room? Or is it going to be a giant...

Brandon 24:46

It's not empty, there'll be a TV mounted to the wall, there'd be a small shelf for the computer, and then in the middle of the room on the floor would be the VR headset and controllers. So, as soon as you walk in after work or something, you can just put the headset and stuff on and turn everything on. And you can have this whole space, you can move around and...

Meliza Manalo 24:49

Where do we sleep? Oh, I guess you were saying in the bedroom.

Brandon 25:07

... maybe put sensors in every room so that you can just walk around in your whole apartment. You'd be in game the whole time. And the best part is, you can have any kind of room you want in VR. And it's free. After you pay for the VR and the computer and the TV and stuff. (Laughter) Then it's free after that.

Meliza Manalo 25:39

So, if I were to walk into your apartment, it'll be completely empty. So, would your bedroom just be a bed and that's it?

Brandon 25:49

There'll be a mattress and a side table.

Meliza Manalo 25:51

Just a mattress on the floor? And one side table?

Brandon 25:54

Yeah. I'll put my phone and stuff on in the light.

Meliza Manalo 25:57

It'll look like a squatter's house. Like someone robbed you.

Brandon 26:02

IT's not a squatter house. It would be clean and stuff. That's another advantage that, you know, people aren't gonna want to break in and steal stuff because there's nothing to steal.

Meliza Manalo 26:11

Yeah, your VR and your super nice TV and computer.

Brandon 26:14

That's not worth breaking into a house just for three things, though.

Meliza Manalo 26:18

Yeah, that's true. Would you have a dining table?

Brandon 26:21

Umm probably. Just like little, you know, maybe like two-person dining table or something because if I have a guest over.

Meliza Manalo 26:28

Just one guest. (Laughter) I think it would have been cool to see that. Like maybe we should have done that where we had our own apartments, but we wouldn't have been able to afford it. At least I wouldn't have been able to do that.

Brandon 26:43

I keep saying the house down the street is for rent.

Meliza Manalo 26:45

Not now. Back then.

Brandon 26:47

We need to have our own house.

Meliza Manalo 26:49

I'm gonna buy my own house.

Brandon 26:51

It'd be easier for you to move to that house since you have less stuff.

Meliza Manalo 26:54

Yeah, I can pack my stuff in probably two days. If that, I could probably do in one day.

Brandon 27:00

Okay, whatever.

Meliza Manalo 27:02

It's true.

Brandon 27:03

Whatever.

Meliza Manalo 27:04

So, you wouldn't have any pots and pans because those are mine.

Brandon 27:07

I don't need pots and pans. I have MREs. Just any like TV dinner type stuff.

Meliza Manalo 27:16

TV dinner. That sounds gross.

Brandon 27:18

What? That's not gross. I grew up eating those 69 cent banquet. Salisbury steaks and stuff.

Meliza Manalo 27:25

Yeah, we used to have those, too.

Brandon 27:26

And the mashed potatoes and ham.

Meliza Manalo 27:28

The Hungry Man. And what's that kid one with the penguin?

Brandon 27:33

Oh, I forgot what that one's called. But I know what you're talking about. It has that brownie that always gets overcooked.

Meliza Manalo 27:38

Yeah, it's melted inside.

Brandon 27:40

Yeah, and that weird mac 'n' cheese that doesn't taste like mac 'n' cheese.

Meliza Manalo 27:43

Yeah. Well, we had a lot of those.

Brandon 27:47

I think that's even worse than the banquet ones. The banquet ones were pretty good.

Meliza Manalo 27:53

And pork and beans. We had a lot of pork and beans.

Brandon 27:56

Pork and beans are good, too.

Meliza Manalo 27:58

And we would put hotdogs in it.

Brandon 27:59

That sounds good.

Meliza Manalo 28:01

I guess. So, I can't eat it anymore. I don't like it. It makes me feel gross.

Brandon 28:06

So would your apartment just be full of plants and decor? That you can't even walk through it and you can't even see the walls anymore? That would be so much pictures and stuff on the wall?

Meliza Manalo 28:17

No, it would be tasteful. I would just have art... I would have art everywhere and plants. But it wouldn't be like you can't see anything or can't see the walls. But I would have a typical apartment.

Brandon 28:32

Like Mr. Krabs house? You know that episode where SpongeBob and Patrick come to paint Mr. Krabs' walls.

Meliza Manalo 28:38

It's all pearls. Isn't it just all pearls or pictures of Pearl?

Brandon 28:42

It's like knick-knacks and stuff. And they have to like use that single hairbrush, put one drop of paint and then blow it around all the knick-knacks and stuff.

Meliza Manalo 28:50

Yeah. Would it be like that? That'd be tasteful. It'd be like, from a magazine or something. I'll try to make it look really nice. It'd be mid-century. And very earthy. Right.

Brandon 29:09

So, you're one of those people that would have like a built-in planter into your house that has a tree growing out of it.

Meliza Manalo 29:18

What do you mean? Like a Bonsai tree?

Brandon 29:20

Like a tree growing inside your house.

Meliza Manalo 29:22

Oh, that'd be pretty cool.

Brandon 29:24

Yeah, there's houses like that.

Meliza Manalo 29:26

Yeah, I'd have that. Like a tree going through the house. Or like a tree house.

Brandon 29:33

Yeah, usually it's like a built-in planter in the ground. And then there's a tree growing in it. You're just asking for dry rot, though. If you do that.

Meliza Manalo 29:40

I don't think I've seen that. Okay. I'll just call you. (Laughter) You can fix my dry rot. What do you think? What else did you miss out on other than not being able to live on your own?

Brandon 29:54

That's it. I just want my alone time. I don't really want anything else. I mean, yeah. I don't really want anything else.

Meliza Manalo 30:03

I mean, I guess that would have been nice. If we were hanging out and then be able to go home...

Brandon 30:09

Why would you want? You wanna to know what it's like to date? Because part of me kind of does but... no.

Meliza Manalo 30:14

I kind of do. Yeah, I kind of do. But at the same time, I would never approach anyone. And I would never like... I don't think I would even get any dates because I've had a few guys ask me out in college.

Brandon 30:29

Because you're way out of everyone's league.

Meliza Manalo 30:32

Okay. (Laughter) No, because the only time anyone asked me out was in college. But after I graduated, the only places I go is work, home or a family member's house. So, when would I ever have someone ask me out?

Brandon 30:50

Yeah, that's true. You have to actually go out in public.

Meliza Manalo 30:54

Yeah, and I don't do that. (Laughter)

Brandon 30:58

I don't either.

Meliza Manalo 30:59

Or when I do go out in public, it's always with my friends. And we don't really... I mean, we rarely ever go downtown. And we rarely ever go to a bar. And what else?

Brandon 31:14

Yeah, what do we do? It's too loud.

Meliza Manalo 31:17

Yeah. And I get really frustrated because you can't talk to anyone. But I'm usually with a group of friends. I'm never just on my own. It wouldn't even work out even if I wanted to date. I would have to do the app route. You wouldn't date someone through an app?

Brandon 31:34

No, that's scary.

Meliza Manalo 31:36

Oh, cuz catfishing?

Brandon 31:38

Yeah. Like, what if it's some creepy murderer or something that's pretending to be some girl that's into me? And then we meet and he kills me and takes my VR?

Meliza Manalo 31:50

Well, that's why you always meet in a public area. And there's stuff you do beforehand.

Brandon 31:55

Yeah. But still like he could just feed me some sort of poison in a drink, and then follow me home. And then when I die, or pass out in my house, he would steal my...wait. Why am I saying he? She. (Laughter) She. Well, it's a he pretending to be a she. Wait, that wouldn't work either. Because I wouldn't take a drink from a guy if he was pretending to be a girl. Will be freaked out already.

Meliza Manalo 32:21

It'd have to be a girl.

Brandon 32:23

Oh, can you just edit that part?

Meliza Manalo 32:25

No. (Laughter) Not taking that out. Well, cuz the app is kind of cool. Because you can filter out all the ones you don't want, you know? You can filter out anyone that's not... I don't know. Because in the app, you can point out what your political views are and your religious views and whether you want kids or don't want kids or if you have kids but want more or have kids but don't want anymore. It's very specific. And they even do your zodiac and your personality type and all these different things.

Brandon 33:04

That's the problem though. It's like am I really gonna find someone that's like you that will like me?

Meliza Manalo 33:09

What do you mean? Well, that'll takes years of... what's the word? I'm trying to figure out?

Brandon 33:18

Year of what?

Meliza Manalo 33:20

Because when I met you at first, you weren't like that. You know, like, you always are on your best behavior when you first meet someone. But it takes living with them and then gradually knowing them.

Brandon 33:32

I just slowly ease my personality on to you. And my daily habits.

Meliza Manalo 33:37

Yeah, but that's gonna happen in every relationship. It's not gonna be instant. You basically have to start over.

Brandon 33:44

I just don't think there's a lot of people that will be accepting of it like you are.

Meliza Manalo 33:47

I don't know, why would you say that? There's a lot of weird people out there. And... (Laughter) Not saying you're weird.

Brandon 33:53

Wow.

Meliza Manalo 33:54

But I mean that's the thing. You just gradually get comfortable with the person you're dating, and then you reveal small things about you at a time and see if it's worth if...

Brandon 34:08

That sounds scary. I think that's why I don't want to date or do any of that. Cuz that scary.

Meliza Manalo 34:13

Yeah.

Brandon 34:14

I was fortunate enough to not have to really worry about that.

Meliza Manalo 34:18

Well, that kind of segues to my next question, which is basically like, what do you like about the fact that you did marry your high school sweetheart? Cuz that's kind of my big thing.

Brandon 34:29

Well, here's a double-edged sword.

Meliza Manalo 34:31

What?

Brandon 34:32

So an answer to that question, which is also a con is that you know everything about me.

Meliza Manalo 34:37

Why is that a con?

Brandon 34:39

Because you know everything about me. (Laughter)

Meliza Manalo 34:43

But that's my biggest Pro is because I know, you're not some secret CIA agent.

Brandon 34:52

Well, you don't know that. I mean, maybe I am.

Meliza Manalo 34:56

What someone recruited you at the age of 15?

Brandon 34:59

And it wouldn't be CIA. It would be NSA.

Meliza Manalo 35:02

Do they recruit people from high school?

Brandon 35:04

Some other medical agency that no one's ever heard of.

Meliza Manalo 35:08

It's highly unlikely. How would you keep that secret?

Brandon 35:11

Highly unlikely. But how would you know?

Meliza Manalo 35:13

Because we spend a lot of time together. When do you even have time to like...?

Brandon 35:17

What if I have a clone that takes my place so that I can go do my work? Or whatever. "Work".

Meliza Manalo 35:24

You just do the air quotes.

Brandon 35:26

Maybe when I'm working, it's not actually working. It's... well, it is. But it's hunting down synthetic androids trying to be human.

Meliza Manalo 35:36

So, when you send those snapchats and stuff, is it someone else sending it?

Brandon 35:42

Maybe the customers are actually synthetic androids trying to live a human life and I'm supposed to eliminate them. Like Blade Runner.

Meliza Manalo 35:51

We didn't even finish watching Blade Runner.

Brandon 35:54

Yeah, but I know what it's about. Basically, the plot of Fallout 4.

Meliza Manalo 36:00

Yeah. A very tired out plot. Anyways, so what else? (Laughter)

Brandon 36:08

Did I even answer the question? Or...

Meliza Manalo 36:10

Well, you said the pro is that we know everything about each other.

Brandon 36:13

Oh, right. Which is also a con.

Meliza Manalo 36:16

Well, what's a pro pro? Without a con?

Brandon 36:19

That I don't... Oh. This sounds really bad. But I don't have to try as hard, I guess.

Meliza Manalo 36:26

What does that mean? (Laughter)

Brandon 36:32

You know what it means. I know you feel the same way. (Laughter)

Meliza Manalo 36:39

Like you don't have to always, I don't know, perform.

Brandon 36:44

What?

Meliza Manalo 36:45

Well, like, you know, when you're dating, when you're first meeting someone, like for me, I mean, if I was gonna go on a date, I would probably get all dressed up and do my makeup and...

Brandon 36:59

I don't always have to impress.

Meliza Manalo 37:01

Yeah. Like, we can just...

Brandon 37:03

I want to just be in my boxers and be a slob and eat pizza and have it all over me. That's fine.

Meliza Manalo 37:10

Okay. (Laughter)

Brandon 37:11

And I'm playing video games.

Meliza Manalo 37:13

Yeah.

Brandon 37:14

And if you want to do that, you can do that, too. Doesn't matter.

Meliza Manalo 37:18

That's a good pro.

Brandon 37:19

Yeah.

Meliza Manalo 37:20

Because we're already...

Brandon 37:21

Basically, okay, so maybe I should have just said we could be ourselves around each other. That's what I'd actually say.

Meliza Manalo 37:26

Oh, there you go. Yeah, that's a good answer.

Brandon 37:29

Yeah. (Laughter)

Meliza Manalo 37:33

That's a good... Yeah, that's a good one. That's true. Because meeting someone gives me anxiety, too. I don't know if I can date. I think I would be too scared.

Brandon 37:46

Would you?

Meliza Manalo 37:47

Mm hmm. Like, even if it's someone... like if you were to die tomorrow, or something, and it's been like a few years, I've mourned properly. And then I wanted to go back out in the dating world, I don't know if I can date someone. Because it'd be scary. Even if it's someone I know, it's still weird. Because it's like...

Brandon 38:13

Because your whole daily routine and everything is different.

Meliza Manalo 38:16

Yeah. And then there's parts of me I don't want to share yet until I'm comfortable with that person. And then it's just too much. It's too anxiety inducing to go on a date. What do you even do on the date?

Brandon 38:29

Yeah, I don't know. What do you do on a date? What do we do when we go on a date? Do we even go on dates?

Meliza Manalo 38:35

We were in high school. And we had chaperones? Our first date, was kind of a typical date. What did we do? No, it wasn't a typical date.

Brandon 38:49

We watched, um, Blades of Fury.

Meliza Manalo 38:53

Blades of Fury.

Brandon 38:54

Yeah.

Meliza Manalo 38:54

We should buy that movie. But our date wasn't typical, like a typical date, because the first thing I did was meet your entire family.

Brandon 39:05

Of course.

Meliza Manalo 39:07

And then everyone was speaking Tagalog because they didn't know that I could understand. Cuz they're just like asking, "Who's that? Who's that? Oh, that's with Brandon?" But yeah, I met your whole family and then we went to watch a movie and then... but we weren't allowed to watch it by ourselves. And then Michael and Patrick, were there.

Brandon 39:29

Oh, yeah. That's what. Patrick was there.

Meliza Manalo 39:31

Yeah.

Brandon 39:32

Well, yeah, you're right.

Meliza Manalo 39:34

Patrick is the same Patrick who I did episode with. What are we talking about in Patrick's episode? Oh, video games.

Brandon 39:42

Yeah. Don't you guys have an upcoming episode about collections?

Meliza Manalo 39:46

I think that's what he wants to do.

Brandon 39:47

Coming soon.

Meliza Manalo 39:49

Yeah, we'll see. I need to text him about that. About his shoe meet.

Brandon 39:56

And it's like a meet up. Not meat made out of shoes or something.

Meliza Manalo 40:01

It's like a car meet but with shoes? It's a shoe meet.

Brandon 40:05

Yeah.

Meliza Manalo 40:06

That's what he was saying. I don't know. If we do that episode, I'll ask Patrick about it and have him explain what a shoe meet is.

Brandon 40:12

Yeah. I'm really interested in what that is.

Meliza Manalo 40:14

Yeah. Like, do you bring boxes of shoes to the place?

Brandon 40:17

Or do you wear them?

Meliza Manalo 40:18

Oh, yeah. But if you wear them, isn't that just a bunch of people in one room with nice shoes? Right? So, wouldn't a shoe meet be like, you bring your shoes. Like your top five or something, best shoes and display it.

Brandon 40:35

That's probably like a car meet thing, right? Where you just bring your car and show it off and stuff.

Meliza Manalo 40:40

Yeah. But I mean do you bring all your shoes like you bring boxes of your shoes?

Brandon 40:44

That seems scary, though. Because shoes are way easier to steal than a car. Like some guy just wants to show up and just steal people's shoes and run off.

Meliza Manalo 40:53

That's why I think it's like a flea market where you bring your shoes.

Brandon 40:59

Well, I don't think it's a flea market.

Meliza Manalo 41:00

Well, not like a flea market, but like a farmer's market where you bring your shoes, display it, because you can also trade and buy and sell shoes.

Brandon 41:09

Oh, you can?

Meliza Manalo 41:10

I think. That's what he said.

Brandon 41:11

Oh, so it's like a...

Meliza Manalo 41:12

It's a flea market. But you know, more expensive.

Brandon 41:16

Yeah. Forget it. I forgot what I'm trying to say. Like a swap meet? Is that what a swap meet is?

Meliza Manalo 41:25

Yeah. Wait, what's the swap meet?

Brandon 41:26

I don't know. It just sounds like what I think I'm thinking of.

Meliza Manalo 41:29

I feel like... It's a swap meet where you bring your stuff and you swap with people? Like literally a swap meet?

Brandon 41:35

That's what I thought. That's what I think it is. It's like you bring stuff to sell or trade?

Meliza Manalo 41:40

I don't know. I've never been to a swap meet. I've only been to a car meet.

Brandon 41:43

Yeah. Me neither. I don't even know what that is. Never mind.

Meliza Manalo 41:44

Never mind. Okay. I don't know. I'll ask him in that episode. Okay, what's another...? Let's see. What's another pro? What were we talking about before Patrick's shoe meet? Oh, our first date.

Brandon 41:59

We were talking about dating.

Meliza Manalo 42:02

Yeah. So, pro would be not having to date.

Brandon 42:06

Yeah, that is a pro. It could be a con, I guess. But I think it's more of a pro. I don't wanna do that.

Meliza Manalo 42:13

It's probably a con. Because we don't have experience in the event that one of us dies early and wants to start dating again.

Brandon 42:23

But if that happens, I don't even think I would want to date. So, that's already a pro.

Meliza Manalo 42:28

That's true. I wouldn't want to do either. I think if you died, I would just be alone. Or just...

Brandon 42:36

That's sad. But I understand.

Meliza Manalo 42:37

No, not necessarily. Because I like being alone.

Brandon 42:40

Yeah. Well, I do too.

Meliza Manalo 42:42

Yeah. And so I just see people when I need to see people or want to see people.

Brandon 42:47

It'd be like, oh, wow, I have so much alone time now. What am I gonna do?

Meliza Manalo 42:52

Okay. (Laughter)

Brandon 42:55

There's so much stuff I can do.

Meliza Manalo 42:56

There would be a lot of stuff I can do. Then I don't have to worry about another person.

Brandon 43:01

Yeah, there's so much stuff I wouldn't have to do. Like, I wouldn't have to do the dishes anymore.

Meliza Manalo 43:06

Oh my god. What's another pro?

Brandon 43:13

What were the other pros we already went over?

Meliza Manalo 43:16

Not dating, knowing each other, being ourselves.

Brandon 43:21

Oh, I guess another pro would be that you know what I'm thinking.

Meliza Manalo 43:25

Yeah. I think that just goes with knowing you for a long time.

Brandon 43:28

Like if we're at a party or something or at a gathering or something. And we already know what to do.

Meliza Manalo 43:33

And we know what time to go home? (Laughter)

Brandon 43:34

Yeah. There's a telepathic aspect.

Meliza Manalo 43:39

That's true. And then we know when the other person is not having a good day.

Brandon 43:46

Yeah. Like there's never a moment where I'm wondering what you're thinking because I already know what you're thinking.

Meliza Manalo 43:53

That could be a con, too.

Brandon 43:54

Which makes me confident. You know what I'm going to do or something, you know. Because I know what you want already or like, I know what you're thinking. So, I know what to do. I don't have to come and ask you something. That's another pro.

Meliza Manalo 44:08

Yeah. I think my favorite thing that you do sometimes is when you know I'm having a bad day. And then you'll say, "Do you need your alone time?" (Laughter) That's my favorite thing that you do.

Brandon 44:23

That's fine with me because then I have my alone time, too. So, it works both ways.

Meliza Manalo 44:27

We need a four-bedroom house.

Brandon 44:29

We already basically have that. There's a shed in a garage. That's the two other rooms.

Meliza Manalo 44:33

But it gets hot and cold in the winter in the summer. You can't just go in there.

Brandon 44:38

Well, I go in there. Not you, though.

Meliza Manalo 44:42

Because with the four-bedroom house. So, we have our master bedroom which is just, you know, where we sleep. And then we have our computer room where we play video games together. And then you have your room and then I have my room. Four bedrooms.

Brandon 44:56

I just want a garage. I want a...

Meliza Manalo 44:58

A three-bedroom house.

Brandon 45:00

Four... three or four car garages with no cars in it, though. Just a big garage.

Meliza Manalo 45:06

What's the point if you're not gonna put your car in there?

Brandon 45:09

No, it's just for me to do stuff in.

Meliza Manalo 45:11

So, workshop.

Brandon 45:13

A workshop, a giant VR room also and a TV and couch in there.

Meliza Manalo 45:18

So, it's your own house. You're basically playing in your own house.

Brandon 45:22

And then, like a fridge.

Meliza Manalo 45:24

One of those houses with the loft.

Brandon 45:26

A townhouse?

Meliza Manalo 45:27

No, you know those houses, like they have a loft area, or the main house is the bottom floor, but then in the top, there's a loft. And it's just like one big empty room.

Brandon 45:38

I'd rather have the garage because it's separate from the house. So, I can be noisy and do whatever, take all my clothes off and run around and yell. (Laughter) Drink a beer from the mini fridge while running around. Yeah, it would be a regular size fridge actually.

Meliza Manalo 45:56

What would be in your fridge?

Brandon 45:57

There'd just be beer and pizza.

Meliza Manalo 46:02

You need a freezer then.

Brandon 46:03

Or no. Meat.

Meliza Manalo 46:05

Just meat. It's just gonna be meat?

Brandon 46:07

Yeah. Like a TriTip that's already cooked and beer.

Meliza Manalo 46:12

So, you also need a microwave.

Brandon 46:14

I can eat cold TriTip. It's gelatinous.

Meliza Manalo 46:18

Eww. That's gross. Let's see, those were my two main questions. And then I don't know if you want to answer this one. But do you have any relationship advice for people? Because we've been together for 14 years. And we still don't want to get a divorce, which is good. Even through this pandemic where everybody...

Brandon 46:38

We didn't ever want to get married. We just did it for the insurance.

Meliza Manalo 46:41

Yeah. (Laughter) But I mean, we've been together for so long. And last year, a bunch of people got divorced because people had to stay home with their spouses. So, do you have any advice?

Brandon 46:58

If I had any advice is just to be yourself and find someone who likes you for who you are. That's really cheesy to say. Very typical advice, but it's true. Because if you find someone that likes you for who you are, they're gonna always want to be around you. And it doesn't matter if you guys spend all day together, they're never gonna get tired of you.

Meliza Manalo 47:20

That's true. So, if you feel like you have to act differently around your spouse or your significant other...

Brandon 47:27

... that's a red flag.

Meliza Manalo 47:28

Yeah.

Brandon 47:29

That's a big red flag. You should just be able to do and say whatever you're feeling and thinking.

Meliza Manalo 47:35

And not be scared.

Brandon 47:36

Yeah. And not have to worry. That's all I can really say.

Meliza Manalo 47:40

That's good advice.

Brandon 47:43

That's the golden rule.

Meliza Manalo 47:44

Okay. Well, thanks for doing this podcast with me.

Brandon 47:48

You're welcome.

Meliza Manalo 47:50

We could do more if you want to feel like it.

Brandon 47:53

I'll think about it.

Meliza Manalo 47:55

All right. And you do the outro.

Brandon 47:57

What is it? Do we have to sing something? Or do you want me to rap something?

Meliza Manalo 48:00

No. You don't have to rap.

Brandon 48:02

You want me to rap an outro?

Meliza Manalo 48:03

No. I don't want you to.

Brandon 48:05

Okay.

Meliza Manalo 48:05

I'm just gonna do my typical outro.

Brandon 48:08

Are you sure?

Meliza Manalo 48:09

Yeah, I'm positive.

Brandon 48:11

Okay.

Meliza Manalo 48:13

All right. Thanks for listening. If you enjoy what you hear and want to stay up to date on the show, please follow me on Facebook and/or Instagram. You can also check out my website at thetalkativeintrovertpodcast.com. All the information will be on there as well as in the show notes. Please help support the show by sharing it with your friends and family. Thanks so much and I'll talk to you guys in the next episode.

Brandon 48:32

Bye.

Meliza Manalo 48:33

Bye.