1 00:00:01,930 --> 00:00:04,789 Speaker 1: The public has had a long held fascination with detectives. 2 00:00:05,410 --> 00:00:07,790 Speaker 1: Detectives see a side of life the average person is 3 00:00:07,850 --> 00:00:12,020 Speaker 1: never exposed to. I spent 34 years as a cop. 4 00:00:12,060 --> 00:00:14,660 Speaker 1: For 25 of those years I was catching killers. That's 5 00:00:14,680 --> 00:00:17,240 Speaker 1: what I did for a living. I was a homicide detective. 6 00:00:18,000 --> 00:00:21,040 Speaker 1: I'm no longer just interviewing bad guys. Instead I'm taking 7 00:00:21,060 --> 00:00:23,959 Speaker 1: the public into the world in which I operated. The 8 00:00:24,000 --> 00:00:26,540 Speaker 1: guests I talk to each week have amazing stories from 9 00:00:26,600 --> 00:00:29,220 Speaker 1: all sides of the law. The interviews are raw and honest, 10 00:00:29,520 --> 00:00:31,770 Speaker 1: just like the people I talk to. Some of the 11 00:00:31,840 --> 00:00:34,970 Speaker 1: content and language might be confronting. That's because no one 12 00:00:34,990 --> 00:00:38,390 Speaker 1: who comes into contact with crime is left unchanged. Join 13 00:00:38,409 --> 00:00:46,709 Speaker 1: me now as I take you into this world. Natasha 14 00:00:46,750 --> 00:00:49,950 Speaker 1: Concealy has lived more life than most people could imagine. 15 00:00:50,810 --> 00:00:55,920 Speaker 1: She's been a stripper, lingerie model, air hostess, convicted drug dealer, 16 00:00:56,510 --> 00:01:00,230 Speaker 1: and eventually found herself in prison. It's been a wild ride, 17 00:01:00,550 --> 00:01:03,870 Speaker 1: built on tragedy early in her life. She partied hard, 18 00:01:04,450 --> 00:01:08,870 Speaker 1: made some mistakes that had big consequences. In this episode, 19 00:01:08,910 --> 00:01:10,850 Speaker 1: she speaks with me about the highs and lows of 20 00:01:10,890 --> 00:01:14,160 Speaker 1: her life, her regrets, and how she's turned her life 21 00:01:14,240 --> 00:01:17,740 Speaker 1: around and is now giving back to society. There is 22 00:01:17,780 --> 00:01:20,660 Speaker 1: a cautionary tale in the story that is worth listening to. 23 00:01:22,280 --> 00:01:24,779 Speaker 1: Natasha Kinsele. Welcome to I Catch Killers. 24 00:01:25,200 --> 00:01:26,580 Speaker 2: Thanks, Gary. Great to be here. 25 00:01:26,920 --> 00:01:29,610 Speaker 1: I got speaking to you yesterday and reading some of 26 00:01:29,630 --> 00:01:32,570 Speaker 1: the stuff that's online. You're in a good space now. Absolutely. 27 00:01:32,590 --> 00:01:35,570 Speaker 1: You feel like, I get the sense you've come like 28 00:01:35,590 --> 00:01:38,270 Speaker 1: the full circle and you've found who you are now. Yeah. 29 00:01:38,290 --> 00:01:40,190 Speaker 1: A long road, but you've got there. Yeah. 30 00:01:40,440 --> 00:01:42,759 Speaker 2: I definitely am. I've come home to myself. 31 00:01:43,180 --> 00:01:43,640 Speaker 1: Yeah. 32 00:01:43,700 --> 00:01:45,940 Speaker 2: And I've spoken about it before. I always lacked a 33 00:01:45,959 --> 00:01:48,580 Speaker 2: sense of belonging, even though it was always there. 34 00:01:49,080 --> 00:01:49,420 Speaker 1: Yeah. 35 00:01:49,540 --> 00:01:51,990 Speaker 2: But I just didn't know. what that meant and how 36 00:01:52,030 --> 00:01:55,510 Speaker 2: that felt. And now I belong within myself and it's 37 00:01:55,530 --> 00:01:59,490 Speaker 2: a beautiful space to be. I love the person I 38 00:01:59,590 --> 00:02:02,050 Speaker 2: am today and I love how she shows up in 39 00:02:02,090 --> 00:02:05,500 Speaker 2: the world. I don't berate myself for my past mistakes. 40 00:02:05,590 --> 00:02:09,160 Speaker 2: I give myself some grace and I really love all 41 00:02:09,200 --> 00:02:11,440 Speaker 2: those bits as well along the way, even though some 42 00:02:11,480 --> 00:02:13,120 Speaker 2: of them, you know, you look back and you go, 43 00:02:14,580 --> 00:02:16,540 Speaker 2: I don't really like what she did or the choices 44 00:02:16,600 --> 00:02:19,480 Speaker 2: she made, but I still embrace her as well because 45 00:02:19,500 --> 00:02:20,240 Speaker 2: she's part of me. 46 00:02:20,460 --> 00:02:23,239 Speaker 1: I've had a lot of people sit opposite here in 47 00:02:23,260 --> 00:02:27,350 Speaker 1: the studio and talk about their life and accepting who 48 00:02:27,389 --> 00:02:31,650 Speaker 1: you are. And yeah, we talk about forgiveness, but forgiving 49 00:02:31,690 --> 00:02:34,609 Speaker 1: yourself is a big, big thing, isn't it? Absolutely. 50 00:02:34,630 --> 00:02:37,450 Speaker 2: I think we are our own worst critic, all of 51 00:02:37,570 --> 00:02:41,220 Speaker 2: us within ourselves, right? People judge us regardless. We can't 52 00:02:41,260 --> 00:02:43,919 Speaker 2: do much about what other people think, but how we 53 00:02:43,940 --> 00:02:48,050 Speaker 2: view ourselves is what is so important and it changes 54 00:02:48,090 --> 00:02:50,010 Speaker 2: the way that you view the world. If you have 55 00:02:50,050 --> 00:02:52,950 Speaker 2: some kindness towards yourself and some gratitude for the things 56 00:02:52,990 --> 00:02:55,690 Speaker 2: that you do have, you know, you start to view 57 00:02:55,730 --> 00:02:58,169 Speaker 2: the world in a different light and then you start 58 00:02:58,210 --> 00:02:59,710 Speaker 2: interacting with it in a different way. 59 00:03:00,510 --> 00:03:02,730 Speaker 1: Another thing, when I was talking to you the other day, 60 00:03:03,350 --> 00:03:05,589 Speaker 1: you said when you went to jail, you realised how 61 00:03:05,710 --> 00:03:08,910 Speaker 1: privileged you were. Yes. Which is like, you know, what 62 00:03:08,960 --> 00:03:11,500 Speaker 1: did jail mean to you? And that's not the answer 63 00:03:11,560 --> 00:03:14,419 Speaker 1: I was expecting, but talk us through that, what you 64 00:03:14,440 --> 00:03:14,900 Speaker 1: meant by that. 65 00:03:15,350 --> 00:03:20,519 Speaker 2: I was almost embarrassed for the privileges and the choices 66 00:03:20,540 --> 00:03:24,139 Speaker 2: that I'd had throughout my life. I've always had choice. 67 00:03:24,200 --> 00:03:26,960 Speaker 2: I've had access to education. I've had access to travel. 68 00:03:26,980 --> 00:03:29,380 Speaker 2: I've had access to people that love me and care 69 00:03:29,419 --> 00:03:31,760 Speaker 2: for me from when I was a child all through 70 00:03:31,870 --> 00:03:36,190 Speaker 2: my adulthood, throughout my life. And the women that I 71 00:03:36,250 --> 00:03:39,970 Speaker 2: met who were incarcerated, and this is the majority of them, 72 00:03:40,770 --> 00:03:44,360 Speaker 2: were lacking either all of those things or or even 73 00:03:44,400 --> 00:03:47,880 Speaker 2: just one of them. There had never been opportunity. There 74 00:03:47,920 --> 00:03:51,960 Speaker 2: had not been a loving family. Education was not something 75 00:03:52,020 --> 00:03:55,210 Speaker 2: that was offered. If your home isn't safe, the last 76 00:03:55,250 --> 00:03:57,310 Speaker 2: thing that you're going to do is turn up at 77 00:03:57,370 --> 00:04:00,110 Speaker 2: school and get the things that you need to do 78 00:04:00,150 --> 00:04:03,950 Speaker 2: to turn it around. And I just, I always thought 79 00:04:04,010 --> 00:04:07,610 Speaker 2: that everybody had choice. Even before I went to prison 80 00:04:07,650 --> 00:04:10,880 Speaker 2: and I went to some pretty crazy places with some 81 00:04:10,920 --> 00:04:14,490 Speaker 2: pretty crazy people and saw some things. But I never 82 00:04:14,690 --> 00:04:20,430 Speaker 2: realized the disadvantage that some of us live in. And 83 00:04:20,470 --> 00:04:23,850 Speaker 2: I always believed that even they had choices. But when 84 00:04:23,890 --> 00:04:28,800 Speaker 2: it compounds and you have no other people around you, 85 00:04:29,500 --> 00:04:32,619 Speaker 2: only the ones that are all doing that, living that life, 86 00:04:32,700 --> 00:04:35,640 Speaker 2: that same system, how do you get out of it? 87 00:04:36,290 --> 00:04:39,589 Speaker 1: And it's opened my eyes up since I left the 88 00:04:39,630 --> 00:04:42,430 Speaker 1: police and seen some of the circumstances that people have 89 00:04:42,830 --> 00:04:46,750 Speaker 1: grown up in. And who are we to judge? Yes. 90 00:04:47,230 --> 00:04:50,010 Speaker 1: Everyone's got their own story. Everyone's got the things that 91 00:04:50,029 --> 00:04:53,090 Speaker 1: have impacted on their life. But it was interesting that 92 00:04:53,110 --> 00:04:56,589 Speaker 1: your experience in prison and the thing that one of 93 00:04:56,630 --> 00:05:00,839 Speaker 1: the big takeaways was how privileged you are. And it 94 00:05:00,900 --> 00:05:02,900 Speaker 1: shows a degree of empathy, which I think is a 95 00:05:02,920 --> 00:05:04,300 Speaker 1: good thing. It is. Yeah. 96 00:05:05,060 --> 00:05:09,560 Speaker 2: We've got to have empathy and even if we don't understand, right, 97 00:05:09,740 --> 00:05:14,000 Speaker 2: and we may not agree, but if we have empathy 98 00:05:14,020 --> 00:05:15,880 Speaker 2: for each other because at the end of the day, 99 00:05:15,900 --> 00:05:19,870 Speaker 2: we're all human and we all should have opportunity and 100 00:05:19,910 --> 00:05:22,830 Speaker 2: we should all have access to those simple things that 101 00:05:22,870 --> 00:05:26,230 Speaker 2: I've just said, to opportunities to choose to change, to 102 00:05:26,250 --> 00:05:30,450 Speaker 2: a safe home to grow up in, to education, to employment. 103 00:05:31,620 --> 00:05:36,580 Speaker 2: They're not privileges. I think every human being deserves access 104 00:05:36,660 --> 00:05:41,060 Speaker 2: to that. And as much as maybe, you know, some 105 00:05:41,100 --> 00:05:43,700 Speaker 2: people that have never experienced that there is a whole 106 00:05:43,740 --> 00:05:46,180 Speaker 2: nother side and it is in our country. Look, I 107 00:05:47,040 --> 00:05:48,779 Speaker 2: spent a lot of time in India as a child 108 00:05:49,520 --> 00:05:52,440 Speaker 2: and I knew what poverty meant and no access. I 109 00:05:52,480 --> 00:05:55,330 Speaker 2: understood that, but that was explained to me that it 110 00:05:55,370 --> 00:05:57,530 Speaker 2: was a third world country and they were very poor. 111 00:05:58,350 --> 00:06:01,450 Speaker 2: I didn't see Australia as being a third world country 112 00:06:01,490 --> 00:06:02,190 Speaker 2: and I still don't. 113 00:06:02,210 --> 00:06:04,070 Speaker 1: No, well, Australia doesn't see themselves as. 114 00:06:04,010 --> 00:06:06,010 Speaker 2: A third world country. But we have. 115 00:06:06,029 --> 00:06:06,690 Speaker 1: Underprivileged. 116 00:06:06,910 --> 00:06:11,130 Speaker 2: We have the same poverty. We have homeless people everywhere 117 00:06:11,950 --> 00:06:15,670 Speaker 2: and people are so... This is my opinion, right? I'm 118 00:06:15,730 --> 00:06:17,610 Speaker 2: not saying that it is right, but this is what 119 00:06:17,670 --> 00:06:22,130 Speaker 2: I've learned throughout my journey. We are taught that... We 120 00:06:22,170 --> 00:06:26,570 Speaker 2: have access and everybody does. So it's easy for us 121 00:06:26,610 --> 00:06:29,180 Speaker 2: to sit here and go, oh, well, they did something 122 00:06:29,380 --> 00:06:32,180 Speaker 2: and that's why they ended up there. It's their own fault. 123 00:06:32,260 --> 00:06:33,820 Speaker 2: They could have chosen differently. 124 00:06:34,440 --> 00:06:36,900 Speaker 1: We have got a lot to talk about. I'm going 125 00:06:36,940 --> 00:06:40,420 Speaker 1: to talk about your upbringing because I think that's very 126 00:06:40,460 --> 00:06:44,190 Speaker 1: interesting and what happened there. how you found yourself working 127 00:06:44,270 --> 00:06:47,190 Speaker 1: as a lingerie model and stripper. We've all got stories 128 00:06:47,230 --> 00:06:47,570 Speaker 1: to tell. 129 00:06:47,970 --> 00:06:50,630 Speaker 2: It was a really fun time, Gary. It was wild. 130 00:06:51,089 --> 00:06:52,690 Speaker 2: I wouldn't change that for the world. 131 00:06:52,890 --> 00:06:56,420 Speaker 1: I would describe, and I think, a wild life that 132 00:06:56,460 --> 00:06:59,640 Speaker 1: you've had, but it's always an interest because that's what 133 00:06:59,680 --> 00:07:03,760 Speaker 1: I wanted to start how you are now. There's been 134 00:07:03,839 --> 00:07:07,240 Speaker 1: a journey to get to this zen-like place. state that 135 00:07:07,260 --> 00:07:11,120 Speaker 1: you're in now and happy with the world. Your drug use, 136 00:07:11,720 --> 00:07:16,320 Speaker 1: you started off as rave parties and recreational drug use, 137 00:07:16,580 --> 00:07:19,780 Speaker 1: then it becomes an addiction. And then you ended up 138 00:07:20,240 --> 00:07:24,710 Speaker 1: dealing drugs and doing time in prison. Okay, this is 139 00:07:24,770 --> 00:07:27,110 Speaker 1: a cycle, but there is a light at the end 140 00:07:27,150 --> 00:07:30,370 Speaker 1: of the tunnel that we'll talk about. But since then 141 00:07:30,450 --> 00:07:34,210 Speaker 1: and the experience leading up to jail and, you know, 142 00:07:34,310 --> 00:07:37,030 Speaker 1: you're taking stock of your life. You've managed to turn 143 00:07:37,050 --> 00:07:41,630 Speaker 1: your life around. You're very much focusing on advocacy and 144 00:07:41,750 --> 00:07:45,270 Speaker 1: helping people and contributing back to society. So that's just 145 00:07:45,360 --> 00:07:46,940 Speaker 1: summing up your life very quickly. 146 00:07:46,950 --> 00:07:48,800 Speaker 2: That was a great sum up. I love it. 147 00:07:49,020 --> 00:07:53,410 Speaker 1: Okay. Well, now we'll see if it follows that trend. script. 148 00:07:54,570 --> 00:08:00,800 Speaker 1: Talk about your childhood, because I think, spoiler alert, traveling 149 00:08:00,820 --> 00:08:03,820 Speaker 1: around with your hippie mum in India from the age 150 00:08:03,860 --> 00:08:06,059 Speaker 1: of five to 10, I think is a pretty interesting start. 151 00:08:06,300 --> 00:08:09,980 Speaker 2: Yeah, it was pretty wild. I think even looking back 152 00:08:10,040 --> 00:08:13,060 Speaker 2: to that earlier ages in Adelaide, my parents had a 153 00:08:13,080 --> 00:08:15,540 Speaker 2: beautiful home. I was close to my grandparents, so I 154 00:08:15,540 --> 00:08:17,340 Speaker 2: had a really loving environment that I grew up in. 155 00:08:18,020 --> 00:08:21,010 Speaker 2: I had a a spirit. My mum's friends talk about 156 00:08:21,050 --> 00:08:23,470 Speaker 2: it these days and they just go, you were always 157 00:08:23,630 --> 00:08:26,790 Speaker 2: defiant and you were really wild. And it was, you 158 00:08:26,810 --> 00:08:30,200 Speaker 2: had this real kind of your way or no way 159 00:08:30,280 --> 00:08:32,920 Speaker 2: from a really young age. So I'd like to say 160 00:08:32,960 --> 00:08:36,260 Speaker 2: that my environment created me, but it didn't. 161 00:08:36,600 --> 00:08:39,760 Speaker 1: You were going to find trouble somehow. 162 00:08:40,000 --> 00:08:43,280 Speaker 2: I definitely was, regardless of how my life was going. 163 00:08:43,330 --> 00:08:47,180 Speaker 2: And I guess you know, experiencing India at a really 164 00:08:47,220 --> 00:08:51,630 Speaker 2: young age with my mom was, it was incredibly, um, 165 00:08:52,090 --> 00:08:55,750 Speaker 2: eye opening. Uh, it was beautiful. It was scary. Um, 166 00:08:57,030 --> 00:08:59,650 Speaker 2: and it was, uh, You know, we were surrounded by 167 00:08:59,690 --> 00:09:03,270 Speaker 2: lots of artistic people. We went to Goa on stage. 168 00:09:03,290 --> 00:09:08,329 Speaker 1: You were doing the, mum was on the full hippie trip. Yes, absolutely. 169 00:09:08,350 --> 00:09:11,030 Speaker 1: Around that time. Yeah. And Goa was recognised for that. 170 00:09:11,090 --> 00:09:13,530 Speaker 2: Yes, it was. And, you know, mum's friends would wear 171 00:09:13,590 --> 00:09:17,550 Speaker 2: big shells on their head and everybody had things they 172 00:09:17,570 --> 00:09:19,640 Speaker 2: were selling at the market there in Arjuna. And it 173 00:09:19,670 --> 00:09:22,240 Speaker 2: was fantastic. you know, the kids would just run wild 174 00:09:23,580 --> 00:09:26,040 Speaker 2: and parents would, you know, party all night and the 175 00:09:26,070 --> 00:09:28,570 Speaker 2: kids would be at one person's place and you kind 176 00:09:28,630 --> 00:09:29,770 Speaker 2: of were just really free. 177 00:09:29,809 --> 00:09:30,670 Speaker 1: A lot of freedom, yeah. 178 00:09:30,690 --> 00:09:34,290 Speaker 2: A lot of freedom. And then I was lucky enough 179 00:09:34,410 --> 00:09:36,310 Speaker 2: that my father was in Europe so we'd go and 180 00:09:36,350 --> 00:09:38,510 Speaker 2: visit him. They were no longer together but we would 181 00:09:38,550 --> 00:09:40,560 Speaker 2: go and visit him and mum would just work in 182 00:09:40,600 --> 00:09:45,680 Speaker 2: a jewelry studio somewhere, make some jewelry. We'd stay with 183 00:09:45,700 --> 00:09:47,599 Speaker 2: dad wherever he was living and I'd just go to 184 00:09:47,640 --> 00:09:50,540 Speaker 2: school wherever we were. So I kind of visited school 185 00:09:50,620 --> 00:09:56,250 Speaker 2: in France, Italy, Germany, Spain, all different places throughout those years. 186 00:09:56,270 --> 00:09:59,830 Speaker 1: Well, that has to shape you. It does. You'd have 187 00:09:59,870 --> 00:10:04,950 Speaker 1: to be self-sufficient in looking after yourself, meeting new people, 188 00:10:04,990 --> 00:10:08,010 Speaker 1: different languages, a whole range of things that would have 189 00:10:08,050 --> 00:10:08,370 Speaker 1: kicked in. 190 00:10:08,590 --> 00:10:11,329 Speaker 2: And I did it really well. And I think what 191 00:10:11,350 --> 00:10:16,280 Speaker 2: I learned there was to assimilate really well. which then 192 00:10:16,320 --> 00:10:18,439 Speaker 2: later on in life became a little bit, I got 193 00:10:18,480 --> 00:10:22,540 Speaker 2: lost in that rather than finding myself or being within 194 00:10:22,760 --> 00:10:26,770 Speaker 2: how comfortable who I was. Um, I would just assimilate 195 00:10:26,830 --> 00:10:30,949 Speaker 2: to whatever environment that I, I was choosing. And I'm, 196 00:10:31,940 --> 00:10:35,030 Speaker 2: later on when drugs and mental health were really bad. 197 00:10:35,530 --> 00:10:37,610 Speaker 2: That was kind of what was, I was really lost 198 00:10:37,770 --> 00:10:39,110 Speaker 2: and I didn't have that belonging. 199 00:10:39,130 --> 00:10:43,440 Speaker 1: Because you came back, was it the teenage years, Newtown 200 00:10:43,660 --> 00:10:46,100 Speaker 1: and going to the school, Newtown. So that would have 201 00:10:46,120 --> 00:10:49,800 Speaker 1: been the experience too. So going from Goa, traveling the 202 00:10:49,870 --> 00:10:56,239 Speaker 1: world and then going there. But before we talk about that, 203 00:10:56,300 --> 00:10:59,400 Speaker 1: there was a significant thing and you spoke about it. 204 00:10:59,400 --> 00:11:01,800 Speaker 1: I'm not sure if you're happy to talk about it. Absolutely. 205 00:11:02,300 --> 00:11:04,660 Speaker 1: Your mum died at the age of when you were 206 00:11:04,660 --> 00:11:07,250 Speaker 1: 10 years old in an accident in India, I believe. 207 00:11:07,540 --> 00:11:09,850 Speaker 2: We're in Goa and we're there for the season and 208 00:11:09,870 --> 00:11:12,870 Speaker 2: we're planning to go to Ibiza next and Bali and 209 00:11:12,970 --> 00:11:17,330 Speaker 2: do the whole hippie trail. And I was really sick 210 00:11:17,350 --> 00:11:19,810 Speaker 2: that day and we had a lady who rented us 211 00:11:19,850 --> 00:11:22,219 Speaker 2: the house that we were living in and she stayed 212 00:11:22,260 --> 00:11:26,110 Speaker 2: with me. Mum took longer than normal and I remember 213 00:11:26,150 --> 00:11:28,420 Speaker 2: this day like it was yesterday. I will never forget. 214 00:11:28,440 --> 00:11:32,040 Speaker 2: And I was so unwell. I had fever and that 215 00:11:32,059 --> 00:11:33,740 Speaker 2: kind of stuff but I wouldn't go back to bed 216 00:11:33,780 --> 00:11:35,939 Speaker 2: and I kept standing in the doorway and I was fretting. 217 00:11:36,620 --> 00:11:39,020 Speaker 2: And then I think it was just before sunset that 218 00:11:39,530 --> 00:11:41,790 Speaker 2: two foreigners came walking up the beach and one of 219 00:11:41,850 --> 00:11:44,810 Speaker 2: them had mum's handbag and he was wearing white and 220 00:11:44,830 --> 00:11:48,660 Speaker 2: he had blood all over his clothes. Mum had been 221 00:11:48,700 --> 00:11:51,040 Speaker 2: hit by a truck coming around her corner, blind corner, 222 00:11:51,420 --> 00:11:55,820 Speaker 2: full frontal, no helmet on, on a motorbike. So she 223 00:11:55,860 --> 00:12:01,000 Speaker 2: didn't die instantly, but would have had severe brain damage 224 00:12:01,059 --> 00:12:06,090 Speaker 2: if she had survived. Obviously, we had a big network 225 00:12:06,130 --> 00:12:09,590 Speaker 2: of people that I could then be looked after while 226 00:12:09,850 --> 00:12:13,969 Speaker 2: the police, Indian police, reached out to my grandparents because 227 00:12:13,990 --> 00:12:17,920 Speaker 2: they couldn't find dad. My grandparents then reached out to 228 00:12:17,960 --> 00:12:20,819 Speaker 2: my father and he, because they were all like, we'll 229 00:12:20,860 --> 00:12:23,090 Speaker 2: take her if you can't, because they knew that he'd 230 00:12:23,160 --> 00:12:25,429 Speaker 2: only just been settling back in Switzerland. 231 00:12:25,450 --> 00:12:26,570 Speaker 1: Yeah. 232 00:12:27,110 --> 00:12:30,150 Speaker 2: But he came and I think mum died the day 233 00:12:30,190 --> 00:12:31,170 Speaker 2: before he got to India. 234 00:12:31,190 --> 00:12:31,810 Speaker 1: Right. 235 00:12:31,830 --> 00:12:35,050 Speaker 2: And he had to tell his 10-year-old daughter, sorry, I 236 00:12:35,070 --> 00:12:38,270 Speaker 2: get emotional around this, that her mum had died. So, 237 00:12:39,070 --> 00:12:41,610 Speaker 2: and I remember he, to this day, we've got a 238 00:12:41,630 --> 00:12:43,890 Speaker 2: really great relationship, me and my dad. To this day, 239 00:12:43,950 --> 00:12:47,560 Speaker 2: he goes, you know, Natasha, I was devastated. You were 240 00:12:47,580 --> 00:12:49,720 Speaker 2: the one that hugged me and said, it's going to 241 00:12:49,740 --> 00:12:51,459 Speaker 2: be okay, Dad. We can do this. 242 00:12:51,900 --> 00:12:52,160 Speaker 1: Wow. 243 00:12:52,679 --> 00:12:54,220 Speaker 2: As a little 10-year-old girl. 244 00:12:54,280 --> 00:12:57,170 Speaker 1: Insight and to be able to step up in circumstances 245 00:12:57,210 --> 00:13:00,410 Speaker 1: like that. Look, I'm sorry that happened. That has to 246 00:13:00,429 --> 00:13:02,930 Speaker 1: have an impact on you. At the age of 10, 247 00:13:02,929 --> 00:13:05,710 Speaker 1: there's no time as a child that's good where someone 248 00:13:05,750 --> 00:13:08,620 Speaker 1: close to you dies. But to lose your mum at 10, 249 00:13:08,620 --> 00:13:12,160 Speaker 1: and I would imagine the lifestyle you were living, you 250 00:13:12,179 --> 00:13:13,080 Speaker 1: would have been inseparable. 251 00:13:13,360 --> 00:13:14,260 Speaker 2: Yes, we were. 252 00:13:14,700 --> 00:13:18,640 Speaker 1: Yeah, so that had to have a significant impact on you. 253 00:13:19,880 --> 00:13:23,800 Speaker 1: You spent time with your dad in different countries and 254 00:13:23,840 --> 00:13:26,480 Speaker 1: then you came back over here. Who were you living 255 00:13:26,520 --> 00:13:28,160 Speaker 1: with over here when you went to school at Newtown? 256 00:13:28,179 --> 00:13:31,860 Speaker 2: All right, so my mum's best friend who had a 257 00:13:31,880 --> 00:13:35,780 Speaker 2: daughter a similar age to me, they had met in 258 00:13:35,860 --> 00:13:39,600 Speaker 2: Adelaide and become really close and they always promised each 259 00:13:39,640 --> 00:13:43,059 Speaker 2: other that they would look after us girls if something 260 00:13:43,100 --> 00:13:46,390 Speaker 2: ever happened to the other. And Corrie had kept that 261 00:13:46,429 --> 00:13:50,020 Speaker 2: promise and continued to stay in touch with us in Switzerland. 262 00:13:50,160 --> 00:13:51,420 Speaker 2: And then when I said to dad, I want to 263 00:13:51,440 --> 00:13:54,420 Speaker 2: go see my grandparents and Corrie and Morgana and all that. 264 00:13:54,440 --> 00:13:56,800 Speaker 2: So I stayed with them and they said, why don't 265 00:13:56,840 --> 00:13:59,240 Speaker 2: you do a bigger trip and freshen your English and 266 00:13:59,300 --> 00:14:01,000 Speaker 2: come back and do a bit of school here and 267 00:14:01,059 --> 00:14:03,209 Speaker 2: all that. So I was, I think I was like 15, 268 00:14:03,190 --> 00:14:08,459 Speaker 2: 16 and I was angry. By this stage, because that 269 00:14:08,500 --> 00:14:11,040 Speaker 2: little girl that hugged her dad and said, everything's going 270 00:14:11,059 --> 00:14:14,560 Speaker 2: to be okay, then went, okay, I've got to make 271 00:14:14,640 --> 00:14:15,480 Speaker 2: everything okay. 272 00:14:15,960 --> 00:14:17,040 Speaker 1: Okay. 273 00:14:17,120 --> 00:14:22,180 Speaker 2: So she then, there was no grieving. There was no, 274 00:14:23,240 --> 00:14:26,540 Speaker 2: everything was always, I'm fine. And I know that they 275 00:14:26,840 --> 00:14:29,330 Speaker 2: encouraged me to see a child psychologist and all of 276 00:14:29,380 --> 00:14:31,989 Speaker 2: that in Switzerland. But I just said, I'm fine. I 277 00:14:32,010 --> 00:14:35,310 Speaker 2: don't need your help. And I literally shut everyone down. 278 00:14:35,450 --> 00:14:37,890 Speaker 2: And then my teens hit and we all know that 279 00:14:37,970 --> 00:14:42,670 Speaker 2: they're really difficult for everybody, for girls and boys. You 280 00:14:43,130 --> 00:14:47,860 Speaker 2: are changing into something different. And I couldn't manage my 281 00:14:47,910 --> 00:14:51,120 Speaker 2: own emotions. I was mad. I was really angry with 282 00:14:51,160 --> 00:14:53,440 Speaker 2: the world. And so Dad thought it might be really 283 00:14:53,480 --> 00:14:55,680 Speaker 2: good for me to go home and have some time. 284 00:14:56,100 --> 00:14:58,880 Speaker 2: I actually had a massive... falling out with my grandparents 285 00:14:58,940 --> 00:15:00,460 Speaker 2: while I was here at that age. 286 00:15:00,560 --> 00:15:01,460 Speaker 1: Were they rebellious? 287 00:15:01,820 --> 00:15:04,570 Speaker 2: Yeah, because I just was like, I'm going out, I'm partying. 288 00:15:04,630 --> 00:15:06,850 Speaker 2: I was going to clubs and they had moved from 289 00:15:06,890 --> 00:15:08,870 Speaker 2: Adelaide to the Gold Coast and I was out clubbing 290 00:15:08,930 --> 00:15:13,050 Speaker 2: at 15. I looked like I was 20, but you know. 291 00:15:14,640 --> 00:15:15,960 Speaker 1: What could possibly go wrong? 292 00:15:16,100 --> 00:15:16,960 Speaker 2: Oh, what could go wrong? 293 00:15:16,980 --> 00:15:19,820 Speaker 1: And what would your grandparents know telling you that you're 294 00:15:19,840 --> 00:15:20,240 Speaker 1: doing that? 295 00:15:20,300 --> 00:15:22,160 Speaker 2: You know, they were just trying to look out for 296 00:15:22,200 --> 00:15:25,160 Speaker 2: me and to make better choices. But I didn't want 297 00:15:25,210 --> 00:15:27,550 Speaker 2: to hear that at this stage. And I think I 298 00:15:27,590 --> 00:15:30,630 Speaker 2: was mad at them too because they had been there. 299 00:15:30,690 --> 00:15:33,070 Speaker 2: They'd always, you know, we'd spoke on the phone and 300 00:15:33,090 --> 00:15:35,990 Speaker 2: they've written me cards. But I was mad at everybody 301 00:15:36,050 --> 00:15:38,410 Speaker 2: because everyone had kind of left me because I had 302 00:15:38,760 --> 00:15:42,120 Speaker 2: went to Switzerland with Dad, but obviously that thinking. 303 00:15:42,180 --> 00:15:44,360 Speaker 1: Your anger could have been directed in all sorts of ways. 304 00:15:44,380 --> 00:15:44,590 Speaker 2: It was. 305 00:15:44,600 --> 00:15:46,790 Speaker 1: And you probably didn't even know what the anger was about. No, 306 00:15:46,860 --> 00:15:49,380 Speaker 1: I was. But you're just angry. And I understand what 307 00:15:49,420 --> 00:15:52,330 Speaker 1: you're saying. You've been the strong one but not looking 308 00:15:52,400 --> 00:15:55,030 Speaker 1: after yourself and, you know, supporting your dad at 10. 309 00:15:55,030 --> 00:15:57,870 Speaker 1: So you had to grow up really, really quickly at 310 00:15:57,910 --> 00:16:00,830 Speaker 1: that age when you're going to be the strong person. 311 00:16:00,890 --> 00:16:04,630 Speaker 1: So it's all, you know, if we're marking it out, 312 00:16:04,790 --> 00:16:08,590 Speaker 1: you can see, okay, something could go wrong here. Yeah. 313 00:16:09,070 --> 00:16:13,070 Speaker 1: You started to get into rave parties and the. 314 00:16:13,250 --> 00:16:16,250 Speaker 2: That's when I got back to Switzerland. Right. So I 315 00:16:16,950 --> 00:16:20,400 Speaker 2: kind of floated around, lost for a bit. I started 316 00:16:20,440 --> 00:16:23,040 Speaker 2: an apprenticeship as a tailor, but I didn't like sitting 317 00:16:23,060 --> 00:16:25,140 Speaker 2: in a room sewing every day. So I said, Dad, 318 00:16:25,180 --> 00:16:27,460 Speaker 2: I don't really want to do this. Because I said 319 00:16:27,600 --> 00:16:28,840 Speaker 2: to him when I got back, I said, I don't 320 00:16:28,860 --> 00:16:30,370 Speaker 2: want to live in Switzerland. I want to go back 321 00:16:30,430 --> 00:16:33,190 Speaker 2: to Australia. And his one condition was, because I had 322 00:16:33,910 --> 00:16:36,470 Speaker 2: like with my step-mom and there'd been all these different 323 00:16:36,510 --> 00:16:38,310 Speaker 2: troubles and I won't go into it. But at the 324 00:16:38,350 --> 00:16:40,610 Speaker 2: end of the day, dad always supported me, but he 325 00:16:40,650 --> 00:16:43,650 Speaker 2: had certain things that he just went, I may not 326 00:16:43,690 --> 00:16:46,350 Speaker 2: agree with what you're doing or I don't really like it, 327 00:16:46,380 --> 00:16:49,440 Speaker 2: but this is the one condition I really will expect 328 00:16:49,480 --> 00:16:52,400 Speaker 2: from you. You finished school, you didn't like it. I 329 00:16:52,440 --> 00:16:54,600 Speaker 2: want you to get some kind of trade, something, an 330 00:16:54,640 --> 00:16:57,970 Speaker 2: apprenticeship or something. So that was kind of what I 331 00:16:58,000 --> 00:17:00,330 Speaker 2: was working towards. I had no idea what I wanted 332 00:17:00,370 --> 00:17:03,090 Speaker 2: to do. I was under the impression that You had 333 00:17:03,130 --> 00:17:05,020 Speaker 2: to choose a career and then do that for the 334 00:17:05,060 --> 00:17:05,780 Speaker 2: rest of your life. 335 00:17:05,800 --> 00:17:07,680 Speaker 1: Well, that was the time, wasn't it? That was back 336 00:17:07,720 --> 00:17:08,120 Speaker 1: then it. 337 00:17:08,020 --> 00:17:12,980 Speaker 2: Was, yeah, the case. Like we're talking late 80s, early 90s, 338 00:17:13,040 --> 00:17:16,220 Speaker 2: around that time. So I tried a lot of different 339 00:17:16,270 --> 00:17:21,530 Speaker 2: things and then I kind of fell into catering with 340 00:17:21,550 --> 00:17:25,110 Speaker 2: a group of girls and they'd do these great events 341 00:17:25,330 --> 00:17:27,290 Speaker 2: and I loved the women that I was working with. 342 00:17:27,850 --> 00:17:29,689 Speaker 2: And then I kind of went, I'm really good at this. 343 00:17:30,010 --> 00:17:31,990 Speaker 2: I'm really organized and that kind of stuff. So I 344 00:17:32,030 --> 00:17:34,550 Speaker 2: ended up doing an apprenticeship in a hotel. 345 00:17:34,570 --> 00:17:35,820 Speaker 1: Hospitality. 346 00:17:35,840 --> 00:17:38,700 Speaker 2: Yeah, hospitality, housekeeping side of things. And it's really well 347 00:17:38,740 --> 00:17:42,600 Speaker 2: paid and it's really great job in Switzerland. And so 348 00:17:42,640 --> 00:17:44,760 Speaker 2: that was two years. And in the meantime, I was 349 00:17:44,800 --> 00:17:47,820 Speaker 2: going out, I was raving. I met people who owned 350 00:17:47,900 --> 00:17:51,460 Speaker 2: clubs in Zurich and just fell into that scene. And 351 00:17:51,500 --> 00:17:54,610 Speaker 2: I loved the wildness of it. I loved the creativity 352 00:17:54,710 --> 00:17:57,150 Speaker 2: of DJs and how they made music. 353 00:17:57,170 --> 00:17:57,250 Speaker 1: Yeah. 354 00:17:57,910 --> 00:17:59,869 Speaker 2: My boyfriend at the time was a DJ and he'd 355 00:17:59,910 --> 00:18:01,540 Speaker 2: teach me a little bit and I was like, oh, 356 00:18:01,580 --> 00:18:02,520 Speaker 2: maybe I'll be a DJ. 357 00:18:02,540 --> 00:18:06,280 Speaker 1: Oh, you would have been rocking at that stage. Yes. 358 00:18:06,740 --> 00:18:08,980 Speaker 2: And it was the days of, you know, they'd just 359 00:18:09,220 --> 00:18:12,440 Speaker 2: started so the party wasn't just on Saturday night. You 360 00:18:12,460 --> 00:18:14,979 Speaker 2: had the after hour that started at 6 a.m. on 361 00:18:15,040 --> 00:18:17,860 Speaker 2: Sunday and that was the club that my friends owned. 362 00:18:17,920 --> 00:18:20,090 Speaker 2: So I kind of worked there as well on the weekends, 363 00:18:20,150 --> 00:18:24,770 Speaker 2: partied all weekend and it was– If I think back now, right, 364 00:18:24,910 --> 00:18:28,430 Speaker 2: and this is my introduction to drugs, was you read 365 00:18:28,450 --> 00:18:30,230 Speaker 2: a book about what the effects were going to be. 366 00:18:30,290 --> 00:18:33,649 Speaker 2: You informed yourself and you took clean drugs where you 367 00:18:33,670 --> 00:18:37,030 Speaker 2: knew where they came from with a bunch of safe people. 368 00:18:37,510 --> 00:18:39,790 Speaker 2: That's how I was introduced to drug taking. And it 369 00:18:39,810 --> 00:18:42,330 Speaker 2: was something that you did recreationally. It's not something that 370 00:18:42,369 --> 00:18:45,460 Speaker 2: you then relied on. So that was my whole impression around. 371 00:18:45,480 --> 00:18:48,340 Speaker 2: I always thought that everybody that was taking drugs would 372 00:18:48,359 --> 00:18:49,340 Speaker 2: do it safely, right? 373 00:18:49,380 --> 00:18:52,330 Speaker 1: In that environment, and yeah, we talk drugs and there's 374 00:18:52,380 --> 00:18:55,409 Speaker 1: a cautionary tale in this how people can fall into it. 375 00:18:56,220 --> 00:19:00,280 Speaker 1: It doesn't look like it's a dirty drug lab. It's 376 00:19:00,359 --> 00:19:02,960 Speaker 1: out with the cool people. You feel like you found 377 00:19:03,000 --> 00:19:06,290 Speaker 1: the meaning of life here. What are these straighties doing? 378 00:19:06,310 --> 00:19:08,400 Speaker 1: Look what I've found. Exactly. They have no idea how 379 00:19:08,420 --> 00:19:12,990 Speaker 1: good life is. So you can fall into that so easily. 380 00:19:13,170 --> 00:19:17,570 Speaker 2: And also my whole upbringing, right? Goa, hippies, pot, drugs, 381 00:19:17,750 --> 00:19:21,110 Speaker 2: parties for days. It was all normal. It was never– 382 00:19:21,369 --> 00:19:23,350 Speaker 2: I was never told, oh, drugs are bad. 383 00:19:23,369 --> 00:19:23,449 Speaker 1: Yeah. 384 00:19:23,840 --> 00:19:26,320 Speaker 2: I was told maybe be really smart in how you 385 00:19:26,340 --> 00:19:28,540 Speaker 2: choose to take drugs and who you take them with 386 00:19:28,640 --> 00:19:29,580 Speaker 2: and where they come from. 387 00:19:29,600 --> 00:19:29,899 Speaker 1: Yeah. 388 00:19:30,180 --> 00:19:33,280 Speaker 2: Right? So those were maybe the cautionary tales that I 389 00:19:33,320 --> 00:19:35,869 Speaker 2: was told around that stuff. And I was allowed to 390 00:19:35,920 --> 00:19:39,390 Speaker 2: make my own decisions, whether people were– like my dad 391 00:19:39,630 --> 00:19:41,570 Speaker 2: didn't agree with a lot of decisions that I made 392 00:19:41,630 --> 00:19:44,090 Speaker 2: in life, but he said, look, Tash, I'll always be 393 00:19:44,130 --> 00:19:47,310 Speaker 2: here for you. So I had that safe person that 394 00:19:47,390 --> 00:19:49,399 Speaker 2: even if I had of, you know, I'm going to 395 00:19:49,440 --> 00:19:52,200 Speaker 2: say if I committed murder, I could have gone home 396 00:19:52,220 --> 00:19:54,619 Speaker 2: and gone, Dad, help me. You know, he wouldn't have 397 00:19:54,680 --> 00:19:55,740 Speaker 2: turned me away. 398 00:19:55,760 --> 00:19:58,840 Speaker 1: I think from a parenting point of view, that's probably 399 00:19:58,859 --> 00:20:01,010 Speaker 1: the best you can do with that. Because if he said, no, 400 00:20:01,050 --> 00:20:03,909 Speaker 1: don't do that, that would have been a falling out 401 00:20:04,030 --> 00:20:06,450 Speaker 1: and would have lost the connection. 402 00:20:06,470 --> 00:20:08,450 Speaker 2: Because I would have done it anyway, which I did. 403 00:20:08,470 --> 00:20:08,610 Speaker 1: Yeah. 404 00:20:10,490 --> 00:20:13,110 Speaker 2: I did everything that people told me maybe not to do. 405 00:20:13,230 --> 00:20:13,550 Speaker 1: Yeah. 406 00:20:13,670 --> 00:20:15,310 Speaker 2: I was like, oh, just go and try that. That 407 00:20:15,330 --> 00:20:17,930 Speaker 2: looks really bad and interesting. So, yeah. 408 00:20:17,950 --> 00:20:20,060 Speaker 1: Yeah. So, if he took a harder line, you probably 409 00:20:20,080 --> 00:20:22,940 Speaker 1: would have gone harder yourself. Yeah. Okay. Take it to 410 00:20:22,980 --> 00:20:27,980 Speaker 1: the extreme. So, that was overseas. Yeah. The rave party 411 00:20:28,000 --> 00:20:30,000 Speaker 1: and that. When did you come back over here? 412 00:20:30,280 --> 00:20:36,160 Speaker 2: So, I finished my apprenticeship in– 1996. And I was like, okay, 413 00:20:36,180 --> 00:20:38,530 Speaker 2: I'm moving back to Australia. See you later. Dumped my 414 00:20:38,570 --> 00:20:40,909 Speaker 2: poor boyfriend who was, I think he thought we were 415 00:20:40,930 --> 00:20:44,170 Speaker 2: going to get married and raise a family, which was never. 416 00:20:44,230 --> 00:20:45,510 Speaker 1: Do you feel bad about that now? 417 00:20:47,420 --> 00:20:48,700 Speaker 2: Maybe just about how it happened. 418 00:20:48,720 --> 00:20:49,740 Speaker 1: Okay. 419 00:20:49,800 --> 00:20:52,900 Speaker 2: But not really because he was actually a really nice guy. Yeah, yeah. 420 00:20:52,980 --> 00:20:54,770 Speaker 2: But I wasn't the best girlfriend in the world. I 421 00:20:54,810 --> 00:20:55,490 Speaker 2: was just wild. 422 00:20:55,510 --> 00:20:56,450 Speaker 1: Yeah. 423 00:20:56,470 --> 00:20:58,870 Speaker 2: So that was kind of a blessing in disguise for him, 424 00:20:59,150 --> 00:20:59,530 Speaker 2: I guess. 425 00:20:59,570 --> 00:21:00,649 Speaker 1: He dodged the bullet there. 426 00:21:00,690 --> 00:21:01,389 Speaker 2: Yeah, I think he did. 427 00:21:01,470 --> 00:21:01,690 Speaker 1: Okay. 428 00:21:02,010 --> 00:21:03,889 Speaker 2: And then I was like, okay, well, I want to 429 00:21:03,930 --> 00:21:06,470 Speaker 2: travel first. So me and my girlfriend went and did 430 00:21:06,510 --> 00:21:09,950 Speaker 2: a tour of Indonesia on my way over. I was so– 431 00:21:13,460 --> 00:21:15,700 Speaker 2: Not even, I wouldn't call it hungover. I just hadn't 432 00:21:15,760 --> 00:21:18,420 Speaker 2: slept for about three months before I left, right? 433 00:21:18,440 --> 00:21:20,220 Speaker 1: So I was. But from the rave scene. 434 00:21:20,240 --> 00:21:22,620 Speaker 2: Yeah, from partying because I knew I was leaving, so 435 00:21:22,680 --> 00:21:26,199 Speaker 2: I was just let's go, right? And I got to 436 00:21:26,260 --> 00:21:29,620 Speaker 2: Indonesia and I was just like. And then I got 437 00:21:29,680 --> 00:21:33,760 Speaker 2: to Australia and life was really quiet because obviously I 438 00:21:33,800 --> 00:21:37,180 Speaker 2: didn't know that many people. I had to reestablish where 439 00:21:37,220 --> 00:21:40,280 Speaker 2: I was going to be, where I fit in. My Morgana, 440 00:21:40,300 --> 00:21:43,220 Speaker 2: who I call my sister, Corrie's daughter, I moved in 441 00:21:43,240 --> 00:21:47,119 Speaker 2: with her and her partner in Alexandria and they were, 442 00:21:47,140 --> 00:21:49,790 Speaker 2: you know, into the music scene. They both played in 443 00:21:49,869 --> 00:21:52,050 Speaker 2: bands and so I'd go along to all of that, 444 00:21:52,090 --> 00:21:55,389 Speaker 2: but it wasn't really my scene. Anyway, so one of 445 00:21:55,430 --> 00:21:58,490 Speaker 2: the boys I met there, his sister was in Bad 446 00:21:58,530 --> 00:22:02,920 Speaker 2: Girls Australia. It was one of those touring national striptease shows. 447 00:22:02,980 --> 00:22:05,760 Speaker 2: And he goes, have you thought about doing some lingerie waitressing? 448 00:22:05,780 --> 00:22:09,240 Speaker 2: It'd be amazing. I go, what the hell is lingerie waitressing, right? 449 00:22:09,680 --> 00:22:10,160 Speaker 1: I'm like, what? 450 00:22:10,240 --> 00:22:12,310 Speaker 2: I'm from Switzerland. I don't know what this is. And 451 00:22:12,330 --> 00:22:13,730 Speaker 2: he goes, oh, you just put your knickers on and 452 00:22:13,750 --> 00:22:15,800 Speaker 2: go walk around the pub and serve some beers. 453 00:22:16,130 --> 00:22:16,840 Speaker 1: Very Australian. 454 00:22:17,020 --> 00:22:20,239 Speaker 2: And I'm like, yes, I found my calling. It was 455 00:22:20,280 --> 00:22:24,369 Speaker 2: the best. I made more tips in one day in 456 00:22:24,410 --> 00:22:27,310 Speaker 2: those pubs than I had a whole week's wage. 457 00:22:27,330 --> 00:22:28,189 Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah. Right? 458 00:22:28,390 --> 00:22:32,270 Speaker 2: And it was– the 90s. It was pumping. It was everywhere. 459 00:22:32,310 --> 00:22:35,470 Speaker 1: With the Bad Girls, were they all based in Sydney 460 00:22:35,530 --> 00:22:36,590 Speaker 1: or were you touring or? 461 00:22:36,770 --> 00:22:39,590 Speaker 2: No, I didn't join the Bad Girls. That was his sister. 462 00:22:39,609 --> 00:22:42,929 Speaker 2: So that's why he had connections to the agencies. 463 00:22:42,950 --> 00:22:43,230 Speaker 1: Yeah. 464 00:22:43,750 --> 00:22:46,659 Speaker 2: So that was all in Sydney at this point. And 465 00:22:46,700 --> 00:22:50,860 Speaker 2: then I saw my first striptease show where I'm still 466 00:22:50,900 --> 00:22:53,939 Speaker 2: friends with this girl and she just had legs up 467 00:22:53,980 --> 00:22:58,250 Speaker 2: to here and had this amazing costume on. The music 468 00:22:58,290 --> 00:23:01,869 Speaker 2: was great. The show, the dancing was amazing. And I 469 00:23:01,890 --> 00:23:04,650 Speaker 2: just went, oh my God, that's what I want to do. 470 00:23:04,670 --> 00:23:06,750 Speaker 2: So I just fell in love with that. And then 471 00:23:06,790 --> 00:23:09,879 Speaker 2: I met the lady who ran Fever Productions, Diane, and 472 00:23:09,910 --> 00:23:13,880 Speaker 2: she taught me how to dance. So I had done 473 00:23:13,920 --> 00:23:16,500 Speaker 2: dancing before when I was younger, but taught me the 474 00:23:16,619 --> 00:23:20,000 Speaker 2: art of striptease, right? And so then I toured with 475 00:23:20,060 --> 00:23:24,790 Speaker 2: her all around Australia and just loved the freedom of 476 00:23:24,850 --> 00:23:29,050 Speaker 2: it all. the girls, the friendships that I built. 477 00:23:30,810 --> 00:23:34,350 Speaker 1: So just on you, you were comfortable with it? Yeah, absolutely. 478 00:23:34,410 --> 00:23:38,080 Speaker 1: Have I compromised myself or is there something that, yeah, 479 00:23:38,100 --> 00:23:40,620 Speaker 1: this wasn't what I expected I'd be doing in life? 480 00:23:40,660 --> 00:23:43,379 Speaker 1: But when you're talking about it, I see the smile 481 00:23:43,460 --> 00:23:44,940 Speaker 1: on your face and you think, well, it was a 482 00:23:44,960 --> 00:23:45,359 Speaker 1: good time. 483 00:23:45,520 --> 00:23:48,460 Speaker 2: It was a really good time. I found myself a 484 00:23:48,480 --> 00:23:51,700 Speaker 2: little bit in there. It gave me some confidence back. 485 00:23:52,340 --> 00:23:56,600 Speaker 2: around my body and who I was as a woman. Uh, 486 00:23:56,720 --> 00:23:59,760 Speaker 2: it also allowed me to have really, I always had 487 00:23:59,800 --> 00:24:02,159 Speaker 2: really clear boundaries, but you know, there was no touching 488 00:24:02,220 --> 00:24:04,880 Speaker 2: involved and there was, I'm not saying there's anything wrong 489 00:24:04,920 --> 00:24:07,330 Speaker 2: with being a sex worker, but that wasn't where this 490 00:24:07,430 --> 00:24:09,970 Speaker 2: was ever going to go. So there was really clear, 491 00:24:09,990 --> 00:24:13,190 Speaker 2: you know, rules around it. I would either have a 492 00:24:13,230 --> 00:24:17,109 Speaker 2: driver with me or at private parties or no one 493 00:24:17,150 --> 00:24:20,250 Speaker 2: really effed with me anyway. I just kind of have. 494 00:24:20,410 --> 00:24:22,510 Speaker 1: You got that. Yeah. Don't fuck with me. 495 00:24:22,590 --> 00:24:23,550 Speaker 2: Yes, pretty much. 496 00:24:23,630 --> 00:24:27,010 Speaker 1: Attitude. And I suppose the worldly upbringing that you had, 497 00:24:27,590 --> 00:24:32,780 Speaker 1: you would know how to manage yourself around situations. With it, did, 498 00:24:33,160 --> 00:24:36,840 Speaker 1: because I've spoken to a number of people, I know 499 00:24:36,880 --> 00:24:39,440 Speaker 1: girls that have worked in the industry and, you know, 500 00:24:40,119 --> 00:24:43,620 Speaker 1: the public perception is, but it's demeaning, it's this and that. 501 00:24:43,780 --> 00:24:46,330 Speaker 1: But then I've had girls say, it's quite empowering. 502 00:24:46,609 --> 00:24:47,950 Speaker 2: It's extremely empowering. 503 00:24:47,990 --> 00:24:48,150 Speaker 1: Yeah. 504 00:24:48,630 --> 00:24:55,320 Speaker 2: And it's about accepting the fact that, you know, and 505 00:24:55,420 --> 00:24:58,260 Speaker 2: I don't want to sound sexist saying this in a way. 506 00:24:58,280 --> 00:25:00,139 Speaker 1: Give it to the blokes. 507 00:25:00,460 --> 00:25:02,600 Speaker 2: Give it to the blokes. I'm sorry, but if you're 508 00:25:02,619 --> 00:25:06,100 Speaker 2: going to pull out money to look at me taking 509 00:25:06,140 --> 00:25:08,899 Speaker 2: my clothes off, I'm going to take that money, right? Yeah. 510 00:25:08,980 --> 00:25:09,740 Speaker 2: That's on you. 511 00:25:09,760 --> 00:25:10,680 Speaker 1: Yeah. 512 00:25:10,900 --> 00:25:12,459 Speaker 2: And, you know, you know the rules. 513 00:25:12,480 --> 00:25:12,640 Speaker 1: Yeah. 514 00:25:13,450 --> 00:25:16,169 Speaker 2: If that's what makes you happy, that's great. 515 00:25:16,790 --> 00:25:19,510 Speaker 1: I get it. Look, I think the blokes should be 516 00:25:19,650 --> 00:25:22,070 Speaker 1: criticised and they'll probably go, I don't care. 517 00:25:22,390 --> 00:25:23,330 Speaker 2: And that's okay too. 518 00:25:23,490 --> 00:25:26,830 Speaker 1: But, yeah, because I think it's interesting discussing it with 519 00:25:26,869 --> 00:25:29,010 Speaker 1: people that have just got a little bit of different 520 00:25:29,050 --> 00:25:32,770 Speaker 1: perspective on it. It's not from the straighty 180 view of, no, 521 00:25:32,790 --> 00:25:35,170 Speaker 1: this is wrong, it's morally wrong. And do you know what? 522 00:25:35,270 --> 00:25:36,650 Speaker 2: To some people it might be wrong. 523 00:25:36,890 --> 00:25:36,990 Speaker 1: Yeah. 524 00:25:37,030 --> 00:25:40,430 Speaker 2: And that's okay. You're allowed to have that opinion. But 525 00:25:40,619 --> 00:25:42,840 Speaker 2: to me it gave me freedom. I earned a lot 526 00:25:42,859 --> 00:25:46,750 Speaker 2: of money doing that. And I traveled regularly. It gave 527 00:25:46,830 --> 00:25:51,030 Speaker 2: me the possibility to buy whatever I wanted to, to 528 00:25:51,070 --> 00:25:52,649 Speaker 2: go to the place, to go back and see my 529 00:25:52,670 --> 00:25:55,510 Speaker 2: dad in Switzerland, to have the freedom to leave the 530 00:25:55,550 --> 00:26:00,090 Speaker 2: bad relationships that I chose. Because, you know, I wasn't 531 00:26:01,010 --> 00:26:03,780 Speaker 2: doing that job and having a relationship doesn't work either. 532 00:26:03,820 --> 00:26:04,199 Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah. 533 00:26:04,980 --> 00:26:08,320 Speaker 2: Who wants their girlfriend to be looked at every day 534 00:26:08,380 --> 00:26:11,290 Speaker 2: by the men when they're naked, right? Fair enough. Even 535 00:26:11,330 --> 00:26:13,370 Speaker 2: if there is nothing else happening, I don't think that's 536 00:26:13,430 --> 00:26:16,430 Speaker 2: fair either to expect that from somebody. But I choose 537 00:26:16,470 --> 00:26:21,010 Speaker 2: really damaged relationships anyway. If I didn't have that money 538 00:26:21,130 --> 00:26:24,470 Speaker 2: that I earned from dancing, I would have been stuck there. 539 00:26:24,869 --> 00:26:28,580 Speaker 1: Okay. So empowered in that it's your choice. No one 540 00:26:28,660 --> 00:26:30,639 Speaker 1: is forcing you to do it. And it gives you 541 00:26:30,680 --> 00:26:35,540 Speaker 1: the independence to make life choices and live life on 542 00:26:35,580 --> 00:26:37,659 Speaker 1: your terms. I suppose that's the way of putting it. 543 00:26:38,180 --> 00:26:40,720 Speaker 1: So you didn't, and we just touched on it briefly, 544 00:26:40,740 --> 00:26:46,080 Speaker 1: you didn't find yourself in any difficult situations, like occupational 545 00:26:46,119 --> 00:26:49,740 Speaker 1: health and safety is not big. in that environment. 546 00:26:49,920 --> 00:26:51,900 Speaker 2: I did slip over on stage a couple of times. 547 00:26:53,460 --> 00:26:55,640 Speaker 2: Maybe was a bit drunk or, yeah, a bit high, 548 00:26:55,660 --> 00:26:57,460 Speaker 2: who knows. But, yeah, a bit wet on the floor 549 00:26:57,500 --> 00:27:00,420 Speaker 2: when you've been doing like a bath show or something. So, yeah, 550 00:27:00,520 --> 00:27:03,340 Speaker 2: stuff like that happened. But I never– I know that 551 00:27:03,359 --> 00:27:05,460 Speaker 2: there were some women that found themselves in some really 552 00:27:05,500 --> 00:27:07,780 Speaker 2: horrible situations and I'm not saying that it was a 553 00:27:07,820 --> 00:27:11,179 Speaker 2: safe profession at all. But like I said, for me 554 00:27:11,300 --> 00:27:13,780 Speaker 2: in general in life, I have thought about consequences differently 555 00:27:14,619 --> 00:27:15,540 Speaker 2: Not until they happened. 556 00:27:15,859 --> 00:27:16,139 Speaker 1: Yeah. 557 00:27:16,180 --> 00:27:18,159 Speaker 2: So for me, it wasn't about that. And I always 558 00:27:18,220 --> 00:27:20,340 Speaker 2: felt safe. And when I didn't, I'd leave. 559 00:27:20,700 --> 00:27:23,950 Speaker 1: Right, right. I would imagine some of the gigs would 560 00:27:23,990 --> 00:27:27,170 Speaker 1: be bikey clubhouses, that type of thing, or end of 561 00:27:27,210 --> 00:27:29,950 Speaker 1: year football, Bucks nights. 562 00:27:30,130 --> 00:27:33,070 Speaker 2: Actually, the bikey clubhouses were the safest place to go. 563 00:27:33,090 --> 00:27:33,990 Speaker 1: Yeah, that's interesting. 564 00:27:34,130 --> 00:27:37,850 Speaker 2: Yes, because you were looked after. And you were a 565 00:27:38,430 --> 00:27:41,530 Speaker 2: house guest and you performed and they made sure that 566 00:27:41,630 --> 00:27:44,760 Speaker 2: all their patrons and whatever respected you and treated you 567 00:27:44,800 --> 00:27:47,580 Speaker 2: well and didn't. And they always encouraged you to stay 568 00:27:47,619 --> 00:27:49,700 Speaker 2: back and have a drink and they would just, you know, 569 00:27:49,720 --> 00:27:51,879 Speaker 2: you were just really looked after. I've got to be 570 00:27:51,900 --> 00:27:53,119 Speaker 2: really honest about it, yeah. 571 00:27:53,140 --> 00:27:57,000 Speaker 1: Okay. No, that's, again, an interesting take on it. And 572 00:27:57,240 --> 00:28:01,439 Speaker 1: I understand what you're saying 100% because if someone misbehaved, 573 00:28:01,600 --> 00:28:02,980 Speaker 1: they'd get dropped on the spot. Yeah. 574 00:28:03,790 --> 00:28:06,409 Speaker 2: And this is my experience, right? I can't speak for 575 00:28:06,450 --> 00:28:09,670 Speaker 2: anybody else's experiences. And I know some of my girlfriends 576 00:28:09,850 --> 00:28:14,230 Speaker 2: had totally different experiences and some of them, you know, 577 00:28:15,270 --> 00:28:18,350 Speaker 2: were sexually assaulted at different places. I'm not saying by clubs, 578 00:28:18,410 --> 00:28:21,590 Speaker 2: I'm saying just at shows and things happened to them 579 00:28:21,650 --> 00:28:25,040 Speaker 2: that were really horrific. And I'm, you know, I, again, 580 00:28:25,119 --> 00:28:28,840 Speaker 2: I feel really blessed around my life that The choices 581 00:28:28,880 --> 00:28:31,580 Speaker 2: that I made and some of the situations, probably something 582 00:28:31,640 --> 00:28:34,060 Speaker 2: should have happened because it wasn't safe that I put 583 00:28:34,100 --> 00:28:37,760 Speaker 2: myself in, but it didn't. So I'm really, really, yeah, 584 00:28:37,920 --> 00:28:39,640 Speaker 2: I look back and go, I'm grateful. 585 00:28:40,120 --> 00:28:45,010 Speaker 1: Well, it's, yeah, different environments. And when you mix alcohol and, yeah, 586 00:28:45,130 --> 00:28:47,730 Speaker 1: a group of idiot blokes together, I would imagine the 587 00:28:47,770 --> 00:28:51,470 Speaker 1: suburban bucks parties would be a greater risk or even, yeah, 588 00:28:51,530 --> 00:28:54,410 Speaker 1: the entitled party. Accountants from the big end of the 589 00:28:54,450 --> 00:28:58,450 Speaker 1: city were throwing money around. I would imagine that causes problems. 590 00:28:58,910 --> 00:29:01,450 Speaker 2: And, you know, when I sit here now and I 591 00:29:01,490 --> 00:29:05,090 Speaker 2: look at that girl and the profit I got from 592 00:29:05,710 --> 00:29:09,330 Speaker 2: that kind of space and some of the behaviours that 593 00:29:09,370 --> 00:29:13,860 Speaker 2: were presented by males there. Yeah. I'd find them unacceptable 594 00:29:13,900 --> 00:29:16,100 Speaker 2: today in any way, shape or form. Some of the 595 00:29:16,160 --> 00:29:19,380 Speaker 2: things that I found acceptable that were said to me 596 00:29:19,520 --> 00:29:23,360 Speaker 2: from blokes or other girls or whatever it was, today 597 00:29:23,440 --> 00:29:25,130 Speaker 2: that stuff matters to me. 598 00:29:25,200 --> 00:29:25,510 Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah. 599 00:29:25,870 --> 00:29:29,790 Speaker 2: You know, so I think it's all about where you're at. 600 00:29:29,990 --> 00:29:33,070 Speaker 1: Because you've changed or society's changed or a combination of both. 601 00:29:33,090 --> 00:29:34,330 Speaker 2: No, because I have changed. 602 00:29:34,350 --> 00:29:34,730 Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah. 603 00:29:34,870 --> 00:29:41,570 Speaker 2: Because before I was friends with men that bashed their girlfriends, right? Yeah, yeah. 604 00:29:42,310 --> 00:29:46,130 Speaker 2: I was friends with men that. you know, probably spoke 605 00:29:46,210 --> 00:29:48,290 Speaker 2: to me in a way that was inappropriate. 606 00:29:48,310 --> 00:29:48,390 Speaker 1: Yeah. 607 00:29:48,730 --> 00:29:50,990 Speaker 2: But there was other parts of them that I loved. 608 00:29:51,230 --> 00:29:51,430 Speaker 1: Yeah. 609 00:29:51,470 --> 00:29:52,830 Speaker 2: Today I wouldn't accept that. 610 00:29:53,010 --> 00:29:53,170 Speaker 1: Yeah. 611 00:29:53,310 --> 00:29:55,830 Speaker 2: And it was the same, and today I also wouldn't 612 00:29:55,870 --> 00:29:59,110 Speaker 2: accept to be in a relationship where someone would verbally 613 00:29:59,250 --> 00:30:02,230 Speaker 2: or physically try and abuse me. That would be, you know, 614 00:30:02,790 --> 00:30:05,930 Speaker 2: even before I got there, those red flags, I'd notice them. 615 00:30:06,360 --> 00:30:09,500 Speaker 2: But back then, I guess things were a little bit different, 616 00:30:09,520 --> 00:30:12,680 Speaker 2: but I don't think from a being safe and a 617 00:30:12,720 --> 00:30:19,540 Speaker 2: woman's perspective, that it's ever been okay for men or 618 00:30:19,740 --> 00:30:23,140 Speaker 2: women as well who execute that power that they have 619 00:30:23,160 --> 00:30:24,240 Speaker 2: over somebody else. 620 00:30:24,300 --> 00:30:27,880 Speaker 1: Well, you're talking in that line of work too, the 621 00:30:27,920 --> 00:30:31,080 Speaker 1: disrespect that could be thrown. And, yeah, I don't think 622 00:30:31,160 --> 00:30:34,910 Speaker 1: anyone or anyone that I respect would feel comfortable with 623 00:30:35,090 --> 00:30:38,650 Speaker 1: regardless of the work. Yeah, you still need to treat 624 00:30:38,670 --> 00:30:42,570 Speaker 1: people with respect. Absolutely. Yeah. you're performing, you're doing this 625 00:30:42,650 --> 00:30:45,290 Speaker 1: and that, but there is a line that should be, uh, 626 00:30:45,410 --> 00:30:49,230 Speaker 1: should always be there. Society's changed a little bit too now. 627 00:30:49,290 --> 00:30:52,110 Speaker 1: Like I, yeah, it was nothing to walk into a 628 00:30:52,150 --> 00:30:54,780 Speaker 1: pub and the, you know, Thursday afternoon, topless bar mates 629 00:30:55,080 --> 00:30:58,460 Speaker 1: and that, you know, just a local, local hotel. And that, 630 00:30:58,480 --> 00:31:01,040 Speaker 1: that was the, uh, and you didn't bat an eyelid. 631 00:31:01,100 --> 00:31:03,860 Speaker 2: No, it was just normal and it was okay. And 632 00:31:03,900 --> 00:31:09,340 Speaker 2: I guess, you know, um, I remember like kind of 633 00:31:09,420 --> 00:31:12,720 Speaker 2: finished up dancing around the time that mobile phones came into. 634 00:31:13,140 --> 00:31:14,280 Speaker 1: Yeah, that would have changed. 635 00:31:14,300 --> 00:31:16,940 Speaker 2: So mobile phones changed everything. So next minute. 636 00:31:16,960 --> 00:31:17,560 Speaker 1: I hadn't thought of that. 637 00:31:17,620 --> 00:31:19,560 Speaker 2: Before it was just cameras, right? So then they had 638 00:31:19,580 --> 00:31:21,120 Speaker 2: to go and get developed and you'd end up in 639 00:31:21,140 --> 00:31:22,620 Speaker 2: someone's box party photos. 640 00:31:22,640 --> 00:31:23,410 Speaker 1: Who cares? 641 00:31:23,430 --> 00:31:27,030 Speaker 2: Yeah. But next minute, the girls were having to combat 642 00:31:27,070 --> 00:31:28,690 Speaker 2: being all over social media. 643 00:31:28,990 --> 00:31:29,170 Speaker 1: Yes. 644 00:31:29,190 --> 00:31:32,430 Speaker 2: Right? In positions you don't really, like if you're doing 645 00:31:32,490 --> 00:31:35,910 Speaker 2: a little twirl and then doing a leg spread, it's okay. 646 00:31:35,950 --> 00:31:36,110 Speaker 1: Yeah. 647 00:31:36,710 --> 00:31:39,890 Speaker 2: Having that forever on somebody's social media and then the 648 00:31:39,930 --> 00:31:43,330 Speaker 2: comments that come from that, I think it changed everything. 649 00:31:43,370 --> 00:31:48,230 Speaker 2: But it also, I think the whole online, being able 650 00:31:48,270 --> 00:31:51,290 Speaker 2: to do online striptease and all of that just changed 651 00:31:51,350 --> 00:31:54,730 Speaker 2: and took that out of parts. And equality as well, 652 00:31:54,830 --> 00:31:56,790 Speaker 2: I guess, in a way. Like women don't want to 653 00:31:56,810 --> 00:31:58,710 Speaker 2: walk into a pub and see a girl walking around 654 00:31:58,730 --> 00:31:59,430 Speaker 2: with her tits out. 655 00:31:59,730 --> 00:32:00,230 Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah. 656 00:32:00,410 --> 00:32:02,490 Speaker 2: So that kind of, yeah, it's a bit of both. 657 00:32:02,830 --> 00:32:06,010 Speaker 1: Okay, so I hadn't even thought from the mobile phones, 658 00:32:06,050 --> 00:32:08,880 Speaker 1: but yeah, that would have changed it completely. 659 00:32:08,980 --> 00:32:13,070 Speaker 2: I'm so glad that throughout all my teenage and 20s, 660 00:32:13,080 --> 00:32:13,480 Speaker 2: there was. 661 00:32:13,460 --> 00:32:15,840 Speaker 1: No mobile phones. We'd all be stuffed, wouldn't we? 662 00:32:15,840 --> 00:32:18,650 Speaker 2: I'd be absolutely stuffed. I would have gone to jail 663 00:32:18,710 --> 00:32:19,870 Speaker 2: a lot earlier, I reckon. 664 00:32:21,760 --> 00:32:26,440 Speaker 1: Okay. So how long were you stripping? 665 00:32:26,620 --> 00:32:27,620 Speaker 2: I did about 10 years. 666 00:32:27,680 --> 00:32:32,170 Speaker 1: Yeah? Okay. So that was a long career and you 667 00:32:32,250 --> 00:32:33,090 Speaker 1: made money out of it? 668 00:32:33,130 --> 00:32:35,710 Speaker 2: I did. I spent it all. Don't get me wrong. Okay. 669 00:32:35,990 --> 00:32:39,470 Speaker 2: I never really, back in the past, never really believed 670 00:32:39,550 --> 00:32:43,350 Speaker 2: in tomorrow. Yeah. It was always today and that's it. Yeah. 671 00:32:43,790 --> 00:32:45,230 Speaker 2: And I think there was a part of me also 672 00:32:45,270 --> 00:32:48,410 Speaker 2: that didn't really want tomorrow, like always that little girl. 673 00:32:48,430 --> 00:32:48,510 Speaker 1: Yeah. 674 00:32:49,580 --> 00:32:51,780 Speaker 2: Not that I wanted to end my life or anything 675 00:32:51,820 --> 00:32:52,260 Speaker 2: like that. 676 00:32:52,300 --> 00:32:55,140 Speaker 1: No, but there was a recklessness in the way that 677 00:32:55,300 --> 00:32:56,360 Speaker 1: you went about things. 678 00:32:56,480 --> 00:33:01,840 Speaker 2: Yeah, absolutely. And if it was wrong or somebody in 679 00:33:01,900 --> 00:33:04,420 Speaker 2: society went, we don't like that, I'd go, oh, I 680 00:33:04,460 --> 00:33:09,100 Speaker 2: like that. So it was that rebel that continued to happen. 681 00:33:09,120 --> 00:33:11,380 Speaker 2: And then I kind of just fell into when you're 682 00:33:11,420 --> 00:33:14,550 Speaker 2: living in that space, they're the people that you're around 683 00:33:14,590 --> 00:33:18,640 Speaker 2: all the time. So you're not really exposed to– other people. 684 00:33:18,700 --> 00:33:20,520 Speaker 2: So that becomes normal, right? 685 00:33:21,360 --> 00:33:23,860 Speaker 1: You make a good point there because it's the environment 686 00:33:23,900 --> 00:33:27,220 Speaker 1: that you're hanging out in. If they're not judging you, well, 687 00:33:27,240 --> 00:33:29,110 Speaker 1: these are my friends. And so I did that. Well, 688 00:33:29,470 --> 00:33:30,270 Speaker 1: no one bats an eyelid. 689 00:33:30,290 --> 00:33:33,870 Speaker 2: It didn't matter, right? Because everybody was kind of, all 690 00:33:33,910 --> 00:33:35,950 Speaker 2: of us girls were in that industry and the ones 691 00:33:35,990 --> 00:33:37,910 Speaker 2: that didn't, they didn't judge us. We would go out 692 00:33:37,950 --> 00:33:41,470 Speaker 2: clubbing together. The red carpet got rolled out. You were 693 00:33:41,770 --> 00:33:44,260 Speaker 2: a bit of a superstar back then. And we were 694 00:33:44,420 --> 00:33:47,060 Speaker 2: and we had– it was great, you know. 695 00:33:47,740 --> 00:33:51,940 Speaker 1: I can see the fun that you would have had then. 696 00:33:52,500 --> 00:33:55,180 Speaker 1: When did drugs start to become a bigger part in 697 00:33:55,220 --> 00:33:57,660 Speaker 1: your life? Did you ever get to the point with 698 00:33:57,920 --> 00:34:01,290 Speaker 1: dependency on it? And I know that can be a 699 00:34:01,370 --> 00:34:01,990 Speaker 1: slow creep. 700 00:34:02,330 --> 00:34:05,970 Speaker 2: Not until really much, much later in life. Throughout all 701 00:34:05,990 --> 00:34:09,609 Speaker 2: of that, I think I always– so I've always had 702 00:34:09,650 --> 00:34:11,810 Speaker 2: this thing that I do when things got hard, I'd run. 703 00:34:12,770 --> 00:34:14,390 Speaker 2: So I'd just pack up and go somewhere else. 704 00:34:14,850 --> 00:34:15,760 Speaker 1: Yeah. Yeah. 705 00:34:16,390 --> 00:34:18,680 Speaker 2: I'd go, oh, I didn't like that or that was 706 00:34:18,719 --> 00:34:20,600 Speaker 2: a bit. So I'd either go back to Switzerland or 707 00:34:20,620 --> 00:34:22,419 Speaker 2: I'd move state, one or the other. 708 00:34:22,860 --> 00:34:25,839 Speaker 1: Just on that, and I want to continue the story, but. 709 00:34:26,489 --> 00:34:29,290 Speaker 1: Do you identify as Australian or you look at the 710 00:34:29,330 --> 00:34:30,810 Speaker 1: world as your home? 711 00:34:31,170 --> 00:34:34,370 Speaker 2: I'm a child of the world, but I love Australia. 712 00:34:34,410 --> 00:34:35,910 Speaker 2: I've always come back to Australia. 713 00:34:35,930 --> 00:34:37,669 Speaker 1: You feel your roots are here in Australia. 714 00:34:37,690 --> 00:34:41,290 Speaker 2: I mean, if we're going from a passport point of view, 715 00:34:41,310 --> 00:34:43,330 Speaker 2: I've got a Swiss and an Australian passport, so I'm 716 00:34:43,370 --> 00:34:47,230 Speaker 2: half Swiss, half Australian, really. But I feel like the 717 00:34:47,250 --> 00:34:51,370 Speaker 2: world is my home. I don't see we're all human 718 00:34:51,410 --> 00:34:53,569 Speaker 2: beings on this planet. We may look a little bit 719 00:34:53,650 --> 00:34:56,420 Speaker 2: different or live in a different area, but Well, that's. 720 00:34:56,280 --> 00:34:58,880 Speaker 1: A good byproduct of your upbringing, I would suggest. I 721 00:34:58,880 --> 00:35:01,060 Speaker 1: think so. It's a good attitude. It took me a 722 00:35:01,080 --> 00:35:06,750 Speaker 1: while to get there, though. You were talking about running away. Oh, yes. 723 00:35:06,930 --> 00:35:10,290 Speaker 2: So things would get difficult and I'd just move. And 724 00:35:10,350 --> 00:35:12,890 Speaker 2: I think when things got a little bit messy and 725 00:35:13,110 --> 00:35:16,830 Speaker 2: I was maybe partying a bit too much, and then 726 00:35:17,310 --> 00:35:19,420 Speaker 2: what happens when you party too much is things get 727 00:35:19,520 --> 00:35:24,109 Speaker 2: out of– they're just not– reality's not right anymore, right? 728 00:35:24,190 --> 00:35:26,270 Speaker 2: So things are out of context and you hang out 729 00:35:26,310 --> 00:35:31,390 Speaker 2: with people that are either traumatised, partying too hard, not 730 00:35:31,410 --> 00:35:33,549 Speaker 2: looking after themselves, all that kind of stuff, and things 731 00:35:33,610 --> 00:35:36,740 Speaker 2: get a bit pear-shaped. So I'd usually just pack up 732 00:35:36,840 --> 00:35:40,100 Speaker 2: and I'd go, I'm not doing well right now, or 733 00:35:40,180 --> 00:35:42,380 Speaker 2: I'd go and see Corrie or my sister. 734 00:35:42,400 --> 00:35:43,840 Speaker 1: They were your stable base. 735 00:35:43,980 --> 00:35:46,299 Speaker 2: They were my stable base or my grandparents. I'd go 736 00:35:46,340 --> 00:35:50,319 Speaker 2: to Queensland and my mum's youngest brother lived with my 737 00:35:50,360 --> 00:35:53,589 Speaker 2: grandparents for a really long time. And he would, you know, 738 00:35:53,630 --> 00:35:58,730 Speaker 2: he'd go, Tashi, you know, pull it up. Or, are 739 00:35:58,750 --> 00:36:01,290 Speaker 2: you okay? That was usually what would set me off. 740 00:36:01,390 --> 00:36:04,090 Speaker 2: If somebody went, are you okay? And I'd go, if 741 00:36:04,130 --> 00:36:05,790 Speaker 2: they're asking me, I'm probably not. 742 00:36:06,670 --> 00:36:08,469 Speaker 1: That's very insightful. 743 00:36:09,489 --> 00:36:12,590 Speaker 2: Insight has never been a problem. It's been denial around, 744 00:36:13,570 --> 00:36:17,570 Speaker 2: you know, looking outside of yourself and for what is wrong, 745 00:36:17,850 --> 00:36:23,310 Speaker 2: the people, the drugs, the environment, the job you're doing, 746 00:36:23,630 --> 00:36:27,310 Speaker 2: whatever it is. And we like to do that, right? 747 00:36:27,370 --> 00:36:30,290 Speaker 2: But the only or the relationship that you don't have 748 00:36:30,550 --> 00:36:34,049 Speaker 2: or the bad relationships that you keep choosing and we 749 00:36:34,270 --> 00:36:38,160 Speaker 2: look there for the solution to whatever is missing inside 750 00:36:38,180 --> 00:36:41,360 Speaker 2: and that's just not where it is. And it's almost 751 00:36:41,480 --> 00:36:45,620 Speaker 2: like you– When you move so many times as I 752 00:36:45,660 --> 00:36:48,410 Speaker 2: do and have that many different environments, you wear different 753 00:36:48,450 --> 00:36:51,390 Speaker 2: masks and you get so lost in all of them. 754 00:36:51,430 --> 00:36:55,370 Speaker 1: There's a freedom that if you do keep moving, like 755 00:36:55,410 --> 00:36:57,730 Speaker 1: some people grow up in one area and that's their 756 00:36:57,770 --> 00:37:00,780 Speaker 1: life and they can't reinvent themselves because everyone knows who 757 00:37:00,820 --> 00:37:03,540 Speaker 1: they are. But if you do move around a lot, 758 00:37:03,940 --> 00:37:07,600 Speaker 1: you can reinvent yourself. Absolutely. You can come in as 759 00:37:07,620 --> 00:37:08,220 Speaker 1: a different person. 760 00:37:08,260 --> 00:37:10,480 Speaker 2: You can and you can assimilate to the people that 761 00:37:10,500 --> 00:37:13,340 Speaker 2: you're hanging around. Yeah. But when you run away … 762 00:37:13,920 --> 00:37:17,009 Speaker 2: You go with you, right? So it only lasts for 763 00:37:17,030 --> 00:37:18,029 Speaker 2: a short period of time. 764 00:37:18,050 --> 00:37:20,189 Speaker 1: And then you show your real self. 765 00:37:20,350 --> 00:37:22,350 Speaker 2: Yeah, or it's not even showing your real self. It's 766 00:37:22,390 --> 00:37:25,469 Speaker 2: people get close. And that was always an issue for 767 00:37:25,510 --> 00:37:29,050 Speaker 2: me when people got too close to I'd run because 768 00:37:29,070 --> 00:37:32,070 Speaker 2: I was fearful of losing them. It makes no sense. 769 00:37:32,410 --> 00:37:36,049 Speaker 1: Well, I'm not a psychologist, but I think losing your 770 00:37:36,090 --> 00:37:39,390 Speaker 1: mother in the circumstances, you described that sense of abandonment 771 00:37:39,510 --> 00:37:42,339 Speaker 1: might play a part in it. Absolutely, it did. That 772 00:37:42,550 --> 00:37:44,220 Speaker 1: I don't want to love too much because I might 773 00:37:44,260 --> 00:37:44,540 Speaker 1: lose it. 774 00:37:44,700 --> 00:37:47,600 Speaker 2: Absolutely, it did. And I was really opinionated around things 775 00:37:47,640 --> 00:37:49,600 Speaker 2: like that. From a very young age, I'd go, well, 776 00:37:49,640 --> 00:37:52,500 Speaker 2: I'm never going to have children because what if something 777 00:37:52,540 --> 00:37:55,120 Speaker 2: happens to me and they end up like me? I'm 778 00:37:55,160 --> 00:37:58,350 Speaker 2: never going to. love somebody completely or stay with them 779 00:37:58,410 --> 00:37:59,790 Speaker 2: because what if they leave me? 780 00:37:59,850 --> 00:38:00,049 Speaker 1: Right. 781 00:38:00,070 --> 00:38:03,359 Speaker 2: There was those, I taught myself that stuff. They didn't 782 00:38:03,410 --> 00:38:06,490 Speaker 2: come from outside of me. And then I'd forgotten about it. 783 00:38:06,560 --> 00:38:10,859 Speaker 2: But the girl that was trying to belong somewhere was 784 00:38:11,020 --> 00:38:16,000 Speaker 2: always then acting when things got difficult from that space, 785 00:38:16,180 --> 00:38:18,240 Speaker 2: from that fear. So yeah. 786 00:38:18,520 --> 00:38:19,879 Speaker 1: I'm out of here. Yeah. 787 00:38:20,000 --> 00:38:22,860 Speaker 2: I'm out of here. And so my My drug use 788 00:38:22,880 --> 00:38:25,200 Speaker 2: would then stop, right? So I'd go wherever I went 789 00:38:25,219 --> 00:38:27,610 Speaker 2: and wherever I was going, I'd stop for a while. 790 00:38:27,790 --> 00:38:30,110 Speaker 2: I'd kind of, you know, get my shit together and 791 00:38:30,150 --> 00:38:32,469 Speaker 2: I'd find another job or do whatever it is that 792 00:38:32,510 --> 00:38:38,440 Speaker 2: I was doing. So no, drugs didn't become that massive, 793 00:38:38,640 --> 00:38:40,660 Speaker 2: have that massive impact, not until much later. 794 00:38:41,090 --> 00:38:43,950 Speaker 1: Okay, and if you were working as a stripper for 795 00:38:43,950 --> 00:38:47,020 Speaker 1: 10 years, drugs would have been readily available if you 796 00:38:47,060 --> 00:38:49,940 Speaker 1: needed it. So it wasn't sort of you struggled to 797 00:38:50,000 --> 00:38:50,219 Speaker 1: get it. 798 00:38:50,280 --> 00:38:52,319 Speaker 2: And I always had them around me. It was the 799 00:38:52,340 --> 00:38:55,680 Speaker 2: people that I chose to be around. And not even consciously, 800 00:38:55,719 --> 00:38:58,759 Speaker 2: it was almost like this is okay. They know what 801 00:38:58,780 --> 00:39:00,740 Speaker 2: they're doing. That's where I'll be friends. 802 00:39:00,860 --> 00:39:05,810 Speaker 1: I see people when I talk to people who had 803 00:39:06,210 --> 00:39:09,630 Speaker 1: real impact on their addiction to drugs and all that, 804 00:39:10,700 --> 00:39:13,140 Speaker 1: It appears to be at some point in time you 805 00:39:13,160 --> 00:39:15,280 Speaker 1: think you got it in control, got it in control, 806 00:39:15,739 --> 00:39:18,540 Speaker 1: I can step away. But then it dawns on you 807 00:39:18,560 --> 00:39:22,430 Speaker 1: or the realization that it's got me. I'm an addict. 808 00:39:22,790 --> 00:39:23,770 Speaker 1: Did you get to that point? 809 00:39:25,030 --> 00:39:28,270 Speaker 2: Not an addict. It was a choice to just take 810 00:39:28,310 --> 00:39:32,969 Speaker 2: drugs and give up on everything else. And this is 811 00:39:33,070 --> 00:39:34,670 Speaker 2: one of the times where I have to give myself 812 00:39:34,710 --> 00:39:37,050 Speaker 2: a lot of grace and go, what were you thinking? 813 00:39:37,239 --> 00:39:37,950 Speaker 1: Yeah. Right? 814 00:39:38,110 --> 00:39:39,939 Speaker 2: And I was in my 40s when I did that. 815 00:39:40,540 --> 00:39:47,320 Speaker 2: And I was mentally really unwell. I had ideas about 816 00:39:47,780 --> 00:39:49,280 Speaker 2: why my life was so broken. 817 00:39:49,300 --> 00:39:49,380 Speaker 1: Yeah. 818 00:39:49,770 --> 00:39:52,049 Speaker 2: Was all outside of me and I was taking no 819 00:39:52,090 --> 00:39:55,319 Speaker 2: responsibility whatsoever. And so then I went, okay, well, I'm 820 00:39:55,360 --> 00:39:57,600 Speaker 2: really good at taking drugs and I'm really good at 821 00:39:57,620 --> 00:40:01,500 Speaker 2: selling drugs and doing all of that stuff that goes 822 00:40:01,520 --> 00:40:02,939 Speaker 2: with it. So that's what I'm going to do. 823 00:40:02,960 --> 00:40:07,760 Speaker 1: When did you– you worked as an airline steward as well. Yeah, 824 00:40:07,780 --> 00:40:09,350 Speaker 1: I did. When did that fit into? 825 00:40:09,370 --> 00:40:14,670 Speaker 2: Okay, so 10 years dancing, ended up in Darwin, had 826 00:40:15,090 --> 00:40:18,280 Speaker 2: a little personal training business, bought a unit. had settled 827 00:40:18,340 --> 00:40:22,120 Speaker 2: in up there, living a good life and loved it 828 00:40:22,180 --> 00:40:22,440 Speaker 2: up there. 829 00:40:22,480 --> 00:40:24,780 Speaker 1: Darwin's a great place. It was so cool. 830 00:40:25,020 --> 00:40:28,319 Speaker 2: The first time I went to Darwin was 1999 and 831 00:40:28,500 --> 00:40:31,640 Speaker 2: it was just wild and it just filled my little 832 00:40:31,680 --> 00:40:34,400 Speaker 2: heart with so much joy and I've still got lifelong 833 00:40:34,420 --> 00:40:37,900 Speaker 2: friends that live there. Darwin was safe for me. I 834 00:40:37,960 --> 00:40:41,469 Speaker 2: could be as crazy as I wanted to be. 835 00:40:41,489 --> 00:40:42,739 Speaker 1: No one would notice in Darwin. 836 00:40:42,950 --> 00:40:45,390 Speaker 2: No, but they'd also look after me. I knew everybody 837 00:40:45,410 --> 00:40:47,390 Speaker 2: there and the clubs and all that and the bouncers 838 00:40:47,469 --> 00:40:50,230 Speaker 2: and that hole and the Hells Angels and all of 839 00:40:50,290 --> 00:40:53,580 Speaker 2: that kind of stuff. So that town became my playground, 840 00:40:53,620 --> 00:40:58,900 Speaker 2: which was in ways it just increased my bad behaviour. 841 00:40:58,920 --> 00:40:59,000 Speaker 1: Yeah. 842 00:40:59,560 --> 00:41:02,700 Speaker 2: But I then also turned my life around and went, okay, 843 00:41:02,880 --> 00:41:04,840 Speaker 2: I'm going to stop this. I'm going to stop dancing. 844 00:41:04,860 --> 00:41:08,110 Speaker 2: I'm going to stop engaging in all of this and 845 00:41:08,120 --> 00:41:10,009 Speaker 2: I'm going to go and do something different. So I 846 00:41:10,030 --> 00:41:14,529 Speaker 2: set up a personal training business. I've always trained all 847 00:41:14,550 --> 00:41:18,110 Speaker 2: my life, so for me, That kind of worked really well. 848 00:41:19,070 --> 00:41:23,670 Speaker 2: And then bought a unit and settled in and then went, oh, 849 00:41:23,690 --> 00:41:27,690 Speaker 2: my God, I can't sustain my lifestyle with just this 850 00:41:27,730 --> 00:41:30,080 Speaker 2: business and the unit and all that kind of stuff. 851 00:41:30,100 --> 00:41:31,719 Speaker 2: So I went, I'm just going to apply for Jetstar. 852 00:41:31,940 --> 00:41:35,040 Speaker 2: So they moved up there. So I went through the 853 00:41:35,060 --> 00:41:40,250 Speaker 2: application process, was successful. I had earlier on in life 854 00:41:40,670 --> 00:41:41,590 Speaker 2: tried Qantas. 855 00:41:41,790 --> 00:41:41,969 Speaker 1: Yeah. 856 00:41:42,030 --> 00:41:43,650 Speaker 2: But I had no idea what I was doing and 857 00:41:43,670 --> 00:41:46,160 Speaker 2: it wasn't successful. So it had always been something that 858 00:41:46,200 --> 00:41:46,770 Speaker 2: I wanted to do. 859 00:41:46,780 --> 00:41:47,780 Speaker 1: In the back of your mind. Yeah. 860 00:41:48,239 --> 00:41:52,360 Speaker 2: Loved travelling. So I ended up cabin crew for 12 months, 861 00:41:52,440 --> 00:41:57,509 Speaker 2: then cabin manager. And then things in Darwin got really 862 00:41:57,950 --> 00:42:01,150 Speaker 2: toxic for me with my ex and things were just messy. 863 00:42:01,690 --> 00:42:05,820 Speaker 2: And I was being really self-destructive and it wasn't– Didn't 864 00:42:05,880 --> 00:42:07,779 Speaker 2: like it and I could see the behaviour. So I 865 00:42:07,800 --> 00:42:09,940 Speaker 2: was like, okay, what can I do? And a position 866 00:42:09,980 --> 00:42:12,359 Speaker 2: on the Gold Coast with Jets I came up. So 867 00:42:12,440 --> 00:42:13,140 Speaker 2: I transferred. 868 00:42:13,640 --> 00:42:14,100 Speaker 1: Yeah. 869 00:42:14,200 --> 00:42:16,180 Speaker 2: Applied for it, got the position as a cabin crew 870 00:42:16,200 --> 00:42:21,029 Speaker 2: manager and transferred. Moved in with my grandparents or my 871 00:42:21,070 --> 00:42:24,310 Speaker 2: grandmother at this point. Pop had passed and my uncle 872 00:42:24,969 --> 00:42:28,890 Speaker 2: and did really well for about 12 months and then 873 00:42:28,969 --> 00:42:31,190 Speaker 2: moved in with an old dancing buddy. 874 00:42:31,210 --> 00:42:31,370 Speaker 1: Yeah. 875 00:42:31,860 --> 00:42:34,280 Speaker 2: And things just spiralled. She had parties all the time, 876 00:42:34,320 --> 00:42:37,500 Speaker 2: so I was just partying all the time. 877 00:42:37,680 --> 00:42:40,680 Speaker 1: No, I shouldn't laugh. I'm just trying to process it. Okay, Darwin. 878 00:42:40,700 --> 00:42:44,000 Speaker 1: I can imagine the lifestyle up there and it is 879 00:42:44,020 --> 00:42:46,899 Speaker 1: the Wild West up there. I love it. It's just 880 00:42:46,920 --> 00:42:48,000 Speaker 1: got a good vibe. 881 00:42:48,080 --> 00:42:48,460 Speaker 2: It does. 882 00:42:48,660 --> 00:42:53,080 Speaker 1: But I can imagine getting out of control. You come down. 883 00:42:53,440 --> 00:42:56,440 Speaker 1: You're working Jetstar, so you've got a regular job. You're 884 00:42:56,460 --> 00:42:59,560 Speaker 1: trying to settle down. move back with your grandmother. Like 885 00:42:59,600 --> 00:43:02,940 Speaker 1: if anyone's going to keep you on track, it's your grandmother. 886 00:43:03,200 --> 00:43:03,739 Speaker 2: Not at all. 887 00:43:04,540 --> 00:43:08,060 Speaker 1: And then your friend turned up and, oh, I would 888 00:43:08,080 --> 00:43:10,580 Speaker 1: have never seen that going bad again. No, not at all. 889 00:43:10,960 --> 00:43:13,930 Speaker 1: With the men in your life, the bad boys, and 890 00:43:13,989 --> 00:43:16,110 Speaker 1: I ask this of a lot of people who have 891 00:43:16,130 --> 00:43:19,230 Speaker 1: been in your position and live the lifestyle and the 892 00:43:19,270 --> 00:43:21,709 Speaker 1: attraction to the bad boys. And I've had people sit here, 893 00:43:21,969 --> 00:43:25,410 Speaker 1: not this similar background to yourself, and go, it didn't 894 00:43:25,450 --> 00:43:28,130 Speaker 1: work out. And I sit here going, Oh, that's a surprise. 895 00:43:28,610 --> 00:43:31,270 Speaker 2: Well, for me, it's not a surprise looking back. And 896 00:43:31,410 --> 00:43:35,150 Speaker 2: even at the time, I didn't know what a relationship 897 00:43:35,650 --> 00:43:38,489 Speaker 2: even was meant to look like. I had no– the 898 00:43:38,630 --> 00:43:40,890 Speaker 2: only model that I had of it was my grandparents 899 00:43:41,250 --> 00:43:44,280 Speaker 2: who were together all their life and loved each other 900 00:43:44,360 --> 00:43:47,750 Speaker 2: and were friends and, you know, had– created a beautiful 901 00:43:47,790 --> 00:43:51,010 Speaker 2: life together. But that didn't just happen through magic, right? 902 00:43:51,070 --> 00:43:53,969 Speaker 2: But in my mind it did. Like I was a 903 00:43:54,050 --> 00:43:58,090 Speaker 2: fairy tale child, right? I read books about fairy tales 904 00:43:58,170 --> 00:44:01,419 Speaker 2: and about, you know, love stories and all that kind 905 00:44:01,460 --> 00:44:03,620 Speaker 2: of stuff. And somewhere inside of me that's what I 906 00:44:03,680 --> 00:44:08,300 Speaker 2: thought was just going to happen one day. So going 907 00:44:08,360 --> 00:44:13,000 Speaker 2: into relations, I couldn't communicate at all. The words that 908 00:44:13,040 --> 00:44:15,569 Speaker 2: I use today and the communication style that I have, 909 00:44:15,590 --> 00:44:17,840 Speaker 2: I had to learn that. I was always good at 910 00:44:17,880 --> 00:44:20,680 Speaker 2: communicating with people outside of, but when it came to 911 00:44:20,739 --> 00:44:24,520 Speaker 2: emotions and vulnerability, I was a closed book. So going 912 00:44:24,540 --> 00:44:26,680 Speaker 2: into a relationship with me was like I have to 913 00:44:26,760 --> 00:44:29,580 Speaker 2: guess what Natasha's thinking and feeling today because she's not 914 00:44:29,600 --> 00:44:31,480 Speaker 2: going to tell me, but then she's going to throw 915 00:44:31,520 --> 00:44:34,859 Speaker 2: a tantrum over there because I haven't guessed right. So, 916 00:44:35,030 --> 00:44:37,190 Speaker 2: you know, it wasn't even just the bad boys. It 917 00:44:37,230 --> 00:44:41,790 Speaker 2: was literally I was not capable of showing up in 918 00:44:41,870 --> 00:44:42,549 Speaker 2: a relationship. 919 00:44:42,590 --> 00:44:45,850 Speaker 1: That's an enormous assessment of what was going wrong. 920 00:44:46,860 --> 00:44:49,190 Speaker 2: And like some of the men that I chose were 921 00:44:49,210 --> 00:44:53,549 Speaker 2: really inappropriate. I don't think I kind of was more 922 00:44:53,590 --> 00:44:56,230 Speaker 2: friends with those really bad boys. They were my mates. 923 00:44:56,530 --> 00:44:56,690 Speaker 1: Yeah. 924 00:44:56,910 --> 00:44:59,730 Speaker 2: And some, you know, the way that they treated their 925 00:44:59,770 --> 00:45:03,040 Speaker 2: missus was not always appropriate. And like I said today, 926 00:45:03,060 --> 00:45:05,719 Speaker 2: I wouldn't stand by and be friends with them. But 927 00:45:05,760 --> 00:45:08,940 Speaker 2: because they were my mates back then, that's who I supported, right? 928 00:45:08,980 --> 00:45:10,759 Speaker 2: I was the one that told the missus, oh, he's 929 00:45:10,800 --> 00:45:13,940 Speaker 2: just whatever. Yeah. And I'm not proud of that at all. 930 00:45:14,000 --> 00:45:16,020 Speaker 2: I think that's really inappropriate. 931 00:45:16,040 --> 00:45:16,120 Speaker 1: Yeah. 932 00:45:16,610 --> 00:45:21,710 Speaker 2: Of allowing people to create bad behaviour just because it's 933 00:45:21,750 --> 00:45:24,170 Speaker 2: not your relationship that you're not saying, you know. 934 00:45:24,190 --> 00:45:28,230 Speaker 1: Well, I've been talking about that a lot lately with 935 00:45:28,290 --> 00:45:30,589 Speaker 1: all the domestic violence and that, and I think we're 936 00:45:30,690 --> 00:45:33,469 Speaker 1: all guilty of just sort of turning a blind eye 937 00:45:33,489 --> 00:45:36,730 Speaker 1: to it and not standing up and pulling someone and, hey, mate, 938 00:45:36,800 --> 00:45:40,990 Speaker 1: that's not on, that type of thing. And I'd like 939 00:45:41,010 --> 00:45:44,380 Speaker 1: to think society's sort of become more aware of it 940 00:45:44,420 --> 00:45:45,399 Speaker 1: that we all play a part. 941 00:45:45,719 --> 00:45:48,700 Speaker 2: I hope so because to me, and this is no excuse, 942 00:45:48,800 --> 00:45:52,640 Speaker 2: but back then I didn't even know what domestic violence meant. 943 00:45:53,080 --> 00:45:56,259 Speaker 2: I'd never heard that word before. It didn't sit in, 944 00:45:56,380 --> 00:45:59,000 Speaker 2: you know, someone just got a bit handy or, you know, 945 00:45:59,060 --> 00:46:01,239 Speaker 2: he just went, I just, you know, slapped her out 946 00:46:01,280 --> 00:46:03,040 Speaker 2: of the way or something like that. And you just go, 947 00:46:03,080 --> 00:46:07,839 Speaker 2: it's men being men, right? That horrible stuff that we 948 00:46:07,880 --> 00:46:10,739 Speaker 2: hide behind or have for so long. Now I have 949 00:46:11,160 --> 00:46:14,700 Speaker 2: words around it and even some of my relationships that 950 00:46:14,760 --> 00:46:16,469 Speaker 2: were It was full on. 951 00:46:16,510 --> 00:46:16,670 Speaker 1: Yeah. 952 00:46:16,950 --> 00:46:20,669 Speaker 2: And it was not okay. But I took responsibility for that, 953 00:46:20,790 --> 00:46:25,489 Speaker 2: full responsibility, which is not okay either because– Yeah, well, there's. 954 00:46:25,030 --> 00:46:28,930 Speaker 1: A lot of– yeah, and I'm just talking the relationships 955 00:46:28,950 --> 00:46:31,509 Speaker 1: with the females. Oh, I shouldn't have upset him. Yeah, 956 00:46:31,610 --> 00:46:34,640 Speaker 1: I know he gets cranky when he drinks. And I 957 00:46:34,700 --> 00:46:37,460 Speaker 1: cringe when I hear that, but that was almost– yeah, 958 00:46:37,640 --> 00:46:40,020 Speaker 1: that was the way people dealt with domestic violence. 959 00:46:40,040 --> 00:46:41,300 Speaker 2: Yeah, and still do. 960 00:46:41,320 --> 00:46:41,460 Speaker 1: Yeah. 961 00:46:41,760 --> 00:46:44,759 Speaker 2: Because they don't know any different. And when you've been 962 00:46:44,800 --> 00:46:47,380 Speaker 2: in it for so long, it becomes normal. 963 00:46:47,739 --> 00:46:47,919 Speaker 1: Yeah. 964 00:46:48,000 --> 00:46:51,180 Speaker 2: Right? And that thing, oh, why doesn't she just leave? 965 00:46:51,940 --> 00:46:54,219 Speaker 2: That just, that really pisses me off. 966 00:46:54,280 --> 00:46:58,160 Speaker 1: I think we're becoming more aware of the difficulties. And 967 00:46:58,219 --> 00:47:01,210 Speaker 1: I think we'll be talking about that in more detail 968 00:47:01,250 --> 00:47:04,430 Speaker 1: in part two of the advocacy work that you're doing 969 00:47:04,830 --> 00:47:08,110 Speaker 1: and women in prison. But we're going to get you 970 00:47:08,150 --> 00:47:12,390 Speaker 1: in the prison. Yeah. I'm sorry, but this is true crime. 971 00:47:12,430 --> 00:47:14,510 Speaker 1: We're going to get you in the prison. 972 00:47:14,690 --> 00:47:15,230 Speaker 2: We're almost there. 973 00:47:16,469 --> 00:47:21,590 Speaker 1: When, yeah, with the drug dealing and that, and I 974 00:47:21,650 --> 00:47:24,010 Speaker 1: spoke to the other day and you said you look 975 00:47:24,050 --> 00:47:26,379 Speaker 1: back at it and, yeah, you're not proud of that 976 00:47:26,940 --> 00:47:28,360 Speaker 1: chapter in your life. 977 00:47:29,160 --> 00:47:32,770 Speaker 2: Look, it's always been there. I didn't just. Suddenly wake 978 00:47:32,830 --> 00:47:34,230 Speaker 2: up one day and go, I'm going to date a 979 00:47:34,270 --> 00:47:38,589 Speaker 2: drug dealer, right, after getting clean and not using drugs anymore. 980 00:47:39,710 --> 00:47:43,040 Speaker 1: Sorry, that's something I picked up too. The person that 981 00:47:43,060 --> 00:47:46,080 Speaker 1: you were locked up with, with the drug dealing, you 982 00:47:46,200 --> 00:47:47,859 Speaker 1: two met in the rehab. Yeah. 983 00:47:48,080 --> 00:47:49,160 Speaker 2: Well, not in rehab, in NA. 984 00:47:49,260 --> 00:47:49,870 Speaker 1: Oh, right. Okay. 985 00:47:49,890 --> 00:47:50,989 Speaker 2: Not quite synonymous, yeah. 986 00:47:51,010 --> 00:47:51,090 Speaker 1: Yeah. 987 00:47:51,810 --> 00:47:53,969 Speaker 2: So we both weren't using it at the time, which 988 00:47:54,370 --> 00:47:56,730 Speaker 2: kind of in a way I kind of go that's 989 00:47:56,750 --> 00:48:00,130 Speaker 2: just ludicrous, all of it, but that it was a business. 990 00:48:00,150 --> 00:48:02,410 Speaker 2: It was an enterprise, right? It was about making money. 991 00:48:02,430 --> 00:48:05,759 Speaker 1: Yeah. And you would have, by that stage, seen the 992 00:48:05,800 --> 00:48:08,259 Speaker 1: damage that drugs can do and all that. Were you 993 00:48:08,320 --> 00:48:11,450 Speaker 1: oblivious to the cause and effect when you were making 994 00:48:11,489 --> 00:48:14,290 Speaker 1: money from it? No. Okay. No. 995 00:48:14,290 --> 00:48:17,470 Speaker 2: So before hand, yes, always. 996 00:48:17,590 --> 00:48:17,770 Speaker 1: Yeah. 997 00:48:17,950 --> 00:48:21,340 Speaker 2: And probably didn't care because everybody I knew was taking drugs. 998 00:48:21,440 --> 00:48:21,980 Speaker 1: Okay. Right? 999 00:48:22,040 --> 00:48:27,340 Speaker 2: So it just becomes normal. And I didn't see– chose 1000 00:48:27,400 --> 00:48:30,989 Speaker 2: not to see the disadvantage that it causes for children and, 1001 00:48:31,310 --> 00:48:32,810 Speaker 2: you know, when mums are on drugs and that kind 1002 00:48:32,830 --> 00:48:35,890 Speaker 2: of stuff. And probably there was some that was around me, 1003 00:48:35,950 --> 00:48:38,670 Speaker 2: but I never took note because it wasn't my problem. 1004 00:48:38,770 --> 00:48:40,129 Speaker 1: Yeah. Right. 1005 00:48:40,150 --> 00:48:44,460 Speaker 2: So, but by the time I was offending with my 1006 00:48:44,680 --> 00:48:48,100 Speaker 2: partner at the time, my mindset around how I viewed 1007 00:48:48,140 --> 00:48:50,820 Speaker 2: the world was changing. I was in that, in that 1008 00:48:52,000 --> 00:48:57,290 Speaker 2: change process from going from, I almost killed myself. right, 1009 00:48:57,350 --> 00:48:57,950 Speaker 2: with drugs. 1010 00:48:58,150 --> 00:48:59,089 Speaker 1: Oh, okay. 1011 00:48:59,130 --> 00:49:01,730 Speaker 2: Yeah, I was going to die from my using. Like 1012 00:49:01,810 --> 00:49:03,520 Speaker 2: I was so self-destructive around it. 1013 00:49:03,540 --> 00:49:05,219 Speaker 1: What sort of drugs were you using? 1014 00:49:05,520 --> 00:49:07,000 Speaker 2: Ice, cocaine. 1015 00:49:07,480 --> 00:49:07,980 Speaker 1: Yeah, just that. 1016 00:49:08,239 --> 00:49:10,380 Speaker 2: Anything, just not heroin. It's the only thing that I 1017 00:49:10,739 --> 00:49:13,620 Speaker 2: haven't ever tried. But at the time it was mainly 1018 00:49:13,739 --> 00:49:17,470 Speaker 2: ice though. And it went into this space where I– 1019 00:49:17,870 --> 00:49:20,739 Speaker 2: and it was not conscious at all. that I had 1020 00:49:20,800 --> 00:49:25,400 Speaker 2: given up on life and it took a moment of 1021 00:49:25,440 --> 00:49:31,319 Speaker 2: clarity for me around how dare I do this to 1022 00:49:31,380 --> 00:49:34,549 Speaker 2: my father. My father's lost two wives in his lifetime, right? 1023 00:49:34,910 --> 00:49:35,569 Speaker 1: Right. 1024 00:49:35,930 --> 00:49:39,160 Speaker 2: I cannot die for him. What am I doing here? 1025 00:49:39,180 --> 00:49:43,830 Speaker 2: I don't belong here. I have opportunity. I have life. 1026 00:49:43,930 --> 00:49:47,290 Speaker 2: I have, I have a world. Why am I doing 1027 00:49:47,310 --> 00:49:50,029 Speaker 2: this to myself and what got me here? And the 1028 00:49:50,070 --> 00:49:52,630 Speaker 2: person that I was dating at the time, um, as 1029 00:49:52,690 --> 00:49:55,630 Speaker 2: much as he was off the Richter scale and in 1030 00:49:55,730 --> 00:49:58,390 Speaker 2: his own thing, he was the one that kind of 1031 00:49:58,410 --> 00:50:00,469 Speaker 2: tapped me on the shoulder a couple of times and said, 1032 00:50:00,850 --> 00:50:01,490 Speaker 2: what are you doing? 1033 00:50:01,510 --> 00:50:03,130 Speaker 1: Yeah. Right. 1034 00:50:03,210 --> 00:50:05,259 Speaker 2: If you stay here, you're going to die. And at 1035 00:50:05,280 --> 00:50:08,020 Speaker 2: the time I didn't believe him, but he like literally 1036 00:50:08,040 --> 00:50:09,440 Speaker 2: was freaking out. He's like, oh my God, I'm going 1037 00:50:09,460 --> 00:50:10,580 Speaker 2: to wake up one day and she'll be dead. 1038 00:50:10,600 --> 00:50:10,960 Speaker 1: Yeah. 1039 00:50:12,080 --> 00:50:14,950 Speaker 2: And I just went, something has to change and I 1040 00:50:15,010 --> 00:50:18,589 Speaker 2: can't not try. Right. I've got to go and give 1041 00:50:18,640 --> 00:50:22,070 Speaker 2: life a go. Whatever has led me here, however I 1042 00:50:22,110 --> 00:50:26,669 Speaker 2: got here, I have to go and fix it. Maybe 1043 00:50:26,730 --> 00:50:29,310 Speaker 2: not for myself right now, but for my dad and 1044 00:50:29,350 --> 00:50:33,670 Speaker 2: for Corey and Morgana and my uncle, Nan's not here anymore. 1045 00:50:34,090 --> 00:50:38,589 Speaker 2: Just those four people, right, came to mind. So I did. 1046 00:50:38,650 --> 00:50:40,569 Speaker 2: I just from one day to another just stopped using drugs. 1047 00:50:40,810 --> 00:50:40,989 Speaker 1: Yeah. 1048 00:50:41,530 --> 00:50:44,520 Speaker 2: And that was it. And then in that space of 1049 00:50:47,580 --> 00:50:51,920 Speaker 2: when you've done damage like I did and with intent 1050 00:50:51,940 --> 00:50:56,050 Speaker 2: to do damage, the recovery is really slow. You may 1051 00:50:56,120 --> 00:51:00,950 Speaker 2: stop using but just even things like how you thought process. 1052 00:51:01,810 --> 00:51:01,930 Speaker 1: Yeah. 1053 00:51:02,530 --> 00:51:06,250 Speaker 2: The relationship I was in then was really unhealthy. There was, 1054 00:51:07,050 --> 00:51:09,339 Speaker 2: you know, the belief system that I had built up 1055 00:51:09,400 --> 00:51:15,140 Speaker 2: around things like domestic and family violence was so unreasonable 1056 00:51:15,520 --> 00:51:19,160 Speaker 2: and of abuse and of being controlled and all those things. 1057 00:51:19,540 --> 00:51:21,080 Speaker 2: I had no idea that was actually happening to me. 1058 00:51:21,460 --> 00:51:23,360 Speaker 2: So when I was getting clean, all these things, I 1059 00:51:23,380 --> 00:51:26,250 Speaker 2: had to process them and there was, you know, frameworks 1060 00:51:26,830 --> 00:51:29,170 Speaker 2: that you could wrap around those and suddenly I had 1061 00:51:29,250 --> 00:51:32,370 Speaker 2: words that that I could explain what I had gone 1062 00:51:32,430 --> 00:51:34,910 Speaker 2: through and it made and I just went and other 1063 00:51:34,950 --> 00:51:37,890 Speaker 2: people were healing from those things too and I went, oh, 1064 00:51:37,910 --> 00:51:40,190 Speaker 2: my God, it's not just me. So that's the space 1065 00:51:40,250 --> 00:51:41,810 Speaker 2: I was in but I was growing and I was 1066 00:51:41,850 --> 00:51:43,989 Speaker 2: becoming a different person and I was trying to show 1067 00:51:44,010 --> 00:51:45,910 Speaker 2: up each day as a different person. So then I 1068 00:51:45,930 --> 00:51:52,340 Speaker 2: met my co-offender and just loved him, just thought he 1069 00:51:52,360 --> 00:51:53,320 Speaker 2: was the bee's knees. 1070 00:51:54,280 --> 00:51:56,580 Speaker 1: And he would have been projecting that he was trying 1071 00:51:56,600 --> 00:51:58,020 Speaker 1: to get off it too. 1072 00:51:58,040 --> 00:52:00,650 Speaker 2: He was. But he had only just been out of 1073 00:52:00,680 --> 00:52:01,430 Speaker 2: prison a year. 1074 00:52:01,610 --> 00:52:01,780 Speaker 1: Right. 1075 00:52:02,390 --> 00:52:04,370 Speaker 2: He's been in and out of prison all his life. 1076 00:52:05,130 --> 00:52:06,570 Speaker 2: Very different story to mine. 1077 00:52:06,610 --> 00:52:06,710 Speaker 1: Yeah. 1078 00:52:07,010 --> 00:52:10,049 Speaker 2: But we just connected and there was real love and 1079 00:52:10,090 --> 00:52:12,009 Speaker 2: care for each other. But again, I think that was 1080 00:52:12,050 --> 00:52:14,910 Speaker 2: more trauma bonding than anything else. And for me, there 1081 00:52:14,950 --> 00:52:17,810 Speaker 2: was also a part in it. I've always been quite 1082 00:52:17,870 --> 00:52:21,569 Speaker 2: strategic in my relationships of what I've wanted from it. Yeah. 1083 00:52:22,090 --> 00:52:25,690 Speaker 2: gone into it going, I want X, Y, Z, even 1084 00:52:25,730 --> 00:52:29,710 Speaker 2: if it's unrealistic. And with him, he was safe. He 1085 00:52:29,750 --> 00:52:36,390 Speaker 2: was kind. And I was still wild. So he'd say 1086 00:52:36,469 --> 00:52:40,219 Speaker 2: something and I'd lose my nana, right? And in a 1087 00:52:40,520 --> 00:52:43,319 Speaker 2: toxic relationship, the other person's going to react to that. 1088 00:52:43,719 --> 00:52:47,009 Speaker 2: He just wouldn't. He'd just go, Tash, it's okay. So 1089 00:52:47,030 --> 00:52:47,730 Speaker 2: he gave me some space. 1090 00:52:47,750 --> 00:52:49,750 Speaker 1: He could settle you down. Yeah. 1091 00:52:49,850 --> 00:52:51,569 Speaker 2: He gave me some space to heal. So I think 1092 00:52:52,310 --> 00:52:56,239 Speaker 2: all of those things combined kept me feeling safe. So 1093 00:52:56,260 --> 00:52:59,259 Speaker 2: when he said, oh, you know, I still do X, Y, 1094 00:52:59,500 --> 00:53:01,480 Speaker 2: Z and move a bit apart here and do a 1095 00:53:01,500 --> 00:53:03,120 Speaker 2: bit of that, I kind of went, I don't care. 1096 00:53:05,020 --> 00:53:07,469 Speaker 2: And then he moved in and then he was like, oh, 1097 00:53:07,489 --> 00:53:09,410 Speaker 2: I want to make a million dollars. 1098 00:53:09,730 --> 00:53:09,890 Speaker 1: Yeah. 1099 00:53:10,270 --> 00:53:10,910 Speaker 2: I said, yeah, cool. 1100 00:53:11,010 --> 00:53:11,290 Speaker 1: All right. 1101 00:53:11,610 --> 00:53:15,340 Speaker 2: But we're doing it my way. Because you've been to prison. 1102 00:53:15,360 --> 00:53:17,940 Speaker 2: I never have. Do it my way. It all went 1103 00:53:17,960 --> 00:53:20,120 Speaker 2: pear-shaped within a week or two. Like he was off 1104 00:53:20,140 --> 00:53:23,960 Speaker 2: doing his own way and I had the shits. But 1105 00:53:23,980 --> 00:53:26,960 Speaker 2: then it kind of was in my home anyway. And 1106 00:53:26,980 --> 00:53:30,100 Speaker 2: I just went, all right, you do whatever you're doing. 1107 00:53:30,120 --> 00:53:33,399 Speaker 2: I don't care. And then it just became so unmanageable 1108 00:53:33,460 --> 00:53:35,320 Speaker 2: that I was just like, okay, cool. I'll just manage 1109 00:53:35,360 --> 00:53:35,680 Speaker 2: the money. 1110 00:53:36,500 --> 00:53:36,739 Speaker 1: Okay. 1111 00:53:36,980 --> 00:53:39,279 Speaker 2: So I was just counting cash and I'm like, should 1112 00:53:39,300 --> 00:53:40,640 Speaker 2: have rung the door and gone, can I get in 1113 00:53:40,680 --> 00:53:43,200 Speaker 2: trouble for this? Might have been a good, like, just 1114 00:53:43,239 --> 00:53:47,160 Speaker 2: in case anybody's listening and thinking of, you know, always check. 1115 00:53:47,300 --> 00:53:51,770 Speaker 1: Again, a cautionary tale. Like, in your mind, I can, well, 1116 00:53:52,430 --> 00:53:55,489 Speaker 1: he's a drug dealer. Yeah, I'm not. I just love him. 1117 00:53:55,590 --> 00:53:59,520 Speaker 1: I'm living with him, but I'm not involved in it. Yeah. Yeah. 1118 00:53:59,880 --> 00:54:02,339 Speaker 2: And I'm advising him on some things that he's either 1119 00:54:02,360 --> 00:54:03,620 Speaker 2: listening or not, right? 1120 00:54:03,660 --> 00:54:03,859 Speaker 1: Yeah. 1121 00:54:04,060 --> 00:54:05,580 Speaker 2: That might keep him safe. 1122 00:54:05,820 --> 00:54:08,580 Speaker 1: I would imagine that the scale of what you're caught, 1123 00:54:08,620 --> 00:54:13,189 Speaker 1: there would have been telephone intercepts and different things. So 1124 00:54:13,670 --> 00:54:16,620 Speaker 1: you would have been jammed up. In terms of your 1125 00:54:16,700 --> 00:54:21,520 Speaker 1: knowledge or involvement, you couldn't go away from having some 1126 00:54:21,580 --> 00:54:24,420 Speaker 1: active involvement in it and some benefits from it. 1127 00:54:24,719 --> 00:54:25,230 Speaker 2: Absolutely. 1128 00:54:25,350 --> 00:54:29,870 Speaker 1: But I've had a look in what's reported publicly about 1129 00:54:29,910 --> 00:54:31,110 Speaker 1: the offence. What year was it in? 1130 00:54:31,290 --> 00:54:34,570 Speaker 2: We were arrested in 2021. Okay. 1131 00:54:35,410 --> 00:54:41,089 Speaker 1: This is the judge's comments on sentencing. She stayed with 1132 00:54:41,110 --> 00:54:43,330 Speaker 1: him and she was aware of his business, helps him 1133 00:54:43,370 --> 00:54:45,890 Speaker 1: with deliveries, and then she's caught with full knowledge of 1134 00:54:45,930 --> 00:54:49,410 Speaker 1: the funds which are funding her lifestyle. So that was 1135 00:54:49,630 --> 00:54:53,609 Speaker 1: the judge's comment. But it was also reported, while she 1136 00:54:53,650 --> 00:54:56,730 Speaker 1: played some role in the management of the operation, it 1137 00:54:56,770 --> 00:55:01,239 Speaker 1: appeared it was always subordinate to her partner. So the 1138 00:55:01,280 --> 00:55:05,359 Speaker 1: way you've described it is pretty much how the court 1139 00:55:05,380 --> 00:55:06,200 Speaker 1: saw it. Yes. 1140 00:55:06,760 --> 00:55:10,320 Speaker 2: And I think... Turning up, being honest. 1141 00:55:10,500 --> 00:55:11,480 Speaker 1: Yep. 1142 00:55:13,280 --> 00:55:14,430 Speaker 2: Not giving a statement. 1143 00:55:14,969 --> 00:55:15,410 Speaker 1: Yep. 1144 00:55:15,469 --> 00:55:19,150 Speaker 2: To police. You just don't talk to police when you're arrested. 1145 00:55:19,170 --> 00:55:20,710 Speaker 1: Oh, you're buying a hard ass. 1146 00:55:20,930 --> 00:55:24,310 Speaker 2: Yeah, absolutely. And they appreciated that in the end. I've 1147 00:55:24,430 --> 00:55:26,790 Speaker 2: got to say, you know, I can't speak for anybody else, 1148 00:55:26,910 --> 00:55:30,660 Speaker 2: but my experience with the detectives that I dealt with was, 1149 00:55:31,660 --> 00:55:33,500 Speaker 2: you know, there was actually a bit of banter even 1150 00:55:33,540 --> 00:55:36,140 Speaker 2: around our conversation because they were just like, oh, my God, 1151 00:55:36,780 --> 00:55:40,710 Speaker 2: we normally– because they put a lot of work into this, right, 1152 00:55:41,550 --> 00:55:44,370 Speaker 2: that for four months we were under investigation. And there 1153 00:55:44,390 --> 00:55:47,910 Speaker 2: was a joint task force because it was a separate 1154 00:55:47,930 --> 00:55:51,739 Speaker 2: investigation of one of the people that my ex was 1155 00:55:51,780 --> 00:55:53,839 Speaker 2: selling to, or we were selling to, I should say, 1156 00:55:53,860 --> 00:55:57,299 Speaker 2: because I'm involved in it, and he was already on investigation. 1157 00:55:57,360 --> 00:56:02,940 Speaker 2: Then they found us through that. Put taps on everything, phone, cars, trackers. 1158 00:56:03,870 --> 00:56:05,610 Speaker 2: Four months is a long time, right? 1159 00:56:05,690 --> 00:56:06,530 Speaker 1: Gather a lot of evidence. 1160 00:56:06,550 --> 00:56:12,180 Speaker 2: A lot of evidence. And when they did arrest us, obviously, 1161 00:56:12,880 --> 00:56:15,600 Speaker 2: I worked the whole time that I had a job. 1162 00:56:16,000 --> 00:56:19,980 Speaker 2: Like for me, that wasn't that main, great, I'm going 1163 00:56:20,000 --> 00:56:21,070 Speaker 2: to get a bit of money, I'm going to be 1164 00:56:21,110 --> 00:56:23,950 Speaker 2: able to retire nicely, we can buy a house, you know, 1165 00:56:23,989 --> 00:56:25,850 Speaker 2: towards the end before we got arrested. It was very 1166 00:56:25,910 --> 00:56:28,990 Speaker 2: clear that we were not going to buy anything together. um, 1167 00:56:29,380 --> 00:56:31,520 Speaker 2: me and my ex, but that's, you know, we would 1168 00:56:31,560 --> 00:56:34,040 Speaker 2: have gone our separate ways whether we were arrested or not. 1169 00:56:34,760 --> 00:56:37,180 Speaker 2: And when we were arrested, like, I think they were 1170 00:56:37,219 --> 00:56:40,920 Speaker 2: hoping that I would give them more. Yeah, absolutely. 1171 00:56:41,100 --> 00:56:41,380 Speaker 1: Right. 1172 00:56:41,480 --> 00:56:43,919 Speaker 2: And, and I understand that that's the game that needs 1173 00:56:43,960 --> 00:56:47,260 Speaker 2: to be played because ultimately what they were looking for 1174 00:56:47,340 --> 00:56:50,300 Speaker 2: was the next connections, right? Not just. 1175 00:56:50,480 --> 00:56:51,899 Speaker 1: Yeah. You're reading it, right? 1176 00:56:51,940 --> 00:56:52,140 Speaker 2: Yeah. 1177 00:56:52,560 --> 00:56:52,739 Speaker 1: Yeah. 1178 00:56:52,820 --> 00:56:54,580 Speaker 2: I know a bit, a little bit about the process, 1179 00:56:54,700 --> 00:56:57,040 Speaker 2: even though it's only one been through at one time, 1180 00:56:57,480 --> 00:57:00,730 Speaker 2: but I was just like, nah, No statement given. Here's 1181 00:57:00,750 --> 00:57:04,730 Speaker 2: my lawyer's name. Please ring them. And can you ring 1182 00:57:04,770 --> 00:57:05,109 Speaker 2: my mum? 1183 00:57:05,930 --> 00:57:06,069 Speaker 1: Okay. 1184 00:57:06,090 --> 00:57:06,950 Speaker 2: Or my Corrie. 1185 00:57:07,190 --> 00:57:12,890 Speaker 1: Yeah. Shame and regret. Because the lifestyle that you live, 1186 00:57:13,210 --> 00:57:17,410 Speaker 1: and I'm surmising here, but okay, you're reckless, you're wild. 1187 00:57:17,660 --> 00:57:20,940 Speaker 1: I wasn't hurting anyone. I'm doing this. Then when you 1188 00:57:21,780 --> 00:57:24,640 Speaker 1: come to that point, I've been arrested. Yeah, it was 1189 00:57:24,700 --> 00:57:27,300 Speaker 1: in the media. You've got to phone your mum, caught 1190 00:57:27,340 --> 00:57:27,860 Speaker 1: up in the drugs. 1191 00:57:29,230 --> 00:57:33,530 Speaker 2: No shame. I don't have shame around it. And regret, 1192 00:57:33,570 --> 00:57:36,280 Speaker 2: I don't do regret. I look at things and learn 1193 00:57:36,320 --> 00:57:38,580 Speaker 2: from them and then go, I don't want to do 1194 00:57:38,620 --> 00:57:42,600 Speaker 2: that again. But I don't have that whole, oh my God, 1195 00:57:42,640 --> 00:57:45,960 Speaker 2: I wish I didn't do things differently. I chose that 1196 00:57:46,000 --> 00:57:48,780 Speaker 2: at the time. I knew I was breaking the law. 1197 00:57:49,220 --> 00:57:51,010 Speaker 2: Like I said, I didn't just wake up one day 1198 00:57:51,050 --> 00:57:53,610 Speaker 2: and date one drug dealer and it wasn't my first 1199 00:57:53,670 --> 00:57:57,240 Speaker 2: time involved in stuff like that before I just didn't care. 1200 00:57:57,640 --> 00:58:00,480 Speaker 2: This time around, a couple of times I said, this 1201 00:58:00,500 --> 00:58:04,040 Speaker 2: needs to wrap up. You've got your meal. Wrap it up. 1202 00:58:04,600 --> 00:58:07,470 Speaker 2: Fuck it off. I don't want this in my life anymore. 1203 00:58:07,850 --> 00:58:11,490 Speaker 2: It's wrong. It doesn't sit well with who I'm becoming. 1204 00:58:11,850 --> 00:58:11,950 Speaker 1: Yeah. 1205 00:58:12,130 --> 00:58:13,990 Speaker 2: And who I want to be as a person. We're 1206 00:58:14,010 --> 00:58:15,750 Speaker 2: still going to take the money from it, right? Don't 1207 00:58:15,770 --> 00:58:16,310 Speaker 2: get me wrong. 1208 00:58:16,790 --> 00:58:19,380 Speaker 1: No, I'm hearing you and I appreciate your honesty with it. 1209 00:58:19,390 --> 00:58:22,040 Speaker 2: But there was a morality around it that I had 1210 00:58:22,200 --> 00:58:23,220 Speaker 2: never felt before. 1211 00:58:23,240 --> 00:58:23,320 Speaker 1: Yeah. 1212 00:58:24,000 --> 00:58:28,160 Speaker 2: And then when I had to face Corrie and Morgana, 1213 00:58:28,860 --> 00:58:31,290 Speaker 2: who Morgana picked me up from the police station when 1214 00:58:31,310 --> 00:58:31,950 Speaker 2: I got bail. 1215 00:58:32,130 --> 00:58:32,270 Speaker 1: Yeah. 1216 00:58:32,820 --> 00:58:35,420 Speaker 2: And she was so angry with me, right? And in 1217 00:58:35,460 --> 00:58:38,520 Speaker 2: the past when people that I cared for and that 1218 00:58:38,580 --> 00:58:42,150 Speaker 2: cared for me were angry with me or made me 1219 00:58:42,170 --> 00:58:45,610 Speaker 2: feel uncomfortable, I'd run. This time I didn't want to 1220 00:58:45,650 --> 00:58:49,530 Speaker 2: run and I wanted to fix it, but there was 1221 00:58:49,770 --> 00:58:53,880 Speaker 2: only one way to help Morgana and Corey trust me 1222 00:58:53,980 --> 00:58:57,020 Speaker 2: again was to just show up each day and do 1223 00:58:57,040 --> 00:59:00,540 Speaker 2: the right thing, whatever that was. Because these people were 1224 00:59:01,080 --> 00:59:03,450 Speaker 2: not my blood. They'd shown up for me time and 1225 00:59:03,470 --> 00:59:08,110 Speaker 2: time again and have never– it's never been conditional because 1226 00:59:08,130 --> 00:59:11,030 Speaker 2: the world that I chose to live in everything was conditional. 1227 00:59:12,150 --> 00:59:15,550 Speaker 2: But these, my, my dad, it was my family, my uncle, 1228 00:59:16,610 --> 00:59:20,260 Speaker 2: nothing's ever been conditional, but this time it came with 1229 00:59:20,320 --> 00:59:23,340 Speaker 2: a condition that this is the last time. that they're 1230 00:59:23,360 --> 00:59:26,620 Speaker 2: going to open the doors for me if I continue. 1231 00:59:26,240 --> 00:59:27,560 Speaker 1: To fuck up. Okay, well, that's a bit of a 1232 00:59:27,580 --> 00:59:28,200 Speaker 1: wake-up call. 1233 00:59:28,340 --> 00:59:30,470 Speaker 2: Absolutely. And it was then a choice that I had 1234 00:59:30,510 --> 00:59:33,070 Speaker 2: to make because I also was sitting in a space 1235 00:59:33,410 --> 00:59:38,090 Speaker 2: of I can continue to live this life, which I 1236 00:59:38,130 --> 00:59:41,430 Speaker 2: call dark, or I can choose to completely step into 1237 00:59:41,450 --> 00:59:45,580 Speaker 2: the light. And what am I so afraid of in 1238 00:59:45,620 --> 00:59:48,060 Speaker 2: the light? Why do I keep going back into this 1239 00:59:48,180 --> 00:59:50,560 Speaker 2: shady place where I used to hide? 1240 00:59:50,580 --> 00:59:50,660 Speaker 1: Yeah. 1241 00:59:52,410 --> 00:59:55,340 Speaker 2: I can't hide anymore because I don't belong there. It 1242 00:59:55,380 --> 00:59:57,580 Speaker 2: doesn't sit with my values. It isn't who I want 1243 00:59:57,600 --> 01:00:01,439 Speaker 2: to be. I had no idea who exactly I wanted 1244 01:00:01,480 --> 01:00:04,780 Speaker 2: to be yet, but that came with time. And I 1245 01:00:04,910 --> 01:00:10,150 Speaker 2: chose to, from that day forward, to always be honest 1246 01:00:10,950 --> 01:00:13,850 Speaker 2: with these people, to never leave them in the dark again, right, 1247 01:00:14,670 --> 01:00:17,010 Speaker 2: because I hadn't told them about it. For me, that 1248 01:00:17,050 --> 01:00:19,120 Speaker 2: was safety for them, right? They don't need to know. 1249 01:00:19,140 --> 01:00:20,160 Speaker 2: And that. 1250 01:00:22,270 --> 01:00:25,550 Speaker 2: To create that change, I also had to really vet 1251 01:00:25,630 --> 01:00:28,110 Speaker 2: the people that I allowed to step into my life. 1252 01:00:28,350 --> 01:00:28,550 Speaker 1: Yeah. 1253 01:00:29,410 --> 01:00:32,620 Speaker 2: And when you do that, right, life becomes really kind 1254 01:00:32,660 --> 01:00:35,240 Speaker 2: of lonely, especially if you don't have the network that 1255 01:00:35,320 --> 01:00:37,300 Speaker 2: I had that are already in the line and that 1256 01:00:37,360 --> 01:00:40,180 Speaker 2: have this, if you don't have that, that space, that's 1257 01:00:40,240 --> 01:00:42,470 Speaker 2: what makes it so hard to create that change. 1258 01:00:43,110 --> 01:00:43,190 Speaker 1: Yeah. 1259 01:00:43,210 --> 01:00:46,170 Speaker 2: And to choose differently. But I did, I chose differently. 1260 01:00:46,450 --> 01:00:51,720 Speaker 2: And I'm telling you, the whole process of Arrest... being 1261 01:00:51,780 --> 01:00:55,140 Speaker 2: let go on bail, the conditions, trying to figure out 1262 01:00:55,160 --> 01:00:58,040 Speaker 2: what's going to happen. When you get the brief that 1263 01:00:58,180 --> 01:01:00,080 Speaker 2: I was like that much of but it was that 1264 01:01:00,140 --> 01:01:04,060 Speaker 2: big because it was both the other two offenders, trying 1265 01:01:04,080 --> 01:01:07,640 Speaker 2: to read through that, finding all this other stuff that 1266 01:01:07,700 --> 01:01:11,000 Speaker 2: I kind of half knew about but didn't really. And 1267 01:01:11,400 --> 01:01:15,260 Speaker 2: so that world that I had banked on with him, 1268 01:01:15,660 --> 01:01:19,890 Speaker 2: that crumbling as well, it's, you know, there's no, I'm not, 1269 01:01:21,580 --> 01:01:25,120 Speaker 2: saying that it was unbearable, but it was pretty shitty. 1270 01:01:25,140 --> 01:01:28,500 Speaker 2: It was a shitty place to be, but the only 1271 01:01:28,560 --> 01:01:31,120 Speaker 2: person that put me in that place was myself. 1272 01:01:31,280 --> 01:01:35,720 Speaker 1: Well, the fact that you can acknowledge that is so 1273 01:01:35,780 --> 01:01:38,500 Speaker 1: helpful to move forward. Like if you're going, oh, but 1274 01:01:38,580 --> 01:01:42,400 Speaker 1: I was just in the wrong relationship, you had choices. 1275 01:01:43,020 --> 01:01:46,070 Speaker 2: Absolutely. They were all my choices. Every single one of 1276 01:01:46,120 --> 01:01:49,920 Speaker 2: those things None of the offence, look, I later on 1277 01:01:49,960 --> 01:01:53,380 Speaker 2: spoke to my ex when we were first no contact. 1278 01:01:53,440 --> 01:01:53,520 Speaker 1: Yeah. 1279 01:01:53,920 --> 01:01:56,240 Speaker 2: Once I went to prison, I actually wrote him a 1280 01:01:56,280 --> 01:01:58,660 Speaker 2: letter and he was like, I thought you were going 1281 01:01:58,680 --> 01:02:00,220 Speaker 2: to blame me. I said, why would I blame you? 1282 01:02:00,690 --> 01:02:02,950 Speaker 2: You made your choices. I made mine. 1283 01:02:02,970 --> 01:02:03,110 Speaker 1: Yeah. 1284 01:02:03,710 --> 01:02:05,810 Speaker 2: You didn't make me do anything, right? 1285 01:02:05,830 --> 01:02:06,170 Speaker 1: Yeah. 1286 01:02:06,990 --> 01:02:09,390 Speaker 2: That's not how it works when you're committing a crime. 1287 01:02:09,630 --> 01:02:11,610 Speaker 1: That could have been the easy path out for you 1288 01:02:11,670 --> 01:02:14,350 Speaker 1: because I'm sure the police offered you, well, you tell 1289 01:02:14,390 --> 01:02:16,470 Speaker 1: us what's going on and there'll be no charges or 1290 01:02:16,570 --> 01:02:18,670 Speaker 1: you'll be getting a letter of comfort and you won't 1291 01:02:18,690 --> 01:02:20,590 Speaker 1: be serving any time. So you would have had. 1292 01:02:20,890 --> 01:02:23,310 Speaker 2: They didn't offer that as such, but I knew that 1293 01:02:23,330 --> 01:02:25,510 Speaker 2: that was on the table, right? They didn't have to 1294 01:02:25,550 --> 01:02:28,169 Speaker 2: tell me, I'm quite intelligent. And I kind of knew 1295 01:02:28,230 --> 01:02:29,890 Speaker 2: that that was on the table and he knew that 1296 01:02:29,930 --> 01:02:31,660 Speaker 2: too at the time. That would have been the most 1297 01:02:31,700 --> 01:02:36,170 Speaker 2: horrendous time for him because He was shady, right? So 1298 01:02:36,210 --> 01:02:39,570 Speaker 2: he didn't, when you're shady, you think everybody else is too. 1299 01:02:39,890 --> 01:02:43,590 Speaker 2: But I would never, I made my choices. And when 1300 01:02:43,820 --> 01:02:47,060 Speaker 2: something happens and the consequences hit you, you've got to 1301 01:02:47,200 --> 01:02:47,640 Speaker 2: own them. 1302 01:02:47,860 --> 01:02:50,660 Speaker 1: Well, I think, and you've made some good choices, some 1303 01:02:50,680 --> 01:02:52,820 Speaker 1: bad choices, but I think that's probably the best choice 1304 01:02:53,080 --> 01:02:57,000 Speaker 1: you made in your life. Because if you were finding excuses, well, 1305 01:02:57,470 --> 01:02:59,250 Speaker 1: I just got caught up in it. I wasn't really 1306 01:02:59,270 --> 01:03:00,970 Speaker 1: the blame for it. You would have fallen back into 1307 01:03:00,990 --> 01:03:01,430 Speaker 1: that life. 1308 01:03:01,450 --> 01:03:03,380 Speaker 2: Absolutely. I would have gone back there. 1309 01:03:03,480 --> 01:03:08,780 Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah. Absolutely. But actually taking responsibility and accepting the 1310 01:03:08,820 --> 01:03:12,360 Speaker 1: consequences of the responsibility is a big thing. 1311 01:03:12,760 --> 01:03:13,860 Speaker 2: It's the only way forward. 1312 01:03:14,510 --> 01:03:17,850 Speaker 1: All right. Well, we're going to take a break. At 1313 01:03:17,910 --> 01:03:21,490 Speaker 1: least we've got you arrested. It took me an hour 1314 01:03:21,510 --> 01:03:25,170 Speaker 1: to get you arrested. I'm sorry. No, but your backstory 1315 01:03:25,210 --> 01:03:29,630 Speaker 1: was fascinating. I think that's, you know, on a long-form 1316 01:03:29,670 --> 01:03:32,850 Speaker 1: chat podcast like this, it's interesting to put in the 1317 01:03:32,890 --> 01:03:36,320 Speaker 1: context how people got here. It's a crime podcast. 1318 01:03:36,340 --> 01:03:36,740 Speaker 2: Yeah. 1319 01:03:36,760 --> 01:03:39,060 Speaker 1: But if we just start, I was dealing drugs, I 1320 01:03:39,080 --> 01:03:43,620 Speaker 1: got arrested. The backstory is the interesting thing. What we 1321 01:03:43,680 --> 01:03:46,760 Speaker 1: are going to talk about in part two is your 1322 01:03:46,800 --> 01:03:50,080 Speaker 1: experience in prison. And, yeah, we highlighted that at the 1323 01:03:50,140 --> 01:03:54,110 Speaker 1: start of this episode where you're realised how privileged you were, 1324 01:03:54,870 --> 01:03:57,690 Speaker 1: what you'd learnt about yourself in prison, what you learnt 1325 01:03:57,730 --> 01:04:01,990 Speaker 1: about others and how it's sort of given you life 1326 01:04:02,050 --> 01:04:05,250 Speaker 1: purpose after leaving prison on what you're doing, which, yeah, 1327 01:04:05,470 --> 01:04:09,570 Speaker 1: we love stories of redemption here. Cool. So let's talk 1328 01:04:09,610 --> 01:04:11,950 Speaker 1: about that and all the issues that we discussed the 1329 01:04:11,970 --> 01:04:16,720 Speaker 1: other day where we could perhaps improve corrective services or, yeah, 1330 01:04:16,740 --> 01:04:19,140 Speaker 1: the prison system. Love to. Make it a better society. 1331 01:04:19,400 --> 01:04:20,820 Speaker 2: Yes, and a safer one too. 1332 01:04:21,220 --> 01:04:23,500 Speaker 1: Yeah, definitely. Less crime, less victims. 1333 01:04:24,100 --> 01:04:24,600 Speaker 2: Absolutely. 1334 01:04:24,620 --> 01:04:27,150 Speaker 1: Sounds great. Back soon. Okay. Cheers.