Speaker 1: The Flavor Podcast Network.
Speaker 2: Island Roots Auckland Ways.
Speaker 3: This one's for the Brown brothers and sisters who want
Speaker 3: to be one with themselves, their culture, their identity, their roots.
Speaker 4: This is Island Roots Auckland Ways.
Speaker 5: Tyler for lover and welcome back to Island Roots Auckland Ways.
Speaker 2: Hi girl, Hey girl, how are you?
Speaker 1: We are very well.
Speaker 5: You've got fee with love from South Crew on today.
Speaker 2: Seven baby, let's.
Speaker 1: Giving six seven. How is the two six seven?
Speaker 2: The two six seven is so good?
Speaker 3: I went for a run yesterday and it was like
Speaker 3: the perfect I mean it's not really spring yet, but
Speaker 3: it was like the perfect spring day. It was seventeen degrees,
Speaker 3: it was blue skies, and then the sunset was also incredible,
Speaker 3: like it was just like the tippid weather.
Speaker 2: It was just like perfect. It was actually a perfect day.
Speaker 1: Okay, we're nearly out of the cult.
Speaker 2: Yeah, quite literally, quite literally, quite literally.
Speaker 5: We are going into a really heartwarming salon was Doren Simle.
Speaker 1: Yeah, and he like goes in various places.
Speaker 2: It does go on various places, but it's just one.
Speaker 1: Of those chats that was so seamless, and Darren is
Speaker 1: an amazing person.
Speaker 3: Yeah, Doren so much fun to be around, has the
Speaker 3: most beautiful energy you'll hear. He's one of my best friends,
Speaker 3: and we've been through a lot together, including receiving our
Speaker 3: cell revealing our cell. Oh yes, so it was cool
Speaker 3: to chat about that, and it was also just cool
Speaker 3: to have him in the studio because I feel like
Speaker 3: more people need to hear about his incredible work as
Speaker 3: a supple maker, as a just a community weaver. I
Speaker 3: guess you could say, yeah, he's pretty awesome.
Speaker 1: Yes he is, and you'll hear that awesomeness right now.
Speaker 3: Hell everyone, welcome back to another episode of Island Roots
Speaker 3: Walking Ways. I am so excited for this episode, also
Speaker 3: very nervous because this is one of my best friends.
Speaker 3: I would count Doren as like my older brother, adopted
Speaker 3: older brother.
Speaker 2: He's very very special to me.
Speaker 3: But he's more than just my friend. He's also you
Speaker 3: will make a creative proud someone. Please welcome to the stage.
Speaker 3: Welcome to Welcome to the stage. I guess sorry about.
Speaker 1: How are you today? I'm good.
Speaker 4: I'm good. It's been a cruizy morning, yeah, sunny, like
Speaker 4: well wristed. Love washed my hair for this.
Speaker 1: You know we're taking it seriously.
Speaker 4: It's just like, what, I'm really lazy when it comes
Speaker 4: to washing my hair, and I'm just like I don't
Speaker 4: want to have gang online, and you.
Speaker 5: Know, it's straight into it. Every episode we share what
Speaker 5: we love about home. So whatever homeers to you, dorin
Speaker 5: with a that's where you currently live, where you were born,
Speaker 5: where you feel most grounded, it ever feels like home?
Speaker 5: What is home and what do you love about it?
Speaker 5: We'll start off first what I love about home? Is?
Speaker 5: What do I love about home? Okay, so there's a
Speaker 5: park right next to my house?
Speaker 2: Yes? Is it next the.
Speaker 1: Yes?
Speaker 4: I know the part we're not saying the.
Speaker 1: Park. The park is such a good park. I think
Speaker 1: I've known that park all of my life because I
Speaker 1: was raised in a house not too far away from
Speaker 1: where I currently live, and so we would often go
Speaker 1: there for gungai. So like we never it was.
Speaker 5: Easter Christmas time, after everyone had done their hours and
Speaker 5: cleaned up, after the food was served, and we would
Speaker 5: walk over to the park.
Speaker 1: We will play basketball.
Speaker 5: I mean, just the weekend gone, we were at two
Speaker 5: seven five Kai, which is like a local eatery kind
Speaker 5: of soul food.
Speaker 1: And it's just been a constant in my life. So
Speaker 1: That's what I love about home this week.
Speaker 2: Beautiful the part.
Speaker 1: We will have to go to the park, Yeah, one
Speaker 1: time please.
Speaker 4: I love that it's quite cool at that park because
Speaker 4: like over summer they do they try to like engagement
Speaker 4: with it and so like every sing a random day
Speaker 4: where they have like Bounty Castle, I know the.
Speaker 1: Hmm.
Speaker 2: Okay, what I love about Home this week. I've recently
Speaker 2: gained a little.
Speaker 3: Bit of an affliction, I guess you could say for
Speaker 3: raw fish.
Speaker 2: I'm a big fan of at the moment.
Speaker 3: I've never liked raw fish before, or maybe I've just
Speaker 3: had bad raw fish, or maybe I've just never really
Speaker 3: adventured into the world of raw fish.
Speaker 2: But there's just something about raw fish. It's just doing
Speaker 2: it for me at the moment. I just want it
Speaker 2: all the time.
Speaker 1: And I don't.
Speaker 2: I'm hooked on raw fish.
Speaker 3: I don't really know where to get it. It just
Speaker 3: is always there at like family things, where it just
Speaker 3: will like turn up just when I need it. When
Speaker 3: I go somewhere, I'm like these raw fish. Thank fuck
Speaker 3: for raw fish. I love real fish.
Speaker 1: Was there raw fish at your graduation celebration?
Speaker 3: Yeah? But I didn't don't think I would have eaten it.
Speaker 3: I don't think that was the start of the era.
Speaker 4: Not too long ago.
Speaker 2: It's really recent.
Speaker 3: It's very very very recent, like around the time we
Speaker 3: got our to tell.
Speaker 2: It might have been.
Speaker 4: Because there was just good food generally because I organizing that.
Speaker 2: Talk about that.
Speaker 3: I'm so excited to talk about to tell. But what
Speaker 3: do you look about home this week?
Speaker 4: Don't I love so? I love in manga, love it,
Speaker 4: love it, but like something not MANGI like adjacent to
Speaker 4: manga Carns. Have you been to Khans restaurant? So, like
Speaker 4: there are two carns. So we have Can's Buffet. I'm
Speaker 4: not talking about that one, like that's that's for other people,
Speaker 4: but for me, it's the Car's restaurant.
Speaker 1: Mixed to the forty five.
Speaker 4: Yeah, yeah, that's exactly the one go through the back insurance,
Speaker 4: you know, and this beautiful tiled restaurant and they just
Speaker 4: have real beautiful food. They do, like this massive bowl
Speaker 4: of hammers. I don't honestly get that on its own,
Speaker 4: with like sex bread and then that's my dinner.
Speaker 5: Yeah, the rice meat them yeah, so good. It's good
Speaker 5: value for money. Don't even get me started on carns.
Speaker 4: Now, So we tried getting into it. Oh, like my
Speaker 4: partner and I really got into it like a year
Speaker 4: maybe year and a half ago, okay, And we tried
Speaker 4: to go there during Ramadan. Not a good idea. They
Speaker 4: were booked, like everyone had made bookings to be there.
Speaker 1: Wow.
Speaker 4: Yeah, it's just it's the one. It's it's my favorite.
Speaker 1: It's Middle Eastern food, beautiful.
Speaker 4: And they've got the spout store area at the back
Speaker 4: that like has like she shirt yes, yeah yeah, not
Speaker 4: my thing but other people's thing.
Speaker 1: You know. Absolutely, the music is pumping.
Speaker 5: Yeah, the food is so on, like like wow, I
Speaker 5: think when you see Carns that touched my heart because
Speaker 5: it's just so good.
Speaker 1: We should go there, okay.
Speaker 4: I well love and like it's right by my favorite camp,
Speaker 4: which is because like you know, it's not the Flashes
Speaker 4: came out, but it always has everything in stock.
Speaker 3: It's literally everything in stock. It's the best came out.
Speaker 3: It truly is the best cap Yeah.
Speaker 1: I love that.
Speaker 5: For us, Corns is good because it fills you up,
Speaker 5: Like you could honestly get a bucket of chicken and
Speaker 5: chips and you wouldn't feel as satisfied as getting cans
Speaker 5: for the same price.
Speaker 4: But I think it's rice, Like, it's just it's.
Speaker 2: Just a car.
Speaker 3: So we're going to the one that's not the buffet.
Speaker 3: We're going to the real restaurant.
Speaker 4: I haven't gone to it myself. I'm not a buffet
Speaker 4: guy because I'm just fat and we need control. Yeah,
Speaker 4: so I need something to be like, this is enough done?
Speaker 3: There is your plate. Oh I love it. That's so fun. Okay,
Speaker 3: let's go to car shut.
Speaker 5: Out three minutes award winning podcast to your eatery.
Speaker 4: So if you would like to sponsor, remember my name
Speaker 4: is dark like because I'm.
Speaker 2: Actually okay, sorry, I'm going going to change it now.
Speaker 3: I don't like it when I get recognized by like
Speaker 3: cafe workers, Like it's different. There's a cafe by my
Speaker 3: work with it every day, Hi, Lissa, Like are you usual?
Speaker 3: Like I don't mind that because I do go there
Speaker 3: every day. But if I go somewhere maybe like once
Speaker 3: a week, like sometimes across the cafe, I like that
Speaker 3: they don't go, oh what can I like? You know,
Speaker 3: they don't they don't make an effort to be too familiar.
Speaker 3: Like I don't think I like being recognized. You like
Speaker 3: the ymity of it all, especially because I come in
Speaker 3: all the way to Central Auckland. I don't want them going,
Speaker 3: oh Son, Like you know, I like when people don't
Speaker 3: recognize me.
Speaker 4: I used to work as a barrista.
Speaker 2: And would you do the thing when you were like
Speaker 2: you usual?
Speaker 4: No, no, no, no, like I was quite happy to pretend
Speaker 4: that I knew no one perfect and so. But there
Speaker 4: would be people that really wanted to be regulars.
Speaker 6: Like I wouldn't know about that either.
Speaker 1: I don't know. I'm just doing this for the money.
Speaker 4: I don't want to be here Auntie's Cafe. She gets
Speaker 4: me so hard, get away with it way too much.
Speaker 1: But who are you? That's so funny? No sponsorship.
Speaker 2: Let's get into this chat.
Speaker 3: For those of you who don't know, Dorina is like
Speaker 3: a PREMI Yeah, incredible supple maker, incredible simon creative, like
Speaker 3: literally revitalizing in this country. Like you probably know his work,
Speaker 3: but you don't really know him. It's kind of that
Speaker 3: kind of situation. So Dren, can you tell us how
Speaker 3: you found yourself in making Seapple, what prompted you to start,
Speaker 3: and what that journey looks like, because when you've explained
Speaker 3: it to me before, I'm like, it's a bit too simple,
Speaker 3: like I feel like you just made it happen. And
Speaker 3: I'm like, what, like what, I don't know he tells
Speaker 3: me about that.
Speaker 4: Yeah, yeah, of course I really stumbled into it. So,
Speaker 4: I mean maybe five or six years ago now, I
Speaker 4: was really wanted to do something to be a better Simon.
Speaker 1: I was just trying to find a way.
Speaker 4: To be able to connect to my culture and the
Speaker 4: actively participate in it. Having to learn the language because
Speaker 4: I'm real, I'm problematically dyslexic and like abow, yeah, and
Speaker 4: like it's just far into my till like it's just
Speaker 4: it's really and I think it's a lot more there's
Speaker 4: a lot more emotion charged in learning language, and you know,
Speaker 4: it's really public learning. Get to learning anything else. And
Speaker 4: so I made a point of trying to find something
Speaker 4: to be able to engage with my culture, to be
Speaker 4: able to preserve practice. And a friend suggested to me
Speaker 4: to be able to learn making tappa and so I
Speaker 4: mean the word that I use is because it's the
Speaker 4: salmon manner of making up and taper isn't a real word.
Speaker 4: Let's have some education is kind of a broad word
Speaker 4: that's like accepted within European places to mean barck cloth
Speaker 4: and talk about individual islands. Man, I'm way off topic already.
Speaker 4: When we talk about individual islands. We each have our
Speaker 4: own manner or way of creating topper cloth. So I
Speaker 4: mean within some more we talk about and it refers
Speaker 4: to how we make it, the process we do, and
Speaker 4: then the finished product and refers to two pieces of
Speaker 4: a clock together and painted like actually marked. We have
Speaker 4: new wehear they have they have tongua, not to hwai.
Speaker 4: They've got kappa. You know, there's all these different words
Speaker 4: shared through the Pacific. So anyway, I a friend suggested
Speaker 4: for me to be able to learn to make I
Speaker 4: ran into on Facebook Cora Allen. She's as she had
Speaker 4: her first exhibition, probably wasn't her first exhibition. First exhibition
Speaker 4: I found and I was a bots and I showed
Speaker 4: up to it and I was like, hey, do you
Speaker 4: want to teach me how? That'd be nice? I mean,
Speaker 4: she kind of gave me a few breadcrumbs. She was
Speaker 4: just like, oh, well, yeah, you should make your own
Speaker 4: tools first. It's like okay, And so I went down
Speaker 4: to Bunnings and I got me some wood and I
Speaker 4: made some Darren is a handyman.
Speaker 3: Let me just tell you, Darren will put anything together.
Speaker 3: So I love the fact that you made your own tools,
Speaker 3: but they're.
Speaker 4: Real crusty eye Like I'm ambitious that I think I
Speaker 4: can make anything very good. Ambition takes over, so we
Speaker 4: I these tools, go in contact with core Ellen again,
Speaker 4: and then she sent me to some more to go
Speaker 4: meet up with someone. Uh, Lissa, I tell you who
Speaker 4: taught me how to mix you up all the simone way?
Speaker 4: And it's just been something I've been doing since.
Speaker 2: Geez it's too easy, right, I feel.
Speaker 5: Like you just did what you were told and.
Speaker 3: The thing yeah, I think also like the fact that
Speaker 3: you did what you're told, Like we've talked about this before,
Speaker 3: like core Ellen was like, oh my gosh, like you
Speaker 3: actually did it.
Speaker 2: Like I feel like some people.
Speaker 3: I could go to Mas and be like, hey, you're
Speaker 3: an excellent journalist and what should I do?
Speaker 2: And Mas is like, go right, five pieces, and I'd.
Speaker 3: Be like, ah, I can't really, it's like making my
Speaker 3: own tools. Oh, I haven't really ever picked up a drill.
Speaker 3: It's probably not going to do that.
Speaker 4: Like these tools were rusty and they still are. Like
Speaker 4: I'm still trying to make my own tools and everyone
Speaker 4: else more beautiful. But like, I mean, there are some
Speaker 4: people who refer to making new tools and they're like, yeah,
Speaker 4: I use some shark's teeth and I used do you
Speaker 4: know like these rare hard woods and all the stuff,
Speaker 4: And I was like, well, I have a circular saw,
Speaker 4: and I can buy some planks of wood for seven
Speaker 4: dollars from Bunny and I can try sand and so
Speaker 4: like they're crusty, but they do their job and you know, yeah,
Speaker 4: so you just you use what you've got, and that's
Speaker 4: really what it was.
Speaker 3: Yeah.
Speaker 4: Yeah, I had someone holding my hand along the way
Speaker 4: and I tried my best.
Speaker 1: Yeah, that's really cool.
Speaker 3: One thing I also love about Dorian's like creative process
Speaker 3: is the painting aspect and the kind of It's something
Speaker 3: that I'm always trying to like teach kids like creating
Speaker 3: art or even just drawing a picture.
Speaker 2: It never it doesn't have to be perfect.
Speaker 3: This is something that Darn actually taught me that I'm
Speaker 3: trying to pass on to the next generation. Yes, it
Speaker 3: doesn't need to be perfect. There's no such thing as perfect,
Speaker 3: and the imperfections and a piece of art are actually
Speaker 3: what makes it like really interesting and like really cool
Speaker 3: and so like if something's a little bit off, like
Speaker 3: maybe you had spaced out your pattern a certain way
Speaker 3: and then you've got a bit over zealous and it's
Speaker 3: not quite measured up appropriately.
Speaker 2: Who cares?
Speaker 3: Like it actually kind of adds to the character characters,
Speaker 3: to the character of the piece, And like, I don't know,
Speaker 3: I just think that's such a cool way to look
Speaker 3: at creating art, Like it doesn't have to be perfect.
Speaker 2: But would you say you're like an artist? Would you
Speaker 2: claim that title?
Speaker 4: No, because I think with being an artist you have
Speaker 4: to it comes with I don't know, like people go
Speaker 4: to art school, yeah, like you know, like they study,
Speaker 4: like they got even for four years to become artists,
Speaker 4: and there's I feel like there's an expectation to do
Speaker 4: things perfectly when you're an artist. I would call myself
Speaker 4: a maker nice like the map yeah, and you know yeah,
Speaker 4: But I mean like in saying that, like I'm applying
Speaker 4: for like art grants and I'm applying to do like
Speaker 4: an art exhibition and stuff like that. But here and
Speaker 4: be like, no, that's not me. I'm a make I'm different.
Speaker 3: But I feel like the two have quite different connotations,
Speaker 3: right man, Would you agree like your makere is just
Speaker 3: like constantly not constantly like producing work whers an artists,
Speaker 3: like that's your job almost.
Speaker 1: Yeah.
Speaker 4: I also think that as you have room to make mistakes. Yeah,
Speaker 4: and there's a lot more grace and forgiveness out there
Speaker 4: with within your practice. Where is that?
Speaker 1: I don't know?
Speaker 4: And they're like, this is this is just me what
Speaker 4: I perceived, like maybe the artists who have the same
Speaker 4: sort of attitude towards the word being an artist, but
Speaker 4: for me, it's it's scary.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I want to ask about that trips Samoa.
Speaker 5: Yeah, how was it learning from knowledge holders in the
Speaker 5: mother lit?
Speaker 4: Yeah? So, I mean they didn't know I was coming, Okay, right, the.
Speaker 2: Thing is just to rock up and hope they're home,
Speaker 2: isn't that?
Speaker 1: That was it?
Speaker 4: That's exactly what I did. So, I mean I booked
Speaker 4: a flight. It was on special four hundred dollars return, okay,
Speaker 4: and then you know went from you caught the theory
Speaker 4: over so.
Speaker 1: This was that Yeah.
Speaker 4: Yeah, yeah, I didn't even have like I don't have
Speaker 4: family there, and so they're like, caught a taxi to
Speaker 4: the lady's house and then just rocked up. I was like, Hi,
Speaker 4: I'm Dorian, I want to learn how to do this,
Speaker 4: and then we sat down and started making straight away.
Speaker 4: There was no hesitation.
Speaker 3: Crazy like when you say it was it was too easy.
Speaker 4: I just fell into my lep.
Speaker 3: But I think also like our knowledge holders know who
Speaker 3: they want to pass the knowledge on. I since that
Speaker 3: maybe for saw something in you and was like.
Speaker 4: Yeah, you're right.
Speaker 2: That's the one period.
Speaker 4: I went back to see if another time and I
Speaker 4: took a friend with me, and halfway through the process,
Speaker 4: she was like, she's not a top maker, she's.
Speaker 1: Weak society exercising discernments.
Speaker 2: Okay, there you go.
Speaker 1: See.
Speaker 5: Oh my gosh, I think that a very generous word.
Speaker 3: What is it like revitalizing? What does Corey Allen say
Speaker 3: about you? Darn but you wouldn't say about yourself.
Speaker 2: You're like something.
Speaker 4: I wouldn't even say we're revitalizing because I think I
Speaker 4: think at a few years ago, we would have been
Speaker 4: at a phase where was a really endangered practice. It
Speaker 4: was it was sleeping. But I mean last year alone
Speaker 4: with the workshops I taught, around about five hundred people
Speaker 4: attended the workshops. See and from these workshops onwards more people.
Speaker 4: I would say, it's revitalized, it's alive. It's living now
Speaker 4: because from there there are so many people who have
Speaker 4: their own independent practice. They're making their own tools, making
Speaker 4: their own pieces, they're introducing it to their families, and
Speaker 4: it's become such a normal way of life now that
Speaker 4: I think we're beyond revitalizing. You know, it's not dead,
Speaker 4: it's not sleeping, and it's taking on a new journey.
Speaker 2: That's so special.
Speaker 3: But also I feel like more than that, darn like you,
Speaker 3: I mean even just me, obviously I'm your fucking biggest fan,
Speaker 3: but like you have helped me tap into a creative
Speaker 3: side of myself. I didn't really know that I had
Speaker 3: or because obviously big nerd big in the books, reading
Speaker 3: writing one hundred percent. But you've helped me really understand
Speaker 3: like my writing is a really creative process and just
Speaker 3: helped me become a more creative person in general, and
Speaker 3: like not thinking so like black and white and linear
Speaker 3: about things.
Speaker 2: And I think that's really special.
Speaker 3: Like the se Upper workshops do more than just help
Speaker 3: with culture, Like you're helping with that self confidence.
Speaker 4: Well, I think the thing for me is with the
Speaker 4: So the workshops originally happened for the MVP. The frame
Speaker 4: of pacifica community. So we're we were really focused on
Speaker 4: bringing the queer Pacific community together to be able to
Speaker 4: create tangible culture.
Speaker 1: Nice.
Speaker 4: Ohangible culture, No, that's the wrong tangible community.
Speaker 2: So that weird and material culture.
Speaker 4: Yeah, and material culture and so like, while the goal
Speaker 4: behind it was to be able to help people learn
Speaker 4: how to mix you up, but it's also just connecting
Speaker 4: people together. And yeah, I love it. I love it,
Speaker 4: love it, And like I feel like you're like crediting
Speaker 4: me for a lot more than I'm actually deserving of.
Speaker 4: I was just there, like I just got some funding
Speaker 4: and had a workshop and made some friends. How nice
Speaker 4: is that?
Speaker 1: I think Darren, when applying for funding next time, should
Speaker 1: actually use excerpt. Yeah you were saying, yeah, yeah, because
Speaker 1: this is what people believe.
Speaker 5: I've seen videos of you and your workshops, and there's
Speaker 5: like such a care and kindness that you applied to
Speaker 5: teaching people.
Speaker 2: Yeah, it doesn't really hold that caring kindness outside.
Speaker 1: Kidding.
Speaker 2: Darn is the most caring kind person I know for real.
Speaker 4: I'm just interested, Like my partner's going to listen to
Speaker 4: this and be like, man, you're gonna have the biggest here.
Speaker 3: Shut up, Okay, darn's pardon. John is like my big brother.
Speaker 3: We also look a little bit stilus. We do look
Speaker 3: like we could pass some see Yeah, yeah yeah, so Hidrader.
Speaker 4: Hijohn, Oh my love, how are you.
Speaker 3: Like?
Speaker 4: All these nice things that have been said about me?
Speaker 4: And then you should repeat them?
Speaker 1: Remember this?
Speaker 2: So tell us what I getting card?
Speaker 1: How did How was the process?
Speaker 2: This is something you wanted to for like six years
Speaker 2: or something?
Speaker 3: Right?
Speaker 4: Yeah, yeah, like it's been I was talking to my
Speaker 4: niece Kazaiah, like from a time she's like fifteen sixteen,
Speaker 4: We've been having this conversation about me wanting to receive
Speaker 4: my model fear and who wanted to receive her model
Speaker 4: And a couple of years ago we started talking to
Speaker 4: Lawrence No, not a couple of years ago, maybe a
Speaker 4: year ago. We started talking to Lawrence Ching, who has
Speaker 4: been so wonderful and again held our hand through the
Speaker 4: whole process. So we haven't really had to like fight
Speaker 4: for space or fight to know what's going on because
Speaker 4: he's been really a help he can and guiding us
Speaker 4: through that.
Speaker 2: Yeah.
Speaker 3: One thing I loved about Alcoholonel Lawrence was that he
Speaker 3: was like, if we had any questions, he was really
Speaker 3: receptive and it never made us feel.
Speaker 2: Dumb, dumb or inferior.
Speaker 3: Yeah, for asking like even small questions about like our salmonga.
Speaker 3: He was really open to answering questions.
Speaker 2: Yeah. I really appreciated that about that journey.
Speaker 4: Yeah, and so that was like that was a really
Speaker 4: wonderful part. But like to be honest, like the journey
Speaker 4: is like a wonderful and horrible experience. And I talk
Speaker 4: about this in a way as if I'm probably the
Speaker 4: only one that's ever received my mamal fear. I don't
Speaker 4: want that, so I come across.
Speaker 2: It doesn't come across.
Speaker 4: Yeah. So, like leading up to revealing my Mamo fear,
Speaker 4: I spoke to my uncle Greg Simmul, who received his
Speaker 4: Mama fear about thirty years ago, and he was the
Speaker 4: last person in our family to have received revealed it.
Speaker 4: But like I'm a real bots and so when I
Speaker 4: was messaging him, I was like, you know, how was it?
Speaker 4: How was the experience that he said, you know, it's
Speaker 4: the hardest experience of my life. I thought that it
Speaker 4: was going to take two weeks and it ended up
Speaker 4: taking three months to be able to happen. And that
Speaker 4: was like the most immense pain in his life. And
Speaker 4: you know, while it changed the trajectory of his career
Speaker 4: and his life choices, he would never recommend anyone to
Speaker 4: do it.
Speaker 1: Oh and then me being a.
Speaker 4: Box I was like, I've had tattoo before. I know different.
Speaker 4: I'm better, he's weak.
Speaker 1: It was a different time, that was thirty years ago.
Speaker 4: I'm different, and so when we've come to like, so
Speaker 4: I went into this process quite naive, quite dumb, and
Speaker 4: so I took a book with me. I lay down
Speaker 4: on the fulla like really received the first tap. After
Speaker 4: the first tap, that book closed, Like that book closed
Speaker 4: and never opened again. Like I was in so much pain.
Speaker 4: I was like, even though I didn't tell my uncle
Speaker 4: Heal's week, I need to apologize to it everyone in
Speaker 4: my head who I've ever felt superior to. But I
Speaker 4: was humbled so quickly.
Speaker 5: Pretty after the first tap, girl closed. Why did I
Speaker 5: even bring this book?
Speaker 1: It away from me?
Speaker 4: And like I was just screaming in my head the
Speaker 4: whole time.
Speaker 1: I was like.
Speaker 3: When I so I came on the first day to
Speaker 3: watch dor and go under the l and when I came,
Speaker 3: he was like moaning and I just like.
Speaker 2: Walked in and was like, oh, cool, So I'm never
Speaker 2: coming back again. I'm not coming back inside have to
Speaker 2: receive mine.
Speaker 4: But the first day is the worst day.
Speaker 1: It was.
Speaker 4: It was horrible because I had no idea what was
Speaker 4: going to go through. It was two hours and like
Speaker 4: just like I've got a big back, come fat, Like
Speaker 4: we've already talked about how much I love can so
Speaker 4: much canvas to cover, and I just kept going and
Speaker 4: there was so much to black out and it's like
Speaker 4: and I remember saying alerts. I was like, hey, can
Speaker 4: we take a break, and He's like.
Speaker 2: No, literally the okay.
Speaker 3: So for the first two minutes of mine, oh, in
Speaker 3: cases wasn't clear.
Speaker 2: Darrin was like my sore So after you no, no, no, no,
Speaker 2: he was before me.
Speaker 1: Were the boys first first, and then it was because.
Speaker 4: I on someone independents day, I was everyone to know
Speaker 4: into the numbers that day when.
Speaker 2: I started receiving mine, I got ten minutes and I
Speaker 2: was like, hey, can you ask for a break break?
Speaker 3: And then I just had to pretend like I was
Speaker 3: having a coffee fit or something, just so they would
Speaker 3: take that off just like five seconds, just because I
Speaker 3: needed to breathe and just readjust to the sensation and
Speaker 3: then I could go, but something crazy.
Speaker 2: Happened with I received.
Speaker 3: I fainted Darren's kitchen, but thank fuck Darren was a
Speaker 3: nurse because he managed to revive.
Speaker 2: Me, but he also slipped next to me on.
Speaker 3: My fella because he was I think everyone was worried
Speaker 3: that I was gonna, I don't know, die or something, so.
Speaker 1: No one, you're going to die. She wasn't going to happen.
Speaker 4: Yeah, you didn't.
Speaker 3: Know because our stringers were saying to my mom, like,
Speaker 3: you know, people can die from receiving the model, and
Speaker 3: my mom was like, literally, shut the fuck.
Speaker 4: Up, like those two boys in shout out to those
Speaker 4: guys like that they're super wonderful, but also at the
Speaker 4: same time, can you shut up?
Speaker 3: No one asks what else about that experience, like because
Speaker 3: don't ask me if I wanted to join the group
Speaker 3: at Picture's Hot Chicken, and I was like, I don't know,
Speaker 3: I'm not sure if this is for me. And then
Speaker 3: I went home and talked to my dad and I
Speaker 3: was like, this is it, Like who were the people
Speaker 3: that you were talking to and your journey that like really,
Speaker 3: I don't I don't want to say like validated you
Speaker 3: receiving it? But I guess validated or like confirmed that yeah,
Speaker 3: you're on the right path.
Speaker 4: So I mean, like start off just having the conversations
Speaker 4: with my niece because that was really important because yeah,
Speaker 4: she's amazing. We want to speak each other sort and
Speaker 4: to be able to go on this journey together. I
Speaker 4: also had conversations with my dad. My dad, my family
Speaker 4: go to the church US Christ Leveday Saints, so the
Speaker 4: super Mormon, and like you know, they love it and
Speaker 4: and something with the Mormon culture is that we don't
Speaker 4: receive the toll. And so my dad actually told me
Speaker 4: when I when I told him what my plans were,
Speaker 4: that he had actually wanted to get his mother fear
Speaker 4: when he was younger, but didn't because my mom said,
Speaker 4: if you get that done, oh divorceshoe maybe in like
Speaker 4: a lighthearted and so you know, it was just never
Speaker 4: an option for my dad to get done. And so
Speaker 4: you know, he gave me his blessing, and you know,
Speaker 4: it was just nice to be able to fulfill them
Speaker 4: dream for my dad as well, and also like it
Speaker 4: was my dream, it was a shared dream and a
Speaker 4: shared ambition. I also spoke to like a wider community
Speaker 4: as well, So like I was you know how same
Speaker 4: before that I didn't want to learn how speak salmon,
Speaker 4: and so I learned. Yeah. I then like the thing
Speaker 4: with it is that everything that I do within our
Speaker 4: culture just kind of like points me back. You need
Speaker 4: to learn some more now, and so, you know, I
Speaker 4: spoke to my teachers that I had when I went
Speaker 4: to my t more course, and you know, they were
Speaker 4: really encouraging. And it's just been I think, I feel
Speaker 4: really lucky that I've had nothing but love from the
Speaker 4: community and how good people have been very supportive.
Speaker 2: Yeah, the Instagram shares girl then were going up.
Speaker 4: Yeah, so it's just been it's just been really nice
Speaker 4: and so and also like having conversations with a partner
Speaker 4: about it and yeah, my wider family. Yeah yeah, but
Speaker 4: I was pretty set on getting it done, no matter what,
Speaker 4: no matter what, no matter what.
Speaker 3: So one thing I love about Dorian This is gonna
Speaker 3: sound quite backhanded, I think, but I really do mean it.
Speaker 3: You just don't really care what anyone thinks. Well, like
Speaker 3: you do, but you're just like really you're like when
Speaker 3: you have your mind made up on something, you're just
Speaker 3: so ambitious and you're set that it doesn't really matter
Speaker 3: what anyone could say. And that's something that I really
Speaker 3: I don't know. I aspire to have their energy.
Speaker 4: I like to think that I portray that. It's so
Speaker 4: not true.
Speaker 2: It's kind of like not really true.
Speaker 4: But you know, it also did matter what people had
Speaker 4: to say, because you know, when we started talking to
Speaker 4: Lawrence and about receiving a model fear and he was like, well,
Speaker 4: you need to make sure you got your family's blessing.
Speaker 2: I was like, okay, chosen family, do you know.
Speaker 4: So that was a really important part of the process
Speaker 4: that we had family support. But you know, my dad
Speaker 4: was on board so much and that's okay. But my
Speaker 4: dad was like, yes.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I feel like appear until blessing is pretty kind
Speaker 3: of like it's like tenfold, what cousin.
Speaker 1: How do you feel now to be a sonight e meat? Now?
Speaker 1: Then that's complete?
Speaker 4: I love it so like a real big thing for
Speaker 4: me has always been that I want to be recognized
Speaker 4: as s'mone. No one really looked at me with us
Speaker 4: like ambiguously brown. Again. You know, these like such girls
Speaker 4: and you know, you don't know looking at these and
Speaker 4: you're like, man, Thomas, I'm right there, and so like,
Speaker 4: you know, represent my hat, but I've always wanted to
Speaker 4: be recognized as Simon and so it was actually the
Speaker 4: day after I received my mother for year, I took
Speaker 4: my car and to get its warrant and there was
Speaker 4: an old guy like across the road, and it was
Speaker 4: like he just really encouraged me, and like he lifted
Speaker 4: up his ship and you know, it's just such encouragement.
Speaker 4: So like it's just so amazing to be receiving that
Speaker 4: love from the community and to be recognized as Simon
Speaker 4: for the first time.
Speaker 3: Let's get into this s rapid fire, CAMU. It's a
Speaker 3: very chill one today, though we may get a little.
Speaker 2: Bit deep, get deep with the storm.
Speaker 3: As you know, we're both I should say kids in
Speaker 3: our twenties, but we're not really kids. Were like young
Speaker 3: adults and you are not in your twenties.
Speaker 2: Do you want to say how old you are?
Speaker 4: Yeah? Yeah, I'm I know I'm proud of my age
Speaker 4: or not. When I turned thirty, men, life got good.
Speaker 4: Oh I love said when I turned thirty, And I
Speaker 4: don't think it's because of my age, but like life,
Speaker 4: ship was just so much better.
Speaker 3: Yeah, okay, can't wait, Yeah, can't I for that? And
Speaker 3: I also feel like you give just like such great advice,
Speaker 3: and you've also lived like ten thousand lives, which I
Speaker 3: love hearing about. I feel like every time we hang out,
Speaker 3: even though we're like besties, the new.
Speaker 2: Dar in law, like everywhere, I love it.
Speaker 3: So what we want to do for our game today
Speaker 3: is maybe like your top three tips for people in
Speaker 3: their twenties, maybe like what you wish you had known,
Speaker 3: or like what you would have done differently, or just
Speaker 3: like advice in general.
Speaker 4: I think like one thing is that friendships don't need
Speaker 4: to be forever. Relationships change and so like because like
Speaker 4: let's talk about someone language, let me get guys. So
Speaker 4: like when we talk about like the like when we
Speaker 4: say you know my something, like when we say like yeah,
Speaker 4: so say we say little like my family. We say
Speaker 4: it with because it means like they're my family forever.
Speaker 4: I'm attaching them. But when we talk about friends, like
Speaker 4: we say like like you know, we say like my friend,
Speaker 4: and it's in a way that's not They're possessive, but
Speaker 4: not in a forever way. So I would say little
Speaker 4: funny it this is my house because I belong to
Speaker 4: it forever. Yeah, it's my car. I might sell it
Speaker 4: in the future, and I think that's just really important
Speaker 4: to know that some relationships don't last fear and that's okay,
Speaker 4: yeah yeah, move on.
Speaker 2: Oh that felt very pointed.
Speaker 1: I like it here, that's a good learning number two.
Speaker 4: Oh, I think be okay with humble pie, Like I
Speaker 4: have to eat it so often, like just like if
Speaker 4: you get humbled, just take it, move on.
Speaker 1: I'm still trying to learn that.
Speaker 4: Time like regularly by John O. I love you like
Speaker 4: to like point out flaws, but I.
Speaker 3: Think being humbled is like so important. It helps us
Speaker 3: be more self aware. And also I feel like helps
Speaker 3: you discern between when someone's genuinely looking out for you
Speaker 3: and like wanting to humble you in like a gentle
Speaker 3: way versus when someone's just being an asshole and what's
Speaker 3: to we mean to you.
Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, yeah, there's a difference.
Speaker 4: And I think my last bit of advice would be
Speaker 4: for everyone, but especially Molin passifica community. If you have
Speaker 4: ambitions to study, go study, do it straight away, and
Speaker 4: then within that apply for a scholarship. Don't apply for
Speaker 4: everything everyone, So you're going to play within health spaces.
Speaker 4: Look on the India, look on the ministry, of health,
Speaker 4: look at your university, look at NGO's everyone. One of like,
Speaker 4: one of my biggest co puppet is that it's my
Speaker 4: dream for other people to pay for my dreams. Yes,
Speaker 4: so like, and it's also my dream for other people
Speaker 4: to pay for your dreams. So that if you have
Speaker 4: the ability to come out of UNI debt free and
Speaker 4: just have a B plus average, absolutely go for it.
Speaker 4: Yeah yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I was on a scholarship. Made a world of difference.
Speaker 1: Don't have a student loan.
Speaker 4: Lucky I didn't get a scholarship the whole time. Oh yeah,
Speaker 4: but like I like through my whole master's side, scholarships
Speaker 4: that paid through for that, but not my bachelors. But
Speaker 4: I mean even if I mean I should be giving
Speaker 4: out financial advice. But if it's if that's what's holding
Speaker 4: you back from studying, yeah, don't let it.
Speaker 1: No, yes, absolutely, And.
Speaker 4: Study doesn't need to be unique. It can be a trade,
Speaker 4: it can be like yeah, it can be.
Speaker 1: Whatever could be learning.
Speaker 4: Yeah, get that higher education. It's better for us as
Speaker 4: a community.
Speaker 1: Ground of applause. It's a turn. Yeah.
Speaker 2: That is so good.
Speaker 3: That brings us to the end of our Selena John
Speaker 3: for joining us thanks for having me.
Speaker 2: Where can we find you on social media?
Speaker 4: So it's a really dumb useing it, No it's not.
Speaker 1: It's great use the name is so.
Speaker 2: What is your name?
Speaker 4: Is his Instagram? Yeah, I'm all just searching Dorin Simo
Speaker 4: because I'm the only one. So there's no one else
Speaker 4: coming out with this name.
Speaker 2: Number one, the only one, the only one here.
Speaker 1: We'll talk it a little bit of everything, Darren, Thank
Speaker 1: you so much for coming on. And that is Alan
Speaker 1: roots Aukland. Ways, thank you again to darn Simo and
Speaker 1: we will be back next week.
Speaker 2: We shall be back next week.
Speaker 1: Yeah, that's it. That's it, boy,