I was joined by Monica Maxino at Flatbush Bagel in Brooklyn, NY to talk about the conversation around mental health, the ins and outs of the rugby world, and the Kill Bill soundtrack.
Prior to our on-the-record conversation, Monica and I walked around looking for a coffee shop that would let us sit inside to do the interview after the one we originally planned to meet at was closed for the owner to have lunch. We eventually made our way to Flatbush Bagel, where I had eaten breakfast just an hour earlier.
Frankie Becerra: Thank you again for your participation as well as the little journey we just had.
Monica Maxino: To every single cafe possible that doesn’t have seating. Thank you for having me.
FB: So what’s one way you’ve changed since high school?
MM: Oh, a lot. Just hands down a lot. I’ve been open about my mental health so throughout college and figuring out that I have that diagnosis of bipolar disorder that really changed me in the sense that I had to grow up and take care of my health where we’re not kids anymore. But still took away from how I felt, it kind of like made me older. And then what made me feel really old was that when I dislocated my knee when I was 23, like fully dislocated my knee, like almost amputated. And that was something that also I had to work hard on and really sucked. The timing was also, that’s when I, I started my masters in public health program the week before I got hurt.
FB: Oh, wow.
MM: Yeah so I had to switch to online, which was fine because this was way before Zoom and the Covid times so you know, had it first. But it was just something that I had to focus on, like I had to focus on my physical health and I also had to focus on my career. So with all that it just kinda made me more resilient and stronger, but it also kinda really sucked.
FB: Yeah of course.
MM: Not that I feel bad about it like I accept it, but it’s just like damn I have the worst luck ever. But I’m fine now like I can walk and run fine, I’m trying to get into rugby again. Also, I play rugby, that’s how I got hurt.
FB: That’s great and I really admire how open you’ve been about the mental health stuff because I do think it’s one of those things that we are kind of at a point in time where people are much more comfortable talking about it, but even ten years ago to be having conversations about it, it was still feeling kind of taboo. And I know myself, towards the end of high school, I was dealing with a lot of mental health stuff where I was just not really knowing how to handle it, not really knowing what to do about it, and having these moments where I just found myself kind of shutting down. But since then I’ve been medicated, I’m in therapy-
MM: Yeah! Hell yeah.
FB: And it’s good to know that there’s this whole kind of new world opened up around it. And it’s nice to see it, I mean we throw this term around a lot, but normalized and just being one of those things where like it’s as important as your physical health if not more. You’re stuck with that brain, you gotta take care of it, babes.
MM: Yeah exactly. I think also with being open about it like exactly that- I actually started showing symptoms (of bipolar disorder) back in high school, but I never realized it. So I showed a lot of- so between mania and depression, mania is the one I don’t notice. Because that’s the one where it’s like “Let me do everything, I feel great.” So in high school, I remember I used to not be able to sleep and just run like ten miles on the treadmill. Not all the time, but a lot of times. But yeah it’s just like we don’t talk about it. I’m a first-generation Filipino American, and even though my parents are nurses, mental health is just not talked about, but I think that’s just in general. But I think now like you said we’re becoming more open to mental health and realizing how much more it helps us. And I think it’s really good that we’re starting to make taking medication normalized because it’s like “Oh we don’t have homemade chemicals, we have to buy store-bought”.
FB: Right, exactly.
MM: It just makes you feel better. You have to take your meds and then you’ll find that it actually makes you feel better over time.
FB: So what’s something that you’ve accomplished in the last ten years that you’re proud of?
MM: So much!
FB: Yeah?
MM: Same thing as what I said before like the hard things that I went through have changed me. But there few things that I’m really proud of. I mean, with bipolar disorder it’s like a hit or miss, some days I’m like “Yeah!” and some days I’m like “No!”. But with my knee, that’s something that I’m still working on but it was still like “Oh yay I can move around again”. That one’s also a hit or miss being like yay or nay. But with my career in public health, it really took off. I started at the medical reserve corps back in high school. It’s a public health program for volunteers, and it was run by the Putnam County Department of Health, and I’ve been with them and worked with them for the past ten years, so I chose to get my master’s because of them. It sucks but in public health, if you don’t have your master’s you’re not taken seriously, and I needed that background anyway, so it worked out. And it also was hard with a dislocated knee, but I really love my diploma. I post pictures about it so many times, I have that SpongeBob licking the picture that’s my diploma.
FB: I love it.
MM: But then I also quit my job actually. I used to work in a medical office but I quit it at the beginning of Covid because I was just so sick of not being in my field. And dealing with Boomers on the phone because they don’t know how to use their phones. But I ended up doing the Covid-19 vaccine clinics. So I did that for six months, and I was pretty much at every single clinic, so that added up to like 174 hours. And I kept a sheet where I tallied all of my doses and I’m pretty sure it was like 2000.
FB: That’s crazy.
MM: Yeah, but as a public health servant you have to be willing to put yourself in front of the danger. So I was willingly exposed to 10-20 thousand people for six months giving all these doses just because I wanted to.
FB: You actually gave my sister her vaccine, so thank you for that.
MM: Wait, did I?
FB: Yep
MM: Probably did, there were so many people. There were a few people who were wearing their masks and I was like “Oh is that them? Maybe it’s a common name”
FB: So on the flip side of that, what’s something you hope to accomplish in the next ten years?
MM: I just accepted a job with the American Red Cross in their disaster resilience corps. So what I’ve been doing with public health overall, when I worked with Putnam County Department of Health, is emergency management. So that means I’m gonna be handling things like Hurricane Katrina. Hurricane Katrina was like my favorite topic in grad school to talk about because so many things went wrong. It’s just an emergency manager’s dream, which is so funny because like I love disasters. Like I love them. I’m ready to go. I’m that person who in fight or flight I’m “fight”. But it’s just also something that comes really naturally to me. Along with emergency management, I also do health education, that’s what my degree is in. And emergency management falls under that, but my title is a health educator. But I’m not a freakin health teacher in high school. I’m the one who makes programs for the community to be like “Hey, can you just be healthy? Like can you just listen?”. But I like the emergency management side much better than health education. Health education comes easy too, but my main one is gonna be emergency management. That’s why with the American Red Cross, that’s like the highest public health dream you can get. Because with the Red Cross it’s all over, it’s not tied (down) by the government. So I originally wanted to be in the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. And I don’t know why but they just never got back to me. My resume is impressive, I have 13 FEMA certificates, and I have so much experience and they’re like “No”. Whatever. But with the American Red Cross, my position is kind of like a stepping stone, and the whole program is what I’m really excited for. Because I know for this little stepping stone I’m gonna like, kick ass. I’m just so like, ok I also use the mania from Bipolar to work like insane hours. I know I’m talking kind of long about this. But that’s just my “career career”. That’s not even my rugby career. I’ll talk about that in a second. But for public health, it’s just like something I’m really passionate about, and like with the Red Cross I can go higher. I can go to international, and even if I wanted to the World Health Organization. It’s a great- It’s something that I’m not completely realizing that is so insane that I’m a part of now. Because it’s like that’s the Red Cross! Like I think people take it for granted and it’s just like no it’s so good. And I like that it’s a nonprofit and I trust and respect the program, you know this entity. So it’s just like… I should be grateful. I know we’re only like 28 and it’s like finally I’m getting this position. But, ok let’s go into rugby.
FB: Get into it. Go.
MM: So with rugby I’ve been playing since college, junior year. Then I started playing with Danbury’s rugby team. I started in 2015 and up until now actually, I’ve been with them. It’s changed since I got hurt. I was a player, then I got hurt, so I was injured then I came back a little bit, and now I’m a ref. What I really wanted in rugby was to be like athletic and everything. I don’t know, to get far, to have a good career. So it was nice though to know that my rugby career ended on a good note. Because I got hurt- so (in rugby) there are 15s and 7s. 15s is what you see on TV, like a big scrum, everyone’s just dogpiling on each other, while 7s is more technical. Seven people on each team on the field, full field, seven-minute halves, and it’s just, I love it. It’s a lot of running, people don’t like running. I love running. Even playing, I really love playing 7s. But it’s a lot of running and a lot of tactics and everything and it’s just nice that it’s only 14 minutes. And I love tournaments, tournaments are only 7s usually. So the season for 7s is during the summer, and the 7s season before I got hurt, because I got hurt in the first game of 15s, was amazing. We won every single tournament. I got MVP of a tournament, and I was just like “How did I get MVP?”. Because the refs do it (decide MVP) but I’m like ok is it because this one ref saw me get dump tackled and like roll off the field? Then I got hurt playing and just was really sad about that because when I got hurt it was just from ten to zero. Like I had to keep my leg straight, I used a walker, and a walker is really good compared to crutches because crutches are really flimsy and you might get hurt. So I had to go through all of that, and I think one of my goals is to be able to run more and physically play rugby. But now I’m reffing. So I decided to become a ref just for funsies honestly. Because it’s like more low-key than playing, but it’s more intense. There’s a lot of ref abuse. I just had a meeting, like an education seminar, talking about how to prevent ref abuse. Like de-escalating situations because there are insane situations where especially men get really into it, but with reffing it just like, I’m one of the only girls. I’m one of the only Asian girls. And it’s nice though because I get to travel and everything. So with reffing I really want to increase my- I haven’t played in five years. So like I don’t remember the rules for 15s but I remember for 7s. It’s nice right now because I’m doing tournament style. But reffing, getting higher, knowing the rules, and getting more comfortable and training. But I don’t want to be the top, like I don’t want to be professional level. But with rugby, it’s great because you get sent all over. I know someone who went to Alaska, someone who went to England, and I went to Tampa. I also am going to Utah in July, and I also go to Lake Placid every year, it’s really nice. And then for coaching, this is another rugby aspect, I’ve been coaching with Mike Petri, who used to be a USA Eagle first of all. So it’s this program Rugby For All, it’s directed at kids so like elementary school, and middle school, and intermediate school in the middle. We haven’t really done elementary in a while. It’s harder for that, but I’ve been doing intermediate and middle school. And I think with kids people don’t realize like, you have to treat them as adults but to a certain level. Gauge it for them. So when I’m with my middle school boys I just let them play rugby, and with other classes, I do more technical (lessons). And with coaching, I do like doing youth. I don’t know if I’ll go higher. I think because with youth it’s just easy. Maybe if I feel more comfortable I’ll go to high school or like college, but that’s a lot of work… I just want to be able to work on this program and develop this program. I was the only girl for two years. And I was the only one who had my shit together. But now we have someone who like we’re just ready to go, really ready to revamp this program, and like I want it to be the basis for every youth program in America, you know what I mean? Like this is what you refer to and this is what you can use and everything. So I think in general with my rugby career I want to get to a point where I’m comfortable. Reffing I think I’m gonna take more seriously just because I’m more available for it, but for coaching it’s like I’m still gonna work hard but it’s more on the administrative level. And then playing it’s more just like getting into shape, running around. And then with public health, I want to get really high in the Red Cross and also get like certifications. So getting the certified health educator specialist test… I want to be that Asian that does too much. Like who does so much and it’s crazy, so that’s where the mania comes in, but it’s like a healthy mania.
FB: Right, you’re making it work for you.
MM: Yes. Sorry that was so long.
FB: No, that’s fine. Don’t worry about that at all. So what if anything do you miss most about high school? And it’s ok if the answer is “nothing”.
MM: No, I miss, so you know I was in NJROTC?
FB: Right.
MM: So the navy military program where, I mean we learned navy things, and I kind of liked that discipline stuff and aspect and kind of just having a direction and everything. Just like serving a purpose, which pretty much is probably like the Red Cross also, but I really miss that group of friends. Seeing them all the time, and like the ROTC room was its own room. Like if you weren’t one of the people, you couldn’t go in. And it was just really nice because we had that space and everything, and my best friend Kayssa was there too. And I really love how Kayssa and I, like we just stuck together. We would always drive to school together. She lived in Put Lake, and I lived closer to the school, and everyone was like “Why do you go pick her up? You’re going in the opposite direction”. And I’m like “No, she’s my best friend. I’m picking her up.” And then like our PLC memories. I think a lot of my memories are like driving around in my car just being dumbasses. Actually like football games too because I used to do colorguard, and I would run back to change so I could watch the final half of the game. But that’s what I miss. I miss just like being with each other, seeing each other. I mean it’s funny because like you know, even though we went to school together and we grew up together, we don’t always like, interact with each other. I mean my other best friend Kerri was like, it was just great and I think in general the people you really stick with as friends are the ones you feel a connection with. And like I still trust one of you and everything. I think it’s just more interesting that Kayssa and Kerri are my best friends. I love them so much. And the Jara sisters. They were in ROTC also. Again like that kind of- Oh! This is what I miss. I miss playing orchestra every single day.
FB: Yeah?
MM: Because I love violin, but I only like classical music. But then also like I wanna get back into it. But it’s like when you’re in school you’re really great. And also track, I forgot I did track too. Track was fun. Again just being with the same people.
FB: I think that’s been a recurring theme so far in these interviews, kind of like that sense of community of it all. Where you’re with these same people every day, you’re in this routine, and there’s that comfort in sameness if that makes sense.
MM: No it’s totally true because it’s just like you’re in a closed pool where you have your friends, and you have your friends in different circles. High school starts it first and then college pretty much copies it but you live there. But yeah it’s kind of crazy to think of, especially in Brewster because every time I work in freakin the city I’m just like “You guys need to go the F outside. You guys are insane, you don’t have grass. Like please go outside.” That’s why I think we grew up way more humble and different because like, I mean we had to drive to everything, but I really like that fresh air. Like Kayssa was even saying in Florida you can’t see the stars that well. And it’s just like we were so close to the city, but it’s just nice to know that that hometown is that hometown… We all have a home there.
FB: Do you think you left high school prepared for the next phase of your life?
MM: No. (Laughs) Fuck no. Because also like I’m a first-generation Filipino American. Because I’m a first generation, I had to figure out a lot of things on my own. Like I didn’t know the college process. My parents figured it out, and my (older) brother is really smart… he’s very more administrative and like focused on money stuff like that, like business-y while I’m more like whatever. So he had to figure out the college process, and I just followed. I ended up going to the same school as him, Sienna. But you know with mental health, we talked about this, they (parents) didn’t know. I didn’t know. I tried taking medication and like going to a doctor in high school and my parents were like “No.” But in college, I was able to. I was able to go to therapy there for a bit, and I had a really good therapist there, but it’s not like you can see them after college. But yeah I think just school work too because I did not understand calculus, and I never understood physics or economics at all. Never ever. And I took both in high school and college and I just did not understand. I think also because I was a pre-med major and then I switched to philosophy because I just like philosophy. It’s not like just smoking every day and stuff, no. It’s analysis, it made me- like even me speaking. You hear the way I’m speaking that’s because, I’m already smart like that we all know that smart Asian shit, but it made me more able to articulate my thoughts. Because if you’re reading some Wittgenstein or even Plato and stuff- but Wittgenstein is such a dick like you can’t understand him at all. But you have to be able to read from that and then be like this is what they mean. Critical writing, and critical thinking skills, I think those are really important. Just also being able to speak about anything. Like I think we tried, I know there are programs where you teach philosophy to kids, but yeah I think they just were too soft on us maybe? Like I can’t really tell, I think it’s too small-town country kind of stuff. Not knowing what the city is like, but you know what I mean? I always compare it to the city because it’s so different.
FB: So if you could change one thing about your time in high school knowing what you know now, what would you change?
MM: Umm… I don’t know. Kayssa, Kerri, and I talk about how we had a good high school experience actually. I think I liked it on our level, where it’s not like we’re trying to be popular or anything. Like that idea of being popular. We weren’t trying to prove anything we were just being ourselves. I think that’s what was nice, that we could just be embarrassed and stuff- ok when I was in high school freshman year I used to wear Lolita stuff, which is like the big poofy skirts, and I wore like a zip-up tie and I’m just like if I wore that in high school now I’d get ripped apart
FB: (Laughs thinking about what he’s seen kids wear when working in schools)
MM: But no, I don’t think so honeslty.
FB: Nice. So as a member of the class of 2013, do you have any advice for the class of 2023 as they enter the next phase of their lives?
MM: Don’t be a dumbass. Well I think it’s that you need to accept reality how it is where there’s good things and there’s bad things, but you need to realize and put in the work to be able to handle those things. And it’s like everything happens for a reason, that’s you know the basic. And I love the golden rule which is treat others the way you want to be treated. And I love the Murphy’s law, if it can go wrong it will go wrong. You just need to be smart on all these three levels. Like you just need to make yourself more aware of everything.
FB: We definitely saw Murphy’s Law today when we tried to go into five different places to have this conversation.
MM: I know! Just to go to a place you were in this monring.
FB: Exactly, I should’ve just remained here.
MM: We tried, we tried. I think also, because for myself too, and that’s why I’m so open about being bipolar, you need to understand yourself through the core. Accept all your shittiness. Like I know I do shitty things. And it’s ok, everyone does. I do weird things. You do weird things. It’s just that you need to know yourself. That’s what goes into health too, mental and physical health because it’s just like “Huh, I feel like something’s wrong.” I’ll talk to my psych, I’ll increase my meds, we’re good, and like other things too. I think it’s really important for those rules and like if you really know yourself, you can accommodate it to anything. Not even accommodate it, you just know how you are in that situation. You’re an adult.
FB: So speaking of the current seniors, would you rather have been a high schooler right now-
MM: No.
FB: Or in the early 2010s when we were there?
MM: (Laughs) No, 2013 100%.
FB: Yeah?
MM: Just because I was talking to this kid like this family friend and I was like “Snapchat started when I was a senior in high school, and people lost their shit when you could take videos.” And I think it’s good because my image of myself wasn’t distorted by social media. Like even now I’m like “Huh, I’m gonna delete that.” And like I think it’s just 2023 they’re so focused on their image- I don’t know it’s just like I already have anxiety and everything I would not feel great in this generation.
FB: Yeah I definitely feel that as well. The combination of technology and social media that is available to them as kids at this age compared to what we had like our phones could do like three things. Meanwhile, for them, it’s an entire world pretty much.
MM: Exactly. And I like that we were the generation that did things the more simple way, or like a little harder, but it wasn’t electronic. But then we got into the age of computers and then computers became more important. And I like that because like I feel like an original. I grew up seeing that, and that’s why I’m more like an adult honestly like I don’t go on TikTok. Like I refuse, also if it’s good enough and funny enough it’ll show up on any other social media. Like I use Tumblr for memes and it’s like my newspaper, but besides that I really just… social media it’s just you can tell how it affects people. I don’t remember where I was going with this… Oh with watching on TikTok you just get mindless about it and I don’t like that. I’d rather do that with music.
FB: So one thing our high school never did was senior quotes. Do you have one that you like that you would’ve used back then, or one that you like now?
MM: Oh shit, um… I could be lame, I feel like maybe I would be lame because now I’m like more simplistic and more straight to the point, but I think maybe I would be lame enough to be like from That 70’s Show “Hanging out, down the street, same old things, we did last week” but then change it to the ROTC room or my car or something… What would yours be?
FB: I actually had one in mind for if we would’ve done it because for some reason I thought it was just gonna happen out of nowhere-
MM: Never, they never ever did that.
FB: Yeah we didn’t do too much fun kind of senior classic stuff I think. But the one I really like and still like is “A baby’s gotta do what a baby’s gotta do” by Tommy Pickles from Rugrats.
MM: (Laughs) That’s so funny, that’s a good one
FB: Thank you, I feel like it’s very true but also not even-
MM: I don’t think I even would remember that quote because I didn’t watch- my parents were really Asian and we never had cable until I was like 12. That’s the thing with TV too like these kids have too much. They don’t even know.
FB: I feel like kids aren’t even watching TV that much, it’s all on the internet now.
MM: Yeah they don’t remember parents putting on the news.
FB: Crazy, it’s like a whole different world.
MM: I feel like… I don’t know. Remember how at our graduation you took a photo of all of us? That was great.
FB: Yeah I enjoyed us.
MM: Because like we don’t always have a lot of photos from high school. I mean I do, it’s just on a memory card.
FB: Right exactly we were using real cameras back then.
MM: Yeah we were.
FB: Because it was like I said before our phones could just do everything. So like you’d bring your camera somewhere.
MM: And they were cute. And I remember I had one freshman year and everyone was just so candid and like “Hey it’s halloween” like people didn’t care so much about themselves. Now it’s too much.
FB: I think it is a little too much. But before we wrap up, do you have any questions for me? It’s ok if you don’t.
MM: How’s your comedy stuff? Especially since you moved from Brewster to the city, like how’s it going?
FB: It’s-
MM: Wait wait wait, first how do you feel about living in the city? Because I feel like that affects your (answer).
FB: It was really tough at first. That first month was a hard one but-
MM: What’s your apartment like? Is it a walkup?
FB: It’s a third floor walk up.
MM: That’s why I don’t like Brooklyn.
FB: Well second technically I guess, but I make it work. I am one of three in the apartment, but it’s people I know and love so I’m fine with that.
MM: That’s good.
FB: But yeah I’ve been enjoying it for the most part since I’ve been down here. I really like the area I’m in. It’s so close to the park, I’m in there constantly. And there’s plenty of coffee shops even though they don’t always let you sit down as we learned.
MM: Exactly.
FB: As far as comedy it’s actually been kind of an interesting transition because-
MM: Sorry
FB: No go ahead
MM: So I really like comedians- like Jon Stewart and just cuz with comedians, comedians like they, people are like “hahaha they’re so silly” and it’s like no they’re actually like really fucking smart. Like Tina Fey worked as a head writer for SNL, was insanely like, cause those hours for SNL, see I love the people from SNL but I don’t really watch it because I just like the work they put in. Like Seth Meyers, I love him.
FB: Love him.
MM: Really great guy. And then Stephen Colbert, like before he was on late night, really smart. Really, really good. Cause if you watch Jon Stewart’s Mark Twain award-
FB: I have
MM: Dave Chapelle’s smart too, but I don’t know how I feel about him and his comments.
FB: Yeah he’s making one of those rough turns. That’s something that’s been kind of hard to watch as a comedy fan because it is kind of like… obviously I don’t agree with what they’re talking about but the worst part about it for me is that it’s not funny. Like they’re better than this just on a comedy level and it’s a bummer when they kind of make that turn into the world of “wokeness” and “cancel culture” and all that bullshit because it’s all just them making the same jokes over and over again and the same complaints and it’s like no one is really gaining anything from this. He used to be interesting, he used to make actual jokes instead of just complaining about how no one lets him talk anymore, despite getting paid millions of dollars to say that.
MM: Exactly so like even with comedians where I’m just like “oh they’re so great”- when you’re talking you have to do it in a way where the audience gets the joke. That’s why I really like Ali Wong, I really love Jo Koy. Jo Koy is so amazing, I knew him way before people- I remember him from YouTube when YouTube first started and like you had to share the family computer. With Jo Koy I love that he is really putting out what Filipino culture is. Everything he talks about I’m just like “that is my home life. That is us. Thank you for explaining it because these white people won’t understand”. And it’s true. And like I like reading their books too- oh Trevor Noah! Trevor Noah is really smart. I don’t know if I like his standup so much, but like he’s very smart. Like his book that he wrote um.
FB: His book is great.
MM: Born a Crime.
FB: Born a Crime is fantastic.
MM: It’s so good. And then I just love how it comes together.
FB: They’re making it into a movie.
MM: I heard that, that’ll be great. But exactly, sorry I took over, but like comedians are just really smart. I wish Jon Stewart had a book, and I wish Stephen Colbert had a book.
FB: They do!
MM: Is it that flag one?
FB: Yes, and I think it’s kind of written as his Colbert Report character.
MM: I love that. With that character too it’s just like “No, it’s just a personality” and the fact that he, also cause you know with The Daily Show and The Colbert Report and like SNL does it weekly, but they have to write their things the day of. They have to do their jokes like the day of. They record at like 4pm and it’s just like how long have you been working on this?
FB: That was something that I was kind of putting myself through as well on a writing level. I know you said you stay off TikTok-
MM: Sorry this song (playing in Flatbush Bagel) is from Kill Bill.
FB: Oh shit you’re right.
MM: Yeah this is from Kill Bill. At the end of the first movie.
FB: The scene with the snow?
MM: Yeah, no no this is when she puts the french woman in her car and is driving off. It’s literally the last song.
FB: That’s so funny.
MM: I’m always just like “Wait a second”.
FB: But yeah with what you were talking about with The Daily Show, it’s literally daily so they had to be making that every day, and that is a world that I always wanted to be in.
MM: Which is rough.
FB: I always wanted to work in writing for Late Night or writing for The Daily Show or Saturday Night Live or something like that. So for the past two years, I stopped doing this when I moved here, but like all of last year and most of the year before I was doing this series of videos on TikTok called “Jokes I Wrote Today” which started as just a writing exercise I had been doing since college where I would just read through the news-
MM: Improv is really hard.
FB: Yes.
MM: Improv is super duper hard. Even in orchestra like I could never. It’s just my mind doesn’t work like that. Like your mind probably works like that.
FB: I started in improv and then switched to standup so it’s-
MM: Which is good, that’s like a really good basis.
FB: But I was doing this thing that I would call “Five A Days” where I would read through the news and try to write at least five monologue style jokes about what I was seeing. Then when I got on TikTok I started making videos of me just taking the jokes I had written that day, choosing my three favorites, and then just saying them directly to the camera. And I wasn’t doing it for like views or anything, I was just really doing it to hold myself accountable to like make sure I was continuing to do the work of the writing, and just over time it started to grow me a little bit of an audience there. Which was nice, but again it wasn’t the reason why I was doing it. But then when I moved-
MM: I feel like also it’s just like, I think we’re at the age right now where it’s just like oh you need a reason to do it but for us like, that’s exactly what I kind of alluded to before like you don’t give a shit. Like sometimes I do, but like most of the time like you see me on Instagram posting memes, doing like sex jokes, I’m just like I don’t give a shit. Like I talk about my mental health and I’m just like “You’re just gonna read it and that’s it”
FB: But like you were saying it’s a lot of work for these shows, and I found myself getting burnt out from it as soon as I moved here. I remember the first week I was here just sitting down to make one of these videos and my body just kind of being like “We can’t do this right now”. Like I really was living like a no days off kind of life with this where I was posting this shit every single day no matter what. Like making sure I was putting these videos out before midnight because I refused to post them even if it was technically the day after. So I was making sure even if I had worked the whole day, done standup at night, I was going and making sure I was writing and posting these videos. So since I’ve moved here I kind of have taken a little step back from comedy just to kind of like-
MM: I think the city is a lot to take in.
FB: It is, definitely.
MM: I mentioned also before when we were talking and walking over here I’m gonna be moving home for a little bit. I lived on the border of- pretty much Long Island. It’s still called Queens but it’s Long Island, but I feel like it held me back from being a city person. Like going out to cafes that probably don’t have seating and stuff like that… The city is a lot. I coach middle schoolers and kids but it’s just like… again like Brewster is so small. So homey, so cozy, and small. So going from that to here, I also went to a small college too so it doesn’t really help it but…
FB: But yeah as far as the answer to the question of how comedy is going, kind of at a crossroads right now but we’re figuring it out-
MM: Me too! With my career! I think like… good manifestation. I don’t want to be that universe person but you know what I mean? I think like… this is a good year for us.
FB: Well hey I’ll take what I can get.
(This interview has been edited for length and clarity)
13 On 13 