Bill's Gotta Brand New Beard / Hello from the Road

This would be me and filmmaking pal Paul on site with Arkansas Bill Jones. You may not recognize him from previous posts.

Saturday Bill greeted us with a full beard and surprisingly blonde, long hair. But behind all that hair was good ol' Bill, the guy whose interviews with me have gone viral on my YouTube channel.

We shot video #3, having me spend half-a-day with the guy and his gal, Norma Jo. He showed us his fishing hole, set up some raccoon traps, and opened up about his life these days in rural Arkansas. It's these conversations and all the little human moments along the way that make these videos memorable.

This one should live up to the previous two. I look forward to having it for you in the coming weeks.

While down south, I stayed next door to Arkansas in Oklahoma, where my friend Paul calls home. There, I took the time to meet a couple of other locals.

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"Hi, Baby," said this woman graciously, welcoming me on Friday to this gas station near the Kansas-Oklahoma border.

"Now I know I'm not home anymore," I responded to her. "You'd never hear 'baby' like that in Minnesota. Never."

"Well, it's in my name," she replied while pointing to her name tag.

"Nice to meet you, Gina Baby. Can I take your picture?"

"Sure thing," she said without a moment's hesitation.

I like the hospitality in the Southern U.S.

"You gotta help them in their pain," said this gentleman. "'Cause they might not even know it exists."

James here served me some late night frozen custard in Norman, Oklahoma. Then, he poured his heart out. Speaking from his own experience with trauma and mental illness, he said the above quote about helping youth today who've similarly been given a difficult hand in life. I hope to have our interview video soon.

There's a story in every person you encounter.

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This long weekend was just a short reprieve from all the activity and tragedy back in Minnesota, but it's been a welcome reminder of all the goodness and enjoyment spread across this country and our planet.

from Des Moines,

-Brandon