PEL Presents PvI#118: Aphoristically w/ Andrea Roccella

Introduction to Serval

0:00I'm Jake Stouck, co-founder and CEO of Serval. We built Serval to automate the IT work that slows companies down. Onboarding, password resets, access to applications, my laptop stopped working. While employees wait for help, their real work is put on hold. IT desperately wants to automate this work and that's why they need Serval. You just tell Serval what you wanna automate in plain English and it's built. No drag and drop workflows, no expensive consultants. Employees get unblocked and IT teams

0:30go from drowning in tickets to building what actually matters. With Serval, IT becomes the AI engine powering the entire company. This is a new way to run IT. We guarantee you'll automate 50% of all tickets and we'll prove it to you in a free four-week pilot. Go to serval.com slash listen. That's S-E-R-V-A-L.com slash listen.

Everand Audiobook Subscription

0:57If you love podcasts, you already know how to fit great stories into your busy day. So why not do the same thing with books? Everand is an affordable audiobook and ebook subscription that goes wherever you go. Your commute, your workout, your grocery run. No rearranging your schedule, no carving out reading time. Just hit play. For a limited time, new members get two free books when they start a free trial. Go to everand.com slash listen to claim yours. That's E-V-E-R-A-N-D dot com slash listen.

Philosophy vs Improv Introduction

1:34This is Philosophy vs. Improv where two sages try to teach each other a thing or two and maybe you, the audience, get something out of it as well. Hello and welcome to Philosophy vs. Improv. It is Mary Mary Hines here with you bringing the improvisational prowess and I'm joined by my co-host. This is Mark Linsenmeyer. I have training in philosophy enough to, at least, you know, enough for you people and we are joined by a very special guest. Hello guys, this is Andrea Rocella speaking with you from the beautiful 104 Degrees Florida.

2:07It's a joy for me to be here. Typically, our guests are philosophy professionals or acting people, but you are another folks that seems to do some of each. Well, yeah, what's your background? I understand, you know, you're a teacher, you were doing acting, at least in Italy. What is your status here? Well, I've been acting almost all my life. Ever since I was in elementary school, I was already doing something like that and then I started working around the world as an artistic director and doing shows in resorts. From there, I transitioned to theater

2:38and I started performing in operetta and musical theater. So I've been singing and acting for maybe three, four years touring Italy and then I moved to the United States because I fell in love with New York City and Broadway and all of that. And so I quit everything I was doing in Italy.

Andrea's Career Transition

2:53I had written a book and I wrote a musical and I was on tour with performing. I just moved to the United States and I started a completely different journey. Because I didn't know English very well back then, I couldn't really act. So I started writing more because writing didn't have an accent and also I had time to Google or go in a dictionary and understand how to put together something that I wanted to say. And then now I've been here for 17 years so that has changed. And I wrote my second book which is Think Town

3:24and I guess the glue that took us here today which is a philosophy book. You know, there's a phrase that we say in theater that you've been like bitten by the bug, bitten by the theater bug. So what about theater got you? Do you recall? I was very fortunate in my childhood because my family always, everybody loved me so much. So every time I was speaking and I was just making a joke, the feedback was always fantastic. So I think that started creating that longing

3:55for a reaction for what I say. And so I remember that in an elementary school that my teacher gave me this role, like lead role in a kind of comedy sketch at the end of the year as a performance. And that went, they say, I don't remember it completely, but they say so well, everybody just complimented. And so then the next year they gave me another bigger role. I was the host of the whole show. And so I guess that more than at that point,

4:26me was everybody else telling me, oh, you should do this. Just be an actor. Just do that. And I loved the fact that if I say something, there's a reaction like a laughter. I remember that to be. So at home, I was always seeking it. Everybody at home was making jokes all the time. I grew up in a joking family. I think that became, okay, why is this not happening when I'm home? And so I tried to create that. From the jokes and the laughters became also, okay, I can also be a character. I can also be somebody else.

4:58Or I can sing. Okay, let me learn how to do that. And so that became really, I think the bug grew within me. And now it transitioned. I still want to do stage if it's possible, but more is more on the writing. I did that one time. I wrote the first musical in Italy, and I saw it live happen, something that I wrote while I was shaving or in the bathroom or walking. And that was actually happening. Actors understood what I meant. It was on the stage. And that was a new drug. And so I thought, okay,

5:29this is what I want to do now. Okay, I'll act, but I want to do that.

Discussing the Book Think Town

5:33Let me ask you then about the book here. So it's a book of philosophical poetry. I'm a sucker for maps. So you have a little map at the beginning. Over here are all the parts of Think Town. And then there's a section, sort of a chapter on each of them. Fear Theater, Society Square, Judgment Court, Possession Cove, things like that. And in each of these, you have a little sort of metaphorical description of the geography of the place. And then a page or two or more of little aphorisms. And I read something, I think in your materials,

6:03said you've been working on these aphorisms 20 years, right? This is not sit down and I'm going to just write 10 aphorisms about fear. Yeah, why the aphorism? And I assume in Europe, they sort of make people take philosophy more than in America. So yeah, what is your philosophical background that led you to this? Philosophy, unfortunately, wasn't part of my school. They never taught me in that sense. But as I was saying before, jokes were something in my family. Also, my dad read a million books. And so speaking with some depth was also part of my upbringing.

6:34Now, at one point, I realized that many of us just have a little notebook and write notes or thoughts about something. Very quickly, I realized that what I was writing was in a form of quote or an aphorism or a thought that was like compressed and it was somewhat beautiful, but also with the meaning behind. And so I realized that was just something natural that kept coming. If I got to an understanding or some aha moment or some doubt or something that tickled the intellect, it would translate more easily

7:05into something that was powerful like an aphorism. And so throughout the years and I had so many notebooks and as a matter of fact, the book started in Italian and then became in English when it came to the United States and it got translated. But I mean, most aphorisms were written in the past 17 years. So most of it was already in English. And so that is really how it happened. And at one point I had this like at that point it was like maybe 400 aphorisms. Now it's 550. Another maybe 50 or 100 were cut.

7:36They didn't make it to the book. But those were the ones that really I had and I didn't understand

Aphorisms and Philosophy

7:42really how to put them together. They already had a theme. So like fear was already there, right? And then maybe positive and negative or love. They were already there in chapters, but I didn't understand how it was. And then one night I might have been not completely sober that night, but I had the feeling that maybe that should have been the way I see it, which is a town within our mind. So the book is really the metaphor. And I imagine the mind as a town. And then it all made perfect sense.

8:12And then everything started clicking. Oh yeah, yes, exactly. I actually can create a whole metaphor of this area, of town, of this street and envision it because that's the way we process our thoughts when this happens, when this kind of thought happens, when you're positive, when you're negative, when you're in love or anger or even the subconscious made perfect sense to be a subway and so forth. That's how it developed. It's a very cool format. I found as I was reading pieces of it that it was

8:43causing me to muse on my own thoughts and reflections around those same subjects. So I'm curious, is there any particular chapter or philosophical subject of the different elements of Think Town that intrigues you the most? Well, as it is with maybe food or music or movies, there's times in life that you are more into something and then you transition into something else. So there were moments where fear theater was so important because I actually never experienced fear

9:14very much in my life. And so it was easier to see it because I could see it in other people and I could see how that would damage them and they would divert the decisions towards something that just makes them stall rather than act and live. Just to offer, as you're talking about the fear thing, I found something in the fear section that I wrote down that really resonates with me. Visitors leave only when their own will overcomes the inertia the space inspires. Yeah. Which I found very fascinating. Thank you. Well,

9:44it really is like you have it. Genetically, we were given fear so that we wouldn't put our hand on the fire, we wouldn't jump off the cliff, we wouldn't make those things. So we are there to protect. So fear is actually a very, very useful tool. But then that tool becomes something that we use as comfort and then it completely hinders our life. Almost everything in life is beautiful and is there to be a tool for us. And then because of the way we deal, we overthink, we overdo, then it goes

10:15into a direction that it wouldn't be what, it's useful.

Conversing with a Monster Under the Bed

10:19Hey, Andrea, it's me. It's the monster under your bed. I've got a couple things I'd like to talk about with you if you have the time. I know, I know you just got in the bed and you're not sleepy yet, so can we have a quick conversation? Have you always been there? Yeah, this is where I live. Yeah, I mean, it's a bit, you know, basically underneath your bed is like my sun room or really my moon room because sun does terrible things to my skin, you know, I'm covered in scales and I, but anyway, my whole point is,

10:50you know, it's like a portal. So basically, anyway, I'm sorry, I'm beating around the bush. You usually do that. That's a classic behavior of yours, but. Oh, thank you for acknowledging me because I thought you didn't care about me anymore because you're not scared of me anymore. And I gotta say, I might get fired as you're under the bed monster because you're not scared of me anymore. What's the problem? You have so many other beds to go to. Like, the world is filled with beds that can't wait to have you under.

11:21But no one is you. You're putting me in a very vulnerable situation and I'm fearful for my job and you actually are my favorite client because you're the closest commute to my kids and my wife and we've been having some marital spats because I'm not bringing home enough, you know, fresh meat anymore because you're not scared of me and I can't feast on your nightmares because you, uh, yeah, I'll take responsibility for that. I mean, you get, you get a new stuffed animal

11:51that is a very effective shield against this sort of thing, can provide security, provide something tangible that he can hold on to. He doesn't need some sort of wispy piece of crap under the bed. Exactly. So you can just, first of all, you can take advantage of that. Yeah, play with it. But also, have you noticed under your bed? Under my bed? Yeah, because it feels there's somebody else under your bed. That's why you're fearful and afraid of not feeding your family. Wait a second. Don't you psychoanalyze me.

12:22Just knock, knock, knock. Try knock down, down below. I'm pretty sure somebody else is there. Somebody's there underneath my bed? Everybody has a bed. I got my own bed. I stay during the day. It's one of those sort of toy story sort of situations where I go home to my wife and kids and, you know, then come here to be a stuffed animal just for the night. But, you know, when I get lost, that's because I'm, you know, I'm at home. I'll check my bed as well. Exactly. What was your name, by the way? Because I forgot you.

12:53Do I know your name, little stuff, cute stuff animal? I mean, I think you're the one who's supposed to come up with a name. I'm pretty sure that's your responsibility. And now you're trying to pass off the buck to us and it's not our responsibility. Relationships are a two-way street about communication and love and respect. And I know everybody else loves you, but honestly, not here. Well, that's true. But, well, the reason why I forgot, I actually forgot and I apologize. I forgot your name that I gave you so long ago because we haven't, I haven't really

13:24needed you in a long time. Without the fear, you don't really need the thing to hold on to. So maybe, maybe you can go down to the bed, down the bed to her and comfort her. And then you can give her. Do you want to be my under the bed friend? All right. All right. Stuff me under the bed. It was just Teddy, by the way. I mean, it's an uncreative name, but I guess that just became a generic. It was like, you know, Kleenex brand and Kleenex and so I just became the Teddy. Maybe that had some other name

13:55in your mind, but this, anyway, it was not communicated to me. That's fine. That's when I started learning how to read. So I read it. I thought that was your name. I said, were you talking to me? Because at that point, you were actually talking to me a lot. You were telling me to be, to relax, don't worry. And that was a beautiful time we spent together. But you know, like Dr. Seuss says, you have to be happy for what you had and not sad for what you don't have anymore. So at one point, we parted ways and I forgot about you and I really hope you enjoyed that time of separation. Were you missing? I mean, yeah,

14:25I got to go to college. I'm having a hard time being mad at you because you're making some very eloquent points and honestly, for a 10-year-old, I'm really impressed. Thank you. Thank you. That's what my friends in school say the same. And, you know, I kind of counsel them through their problems. Can you do me a favor? Can you do me a favor? Maybe like twice a week. You can just like kind of, I got a microphone placed up by your headboard. If you could just give me a,

14:56ah, please don't eat me or, or a, ah, stay away from me with your beautiful claws. Don't, don't scratch me. You know, maybe just twice a week. You know, could you do that for me, please? Not only would I do that, I just want you to know that I already do that. It's just, you haven't noticed I do because you too, you too, spending too much time listening to the other one. No, and I've been so scared of losing you that I've been having a hard time. I'm so happy that we had, that we communicated. Honestly, Teddy,

15:26I'm sorry for being such an asshole. It's a hard time to be a monster nowadays. I mean, I guess we're going to be spending a lot more time together, so I'll have to get used to that. I'm excited to be working with you. Yeah. All right. All right. I'm seeing. Let's wrap that up. I've forgotten about you. I really communicate with you. I actually thank you for how helpful you've been in making me make wrong things that would be hurtful to me, so I appreciate it, but also sometimes you tend to talk too much, and that's when it's better

15:58you stay under the bed. I love it. Great job. Great scene. Do not let the scene end without some constructive criticism and a thank you. You got to lead with the good. That was very good modeling. Great job, Andrea. Great job. I loved it. Very fun. Yeah, you were starting to pull out the aphorisms as your character there, which seems like a very good format. Let me lead with the good here. For the present day, it seems like you could make, the next thing should be either yourself to learn, learn, or maybe you already know how to use some graphics programs

16:29or, in fact, use AI. Use, make memes. Make visual memes out of probably at least 10% of these things. Or maybe hire some artists that are really... Sign... Yes, that's actually better. Yeah. And sign your name at the bottom so as they get distributed around the internet, then you will get credit. Or Canva. Canva's great too and you can do it yourself pretty easily. And first of all, thank you for the advice and also for the care. I have started that two weeks ago with... because I was introduced to this new concept

16:59of AI agents, which is the new generation of it. You know, before we used to say, just say, okay, can I do this? How do I do this? And blah, blah, blah. Now they actually do things for you as the new era. And so I tried it because I have a little bit of a geeky side. And so I tried it and I was mind blown completely. It's incredible. So I have this AI agent who every morning creates these cards with the aphorisms from the book and just posts them on all social media

17:29and posts videos that I've recorded. Because I do a philosophy circle out of the library here close by. And so I've recorded some videos. So this AI system just took the videos that I had already cut and posts them on TikTok and posts them on YouTube. So it's really... It's beautiful as it gets and as everything, you can see it from the other angle and it could be frightening, but I choose not to. And so I'm doing that. And so thank you. Thank you for saying that. It's really incredible. And the quality

18:00of what they come up with because the AI read the book, we spoke a little bit with an onboarding process and now they just knows about me, which is beautiful, crazy. It's a real life though. It's not too far from life

Using AI for Creative Projects

18:15in any way. It's part of it. When people turn to healthcare for weight loss, they're looking for real support. That's why more people are choosing orderlymeds.com. Orderly Meds connects you with real doctors and access to proven GLP-1 medications like semaglutide and terzepatide. No guessing, just a more supportive experience. And all shipped directly to your door in discreet packaging. Do your research. Ask questions. Then visit orderlymeds.com slash podcast for an exclusive offer. That's orderlymeds.com slash podcast. Individual results may vary. Not medical advice. Eligibility required. See site for details.

18:45I'm U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy. We all get distracted when we drive. Whether it's from our phones or kids in the backseat bickering. But how we handle these distractions can be a matter of life or death. Before you get on the road for your next road trip, please put your phones on silent and take a mental note to focus on driving. Paid for by NHTSA.

19:15Can Botox? On a botulinum toxin A help if I have chronic migraine? 15 or more headache days a month each lasting 4 hours or more? Botox prevents headaches in adults with chronic migraine. It's not approved for adults with migraine who have 14 or fewer headache days a month. It's the number one prescribed branded chronic migraine treatment. Prescription Botox is injected by your doctor. Effects of Botox may spread hours to weeks after injection causing serious symptoms. Alert your doctor right away as difficulty swallowing, speaking, breathing, eye problems, or muscle weakness can be signs

19:46of a life-threatening condition. Patients with these conditions before injection are at highest risk. Side effects may include allergic reactions, neck and injection site pain, fatigue, and headache. Allergic reactions can include rash, welts, asthma symptoms, and dizziness. Don't receive Botox if there's a skin infection. Tell your doctor your medical history, muscle or nerve conditions, including ALS, Lou Gehrig's disease, myasthenia gravis, or Lambert-Eaton syndrome, and medications, including botulinum toxins, as these may increase the risk of serious side effects. Ask your doctor and visit BotoxChronicMigraine.com or call 1-800-44-BOTOX

20:16to learn more. Don't be afraid, Mary. This is page 8 of the book. Mary, don't be afraid of the AI, or even though it might kill us. I will offer you here, and I'll keep myself concise, but it is a little bit of a fear response, but mostly it is, we don't need to go too far into it, but it's concern for the environment. It's concern for the entertainment industry. It's taking me and my friends out of work. There are a couple elements of it that I have a pretty strong distaste for,

20:49but to each their own and as they like. Well, Mary, I really, really, this is like a situation where I am completely divided in two, and I went back and forth so many times because, yes, I completely agree with you, and as a matter of fact, it's impossible to disagree with you. That is it. It is the fact, and it's every day more. So there's no argument on the other side. So I get it. The only argument that I had and I went through is my position with things in life

21:22and what I can do, what I cannot do, and what resonates with me, what doesn't. Like, for instance, I've been a vegetarian for 27 years, right? Against all the odds because I grew up in Sicily where the word wasn't even a thing because I felt like that was something that I really wanted to do because it was the death of the animals. I didn't want to participate in it, blah, blah, blah, right? So I got into that cause and other causes, and there's also causes that are not really, they can't resonate with me, and it's okay to understand, for me personally,

21:53I'm not preaching for everybody, for me personally, to what your battles are and what your battles aren't. Like for politics, for instance, I can get upset, whatever, but it's not my place. If I can do something about it, then great, do something about it. But if there's something that is not really my battle, I cannot do it, right? In this situation, I have to understand, okay, am I damaging the world more than what I'm doing good just by sharing this aphorism that could help? And so at that point, I find myself and say, okay, I'm not contributing particularly to this as an investor.

22:24I'm not pushing it. If they stop it tomorrow, I will be very happy. So I'm just getting this so that I can share these aphorisms with the world. That's where I found myself, or maybe I'm just justifying the evil aspect of it. I really wouldn't be knowing it yet. I just went with my heart more than the greed. Sure. It's fine. It seems all conversations are going to move to AI as long as we don't spend our whole time on it. But it's a fine example of a thing if we're going to talk about fear and stuff. If you're replacing human labor,

22:54that's bad. Use an artist. But if it's enabling you to do things, you would not have the money. I'm not going to hire somebody. So for me, it's I have all these albums with all these songs, none of which have videos or like two, I've made maybe two videos ever. I'm sure very soon I will figure out how to generate an AI video. That's probably just some abstract stuff floating around or maybe put in a photo of me or whatever, you know, whatever the thing is. Something that I would not have time

23:25to learn on my own. It would basically be like using Photoshop, but I'm using AI to create this thing much more quickly because there is zero chance. You know, I tried to hire somebody, a real animator to do this and it was going to be $5,000 to do freaking one song and I have zero budget. So the fact that it is increasing productivity, but I am apprehensive about it because I know musicians who are like, if I see one thing, you know, if I see somebody using AI for something, it just completely turns me off then. Then I think that they're a shallow person

23:55and it's not, it's not like I created the music with AI. Like it's just, I'm a musician. I'm not an artist. No artists are jumping up to collaborate with me out of the love of my music or the love of doing it. Create something organic. Mary, what do you think about that as a specific? I'll use this as an example. I had an actor friend who was going to be producing an AI created superhero TV show, essentially. And he wanted me to be a part of it.

24:26I've been wanting to be a superhero on a TV show or film for my entire life. It is still a goal of mine. I'd love to be a supervillain at XYZ. But ultimately, even though the opportunity seemed great, I could not allow myself to do it. Really, it's like, I think the biggest thing for me are like the environmental concerns and what it's doing to communities and what it's, what it does to water that then makes it unable to be filtered and processed for consumption. It's really, it's like the environmental concern for me is the strongest one.

24:57And I don't think people outside of the entertainment industry understand what's happening inside of it. It's really terrifying. It is very scary. And it's something that I personally don't want to touch or engage with as it can ruin. I've been offered gigs to have myself like recorded and, you know, pay me like $500 to film my face. And basically it's like, they don't say it outright, but you're training AI.

25:27And it's like, when I sell out, I'm going to sell out for much more than $500. And I'm not going to take one cookie for now that is going to take away my ability to ever have cookies in the future. It's very emotionally charged for me. It's very scary. And it's something that I'm working through. Well, truly it comes down to what you have control of, you know, like in the end, you have control what's within and very little what's beyond you. And so if in this situation, like if you were working with the people,

25:59the CEOs and all those people who are in charge, then definitely. But for what concerns like you, like in Mark's case, that he always wanted to have this video and never was it able, but was he able because it doesn't have the funds or the time or whatever it is, then that would be just creating a video really. And so sure, it may feed the AI to understand that actually there's this kind of videos