Episode 25 · Peter Jermyn · Dennis Rael · December 23, 2023
Peter Jermyn and Dennis Rael talk through the story of Los Bagels, from the old butcher shop on I Street to a longtime Humboldt gathering place. They get into how the business grew out of community connections, local partnerships, and a desire to make room for different kinds of people. The conversation also looks ahead at Humboldt’s shifting economy, with a lot of attention on what it will take to keep things rooted here.
Watch the conversation
What this episode covers
- How Los Bagels started in the former Roy’s Quality Meats building in Arcata.
- Dennis’s mixed Latino, Mexican, and Jewish background, and why bagels made sense to him.
- Peter and Dennis meeting through family and friendship before becoming business partners.
- Building Los Bagels as a cafe, a workplace, and a place where community groups could connect.
- Supporting local makers and small businesses through products like jam, sauce, tofu spread, granola, and smoked fish.
- What the next chapter for Humboldt might look like, from entrepreneurship and tribal leadership to climate change and local ownership.
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Transcript
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Scott Hammond: Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, uh, I have some friends in,
today, Peter Jermyn and Dennis Rael from Los Bagels. Welcome.
Peter Jermyn: Hey.
Dennis Rael: Nice to be here.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah. Thanks, Scott.
Scott Hammond: Great to have you guys here.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: How many years in the bagel business?
Peter Jermyn: Almost 40.
Dennis Rael: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Wow.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Is next year the 40th?
Dennis Rael: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: Next year's the 40th, yeah.
Scott Hammond: Wow. I was d- debating that with Joni.
We were in the other day and I go-
Peter Jermyn: '84, '94-
Scott Hammond: Did we have?
Peter Jermyn: … onward.
Scott Hammond: Yeah, 'cause it was a, a, a butcher shop, right?
Dennis Rael: Right. It was Roy's Quality Meats.
I still have that original sign in my barn, actually. Roy Iskra, uh, who, who had the previous facility and,
uh, I actually met Roy, uh, 'cause I used to be a butcher before I
Bagels.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Dennis Rael: I was a butcher at, uh, the co-op, and I stopped in to do
something with him and get… Started talking, and he told me he retiring, so.
Scott Hammond: Back in the day.
Dennis Rael: Uh, 'cause back then it was really hard to find location, get
real… I mean, to find any kind of vacancy. There just was nothing-
Scott Hammond: Right
Dennis Rael: … nothing around, so.
Scott Hammond: Unlike today.
Dennis Rael: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah, right.
Dennis Rael: Today there's, yeah, a lot of, lot of opportunities.
It's-
Scott Hammond: There's a lot of open real estate. [laughs]
Dennis Rael: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: So.
Scott Hammond: Wow, that's going back. Did you know David Lippman
Dennis Rael: Oh, yeah
Scott Hammond: … uh, what was the co-op before it was the co-op?
Natural Whole F- uh-
Dennis Rael: No
Scott Hammond: … United, United something.
Dennis Rael: Oh, United Naturals, yeah.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: I worked with him over here in Eu- in Eureka.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: Uh, actually I worked in that warehouse before I worked for the
It was a completely separate scenario. It was a interesting-
Scott Hammond: You go way back
Dennis Rael: … place, so.
Scott Hammond: You must be in your, like, over 100.
[laughs]
Dennis Rael: I'm 113.
Scott Hammond: You look gr-
Peter Jermyn: [laughs] Yeah, right.
Scott Hammond: He's holding, he's holding it well, don't you?
Peter Jermyn: Absolutely.
Scott Hammond: So how did you meet Dennis, and how did your association with-
Peter Jermyn: Well, Claudia, my wife, and Dennis have the same birthday.
I think it's a couple years or a year apart.
Dennis Rael: Year apart.
Peter Jermyn: Yes.
Scott Hammond: Wow.
Peter Jermyn: A year apart. But, so I got invited to a birthday party,
and there was Dennis.
Scott Hammond: Wow.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah. So that wa- that was the first time I met him. Yeah.
Scott Hammond: So friends and then partners, and now friend partners.
Peter Jermyn: You bet.
Dennis Rael: Right. To make the story even more interesting
Peter's wife, Claudia, that we both rented a room in the same house in Arcata. Uh, and then we realized we were both… Before, we didn't know we had the same birthday, were both driving the identical same vehicle, uh-
Scott Hammond: [laughs]
Dennis Rael: … and, uh, then realized we had the same birthday
just too weird," so. Uh, and then, then I met Peter.
Yeah, so.
Scott Hammond: Universes colliding.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Peter, she's delightful, by the way.
I got to meet her at a-
Peter Jermyn: Oh
Scott Hammond: … show there at the Arcata-
Peter Jermyn: Oh, okay. Good
Scott Hammond: … Playhouse.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Yeah. She's super nice.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah. Great. No, I got pretty good choice in people.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: And like, I just, like-
Scott Hammond: The jury's-
Peter Jermyn: … when, when their birthday is, and then I go,
Scott Hammond: I line 'em up. [laughs] So you married
up like I did.
Peter Jermyn: Exactly.
Scott Hammond: Yeah. That's good. I like it. So, uh, give us a little history of
the bagel business, if you would, and then we can talk about some other
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: You wanna start?
Peter Jermyn: Sure.
Scott Hammond: Or Peter?
Peter Jermyn: Well, so w-
and Dennis said Roy Iskra had butcher shop, 23 years in the same butcher shop. I'm like, "That is phenomenal. The guy stayed in business
[laughs]
Scott Hammond: Yeah. Yeah, almo- more than… Well, it's gotta be double one day.
Dennis Rael: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: And why, and why bagels? How… Y- your, your heritage is, is,
bagel background, right?
Dennis Rael: Right. Well, half of my heritage does.
Like I said, I'm, I'm fortunate enough to have, uh, My family, my background is both Latino and Mexican on my dad's side, and my mother's side is, uh, is Jewish, originally from the
Ukraine.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Dennis Rael: Uh, and bagels were one of those items
up here. Uh-
Scott Hammond: No
Dennis Rael: … I was looking around and when,
either the Bay Area or LA or even relatives from back east-
Scott Hammond: Hmm
Dennis Rael: … they'd say, "Hey, what can I bring?" And I'd say,
Scott Hammond: [laughs]
Dennis Rael: Uh, and so-
Scott Hammond: That's what they say to us in Oregon now.
Dennis Rael: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Bring us some bagels.
Dennis Rael: Right.
Peter Jermyn: Right.
Dennis Rael: Well, now thing… I mean, we're able to get things to turn around to
bring bagels back east and, and all over the place, which is, which
Scott Hammond: Quick, quick hard stop. I brought bags of bagels to
Amsterdam to my son two months ago.
Peter Jermyn: All right.
Scott Hammond: They were sto-
Dennis Rael: Oh, wow
Scott Hammond: … by the way, they were, Joni put them in a shoe.
Peter Jermyn: Did you-
Dennis Rael: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: We got them and we whipped those out, and it
contraband. [laughs]
Dennis Rael: That's right. Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: Nice move.
Dennis Rael: That's, that's a good one.
Peter Jermyn: They loved it.
Scott Hammond: Nice move. [laughs]
Dennis Rael: So for me, I started looking into, okay, what I wa-
Like Peter had said, I'd had my own business in the Cafe Pacifico-
Scott Hammond: Oh
Dennis Rael: … which was the first Mexican restaurant in,
Scott Hammond: Wow
Dennis Rael: … uh, back in the late '70s. Uh-
Scott Hammond: Where was it in town? Was it-
Dennis Rael: On the Warmoesstraat, 针 derelict between the train station
Scott Hammond: Oh, wow.
Dennis Rael: Uh, so right, right there, right on the edge of the Red Light
Scott Hammond: Good spot.
Dennis Rael: Uh, across the str- or kinda catty-corner from the police
Scott Hammond: That's when the red light-
Dennis Rael: So
Scott Hammond: … was on fire, right?
Dennis Rael: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: There was a crazy-
Dennis Rael: So, uh,
and, uh,
yeah, so when I moved to, uh, you know… After living in the Netherlands for a years, I moved here. I did a f- you know, a little bit of some odd jobs, and like I said, I became a, uh, butcher at the co-op, but I still, I realized I wanted to form my own business-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Dennis Rael: … and, um, you know, be in control of that,
do, so I started looking into bagels, and to me it was a little bit between bagels and tortillas. There weren't good tortillas here back sad to say, there's still that gap. You know, there's some individuals who are making tortillas these days-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Dennis Rael: … but still, on a larger level, uh,
Scott Hammond: Mm
Dennis Rael: … great opportunity for somebody.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: So at that point I started
doing a bunch of research and then looking around. Okay, I didn't wanna do it alone. I, I've always liked the idea doing it with a
partnership.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Dennis Rael: Uh, and, uh, you know, Peter was one of the individuals that we'd
become friends, and he'd had some business experience, trying to figure out what he was gonna do. He just moved up north here-
Scott Hammond: Hmm
Dennis Rael: … and was kinda weighing between, okay,
esoteric bagel shop or something more-
Scott Hammond: [laughs]
Dennis Rael: … firm as he could become a teacher,
Peter Jermyn: Right
Dennis Rael: … on the fence doing both for,
Peter Jermyn: Bagels is sort of teaching, right?
Dennis Rael: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah. Right.
Dennis Rael: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: So, so tell us your background.
us?
Dennis Rael: N- no, I came from… I, I lived on the Mason-Dixon line
for-
Peter Jermyn: Oh
Dennis Rael: … a lot of my life.
Peter Jermyn: Oh.
Dennis Rael: And, uh, then I moved
right around the end of the '60s-
Peter Jermyn: Hmm
Dennis Rael: … to Southern Humboldt.
Peter Jermyn: Oh, wow.
Dennis Rael: And then I realized, you know, it's just hard to make a living in
Southern Humboldt. It was really… I, like Dennis, I was doing every kind of job.
Peter Jermyn: Mm-hmm.
Dennis Rael: Started my own business and, um, and I realized,
you know, you just, you need to find something steadier.
Peter Jermyn: Hmm.
Dennis Rael: So I went to Humboldt to get a teacher's credential.
Peter Jermyn: You mean Cal Poly?
Dennis Rael: No, it was Humboldt at that point.
Peter Jermyn: It was Humboldt.
Dennis Rael: Thank you.
Peter Jermyn: It's, uh, it's still-
Dennis Rael: Absolutely right.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: High five across the table.
Peter Jermyn: Exactly. And, and so then I met Dennis and-
Dennis Rael: Yeah
Peter Jermyn: … and we were talking about business and I said,
we really need a place to go have coffee and talk about business." And there wasn't a place like that.
Dennis Rael: Huh.
Peter Jermyn: So when he had this idea for, for
bagels, it was, we need a cafe. We need this place that, that people, all-
Dennis Rael: Sure
Peter Jermyn: … kinds of people can feel comfortable to
coffee and meet and, and so that was the genesis of the whole, uh-
Dennis Rael: Wow
Peter Jermyn: … hey, let's have, let's have a bagel cafe.
Dennis Rael: Sure. Sure.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: And boy do you have
three? Is there three now?
Peter Jermyn: Three, yeah.
Dennis Rael: Yeah? Okay.
Peter Jermyn: Only one, one of when, one of which you can't sit down
the, uh, which is now Cal- Cal Poly, but-
Dennis Rael: Mm-hmm
Peter Jermyn: … uh, but we sell bagels and a variety of things.
Dennis Rael: All right.
Peter Jermyn: That's like a running joke in [laughs] this podcast.
Ca- it's Cal Poly Humboldt, formerly known as-
Dennis Rael: X
Peter Jermyn: … as the [laughs] X.
Dennis Rael: [laughs]
Peter Jermyn: It's H now. See the big H everywhere.
That's their, their mo- their logo, so. No, it, it… You guys have offshoots of this as well in terms of, uh, product, like the slime slug you sell.
Dennis Rael: Yeah. Yeah, slug slime-
Peter Jermyn: Slug slime. Yeah
Dennis Rael: … and, and granola-
Peter Jermyn: Mm-hmm
Dennis Rael: … uh, you know, are two, two of the products that we, uh,
the stores, and wholesale around, and also, you know, ship different places.
Peter Jermyn: Gotcha.
Dennis Rael: Uh, so.
Peter Jermyn: So, uh, what, uh-
Dennis Rael: Well, one of the-
Peter Jermyn: Go ahead. Go ahead. You were gonna say
Dennis Rael: … one of the cool things about the early
that there were a bunch of us starting different kinds of businesses, and okay, so we needed jam for the bagels, and Susan Anderson needed to have a, a small business so she could sell us jam. And Perta was an artist, but sold jalapeno jam, so we put her… Dixie had a Lar- Larrupin Cafe and this great
sauce.
Peter Jermyn: Wow.
Dennis Rael: Hey, w- we'll put that on the bagels.
Scott and, uh, and, uh, his buddy, w- w- w-
Peter Jermyn: Mitch was his special buddy.
Dennis Rael: Mitch, yeah.
Peter Jermyn: Is that Mr. Fish or the-
Dennis Rael: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: Or the-
Dennis Rael: Fish Brothers
Peter Jermyn: … and, and we really needed fish, so they,
So-
Dennis Rael: That's right
Peter Jermyn: … um-
Dennis Rael: Mad River Jams, was that part of it?
Peter Jermyn: Yeah, Mad River Jams, that was Susan.
Dennis Rael: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: And, um, and then even Matthew, uh,
Schmidt with the Tofu Works-
Dennis Rael: Yeah
Peter Jermyn: … came and, "Hey, I can make tofu spread for you."
Dennis Rael: Did I see Matthew? Is he still selling to- making,
Peter Jermyn: I think so.
Dennis Rael: I haven't seen him for quite a while, but I think he's still around.
Peter Jermyn: I thought I saw him at the co-op.
Dennis Rael: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: The, uh-
Dennis Rael: Yeah. Yeah
Peter Jermyn: … he was sitting at the co-op the other day.
Dennis Rael: Right. Yeah, you would probably see him, like,
Peter Jermyn: Go figure.
Dennis Rael: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: So what's your, what's your job today?
What's your title and what are your, your duties? Let's,
Dennis Rael: I'd say my, probably my, uh,
my title would be semi-retired.
Peter Jermyn: Mm-hmm.
Dennis Rael: Uh, I'm still obviously involved with Los
I'm president of the board. Uh, and then I meet regularly, uh, with two of our partners who have kind of
Peter Jermyn: Mm-hmm.
Dennis Rael: Um, both Travis May, the general manager, and Eddie Blakeslee,
operations manager.
Peter Jermyn: Mm-hmm.
Dennis Rael: Uh, so,
uh, not involved in the day-to-day operations,
projects or-
Peter Jermyn: Hmm
Dennis Rael: … or, uh, you know, the thing I like about it is now I get a
call after the fact that, "Just so you know,"
Peter Jermyn: [laughs]
Dennis Rael: "… this water line broke yesterday
Peter Jermyn: It's done
Dennis Rael: … instead of getting a call in the middle of
water everywhere. What are you gonna do?"
Peter Jermyn: Come on down. [laughs]
Dennis Rael: So, uh,
but like I said, besides that, uh, you know, even during my… when I was working with, uh, with Loss Bagels full time, I've been involved in a variety of other enterprises, a lot of non-profits. Uh, been involved in a wood export business in, in southern Mexico.
Peter Jermyn: Wow.
Dennis Rael: Uh, like I said, helped start the Arcata Sister City.
Peter Jermyn: Mm-hmm.
Dennis Rael: Uh, currently on the board right now of
Been involved in Planned Parenthood board, been involved with North Coast Regional
Land Trust-
Peter Jermyn: Right
Dennis Rael: … and still do a lot of stuff with,
Uh, been real-
Peter Jermyn: Yeah
Dennis Rael: … involved with the trails
Um-
Peter Jermyn: Oh, wow
Dennis Rael: … so,
uh, but still find plenty of time to, uh, to go fishing and, uh, to go mountain biking, uh-
Peter Jermyn: Nice
Dennis Rael: … and go hiking, so.
Peter Jermyn: So this has been a platform for you,
starting a business to do other things and be involved in-
Dennis Rael: Well, I think that's just who I am,
Uh, and, you know, when you speak of platform, we first opened Los Bagels is how it could be a platform to involve other people, [coughs] excuse me, other people and, and other organizations and businesses to do a variety of projects.
Peter Jermyn: Hmm.
Dennis Rael: You know, how we could get a Coca-Cola
donate to our sister city in Nicaragua-
Peter Jermyn: Mm-hmm
Dennis Rael: … by donating to Loss Bagels,
that for a block party we're gonna have to benefit somebody else.
Peter Jermyn: Right.
Dennis Rael: So continue get community partners involved in a whole variety
of way and not just be a one, you know, one-time shot.
Peter Jermyn: Love it.
Dennis Rael: Uh, and just keep, keep going on and on,
great part, and that's what, what I think juiced me up
know?
Peter Jermyn: Mm-hmm. It's that win, win, win, win, win thing.
Dennis Rael: Right, and I think that's, that's what goes back to when I look at,
as a, as a business and, you know, community organization, is because we've continually given b-Back to the community in so many different ways-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Dennis Rael: … and they in turn give back to us and,
Scott Hammond: Right.
Dennis Rael: So.
Scott Hammond: That's so, such a cool story, and
I wish it was like that for, for all of us all the time, bet. What's… Sir, what is your job? What, what do you do?
[laughs]
Peter Jermyn: [laughs] Well, like Dennis, I'm semi-retired, but I'm
fairly retired.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Peter Jermyn: But, um, yeah.
But one of the really good things that Dennis sort of alluded to is what kept us… We had different hats that we wore, and one of the hats was we worked and managed Los Bagels-
Scott Hammond: Mm
Peter Jermyn: … but we also were board of directors,
board. So there would… W- we regularly would take off our working hats-
Scott Hammond: Mm
Peter Jermyn: … and put on our board hats and sit down
about the business in general-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Peter Jermyn: … where it goes, how it works, all those kind of things.
And so th- that structure really has
helped-
Scott Hammond: Yeah
Peter Jermyn: … and it's helped us to be able to move as
have.
Scott Hammond: Right.
Peter Jermyn: It, it's… Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: It's a, a… The other thing that, um, has
really always been true, and it's one of the, the traits that a- attracted me to working with Dennis, kind of integrity that, uh-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Peter Jermyn: … comes with the whole experience of Los
Scott Hammond: Nice.
Peter Jermyn: Um, whether it's about the bookkeeping,
products, or whether-
Scott Hammond: Mm
Peter Jermyn: … it's about the way we deal with customers,
customer problems. One of the best things about working there was all the people and the, and the
development.
Scott Hammond: Hmm.
Peter Jermyn: We got to do employment development work with young
people all the time.
Scott Hammond: Wow.
Peter Jermyn: I mean, from [laughs] I remember Dennis saying
like, "This girl's not showing up on time," problem? And we find out she doesn't have a decent across the street to the hardware store, get her a-
Scott Hammond: Get her a clock
Peter Jermyn: … alarm clock. [laughs] So it-
Scott Hammond: Nice
Peter Jermyn: … you know. Um, yeah. So but of, uh, it was
also a lot, the business could be a platform for other
people, and there were a lot of people who were musicians, who were-
Scott Hammond: Mm
Peter Jermyn: … artists, who'd had other pursuits in their lives-
Scott Hammond: Hmm
Peter Jermyn: … where they were going to university-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Peter Jermyn: … and they used employment at Los Bagels-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Peter Jermyn: … as a regular base-
Scott Hammond: Wow
Peter Jermyn: … and then could go off, whether it was economic base
just, like, a touchstone place.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Peter Jermyn: And, uh, yeah.
Scott Hammond: I love it.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: So when we're… We have nine kids.
Many of them live out of town, and is there anything from Humboldt? Inevitably, it's some product from you guys.
Peter Jermyn: Uh-huh.
Scott Hammond: It used to be Dick Taylor. Now I think they have a library full.
But it's almost always bagels or sauce or granola or whatever. We brought some granola to Amsterdam, too. I, I immediately tapped into it myself-
Peter Jermyn: Yeah
Scott Hammond: … but.
Peter Jermyn: W- I think one of the things that why,
are important, like, to your kids who are away, and, and that's true for a lot of families and a lot of people who used to live here, is that they mean something about the-
Scott Hammond: Yeah
Peter Jermyn: … essence of Humboldt-
Scott Hammond: Yeah
Peter Jermyn: … in a way that's in the product and,
It's, it's like-
Scott Hammond: Yes, it is
Peter Jermyn: … it's baked into it somewhere.
Scott Hammond: Right. [laughs]
Peter Jermyn: We only got five ingredients, but there is this secret one that's-
Scott Hammond: It's a great
Peter Jermyn: …
that's, uh, that's, that is the Humboldt experience.
Scott Hammond: That's a great point. You touched on something that's, I think,
It's like, uh, the, these guys have figured some of that out. There's, there's a product loyalty. It's baked into the… There's a magic. There's a, a memory.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: It's, it probably has to do with taste buds.
There's something-
Peter Jermyn: Mm-hmm
Scott Hammond: … tactile or, you know, taste in that.
So that, and then you become a product advocate. Yeah. Oh, these guys… Oh, you want some of this sauce? Oh, You know, whatever.
Peter Jermyn: Right.
Scott Hammond: And so-
Peter Jermyn: Right. Yeah
Scott Hammond: … you got, you got people out there preaching that,
Peter Jermyn: And it's experience that people had.
I, I watched couples meet at the bagel shop, sitting [laughs] uh, you know, um,
yeah.
Scott Hammond: Proposals.
Peter Jermyn: You could… Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Right.
Peter Jermyn: You know? Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: I mean, they're, they're… Like, it really w-
Scott Hammond: Yeah
Peter Jermyn: … uh, is a nexus of a lot of meeting.
Scott Hammond: Yeah. Yeah, I love it.
Peter Jermyn: Whether it's… And, and the,
who meets and how it meets is different in Eureka and
Arcata. Um-
Scott Hammond: Sure.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Yeah. That's good. So, uh, what do you see for
Humboldt going forward? What would you… What do you see? What would you like to see? And I'll start with Dennis and, What's, what's the future of our county as you You're, you're on a lot of boards. The Great Redwood Trail's coming. I mean, there's some stuff. Hopefully, we'll get to see some of it.
Dennis Rael: Um, that's, that's an interesting question.
I don't know if I have a vision si- uh, going forward. I think there's gonna be a lot of potential change coming to Humboldt. Uh, obviously, the effects that we've had from cannabis over the years that we've seen go up and down in a little rollercoaster, uh, it's had a, I think, a radical effect on this county-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Dennis Rael: … both positive and negative.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: Uh, so it'll be interesting to see what's
backfill-
Scott Hammond: Mm
Dennis Rael: … on that void as that's coming up.
Scott Hammond: Sure.
Dennis Rael: You have all this space and stuff now that's not being utilized.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm. The boom and bust economy.
Dennis Rael: And, and, uh, expertise in there, people who are…
You know, some really smart people-
Scott Hammond: Mm
Dennis Rael: … who have a lot of, uh, a lot going for them.
Uh, obviously, we have this wind power which is coming, gonna be a huge change to the county, both what's gonna happen infrastructure-wise and, and going forward here. And, uh, Cal Poly as, and as we know it now, and its potential. You know, I'm, I'm not sure if it's gonna meet its keep hearing about.
Scott Hammond: Right.
Dennis Rael: Uh, but I mean, we've seen thatA little bit.
You can almost equate it to the cannabis business as far as boom and bust over the years that we've been in business. You know?
Scott Hammond: The education boom and bust?
Dennis Rael: Well, the, the numbers.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: The numbers of students that-
Scott Hammond: Yeah
Dennis Rael: … we've had, you know. Uh, what they're shooting for in some of these
are similar to we had back 20, 30 years ago, you know?
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Dennis Rael: And, uh, and how that's affected the-
Scott Hammond: Mm
Dennis Rael: … you know, the economy.
Scott Hammond: Humboldt State.
Dennis Rael: Uh, so.
Scott Hammond: That's Humboldt State.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah. Yeah. Right.
Scott Hammond: Humboldt Teachers College. [laughs]
Peter Jermyn: Yeah, I was gonna say.
Dennis Rael: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: So, you know, I th- and I also think the, the change in,
in what's happening, uh, just overall with the county and, you know, the, the change in recognition of what, uh, tribes are doing throughout this whole area, not just Humboldt County, but,
uh-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm. Sure
Dennis Rael: … and a whole change in, hopefully, some of the vision of equity-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Dennis Rael: … to what's going on. Uh, so I think there's a lot of
potential. Uh, and, you know, it's neat to see a- another wave of, of entrepreneurs in a different sense. Um, like I said, Adam and Dustin with Dick Taylor are, are great individuals and, you know, and I think the key word talking about, you know, besides great product and, and product loyalty, et cetera, is integrity.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Dennis Rael: You know, and I think these, these guys really have that integrity,
Scott Hammond: Mm
Dennis Rael: … that speaks volumes at going forward.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: Uh, so I think there will be opportunities,
changing. I… You know, obviously we have climate change coming population is gonna change and, and-
Scott Hammond: Mm
Dennis Rael: … increase.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: Uh, so it's, it's great opportunity and, and it, to
me it's a lot of unknowns, you know-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Dennis Rael: … to be honest.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: Uh, what's gonna happen with sea level rise-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Dennis Rael: … you know, with, uh, all the, the property
know, gonna be-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Dennis Rael: … flooded, and how do we adapt with that?
Scott Hammond: Wow.
Dennis Rael: Uh, so.
Scott Hammond: Yeah. I've asked the question a number of times,
of di- different angles that no- no one's mentioned. Climate change.
Dennis Rael: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Boom and bust economy. I mean, don't they call this an, an extraction
economy?
Dennis Rael: Right.
Scott Hammond: Isn't that timber-
Peter Jermyn: Well, yep. Yep
Scott Hammond: … and marijuana and-
Peter Jermyn: Yeah
Scott Hammond: … steel?
Dennis Rael: Well, seafood.
Scott Hammond: Coal? [laughs]
Dennis Rael: Yeah. Fishing, the fishing industry.
Scott Hammond: Fishing.
Dennis Rael: You know?
Scott Hammond: Yeah. All of it.
Dennis Rael: Um, so.
Scott Hammond: Logging. What do, what do you see f- for your Humboldt
Peter Jermyn: So I, I'll tell you, Scott, [laughs] that when I first came to
Humboldt, I met some old people t- or… And they were probably just mature adults, but-
Scott Hammond: [laughs]
Peter Jermyn: [laughs] But-
Scott Hammond: They were 45
Peter Jermyn: … they, they told me how Humboldt used to be so
Scott Hammond: Hm.
Peter Jermyn: It was just so great. And, uh, you know, now
it's just a mess. And that was 50
years ago.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: Okay?
And I'll tell you [laughs] that th- I see that same-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Peter Jermyn: … Humboldt is… I, when I looked around, I saw opportunities.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: Because w- we knew that the timber industry was going away.
And, you know, when I tried to find jobs in the timber Humboldt, there really just all the mills
Scott Hammond: Right.
Peter Jermyn: And there j- there just wasn't… And yet,
look at what filled in underneath that in southern-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Peter Jermyn: … Humboldt. Okay, so there's-
Scott Hammond: Sure
Peter Jermyn: … that. And when I looked around Arcata, there were a
lot of empty lots-
Scott Hammond: Hm
Peter Jermyn: … that were buildings that had burned.
Nobody was rebuilding.
Scott Hammond: Remember that.
Peter Jermyn: A hotel couldn't really keep tenants, and they were like-
Scott Hammond: Plaza had a burned down site on the-
Peter Jermyn: Yeah
Scott Hammond: … the old… Was it a shoe store or
f- uh, clothing store?
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Anyway.
Peter Jermyn: So, so what happened w- was when
I looked at it, I saw, hey, there's an opportunity. And people like Alex Stillman came and said-
Scott Hammond: Mm
Peter Jermyn: … "Hey, you know, we could do this.
We can do that." People like Dennis and I came and found things to do. Other people found small businesses. So when I look ahead, I say, "You know, I think there's tons of opportunities."
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Peter Jermyn: And h- the better days are not behind us,
I think.
Scott Hammond: Good word.
Peter Jermyn: You know?
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah. Uh, so yeah, there's challenges.
Hey, there were economic challenges 50 years It was hard to make a living.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Peter Jermyn: There were, you know…
Um, and it still can be, but there's also an entrepreneurial spirit in this county-
Scott Hammond: Yeah
Peter Jermyn: … that I tapped into.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Peter Jermyn: I realized, hey, this is a place I wanna be.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: Um, and when people say to me, "Hey, how come I moved
here?"
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Peter Jermyn: That was one of the things that really attracted me.
Scott Hammond: Yeah. Yeah. I mean, it-
Peter Jermyn: And so, so when I look ahead, yeah, I think there,
there are challenges like climate change, but I also recognize that, you know, when you look at the Arcata Marsh, and that was just a project-
Scott Hammond: Right
Peter Jermyn: … 40, 50 years ago. It was kind of a,
almost a brownfield site.
Scott Hammond: Yeah, it was a dump.
Peter Jermyn: That, uh, that,
that… And we needed a sewer system.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Peter Jermyn: And that was innovative. I have no idea what the innovative
next project is.
Scott Hammond: Right.
Peter Jermyn: Um, you know, when I look at w- w- the peninsula
and I think about all the economic activity that was on the peninsula.
Scott Hammond: Hm.
Peter Jermyn: The shipbuilding, and Dick Taylor show you, hey, [laughs]
that's what the sh- And it was one of the biggest shipbuilding places in the country.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Peter Jermyn: That went away.
Scott Hammond: Is that Fairhaven at Samoa?
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: That wa- Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: We had two pulp mills here-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Peter Jermyn: … that were making paper that was-
Scott Hammond: Mm
Peter Jermyn: … high grade, internationally known redwood fiber
paper.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Peter Jermyn: That went away.
Scott Hammond: I'm gonna be entertaining-
Peter Jermyn: So-
Scott Hammond: … just for a minute. That's, that's right out here on Samoa Peninsula.
Peter Jermyn: Yep. Yep.
Scott Hammond: That's in Humboldt, right on the ocean.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Yeah, no, great points.
Peter Jermyn: So, so when I look at, okay, yeah, they're gonna
build a, a fish farm. I don't know whether it's the best thing that ever happened or not, but I do know that people have that look
at it as-
Scott Hammond: Right
Peter Jermyn: … look, there's another opportunity here.
Scott Hammond: Let's get curious.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Yeah
Peter Jermyn: And, and when I look at, say, the fish farm, I know people have to
eat.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: And people are really looking for good fish,
ocean, so maybe, maybe that's a good idea.
Scott Hammond: Yeah. So economic development, spirit of entrepreneurship, um-
Peter Jermyn: Yeah
Scott Hammond: …
who was it? It was, um, it was Billy Hansel said… No, it was Larry O'Dos.
He said, uh, "Humboldt's got grit."
Peter Jermyn: Uh-huh.
Scott Hammond: I go, "Grit? Yeah, I haven't heard-"
Peter Jermyn: Yeah
Scott Hammond: … "that word in a month."
Peter Jermyn: Mm.
Scott Hammond: That's a pretty, pretty good way to say it.
I just heard you-
Peter Jermyn: Yeah
Scott Hammond: … imply that, and so if you were to shout out, uh, out a few
people that have grown and, and been entrepreneurial over the years, I mean, I think of Jewel Gin and Mad River Brewery and, like, Blue Lake or Eric Almquist, but who, who comes to your mind? I mean, th- there's some obvious ones that we all would top three that…
Dennis Rael: You know, way back when, I think back that we used to actually have
plaza, uh, a bunch of us who were entrepreneurs back then.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: And that was back to, uh, Don Banducci with Yakima-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Dennis Rael: … with Steve Cole.
Scott Hammond: Sure.
Dennis Rael: Uh, Steve O'Meara. It was, uh, Holly Yashi, you know-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Dennis Rael: … sitting down. It was Julie Fulkerson.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Dennis Rael: Uh, and so I think you had some of…
I see some of those folks of, of almost being pred- We started similar
timing-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Dennis Rael: … uh, that they did, but a little bit predecessors-
Scott Hammond: Huh
Dennis Rael: … and, you know, going f- going forward on, on some of these.
And some have gotten to be international firms, you know, and they… Some have left the area. Some are still here.
Scott Hammond: Sure.
Dennis Rael: Uh, but I think, uh, I look to those as
being both peers and mentors-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Dennis Rael: … you know, in a, in a similar situation.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Dennis Rael: Uh-
Scott Hammond: Little bit of renaissance there in, in fact.
Dennis Rael: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: [phone rings] Sorry about that. This has never happened before.
Peter Jermyn: [laughs]
Scott Hammond: I'm so embarrassed. My phone went off.
Um-
Dennis Rael: That's good. I didn't think about turning mine off.
Scott Hammond: Yeah. You get yours quick. So yeah, great point.
So there's a little, uh, entrepreneurial renaissance back in the
Dennis Rael: Right
Scott Hammond: … and you're saying,
"Hey, the best days are maybe to come."
Peter Jermyn: That's absolutely-
Scott Hammond: That's a great, hopeful-
Peter Jermyn: Yeah
Scott Hammond: … I like that vision. Yeah.
Dennis Rael: Mm-hmm.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: You know, I wanna make a, a little point.
You talked about this being an extraction economy, which I think is really true, and I know something that we look at at, uh, at Humboldt Area Foundation, uh, is how to change some of the ethics of
Scott Hammond: Mm.
Dennis Rael: Uh, because generally in that extraction economy, you
have individuals getting taken advantaged of-
Scott Hammond: Mm
Dennis Rael: … uh, to,
m- to make that extraction happen and take, take it away from here instead of making sure that the people who live here, uh, and are working here get full advantage of, of what's happening in that-
Scott Hammond: Good
Dennis Rael: … whole scenario.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: So, you know, I look forward to things going in the
but happening in a better, better frame of mind.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: Uh, and you know, similar to what Peter said,
are ahead.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Dennis Rael: Uh, so when you look at an extraction, uh,
wind energy, you look at fish farm or any, any of these changes, okay, how can we do those in a way-
Scott Hammond: Hmm
Dennis Rael: … that really,
really benefits that community-
Peter Jermyn: Yeah, absolutely
Dennis Rael: … instead of taking away from it-
Peter Jermyn: That-
Dennis Rael: … you know?
Scott Hammond: That's good.
Dennis Rael: Uh, so…
Scott Hammond: So you benefit the locals. You keep money locally.
Peter Jermyn: And that ethic wasn't built into
a lot of the earlier extractive-
Scott Hammond: Sure
Peter Jermyn: … activities.
Scott Hammond: Georgia-Pacific-
Peter Jermyn: But it is now
Scott Hammond: … it went somewhere.
Peter Jermyn: Now there are people with those kind of visions.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: I like it.
Peter Jermyn: Um, if we-
Scott Hammond: It's good to talk about it, by the way.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah. So one of the places that I look at what's
happening that's really good is when I moved here, there were dairies, and there was a mix of dairies all over the place.
Now all Humboldt milk
is organic.
Scott Hammond: Hmm.
Peter Jermyn: And there are regenerative ag-
Scott Hammond: Wow
Peter Jermyn: … people who are leading the way-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Peter Jermyn: … and showing that there's premium in the marketplace.
And so when I look at it, it's like a lot of these ag producers, you know, it used to be that there were… all the, all the beef went to-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Peter Jermyn: … feedlots-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Peter Jermyn: … and got fed chemicals and, uh, to fatten them up.
Now they're grass-fed beef, and there was marketing to do that, and there was this, uh, vision-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Peter Jermyn: … that, that we could do it better.
Scott Hammond: So sustainability and… But, but more than that, it's…
You're saying on a demographic local person,
human level-
Dennis Rael: Right. I think it's both ways
Scott Hammond: … taking care of people. Yeah. Mm-hmm
Dennis Rael: You know, like, like Peter was talking about. You know,
You take what Humboldt Grass-Fed Beef and Lee Morin, his family, has done, who have been here generations, but how do they adapt to make that a premium product?
Scott Hammond: Is he kind of the lead guy-
Dennis Rael: [coughs]
Scott Hammond: … that did that, Dennis?
Dennis Rael: Well, he is one of the individuals.
There's other people, but yeah, he was one of the lead people-
Scott Hammond: Yeah
Dennis Rael: … uh, with that, and I was fortunate enough to get to,
We both went on, went on the, uh, uh, North Coast Regional Land Trust board
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Dennis Rael: … from totally different perspectives,
Scott Hammond: Sure.
Dennis Rael: But both businesspeople and both looking at that and-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Dennis Rael: … and, you know, somebody I value as a, as a friend
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Dennis Rael: I think we both were over… able to open up either…
And-
Scott Hammond: I love it
Dennis Rael: … you know?
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: Uh, and I see that continually happening.
There's a number of, like Peter said, other, other dairies that are, that on and other people who are utilizing their land in a different
you know-
Scott Hammond: Yeah
Dennis Rael: … and keeping that, you know? And-
Scott Hammond: Yeah
Dennis Rael: … you know, some of the work
keeping these working landscapes so we can not split them all up and going forward and, and have-
Scott Hammond: Love it
Dennis Rael: … a resource that, that, that will go for generations, you know?
Scott Hammond: I think you just hit on something that
strikes me as the magic of Humboldt. It's in a world of division now. That, that experience you just shared is… That's the magic of Humboldt, you know?
Peter Jermyn: Well, if you, if you look at the mission statement for
Bagels-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Peter Jermyn: … it says a multi-cash, multicultural cafe.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Peter Jermyn: And when, when you came into Humboldt 50, 60 years
ago, there were, there was, like, a cultural split.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Dennis Rael: And we've worked hard to heal that cultural-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Dennis Rael: … split, to make sure that w- that
a whole lot of different kinds of people could all experience being at Los Bagels together.
Scott Hammond: Perfect. Yeah.
Dennis Rael: Uh, yeah.
Scott Hammond: It's finding that common denominator, I think-
Dennis Rael: Yeah
Scott Hammond: … that he has that, and, and reaching out to those folks to find
what, what can we agree on, not necessarily what we disagree on-
Dennis Rael: Yeah
Scott Hammond: … and going for it, and sharing some of the cultures.
I have this great vision of this little kid bringing his, uh, their dad, this little girl bringing her dad into Los Bagels right around this time of the year, and said, "Dad, I wanna, I wanna get a menorah," uh, because she'd heard about that at school. And her dad said, "You know, look, Jewish." She goes, "Dad, you don't have to be Jewish to, it's, it's… So here is this little kid teaching her dad about whole different culture-
Dennis Rael: Yeah
Scott Hammond: … and how to open that up.
Dennis Rael: Right. Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Uh, so, and that happens in, I think, so many different levels,
much potential to do that-
Dennis Rael: Right
Scott Hammond: … you know? So.
Dennis Rael: Same thing with Dia de Los Muertos, right?
Scott Hammond: Yeah, yeah.
Dennis Rael: To see that.
Scott Hammond: It's another-
Dennis Rael: Right
Scott Hammond: … another deal to open that up.
Dennis Rael: But, you know, it's even on the bagel level [laughs]
I remember taking a platter to KRED and Dana Hall-
Scott Hammond: Sure
Dennis Rael: … who had never… Like, he didn't have a first idea what a
bagel was.
Scott Hammond: Country music station. He had donuts.
Dennis Rael: Right. Exactly. And-
Scott Hammond: Love you, love you, Dana
Dennis Rael: … but he, but he liked the smoked fish, and
on air he said, "I'm sitting here eating a bagel,
not bad."
Scott Hammond: [laughs]
Dennis Rael: And I knew-
Scott Hammond: That's a good endorsement. [laughs]
Dennis Rael: I knew we were successful in reaching across
the, uh, uh-
Scott Hammond: Yeah
Dennis Rael: … yeah, the culture there.
Scott Hammond: Yeah. I remember eating bagels in
Dennis Rael: Yeah. Right.
Scott Hammond: Yeah. You guys-
Dennis Rael: And see, that goes all the way back to when we,
He said, "Where did we…" We- we're founded at, I mean, uh, is at the Arcata location, 1061 I Street, which was Roy Iskra's, uh, Roy's Quality Meats. And when I told him what I wanted to do, he'd never heard of a bagel.
Scott Hammond: He had donut holes.
Dennis Rael: And he was very leery of selling his, his
property to somebody of starting this project he'd never heard of, and-
Scott Hammond: Wow
Dennis Rael: … he was a guy who hung out at Don's Donuts
And I, you know, told him about this, and he finally came back and, you know, the months of negotiations were happening. "You know, I talked to my daughter about these, know, they're, they're not too bad. They're all right."
Scott Hammond: They're good. [laughs]
Dennis Rael: Uh, and so it was opening that whole thing up-
Scott Hammond: Yeah
Dennis Rael: … you know, even to him-
Scott Hammond: Yeah
Dennis Rael: … so that it would work in
And it was a cultural, it was an exchange. There was a humanitarian exchange.
Scott Hammond: Yeah, yeah.
Dennis Rael: Uh.
Scott Hammond: I'm hearing you say connection and relationship.
Dennis Rael: Yep.
Scott Hammond: What was the guy at the Grass Fed be- Is it Lee?
Dennis Rael: No. Yeah, Lee Mora.
Scott Hammond: Lee Mora.
Dennis Rael: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Is he still, is he still around?
Dennis Rael: No, he's still around and-
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Okay. Yeah.
Dennis Rael: So.
Scott Hammond: Huh.
Dennis Rael: You should have Lee. Lee would be a good one for you on your
Scott Hammond: Okay.
Dennis Rael: So.
Scott Hammond: Yeah, let's… We'll talk to Lee.
Dennis Rael: So, yeah.
Scott Hammond: So you've experienced these kind of connections.
You, you got any other top of mind ones you, y- you connected with somebody that maybe you shouldn't have?
Dennis Rael: Um-
Scott Hammond: That wouldn't make any sense 'cause you were so diverse?
Dennis Rael: Yeah.
I, yes and no. So one day, uh,
well, this was a long time ago now, but my father died, and it was on the East Coast, so I was flying east.
And I was in the airport in San Francisco, and sitting across from me at one of those little places to eat was this nice couple, and they were just regular
folks.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Dennis Rael: And they said, "Oh, hey, where are you from?" And then they said
they were coming from Ronald Reagan's inauguration.
Scott Hammond: How about that?
Dennis Rael: And they were the head of the Republican
Party in Humboldt County. [laughs] And they lived right up the street from the bagel shop, but, but I know that Robin Arkley walked right by the shop-
Scott Hammond: Every day
Dennis Rael: … really often.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: I remember waving to him
before. And then after that, it was now I was a human, he was
a human.
Scott Hammond: Ah. Did he come in for a bagel then?
Dennis Rael: I doubt it. [laughs]
Scott Hammond: [laughs]
Dennis Rael: They're too tough.
Scott Hammond: He's a pretty hardcore dude.
Dennis Rael: [laughs] But it was… But, you know, and this was not
Rob Arkley, who we know in Eureka, but-
Scott Hammond: It's his papa, yeah
Dennis Rael: … this was his, his dad and mom-
Scott Hammond: Yeah
Dennis Rael: … who lived up at the top of the hill in
Scott Hammond: Yeah, they're right up the street.
Dennis Rael: Yeah. Yeah.
Scott Hammond: By the Vets Hall up there, yeah.
Dennis Rael: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Huh.
Dennis Rael: But, but it was one of those, yeah, you know, that's, there's…
It is possible-
Scott Hammond: It's a connection.
Dennis Rael: Yeah
Scott Hammond: … yeah
Dennis Rael: … to reach.
Scott Hammond: You know, I used to work at the Tri-City,
Dennis Rael: Yeah
Scott Hammond: … newspaper, and my boss Ron sold it
County, and it's another story. But I said, goes, "We could be as diverse as we wanted, from all the backgrounds." He goes, "There were still relationships and, um, and m- mutual exchange." Uh, you could go down the r- the line and describe it, but, um, I think that sets us apart. And in a world right now that feels super, super weird and divided, you know, and sad- sadly, but maybe, maybe that's… We're the outlier in a good way.
Dennis Rael: You know, I think it sets us apart and exists,
attractions that I have here.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Dennis Rael: But I also think it's important to not be fooled,
of conflict going on and, you know, a lot of people-
Scott Hammond: Sure
Dennis Rael: … who don't wanna w- reach across the aisle and do that,
Scott Hammond: Sure.
Dennis Rael: That there's a lot of work to be done in that scenario here-
Scott Hammond: Good
Dennis Rael: … that, uh, I think lots of times people think of
even Arcata, as this, uh, real liberal enclave, but there's a lot of things going on that maybe underneath the skin-
Scott Hammond: Yeah
Dennis Rael: … uh, they're not so, so liberal that-
Scott Hammond: Right
Dennis Rael: … we would think about, you know?
Scott Hammond: Right.
Dennis Rael: Uh, that, like I said, I see that on a re- on a regular basis.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: You know? And so, uh, as great as it is,
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: You know? And, uh, yeah, keep, keep reaching across that aisle,
Creeds.
Scott Hammond: Amen.
Dennis Rael: You know, meeting those people at the airport,
Scott Hammond: Yeah
Dennis Rael: … opening that up because I think there's those
Scott Hammond: Yeah.In the Barbie movie, one of the lines is s- he says,
[laughs]
Dennis Rael: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: It's pretty… [laughs]
Dennis Rael: Well-
Scott Hammond: Yeah. [laughs]
Dennis Rael: I think one of the wonderful things about Humboldt is that the
scale works, that because w- we have this big forest all around us-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Dennis Rael: …
that, that we really are just here, and th- that we're… It's not too big. So there really is that chance to see those people more
than-
Scott Hammond: That's a great point
Dennis Rael: … more than-
Scott Hammond: Yeah, mm-hmm
Dennis Rael: … one or two times.
Scott Hammond: My wife Joni's a runner and a hiker and a biker,
"Hey, I saw your wife Joni." Or Joni saw so-and-so-
Dennis Rael: Right
Scott Hammond: … at McKinleyville on the Hammond Trail.
Dennis Rael: Yeah. There's that-
Scott Hammond: You ever heard of the Hammond, Hammond Trail?
Dennis Rael: [laughs] I got Hammond doors in my house.
Scott Hammond: Do you really? From Hammond Lumber?
Dennis Rael: [laughs]
Scott Hammond: [laughs]
Dennis Rael: From the railroad, yeah.
Scott Hammond: From the rai-… Oh, wow. The, um…
So, so I was gonna ask, you get a, a, you get a full day off tomorrow for free to do whatever you wanna do with whomever.
Dennis Rael: So wait, what does that mean, for free?
Like-
Scott Hammond: To do whatever you wanna do.
Dennis Rael: Oh. [laughs] Okay.
Scott Hammond: And, and you have pocket money. Uh,
What, what… Dennis, what do you do with a day off at Humboldt? What would, what would be your ideal fun day?
Dennis Rael: Uh, well, I'm fortunate that, uh, right now I have my daughter home
for a few weeks.
Scott Hammond: Mm.
Dennis Rael: Uh, so I get to hang out with her and,
I know we've talked about, uh, a memory that I have as, as a kid growing up was making cookies with my mom, and so we're talking about doing a little
two of us-
Scott Hammond: Nice
Dennis Rael: … and make two of the three different types
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Dennis Rael: Uh, I'm actually gonna be s- sitting down tomorrow, uh,
for lunch with another local business owner and just, uh, you know, exchanging information. Nothing, nothing really on the agenda.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Dennis Rael: Uh, and I'm sure I'll go for maybe a little
hike someplace.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Dennis Rael: Uh, and then turn back around as,
uh, a little meeting at Los Bagels tomorrow, consultant coming in to do some work, uh-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Dennis Rael: … work there. So it'll be mixing all that up.
Scott Hammond: I hear a lot of people connection in-
Dennis Rael: No, I think it is.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: So.
Scott Hammond: That's an ideal day. So, um,
how far do you ride when you ride your bike?
Dennis Rael: You know, uh, generally I, I mountain bike now.
I used to do a lot of road biking-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Dennis Rael: … and do a lot of… I used to ride to Trinidad regularly.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Dennis Rael: Uh, and, uh, now I, I spend a couple hours two
week up in the community forest-
Scott Hammond: Mm
Dennis Rael: … or we'll go some other places and,
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: So shorter time and miles, but more get your heart going,
uh-
Scott Hammond: Oh, yeah. There's some-
Dennis Rael: And I… Once again, it's that people connection.
People that I ride with are real close, close friends.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: Uh, and, you know, we look after each other and, and,
experience along with a good workout and-
Scott Hammond: Yeah. My wife Joni's-
Dennis Rael: So
Scott Hammond: … turned me on to that forest. It's-
Dennis Rael: Yeah
Scott Hammond: … something special. Now, are you still a, a boat guy?
Would-
Dennis Rael: Yeah. Yeah
Scott Hammond: … would boating be part of your, your-
Dennis Rael: Uh, yeah, it would be
Scott Hammond: … day off?
Dennis Rael: It… [laughs] Yes.
Scott Hammond: Just thought I'd throw it out there.
Dennis Rael: That's right. No. I got a boat at Woodley Island, and
regularly on, during the, the time when it's daylight savings, we sail on Wednesday nights. But now it's Saturdays, and there's fewer of us who go out to sail together. But, um, yeah, so sailing's a real part of…
Scott Hammond: Besides sailing, what would you do with your,
Dennis Rael: What would I do with my free day? [laughs] The,
these high tides that have been lately-
Scott Hammond: Oh, yeah
Dennis Rael: … make me wanna take my rowboat
Scott Hammond: Oh
Dennis Rael: … investigate some places
Scott Hammond: Sure.
Dennis Rael: Um, there's, the land trust has a piece of property,
Freshwater Farms Reserve.
Scott Hammond: Right.
Dennis Rael: And if you look when you go by on Myrtle Avenue, a lot of
times lately it's been flooded. And you could actually-
Scott Hammond: It's that far out
Dennis Rael: … boat right up.
Scott Hammond: That has the access. I've seen people take-
Dennis Rael: Right. Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Kayaks. A lot of people-
Dennis Rael: Well, there's a slough that comes all the way around there, but,
l- lately because of these high tides, the water comes up the slough and then fills that property.
Scott Hammond: Put in right there.
Dennis Rael: Yeah. So yeah. So that could be some real good exploring.
Scott Hammond: Yeah. We insured a lady named Betsy who's a big
Dennis Rael: Yeah
Scott Hammond: … you know, she's our age, and she's, uh, she goes out all the time,
Trinidad or the bay or the-
Dennis Rael: Yeah
Scott Hammond: … sloughs and-
Dennis Rael: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Really.
Dennis Rael: That's great. It's a good trip from,
tide down to s- to Humboldt, uh, you know, down to Woodley Island or-
Scott Hammond: Sure. Yeah
Dennis Rael: … someplace down there. Or the opposite if the tide's rising-
Scott Hammond: Tough
Dennis Rael: … to take a ride up.
Scott Hammond: Never thought of that.
Dennis Rael: We, we did it in the moonlight one night,
Scott Hammond: Whoa.
Dennis Rael: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: That'd be neat.
Dennis Rael: It puts you in some interesting places, you know,
Cow fields all around, but you're real close to the airport,
Field.
Scott Hammond: I have a kayak story that'll tie this in.
So when I was a young insurance guy 10 years ago at age 53, I went down with my satchel and my sport coat to see Don Brown and, and to, you know, job shadow and see what Don was up to, a great guy. He, he said, "Scott," he's from Texas, "Get… There's some shorts and some sandals in there. Go get dressed," in his apartment next to his business.
And I said, "Okay." And he's got… He goes, "I got the kayak strapped on. We're good to go." He had two 18-foot, I think they were cherry wood or something. He made them himself.
Dennis Rael: Mm.
Scott Hammond: He goes, "We're going to Hooked Slough,
"I guess this is part of the deal. [laughs] Let's do it."
Dennis Rael: [laughs]
Scott Hammond: And it was, and it was the zen moment of insurance trading
greatest. He goes, "Scott, I want you to bring a big check when you come to funerals. I want you to sell life insurance, but I want you to enjoy Humboldt County." goes, "This is how I do it." And it was two or three hours of just, you know, 70 degrees. It was a magic fall day and, you know, on the, on the bay down there, and I go, "Man, th- what am I, what am I thinking? How do I miss out on this?" 'Cause we live, you know… I, I, I was gonna say Disneyland. That's not a good analogy.What, what do we not have here?
Peter Jermyn: Right.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: We got a lot of nature that we can-
Scott Hammond: Mm.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Yeah, we do.
Peter Jermyn: Right.
Scott Hammond: So, uh, let's, let's talk challenges.
So, uh, we ki- you kinda touched on a couple in what, what do you see, Peter, as, as our, uh, obstacles going forward?
Peter Jermyn: Well,
[laughs] so one of our shared values for Dennis and I-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Peter Jermyn: … when we first started in business
like checking what do you want out of business? What do you… And one of the shared values was we want time off.
Scott Hammond: Ah.
Peter Jermyn: And so one of the beauties of h- being a
partner was to be able to, "I can cover while you're gone. You can cover while I'm gone."
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: And so one of the challenges of living
in Humboldt is to really make sure to take
advantage-
Scott Hammond: Yeah
Peter Jermyn: … of doing that. Put the shorts on and,
do. Get, uh-
Scott Hammond: Yeah
Peter Jermyn: … because w- it's r- these days you can fill your
days up with activities-
Scott Hammond: Mm
Peter Jermyn: … and miss the fact that you have-
Scott Hammond: Yeah
Peter Jermyn: … this kind of closeness to nature and
engagement. And-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Peter Jermyn: … you think about how many trails there
not even have been on. [laughs]
Scott Hammond: Right.
Peter Jermyn: And, uh, you know.
Scott Hammond: Mountain biker paradise, right?
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: For,
for i- walkers, for m- for runners, for, you know. Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Yeah. Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: Um, and, and so, and back roads to explore
and waterways to explore. So one of the challenges is really to remember that you need a, a balance between getting things done-
Scott Hammond: I like it
Peter Jermyn: … getting there [laughs] and experiencing what
it is. So I think your guy Dan Brown was onto something.
Scott Hammond: Yeah, he was… Yeah. It, it… Giving yourself permission to,
Peter Jermyn: Yep.
Scott Hammond: So Saturday was a magic day. Joni goes,
at Stout Grove in, uh, Crescent City." And I go, "Yeah." I d- I didn't pass the test. [laughs] I go, "I got all this other stuff. I gotta go to Grocery Outlet and get, you know, some organic milk." I, I just did… She was in the moment. She's ready to go, and I'm going, "Well, I have responsibilities." And so maybe we don't always get that one right. And the next day it rained like hell, so.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah, that's the challenge then.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: Take, take it when you got it.
Scott Hammond: That's a g- that's a great, great bit, bit of advice.
Dennis Rael: Peter brought up a, a really good point and something I'm,
that I get to couple times a year go to lecture up to a, a, uh, business class at, uh, formal Humboldt State, and one of the things I always ask kids is why do they think that, uh, we started Los Bagels.
Scott Hammond: Hmm.
Dennis Rael: And in, uh, probably 10 or 15 years I've been doing that, one kid
has come up with the correct answer.
Scott Hammond: What's that?
Dennis Rael: Uh, and the correct answer was,
Scott Hammond: Nice.
Dennis Rael: Which is not the answer if you're gonna be an entrepreneur and
gonna start, especially a food business, and to do that.
Scott Hammond: Oh.
Dennis Rael: But from the get-go, kinda like Peter said, and,
partner who was helping us out, uh, that, uh, we traded off. We both were not afraid to work hard and, you know, I remember falling asleep at the table the
two-
Scott Hammond: Hmm
Dennis Rael: … uh, because we were working so many long hours.
But I also wanted to play hard, you know-
Scott Hammond: Yeah
Dennis Rael: … and do that. And we traded that off,
I mean, I feel incredibly fortunate having Peter I think I feel closer with him now-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Dennis Rael: … than maybe 30, 40 years ago.
Scott Hammond: Sure.
Dennis Rael: Uh, and we li- we live across the valley from each other
saw, saw your light on. What were you doing at 3:00 in the morning?"
Scott Hammond: [laughs]
Dennis Rael: And, and that, uh-
Scott Hammond: Same thing you were
Dennis Rael: … you know? But, uh, we also have some of those similar values-
Scott Hammond: Yeah
Dennis Rael: … you know, to get out, and I think both of us also like to travel
amount, so.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Dennis Rael: You know, we're, we're coming and going and,
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: But, uh, no, and I think it's so true. It's…
And I hear Peter talk, I see how easy it is to not do those things. Uh, and I think COVID for me-
Scott Hammond: Hmm
Dennis Rael: … you know, taught me a lesson of, uh, say yes and
don't say no. It's so easy to say no on so many
different-
Scott Hammond: Yeah
Dennis Rael: … opportunities.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: You know? Uh, and we all do that on a regular basis
saying, "Yeah, okay. That wouldn't have been my first gonna do that," bes- 'cause like you said, it may pour tomorrow.
Scott Hammond: Right.
Dennis Rael: You know?
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Dennis Rael: Uh, and live in that, live in that moment.
Scott Hammond: Yeah. So Joni and I are getting a little bit older,
principles. One is let's try new stuff. Always, always look for, "You know, we haven't done that. Let's try that." And the other is let's get curious. Let's find out what, what's behind that. Why does that person think that way? It'd be kinda interesting to know-
Dennis Rael: Mm-hmm
Scott Hammond: … their life experience and what,
w- where they're coming from. Or, or that experience of kayaking Grove or what- whatever it would be.
Um, I'll, I'll leave this as an open question. So of, of all the platforms besides the business that y- the offshoots that you were alluding to, what are you, um… Which one would you like to highlight Sister City? Uh, what, what are you, what are you proud of? What What would you like to, you know, shout out, um, that you see that's a fav- I don't know, a favorite or one that you, you are, are
especially feel great about? You wanna go first?
Peter Jermyn: Okay. Well, I, I feel really great about the
longevity of Los Bagels, and I've talked about it earlier, but how many people we have affected and given them a good start. I'll tell you, there were people we hired who didn't have any
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Peter Jermyn: And, and we really helped form
them into people who had the discipline to go to
work-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Peter Jermyn: … show up on time-
Scott Hammond: Okay
Peter Jermyn: … and just do the simple tasks that are r-
to organize yourself to, toMove
forward
Scott Hammond: Professional development
Peter Jermyn: … make progress
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Sure.
Peter Jermyn: Make progress in your own life.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: And I think that we also have been a model for a lot
people to say, "Oh, hey, that's how… Oh, oh, you could actually do a business. Oh, I could… You know, if they can do it, I could do it."
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: Um, you know?
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: So that kind of idea.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah. So-
Scott Hammond: Model, yeah.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Modeling, yeah.
Peter Jermyn: Uh-huh. Yeah. And I think we're both, uh,
showing the, the guys who are running the bagel shop now how to move to be retired-
Scott Hammond: Ah
Peter Jermyn: … and still active.
Scott Hammond: The succession plan.
Peter Jermyn: And, um, yeah, and I think-
Scott Hammond: Yeah
Peter Jermyn: … yeah.
Scott Hammond: Yeah, which is probably not easy
Peter Jermyn: Yeah
Scott Hammond: … And, and, and just, just for the record, the marriage, it,
The marriage is beautiful. I love it.
Most part-
Peter Jermyn: Oh, it's a-
Scott Hammond: Most partnerships don't last
Peter Jermyn: … Partnership is, is like a marriage.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: There's no doubt.
Scott Hammond: No, it's great. I think it's applaudable.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: It's wonderful.
Dennis Rael: You know, to add on a little bit to what Peter
uh, is we were able to offer opportunities to people, uh, who… I mean, word was getting out, and I'll, I'll use an example of I got approached from, uh, these folks from the Sacramento area who school and, and had some, uh, some real disabilities, and they wanted to see if there's… They had heard that we would potentially hire this individual, uh, as a place to f- uh, for him to develop, and it wa- it was to get some work skills,
Scott Hammond: Love it
Dennis Rael: … and work on. And so I was shocked that they'd heard about this
other people-
Scott Hammond: Huh
Dennis Rael: … uh, just,
just through word of mouth. Uh, and we… I remember sitting down. At that point, uh, the brewery was, um, you know, still catty-corner for us, but the early brewery, and having lunch.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Dennis Rael: And of… You know, there was four of us talking on how to…
Would we consider… And they were even willing to pay us to hire their son so that he would have an opportunity and try to learn some skills and, and what could work and work in the back. Well, he ended up working for us for about three saw… And we, we paid him from the get-go, uh, but we slowly saw him develop and create community within, uh, the store. He'd, he'd done some other work with his dad, but he'd never really, uh, had a real job per se.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Dennis Rael: Uh, but we've, we've been involved with that multiple
times of different individuals to give them an opportunity-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Dennis Rael: … to do that, and it's way beyond what the actual work
Scott Hammond: Sure.
Dennis Rael: Uh, so,
so that's just what Peter was saying.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Dennis Rael: If I was gonna say what I wanted to highlight,
that you had mentioned.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Dennis Rael: I would highlight, I guess, how proud I am of, of my family
Scott Hammond: Nice.
Dennis Rael: Uh, that, uh, one of them is home right now and-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Dennis Rael: … they're just both great human beings and,
Scott Hammond: Nice
Dennis Rael: … incredibly proud. So-
Scott Hammond: That's cool that you can balance that work/life thing.
Dennis Rael: So, um, that's, that's a hard one.
Scott Hammond: Are you a grandpa?
Dennis Rael: It's a… No, I'm not.
Scott Hammond: No.
Dennis Rael: So, yeah.
Scott Hammond: How about you?
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Yeah?
Peter Jermyn: Yeah. Yeah. And if, if you said,
is-
Scott Hammond: Yeah
Peter Jermyn: … I might-
Scott Hammond: I know he's gonna
Peter Jermyn: … I might be driving my, one of my granddaughters to
something, so yeah. I'm-
Dennis Rael: He's a great grandparent.
Scott Hammond: How many grandparent kids?
Peter Jermyn: I, I… We… I just have two grandkids.
Scott Hammond: Two.
Peter Jermyn: But they live right around the corner, an-
Scott Hammond: Wow
Peter Jermyn: … you know, a half mile away, quarter of a mile away.
Scott Hammond: Wow.
Peter Jermyn: And, uh, and they're both… Like Dennis, I, I can be
really proud to know them.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Peter Jermyn: But they're both kids who have developed full
personalities.
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.
Peter Jermyn: And it's, it's a nice thing to watch.
Scott Hammond: It's a cool thing, man.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Adult kids that are great.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Good for you guys.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Yeah, that's the payoff. My dad, uh, was a really neat guy.
Um, Bob, he came to a, a meeting and I said, "Hey, uh, you know, we're a bunch of sales guys and you're a sales guy. What would you tell us about life? What are your top three takeaways?" And I thought he'd have, you know, a notebook and a half hour and he'd be ready to go, and he said, "If you're in business for the money, you're only about half paid." And I stopped and I go, "Well, where's the rest?" You know, I, I… Whatever he said, I missed it. He goes, "If you're in business and sales just for money, you're about half paid 'cause it's about connection and, and that outreach and that development," all the things you guys are talking about. And I thought, "Man." I kinda got mad at him after, but I figured it out. Took me some months and years to go, "Oh, that's what he said." It's about, it's about the human connection and the reward of two beautiful daughters or some great, two great grandkids or-
Peter Jermyn: Yeah
Scott Hammond: … you know, all that comes in. So, uh, as I wrap up, I'll,
I'll, I'll throw this to you first, my Toastmaster friend. First of all, thank you for speaking on Italy. Gosh,
Peter Jermyn: You, you really liked that story.
Scott Hammond: It was a pretty… The guy did a pretty good speech.
I mean, I've been in Italy. In my head I'm going, "Man, some point." So we've, uh, we got to go to England last summer and this, this fall we got to go to, uh-
Peter Jermyn: Right. Good model
Scott Hammond: … Amsterdam. So I don't, may- I don't know what's next.
But, um, g- great speech. Thank you. So we have a little sp- So travel is your passion.
Peter Jermyn: Yep.
Scott Hammond: Uh, with that I'll, I'll lead into my, my final que-
final. W- what does it say on Peter Jermyn's What, what, what would you like to be remembered for? What's the etching in the sto- what, what, uh, what comes to mind?
Peter Jermyn: Well, there were a couple of things that
me to learn in my life, and I think one of them was forgiveness.
Scott Hammond: Ah.
Peter Jermyn: And I, I didn't really realize how important
it was.
Scott Hammond: Real important
Peter Jermyn: … un-un-
Scott Hammond: Yeah
Peter Jermyn: … till I was in my 50s and I started to like,
"Oh, huh." And, and so, i- you
know, um, it's… Yeah, that's a– That would be something I want somehow to be remembered for.
Scott Hammond: Yeah. Let it go, man.
Peter Jermyn: Um, yep.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Really critical.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Funny how it takes us that some of us are slow learners even-
Peter Jermyn: [laughs]
Scott Hammond: … on that topic, you know?
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: It's like-
Peter Jermyn: Right
Scott Hammond: … right, what do you hold that for?
Peter Jermyn: Exactly.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: It… Uh, John Dalby from Redwood Capital says,
is me taking poison expecting you to die."
Peter Jermyn: Yeah. Right.
Scott Hammond: It's like-
Peter Jermyn: Exactly.
Scott Hammond: [laughs]
Peter Jermyn: I got it.
Scott Hammond: It's loose.
Peter Jermyn: No, that, that really resonates.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: I can-
Scott Hammond: I really like that. He, he's, he, he hit that one well.
Dennis, what, what, what do, what, what are they gonna say? What, what's your tombstone read?
Dennis Rael: Oh, that's interesting. Uh, that's a good question.
Uh, I would say, uh,
a, uh, a good father,
um, cares about family and community.
Scott Hammond: Nice.
I love it. Straight to the point.
Dennis Rael: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
Scott Hammond: Well, fellas, appreciate you guys being here.
Dennis Rael: Yeah. Thank you.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: Thanks.
Scott Hammond: Thanks for taking some time-
Peter Jermyn: Yeah
Scott Hammond: … and, uh, happy holidays. Happy Hanukkah. Are we in Hanukkah yet?
Dennis Rael: It's over.
Scott Hammond: It's over. It already is.
Peter Jermyn: Right. Yeah.
Scott Hammond: See, I should-
Dennis Rael: You're just, you're just early.
Peter Jermyn: Right. Well-
Dennis Rael: You're just early. Look at it that way.
Scott Hammond: I'm early. [laughs] It's not… Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: Early for next year.
Scott Hammond: Coming up right away.
Dennis Rael: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Anyway, great to have you guys and, uh,
Eureka at the Cal Poly Humboldt campus. And, and kind of parting shot here, I, I forgot to ask this. I'm sure you've been approached by franchisees, the idea of franchising, the idea of doing something bigger. Uh, will it happen? And if so, why… If not, why not?
Dennis Rael: This could be a whole other show. We could-
Scott Hammond: Yeah. Yeah, right.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah. That's a, that's a long-
Scott Hammond: Has that come up in, in the-
Peter Jermyn: Yeah. Yeah
Scott Hammond: … legacy-
Peter Jermyn: Absolutely
Scott Hammond: … discussions? Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: Yeah. I'll tell you one thing, and this was one of the
best pieces of advice Dennis ever gave me. I said, "You know, we're in the wrong business. We should be selling bagel shops." And he said, "Where do you wanna live?"
Scott Hammond: Huh.
Peter Jermyn: How do you wanna live?
Scott Hammond: Huh.
Good answer. Yeah.
Peter Jermyn: And when I took that to heart and then started to-
Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm
Peter Jermyn: … experience it, I said, "You know, a person who
knows he has enough-
Scott Hammond: Ah
Peter Jermyn: … has plenty. He's got enough."
Scott Hammond: Amen, brother. Yeah. That's a good one. Yeah.
Same thing with our Humboldt Heroes, our veterans recognition. Somebody go– or Paul, uh, Brousseau was interviewing me. He goes, "Hey, what…" And it… Very good question. He goes, "You wanna go statewide, national?" I go, "I think It would, it would wreck the genuine organic thing is, and it's, it's small. It's designed to be small, and it's meaningful at, at its scale. So anyway, thank you, Peter
Jermyn.
Peter Jermyn: You're welcome, Scott.
Scott Hammond: Thank you, Dennis.
Dennis Rael: Thank you.
Peter Jermyn: Thanks for giving us a-
Dennis Rael: Yeah. Appreciate it. Yeah
Peter Jermyn: … chance to put our, uh, thoughts to words. That's good.
Scott Hammond: Absolutely. Happy holidays to you guys.
Dennis Rael: All right. Same to you.
Scott Hammond: Appreciate it.
Dennis Rael: Yeah.
Scott Hammond: Have a good day.
Peter Jermyn: All right. Bye-bye.