Star Wars, King Arthur, and Grocery Stores — And It All Makes Sense
I Accidentally Invented a New Star Wars Universe, and I'm not sorry.
It began with coffee. Monday morning, low-key chaos, a green tea mistaken for dirty water, and two dads navigating their ever-shifting routines. From there, the conversation spiraled delightfully into meditation, nostalgia, storytelling, and the most unexpected connection between Star Wars and King Arthur.
Dom recounts his shifting morning rituals and a reel about silence leading to mental clarity. They unpack a scientific study showing that just eight days of 20-minute daily silence can rewire the brain, decreasing fear and boosting decision-making. That segues into a bigger point: attention is power. As Gary Vee says, "You are the algorithm." What you focus on, you become. And lately, these dads have been focused on big ideas.
Gabe brings up his recent obsession with "Silo," a claustrophobic sci-fi show on Apple TV. That loops into a broader discussion of dystopian media, mysteries, and the self-published book "Wool" by Hugh Howey that started it all. Dom, meanwhile, riffs on his frustrations with "Andor," particularly how recycled sets break the Star Wars immersion for him.
But the heart of the episode bursts open when Dom shares a new story idea: what if King Arthur’s story took place in space? What if Merlin was trying to bring back a spiritual form of Jedi, and the real threat was not evil per se, but mechanized order without reverence? The Empire, in this framing, is the result of divorcing morality from reality. And Camelot? A failed Jedi Empire built with good intentions but flawed execution.
This leads to a rich discussion on modern religion, storytelling structure, and the persistence of magical figures like the Green Knight who challenge our ideas of order.
They explore narrative flips: taking a known villain and showing their side of the story, like reframing Viking raids or flipping the perspective in Attack on Titan. That inspires a story jam, with Dom pitching a Phantom Menace-inspired scene about a defecting ambassador whose attempt to surrender is misunderstood as a threat, creating tension and irony. It’s storytelling fun at its finest.
From there, the episode meanders into the world of co-writing. Dom recounts a conversation with a self-publishing author whose sons quit their jobs to write full-time. The secret? Crank out 20 decent books and earn a stable income. They muse on the logistics of co-writing, outlining scenes, and the weird ease of writing for someone else versus crafting your own world.
Grocery stores are the next rabbit hole. Gabe tells tales from his cashier days, including awkward ID checks and night shift quirks. Dom shares his childhood love of free bread rolls and icing sugar bins in New Zealand. That rolls into a surprisingly rich debate on self-checkout, Amazon Go, and the erosion of community rituals.
They then spiral into the future of food: urban farming, vertical gardens, smart city design, and the possibility of empowering small farms with AI. The conversation widens to include deep thoughts on modern life, the loss of traditional roles, and the hope that some people might one day be able to do what they were actually born to do.
The episode closes on a soul-deep note. Dom shares how silence, walks, and red cardinals are helping him reconnect with his inner child. Gabe dives into internal family systems, the idea that many of our adult stresses stem from the unmet needs of our younger selves.
He recounts a moment of prayer where he felt God speak directly to little Gabe, saying, "You are my beloved son. You don’t have to try so hard."
With no real answers but plenty of thought-provoking tangents, the episode is a gentle reminder that even chaos can reveal clarity, and that stories—whether told through Jedi, grocery aisles, or childhood memories—can still bring us home.