Mocktails Or Messy
Mocktails Or Messy
#50: Gregory Tells All: Cancer Survivor, HGTV Director, & How He Hired Ryan
Gregory Powell brings his sharp wit and design expertise to the podcast, sharing the remarkable journey that led him from New York's television industry back to his hometown of Pittsburgh. What began as a simple complaint about facial pain during a family visit in 2018 quickly escalated to a life-changing diagnosis: stage four adenoid cystic carcinoma, an incredibly rare cancer affecting his salivary gland.
Rather than surrendering to circumstance, Gregory approached his hospital stay with characteristic flair—ordering Japanese kimonos, using vintage silverware for hospital meals, and creating a "creative deck" specifying acceptable flower arrangements for visitors. This refusal to surrender his identity perfectly encapsulates Gregory's perspective on life's challenges: "When they're telling you 'we have to fix this right now,' you don't have time to think 'why me?' You just go into action mode."
After recovering just as COVID hit in early 2020, Gregory pivoted professionally into design production for HGTV, where his ability to solve problems under pressure made him invaluable on shows like "Trixie Motel." He describes the delicate balance of managing reality TV production schedules against construction timelines, often requiring creative solutions when materials don't arrive on time.
Throughout our conversation, Gregory offers candid insights into dating in what he calls "the Paris of Appalachia," describing Pittsburgh's social scene as a "yearbook" where everyone knows everyone's history. His perspective on relationships at this stage of life is refreshingly mature—maintaining separate homes even in committed relationships, valuing independence alongside connection.
From naming his chickens after fashion icons to having his dog Louis upgraded to first class while he remained in coach, Gregory's stories blend humor with authentic reflection on creating a meaningful life after facing mortality. His journey reminds us that maintaining our personal style and humor through life's greatest challenges isn't just about survival—it's about thriving on your own terms.
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Ryan no-called no-show and was like I lost my phone last night.
Speaker 2:Yeah, we were peeing behind a dumpster and we got a public urination together.
Speaker 1:I was like it's my 21st and the bartender's like you have been coming in here for like over a year.
Speaker 2:Hi there, this is Mocktails Are Messy and you're with.
Speaker 3:Ryan Frankowski.
Speaker 2:And Kelly Msgorski. Sorry, we're like we've been thrown a curveball right now because we just had our guests show up and we're so excited.
Speaker 3:I know we have the infamous, the famous, the world-renowned. Am I saying?
Speaker 2:that right Renowned.
Speaker 3:World-renowned Gregory Powell. Let's go, gregory. The world renowned, am I saying it right? Renowned? World renowned, gregory Powell. Let's go, gregory. Thank you for coming to the studio today.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I'm really excited to be on Hot Ones.
Speaker 3:Oh my, god, hot Ones. What's Hot Ones? Well, I'm the hot one I know you little slut, you always are with the fashion. Look at those. Can you put the shoe up to the cam? Show me that. My God, gregory, I don't know if you can see it. Those are fucking fresh. Kelly, thought you were towering over her. Now you know why he's got a two-inch heel on.
Speaker 2:Oh well, he's still tall.
Speaker 3:I know I love it. They're like spaceman shoes.
Speaker 2:They're like shiny, like a bully, though Tin man shoes.
Speaker 3:He is probably the most direct New Yorker Pittsburgher that I know. You do not make me feel warm and fuzzy in a good way. In a good way You're fucking real Cheers to that. And what the fuck are we drinking?
Speaker 2:I don't know this is what you provide. Okay, we do have champagne.
Speaker 3:Yes, yes, I don't know, this is what you provide. Okay, we do have champagne. Yes, yes, and, gregory, I'm so sorry that we brought you like some of the Ooh Corbelle. Yeah, have you ever had that before?
Speaker 1:What are the tasting notes, Ryan?
Speaker 3:It's a nice little. Well, actually Is it a?
Speaker 1:champagne, or is it just a?
Speaker 3:bottom barrel sparkling beverage. He would say bottom barrel, bottom of the barrel. But you preemptively decided to bring your own stuff to the studio. Yeah, I did.
Speaker 2:Why did you bring your own?
Speaker 1:stuff. I brought my own because I know Ryan.
Speaker 2:And you didn't trust him.
Speaker 3:I didn't trust him to actually do it.
Speaker 1:For anybody else that appears on the show there was no writer submission. I didn't get asked about green M&Ms in my dressing room or anything else.
Speaker 2:Right Shit. So you really didn't know that I literally just put that back in there.
Speaker 3:I was like if.
Speaker 1:I show up here and this bitch serves me White Claw and a can I'm going to lose it Well, thank God, you brought your own shit.
Speaker 2:Hey, what did you bring the last?
Speaker 1:time Ryan was at my house, he brought me a hostess gift of a six pack of Iron City beer of a six pack of Iron City beer.
Speaker 2:Iron shitty, yeah, I'm so fucking stupid.
Speaker 3:Why did I think that was a good idea To a Christmas party it?
Speaker 1:was like here, babe, oh no, no, ryan, no.
Speaker 2:So what did you bring for yourself then?
Speaker 1:Oh I, brought myself a dirty martini, oh my.
Speaker 3:God Whip it out, you are spicy Show me that dirty dick.
Speaker 2:Yeah, whip it out honey.
Speaker 3:I'm sorry, dirty martini. Wait, what did you just say? I mean, you know this little kitty cat. He's been all over New York and Pittsburgh. If you know what I mean, I know.
Speaker 2:Well, we're going to watch you. Will you explain how you're making it?
Speaker 1:I pre-made it.
Speaker 2:So I made a batch cocktail at home okay uh, it's kettle, one with filthy, dirty olive juice.
Speaker 1:Oh there, you love always as filthy wow, you're a menace.
Speaker 3:I know it's okay, I brought a glass to share. Oh my god, you love a good fucking mix of double fisted I will say are you?
Speaker 2:you know that I'm gonna drink?
Speaker 3:no you know that you know better than that right yours is over, I that yours was over. I'm boring right. Yeah, yeah but you pulled up with me right.
Speaker 2:He's off his rocker today, so we're good, we're all good. I'm a little caffeinated he.
Speaker 3:last time I was at his Christmas, like last time was it your Christmas party the last time?
Speaker 1:Yeah, but I saw you.
Speaker 3:I love his.
Speaker 1:like it was after Christmas, Like it was the Christmas which it was like the between Christmas and New Year's vibe.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 2:That's a good vibe, yeah.
Speaker 3:I know, I know he's got like the cutest fucking house up on the hill. It's got a good overview of the city of Pittsburgh oh wow, he's living that big life yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 3:Big boy, big problem.
Speaker 2:I know I want the best of both worlds. I want like the farm and I want the house on the hill.
Speaker 1:So I have that in Pittsburgh, because I also have chickens.
Speaker 2:Wait.
Speaker 3:Okay, he literally is your spirit animal Honey.
Speaker 2:I just ordered 14 chickens.
Speaker 1:Oh, amazing, from where Stromberger, myers, myers, hatchery?
Speaker 2:I just heard that like there's a good alive rate where they show up and they're alive still.
Speaker 1:So I'm excited. They come like a day old in the mail and they ship very well, it's weird.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's so weird. Yeah, maybe they don't need to like eat a lot on the first day.
Speaker 3:They were meant to me.
Speaker 2:Yes, I'm going to be like uh, how many do you have?
Speaker 1:I had five, but we're down to three.
Speaker 2:But they were all named Designers.
Speaker 1:What are their names? So we had Thank you, well, fashion people. So we had Franca Sassani, anna Wintour, andre Leon Talley, grace Coddington Is that four or five. Grace Coddington.
Speaker 2:Four, four. And then who was the last one?
Speaker 3:Oscar de la Renta. I forget the last one.
Speaker 1:But one of them died. One of them died and then I got a new one, and she became Heidi Plume.
Speaker 3:That is so cute.
Speaker 2:Heidi Plume like Klum right, so did any animals get them? No?
Speaker 1:You have a nice cage dog, some of them got like one of them got Rynek, which is like this weird thing that happens, where they just kind of I don't know, I'm got ryanek which is like this weird thing that happens, where they just kind of I don't know, I'm not a veterinarian, yeah, I'm not into animal cruelty. Yeah, I, just they.
Speaker 2:I believe they died of natural causes because everybody else was happy, I get it okay cheers, cheers to the martini drinkers dirty martini.
Speaker 3:Okay, that's good yeah, yeah, because she had one at um cobra kai.
Speaker 2:It was straight, it was just straight salt oh, it was like disgusting, and I've actually this is only the second dirty martini I've had oh, because that one ruined it.
Speaker 1:That one ruined it for me um he is like a fast learner, so we'll get you in, thank you, is that like an?
Speaker 3:insult. Are you trying to be like facetious? No, okay.
Speaker 2:Because she is. I think he was being kind. Oh, I just didn't think, or maybe like he thought oh, what a dumb blonde.
Speaker 3:Yeah, see, that's what.
Speaker 1:I thought he was going with that I don't know. We're both blondes.
Speaker 3:I know he's got the blonde going on. Are you going to grow it out, are you going to keep it, or what's going on with this bleach blonde I like?
Speaker 1:it. I don't know Right now. It's a weird situation. I just have not been maintaining it, but everyone thinks I have balayage.
Speaker 2:I like it. Oh, it does look like a balayage.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 3:And.
Speaker 2:I'm allowed to touch it, did you?
Speaker 1:color it before, but the rest of it's my natural.
Speaker 2:So how did you two meet?
Speaker 1:Okay, so Ryan and I met.
Speaker 3:Don't tell me the worst parts, right Tell all the parts, only the worst parts, okay cool. Try to be nice on this one, just put your head down.
Speaker 1:So Ryan and I met in New York in I want to say, probably 2017. Okay, I was art directing a pilot for a show.
Speaker 3:My Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. No oh no, that was another one.
Speaker 1:It was a podcast attempting to be a TV show, so it's a little hard to home right now, but it was called Don't Be an Idiom and it was like an academic situation and we were filming at this big catholic school outside of new york and queens and the bronx or the bronx yeah riverdale I don't know. Yeah, you probably remember those parts because of your situation. So to get to the point is, we needed an art, pa and um and the guy was this production assistant.
Speaker 3:Yes, a production assistant department, because you are a world.
Speaker 1:I was the art director um, my buddy was the production designer. So we got Ryan's info from the producer and I looked at the number and I was like, oh, 412, girly. So then I talked to him on the phone and I like couldn't get over his accent. So I was like we have to hire the guy from Pittsburgh. He sounds so funny.
Speaker 1:So Ryan comes to set and lo and behold, we were also like, oh, he's a cute one so it was fun the first day yeah, but I heard of the first day we ride back in the shuttle to the city and he and I are on like 23rd Street and he's like, oh, I'm going to my friend Carson Chrisley's Christmas party tonight. Do you want to come? And I was like, ooh, I don't know. We got to be on set tomorrow at 5 am. I was like don't mess this up.
Speaker 2:Have a good night.
Speaker 1:But I'll see you tomorrow.
Speaker 2:Oh, he messed it up, didn't he Brian?
Speaker 1:no called, no showed what Until about halfway through the day and then showed up and was like I lost my phone last night.
Speaker 2:No, he didn't.
Speaker 1:Had somebody else's phone.
Speaker 3:I kept the phone.
Speaker 1:I don't know. You showed up claiming that you had lost your phone.
Speaker 1:He may have and that was the reason why you missed it, because you couldn't remember the address and you couldn't book a car. But you came and then we tortured you for the rest of the day because it was a set that was like a school classroom with tons of books, and so there were six bookcases that needed to be unloaded at the end of the day and there was a way to get out with a ramp and there was a way to get out with having to go down a flight of steps with boxes of books. So we made Ryan do all the books down the steps to the truck.
Speaker 2:So now we need to know the truth. Ryan, did you lose your phone, or was that an excuse because you were too drunk and hungover? I feel like.
Speaker 3:I was too drunk and hungover phone. Or was that an excuse because you were?
Speaker 1:too drunk and hung over. I was too drunk and hung over. Yeah, I think that that was pretty clear.
Speaker 3:You could see through that yeah, but it also wouldn't surprise me because I feel like those drunken days why I'm sober right now yes because I would always break my phone I would always lose my phone I would. It just felt like it was like a never-ending battle so I'm constantly losing your wallet too, I know I know, I know. So I feel very fortunate. It's okay that he lost his wallet.
Speaker 1:He doesn't have any money in it, that's true.
Speaker 3:Yeah, that's true, you're so bitchy, but this is what I love about Gregory.
Speaker 1:You told me, this was your roast.
Speaker 3:I am actually looking for that. I want you to bring some roasting. I mean, I'm not like, like I'm supposed to it, but thank you for putting up with me and not fucking firing my ass. Yeah, you did, great did you did.
Speaker 1:Were you at that point you're like, well, it's halfway through the day, we don't fucking need you well, that's where we were like let him show up, let's see how bad he is, and then let's see if we can torture him right, but because we could very quickly tell you were just hung over and messed up, not like actually having a problem you probably looked like shit I probably did.
Speaker 2:You came in the same outfit as the day before oh my god, oh my god, are you fucking kidding me?
Speaker 3:you probably smelled like shit I think you know what it was.
Speaker 1:I probably passed out somewhere and yeah, I think you came straight from the party, oh, gosh fucking you really did used to be that way, though, and I forget.
Speaker 2:I forget how bad it was, and this is why he's sober guys cheers congratulations congratulations.
Speaker 3:Yes, oh my god but can I just say thank you, gregory, for not just writing me off. He still. I don't know if you ever hired me again, but he's still. We remain friends yeah, exactly well gregory, what brought you to pittsburgh?
Speaker 1:oh, this is where it gets dark. Oh, so in 2018, I came back to pittsburgh and I was home for the weekend and so you're from here?
Speaker 2:yeah, I grew up here, okay I went to kappa high school.
Speaker 1:Shout out to kappa high school okay all the artists go there I, I thought so yeah. Yeah, but so yeah, I was home visiting my parents and I complained about having some pain in my face and my mom was like you've complained about this too long as like a strong, armed Pittsburgh woman would do. And she's like you're coming with me. We're going to my friend. He's a doctor. I have a Botox appointment. He's going to check you out.
Speaker 2:Where was the pain?
Speaker 1:it was in the left side of my face and my cheek and just like hurt yeah, it just hurt all the time. I thought I had tmj and so I went to the j.
Speaker 2:I don't know what your jaw is like.
Speaker 1:Your muscle here gets really like from like chewing bubble gum too much oh yeah, or sucking dick yeah, yeah, exactly, yeah, good old fashion sports, you know, taking one for the team over and over again, um. But so I went to a doctor with her and the guy was just like, oh my god, he's like there's something really, really wrong. I'm calling, I'm calling my professor from medical school. He's gonna see you immediately go right there. And then it just spiraled out and they were like you have cancer, you have stage four cancer, you have to do crazy surgery, like, and it just like my body took over my life with health care for like two and a half years and then the end of all of that was, fantastically, january 2020 and so oh, then covid starts, and yes, and then covid starts, so I was ready to like go travel the world and have like the best, like fuck off year ever, and so, oh, then covid starts, and yes, and then covid starts.
Speaker 1:So I was ready to like go travel the world and have like the best, like fuck off year ever, and so got stuck in pittsburgh now, okay now but you never look back.
Speaker 3:Was there a?
Speaker 2:bump or anything like. What can we tell people to like look for?
Speaker 1:because that's I don't know it's like a really, really rare cancer. It's called adenoid cystic carcinoma. It started in my salivary gland and it's like I don't know who. If anybody fax checks me, I don't really know all the details but at one point in time something in the research was like that it's like less than like, I think, a hundred thousand cases globally a year, so out of like eight billion people or whatever is on earth like so so you had to do like radiation and stuff. Surgery radiation and then a chemo pill.
Speaker 2:What was that like for you going through all that?
Speaker 1:I mean it was insane. I'm on the other side of it now in like a manageable care situation of like knowing my body and checkups with the doctors and stuff, but I mean it was pretty insane.
Speaker 2:How did your body feel?
Speaker 1:I mean, yeah, like they, I was in the hospital for two weeks they like. Yeah, rebuilt my face with sections of my leg, of my hamstring and stuff wow, but also I was such a little cunt, you can't even tell, though I I I sent submitted to all of my friends and family um a creative deck of acceptable flowers types of arrangements. I also spent time going to thrift stores and getting hotel silver to serve myself and the hospital food, and then ordered kimonos from Japan.
Speaker 3:I love you.
Speaker 1:So, even though I was laid off, I made the hospital as glamorous as I could.
Speaker 2:That's totally fine.
Speaker 1:No, that's amazing Knowing you're going in for two weeks, like that's kind of. What you gotta do is just be like I'm gonna make the best out of this and then one of my friends knew.
Speaker 2:So you're laying there in the hospital bed with a kimono on.
Speaker 1:Yes, 100% Fuck yes and like vintage silverware. Do you have any pictures of that? Um I can, I'll show you afterwards.
Speaker 2:If you do and you're comfortable sharing, you should send it to us so we can post it like you know, we'll remind you okay I think that that should be a message.
Speaker 3:Yes, so you put out yeah, I'm so sick of hospitals, so many people don't get to prepare for something like that.
Speaker 1:so like I had like two months to prepare because there were so many doctors involved, so I just was like I have to make the most fun out of this.
Speaker 3:Right, yeah, and you've always been optimistic, even though you can be a little sassy.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you got to make fun and stuff and laugh through it. So sometimes it comes across as misery, but sometimes it's fun. You're a comedian.
Speaker 2:That's super inspiring. You sound so positive, like on the other side of it were you like?
Speaker 3:were you as positive during the process or were you a little bit like?
Speaker 1:it's one of those situations and it's like until anybody else is in it, but it's like, really just like a it's go time mentality, because you can't really like sit around and be like woe was me or like why did this happen? This is so messed up. If only something else went a different way. When they're also like we like have to go right now to fix this. You don't really have a lot of time to think about stuff like that, so that was kind of empowering. That makes a lot of sense.
Speaker 3:Thank God you guys did have like access to these type of doctors, surgeons hospitals, yeah, exactly. I mean, yes, you have a lot of offer in New York. But I mean, do you feel like having your family here and being with them?
Speaker 1:Yeah, no, my family was super supportive and all that stuff, and then after all of that, I ended up starting to work in HGTV, so I've been a design producer of HGv for like um the past, I think six years now so how does that work?
Speaker 2:is there like specific shows that you did do, or yeah, yeah, um, okay, can you tell us more about that?
Speaker 1:yeah, so one of the best shows that I've ever done is tricksy motel. Season one in palm springs.
Speaker 2:Okay, and so we. I need to watch that.
Speaker 1:We did an eight-room motel. It's available on Max if you have a Max subscription. All different theme rooms designed by Danny Daisy and then starring Trixie Mattel and her then partner, david Silver. It's amazing. We turned a little motel into a pink palace. It was lots of celebrity guest stars like Orville Pack. Leslie Jordan RIP was on motel into a pink palace and it was like lots of celebrity guest stars like Orville Peck.
Speaker 2:Leslie Jordan RIP was on Nicole Byer. It was so fun, that sounds so much fun, so you are doing a lot of like camera stuff, no, no.
Speaker 1:I am a design producer, so I oversee the execution of the design.
Speaker 2:Okay, so you're making sure everything looks good.
Speaker 1:Making sure everything looks good. Also, scene work on an HGTV show, like stepping out a DIY and the process on those things. Reality TV plus construction is always really fun because deadlines don't match TV schedules. So when your vendor's like, oh sorry, the Zelaj tile that the designer picked out is still in morocco and we need it for on-camera work in two days, I'm the one that's like driving to 17 different home depots getting options and being like they have enough square footage of what we need right like matching it or figuring out a solution.
Speaker 3:You're like actually making it all happen exactly. Wow. So that was the one thing I admired about greg. He does not.
Speaker 1:He's cool under pressure yeah, he doesn't stress, or if you do, stress everything can be figured out, it just is like you really have to sit down yeah and anytime that there's like drama or something where it's like to me, I'm always like what's the point? And being like you drop the ball yeah, like that's something that could be discussed later of like, yeah, whether we want to keep you as part of the team or it's like you know what I mean. It's like those kind of things. But like in the moment, like why?
Speaker 3:rip someone apart. Right, exactly, that makes sense, I mean yeah, like that time that we you know when I dropped the ball, you didn't make me feel shitty in the moment, but you definitely put me to work hard, and then you never hired me again. Well, would you? I think you did, I think you did it that I think I moved away and you were like yeah, this is an easy one for you.
Speaker 2:Maybe you have a chance for redemption now that you're sober. I want to.
Speaker 3:I really want to. I've been bugging, I've been in his ear a little bit, but he's been all all over the fucking place.
Speaker 1:Now the table's in turn, because he brought me here.
Speaker 3:Exactly, I love it. I love you're on my turf now. Because, he's used to being in charge. Now we're in charge, are we?
Speaker 2:I don't know.
Speaker 3:I mean I don't think this one could ever get charged on or be like. He's such an alpha. I don't know if anybody can like fucking, be like, right, right. What are you trying to ask? Me right, I feel like I don't think you would ever let somebody be in charge yeah, I.
Speaker 1:I let people be in charge.
Speaker 3:I work well with others I think he would I don't know the last one he talked to me about on one of these jobs. He was like this is really fucking annoying, I'm done he literally quit.
Speaker 1:I did quit one job because the designer refused to call me Gregory.
Speaker 2:Oh well, that's not okay.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I identified myself. Yeah, two months of pre-production, remotely just being like hi, I'm Gregory, what the hell did they want to call you. And she kept being like oh, your name's so hard for me, Can I just call you greg and I?
Speaker 1:was like gosh it's really not that hard and then kept being like none of the construction crews are going to be able to call you that, like blah, blah, blah, and yeah, it just got to the point two weeks into production. After that I was like I'm good, I don't want to be in this situation anymore, so I left literally, I would have done the same thing like yeah yeah, that's bullshit, yeah no, no, it wasn't.
Speaker 1:It wasn't really good. They weren't a great person. And I think their show's canceled now. So, I won't say the name of their show but he's never going to do that.
Speaker 3:He's always he's. He's keeping his reputations intact, and you know yeah burning bridges here, not in the city of bridges, oh my God, not in the city of bridges, pittsburgh, people don't realize that Pittsburgh. So tell us how you feel about being in Pittsburgh, because when we connected, reconnected, I was like, thank God, I have my LA boy, my New York boy, Like he gives me that sense of creativity. So like, how do you feel with a different shift in living in this?
Speaker 1:you know, I mean Pittsburgh's weird it is weird.
Speaker 2:Let's explain this to people that don't live here how can we describe it, gregory?
Speaker 1:I don't know. It's the Paris of Appalachia, I guess is the easiest way to put it.
Speaker 2:Holy crap, did you just come up with that on your own that is a saying
Speaker 1:that people say.
Speaker 2:Oh, I never heard it.
Speaker 1:So, really Paris? Yeah, the Paris of Appalachia. That's hilarious.
Speaker 3:I guess it is like the little gold Appalachia, but Paris. No, come on, it's not Paris of.
Speaker 2:Appalachia.
Speaker 1:Of Appalachia, yes. Paris of the world, no.
Speaker 3:Well, I'm just confused, because I would maybe describe it as more of like. It might be like a little more New.
Speaker 1:York of Appalachia. Yeah, we're the highest culture point of Appalachia, yeah.
Speaker 3:But Paris is a little bit more romantic and European.
Speaker 2:You're not helping.
Speaker 1:You're not helping, okay, we have gray skies and rain all the time Bridges out the wazoo.
Speaker 2:What more do you want from a place Right?
Speaker 1:Hey, I do think that the food is. We put french fries on salad.
Speaker 2:Okay, yeah, and I don't actually Okay, speaking of that, I don't really like that, I don't.
Speaker 1:But You're awful and no one will ever love you.
Speaker 3:This is the real Gregory Powell. Please stand up.
Speaker 2:But hey, the food here is good the food here is good, I know, but for sure, for sure. So do you like Permanis?
Speaker 3:Yes, Okay, yeah, permanis is good, but not like Permanis, no, it's Permanis Get over yourself. It's definitely Permanis, they say in Florida Permanis.
Speaker 2:Well, they can go.
Speaker 1:Yeah, they're in Florida. Nothing good has ever come out of Florida.
Speaker 2:Thank you Amen, amen, nothing has ever had good had come out of that place. There's more sunshine there. Yeah, Well, she kind of likes it. I don't know why I like the sunshine. I mean there are parts Miami.
Speaker 3:Welcome to Miami. I just like the beach.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:No.
Speaker 1:Let her be Please.
Speaker 3:We'll let you be baby.
Speaker 2:Okay. So, gregory, what is your dating life looking like?
Speaker 3:He's a little man.
Speaker 2:Cause it's tough, Like in Pittsburgh, right or no?
Speaker 3:the streets are tough yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 3:He asked me like a week ago or no, it was a month ago. You were like so are you dating anybody in Pittsburgh? I'm like laughing. I'm like how you feel too, yeah.
Speaker 2:No comment yeah.
Speaker 1:He's playing the best, no no, the apps are rough. The apps are rough, for sure. Scratch, grind, tinder, bumble.
Speaker 2:Yeah, we do what we have to do to get by.
Speaker 3:I mean, I feel like any Sniffies. I mean that's the new one.
Speaker 1:But I think truth, truthfully, the apps are rough with everybody, right? I don't know, I just feel, like in other cities. Maybe it's just because you show up and everybody wants to, like you know, be on you, so to speak, because you're new, like they want to collect the new pokemon that's in town. But um it's a lot of the same faces.
Speaker 3:Let's say it's not as large it's like a yearbook it's like a small community. It's a yearbook.
Speaker 1:It's a yearbook, and you're in there, done that. The toughest thing for me in pittsburgh has always been a lack of anonymity. When you go out like living in a city like new york and la when you go out you can go out with your group of friends and everybody's like. But when you go out in pittsburgh with your group of friends and you end up going in the back of the bar and making out with someone, they're like oh my God, how do you know, Steven? Yeah, Can I just have a moment to enjoy something for a second? Right? They're like that's so-and-so's ex. They do this. This is their parents. I know their neighbor and they went to middle school with my cousin.
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Oh God, oh god. I know you wouldn't think oh, pittsburgh's a small town, but it is I mean particularly the gay community.
Speaker 3:We only have like three gay bars now here, I know, and you took me to one really good one, mary's, and this was the time that you were like, and I tried to not be because I think the sober me is more like cognizant of like hey, you're with your friends, you're not gonna just like disappear, like you used to drunk, and like just find it like a rando and make out the whole night and then go back to their place and then you're like your friends are like worried about you, like where the fuck did franco go?
Speaker 3:so this particular person, uh-huh, was starting to come up to me, like you saw at that place, yeah, mary's, and they were being like kind of aggressive. But I wanted to hang out with my friends and I wanted to be like, but I was like you know what, I'll entertain it. And then little little be known. I try to like connect with them after because I was like, okay, we're gonna actually just have a great time like me, you, max, I think we were with two other people and then I try to hang out with this person, like a couple like you know, like what's going on, like you wanted to hang out, and then they just said hi, ryan, sorry, I've been crazy busy with work and stuff. It's great running into you at mary's. I'm not sure our paths will cross again, but right now I'm just not looking to build any new connections at this time. Wish you the best.
Speaker 1:Ew lame.
Speaker 3:I mean I was like okay, why did you? But that I think maybe the alcohol for them.
Speaker 1:You know, I don't know, that's just weird behavior.
Speaker 2:Well then he had another guy that threatened to blow his ass.
Speaker 1:That sounds like somebody that flirted what was that about you? Sold that. That sounds like somebody that flirted with you that then got cagey because either a they have a boyfriend b, they weren't prepared to deliver on the check that they're writing yeah yeah that sounds like some, I don't want my boyfriend or this guy.
Speaker 3:I went on three dates and now I decided we're dating definitely yeah, oh well, like I would totally respect it and like I respect it and like I think it was just like that's the kind of shit that's been happening in Pittsburgh.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's a very booed up kind of place.
Speaker 2:This guy got mad because he wouldn't meet up with them and he threatened to beat him up if he ever sees him.
Speaker 1:By not hooking up with them, weird right that's real weird and then. But that's definitely some ryan shit yeah, that's definitely a ryan story well.
Speaker 3:And then the last one I'll say and I want to get your opinion on this, because he knows me, he knows the culture, we know each other so well, even though we have really not spent that much time together over the years. But I think in some way, like I do not understand, the last one was like a gen z okay, and they were like upset with me that I didn't like console them after the election oh, I remember that one, yeah they were just like.
Speaker 1:Hey, sorry, I haven't been responsive how much were you hanging out with them before this?
Speaker 3:like twice, three times maybe twice, three times.
Speaker 1:It was no. What are the durations?
Speaker 3:oh, it's just more like did you stay the night?
Speaker 1:never did you stay the night, did you do activities that weren't hookups?
Speaker 3:probably, I mean was I watch a movie.
Speaker 1:Did you hold hands? Probably, oh yeah yeah, but consult me after the election, though, like what I mean just reaching out after the election with how awful it went to just be like, hey, how are you doing today if it was someone you were spending time with?
Speaker 3:well, no, I don't think it was that serious. I think it was just I kind of said to people like I didn't really go into that dark place because I was still trying to just like pretend like nothing was happening. I blacked it out and so for me I was just like I guess I should have said how are you?
Speaker 1:but they were really offended well, were they really political like? Were they campaigning before and, like you, knew that that was a part of their life. I didn't actually. Here's ryan, though that's like I. I had no idea like we flashed to a jump cut of the person's house and it's like every democratic sign in the windows and he's like there were no signs. I had no idea. How would I know?
Speaker 3:He knows me so well, he does know you. You are so like, how like you are like this with all of your friends you are the air, you are very observant, or you're very like, fucking, like you will put it to them, like you'll be, like you, fucking idiot, like you, fucking bitch. Oh, I'm not calling people idiots, not like mean spirited, but like you're.
Speaker 1:that's what we love about gregory I just see the calls and I say them out loud to my, to my own, fuck going on my mouth sometimes some people are just more insightful.
Speaker 3:Gregory's insightful yes yes, he's not a space cadet, like you know poppin adderall, oh my god. But I do think that nice thing about gregory is he brings a little bit of creativity to the berg and, you know, has all these really good events, these good parties, like for the golden globes party he got everybody together.
Speaker 1:I do like entertaining, I like putting out a big entertainer yeah and it's a good spread. It's not like pizza from fucking pasquale's pizza all right, yeah, and I'm not someone that's like let's go to costco and just open a bunch of things right, oh my gosh, I mean at the very least at the very least replay right, yes, right, and make your own damn dip for the crudite, I know right, oh my God.
Speaker 3:See, that's the thing. And then I'm always like, what can I bring? What can I bring to Gregory's event? And he's like, please don't bring anything, because you're going to fuck it up.
Speaker 1:Not even that. I just one time a friend. You know who you are if you hear this and you know I love you, love you, but showed up with a catering order of Wendy's which I was mortified about. But in the end I put it out on a very nice tray, conveniently stacked, and there was not a single one left. It was like the perfect hit of the party.
Speaker 3:It was good, I think I was there. I was there, but I did beautiful other things and then was like oh, let me put these paper-wrapped burgers on a plate in the middle of my table that that was still not a good call, because they were still like no, but they were so good they were by the end of the night you were like, oh yeah, I'll have a.
Speaker 1:I'll have like a smash burger yeah, yeah so what is your messiest story to dateup?
Speaker 3:drunken activity of debauchery? Like just the nastiest messy, like embarrassing story.
Speaker 1:I mean, I don't really get that messy.
Speaker 3:I mean, this is a funny this is.
Speaker 1:I guess this is kind of the messiest, but this is cute. So when I was in college I lived in Philadelphia.
Speaker 2:Temple. Okay, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1:This is almost 20 years ago at this point so I can? I can say this without implicating anyone, but there was a bar I loved going to called tavern on kamak.
Speaker 1:It still exists and I lived half a block away and I had a fake id and I used to go in there all the time and it was the night of my 21st birthday and I went in with some friends and we're sitting at the bar having cocktails and I was like it's my 21st and the bartender's like you have been coming in here for like over a year. What are you talking? About and I was like no, but now it's my real birthday. Oh shit, did he get pissed?
Speaker 3:they were a little grumpy, but they were like okay, fine, fine, I know, I mean the fact that you said it. I would have been like oh, fuck shit, what.
Speaker 1:Never mind, I'm actually 22.
Speaker 3:This is my 22nd.
Speaker 2:No, that's a good one, that's.
Speaker 3:Gregory for you. He does not get too fucked.
Speaker 1:A good Pittsburgh story, though, of being underage and being drunk and messy. So there used to be. You got arrested. No, I've never been arrested.
Speaker 1:Thank god, knock on wood, we have um, so velveteers back in the day used to have like in larryville, right in larryville and this is like peak, like early 2000s we're probably talking like 2006 or 2007 and they had a stamp at the door that was like known and it said you are beautiful. And it was kind of like a big stamp. It was like three inches by two inches, and two friends and I stole it what? And like held it for ransom for like two weeks and it was like this is pre-social media, like being as big as it is now, like we only had Facebook was like this is pre-social media, like being as big as it is now, like we only had facebook, but and I don't even think you had the like what's on your mind section of facebook kind of thing so we were just like holding it ransom and like stamping it on random pliers around town and all kinds of stuff and then eventually went one night to 80s night and just like left it on the return.
Speaker 3:Oh my gosh, that's funny, I know. I know, 80s night is a good night to go. Yeah, he's got all the good fucking fabrics. Like this guy. He's got the fucking costumes, he's got the like, you know the style. I always ask him to dress me but he's always like oh no, you couldn't, you couldn't pull this off oh my god.
Speaker 1:I mean, how many red carpet events are you going to that you're asking me to help you with?
Speaker 3:I would love for you to help me for this coming weekend. What's? This weekend it's the Oscars. Oh, you're going to the Oscars, I am, but it's going to be behind the scenes.
Speaker 1:So then, you don't get to dress up. I don't. I don't have to dress up, I just I have to look somewhat cute. I think you have to wear all. Black is usually what people's assistants have to wear.
Speaker 3:Well, I said that I'm going to wear a black suit. I'm going to wear a black suit. I'm not going to be like black shirt, t-shirt. Who are you going with? I don't know if I should say it on cam, oh.
Speaker 2:We'll tell you after I don't know.
Speaker 3:I mean I'll tell you, but it's kind of another like. So I think this is a problem. I have the characters here. Like we said, it's like a yearbook. You know, when you're trying to date, like, can you imagine you date? I mean, she dated like my best friend and now she's married to him from high school, you know.
Speaker 1:It's tricky in the book. Yeah, that isn't that crazy.
Speaker 3:Well, I guess it's tricky in the burg, like can you imagine meeting somebody like in the burg, um, but I guess the yearbook thing, I don't know. I think I feel like I get these, like you know, characters that are in out of town and like all this stuff, and then she's like you're a flight risk, but then I was like I need to really buckle down and do my own thing.
Speaker 3:Uh-huh, right, yeah, because you know yourself like if somebody was, like you know, in another city, would you take off and leave and I'm ready to go any day if there's anyone out there that wants to pick me up and take me away. Please, please, please, please do but I'm just saying like, don't you like having your like home base here?
Speaker 1:and no, I love having a house. Yes, I will always have my own place. Yes, I think particularly gay men should each have their own home, and I think that's also a function of just being the age that I am now.
Speaker 2:If I meet someone like that is my contemporary you don't want someone moving in with you or you.
Speaker 1:They just have to have their own home too I want them to have their own thing and I want them to also want to maintain it because, like at this point, I'm not meeting someone and being like oh my god, what are we gonna do for dishes? What kind of yeah like what kind of like pots? And pans do we need? Yeah, oh, my sofa like.
Speaker 3:I'm like.
Speaker 1:I've spent a lot of money and time thinking about all these things in my life.
Speaker 3:I don't want to just be like, okay, fine, we can get rid of this that I like curated for myself and you don't want them to just move in and then you have to take care of them exactly, yeah none of that that makes sense, yeah, but do you notice a lot of people get like lonely and then they just are totally open-minded to like hey, like come live with me and like we'll make this little happy family I mean, I could do that, but I would still keep my place do you have like a dog or a cat?
Speaker 1:I do have a dog. His name is louis.
Speaker 2:He's a pavillon, he's fantastic or those ones with, like, the long hair on the ears.
Speaker 1:Yes, those are cute he has like bat wings for ears yes, I love those.
Speaker 3:He's so cute. You had louis at your parents house for a while, right yeah, he goes up to his grandparents for trips.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, he also went cross country with me. He has several wings from different airlines. One time a flight attendant took him up to first and left me and coach.
Speaker 2:And was just like, can I?
Speaker 1:just show him to people in the cabin and I was like, yeah, fine, here's his leash. And they took him up and brought him back to me.
Speaker 2:Oh my gosh, how cute, what a lucky little dog. So you have?
Speaker 3:to ask us a question. I know you didn't come prepared, but I want you to like, ask us a messy, or even just like something that you were really just kind of trying to pull out of us, that you thought might be important. Oh, or maybe not, maybe it could be just really stupid.
Speaker 2:I think we ask every guest.
Speaker 3:Maybe it could be just really stupid I think we ask every guest yeah. And nobody ever has any questions for us?
Speaker 1:Well, I guess we should prep you right. What's your messiest story of you two together?
Speaker 2:Oh, when we got a public urination together.
Speaker 3:Yeah, we peed behind a dumpster.
Speaker 2:On each other. Yes, not next to each other. I peed on her and she peed on me. Yeah, we were peeing behind a dumpster and we got a public urination together and it was like, yeah, how close to a playground were you?
Speaker 3:luckily we didn't get in trouble with that I mean that might be a problem on megan's like list or whatever.
Speaker 1:But yeah, it definitely scarred us like we were like it sounds pretty rough for being 10 in the morning right it might have been 10 in the morning, I don't know.
Speaker 3:I do think that. What did do think that? What did you think that last time we went out messy at Brillo Box, like whenever we were in like 2024. Was it 2024? Maybe that was like the last. So like not a lot of people here, because you haven't seen me messy in Pittsburgh, I didn't even think you were that messy. So you didn't think I was that messy.
Speaker 1:No, but Ryan think you were that messy, so you didn't think I was that messy. No, but ryan has a tendency to get a little handsy, I do, he does.
Speaker 2:Yeah, with women that he doesn't know.
Speaker 3:Your friend, yeah, he, he did a small of the back hand placement. Yeah, she asked him to remove the hand. What did he do? And then he did it again on the back.
Speaker 1:No, like like you were holding the tramp stamp area.
Speaker 2:This woman did not have a tramp stamp, but she told you to stop, and then he did it again and he kept going hon, hon, it's not that serious.
Speaker 1:I didn't mean it and like his natural reaction was to like pat her on that part of the back even more, yeah, so it just got cyclical.
Speaker 3:That was weird, yeah oh my god, and I'll never forget that. So that's the kind of stuff I don't that's cringy?
Speaker 1:yeah, it was a little cringe it was a little tough in the moment yeah, and you know what?
Speaker 3:I think in some ways, like I probably always did that and like drunk, and then I just kind of probably didn't have like somebody that was he's like leaning away from your hands, like please don't touch me, oh my god, I'm a horrible person. Thank you for bringing that up that's and he's. Yeah, I am, I am I'm just like that person and so now that I'm like completely out of the you know booze that world in that world.
Speaker 3:I do notice that, like I am so much better of like a hey, don't touch somebody unless they, like, are giving you the same thing. Well, gregory pal, I would like to lighten the mood with like a toast. Thank you so much for just being in my life and making it so much more fun in the bird.
Speaker 1:Thank you for having me in yours by your neighborhood. Now, uh-huh, where's the mr ro Rogers train set, though? That's what I'm missing. The Mocktails or Messy's Express, ryan comes in, changes his shoes, puts on a sweater.
Speaker 3:That's going to be episode 60.
Speaker 2:Cheers to Gregory Powell Great to meet you guys, thanks for getting messy with us.
Speaker 1:Now we're going to go after dark.
Speaker 3:Gregory Powell, we're taking you out to the Brillo Box. You're going to get messy.
Speaker 2:Clothes are coming off, watch out. Thank you for listening to. Mocktails Are Messy. This is Kelly Mazgorski.
Speaker 3:And Ryan Frankofsky. Thank you, Gregory, for coming to the studio.
Speaker 1:Thanks for listening to. Mocktails are Messy. This is Gregory Powell.
Speaker 3:Woo yeah, Gregory Cheers.
Speaker 2:Love ya. Are you Welsh? No, Okay, I had a boss that was like from Welsh. His last name was From.
Speaker 3:Wales. Oh yeah, that's it. That is actually a good one. That's gonna be on the fucking. No, no, take it off. I love it Cute.
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