My Grandma Refused To Salute Hitler

Okay, I've got a very special guest for you. My grandma. She's 99 years old and she has quite a story to tell about how she once saw Adolf Hitler in person, what she thought of him and how she came to the United States with no family or friends. I recorded my conversation with her and transcribed it for you here. Check it out: Tai: What did you think when you saw Hitler? Did you think, "I need to leave Germany?" Grandma: No, but I thought he was crazy. He came, I think, by car. Tai: So he drove up in a car. What was he like? What was Adolf Hitler like? Grandma: He was standing in the car I think. Lots of people on both sides. Tai: You didn't say "Heil Hitler?" Grandma: No. ======= By the way, I’ve been traveling the world talking to the top cryptocurrency experts. I’m talking about crypto rock stars, guys who have their pulse on the underground crypto community. A lot of them never want to be seen on camera, but I convinced them to teach on camera in my new Bitcoin Crypto Mastermind Program. This stuff is not like anything else out there. ? [Click here to checkout my Bitcoin Crypto Mastermind while it’s still open.]( ======= Tai: Were you afraid to say that out loud? Grandma: I talked to my friend, yes, I said, "an intelligent person like you, I cannot believe that you believe this guy." Tai: But she turned out to be a liar, and she turned her family in to the Gestapo. How did that make you feel, that your best friend betrayed you? Grandma: Awful. Tai: Did it make it hard to trust people for the rest of your life? Grandma: No. Later on I visited her once, after she was just about to write her book. Tai: Did you forgive her? Grandma: Not really. Tai: Do you forgive her now? Grandma: Yeah well I said, goodbye, that's it. She wanted to renew the friendship. Tai: So you didn't want to be friends with her. Why do you think she betrayed you? Do you think it's because she told them about your diaries when the Gestapo came? Grandma: Well I tell you, the people who were Nazis, like her, they believed in what they believed in a hundred percent, so nothing mattered. Tai: Germans are supposed to be, "the most sophisticated civilization at the time." Grandma: That's what I told her. Tai: What do you think happened in Germany that caused that? Grandma: Well some people are so persuasive, he just managed to get everybody. I cannot believe it. Tai: Do you think World War One had something to do with it? Germany had just gone through a recession that caused a lot of poverty and he brought new things. Grandma: He did a lot of good things. He did do a lot of things. He made these highways, terrific autobahn. He got people jobs, because he got them all into the black or brown, and some other stuff... Tai: You're talking about the brown, they used to have, like the police, yeah they had the brown-uniformed police. Grandma: Yes, and then the black one was the SS. The SR and the SS. Tai: If you could go back in a time machine or if somebody could go back in a time machine, do you think it would be better for them to kill Adolf Hitler before he came to power? Do you think that's ethical? Grandma: Absolutely. Tai: Yeah? Grandma: Oh yes, and there had been attempts. There were attempts, in fact one of my relatives, I forgot who that was, they were involved in one attempt. Tai: Yeah, with Dietrich Bonhoeffer or one of these guys. Did he get hung? They all got hung. Grandma: I think they all got killed, yeah. Tai: For trying to kill Hitler, he caught them. Grandma: They almost killed Hitler. Tai: Yeah, there was a bomb in a the suitcase that went off, and it was too far away from Hitler. It didn't kill him. It hurt him though. Some of the shrapnel hit him. He was mad about that. Grandma: Of course. Tai: So you think that's justified, to assassinate someone crazy like that. Grandma: Oh, absolutely. Tai: What do you think about Kim Jong Un in North Korea, that kills a lot of people. Do you think he could be assassinated? Grandma: I'm sure they're all worried about that. Tai: But do you think America would be justified to assassinate him? Grandma: I don't know about North Korea, what the heck is going on with them. Tai: Do you remember seeing Nazis, when you were a little girl going to school, would the Nazis drive by? The military? Grandma: From the house we saw a lot of it. My parents saw it and my mother actually wanted to keep us from seeing too much. Tai: Really? Grandma: Yeah, they tried to protect us from all of it, which was silly. Tai: You think parents should let their kids see? Grandma: Well, my sister was politically much more aware and I was not. I never was very interested. I went to museums and libraries and things, you know? Tai: Yeah. Grandma: I just had not much interest in it, but I should have. Tai: All your brothers and sisters had blonde hair. Grandma: Yeah. Tai: And you didn't. How'd that make you feel? Grandma: I was a gypsy child. Tai: You thought you were actually dropped off at the door of your parents by gypsies? Grandma: Well, I always have that memory that I was a gypsy child, yeah. Tai: With the Germans at the time, was it good to be blonde there? Was it better to be blonde? Did people like you more if you were blonde? Grandma: Oh I think so, yeah. At least in Northern Germany. Tai: So it was kind of like racism against people who were brunette? What would've happened to me? Grandma: But of course, Hitler himself wasn't blonde. Tai: Yeah, it was kind of ironic. Grandma: It was very ironic. Some people even claim he has Jewish blood. I mean it's unbelievable. It's unbelievable what people believe in. I'm not very easily hypnotized. I know that because once I was taking a course in psychology at Bryn Mawr, and we were talking about hypnotism, and we experimented with trying to hynpotize each other, and I tried it. I was very successful at hypnotizing people, but nobody could hypnotize me. Tai: Really? Grandma: Yeah. Tai: So do you think Adolf Hitler maybe hypnotized all of Germany? Most of Germany? Grandma: I think so. Tai: So you were born in 1918, you're 20 years old. You're just a young girl, you see Hitler. How long was it 'til you left Germany after that? About a year? Grandma: Well, when I was 21. I finished high school with the help of one of my almost blind schoolmate, who later on I met and she said, you know I was the only non-Nazi in that whole class. Well, Hitler even persuaded our very good teacher who taught us English very well, she was taught in England but she was German, but she also persuaded her to become a Nazi. Tai: So were all your friends becoming Nazi Youth? A lot of them? Grandma: Nobody seemed to discriminate against me, so I don't quite know. Tai: But I'm saying, were the other friends of yours becoming? Grandma: Many of them. Well, many of them had to. Because if they weren't Nazis they couldn't get a job, and it was dangerous, you know? Tai: So even your brother, he ended up fighting in the German army and getting killed in Russia. Grandma: He was not a Nazi. Tai: But he fought for the Nazis because he had to. No one had any choice. Grandma: Well, yeah, he was one year earlier for the AB2. AB2 was the final exam in high school. Because they were in the Arbeitsdienst They had to go out into the country and help farmers or something like that. Tai: Arbeit is like work. Dienst is like, what? What's that mean, like farms or something? Grandma: Arbeitsdienst, dienst is service. It sort of goes from one to the next, you know. And of course, everybody had to be in the Hitler Youth. Tai: Yeah. But how did you get out of the Hitler Youth? Grandma: I couldn't because I was half Jewish. Tai: Oh, you were half Jewish, so they wouldn't let you in. And they knew that? Grandma: I guess so. Tai: But you were practicing Christians right? Your parents? Grandma: That has nothing to do with it, really. Tai: How did they find out you were part Jewish? Grandma: It's written down somehow. You know, you had to prove your grandparents were not Jewish. Tai: You couldn't have any Jewish blood. Would you look outside on the streets and see troops walking by? Grandma: Sometimes I did, yeah. Tai: Was it a scary time? Were you scared? Or did it just seem like business as usual? Grandma: Yeah, it was, I don't remember seeing many. I saw them from the window, but I don't know when I met them. Tai: Did you leave before this Kristallnacht or whatever? In ’38 you were still there. But you don't remember that? When they came and knocked down all the Jewish stores? Grandma: Yeah, I must've, I must remember that. It's been a while. It's been about 80 years. I didn't go on the streets that much either. Tai: Really? Now, in the 1920s, when the depression in Germany came, hyperinflation, how did it affect your family? How did it affect you? Our family I guess. Grandma: My grandparents were very much affected. And I'm sure we were too, I can't quite remember. Tai: You didn't have much food, right? When you came to the U.S. It was the first time you saw somebody not eat all their meal. And leave food on the plate. Grandma: Oh absolutely. Tai: You'd never seen that before? Really? Grandma: No, no. But that's like the Amish. They won't leave any food either. Tai: The Germans? Grandma: Yeah, yeah. It's a German habit I think. Tai: I noticed growing up, you still don't completely forgive Germany. You don't love Germany. Grandma: No. Tai: Why is that? Grandma: Because of Hitler. Tai: You mean because they accepted Hitler? Grandma: Oh, yeah. Tai: And your brother died because of that. And your cousins died. Grandma: Well, my non-Jewish cousins. The other ones all went to England. Tai: I know, that's odd. Half your side is Jewish, half is very German. Grandma: But the reason why the other ones, the Jewish ones, came out is because they just didn't want to stay in Germany. Tai: Was it easy to leave for you, to come to England? It wasn't hard yet? 'Cause it got hard later. Grandma: It was not that difficult, no. I think you still got, I mean the number was very small, but you still got out. Tai: Most of the men in your family were killed in World War Two, right? Grandma: Well the younger ones, yes. Tai: Your cousins and things? Grandma: Yeah, all the non-Jewish cousins, yeah. The other ones more or less got out to England. Tai: So the ones that 'Cause you were half Jewish, right? Your mother was German. Grandma: Was absolutely not Jewish. And that family Tai: And they all died, 'cause they were fighting for the, they had to go into the German army. Now was your brother, he fought for the Germans, but he was half-Jewish. Do you think he knew? People didn't know in Germany right away what Nazism stood for. Grandma: Of yeah, he did know. Tai: He did know? Why do you think he fought? Grandma: Well he had to, practically. He had a chance to go to Australia, or some other places, but somehow or another he didn't want to I guess. Tai: He felt loyal to his comrades. Grandma: Yeah, that definitely. Tai: And he was in a calvary. Grandma: I think so, yeah. Tai: That's wild. They still had people on horseback. Grandma: I know. And Russia in that cold winter, I've read about it. Tai: Do you know how he was shot? Grandma: My brother was shot and one of his friends, who later on brought some information on that to my mother. They looked for my brother’s friend. They wanted to take him out and couldn't find him. Tai: When you got that news how did it make you feel? Grandma: Oh, terrible. So many people died, yes. Tai: A lot of your female friends never got married 'cause there wasn't enough men, right? Grandma: Right. Tai: Do you think the world's gotten worse or better? Grandma: It's really dangerous right now, I think. Tai: But do you think it’s more dangerous than when you were born? World War One, the whole world was fighting, World War Two when you were in your 20s. What do you think is dangerous now? Grandma: Trump. Tai: You're not a big Trump fan? Grandma: I certainly am not. Tai: What presidents did you like? You've seen a lot. Grandma: I liked Carter, but not necessarily for what he did, although he had sort of bad luck just like Obama. But Carter, after his presidency, he did some wonderful things. Tai: Do you remember Germany going through hyperinflation? Where money wasn't worth much? Grandma: Oh yeah. Tai: People lost everything. Grandma: Oh yeah. That's where my grandparents lost all their money. Tai: So your grandparents had money, and they lost it in hyperinflation? And people didn't have enough food. Didn't you say your dad was a doctor and they would have to bring them food, what, rabbits or something? Grandma: Sometimes they brought something from the country, like I remember a rabbit hanging on our back balcony or something. Tai: So for him to treat them as a doctor, the money wasn't worth anything so they would bring a rabbit? Grandma: Right. Tai: Wow. Do you think the world's gonna go through a depression like that one day? Grandma: Could, could. Well in some countries it is. Tai: Yeah. Grandma: Venezuela, you know. Tai: If you could change one thing about the world, what would you change? If had all power. Grandma: As much peace as possible. Tai: Less war? Grandma: Less war, less war. Less soldiers, yes. Tai: What do you think's the solution? Grandma: Our prison system is crazy and bad. I don't like the death penalty, I don't like the prison system. Tai: What do you do with the death penalty with people who mass murder and kill a lot of people. Grandma: Well, prison. But I wouldn't kill them, I don't think so. And also, in some countries, they educate their prisoners. In this country, they make them worse. I don't like the police anymore. Tai: What do you think the police are doing wrong? Grandma: I remember in England, they didn't even have guns. Tai: What do you think about the segregation that you saw? Grandma: Oh god yes. I think that's terrible. It's still going. Your grandfather's mother, was in Paris and was horrified that there was a black person sitting at the table with whites. I mean, she was upset about it. Tai: So you're talking about your husband's mother, which is my great-grandmother on the other side. She came from the South, where everything was racist. Grandma: New Orleans, yeah. Tai: But do you think, just in general, when you were growing up, family would come together, there was no TV, there was no iPhones, there was no Instagram, Twitter. Do you think people were less distracted and had better social connections? Grandma: I'm sure they did. Tai: Yeah? Grandma: We also ate together. Nobody would ever eat alone. They had their meals, you know. Tai: You think it's better for families to eat together? Grandma: Of course. Tai: You told me that your, I guess your grandparents had all these expensive pianos, Steinways, and the American bombers dropped bombs and destroyed a lot of these houses and things. Grandma: I have never been able to find my Jewish grandmother's house. Tai: It was destroyed by the bombers? Grandma: Must have been. I could never find that street even. It was near the Tiergarten, you know, that famous place. Which was beautiful. Tai: America dropped a lot of bombs on Germany. Do you think America did the right thing to fight back against the Germans even though it's where you were born? Grandma: Oh I'm sure the whole thing was correct, but I mean, all wars are terrible. If we could somehow get together, but you couldn't, with Hitler you couldn't. Tai: So you think sometimes war is justified when you have a crazy man? Grandma: Yeah. He thought he could win the world. Tai: Germans thought they could win the world. It's kinda crazy. Germany had a lot of people, but to think, you know, they declared war against America, Australia, most of Europe, England. They were kinda cocky I guess, to think you could take on the world. Grandma: Of course. Tai: And they did get pretty far. Grandma: Well, Hitler made lots of mistakes. But if he hadn't gone to Russia, for one thing, he went to Russia later on, months too late. That's why the climate was so bad. Tai: And that's where your brother, my great uncle, died. Grandma: That's right. Tai: They got stuck in the snow and the mud. Grandma: And they weren't dressed for it or anything. I mean, Hitler made a lot of mistakes. But you know, that's true for many wars. People make mistakes, right? Tai: What do you think about America? We became allies with Joseph Stalin to win the war. I remember as a little kid, I went to Germany with you, and there was still Eastern and Western Germany. The wall hadn't fallen. I was just a little kid, and your sister lived in Bonn, which was the capital of the West. So basically, we told Stalin, if you help us win the war, we'll give you, basically, half of Europe. And half of Europe from 1945 until the fall of let's say Germany in the '80s, 40 years was under Communist rule, and Stalin was not a great guy either. Grandma: Oh no. Tai: Do you think that was justified? That we went from Hitler to Stalin? Grandma: No, I've read about Stalin. I read about the whole history of Russia. Tai: You never got to meet Stalin right? Or see Stalin in person. Grandma: No. Tai: You saw Hitler. There's not many people alive who have seen him in person. Do you remember what kind of car he had? Probably a Mercedes. Grandma: Probably. Tai: Did your family have a car? Grandma: We had a car, we had a DKW I remember, or something like that. Tai: Deh Kah Weh. You know I like cars. You said when I was a little kid, I used to… Grandma: Oh, you spent your life in the cars. Tai: Now I have cars and people go, why do you post videos with cars? Grandma: Because of that. Tai: You understand it, grandma knows. I've always liked cars. Grandma: We had a shift car and I hardly could do the shift. I mean, I was such a bad driver. Tai: What do you think of the modern education system. What do we need to change? Grandma: Oh boy. There are probably some very good schools. At university, I had people sit in groups, and they taught each other. That was very nice. I think languages ought to be taught not by grammar, but by speaking and understanding first. And that's what they did here, at UCSD, when I came. Tai: So you think a lot of it, they just sit people now to learn about English, instead of just writing? You have to do grammar and memorize, you know, participles, dangling participles and all this. Grandma: No Americans know grammar anyway, but the Germans had to learn it. Tai: So maybe more practical education in school, you think? Grandma: I don't know. In Germany, you went to the gymnasium only if you were gifted intellectually, so to speak. You could also, halfway, you could go to where you learn skills. Tai: Right, so they would divide the more book smart people and teach them one way, and the more career-oriented, they would get like a trade or a craft. Do you think that's better? Grandma: I think it has some advantages, I think, for the people. I don't know. It's hard to tell, I mean I don't know anything about it. But certainly, Trump had appointed this couple who know nothing about education. Tai: Oh, you're talking about, Betsy DeVos, or something. You're not a big fan? Grandma: Well I heard about them, I mean, I don't know. I don't follow it so much anymore. ======= By the way, if you've been paying attention to Bitcoin and Cryptocurrencies lately, you've seen that prices are dropping across the board! It's insane. Despite what the mainstream media is saying, the top experts are very excited the prices are dropping. I’ve been traveling the world talking to the top cryptocurrency experts. I’m talking about crypto rock stars, guys who have their pulse on the underground crypto community. The stuff they've been sharing is mind blowing. If you want to know why price drops are a good thing, check out the link below: [Click here to checkout my Bitcoin Crypto Mastermind while it’s still open](. ======= Tai: Do you remember the Korean and Vietnam War? What were those like? Grandma: Well, I was quite upset. Many of the students went to Canada. Tai: You mean to get away from the draft? So you were teaching at college at that time. Grandma: I was teaching, yes, and some of the students slept in their cars. They had no money and they just were students because they didn't want to be drafted, and you could delay it if you were. Tai: Do you think people were doing something wrong when they left the country? Should they have been more patriotic? Grandma: No, not at all, and I was amazed at the women who were not drafted, how uninterested they were in war. They didn't have to do it. Tai: The women didn't but the men did. Grandma: Yeah, the women didn't, and for that reason they had absolutely no interest in the war or doing anything. I thought that was very bad. Tai: Do you think the women should have been drafted too? Grandma: Not only the women but also all the men. I think all the people, as long as they're fit, they ought to be drafted. That might stop a draft. Tai: You think the senators and all the senators' kids and all the people? Grandma: Yes. Like lots of people should have been drafted. Tai: So the elite can draft the poor people's kids, but their kids don't go. It’s not fair. Grandma: That's right. Tai: So you've lived 99 years. What do you regret and what would you do differently if you could do it all over again? Grandma: Oh god. I don't know. Tai: What's some things that come to mind? Grandma: Oh, I had some other boyfriends that I would have liked to marry. Tai: So you think you would have married someone different maybe? Grandma: Possibly. Tai: But we wouldn't be here. I wouldn't be here. No, I don't wanna change your answer. So you would have married maybe, why would you have married them instead of my grandpa? Grandma: They came from Chicago and stayed at our house. And I loved him and he loved me I think. Tai: But wait, were you already married? Grandma: I was married, yes. Tai: And he was married? Grandma: He was married too. Tai: Uh oh, this sounds like trouble grandma. Grandma: All kinds of trouble. Tai: Any other regrets? Would you have come to America? Do you regret that? Grandma: No, never, because as I told you, I met all those Californians that I just admired. That was before Hitler, you know. Tai: But I'm saying, do you regret coming to America? Or are you glad you came to America? Grandma: I'm glad I came to America. Especially California, you know. Tai: You like California the most. More than New York? Grandma: Oh, absolutely. Tai: Why more than New York? Grandma: Well I loved all those Los Angeles people who came. Tai: 'Cause when you were a little girl, yeah. Grandma: They were so wonderful, you know. Tai: Is it 'cause they were free? It was women wearing pants, you'd never seen that before. Grandma: That's right. Tai: Piano players standing on their head. Grandma: Right, all kinds of things that were different. Tai: If you had to sum up, and I know you don't like doing this 'cause I've asked you this before, but if you had to some up what you learned about planet earth, what have you learned? Grandma: It will end in a few million years, when the sun disappears. Well I was always pretty objective about everything. I was not taking sides so much. That's what good anthropology is, you know? I had to put up with an awful lot of being pretty tolerant with my children because they were all in different phases of religion and this and that and I didn't have any of that interest particularly. I couldn't take sides. Andrea, I had to… Tai: That's my mom by the way, Andrea. Grandma: Yeah, Bill and some other ones and Everybody had different interests in coming and going and religion and so on. Tai: Is that an important lesson? That people need to be more tolerant? Grandma: Well I imagine it's a good idea to be tolerant anyway. Tai: You were tolerant. Grandma: Yeah, I am. I had to be, when you have children, all kinds of different things, you know, you have to be. How can you take sides? Tai: You think if people were more tolerant there'd be less war? Grandma: : Probably. Tai: You said you don't like war. Grandma: Yeah, well I don't like it, no. Tai: You saw firsthand too many. Did you ever see your brother again when you left Germany? Your older brother. Grandma: I don't think so. Tai: So you got on a boat and you came to America, and you talked to him maybe by letter? Grandma: I have this one picture which has gone astray, with a letter, not a very interesting letter, but, I don't know. Tai: That's sad, that your brother, who you loved… Grandma: I saw him before he was in Russia, yeah. I know, and I had several. One of my aunt's younger sons, we were very good friends. And of course, my mother was not terribly maternal. Tai: You were maternal. All your pictures are little, you were holding dolls. Grandma: I know, I liked dolls. Although I had one doll which was an older girl, whom I always spanked and so on. Tai: Did they spank when you were growing up in Germany? Grandma: No. Tai: You're not a big believer in spanking? Grandma: No. I mean, I don't know how you educate children anymore. No, I don't think spanking is a good idea. Especially hurting, hurting kids is very bad. I mean, slapping may be okay. Tai: Slapping's okay? Grandma: Well, if they are very young they might not quite know what it is. Tai: I don't remember you ever slapping. You kind of raised me as a little kid. Grandma: I know. No, I never did. Tai: I don't think you ever hit me. Grandpa used to shoot rubber bands at me. Grandma: I know. I couldn't leave you alone with him, he was dangerous. Tai: My grandpa was a little bit much. He used to shoot rubber bands and hit me in the head. Grandma: I know. Tai: I think grandpa was nice to me most of the time. I learned how to learn from him. He was very smart. Grandma: Very smart. Tai: What I learned from grandpa, your first husband, you got married again after he died but, I learned from my grandpa that you can find out answers to things. If you're curious enough. Most people aren't curious. You're curious. Grandma: I mean, everybody, I mean David and Bill, they both remember their father quite well. Tai: Yeah. He was a strong personality, for good or bad. You think more good or more bad? Grandma: Later on, more bad. Tai: Did he get worse over time than when you married him? Grandma: Yeah. Tai: Do men do that? They start out good and then they get bad? Grandma: No, because he was bipolar. Also in Panama it was pretty bad because I had to neglect my children and sit by his bedside, you know, forever. Tai: Do you think he was a narcissist? Grandma: Oh, an egocentric narcissist. Tai: So that's a double narcissist. But did you know he was gonna be such a narcissist when you married him? Grandma: No. Tai: I feel like women, this happens a lot to women. But sometimes to men. They go, when I married 'em they were this way, and then they turned out to be… Grandma: Quite different. Tai: Do you think they change or they were always that way and just hiding it? Grandma: No, they don't hide it, but they, it doesn't show so well, yeah. Tai: Was your mom or dad a narcissist, do you think? Your mom? Grandma: No, she was just very beautiful and had lots of admirers. Tai: In Germany? Grandma: Yeah, but my father had affairs too. Once we had a… Tai: Your dad had affairs you think? Grandma: Yes. Tai: Oh man. Grandma: But that was very common at that time, once we had our caretaker, this lady from Moscow who was German but, you know, she was really like a mother. She was ironing and left the iron on and it started a fire. And the firemen came, and my mother opened the door and she was in her nightgown. And, they said where's your husband? Well he was off with one of his women. Tai: Really? This is in Germany? Grandma: Yes, in Germany. Tai: So you remember your dad having affairs, and that was common? It wasn't, your mom didn't get mad? Grandma: I'm sure she did, she may have. Tai: Did she have an affair too? Grandma: She flirted a lot, so, you know. Tai: She flirted a lot? You remember that? Grandma: Well, I do now, yeah, in part. Tai: Marriages are complicated, grandma. You've been married twice. What did you learn about marriage? Grandma: Yeah, marriage is complicated. Tai: Do you recommend it? Grandma: Oh, of course, if you want children. I think you shouldn't get married, like in Sweden, they don't get married until they have a child practically. Tai: Do you think that's better? Grandma: That's probably a good idea. I mean, if you want children you should be married. Otherwise… Tai: Forget about it? Grandma: Yeah. I think, I don't know. Tai: Are you glad you had kids? Grandma: Oh I always wanted children, yeah. Tai: What do you think about women or men who don't wanna have kids. You think that's fine? Grandma: That's fine. I think it's much better now that you can prevent it. Tai: You mean with birth control, things like that. Grandma: Yeah, that was very difficult to get when I was first married, very difficult. Tai: In Germany they didn't want birth control. They wanted more Germans, right? Grandma: Well they couldn't help it, yeah. I remember, my sister was born on the first of October. And my parents got married on the first of October, and she always said, I was born on my parents' wedding day. Tai: But a year later, but she didn't say that. Grandma: At least two years later. Tai: So they were embarrassed. Grandma: Of course, everybody was. I mean in Germany you got married, it was just a bust. Tai: But do you think that's better, to have traditional families, versus what we have now? Grandma: I think it is better to have children if you want them. But if you don't want them, you should prevent them. Tai: Yeah. Grandma: And that's fine too, you know. Tai: Do you think bigger families are better? A lot of people have one kid. Grandma: I don't think one is enough, two is not quite enough. I think from three on is good. Tai: Yeah? Grandma: But I mean having like seven, eight children like people used to have, you know… Tai: You think that's too many? Grandma: Oh, much too many. You know why so many Mexican women came here? Tai: Why? Grandma: Because they wanted children, children, children, or they couldn't prevent it, so they fled. Tai: Oh you mean the women didn't wanna have so many kids, so they came to America. Grandma: That's right. I know. No, I think it's terrible to have so many kids. Can you imagine having one child every year? Tai: Maya, what do you think about that? Maya: I don't think the body's made for that. Tai: I knew an Amish guy, his mom had 16 kids. Grandma: Yeah. Maya: Too many. Tai: That's too many for you, Maya? You don't wanna have 16? Maya: No, I think three is good. It's a numbers game. It's like quantity, not quality. Tai: Numbers game, Maya says. Thank you for that. Maya: I'm saying, when you have 16 kids, some of them are gonna not be great, but you have other ones to make up for it. Tai: Yeah, but that happens when you have two kids too, not all of them are great. Grandma: When you have so many kids, many of them die too. Tai: You had three kids, you think that's an okay number? Grandma: That's good, yeah, I think so. And it was, most of my family, they don't have more than that. Tai: If everyone has three kids, the planet will have a lot of people. Grandma: I think overpopulation is a very big problem. Tai: So should people have zero? So you're saying, people who don't want to have kids should have zero, and the people who wanna have kids should have three. Maya: I would like more screenings. Tai: Maya says she thinks people should be screened before they can have kids, 'cause some crazy people are having kids. Grandma: In what way? Maya: So good, smart people should have more kids. Sometimes they don't want kids, 'cause they know they're smart and can provide and don't feel like it. Tai: It is kinda crazy that you need a license to operate a car, but you can have kids with no license. With no training. I'm not saying you should prevent people, but maybe some training would do. Doesn't look like this planet is super well-trained with kids. I don't know, I'm not a parent so I can't say. I see kids once in a while where I'm going, your mom and dad need a little training. Grandma: Some people adopt a lot of kids and have lots of them. Tai: Yeah, Angelina Jolie adopted a whole bunch. That's good too. Grandma: That's very good, yeah. Tai: What do you think is the biggest thing that's motivated you? You're pretty motivated, you did the rough water swim when you were in your 70s in the ocean, and you got number one in ping pong. Grandma: I was very athletic. Tai: Yeah and you did zumba, even in your 90s. Grandma: I think that was very good for my health, you know. Tai: Yeah, Are you still doing zumba? Grandma: No, but I do exercises. Tai: I showed you some squats. Do you do those some? Grandma: Nah. Tai: Not doing them anymore? Grandma: I have this one trainer. She's very good, and she tells me how to do it. And I can now walk down the stairs. But I can't really do it alone, so you know. It's this dependency, which is sort of disgusting. I mean I drove for a long time until my eyes got too bad, you know. Bad eyes, bad ears. Tai: Are you the oldest one in your family? Did your dad or mom live past 99? Grandma: My father lived 'til 92 I think. Tai: And what about your mom? Grandma: No, she died much earlier. She had a heart condition. But she was very energetic. Tai: She had a heart attack? Is that how she died? Grandma: No, no. Oh, eventually, yeah. Tai: Where were you when your mom died? Grandma: In La Jolla. Tai: Were you surprised on that day? Or you already knew something was wrong. Grandma: When she came here it was in a hospital. But then she got well again. It was very hard for her because she couldn't speak English and the people couldn't speak German. I mean, she could speak English but not very well. Tai: So what's the secret, what are some of the secrets you think, to your health? Grandma: Exercise. Tai: And you eat pretty good. Grandma: Well, with Billy I ate… Tai: But you always have. You eat very German. You don't have many snacks, you eat three meals a day, you eat an apple. Grandma: Yeah well, I mean, Andrea has helped too in that respect. She is very good with health, yeah. Tai: People didn't know much about health years ago. Grandma: No, but of course in Germany you didn't have that horrible food. I mean, here everything is processed. Tai: So you think the food was better when you grew up in Germany? More natural? Grandma: Oh, yeah. I mean it was natural, you know. Not that we had that much but there was never anything like what's here. I mean, big difference. Tai: Yeah, the food systems not great in the United States. If you can grow your own it's better. Get a little garden. Grandma: Absolutely. You have a farm now, huh? Tai: Yeah. Grandma: That's nice. Tai: But it's in Virginia, so we have to bring some of the food all the way. That's not that easy. Grandma: Well that's not so good either. Tai: What was it like having grandkids? Grandma: - Great. Tai: You like grandkids better than kids? Grandma: No, you can't have grandkids without kids. But the grandkids are all fascinating, yeah. Tai: I was your first grandkid. Grandma: For quite a long time actually, you know. Tai: Where's your favorite place? You've been all around the world. Where did you like the most and where did you like the least? Grandma: No, I love Japan, I like Russia. But not for the reasons you think I like them. For the art and things like that. Tai: Grandma likes art. You can see on the walls here, and all her pottery she collects. She's a true anthropologist up here. Go above the windowsill here, you can see some. What's your least favorite place you've been? Any place you didn't like that much? I went to Moscow once when it was cold, that wasn't my favorite. Grandma: But I liked Moscow. Tai: You liked Saint Petersburg, didn't you? Grandma: And Moscow. But it was because of the art I found, you know. Tai: Grandma loves art. That's the Pisces in you. Grandma: But it's folk art more than anything. Tai: The art of the people. Grandma: I've gone to Mexico a lot, you know, Guatemala, Peru, I love Peru. Tai: Herman, my friend, he's in Colombia right now. Grandma: I know, he was here. Tai: You think you're gonna travel ever to Colombia? Grandma: Unfortunately I can't travel anymore. Tai: Why? Grandma: I can't. Tai: Grandma says this, but then she travels. Grandma: No I can't. Tai: You said that and then you went to Europe. Grandma: Oslo was wonderful. I loved that. Tai: What do you think America's gonna look like in 50 years? Grandma: Oh god. Tai: What do you think America will be like in 50 years? Grandma: Don't ask me. Tai: No? Better or worse than it is now? You think the world's getting better? Grandma: Doesn't look like it. Tai: No? Even though you've been through World War One and Two, you think it's worse now? There's less war. Grandma: Less war? There's war all over the place. Tai: Well but I mean, there's not a, World War. In World War Two you had about 100 to 200 million people displaced, killed, fled. Grandma: But you don't think there's that many people being killed all over the place? Of course the fires, my god in heaven. I don't know, there are all kinds of predictions about the future, of this, hotter, but then also colder, so who knows. Well, as long as the sun is there it's all right. I believe in the sun. Tai: God of the sun or whatever, right? Is that Peruvian? Inca? Grandma: I want to say Inca I think. And every, I have had talking books now. Tai: Audio books, grandma. Grandma: Audio books, yeah, about China, about all kinds, and they all go back to the sun, it's very interesting. Tai: Well the sun is really what drives photosynthesis and everything, food. Grandma: That is my god, so to speak. Tai: Well Grandma, thank you for the talk. We all love you. Grandma: Thank you for coming. ----------- Well there you have it. So what did you think? What are your thoughts on my grandma's experiences? She wasn't afraid to take action. Despite what everyone else was doing, she took action and fled Germany before Hitler could prevent it. Nowadays we have it easy. A little common sense can go a long way. Take Bitcoin for example. So many people are standing around waiting for some magical fairy to make them stop procrastinating. Procrastination is the killer of hopes and dreams. If you're new to the cryptocurrency world, and it sound like something you would want to get into, you should take action. Maybe you feel like there is a lot for you to learn, but that is totally normal. That's why I'm creating free content to have as a resource for people who want to learn more and for people who want the most up-to-date knowledge. There's my free podcast: Bitcoin Crypto Mastermind available on iTunes and Spotify. There's also a free Facebook group. Stay Strong, Tai P.S. For those of you who are ambitious and want to dive deeper into the up and coming world of cryptocurrencies, check out my new Bitcoin Crypto Mastermind program. I brought in the top experts to teach my students how to get started with cryptocurrencies, and more importantly, how to use the strategies the experts are using. [Check out this video I recorded recently about my research on it and how you can take advantage.]( [Manage Email Alerts]( | [Unsubscribe From All]( | [Unsubscribe From Tai's Emails Only]( You have received this email to {EMAIL} because you are a registered [Tailopez.com]( subscriber. 8581 Santa Monica Blvd. Suite #703 West Hollywood, CA USA