This transcript was automatically generated and might contain errors.

[0:00] Adassa: Hi, I'm Adassa.

[0:02] Richard Kind: Hello, I'm Richard Kind.

[0:04] Adassa: Welcome to season two of Around the Sun, an episodic audio drama created by me, Brad Forenza. This is season two, episode one, Red Earth Realty. Thank you for listening. And here we go.

[0:30] ♪ Musical number ♪

[0:36] Adassa: The realtor wipes sweat from her brow as Mr. Young ponders the vastness of the desert before him.

[0:47] Richard Kind: So, what exactly am I looking at?

[0:51] Adassa: A pocket listing, Mr. Young. Your dream home. That's what you're looking at.

[0:56] Richard Kind: The desert.

[0:58] Adassa: It would probably look better staged.

[1:00] Richard Kind: How are you going to stage the desert?

[1:02] Adassa: It's way under budget. So you can buy all new appliances.

[1:07] Richard Kind: Can you even sell the desert? Is that legal?

[1:09] Adassa: Listen to yourself. Still thinking inside the box. You have to imagine the possibility, Mr. Young. That's how the West was won.

[1:19] Richard Kind: Look, don't get me wrong. I love the possibility. And maybe if I was 18 again, I'd be motivated to do the work. But there's no foundation out here. There's no frame. It's just desert.

[1:31] Adassa: Just focus on the freedom, the independence, everything that called you here. It's what you've always wanted, isn't it?

[1:41] Richard Kind: Peace. That's what I've always wanted. A little peace.

[1:47] Adassa: Well, I see peace in every direction.

[1:53] Richard Kind: I see sand. Lots and lots of sand.

[1:57] Adassa: Tomato, tomato.

[2:00] Richard Kind: How about some specks? Do you have any specks to show me?

[2:02] Adassa: Look, Mr. Young. You told me you wanted space. Last weekend, you said the developments were too commercial. Yesterday was too suburban. So what's wrong with the desert?

[2:13] Richard Kind: I don't know. It's overwhelming.

[2:16] Adassa: Well, I only get paid when you figure it out. And even then, I have to share my commission with the sellers above me. It's not a glamorous life, Mr. Young. Everyone thinks it is, but it's not. I only work when the seller above me doesn't want new clients. And trust me, he doesn't want the indecisive ones.

[2:37] Richard Kind: Is that how you got stuck with me?

[2:39] Adassa: You didn't hear it from me.

[2:42] Richard Kind: I'm sorry. I didn't know.

[2:44] Adassa: Hey, I'm just a cog trying to get ahead in life, Mr. Young. And this won't be a pocket listing for long.

[2:53] Richard Kind: I know.

[2:54] Adassa: You gotta strike while the iron's hot. Unobstructed views. In all directions. People would kill for this sort of thing back where you're from.

[3:03] Richard Kind: But I'm from New York City. Please. There's no comparison.

[3:07] Adassa: Right. And how many square feet did you have there?

[3:12] Richard Kind: Not enough.

[3:13] Adassa: And here, you have infinite potential.

[3:17] Richard Kind: It's too much potential.

[3:19] Adassa: Look, this isn't Goldilocks. There's no such thing as just right. Not in a seller's market. People are retiring to the Southwest in record frequencies.

[3:32] Richard Kind: But I don't want any more projects to manage. I already paid my dues.

[3:36] Adassa: I don't want to deal with contractors. I want to leave all that noise back East.

[3:40] Richard Kind: The car horns. The squeaky brakes. The sirens.

[3:45] Adassa: Hot garbage in summer. Neighbor's smoke detector in winter.

[3:50] Richard Kind: The trains that become express when you're already on them.

[3:54] Adassa: The claustrophobia.

[3:56] Richard Kind: The disparity.

[3:58] Adassa: Takes a toll on a person.

[4:01] Richard Kind: So what do you want, Mr. Young?

[4:04] Adassa: Siddhartha.

[4:06] Richard Kind: Bless you.

[4:07] Adassa: No. No Siddhartha. It's a book by Herman Hesse.

[4:13] Richard Kind: I had to read it years ago for school because I didn't really understand it back then. I just skimmed it. If that.

[4:20] Adassa: You're telling me. I'm finally reading The Great Gatsby. Only because my son has to write a report on it.

[4:27] Richard Kind: I figure I'll help him out. It's the only way he's guaranteed to graduate.

[4:32] Adassa: Youth is wasted on the young.

[4:36] Richard Kind: It's not half bad, you know. Gatsby. The American Dream is pretty busted. Hopefully he'll read it someday.

[4:44] Adassa: Well, Siddhartha's been on my bookshelf for decades and now I've cleared everything out. Gave all my books away.

[4:50] Richard Kind: Except Siddhartha.

[4:52] Adassa: Out here, I'm going to read that book once and for all.

[4:56] Richard Kind: Better yet, I'm going to live that book.

[4:58] Adassa: What's it about?

[5:00] Richard Kind: Finding your peace.

[5:02] Adassa: Well, you'll certainly have headspace to find it out here. In fact, I can't think of a better place to find your peace than this untouched patch of desert.

[5:14] Richard Kind: You know, I never thought of it like that.

[5:16] Adassa: The Navajo have a saying. Man's law changes with the understanding of man. But the laws of the spirit always remain the same.

[5:26] Richard Kind: Huh. What's that mean?

[5:28] Adassa: It means you won't regret buying this property, Mr. Young.

[5:32] Richard Kind: What? Is it indigenous land or something?

[5:35] Adassa: It's all indigenous land. We're just borrowing it.

[5:39] Richard Kind: And who was the last owner?

[5:41] Adassa: Um, the feds.

[5:43] Richard Kind: What'd they use it for?

[5:45] Adassa: Federally stuff, I guess.

[5:48] Richard Kind: Yeah, what kind of federally stuff?

[5:50] Adassa: Beats me. The kids used to come out here and get high. That's all I know. Lots of untapped potential in this desert.

[5:58] Richard Kind: But as of tomorrow, it goes to the highest bidder.

[6:03] Adassa: The list that goes live tomorrow?

[6:05] Richard Kind: Unless, of course, you want it today.

[6:09] Adassa: Well, there would be a lot of extra work.

[6:14] Richard Kind: But it does check a lot of your boxes.

[6:19] Adassa: Listen, could you not the percentage point off your commission or something?

[6:22] Richard Kind: Why would I do that?

[6:24] Adassa: To get the sale.

[6:25] Richard Kind: Seller's market, Mr. Young.

[6:27] Adassa: Oh.

[6:28] Richard Kind: And remember, I am but a humble cog. I have to kick my commission up the chain to the sellers above me.

[6:36] Adassa: Right.

[6:37] Richard Kind: It's all just a big pyramid scheme, you know.

[6:40] Adassa: Real estate?

[6:41] Richard Kind: Life.

[6:43] Adassa: Yeah.

[6:45] Richard Kind: You know, there's nothing that says you have to build right away.

[6:50] Adassa: You could get a little motorhome and park it in the middle of your property, right under the open sky.

[6:57] Richard Kind: Then sit in front of a campfire and read Siddhartha to your heart's content.

[7:03] Adassa: Every once in a while, hear a coyote howl or watch a UFO pass overhead.

[7:08] Richard Kind: UFO?

[7:09] Adassa: Kidding.

[7:10] Richard Kind: I'm kidding.

[7:11] Adassa: But the buyer always assumes some risk.

[7:13] Richard Kind: You know, that coming from the big city, of course.

[7:16] Adassa: Of course.

[7:18] Richard Kind: So, what do you say, Mr. Young?

[7:22] Adassa: Do we have a deal?

[7:24] Richard Kind: Are you ready to reward yourself with your panoramic American dream?

[7:30] Adassa: Ready as I'll ever be, I guess.

[7:33] Richard Kind: Yeah, we have a deal.

[7:35] Adassa: Yes.

[7:37] Richard Kind: A new chapter begins.

[7:42] Adassa: Well, here we are, Brian.

[7:43] Richard Kind: Where's that, Brad?

[7:44] Adassa: Around the Sun Season 2.

[7:46] Richard Kind: In the desert this time, huh?

[7:48] Adassa: Yeah, nothing like a long pandemic to move things out of a city.

[7:51] Richard Kind: What else is new this season?

[7:52] Adassa: Well, we have a website, aroundthesunpodcast.com, where everyone can access production credits and listen to more episodes.

[7:59] Richard Kind: Sweet.

[8:00] Adassa: And are we still asking listeners to like, share, and subscribe?

[8:03] Richard Kind: It's only decent, Brian. It's only decent.

[8:06] Adassa: Very true.

[8:07] Richard Kind: But in the interim, welcome to the desert!