Interview With Kyle Kunz
Transcript
Crime Scene Cleaning
Interview With Kyle Kunz
Episode Transcript
INTRO
MARK TAURIELLO You’re listening to Bizarre Buffet, a podcast of all you can eat weird ! I’m your host Mark Tauriello.
JEN WILSON I’m Jen Wilson.
MARC BLUESTEIN And I’m Marc Bluestein
VINCENT PRICE There’ll be food, and drinks, and ghosts…And perhaps even a few murders. You’re all invited !
SUSAN ATKINS When we first went in…uhhh. One of the people said “ Who are you ? “ , and Tex said “ I’m the devil, and I’m here to do the devils business. “
MARK TAURIELLO Hey everyone ! You’re listening to episode 2 of Bizarre Buffet. Today’s topic is Crime Scene & Death Cleanup .
MARC BLUESTEIN Oh!!
JEN WILSON Oh, oh! Yes !
MARK TAURIELLO We’re getting dark up in here !
JEN WILSON. I love me a good crime scene!
( Laughter )
MARK TAURIELLO I mean, holy crap. Imagine having to do that job ?
MARC BLUESTEIN I cant !
JEN WILSON. You have to be a special person.
MARC BLUESTEIN You really do. It is such a specific profession. Even someone like me, someone who can watch every Horror Movie , every kind of thing. And I’ve seen some weird shit ! Watching those videos…after a while…makes me feel a certain kind of way!
I start getting a little sad. It goes from being super interested, to just feeling like…this is kind of bumming me out. Ya know ?
MARK TAURIELLO Cause its real !
MARC BLUESTEIN Yeah ! Yeah..its hard.
MARK TAURIELLO We watched that stuff together all the time. At first I’m all into it and I’m like “ Oh my God !”. Then I’m shocked.
Once it sets in, I’m like “ We have to watch Golden Girls , or something whimsical ! “
MARC BLUESTEIN Yeah, thats what he always says ! “ Something whimsical “
MARK TAURIELLO Jen , whats the weirdest thing you ever saw ? That was like a gross crime scene…in real life ?
JEN WILSON. I mean… You guys know that I’ve worked with Autistic kids, from ages 5 – 20.
Gross crime scenes probably include..bodily fluids on the walls, on the floors, on their backs.
MARC BLUESTEIN Yeahhh.
JEN WILSON On their body…
I mean, I’ve never dealt with blood. More like, other bodily fluids. Which is weird because I can do blood, but I cant do my own blood.
MARC BLUESTEIN Really !?
JEN WILSON Yes.
MARC BLUESTEIN It’s so odd. Its kind of like..I hate needles, but I’m fine with tattoos. That kind of thing.
JEN WILSON Okay.
MARC BLUESTEIN Doctor needles freak me out, but otherwise I’m ok.
MARK TAURIELLO The last time I got a needle was when I went to get a physical. They were doing their needle stuff, I don’t even remember what they were doing. But, the doctor told me to stop being a baby.
I was like, “ Wahhh ! “
MARC BLUESTEIN The doctor was like “ Shut up !!”
MARK TAURIELLO What about you, Marc ? Whats the nastiest or weirdest thing you’ve ever seen? It can even be like, if someone threw up at a bar.
MARC BLUESTEIN Oh. The nastiest thing ? I mean, I’ve seen people do a lot of nasty things. Nothing is coming to mind right now, in the sense of “ Oh my God, I cant believe I witnessed that “ . I’ve witnessed a lot of crap behavior from people.
What about you ?
MARK TAURIELLO Oh my ! I think this is a good story to share.
When I was younger my family and I lived in a very unsavory neighborhood, with a very high crime rate.
Irvington, New Jersey ! Represent! Hey Guys !
MARC BLUESTEIN Woo, shout out !
JEN WILSON Wooo!
MARK TAURIELLO People always say “ YOU GREW UP THERE !? “, and I’m like, yes bitch, I did!
One of the times that we were robbed, the crack head who robbed us…he broke in through a window. I’m assuming he cut his arms up really bad, because there was blood all over the house.
When we got home and went into the house, we thought someone broke in and got murdered in the house.
And because it took the cops a day to show up, we were looking around the house for a body.
MARC BLUESTEIN Oh, no !
MARK TAURIELLO Instead of a body, we had things stolen .
JEN WILSON Like what ? What did you get stolen ?
MARK TAURIELLO You know.. jewelry, a television set. Nice things that you’d have in a house.
MARC BLUESTEIN A collection of exotic underwear from around the world..
JEN WILSON Yes!!
MARK TAURIELLO I think I was 8 or 9. I don’t think my underwear was as exotic as it is now.
MARC BLUESTEIN Ew, gross !
MARK TAURIELLO. There was just blood everywhere.
MARC BLUESTEIN God. Blood and underwear everywhere !
MARK TAURIELLO And my mom, God Bless her soul.
She literally took the towels that had the blood on them, put them in a Ziplock bag, and gave them to the cop. She said “ Incase you need DNA evidence “ , and the cop say “ Honey, you’ve been watching too many TV shows !”
MARC BLUESTEIN Now I actually do have something coming to mind. When I was growing up, there was this one time that one of my dogs threw up, and the other one ate it .
( LAUGHTER )
That was truly gross. Like, really gross. Early 2000’s weird video gross.
JEN WILSON Ooo!
MARC BLUESTEIN I know. Jen has three cups and nine girls, right ?
JEN WILSON Yeah, ya know.
MARK TAURIELLO 2 dogs, one bowl.
( LAUGHTER )
MARC BLUESTEIN 2 dogs, one vomit.
MARK TAURIELLO Was it Romeo and Kasha ?
MARC BLUESTEIN It was Romeo and Kasha !
MARK TAURIELLO Let me guess. Kasha threw up, and Romeo ate it ?
MARC BLUESTEIN Yup! Cause boys are disgusting. But thats true love !
Wouldn’t you agree, Jen ?
JEN WILSON Absolutely !
MARC BLUESTEIN Let’s get back to Crime Scene Cleaning.
Theres a really interesting channel on YouTube, the company is called Spaulding Decon.
I dont know what possessed me in the moment. I think it was one of those things that was always in the back of my mind. One day I thought to myself “ Let me see if I can find some video footage “, just to see if anything was out there.
In doing so, Mark and I stumbled across this channel. We said, ok, its really nice produced, its very VIVID and GRAPHIC.
So, we’ re in ! We’re down. Down to clown, as they say.
( LAUGHTER )
I don’t event know what that means !
JEN WILSON DOWN TO CLOWN .
MARC BLUESTEIN Down to clown! Not John Wayne Gacy, though.
MARK TAURIELLO I think when we found this on YouTube, what sucked us in…You know how they have a picture thats a preview of the video you’re about to watch ? It was a brown stain that was human sized.
We were like, oh God, this looks real !
MARC BLUESTEIN It wasn’t a Hollywood stain. It looked like a real, legit stain.
MARK TAURIELLO It was oxidized.
MARC BLUESTEIN It was definitely click bait, but they delivered ! They did not disappoint.
Years ago, I saw this truck…you know how a truck will advertise “ We do this , we do that “
JEN WILSON Mhm.
MARC BLUESTEIN It said :
- Biohazard
- Suicide
- Etc, etc, Cleanup.
I thought,
“ Wow, that makes sense “
Because is something that there would be a need for professionals. Ones that aren’t your average cleaning service that you would call. Rightfully so.
It’s a pretty crazy thing.
MARK TAURIELLO It’s an undying industry. Pun intended, no pun intended..
MARC BLUESTEIN It’s a good one, it truly is.
MARK TAURIELLO And people are always dying. It’s like the funeral home industry, it’s never gonna go out of business.
MARC BLUESTEIN For better or worse, its something you can always rely on.
JEN WILSON Yeah.
MARK TAURIELLO Would you guy’s ever do it for a good sum of money ? Let’s just say there was a house, and the whole family got brutally murdered, and you had to clean it.
Would you be able to do it..for like, $1,000 ?
JEN WILSON I think its one of those situations where I’d have to be in it. I don’t know unless I was there doing it.
MARC BLUESTEIN. That makes sense to me.
I don’t think that its about whether I’d do it or not, I just don’t know if I’d be physically capable of doing it .
JEN WILSON Yeah.
MARC BLUESTEIN I don’t know.
I could probably live in a house where people were murdered. But after the professionals come in, like Spualding Decon…and take care of the place.
Even that…It’s still questionable for me.
MARK TAURIELLO Well, it makes you think too.
On the show, theres a lot of times where someone dies, and their bodily fluids seep through layers and layers. Through the floor, into the ceiling…to God knows where else..even into the substructure of the house.
And to some people, I’m sure that if you bleach or do something topical, to the eye it looks as though its clean. Underneath the wall’s, there could still be tissue, there could still be blood.
And I just wonder, how many place’s are there where something like this has happened, and theres still residue left over ? Unbeknownst to whoever is living in that space.
JEN WILSON Yeah.
MARC BLUESTEIN It has to be really common, I would imagine. Right ?
MARK TAURIELLO I would imagine..
MARC BLUESTEIN Because I’m curious to know, percentage wise. How many instances are there of people who try to do , or attempt this on their own ?
Is it a thing that people do ? Maybe it’s the type of thing where if you’re not able to, financially…call someone in ?
So when you watch the show, they give you the nitty gritty details. They show you that this is not just a surface based issue.
Once they start taking things apart, depending on where the person passed away or was murdered….
If its a carpet for instance, they have to rip up that carpet. They have to take out the padding underneath of the carpet, it goes so in depth.
The people are equipped!
JEN WILSON Yeah.
MARC BLUESTEIN They know how to do the work to fix It back up.
JEN WILSON Yeah…no!
(LAUGHTER)
MARK TAURIELLO And then meanwhile, ya know, if I have to get leftover pasta out of the drain of the sink I’m crying about it !
MARC BLUESTEIN Yeah, I’ve seen it. Crying.
MARK TAURIELLO I don’t know how they do it.
JEN WILSON You guy’s know we have a very special guest today. His name is Kyle Kunz .
And he is someone who we may consider to have an unusual career. Kyle is a Crime Scene Cleaning expert!
MARK TAURIELLO Ooohhhhhhh!!!
JEN WILSON He is one of the faces of a very popular YouTube channel called Crime Scene Cleaning, as we all know.
MARC BLUESTEIN My favorite !
JEN WILSON It’s a show that follows its highly trained technicians, of which Kyle is the Lead Technician in charge of the Field Crew.
We witness as they journey through the in depth procedures of remedying a home or apartment, after a dangerous or tragic event took place.
MARK TAURIELLO He plays no games !
JEN WILSON All of the cases that we see require the expertise of individuals, who are professionals in the field.
Not everyone can do it, right ?
MARC BLUESTEIN I would never know where to begin …
JEN WILSON Exactly.
MARK TAURIELLO I would cry !
JEN WILSON Not only do they take on the huge amount of work thats required to do this job , but they’re also providing an invaluable service.
They’re removing added stress, and added trauma from family and friends, that have been through too much already.
MARC BLUESTEIN Exactly. It’s the last thing you need to think about.
JEN WILSON They take this task on. I had no idea how involved and in depth these procedures are.
MARC BLUESTEIN Oh, yes. They are.
JEN WILSON Right guys ?
Because on any episode you can see Kyle and the members of his team…they’re doing actual construction work.
MARC BLUESTEIN It’s insane.
JEN WILSON Cutting off parts of walls, removing and replacing floors, and tiles.
MARC BLUESTEIN Mhm.
JEN WILSON. Oh, God…
MARK TAURIELLO Dealing with Biohazard. I’m sure theres laws about how you have to deal with Biohazard’s.
MARC BLUESTEIN Yeah.
JEN WILSON. It’s definitely not a career thats suited for everyone.
But if you’d like to see some of what we’re talking about, definitely subscribe to Crime Scene Cleaning on YouTube.
Spaulding Decon is their parent company.
And as it say’s in their About section :
“ Spaulding Decon is a premiere crime scene cleanup , hoarding cleanup, and meth lab cleanup company in the US. “
MARC BLUESTEIN Oh my God!
MARK TAURIELLO And there’s a lot of meth labs !
MARC BLUESTEIN Especially in America !
JEN WILSON Aside from his career as a crime scene guru, Kyle has authored three novels. He has a fourth novel on the way.
His Best Selling book is “ Secrecy, Memoirs from the Silent “, in which he recounts his life struggles with child abuse, drug addiction, and so much more.
You can find this novel on Amazon, as well as his other novels “ Reflections Past “, as well as “ Hidden Revenge “.
We’re thrilled to have Kyle joining us today, to discuss his fascinating line of work, as well as his literary work; that hold’s so much relevance to so many of us.
Let’s welcome Kyle Kunz !
MARK TAURIELLO So, Kyle. Welcome to our show! It’s so fantastic to have you here with us.
As you know, we are obsessed with the show Crime Scene Cleaning, that’s on the Spaulding Decon channel on YouTube.
Your line of work, it’s very fascinating. I think its something where you need to be a very special type of person to be able to do what you do.
We’re gonna start with the more logistics behind the work that you do.
INTERVIEW BEGINS
KYLE KUNZ Okay !
MARK TAURIELLO Okurrr?
( LAUGHTER )
KYLE KUNZ We got this, we got this !
JEN WILSON Yas, Queen’s!
MARK TAURIELLO How did you specifically get into this profession?
KYLE KUNZ Oh, God! You WOULD ask that…
it’s been kind of a crazy, crazy ride.
In 2009, I actually got bored with the everyday monotonous lifestyle. I was just like, I cant do the 9-5, I cant do the 8-4, I can’t ! I just cant do it anymore.
So I started doing some super intense research, trying to find something that I would love to do.
And Crime Scene Cleaning popped up!
And I was like…” Well, hot damn ! “
(LAUGHTER )
Let me jump on this bandwagon.
It kind of escalated from there . I took a National Class, I got certified through OSHA…all the fun stuff.
JEN WILSON We were gonna ask that. It makes sense that you had to go through OSHA.
KYLE KUNZ Yes, yes.
I had to go through OSHA to become certified. Things like that.
And then as excited as I was, it all went down the drain.
I lived in a small town. A small city where we didn’t have…
We had ENOUGH business for it, but we didn’t have a large enough population to have a company like that IN the area.
So, I went and sold adult novelties, I wrote three books. I worked at gas stations, I worked in the oil industry.
And about two years ago I ended up moving up to Tampa, and one of the first things I did was search out those companies.
I applied at Spaulding and harassed them for probably three weeks.
( LAUGHTER )
HARASSED, actually harassed. Called them everyday. Until they got aggravated enough and called me in.
And its been on like Donkey Kong ever since !
JEN WILSON Wow !
MARK TAURIELLO Can you tell us a little bit about the training process, and what that entails?
KYLE KUNZ Yeah, absolutely.
The training process is super simple. Either you make it on a scene, or you don’t make it on a scene.
MARK TAURIELLO Oh !
( LAUGHTER )
KYLE KUNZ A lot of people think that they have the guts to do it, they think they have the mindset to do it.
And then they get in…
We always do hands on training. Because it really makes or breaks the deal.
JEN WILSON. Oh, yeah. For sure.
KYLE KUNZ A lot of people talk a big game.
“ I can do this! 100%! “
Then they turn around…. They get on the scene, and I find them hurdled behind the van ! Either in the Fetal Position, or vomiting.
MARK TAURIELLO Wow…
MARC BLUESTEIN I can totally relate to that. In my daytime profession, I do hair.
It’s obviously not anything similar, but there are people who will say “ Oh, its JUST hair. How hard could it be ? “ It’s when you’re actually doing the job that you see how hard it can be.
KYLE KUNZ Right, right.
It’s kind of the same! You do hair….I clean up hair.
So, I mean, theres similarities.
MARK TAURIELLO But normally the hair in your situation is detached !
JEN WILSON Yes !
KYLE KUNZ Yes ! Sometimes a little crunchy.
( LAUGHTER )
MARC BLUESTEIN Oh, God !
JEN WILSON And something that you said earlier, which I think resonates with a lot of people who are listening…
About being tired of the 9-5 grind, and finding something that you’re passionate about.
I hear it from a lot of people. I hear it from a lot of friends and a lot of colleagues, about how they’re tired of doing the same thing; over and over again .
KYLE KUNZ Yes.
It get’s mentally exhausting, it get’s physically exhausting.
Coming home from my 9-5, I was mentally drained. And don’t get me wrong, I’m mentally drained everyday when I come home from working…cleaning up crime scenes. But it’s a different kind of mental drain.
Back when I was working the 9-5, it was :
- I’d come home.
- I’d cook dinner.
- We’d eat dinner.
- We took showers.
- And we would go to bed.
We’d wake up the next morning and do it all over again.
Now its a matter of …I never know what city, what state, what the job is gonna be.
JEN WILSON Exactly.
KYLE KUNZ I wake up everyday..and its literally a brand new start everyday.
JEN WILSON. Thats amazing.
MARC BLUESTEIN That is amazing.
That’s something thats so rare to find in a line of work.
KYLE KUNZ It is, it really is.
MARK TAURIELLO And with your line of work, no two situations are the same.
KYLE KUNZ No.
I have had SIMILAR situations. But the two years that I’ve been working with Spaulding, I have never…never, ever, ever..had two exact, same situations.
MARK TAURIELLO While we’re talking about situations..we’re gonna dive a little bit deeper into the nitty gritty of what you do.
And I would love to know…With what you’ve done..And I’m sure a million people have asked you this. Now a million and three are going to ask you.
( LAUGHTER )
ANCHOR FM AD
MARK TAURIELLO What’s the most difficult or unusual situation you’ve encountered so far?
KYLE KUNZ So, its more circumstantial at this point. It’s the circumstances BEHIND. And with June being Gay Pride Month, and also PTSD Awareness Month.
Cleaning up suicides. Especially Veteran Suicides, or even the LGBTQ community….Those kinds of suicides actually effect me super, super, deep.
Those are the days that I come home and I actually sit in the bottom of my shower. And either I cry, or I just sit there for 20 minutes…. Trying to let the water wash away EVERYTHING.
MARC BLUESTEIN I’m sure that when people meet you, its kind of like “ Oh my God, tell me GRUESOME stuff !” Or, maybe they’re scared and curious…whatever it is.
But the thing is..these are people. These are people from every kind of community.
Thats a very interesting and impactful statement, that means a lot.
MARK TAURIELLO The one thing that I really love when watching the show with you, Kyle…
Is the fact that you do a very difficult job, but you also have this way about you.
Where you have a great personality and seem to be very comforting to everyone involved.
And I said to Marc, I was like GOOD GOD.
If I were to have to clean up a crime scene , I would need Kyle there to hold my hand!
JEN WILSON Yeah !
(LAUGHTER )
KYLE KUNZ Thats funny, thats funny.
JEN WILSON. I think Kyle, too… You have this sense of humor. You have this way to kind of make light of the situation while you’re cleaning.
KYLE KUNZ Yes! Yeah.
You really kind of have to have that sense of humor. I mean Gallows Humor is something thats in any kind of macabre industry.
Whether you be a Funeral Director, a coroner, or a medical examiner…
We all have that Gallows Humor….I just take it to the next level. Being able to have fun in the environment that you work at .
JEN WILSON YOU HAVE TO !
KYLE KUNZ Yeah, ultimately you have to. You have to keep that positive mindset.
Because I honestly, 100% feel…If I went into every single job, me being a person with PTSD and having been diagnosed with it…. I feel like I would be sucked into that state of mind.
And probably end up being one of my next victims, that one of my techs would end up having to clean up.
JEN WILSON Yeah…
MARC BLUESTEIN Oh God…
Everything needs to have a balance, and thats what its about.
KYLE KUNZ Exactly.
MARC BLUESTEIN What you do is no easy job. Like what Mark said earlier, you have to be a certain kind of person. There has to be something that gets YOU THROUGH.
And motivating the team that you’re working with.
KYLE KUNZ Yes. Exactly, exactly.
They know that in the morning, if Britney Spears is blasting through the truck.. We’re going to a “ decomp “ , and its gonna be a funny day. ( ? )
MARC BLUESTEIN It’s like sounding the alarms !
( LAUGHTER )
KYLE KUNZ Yes, thats exactly what it is !
MARK TAURIELLO I love that !
KYLE KUNZ When they hear “ IT’S BRITNEY, BITCH “, they’re on ! They already know whats happening.
MARC BLUESTEIN They’re like “ Oh, No !!! “
JEN WILSON “ Oh, God ! “
MARK TAURIELLO One of my own personal curiosities.
And I’m a retail manager for a fashion brand. I have a business mindset sometimes.
With the work that you do with crime scene cleaning, I was wondering….
How is the pricing situation handled ?
KYLE KUNZ You know, its kind of weird.
Mostly everything is dealt with by insurance and things like that. It’s usually just hidden in there, in the insurance policy that its covered under.
But each situation is different. And it just really depends on the type of job that it is, the type of situation.
How many people were involved in… say….crime ?
It kind of goes like that.
MARK TAURIELLO So, its a case by case basis.
KYLE KUNZ Yes, exactly.
Yeah, theres not one of those square foot, or anything like that. It’s literally just a case by case.
So, not only am I away from the monotonous everyday lifestyle.
But I’m also away from the monotonous lifestyle of business as well.
JEN WILSON Right.
MARK TAURIELLO Gotcha.
MARC BLUESTEIN And that can be the most boring part of it all, so good for you man !
(LAUGHTER)
KYLE KUNZ Exactly! Exactly.
Numbers are NOT my game !
MARC BLUESTEIN I’m there with you !
JEN WILSON I am too. I’m like “ Can someone else deal with this please ? “
KYLE KUNZ Yeah, I’m the same way, I’m the same way.
We own a logistics company, me and my fiancé. I look at him and I’m like “ I don’t understand . “
And he’s like “ Oh no, its good. I got this . “
JEN WILSON. It’s always good when someone knows what they’re doing !
KYLE KUNZ Yes, yes !
MARK TAURIELLO I’m always fascinated by how in-depth the cleanups are.
I’ve seen the episodes where you’ll deal with a mattress…And you’ll literally have to dissemble it.
And I’m sure you have a lot of biohazard laws or regulations you have to follow.
On top of …It’s almost like you’re doing a lot of construction work ?
KYLE KUNZ Yes. Yes.
It’s actually a lot of DECONSTRUCTION work.
MARK TAURIELLO Deconstruction work. Got it.
KYLE KUNZ Yeah.
We’re literally deconstructing what manufacturers have put together.
SO, the good thing now, is that I can pick out some bomb ass furniture. Because I know whats gonna hold up !
( LAUGHTER )
The BAD thing is, is that some of those jobs….Like a recliner ? Mannnnn……
I will NEVER own a recliner because I know how it is.
( Referring to an individual who has passed away on a recliner * )
MARK TAURIELLO Can you tell us what makes a recliner, possibly the worst thing to die in ?
KYLE KUNZ So, essentially when you die, you liquify.
I hope no one is listening who has a super sensitive stomach…..but you do. You liquify.
Between the body fat and the blood, and all the other bio…
A recliner has every single piece of material KNOWN TO MAN .
So…
- It’s frame is made of wood.
- It’s got THE SPRINGS
- It’s got THE FOAM
- It’s got THE CUSHION
- It’s got THE PLUSH
- It’s got THE PLASTIC
And you have to deconstruct and find and track, where the biohazard has gone….Through each and every crevice.
MARC BLUESTEIN Oh my Goddddd…
So when you walk into a room and see that, is it like “ OH, GODDDD NOOO”
KYLE KUNZ When I walk into a room and see that, normally I’m like
“ Ok guys, this is your time to shine ! “
Because I trained you the way that I know how to do it…. And I’ll stand in the background and guide you.
MARC BLUESTEIN You’ll be CHEERING them on as they take apart that recliner !
( LAUGHTER )
GO TEAM GO !
KYLE KUNZ Thats when I take over videoing and I’m like, yeah… May God Be With You .
MARC BLUESTEIN The whole thing about what Mark just said on that topic…
I told him :
“ One of the things I’d want to ask Kyle. Like, Kyle…eventually..when I drop dead from being SO GORGEOUS…How should I do it ? To make it easier for the Kyles of the future ? “
KYLE KUNZ ACTUALLY !
You know, actually, I get that a lot.
The best way to do this is…
Watch a couple of episodes of Dexter… Create that EXACT ROOM…
( LAUGHTER )
And just…WAIT !
( LAUGHTER )
MARK TAURIELLO THATS A LOT OF PLASTIC !
KYLE KUNZ YES. Yes.
JEN WILSON Because I was gonna say…Are we talking Dexter the murder..or Dexter the Forensic Scientist !?
KYLE KUNZ Oh yeah, no…the murderer.
JEN WILSON The murderer, got it.
MARC BLUESTEIN THE TV SHOW, JEN !
JEN WILSON I KNOWWW!
(LAUGHTER )
Dexter’s got two sides to him !
KYLE KUNZ THE GOOD NEWS IS…. I make Dexter rooms ALL THE TIME.
Wait, that sounded bad..
NOT FOR MURDER.
( LAUGHTER )
So I can totally walk you through the steps, it’s okay.
MARC BLUESTEIN That’s amazing ! Okay.. Good to know!
( LAUGHTER )
MARK TAURIELLO SO, moving on from the logistics and murder rooms and what have you.
KYLE KUNZ Murder rooms are my favorite !
MARK TAURIELLO Everyone else’s too !
(LAUGHTER )
You are…
You are also a person and a human being. And I know that this definitely takes a toll on you.
So aside from humor, what else is a good coping mechanism that helps you to separate your work from your personal life ?
KYLE KUNZ So… LEGALLY ?
(LAUGHTER)
No, I’m just kidding.
A lot of the time I’m actually out in my yard, working in my yard. I have my fiancé who, we both do a lot of work in our yard.
We’re remodeling. We had a flood upstairs …a couple of months ago in our bathroom.
We’re remodeling our house at the moment .
My boy’s. My Yorkie’s. I have two Teacup Yorkie’s. WHICH…if you follow me on IG. You’ll see them..EVERYWHERE.
To take away the stress from seeing and dealing with what I do for work, I’m either in the yard or in the kitchen cooking.
I’m like..The perfect Housewife.
MARK TAURIELLO You’ll have to come by and cook for us, because Marc and I live off of microwavable food.
(LAUGHTER )
KYLE KUNZ OH NO! NO!
If I could get away with cooking a five course meal daily…AND I USED TO…I just don’t have the energy anymore.
MARC BLUESTEIN KYLE.
Let me tell you…That microwave is so tired that it makes whale noises as it rotates.
(LAUGHTER )
KYLE KUNZ That’s actually what it sounds like when I get onto the beach. I just hear nothing but whale noises.
( LAUGHTER )
JEN WILSON I’m just getting sick of cooking..During this global crisis thats going on .
I’M JUST SICK OF THE COOKING.
KYLE KUNZ But that’s pretty much it, in terms of my coping mechanisms. Other than my writing and such.
Plant’s and food.
MARC BLUESTEIN And that’s the next thing we wanted to get into. SO…
Kyle Kunz is a writer. You have…What, three novels ?
JEN WILSON Three novels !
MARC BLUESTEIN And a fourth one on the way ?
KYLE KUNZ I do ! I do have three novels and a fourth one on the way !
MARK TAURIELLO Tell us everything. Tell us about them !
KYLE KUNZ EVERYTHING, holy crap.
JEN WILSON EVERYTHING !
KYLE KUNZ Well..
The first one is my worst, Hidden Revenge. It’s the absolute worst, I hate it with every passion.
I cant believe that a nice guy like me would write something so crazy and macabre.
It’s pretty cool. It’s a weird Homo love story…
JEN WILSON You know, I’m a writer myself…We’re all our own worst critics when it comes to our writing and our work.
KYLE KUNZ Yes.
This is something that my mom shouldn’t have read…And I didn’t realize she was GOING TO READ.
MARC BLUESTEIN You were like “ Mom ! Put that down !”
KYLE KUNZ. I was like “ MOM! What are you doing ? “
She goes “ I bought it so you could sign it ! “
(LAUGHTER)
MARC BLUESTEIN Like, BE SUPPORTIVE WITH ANOTHER BOOK !
KYLE KUNZ YEAH. Yeah.
You know…Hidden Revenge, I kind of leave that on the back burner.
Secrecy, Memoirs from the Silent , thats actually my life. That’s my entire childhood growing up.
Coping with the sexual abuse, the mental abuse, the physical abuse, drug addiction…And things like that.
That one hits close to home. Just because I felt a chapter of my life close…When I had written the last chapter of that book.
JEN WILSON That must have been so liberating.
KYLE KUNZ It was.
It was something that I had needed to get off my chest completely. Get it out of my mind.
I struggle daily with it. I was diagnosed with Manic Depression and severe PTSD.
I mean. I struggle with it everyday, but everyday is a new day because of the job that I do. And because of the people that I surround myself with.
So..If I have a moment, it doesn’t stick around very long.
MARC BLUESTEIN That’s really beautiful.
We were talking about how what you do is very meaningful and important to you. I feel like what you do, in my personal opinion..And please correct me if I’m wrong.
What you do with helping people, it’s important to you. And it ties in with your personal life experiences.
Would you agree with that ?
KYLE KUNZ 100 %
I actually do what I do to help those in need. Because it actually helps me to cope with my own past.
Saving somebody from going through what I had to deal with in the past, and taking all of that on for myself.
Whether it be hoarding , or a meth lab cleanup, or something like that.
Or having a family member walk in and trying to clean their own mother or fathers suicide…
I take that pain from them, and I put it onto myself. And when I take that shower at night…I wash it all down the drain.
MARC BLUESTEIN That’s beautiful, really.
JEN WILSON Yeah.
MARC BLUESTEIN. That really is.
You’re definitely a special person.
JEN WILSON Absolutely.
MARC BLUESTEIN Ya know…
You go on YouTube, you see the videos. People are just naturally dark and curious, its just part of who we are. It’s so much deeper for someone like you. This is apart of you, and its meaningful to you.
KYLE KUNZ Right.
MARC BLUESTEIN I think thats a very important message to share, and very motivating.
For those people who maybe feel like they’re tired of their job…All of those things that we talked about. It’s an inspirational story.
KYLE KUNZ I find it kind of gross…
(LAUGHTER)
JEN WILSON. I was gonna say, Can you tell us about your new memoir coming out ?
KYLE KUNZ Yes !
My NEW novel coming out, its actually kind of crazy. With everything that I deal with at work, and everything that I’ve dealt with in the past…I’ve actually created a book thats completely full of nothing but Suicide Letters .
I know it sounds super crazy, and I know that it sounds super macabre. And I feel like….Everybody always has that moment where they feel so alone, that NO MATTER WHAT; they feel like they’re the only ones going through it at that moment. When we’ve all been in one position or another.
And I feel that if I were to turn around and show the world, that other people have suffered in the same way….And to help spread Suicide Awareness.. It could change the world.
JEN WILSON Thats AMAZING.
MARC BLUESTEIN That’s really amazing.
JEN WILSON. That’s really amazing, Kyle.
As somebody who also struggles with Mental Illness and Depression. I’ve had really dark and traumatic times in my life. I feel as though having something like that…Might have been able to help me realize that I wasn’t in fact alone…
KYLE KUNZ Yes.
I am a…I’m a drug addict survivor , I’m a sexual abuse survivor , I am a suicide…I’m an attempted suicide survivor. And putting all of that in, and seeing it ? …. I felt so alone at times.
I was like, I’ve never seen something LIKE THAT…Where people can relate.
It’s crazy.
MARC BLUESTEIN It is. And super impactful.
JEN WILSON It is…
As somebody who is a suicide, and sexual abuse, and drug addiction survivor…
And with that state of our world right now, I believe that Mental Health is really important right now.
KYLE KUNZ. I agree.
JEN WILSON I feel that people are being effected right now, mentally and emotionally.
I was just wondering if you had any advice for people listening who might be struggling as well ? And kind of…How to cope through this time right now ?
KYLE KUNZ LOTS AND LOTS OF ALCOHOL ! No, I’m just kidding.
(LAUGHTER)
MARC BLUESTEIN I DO THAT ! I’M GOOD AT THAT !
KYLE KUNZ TOTALLY JOKING.
I am a Martini man here , but I am a minimal Martini man here… Like, once every couple hour….. I mean DAYS . Things like that.
(LAUGHTER)
MARC BLUESTEIN I was like OH WOW, I CAN RELATE.
KYLE KUNZ You know …
Arts and crafts, things like that. Gardening ! STEP AWAY FROM TECHNOLOGY. Get out! Grab a fishing pole and go fishing ! Go walk your dog. Ride a bike around your neighborhood.
Get out and actually experience the world for what it is.
I remember 10 or 15 years ago, parents would say “ Hey, Come home when the lights come on . “ When the lights come on, on the street.
NOW, kids don’t leave their house. Everybody is glued to technology. And though we live in a world with technology…The world is still spinning with US on it.
So, why not enjoy it ? While were all STUCK and ISOLATED ?
MARC BLUESTEIN That is very wise..And very valid.
JEN WILSON Absolutely..
MARC BLUESTEIN Those are great points.
SO, EXPERIENCE THE WORLD !! LISTEN TO KYLE !
JEN WILSON AND BUY HIS BOOK !
MARC BLUESTEIN YES, BUY HIS BOOK.
MARK TAURIELLO. Kyle, where can everybody buy your book ?
KYLE KUNZ Don’t forget to have a Martini !
JEN WILSON Yes! Have a Martini while reading his book !
MARC BLUESTEIN Yes, while reading his book !
AND DONT PASS AWAY IN A RECLINER , FOR GOD SAKE !!
KYLE KUNZ You guys…
I was getting ready to call in, and was listening to your first episode that was released on May 30th. The episode with the cults. And I was super, super, deep into it.
So, thank you guys for interrupting !
( Awww )
I’m so grateful that you guys reached out, and I cannot wait to hear the rest of the episode that I was listening to….This one…And all of the other ones.
JEN WILSON Aw, thank you !
MARC BLUESTEIN Thats so sweet.
And Kyle, tell us, whats your Instagram and where do we buy your books ?
KYLE KUNZ My books are available on Amazon , and you can just type in Kyle R Kunz in the search menu and it’ll pull up my books.
And my IG is @KyleRKunz69 . I mean, thats my lucky number. So, we’ll go with that.
MARC BLUESTEIN Hey, ya know what ? It’s a good number!
MARK TAURIELLO. MINE TOO !
(LAUGHTER)
JEN WILSON I THINK ITS EVERYONES HERE LUCKY NUMBER !
(LAUGHTER)
KYLE KUNZ I AGREE, I AGREE.
It’s a lucky number for everybody. Play the Lotto ! 69 !
MARK TAURIELLO That’s right !
MARC BLUESTEIN Well,
We’ve been talking to Kyle Kunz. You can find Kyle, also on YouTube. He works for Spaulding Decon, but he’s also an author.
So check him out on YouTube, on Amazon , on Instagram, FOLLOW him, LIKE his content. He’s a really cool and amazing person . And we’re so glad that he joined us today.
KYLE KUNZ Thank you, guys.
THANK YOU KYLE
KYLE KUNZ Thank you guys. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.
You guys have a good day !
MARC BLUESTEIN Thank you for listening to episode 2 , season 1 , of Bizarre Buffet.
Make sure to follow us on Instagram @BizarreBuffet . And subscribe on Apple , Google , Anchor, Spotify … Wherever you listen to podcast’s from !
WE’LL SEE YOU SOON !!
END
Subscribe/Follow
