Taylor Salazar:
My name is Taylor, so I'm here with my dad and my daughter...
Mike Rothwell:
Ronin!
Taylor Salazar:
What's your favorite memory of you and Grandpa?
Ronin Salazar:
I liked when we would play on the trailer — the pop-up tent trailer — we would play with all the dishes and stuff.
Mike Rothwell:
She was really good at it. And then you like being on the roof, too.
Ronin Salazar:
Oh yeah. I loved being on the roof!
Mike Rothwell:
On the roof of the tent trailer, yeah.
Taylor Salazar:
I love the extra gum you carry all the time, camping with all the tadpoles — Dripping Springs.
Mike Rothwell:
...in Temecula
Taylor Salazar:
One of my most favorite trips we ever went on.
Mike Rothwell:
We've got pictures of you — how happy you were.
Taylor Salazar:
Really quick: what was that thing that your friend's mom would make?
Mike Rothwell:
They were Dutch, and I'd sneak over and she would make these traditional candies on butter bread in the morning.
Taylor Salazar:
Was it, like, sprinkles?
Mike Rothwell:
Sprinkles, and it was so good, different colors, like rainbows. Got you going for the morning.
Ronin Salazar:
What would you do for fun?
Mike Rothwell:
I was playing around parks, ride bikes, skateboard, played cards for money. That was fun.
Taylor Salazar:
Oh, you were gambling?
Mike Rothwell:
Yeah, we were gambling down the street. You know, they'd say "You got to come in when the street lights are on," and then we just kind of wait till Grandma, or whoever was babysitting would yell our names out.
Ronin Salazar:
Did you get into trouble? What was the worst thing you did?
Mike Rothwell:
Oh, you want to know the... oh, boy. We had a few guys that hung around at night, and then we would hang fishing wire from one tree across the street to the other, and it would be really tight. And we'd had a sign hanging down that says, "Do not enter" (because it was a cul-de-sac, we thought we owned it), and we'd hide up in the trees. And this one guy came with an old '55 Chevy, and he had an antenna with the big, solid ball at the top, and he went through it and it snapped, and it totally shattered his windshield. And he was so mad, he was knocking on all the doors, and we were just hoping that he wouldn't look up in the trees. But I think that's the worst I can kind of tell you.
Taylor Salazar:
Do you even remember your biological dad? I know you have some memories.
Mike Rothwell:
He was a drinker, and he had me and Tina in the car — and there was no seat belts back then — so we were in the back seat, and he hit the brakes so hard that I ended up in the front seat, where your feet are supposed to go, and Tina hit her head someplace. Anyway, we walked upstairs to the apartment, and he was still drinking, and he passed out, but he forgot the iron...
Taylor Salazar:
So he left the iron on the ironing board, and then it caught fire.
Mike Rothwell:
Yeah, and he was on the ground, I think I was 4 1/2, maybe 5, and I had to put the fire out. Yeah, I think I'm blending two stories.
Taylor Salazar:
Well, those are two not great memories.
Mike Rothwell:
And I've talked to him about that, and we've worked through all of that stuff. It was really helpful.
Ronin Salazar:
Do you have a love of your life?
Mike Rothwell:
That would be "the Meesh," Michelle. Big time, my soulmate.
Taylor Salazar:
What was your first impression of her?
Mike Rothwell:
Kind of tough!
Taylor Salazar:
Was she wearing those boots?
Mike Rothwell:
Doc Martens? Boom, boom. And she didn't even look at me. And I was in charge. After a while, you get to work with somebody you know, and you get to know them. And I realized that she was a lot more!
Taylor Salazar:
She's a cool chick.
Mike Rothwell:
Totally!
Ronin Salazar:
Describe the work that you used to do.
Mike Rothwell:
I just went straight into my 16th birthday and Dave said, "Here, go to McCoy's market and be a box boy."
Taylor Salazar:
He told you what to do?
Mike Rothwell:
Yeah! He said, "You're gonna be working here." I said, "Okay." So he says, "Watch out, you might stay in it all your life."
Taylor Salazar:
How many years?
Mike Rothwell:
Forty-five. The dairy position was always nice.
Taylor Salazar:
Yeah, Ronin helped.
Mike Rothwell:
Checking for cracked eggs.
Ronin Salazar:
Yeah, that was my favorite part.
Taylor Salazar:
Okay, so now this new chapter of retirement and Utah. How are you feeling about, like, your health? This is a big thing that you've just done: quit drinking.
Mike Rothwell:
Yeah, I feel really good.
Taylor Salazar:
Do you ever crave it?
Mike Rothwell:
No. I did the beginning, you know, in the garage, because I had a fridge out there, then I got rid of the fridge.
Taylor Salazar:
And now, moving here?
Mike Rothwell:
Yeah, I can't wait to do more adventures with Ronin, because I'm here. Enjoying and breathing deeply into this beautiful air, and I'm very optimistic about staying healthy.
Taylor Salazar:
It's a whole new start.
Mike Rothwell:
Yes.
