Sickboy

From "Why me, God?" to "Well, this is awkward..." Joel goes deep on his decade long tango with a rare cancer diagnosis. No inspirational background music or heartwarming montages here - just raw, unfiltered real talk about what happens when life serves you a hot steaming plate of garbage. Joel takes the fellas through his journey with a cancer, exploring how it rattled his faith, redefined his identity, and made him question everything he thought he believed in. Openly shedding light on the emotional and physical toll, the power of family support, and the strength he found in awareness and acceptance.

They needed certainty. They got chaos. For over a decade, countless people from at least five different countries put their trust in a company offering prenatal paternity tests. It promised clients “99.9% accuracy” — but then routinely, for over a decade, identified the wrong biological fathers.

Investigative journalists Jorge Barrera and Rachel Houlihan track down the people whose lives were torn apart by these bad results, the shattered families and acrimonious court cases that followed, and the story behind the company that continues to stand by its testing and is still operating today.

Pain doesn’t always look the way people expect it to. Watercolor artist KYRIANNA delves into the reality of living with chronic pain—a sensation she likens to a broken bone that refuses to heal. Art, for her, is more than a passion; it’s a lifeline and a voice for the often invisible struggles of chronic illness. In this episode, she shares how painting helps her express and validate her symptoms while tackling the disbelief and gaslighting that can come with an invisible condition. KYRIANNA opens up about the unique catharsis of translating pain into portraits, shedding light on chronic illness and the healing power of creativity.

Be sure to check out KYRIANNA'S upcoming art exhibit if you're in the area! 1078 Gallery, Chico California - November 1-24 2024.

Solitary confinement isn't just a punishment; for some, it's a childhood reality. In this episode, author Lisa Moore discusses her powerful collaboration with Jack Whalen on Invisible Prisons, a book that reveals the traumatic experiences of children in reform schools, focusing on Jack's harrowing story of isolation. The conversation explores the systemic issues of child abuse, the deep psychological impact of solitary confinement, and the pivotal role of love and family in healing. Lisa reflects on the transformative power of empathy in storytelling and her personal journey through the writing process.

When science and ethics clash, the results can be mind-boggling—and a little unsettling. This week Jer takes the fellas on a Cloning deep dive. It all begins with the recent story of Arthur “Jack” Schubarth, an 81-year-old rancher imprisoned for illegally cloning sheep for trophy hunting, sparking a deeper look into the ethical maze of cloning. From Dolly the sheep's groundbreaking role as the first mammal cloned from an adult cell to the controversial revival of extinct species like the woolly mammoth, cloning's potential is both awe-inspiring and alarming. Along the way, the discussion tackles fringe theories, human-animal hybrids, and the growing trend of cloning pets—raising big questions about our future with biotechnology.