Divorced Playbook

What do Barney Stinson, Larry David, Bernie Sanders, Big Bird, Baby Yoda, turtlenecks and the Beastie Boys all have in common?

This is the first time they have all appeared in the same sentence, and also the first time they've all been topics on the same podcast episode.

The Levy Bros. discuss the collateral damage of an active dating life and how the "Perfect Week" is far from perfect, even when it goes nearly perfectly. They also talk about how the mindfulness practice of being present can sometimes backfire. 

Feedback on the show has been pouring in, and Scott tries to help Dan figure out how to deal with being told to f*ck off. And, as brothers do, the banter and bickering and, yes, Dan's voices of Sesame Street characters to get under Scott's skin bridge this entire episode.

The guys also play What Your Favorite Fruit Says About You (as a parent) before and Scott asks for help from the audience to survive Dan's distractions. As Dan says on the show, "my blood is pumping with the H this morning." You'll have to listen to figure out what that means.

An episode in survival. Scott and Dan share some recent interactions with their kids and how important the concept of being present is in a child's eye. Scott shares details on a story he's told about Jack seeing how much he was struggling and asking — at 10 years old — if Scott needed help. Now seven years later, Scott discusses how they each remember that moment.

Dan told his kids he's become something of a relationship expert...as in, he's an expert in knowing exactly what to do to make your marriage fail. (There's a little more to it than that.)

Max makes two appearances on the show, as we first put a call-out for any great videos or photos of listeners with their kids we can share with our fellow single parents. Then...let's just say dating site eHarmony probably isn't going to be sponsoring this episode.

Last, the Levy Bros. revisit one of their darkest Ghost Stories. Did Dan get ghosted again, or was there finally some closure? And Scott and Dan argue about mind-reading, and why Dan believes his honesty is hurting him when it comes to second and third dates.

Dan is in a funk. So how do you get out of a funk? Funk music!

What is your go-to song to get you out of a funk?

And how do you make sure a funk doesn't turn into something more?

Dan talks about his impending wedding anniversary, and it being the first year on this date he isn't married. And his therapist  has left. For someone who struggles with abandonment issues, this is a lot to deal with, and we talk about ALL of it. 

(NOTE: This show speaks a lot about mental health, including an open discussion about suicidal ideation. PLEASE take caution when listening to this episode in front of your kids.)

Scott and Dan discuss the idea of taking things one day at a time and how, for some, that has to be one hour at a time, one minute at a time. Then we lighten things up with a cameo from Jack and Luke (Scott's kids) and go through some ridiculous Tinder profile photos!

Dan thinks he is a sex monster. Or at least that is how he thinks women perceive him. Are they right? And should he be true to himself and deal with the fallout or should he put on a less direct facade? 

Dan has a blue suit jacket on. COMPLETELY LINED IN TARDISES. It's the mullet version of sport coats: business on the outside, party on the inside.

We spend a lot of time on what to do when the language of your divorce agreement is left up to interpretation. Dan's ex showed the kids a picture of the guy she is dating, and we discuss if that constitutes a breach of the language in their divorce agreement. Scott lends his sage insight to the situation — this is about as big brother-little brother as this show gets.

Dan mocks Scott for having a boring lifestyle, to which Scott replies by talking about the time he DRANK WINE WITH BILLY JOEL IN ITALY? (Was it a bottle of white? A bottle of red? A bottle of rosé, instead?)

We show a teaser video for the full site, and talk about the Divorced Dad Playbook turtle mascot, and how it came to be. This leads to a conversation about the time in Dan's divorce where he realized you can't expect other people to love you until you learn to love yourself.

Dan learns his nephews know he made out with a homeless woman (maybe) in a park. Scott gets distracted by Siri and Dan talks about a woman he made out with after she heard he made out with a park rando.

Scott isn't sure he likes his voice. And Dan got a call from a woman he dated — and who he envisions possibly dating again when he reaches a more stable point in his life — asking for advice about the guy she is with now. What should he do?!?

Scott started wearing a suit jacket on the podcast, so Dan wore his Iron Man suit. Yes, and actual suit. That looks like the Iron Man suit.

We talk about the ebb and flow of online dating, and how when you become single, you lose a ton of friends and you feel very alone. Dan has ZERO single friends. Scott talks about how when he got divorced, the wives of his friends wouldn't let them be friends anymore. 

Is divorce a "Group Think" situation? If one friend gets divorced, do others follow? 

We play Round Two of Cardi B or Tinder!

And what happens when your dating profile photos do not match your interests? For example, Dan shows off his old blue hair, but realizes he looks way less punk than he did as a kid. So how can he attract the type of women he's looking for when his profile makes him look like a preppy doofus?

Can Dan pull off the blue hair now? And did Dan just admit he's the fun brother but Scott's the handsome one?

Scott wears a pocket square. Dan's kids told him that they asked their mom if she'd listen to the podcast and she said no, but if Dan says anything bad about her, she plans to sue him for defamation of character. And the kids think she's serious. Scott deals with his youngest threatening to sue him and put him in jail and take all his money.

This leads to a conversation about when to take your ex back to court if they are not abiding by the divorce agreement. When is the right time to get lawyers and the courts involved?

And Dan has Swipe Thumb. Yes, he actually injured his thumb swiping left on dating profiles. And, sage advice for those out there: Don't swipe and wipe with the same hand.

FUN TIME: Dan shows Scott a few dating profiles and asks Scott to pick which Dan would LEAST want to go on a date with. The answer WILL surprise you.

We end with Dan discussing the one year anniversary of his separation and how he got ghosted AGAIN by someone. Why does this keep happening?!?!?! We try to figure that out.

In this episode, we talk about what a parent can do when something happens involving your kids but they are with your ex.

And we talk about sex! And the worst. date. ever. (Two separate topics, we swear.)

Our guest on the show is Nicole Ananda, Founder & Managing Partner, Ananda Integrative Healing Group. She is a Certified Surrogate Partner, Certified Life Coach, Certified Reiki Master
Certified Shamanic Practitioner, Certified IET Practitioner, Tantra Practitioner and Dan's personal Shaman.

We talk about sex, sexual dysfunction and how a recently-divorced man is supposed to have the confidence to start having sex again when it had been years since he was with anyone other than his wife.

Learn more about Nicole and her business at http://www.anandaintegrativehealing.com

And Dan shares his story of a terrible date. Just awful.

We try to figure out how Scott and Dan are related, given Scott has no interest in comic books and Dan (and his amazing son Iron Max) were in an issue of Invincible Iron Man!

Plus, Dan explains to Scott what the Tardis is, and what "It's bigger on the inside" means on the show, and on Dan's dating profile.

Oh, and Dan's ex is dating. We talk about when the right time to tell your kids about a new significant other — and when they should meet that person. 

Scott also takes a quiz to figure out which Game of Thrones character he'd like to date.

The show ends with Dan revealing it's the one year anniversary of the day his ex asked for a separation, and it leads into a conversation about abandonment, personality disorders, mental health and how to not feel so alone when, well, you're alone.

Yes, that headline is correct. On this episode we talk about Covid-19 and how the pandemic has impacted us as single dads, especially with regard to our kids and school. 

Then we talk about dating in the time of Corona (Scott had it and has the antibodies, btw) and play a game where Scott has to decide which celebrities are divorced dads. It's not as easy as it sounds.

And that's it. That's the whole show. Please disregard all the times Scott calls Dan an idiot and don't worry about the story of how after Dan's date when home he made out with a woman in the park, who may or may not have been homeless.

What can you do when your kids don't want to be with you because they have more fun (and more friends and more stuff) at your ex's house?

Also, we play the first edition of Cardi B or Tinder...Dan asks Scott which lines are from Cardi B lyrics and which are from actual Tinder profiles.

And what's the farthest you've ever traveled for a date?