We are so pleased to bring you an episode with the luminous and wise Avery Alder, as we have long been eager to share her light with our listeners. Avery is a game-maker (Monsterhearts, anyone?), a queer mama, and a pillar of a well-fed community. She centers nurturing and nourishment in her life and her activism, and speaks to the importance of a community kitchen to all successful social movements. And holy moly, does she ever want to make you some delicious bread. We also discuss Quakerism, anti-facism, and the importance of having a focused project versus the desire to be and do all things.

Well, gosh darn it, it was so nice to see Noel that we ended up doing two eps in a day. This is a short one mostly about the beautiful/disgusting dichotomy of pregnancy, childbirth, and early motherhood, and how easy it is to get on the wrong side of the dreaded “mommy wars” online. Apparently you can’t even be creeped out by ReBorn Dolls anymore.

This week’s guest is a longtime friend who crossed a sea to be with us on this lovely long weekend–Noel! We talk creating life, and plumb some dark depths around losing parents, as we come fresh off Chris’ dad’s funeral. We find that there is a lot of commonality among the reluctant bereaved, and sometimes you just need to joke about what the hell to do with a big ol’ box of cremains. Loss is complicated, guys. There are still a surprising number of laughs to be had this episode, so please enjoy, and may all your popes be so very young.

We get a bit serious with this ep, but it’s not all doom and gloom–our guest this week is the phenomenal Lana Fox, an overdose prevention educator, who joins us to talk about what’s going on on the ground with Vancouver’s opiate crisis. We find out who is doing the hard work (surprise, it’s punx and peers!) to provide lifesaving care and compassion to people living with addictions to an increasingly dangerous class of drugs. We also muse on prevention and treatment for caregiver burnout, and punk house parenting. Let’s all take care of each other in this scary mixed-up world, hey?

Our Darling Nikki joins us to wail about the figurative smoking crater that is the state of things in her homeland, the US. Once we’ve purged that little emotional demon for the moment, we try channeling the year of the Rooster, talk developing resilience, and explore the finer points of complex weed science! THEM TERPS.

Decide right now if you want to be the big or the little spoon, because this week we’ve got hilarious comedian Hayley Beamish, and you’re gonna love finding out all the ways comics pay the bills with day jobs. We all muse ideas for the perfect lunch restaurant, share travel adventures, and we absolutely do not record in a shed full of rats.

At long last, we have the chanteuse behind our Sea Hags theme song, it’s

Hilary McNaughton on the pod! She shares some of her wisdom about life,

love, community, and oh-so-many EMOTIONS. We talk body shapes, fancy bras,

the wonders of Model Express, and we enjoy secret candy out of a toque.

A new year and back in the swing of things, we’re joined this week by Roman Mancini,

a comedian and a recent transplant from our nation’s capital. Katie and Roman introduce

a never-to-be-repeated Pro Wrestling Minute, we drag Dan Brown, which gives

way to discussions of handsome jesus, harems (life goals, multiple wife goals?), closet

shamans, and a very, very rude digression that makes this one for our relatives to avoid!

Just a quick one with no guests that we laid down between rehearsals

for our New Year’s show! We tried to get hygge with it, but with a

heaping handful of rock and roll energy. We talk–again!–about how important

the routine practice of podcasting is to us, how to build a life worth

sharing, low-key life dreams, and the real dreams Chris hopes to have on her

BRAND NEW MATTRESS (hopefully purchased using another podcast’s price

discount).

Christmas baby Chris hosts her birthday party ahead of the day so rudely

hijacked by a certain son of a certain someone, and we’re pilfering a few

of the party guests to hear what little nuggets of gold they were able to

mine from this craptastic year. Thanks for the character growth, 2016, I GUESS.

On an episode number that suggests the answer to life, the universe and

everything, we share the reasons we keep on truckin’, and our hopes for

the next 365.