Tangentially Speaking with Christopher Ryan

Heather was born in Arkansas and grew up with few advantages. But thanks to an indomitable spirit, hard work, and some solid friendships, she's got a great thing going. We talk about poverty, meth culture, Portland, and planning one's escape. Heather's blog . Her Instagram feed . Music: Humans from Earth on iTunes . This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or...

Jeff went to Yale, where he was a stand-out linebacker and came to the attention of the Cowboys, who drafted him in the second round. He brought his laid-back vibe from the beaches of southern California to the NFL, where he excelled for seven years. He now lives in Venice, CA, where he is raising two great kids with his wife, Heather, and does a lot of cooking and painting. This is a public episo...

Jake Johannsen appeared on “The Late Show with David Letterman" 45 times. He has appeared in the “HBO Young Comedian’s Special” and PBS’s “Comedy Tonight” series, and was the host of Comedy Central’s series, “Two Drink Minimum”. He has also been nominated as “Best Male Stand-Up Comedian” for the American Comedy Awards. And he makes fantastic cajun food. This is a public episode. If you'd like to d...

Martin is the founder and director of the center, and Maria is a counselor helping patients integrate the experiences they have at Crossroads into more healthy lives. They use ibogaine, a very potent African hallucinogen, to help people with addictive behavior patterns break those patterns and "reset" their lives. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or ge...

Tre Hardson is "a journalist of the times" who just happens to be a rapper, dancer, musician, and something of a philosopher as well. Best known as one of the founding members of The Pharcyde , his current band is called Bizarre Ride. This conversation covers the long road from South Central Los Angeles to Laurelhurst Park, in Portland, Oregon. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss th...

Graham Hancock became a world famous bestselling author with Fingerprints of the Gods , a book that questioned the mainstream narrative concerning the origins of civilization—among many other things. Now, he's just published a follow-up, Magicians of the Gods , bringing recent discoveries to his controversial, compelling narrative. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other...

This is Part 1. Part 2 is on Andy's podcast: On The Block Radio. Check it out! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribe

First episode of the SOMA series. We start in Norway, head to Mississippi, Mexico, Brazil, Cabo Verde, Senegal, and then back to Rehab Mountain in Malibu. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribe

I met Lois in her 83rd year. We talk about her loves, her passions, some of her famous friends, and reflect on special moments from a very special life. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribe

Sheldon Solomon is a psychologist and professor of social psychology at Skidmore College, best known for developing Terror Management Theory, along with Jeff Greenberg and Tom Pyszczynski which is concerned with how humans deal with our own sense of mortality. Solomon co-authored the book The Worm at the Core: On the role of Death in Life with Jeff Greenberg and Tom Pyszczynski. This is a public e...

Mark Davis, ND is a founder and the medical director of Good Life Medicine Center, and his naturopathic practice, Bright Medicine Clinic, focuses on gastroenterological health. Dr. Davis is one of a handful of physicians in the North America with clinical expertise in fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT). This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get acces...

After spending some time in Thailand teaching tigers not to eat people, Ben went to Chile, bought an old VW camper van, and set off for Alaska.   This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribe

Roger has worked in film and television as a director, writer, producer and editor. He's worked with lots of famous people (Larry David, David Spade, Leonard Nimoy) and has made a series of unique documentaries about fringe communities and thinkers: Trekkies, Suckers (about car salesmen), Six Days in Roswell (UFO enthusiasts), The Nature of Existence. This is a public episode. If you'd like to dis...

Jonathan is the host of Outside TV's The Road Less Traveled. We talk about everything from the wonders of Colombian women to the dangers of swimming naked in cold water to what Robert Frost really had in mind.  This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribe

This bonus episode was recorded last week at The Strand bookstore on Broadway, in New York. The three of us talk about intimacy, sexuality, and the often opposing appetites for novelty and intimacy. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribe

Neil and I became friends after he'd already outgrown The Game , his colossal best-seller. The Truth , just released this week is one of the bravest, funniest, most vulnerable books you'll ever read.  This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribe

Jenn and Bryan left the security of good jobs and a nice house in Portland in an old VW van and spent a year meandering south with Karma, their dog. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribe

West stopped in Portland on his way back to Cambridge from a research trip to the Amazon. This episode features music by his pal, Kim Churchill. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribe

It seemed like a good idea at the time. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribe

Lead singer/songwriter of the Canadian band Man Made Lake, Colin is a deep, smart, talented, and very funny man. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribe

Elliott graduated from the Naval Academy and worked as an analyst for the Air Force for six years. This is the third in my series of conversations with veterans. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribe

Justin has been there and done that. From western Nepal to Sumatran jungles to Black Rock Desert, he's left footprints and gathered memories. A man after my own heart, Justin travels the way it should be done. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribe

Nathaniel started at the Mexican border in April and has been walking north ever since. He's covered thousands of miles through deserts, valleys and ridgelines. We talk about the sorts of people he's met on the trail, the highs and lows of walking several thousand miles, and what sorts of insights one gets about home from wandering so far from it. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss...

Alice recently resigned her position as a professor at Northwestern University's Medical Humanities and Bioethics Program over her refusal to surrender academic freedom. She's the author of Galileo's Middle Finger: Heretics, Activists, and the Search for Justice in Science . This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisr...

Eric Berkowitz is a San Francisco-based author and human rights lawyer. His journalistic work has appeared in the Los Angeles Times, LA Weekly, California Lawyer, and the Washington Post, as well as websites such as Huffington Post, AlterNet and Salon. His books on sex and the law both kick serious ass. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to...