Walk-Ins Welcome with Bridget Phetasy

Story Hour with Bridget Phetasy is a segment where Bridget reminisces with cousin Maggie and tells stories explaining who she is and how she got here.Bridget’s globe trotting tales really kick off with the first leg of her months-long journey. Hear how a spontaneous opportunity to go to Burning Man, led to a weed farm in Oregon, to an ashram in Australia, and wwoofing on a horse farm in New Zealand. The many adventures and mishaps along the way include knowing her way around Sydney exclusively via boat, accidentally joining a sex cult in the Australian bush, crashing a party of entrepreneurs in New Zealand, and why a backpack full of mini-dresses and the gift of gab will get you far on your travels. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.phetasy.com/subscribeSupport the show

Mark Normand, stand-up comedian and podcast host, connects with Bridget to make fun of Gwyneth Paltrow’s vagina candles, the absurdity of people on Twitter telling you to reach out if you’re feeling depressed or suicidal when they’re the ones calling you Nazis, political hypocrisy and posturing, and people wielding the word “complicit” as a weapon. They cover why doing stand-up seemed like becoming an astronaut, how weird it is to see the mob mentality go viral, how not being able to ask questions about something is always a bad sign, why Mark should consider trying heroin, and why Bridget would make a terrible drug mule. They also get deep with discussions of mortality, the uncomfortableness of sitting with joy, the warrior ethos, how everyone has demons, and how the stories we tell ourselves keep us stuck. Check out Mark’s stand-up special Out To Lunch. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.phetasy.com/subscribeSupport the show

Yannis Pappas (stand-up comic) stops by to mock everyone and everything with Bridget, including: Bill Gates, white people presenting as POC, China, Tom Cruise, the two cults running this country, Scandinavians, and comedians being taken seriously as political pundits. He and Bridget also cover how things have changed since he became a dad, what Kurt Cobain would be like if he were still alive today, their ideas for reality shows, the ability of the Irish to repress their emotions, Joe Rogan’s stamina, why oxy is a man’s drug, and why everyone should drop out of college and start a podcast. Special guest appearance by Tim Dillon. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.phetasy.com/subscribeSupport the show

Sarah Tollemache, stand-up comic and podcast host, joins Bridget for a hilarious conversation about anything and everything, including what they miss about live stand up, defending their right to be hyperbolic, worrying about being caught in the background of a viral video that would get them cancelled, and their shared fascination of black market arms dealing and money laundering. They discuss their ability to create for themselves rather than the gatekeepers, why corporations that stand up to woke public pressure tend to be European, the stereotypes of traveling, why Bridget should go into PR to advised celebrities who are being cancelled, and swap restaurant industry horror stories. Check out Sarah’s podcast Vadge here. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.phetasy.com/subscribeSupport the show

Kmele Foster is a partner at Free Think, a media company that tells stories about the people and ideas that are changing the world, he’s also a co-host of The Fifth Column podcast. He and Bridget discuss the weirdness of signs like “Black People Welcome Here,” and how they give him a Get Out sort of feeling, what he would teach kids about media literacy right now, why he prefers lukewarm takes over hot takes, and the worrying trend that violence has become a clear attribute of our politics recently, that it isn’t going away, and isn’t only coming from one side. They cover using ridicule as an effective weapon, how easy it is to become what you hate, encouraging people to be brave, and wonder happens in a society when people don’t trust each other and are being trained to hate each other. Check out The Fifth Column podcast here. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.phetasy.com/subscribeSupport the show

Ryan Long, comedian and filmmaker, connects with Bridget from New York and they discuss his move from Canada five months before the pandemic hit, why NYC is a sadboy town, the challenges of being a self-starter and your own boss, the outrage economy, why good editors are so hard to find, and why Canada is dead to him. In the middle of their conversation Bridget receives breaking news of the lockdown at the Capitol on January 6th but that doesn’t derail the conversation. They delve into how Hollywood woke culture feels like a last ditch attempt  to maintain their status as gatekeepers, why Millennials are really just young Boomers in disguise, the difference between British comedy, American comedy, and Australian comedy, and how finding a way to turn something you might get mad about into something funny is a means of undermining your anger. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.phetasy.com/subscribeSupport the show

Adrienne Iapalucci is a stand-up comic, podcast host, and Bridget’s “spirit human.” She and Bridget discuss how their dysfunctional childhoods are probably what led them to stand-up in the first place and what keeps them grinding long after most normal people would quit. They talk addiction, the stand-up scene in NYC vs LA, their shared belief that things will always get worse, and why they both default to dark comedy the darker things get. Adrienne tells stories about working for a collections agency, Bridget shares how she learned the lesson you should never read someone else’s journal the hard way. They discuss how comedy has changed in today’s political climate and wonder if it’s better to achieve massive success with the wealth that comes with it only to watch it all slip away, or to live a moderately successful life being able to do what you love, but never “making it.” Stream or buy Adrienne’s latest album Baby Skeletons. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.phetasy.com/subscribeSupport the show

W. Keith Campbell is a nationally recognized expert on narcissism, society and generational change. He and Bridget discuss social media and narcissism, whether everyone with a big platform is inherently a narcissist, why Keith thinks Kylie Jenner is a genius, how technology always leads to status inversions where the wisdom of age gets crushed by youth’s expertise in tech, and why narcissism is essentially America’s brand. They also cover the evolution of individuals identifying themselves as “brands,” how geek culture and the great fantasy migration relates to self-esteem, the inevitability of the tribalism and polarization of social media, manufactured authenticity, the elite wars, and the first word that came into his head when he met Joe Rogan. Be sure to check out Keith’s latest book The New Science of Narcissism. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.phetasy.com/subscribeSupport the show

Harleen Kaur is a former NASA space engineer and current CEO and founder of Ground News, the world’s first news comparison platform. Ground News aggregates news stories from around the world, shows you how they are being covered by different media outlets, and helps you identify the media bias on the different coverage. Harleen founded the company to solve a problem she herself had, when it came to identifying media bias and putting news stories within a larger global perspective. She and Bridget discuss how revenue models are ruining journalism, the advantages of traveling and living in several different countries, the perspective working on a probe to Pluto can give you on the achievements of humankind, and how challenging yourself with information that competes with your world view teaches intellectual resilience.  This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.phetasy.com/subscribeSupport the show

Johann Hari (Chasing the Scream, Lost Connections) sits down with Bridget to discuss the rise in depression, anxiety and addiction in society, particularly during Covid, and what that means about their underlying causes. Through extensive traveling and research for his books, Johann has explored the idea that the roots of all three are not just biological, but also psychological and social, and that we need a more complex approach to treatment in order to address all three aspects of these ailments. In a deep and wide-ranging conversation, they discuss loneliness, tribalism, how Portugal solved its heroin crisis, how Cambodians treat depression, the rising wealth disparity in our society, how junk values have taken over our lives, homelessness, competitive victimhood, and why social media is to having a social life what porn is to having sex. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.phetasy.com/subscribeSupport the show