Dopey: On the Dark Comedy of Drug Addiction

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Summary:
This week on Dopey! Benjamin Tod of Lost Dog Street Band brings a deeply honest story of childhood trauma, crust punk, freight trains, heroin, methamphetamine, and the slow work of building a different life.
Growing up outside Nashville, Benjamin started drinking as a kid and using hard drugs in his early teens. Drawn to the freedom of traveling musicians, he found a world of street performances, railroad journeys, makeshift camps, and friendships forged under bridges. He takes us inside that life: getting strung out in one city and kicking in the next, withdrawing while waiting for sugar-beet harvest work, and trying to perform through an IV-meth-fueled panic attack while opening for the Devil Makes Three.
Benjamin also gets into what’s happening now—feeling spiritually unsettled, confronting old pain, and wanting to become a better husband and father. He talks about the collapse of his marriage to Ashley, recording I Will Rise in the middle of his darkest period, and the sick puppy named Rita who became a symbol of starting over. On thirteen acres in Kentucky, he began clearing land, rebuilding trust, and making a home. Getting off the needle came first; letting go of alcohol took years longer.
PLUS! Punk rock as folk music, the Clash, outlaw country, faith without rigid dogma, shame without self-destruction, and a round of This or That. Before the interview: a listener writes about dabs and research chemicals, Eric remembers a friend’s disastrous gasoline-bong idea, and Matt Wiedemeyer Carroll celebrates three years sober. Closing with Benjamin’s “Using Again” and an early banjo recording from Jake in West Virginia.
All that and MUCH MORE on Brand new super anarchist crusty, punk rock, honky tonk episode of that good old Dopey Show!


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Summary
This week on Dopey Greatest Hits! We revisit Jamie Lee Curtis’s first appearance on Dopey, recorded in 2019 with Dave in his attic, a microphone in one hand, and a Bluetooth speaker in the other.
It began outside Katz’s Deli, where Dave tried to casually intercept Jamie and pitch the show. Her response: “I’m a dope fiend.” His response: “Me too.” What followed was an email misunderstanding, years of persistence, and a conversation about why Jamie initially wanted nothing to do with a comedy podcast about addiction—and how Chris’s death changed her understanding of the show.
Jamie and Dave talk about opioid addiction, secrecy, the vulnerability of being publicly sober, and finding connection through other people’s honesty. Dave remembers Chris, explains why showing the fun in recovery matters, and gets to tell Jamie what her movies and children’s books have meant to his family.
PLUS! A medical student writes about how Chris is still helping people he never met, JD responds to criticism of his workplace drug discovery, and Dave ranks his morning-text correspondents. Listener letters explore sex addiction, the difference between sponsorship and life advice, and an EMDR experience that helped one woman rethink sexual pressure in her marriage. Dave also explains why he stopped EMDR—for now.
All that and MUCH MORE on a super star studded - Dopey's Greatest Hits!


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Summary:
This week on Dopey Wednesday! Photographer Sean Murphy, author of My Friend Weezer, brings an epic story of rock ’n’ roll, alcoholism, meth addiction, and finally finding a recovery that stuck.
Sean takes us from Florida’s early rave scene to art school in Boston, San Francisco’s rock ’n’ roll underground, and a photography career shooting some of the biggest bands in the world. He photographs the Beastie Boys while falling off the wagon, nearly loses the camera containing their pictures, drives Shane MacGowan over the hills of San Francisco in a barely functioning Volkswagen, and finds himself living above a gay porn studio with a seemingly endless supply of meth downstairs.
In Los Angeles, the jobs get bigger while the consequences get worse: a relapse in Slayer’s limo ends in a blackout DUI near his AA meeting, police surround his truck outside MADtv, and drugs and alcohol tear through his marriage, parenting, and professional life. Through it all, his friendship with Weezer becomes one of the lasting bright spots.
But the heart of Sean’s story is what finally changed. After years of meetings, treatment, and going back out, a persistent biker sponsor and an Irish addict named Mike help him find a way through the steps. At a chaotic sober house called Plan C—complete with a horse, chickens, costumes, and a collection of unbelievable characters—Sean discovers purpose in helping other people. Today, he hosts a recovery meeting at his photography studio and describes a sober life far beyond anything he knew to ask for.
PLUS! Nat Kingsley gives a fellow rehab patient his debit card and PIN in exchange for a promised tennis ball full of heroin. Dave remembers his own rehab tennis-ball disaster, celebrates a Dopey Nation anniversary, and reads reactions to Keith’s episode, the Trey controversy, and the sound complaint that finally gets resolved.
All that and MUCH, MUCH MORE! on a very, very girthy new Wednesday Dose of that good old Dopey Show!


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Summary
This week on Dopey Tuesday! Cormac and Selby return for a Reddit Roundup teaser featuring flaming drum kits, obsessive hobbies, comfort television, and another questionable Patreon sales pitch from Dave.
Cormac reports back from opening for a masked surf-rock band that sets its drums on fire, then explains how music and strength training give his obsessive energy somewhere productive to go. Selby prefers to wait for the urge to exercise to pass. Meanwhile, Dave has found comfort in peanut butter ice cream and another trip through The Sopranos, kicking off an argument about Mad Men, Breaking Bad, and which season of The Wire deserves the crown.
PLUS! A DopeyCon caption contest threatens to reveal what Dave was actually thinking, Selby promises behind-the-scenes dirt, and Dave revisits calling non-patrons “cheapos.” Can you spare 16 cents a day? Should recovery meeting links be shared? And could your sob story win you a gifted Patreon membership?
Listen to the whole thing at www.patren.com/dopeypodcast

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Summary
This week on Dopey Total Replay! It’s the infamous 50th episode: Dave Gives Up, Chris Takes Over! Dave tries to manufacture a feud with That Sober Guy, Chris prepares to become “Dr. Chris,” and the boys celebrate their milestone by arguing about almost everything.
Chris tells the story of working in a prestigious Boston hospital while secretly shooting heroin and cocaine—and financing his habit by stealing his mother’s jewelry. After getting banned from his parents’ building, he gets the jeweler himself to drive him back for another attempt, then disappears to Harlem on a crack binge while his girlfriend waits to pick him up from work. His brother and sister eventually retrieve him and bring him to detox, setting him on the path to Mountainside, where he meets Dave.
PLUS! Chris finds the perfect addiction metaphor in The Wrestler, Dave and Chris revisit their favorite early Dopey moments, a debate over stolen bracelets becomes an argument about brioche French toast, and Chris pushes Dave to the breaking point with his relentless search for Flesh-n-Bone. Expired hand warmers, disastrous music trivia, mushrooms in a red velvet taxi, and a negotiation over whether Chris will EVER say “Toodles.”
In the new introduction, Dave revisits classic Dopey beefs, wonders what a spiritual solution actually looks like, and reads listener comments questioning his ability to beat up Ezra. All that and MUCH, MUCH, MUCH MORE on a classic dose of good old, old timey Dopey!

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