Ducking Realitea
Ducking Realitea Casual Conversations About Serious Sh*t. Real Stories. Raw Moments. Big Joy. Hosted by Siobhan Welcome to Ducking Realitea, the podcast where we spill truth like tea and dive into the gritty, hilarious, and healing parts of being human. Hosted by Siobhan, this show is all about casual conversations with real people who’ve lived through some serious sh*t and came out the other side with stories worth sharing. From trauma to transformation, heartbreak to humor, we explore what it means to rebuild your life, trust your gut, and find joy even in the mess. These are the stories behind the strength, raw, unfiltered, and deeply human. If you're craving connection, curious about how others have healed, or just need a reminder that you’re not alone, this pod’s for you. Grab your beverage of choice (or roll one up), and join us each week for soulful storytelling with a side of sass. Let’s rebel against the noise, talk about what actually matters, and maybe even laugh our way through the chaos. Because here at Ducking Realitea, we believe: Your story matters. Vulnerability is power. And joy is always worth chasing.
Episodes
Well, Touch of the Tism is two weeks late.
Before anybody asks... no, none of us are pregnant. 😂
Honestly, we've just been busy being adults, which frankly feels like a design flaw. Between BottleRock, gallery resets, work, chronic pain, family stuff, and trying to remember where we left our keys, this episode took a little longer to make it out into the world.
This one starts with us catching up and quickly devolves ...
Charles was born in Manila, raised in West Oakland, and shaped by a journey that includes skipping grades, rave days, a suicide attempt, paranoid schizophrenia, and two hospitalizations. Today, he’s a therapist serving school-age kids on Medi-Cal, bringing both clinical training and lived experience into the room.
In this conversation, we talk about what psychosis actually feels like, why medication is lifesavi...
This week I'm joined by Ilona Campbell, the creator behind Campbell Sells the Bay, for a conversation that goes far beyond real estate.
Born in Ukraine and raised in San Francisco, Ilona shares her journey through Burning Man culture, opening one of Brooklyn's first vape shops, world travel, motherhood, and eventually becoming one of the Bay Area's favorite local history storytellers.
We talk about Oakland history, Ea...
How the Canvas Became My Church with Jo Anne Yada
Jo Anne Yada joined me in the studio to talk about art, creativity, and teaching kids through music and self-expression. What I didn't expect was a conversation that would take us through growing up Mormon, leaving a high-demand religion, questioning long-held beliefs, and learning how to build a life that actually feels like your own.
We talk about purity culture, fam...
Jason Buckley drops into the pond for a conversation about punk rock, rent control, women-led music festivals, labor activism, and the weird ways community forms when life gets hard.
Siobhan first met Jason at the She Shreds Music Fest, where he was running stage sound while helping his band Star Strut pull off an ambitious women-in-music festival that almost unraveled from pure chaos and exhaustion… but someh...
What happens when a chef and a mixologist start finishing each other’s…flavors?
Proof & Pairing happens, cocktail-first creations, wild creativity, and the most joyful culinary chaos you’ve ever heard.
In this episode of Ducking Realitea, I sit down with Todd and Chef Lamont of Proof & Pairing, a Bay Area-based cocktail-first food pairing experience that flips traditional food and drink ...
The tea has been spiltz… and in this case, it’s hot. Like sauna hot.
This week I’m sitting down with my friend Chris—one of my favorite humans from Archimedes Banya—and we get into how a shy college kid going to nude beaches in Humboldt somehow turned into a 40+ year love affair with naturism, sauna culture, and one very specific kind of community you don’t really find anywhere el...
This live episode of Ducking Realitea presents: Touch of the Tism drops you right into Fireside in Alameda, where Siobhan, Holly, and Danielle bring their studio to the stage for Episode 7. What starts as a nerves-and-negronis kind of night quickly turns into a hilarious, heartfelt group therapy session with a bar full of friends, listeners, and a few unsuspecting new fans.
The trio share how the pod was born out of ...
A culty childhood. A goat ranch. Face scars. Suspension hooks.
And somehow… one of the most grounded people you’ll ever meet.
In this episode of Ducking Realitea, Siobhan sits down with Gage for a conversation that starts with first impressions, and quickly turns into something much deeper.
Gage shares what it was like growing up in a strict religious environment, navigating family instability, and eventua...
This one goes everywhere, in the best way.
Siobhan sits down with Dr. Misha Brodsky: Soviet-born mathematician, UC Berkeley researcher, university administrator… and the man behind one of the most iconic banyas in the U.S.
From growing up in the Soviet Union—where travel was restricted and careers were essentially pre-determined—to being told “you can go, but you go forever,” Misha share...
This episode is not light… but it’s important.
From being coached to lie to CPS at four years old to ending up on a psych ward as a teaching case, Tracy has survived more than most people can imagine, and somehow built a life full of love, art, and zero tolerance for bullshit.
Siobhan sits down with Tracy of Black Widow Bottles for a raw, unfiltered conversation about what it actually takes to rebuild you...
This episode was supposed to be a quick promo.
You know… remind you about the live show, keep it tight, move on.
Yeah—no. That’s not what happened.
This episode of Touch of the Tism is part promo, part group therapy, and fully unfiltered. We’re gearing up for our first live show on April 4—bands, tastings, a fundraiser for Meals on Wheels—and we’re equal parts excited and slig...
She thought she’d be dancing on tour… instead she found herself producing events at Oprah’s house.
In this episode of Ducking Realitea, Siobhan sits down with experiential event producer Kristina Martinez to talk about what it actually takes to build a career behind the scenes of the moments people never forget.
From bartending triple shifts in New York to producing large-scale immersive events acro...
This one gets real.
I sat down with Brian Paine a Bay Area punk kid turned tech professional—who watched his life unravel after layoffs, grief, and a slow slide into depression. We talk about what it actually feels like when you lose your identity, your routine, and your sense of self… and how easy it is to quietly disappear.
Brian opens up about going from the loud, social “mayor of the group&rdquo...
Domestic violence doesn’t always look like the movies. Sometimes it’s quiet. Sometimes it’s confusing. And sometimes it slowly erodes your sense of self.
This week on Ducking Realitea, Siobhan sits down with Laura MacInnis, managing attorney at the Family Violence Law Center, to talk about the real dynamics of abuse, coercive control, and the long road survivors take to reclaim their lives.
Laura sha...
This episode of Touch of the Tism begins in classic chaotic fashion, studio mishaps, Seattle dogs, retail exhaustion, but quickly shifts into something deeper.
Holly opens up about losing a longtime friend under complicated and painful circumstances. The conversation moves through grief, survivor’s guilt, boundaries, addiction, and the impossible “what ifs” we replay when someone dies. Siobhan share...
This week in The Pond, Siobhan sits down with singer, performer, and emcee Sheena Lokelani for a wildly honest, laugh-through-the-chaos conversation about music, motherhood, dating, and growing into your power. Sheena shares how her journey started in a Filipino family band in her twenties, paused for parenting, and then unexpectedly reignited through open mics (including one gloriously chaotic, slightly drunk first...
In this episode of Ducking Realitea, Siobhan sits down with Brianna Devlin, a museum nerd and history lover who turned a lifelong fascination with Alameda’s Pinball Museum into a career, and a path to graduate school.
Brianna shares how growing up on the “storybook” island of Alameda shaped her love of community and culture, and how a late-night search for “museums near me” led her from ...
Siobhan sits down with returning guest Lee Williams, and her very vocal dog, Tiburon, to talk about trauma, healing, and the quiet ways safety gets rebuilt.
After experiencing a terrifying home invasion, Lee’s sense of security was shattered. Locks and cameras helped, but fear lingered. Enter Tiburon: a nine-month-old Siberian Husky adopted almost on instinct, whose size offered protection, but whose presence o...
This episode of Ducking Realitea is a chaotic, tender wander through the life of Johnny Dismal: bartender-turned–festival boss, punk rocker, and darkly hilarious visual artist. Johnny and Siobhan trace his journey from a childhood bouncing between Air Force bases in Europe to becoming a self-described “Masshole” obsessed with hardcore shows along the New England coast.
Johnny unpacks how music and a...
Popular Podcasts
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Hey Jonas! The official Jonas Brothers podcast. Hosted by Kevin, Joe, and Nick Jonas. It’s the Jonas Brothers you know... musicians, actors, and well, yes, brothers. Now, they’re sharing another side of themselves in the playful, intimate, and irreverent way only they can. Spend time with the Jonas Brothers here and stay a little bit longer for deep conversations like never before.
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by Audiochuck Media Company.
Building on the belief that a deeper understanding of the natural world enriches all of our lives, host Steven Rinella brings an in-depth and relevant look at all outdoor topics including hunting, fishing, nature, conservation, and wild foods. Filled with humor, irreverence, and things that will surprise the hell out of you, each episode welcomes a diverse group of guests who add their own expertise to the vast world of the outdoors. Part of The MeatEater Podcast Network.
Where the world and America meet, with episodes each weekday. The world is changing. Decisions made in the US and by the second Trump administration are accelerating that change. But they are also a symptom of it. With Asma Khalid in DC, Tristan Redman in London, and the backing of the BBC’s international newsroom, The Global Story brings clarity to politics, business and foreign policy in a time of connection and disruption. Come and join us our live event. You can register for Castfest tickets here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/showsandtours/shows/castfest-2026