Your Other Family

Andrew returns to dive deeper into his blog, “A Straight Man Won’t Fix You.” What led him to write this post, and long did he ponder it? Join Tom and Andrew for a discussion on the idolization of friendships with straight men, theorizing why some men in Side B spaces get drawn into the "mythical" realm of straight men. We also briefly recap the third season of “Heartstopper” and lament Andrew’s lack of attendance – and also his fel...

After a couple years of discussions, spreadsheets, form submissions, and more legal fees than you could imagine, Your Other Family is now a government-recognized nonprofit organization! The IRS approved our nonprofit, and all membership dues and donations to our ministry are officially tax-deductible, including all amounts given retroactively on our new giving platform. We still have a journey yet ahead of us to close our remaining...

What draws us to the beauty of men? Do we engage it or run far from it? Join Tom, Ryan, and Matt for a discussion on masculine beauty! Learn why this topic has become something of Ryan’s “brand,” including a perspective shift that’s helped many members of our YOB community. We talk about navigating the tension between admiration and lust, gratitude and envy, and participation and insecurity in our interactions with the beautiful me...

Welcome to our debut episode of the YOScast! Johana-Marie and Ashley join Erin to discuss the Life on Side B podcast episode on women's inclusion in Side B spaces (S3Ep14). As listeners, Erin and Johana-Marie talk about our big takeaways from this conversation, and Ashley recalls her experience co-hosting this episode. It’s been four years since it aired, so what has changed? Has anything stayed the same? We reflect on what gaps we...

Tom here, and it's my monthly "State of the Sparrow" for Your Other Family! It feels good to say I am now executive director of this new ministry. This month we finally made the switch away from Patreon to our new ministry giving platform. I actually got emotional deactivating our old way of supporting YOB. But I'm excited for what's to come as I update y'all on the resumption of regular blog/podcast content, as well as our next YO...

After 2+ years, we’re back with a new YOBcast! OGs Tom and Ryan welcome new YOBcast regular Matt as we catch up on the last couple years of our nonprofit journey. Fittingly, with the formation of Your Other Sisters alongside YOB under our nonprofit ministry of Your Other Family, we discuss the topic of WOMEN. How well have we connected with women from childhood to today? Did we genuinely experience adolescent crushes on girls or ev...

Introducing our new Your Other Family Podcast Network: a podcast channel for all YOF, YOB, and YOS podcast productions.

In our first YOF Update pod, Tom shares the latest organizational updates about Your Other Brothers and Your Other Sisters under our new pending nonprofit ministry of Your Other Family! Tom shares the tentative upcoming podcast schedule, along with the financial situation as we pivot away from YOB’s Patreon page t...

Ryan returns! We catch up on his life over the last couple years, including his VERY COOL new earring. We also celebrate our 100th ConvoCast by dusting off the oft-neglected “YOBcast Topics” spreadsheet to talk about what we WOULD talk about if we were talking about it (but we're not). Do you follow? Potential YOBcast topics like robosexuality, nudity, cuddling, arousal, and much, much more.

Thanks friends for 100 conversations!

Tom’s brother Andy returns for his annual tradition of prepping us for the big game! We dive into the big storylines of Super Bowl LIX (or, Licks) and give our predictions for this Chiefs v. Eagles rematch of two years ago. We also spend a good portion of the episode talking about non-football things! Such as the hottest players, the Kendrick v. Drake feud, and the sexuality of various snackfoods. Oh, and Taylor Swift makes her sec...

Tom's younger brother, Andy, returns to discuss something besides football! Well – he does give us his Super Bowl prediction before he inevitably returns for his annual Big Game assessment podcast in a couple months. But before any football talk, we discuss his impending fatherhood! He and his wife are due with their first child, a daughter, in just a few more months. What brings Andy joy, and what causes him anxiety about becoming...

We're back! Daniel joins Tom to recap this year's YOBBERS Retreat. As a newer member of YOB leadership, how did Daniel enjoy this retreat compared to others? We reflect on this distinction of leadership and participation with our retreat, including the challenge of not just serving a role or a function all weekend long. We also dive into our retreat's first-time art piece -- a locked birdcage with one sparrow inside and two sparrow...

Dawson returns to help us close our At Home series! Tom takes the show on the road to Athens, Georgia, where he once lived for 11 years, to share an in-person conversation with Dawson, who has lived in this city for all 31 of his years. Why did Tom leave home all those years ago, and why has Dawson stayed? Has this same city been a consistent refuge for Dawson, or have there been some darker times, even times where he thought he mi...

Simon joins Tom to share their experiences of living alone for these last several years! Has it been an independent person's paradise, or have there also been emotional difficulties? How did the pandemic impact living alone? Simon also shares his experience of growing up with a twin brother, in addition to living previously with female friends, including the challenges of perception amongst any Christian onlookers. Will Simon and T...

Ryan makes his podcast debut as our first native Canadian on the show! He shares his unique living situation, splitting time in the big city and also a small town living in a house with his younger brother. Both Ryan and his brother are single men in their forties -- Ryan, queer; his brother, straight. How did this living situation in a faraway town come to be? Ryan tells us the story about "taking the long way" one day, along with...

Newcomer to the podcast but not to our community, longtime member Matt shares about his life in a celibate partnership with another man. He talks about splitting time in two locations to be close to his parents as well as his partner, with whom he co-owns a house. He shares openly how there was never any sort of road map to this particular kind of "Side B" journey, connecting with some other celibate couples over time. Matt shares ...

Nhat makes his debut appearance! We celebrate his 1-year YOBiversary as he tells us his “at home” story of being married to his wife of the last four years. He shares the challenges of merging his wife’s family dynamic and his own into one new family and home, as well as the joys of complimenting one another and yearning for a better home together. We also dive into Nhat’s childhood as a “PK” or pastor’s kid and how that has impact...

Harrison returns to discuss his societally common but YOB-ly uncommon home life: a wife and three kids! He shares the joys of noise in his home, as well as the challenges of wondering whether he measures up as a dad. We learn about the farm where he grew up, including the literal closet that was once his refuge. Harrison shares vulnerably about his struggles to feel "at home" in his male body, also pointing out the beauty of Jesus'...

Daniel returns to discuss his life in SoCal, living with two straight men! Like Andrew, he also moved across America for a new start and a new home from the Midwest. He tells us Andrew's teased "pots and pans" story from our last episode, a snapshot of pursuing healthy communication and expectations with straight roommates. Daniel shares some of the joys of living with straight men, including the activities in which they partake wi...

Andrew returns to tell the tale of his cross-country move from Ohio to Southern California! What led him to leave the only home he’d ever known to find a new one? He shares about his upbringing in the Midwest, including many years of homeschooling, and a friend who prompted him to ponder the possibility of a new start. Andrew basks in the literal and existential sunshine of his new life in SoCal, talking about his new queer communi...