Why does leaving a funeral home feel like walking out of a liquor store? What do dead bodies feel like? What do you do when you find yourself bawling at a roller rink on a blind date? What do you do when you have to scratch your dying father's balls because he's hallucinating and lost feeling in his hands? With a new guest every other week, Brice Klein (haver of dead parents) tries to demystify death just a little more. Ideally in a way that makes you laugh and not just feel super depressed.
Episodes
Jan 12, 2022
Jan 12, 2022
36 min
Casey Wilson was 25 when her mom died suddenly in her sleep leaving Casey utterly shocked and meandering, trying to figure out what to do next. Fortunately, she crawled out of the pits of grief and has gone on to have a tremendous career as an actress, author, and podcast host. In this episode we talk with her about:
- why being on SNL was awful for her grieving process,
- having to retrieve her mom's jewelry from the casket,
- why she had to re-record the lines to her eulogy,
- and how Casey leveraged medication to get her out of her deepest pits of depression and grief.
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Her memoir is The Wreckage of My Presence, her Real Housewives podcast is Bitch Sesh, and she stars in shows such as Black Monday and The Shrink Next Door.
This is our last episode of the season so make sure to subscribe wherever you listen and follow us on Instagram to stay up to date on our return.
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Dec 29, 2021
Dec 29, 2021
20 min
My dad battled through esophagael cancer for six and half years with the last three weeks of his life striking similar to my mother's. In this episode, I (Brice) dive into:
- how I had too become far too aware of my dad's crotch,
- the striking similarities between the end of my parents' lives,
- and how weird last words are.
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Dec 15, 2021
Dec 15, 2021
27 min
Maraika was pregnant with her son when her dad died suddenly, just after her husband, Sebastian's, dad also died unexpectedly. The pregnancy and cascading events drove her to suppress her grief until it boiled up and she had to address it. In this episode we talk with Maraika about:
- why she turned down every Chicago funeral home,
- how she carries her dad with her,
- how her brother had to carry their dad out of his law office,
- and how she finally addressed her dad's death.
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Dec 1, 2021
Dec 1, 2021
40 min
From the time he left home, Michael was estranged from his dad, but was suddenly thrust back into his father's life as his primary caregiver when he found out he was dying. This role meant Michael had to make the final decisions on his dad's life and then coordinate everything that would come next. In this episode we talk about:
- the wild things you find when cleaning out someone's house,
- how to manage credit card companies trying to collect your dead father's debts,
- how to disguise an urn so a church will allow it,
- and how to give a eulogy after a relationship disintegrated.
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Nov 17, 2021
Nov 17, 2021
25 min
Anna's mom always held a laissez-faire approach to life. When she was diagnosed with metastatic cancer and faced death, this laissez-faire approach suddenly held a new beauty and set of challenges. In this episode we talk with Anna about:
- why she didn't tell anyone she was with when she found out her mom died,
- how strange it is when you know your mom's doctors,
- and the challenges of losing someone in the pandemic.
(Apologies for the sound quality in this episode, it was the first episode we recorded and were working through a few kinks).
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Nov 3, 2021
Nov 3, 2021
26 min
Brian was 17 when his best friend Andrew died suddenly. In the many years that have passed he's slowly come to terms with it but still struggles with his death and its aftermath. In this episode we talk about:
- how he remembers Andrew,
- the difficulty of grieving when you're 17,
- struggling to figure out what to say in his eulogy,
- and how he's sure Andrew still messes with him to this day.
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Oct 20, 2021
Oct 20, 2021
24 min
Warning, this episode contains discussion of suicide.
Matt's dad died just before he started his senior year of college leaving Matt with questions of whether or not to go back to school and how to integrate back into a college campus when your life has forever been changed. In this episode we talk about:
- how awkward the birds and the bees talk can be,
- the challenges of having a good relationship with a parent who doesn't have a good relationship with themself,
- how you decide if you go back to school or not after the death of a parent,
- and what makes Matt think of his dad now.
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Oct 6, 2021
Oct 6, 2021
28 min
For the six years his dad was sick with cancer, Lucas was in Hong Kong, somewhat removed from the reality of the situation. And then on what he thought would be an innocuous visit to Chicago, he found himself at his father's deathbed, thrust into a world he'd remained tangential to for years prior.
In this episode, we talk with Lucas (who is also my brother!) about:
what ice cream and prostate radiation have in common,
how to tell your kids grandpa just died,
and what it's like quarantining in a hotel room in Hong Kong alone for two weeks 6 days after your dad died.
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Oct 5, 2021
Oct 5, 2021
29 min
When his dad died suddenly from complications from a heart attack, Sebastian was uniquely comfortable with it. The aguish he does feel though, is that his kids don't get to grow up with the dad as grandpa.
In this episode, he and Brian our sound engineer dive into:
spiked contact lenses,
how weird funeral homes are in America and how they differ in Germany,
his mom's feud with the local funeral home director,
and the importance of grandpa.
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Sep 8, 2021
Sep 8, 2021
30 min
Warning, this episode contains discussion of suicide.
Maria's back! Her mom died when she was 7, and she never had a relationship with her dead, so when she was 14, she moved in with her 23 year old sister.
She's in a much better place now and has the stories to go with it. In this episode we talk about:
- why she hates being told she's strong
- how Caribbean gangs use flowers at funerals
- dead parent tattoos (on both of us!)
- and why she's grateful for parentless Thanksgivings.
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Subscribe to stay up to date on all our episodes.
Find us on Instagram: @plasticurns
Or email us at: hello@plastic-urns.com