• Those addicted to drugs and/or alcohol
• Anyone who's ever woke up not knowing what city they're in (or why there's a meth pipe under their pillow)
• People who thought Goldberg from The Mighty Ducks just "fell off"
• Fans of 90s nostalgia with a side of real-life wreckage
• Anyone who's ever made a mess of their life (and wants a way out)

You think you know Goldberg? Think again. Shaun Weiss joins the pod and rips the mask off the chaos, the meth, the mugshots, and what it really took to crawl out of hell. In this raw and unflinching episode, Chris, Jeff, and Jakob sit down with actor, comedian, and walking resurrection story Shaun Weiss—aka Goldberg the goalie from The Mighty Ducks franchise. You probably saw his mugshot a few years back and thought, "Damn, what the hell happened to Goldberg?" Well, he's here to tell you.

Shaun dives into his brutal addiction spiral, shady rehab scams, and rock bottom moments that nearly killed him—meth binges, jail cells, and stolen needles. This isn't a Lifetime movie; it's gritty truth with a shot of hope.

But there's redemption, too. Shaun breaks down how he got sober, the spiritual tools that actually worked for him (spoiler: not rehab horses), and how he's now turning that wreckage into a new life—including stand-up comedy, public speaking, and a whole new mindset powered by joy, not just survival. He even plugs Isha Kriya meditation from Sadhguru: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EwQkfoKxRvo.

From Ducks memories and Dawson's Creek near-misses to hiding AA meetings inside bullshit treatment centers, this episode is equal parts hilarious, horrifying, and healing.

Oh, and yeah, Goldberg had the hots for Julie the Cat. We said what we said.

• 0:00 – Egyptian Workspace Partners ad
• 1:03 – Shaun drops bars, Pondoff fanboys out
• 2:37 – The Mighty Ducks legacy + Shaun's hockey conversion
• 5:45 – Duck teammates and NHL connections
• 6:38 – Dawson's Creek almost-casting and 90s commercials
• 7:42 – Royalty checks and childhood acting perks
• 8:45 – The real start of addiction
• 11:01 – Body brokering and how rehab became a racket
• 13:02 – Scholarship to rehab via Ducks nostalgia
• 14:01 – Mugshots, surrender, jailhouse awakening
• 17:01 – What really flips the switch in recovery
• 19:03 – Shaun's spiritual moment
• 22:28 – Booze and a 12-pack-a-day hellscape
• 25:40 – Opioid spiral + Vicodin chemistry
• 28:45 – CVS scavenger hunts
• 30:42 – Meth benders and shadow people
• 34:06 – Losing everything ($20K in 3 months)
• 35:13 – Shoplifting + Disney star fails
• 36:58 – Stand-up comedy and speaking truth
• 38:20 – Why addicts chase 1200s in a world of 100s
• 41:45 – Sadhguru + Isha Kriya meditation
• 44:03 – Joy in the small stuff
• 46:42 – Letting go of trauma
• 47:16 – Sobriety date and Kobe
• 49:13 – Rehab centers that don’t want the truth
• 51:36 – Underground AA meetings
• 53:58 – Why 90 days in sober living matters
• 56:36 – Meth addict to miracle
• 58:01 – Why this work beats any high
• 59:16 – Healing the whole family
• 1:00:13 – Losing his father, his fiancé, and his will to live
• 1:01:16 – Sharing needles and rock bottom
• 1:02:15 – What are we really numbing?
• 1:03:03 – Bringing Shaun to St. Louis
• 1:03:48 – NHL trades + Ducks nostalgia

Sponsored by:
Illinois Recovery Center
Egyptian Workspace Partners
McKelvey Insurance

Who this episode is for:

• Anyone who feels like they were an alcoholic before their first drink
• Parents secretly hating the newborn phase
• Therapists who drink alone and pretend it’s fine
• People who nurse a beer until it becomes a personality trait
• Anyone who’s ever made a mess of their life

Episode 22: Therapist, Addict, Jesus-Lover — Jeff Brenneman Uncensored

Strap in, degenerates. This one veers from Bible college to blackout whiskey nights, with a surprise stop for tea with the Taliban.

Chris, Jeff, and Jakob welcome Jeff Brenneman, Clinical Director at Illinois Recovery Center. Once on track to be a preacher, Jeff’s life swerved through addiction, fatherhood breakdowns, and some very questionable DIY detoxing (do not recommend). This dude was an alcoholic before his first drink—and you’ll hear exactly why.

They hit everything: Borderline Personality Disorder, perfectionism, fear of failure, therapy myths, Enneagrams, hiding from your own family, the dangers of being “the smart kid,” and what sobriety really takes.

Also: Jeff’s kid visited Afghanistan. For fun. That’s not a metaphor.

And while the Bible and recovery stuff run deep, there’s still plenty of chaos, Chris’s sex life, shame jokes, and Trader Joe’s tears to go around.

Timestamps include:

• 00:00 — Marco Bertorelli of Bertarelli Cutlery
• 03:17 — Meet Jeff: therapist, ex-drunk, accidental pastor
• 10:29 — Becoming a drunk despite a "perfect" life
• 25:07 — “I was an alcoholic before I took a drink”
• 30:43 — Borderline Personality Disorder gets real
• 41:17 — His son visits Afghanistan... because why not?
• 48:38 — Met wife in third grade. Cute, until the drinking.
• 53:07 — DIY detoxing while mom’s in the guest room
• 56:41 — The fifth of whiskey night
• 58:59 — Half-assing AA doesn't work (duh)
• 1:03:12 — Sponsorship & brutal honesty
• 1:14:15 — God, guilt, and post-bottle faith
• 1:23:01 — Jakob cries in Trader Joe’s
• 1:32:03 — Accountability: the real rehab
• 1:39:07 — Doing the work even when it sucks
• 1:47:11 — Why Jeff stays at IRC

Sponsored by Illinois Recovery Center and Bertarelli Cutlery

• Anyone who woke up with a Great Dane puppy and no memory of ordering it
• The families still trying to love a tornado in human form
• Addicts who’ve checked into rehab more times than they can count (Angela’s got you beat)
• People in recovery, people out of recovery, people still circling the drain
• Folks not in recovery but who’ve ever made a mess of their life and are wondering, “Now what?”

Chris and Jeff wrangle the now-married madness that is Angela and Dr. Chris Schenewerk—back for Round 3, but this time in the same damn room. And buckle up, because it gets unhinged in the best way.

There’s a five-grand Great Dane bought during a blackout. Jellyfish revelations. Dead ducks. Rehab round twelve. Boobs paid for by Angela (not her husband, thank you very much). Grief, laughter, rage, and a recovery meeting started in a damn bowling alley.

This episode’s a cocktail of chaos, clarity, and hard-won perspective. Recovery ain't a straight line—and this couple proves it’s still worth crawling the damn thing.

• 0:00 – Knife talk and sponsor shoutouts
• 2:00 – Angela and Dr. Chris together: Zeus the blackout puppy, John Wick the dog
• 5:00 – Angela’s animal kingdom: jellyfish, wood ducks, and regretful Amazon buys
• 10:00 – Clean Cause gets the spotlight (use code: PONDOFF for 20% off at cleancause.com)
• 15:00 – Dr. Chris opens up about losing his brother and not drinking through it
• 20:00 – Angela breaks down 12 rehabs, chaos, and what finally clicked
• 25:00 – Kids and the wreckage they witness—Angela owns her side of the street
• 30:00 – The “Three Amigos” Friday AA meeting is born in a bowling alley
• 35:00 – Dr. Chris’s recovery workbook—text him, he’ll mail you a copy
• 40:00 – Sobriety labels are dumb—just do the work
• 45:00 – Pandemic recovery meetings, muting drunk people on Zoom
• 55:00 – Rehab myths, boobs, and doing the next right thing
• 1:00:00 – Jersey trauma, 9/11 aftermath, and losing Jimmy
• 1:10:00 – Bridging recovery at Memorial Hospital—pamphlets, meetings, hope
• 1:20:00 – Bird jokes, orchid addiction, prostate talk—classic chaos
• 1:30:00 – Remembering Brian Schenewerk, prayer, and promising more babies

• Clean Cause Energy Drinks – 20% off with code PONDOFF
• Illinois Recovery Center
• Bertarelli Cutlery
• AA Meeting Finder
• Memorial Hospital Detox Bridge Program

This glorious mess brought to you by Illinois Recovery Center and Bertarelli Cutlery—because sharp knives and sharp minds save lives.