Tangentially Speaking with Christopher Ryan Chris Ryan

In an age where we’re told to always strive for efficiency, monetization, and TOTAL OPTIMIZATION, doing something purely for the fuck of it becomes a subversive, revolutionary act.


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Paleontologist-Futurist Michael Garfield is devoted to helping navigate our age of accelerating weirdness and helping cultivate the curiosity and play we'll need to thrive in it. As host and producer of Future Fossils Podcast, Michael refuses to be enslaved by a single perspective, creative medium, or intellectual community, walking through the walls between academia and festival culture, theory and practice — speaking and performing everywhere from Moogfest to Burning Man, SXSW to Boom Festival, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia to Long Now's Ignite Talks to The Chapel of Sacred Mirrors.
Intro music “Brightside of the Sun,” by Basin and Range. Transition music: “Olympus Mons,” by Michael Garfield. Outro: “Smoke Alarm,” by Carsie Blanton.


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Mark Nelson is an American ecologist and author based in Santa Fe, New Mexico. His research focuses on closed ecological system research, ecological engineering, restoration of damaged ecosystems, and wastewater recycling. Nelson was one of the eight original crew members of Biosphere 2 in 1991.
Intro music “Brightside of the Sun,” by Basin and Range; “If I had a Million Dollars,” by Barenaked Ladies; Outro: “Smoke Alarm,” by Carsie Blanton.


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I met this incredible woman over a decade ago (ep 87), when she was in a very difficult spot, suffering from constant pain, unable to move or care for herself. She was preparing to die. In the years since, I’ve seen the light in her grow stronger and stronger. She’s recovered from severe scleroderma, written a book about her journey, been profiled on a Netflix series, featured in Gabor Maté's NYT bestseller The Myth of Normal, and continuously explored her inner world with the help of sacred plants (ayahuasca) and other modalities. Her initiation into the world of healing by way of her own near death experience is as authentically “shamanic” as anything I’m aware of in the modern world.
You can learn more about the retreat she’s leading in Costa Rica here.
This video of Mee Ok and Gabor Mate will give you a sense of the incredible journey my friend is taking.


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What values underlie this podcast? Russell Brand in search of universal human values. How not to be a fool for love (or for Andrew Tate). Looking back at life — both the parts lived and unlived — from here. Jimmy Carter and the value of some types of shame. How Ozembic symbolizes American life in 2024. Artificial cures for artificial problems and the su…

Bill first picked up a camera in 1965, at age 20, little knowing that photography would become his profession. Since then camera work has taken him to India, China, Australia, Japan, Mexico, Alaska, Egypt, Ireland, Bhutan, Zambia, Chilean Patagonia and the American West. Bill’s images have appeared in magazines, books, calendars, newspapers, catalogs, annual reports.  In 1995 Bill moved to the San Luis Valley, took up residence in a travel trailer near Crestone, Colorado and started building a strawbale house.
Intro music “Brightside of the Sun,” by Basin and Range. Outro: “Smoke Alarm,” by Carsie Blanton.



This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit chrisryan.substack.com/subscribe