Are You Garbage? – “Pulling Pizza Scams w/ Ryan Sickler”

Hosts: Kevin Ryan & H. Foley
Guest: Ryan Sickler
Release Date: October 30, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode of Are You Garbage? dives into classic dirtbag antics, blue-collar nostalgia, and comedic scams with returning favorite Ryan Sickler. The hosts and their guest explore personal histories of pizza hustles, family memories, questionable travel habits, and “garbage” antics from their upbringings. Ryan gets candid and hilarious about growing up with little money, hustling for free pizza, forging signatures, dealing with heartbreak, and climbing the comedy mountain—all while being proudly, undeniably garbage.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. TWA Hotel Stories & Airport Living

• The episode opens with a spirited discussion about airport hotels, specifically the TWA Hotel at JFK, with Sickler recounting his affinity for its gym and infinity pool.

  • “Anytime I'm in pain these days, I can go work out. ... I'm walking now.” — Ryan Sickler [03:32]
  • “It's an infinity pool that's heated. Like, hot tub water. And it overlooks the airport.” — Ryan Sickler [04:32]

• The crew riff on the “classiness” of the TWA and the low-level scams and mix-ups at airport food courts.

  • “I got into a beef with the guy at the food counter.” — Kevin Ryan [05:00]

2. Legendary Pizza Scams

• Sickler reveals a “garbage” hack from the '80s—claiming to find hair on a delivered pizza to get free replacements, a scam he shamelessly repeated at new addresses.
  • “You can only do this once if you… unless you move.” — Ryan Sickler [09:11]
  • “We get excited to move. I'm like, guess what we're getting for the next two weeks? Free pizza.” — Ryan Sickler [11:35]
  • This segment becomes a core, recurring theme: maximizing opportunity, living rough, and laughing about it.

3. Growing Up Hustling: Sickler Family Edition

• Heavy on sickler’s stories of growing up in a single-parent household with his two brothers, experiencing hardship (his father’s death at 16), and hustling for every edge—whether pizza, honor roll personal pans, or car insurance discounts.
  • “From 16 on... the three of us are just living by ourselves in this house.” — Ryan Sickler [12:16]
  • “If you got a 3.0 or higher... you got a free personal pan.” — Ryan Sickler [13:06]
  • The trio reminisce on Pizza Hut sit-downs, gym class A’s, math struggles, and the importance of a working-class mentality.

4. Best & Worst School Memories

• The hosts and Sickler trade stories of cheating, flunking math, and creative academic scams—sometimes leading to unexpectedly heartfelt moments.
  • “Sometimes it's all right to cheat kids. Sometimes it's ally.” — Ryan Sickler [25:58]
  • Sickler tells a moving story of forging his late father’s signature, which inadvertently resulted in the last photo ever taken of his dad—a story full of both comedy and heart.
    • “That’s the Last photo ever taken of our dad. ... if we both don't forge, ... we don't get that picture. Is that wild?” — Ryan Sickler [25:36]

5. Fast Food, Pop Culture, and Iconic Garbage

• The conversation turns to fast food history, Hamburger University, and the joy of fake nostalgia (i.e., pop-up McDowell’s from Coming to America). The vibe is proudly lowbrow and full of inside jokes.
  • “There was a place called Bob's Classy Lady. ... and back then they had the early stream and no one gave a ... about the Ravens.” — Ryan Sickler [47:04]
  • “They did a McDowell’s. ... you could go in and get a Big Mick and all that.” — Ryan Sickler [29:33]

6. Travel Habits: Pure Garbage or Classy?

• In classic AYG style, the hosts quiz Sickler on airport and hotel behaviors—Are you eating at the gate? Bringing a cheesesteak through TSA? Putting food through the x-ray?
  • “I do love warm food food. But I like a cold cheese stick. So do I. I love it. Purposely wrap it up in foil ... I'll bust out cheesesteak.” — Ryan Sickler [34:51]
  • “I have a rule. I can't put food through the X ray machine.” — Kevin Ryan [36:03]

7. Home Comforts & New Money Upgrades

• The guys talk home upgrades, with Sickler revealing his “new money” moves—putting a TV in the bathroom, installing a bidet, and holding onto a hospital shower seat for comfort and nostalgia.
  • “These days, I don't need the radio anymore. I will watch... Sunday Ticket on in the toilet or the MLB package.” — Ryan Sickler [46:39]
  • “I got the full bidet, heated seat plugged in. All of it.” — Ryan Sickler [51:59]

8. The Garbage Test: Rapid Fire Q&A

• The show’s signature segment asks about:
  • Eating at airport restaurants
  • Bringing food from home
  • Swimming at motel pools
  • Owning rat tails or mullets
  • Using bidets
  • Handling mail for former tenants
  • Taking pictures in front of cars that aren't yours
  • Best dirtbag flexes involving cars, bathrooms, and more
  • “Have you ever taken a picture in front of a car that wasn't yours?” — [57:49]

9. The Honda Civic & the Playboy Mansion

• The episode climaxes with Sickler’s epic story of his beloved 1990 Honda Civic, his neighbor who was “Hugh Hefner’s number two zookeeper”, and the surreal moment of parking at the Playboy Mansion.
  • “So I pull this in there and she goes. ... Take a picture. You don't get to park in the driveway at the Playboy Mansion. So boom, I take a picture.” — Ryan Sickler [63:01]
  • The car, which traveled over 300,000 miles, becomes a symbol for Sickler’s whole journey: starting with nothing, hustling always, and making something special (and funny) out of the chaos.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Garbage Mentality:
  “We get excited to move. I'm like, guess what we're getting for the next two weeks? Free pizza.” – Ryan Sickler [11:41]
  “Sometimes it's all right to cheat kids. Sometimes it's ally.” – Ryan Sickler [25:58]

• On Last Family Photo:
  “If we both don't forge ... we don't get that picture of our dad. Is that wild?” – Ryan Sickler [25:36]

• On Being Blue Collar:
  “He's a blue-collar guy. I'm like, it's just a shirt.” — Ryan Sickler [08:09]

• On Cold Cheesesteaks:
  “I do love warm food, but I like a cold cheesesteak. ... I'll bust that out and eat it.” — Ryan Sickler [34:51]

• On Hotel Pools:
  “I was a lifeguard. ...I’ll definitely do that [swim in a hotel pool].” — Ryan Sickler [39:37–43:11]

• On Bathroom Luxuries:
  “I got the full bidet, heated seat plugged in. All of it.” – Ryan Sickler [51:59]
  “I sit it under my rain shower, and I just watch football.” – Ryan Sickler [52:39]

• Playboy Mansion Story:
  “You don't get to park in the driveway at the Playboy Mansion. So boom, I take a picture. ... That's the Honda Civic at the Playboy Mansion right there, y’all.” – Ryan Sickler [63:01]
  “That’s where it all started. And that’s what got us here.” – Ryan Sickler, on his Honda Civic photo [65:26]

Timestamps for Essential Segments

• Opening banter, TWA Hotel & airport gyms: 00:24–04:48
• Pizza scam origin stories: 09:01–11:54
• Growing up on “dirtbag” hustles: 11:54–13:46
• Forging dad’s signature/last family photo: 20:31–25:58
• Cheating in school and state assessments: 26:02–28:34
• Hamburger University & McDowell’s nostalgia: 29:00–30:25
• Travel/airport food confessions: 30:46–34:51
• Personal comfort upgrades, homebody joys: 44:44–53:01
• Garbage Q&A (mail, pictures, travel hacks): 55:16–58:25
• The Honda Civic & Playboy Mansion story: 58:27–64:47
• Closing & comedic reflections: 65:08–67:45

Summary & Tone

The tone is consistently loose, self-deprecating, and hilarious, bouncing from confessional childhood stories to “garbage” life hacks. Ryan Sickler, the hosts, and their shared background create a sense of warmth—celebrating the scrappy, hustling, always-scheming spirit of working-class kids making the most of every opportunity. Listeners are treated to both belly laughs and genuine moments of heart, all held together by relentless riffing and a mutual joy in all things “trash.”

In short:
If you’ve ever called in a fake hair to score free pizza, or if the high point of your day is a cold cheesesteak on a cross-country flight, or even if you've had your life’s journey defined by a beat-up Civic and a chance encounter with the world’s weirdest neighbor—this is your episode.

Don't miss:

• The legendary pizza scam sequence [09:01–11:54]
• The last family photo story [20:31–25:58]
• The Playboy Mansion Civic caper [58:27–64:47]

Closing words:
“That’s where it all started. And that’s what got us here.” – Ryan Sickler [65:26]