Holmberg’s Morning Sickness – Arizona

Episode: 09-29-25
Date: September 29, 2025
Main Theme:
A classic irreverent episode that swings from a hilarious, biting critique of Phoenix’s WNBA team’s success and cultural relevance, through wild medical stories involving foreign objects, and finally lands on a skeptical discussion of religious rationalization after tragedy. Holmberg and the crew blend sports, shock humor, and social commentary in their signature unfiltered style.

Episode Overview

The main focus is Holmberg’s mixture of local sports disappointment (with Phoenix’s Mercury WNBA team's unexpected finals appearance), grotesquely comic medical anecdotes, and an exploration of how people process the unfulfilled “end of the world” prophecy and violent tragedy through faith. The tone is consistently irreverent, self-deprecating, and confrontational on social norms and media narratives.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Phoenix Mercury in the WNBA Finals – Apathetic City, Unnamed Players

• Holmberg bemoans the Mercury’s finals run, sarcastically notes no one cares or can name a player, and jokes about the absurdity of potentially having to get a tattoo if they win.
• The crew mocks the negligible buzz in Phoenix for the Mercury, contrasting it with the hype when the Suns made the NBA Finals.
• They debate why women’s basketball hasn’t taken off, making suggestions for rule changes to make it more appealing, like lowering the rim or moving to three-on-three games.
• Notable Quote:
  • Holmberg: “If you had a championship in the forest and it fell and no one was there, would it still count?” (03:02)
  • Holmberg: “You might be right about the thing you accused me of [misogyny], but also this product stinks.” (04:28)
• Timestamps:
  • 00:34–02:15: Discussion of the Mercury’s finals chances and Holmberg’s tattoo bet.
  • 03:13–04:28: City's apathy and the invisible Mercury parades.
  • 04:29–06:33: Why WNBA doesn’t catch on—ideas for changing the women’s game.

2. The Mercury Tattoo Bet & Public Indifference

• Holmberg considers what it would be like to have a “Phoenix Mercury World Champs 2025” tattoo, muses sarcastically about explaining it to puzzled strangers.
• Several variations of the tattoo are joked about, including adding “girl basketball world champions,” a prison-style or tramp stamp version, and even incorporating co-host Brady’s likeness into the design.
• The team riffs on how disconnected people are from the Mercury:
  • Holmberg: “Name two Phoenix Mercury players? ...[They'd go] ‘uh— click.’” (14:23)
• Timestamps:
  • 06:50–09:12: Personal stories of accidental Mercury game attendance and general public apathy.
  • 11:00–14:23: Tattoo design jokes, further testament to lack of fan awareness.

3. Bizarre Medical Story: The Yankee Candle in the Butt

• The show pivots into a segment about weird things ER doctors remove from patients—focusing on a recent, real report of a man with a “desktop jar” Yankee candle stuck in his rectum.
• The hosts mix disgust and amusement, running through stats about how common such incidents are (4,000 U.S. hospitalizations a year for rectal objects; mostly men), and joke about the ER doctors’ reactions and the scents “emitted.”
• Notable Quotes:
  • Holmberg (about the patient's scent): “His ass smelled amazing. He had a candle in it!” (22:12)
  • Holmberg (on stats): “4,000 people. Which means... there’s another quarter million that get it out themselves.” (25:35)
• They humorously speculate on the psychology behind these acts and how shame factors into seeking medical help. The hosts recount other crazy object stories (e.g., a French man with a WWII artillery shell).
• Timestamps:
  • 20:37–28:00: Full candle story: details, jokes, and related stats.

4. Further Outrageous “What’s Up Your Ass” Anecdotes and Games

• Joking about making “What’s in My Ass?” into a radio call-in game, riffing about infamous urban legends (Richard Gere’s hamster), and reflecting on the lengths to which people push the envelope for shock or pleasure.
• The whole bit careens into slapstick and the grotesque, with tongue-in-cheek morality about how society has normalized the extreme.
• Holmberg: “We’re not even batting an eye at this anymore. ...We have a stomach for everything now. It’s incredible.” (34:05)
• Timestamps:
  • 28:49–36:53: Game show commentary, hamster urban myth, and escalation.

5. The “End of the World” Guy’s Apology & Religious Processing of Tragedy

• Discussion turns to a recent repeat “end times” preacher now apologizing for his failed prophecy.
• Holmberg skewers people’s attempts to rationalize public tragedies—like the Charlie Kirk assassination—by attributing them to “God’s will.”
  • Holmberg: “If that’s part of your God’s plan, he’s miserable, that’s all. ... Why did he have to blow up his throat on TV so I could sit back and listen to people going, ‘God called for him?’” (38:01)
  • He draws parallels between Western and Eastern religious rationalizations of violence, pointing out the double standards in how Americans view martyrdom abroad versus at home.
  • Holmberg: “If a Muslim said that ... we’d think they were crazy ... But we do it and it’s like, ‘Oh, that’s beautiful.’ ... It’s creepy.” (43:16)
• The show challenges the logic and comfort derived from these narratives, suggesting people should just acknowledge the tragedy and its randomness instead of wrapping it in faith.
• Timestamps:
  • 36:58–45:32: End of the world preacher’s apology segues into faith and tragedy critique.

6. Music Picks and References

• As an episode tradition, the team compiles a list of songs for various news stories and moods, including Army of Anyone’s “Goodbye,” Eddie Murphy’s “Boogie in Your Butt” (fittingly referenced), and more.
• Holmberg expresses nostalgia for Army of Anyone as a supergroup that didn’t last.
• Timestamps:
  • 46:32–47:33: Music discussion and nostalgia.

Notable Quotes & Moments (with timestamps)

• On citywide Mercury indifference:
  • “If you had a championship in the forest and it fell and no one was there, would it still count?” (03:02)
• On women's basketball:
  • “I like what they’re trying to do...get that short court three on three league going for the ladies. Have you seen that? ... Because ... They’re trying to play on a men’s court. With men’s rims...Shrink, bring it down to nine feet.” (04:28–05:35)
• On the tattoo bet:
  • “No, it’s going to be block letters, like a prison tattoo that just says, Phoenix Mercury World Champions 2025. ... Just like I wrote it with a pen.” (10:49)
• On ER candle incident:
  • “His ass smelled amazing. He had a candle in it. ... It was a Yankee candle and not the mini one, it was the big one. ... He said, the desktop jar. And it wasn’t just the top, it was the whole thing.” (22:12–22:46)
  • “4,000 people. Which means my guess would be there’s another quarter million that get it out themselves.” (25:35)
• On “what’s up your ass” as an old idiom:
  • “The phrase ‘what’s up your ass’ has been common for ages. Doesn’t come out of the thin and blue sky.” (28:49)
• On religious rationalizing tragedy:
  • “If that’s part of your God’s plan, he’s miserable, that’s all.” (38:01)
  • “If a Muslim said that...we’d think they were crazy...But we do it and it’s like, ‘Oh, that’s beautiful.’ ... It’s creepy.” (43:16)

Episode Flow & Tone

• The podcast is structured as a loose, uncensored morning radio roundtable rife with improvisation, sarcasm, and sharp social observation.
• The humor is dark and occasionally crude, especially when detailing ER stories or critiquing religious platitudes.
• Despite joking about the Mercury’s irrelevance, the hosts show a deeper awareness of why some sports leagues or narratives don’t catch wider appeal, and aren’t afraid to break from gags to challenge the audience’s views on faith, tragedy, and media coverage.

For the Listener

If you haven’t heard the episode, expect:

• Laugh-out-loud riffs on Phoenix’s baffling indifference to its top women’s basketball team
• Unfiltered, hilarious reactions to bizarre real-life ER stories
• Memorably blunt, sobering takes on how society deals with the aftermath of violence and failed prophecies
• Marshaled seamlessly by Holmberg’s acerbic wit and rapport with his co-hosts

Note: This episode is NSFW in both content and style, with comic exaggeration and shock designed to entertain and provoke thought in equal measure.