Stavvy's World – Bonus #145: Live Call Show Vol. 31 [PATREON PREVIEW]

Host: Stavros Halkias
Date: September 11, 2025
Featured Segment: Call-in advice for a listener dealing with her father's post-divorce meltdown

Episode Overview

This bonus episode of Stavvy’s World features a particularly explosive live call, with Stavros and co-host fielding a listener’s jaw-dropping family drama. The caller seeks advice on handling her father’s post-retirement midlife crisis, which spiraled into a failed business, an affair with a much older, eccentric woman, and a series of bizarre life decisions that threaten both his finances and familial bonds. The hosts respond with the show’s trademark mix of humor and genuine concern, offering both hearty laughs and measured advice.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Caller’s Story: From Cop to Chaos (00:16–07:06)

• Background:

  • The caller’s parents were married for 36 years—“I was like, wow, this is love. Like, good for them. Happy family.” (Caller, 00:16)
  • After retirement, her father, a career cop, bought a restaurant with his pension… and “it was the worst fucking food… so bad.” (Caller, 00:48)
  • The restaurant predictably “flops,” dragging the family down with it.

• Affair with a Waitress:

  • Dad falls for a “career waitress… in her 60s, has tiggle bitties, and is like an attractive older woman.”
  • “He tells my mom, like, I'm no longer in love with you. I'm in love with this woman. But I want to stay married.” (Caller, 01:30)
  • Hosts react:
    • Stav: “He wasn’t thinking about fucking making food. He was thinking about fucking waitresses.” (02:13)
    • “A first generation E-thot before they even had the Internet, she was an E-girl.” (Host 1, 02:00)

• Polyamorous Proposal:

  • The dad wants to have an open marriage—remains married but dates the waitress, who’s still married herself.
  • “Your dad’s coming out as Polly in his old age. I mean, this is insane.” (Host 1, 03:05)
  • Caller stands firm and convinces her mom to leave: “No, you’re not doing that… You’re getting a divorce so good.” (Caller, 03:21)

2. Fallout: Divorce & Dad’s Spiral (03:47–07:32)

• Mom’s Success, Dad’s Decline:

  • Mom is now “thriving,” doing yoga and Zumba; dad is “spiraling out of control,” in a sad apartment—“like, one piece of furniture… one piece of strange artwork.” (Caller, 04:02)
  • “Retired cop, failed restauranteur, divorce. That’s a very divorced man right there.” (Host 1, 05:18)

• Extreme Decisions:

  • Dad removes his ex-wife as beneficiary from his life insurance and names the new woman instead—“That’s crazy. Not even you, like, okay, that’s what I said. I was like, you have three children.” (Caller & Host 1, 06:06–06:13)
  • The new woman, now living with dad, “also has a husband and a kid” and is described as both gothic and manipulative.

• Host Reactions:

  • Hosts joke about the situation evolving into a murder-thriller plot for the life insurance—“What if this is just a plot to kill your father by this white trash couple?” (Host 1, 06:53)
  • The family only discovers the life insurance change via a letter; the network of “secrets” among siblings and their mother adds intrigue.

3. The Question: Can You Save Dad from Himself? (07:32–16:48)

• Caller’s Dilemma:

  • Torn between confronting her father, cutting him off, or letting him make his (bad) choices—“I can’t even like talk to him without wanting to throw my phone across the room anymore.” (Caller, 08:42)
  • “How the fuck do I convince my dad that he needs to leave this woman who’s probably slowly poisoning him for his life insurance money. Or do I just say fuck you and just stop talking to my dad?” (Caller, 08:31)

• Host Advice:

  • Stavros emphasizes you can only go so far:
    • “I don’t think you can tell him to leave this woman, right? It’s his fucking life. He wants to be a fucking idiot. Whatever… All he’s got is getting to fuck this woman, right?” (Host 1, 08:55)
    • The betrayal is not the divorce, but naming the new girlfriend as life insurance beneficiary over his own children:
      • “That I would have a big issue with… if my dad put his new girlfriend instead of his kids.” (Host 1, 10:22)
    • Advice: Address it directly; no need for covert ops—“You can very reasonably bring up to your dad post divorce.” (Host 1, 13:20)

• Family Espionage:

  • Caller reveals her mom and sister maintain an “underground network” for keeping tabs on dad:
    • “I have my sources…Your whole family is insane is what you’re telling me.” (Caller & Host 1, 12:25–12:31)
  • Suggestions to approach dad directly with practical questions, rather than relying on subterfuge—“A straightforward question might be actually a better way to go about this.” (Host 1, 13:20)

• Long-Term Perspective:

  • Co-host cautions:
    • “Your dad clearly had a life crisis, but… look into the future, especially if you’re thinking about, like, cutting them off… what’s your relationship going to look like?” (Host 2, 14:35)
    • “Eventually your anger towards him will soften. You will always think he’s a dumbass… But you know, just something to keep in mind.” (Host 2, 15:45)

• Ongoing Disasters:

  • Dad is now depleting joint bank accounts to invest in “platinum and precious metals.” (Caller, 15:45)
  • Hosts urge legal action: “Your mom’s got to figure that out with her lawyers. That’s insane.” (Host 1, 16:02)
  • On ‘helping’ vs. ‘controlling’ dad: “Help guide him in the direction of making less horrible mistakes in the future. But also, he’s going to do whatever stupid ass shit he’s going to do.” (Host 2, 16:33)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the dad's failed business and pivot to dating:
  • “All those minority arms broken just to fail at selling ribs.” (Host 1, 00:39)
• On the Elvira-esque new girlfriend:
  • “On her Facebook, she literally, like, dresses up like Elvira and like, straight up thinking she’s some sort of, like, sorceress.” (Caller, 01:50)
• On generational shifts in infidelity:
  • “When men had honor, they just cheated and kept their mouth shut. This guy’s trying to codify this relationship.” (Host 1, 04:36)
• On parental misreading of therapy:
  • “His therapist told him that guilt and shame are not valid emotions and he shouldn’t feel those.” (Caller, 07:40)
  • “You should have done a little more screening on this therapist. Sounds like.” (Host 1, 07:54)
• On the underlying question:
  • “You can’t tell him what to do. The amount you want to have him in your life, that’s up to you… But putting his new girlfriend over you… is weird.” (Host 1, 10:22)
• On confronting dad:
  • “I went to a psychic who told me she’s going to strangle you in your sleep. I think a straightforward question might be actually a better way…” (Host 1, 13:20)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:16 – Start of caller’s story: divorce, failed restaurant, new relationship.
• 01:30 – Dad’s bizarre polyamorous arrangement request.
• 04:02 – Dad’s post-separation struggles; apartment life.
• 06:05 – Life insurance drama begins.
• 08:31 – Caller wonders how to intervene or detach.
• 10:22 – Hosts’ core advice: Focus on the life insurance issue.
• 12:15 – The “underground secrets network” revelation.
• 13:20 – Advice on directly broaching life insurance and logistics.
• 14:35 – Co-host urges long-term thinking about family bonds.
• 15:45 – Dad’s new “investment” scheme in precious metals.

Tone & Language

The episode is rich with comedic banter, off-color asides, and sharp-tongued observations, characteristic of Stavvy’s World. The hosts’ empathy is often laced with brutal honesty (“Your whole family is insane is what you’re telling me”), but care is shown for the caller’s predicament, culminating in practical advice and a push for maintaining familial ties—if on your terms.

Summary Takeaway

Listeners are treated to an outrageous but relatable example of family dysfunction in the face of sudden change. In typical Stavvy’s World fashion, the show riffs on cringe details (Elvira cosplay, failed barbecue joints, secretive sisters) while dispensing real-world advice: set boundaries, communicate directly, and remember that ultimately, you can't save someone from their own foolishness—but you can decide your own limits.

Final words from Stav:
“Amen. Good luck, sister.” (Host 1, 16:48)