The Wayback with Ryan Sickler

Episode 91 | Thomas Araujo (Dope as Yola)
Release Date: September 25, 2025

Episode Overview

In this nostalgic and comedic conversation, Ryan Sickler welcomes Thomas Araujo, known as Dope as Yola, back to "The Wayback." Together, they reminisce about childhood in the country, family quirks, misadventures with cars, family dynamics, old homes, and memorable pop culture moments. The episode blends humor, candid stories about growing up, and genuine reflections about family, culture, and the little things that shape identity.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Early Driving Lessons & Country Life

[05:06 - 12:24]

• Thomas' rural upbringing: He started driving at an improbably young age (around third or fourth grade) due to his family's truck-driving background.
  • "I was driving my dad's pickup at like maybe fourth grade... not even 8, maybe 10, but that's how you learn. My whole family's truck driver." — Thomas [05:29]
• Sneaking out with grandma’s car: Hilarious and risky tales of taking his grandmother's Cadillac with his friend Joe for “parties,” including the iconic moment when he successfully avoids being caught but accidentally crushes his prized pipe.
  • "I park it exactly how she parks... I get out of the car and I look down and I ran over my brand new pipe." — Thomas [11:33]
• The epic recovery: Years later, he dug up the shattered pipe on Instagram Live, a testament to childhood attachments and amusing regret.

2. Sibling Dynamics & Room Sharing

[12:26 - 13:41]

• Sharing a room with his sister: The shared space was fraught with sibling combat and early gender/sexuality insights.
  • "My sister's super...like she's Randy Monchman Savage and I am everyone else, dude. I swear to God, I walk in, and she's like, all right, beat your ass." — Thomas [12:41]
• Parental discipline: Thomas reflects on his mom’s approach to discipline and how it contrasted between him and his sister.

3. Old Homes, Nostalgia, and Family Legacy

[14:45 - 18:26]

• Touring old addresses on Google Maps: Both host and guest look up Thomas' childhood homes and recount the significance of each.
  • On seeing his old house: "Oh, man. I would throw up there all the time before I got home after parties. My grandma, grandpa. Oh, yeah, that's the house I grew up in. I love it." — Thomas [15:23]
• Failed efforts to buy childhood homes: Thomas tried to reclaim his past, inspired by childhood Christmases and a desire to revive family traditions.
  • "I want to keep the house. Build a new house in the back... so I can have Christmas like I did at my grandma's when I was a kid." — Thomas [16:09]

4. Family Vacations & Summer Memories

[18:26 - 21:22]

• No vacations growing up: The family only came together for funerals, not recreational trips.
  • "Vacations? No, you just go to school, you come home..." — Thomas [18:53]
• Summer routines: Cheap candy runs, bike rides, and childhood fights colored his days. Notably, Thomas shares the gross-out story of having slugs thrown at him after a fight.
• Tootsie Pop legend: Thomas uncovers a supposed tradition—get a Tootsie Pop wrapper featuring an Indian shooting a star and earn a free pop at local stores—a "myth" still believed by kids.
  • "You open a Tootsie Pop and if you get the guy with shooting the star... you take it back and get a free Tootsie Pop." — Thomas [19:47]

5. Favorite Childhood Stores, Weird Candy, and First Concerts

[21:35 - 24:51]

• Local corner stores: Thomas frequented a store called Best Buy (not the electronics chain), memorable for its lack of a sign and selling odd candies.
• Spice Girls lollipops: Both reminisce about gross, limited-edition Spice Girls lollipops—Thomas’ first concert was actually the Spice Girls!
  • "So I like girls, right? And then my sister's pretty gay. My sister also likes girls, but we didn't know that...so she's like, yo, we should go to Spice Girls concert." — Thomas [24:20]
• Ryan’s first concert: Ozzy Osbourne and Metallica—an epic rock origin story by comparison.

6. First R-Rated (and Accidental XXX) Movie Experiences

[25:03 - 29:13]

• Early exposure to horror: Thomas watches The Exorcist at a very young age, traumatized but also drawn to scary films out of familial necessity.
• Video rental mishaps and parental oversight: A memorable story where, due to a mislabeled tape, Thomas and his family unwittingly watched pornographic content. His mom returns it with a hilarious confrontation.
  • "We get home, we put it on, and there's just... it's just porn because somebody didn't rewind it... My mom just does this to us. You know how hard is to turn the vcr? And she turns the VCR up, pops it up. My child." — Thomas [27:41]

7. Family Movie Nights, Nostalgic Movies, and Scary Movie Debates

[29:13 - 36:16]

• Stand By Me, Porky’s, and other classics: Both discuss movies watched with (and accidentally in front of) parents and grandparents, the awkwardness of certain scenes, and generational divides over film content.
• The only real family movie outing: For Thomas, “The Wedding Singer,” a rare shared experience.
• Haunted houses and scary movies: Neither has much love for modern scary movies—Thomas, in particular, has a deep aversion to being scared for fun.
  • "I hate scary. I used to. I used to say, like, yo, scary, enough walking home. I don't want to walk. I don't want to be scared at home." — Thomas [36:05]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On learning to drive:

  • "I was driving my dad’s pickup at maybe fourth grade... As long as you don't go too fast. I learned how to downshift, you know, I was not even 8, maybe 10, but that's how you learn. My whole family's truck driver." — Thomas [05:29]

• On the loss of his treasured pipe:

  • "I ran over my brand new pipe. Because I put it behind the tile behind it. I ran it over. I scooped up all the pieces. I buried it." — Thomas [11:33]

• On sibling rivalry:

  • "My sister would get her ass whooped, come in, and beat the out of me. So I should have just sided with her..." — Thomas [12:41]

• Nostalgia and family traditions:

  • "I want to keep the house...so I can have Christmas like I did at my grandma's when I was a kid." — Thomas [16:09]

• First concert confession:

  • "Spice Girls." — Thomas [24:13]
  • "If you want to be. That's a hard song. I'll say that. The Spice Girls movie, pretty good, too." — Thomas [24:51]

• Tootsie Pop myth revelation:

  • "You open a Tootsie Pop and if you get the guy with shooting the star with a bow and arrow, you take it back and get a free Tootsie Pop." — Thomas [19:47]
  • "How the hell did I never hear about that?" — Ryan [20:30]

• On scary movies:

  • "I used to say, 'yo, scary enough walking home. I don't want to be scared at home.'" — Thomas [36:05]

Important Timestamps

• [05:06] — Thomas recounts driving pickup trucks as a grade schooler
• [11:33] — How he ran over his first smuggled pipe
• [14:45] — Google Maps tour of Thomas’s childhood addresses
• [16:09] — Describes his dream for the old family house
• [19:47] — Tootsie Pop legend retold
• [24:13] — Thomas admits first concert was Spice Girls
• [27:41] — Accidental porn rental story
• [36:05] — Thomas explains his lasting aversion to scary movies

Finale & Plugs

[36:16 - End]

• Thomas plugs his podcast: "Dope as Usual Podcast every Tuesday at 12:30 on all platforms."
• Ryan wraps the episode: Thanks listeners and reminds them to check him out on social media and YouTube.

Tone & Vibe

Casual, humorous, and brimming with candid nostalgia. Both host and guest lean into vivid, sometimes outrageous childhood anecdotes while reflecting on how their upbringings shaped who they are. The camaraderie is palpable, with both sharing moments of humility, laughter, and old-school charm.

This episode is a must-listen for fans of honest, funny, and raw recollections about growing up with little supervision, the power of found family, and the quirks that make home truly memorable.