"We're Here to Help" Episode 227: Best Advice Vol 3: The Cranky Ronnies (with Steve Berg and Eric Edelstein)

Date: November 5, 2025
Hosts: Jake Johnson & Gareth Reynolds
Guests: Steve Berg & Eric Edelstein
Theme: Listeners call in to share the best advice they’ve ever received, personal stories, and follow-ups on previous advice from the show, all with the comedic, irreverent tone that defines "We're Here to Help." The episode features the segment "The Cranky Ronnies," and is rich with banter, fake personas, and playful teasing among friends.

Episode Overview

In this “fusion” episode of We’re Here to Help, Jake and Gareth are joined by friends Steve Berg and Eric Edelstein for a jam-packed volume of caller stories about the best (and weirdest) advice they’ve ever received. The vibe is part celebration, part roast, with recurring in-jokes, impressions, and inspired tangents. The group also discusses Gareth’s recent standup special, Steve’s upcoming “Home EC” Patreon show, and field calls that range from the darkly comedic (“my wedding DJ was a murderer”) to mischievous (“don’t tell people you’re dead when you’re not”) to heartwarming (“embrace the weird”).

Key Discussion Points & Caller Highlights

1. Gareth’s Standup Special and Recap

• [03:03] Gareth shares reflections on performing his standup special: a whirlwind night with friends, family, an after-party, and seeing the “We’re Here to Help” van. The emotional aftermath is discussed, but with typically comedic deflection:
  • Steve: “Did you cry that night?”
    Gareth: “No… there was emotion.”
    • Follows with a riff about how men process (“After a great gig, I burp. That’s how I release. I’m a lot like Robert Durst.” [07:08])
• Jake: “You've been working so hard. It's crazy to watch you…” – ends with a playful burp mid-sentence.
• Memorable Quote:
  • “It became cellular... anyone who’s done anything like that, to have a night that culminates and it go well and then it be over, it was just the best.” – Gareth, [04:01]

2. Steve’s Upcoming Patreon Show: "Home EC"

• [07:35–11:13] Steve pitches his upcoming Patreon cooking/party-hosting show, likened to “Martha Stewart on three tabs of acid.” Audience members will email real event dilemmas for Steve to solve—think entertaining tips, menu and music curation—with follow-ups and photos requested.
  • Steve: “The whole idea of cooking with love and entertaining with love is actually a real thing, I believe.” [11:06]

3. Caller Stories of the Best Advice They’ve Received

Dana: The Wedding DJ/Cold Case

• [11:28–18:29]
• Story: Dana was advised to buy wedding insurance. Months before her wedding, their DJ vanished—he’d been arrested for a decades-old murder. The insurance covered their costs.
  • Dana: “If your DJ commits a murder in the 1900s, it’s all covered. We got our money back.” [16:43]
• Hosts React: Outraged and delighted. Eric (in various impressions) says: “Before you hire a DJ, check his crawl space, babe.” [17:26]
• Advice Takeaway: Wedding insurance is essential—covers even the wildest scenarios.

Lindsay: Pranks Gone Awry

• [19:01–26:21]
• Story: Childhood story—her brakes were tampered with, almost causing an accident. Her mom’s “lesson” was to pretend Lindsay had been gravely hurt or died (by skipping the bus and hiding at school) to spook the culprits. It worked too well: rumors swirl, classmates distraught.
  • Lindsay: “My advice is don’t tell people that you’re dead when you’re not.” [25:04]
• Hosts: Laugh at the escalation, immediately call it “merch.”
• Advice Takeaway: “If you’re going to do an elaborate prank, make sure you get all the details right… and maybe don’t tell people you’re dead.”

Mikayla: The Cheese Alibi

• [28:35–39:11]
• Story: Mikayla eats half a pound of cheese during her drive home and concocts a white lie: she gave snack food to a homeless man with a dog, which has become her recurring excuse for missing groceries.
  • Jake: “I would sit in the car, eat all the cheese, and I would die with that wrapper.” [33:05]
  • Mikayla: “I've used it about three different times with different snacks… [now] my husband will say, ‘Can you pick up… cheese?’ And I’m planning what kind of snack I could bring that the dog could also enjoy…” [34:53]
• Hosts: Applaud her creativity. Gareth proposes karma: actually give food to someone in need to “tie the lie to reality.”
• Big Laugh: Mikayla’s covert snack habit is described as “hall of fame level” advice storytelling.
• Follow-Up Offer: Jake and Gareth want to help Mikayla reveal her long-running “homeless dog” alibi to her husband a year from now.

Ryan: Embracing the Weird

• [39:40–46:35]
• Story: Ryan recounts advice from his wife—“embrace the weirdness.” He describes a co-worker who wore full cycling attire to work (but only swapped out his top for a button-up and tie), plus a “banana guy”—making the office eccentric, fun, and highly successful at sales.
  • Ryan: “He got me onto a slow-pitch softball team of 70-year-old doctors who’ve been playing for 45 years.” [43:50]
• Hosts: “If this show were The Voice, we’d all turn our chairs.” [45:05]
• Advice Takeaway: Leaning into others’ eccentricities leads to unexpected friendships and personal confidence.

Danae: The Cigarette Compromise

• [46:41–58:21]
• Story: Her friend and her friend’s husband make a pact: every time he bums a cigarette, he has to give his wife all the cash in his wallet. Danae (a smoker) helps enforce the rule and gets introspective about quitting cigarettes.
  • Jake (getting real): “Danae, I need you to stop smoking cigarettes.” [50:10]
  • Emotional group intervention; various hosts share quitting stories and methods. Offer to send her a Steve Berg Hunk Calendar as reward if she truly quits, and check-in accountability is arranged for future episodes.
  • Steve: “Every one of us used to smoke… and we all smoked a pack a day.” [53:19]
• Advice Takeaway: Tough love and community support—committing to real change means accountability and, sometimes, a bit of public shaming and reward.

Notable Quotes & Timestamps

• On big life moments (Gareth’s Special):

  “It became cellular…to have a night that culminates and it go well…was just the best.” — Gareth [04:01]

• On creative pranks:

  “Don’t tell people you’re dead when you’re not.” — Lindsay [25:04]

• Absurd white lies:

  “I made up a fake homeless man with a dog … Now [my husband] says, ‘Stop going to that grocery store because he doesn't want me to keep buying snacks for this dog.’” — Mikayla [34:53]

• On embracing the weird:

  “When in crazy town, embrace it.” — Ryan [43:50]

• On cigarettes and quitting:

  “Danae, I need you to stop smoking cigarettes.” — Jake [50:10]
  “There’s never going to be a good time to quit ever. … I would actually start tomorrow.” — Steve [57:30]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [03:03] Gareth on his standup special and aftermath
• [07:35] Steve introduces “Home EC”
• [11:28] Dana: wedding insurance/dark wedding DJ advice
• [19:01] Lindsay: prank gone wrong
• [28:35] Mikayla: cheese-eating, snack cover story
• [39:40] Ryan: “embrace the weird” workplace
• [46:41] Danae: cigarettes, group intervention, and quitting stories

Tone, Inside Jokes & Podcast Vibe

• Playful and irreverent: Hosts frequently joke, riff, and tease both each other and their callers (“The Cranky Ronnies,” “Lindsay & Tracy” alter-egos for Jake & Eric).
• Silly impressions: Eric Edelstein pulls out recurring impressions (Sammy Davis Jr., David Lynch, Bill Walton) to comment comically on caller stories.
• Real advice, delivered comedically: The heart behind the banter is strong. Listeners’ stories are met with genuine warmth and encouragement.

Recurring Themes

• Accountability & community: Whether it’s quitting smoking, following through with a wedding, or sticking to a white lie, the show emphasizes long-term follow-through and helping each other out.
• Practical but irreverent advice: From “get wedding insurance” to “don’t pretend you’re dead” to “own your quirks,” the advice is both sincerely valuable and deeply funny.
• Celebration of weirdness: Whether in snack habits or workplace attire, “lean in” is the motto.

Final Takeaways

Best-of Advice from the Episode:

• Get wedding insurance—not just for common sense, but you never know if your DJ is a secret criminal.
• Don’t escalate pranks beyond your ability to control them—especially not faking your own death.
• If you need a snack alibi, philanthropy (even fictional) is a strong move; real kindness is even better.
• Embracing weirdness can transform friendships and yourself.
• If you want to quit a bad habit, enlist friends, accountability, and possibly reward yourself with absurd motivational pinup calendars.

Closing Note: Listeners are encouraged to send in their stories, follow up on their progress, and “embrace the weird” with the hosts—a space equal parts supportive community and comedy clubhouse.

For those who haven’t heard the episode, this summary captures the show’s full flavor: inventive, warm, wildly tangential, and sneakily wise.