And That's Why We Drink
Episode 469: Nostalgic Lip Landlines and Dancing Ghosts
Hosts: Christine Schiefer & Em Schulz
Date: February 8, 2026
Overview
In this episode, Christine and Em blend their signature storytelling and banter while diving into the chilling details of the Moss Mansion hauntings in Billings, Montana, and the decades-old true crime mystery of "Room 1046." The episode is peppered with nostalgia, quirky anecdotes (lip phones, Comic Con encounters), personal updates, astrological asides, and a lot of speculation, creating the familiar cocktail of comfort and unsettling intrigue that defines And That's Why We Drink.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
1. Coping in a Dystopian Era
- The hosts acknowledge ongoing national turmoil and social anxiety, discussing personal efforts to find joy and control (02:18).
- Christine reflects on the surreal experience of flying during breaking news, describing a "history book situation" with every passenger tuned to different channels covering the same crisis (02:24).
- Em discusses astrology, connecting current upheaval to Neptune's shift from Pisces to Aries, symbolizing a move from dreaminess to fiery resistance:
"We're stepping out of Pisces dreamy spirituality into an active, fiery, resistance-type spirituality... We're fighting the fascists." (04:00)
Notable Quote
Christine (03:36):
"Neptune is entering Aries fire sign. The last time this happened was about 150 years ago, the first day of the Civil War in the US. So ain't that funny?"
2. Creative Outlets & Side Hustles
- Em launches a new "hot stuff devil" sticker for charity (abolish ICE), donating proceeds after recent Minneapolis news. Christine's girlfriend opens "Forager's Craft," a woodworking jewelry business. (05:11–07:11)
- The conversation emphasizes finding agency in chaos and supporting loved ones' entrepreneurial efforts.
3. Comic Con Adventures & Nostalgia
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Christine distracts herself by attending Comic Con, meeting Hey Arnold creator Craig Bartlett (who also drew Cynthia from Rugrats) and the voice of a Powerpuff Girl (08:23–10:14).
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Secures the last Hey Arnold! soundtrack vinyl from Bartlett:
"It was like, the last one that they had in their, in their personal collection... I got him to sign it." (09:42)
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Sparked by this nostalgia, the hosts fondly reminisce about collectible phones—lip landlines, novelty phones, and losing a SpongeBob phone at TSA (23:15–25:02).
Memorable Moment
Em (23:15):
"With my adult money, I would love to buy the clear build-it-yourself landline phone we all wanted as kids... And yet. Why? Who am I calling?"
4. The Moss Mansion: Paranormal Story
[Location: Billings, Montana | Begins at 14:10]
Background
- Built in 1902 for Preston (PB) and Martha "Maddie" Moss, designed by the same architect as NYC's Plaza Hotel and original Waldorf Astoria (19:56).
- Mansion had 28 rooms with luxurious features far ahead of its time: indoor plumbing, electric bell system, early rotary phone decades before they were popular (22:02).
Family & Lore
- PB Moss: local banking mogul, town builder, founder of everything from the bank to power to local newspaper (Billings Gazette). Maddie: first woman in Billings to drive a car, famously "deviled to death" by people wanting rides (33:47).
- Moss family lived with six children. Several (including PB, Martha, and youngest daughter Virginia) died in the mansion over the years.
Hauntings & Paranormal Activity
- Key spirits: Virginia (child), Melville (musician daughter), PB.
- Famous sighting: Near Melville's death, a hospice nurse saw a little girl (Virginia) standing vigil by her bed. (37:31)
- Paranormal investigators have recorded EVPs of the spirits stating their names and interacting, with Melville reportedly unable to "go upstairs"—possibly tied to her physical limitations in life (39:00–39:19).
Ghostly Encounters
- Shadows "dancing" to period music in the ballroom and parlor.
- Curtains moving on their own, laughter, footsteps, objects moving, and phone-related phenomena.
- Staff perform daily greetings and farewells to keep spirits happy (44:21).
- Museum now displays Moss family artifacts, believed to act as "trigger items" for ghostly activity.
Notable Quote
Em (45:01):
"That would be creative, though, if they got that phone—probably unplugged these days—to ring. Oh, that'd be scary as shit."
Moss Mansion Today
- Offers ghost tours, murder mystery dinners, and other events. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places and used in film shoots.
5. Banter & Breaks: Alliterative Names and Local Newspapers
- Spirited riffing on name alliteration trends and local newspapers' names (30:36–33:33).
- Christine:
"If it's Christine Christensen, then I sound like I literally invented the church." (18:45)
- Lighthearted rundown of fictional newspapers like the "Burbank Bulletin" and personal childhood "Wolper News" (32:07), which gets a nostalgic callback in the yappy hour segment.
6. True Crime Deep Dive: The Mystery of Room 1046
[Begins at 51:27]
The Case
- January 2, 1935, Kansas City: Young man checks into the President Hotel under "Roland T. Owen" (an alias), requests an interior room, and brings only minimal belongings; acts wary, keeps shades drawn (54:00–55:05).
- Multiple witnesses: cleaning staff, bellboys, and a mysterious "Don" contacted by note and phone.
- Esoteric hotel protocols (locking doors from the outside) and strange housekeeping interactions ensue, with the guest consistently in darkness and insisting on not locking the door due to an expected visitor (56:40–57:29).
- Multiple people heard in the room; a commercial sex worker possibly visits; late-night chaos with thumping, arguing, and party noises nearby (64:13–64:54).
Discovery of the Crime
- Friday morning: After multiple checks, bellboy finds "Owen" badly injured, tied up, with severe stab wounds. He dies the next day but claims, "No one [did this]. I hit my head on the bathtub." (75:10)
- The violent state of the room, lack of belongings, suspicious fingerprints, and cryptic note ("Don, I will be back in 15 minutes") perplex investigators.
Investigation & Aftermath
- Case unravels: victim is eventually identified as 17-year-old Artemis Ogletree, run away from Alabama. After his death, his mother receives multiple letters and a suspicious phone call, all indicating he was still alive—these were likely sent by someone connected to the killer (88:58–91:30).
- Anonymous callers pay for his funeral and send roses signed "Love forever, Louise" (84:02). The killer is never conclusively identified.
Notable Quotes & Moments
Christine (71:04):
"Why can't you get to the phone? If you're trying to cover something up, you would just do it to keep them at bay. So why can't you get to the phone?"
Em (86:54):
"Artemis Ogletree is wild, dude...she [his mom] reveals he's only 17."
7. Postmortem Theories & Speculation
- The hosts engage in detailed theorizing about the possible motives: doomed romance, mob involvement, mistaken identity, gay panic, or infidelity (94:37–100:05).
- Christine leans toward a "lovers' quarrel or love triangle"; Em suggests, "maybe the woman he hooked up with was married and the wronged husband found him."
Christine (100:00):
"Love triangle or the infidelity. I do too. I agree...Maybe we solved it. Hey, we solved it!"
8. Technical Difficulties & Classic Podcasting Chaos
- Amidst the mystery, the hosts realize they never resumed video recording after a break, bemoaning lost visuals for the episode's most expressive moments—relatable podcaster mishap (58:16–59:42).
Christine (59:13):
"We've got our locals. At least we have audio. That's all that matters."
Timestamps for Key Segments
- 02:24 – Christine's in-flight "history book" news moment
- 03:36–04:16 – Astrology & Neptune's fire
- 05:11–07:11 – Creative outlets; Christine's girlfriend's jewelry business
- 08:23–10:27 – Comic Con nostalgia; autographs & collectibles
- 14:10–47:02 – Moss Mansion story (ghosts & history)
- 51:27–100:05 – Room 1046 true crime investigation
- 58:16–59:42 – Realization of lost video; podcast chaos
Tone & Language
The episode remains warmly irreverent and deeply engaged:
- Banter is tangential, playful, and peppered with random nostalgia, alliteration jokes, and wild speculation.
- True crime and ghost stories are detailed, with an emphasis on the heartbreak and humor of human tragedy.
- Listeners are drawn into the hosts' friendship, their small joys, and their very relatable coping mechanisms.
Notable Quotes (with Timestamps)
- Christine (03:36): "Neptune is entering Aries fire sign. The last time this happened was about 150 years ago, the first day of the Civil War in the US."
- Em (23:15): "With my adult money, I would love to buy the clear build-it-yourself landline phone we all wanted as kids...And yet. Why? Who am I calling?"
- Christine (37:41): "So it's presumed that that was Virginia Moss who died in the house at 5, and she was just watching over her sister."
- Em (86:54): "Artemis Ogletree is wild, dude...she reveals he's only 17."
- Christine (100:00): "Love triangle or the infidelity. I do too. I agree...Maybe we solved it. Hey, we solved it!"
Conclusion
Episode 469 encapsulates the essence of And That's Why We Drink: seeking solace in strange stories, laughing through the nostalgia and the darkness, and refusing to lose warmth even while wading through historical tragedy. Whether it's the haunted halls of Montana or a bloody unsolved murder from 1935, Christine and Em remind us why the world is scary—and why we drink.