And That's Why We Drink – Episode 477: "Rat Directions and Pantsless Ghost Hunts"
Release Date: April 5, 2026
Hosts: Christine Schiefer & Em Schulz
Main Themes: Processing clutter, true crime intersecting with paranormal TV, childhood horror tales, the monkey’s paw motif, domestic violence, reality vs. the supernatural
Episode Overview
This episode of "And That's Why We Drink" blends the personal with the paranormal and true crime, as Christine and Em start with reflections on home organization and nostalgia before diving into chilling territory. Em delivers a lively, in-depth retelling and discussion of classic horror story "The Monkey’s Paw," examining its literary impact and retrospective complexities. Christine then covers the tragic, true crime-laden story of Ghost Adventures’ recurring guest investigators Mark and Debbie Constantino, whose fame in paranormal TV ended in a devastating murder-suicide. The result is an episode full of dark humor, pop culture references, literary analysis, and a serious approach to sensitive topics.
**Personal Catch-up:
"Home Clutter, Attachment, and Letting Go"**
- Time: 02:46–17:04
Key Discussion Points
- Both hosts share updates on home projects, frustrations over unachieved décor goals, and the emotional baggage of clutter.
- Conversations meander into family habits around saving (or not saving) memorabilia, and the differing personalities in their relationships when it comes to hoarding or minimalism.
- Christine discusses her ongoing project of decluttering and the joy and pain of rediscovering and letting go of old keepsakes.
- Quote (Christine, 07:17): “Now that I’m getting myself healed up a little bit, I’m like, oh, I don’t need to hold onto this, like, straw wrapper because my ex-boyfriend gave it to me.”
- Both hosts explore anxiety around keeping or disposing of personal items, and how larger or smaller living spaces influence this.
Memorable Moment
- Christine relates, with self-deprecating humor, to pushing her husband’s clothes to inaccessible corners, recognizing how these household foibles reflect broader relationship dynamics.
Parenting & Childhood Fears: The Power of Stories
- Time: 18:04–22:54
Key Discussion Points
- Christine recounts a recent parenting fail, giving Leona (her daughter) a children’s book meant to be empowering but instead provoking intense fear—the child demands the book be put out of sight, linking the fear to a broader ongoing concern about wolves.
- Quote (Christine, 19:41): “She’s like, burn it. Literally burn it.”
- Em and Christine discuss how kids’ fears often have logic adults don’t always follow, and how their own upbringings with spooky literature shaped (or didn’t shape) their reactions.
Drinks and Inside Jokes
- Time: 22:54–24:30
Key Discussion Points
- The hosts riff on their respective, underwhelming beverages while reprising the show’s long-running “thirsty little rats” catchphrase with trademark crass humor.
- Quote (Em, 24:05): “You thirsty, little effing rats? Drink some water.”
Story Segment 1: Em’s Book Report – “The Monkey’s Paw”
- Time: 27:19–77:12
Key Discussion Points
Nostalgia for School Assignments & Reading Avoidance
- Both hosts reflect on dodging assigned reading in school, the wish for audiobooks, and how their personalities and life circumstances made reading difficult or unappealing as teens.
The Story Recap
- Em retells "The Monkey’s Paw" in detail, infusing the segment with humor and their unique narrative voice:
- A London family (the Whites) receives a visit from a friend, Sergeant Major Morris, who brings a supposedly cursed monkey’s paw.
- The paw grants three wishes per owner but with catastrophic, ironic outcomes—demonstrating the moral “be careful what you wish for.”
- The family wishes for 200 pounds to pay off their mortgage; soon after, the son dies in a work accident and the payout equals the wish.
- In grief, the wife insists on using the second wish to bring their son back; strange phenomena ensue, culminating in frantic knocking at the door. The husband uses the final wish—implied to send the son back to the grave—and the story ends with emptiness and loss.
Literary Themes & Analysis
- Em offers a layperson’s literary breakdown, highlighting:
- Foreshadowing via risky chess moves.
- The symbolism of the number three.
- The ambiguity about whether the paw is real or a coincidence.
- Retrospective discussion about the problematic, racialized elements of the story, situating its British colonial context and how its warnings about "dangerous" Indian magic reflect imperialist anxieties.
- Christine proposes the story can be read as comedic or satirical colonial commentary, joking that its heavy subtext would have gone over their heads as teens.
- Quote (Em, 66:40): “What if the monkey’s paw was just, like, a silly story that this guy told about on his travels and he threw it in a fire for the gimmick, and, like, it was just some paw that he picked up along the way? And there was never magic...”
Memorable Moments
- Sympathetic riffs about what, exactly, the characters wish for ("pay off the loan is not like a risky wish").
- Em’s delivery of the “campfire knocks” (61:00), creating genuine atmosphere amid the laughter.
- Christine’s reaction to the grim twist, and her speculation about the ambiguous ending.
Pop Culture Legacy
- Em wraps with "Monkey’s Paw" fun facts: From literary origin (1902, by a comedic writer) to its many stage, film, and TV adaptations. Stephen King’s "Pet Sematary" and various TV shows ("Simpsons," "Are You Afraid of the Dark?") are cited as inspired by the motif.
Story Segment 2: Christine’s True Crime – The Constantino Case
- Time: 81:28–116:47
Key Discussion Points
Who Were Mark & Debbie Constantino?
- Their rise to fame as married paranormal investigators, specializing in EVP (electronic voice phenomena), frequent contributors to "Ghost Adventures" led by Zak Bagans.
- Quote (Christine, 83:02): “Together they launched a website called Spirits Speak … most specifically with electronic voice phenomena.”
- Mark enters the field as a skeptic; Debbie claims a lifelong connection to the paranormal.
- Both become "guest experts" on the Ghost Adventures team—drawing a following as a "paranormal power couple."
Trouble Behind the Scenes
- Beneath media success, their marriage is marked by mutual domestic violence, which escalates in 2015:
- Debbie arrested for allegedly cutting Mark with a kitchen knife (March).
- Mark and daughter Raquel kidnap and assault Debbie (August—six weeks before the murder-suicide).
- Restraining orders are issued but do not protect Debbie; Christine reads excerpts from "The Gift of Fear" discussing why such orders are often ineffective against dangerous abusers.
- Quote (From "The Gift of Fear," 98:53): “Restraining orders are most effective on the reasonable person who has a limited emotional investment...if the goal is to prevent a murder, the civil restraining order is probably the wrong strategy...rejection is a very common trigger to violence.”
The Crime
- On September 22, 2015, after kidnapping Debbie, Mark kills another man (James Anderson, a roommate), abducts Debbie to their daughter’s apartment, kills her, then himself, following a tense police standoff.
- The horror—and failures of both the justice system and personal safety—are underscored by the hosts’ frustration at how signs were missed or minimized.
Aftermath & Media Resonance
- "Ghost Adventures" episodes featuring the Constantinos are quietly pulled from streaming. Zak Bagans tweets condolences and grieves on-air during a tribute investigation at the Washoe Club.
- Christine describes the complicated fan reaction:
- Some grieve sincerely; others circulate damaging myths attributing Mark’s violence to being "possessed by demons" rather than holding him to account.
- Quote (Christine, 104:49): “Some fans suggest that Mark's actions were caused by demons or dark entities that attach because he wasn’t ghost hunting safely enough... No, he was a documented abuser, and like he made a human decision to murder his wife.”
- Some grieve sincerely; others circulate damaging myths attributing Mark’s violence to being "possessed by demons" rather than holding him to account.
Discussion of Domestic Violence
- Christine provides current US statistics and resources for anyone experiencing intimate partner violence.
- The hosts urge listeners not to explain crimes away as paranormal possession or attachment, but rather to recognize underlying patterns: domestic violence is common, dangerous, and demands serious attention.
Ghost Adventures, Pop Culture & Grief
- Time: 109:15–121:36
Key Discussion Points
- Both hosts critique (and, in places, defend) Zak Bagans and the handling of the Constantino tragedy on "Ghost Adventures":
- Zak and crew revisit Washoe Club, purportedly contact Debbie via EVP, and openly weep on camera. Fans debate whether this is healing, exploitative, or both.
- Christine notes that, while some moments are unintentionally comic (Zak’s shirt on display in a museum case; a detour into making chocolate turtles at a candy shop immediately after supposed ghost contact), the grief in some parts feels genuine.
- Christine: “He’s always himself... even in grief.”
Memorable Moments
- The episode’s signature blend of irreverence and sincerity is on display as Christine both mocks and empathizes with the show’s odd tonal shifts, including Zak’s candy store distraction.
- Both hosts express gratitude for finding catharsis in investigating, talking about, and sometimes lightly mocking the very stories that trouble or confuse them.
Show Wrap-up & Listener Resources
- Brief mentions of upcoming travel, projects, and audience engagement (Snooki/Jersey Shore jokes).
- Christine reiterates the importance of recognizing, supporting, and understanding the dynamics of domestic violence.
Notable Quotes & Timestamps
- “[The monkey’s paw]... the only thing I really remembered is that you have to be careful what you wish for.” – Em, 28:36
- “Restraining orders are most effective on the reasonable person who has a limited emotional investment...if the goal is to prevent a murder, the civil restraining order is probably the wrong strategy.” – The Gift of Fear (quoted by Christine), 98:53
- “He was a documented abuser and he made a human decision to murder his wife. So I just don’t find much value in saying a demon did it...” – Christine, 104:49
- “He’s always himself, even in grief.” – Christine, 115:30
Important Segment Timestamps
- Clutter, nostalgia, home-lives: 02:46–17:04
- Childhood fears, parenting: 18:04–22:54
- "Monkey’s Paw" segment (Em’s book report): 27:19–77:12
- Constantino case background: 81:28–85:15
- Abuse, legal failures, and murder: 89:20–102:06
- Aftermath and Ghost Adventures tribute: 106:23–121:36
Episode Tone & Style
An intense blend of laughter, self-deprecation, trauma processing, pop culture riffing, and literary/true crime analysis—often moving seamlessly between sarcasm, empathy, and serious reflection.
Resources
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence:
- National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-SAFE
- Text: "START" to 88788
- thehotline.org
Why Do They Drink?
Because the past—a haunted house, a school assignment, or a television hero—never stays neatly tucked away and the lines between horror and reality are thinner than we think.
End of Summary