Listener Stories: Vol. 117 featuring. For Better And Worse

Summary

And That's Why We Drink: Listener Stories Vol. 117 (feat. For Better And Worse)

Podcast: And That's Why We Drink

Hosts: Christine Schiefer & Em Schulz
Guests: Rachel & Jerry (For Better And Worse Podcast)
Release Date: July 1, 2026

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Episode Overview

This mid-year Listener Stories episode celebrates all things paranormal, skeptical partners, and complex relationship dynamics. Christine and Em welcome Rachel and Jerry from the "For Better And Worse" podcast (also ParaPods network podcasters) as guest co-hosts. Together, they dive into chilling listener-submitted tales that explore the collision between believers and skeptics within relationships—highlighting true hauntings, psychic awakenings, and moments where even the hardest non-believers are forced to question reality.

The episode is full of laughter and shivers, as everyone shares their own “skeptics versus believers” stories from their relationships, discusses the gray area of family “witchiness”, and gives advice for navigating spiritual divergence with empathy and humor.

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Main Themes

• Believers & Skeptics in Romantic Partnerships: Relationships often feature one partner who perceives supernatural phenomena, and another who needs more empirical proof.
• Generational "Witchiness” & Unexplainable Family Lore: Listeners—and hosts—share stories of intuition, inherited psychic abilities, and haunting family histories.
• Kids & the Paranormal: Stories of children’s uncanny sensitivity (or resistance) to spirits.
• Skeptical Rationalizations: Skeptics try, and often fail, to explain away chilling events.
• Guidance For Spiritual Self-Revelation: How to come out as “psychic” or spiritual to a skeptic partner.

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Key Discussion Points & Listener Stories

1. The “Believer/Skeptic” Dynamic in Relationships

[02:17–06:47]

• Emma introduces Rachel and Jerry, whose podcast “For Better And Worse” often covers relationship dynamics, including those between believers and skeptics.
• Christine and Emma reflect on their own partners: Christine’s wife Allison is a staunch skeptic (“She’s a full blown skeptic. Every time I think there’s a ghost, she goes, ‘Okay, so your job’s imagination, I guess.’”—Christine, [03:55])
• Emma’s husband Blaze recently became open-minded after witnessing a medium (Tyler Henry show). “He said, I didn’t know that there was something after we die... I just thought we were computers and you just turned off when you died. And I said, huh?”—Emma, [04:35]
• Rachel posits: “Some people are just more sensitive to that energy. I have a theory that it kind of runs in family lines...”

2. Kids, Family, and Hauntings (“Papa’s Room”)

[07:11–14:47]

• Rachel recounts her young daughter’s interaction with a possible spirit in her room: “She has a cubby in her room... but she would call it ‘papa’s room.’ But she got scared, so it became more negative” ([08:13]).
• Salt rituals, minor Ghostbuster consults, and changes in children’s nightmares and behavior are discussed.
• Em: “As someone with a four year old daughter... I live in a house from 1865... I was prepped for ‘papa cubbies’ but nothing’s happened! Some kids are just closed off. But sometimes my daughter will say things like ‘where’s she going?’ and just point up the stairs... but never wants to talk about it.” ([10:30])
• The group discusses how children’s reluctance to discuss the paranormal might stem from their own sensitivity, fear, or stubborn resistance.

3. “For Better And Worse” Podcast Origin Story

[15:05–18:45]

• Rachel and Jerry share their podcast journey—originally a collaboration between Rachel (post-divorce) and her friend Jess (newlywed), then on hiatus, and now rebooted with Jerry.
• Their show focuses on all facets of relationships, breakups, and resilience, inspired by real-life “for better and worse” experiences.

4. Listener Story 1: “Help Me Tell My Skeptic Husband I’m Psychic” (Nikki)

[21:06–36:46]

• Nikki writes in seeking advice on telling her “logical, science-based” husband about her psychic abilities.
• Nikki recounts generations of family “witchiness” (grandmother could “cure warts with the touch of his hand,” [22:15]), her childhood visions (including the Hat Man), and recent adult psychic phenomena—such as knowing when people or pets had died and premonitions of accidents.
• She has begun exploring oracle card readings, meditation, and Reiki behind her husband’s back, anxious about being dismissed or ridiculed.
• Advice from hosts and guests:
  • Rachel: “Saying ‘I’m working on my spirituality... is important to me right now,’ should be enough... Your partner should be supportive of that.” ([32:01])
  • Jerry: “The reason you are so hesitant to share is because you are still vulnerable about it... You just need him not to yuck your yum.” ([31:43])
  • Emma: “You don’t need to prove anything... Some people are just open to things in their own time.” ([32:39])

5. Listener Story 2: “I Will Never Tell My Skeptic Husband This Story” (Mac)

[39:31–53:12]

• Mac describes a lifetime of “the touch” (psychic abilities), family support, and regular visits from her deceased grandmother.
• As a tween, Mac had a vision of a red car crash that came true, tied to a local hay ride tragedy.
• Now an adult married to a partial skeptic, she shares a chilling wedding night story: after eloping in a cemetery, she witnessed her husband standing face-to-face with a white, faceless woman in their yard. “They were nose to nose and he is over 6ft tall... She was pure white, in a tattered nightgown... her face was featureless.” ([47:05])
• A camera later installed caught nothing. Mac never tells her husband what she saw, but shares with the podcast for the first time—a moment that chills everyone present.
• Christine: “I would spiral... I wonder, was that the only time in his life he’s also felt something odd?” ([52:58])

6. Listener Story 3: “Quit it, Susie!” (Katie)

[55:16–59:00]

• After her ex-wife’s Aunt Susie passed, Katie’s house saw an uptick in paranormal activity: lamps and gas fireplaces turning on/off, EMF meter spikes.
• The only comfort: her dog would act joyful and friendly, as if greeting an old friend.
• A hardline skeptic (her ex-mother-in-law) finally witnesses undeniable activity; after taunting, “If it’s true, how come I’ve never seen anything?” the lamp clicks on. She says, “Okay, quit it, Susie”—the lamp clicks off.
• Emma: “Sometimes you just need your team to help you orchestrate something that will work.” ([58:47])

7. Listener Story 4: “My Skeptic Partner’s Outright Denial” (Christina)

[59:11–67:09]

• Christina’s husband Z, her high school sweetheart, chronically denies or rationalizes the supernatural experiences that stalk Christina.
• Multiple incidents: doors slamming open on their own, a traumatic sleep paralysis episode with a crawling girl entity in an Airbnb, and a shadow man at the foot of the bed.
• Even when jewelry is physically moved and Christina sobs in fear, Z is unwavering: “That’s the worst. [He insists] it was just a nightmare and that my jewelry must have slid off themselves.” ([65:07])
• The group discusses the frustration and, ultimately, the gaslighting of living between two realities: what you know, and what someone insists couldn't happen.

8. Listener Story 5: “The Woman in the Laundry Room Wasn’t My Mom” (Kate)

[75:57–88:46]

• A dark family story: Kate’s great-uncle’s ex-girlfriend, after being rejected, dies by suicide in a wedding dress at Kate’s grandparents’ house. Generations later, Kate’s deeply skeptical father encounters a woman in white in the laundry room (long dark hair, wedding dress).
• Days later, at a cousin’s house, he sees the same woman clawing and pulling at the sliding glass door, leaving a handprint “between the two panes of glass” that can’t be washed away. ([86:57])
• This experience breaks through her father’s skepticism: “My dad, at that point, told my mom he believed in the afterlife. Now, because how could you not when your uncle’s dead ex-girlfriend won’t quit following you around...” ([88:19])

9. Listener Story 6: “I Asked My Sister-in-Law’s Dead Dad to Grab My Skeptic Boyfriend’s Ass”

[90:34–97:44]

• A listener with a lifelong familiarity with the paranormal attempts to “prove” ghosts to her skeptical boyfriend by dragging him on ghost hunts (including a night at the Queen Mary).
• Before a hunt, her sister-in-law jokes, “Hey Dad, if you can help out, touch his ass on the hunt.” Later, the boyfriend returns from the bathroom perturbed: “I felt something rubbing against my ass, but I think it was just the shower curtain.” ([94:41])
• Despite the humorous setup, he refuses to admit the possibility of a haunting, but the family is convinced. As Emma notes: “He has to convince himself... you could literally see a full blown apparition and be like, I was just hallucinating.”

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Memorable Quotes

• Christine: “Every time I think there’s a ghost, [Allison] goes, ‘Okay, so your job’s imagination, I guess.’” ([03:55])
• Emma (on Blaze's change): “He said, ‘I didn’t know that there’s something after we die...I just thought we were computers and you just turned off.’” ([04:35])
• Rachel: “Just because someone doesn’t feel super tied to a specific religion, like we can’t deny that as the human race, we aren’t drawn into some spirituality of some kind.” ([30:31])
• Jerry: “You just need him not to yuck your yum.” ([31:43])
• Emma (on coming out spiritually): “You don’t have to prove anything... at a certain point I realized, oh, it is not my place to convince anyone else.” ([32:39])
• Christine (on the vent-haunting story): “I don't know who I'm more mad at: the husband or the ghost. Both of them are working together to gaslight you!” ([66:48])
• Jerry (advice): “If he was certain it was the shower curtain, he wouldn't have even told you the story.” ([97:15])

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Notable Timestamps

• [02:17] — Welcoming Rachel & Jerry, discussion about being partnered with a skeptic
• [07:11] — Rachel’s “Papa’s Room” child haunting story
• [15:05] — For Better And Worse podcast background
• [21:06] — Nikki’s dilemma: telling a skeptic husband she’s psychic
• [39:31] — Mac’s faceless woman encounter on her wedding night
• [55:16] — Katie’s Aunt Susie poltergeist lamp story (“quit it, Susie”)
• [59:11] — Christina’s string of haunted incidents and skeptic partner, including the crawling woman and missing jewelry
• [75:57] — Kate’s family haunting and the un-washable ghostly handprint
• [90:34] — Ghost-hunting for evidence: a possible poltergrope on the Queen Mary

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Tone, Style, & Noteworthy Moments

• High-spirited Banter: The episode is rich in conversational, affectionate sarcasm and supportive teasing about partner dynamics.
• Validating “The Weird Kids”: Empathy for those who carry family “witchiness” and for listeners whose partners don’t “see what you see.”
• Practical Advice: No one is pushed to “prove” anything to skeptics; the team validates emotional safety and spiritual exploration for oneself.
• Running Jokes & Callbacks: “Quit it, Susie!” (mocking but affectionate) and repeated references to the “Victorian child sleeper” archetype.
• Listener Support: Several stories emphasize the importance of pets as spiritual litmus tests (“puppies can't even uppies!”) and the relief of shared experience.

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Final Notes

• Follow For Better And Worse Podcast: Instagram @forbetterandworsepodcast, TikTok @worse, etc.—the guests’ chemistry and insight fit perfectly.
• Summary: This episode is a hilarious, touching, and sometimes terrifying exploration of how belief, skepticism, and the supernatural weave through modern relationships. Whether you “see dead people” or you’re trying to “yuck no one’s yum,” the stories serve up both validation and chills.

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What’s left unexplained?
Why do ghosts always wait until the skeptic almost sees them to disappear? And, to quote the group, “Why do they always have to scurry?!”

And that’s why we drink.

Transcript

[Emma]

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[Emma]

Well hello everyone. Welcome to the July Listener episode. That sounds shocking in My ears. But we're apparently at this point, when this comes out, more than halfway through the year, we have two very special guests from our lovely parapods network. We have, for better and worse, Rach and Jerry are here to help us dig into some skeptical ghost story relationship slash ghost story slash. I didn't prep this part. Sorry. The ad libbing's not working for me. It's okay.

[Christine]

You know, you're doing great.

[Jerry]

You're.

[Christine]

Keep it.

[Emma]

I sort of started to run out of steam and I couldn't find an entry, an exit point.

[Christine]

Tag team me. Tag team me.

[Emma]

Yeah, go ahead.

[Christine]

And now we are going to be doing for our July listeners, we. And by we, I mean Eva, of course, as always, has picked out some wonderful stories for us. But the theme this time around is going to be relationships that you might be in with people that are either, if you're a believer, they're a nonbeliever

[Emma]

or like a skeptical vibe. Yeah.

[Christine]

And because as you have heard Christina and I say for many moons now, we are unfortunately in a devastating blow with skeptics. And it has made our dynamics with them very interesting.

[Emma]

Across we bear every single day.

[Rachel]

It's absolutely Christine, because isn't your house haunted?

[Christine]

Oh, yeah.

[Emma]

And my husband would think. Here's what I'll tell you. He believes it more than anyone else. He's just like, I don't want to know or think about it.

[Rachel]

I'm like, that there's a ghost in my house. I've chosen to ignore.

[Emma]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. He's more like that. Where I've just learned, like, oh, it's not that he doesn't believe it at all. It's more that he's just like, I'd rather not even consciously think about it.

[Rachel]

Yeah.

[Christine]

You know, that's better than what I'm dealing with over here. Allison is just.

[Emma]

She is a full blown skeptic.

[Christine]

Every time I think there's a go. My job is ghost, she goes. Okay, so your job's imagination, I guess.

[Emma]

You're so creative.

[Christine]

Yeah. Wow. And it's. I think it is very. As we mentioned in our emails, it's very apropos to be doing this episode with you because the two of you have one of these dynamics. Yes.

[Emma]

And also. Well, tell us about your podcast. That's more. That's more on. On theme, I think, of why we're covering this.

[Christine]

Y.

[Jerry]

So that old chestnut, I was gonna say, I don't know if it's worse to be in a relationship with someone who's a Skeptic. Or in a relationship with someone who so deeply believes but is so afraid of it that they're like, I don't wanna know.

[Emma]

I. I know which one. It's the one I have, I think, because I took Blaze to a Tyler Henry Hollywood medium show recently. Actually, he took me for. It was a Valentine's gift. And he did it. He did it because I said, I want these tickets. And he said, we love. Yeah. And so he took the hint and he took me and we walked out and I said, oh, so what do you think? And he said, I didn't know that there's something after we die. And I went, hahaha. And he said, no, I'm serious. I had no idea. I just thought, like, we were computers and you just turned off when you died. And I said, huh? And you. You now, like, believe that? And he's like, where have you been? And I said, well, haven't you always, like, known that deep down? He's like, no, I just needed to see that. And now I understand. And I was like, what's kind of sick brain? Maybe it's a healthy brain. I can't really follow.

[Christine]

I love the metal set as Blaze is incredible.

[Emma]

He just, like, I had, playing a

[Jerry]

real long fictional game.

[Rachel]

What's this?

[Christine]

The Sims.

[Jerry]

To see.

[Emma]

See a medium with his own eyes. And he's like, oh, shit. That guy's really talking to dead people. They can. They can come back.

[Rachel]

And I'm like, herself.

[Emma]

Yeah, I know. I do too. I'm like, hello. Okay. But. All right. And I think he believed it, but he was just like, I just didn't really understand. And now I understand. So I guess there's GR. Growth there. Whereas with Allison, I feel like she's put her foot down and said, I

[Christine]

don't think she is.

[Rachel]

I think that's crazy. As someone who, like, I. I've said this to Jerry. I feel like some people are just more sensitive to that energy. I have a theory that, like, it kind of runs in family lines. And I'm the type of person that's, like, pretty. Like, I'm a pragmatist. Like, I'm just like, okay, I. I take, like, data and I. You know, that's Blaze too.

[Emma]

Yeah.

[Rachel]

So many people believe in it. Like, so many people have, like, firsthand experiences or like.

[Jerry]

So because of that, it has to be true. Yes.

[Emma]

And can I say something too? Only one of those experiences has to be real for something crazy to be happening. Do you know what I mean? Like, even if 95% of the people telling ghost stories, they're, like, wrong or misconstrued or, like, didn't understand if 5% of those stories are true, like, there's ghosts, baby.

[Rachel]

Right?

[Christine]

Yeah.

[Jerry]

That's how we get laws. We only have a small percentage of time for us to need to make a change.

[Rachel]

Exactly.

[Emma]

I.

[Christine]

Well done. What a. What a slam dunk way to end that.

[Emma]

Talk about a rebuttal.

[Jerry]

My platform, I feel like if we

[Emma]

were on debate team, we'd be so proud of ourselves. And then, like, we'd immediately lose. Like, the other team would.

[Christine]

Jerry would have said that. And we'd all go, that was smoked.

[Emma]

Smoked him.

[Jerry]

And I rest my case. Your honor goes a real goodbye, and there's no rebuttal.

[Christine]

You don't even get it. Like, they're.

[Emma]

Your honor.

[Jerry]

Daughter, please.

[Rachel]

We went to bust our house because the ghost was bothering our daughter. And our daughter at the time was 2. And she was calling. She has a cubby in her room, which we thought, oh, so cute. Such a cute little cubby. But she would call it papa's room.

[Emma]

Oh, no.

[Rachel]

And you do have a grandpa in her life that she, you know, we call him Papa.

[Jerry]

Never.

[Rachel]

He'd never been in that cubby. It seemed a little odd. Also, it wasn't a figure in her life at the time that he was around often. Like, probably like once a month, you know, like, you're like, okay, papa's room.

[Emma]

Different papa.

[Rachel]

But I was like, does that mean there with her? Didn't feel anything negative until we were having some negativity. We're having some negativity right after my youngest was born and we called in the ghost.

[Emma]

Did you mean negativity, like, from the spirits, or you're saying you had negativity,

[Rachel]

like, in your life feel negative about Papa? Like, she didn't feel like it was making her have bad dreams or anything. But then she got scared, but then

[Emma]

she started getting scared, so it became more negative. Okay.

[Rachel]

Yeah. Whoa, whoa, whoa. That's not cool, Papa.

[Christine]

And I'm not.

[Rachel]

I'm not down from that. You can live in this house. I'm fine with that, but don't be rude. So then we called the Ghostbusters and we had a consultation. And he, to be fair, very honest, he was like, well, one of two things could happen. You know, we can go in, we can, you know, try to talk to the entity, see what's up, and invite it to leave. Or it could ramp up the activity.

[Emma]

And I said, there's no in between.

[Rachel]

I'm just gonna ask him to leave. And I'll do my best because more activity sounded. We don't need that horrific dying to me.

[Christine]

And I, I, As. As someone who has minimal expertise in this, but I would usually assume that by talking to it at all, you're just. Even if you're trying to get rid of it, eating it. Activity by. But yeah, by giving it the intention or by giving it permission to talk all of a sudden or to, to make contact.

[Jerry]

I like invite it to leave. Like, it could decline the invitation.

[Emma]

I don't like that. Yeah. I think you need to go in there more forceful. Say, this is my house. You're not welcome. Bye, Papa. Get out of your cubby, you little.

[Christine]

And also I'm wondering, is it like, is this thing like a. If. If Papa is real? If Papa is something that she's saying, is it like just an old man that. So she's assuming, oh, his name is also Papa. Or is this like a doppelganger pretending to.

[Jerry]

Yeah, because I was gonna ask because

[Christine]

in that way she feels safer.

[Jerry]

Or is it an assimilation thing where all old men are Papa.

[Rachel]

We've tried to write the bottom of it.

[Emma]

How old is she now?

[Rachel]

Three.

[Emma]

Okay, okay.

[Rachel]

But she. And she's still. It's funny, she still calls it Papa's room, which is just like, okay, I

[Emma]

hate that that's stuck.

[Jerry]

This is an active case.

[Rachel]

It's an active case.

[Emma]

It's an active case. You asked him to leave.

[Jerry]

I'll probe about it.

[Rachel]

Like, oh, have you seen Papa lately? And so she just seems disinterested a lot of the time conversation. So I'm taking that as a win.

[Jerry]

I don't know if that's a win though, because she is just having night terror. She's struggling to sleep, and her not wanting to talk about it might just be.

[Emma]

Can I, as someone with a four year old daughter who I was prepped for any and all like, Papa cubbies, like, oh, there's someone in the corner. Like, I was. I was ready. And I was like, I live in a house from 1865. Like, some shit's gonna go down. And I was ready. Not a single word. And I've just thought, well, that's weird. Maybe she's like, totally closed off. I think it's the same thing that Blaze has, because I have asked her before. Like, she has mentioned some weird things. Like sometimes she'll say something like, where's she going? Like, endpoint up the stairs. And I'm like, you know, so they're like, weird moments. But when I ask her anything about, like, her room or the house, she, like, kind of completely shuts down and is like, I will not entertain this conversation. And it's so weird because, like, I've never presented anything as scary. Like, we don't, you know, watch anything. And she. It's so weird. She's very, like, insistent. And she's said since she was a little baby, I don't dream. I don't close my eyes when I sleep. I don't have nightmares. I don't have good dreams. I just lay there and I see nothing. And I was like, what the hell? So I don't know if it's like, she has seen things and is scared to talk about it.

[Jerry]

Ollie says that, too. Ollie says when he sleeps, he leaves his eyes open and he is going on. No, I'm laying next to him and his eyes are very much closed. Christine, we talked about this because we were talking about astral projecting and how we used to fly down the stairs and, like, kind of like go through our house as kids.

[Emma]

Yeah.

[Jerry]

And I don't know if that's what's. What he means when he says, I don't sleep. My eyes are open.

[Emma]

I can't believe that.

[Jerry]

Feels like he's wandering the house. But he's my kid who doesn't talk about spirits. Where my other son, Forest, he's. He wants to talk about.

[Emma]

Because I always have a feeling if I have.

[Jerry]

He's never met.

[Emma]

See, like, I know if I have a second kid, I feel like that's the one who's going to be like. Like, oh, you know. But Leona, for some reason, was like, I don't think so. And so she and Blaze are like, we're actually not gonna go there. And I'm like, what's happening? It's so weird.

[Rachel]

I. I've never felt sensitive to it, but my husband Josh has. Like, he remembers being, like, living in one of his mom's house when he was growing up and, like, not going in the house. Like, he would play outside. He hated being in there. Like, hated visiting. So he has gotten confused through all this because he's just like, I don't sense any negativity. So it's either, like, specifically pointed towards Elsie.

[Emma]

Right.

[Rachel]

Or, you know. Yeah, I don't know. But the nightmares have gone down quite a bit.

[Jerry]

Well, that's good.

[Emma]

That's good.

[Rachel]

We. We did do assault, ring around, you know. We.

[Jerry]

You did?

[Emma]

Yes.

[Rachel]

I was terrified. Like, this is how I expected Christine's motherhood. To go your newborn. Feeding your newborn in their room. Okay. And hearing your other. Your not even two year old say, stop.

[Jerry]

I don't like that.

[Christine]

Ah.

[Emma]

Like, I would literally. I don't know what I would do. I. I don't know.

[Christine]

Salt it up. I get it. Salt it up.

[Emma]

Yeah.

[Rachel]

Laying Piper back down and going into Elsie and be like, are you okay?

[Jerry]

And then salt bay all day.

[Christine]

Come with, come with me.

[Emma]

Sprinkle, Sprinkle a little salt.

[Rachel]

Yeah.

[Christine]

Oh, my God. So is that, that's not happening anymore now, though?

[Rachel]

No. Like, nothing negative or like dramatic because after that experience of like, that, like, activity. But what's funny is it probably was like quite around like Halloween time if I think about it, because Piper was a newborn, so he got more excited. Yeah, he was more excited.

[Jerry]

Playtime.

[Emma]

Gross, Jerry, you keep making it worse. Making it worse.

[Jerry]

Yeah. Our podcast is nothing about.

[Emma]

I know.

[Jerry]

So anyway, like, it's fun to hear these stories because Rachel's not a skeptic, but she's not.

[Rachel]

I don't have enough firsthand.

[Jerry]

I'm just gonna say if you don't have enough first hand experience, you normally don't talk about it and so you more just like observe and collect data and.

[Rachel]

But I also avoid it. Like, I think about people who like, love scary movies and love like, I don't need any of that living in my head. Yeah. Ever. It's scary.

[Jerry]

It is scary.

[Christine]

What's crazy though is that I. I started this episode assuming that you were a total skeptic and yet you're the only one who's come in hot with a story that, like, actually is very fun. And you're like. But I mean, I, you know, I'm thinking about it practically and I'm like, I would not be.

[Jerry]

But okay.

[Christine]

You know, Wild.

[Rachel]

Yeah.

[Jerry]

You know, the reason we started this, Rachel had actually started it years ago with her friend J, as someone who was wanting to create content that she needed to hear herself after she got in a divorce. And so you had gotten a divorce. Jess had just. She was a newlywed. So it was the dynamic of 20s and 30s of like, what's going on? And Jess had some really hard things happen in her life, like back to back to back. And she was like, hey, I gotta go.

[Christine]

I can't.

[Jerry]

I can't process this on the Internet. And so after like a two year hiatus.

[Rachel]

Yeah.

[Jerry]

I was like, you know what? You got remarried? I'll get a divorce and then I'll be the divorced one.

[Christine]

For the content.

[Emma]

Yeah, for the story.

[Jerry]

Yeah, Yeah, I did it for the bit.

[Emma]

My children.

[Jerry]

Wow.

[Emma]

Yeah, I'm sure they will. I'm sure they will. Wow. So how's it going? So it's relatively new, right?

[Jerry]

About doing it again and.

[Emma]

Yeah. A new reboot, kind of.

[Rachel]

Exactly. Yeah. And it's been so fun. I love podcasting. It was like a hard exit when Jess left. And, you know, we've kind of talked about that, like, how, you know, it felt like a relationship, you know, ending, whether, like, I wasn't mad and I wasn't, you know, anyway. But, like, obviously there was that disappointment. But then, sure, getting the opportunity to start it again with Jerry and, you know, Jerry and Jess are very similar, like, level of friends, like, met in a similar way. Her and Jess are similar age, like, all of that. So it's been really fun to restart it and to, I don't know, shift things in a way that, like, I wanted to at the time and didn't.

[Jerry]

And. And I even think the premise of the podcast being called For Better and Worse, a lot of times, we were also in the wedding industry, so we met because we were wedding photographers. And a lot of times in vowels, people say for better or worse. And a lot of times. And is the word. Because a lot of times life is happening all at once. It's not an or situation. It's always an and. And I just loved. That's why when I. When it was done, I was like, it can't be done. There's John with it. So I. When I was going through my divorce, and then I quickly was into another relationship, actually, by this point in time, I will be married for a second.

[Christine]

Yeah.

[Jerry]

July.

[Emma]

I know. Oh, my gosh.

[Jerry]

It's. That's. Whenever you said July, I was like, oh, my gosh, I'll be married for, like, two months at this point.

[Rachel]

Josh and I will tell you.

[Christine]

Well, congratulations.

[Emma]

Congratulations. Thank you. Yes.

[Christine]

Yeah.

[Jerry]

But I. Even in the. The exit of Jess, I think For Better and Worse is not just about marriages. It's about all kinds of relationships. And I think you and Jess went through a big worse. Jess went through a worse in her own personal life. And then having to navigate that with your friendship as she exited and still prioritizing that relationship. And then when we went to Jess and asked for her blessing to start it again, that was another opportunity for, you know, us as a group of friends to kind of, like, navigate those things. And just. It's very hard being an adult, especially an adult woman, and navigating relationships and friendships and having a really core support group and so kind of wanting to give people that in our little corner of the Internet.

[Rachel]

Cool.

[Jerry]

It's the heart of it.

[Christine]

Sweet.

[Emma]

It's just delightful. I watch all the clips on Instagram too. Like, I just. They. You guys just crack me up. So.

[Jerry]

You're a delight.

[Emma]

You're a delight. You're both a delight. Wow. Well, we're so happy to have you here and we're gonna read on that note stories that Eva picked about, like, people in relationships and as we. I was gonna say hinted at, but as we just like, totally. What's the opposite of hinting at bulldozed. Bulldozed. Bulldozed. The theme of skeptic partners.

[Christine]

If you're looking to judge up your home, your style, anything like that, you gotta head over to Quint's. We have talked about them a whole bunch of times over here. Our favorite thing about it is that it feels elevated. Not to speak like tan France of Queer Eye, but truly, everything over there is elevated. And the price is not elevated. That's the best part of it. You can look real classy, 100% European linen pants. They've got dresses, they've got tops. They're lightweight, effortless. They just started 32. Quint also has 14 karat gold jewelry that adds just like subtle finishing touch or some simple hoops. Any accessories you might need. But it's not just apparel. Quint also offers these elevated essentials for your home. From bedding and bath to kitchen essentials. Furniture. I recently decided, you know what? I'm done with towels. I'm only working with bath sheets from now on. I want to feel just wrapped up. So I went over to Quint and they have this Turkish waffle terry bath sheet. I feel like one of those dogs where I keep tilting my head because I keep hearing all the words that I that are my favorite things in the world. Waff texture. It's terry cloth bath sheets. They change the game. Truly, truly, truly. If. If you're looking for something to even just try out over at Quint, try these bath sheets. Make your summer wardrobe feel easier. Make your home feel good too. Go to quince.com drink for free shipping on your order and 365 day returns. Now available in Canada too. That's Q-U-I-N c e.com/drink for free shipping and 365 day returns. Quint.com drink this is from Nikki, who uses she. Her pronouns thank you for normalizing pronouns. And the subject line is help me tell my skeptic husband. I'm a psychic. Okay, so immediate fun. It's. I. I was also.

[Emma]

I knew you'd like it.

[Christine]

It's a bit of a. As Eva put it, a Dear Abby situation was that nothing even happened yet,

[Jerry]

and I got goosebumps.

[Emma]

The husband's like, I love telling men they're.

[Jerry]

I can't.

[Emma]

Oh, Jerry's, like, chomping at the.

[Rachel]

I don't.

[Christine]

I don't even have to read this.

[Rachel]

Yeah.

[Emma]

Why didn't Jerry read it?

[Christine]

Okay, here we go. Long time listener, first time caller. My name is Nikki, and the skeptic in my life is my CIS male husband. And then, of course, she puts. Go figure. This is a long story, and I love to yap. I know you can relate, so I'm gonna get right to it. First, let's address the subject line. Yes, you read that. Right. I think I might be a little psychic. I say think because it's kind of new. Well, not new exactly, but it's like I just became aware of it again, if that makes any sense. I've had intuitive feelings since I was very young. I also totally saw spirits when I was a kid, including the hat man.

[Emma]

Cool.

[Christine]

But I digress. I eventually grew out of it, like so many of us do. I also have some wishness on my mom's side of the family. My grandma used to tell stories about how her father could cure warts with the touch of his hand.

[Emma]

No, that means you have to touch someone's warts, though.

[Christine]

Yeah, I.

[Jerry]

Something more fun with your hands.

[Emma]

Yeah, maybe have a lot of fun. Don't. Don't yuck as yum. You know?

[Jerry]

Well, I mean, there's so many things that could be cured. Can we maybe try and focus on. I'm not

[Emma]

well, Jerry, can you. Can you heal a wart? Because once you can heal a wart, maybe then you can talk about what level of healing you're here.

[Jerry]

Which time do I have?

[Emma]

Okay, here's my wart. Hold on.

[Christine]

Once you can heal a wart, though, I'm mad that you can't heal other things that feel, like, less hard to cure. Like. What about zits? Like you can't handle my acne.

[Emma]

Well, maybe he could. Maybe he just, like, had. Maybe warts were, like, his ex specialties.

[Jerry]

Or maybe wart was just, like, people

[Rachel]

came from everything people came from.

[Emma]

Yeah, maybe. Especially.

[Rachel]

You ever had a planner's wort? Brutal.

[Emma]

Can I tell you I have one right now? I'm not even joking.

[Christine]

You're totally right. Maybe he can heal all things. But like one time there was like one wart that like everyone's just remembered. They're like, that's the work guy.

[Emma]

Like he, he's typecast. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Jerry]

He's like, I grew an arm back once, but all you guys want to talk about is that so true.

[Emma]

Oh my God.

[Christine]

So let's see. He heals warts. Excellent story is. Oh, here we get a whole story about it. The story is the wart would disappear within 24 hours after he touched you. It was a family secret that was passed down to the oldest grandchild for generations. So like if you're the second oldest, fuck you, I guess.

[Emma]

Yeah.

[Christine]

If you have a wart, don't ask any questions.

[Emma]

Yeah, see, this is why it sucks. Leon is the oldest grandchild because she's going to be like, I don't care and I don't believe you and then walk away and no one's going to burden.

[Jerry]

I didn't ask for this.

[Emma]

I don't have a wart. Leave me alone. Yeah,

[Christine]

let's see more family witchiness. Growing up, my grandma told all of us grandkids that she was a witch to give you a picture. My grandma was a little five foot nothing, sassy lady from Texas. She was exactly what you picture. Sweet as can be, but also scary as hell. And she'd say all sorts of creepy to us. She would threaten to put spells on people who upset us or do. Or do on to them if we didn't behave. Wait, hang on. Or do do them on us. Oh, do them on us. Do the spells on us if we didn't behave. I was like, hang on a second, whoa.

[Jerry]

Threat.

[Christine]

Then she just giggle. She'd just giggle and walk away and act like nothing happened after she's threatened by her own children.

[Emma]

Classic.

[Christine]

She passed away in 2020. But to this day none of us know if she was kidding or seriously. So now to some of my more recent experiences. As I said, I've always had a strong intuition. But it definitely got stronger when my grandparents passed away and they died 40 days apart.

[Jerry]

Interesting nights,

[Emma]

Bible, Noah's Ark, turning warts

[Jerry]

into wine or whatever.

[Emma]

Planter warts.

[Christine]

For example, one day a while back, I was in the shower and I got a random thought about my great uncle Moose, which was his nickname for Morris, which I love that you great made sure to tell us that yes, he was a man I met maybe five times in my life. The point is I barely knew him, so it was really random for him to cross my mind a few Days later, his daughter texted me to tell me he had passed away. Another time, I had a random thought about my husband's dog, Nala, that he used to have with his ex. I met the dog once years ago, before my husband and I were even dating. So it felt really random to think of Nala at the time. Same thing happened. His ex texted him a week or so later telling him that Nala had passed away.

[Jerry]

Oh, no.

[Emma]

Oh, they're all stopping to say bye.

[Christine]

Yeah. And. But it sounds like there are people who shouldn't really, like, need her goodbye or want her goodbye, but maybe she's just, like, the, like, the strongest magnet near them.

[Emma]

I was gonna say that happens a lot where, like, couples will dream of, like, their partners, like, grandma or somebody. Like, it'll, like, come through a different person in their life rather than directly. Yeah.

[Christine]

Maybe to help. Help warn them.

[Jerry]

Or maybe that's, like you said, the

[Emma]

open person in the really, like, the open.

[Christine]

Yeah. Or they're, like, just the easiest to fly to or something. But they're available that day.

[Emma]

In the shower, though. Uncle Moose, like, hold on, I'm in the shower. Like, you don't need to have an

[Jerry]

opening in my schedule for Uncle Moose

[Christine]

to say, I'll always pencil Moose in.

[Emma]

Yeah, yeah, they're.

[Christine]

They're not all about death. Death. The one that free feels the craziest to me is that I predicted I was going to fall down some stairs.

[Emma]

Oh, my God. But imagine after Nala and Moose, you're like, am I gonna die? And I just predicted it. That's terrible.

[Rachel]

Yeah, yeah.

[Emma]

Manifest your own death.

[Christine]

I would. I would be horrified. Anytime I got a flash of anything, I'd be like, what could it mean? For weeks, me falling down stairs kept randomly popping up into my head. I kept thinking, what the is that about? And then I'd go on about my day and forget all about it. It. One day, I stumbled a little on some stairs at work and had the very clear thought, it won't happen at work. Oh, yuck.

[Emma]

Who is telling you this? Your higher self?

[Christine]

Someone who obviously, like, has a mouth but not arms to catch you so you don't fall.

[Jerry]

I don't know.

[Emma]

Wow.

[Jerry]

I'm not supposed to intervene.

[Christine]

It's like, I'm gonna just keep horrifying you until it happens and then watch it happen.

[Emma]

The second you stumble down one step, they're like, oh, by the west.

[Rachel]

Yeah, it's now.

[Emma]

Yeah, it's not now, but it's later.

[Jerry]

Have a nice trip. See you next fall.

[Emma]

Oh, you know, they were just waiting for that. That moment. Yeah.

[Christine]

I stress the word. I stress the word clear because I have anxiety. Oh, like I heard it clear. The voice is very clear. I stress the word clear because I have anxiety and adhd. So you know, it's loud as hell in my head, so clear thoughts stand out. I thought I was losing my damn mind. And sure enough, a few weeks later I ended up up falling down the stairs in my basement. Side note, I also ended up breaking my first bone, which I did not know what happened. Oh, that part. That part was a secret little surprise for the moment.

[Emma]

Yeah. Apparently they didn't want you to know that yet.

[Christine]

There are many more I could tell you, but let me not lose the plot. I still need your help with my husband, of course.

[Rachel]

Oh yeah, yeah. That guy.

[Christine]

That guy. As you can imagine, my husband is a typical man in the sense that he is a very logic and science based thinker. Not a bad quality to have until your wife starts thinking she might be psychic. I made offhand comments our entire 8 year relationship about being psychic or a witch and he never shoots it down. But he doesn't really buy it either. And for the last few months I've been basically exploring in secret. I got an oracle card deck and have been pulling a card daily. I've been working on meditating and trying to connect to my spirit guides. I also have my first reiki massage this weekend and my husband knows about none of it.

[Jerry]

There's worse things you could be practicing.

[Emma]

I know. Imagine your secret life healing yourself.

[Christine]

I wouldn't even feel guilty about it yet. Be like, this is just a vacay.

[Emma]

This is just a self care experience. Definitely.

[Christine]

He's a good man and I know he loves me deeply. So I don't know what my problem is. I'm feeling so apprehensive about showing this side of myself to him. So now I come to you, Em and Christine. I'm daring Rachel and we pass it

[Emma]

off to two other people. Yeah, yeah.

[Christine]

For your advice, how do I tell my very logical husband that I think I'm psychic? I'll take any advice you got. And as a side note, I moved from Texas to Pittsburgh in 2023 and I spent much of that three day drive listening to and that's why we drink.

[Rachel]

Wow, that's a lot. That's a lot of you guys.

[Jerry]

Hey, I'm one time to shoot a wedding and I listened the entire time I was in a target trying to find something because I didn't pac back correctly. And that's when I learned about the back rooms for the first time. And I was like, I hate it here, but I'll be back.

[Emma]

And here you are. Here you are.

[Christine]

Yes. Well, so thank you, Nikki. What, what advice does everyone have?

[Rachel]

I think for me, as someone who, like, I am very practical and it helps that like, like I said, I'm like, a lot of people have this experience, so it can't just be like, like saying something that's because you don't understand it is ignorant and dumb. Like, it just is.

[Emma]

It's not like science minded. Right. But it's just like.

[Rachel]

Yeah. Specifically leaning into like the spirituality aspect of it. Like, spirituality is a part of every single culture on the planet. Like, just because someone doesn't feel super tied to like a specific religion, like we can't deny that as the human race, we aren't drawn into some like, spirituality of some kind, something for nothing. Right. Like every, literally every single early civilization on the planet, it had a higher belief system.

[Jerry]

Well, I saw something that was like. Some people call it manifestation, some people call it prayer, some people call it quantum physics. Some people call it like all of these things. And it's just an energy transference. And they're saying, but nobody is saying that it doesn't exist. No one's denying the existence of it. They just call it something different. And I think in this situation, the reason you're feeling this is me assuming making an ass out of you and me. I think the reason that you are so hesitant to share it is because you are still vulnerable about it. You are still in self doubt. And so you are afraid of rejection. And I would encourage you to not give a. Because.

[Christine]

Yeah.

[Emma]

Yeah.

[Jerry]

You do not have to share everything. As far as, like

[Rachel]

you and your

[Jerry]

partner don't have to do everything together.

[Rachel]

All right.

[Jerry]

As long as he's not being dismissive or disrespectful.

[Emma]

They don't even have to enjoy it. Like, they don't even have to enjoy it themselves as long as they respect that you enjoy it.

[Jerry]

Right.

[Rachel]

But saying that like, like I'm working on my spirituality, it feels something that's important to me right now is it should be enough. Like again, like, I think the 10, like our. The holistic view of self is like, you know, emotional, physical, spiritual. And I think there's another one. But like, spirituality is always in there.

[Christine]

Yeah.

[Rachel]

For most people to feel like healthy, happy in a full version of themselves. So if that manifests for her and like drawing cards and like. Yeah. Figuring it out, like, that's great and that's special. That makes you feel more connected to yourself and the world around you. Like, your partner should be supportive of that.

[Emma]

I would agree. And I would also add, like, I, I would also encourage you to not feel that you have to prove anything. Like, oh, no, the cards really do work. Or, you know, I feel like when I started this kind of spiritual journey, you know, and I was like, I wanted to prove, like, it's not crazy, like people tarot really work, you know, and it's like at a certain point I realized like, oh, it is not my place to convince anyone else that. And also it doesn't work. Like, nobody, like I said, blazing, freaking understand that something happened after you died till he like had one particular experience and went, got it. You know, some people just take to things differently. Yes. I don't feel like you have to prove anything to anyone, you know?

[Jerry]

Yeah, that was all. I think you don't need him to join you right in it.

[Rachel]

Yeah, you're not asking him to.

[Jerry]

You just need him not to yuck your yum.

[Rachel]

Right, Right.

[Jerry]

And you need to be able to do it freely without feeling embarrassed. Like, you have to hide it because it's not something, it's more of you. And I think that's the reason why it's scary is you talked a lot in the beginning about how deeply rooted it is in your family. It feels like a core part of you that you are exploring. And that's a really scary thing to want to share with someone totally and feel like they could dislike it. And so it's not that you need him to join you, it's that you feel that he needs, if he doesn't support it, that it's a form of rejection. And it's not those two things need to be separate. Like again, he just needs to be able to respect that you're doing it.

[Emma]

It's more important.

[Rachel]

You shouldn't be ashamed that you are

[Emma]

doing it just because you're integrating it, not him. Yeah.

[Rachel]

The only way to have a healthy relationship is to allow like growth and change within a relationship. It's the only way that marriages, long term relationships, partnerships last is because you allow yourself to grow and change. And I think it can feel daunting, you know, like if I picked up like roller derby and started getting really passionate about roller derby, my husband would be like, okay, that seems out of nowhere, seems a little weird. But you are pretty aggressive and athletic.

[Emma]

So I love you knowing this. Yeah. You know what? Good point, Rach. Because maybe the partner, maybe the husband will be like, oh, yeah, that. I totally see that.

[Rachel]

You know?

[Emma]

Who knows? Maybe you don't even know. Yeah. So who knows? Don't let your own, like, mind talk you out of things. Sometimes it likes to try to keep you.

[Rachel]

But the longer you don't say something, the more you feel like you're keeping something. That's when you.

[Emma]

And then it's gonna.

[Rachel]

Weird stuff will come up about it, like, I've been keeping this from you. And then it's like, why would you. You know, so don't keep it to yourself, too, for too long.

[Jerry]

I also would like to say before we go any further into giving advice, Rachel and I have no qualifications.

[Rachel]

Zero.

[Christine]

Sure.

[Jerry]

I have a bachelor's degree as well. Not in counseling.

[Emma]

Well, here you go.

[Rachel]

To be fair.

[Jerry]

Okay. That's good. In what, Jason?

[Rachel]

Conflict management.

[Emma]

I thought you said Catholic management.

[Jerry]

Yeah, she manages this Catholic. Every week.

[Emma]

I need help.

[Jerry]

My degree is as an intervention specialist. And so when people hear that.

[Rachel]

Qualified.

[Jerry]

Yeah, but it was special education.

[Christine]

Sure.

[Jerry]

It has nothing to do.

[Emma]

Far more qualified. I. I was gonna say we have master's degrees, but in television, like. Yeah, like, we like to write fictional. This is not. We're not the people who listen to our show.

[Rachel]

My dream growing up, I was gonna

[Christine]

say it's like, there have been a few times when people have asked me ghost hunting advice, but they're like, oh, I think I have, like, a demon in my house. What do I do? And I'm like, what do you do? Move. I don't know.

[Emma]

Why am I the qualified person, first of all?

[Christine]

Yeah, but I. I guess, like, I. I've accidentally made some people think that I'm an exorcist. So I. Oh, well.

[Jerry]

And that's the thing on the Internet that people can say whatever they want and can talk about their experiences. And, like, I know we talk a lot about our mental health disorders and whatever else. And, I mean, I've diagnosed myself with several things on Tick Tock, but. And that's why I think it's very important to say, like, please do not.

[Emma]

Yeah.

[Rachel]

Don't take this as comfortable.

[Emma]

You can listen to me.

[Rachel]

Very good track record. I have an impeccable track record.

[Jerry]

Oh, fantastic.

[Rachel]

Okay. Don't listen to my own. My advice most of the time, but when it comes to other people.

[Emma]

I was gonna say.

[Rachel]

I said to Jerry the other day, as I, like, psychoanalyzed one of my friends who is in a new relationship, and I was like, this is not good. This is Bad news, you know, gave her the shot.

[Emma]

It is sometimes a lot easier to figure it out.

[Rachel]

And I was like, am I psychic? And then they were like, it's probably just your like autism Packer pattern recognition.

[Jerry]

I said, tomato, tomato.

[Emma]

It's always the autism, never the psychic abilities. Yeah, could be both.

[Christine]

It could be both. You never know. And yeah, it is. It's always definitely one on.

[Jerry]

It's definitely obvious.

[Rachel]

At least.

[Emma]

At least. Got that.

[Rachel]

All right.

[Christine]

Today's episode is sponsored by the ASPCA Pet Health Insurance Program. As a frequent goer of the dog park, I have seen some scary things happen at the dog park. Luckily not to my dog. Although very recently we had our first scare. He ends up stepping on a bee and got stung. But I was absolutely panicked. As a first time dog parent who has absolutely infantilized my little puppy dog in a moment like that, you really are thankful that you have your pet insurance. The ASPCA Pet Health Insurance program offers customizable accident and illness plans that can fit your budget, your lifestyle, and even your pet's particular quirks. Like if he enjoys stepping on bees and horrifying their parents. Because let's be honest, that bills can add up fast. All we ever do at the dog park is talk about how expensive our dogs are. This will help you in the long run. ASPCA pet health insurance has been around for almost 30 years and has covered over a million pet pets. And when it's time to submit a claim, it's easy. Just use their app and receive reimbursement for eligible vet bills directly into your bank account so you can get back to focusing on what really matters. Your pet, my little hankies. And to Explore coverage, visit aspcapetinsurance.com Drink that's aspcapetinsurance.Com Drink one more time. Again, that's aspcapetinsura.com Drink. This is a paid advertisement. Insurance is underwritten by either Independence American Insurance Company or United States Fire Insurance Company and produced by PTZ Insurance Agency Ltd. Admitted the ASPCA is not insurer and is not engaged in the business of insurance. Who would like to read the second story? Is that. Should we.

[Jerry]

Yeah.

[Emma]

Are you all reading any or are you just. Oh, yeah. Okay. So Jerry, I got it pulled up.

[Jerry]

I have a whole laptop because I still have not been to the eye doctor.

[Emma]

So I can brag.

[Jerry]

See?

[Emma]

Not to brag.

[Christine]

It looks like we have pictures for the second story, so at some point we'll all have to. Okay, you know, take a look at the bottom.

[Jerry]

This is juicy. Okay. Hopefully these images.

[Emma]

Oh, Eva sent the pictures in a group chat for after.

[Christine]

Okay, perfect.

[Rachel]

Thank you.

[Jerry]

Okay. Okay, Good, good, good, good. Okay. All right. So this is. Am I allowed to say their name? Yep. Okay. This is called I will never tell my skeptic husband this story. Odd.

[Christine]

That'd be so awkward if he. He's like. So I checked in, and that's why I drank this week.

[Emma]

And.

[Christine]

What's going on?

[Emma]

I heard hello.

[Jerry]

And that's why we drink. Team lovers of the weird, thirsty little rats. Fur babies and Sorry. M. Beloved Lemon.

[Emma]

Yes.

[Rachel]

Okay.

[Christine]

As long as you're not. I'm fine.

[Jerry]

I'm tagging myself as thirsty little rat, so.

[Emma]

Great.

[Christine]

That's excellent.

[Emma]

I'm just. You can be the lady.

[Rachel]

Finish my drink. So I might be the thirsty little rat.

[Jerry]

Okay, perfect. My name name is Mac. She her. And I am a longtime listener. First time writer. I saw your request for stories about skeptic partners and being a weirdo who is newly wed to a skeptic. I figured this would be a great time to share. To preface, I've always had, as my family calls it, the touch. Can you. The work touch.

[Christine]

Excellent callback. Excellent.

[Rachel]

She's a professional.

[Jerry]

I would hear and see things that no one else could. I would have premonitions of the future and be able to just know when something was going to happen. This impacted me so much as a child that I even pulled my mother to the side once to speak in private about a visitor I had.

[Emma]

I regularly. Papa.

[Jerry]

Papa, Papa's here. I would regularly get visits from my grandmother who passed when I was a toddler. Never menacing. She was just always there. Sometimes she would help me navigate hard things. Sometimes she would come with warning. One day, she warned me of a car crash. I saw her in my room. I could smell her brand of cigarette. Classic.

[Emma]

Classic.

[Jerry]

And I got these horrible flashes of a red car wrecked in the woods. As a teenager, maybe 11 at the time. That didn't make sense. Tweenager. Oh, my God. I was like, teenager at 11.

[Emma]

What's happening?

[Jerry]

I don't think I understand what a teenager is. Okay. Tweenager. Maybe 11 at the time.

[Rachel]

Time.

[Jerry]

That didn't make sense. No one I knew had a red car, and I couldn't drive yet. About a week later, around Halloween, my friends and I were getting ready to go to a haunted hayride. Right as we were getting ready to go, my friend's mom got a call. The hayride was canceled by the woman who ran it. She had just found out that her son had passed in a bad car accident.

[Christine]

Oh my God.

[Jerry]

Grandma came to say, you're not going to be able to go to the hay ride. I know.

[Emma]

I was like, what is the point? What is the message?

[Christine]

You know, we were.

[Jerry]

We were bummed. We were bummed.

[Christine]

I sure bet. Oh my God.

[Jerry]

That our fun Halloween night was ruined.

[Emma]

Complained.

[Christine]

It's one of those stories that at 11, it's. It means one thing, but then as you get older, it slowly morphs into

[Emma]

like, it's not really funny anymore. When you get to a certain age and you're like, I think this is

[Jerry]

a very vulnerable thing to do to admit that this is how you felt that somebody.

[Christine]

And we all would have been the Same way at 11. We would have all been like 100%

[Jerry]

damage, as any tweens do. So my friend's mother showed us a photo of the car that was in the crash too. I don't know. Force us to empathize. So they show the car to be like, oh, this? Would you rather do that?

[Emma]

My dad used to do that. He'd be like, oh yeah, you feel sad. Look at these starving people. And I'm like, why? Yeah, why?

[Rachel]

Yeah, why was there are people starving in China? Always. The reason to get.

[Emma]

Always. And then when the Internet came around, my dad's like, I can even show you pictures of it. And I'm like, what? Okay. Anyway. Talking weird.

[Jerry]

Okay. It was the red car my grandmother had warned me about. I told my mom all of this and she very nonchalantly looked at me in my distraught tween age eyes and said, everyone in the family has that. We didn't speak about it again. And I continued to navigate this weird ability on my own. Maybe I'll share more of my stories in the future, but let me get on with this story.

[Rachel]

Story.

[Jerry]

Flash forward to adulthood. I meet my amazing husband and I am very clear about how I see ghosts and about my ability to just know things. When we first meet. I love the upfrontness him being not a complete skeptic as he believes in ghosts and did not question my ghost stories. But also not a full believer. He thinks psychics are bs. He's always shrugged my visions off. Off. Or reassured me when I have a bad or weird feeling that I'm just anxious and then gets upset that I. I'm always right when the exact thing I said would happen. Wow.

[Emma]

Wow.

[Jerry]

They say men.

[Christine]

I mean, it's. We're all thinking it. Yeah.

[Jerry]

Oh, yeah. Even though he's Skeptical. He has always been a part of all of this. For example, when he and I met, my grandmother came to me the night of what should have been our first date. I had to postpone due to some life things, and I was worried wouldn't hear from him again. I was really contemplating just cutting my losses before he even got the chance to ghost me. But the familiar smell of her cigarette smoke filling the room and the happy little visions of he and I together confirmed that I had found the one and that he would stick around. And three years later, we are now married. Grandma was like, let me tell you.

[Rachel]

Yeah.

[Emma]

About a long drive.

[Christine]

He's not gonna be perfect, but he'll be good enough. Yeah.

[Emma]

I love that. She's like, here's a car crash. Also, here's your beautiful marriage. You never know what I'll show.

[Christine]

She runs the gamut. She's like, it could be something that will affect you minimally or just so significantly.

[Emma]

Yeah, yeah.

[Jerry]

Well, significantly as a tween that probably was big.

[Christine]

Sure. You know what? It's significant to all. Yeah, yeah.

[Jerry]

To me, it's relative.

[Rachel]

I mean, it was canceled for everyone. That's true. Not just them.

[Emma]

That's true.

[Rachel]

True.

[Emma]

It was a ripple.

[Christine]

A lot of other people were bummed that day, I bet.

[Emma]

Yeah.

[Jerry]

Big bummer of a day. Now for such a part, I refuse to tell my husband. Husband. We eloped Halloween 2025, in a cemetery close to my first big girl apartment, where we went often while dating.

[Emma]

My grandma showed up with her cigarette.

[Jerry]

I love this. Like, my husband's a skeptic. We did get married on Halloween in the graveyard.

[Emma]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. But I'll never tell him my secret.

[Rachel]

I'm not buying that he's a skeptic.

[Emma]

That's.

[Christine]

Yeah, right.

[Jerry]

We were going to wait a while, but I just had this feeling, this push that it needed to happen that day. So we did the thing, and it was beautiful, just the two of us. We didn't tell anyone we were elop hoping. We invited all of our friends over to our house for a Halloween party that night and surprised them with the news when they arrived. It was a great night. And once the sun went down, we went out to the fire pit and decided to make a fire and roast the marshmallows. My friends and I were chatting as my husband walked around the border of our yard collecting firewood and sticks with a flashlight in hand. Then it was like something told me to watch him, told me to check on him in the yard. I Looked up from the fire and saw him at the far edge of the yard and yard. He was bending down to pick up a stick. And as he stood up, the flashlight came up with him. And what came into my view made my blood go cold.

[Rachel]

Ah.

[Jerry]

There was a woman standing right in front of him, inches from his face.

[Rachel]

What did he see? This woman?

[Jerry]

They were nose to nose and he is over 6 foot tall. It felt like they stood there like that for ages. Even though it was probably like 10 seconds. Seconds. She was terrifying. I had never seen her before. She was not my grandmother. She was pure white, in a white tattered nightgown with white and gray hair covering her face. I couldn't see her feet or her hands. And her face was featureless.

[Christine]

I'm gonna throw up. What is happening?

[Jerry]

I know there's like three more paragraphs. It's gonna be okay. It's gonna be any better. And then as my husband put the flashlight down to get another stick, she was gone. I sat frozen in my seat as my friends chatted to me. When I finally unfroze, I excused myself to go inside. I salted and cleansed every door and window in my small house. I told no one what was going on. I lit an incense, said a little prayer, and marched my terrified ass back out to the fire pit to check on my husband, who was totally fine and enjoying his fire building. Adventure.

[Rachel]

Adventure.

[Jerry]

Just a clueless man. Yeah, thank goodness.

[Christine]

Honestly, for once, finally, you know, just

[Emma]

humming, humming along for once. It's. It's beneficial to all of us.

[Jerry]

Thank you. We installed a camera on that side of the house, and I'm sorry to report that we have never caught anything on it. Don't be sorry. That's great.

[Emma]

Don't be sorry. All right.

[Rachel]

It's okay.

[Christine]

I apologize.

[Jerry]

I still have no idea who she was or what she wanted, but thinking about it chills me to my bones. I will never tell my husband what I saw. This is the first time I've really even talked about it. I don't know. I don't know what kind of beyond the veil wedding present the universe was trying to give me, but I really could have gone without that. Thank you all for making me laugh and supporting the weird kids out there. Also, my sister would kill me if I didn't give her a shout out, so. Taylor, I know you're listening.

[Emma]

Love you, Taylor.

[Jerry]

Please see the attached photos of my goofy animals, Shadow the dog and Lilith the cat to brighten your day. And a bonus photo of our wedding day. So you can see how great it was pre freaky, freaky ass ghost visit.

[Emma]

I'm gonna look.

[Christine]

Oh, very cute.

[Emma]

I'm trying to picture this man with a. With a witchy, creepy.

[Christine]

Yeah.

[Jerry]

Featureless nose.

[Rachel]

I think Amy knows for the best. I don't. I wouldn't say. You know, I wouldn't say either. I wouldn't.

[Emma]

You know. Remember when we said, oh, imagine he listened to this podcast. Now he's gonna be crying if he listens this podcast. That's so scary.

[Jerry]

Do you think something followed him home from the cemetery?

[Emma]

That's what exactly my thought, Jerry.

[Rachel]

That's the risk of getting married in the cemetery.

[Emma]

Followed from the cemetery. I totally agree.

[Christine]

Interesting.

[Jerry]

She was like, I heard you wanted a bride.

[Emma]

Exactly. She probably stepped between you.

[Christine]

Wedding kiss.

[Rachel]

No, no, no.

[Jerry]

I do.

[Christine]

Oh, man. I just hate that.

[Emma]

Yuck.

[Christine]

I wonder what the. I'm. I'm. Although it was. I can't imagine it. It would had to be horrifying to actually see, but I feel like I'm just left with more confusion because I'm like, why is that something that the. The spirits felt that you needed to see? Well, not give you any more context.

[Jerry]

Like, part of me feels like it had nothing to do with something for her part. Feels like it's just something that she witnessed.

[Emma]

She just had a feeling. She said something, told me to ch my husband. And she looks up and is like, whoa. Something's like something.

[Christine]

But I would spiral, and then I would go, were they telling me about that? Like, how come I haven't seen any other experiences he's had with spirits that he was unaware of? Is this the only one or was compared to the rest

[Jerry]

were in the future.

[Christine]

And she grew taller and she exploding.

[Jerry]

She didn't have feet.

[Rachel]

Oh. Oh.

[Jerry]

She didn't have hands or feet.

[Emma]

Yeah, but she had terrible energy. But she had terrible energy, though. Why did she have terrible energy, though?

[Rachel]

I hope no accident.

[Jerry]

So I used to see a woman in white in my mom's bedroom.

[Rachel]

Oh, Lord.

[Jerry]

And she. I mean, she didn't really have a face, but she also was floating. She didn't have feet. She was standing my mom's mirror.

[Christine]

So she's looking at her. Her face that has.

[Jerry]

No, she was looking at herself.

[Emma]

Yeah, I'm looking at this wedding photo.

[Christine]

She was going, where's my face?

[Emma]

That's wedding photo. And like, this person.

[Christine]

Person.

[Emma]

She's like, significantly shorter. I don't know. I don't know if that's. I feel like if the vibe is bad. I don't Want to say that.

[Jerry]

Yeah, she did. She did feel some. Sometimes I wonder, like, is the vibe bad or are you spooked? Yeah, I think it's spooked because the vibe's bad. Do you know what I mean?

[Emma]

Like, also, like, if you're. But if you're getting. If you're seeing your grandma and you're seeing car crashes and you're getting married in a graveyard, I feel like at that point you kind of have, Have a. Like, like, if you saw a ghost, you wouldn't immediately be, like, terrible bad, right? Like, I feel like, yeah, I mean,

[Rachel]

yeah, it's like, ominous, except good tidings. Yeah.

[Christine]

I would think I would look at my track record and be like, if most of the time what I'm seeing is something like that, say, quote, bummer. I would. Yeah, I, I would put this in the bummer category until proven otherwise.

[Jerry]

I'll also say she said, said that they were face to face for what felt like 10 seconds. That's a long time.

[Emma]

No, she said it felt forever, but it was probably like 10 seconds. I'm like, 10 seconds is, like you

[Jerry]

said, a really long time. This is a very long time to be standing like this with a nothing. You know what I mean?

[Emma]

She was terrifying. I'd never seen her before. She was not my grandmother. She was pure white, in a white tattered nightgown with white and gray hair covering her face. I couldn't see her feet or her hands, and her face was featureless. And then as my husband put the flashlight down, she was just gone.

[Christine]

I do, I do wonder. I, I, I wish that she, in the moment, had asked him, like, hey, did you feel anything weird thinking of anything, like, because for all you know, that was the only time in his life that he has also felt something odd.

[Rachel]

Very cold.

[Christine]

Yeah.

[Rachel]

Did you get a chill in your bones?

[Jerry]

Happy to be married to me?

[Rachel]

Yeah.

[Emma]

Oh, God.

[Jerry]

Snake was going to come up. When she was like, I look up and he's in the grass with a flashlight.

[Christine]

I was like, oh, he's going to

[Jerry]

get bit by a snake.

[Rachel]

I don't think that's.

[Christine]

That there was going to be a. I thought there was going to be a yard accident for sure. Like, she was.

[Emma]

I totally. Oh, my God. I was like, I thought grandma was going to come back. But no. Creepy faceless lady.

[Christine]

This episode is brought to you by Angry Orchard Hard Cider. Every day, there are little things in life that feel way bigger than they need to. I regularly say I cannot stand being inconvenienced. I know everybody feels that way, but for some reason, I feel like mine's dialed to 11. I just hate being inconvenienced. I hate it from. From like, my wi fi regularly cutting out when we're trying to record all the way down to like, Hank threw up in his bed this morning right after I cleaned it for like the third time this week. This stupid haircut that is way too short. Please don't even talk about it. There's just. There's so many little things that I could. I could find time to complain. I mean, we have a show called. And that's why we drink, because we just always find reasons to complain. We luckily have partnered with Angry Orchard, and they are here to tell you that you don't have to get angry. Get Orchard. Angry Orchard hard cider is made with two real apples in every cider, which is why it has that real fresh apple flavor instead of being overly sugary. And Angry Orchard is the number one hard cider in the country, so they clearly know what they're doing when it comes to crafting cider. It's crisp, refreshing, approachable, whether you're new to cider or already a fan. And it's gluten free, so you can partake as well. Angry Orchard is available at bars, restaurants, retailers nationwide. In my fridge. It has been gifted to many people at the dog park in the past and they have always thought, ugh, thank you. Not thought. They've said it to me. Thank you so much. I had a bad day. This is really good to help. So if you're having a rough day or if you're not, don't get Angry Good Orchard near you. Visit angry orchard.com and use the cider locator to find Angry Orchard near you. Angry Orchard Cider Company, llc. Angry Orchard is a hard cider with other natural flavors. Please drink responsibly.

[Emma]

Okay, so this is called O. Quit it Susie. I don't like that out by is the name.

[Christine]

You guys handle this one?

[Emma]

Yeah, it's already bad. Okay, so. Hi, Christine. M for babies. Amazing team at etwd. Jerry and Rachel. Also my name is Katie. She her Libra. First off, I wanted to start this by saying how much I love your podcast. Let's crack into it. My ex wife lost her. Oh, okay. Of course, now Susie is just okay. Oh, we like Susie now. I'm in. Okay.

[Christine]

Got it. Yeah. I thought we.

[Rachel]

Didn't you take it back?

[Emma]

My ex wife lost her aunt Susie quite suddenly. She had cancer and hid it from the family until near the end of her life. It was devastating, especially for my ex, ex wife. A few months after her passing, a lot of paranormal activity started happening at our home. Our touch light would turn off and on. Our EMF reader would our light and our EMF reader. That's also next to the light table. That's our bedside emf, our family emf.

[Christine]

This is the portable emf on all

[Emma]

night, our travel emf. Okay, so let's see. Our touch light would turn on, our EMF reader would constantly be going off, and our gas fireplace would switch on and off. It seriously freaked me out. But my ex wife would always say, that's just Susie. The only thing that convinced me this was not a demon was that my dog would always act the same way. His tail would start wagging. He would go into the spare bedroom and stand on his back paws as if he wanted someone to pick him up. And she's like, I can't.

[Christine]

Showing his tummy.

[Emma]

Oh baby. She's like, I don't have hands or feet. I can't pick you up.

[Christine]

That's the worst part about being a ghost is you can't pick up any puppies.

[Emma]

Puppies can't even.

[Christine]

Uppies.

[Jerry]

Uppies.

[Emma]

Uppies. Okay.

[Rachel]

Oh, your dog is a baby.

[Emma]

So oh my God. If he wanted, he wanted someone to pick him up. After seeing this a few times, I started to relax a bit. However, it was getting very annoying. So we then removed the touch lamp EMF reader and blew the pilot light out in the guest room. Side please. During this time, we told my ex mother in law, Susie's sister, what was going on. This woman was convinced we were lying and would always roll her eyes whenever we told people. She would always make the same comment. If it's true, how come I've never seen anything? My ex mother in law would be at our house from time to time helping with the kids and nothing would ever happen. Until one day, my ex mother in law was in the doorway of my daughter's room. In the back of this room, there was an old lamp that had a switch on the cord to turn it on and off. It would always make a loud clicking noise when you did this. We were talking to my mother in law about more odd things that were happening and she made another comment about how we were making it all up when we heard a loud click and the side lamp turned on. We all looked at the light for a long time. No one talked until I heard my ex mother in law say, okay, quit it, Susie.

[Jerry]

Susie's in the corner Middle fingers up.

[Christine]

Middle finger.

[Emma]

She's like your sister. Whimsical. Yeah. What the cat?

[Jerry]

Live a little. Yeah.

[Emma]

Okay. Quit it, Susie. Then another loud click and the light turned off. That was the day she finally believed us. Odd things would still happen from time to time. But my mother in law never doubted us again. Sorry. This toast. Oh, you know what? And I have advice for the first person too. Sometimes you just need. Who wanted to know how to tell her husband. Sometimes you just need to like ask your. Your team. Be like, can you just help me orchestrate something that like will work? I feel like in this situation, it's like the mother in law's like, why don't I ever see anything? Like she's bound to see something. Susie's like, I'll show you something. You know.

[Christine]

Yeah, I'm pretty sure your family.

[Jerry]

Get them, Susie.

[Emma]

Yeah, quit it, Susie.

[Jerry]

Whoever your Susie is. Just a quick. Get him.

[Rachel]

Yeah.

[Emma]

Uppies. Uppies. It's my favorite.

[Rachel]

All right, Rachel.

[Christine]

Well, wonderful. All right, Rachel, would you like to do the number four?

[Rachel]

Yes.

[Emma]

The honors.

[Jerry]

And for you.

[Rachel]

Okay. Scoochy, scoochy, scooch. Okay. Okay. This is from Christina. She her.

[Emma]

Hello.

[Rachel]

And that's why we drink family. My husband Z and I are high school sweethearts. I am the spooky spiritual one and he's the. There's an explanation for everything. 1. Over the course of our relationship, several paranormal things have occurred in his presence. Let me share some of the stories I have so we can roll our eyes together at this lovely clueless man.

[Christine]

Love it.

[Rachel]

Number one, my favorite, outright denial. I grew up in a haunted house. I experienced disembodied voices speaking in my ear and watched semi transparent figures disappear around corners.

[Jerry]

I had told them face, would you.

[Emma]

You literally shifted like your. You left your. Your soul like was like, I'm going to hang out.

[Jerry]

Body took a screenshot.

[Rachel]

SSRIs are not enough for these people. Like if you're see.

[Jerry]

Speaking of SSRIs, I'm so sorry. I'm derailing this.

[Rachel]

Did you forget?

[Jerry]

Well, yes, but. So for the wedding, we are doing like specialty cocktails for Brady and I. Like his and hers. And he's doing a Jack and coke. I am doing a paloma. But if you know anything about a paloma, they have grapefruit in them. And grapefruit don't mix. So we are doing a pineapple paloma.

[Emma]

It also with birth control. Want that on a wedding night?

[Jerry]

Exactly. I'm thinking of it.

[Christine]

Big brain. Brain, you're on some other Level.

[Emma]

Absolutely.

[Rachel]

Okay, so, you know, disembodied voices, figures disappearing.

[Jerry]

We're back. Okay.

[Rachel]

I told him of these instances and more, and his response would always be, I believe you've experienced something strange. Y. Oh, boo. One day we were hanging out in my bedroom, talking about a recent experience I had. I had. And he outright said, I just don't think ghosts exist. He got up to go to the bathroom, and my door forcefully swung open. As he reached for the doorknob, he briefly paused, turned to look at me, and said, well, that was weird. He spent the rest of the night adding pressure to the floorboards on either side of the door in an attempt to recreate it.

[Emma]

Oh, stop wasting.

[Rachel]

Open windows in the room and on the bottom floor to create a draft. It did not budge. To this day, he still thinks it was all a coincidence or he loves scientific method.

[Christine]

It is absolutely, as stated, outright denial.

[Emma]

This is like, you have to be denial.

[Rachel]

But I can agree with the outright denial because. And just kind of like, I don't see it. Like, our Tony box will turn on at random times. And I'm just like, what is going on with the Tony box?

[Emma]

I mean, I'm the same way, but

[Rachel]

I feel like if you.

[Emma]

Somebody said to me, oh, I. This thing happens. And I. I feel like his answer smacks of, like, I think youth. I believe you believe what happened, you know, and it's like, you know, at a certain point, like, I agree with you, though I am with you, where I'm like, oh, it must be a glitch. Must be a lighting electrical issue. Until it's like, really? But. But the fact that he spent an all night trying to prove it. It's like he knows something.

[Jerry]

You know what that. What he did reminds me me of. It reminds me of when you accidentally, like, move your chair and it sounds like a fart, and then you try and get it to do it again, and it won't do it again.

[Emma]

Like, I swear it wasn't me.

[Rachel]

Except Jerry.

[Christine]

Except Jerry this time, like, begging for people to be on his side about it.

[Emma]

Yeah, but this time you did. He did fart. He just won't admit it. Like, he. Not really, but, like, he did have the experience. And he's like, no, approve it. And so he's trying extra hard to compensate, you know, like, he clearly knows something's up. He did fart this time. I know. Fart.

[Christine]

Sure.

[Jerry]

That's funny.

[Rachel]

Okay, number two. This one is legitimately scary. Great. Love it. One weekend in 2022, we spent the weekend at an Airbnb in Warwick, New New York, to visit some wineries there. That first night, I could not shake the feeling of being watched. We went to sleep and I unfortunately experienced sleep paralysis. I was very aware that something was in the room with us, but could not move my limbs to war. And Z, he sleeps like a Victorian child, so if anyone would break in, he'd drool through it.

[Jerry]

As a historically good sleepers, I don't know, but I love sick.

[Christine]

Yeah, historically kind of almost already dead sickly.

[Jerry]

Yeah.

[Emma]

Yeah.

[Rachel]

As I'm fighting with my mind to awaken my limbs, my eyes are tracking movement I cannot see but feel. I'm concentrating so hard, I start to see the shape of a young, young woman. I have the immediate thought that she died here, that her body is nearby and we should be wary of our host. All at once, my feeling comes back and I shoot up in bed. Movement seemed to startle her, and she shot across the room, climbed atop the dresser and into the closed vent I did not notice was on my side of the room.

[Christine]

I was wondering why you paused and I was like, what's too.

[Emma]

I thought there was a lag, but. Oh, my God.

[Jerry]

Hey, I'd like to not read any more.

[Rachel]

The rental to the main house where our host was currently staying.

[Emma]

Shut the up.

[Jerry]

I sobbed all out of my skin right now. Like, I don't feel. I don't want to be here. This is a mo.

[Emma]

This is a movie script. This is heinous.

[Rachel]

I sobbed in fear and turned on all the lights, roughly shaking Z awake. He tried to comfort me, saying it was just a nightmare, but she knocked off my bracelets and engagement ring I left on the table. Trinket tray in the center of the dresser, and they were lying on the floor. I could not sleep for the rest of the night because every time I would get comfortable, I would stare at the vent. And it felt like she was just outside my view, watching me back. I don't even like writing this. I could dip it together with that.

[Christine]

Yeah, agreed.

[Emma]

Is that what it says? That's. I mean, wow.

[Rachel]

So that's the worst. Certainly that I just had a nightmare and that my jewelry must have slid off themselves. Themselves.

[Jerry]

Z, I've. Honestly, I've had enough in that moment.

[Christine]

Divorce. I would be like, you have to be. I'm worried.

[Jerry]

I can't.

[Christine]

I need you to be on my.

[Jerry]

I'll send you my lawyer's information.

[Christine]

Yeah.

[Jerry]

That's my advice.

[Rachel]

I didn't even hear that racket was beyond me, but men I guess

[Emma]

number three.

[Rachel]

This is the last third. There's a third.

[Emma]

There's another one.

[Christine]

I really. I'm. I don't want to do it anymore.

[Rachel]

Titled. We still have beef about this.

[Jerry]

What's up? The reason I don't want you to keep going is because I feel like I. If I'm writing this, I would have saved the worst for last.

[Emma]

And that I agree, was that it can't get. I can't go on.

[Rachel]

I think she's going in order of events.

[Jerry]

Okay. Chronological.

[Christine]

Okay.

[Rachel]

The last experience was maybe a year or two ago. Our apartment is directly in between two cemeteries. And one night, I saw the shape of a man standing at the foot of our bed. Z is already asleep, and I was just settling in for. For the night. I saw the shape. Oh, I screamed. I'm shaking Z. And screaming. Not once breaking my gaze from what I assumed at the time was just a random man in our room, Z was stirring. There's a man where. While he's slowly putting on his glasses, mind you, by the time he's up, the shadow man disappears, and I smack Z with my pillow. If there had been a person there, you would have. We would have been goners. Luckily, it was just a ghost. But it pissed me off so much that it just stood there watching, watching us. Stayed as Z was waking up and then peaced out before he could actually get his eyes on it. I yell at him about this frequently. Lol. Thank you so much.

[Jerry]

Thank you.

[Rachel]

Thank you so much for taking the time to read the frustrating accounts of my husband's disbelief. I'll be sure to update y' all if that ever changes. Thanks for laughing scares. Much love.

[Emma]

You're better.

[Christine]

I don't know who I'm more mad at, the husband or the ghost because it's like both of them are working together to make sure

[Emma]

gaslight you.

[Rachel]

You. They're gaslighting you. They're like gaslighting Christina.

[Jerry]

That email felt like a sandwich. It felt like the bad was right in the middle. Yeah, it was bookended by something I could tolerate.

[Rachel]

A young woman screwing up your walls into a vent that would scurrying the scurrying enough.

[Emma]

And climbing onto the dresser like a little spider person. Like, I don't think so. And the fact that, like, oh, maybe it was a nightmare. I do want to believe my skeptic husband. Oh, why is my engagement ring on the floor with my jewelry? I mean,

[Jerry]

explain that.

[Christine]

Yeah, yeah, we all wrestle.

[Rachel]

Explain that.

[Jerry]

The reason. Okay, so that was horrifying. I Experienced a sleep paralysis situation where I, my son was in the other room. My husband at the time had left to go to work. And I heard what I thought was him coming back in, like he had forgotten something. And so I heard his keys. And then I open my eyes, eyes. And I see a woman in my doorway. And it was an old woman.

[Emma]

My God.

[Jerry]

So. Which is what I was picturing whenever you were reading this. And she looked at me, just turned her head and walked out. Now I have the baby monitor on my bedside table. I see her walk in on the baby monitor to my son's room.

[Christine]

I, you are lying.

[Jerry]

I am like, crying because I want to. But she was very, very, like, I could hear my son crying and I wanted to get up desperately and I couldn't. And, but in that situation, she was at least trying to, like, tend to my kid. She wasn't scurrying up my dresser into a vent.

[Emma]

Oh, my God.

[Christine]

I, I, this is why I know I can't. I'm sorry. I'm watching two lizards. It's mating season. Then they're on my wall. It's crazy.

[Emma]

Oh, wow. That's pornographic.

[Jerry]

These stories get me all hot and bothered.

[Christine]

I am, I feel like in that moment, there's a reason why I'm not meant to be a parent. Because if I saw a, a woman approaching my, my kids crib. And in my mind, I'm sorry, I'm thinking of the scurrying woman, I'd be like, I don't, I can't get in there. I wouldn't, I wouldn't. Yeah, you're on your own. Learn to fight. I don't know what, I wouldn't know what to do.

[Jerry]

It would throw them into a pool. And you hope that they flip over.

[Christine]

Sometimes it's for the greater good.

[Emma]

Like that I was gonna say too. I'm sorry. I'm still stuck on. I mean, aren't we all? This woman scurrying. Okay. And also, I want to add to like, the fact that the vent connects to the main house is so distressing to me. It's like, yeah. Something in my mind, my, it's like something was coming to watch you, like in your guest in this situation.

[Rachel]

As someone who knows virtually nothing about the paranormal, are we assuming this wasn't a ghost? It was some sort of, of like, I don't know.

[Emma]

I'm assuming it wasn't a ghost.

[Rachel]

You know what I mean?

[Emma]

I'm assuming it was like some sort of like, entity, like negative entity.

[Christine]

I don't know, also, I mean, I. It would cross my mind for a moment, like, was this, like, the people in the main house that were like, yes. Like. Like, true crime up here? Like, they're frogging or living in the ceiling or something?

[Jerry]

What was that one movie where the.

[Christine]

The Watcher house.

[Jerry]

Oh, the grandparents were not really the grandparents, and they were, like, under the house and they were, like, climbing the oven to clean it or.

[Emma]

Yes, that's what it reminded me of. I don't know what that is. I'm with Rachel on this. I don't even know what Rachel thinks,

[Christine]

but I know what you're talking about.

[Rachel]

I think I've seen clips of this where they, like, get on FaceTime with their mom and. Yes, that's not your grandparents.

[Emma]

Yes. Bye.

[Rachel]

And I've always wondered.

[Emma]

Everybody stop.

[Rachel]

Who dropped them off? You know, who dropped them off there?

[Emma]

I'm gonna hang up on all of you in five seconds.

[Christine]

It was a bad movie, but I. I mean, I would have at least, certainly, because Christine and I are always talking about, like, which is when you hear a sound in the middle of the night, like, do you hope it's a ghost? Or do you hope someone's breaking in?

[Emma]

Yeah.

[Christine]

And I. If I woke up and saw someone near my jewelry while I'm sleeping in a guest house, I. I would think someone broke in, is trying to rob me, and then all of a sudden, they scurry into the wall, and I'd be like, what the was that?

[Rachel]

I'm sorry. I'm picking up. I'm picking up and moving.

[Jerry]

Yeah.

[Emma]

No, when.

[Rachel]

When things got bad with other Elsie, I. We had only been in the house for, like, four months, and I was like, we have to move.

[Jerry]

Yeah.

[Emma]

I mean, how.

[Christine]

How could y'. All. Yeah, totally.

[Emma]

And thank. Instead of, like, living there. I don't know. Wow.

[Christine]

Yeah.

[Emma]

But I will say I never thought about this way, but I think Blaze also sleeps like a Victorian child, if that's what we're going with, because I do sometimes hear, like, the other day, there was a crash in. What was the other day? It was a few weeks ago. There was a crash in. On the third floor of my house. And I assumed, like, the cat had broken a glass. Like, I heard glass shattering, and, like, you don't want to hear glass shattering in the middle of the night. And I literally turn to my husband, who is, like, a martial arts person and, like, trains every day, has a baseball bat in the bed. I'm like, wake up. And he's like, no, I'm Tired. And I'm like, there something. Some glass chatter. And he said, oh, that's too bad. And I'm like, will you get the activate?

[Jerry]

That sounds like a later me problem

[Christine]

activates and like, where's your sleeper agent button? It's time to kick. Yeah.

[Emma]

And then I try. I said, I'll. I'll do the big. I'll do the big. The big show. The big finale. I said, I think someone's in the house. And he goes, I'm sure. He's like, oh, what? I don't think so. And I'm like, okay. So nothing. Apparently.

[Rachel]

I am hearing it.

[Christine]

I feel like the first thing commission if you're gonna be a martial arts person. I feel like the first thing you. The first step is wake up. But I feel like they teach you. Well, I don't. I don't know for sure, but I imagine they teach you, like, how to remain calm and such situations. And he's like, too calm. I'm like, it's time to begin what you've been training for, by the way,

[Emma]

as Em and I always discuss. Like, you just said it was a ghost, because the glass panel of my vanity up here just, like, flung itself off and shattered everywhere. It's also a mirror, which felt like bad luck, but, yeah, it was weird. And the fact that Blaze didn't wake up, I almost was like, oh, now the ghosts know he's not gonna get up anytime soon.

[Jerry]

Yeah, it's like all that training is

[Rachel]

for not totally Josh. Once he's asleep, once he's act. He's dead.

[Emma]

Useless.

[Rachel]

He's gone. They're gone. Where are terrible. He's a horrible husband, terrible father.

[Emma]

Victorian. Victorian child near the death.

[Christine]

Allison and I, I. We regularly say that I look more like the boy, but I act like the girl. And she looks like the girl, but acts like the boy. And she really also sleeps like a Victorian child. And like, I know if someone broke in with a. With an ax, stabbed me a million times where I had time to scream for an hour, and we live in a shoe box, she would just sleep the whole way through.

[Emma]

She would roll over and go, are you okay? And then, like, roll back over, like, that's how Blaze is too.

[Christine]

Yeah.

[Rachel]

She's in deep sleep. Kiss for.

[Christine]

But it's just one of those things where I'm like, ugh, you are the man, aren't you?

[Emma]

Such a. Such a guy. And then I'm sure it was just a nightmare, you know, like, oh, God.

[Jerry]

Well, you know, who needs to train? Blaze is Liam, Leona. Apparently, she's sleeping with her eyes open. She could take a couple lessons.

[Emma]

I'm gonna get her a baseball bat to put by her bed.

[Jerry]

That's. Who needs them.

[Emma]

Yeah, yeah. The one with the eyes wide open all night long. Okay. Wow. That was a doozy. Is it. Is it my. Are there more? Is it my turn?

[Christine]

There's two more. Yeah.

[Emma]

I feel like I've left the planet again. Sorry.

[Christine]

Now that we're all settled into our house, there have just been a few last minute things that I've really needed. We've been together, me and Allison, for nine years, and we're still eating off of the plates that we got at Goodwill when we got our first place together, and we were like, it's time for a facelift for the insides of our kitchen cabinets. And we ended up going on Wayfair. We found the perfect place. Bowls, all that, a full set. Instead of it just being kind of like just a pile of random plates that we've gotten there. It's no longer an assortment of things, but just a fine, pristine, perfect little set of plates. It's in bowls. It's very beautiful. We got all of this from Wayfair. It. You can find so many things on there. Couches and beds and, like, all the, like, wall decor. There's so much you can get over at Wayfair. They have it all. And on top of that, you can shop with Wayfair Verified, which is their team of product specialists. They vet everything by by hand, using a 10 point instead of inspection. They test things like quality of materials, functionality and features, and even how long it takes to build. But guess what? Even better than that, they will come to my house and they will build it for me. So no assembly required on my half. If there's anything you need in your home, just go check Wayfair. They've got fire pits. They've got, I mean, everything you can imagine. If you're ready to upgrade your home for way less, head to Wayfair.com right now to shop all things home and get your space ready for less. That's W A Y F A I r dot com.

[Emma]

Wayfair Every style, every home.

[Christine]

This one. This one is from Kate, who uses she. Her pronouns. Thank you for normalizing pronouns. And the subject line is hey. The woman in the laundry room wasn't my mom. And now my dad has some new beliefs.

[Emma]

Oh, hello, everyone. Thanks so much to Eva. That should. That should be how every email starts. Thank you, but thanks to Eva for making today possible. For making every day possible course. Thanks so much to Eva for reading my story. I appreciate all the hard work you do. Also, if Christine and Emma reading this. Ah, okay. Love that. Thanks for all the laughs. I've been listening since episode 25. Oh my gosh.

[Christine]

Long time.

[Emma]

That is a long time. Be aware there is a slight trigger warning for a mention of suicide for this story. Okay, let's crack into it. As you can tell by the title, my dad has some new beliefs about what the afterlife could look like. So does Blaze, apparently. Apparently he went to a Tyler Henry show at the Hard Rock Casino and it changed his view on life.

[Christine]

You never know what it's going to be.

[Emma]

You never know what it takes, you know. Okay. As you can tell by the title, my dad has some new beliefs about what the afterlife could look like. And it all started with the woman in the laundry room. The following stories and family lore has been told to me by my mother who swears these were the experiences my that made my dad realize maybe there is actually something to look forward to after our time here on on earth. Also bear with me, there are two stories, but you can't tell one without the other. So here I go for a quick bit of context. My grandparents and great uncles are all from the Appalachian mountain area. When my great uncle was in his early 20s, he was dating a girl we'll call Jamie. Jamie was so madly in love with my uncle that when he decided he was moving to California to start over, she was coming with him. My uncle, however, told Jamie she could come with him, but he would not marry her. For what reason? I have no idea. Idea. I mean, I mean maybe she just. He just didn't want to.

[Christine]

I don't know.

[Rachel]

I don't know.

[Emma]

That's allowed. I think she came with him anyways. And once when months later he broke up with her. Yeah. She showed up at my grandparents house in a wedding. Oh God. Okay, sorry. This gets really, really dark. Okay, sorry. Whoa. I did not see this coming. Okay, she came with him anyways and one months later he broke up with her. She showed up at my grandparents house in a wedding wedding dress and died by suicide in front of them.

[Christine]

Oh my God.

[Jerry]

Oh. Oh.

[Christine]

Oh my God.

[Rachel]

In front of him or just his parents?

[Emma]

In front of the grandparents like so his parents.

[Christine]

Oh my God.

[Emma]

Everyone in my family has known about this since. Since including my dad. Even though he was not alive when the events took place. So this was like her grandpa.

[Rachel]

Okay.

[Emma]

Oh my God.

[Jerry]

What the horrifying story.

[Emma]

And then it's is end of trigger warning. Thanks.

[Jerry]

That's good.

[Christine]

Thank you so much.

[Jerry]

Hey, I got that.

[Emma]

Hey.

[Jerry]

I think we.

[Christine]

We figured that there was more after

[Emma]

we all landed on the other side and went, what the.

[Christine]

Jesus. Okay.

[Rachel]

All right.

[Emma]

End of trigger warning. Other added context. My dad, prior to these events, was the biggest skeptic my mom knew, as he would make fun of her, even talking about supernatural things. When my mom and dad were 20 years old, my dad was in the military. After long deployments, my parents would come home to a small farm town in the middle of California to see their families. On one of these trips home, while visiting my dad's parents, he saw something he'd never forget and still refuses to speak about to this day. It was an easy day of lounging around and talking to my grandma about baby shower plans when my dad decided he'd do the laundry for him and my mom before they packed up to go to his cousin's house. See? First man who's just stepping up and doing the laundry.

[Christine]

Incredible.

[Emma]

Incredible. Okay. It was an easy day of lounge around talking to my grandma about baby shower plans when my dad decided he'd do the laundry. Laundry before they packed up to go to his cousin's house. Think of an old home that was built in the 90s where you walk in the garage and then straight ahead through the living room was the kitchen. My dad walked down the long hallway to the garage where the washer and dryer were located. While switching the clothes from the washer to the dryer, my dad saw something white and flowy out of the corner of his eye.

[Jerry]

Oh, no.

[Emma]

Oh my God. When he looked up, he saw. Wait, hold on. Wasn't that also what that lady was wearing in the yard? Like nose to nose with that guy? Oh, oh yeah, the bride. Unfortunately, this on the wedding day.

[Christine]

Yeah, she also looks like the geez bride.

[Emma]

Oh, that's right. Yeah. Okay, here we go. While switching the clothes from the washer to the dryer, my dad saw something white and flowy out of the corner of his eye. When he looked up, he saw the back of a woman with long dark hair walking through the garage door into the house wearing a long white dress. Oh, my God. He called for my mom, but before he could get an answer, the door slammed shut. My mom told me that. My dad explained, after seeing this woman, he felt an immense amount of dark dread. And with that, he took off running down the hallway. When he got into the living room, he found my mom and grandma talking there. He interrogated my mom and grandma demanding to know who came down the hallway and why they were trying to scare him. When they swore up and down that neither of them had done it and that he was the only one in and out of the garage, all the color drained from his face in the same trip home. Just days later, my mom and dad went to stay with his cousins, the children of the earlier mentioned uncle and visit just before heading back to San San Diego. One night after going to sleep, my dad awoke to the sound of knocking on the sliding glass door. Oh my God. That was across the living room from the air mattress he and my mom were sleeping on. He sat up and when he turned to look at the sliding glass door, he saw the same woman he had seen a few days ago.

[Christine]

Oh my God.

[Emma]

Clawing and pulling at the sliding glass.

[Jerry]

Hey, hey, ghost.

[Emma]

Stop clawing.

[Jerry]

Stop climbing. Stop. Stop doing.

[Christine]

And the clawing, the animal movements is too much.

[Jerry]

It must be done.

[Emma]

What it, what it is, is untenable, frankly.

[Jerry]

Untenable.

[Emma]

It is. It's untenable. And I'm just.

[Jerry]

An incredible word.

[Emma]

My new, My new hex is Quit it Susie. And that should just calm it all. Like just everything got to stop. That's enough, Susie. Okay. Clawing and pulling at the sliding glass door. She made eye contact with him and put her hand against the glass of the door.

[Jerry]

What?

[Emma]

As. As she faded away.

[Christine]

What kind of Steven Spielberg ET Was that? What do you mean?

[Emma]

So spooky.

[Jerry]

Do you think that her dad looked like her uncle?

[Christine]

Oh.

[Jerry]

And then the woman was like, there you are, you. I've been looking for Eos.

[Emma]

You know, chills. Because especially at that age 20, which is like the same age around when this would have. Oh my God.

[Rachel]

Well, and also where did she commit suicide?

[Emma]

At the grandparents house there.

[Rachel]

That was built in the 90s.

[Emma]

No, no, no. That was in Appalachia. So.

[Christine]

Oh.

[Rachel]

And they were in California.

[Emma]

So now they're like. They've all moved to California. But also she followed him to California. Remember like back. Yeah.

[Christine]

She could have been attached to like something that was still in the house or something. Something. And just got with them or. I've been attached to them. I don't know.

[Jerry]

Yeah.

[Christine]

That's horrifying.

[Jerry]

Yeah. Especially like dying in such a traumatic way.

[Emma]

Yes.

[Jerry]

Like.

[Emma]

Yeah.

[Jerry]

I could also see it being something that like she relives consciously.

[Emma]

She's just like in this weird limbo space. Yeah. Yeah.

[Christine]

I. I wonder the. If this were a Steven Spielberg ET Movie. I feel like they have like now like found common ground with the hand up on the glass together. I feel like maybe now she'll go the away, you know, Maybe.

[Emma]

Maybe that's what I'm hoping.

[Christine]

I'm like, let's have a happy ending here. Like, oh, now we've made contact through the glass.

[Jerry]

Like, let's agree to just TV masters. That's what's happening right now.

[Emma]

Thank you.

[Jerry]

Well earned.

[Emma]

Is that what's happening? Okay. Yeah, yeah, okay, I see. Okay. Blah, blah, blah. So he saw this woman at the sliding glass door. She made eye contact, put her hand against the glass and flipped. Faded away. My dad went back to sleep. I don't know how he managed that. And had countless night terrors of him waking up to find the woman standing over him. Oh, God, she got in.

[Rachel]

Like, come on.

[Christine]

Never mind. You got to rip up my.

[Emma]

I was like, Steven Spielberg would just. I don't think he would all of

[Jerry]

a sudden of a loss of raptors there.

[Emma]

My dad went back to sleep. He had countless nights tears. All of this woman standing. Standing over him, staring with her hurt and sorrowful brown eyes into his. My dad told my mom all of this, and after looking at the sliding glass door she was trying to get through, he realized there was still a handprint.

[Jerry]

No, no, no.

[Rachel]

It's.

[Christine]

In that moment, I would literally buy a goodbye fingerprint kit or something just to have evidence of this.

[Emma]

A fingerprint kit. You and I would be on Amazon. Like, hold on.

[Christine]

I need to show people. Like, here. Here's her literal DNA.

[Emma]

Yes, your honor.

[Jerry]

Your honor.

[Emma]

Get it together.

[Christine]

Get real.

[Jerry]

What do you call those glass cutters and like. Like, they do the.

[Emma]

Around it from spy kids or whatever. Yeah, no, I'm assuming that's a real thing. Yeah. Also, I be like. I mean, this is just. Okay. It's all just very horrible. Okay. So my dad told my mom, and he realized there was still a hand print. Uhhuh. To this day, that hand print is still on the sliding glass door. M. Get your kit. Get your.

[Christine]

Literally, it like, today is the day.

[Rachel]

Talking about they can't get it off.

[Emma]

Hey, Kate, can you just get a fingerprint kit over there now?

[Christine]

What's that?

[Jerry]

Get a new.

[Christine]

What are you doing?

[Jerry]

Come on.

[Christine]

We got to do.

[Jerry]

Think about. Think about one.

[Christine]

And one is

[Jerry]

animal.

[Christine]

Also, like, has anyone tried to wipe that off? Because that feels like you're desecrating bodily remains or something. It feels weird to.

[Emma]

Oh, really? I would. I was gonna say I take one of those power cleaner things. What are they crazy?

[Christine]

I would literally put a sharpie Border around it and be like, you can wash the window, but not this section,

[Jerry]

because this is the only turkey so fast.

[Christine]

This is. This is one of those things where I'd be like, if there. If there's ever a contest, right? It's like we're looking for literal evidence of a ghost. You have it right there.

[Emma]

Dear Lord.

[Christine]

That's a money maker. That's a money maker.

[Jerry]

I mean, I just turned it into a turkey. There goes the money.

[Christine]

Oh, man.

[Rachel]

Oh, I see what you mean.

[Jerry]

Okay.

[Emma]

Oh, I see what you mean.

[Rachel]

I wasn't following at all.

[Emma]

Okay, okay, okay.

[Rachel]

Like, that's a good joke.

[Emma]

Oh, God. Okay.

[Rachel]

Yeah.

[Emma]

Now, how do we get back into this terrible, sad, tragic story? Let's see. To this day, the handprint is still on that sliding glass door. It's believed the print. Okay, now this is even getting spookier. I mean, I didn't think it could

[Christine]

tell me immediately what it's believed the

[Emma]

print is between the two panes of glass, and that is why nobody can scrub it off.

[Christine]

Okay. But she preserved herself. She knows it's a money maker.

[Emma]

Amazing. Because she was trying to go through the glass.

[Jerry]

Glass. Holy.

[Christine]

And by the way, with an expo marker, you can make as many turkeys as you want now.

[Emma]

Yeah, we all win, Fixture.

[Christine]

We all win.

[Rachel]

Oh, my God.

[Emma]

My dad told me, okay. The sliding glass door. It's believed the print is between the two panes of glass, and that is why nothing can clean it off. My dad at that point, told my mom he believed in the afterlife. Now, because how could you not when your uncle's dead ex girlfriend won't quit following you around and made her promise not to tell anyone. So, yeah, that's how my uncle's ex girlfriend was the woman in the laundry room that was not my mom and made my skeptic dad believe in ghosts, and that's why he drinks. Oh, my word. I'm very. I'm very sorry also for the family trauma. And I'm not. We're not trying to through that. It's because that part is just absolutely bananas level. Like, not okay, but just like the fact that your dad is just like, going about his life never having even met this person, and then all of a sudden, she's like, you look just like him. Like, that's terrifying.

[Rachel]

And he was young when this happened. Is that like, it was him as a young.

[Emma]

Yeah, he was really young. He, like, moved away.

[Jerry]

He wasn't alive.

[Rachel]

No, I. I know when this happened to him.

[Jerry]

About the same age, right?

[Emma]

Yeah, yeah.

[Jerry]

Yeah, he was about 20 when she.

[Rachel]

Crazy suicide. Yeah.

[Emma]

Which I think makes so much sense to Jerry's point of they probably resemble one another. Pretty strong.

[Rachel]

Yeah.

[Emma]

Would be my guess.

[Jerry]

Like, there you are, you handsome. Mother, father.

[Emma]

Yeah. I'm gonna come in that door. I'm.

[Christine]

Stop.

[Jerry]

Oh. Now it's on your glass forever.

[Emma]

I know. Wow. That's just like. That's like a. That's a good one. That's a really good one.

[Christine]

All right, we have one left. Who would like to read it?

[Rachel]

He wants to take us home. Jerry,

[Christine]

take us home.

[Emma]

Wow.

[Jerry]

All right.

[Emma]

I'm gonna actually call my mom to take me home because I am a little scared.

[Jerry]

Mom, pick me up. I'm scared.

[Emma]

Pick me up.

[Christine]

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[Jerry]

This is the time I asked my sister in law's dead dad to grab my skeptic boyfriend's ass. Incredible. Already.

[Emma]

Wow.

[Jerry]

Notes.

[Christine]

I'm fine with that so far.

[Rachel]

Yeah.

[Jerry]

Although consent's important.

[Emma]

I was about to say I feel like maybe I should be the voice of reason here, but maybe I won't be.

[Christine]

I think I'm a little. I'm putting my own experience in. In the loop when I make that statement because I have been. We were saying polter groped. I've been trapped on the ass by a ghost. And because the story is good, I'm fine with it. So I think like. Yeah, seems like in hindsight I would hope that this.

[Emma]

This were all in the story.

[Rachel]

I did it for the bit.

[Emma]

For the bit. Big time.

[Jerry]

Hello, Em and Christine. I saw the call for skeptical partner stories and ran to the submission page. I can't remember a time in my life when I didn't have some sense of the paranormal world. I remember being three and telling my mom I didn't like the ghosts in my room. Valid. Who would. To which she told me at three they just need my help. So thanks for the complex, mom.

[Emma]

Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait.

[Jerry]

Yeah.

[Emma]

No, no, no, no, no.

[Jerry]

Oh, they're there for your assistance.

[Emma]

It's like you know how you help. You know how you therapize mommy all day. Well, now you have to therapize these ghosts too.

[Rachel]

Yeah.

[Emma]

Just kidding. That was not a reference to this person's actual parent.

[Jerry]

She would also tell me when my grandfather's ghost was around visiting.

[Emma]

Oh God.

[Jerry]

Cool. So growing. Growing up nice with this very matter of fact interaction with spirits. I've become pretty used to weird things. My boyfriend however, believes everything has as an explanation a theme.

[Emma]

We love it.

[Jerry]

For example, I have a pride tiara on my shelf that I got at a local pride parade. I've known since I moved into my current house that it came with an old man's ghost and he's a grump. The house or the tiara?

[Christine]

Yeah.

[Emma]

And I went an old grumpy gay. What's.

[Christine]

Absolutely just like a sassy criminal Mudgeon, please.

[Rachel]

Any day.

[Jerry]

I do think that they mean the house, but I like the idea that it's attached to the tiara.

[Emma]

And also I love that like a curmudgeon had to be attached to a rainbow tiara. Like you know the vibe, you know,

[Christine]

he's so over it.

[Emma]

Hilarious. So good.

[Jerry]

One day my boyfriend and I were sitting minding Our own business. When I heard a loud pling sound just before the tiara flew off the shelf as if someone flipped clicked it off. I immediately started yelling at the ghost, telling him that in my house we don't accept that kind of. No matter what. He believed in life. Oh, got it. After I finished, my boyfriend said, I think it just fell normally.

[Emma]

Huh.

[Christine]

Okay, get out.

[Jerry]

Hey, hey, Kevin. Shut up.

[Rachel]

Shut up.

[Emma]

Hey Kevin.

[Rachel]

No one asked you unless there's a cat on the loose. Yeah, that you correct there.

[Jerry]

And as of now, I. I've not been told of any cats. This led me on a mission to find an experience my boyfriend couldn't explain away. So I started taking him on ghost stores and hunts.

[Emma]

This is me to a T. We're

[Jerry]

teaching everywhere ghosts are supposed to be. We live in Southern California and I got tickets for a guided ghost hunt on the Queen Mary on Halloween.

[Emma]

That'll do.

[Jerry]

My sister in law that all I want is for my boyfriend to have something happen that he can't explain and joked that it would be great if a ghost nose could just touch him. Yeah, just a little.

[Christine]

So you gave consent, so you know it's fine. Yeah, yeah.

[Jerry]

Her father passed away several years ago. So she called out, hey dad, if you can help out, touch his ass on the hunt.

[Emma]

Halloween.

[Jerry]

Some weird things happen on the hunt. But nothing that really convinced him it went well. And until about 2am oh my God. So we booked a room on the Queen Mary for the night.

[Rachel]

I'm sorry.

[Jerry]

I know. We get back to our room after it's over, starting to get ready for bed and he comes out of the bathroom looking odd. What's up? I asked. Eyebrows froed. He says, I don't know. I was brushing my teeth and I felt something rubbing against my ass, but I think it was just the shower curtain. No, that was the grumpy gay.

[Rachel]

That was the girl.

[Emma]

Oh, I thought it was the dad.

[Jerry]

Dad. It is the dad.

[Emma]

Oh, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. It's the grumpy gay.

[Jerry]

The grumpy gay everywhere.

[Emma]

Well, I thought okay. Because I was like, oh my God, is the dad the grumpy gay? Okay.

[Jerry]

Who doesn't like boats?

[Emma]

Who doesn't like boats?

[Christine]

And as someone we've. We've, we've. I was gonna say we've booked an overnight stay there. That does not mean we stayed the whole night. But we were there and can't confirm. The bathrooms are small and the shower curtain could have been rough. Rubbing his butt could have grabbed him.

[Jerry]

Okay, okay.

[Christine]

That could also be dad.

[Jerry]

That's good insight. I start laughing. He didn't know about the conversation with my sister in law and I am convinced that he couldn't have felt the fabric shower curtain through his jeans. And her dad did in fact grab his ass in a moment of opportunity. I tell him the whole story. He's still skeptical. I call my sister in law the next day. She believes that's exactly how her dad would have done it. We tell our friends, his co workers, literally everyone and every person we tell believes it had to be. It had to have been her dad, my boyfriend. To this day, he's still not convinced. How do you get ghost groped in a Queen Mary bathroom and still be a skeptic? I'm still dragging him on tours and hunts and one day I believe I'll finally convince him. But until that day, that's why I drink.

[Emma]

Oh, wow. Here's what I have to say. He has to convince himself he could literally see a full blown apparition in front of his face and be like, I was just hallucinating. Like, there is no way you can. Because I've tried, tried this with Blaze and then all of a sudden I make him take me to a Tyler Henry show and he goes, everything changed. I went, that's what it took. I just had to show you Hollywood medium one time. Like, I don't know. So every ghost hunt, I mean, that's a great point. Like a young, a gentle gay man, but still man. Yeah. And I just was very like, surprised. But he's like, wow, I can't believe it. And I'm like, I didn't know that was the entry point for you. Maybe polter groped wasn't enough for this guy. But also. So like, I just love that he, he has to know it wasn't the shower curtain because why else would he come out with a furrowed brow and go, it must be the shower curtain. Like if he, he would be like, no, it was definitely. It was. He wouldn't have even told you the story. Right.

[Jerry]

If he was certain that it was the shower curtain, why wouldn't you?

[Emma]

At all. Totally.

[Jerry]

Maybe. Maybe he's playing dumb and he just likes going on these ghost tours.

[Rachel]

Yeah.

[Christine]

He's like, oh, maybe he's actually having a blast.

[Emma]

He sticks his butt out a little bit like, treat me to these little

[Rachel]

T.

[Emma]

And it's like, I just like when your friend's dad just gives me a little poop, you know, Patty on the rear.

[Jerry]

It was weird because the shower curtain said good game when it.

[Emma]

But I'm pretty sure it happens. Good game. Oh, well, you know what? Good game to you guys, too. We all did. Awesome. I'm so thankful you were all here for. Sorry we had you for so long, but that tends to happen when some yappers show up on a screen.

[Jerry]

Together, we took up about 20 minutes figuring out Safari was not the movie.

[Christine]

That's okay.

[Emma]

It was all part of the journey.

[Rachel]

Take it away from my doc. Like, I'm gonna have to completely delete it.

[Christine]

Yes, that's what I had to do.

[Rachel]

Oh, it was uploading stuff to Patreon.

[Jerry]

Yes.

[Rachel]

Was the last thing that I was like, I'm going to have a conniption. Took me, like, two full days. And I was like, this needs to come out tomorrow. And then Gary was like, are you. What browser are you using?

[Christine]

And I was like, none of your business.

[Emma]

None of your business.

[Jerry]

This is actually an intervention.

[Emma]

Yes, we've. We've been here before. We had to intervene on M's behalf one time, so don't worry. Wow. Well, thank you both so much. For having us. No, for having you. You're so welcome. And also, where can people find you besides just, you know, all over the place?

[Rachel]

We are. I really need to remember these handles better For Better and Worse Podcast pod at Gmail.

[Emma]

Yeah, for they both. They both pull their phones out simultaneously.

[Rachel]

Let me get my. Together.

[Jerry]

Hey, hey, hey.

[Rachel]

Let me get my.

[Emma]

I just know that Eve is about to chime in with all the. Okay.

[Rachel]

Information on Instagram at For Better and Worse Podcast can also find us on Tick Tock at Worse.

[Emma]

Well, Rachel has to find herself first, and then we can find you guys. Yeah, so find yourself.

[Jerry]

It's a geocache situation. You just have to find.

[Emma]

Support the scavenger hunt.

[Jerry]

And it'll lead you where you need to go.

[Rachel]

Exactly.

[Emma]

It's super fun.

[Rachel]

Put in the hyperlink to the YouTube or something. You know what I mean?

[Emma]

Like, you have to open it on safari, otherwise it'll never work.

[Jerry]

You're meant to find us. We'll find you.

[Rachel]

Exactly.

[Emma]

That's so powerful. Wow. What a way to end it. Thank you both so much. What a delight, you and congratulations, Jerry, on being a newlywed. La La. Has a nice ring to it.

[Christine]

Has a nice ring to it.

[Jerry]

Thanks, everyone. Thanks for having us. A blast, as always.

[Christine]

A blast. Yeah, thank you. And we'll see everyone next month for more listener stories.

[Rachel]

Bye.

[Emma]

Hey, it's Ryan Reynolds here for Mint Mobile. Now, I was looking for fun ways to tell you that Mint's offer of unlimited Prem Premium Wireless for 15amonth is back. So I thought it would be fun if we made 15 bills, but it turns out that's very illegal. So there goes my big idea for the commercial. Give it a [e-mail] switch upfront payment of $45 for three months, $90 for six months or $180 for 12 month plan required $15 per month equivalent to taxes and fees. Extra initial plan term only greater than 50 gigabytes. Me slow when network is busy. C terms.