My Favorite Murder – Minisode 458 ("Or So We Thought")

Hosts: Karen Kilgariff & Georgia Hardstark
Date: October 20, 2025
Theme: Listener-submitted “Or So We Thought” twist stories—hometowns, family dramas, awkward encounters, and surprising mysteries.

Episode Overview

In this minisode, Karen and Georgia dive into a collection of listener stories centered around the theme, “Or So We Thought”—narratives that start out ordinary but take a wild, dark, or hilarious turn. As always, the duo injects their signature wit and camaraderie while reading emails ranging from true crime to family secrets to laugh-out-loud misadventures. The stories serve up a mix of murder, mistaken identity, surprise animal visitors, and good old-fashioned cat burglary, each with a twist the tellers—and listeners—didn’t see coming.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Twisted Family Secrets & Small-Town Scandals (02:24 – 06:07)

• Story: A seemingly perfect family, led by a well-respected police officer, turns out to be at the center of a shocking murder-suicide, all revealed after a private investigator's photos and a mysterious disappearance.
• Karen: “And also how often where everybody in town compares themselves to this perfect family and then the other shoe drops.” (02:57)
• Georgia: Incredulous at the extreme twist: “The mother was found three days later, bound with duct tape in her trunk and her throat was slit.” (04:46)
• Memorable Moment: The son, furious after the truth emerges, has his father’s body moved across the cemetery.
• Lesson: “Stay sexy and don’t marry a cop.” – Brandy (the storyteller) (05:49)
• Karen’s Reflection: “Or so we thought. That was like. It's not just a standard affair... everything falls apart." (05:56)

2. Pool Heroine Mom Fends Off a Creep (06:07 – 09:20)

• Story: Listener Jay recounts how her teen mom, after a lifeguard shift, chased a supposed kid peeping in the women’s showers—only to discover it was a grown man, whom she then marches to police in only a towel.
• Georgia (reading): “My mom marched the man into the pool to report him to staff and eventually the police… never mess with my mom.” (08:22)
• Reflection: Both hosts relate, with Karen noting the stress and absurdity: “The idea of having to chase someone in a towel is so stressful and insane. And then that reveal…just a short man!” (09:31)
• Memorable Line: “Hooray for all those moms out there that keep the spirit alive and strong.” (09:12)

3. The Amish Meth Lab Explosion (12:03 – 14:15)

• Story: Mal (a trans listener) shares about moving to a Mennonite farm in Indiana, only to find themselves neighbors to an Amish-run meth lab—exposing a fatal explosion with wild rumors swirling.
• Karen’s Favorite Part: “According to my aunt, there was an Amish run meth house just up the road and it had exploded.” (12:50)
• Georgia: “The Amish fucking grow meth. Grow meth? You can’t grow meth.” (13:01)
• Closing Thought: Even rural life isn’t safe from chaos: “Just thinking you’re going to start a new life and just immediately a meth house that’s run by the Amish blows up.” (14:05)

4. Uncle’s Secret Stash & Accidental Hotboxing (15:18 – 17:32)

• Story: After an uncle’s death, family searches a rural cabin for sentimental “treasure” and finds a secret weed-growing operation worth $10k. Unsure what to do, they burn it in a massive bonfire—getting everyone high unintentionally.
• Georgia (reading): “Turns out my quiet private uncle was the local drug dealer.” (16:19)
• Karen: “A bonfire of weed.” (16:56)
• Family Lesson: “Keep them close and let them know you love them. You never know when a phone call or text may be your last. Stay sexy and maybe don’t burn your uncle’s entire weed supply. At least not at once.” (17:01)
• Georgia: “Where was the cash hidden, though? Because where there’s $10,000 worth of weed, there’s cash you can’t put in a bank.” (17:38)

5. Texas Teacher’s Possum Surprise (19:56 – 23:27)

• Story: An elementary school teacher describes the chaos when a student’s hoodie pocket is revealed to contain a live baby possum, which escapes during reading time.
• Karen (narrating): “A tiny, mostly hairless blur hissing between the copies of ‘Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing’… surely this was some toy gone wrong, right? Wrong.” (21:49)
• Student’s defense: “I found him on the way to school and I didn’t want him to be lonely, so I put him in my pocket.” (22:23)
• Resolution: With much chaos, the possum is wrangled and returned to the wild; hosts highlight the resilience and creativity of teachers.
• Memorable: “Check your students’ pockets for wildlife.” (23:27)
• Teacher’s Wish List: The hosts agree to share the teacher’s Amazon wish list to support underfunded classrooms, inviting listeners to help and add theirs. (24:38–24:48)

6. Cat Burglars with Good Intentions (24:53 – 28:14)

• Story: A woman and her mom, searching for a missing black cat, accidentally break into a neighbor’s house to “rescue” a lookalike—realizing much too late that it isn’t their pet. They then stealthily return the cat before being found out. The real cat returns days later.
• Georgia (reading): “I think it was at this point we realized she was...this is not my cat. We fucking stole, with the best of intentions, my neighbor's cat, all caps right out of their damn home...” (27:36)
• Karen: “You burglared that cat?” (27:42)
• Moral: “Stay sexy and lock your fucking doors, or your crazy neighbor and her mom may steal your cat and then return it.” (28:08)
• Karen: “Thank God they didn’t have to break back in and put the cat in... Like, it’s just through that cat door.” (28:14)
• Hosts reflect: On mischief, mistaken identity, and good intentions gone sideways. “Keep sending us your ‘or so I thought’ twist stories and we can include them in the regular hometowns. I fucking love them so much.” – Georgia (28:29)

Notable Quotes & Moments

• “Isn’t it weird 10 years later that people thought… no, we’re the normies.” – Karen & Georgia (02:39)
• “Turns out my quiet private uncle was the local drug dealer.” – Listener email (16:19)
• “Thank God they didn’t have to break back in and put the cat in... Like, it’s just through that cat door.” – Karen (28:14)
• On Listener Support:
  “So if you have a little extra to give, we can do that.” – Karen, discussing sharing teacher wish lists. (24:44)

Timestamps for Key Segments

| Segment | Description | |-------------|-----------------| | 02:24–06:07 | Shocking cop family murder-mystery twist | | 06:07–09:20 | Pool peeper caught by badass mom| | 12:03–14:15 | Amish meth lab explosion in rural Indiana | | 15:18–17:32 | Uncle’s secret weed room, accidental family bonfire | | 19:56–23:27 | Baby possum chaos in Texas classroom | | 24:53–28:14 | Mistaken catnap: neighbors become cat burglars |

Tone & Style

• Conversational, irreverent, and heartfelt: Both hosts blend dark subject matter with supportive, relatable humor.
• Warmth for listener submissions: Both Karen and Georgia express appreciation and empathy for the stories, often adding their own perspectives or similar anecdotes.
• Encouragement and call to action: Particularly strong in their discussion of supporting teachers and inviting further story submissions.

Final Thoughts

This minisode encapsulates the offbeat and often poignant nature of the "Or So We Thought" theme—where every seemingly mundane or safe situation turns on a dime. Between wild small-town scandals, brave moms, unexpected criminal enterprises, and droll suburban misadventures, Karen and Georgia celebrate the unpredictability of real life. Listeners are encouraged to keep sending in their twisted tales—because as this episode proves, the truth is always stranger (and funnier) than fiction.

For More:

• Submit your own story: myfavoritemurdermail.com
• Support teachers by checking Instagram for classroom wish list links
• Stay sexy and don’t get murdered.