The Nonessential Podcast

This week, Ben reads a creepypasta that outlines why it may be a bad idea to follow clearly unhinged instructions you may come across while exploring old wells. Check out the anonymously authored 'Scribblings in the Well.'

Sometimes you want to get away from the place where everybody knows your name. This week, Steve reads a story about a man trapped in a kind of purgatory that... well, actually sounds pretty okay? Check out  The Bar , by Alparos-Lilah.  Source: https://creepypasta.fandom.com/wiki/The_Bar  

This week, Ben reads the exciting conclusion, or is excited to conclude, the mystery thriller creepypasta  Lost Episodes Can Be Found , originally written by Hopelessnightowl.  As the protagonist draws nearer to finding the disturbing verion of Aristicats that has haunted him since his youth (yes, you heard that right), the bigger picture starts to emerge. But you'll have to listen if you want to...

This week, Ben takes us on the first leg of a journey with more legs than one. Probably two. But perhaps three? Regardless, this is leg one, and it's the start of a tale of a traumatic version of the already traumatic Aristicats, and the narrator's quest to find out where and how it came to be.  Check out  Lost Episodes Can Be Found Again,  part one. By HopelessNightOwl Source:  Lost Episodes Can...

In this installment of the Nonessential Podcast, Steve reads the story of a soldier who's past is quite literally haunting him. Check out the anonymously written  Only Following Orders . 

Hubert Wiliks was a man on a mission. Well, a few missions. But war metals and documenting birds couldn't compare with his plan to pilot a submarine under the north pole, using specially designed evil-villain drills and a giant reverse ice skate.  Check out episode 258: The Adventures of Hubert Wilkins. Sources: https://www.centennialofflight.net/essay/Explorers_Record_Setters_and_Daredevils/south...

This week, Steve reads two  firey stories from Alparos-Lilah:  The Fortune Teller , and  Echoes from the Ashes . Both touch on the themes of fire, death, and what comes next.  Sources: https://creepypasta.fandom.com/wiki/The_Fortune_Teller https://creepypasta.fandom.com/wiki/Echoes_from_the_Ashes  

This week, Ben reads 'The Butcher Family' by Night Spirit. It's a tale of woe, generational curses, and the best damned meat-cubes you ever did taste.  Source: The Butcher Family | Creepypasta Wiki | Fandom

After a short (medium) hiatus, we're back. And this week's show not only has legs, it has at least sixteen of them. Check out a creepy double feature as Steve reads TheBrexters 'Creepy Crawlies' and SpoopySparkle's 'The Crawly Man.'    Sources: Creepy Crawlies | Creepypasta Wiki | Fandom The Crawly Man | Creepypasta Wiki | Fandom

On the brink of starvation and ruin, a pastor struggles with the absolute abandonment of his congregation. But then a mysterious man-thing shows up and offers him a deal he can't refuse. This week, Ben reads the piously creepy  A Friend in Need  by Dylon Winfield. 

This week's creepypasta is about a scientist who is afraid of trees. This might seem odd, but after reading 'Overgrowth' by Aphibacus192000, the real question becomes why would anybody think it's odd for this scientist to be afraid of trees?  Source: Overgrowth | Creepypasta Wiki | Fandom

This week, Ben puts on his Brave Boy Pants and delves into Reddit/Nosleep to retrieve a story so freightful in it's freighteningness that it took us an extra 24 hours to post. Check out ' My Wife Has Been Peeking at Me From Around Corners and Behind Furniture. It's Gone from Weird to Terrifying ' by Maliagirl1314. Source: https://www.reddit.com/r/nosleep/comments/sva7z6/my_wife_has_been_peeking_at...

This week, Steve (eventually) discusses one of the raddest (or radiated'est) cryptids (un)known to man: The Blackbird of Chernobyl. Is this creature a prohpet of doom, or does it cause it? Is it related to that Mothman fellow, or is it one in the same? Leave it to us to not get tot he bottom of any of those pressing questions.  Source: The Blackbird of Chernobyl | Creepypasta Wiki | Fandom

This week, Ben brings a supernatural tale so super it's natural to tell. A hit musician, locked alone in a cabin deep in the woods. Desperate to write that one last perfect song. But at what cost? Check out The Curse of the Ninth by Trycksterr.  Source:  The Curse of the Ninth | Creepypasta Wiki | Fandom  

This week, Steve takes a look at a trio of murder-crimes with interesting twists behind the motives and methods of, well, murder-killing. Check it out. Source: https://listverse.com/2022/07/30/ten-real-life-plot-twists-in-criminal-cases/  

This week, Ben continues Pasta Noir: Dames, Slugs, and the Hatchetman,  the saga started with last week's episode. In this installment, we learn more about the weirdly homophobic, yet subtuley homoerotic relationship between our hero and his young partner. Also there's a murder or something. Check it out Source: https://creepypasta.fandom.com/wiki/Pasta_Noir:_Dames,_Slugs_and_the_Hatchetman  

This week, Steve reads the wonderfuly (pasta) noir,  Pasta Noir: Dames, Slugs, and the Hatchetman by BlackNumber1. Or, more specifically, he reads part 1 of the above-mentioned story because there's 11 parts, and to read all of them would be too much.  Source:  https://creepypasta.fandom.com/wiki/Pasta_Noir:_Dames,_Slugs_and_the_Hatchetman  

This week's episode brings you the story of a doctor who is willing to do anything it takes to do good. This, of course, means bad things. Ben read's  The Good Doctor Locklear , written by Madam Macabre Source: Good Doctor Locklear | Creepypasta Wiki | Fandom

What happens when the friend you're expecting to meet turns up dead? A bunch of surprisingly non-chalant conversations, and an inexplicably shocking reveal, apparently. This week, Steve jumps off the supernatural horror train, and then gets run over by the crime horror train. Check out 'Crime Scene' by Triololo.  Source: Crime Scene Photos | Creepypasta Wiki | Fandom

This week, Ben decorates our metaphorical refridgerator with MacaroniArtZombeh's  Mr Trenchfoot , immediately followed by the thrilling prequel,  In the Trenches . That's right, it's a double-dose of Trenchfoot. Trenchfeet? Unbutton your pants (so you have room for the extra serving, not for pervy reasons), sit down, and enjoy.  Source:  Mr. Trenchfoot | Creepypasta Wiki | Fandom In the Trenches |...

An (amateur?) investigative journalist inexplicably digs into what appears to be a randomly chosen, derilict former daycare. What their overly cooperative interviewees reveal is a bizzare cover-up of paranormal proportions.  This week, Steve bites off more than he can chew with  Happy Sun Daycare  by Chelsea.adams.524. Source: Happy Sun Daycare | Creepypasta Wiki | Fandom  

To celebrate Halloween, this week we're doing the thing we do about 75% of the time already! Ben reads the creepiest of pastas that's ever been written regarding wallpaper blemishes, with  A Tear in the Wallpaper  by Umbrello.  Source: A Tear in the Wallpaper | Creepypasta Wiki | Fandom  

They say you should never meet your heroes. This week, Steve reads 'The Beef Bandit' by Levi Athens, and proves once and for all that at least in this one specific fictional situation, that saying is correct.  Check out episode 241 before you steal your next slab of beef. ...Or maybe while you're stealing that sweet red meat?  Source: https://creepypasta.fandom.com/wiki/The_Beef_Bandit  

This week, Ben pulls a random story out of his hat, and hits the creepypasta jackpot with the  superbly written 'Eric Floc's Sad Men,' by CynicalSloth. And for once, we're not being sarcastic when we say this is truly a great work of fiction. Or non-fiction? Source: Eric Floc's Sad Men | Creepypasta Wiki | Fandom

This week, Steve takes a look at a few of the local lore and legends of Idaho. These tales feature killer mountain dwarves, demonic fish-babies, and a plethora—yes, an entire plethora—of lake monsters. Sadly, they do not contain a single potato.  Sources: Legendary Idaho Monsters (gooutlocal.com) 6 Creepy Idaho Legends That Will Keep You Up at Night [PICS] (mix106radio.com) 7 Mysterious And Strang...