The Nonessential Podcast
A show about anything and everything that we find interesting, but not essential. From true history and crime, to myths, legends, and creepypasta, if we like it, we'll talk about it. And if we don't like it, we'll talk about it even more.
Episodes
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 know how this story concludes.
...or...
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
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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.
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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.
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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.'
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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?
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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.
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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.
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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
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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.
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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.
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