Boxing Day starts Friday, December 20th! Take 40% off Holiday, including party, cards + greens. Discount applied at checkout.
Indoorsy: A Blog Dedicated to The Great Indoors

AHR's Guide to Being Scared Silly

October 16, 2022

AHR's Guide to Being Scared Silly

Allow me to immediately absolve you of the illusion that I’ve been a lifelong fan of all things scary. It’s true that movies like Nightmare on Elm Street, Friday the 13th and Halloween were all the rage when I was a teen but, unfortunately for me and my street cred, I was the kid who’d leave the room at the mere mention of them. I once found myself in a situation where I was forced to watch Children of the Corn and it traumatized me for YEARS. For literal years, every time I thought about the movie, I’d get a chill that would run from the front to the back of my left shoulder. I literally have no idea how I ended up in a situation where I watched this movie, but it probably involved a boy and dear reader, it was not worth it. I’m still not into slasher flicks, mainly because I just find them a little ridiculous, but I am into psychological thrillers and have a passion for true crime that occasionally concerns my husband (but also keeps him on his toes?). Apparently, I’m only engaged if these horrible things are within the realm of possibility? I’d prefer not to look too closely at the psychology behind that, so let’s get down to business!

One thing about me is that I love a podcast. If it involves murder, all the better. Again, let’s not dig too deeply into that statement. Over the years I’ve listened to some of the best: My Favorite Murder, Serial, Someone Knows Something, S-Town, Down the Hill, and Bear Brook, to name a few. As a result, I’ve compiled a mental list of favorite episodes. Each have stuck with me for various reasons; some are truly scary, some are eerie, and some are creepy by virtue of being possible. With that in mind, I’ve created my own “Z” rating system and marked each episode with anywhere from 1-5 Z’s for how much sleep I think you’ll get the night after listening.

 

AHR’s Patented Z Rating

Z- You’ll be turning on the lights and waking your significant other when going to pee in the night

ZZ- You’ll wake several times to scan the shadows and won’t sleep with your back to the room

ZZZ- You’ll crack an eye, do a quick scan of the room, and drift off again

ZZZZ- You’ll think about it briefly when rolling over

ZZZZZ- You’ll sleep like you never listened

Consider yourself warned, grab your Airpods and pick your poison!

Spooked

Season 1, Episode 02- Lost in Time

Not as much creepy as it is eerie. Although, if I was experiencing it? Different story.

Z Rating: ZZZ

Season 3, Episode 01- The Thin Place

Oh, you were thinking of sleeping tonight? Hahahahaahahahahahahahahahaha. Went to listen to this episode again in preparation for compiling this list and had to brace myself emotionally.

Z Rating: Z

Radio Rental

Episode 02- Told a Serial Killer and Doppelganger

Both episodes are absolutely fantastic, but Doppelganger is the one that I think about most often. Even years later, the person telling the story sounds haunted and bewildered.

Z Rating: ZZ

Episode 09- Camp Counsellor and Slumber Party

Camp Counsellor is a case study for listening to your gut and Slumber Party? Well, anyone who’s been to a sleepover as a teenager could picture themselves in exactly this situation.

Z Rating: ZZ


My Favorite Murder

Episode 183- Here we Back Are

Karen and Georgia tell the story of the Mothman of West Virginia, a supernatural disaster story that was also made into the movie The Mothman Prophesies, staring Richard Gere. Another example of a movie I was roped into watching and thought about for years. The scene where the Mothman calls Richard Gere’s hotel room? Absolutely NOT.

Z Rating: ZZZ

Episode 194- The Spooky Halloween Hometown Special

In which Karen and Georgia read scary stories from listeners using their trademark humour.

Z Rating: ZZZZ

*My Favorite Murder is my all-time favorite true crime podcast. There are so many episodes I could recommend. If you like true crime mixed with a healthy dose of humour to take the edge off, this podcast is the one.

Buried Bones

Episode 4- Stalked

Paul Holes and Kate Winkler-Dawson review historic cases through a modern forensic lens. The case in this episode is rare and creepy. Hearing the two unpack the evidence and motive is both fascinating and alarming.

Z Rating: ZZZ

The No Sleep Podcast

Season 5, Episode 25- The Whistlers

The No Sleep Podcast is a horror fiction podcast. Fiction isn’t usually my cup of podcast tea, but this episode is like a movie for your ears. Great for a long car ride or a day of mindless tasks.

Also, The Whistlers hits pretty close to home after a recent experience I had in the basement of the store when it was closed. I heard whistling coming from directly behind me as I washed my hands and may have had the most blood-curdling scream before realizing it was a reel playing on my phone in my back pocket.

Z Rating: ZZ

That’s it, my by no means comprehensive list of favorite scary podcast episodes. Got a podcast recommendation (scary or not)? Leave it in the comments below. And if you listen to any of the episodes above, let me know what you think!


Leave a comment

Also in Indoorsy: A Blog Dedicated to The Great Indoors

Summertime Sadness
Summertime Sadness

July 06, 2024 2 Comments

“What are you even doing with your summer?” Every year around this time, this is the thought that runs through my head. Summer is so fresh and new, the weather still tentative (as if that changes). Everything’s lush, the air heavy with the scent of late blooming lilacs, peonies, fresh cut grass. The giddiness of that first drink on a patio, hanging baskets overflowing, summer is at its finest. The possibility of what lies ahead is overwhelming. Completely overwhelming. Because I am not a summer person. I love the great indoors and summer is a season notorious for the enjoyment of outdoor pursuits. The result? A certain kind of summertime sadness that can only be born of the concern not that summer is passing too quickly, but too slowly.

Continue Reading

Dressed in Holiday Style
Dressed in Holiday Style

December 11, 2022

Whenever I hear that verse of Silver Bells, I always imagine myself bundled up in a long coat, wearing a jaunty little hat (not unlike the one worn by Mary Steenburgen in Elf) and carrying several brown paper Macy’s shopping bags. I am standing outside of a store gazing at its Christmas window display while around me the shoppers rush home with their treasures. All at once, I am jostled by a passerby and one of my packages drops to the sidewalk. I bend down to pick it up and come face to face with the stranger, who has also bent to retrieve it. He looks alarmingly like Jude Law as he did in the movie The Holiday, his eyes- how they twinkle, his dimples how merry! When he speaks, I swear I can hear a hint of an accent, ”Drop something?” he says, his droll little mouth drawn up like a bow. I have only slightly regained my composure when Clint sidles up behind us and says “I’m so tired. Why do malls make me so tired? Where did you get that hat?” And as I turn back to thank my kind stranger, I hear him exclaim, as he walks out of sight, “Happy Christmas to all and to all a good night!”

Continue Reading

Get the Look: You've Got Mail
Get the Look: You've Got Mail

September 11, 2022

"Don’t you love Okotoks in the Fall? Makes me want to watch You’ve Got Mail."

Well, I guess if I’m being completely honest, I always want to watch You’ve Got Mail, but the urge is especially strong at the first hint of Fall. In a lot of ways, I’m not typically nostalgic when it comes to the 90’s. I’m not eager to revisit my grunge phase, but I do have a special place in my heart when it comes to 90’s interior and set design. Enter You’ve Got Mail and, more specifically, Meg Ryan’s apartment.

Continue Reading