Since founder Craig Newmark launched the classified advertisements website Craigslist way back in 1995, it has gone from strength to strength. From its humble beginnings as an email events list, it has grown into a multi-million-dollar company. Not bad, huh?

You can get almost anything on Craigslist, from an old couch to a new significant other. The possibilities (and the advertisements) are endless. If you thought Craigslist was just a US thing, you’re wrong. Dozens of countries now boast their own Craigslist sites – there is a whole lot of buying and selling going on worldwide, thanks to Craig Newmark.

When you have a website that offers free advertising to anyone and their dog, it goes without saying that you can get some rather interesting posts. The sales website had a dedicated ‘Erotic Services’ section which facilitated the ‘romantic’ liaisons and casual encounters of many a lonely soul. The section came under fire a few years ago when state attorneys claimed it was promoting prostitution. Despite an attempt to re-brand the section under the new guise ‘Adult Services’ the entire section was done away with in 2010, to the despair of many voyeurs.

This doesn’t mean that we weren’t left with a few Craigslist gems to go down in advertising history, forever immortalized by the internet. What’s more, if you thought that all of the weird and wonderful from Craigslist was purely sexual, think again.

There are a whole host of ever-expanding ‘WTF did I just read?’ posts just waiting to be screenshot and sent to all of your friends.

If you thought you had a good grasp of the boundaries of human weirdness, prepare to be schooled.

Here are the 25 of the Weirdest Craigslist Ads You’ve Ever Seen.

25. SEEKING THE SUPERNATURAL

There are a lot of documentaries out there. Some are informative and captivating, taking years of research and careful editing to perfect. Then, there’s this one. Presumably created as a last-ditch attempt at making enough money to finally move out of their parent’s basement, this ad seeks the supernatural. Not just any old type of supernatural (because that would be odd), but a ghost that surfs the internet to be exact. I would love to have been a fly on the wall when the troll responses started pouring in. There’s a reason that this documentary didn’t make it to Netflix. RIP stupid idea. On to the next.

24. IT’S STILL FRESH

If you’re eating right now, I sincerely apologize, but I don’t regret it. The most worrying thing is that there is probably a market for this kind of obscurity. After all, they say there is a fetish for everything – this probably extends to steaming piles of corn ridden poop advertised on Craigslist. The town of Springfield, Illinois has been put on the map thanks to this user. There is a great trade for used panties and other disgusting oddities, so why not try and make some $$$ doing what literally comes naturally to you? I remember my dad once saying to me when I asked for some cash, ‘I don’t shit money, you know!’ Well, more fool you, pops.

23. YOU CAN CALL ME AL

Paul Simon created the 1986 smash hit with this goal in mind, bringing two lost souls together in the form of Al and Betty. Okay, probably not, but let’s play along shall we? It would be a shame not to, considering how invested the poster of this lonely-hearts style ad is. It’s very specific, but give the man what he wants – and he wants Betty. At its core, I suspect this is more sweet than weird, but the attention to detail, accepted names and ID request rates it pretty high on the peculiar-o-meter. Where are you, Al? Did you find your Betty? My name is Kate but I know a street corner where I can get the required documents. #FindAl

22. SICK OF DICK

Let’s face it, working in the porn industry has to become pretty disheartening. Even if you’ve got a really high sex drive, it must get tiresome after a while. If you’ve ever watched a porno (don’t pretend you haven’t), you can’t say that these stars don’t earn their money – and more power to them. It’s not for the fainthearted or for those with a weak stomach. I don’t blame this person for wanting to literally cut ties with any dick in their personal life, when they’re surrounded by them in their professional life. After all, who wants to take work home with them?

21. THE PERFECT NECKLACE

I know you’re thinking it, so allow me to reiterate. WHAT THE ACTUAL F***. Firstly, raise your hand if you could think of nothing better than mutilating the corpse of your beloved cat? No takers? Didn’t think so. What if I told you it was all so you could have his shrunken head hanging around your neck for the rest of your life? *Tumbleweed* What interests me most about this post is the ominous location. This poster isn’t confined to a single town. He is everywhere. No poor deceased animal is safe. I would really like to know if this is a thing, but I’m too scared to Google it.

20. MAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU

Since we’re all friends here, I feel safe making this confession. I have never seen Star Wars either. However, I have never felt the slightest desire too, unlike this gal. She is ready, primed and waiting to have her first encounter with Luke Skywalker (that’s one of the characters, right?). Not only is she ready, but she is kind enough to share this experience with another, in the hope of having some sort of markedly non-sexual encounter that will leave both parties feeling just as awkward. It’s amazing how someone who has never seen the movies before can be so excited about it. Someone bought into the hype, herh herh herh.

19. SHARKNADO

I don’t really know what’s going on here. Is it an inflatable shark, or a real shark with the capacity to shrink? Is it similar to the terrible Sharknado movies? It’s a dangerous business owning a lesser kept house shark. They roam around as they please, chomping on the furniture and picking their teeth with everything in sight. If you thought having a cat ceaselessly sharpening their claws on your new couch was bad, wait until you own a house shark – which you inevitably will, because apparently that’s what people do these days. Also, warm him up so he doesn’t sink? Wait, what? Do house sharks need blankets now? A pet is for life, not just for spring break.

18. BUTT LOVE AND HALL AND OATES

Okay, you’ve got me. This is the stuff that my fantasies are made up of. Actually, this is why I’m on Tinder full stop. This is where dreams are made…or where dreams come to die. I’m pretty sure it’s the latter. There’s someone out there for everyone, so let’s hope this poster found his back door lover and Hall and Oates enthusiast. The question on everyone’s mind must be – exactly what does his house smell of that makes it so amazing? I think it’s going to be something more exciting than a Christmas Cookie Yankee Candle. Sex and despair?

17. SUPPORT YOUR CANDIDATE

This is the kind of dedication that was needed on Bernie Sanders’ campaign trail. Where were the free blow jobs in the 2016 presidential race? I’m definitely not going to do it, but surely, anything to help the cause. The only issue here is that when you vote no-one is in the booth but you and the ballot slip, how would you know how all of your hard work and dedication has paid off? It’s a huge gamble to take and a very risky investment – especially seeing how most people would just take the solicitous sex act and run. Points for effort.

16. NO CREEPY GOTH STUFF

This is weird. Now imagine it in the voice of Sheldon from the Big Bang Theory. Even weirder, right? I have never personally been involved in role play to this level. This is extreme dedication that surpasses being so engrossed in Sims 4 that you don’t shower for 48 hours. This is blue body paint, staff wielding, sanctioned spell casting weirdness that turns men into mages. Are you the moon queen/druid our ogre is looking for? Since this was posted in 2007 I’m thinking he’s probably paired off and happily nestled away in his lair, but no fear. There are plenty more where he came from.

15. NEED SOMEONE TO SIT ON LAP

Well, now I’ve heard it all. I personally have back problems myself, so am I missing a trick here? Should I be putting out a desperately seeking lap sitter ad? I might consider it if I thought that was what this poster was really doing, but I’m not convinced. For a start, men might be physically stronger than women, but in this case, what has that got to do with anything? This poster wants someone to sit on them, not lift them – so why do they have to be in shape? Surely, the bigger the better as the more weight you have on you, the more anchored you will be? I’m calling BS here. What do you think?

14. LOVE AT FIRST LIMB

Here’s a story to tell the grand kids. ‘How did we meet? Oh, I saw your grandfather running down the street frantically trying to make his physiotherapy appointment, when one of his arms flew off. Dreamy.’ I have a feeling that this was a potential screen play for a Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan rom-com. It just oozes potential. This lonely heart got an arm instead. Let’s hope her love interest realized he was missing something sooner rather than later and hopped on to Craigslist to find this romantic proposal waiting for him. After all, it was in good company with the rest of the things this lady had collected from other potential victims – I mean, suitors.

13. PET ME, I’M LITTER TRAINED

If you’ve seen any of my other articles then you may already know that I am a cat lover. I am a huge fan of those fluffy four legged evil geniuses. Therefore, it might surprise you to know that I am not here for a human cat situation. I like my animals, animals. Plus, cleaning out the litter tray is bad enough when it’s kitty sized poops – I cannot understand why anyone in their right mind would want to deal with human turds in kitty litter, let alone make the turds in the litter themselves. This whole situation baffles me, but it’s what people do, just a quick look on YouTube will let you know that there are people out there who do this kind of stuff. So, if you ever find yourself wanting to hang up your human hat and try being a cat for a day, you can always try posting on Craigslist.

12. DON’T BE SCARED OF YOUR BROWSER HISTORY

I once had a boyfriend who was pretty tech savvy, so when my former boss had an issue with her computer, I offered up his services. When he came home, he was pretty mortified at what he had found on her computer. It’s safe to say that he could never look at her the same way after that. Would you be comfortable giving someone your computer to fix with your browsing and download history? Some things linger around even after you’ve deleted them – and God forbid you forget to empty the trash folder. All of those fears go away with this guy, who won’t look at your files – HONEST. Even if he does, who cares. Pay the man and continue downloading your freaky fetish porn.

11. PLEASE HANG OUT WITH ME

There is something really quite sad about this post. What’s worse is I bet some females would have actually done it. Who knows what gems lay in that record collection – although I suspect there are none left now. Maybe it was just a way to move into the digital age, or maybe they had a bad experience watching High Fidelity and needed to purge. The alternative is that this is a painfully lonely male with little to no social skills who is willing to trade a lifetime’s worth of vinyl for some female company, and that’s just too sad to consider.

10. BABYSITTER FOR DRUGGIES

The world could benefit from more of this type of honesty. Confused by the lack of payment offered for this role? Allow me to help. The payment is having this spectacular couple as friends to tend and love in an unreciprocated manner forever more. What more could you want from life than to find friends on Craigslist who only want you to do burger runs when they’re too messed up to face the harsh light of day? Money really pales in comparison to this glorious relationship, doesn’t it? However, should you want to ditch these D-bags and create a business that offers a similar service, I’m pretty sure people would pay for it. It’s called being a pizza delivery guy.

9. FREE CONDOMS FOR THE TAKING

Just a girl trying to get over her ex-boyfriend and rid herself of memories of his gigantic penis. Let’s face it, magnum condoms are intimidating. If a girl hands you one of those with great expectations that you literally can’t fulfill, it’s going to be a disaster for both you and her. Much safer to eliminate the threat before it arises. This girl isn’t just heartbroken, she’s smart. She even shoots down creepy guys before they’ve started creeping. She isn’t here for it, she has no time for guys, their magnum sized dicks and perverted emails. However, there were probably a few yellow-faced guys walking around in Clinton Hill circa 2009.

8. HERE’S THE SITUATION

Well, this wasn’t going to end well. Sometimes, people baffle me. Guys in particular. Here we have a male of the species openly admitting that a girl he didn’t know slept in his bed. He didn’t do anything, and told his girlfriend who was AMAZINGLY COOL about the entire thing. Yes, amazingly cool about a naked girl wandering into her boyfriend’s apartment at booty call hour – and yet, he ignores this and relentlessly pursues said naked girl who walks around wearing nothing but a bed sheet. Clearly, his ‘good situation’ isn’t good enough for him, and all it takes is temptation to lure him to the dark side of Craigslist. SMDH.

7. CARROT WANTS TO MEET YOU

I’m a little lost on this one. Is this someone thinking their quirkiness will get them a date? I’ve seen a lot on Tinder (believe me), but this takes the biscuit. I want to see a picture of the carrot in question and what makes it anatomically interesting. Is it because it’s not a carrot but in fact, a ginger haired person? What kind of special attention is this carrot looking for? Soup making, hummus dipping? Marriage? I have so many questions and since this post is from 2011, no one to answer them. Let’s hope that this poster found the vegetable lover of their dreams to partake in whatever sort of fetish this is.

6. 1500 LIVE LADYBUGS

The thought process behind this drunken decision would make an interesting diagram, don’t you think? The idea of opening this parcel when it arrives in the mail makes my skin crawl. I love a ladybug as much as the next person, but a swarm of 1500 crawling all over each other, fluttering their teeny tiny wings makes me feel quite ill. The poster clearly regrets the decision and is trying to save their little red and black souls – or feed them to a willing animal. Whichever gets them off of their hands quick enough. After all, he doesn’t want to ruin 1500 lives.

5. MAD SCIENTIST TO CLONE DOG

Wouldn’t it be nice if we could all go around cloning our favorite animals? In this Futurama worthy ad, this poster is looking for a run of the mill Mad Scientist to make all of his dreams come true. Just imagine it, lots of the best dogs in the world running around, making the world a better place. We could eradicate the ones that chew your shoes and pee in your purse, creating a utopia where humans and dogs live happily ever after, with no scolding or puppy training classes ever again. However nice this sounds, there is a reason that cloning only happens in top secret facilities. Dream on poster 3380474933.

4. TOPLESS DUNGEON MASTER NEEDED

‘You can have a bachelor party but NO STRIP CLUBS, OKAY?’ Not only did the groom and his friends bypass the strip club rule with finesse, they’ve orchestrated a Dungeons and Dragons themed game that will last no longer than 30 minutes. What are the chances. I like the cut of this poster’s jib. The gentlemanly manner in which he politely seeks out a female Dungeon Master is impressive and suave…or at least it was, up until the topless part and request for a C cup or greater. I still admire their ingenuity. At least it’s not thrusting dollar bills in the thong of a stripper at a place that smells of sweat and stale beer.

3. LOVELY GLOVE

Actor Tom Hanks has an Instagram dedicated to things he finds on the street, like singular gloves and lost keys. Was this you, Hanx? I wouldn’t be surprised, with his rapier wit and appreciation of the finer things in life. While it’s kind of the poster to go to the length of posting this poor lost accessory on Craigslist, would you really want it back when it’s coated in his butter-like sweat? I’d take a pass on that. What’s more, he doesn’t sound like he really wants to give the glove back. They’re having far too much imaginary fun and frolics, playing Risk and debating politics to part ways yet. However, if you can pay the ransom, he can be yours again.  The glove that is. Avoid the poster at all costs.

2. POSSIBLY IN NEED OF EXORCIST

Females like to be certain that the house they’re going to sleep in, isn’t going to kill them in their sleep. Personally, as a single female, I could care less about the house being broken into by thieves. I took one Tae Kwon-do class when I was 11, I’m good. Ghosts on the other hand, that’s a hell of a lot of NOPE. I am not here for that. I am fully with this girl. You go and get your exorcist and have him on speed dial. Just don’t expect your boyfriend to be completely understanding when you foot him with the bill. After all, it is his house.

1. SEEKING SNIFF PARTNER

You took the risk, Mark. You were worried about sounding strange and perverted – and you do. Reading this ad made me feel slightly ill. It was all swimming along nicely on a sea of ‘WTF’ until I got to the sniffing of the bellybutton and that’s when I threw up in my mouth. Everyone knows that bellybuttons are disgusting little holes of grossness, deep dark little places to be avoided by anything other than a cotton bud for cleaning purposes. Sniffing of the bellybutton is strictly forbidden, but not in Mark’s case. Mark likes it. Mark wants to sniff yours and you to sniff his, along with everything else on the planet. Not in a sexual way though, because that would be weird.

Source: uk.complex.com