NO JIVE
--==A Ghostories Library==--

I've Seen the Reaper's Wagon
by Mai
Hailing from: Oshkosh, WI
vangm72@uwosh.edu
Where the Spooky Event Occurred: Laos

When I was about 8 years old in Laos my cousin died of a disease that could not be cured.

On the night that she died strange things occurred -- like seeing her image again.

On the night that my cousin death, I was wandering off in search of my friends. But as I was walking I ran into a lady who looked just like my dead cousin. She was sitting next to a tree with blood surrounding the tree.

As I approached her, I thought she had been stabbed. Suddenly, she asked me to go and get help. This is what she said to me: "Little girl come here." So, I did, and said "Please go get help." Then as I turned around to go and get help, I looked back to see just how bad she had been injured -- but she was gone into thin air.

Then came a wagon with a body in the wagon. As the wagon passed, I asked the driver to see who was in the wagon, and as the driver let me peak inside the wagon, there was the lady's body, my cousin!

I was so afraid I never went out again. Until this day I still wonder if it was my imagination or whether I really had encountered a real ghost. I have told this story many times to my friends and family, but I don't think they believe in it.

An excellent tale indeed, and thanks! Could it possibly point to the trail of that ol' grim reaper? Hmmmmmm ...

 

Twin Peeks: My Sweet Kelly
by C. Lawton
Hailing from: Auckland, New Zealand
clawton@nz.oracle.com

Last year in the month of June my twin sister Kelly committed suicide, we were both 20 years old and I knew that at that time she was going through a depressed state. Being her closest sister I could sense her depression first off before anyone, but just thought that it was friends or maybe that she wasn't feeling well. Her mood swings were effecting mum and dad and they were concerned if she was sick or worried about anything that she could tell them, but she didn't let anyone know her reasons for being moody.

Two months before she died she started writing a journal. It wasn't a daily journal but she entered things in it that were occurring in her life or about how she was feeling. One of her entries captured my attention.

She wrote about a 22 year old man by the name of David and his visits to her. At first I thought it was someone she was seeing that none of us knew about, but as I read on she mentioned that David was a ghost, but he didn't scare her.

She went on how he came to visit her when she was alone in her room and when she was asleep. His presence was always +wlt because he would touch her lightly on her hair or on her shoulder, and it would be a very cold +weling. Kelly went on to say that this only happened in her room. At first when I read the story I was a little frightened that this was happening in our house, but then Kelly wrote that David was a gentle spirit that kept her company and she became very attached to him after some time.

Then her depression set in. She didn't want to live anymore and go through the hassles of being an adult with all the responsibilities involved.

I always knew she wanted life to be handed to her on a silver platter, and that she was never one to be realistic. She just ignored the important things in life and went on.

She entered into her journal that life was boring and that she didn't have the same direction or goals that I had. We were identical twins but had totally different personalities. I cried when I read that because I would have always tried to help her if she was sad. I wish I had been a better sister to her during her depressed time, and I get mad at myself for not being persistent enough to have helped her.

Kelly's last entry was 2 weeks before she died and it said that life with David would be more happier for her, she would plan her departure to be with David soon, and she hoped that everyone would understand what she was going through and that this is what she wanted to do.

I have never understood why she killed herself and neither has anyone else, the reason why she died is just too bizarre to understand.

On December 10th at about 11.00 p.m., I was closing all the windows and locking the doors in our house before I went to bed. Mum and Dad had gone away for a couple of days for a break from work and Mum still had not gotten over Kelly's death, so I was the only one at home as I was securing the house when I heard the sounds of someone running upstairs and laughter.

My heart started pounding as I knew no-one was in the house except for me. I wasn't sure what to do, so I grabbed one of Mum's kitchen knifes and started up the stairs. Then the running footsteps vanished into Kelly's old room and the laughter continued, now my stomach was churning and I was scared to even look. I just thought to myself that this can't be happening and gripped the knife tightly as I neared the entrance of the room. As I edged closer, I heard the sounds of two people, but couldn't understand what they were saying, I could only hear the voice of a male and female.

I asked who was there, but no-one replied so I stormed into the Kelly's bedroom. It was empty, I opened the wardrobe door to see if anyone was hiding in there and that was also empty.

But oddly, her bedroom window was open and a cool breeze was entering the room it was making me cold so I went over and closed it. As I turned around I was startled to see a hazy figure standing at the bedroom doorway. My heart felt like it was going to be ripped out as it was beating so fast, I stood in shock and stared in amazement. Even though I felt silly for asking, I asked if she was Kelly. I could tell by the shape of the figure that it was a female and then she started to come towards me. I backed off a bit and then she become familiar with me.

She was wearing faded blue jeans and a blue top. Tears were streaming down my face. These were the same clothes Kelly had worn when she had hung herself. Even though her face was not clear to me, I knew that she was smiling. She blew me a kiss and walked out of the room and into the hallway.

I ran after her but she had disappeared quicker than a blink of an eye. After that experience I have always had a feeling that Kelly is watching me. It's a scary memory I have of her visit, but I do feel comforted that she is not sad. I miss her deeply and have not seen her spirit since.

I hope she is finally at rest.

I've heard that twins have a sixth sense about each other. This could possibly be another confirmation!

 

Maids Depart Where Ghouls Rush In
by Jean R.
Hailing from: MI
JeanR@c3net.net
Where the Spooky Event Occurred: Old Country House

My sister-in-law and I had taken on the job of cleaning an old country house and of course it was way out in the country. The woman who owned the house had told us she thought it was haunted by two children who had lived there about 150 years ago. From what I understood the children had died there too. She had told us stories about electrical disturbances, strange noises in the night and all the things that we believe make a house haunted. I certainly was intrigued by her stories and really hoped I would be able to experience something in the way of some sort of presence.

My sister-in-law and I were very organized in the way we cleaned her house. You see it was very large and we made it a point to keep all our cleaning supplies together so that they would always be by our side. Not at this house, though ... we couldn't stay organized. We'd go to get a certain cleaning item and it would be gone ... usually found in another part of the house. It was like a child playing a prank on us. It totally baffled us because we knew where and when we put our supplies. Although we would laugh about the "losing of items," it was spooky too.

One afternoon, I was downstairs in the kitchen alone and I had the feeling I was not alone ... I really wasn't either. I looked up and saw a little blonde girl about six years old dressed in a long yellow dress chasing a ball through the front hallway. Chills were all over me at this point. I wasn't really frightened ... just mainly "blown away". I yelled for my sister-in-law right away. We quickly finished our house work. We left and never went back again.

Now here's a mystery! Let's see: Blondes have more fun? Halls and Balls mean missing Towels? (Oh boy, there I go again!) One bet I think I could make is that this particular home wasn't exactly spotless when you found it, right? Probably hard for them to keep in hire regular cleaning services, that is, unless you could find a new brand of ghoul, "The Invisible Maids!" (Oh gosh! I'm on a roll!) Well, anyway, you "maid" my day! Heh! And, thanks for sending it to us!

 

Show Me the Dough!
by Laney M.
Hailing from: San Mateo, CA
laneym@qualix.com
Where the Spooky Event Occurred: Clearlake, CA

This story is so very true. I was about 15, and living with my best friend and her family. We had gone out one night and came home kind of late. When we entered the house we could smell baking bread. We just assumed that her Mom had made some fresh bread. It would have been odd for her to bake fresh bread, but all the same no-one else cooked.

After going to bed, I awoke to a strange noise. I got out of bed thinking maybe someone was just up getting a snack so I thought I would join them. I went into the kitchen and saw three bread pans on the stove, I knew they weren't there earlier, just the aroma. I thought maybe my friends Mom had gotten up to take them out of the oven, but it was like 3:00am. I disregarded it and went back to bed.

The next morning when I woke up I went into the kitchen and the bread and the smell were gone. I asked my friend if she had had any of the bread that morning and she said there wasn't any. It seemed really weird to me. I wasn't sure what to think so when her Mom got up I asked her if she had baked some bread last night and she just laughed at me and said that it must have been the old lady who used to live there but died. I guess it had happened before and my "so called" best friend hadn't told me.

Kitchen stories are very weird, for sure. When I think about it, it gives a whole new reverence to Wonder Bread! I mean, I always wondered where those 12 strong ways went to anyway?? You agree?? Hmmmmm ... if it was dough, where did it go? If it was wheat, what do we eat? If it is rye, who di __ .... (Oh gosh, sorry, there I go again).Hey wait! Sniff ... sniff ... ah naw, I think that's just plain old flour power! Must be the sixites!!! --- What can I say (I can't be tamed), but thanks for sending it to us!

 

The Squeezer
by Angie Mash
Hailing from: Oshawa, ON
695295@mail.durhamc.ican.net
Where the Spooky Event Occurred: Three Places Where I Lived

I cannot recall the first time that this so called "spirit" overcame me, but I do know that it happened in the early spring of 1993. I was 16 at the time, and had left home. I was residing with my boyfriend, and we were living in an old unkept building. There were several other people who were renting apartments, and shortly after we moved in, we began to befriend many of the occupants. Our apartment was on the main floor, terribly in need of work, and we practically lived in our bedroom which was in the back of the apartment.

One night as Jerred (my boyfriend) was heading for the bathtub, I decided to click on the T.V. that was in our bedroom, and crawled into bed. The only light that was on in the whole apartment was in the bathroom. As I began to dose off, but still being aware of the television on, and Jerred getting out of the tub, I felt a strange presence begin to crawl on the bed towards me. A strange and powerful force paralyzed me and I was unable to say a thing. This presence wrapped it"s arms around me and held me tight and a voice whispered in my ear "Ohhhhhhh, Angieeeee" -- in a very troubling voice. In my mind I was freaking out and one of the first things that came to my mind (other than I could swear I was going crazy) was, "Dear God help me!!" Eventually, after repeating this in my mind a couple of times, the spirit released me, and I was able to sit up and scream.

Several other times this happened to me -- even after we moved into a better and well-kept local building. Many times Jerred would not believe me, until one night around 2:00 a.m., Jerred sat up straight in bed and yelled "God help me!!!!" After that there were no doubts that I was not crazy.

The odd thing about this was, when I became pregnant in late 1994, the whole time not once did this happen. The next time it happened, my son was 6 months old, Jerred had left me, and I was now occupying my grandfather's old apartment in which he had passed away in. I was lying on the couch having a nap while my son napped, and the spirit came up the stairs and grabbed with such a force that I could swear it had missed me or something. By this time I was not really scared of this thing, and although I didn't really enjoy the experiences, I could now at least expect it.

One Friday night, as I sat by myself in my dark apartment, with only the T.V. on and my fish tank light, I felt like I wasn't alone in the room. Usually these experiences only happened when I was falling asleep, but for some reason I guess, this night was different.

From behind my rocking chair, the figure of my grandfather stood in a shadow on the wall behind my lit up fish tank. I just about lost it!! After telling my father about this, (my parents lived in the main floor of the house while I lived on top of their garage) my father agreed that there was something up there in my apartment.

He told that several times, shortly after my grandfather died, he could hear my grandfather's oversized slippers coming down the stairwell that connected the two apartments together. He also said that a couple times during the night he would wake to see my grandfather standing at the end of his bed staring at him.

Now although this may not really be that SCARY, when you are put through such experiences, it can really give you the jitters. To this day, although I moved again, I've had the spirit walk through my kitchen door down the hall, and into my bedroom to where I am lying just to make sure that I haven't forgotten him. Believe me, I never will.

I've heard of stalkers before, but your ghostly squeezer gives me the jitters too! And, just when you think you've given him the slip (it was a him, right???), in shuffle the relatives! Hmmm ... I wonder if they were trying to protect you from the squeezer!! You should check your family ancestry and see if there was some weird relative mucking up your family tree. Maybe Grandpa is busy fending him off for you!!! (If you hear an odd "smack!" in the middle of the night, possibly Grandpa slapped him with a slipper!) Good luck, and thanks for the tale. I liked it!

Boo!
by M. Farley
Hailing from: Hinesville, Ga
Faion@InfoAve.net
Where the Spooky Event Occurred: Berlin, Germany, Just outside of Potsdam.

I once had a ghost that haunted my home in Utah, but he never scared me -- instead he became a cherished member of our family. I liked him so much that before we left for Germany, I found a way to set him free into the next life. But, the story I am about to relate really isn't about me but about a poor American GI that I nearly scared to death in Potsdam. I thought I would tell this story because it was really funny.

I belong to a medieval reenactment group, the Society for Creative Anachronism (SCA). We often held camping events at a Boy Scout campground on the banks of the Wansee (pronounced Von See) Lake. This area is rich with medieval history. A castle still stands on the other side of the lake, it was a hunting castle called Potsdam. When you go to a SCA event, you go in full medieval dress, or at least I do. At the time of the event, the mornings and evenings were often heralded with thick, pea-soup fog that would roll in and out in waves. One moment you can see everything around you the next, you would be lucky to see a few feet in front of you.

It was on such a day, in March of 1991, that I decided to go for a walk. I knew that the fog would lift soon and I decided not to wait. I could hear a dog far off in the distance and decided to walk to where the dog was barking. I was wearing a long light blue heavily woven dress with blue flat boots. I had a dark brown cloak with sheep skin lining to protect me from the cold. I had the hood up and pulled down somewhat low because my face was getting a little nippy. My low boots and the moist ground allowed for me to walk almost without a sound.

I could tell that I was getting closer because the dog was now barking frantically, heralding my approach. The fog was still pretty thick and the rolls and waves weren't happening very often either. I really couldn't tell where I was. I could hear a man say in English, "What is it boy? What's got you spooked?" I remember turning toward the sound of the voice and I had stopped there, with my hands on my hips. At that moment, the fog rolled back. From out of the blue, there they were. Man and dog on one side of a fence. Me with all my medieval regalia on the other side. I was very startled to see them that close, and I'm sure it showed on my face. The man looked at me from the bottom up taking in the boots, dress, cloak and half hidden started face. He turn very pale, green began to foam under his chin, and he began to scream. "Ghost, ghost, oh my God it a . . . ghost!!!" The soldier dropped the dog's leash and took off running in the opposite direction, the dog close at his heels. At the time the fog waved back in and separated me from his view. Needless to say I hurried out of there and back to the camp ground.

When I got back to camp, everyone wanted to know what was going on. They had heard that man's screams all the way to the campground!! We all had a good laugh. I wanted to go to where the soldier worked at and explained what had happened, but I didn't like the idea of possibly getting shot.

I've been waiting for a funny story here in the Ghost Tales, and that one really is great!! Thank you so much for submitting it to us! It kind of reminds me of that "Three Stooges" episode where they romp around the graveyard scaring and chasing each other and the bad guys! And your description was so tight that I could really envision what it was like to be there with you in the fog. Excellent story! Three cheers!

 

"Up A Creak"
by Tammi
Hailing from: Oviedo, Florida
Where the Spooky Event Occurred: Oviedo, Florida

When I was a teenager, I used to go and visit my cousin every chance that I got. Our grandfather, who was a minister, died of cancer two years before I was born. His favorite daughter was my cousin's mother. She used to always tell me that my grandfather was still in their house but I never believed it.

Many strange things would happen in the house over the next several years that convinced me there really are ghosts. One day my aunt's basement caught on fire. This is where she kept my grandfather's bible and his favorite hat in a box. Well when the fire was put out and they were wading through the waist high water, everything was completely ruined except for my grandfather's box with his bible and hat completely untouched!

Another time when I was visiting, my cousin and I were in the family room that was downstairs and had absolutely no windows. We were watching TV, I was sitting on the couch and kind of next to me but up a little was my cousin in the chair. At the exact same time we both turned to each other because on the wall was a gray shadow of a tall man. We were the only ones at home. We both jumped up and ran out of the house scared.

Another time, my aunt came home from work for lunch. She was upstairs and heard the front door open so she called out. When no one answered, she went down, saw that no one was there so she shut and locked the door and went back upstairs -- but it happened again. This time, before she could go down the stairs she heard someone walking up the stairs yet she couldn't see anyone.

Things like that have happened many times. You could hear him rocking in the rocking chair in the bedroom above the family room, or banging. My cousin and my aunt have both awakened to someone gently caressing or shaking them. I used to think that it was very scary before but now I think it's wonderful that I've got him near me since I didn't get to meet him before he passed on. But every now and then when I go to visit, I feel someone watching me and it gives me goose pimples!!

I used to go to Windsor, Ontario, Canada and visit my Grandmother, Aunt and Uncle at the house where my grandfather passed on. Although I had known him before his death, I always thought when I passed by the room he had slept (and died) in, that someday I would hear or maybe see him. But I never did. The place you decribe sounds very much like the house I used to visit -- so it makes it easy for me to visualize the episodes you describe.I remember when my grandfather passed on, he was in bed and my Aunt and Uncle were downstairs. To signal when something was wrong, he used to take his shoe and bang it on the hardwood floor in his room so they would come a-running with his medicine. True to form, he banged his shoe, but this time when they reached his bedside, he was gone. So, you see, the banging sounds you describe remind me of my grandfather's "help" signal. I wonder if your grandfather had one of those signals too.

Once again, a group of very fine stories. Thank you so much for taking the time to share them with O'Neill's Ghostories!

 

Inherited Guardian, No Travel -- You Best Behave!
by Jane Spake Hansen
E-mail: Janey@mail.RogersU.Edu
Hailing from: Tulsa, OK
Where the Spooky Event Occurred: Norman, Ok.

My father, although he attempts to play the skeptic now, has been psychic since his near-death experience in his late teens. Our whole family seems to have inherited different extra-sensory powers from both of our parents (telepathy, telekinesis, out of body experiences ...), but I seem to be the one that gained dad's former guardian.

He knew he had something/someone guiding him, until he took his first overseas assignment with the Foreign Service in '78. Until that point, he had INCREDIBLE luck! He could walk by slot machines and know which ones would hit the jackpot (a little voice spoke up inside his head, or he would just get the urge to stop at a particular one), and anytime he was worried about finances, that voice/urge (his guardian of course!) would encourage him to look around. In one instance, $20 was blowing his way in the wind. Another time, he stopped to pick up a 2-by-4 and found money stuck to it too!

Anyway, before we moved away from Indonesia in 1980, dad went to a psychic with his buddies and was told right off the bat that he'd had a guardian for quite some time, but that it did not want to follow him over the ocean (Dad is a native Oklahoman), so had left him. Which dad says he had sensed since his "luck" hadn't been the same since we'd moved overseas.

Now I only learned of dad's guardian when talking with him over the past few months, and actually his stories came up as a result of me commenting that "I think I have a guardian angel or spirit." My guardian has been with me since my late teens as well, and manifests in pleasant, albeit different, ways.

1. Whenever my husband has upset me, books will fall off the shelves onto him, he'll walk into doors he thought were open the moment before, stub his toes on anything available ..(He is not simply uncoordinated! All other times he's quite agile - he's a mountain bike racer and gymnastics coach!)

Also, light bulbs have a tendency to explode if I am annoyed in any way with him - not just burn out, but shatter while still screwed into the socket!

2. Lights go off and on signalling people with good or bad "vibes" who enter our home.

3. The guardian also manifests as a shadow-like form which both my husband and myself see randomly.

But before I take another seg-way ... let me get to the story I wanted to relate to you, now that you have sufficient background!

While I was in college in Norman, Oklahoma I had a series of roomies come and go through my three bedroom house. The only one that left on bad terms with me was Cheri - who bolted out in the middle of the night one Friday, only to return a week later to pack up and get the heck out as fast as she could!

Apparently, the fact that the hall light turned itself off and on, or the little girl's voice we occasionally heard singing in the back bedroom, were really starting to freak her out and the nightmare she had that prompted her to move was the last straw!

The story she related to me in regards to her move was that she had dreamed that a demon was at the foot of her bed trying to pull her out, and it was so incredibly real that when she awoke she found herself sitting up in bed and pushing against where the demon was in her dream. She was so frightened that she tried to pray, but was too scared to even remember a prayer and finally just repeated to God over and over to send her a guardian angel.

Meanwhile, it is about 1 a.m. and I am awakened in my room by a phone call from her lawyer boyfriend who NEVER, EVER, called past 10 p.m., so I go and knock on her door to tell her he's on the phone. She gets up, tells him the story, he tells her I must be a satanic worshipper and she needs to get the heck out of that house so she does right then and there! What gets me is she tells me he is the guardian she was praying for - although she never even heard the phone ring that night! It was me who came to her room when she was trying to pray! (To his credit, Michael had a bad feeling and called her to check ...).

Well, Cheri moves out and I am scared to death to be in the house by myself since I'm sure there must be a demon there, so my best friend Donna brings over a channeler to check things out. The channeler walks in and right away says, "you have such incredible light in here - it is a very grounded and positive spiritual space ... except for this trail of fear from this bedroom over to the phone in the living room" (Cheri's midnight trail of fear ...).

The channeler tells me I have nothing to worry about, so I felt much more relaxed about my home. The very next day, I arrive home from work and sit at the dining table to do bills. I am facing the living room, the hall is to the right at the end of the table, and there is no one home but myself, but somehow the incense burner I had placed in Cheri's room to "clear the bad vibes" out had been moved to the floor at the other end of the table with a new stick on incense placed in it! As I walked around the table and saw it there (of course it was not there when I came in to sit at the table!) a strong sense of calm and reassurance came over me, I "felt" as if someone was telling me everything would be fine that the incense was a token of reassurance, so I lit it. I have had more contact/awareness of my guardian, and have not had any frightening experiences since. Odd ones, but not scary ones!

Great story, Jane! Remind me to keep a good stock of fresh bulbs if ever I come to your house to visit! And, thanks for sending it in, we appreciate it!

 

I Heard Noises! Grab the Cat!
by Thomas F.
E-mail: codys8@aol.com
Hailing from: Bensalem, Pennsylvania
Where the Spooky Event Occurred: My Best Friend's Home

The story about to be told was already written before, only this time I've added a little more background and detail.

It was summer, in Bensalem, PA. My buddy's parents and mine had taken a vacation together and I was staying at his house most of the time, mainly because my sister and brother were staying at my house. His parents were gone and his sister spent the week nights at a friend's.

Well, Eric (my best friend whose house it was) had this really eerie freaky doll which he had all his life. His mother (I think) owned it before him. Anyway, Eric always claimed to have a ghost child in the house. He said something about some kid dying but I never really paid any attention to the stories until that week.

Eric claimed that when he was little the child would play with his toys when he wasn't around. (Guess what toy or doll resided in the play area? You got it, the doll). One night we were all goofing off and decided to play a trick on Eric, so my buddies took the doll out of the closet where it was kept and told Eric that the thing had come out of the closet! OOOOOHHHH! Eric believed it because he said it was one of the toys that the child played with.

Yeah, right! I said a flamboyant way -- and I jumped on the doll and started to beat it up. To make a long story short, it supposedly moved a couple of times. The next day I was playing cards with my girlfriend in his dining room where this big antique china closet was behind me. I got up to see where Eric was and as I walked away the door, that should have been magnetically held in place, opened up in front of our eyes (more mine than my girlfriend's because she was looking towards the other direction at the television). That door could not have opened by itself because its wood is partially warped and it takes a good shove to close it,and a hard tug to yank it open.

O.K freak accident! Not a big deal you say! WRONG! The next day I was sitting at Eric's counter that connects to the kitchen. About thirty feet away there is the front door and steps leading upstairs -- and here's what happened to make Eric a second believer.

I was reading a newspaper at the counter and Eric was on the couch behind me talking on the phone and making plans. It was around nine-ish. I started to hear noises from upstairs! OK, it was his sister, but was she home? Sure, she had to be so I got up and yelled to her as I walked towards the stairs when all the noises stopped. (The noises were distant the entire time and were like a radio personality and country music singing).

Now picture this: here is Eric inquiring who I'm yelling at, and here's me answering (very unsure) "your sister" -- and I got really cold scary feeling that came over me when he replied she had not been home all day!

Wow, ok. I think to myself, I'm just imagining it. So I sat back down but the noises started again. So I headed for the steps with the noise staying in the distance -- but this time they were not quitting so I ran over to Eric a little and yelled several times for him to come over there. Finally, he started walking over towards me and as we turned to take the final few steps to the railing when the noises stopped. This time, however, Eric had moved fast enough to hear them.

We wanted to leave, but we stopped and thought there had to be an alarm clock on playing music or his sister left a radio on (anything logical). We were freaked out. I grabbed on of his cats and we started up the stairs. I took the cat with me because I had heard cats can sense or see apparitions or evil or whatever. I wanted to see this thing and also be aware if it was around.

We went up the stairs and checked every room, every alarm clock, radio, stereo -- anything that would produce voices. We found nothing. In fact, most were unplugged and if they weren't, they sure as heck weren't set to any country music stations or talk shows. The buttons on the stereo were set to tape/CD, but there was nothing in them!

WHERE THE HECK DID THOSE NOISES COME FROM?? It had to be that ghost that Eric talked about. I sure of it!

Sorry about the super fine details about how i was feeling at certain moments, but those are just like the feelings everyone else experiences when they are freaked out. That was just my story on how i came to believe Eric. Even though I always believed in ghosts and the paranormal that was the first vivid memory of something was related to it, at least for me personally.

The moral of the story just has to be: Always keep a cat handy when searching for the inexplicable sounds of country music or Rush Limbaugh!

Ah, but one last question: Is that's what's known in ghost circles as a Cat Scan!!! bahahhahhahaha --- oppps, sorry!

 

Here Grandpa, There Grandpa
by Christina Jacobs
E-mail: jayduo@localnet.com
Hailing from: N. Tonawanda, NY
Where the Spooky Event Occurred: My Old House in Olean, NY

My story takes place in a little town called Olean which is in the southern part of New York. I was living with my grandmother and mother at the time. The house we lived in was designed and built by my grandfather who died in his sleep a year after the house was done. The house is a very small house with two bedrooms and a bathroom, and these rooms were located you could walk out of any of the three and see the fireplace, kitchen, and living room.

There is a little bit of background information you'll need to understand the story. And by the way, this is all true.

I was around 14 years old when all of these sightings happened. I was going through a very depressed time in my life. I had the eating disorder called anorexia, and I also had insomnia. Every night about 2:00 a.m. I would wake up, and walk out of my room into the living room, and sit beside my dog Skippy who always slept on a cushion behind the sofa. Every time I would walk out of my room I would see this white figure go from the television in the living room to the stove in the kitchen, and it would pass right through the chair and the counter (table) that separated the kitchen and the living room. The white figure was in the shape of a huge person, but you could not see any details at all. Just a white figure surrounded by a ball of light. That is the only way I can think of to describe it. These sightings happened every night throughout my teen years.

I was never scared, but I always got this cold chill that ran up my back. My dog also woke up, and started to growl when this white figure was around.

One morning I decided to tell my grandmother about what I had been seeing. She always used to tell me that grandpa was watching out for us, but she would never say anything about what I told her. It was like she totally ignored my story altogether. So the next time I saw my aunt I told her all that I had told my grandma, and I asked her what she thought about the sightings. She said the same thing that my grandma said, but she also said that dad (her dad, my grandpa) promised that he would always be around the house watching out for everyone in their times of need, or sorrow. Before, when I was a little girl, I never saw these sightings. It was only when I was depressed and anoretic that I saw them. He must have been that white figure I had been seeing all those nights. I was definitely a sorrowful time for me.

So here's how I see it, even when a family member dies, a promise still stays true.

Nothing funny about feeling low or about things that affect your appetite. That's for sure, and I know those things should be taken seriously. Still, I can't help but wonder why Gramps took that shortcut through the kitchen counter and made a bee-line to the stove?!! Hmmmmmmm....maybe you two have/had more in common than you might think!

 

Light Me a Candle, or Two -- Then Run!
by Susan Polhemus
E-mail: Susan_Polhemus@net.qm.nichols.com
Hailing from: Vienna, Virginia
Where the Spooky Event Occurred: Northern Virginia

Having been raised in a house that had a definite presence as well as experiencing several other strange phenomena over the years has certainly driven my interest in the paranormal to the top of the scale.

My friend and I have toured Mt. Vernon in Virginia -- and as luck would have it, the illustrator of Mt. Vernon's Book of Ghost Stories just happened to be our tour guide. During the tour, though, it was mandated that she only refer to the antiques and not what Keith and I came there for (to obtain as much information as possible and, perhaps, be fortunate enough to actually experience something "out of the ordinary"). The tour ended and we finally were able to speak to her "off-the-record." She spoke of several incidents and they are as follows:

1.) Claudia (our tour guide) was closing Mt. Vernon after it had been rented for an evening social function. She was on the top floor blowing out candles and closing (perhaps locking) the doors to the respective bedrooms. Finally, she was finished for the night and closed/locked the main entrance behind her. She walked to her car, got in and turned on the ignition key. It was at that moment that Claudia looked up at the top level of the house and saw that in every room, the candles were lit. AND SHE WAS THE LAST ONE IN THE HOUSE. Needless to say, she high-tailed it out of there.

2.) Claudia and several other tour guides/preservationists were starting their day as usual at beautiful Mt. Vernon. They basically arrived at the same time and let themselves in. (Now, for those that haven't been afforded the opportunity to view this beautiful piece of history, the main door faces a winding, central wooden staircase. This is the Main Hall). Claudia was ascending the stairs in order to open up the top floor for the daily tours, made it about half way up, and encountered a sort of misty spot. This misty spot was extremely cold. She was scared. Several of the other people there were also witness to this event. They were scared too. They all felt a presence, including their boss, whom emphatically (before) did not believe in the paranormal. I think he does, now.

Being myself a real nut about older buildings, I relish the thought of a good ghost story in any historical edifice, structure, monument, building, tower, turret, castle -- ok, ok ... you get the picture! (Heh, sorry!) Anyway, I remember talking to the tour guide at the Hotel Coronado, in the Port of San Diego, and she had some hair-raising tales too. Really, really cool stuff and, well, I bow to you in the famous old Virginia tradition of the 13 Colonies for sending these great accounts . . .

But, say, didn't the Washington's greet each other with a bow at all stately meetings? And, when entering the Great Hall wasn't it tradition to pause halfway down the staircase so as to make an impression for all to notice the arrival of the host? Not to mention that it was most likely forbidden for any "caretaker" to even think of ascending the great staircase! And, weren't all the candles lit on the upper floors when the master's arrival was expected after an excursion away from the manor? In a manner of speaking? Or was it the servants that were "lit" by the time he arrived back home (or was it when he was away) -- hmmmmmm -- I'm not sure, I have to go ponder that one -- meanwhile, one can only wonder . . .

 

 

New Improved Casper! Benevolent, Never Malevolent
by Carla Boltin-Romere
E-mail: cboltin@jtlshop.jonesnet.org
Hailing from: Fayetteville, Arkansas
Where the Spooky Event Occurred: College Station, Texas

I guess you could call this a "Casper" ghost story. I lived in a 100+ year old house in College Station, Texas while I was going to college at Texas A&M. There were six of us living there, two women and four men. I had a front bedroom, Michele had the back bedroom with our bathroom, and the guys shared the biggest room and the other bathroom.

I was always a very sound sleeper and would not wake up to the alarm clock, so Michele would come in and wake me up every morning for class. Tuesday mornings we both had 8 a.m. classes. One Tuesday morning, Michele came in and tapped me on the shoulder and woke me up as usual. I got up and headed to the back of the house to take a shower. When I got back there Michele was back in bed. I asked her why she went back to bed and she said that she had NEVER GOTTEN UP! She told me she didn't come wake me up at all! So we finally figured out that it was "Casper" making sure we weren't late for class!

Another day we were sitting on her bed reading Cosmopolitan and doing one of their insidious surveys and got thirsty. I went to the kitchen, got us each a drink and went back across the hall. I noticed the closet was open at the end of the hall. After I dropped off our drinks I went back to close the closet door. It was a really old house and the closet door would stick and we'd really have to push it hard to get it to close. So I did. Shortly thereafter I went to refill our drinks and the closet was open again! We were sitting 8-10 feet from the door with the bedroom door open and would have SEEN & HEARD ANYONE who opened the door. But, we didn't see or hear anything.

Just as a test we tried (re-closing the door) several times and I think "Casper" was just having fun with us because while we couldn't open the door without making any noise, it opened of its own accord at least four times that afternoon! We determined that we did indeed live in a haunted house but none of us were afraid because our ghost was at least friendly, albeit a bit mischievous! If I ever have to live in a haunted house again, I hope "Casper" is there!

What! No semi-transparent ghoulish visions??! No moaning in the middle of the night?!! (Hey, wait a second Ken, this is a family site!) No short dolls running across the floor with large knives??! (Nope, that's Karen Black and it's as old as the hills . . .) Welllll, now that I think of it, we've received a lot of friendly ghost stories here. But I have only to wonder . . . hmmmmm . . . a co-ed house, and aren't Texas guys somewhat mischievous? And, since it was college, were those iced teas or Mint Juleps you were a- sippin'? And, could that have really been Freewheelin' Franklin in the closet? Or, hey, here's a scarier thought, if that wasn't a ghost, and it wasn't Michele, WHO was it in your room that morning???? Hmmmmmm! (If you're blushing we'll have to start a new site, called "True Confessions!"

Naw, it was probably Casper! (Thanks for the story! Now go close that door at the end of the hall where you live now! And bring me one of those Juleps! Er, please?)