Scary Question Number 11:

How do you know you have a dangerous poltergeist?

The past few months I’ve been seeing a seemingly porcelain man who has no face except to black as night eyes. Things have been shooting across my room at times and an old out of battery christmas music bear keeps playing music at night. Ive also been waking up with cuts and I’ve found flammable objects in the oven. Whenever I record audio there’s a voice in the backround. Is this going too far?

(1) If you are being physically harmed by a poltergeist, there is a good chance it is a dangerous poltergeist and not one that is there to do your laundry and read you bedtime stories. (2) “Is this going too far?” What??? Um, if you’re totally cool with the freaky and violent activity, well then hell no it’s not going too far! If, on the other hand, you are a normal rational person (which I am guessing by the questions you are most certainly not), I’d say this stuff is pretty much beyond your typical nighttime activity and might just be crossing the line in to the intolerable and scary as hell. I’d like to know what this person’s “normal” life was like before this stuff started happening for them to not be sure if this was really freaky and dangerous. If it’s a member of the Jesco White family of West Virginia, I could see how these questions could make sense.

Source: http://mysticbanana.com/how-do-you-know-you-have-a-dangerous-poltergeist.html

Scary Question Number 12:

How do i become a poltergeist?

I was curious about how i could become a poltergeist and weather or not it would be permanant.

Ok, what is up with the nutty poltergeist questions? Is it because they’re working on a remake of the 1982 horror classic? Which preteen actress will meet with the movie’s curse this time? Has the little girl who played Carol Anne in the original movies been alleged to have come back as a poltergeist herself? That could be a new movie right there, Hollywood. So this lunatic wants to become a poltergeist. Does he realize he has to die to do that? For most people, death is pretty permanent, so I am guessing that would be a problem for this guy. This guy’s other posts consist of: “lolenvironment” and “BP hate topic make me sad =(” so I am not sure the dude is clever enough to realize the part about death, or that being dead could be permanent. He seems to be doing a good enough job being an idiot troll on the Yahoo message boards for now, so maybe he just wants to be able to continue to wreak a little minor havoc when he’s gone. What’s really weird, sad, and disturbing is that he’s not the only one asking this question. Come on, people, take some anger management classes and quit focusing on how to continue to be troublesome bastards after you die.

Sources:
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20100702034208AAx2t9S
http://mysticbanana.com/how-do-i-become-a-ghost-or-poltergeist-after-i-die.html

Have you seen a scary question? Let me know!

- Julie

Captain Scott McLean has been at the station for almost ten years and insists the place is haunted. He said the firefighters have learned to work around it. Ghostly activities include doors being opened, objects being moved, and strange noises being made. Firefighter Anthony Brown felt a presence pin him to his bed in the middle of the night recently and tried to call out but all that came out were mumbles. McLean says the same thing once happened to him.

As a result of the hauntings, many of the firefighters refuse to sleep at the station, choosing either to sleep in their cars or stay up watching television. Other firefighters refuse to work there entirely.

Who haunts firefighters? What kind of irritating spirit gets its jollies by annoying and depriving of sleep the very people who have dedicated their lives to protecting others at a moment’s notice? We want them to be as well rested as possible. This ghost must think it’s pretty hot stuff to have scared a bunch of people who rush into burning buildings for a living. Well, haunting firefighters is like haunting policemen or medical staff. It’s just not thoughtful. Maybe if the building is demolished, the ghost can go find some other place to haunt, like a convenience store or a donut shop. Wouldn’t that be more fun anyway?

- Julie

Sources:
http://www.firerescue1.com/fire-news/829983-calif-officials-tackle-firehouse-ghost-problem/
http://firegeezer.com/2010/06/14/haunted-firehouse-to-be-replaced/
http://www.orovillemr.com/news/ci_15287253

He ought to at least get a complimentary breakfast for that

It used to be that having what seemed to be a ghost in one’s hotel room was grounds for calling the front desk and demanding a room change. Now it’s a reason to seek out particular hotels to book an exciting vacation.

Several hotels, likely in dire need of income from summer guests after the past few years of people indulging in “staycations” to save money, are cashing in on the recent surge in interest in the paranormal to entice tourists to book stays.

In Eureka Springs, Arkansas, two hotels are running a special deal for tourists interested in being haunted. Here’s what the “Paranormal Pair Package” entails: a room for one night at the Crescent Hotel, rumored to be haunted, of course; a room for one night at the Basin Park Hotel, also haunted, two ghost tour tickets for each hotel (yes, the hotels are even *charging extra* for possible encounters with spirits); and my favorite part, two “collectible ghost squeezees.”

I had no idea what a squeezee is. The Google failed to enlighten me, but the historichotels.org site informed me that it is a “a foam hand-held stress reliever in the shape of a ghost.” Well, that sounds like a fabulous and durable souvenir. Maybe a glow-in-the-dark ghost keychain or cup would be better. If you book the “Spirit of The Crescent Package,” you get a video and a t-shirt. The “Most Fun” package a t the Basin Park Hotel comes with all kinds of ghost tour and underground tour tickets and a disposable camera (great for taking blurry pictures – proof of ghosts, you know – and pictures of orbs – not dust! No! Ghosts!).

The Inn at Duck Creeke in Wellfleet is also claiming to be home to some spirits who bring a little extra to the guests’ stays. A recent article in the local paper highlighted tales of ghostly activity at the hotel. The owners claim they don’t tell the guests about the ghosts but will chat about them if the guests bring it up. (1) Right. They don’t like to talk about it, hence the newspaper article in which they go on at length about it. (2) Nice. That’s as bad as not telling the guests that the hot water tends to be absent, then saying “oh, yes. That happens from time to time. Ha ha. Sorry about that. Hope that hasn’t affected your stay.”

Naturally, the Stanley Hotel (the setting for Stephen King’s book, “The Shining”) is attempting to draw in tourists with some good paranormal pr work. The hotel offers historic ghost tours, a special Halloween weekend including “The Shining Ball” (the flyer shows an eerie image of a man with an axe, with REDRUM scrawled in red below him), and a gift shop that sells all kinds of goodies commemorating the famous novel. When I visited there years ago, I bought a postcard in the gift shop, and it was just a regular picture of the hotel, with no hint of any kitschy ghosty murdery stuff on it. The woman working in the shop said “Just the card?” to me in as icy and snobby a tone as she could muster, as if I were being the biggest cheapskate ever (hey, I was, I was in grad school amassing colossal student loan debt). I thought, hey, lady, YOU’RE the one working in a shop surrounded by “redrum” sweatshirts, so perhaps you ought to take the condescension down a notch, hmm? I’m sure they probably sold squeezees, too.

- Julie

Sources:
http://www.arkansas.com/hotdeals/details.asp?id=3792&cat=1
http://www.crescent-hotel.com/ghosts/index.html
http://americasmosthauntedhotel.com/packages.htm
http://thecabinet.com/darkdestinations/location.php?sub_id=dark_destinations&letter=b&location_id=basin_park_hotel__eureka_springs_ghost_tour
http://www.historichotels.org/stress_check
http://www.wickedlocal.com/truro/features/x1350924468/Ghost-sightings-part-of-everyday-life-at-Wellfleet-inn

Some planning gone seriously wrong resulted in construction of a primary school in a graveyard. How did someone not discover this problem before the bulldozers moved in? Residents managed to halt construction temporarily while they sued to have the school built elsewhere.

Officials apparently decided it would be easier to clear land in the cemetery than to evict people illegally occupying government land that would be sufficient for school space.

This wouldn’t be a first. Schools elsewhere have been built on graveyards, like a school in Toledo, Italy, and a school in New Westminster, British Columbia, Canada, among others. In Illinois, there are reports of multiple schools built over graveyards, and many of those schools are said to be haunted.

Well, I suppose despite the creepiness of having children occupy buildings construction over burial sites, there could be some benefits. Maybe really clever and not easily scared kids can figure out a way to get any ghosts present to help them get the answers to tests or hack into the computer system to change their grades. Productions of “Hamlet” could have real ghosts drafted into service. Pranksters could pull all kinds of stunts and blame them on the ghosts. Do you suppose they’ll have the school nurses trained on minor exorcisms?

- Julie

Sources:

http://tribune.com.pk/story/19840/memon-mohalla-haunted-by-%E2%80%98ghost%E2%80%99-school/
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/02/world/europe/02toledo.html
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/british-columbia/school-threatens-to-disturb-chinese-burial-ground-for-second-time/article1590205/
http://theshadowlands.net/places/illinois.htm

A cleric was brought in to investigate and said the woman’s spirit was not at peace because she was raped and murdered at that location before it became a police station.

The hauntings have been going on since April, when the headquarters moved to the building. Officers reported at least three separate incidents.

- Julie

Sources:
http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/6/1/nation/6378565&sec=nation
http://sify.com/news/female-ghost-in-malaysian-police-lock-up-giving-cops-nightmares-news-international-kgbouebaajd.html
http://www.yourdiscovery.com/conspiracies/legends/pontianak/index.shtml

Scary Question Number 6:

Has funeral homes haunted? I’m doing an internship for funeral directing and will be staying in a fun. home

I enjoy the work. But am curious about what life wl be like while living in a funeral home for a year. Will this affect my dating life?

Um. Wow.

Source: http://www.buryorburn.com/1074/has-funeral-homes-haunted-im-doing-an-internship-for-funeral-directing-and-will-be-staying-in-a-fun-home/

Ok, so the next one isn’t a question, but it’s scary anyway.

Scary Statement Number 1:

I want to be so full of God’s power that it makes people afraid. So afraid that they have to believe.

I’m pretty sure God hasn’t been so hot on humans having enough power to make people afraid. If I recall my Sunday School lessons correctly, that job seems to have been taken by the angels already. Anyway, based on her other website, this lady might just want to ease up on the Red Bull.

Sources:
http://www.dangerousbutgood.com/
http://www.homeeverafter.com/about/

Scary Question Number 7:

I am in my 40s and have never lost anyone close to me. Unfortunately, my darling mother-in-law has terminal cancer. I am now preoccupied that people’s spirits are near us after they die.

Please don’t laugh, but it gives me the creeps. I don’t want to think my mother-in-law will watch me making love with my husband, that my father will watch me in the bathroom or that my mother will be critical of my spending more time with my kids than cleaning the house as she did.

Am I crazy to think I might not have any privacy after my loved ones die?

Maybe, maybe not, but who says the dearly deceased would want to pay attention to any of that? Like your mother-in-law wouldn’t have anything better to do? Will they be somehow forced to observe every second of your life? Then there must be a hell after all. This one gets an eleven out of ten on the paranoia scale for sure.

Sources:
http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/arizonaliving/articles/2010/06/03/20100603abby0604.html#ixzz0q1xH4vMR
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/life/dailycols/7034965.html

More to come next week! If you find any to share, let me know!

- Julie

Photo by T.S. Custadio

Members of the Bay State Paranormal Society were met with unwelcoming activity at the Middleboro town hall recently.  A door slammed by itself, and their recording equipment detected a voice seeming to say “get out.”

Bay State Paranormal Society is the third paranormal group to investigate the hall in the last two years.  The are working on a report of their findings. The town hall will be filmed by Scared! this fall.

A prior investigation by the Paranormal Institute of New England detected a voice saying “help me.” The Enfield Paranormal Society said they found cold spots and saw the ghost of a man in the balcony area. They also sensed a woman repeatedly on and around the stage and reported shutters opening by themselves.

The hall was constructed in 1873 on the site of a former Native American village and has been a district court, jail, post office, and community center. Employees have reported unusual footsteps and the ghost of an elderly man. The Paranormal Institute of New England identified the man as Solomon K. Eaton, the building’s original architect, who died while the building was being constructed and who was never given proper credit for his design.

Three investigations in three years, and none of them were for a TV show. Each team has claimed to have found evidence of paranormal activity. Is the town going to keep having the place investigated until THE piece of evidence of the supernatural is found? Will finally having a show taped there in the fall end the repeated investigations, or will the town keep trying to get nationally televised shows to come visit?

- Julie

Sources:
http://www.enterprisenews.com/topstories/x258108813/Door-slams-on-ghost-probe
http://www.patriotledger.com/news/x258108813/Door-slams-on-ghost-probe
http://www.boston.com/news/local/breaking_news/2008/03/_tom_herde_for.html
http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2008/03/11/pair_plays_ghostly_recording/
http://www.enterprisenews.com/news/x1959711798/Verdict-in-Middleboro-Town-Hall-deemed-haunted
http://www.thebostonchannel.com/news/20705382/detail.html

I don’t think a ghost story is what the band Drive-By Truckers meant when they wrote that line about death in North Alabama in their song, “Puttin’ People On The Moon.”

In Tuscumbia, Colbert County, Alabama, workers in the WMA office have come up with some interesting footage they say shows some long-gone prior occupants of their building. The photos appear fairly normal at first, but after “enhancing the clarity” of the images, local historian John McWilliams says there are images of what appear to be ghosts in the pictures.

McWilliams and EMA Director Mike Melton know they sound a little crazy when talking about these photos, but they don’t mind. They say the whole thing is a creepy but are remaining “lighthearted” about it.

Looking at the “before” and “after” photos, it seems to me that the “enhancing” means adding a bunch of images to the picture. What do you think?

Stills of the pictures can be seen by following the link below.

- Julie

Sources:
http://www.whnt.com/news/whnt-mysterious-images-spotted,0,7126536.story
Title taken from “Puttin’ People On The Moon,” by the band Drive-By Truckers.

One of those spirits identified itself to psychic Barry Norman of the South West Paranormal Team as David Edwards, 46, who died in 1968. Another identified as Caroline Hollsworthy, 66, who died in 1907 and is attached to a pair of her shoes that she loved and that are on display at the shoe shop. The spirit of Caroline said she was responsible for the smell of roses the investigating team detected. She also said there were six other spirits at the site, including four children.

One of the child spirits identified itself as Cynthia, 8, who died in 1923 and enjoyed a dollhouse in the village. Another said he is Frankie, 10, from Cambourne, who died in 1909 and is attached to a tin on display that he used to keep his marbles in.

If there really are ghosts of the people whose former possessions are on display at the park, it certainly helps to make the “experience” a little more real, and intriguing. So, publicity stunt to drum up more business in dour economic times, or the real deal? If it is a publicity stunt, it hasn’t been very well advertised. Maybe a theme park set to look like days gone by would be a comforting place for a ghost to stay.

- Julie

Sources:
http://www.thisisthewestcountry.co.uk/news/cornwall_news/8183857.Ghosts_turn_up_at_Helston_tourist_attraction/
http://www.flambards.co.uk/exhibitions/the-victorian-village-experience.html?phpMyAdmin=0417c7d7e8bd5118140a1d4e07053e10

The New Inn, built around 1430 for pilgrims on their way to Gloucester Cathedral, has had its share of strange goings on reported over the years. According to local lore, children were killed in a fire at the pub several hundred years ago. The current owners say their daughter seems to be talking to the ghost of a young girl and that their dog’s food bowl turned itself over. The owners also say people have reported strange footsteps, cold spots, items going missing, and televisions becoming partially unplugged.

Skeptics say the glass appeared to move on its own but was likely sliding on water on a slightly uneven table. I have seen that happen myself, and it doesn’t take too much moisture or angle to make a glass slide a good distance. Even though that simple trick of physics is fun to play with, especially after a few pints, it’s more exciting for pub patrons and owners to wonder if this time the sliding glass was the work of ghosts.

A local paranormal investigation team plans to see what they can find. Even if they find something, that wouldn’t mean the glass of beer incident wasn’t of secular nature.  Either way, it looks pretty neat when a glass slides across a table and falls to the floor by itself.

I also wonder about the dog bowl thing. Pets can do some supremely clumsy things, and sometimes they are startled as hell about the consequences. Last night my cats managed to work together to flip over their heavy food plate on the kitchen floor (I still don’t know why they did it, but it was fascinating to watch). They seemed to be doing it intentionally, but boy were they alarmed when it worked and made a huge noise in the process.

- Julie

Sources:
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/2991554/Ghost-pushes-pint-off-table.html
http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/gloucestershire/hi/people_and_places/history/newsid_8706000/8706656.stm http://www.infobritain.co.uk/Accommodation_New_Inn_Gloucester.htm