I see (feel, smell, sense, etc.) dead people... (1 Viewer)

[McJose]

That's the thing, McJose...I don't know. If I had to hazard a guess after 30+ years of O.J.T., I would say it is probably BOTH. Nobody can experience some of what I went through during/after college and not have it leave a little scar tissue on one's psyche...I will wholeheartedly admit that.

I just wish I could trade places with a few skeptics when these experiences occur. You guys are mistakenly making the assumption from hundreds/thousands of miles away that I assume every creak or bang is "obviously" a ghost ...and I think several of you are also making the false assumption that I go out of my way looking for these types of occurrences. Honestly, if anything happens, I am quickly running through my mental list of all the logical, tangible things it MUST be (Ockham's Razor), then working my way down the list until I either hit upon the cause or I run out of "things it must be." When I run out of logical things it might be, that's when I try and keep my mind open to the potential for supernatural activity.

I'm really not sure what you're trying to say her. Maybe I wasn't clear. I think you need some psychological help.Example:

Washington Post

Aug. 13, 2005 12:00 AM

WASHINGTON - Robert A. Baker, a University of Kentucky psychology professor emeritus and a leading "ghost buster" who worked on the premise that "there are no haunted places, only haunted people," died Aug. 8 at his home in Lexington, Ky. He had congestive heart failure. He was 84.

Baker was foremost a skeptic, believing that one could not assume from the start that unusual phenomena - ghosts, UFO abductions, lake monsters, remembrances of past lives - were real. In books and scholarly articles, he argued that they could be explained as mental states, that abductions by aliens, for example, were hallucinations, or "waking dreams," that occur in the twilight zone between fully awake and fully asleep.

Much of his work involved being a sympathetic counselor to those who believed they were being toyed with or tortured by unexplainable forces. advertisement

In the 1960s, he visited a traumatized young Kentucky wife who was convinced that she was seeing a "golden-haired 3-year-old girl" in her home.

"After talking with her and her husband," he wrote, "I quickly learned that she was the only one who ever saw or heard the child. Moreover, I learned that she and her spouse wanted children desperately but had no luck. I urged them both to consider adoption, and as soon as they took these steps, the 3-year-old spirit disappeared forever."

 

[Hoart Petterson]

Dantonn...have you ever talked to anyone about this stuff? A doctor, a therapist? Rereading some of the stuff earlier in the thread. I think McJose is right.

 

[datonn]

One other story I don't think I've shared in here before:

2-3 years ago, I was building out my office space with the help of contractors. Took an open part of our attic and closed it off for about a 150 sq.ft. room. Anyway, at the tail end of the project, I was doing some insulation work on the back side of the wall on the NW corner of the room. It was a Friday, and I was only about half done...so I decided to call it a day and hit it again on Saturday.

That night, I was in our Family Room (directly below this area of the home) watching TV. Over about a 10-15 minute period, I heard a ton of loud thuds and dragging sounds above me. I was thinking "What the heck?!" and went to ask my wife what she was doing. She and my two daughters were all sound asleep (went to bed early). I thought "Hmm...okay," but wanted no part going up there to see what I might encounter that late at night in the dark, particularly because it was rather dangerous getting back to that spot without a floor in the dark.

The next morning, I got some tools and went up to finish the insulation work. When I got back there, I nearly dropped my flashlight! The insulation and several tools I had left there the day before had been scattered all over the place. Some things neatly placed in other locations, some stuff that had fallen down into the insulation (where the floor used to be). I immediately thought "uh oh...we must have a pretty big animal or ??? making that part of the attic their home." I went downstairs and called one of our contractors...to tell him what happened and to see if he noticed anything strange while he was up there earlier in the week.

After making the phone call, I went back upstairs shaking my head. I KNEW I had left things a certain way, as I had a system I was using for getting the insulation cut and hung in just the right way, to avoid wasting materials. Anyway, I got back up there, balanced on the floor joists with my flashlight and returned to start doing my work. In the ten minutes I had been downstairs on the phone, literally every single item had been returned to the place I had left it the day before. Nobody else was in the house (my wife and kids were outside, to my knowledge), and the only way into that attic would have been right past me as I was down making my phone call.

Strap on the straight-jacket, I guess!

 

[datonn]

Datonn...have you ever talked to anyone about this stuff? A doctor, a therapist? Rereading some of the stuff earlier in the thread. I think McJose is right.

Short answer? Yes. Talked to 2-3 medical doctors and one psychologist about all this stuff over the past 10-15 years. They all come back and tell me I'm as normal/healthy as anyone else. I've got some lingering issues with my Dad from my childhood, but the shrink didn't think it had any correlation to this bevy of other experiences. One of the medical doctors even had me undergo an EEG and sleep study and gave me a clean bill of health. Ockham's Razor...right?! I thought the exact same thing you did. It's got to be medical/psychological. Only problem is that according to 3-4 PhDs that I've seen on the subject, it isn't.

 

[Hoart Petterson]

Datonn...have you ever talked to anyone about this stuff? A doctor, a therapist? Rereading some of the stuff earlier in the thread. I think McJose is right.

Short answer? Yes. Talked to 2-3 medical doctors and one psychologist about all this stuff over the past 10-15 years. They all come back and tell me I'm as normal/healthy as anyone else. I've got some lingering issues with my Dad from my childhood, but the shrink didn't think it had any correlation to this bevy of other experiences. One of the medical doctors even had me undergo an EEG and sleep study and gave me a clean bill of health. Ockham's Razor...right?! I thought the exact same thing you did. It's got to be medical/psychological. Only problem is that according to 3-4 PhDs that I've seen on the subject, it isn't.

What did they say about going to college and not having a drink?

 

[datonn]

What did they say about going to college and not having a drink?

Yeah...and I didn't even mention the part about remaining a virgin by-choice until my wedding night. [monty python] Help, help! I'm being repressed! [/monty python] No drugs, alcohol or promiscuity (at least getting past 2nd/3rd base)...it's amazing I didn't explode, lol.

 

[#1 Fan of Ana Ivanovic]

Only problem is that according to 3-4 PhDs that I've seen on the subject, it isn't.

No, it is.

 

[Harry Manback]

Hold up. You believe that there are people that have psychic powers? Mediums?

Without a doubt I believe this...yes. I have to believe it. Either that, or my sister, neighbor/friend, daughters, most of my grandmother's siblings and I all belong in institutions. There are different levels, gifts and abilities, and there are a fair-share of frauds and/or people who are in it for attention or personal gain. That said, it's impossible to understand unless you've had some of those experiences happening in your own life.

Would you like $1,000,000? Seriously.

I'd be happy with $1000 if you're breaking into your Jeopardy winnings.

James Randi Challenge One million dollars to anyone who can prove they have psychic or paranormal abilities. No gimmicks, no tricks, easy money.

Datonn could be a wealthy man very soon.

http://www.davidrford.com/

 

[McJose]

I don't think Occam's Razor means that when you run out of the logical explanations that you can think of for a phenomenon you reach for the paranormal.

 

[McJose]

http://www.davidrford.com/

Thanks, Cheech.

 

[datonn]

I don't think Occam's Razor means that when you run out of the logical explanations that you can think of for a phenomenon you reach for the paranormal.

Certainly not. Ockham's Razor - Occam's razor (or Ockham's razor[1]), entia non sunt multiplicanda praeter necessitatem, is the principle that "entities must not be multiplied beyond necessity" and the conclusion thereof, that the simplest explanation or strategy tends to be the best one.

What I am saying is that if something happens, I am working my way down the list of simple, logical explanations. When I run out of simple, logical explanations (and I do try and make that list an extensive one), I file it under unknown. It isn't necessarily supernatural, but I don't want to rule the supernatural out...as whether skeptics will carve me to ribbons over this statement, sometimes the supernatural quite actually COULD be the simplest explanation after several other explanations have been applied and disproven.

 

[Harry Manback]

Good enough, S.T. I appreciate the very thoughtful replies. Long reply coming (sorry).I've gone through a lot of stages in my life. My childhood, I didn't experience much, outside of a few very odd physical experiences in elementary school and then when I was about 14. Then when I got to college, I had one of the more scary, horrific experiences of my life. All I can attribute it to was a demonic presence. I wrote about it earlier in this thread, and it was absolutely awful. That messed me up...particularly after those same experiences "followed me around" for a few years after college (the "Highlander" types of experiences I wrote about before). Again though, no drugs, no alcohol, no dabbling with the occult, no medical issues, etc.In my mid to late 20s, I didn't have many experiences, and it was fantastic. I had a powerful experience at the home of an employee of mine, which after I told her what I was seeing/feeling, she basically corroborated the facts of what I was telling her in high detail. Then I married my wife and moved into our first home in St. Paul, and we had "Frank" as a roommate. That's what we'd call "it" anyway. Seeing things out of the corner of our eyes...feeling a heavy, uncomfortable but non-threatening presence following us around, and the "silk handkerchief" story I wrote about before.We had our oldest daughter and later moved to our current home. That's when a LOT started happening again. For me though, it's not that I want to have experiences. Having experiences, however, seems to make sense to me related to resolving some of the "unexplainable" in my life. What is interesting too is that historically, the stronger I am feeling in my faith (in God), the more that would happen. The less close to God I would feel, the less anything would happen. That is, until we moved into our current home. In our current home, stuff just happens. Winter, Summer. Happy days, sad days. Busy with the girls, home alone. God is real, God is a lie. Stuff was happening for years...and when we had my friend/neighbor over to the house without telling her much of anything about it, her words to me were essentially "Grand Central Station" (of activity). I'd be just as happy having it go away or being prescribed a pill that would "fix" a broken part of my brain or ??? That'd be easy! I just think after 30+ years of experiences that it is one of those things that is, in fact, real...and the only thing to do to "heal" or deal with it is to not be as afraid of it, hit it head-on, and not live in denial. It was different when it was just me (and my wife could think her hubby was off his rocker without any animals being harmed in the making of this film, lol)...but now I've got two daughters experiencing a lot of the same things. Even my wife (skeptic) has experienced vivid footsteps above her where there is no longer any floor (now much less skeptical). As a parent, I don't want my kids to end up being in their late 30s feeling as confused and messed-up by all of this stuff as I've been most of my life. Whatever the answer is, I just want the truth. I often wish it were all a load of crap though...at least the scary stuff and/or the stuff I went through in/after college. That'd be SO much easier.

That almost sounds like a mild form of schizophrenia, onset is usually around that 18-22 age.

 

[Harry Manback]

http://www.davidrford.com/

Thanks, Cheech.

 

[McJose]

I don't think Occam's Razor means that when you run out of the logical explanations that you can think of for a phenomenon you reach for the paranormal.

Certainly not. Ockham's Razor - Occam's razor (or Ockham's razor[1]), entia non sunt multiplicanda praeter necessitatem, is the principle that "entities must not be multiplied beyond necessity" and the conclusion thereof, that the simplest explanation or strategy tends to be the best one.

What I am saying is that if something happens, I am working my way down the list of simple, logical explanations. When I run out of simple, logical explanations (and I do try and make that list an extensive one), I file it under unknown. It isn't necessarily supernatural, but I don't want to rule the supernatural out...as whether skeptics will carve me to ribbons over this statement, sometimes the supernatural quite actually COULD be the simplest explanation after several other explanations have been applied and disproven.

Yeah you're right.Let me ask you this. If you see a magician do a really cool card trick and you know it isn't up his sleeve and you know it wasn't done with mirrors do you believe he really has magic powers? I mean that makes as much sense as a ghost moving some tools or something.

 

[datonn]

Yeah you're right.

Let me ask you this. If you see a magician do a really cool card trick and you know it isn't up his sleeve and you know it wasn't done with mirrors do you believe he really has magic powers? I mean that makes as much sense as a ghost moving some tools or something.

Is that a serious question?! Magic is a form of entertainment. It's all slight-of-hand and diversion/distraction. You're saying a lot of these types of experiences are the exact same thing. Only instead of others tricking me, it is my own mind tricking me. That's a logical conclusion. It's an incorrect conclusion...but a highly logical one. So when 3-4 people all have the same experiences, the same names pop into their head (not "John" or "Mary," lol), describe the same physical features and clothing...all at different points in time when they are not aware of anyone else having any type of similar experience, is that "group crazy?!" Is "crazy" contagious?! Like H1N1?

I'm not talking John Edwards stuff...like "I'm sensing the letter "P".....OMG! My Dad's, cousin's, wife's, step dad's brother's NAME was Phillip!" I'm talking names, spots in a home, reasons for being in that spot in a home, period in history, clothing worn, etc. All experienced by different people, at different times, with no awareness of other people's experiences.

Maybe group schizophrenia?! I should write my doctoral thesis on that particular subject.

 

[Harry Manback]

Yeah you're right.

Let me ask you this. If you see a magician do a really cool card trick and you know it isn't up his sleeve and you know it wasn't done with mirrors do you believe he really has magic powers? I mean that makes as much sense as a ghost moving some tools or something.

Is that a serious question?! Magic is a form of entertainment. It's all slight-of-hand and diversion/distraction. You're saying a lot of these types of experiences are the exact same thing. Only instead of others tricking me, it is my own mind tricking me. That's a logical conclusion. It's an incorrect conclusion...but a highly logical one. So when 3-4 people all have the same experiences, the same names pop into their head (not "John" or "Mary," lol), describe the same physical features and clothing...all at different points in time when they are not aware of anyone else having any type of similar experience, is that "group crazy?!" Is "crazy" contagious?! Like H1N1?

I'm not talking John Edwards stuff...like "I'm sensing the letter "P".....OMG! My Dad's, cousin's, wife's, step dad's brother's NAME was Phillip!" I'm talking names, spots in a home, reasons for being in that spot in a home, period in history, clothing worn, etc. All experienced by different people, at different times, with no awareness of other people's experiences.

Maybe group schizophrenia?! I should write my doctoral thesis on that particular subject.

Schizophrenia is almost certainly hereditary.Not saying you have it or anything, I have no clue.

But it is a possible explanation.

 

[bmarks6161]

- When I was seven, I used to play in the side of the yard by my parents house...and they had these two huge (1,000+ pound) landscaping rocks that were positioned about 20-22' apart. I remember clear as day standing on the rock closest to the house and thinking: "I can jump that...no problem!" Dumb kids stuff, right?! I then remember closing my eyes, and from a standing start, jumping and landing on my shins on the other rock. I remember my pants getting dirty, and the little bit of pain from landing on my shins instead of on my feet. A 1st/2nd grader...making a 20-22' jump from a standing start. After dusting myself off, I remember thinking "how the HECK did I do that?" and then spending the rest of the afternoon trying to do it again....only making it 7-8' even with a running start.

I am a little confused by this and find this more along the lines of a kid's imagination. How does seeing dead people suddenly give you super powers? Are you saying a ghost helped you jump? Sounds more like an episode of Heroes then a real life experience.

 

[Uwe Blab]

You know, at the very least I gotta compliment datonn on taking his licks in this thread. I don't know what the heck I believe, but you sure have provided an interesting reading/thread over several boring work days. Thanks for the thread.

 

[Hellfire Snail]

This thread is pretty awesome, and this dude is coming across as pretty earnest, but has no one even considered that this is ?

Safari posts that three chicks are staying at his place for a few nights the claim is immediate. This guy says he sees a 300 pound ripped Marilyn Manson beast in a ghost car and people are trying to reason with him?

 

[Bob Lee Swagger]

This thread is pretty awesome, and this dude is coming across as pretty earnest, but has no one even considered that this is ?Safari posts that three chicks are staying at his place for a few nights the claim is immediate. This guy says he sees a 300 pound ripped Marilyn Manson beast in a ghost car and people are trying to reason with him?

:X

 

[SuperJohn96]

datonn, maybe you were having a stroke?

Or is that the left arm...hmm

Okay, Mr. Kicked My Butt in our Fantasy League in 2009! Here's one just for you: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bnWpGcUbr0M

 

[Osaurus]

Here is my dog park story. No parts of this were edited for the FFA.

I take my dog to the park about 4x a week. She loves it and it gives her some time to stretch out and sleeps like a log each night. I have been going there for about 2 years now. On the weekends, we usually go right around when the park opens (around 7:30 am). It's Florida, so a lot of times it's very dewy and there is occasional light to heavy mist. One morning we go and are the first ones there (pretty regular occurrence) and I notice this guy already inside the dog park. He is wearing loose jeans, a gray hooded sweatshirt, and a red flannel shirt. His hood is up so I can't see his face as he is walking away from me towards the center of the park. I then notice there isn't another car in the lot. I figure he lives in one the houses nearby and just walked over there. I also noticed he was holding a piece of paper in his left hand. No idea what that was about. From the time I see this guy to the time I get the pooch ready and go inside is maybe 10 seconds or so. I get inside and notice this guy is not around, nor is there a dog. Keep in mind this place only has one exit/entrance. It has two large trees and a high fence all around the 1.5+ acre park. This guy is nowhere to be found at all in the park. I don't see him anywhere at all. At the time I thought it was odd. I thought maybe he hopped the fence or climbed a tree or something (I was looking at all possible reasons for his disappearance), but there is no way this guy could have left the park in that 10 seconds at the entrance/exit I was at, nor could he have run to once of the surrounding fences to hop it as they were pretty far away from where he was it when I saw him.

I thought it was a bizarre incident, so I tell Mrs. Osaurus about it and shrug it off as being just something I could not explain. I have never seen this guy before nor have I seen him since at the park. She then tells me she had a very similar thing happen to her where she saw a guy dressed as I described in the middle of the park who was there one moment and gone the next. I thought she was messing with me, but I realized I didn't tell her what he was wearing or about the piece of paper he was holding in his left hand as well as his hood being up. She nailed those details exactly. She also saw him at the same time in the morning as I did.

I don't know what to make of this at all. I think about it every time I go there, but I am still a little uneasy to ask other folks who frequent the place about seeing this guy in the early morning. Was it some kind of residual thing going on there oblivious to what else is going on? Was it actually a person who gave us the slip on multiple occasions? I am doubtful of the latter.

I have not had another experience like this in my life that I can remember. It was so strange to me that this would happen at a dog park of all places. I still cannot explain it as being paranormal or otherwise. I will leave it as just unexplained. I am going to ask some of the other morning regulars if they have seen anything like this soon as I am really curious.

 

[Paper Lions]

Anyone think they can get a ghost photo together to submit to that ghost photo website?

 

[NoCheese]

Here is my dog park story. No parts of this were edited for the FFA.I take my dog to the park about 4x a week. She loves it and it gives her some time to stretch out and sleeps like a log each night. I have been going there for about 2 years now. On the weekends, we usually go right around when the park opens (around 7:30 am). It's Florida, so a lot of times it's very dewy and thee is occasional light to heavy mist. One morning we go and are the first ones there (pretty regular occurrence) and I notice this guy already inside the dog park. He is wearing loose jeans, a gray hooded sweatshirt, and a red flannel shirt. His hood is up so I can't see his face as he is walking away from me towards the center of the park. I then notice there isn't another car in the lot. I figure he lives in one the houses nearby and just walked over there. I also noticed he was holding a piece of paper in his left hand. No idea what that was about. From the time I see this guy to the time I get the pooch ready and go inside is maybe 10 seconds or so. I get inside and notice this guy is not around, nor is there a dog. Keep in mind this place only has one exit/entrance. It has two large trees and a high fence all around the 1.5+ acre park. This guy is nowhere to be found at all in the park. I don't see him anywhere at all. At the time I thought it was odd. I thought maybe he hopped the fence or climbed a tree or something (I was looking at all possible reasons for his disappearance), but there is no way this guy could have left the park in that 10 seconds at the entrance/exit I was at, nor could he have run to once of the surrounding fences to hop it as they were pretty far away from where he was it when I saw him. I thought it was a bizarre incident, so I tell Mrs. Osaurus about it and shrug it off as being just something I could not explain. I have never seen this guy before nor have I seen him since at the park. She then tells me she had a very similar thing happen to her where she saw a guy dressed as I described in the middle of the park who was there one moment and gone the next. I thought she was messing with me, but I realized I didn't tell her what he was wearing or about the piece of paper he was holding in his left hand as well as his hood being up. She nailed those details exactly. She also saw him at the same time in the morning as I did.I don't know what to make of this at all. I think about it every time I go there, but I am still a little uneasy to ask other folks who frequent the place about seeing this guy in the early morning. Was it some kind of residual thing going on there oblivious to what else is going on? Was it actually a person who gave us the slip on multiple occasions? I am doubtful of the latter.I have not had another experience like this in my life that I can remember. It was so strange to me that this would happen at a dog park of all places. I still cannot explain it as being paranormal or otherwise. I will leave it as just unexplained. I am going to ask some of the other morning regulars if they have seen anything like this soon as I am really curious.

Whoa. Pretty wild you were both able to describe it in such detail.

 

[Phil Elliott]

Yesterday I reached in my coat and pulled out the memorial announcement from my father-in-law's funeral from about 4 years ago. I didn't look at it closely but did notice is age (69). My wife came home and said it was the day her dad died. I have been wearing this coat quite a bit lately because its been so cold down here this winter, but yesterday for some reason I checked out what was in the pockets.

 

[Hoart Petterson]

This thread is pretty awesome, and this dude is coming across as pretty earnest, but has no one even considered that this is ?Safari posts that three chicks are staying at his place for a few nights the claim is immediate. This guy says he sees a 300 pound ripped Marilyn Manson beast in a ghost car and people are trying to reason with him?

It's definitely crossed my mind. I think most of us came to the conclusion he wasn't fishing and the "problem" is the he thinks he sees things that he doesn't. It happens to all of us and some way more than others apparently. The ghost car should be the tip-off. I'd bet a real car came up behind him and his mind did the rest.My guess to what's going on here is something awry in the brain and how the mind distorts memories. For example, very common for people to remember how people from their past look, only to see a picture much later and be shocked that the person looks nothing like they remember. Like if you're 20 years out of college and think about your college girlfriend that you haven't seen in 2 decades, odds are the girl you're thinking about in your head looks much different than she actually did. So with dantonn, things like the ghost car, the standing Olympic long jump, etc...these are events that have evolved in his mind for years. The other component seems to be how his mind goes from zero to super-natural in a blink. He'll come back and say how his whole family sees the same stuff but it could be either a genetic condition or it even could be contagious in the moment. If you walk into a house and your friend tells you the house is haunted, your senses are going to put on immediate hyper-alert and when that happens ytou apparently forget how you left your tools. Seems like a reasonable possibility. I'm sure it'd be frustrating for dantonn to hear that because he's 100% sure in his mind that these things happened.

 

[Hellfire Snail]

This thread is pretty awesome, and this dude is coming across as pretty earnest, but has no one even considered that this is ?Safari posts that three chicks are staying at his place for a few nights the claim is immediate. This guy says he sees a 300 pound ripped Marilyn Manson beast in a ghost car and people are trying to reason with him?

It's definitely crossed my mind. I think most of us came to the conclusion he wasn't fishing and the "problem" is the he thinks he sees things that he doesn't. It happens to all of us and some way more than others apparently. The ghost car should be the tip-off. I'd bet a real car came up behind him and his mind did the rest.My guess to what's going on here is something awry in the brain and how the mind distorts memories. For example, very common for people to remember how people from their past look, only to see a picture much later and be shocked that the person looks nothing like they remember. Like if you're 20 years out of college and think about your college girlfriend that you haven't seen in 2 decades, odds are the girl you're thinking about in your head looks much different than she actually did. So with dantonn, things like the ghost car, the standing Olympic long jump, etc...these are events that have evolved in his mind for years. The other component seems to be how his mind goes from zero to super-natural in a blink. He'll come back and say how his whole family sees the same stuff but it could be either a genetic condition or it even could be contagious in the moment. If you walk into a house and your friend tells you the house is haunted, your senses are going to put on immediate hyper-alert and when that happens ytou apparently forget how you left your tools. Seems like a reasonable possibility. I'm sure it'd be frustrating for dantonn to hear that because he's 100% sure in his mind that these things happened.

Sure, I suppose all that's possible. Given how outlandish the stories got I'm simply surprised no one even suggested the possibility. It's a great concept for a fishing trip, and if it is, it's been executed expertly. I was at the ghost car story, it is difficult to type something like that with a serious tone and actually draw serious responses. Either way, great thread.

 

[McJose]

Yeah you're right.

Let me ask you this. If you see a magician do a really cool card trick and you know it isn't up his sleeve and you know it wasn't done with mirrors do you believe he really has magic powers? I mean that makes as much sense as a ghost moving some tools or something.

Is that a serious question?! Magic is a form of entertainment. It's all slight-of-hand and diversion/distraction. You're saying a lot of these types of experiences are the exact same thing. Only instead of others tricking me, it is my own mind tricking me. That's a logical conclusion. It's an incorrect conclusion...but a highly logical one. So when 3-4 people all have the same experiences, the same names pop into their head (not "John" or "Mary," lol), describe the same physical features and clothing...all at different points in time when they are not aware of anyone else having any type of similar experience, is that "group crazy?!" Is "crazy" contagious?! Like H1N1?

I'm not talking John Edwards stuff...like "I'm sensing the letter "P".....OMG! My Dad's, cousin's, wife's, step dad's brother's NAME was Phillip!" I'm talking names, spots in a home, reasons for being in that spot in a home, period in history, clothing worn, etc. All experienced by different people, at different times, with no awareness of other people's experiences.

Maybe group schizophrenia?! I should write my doctoral thesis on that particular subject.

You've never heard of mass hysteria or the power of suggestion?

 

[pricklypete]

I've only had one unexplainable experience.

My grandmother was sent home on hospice care and was nearing the very end. Was loaded with morphine laying on the bed looking at one spot on the ceiling basically talking to her deceased mother, brother, and sister. These weren't conversations, mind you, just bits and pieces of talk. She was saying certain names though.

Anyway, later that day I stopped back over with my son. He had just began walking so I'm guessing he was about 18 months old.

So I walk in the door and set my son down to walk in. As soon as I set him down, he looked at the ceiling above my grandmothers bed and walked over to the bed. He just stood there smiling looking at the spot on the ceiling with his hands up in the air like he wanted to be picked up. The whole time he just stood there 'talking', with his arms up wanting to be held by whatever he saw up there. He was very happy the whole time.

I just sat and stared and checked out the reaction of the others in the room (Mom, Dad, Wife). Everyone was just in disbelief.

At first I thought that he wanted to go up by my grandmother, but he never even acknowledged she was in the room. Also, he wasn't real tight with her and didn't know her well. So I really don't think that is what he wanted. He just stared at that same spot on the ceiling the whole time. Very odd, and still can't explain it.

 

[datonn]

I say this in complete seriousness: NO FISHING TRIP. The only time I go fishing in FFL-related circles is if I am trying to play up/down certain players in current trade talks.

That "ghost car" story that everyone thinks is me doing my best That actually occurred at a time in my life when I was much more active in church and a couple years after what I felt was a "demonic" presence that scared the living daylights out of me in my freshman dorm's bathroom. For that few-year period of my life, I had what I felt was "evil" following me around. I seriously thought I was ready for the loony bin! However, a few years after that, I had been talking with a friend of mine who TAed for the same professor in college (a few years behind me). He asked me to tell him about some of my experiences, and was floored when I told him that "bathroom" story...because that professor experienced the exact same thing in his office within several weeks of my own experience. A girl I dated freshman year (who I remained friends with) also later told me that she had an almost identical experience in our college gymnasium within a month or two of my experience as well.

That's the part I couldn't resolve in my head. If it was just me seeing/hearing/feeling some of these things, I would have come to the same conclusion a few of you do (off my rocker). When other people I've not previously spoken with vividly experience the same things though, it makes me pause.

That dorm experience, stuff that happened to me down on Nicollet Mall, that "ghost car" incident, etc. It wasn't chronic (all the time). But it was just often enough to really scare and concern me. I'm sure my memory "evolves" a bit over time with every passing year as well. Heck, that's a trait shared by all of us! I simply offer my experiences as an example of things I just could not easily explain away in my own life...seeing if there are other people out there who have shared similar types of experiences. [sarcasm] Or if anyone has a magic, happy pill to make most of it go away, lol. [/sarcasm]

 

[Hoart Petterson]

That actually occurred at a time in my life when I was much more active in church

You keep saying this. Maybe because you were hyper-focused on the whole religion thing that it really flared up your imagination? How "active" in the church are we talking about? What exactly does that mean? Crosseyes active? Were you seeing Jesus in your mashed potatoes? Things like that? I know you say you've taken a step back from the church, maybe now you're dealing with a kind of PTSD?You say you went to a handful of doctors and they came up with nothing. Well, doctors don't treat "weird". They treat actual illnesses/disorders. Until these visions become a real problem (by causing depression, physical symptoms, etc..) I doubt their going to treat you. They'd just chalk it up to a tincture of time thing, maybe chalk it up to a period of high stress. I'd bet my coconuts though that if you were put on certain meds, these visions/occurrences would completely subside. I'd also bet that in the future if left untreated you're going to have more periods like what you had post college. Periods of change are most likely the trigger for these things. Maybe a move, a new job, kids getting older, changes in family, death of older relatives, etc...I'd be on the lookout for your triggers and realize that when you have an event like the ghost car, try to figure out what's going on in your life.

 

[datonn]

Great stories, Osaurus and pricklypete!

 

[McJose]

I've only had one unexplainable experience.My grandmother was sent home on hospice care and was nearing the very end. Was loaded with morphine laying on the bed looking at one spot on the ceiling basically talking to her deceased mother, brother, and sister. These weren't conversations, mind you, just bits and pieces of talk. She was saying certain names though.Anyway, later that day I stopped back over with my son. He had just began walking so I'm guessing he was about 18 months old.So I walk in the door and set my son down to walk in. As soon as I set him down, he looked at the ceiling above my grandmothers bed and walked over to the bed. He just stood there smiling looking at the spot on the ceiling with his hands up in the air like he wanted to be picked up. The whole time he just stood there 'talking', with his arms up wanting to be held by whatever he saw up there. He was very happy the whole time.I just sat and stared and checked out the reaction of the others in the room (Mom, Dad, Wife). Everyone was just in disbelief.At first I thought that he wanted to go up by my grandmother, but he never even acknowledged she was in the room. Also, he wasn't real tight with her and didn't know her well. So I really don't think that is what he wanted. He just stared at that same spot on the ceiling the whole time. Very odd, and still can't explain it.

I don't get it. Kids do weird stuff.

 

[datonn]

That actually occurred at a time in my life when I was much more active in church

You keep saying this. Maybe because you were hyper-focused on the whole religion thing that it really flared up your imagination? How "active" in the church are we talking about? What exactly does that mean? Crosseyes active? Were you seeing Jesus in your mashed potatoes? Things like that? I know you say you've taken a step back from the church, maybe now you're dealing with a kind of PTSD?

Active in the church meant I was going to church every Sunday, going to a Bible study about two times/month, and playing in Church basketball and broomball leagues with my buddies. And I'm not talking far out dancing-in-the-aisles or handling snakes church! I'm talking upper-middle income suburban, Protestant mega-Church that frowned upon non-conformity and wearing jeans to church, and would have St. Paul Chamber Orchestra concerts in their multi-million dollar sanctuary when services weren't being held. I've always believed in God and a Creator, but I've never been what you might call hard-core in my religious beliefs and in the way I live my life.I couldn't talk about these experiences with ANYONE there, or at college, or at my job...as they would have thought I was crazy and/or had too much "something-something-something Dark Side" (Family Guy, lol) in me. Having these experiences was not an "asset" to me in ANY way. I wasn't looking for attention. All that would happen is people thinking less of me or even being a little "afraid" of me if they knew what I was experiencing. Except for a few trusted friends...and the comfort of strangers.And FWIW, I have yet to see Jesus in my mashed potatoes. Now *THAT* is crazy...lol.

 

[Hoart Petterson]

That actually occurred at a time in my life when I was much more active in church

You keep saying this. Maybe because you were hyper-focused on the whole religion thing that it really flared up your imagination? How "active" in the church are we talking about? What exactly does that mean? Crosseyes active? Were you seeing Jesus in your mashed potatoes? Things like that? I know you say you've taken a step back from the church, maybe now you're dealing with a kind of PTSD?

Active in the church meant I was going to church every Sunday, going to a Bible study about two times/month, and playing in Church basketball and broomball leagues with my buddies. And I'm not talking far out dancing-in-the-aisles or handling snakes church! I'm talking upper-middle income suburban mega-Church that frowned upon non-conformity, wearing jeans to church, and would have St. Paul Chamber Orchestra concerts in their multi-million dollar sanctuary when services weren't being held. I've always believed in God and a Creator, but I've never what you might call hard-core in my religious beliefs and in the way I live my life.I couldn't talk about these experiences with ANYONE there, or at college, or at my job...as they would have thought I was crazy and/or had too much "something-something-something Dark Side" (Family Guy, lol) in me. Having these experiences was not an "asset" to me in ANY way. I wasn't looking for attention. All that would happen is people thinking less of me if they knew what I was experiencing, etc. Except for a few trusted friends...and the comfort of strangers.And FWIW, I have yet to see Jesus in my mashed potatoes. Now *THAT* is crazy...lol.

I don't believe for a second that you were looking for attention or that these occurrences were an asset. I don't think it matters what the style of the church was either. I think what matters is how you think about God and religion, i.e. how your brain processes that information and how the way you process information differs during periods of change or stress. You also mentioned some issues with your father. What else was going on when you were a kid? Did you repress anything? Something's going on here and it has nothing to do with "ghosts" visiting you. I know that's tough to hear.

 

[datonn]

I don't believe for a second that you were looking for attention or that these occurrences were an asset. I don't think it matters what the style of the church was either. I think what matters is how you think about God and religion, i.e. how your brain processes that information and how the way you process information differs during periods of change or stress. You also mentioned some issues with your father. What else was going on when you were a kid? Did you repress anything? Something's going on here and it has nothing to do with "ghosts" visiting you. I know that's tough to hear.

This reply is going to sound a bit rude or trite (I really don't intend it to be)...but what exactly would be "tough to hear?" Some anonymous individual from parts-unknown on the Internet who has some preconceived values/beliefs on a subject making an arm-chair diagnosis based upon a few thread posts? Filtering said thread posts through their own set of filters and preconceived beliefs on a particular subject?!I'm sorry man, but I just don't put that much stock in people I don't know making diagnoses on issues that they might not even have the same undergraduate/graduate course work on as I do (a couple classes shy of theology and psychology minors)...much less any personal experiences of their own to possibly have them reassess their own beliefs on a particular subject.

Now, if you're a PhD in Psychology, specializing in this sort of thing, then we can talk about why you'd come to a different assessment than somebody I spent nearly a year visiting with in-person (who would disagree with you). For all I know though, you're an accountant at Inotech whose sister's friend saw crazy bat-#### while tripping out on acid, and are putting 2 and 17 together.

It's like your car not starting up on the first try this morning on your way to ???, and me saying "Aah yes, I've seen this before. What you need, Hoart Petterson, is a new engine!" If I did that, would you be rearranging your calendar and racing over to the nearest mechanic? Would that information be "tough to hear?" I could be crazy (lol), but I'm going to guess that answer would be a no....

Again, I'm not intending to sound rude! However, you've got to see it from my side of the equation too. You can think I'm an alien from the planet Calgon for all I care! How exactly would you thinking I'm an alien be tough to hear?

 

[McJose]

I doesn't take one single college credit in Psych or Theology to see the utter silliness in believing in ghosts/spirits/demons etc.

You may not have some sort of clinical, psychological diagnosis but your acceptance of paranormal phenomena as 'real' is pretty loony toons.

 

[John 14:6]

The other component seems to be how his mind goes from zero to super-natural in a blink.

Reading through this thread, datonn has said numerous times that he looks for other answers before entertaining the idea of the paranormal.

 

[McJose]

The other component seems to be how his mind goes from zero to super-natural in a blink.

Reading through this thread, datonn has said numerous times that he looks for other answers before entertaining the idea of the paranormal.

And then he contradicts himself over and over.

 

[datonn]

I doesn't take one single college credit in Psych or Theology to see the utter silliness in believing in ghosts/spirits/demons etc. You may not have some sort of clinical, psychological diagnosis but your acceptance of paranormal phenomena as 'real' is pretty loony toons.

I think it is loony toons and utter silliness that anyone could actually consider Sarah Palin as a legitimate Presidential candidate for 2012...or not spot the hypocrisy coming out of Republican camps on issues of morality and the responses to terrorism...or people who make the case that dumping toxic pollutants into our water and air supply is a positive because it is "good for business." Are those facts, or are they opinions? And if they are opinions, what makes my opinions any more valid than anyone who happens to disagree with me?

 

[Hoart Petterson]

I don't believe for a second that you were looking for attention or that these occurrences were an asset. I don't think it matters what the style of the church was either. I think what matters is how you think about God and religion, i.e. how your brain processes that information and how the way you process information differs during periods of change or stress. You also mentioned some issues with your father. What else was going on when you were a kid? Did you repress anything? Something's going on here and it has nothing to do with "ghosts" visiting you. I know that's tough to hear.

This reply is going to sound a bit rude or trite (I really don't intend it to be)...but what exactly would be "tough to hear?" Some anonymous individual from parts-unknown on the Internet who has some preconceived values/beliefs on a subject making an arm-chair diagnosis based upon a few thread posts? Filtering said thread posts through their own set of filters and preconceived beliefs on a particular subject?!I'm sorry man, but I just don't put that much stock in people I don't know making diagnoses on issues that they might not even have the same undergraduate/graduate course work on as I do (a couple classes shy of theology and psychology minors)...much less any personal experiences of their own to possibly have them reassess their own beliefs on a particular subject.

Now, if you're a PhD in Psychology, specializing in this sort of thing, then we can talk about why you'd come to a different assessment than somebody I spent nearly a year visiting with in-person (who would disagree with you). For all I know though, you're an accountant at Inotech whose sister's friend saw crazy bat-#### while tripping out on acid, and are putting 2 and 17 together.

It's like your car not starting up on the first try this morning on your way to ???, and me saying "Aah yes, I've seen this before. What you need, Hoart Petterson, is a new engine!" If I did that, would you be rearranging your calendar and racing over to the nearest mechanic? Would that information be "tough to hear?" I could be crazy (lol), but I'm going to guess that answer would be a no....

Again, I'm not intending to sound rude! However, you've got to see it from my side of the equation too. You can think I'm an alien from the planet Calgon for all I care! How exactly would you thinking I'm an alien be tough to hear?

I'm just trying to give you a rational perspective. Kids can't jump 20 feet from a standing position. Cars don't appear out of nowhere with Marylin Manson driving and beast written on the driver's side door. Evil, smirking demons aren't following you around the mall. You say you've spoken to professionals but they gave you a clean bill of health...then why did you continue treatment for "nearly a year"? What were you talking about? Baseball?I've read and re-read all of your posts in the thread. There's definitely a common theme here and I don't believe one needs a PHD to make a ballpark diagnosis.

 

[honky kong]

You say you've spoken to professionals but they gave you a clean bill of health...then why did you continue treatment for "nearly a year"? What were you talking about? Baseball?

Didn't he say previously that he had some issues with his father or some such? He's written a lot, so I could be confused. At any rate, did he ever say he went to therapy just because he "sees/hears/smells/feels things?" He could've been there for the same reasons that 99% of the other people who go to therapy are there for.

 

[McJose]

I doesn't take one single college credit in Psych or Theology to see the utter silliness in believing in ghosts/spirits/demons etc. You may not have some sort of clinical, psychological diagnosis but your acceptance of paranormal phenomena as 'real' is pretty loony toons.

I think it is loony toons and utter silliness that anyone could actually consider Sarah Palin as a legitimate Presidential candidate for 2012...or not spot the hypocrisy coming out of Republican camps on issues of morality and the responses to terrorism...or people who make the case that dumping toxic pollutants into our water and air supply is a positive because it is "good for business." Are those facts, or are they opinions? And if they are opinions, what makes my opinions any more valid than anyone who happens to disagree with me?

Not the same thing and you know it.

 

[datonn]

You say you've spoken to professionals but they gave you a clean bill of health...then why did you continue treatment for "nearly a year"? What were you talking about? Baseball?

If I were to seriously over-simplify things, basically it was talking about some issues with my Dad being M.I.A. growing up (even though he was physically there, he never wanted to spend eight seconds of time with me doing Father/Son types of things). Conversation evolved to how I'd had lots of headaches that I'd been seeing doctors for, and how I'd been "seeing lots of other crazy stuff," with the Doc then asking me to describe a lot of those experiences (over multiple sessions...as the stuff you guys have read in this thread is just the "highlights"). My wife and I also lost my MIL and "middle child" (in the womb) not too long before, so we talked a lot about that stuff as well.His general diagnosis? No mental illness or any other issues like that...just a combination of an enormous amount of stress in my life (60-70 hours/week of work for YEARS, alongside a major home remodel) and some issues with grief/sadness. Bordering on depression, but not "clinical"...simply the cumulative effect of getting hit with lots of circumstantial things simultaneously within a 18-24 month period. Said I needed time and I needed to find ways to work more fun and exercise into my life and marriage. Which I have. I feel a lot happier and at peace with things than I used to. All of that seems to be independent of this other stuff though.I did outright ask him one day after sharing a few stories: "Am I crazy?!" He laughed and said that while the experiences I was describing were very unusual and a bit concerning (to him), he didn't seem to think it was any type of psychological issue. He didn't really have any alternative explanation though.

 

[TommyGilmore]

I also was working in my third-floor office (attic level) a few weeks ago when I went to head downstairs to get a snack. As I started down the stairs, I distinctly heard the voice of a young girl humming a happy tune in the bedroom at the top of the stairs. I checked it out, and no one was there. I went down to the second floor, and my two daughters weren't there either...and there was no radio on, no talking toys, no nothing.

-----

I see that "thing" that looks about the size of a 10-12 year old child...all of it until it reaches the bed, then only the top half of it as it walks THROUGH the bed, and you know what my first thought was? "Is somebody coming up the stairs...casting a weird shadow in that room?" Answer is no. You know what my SECOND thought was? "It must have been some strange lights or ??? coming through her window!"

-----

I heard a ton of loud thuds and dragging sounds above me. I was thinking "What the heck?!"

-----

I immediately thought "uh oh...we must have a pretty big animal or ??? making that part of the attic their home."

Why isn't your first thought, "Ahhh, must be those pesky ghosts again!"???

 

[datonn]

Why isn't your first thought, "Ahhh, must be those pesky ghosts again!"???

Sometimes it is...but in those instances I then quickly tell myself:- something must have fallen off the spot I placed it, or- maybe a raccoon or a couple squirrels got into the attic, or- maybe a part on the fasteners holding our duct work in place malfunctioned and caused it to get out of balance or fall over or ???...and check things out. Hoping to see signs of animals or some duct work I need to refasten.Hearing footsteps (CLEARLY hearing footsteps...not little bangs or bonks here and there) on the floor above you where there no longer IS a floor is a little unsettling. More than a little unsettling...particularly when your wife and youngest daughter tell you a few days later that they heard you walking around up there before they went to bed...when you hadn't been up there for hours. At least for me, I'm looking for anything logical it could be...because if it is stuff I can't explain away, that opens up whole new cans of messy, complicated worms.

 

[Hoart Petterson]

You say you've spoken to professionals but they gave you a clean bill of health...then why did you continue treatment for "nearly a year"? What were you talking about? Baseball?

If I were to seriously over-simplify things, basically it was talking about some issues with my Dad being M.I.A. growing up (even though he was physically there, he never wanted to spend eight seconds of time with me doing Father/Son types of things). Conversation evolved to how I'd had lots of headaches that I'd been seeing doctors for, and how I'd been "seeing lots of other crazy stuff," with the Doc then asking me to describe a lot of those experiences (over multiple sessions...as the stuff you guys have read in this thread is just the "highlights"). My wife and I also lost my MIL and "middle child" (in the womb) not too long before, so we talked a lot about that stuff as well.His general diagnosis? No mental illness or any other issues like that...just a combination of an enormous amount of stress in my life (60-70 hours/week of work for YEARS, alongside a major home remodel) and some issues with grief/sadness. Bordering on depression, but not "clinical"...simply the cumulative effect of getting hit with lots of circumstantial things simultaneously within a 18-24 month period. Said I needed time and I needed to find ways to work more fun and exercise into my life and marriage. Which I have. I feel a lot happier and at peace with things than I used to. All of that seems to be independent of this other stuff though.

I did outright ask him one day after sharing a few stories: "Am I crazy?!" He laughed and said that while the experiences I was describing were very unusual and a bit concerning (to him), he didn't seem to think it was any type of psychological issue. He didn't really have any alternative explanation though.

 

[TommyGilmore]

Why isn't your first thought, "Ahhh, must be those pesky ghosts again!"???

Sometimes it is...but in those instances I then quickly tell myself:- something must have fallen off the spot I placed it, or

- maybe a raccoon or a couple squirrels got into the attic, or

- maybe a part on the fasteners holding our duct work in place malfunctioned and caused it to get out of balance or fall over or ???

...and check things out. Hoping to see signs of animals or some duct work I need to refasten.

Why? You should have enough experience by now to recognize a paranormal experience when it happens to you. But when you go through this overblown process of eliminating all the other possibilities, you just get yourself more "worked up" than necessary. Just accept that it was a ghost and then move on with your life.

Hearing footsteps (CLEARLY hearing footsteps...not little bangs or bonks here and there) on the floor above you where there no longer IS a floor is a little unsettling.

Sure -- the first time it happens. But after it's happened 20 or 30 times, a person typically gets a clue.It's been 30 years since I first heard an airplane flying over my house. The sound stopped scaring me 29 years ago.

 

[datonn]

Why? You should have enough experience by now to recognize a paranormal experience when it happens to you. But when you go through this overblown process of eliminating all the other possibilities, you just get yourself more "worked up" than necessary. Just accept that it was a ghost and then move on with your life.

Yep. I ultimately want the same things that skeptics are after though...the truth. I've never captured anything I've ever seen/experienced on film/video. I've got exactly ZERO DVR recordings of anything I've ever heard (or things I couldn't hear in the moment). Etc. I believe it, but can I PROVE it is real? No.So with a lot of these situations, we all should go into them looking for the tangible reason(s) why what you've seen/heard/felt is *NOT* supernatural. Explain it away and move on to the REAL evidence or experiences that cannot be dismissed as easily. Presenting one "false positive" as iron-clad proof of something's existence, only to have it later debunked, does SO much harm to the field of study...and makes that mountain that much harder to climb. I WANT to believe in God. I WANT to believe in ghost/spirits. I WANT to believe the Republican Party will get their heads out of their arses in time for the 2010 elections! Substantiated proof makes those beliefs that much easier to not only hold, but share with others. FWIW.

 

[John 14:6]

Yep. I ultimately want the same things that skeptics are after though...the truth. I've never captured anything I've ever seen/experienced on film/video. I've got exactly ZERO DVR recordings of anything I've ever heard (or things I couldn't hear in the moment). Etc. I believe it, but can I PROVE it is real? No.

Have you tried setting up a camera to film at night?