- My House IS Haunted (???)

Find out if YOUR house is haunted !!!

I have never denied thinking that "I have a ghost", but never considered my house to be HAUNTED. I mean, "my" ghost doesn't haunt me, it just makes itself known that it's still here upon occasion - by typical means.

However, as I am trying to learn about the paranormal, I am already finding that my efforts are not going to waste - after only a week. A brief definition of "Haunted House" can be summed as "a residence believed to be inhabited by ghosts". hmmmmm....

A more detailed meaning goes something like this, "A haunted house is a house that is believed to be a center for supernatural occurrences or paranormal activity by ghosts, poltergeists and/or demons".... BELIEVED TO BE ?!?!?! When then, hell yeah mine is !!!

Now I'm NOT trying to be skeptical of these so-called definitions but I am a self-proclaimed realist and have an extremely analytical mentality - which by the way is already evident to myself in the posts I have written, causing thoughts of being a "debunker" to cross my mind.... but I'll get into that in great detail in a future post - HA, hopefully I don't debunk my hobby altogether !!!!!

Anyway, even the detailed explanation posed a dilemma with my analytics. I needed more !!! Let's start by defining the definitions a bit... just so we understand what we're talking about here... from CrimeBrat...

Ghost - The soul or spirit of a dead person, reflecting the appearance of his or her living body but less substantial. Ghosts may exist in a state of semi-awareness or be completely cognizant of their loving observers.

Poltergeist - A ghost that manifests its presence through noises, rappings, the moving of objects, and the creation of disorder. The relocation of furniture is an indication of poltergeist activity.

... while a Demon (hmmm, eerily similar to the word Damien) could be considered a negative or evil spirit, ghost or poltergeist. (although some beliefs point toward the existence of "good"demons).

Now we're getting somewhere !!! I now understand that more-so than a ghost, I have a poltergeist in my house... I've definitely experienced noises, footsteps and "missing" objects... and I'd swear that when I type on my keyboard, different words appear than what I actually type... hell I've even caught a glimpse of said poltergeist... looks nothing like Slimer, by the way.

So, My House IS Haunted !!!! BUUUUUUUUUUT... wait a minute !!!!! [insert analytical senses here] I've been experiencing the same phenomena for many years... in SEVERAL different houses. So how could my HOUSE be haunted ?!?!? Once again, CrimeBrat to the rescue....

Haunting - The manifestation of a ghostly presence attached to a specific person or location.

NOW, I understand... it isn't my HOUSE that is haunted... it is I that am haunted !!! THAT'S a relief !!!! UHHHHHHH... So, now I am CERTAIN that I personally am haunted by a "pesky" poltergeist... certainly not a demon as I have experienced NO evil phenomena... YET !!!

Since embarking on my "hobby", I have already received several messages indicating experiences with paranormal phenomena in their houses. I have compiled a (check) list of some signs that your house may be haunted so you can evaluate your own personal situations.

"Common" Phenomena:

• Unexplained noises - footsteps, scratching, bangs, knocks etc. *
• Doors and cabinets opening and closing - not personally witnessed, but if you do see this then... *
• Lights, switches, electronics or appliances turning themselves off/ on - again, not often actually seen but... *
• Disappearing, "lost", reappearing items - "borrower's phenomena"; items disappear from someplace you KNOW you left them.. then reappear exactly in that spot *
• Unusual Pet Behavior - animals have sharper senses than humans...
• Feelings of being watched - not an uncommon feeling but combined with other activity can certainly be an important factor *

Moderate phenomena:

• Unexplained Shadows - catching glimpses of shapes or shadows out of the corner of your eye for no apparent reason. *
• Mild Psychokinetic - actually witnessing a door close or switch or appliance turning off or on
• Feelings of being touched - feeling something brush by, touch your hair or even a hand on your shoulder - or a nudge *
• Hearing voices - hearing a voice (or music) from no apparent source... could be a whisper, cry or even your name being said *
• Cold/Hots spots - sudden and sometimes extreme changes in temperature; a cold draft or warm breath on your neck, for instance *
• Unexplained Odors - cologne/perfume, cigarette or other odors from no apparent source

Extreme Phenomena:

• Severe Psychokinetic - witnessing moving or levitating objects
• Apparitions - physical manifestation of a spirit; mists, transparent forms or even solid forms that disappear *
• Physical assault - pushes, slaps, punches; even causing bruises of other injury
• Direct contact - a spirit addresses you and even speaks to you personally, knowing your name
• Negative Energy - negativity, depression, dizziness, head-aches, extreme mood swings; even nightmares ( can also be attributed to other reasons INCLUDING carbon monoxide poisoning)
• Other physical evidence - writings on the wall, footprints, handprints; light orbs or apparitions showing up in photographs **

So what to do NOW ?!?!?! Analyze your own experiences against the list above. Obviously, the more the "merrier". It is believed that if you have experienced 7 or more (LESS if you've experienced the Extreme) then there is a good possibility that your house (or you) may be haunted. The same holds true for buildings, woods, etc.

HOWEVER, do NOT rush to grab your phone and call your local paranormal research group. They are very busy and take this very seriously. Although each service has their own approach, they all have a standard questionnaire which they will initiate to try to debunk (find a reasonable explanation for) the validity of your claims. Their objective isn't to doubt you but to gain a better understanding of your situation... and to help you gain a better understanding too.

Your first course of action should be to try to find a reasonable explanation yourself for the phenomena you have experienced - you know yourself and your situation better than anyone else. It will help to do some research on the history of the property and it's location - you WILL need this info if you decide you need to call the experts. You may be surprised at the phenomena you can rationalize yourself - doors closing due to faulty hinges or drafts.... noises/falling objects being caused by plumbing, house-settling, mice, even minor earth tremors.... disappearing objects just being forgetfulness... shadows being cast by passing cars.... or simply an over-active imagination.

If you CAN'T rule out the experiences by rational explanations (and your situation isn't EXTREME), you will want to keep a journal to record the hauntings - which may also be needed by the experts. In the journal be sure to record as much information as possible both of the experience and the conditions at the time... time of day, your physical location, others involved, weather conditions etc. The more information you record, the more help you will be to the experts, or to yourself in analyzing the experiences.

NOW, if you feel you absolutely need to involve a research team, you should be prepared when you make that phone call. Along with everything mentioned above, there is a lot of specific information they will ask you for in order to "triage" your particular situation. Again, they are there to help, but no matter how grave (no pun) you deem your experiences, THEY ARE THE EXPERTS !!!!

So, it would be in every one's best interest to not only have specific answers to the phenomena witnessed (hopefully from your detailed journal) but also, at the very least, readily have the answers to the additional questions they will ask. Such as (but not limited to):

1. How old is the site (building)?
2. How many floors - basement and attic - and number of rooms?
3. How long have you lived there?
4. What are your religious and "occult" beliefs?
5. How many occupants and pets? Including personal information about each...
6. Is there a sacred or Native American history?
7. Is the site near power lines, earthquake fault lines, crop circles or underground water?
8. What is the bedrock composition of the area?
9. Has there ever been a tragic death, murder or suicide at the location?
10. History of previous owners?
11. Has there ever been a Ouija board used at the site?
12. Are there other witnesses (to confirm and/or further describe)?

Again, there will be more that they ask you and the more information that you have readily available, the better....

NOW, Certainly there are more signs of being haunted but the ones listed are very critical. And for the record, I put an asterisk (*) after each phenomena I have personally experienced on a regular basis, from house to house. I haven't even counted BUT... I KNOW I'm haunted, are YOU !!!!!!!!!

Oh and, in case you wondered about the item above with the (**)... perhaps this will explain THAT !!!!!!!!

True, I have blocked out the faces of my son's friends for identity purposes, BUT that apparition was NOT invited to this photo shoot !!!!!!!!

HAPPY H(A)UNTING !!!!!!!