what do you believe?

[glennajo]

thanks Grandpa

Rox, that seriously brought a tear to my eye. I'm glad there is someone watching over you.

Kylie, I agree about the aliens, UFO's etc. I have no reason to believe in them, but that doesn't mean they're not out there.

If anyone has seen anything, I would be interested in hearing about it though...

[MollyRose]

Well, I certainly don't NOT believe in ghosts, etc. I don't think we have any clear information about what's what in the world of the paranormal but I do believe there's more going on than meets the eye.

I have had several "ghostly" experiences including one citing. From research I've done it seems that if someone has one paranormal experience they are likely to have several. Maybe some of us are more open to the experience or something.

I have lots of spooky, unexplainable stories, but I don't want to hog space on the thread. If anyone's interested in this field you might check out http://www.sgha.net/ . The Southwest Ghost Hunters Association operates in NM, TX, AZ, UT, NV, and CA., and if you look at their links you can find ghost hunters in other states as well. Look at their investigations and you will see some pretty scary pictures, videos and recordings.
One story on their sight involves a local restaurant (Maria Teresa's) which is supposedly haunted by a number of ghosts including an old woman who takes dessert orders! One night a whole table of people looked in a mirror next to them and saw her sitting at the table for about 45 minutes.

[Wolf]

Thanks for sharing your story, glennajo. It's comforting to know that your friend reach out to you to soothe your sorrow. Like I said before, I've never experienced anything like that but I know of people that have. I also believe in angels.

Joeguy, that sounds like it was down right eerie.
Did you stay in that spooky house for long?

My father also stayed at a house, a long time ago, in San Antonio where door would bang, footsteps would stop at the edge of his bed, sheets would be pulled off him, and stuff like that. He said all the other workers that were staying in the same house left because they were scared, but he toughed it out. I would've darted out of there asap.

[glennajo]

Like I said, I've never had a scary experience. But my cousin lived in a house ( they recently moved) and she and her husband swore it was haunted. She actually saw (she says) an old woman walk into her bedroom while she was laying awake in bed one night. Also, someone or something would turn the dryer on in the middle of the night.
Everytime I was there I'd find myself looking over my shoulder...

[Jill]

I do believe in ghosts. I lived in a haunted house and one of the fire stations I worked at was haunted. I don't really believe in an afterlife per se - I think dead is dead, except when it is not, if that makes sense. Maybe the "restless spirits" is a good way to put it, but I don't believe in souls so maybe "spirit" is the wrong word. It's hard to explain One way to explain it is that a ghost is not a dead thing. A ghost is still alive, so it's not in the afterlife. Ghosts could also be strong ideas that linger....well, that one's hard to explain too. Moving on....

I don't believe that aliens have visited, but I think it is likely that life exists on other planets.

[joeguy]

Originally posted by Wolf

Joeguy, that sounds like it was down right eerie.
Did you stay in that spooky house for long?

I stuck it out for a year, I was even going to renew the lease but the landlord wouldn't fix the a/c. so I moved. this house was on Hayes ave. in cocoa beach florida. the worst nights were when we had several friends over, no one got any sleep those nights. it was like "they" were ticked off we had bunches of people over. weird.

[broken_pryncess]

i guess i feel like i should now answer my own question... lol

as far as "ghosts" are concerned, i think jill pretty much nailed my opinion and belief on that matter. i have always thought that it is more of an energy thing as opposed to a restless "soul" or spirit. i really don't believe that we have souls. i think that our thoughts and abilities are all basically chemical and that when we die that is pretty much it. but, i do believe that those who are extremely troubled during their lives or who die in a tragic or violent way sometimes leave "strong ideas" or pieces of themselves here on earth.

i have never lived in a haunted house. but, i have had several experiences that just cannot be explained, and i did have a friend who had a lot of energy around her. several people who know her have had incidents revolving around her, and this is what has really strengthened my belief in the energy idea.

i've never really put all that much thought into aliens or ufos or abductions. i don't believe that we are alone, but i also don't believe that aliens are picking people out of their houses for random anal probes, either.

i am really interested in hearing any other stories that anyone may have. i have, as of late, become rather fascinated with the paranormal.

oh, and glenna... don't EVER be afraid to speak your mind. try not to worry so much about how others perceive you. be yourself, be true to yourself, because at the end of the day, really what else is there?

[Jill]

broken_pryncess, how about I just let you explain my ideas - you're better at it than I!

My haunted house was pretty cool. The ghost made itself known by waking me up punding on the wall above my head. When I opened my eyes, it would stop. It would tap on the wall up and down the hall. Once I saw a weird shape in my room, which drifted out the door - and my dogs jumped up and followed it! Eek! I fired up the Ouija board for fun one night, and I've never seen anything so scary. It was spelling out words, sentences......frightening. It's never worked that well before that or since.

The fire station was haunted too; one night I walked down to the bay (where the trucks are) and I heard footsteps on the other side of Engine 3. I called out but no one was there. After checking the whole bay, nervously brandishing a shovel, I couldn't find anyone. Another time I walked in the bay and heard the back door slam shut. I ran back to see who had left, and no one was there. There was an inch of new snow outside but no tracks! I got a really creepy feeling and left post haste! A few days later I was chatting with the chief and a captain. I felt kinda dumb but asked them if anything weird happens around the station. The chief and captain looked at each other, and the cap said, "let me guess: the other side of engine 3 and out by the back door, right?" It was so creepy. Apparently one of the guys had seen the apparition of a firefighter who had died a few years before, sitting in the engine he used to drive. He ended up quitting the department. The chief said he drove by one night and saw that all the emergency lights on all the trucks were on, but when he stopped and went inside, they were off.

[glennajo]

Ewwwwwww! That creeps me out!

I have goose bumps on my legs, and it even gave me a little shiver.
Do you know if the firefighter was killed on the job?

[Wayner]

I can't believe that nobody thought to start a thread like this before, PB.

Aliens: I think it would be presumptuous of us to think that we are alone in the universe.

Afterlife: I'm a Christian. I firmly believe that when we die, we either go to heaven or hell. And of course, I believe in angels.

Ghosts: I've never had a personal experience - at least one that couldn't be explained away - and I don't want one. However, I've dated a number of women that had some pretty freaky experiences. My wife had an experience in college with a Ouija board that scared her so badly that she and the girls in her sorority would not sleep without someone watching over them for weeks, and to this day she will not talk about it, or go near a Ouija board.

Aliens don't worry me. Ghost stuff scares the bejeezus out of me. And yet, Stephen King is my favorite author.