Paranormal Witness - General Discussion

[EverybodyIsACritic]

On August 13, 2015 at 7:04 PM, Chelsea girl said:

My favorite episode was the one where the guy had crazy drag queen eyebrows. He moved his new wife an her son in the home where his ex wife had died. The ex ended up scaring the kid and his new wife and he didn't believe them or care, lol. Pretty sure they aren't together anymore.

All I had to read was "crazy drag queen eyebrows" to know which episode that was!  That was the house full of yard-sale angels and cherubs, and the "husband" freaked when the new beard went into ex-Ms. Thang's room. I loved it!

[EverybodyIsACritic]

Just now, ari333 said:

Yes. I hear you.

 

Also, as many weird creepy things that happened, there were some good things too... still weird but the experience felt different.  - loving.. comforting. One time I saw a purple-ish white orb (I hate that word) over my bf's head while he was sleeping. I didnt' feel fear though. It was oddly calming.

I've had several good experiences, too!  I've never seen anything, per se, but I had a series of lucid "visitation" dreams from a friend that died under "mysterious" circumstances in which all my questions were answered, which was later verified by his mom. And, my uncle "did" things to show so many of us that he was still around, all things that were personal and specific to each person.

[bilgistic]

My beloved cat of 17.5 years passed in September. She was such a pure and gentle "old" kitty soul, with the most knowing eyes. She was my first kitty in my adult years; I got her about a year out of college.

She got very sick her last week or so of her life and quit eating. Her organs began shutting down. It was mercifully pretty fast, and I had to have her put down. She seemed almost relieved. When I was in the room after she was gone, she was GONE. It was just her cat vessel there. She wasn't there anymore. That description doesn't give it justice.

I was distraught, but have another cat (male), three years younger, that I had to keep taking care of. I had a dream about a week later in which I was readying their food, and he was going for it, as he did then, and she was hanging back. I said very gently to her in the dream, "You're not supposed to be here anymore," and I woke up.

I feel so strongly that she was checking on me. My boy cat now has pancreatitis, and it is an incredible battle that takes a great deal of my resources. He was officially diagnosed about a month ago, but his symptoms started getting really bad in about December. I choose to believe that the universe (and she) knew I would need to devote all my caregiving energy to him, so she had to leave us. Of course, now I look at photos of her over her last year and see her decline. That one dream was the only time I've dreamed of her.

I'm not at all religious, but I do believe people, animals and things can be connected, to very loosely define my spirituality.

[bunnyblue]

On 11/16/2015 at 11:32 AM, jewel21 said:

It was always unnerving and seemed to be something that followed by mother around from house to house.

Holy crap, now that's scary. For a house to be haunted is one thing but for something to follow someone from house to house seems almost unbearable.

I just discovered this forum and while the show has lost most of its appeal, I love reading everyone's scary stories.

One unexplainable experience I had was when I was 13 years old. I stayed home from school one day ("sick") and slept in. Late in the afternoon I was going to go outside to get the mail but when I got to the front door the surface style door bolt was locked. I'd been alone, sleeping, after my dad left for work hours before. He couldn't have locked the bolt behind him because there was no way to lock it from the outside. I can still see that stupid bolt and how we had to slide it to the right in order to lock it, which we only did at night. This was in San Francisco where the houses are smushed together with about 1/2 an inch separating them. There was no other way out of that house unless one jumped the backyard fence (and landed in the neighbor's yard) or jumped out a 2 story window. I remember feeling cold and freaked out when I saw that bolt locked from the inside. To this day, I still don't understand how the door could have been locked when I was alone in the house.

In this same house my brother and his girlfriend claimed they had a frightening experience. They were hanging out in his bedroom while the rest of the family went to a wedding. The door was closed when they heard several loud knocks on the bedroom door. My brother said "come in" thinking we had returned from the wedding. He got no reply. They heard knocking again. Once again he said "come in". Nothing, so he got up and flung the door open and no one was there. They searched the house and found no one. They were sufficiently freaked out when we got home hours later.

[caligirl50]

Love these stories!

If you all want to be freaked out, read the Halloween Ghost Stories on Gawker/Jezebel.  They are horrifyingly fun.  Jezebel hosts a best story contest each year.

[hatchetgirl]

My mom was a witch and carried a mirror she said could tell the future.  She was also schizophrenic, so there's that... but she did a voodoo doll of a brother in law and stabbed it's heart and the next day, he had a heart attack.  She could work the oujui board herself, again schizophrenic, but my friend and I were trying and it said it hated us so we ran to her.  She "spoke" to the spirit and it said I was too skeptical.  

The only thing I know is that my great aunt who took care of me until 12, always wore rose scented lotion and in my adult life I've smelled roses where no roses were... the biggest time, on the beach, which should snell of beach and I was surrounded by roses.  

[jumper sage]

My disclaimer:  I was raised in an atheist family that respected all religions.  We were required, as children, to learn about world religions.  We were all baptized, just in case.  Insert winky face.  Our families were Catholics from Italy where half remained Catholic and half joined the First English Lutheran church that held many of the same rituals except that ministers, reverends etc were not a conduit to God/Jesus.  We went to Sunday School or Catechism sometimes.  I still respect the Christian belief of not calling forth evil through a oujui board or seance.  I also respect the Judaic belief of no hell.........I am very logical, much like Sheldon Cooper.

1. While in college I rented apartments from the same landlord on different occasions.  He was great and I paid on time.  From a guest house to an upper flat I loved them all.  In graduate school I was broke and he offered me an apartment right by my work at a greatly reduced price.  It was a four unit, truck stop motel style building.  Each unit had a typical motel style kitchen and living room with a bedroom on the back side.  The bedroom faced the main road and the road was four lanes so was pretty well lit.  I noticed after a while that I could not see out the bedroom window at night.  There seemed to be a shape blocking most of it.  No evilness or sounds or anything.  I started sleeping in the living room.  My boyfriend thought I was crazy so he stayed there in the room ...for about 3 hours.  He ran outside to see if it was a bush, tree or maybe somebody.  Nothing.  I asked my landlord about it and he quickly said, "Oh that!  Let me show you something else but it is closer to your school then your work..."!!!!!!!!!

2.  My mother passed away a few years back and while in hospice we had the last rights done by a priest, just in case.  She was quite near death and not really there but her body reacted quite violently to the holy water.  The priest looked at us and we laughed, "Grandma always said her grandchildren were burned by holy water".  But that is not the story.  Here is the story.  I don't like candy.  I like chocolate but not candy.  I am your best friend at Halloween.  Anyways my mother loved Werthers candy especially the butterscotch round candies.  Some time after my mom passed I had my nephew, her youngest grandchild, overnight.  We had carryout from different restaurants and were getting the Xbox and laptops up and running for a night of gaming.  He was 14 at the time.  He looked at me and slyly asked, "Aren't you going to share with me?"  I asked him what he was talking about.  He said he smelled the Werthers and I was hogging them even though I claim to not like candy.  I told him, "Honey there are no candies in this house except for what we bought you".  He looked at me with a bit of horror on his face.  I told him it was probably grandma stopping by to say hi.  Both my brother and sister say they often smell the candy around them at different times.  Besides the candy smell I had an incident where I closed the building at work and then was due to open it the next morning and forgot to set my alarm.  I heard my name yelled, like when you are a kid in school, to wake up.  It was my mother's voice.

I am not claiming ghosts or denying it.  I am open to suggestive thinking.  I do realize that our brains must get us ready for a peaceful passing.  I do know this, I am worried about what happens to our brains when we die.  How can it turn off?  My mother kept claiming to have visits from dead relatives at the end of her life.  One was a friend of hers from work and I said I didn't know he had died for he was a good 25 years younger than her.  She said he wasn't dead and came each day for a smoke break?????????  I called her office and they told me he had recently died from a brain tumor.   Holy crap!  It does make me feel better knowing family comes for you.  It freaks my brother out.  I just don't know but I would love for that to happen.  The day she died she said there was a party in the next room for her and we should get her there.  I guess she got there.

Edited July 3, 2016 by jumper sage

[caligirl50]

Great stories!!!!!

[Mu Shu]

Don't worry about your brain when you die.  The way I see it, the brain energy is no longer encumbered with the burden of keeping the body going, working, staying away from serial killers and people with foul breath and such and such. The brain energy is free to go anywhere it dreams.  So when you die, you are actually freeing yourself to live any life you want.   

I'm pretty sure your energy lives on, and it's up to you to harness it.   I went to Gettysburg a couple of years back without knowing why I was compelled to go, and experienced many weird but not scary events.   I even went into a trance and forbade some people who were near the stone wall at the angle to come closer.   Really odd.

[caligirl50]

Season 5 premieres this Wednesday, August 3rd, 10pm!

[bilgistic]

YES!!! Thank you for the update, @caligirl50!!

[Frozendiva]

Still reruns here in Canada. Tonight's ep is the fireplace one.

Maybe we'll get the new season when Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell ends in a couple of weeks.

Edited August 3, 2016 by Frozendiva

[jewel21]

I posted on Space's fb page asking when we'd be getting the new season. No answer thus far :-/

[Frozendiva]

Jewel21, it is the day after the long weekend and summer vacation time. Maybe there'll be an answer within the next week or so. I don't mind the Strange/Norrell miniseries, although it did take a couple of episodes before I got interested in the story.

[bilgistic]

Is no one talking about the new episode??

I missed what Harper Lee had to do with the whole thing. And the voodoo stuff--was it happening on the property? I thought she said something about a church. It seemed she made some leaps in "logic". I was really confused.

[PBSLover]

I didn’t finish watching the episode...this show freaks me out a bit, so I didn’t see the end and if they explained the introduction and the Harper Lee connection.  I just did a search and found this:

Thirty years ago Harper Lee (writer of To Kill A Mockingbird) was in Alabama researching a possible serial killer, now her novel- along with any drafts and all her notes- is missing. 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/09/09/alabama-murder-mystery-what-happened-to-harper-lees-book_n_8109620.html

"Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Harper Lee politely knocked on truck driver Robert Louis Burns' door in rural Alabama one day more than three decades ago and asked him about the preacher he killed. The plainly dressed writer wanted to meet the man who had stood up in a crowded Alexander City funeral home in 1977 and put a bullet in the brain of a preacher who was rumored to have dabbled in voodoo and suspected in a string of deaths in this riverside county."

[Iboatedhere]

I thought last nights episode was a lot better than last weeks.

When she was sitting at her computer and the woman was slowly inching her way closer behind her....I couldn't even look. I watched out of the corner of my eye and I was watching it this morning in the daylight. I wouldn't have slept at all if I watched it live. Also the very end where she was hanging and the rope snapped then she climbed up the bed.....nope nope nope.

I would have called the cops at the first sign of trouble especially if they knew that there had been squatters in the past. I also would have been on the phone to the brother instead of the father a lot more often. The brother was 5 minutes away! Call him!

Obviously the salt ring did something so they should have stayed in the living room. If it ain't broke, don't fix it!

[PBSLover]

What about the note left in the bathroom on the steamed mirror????????

[bilgistic]

This episode was indeed better than last week's, which was just a nonsensical mess.

I am dubious as to the haunting being just the most recent tenant of the house. Savannah is notorious for being a "haunted" city because it is so old and a port city. That mirror message, especially, didn't make much sense to me coming from (pardon me but) a crack whore. What would she want with three college girls? I just didn't see her as a sinister force, but a residual haunting that repeated patterns--doors opening/closing, singing, etc.

This show is bad about dramatizing things for production value--like the ghost coming up behind one of the girls when neither would have known about it when they were Skyping. One girl left the room and the one in the house didn't see it on the monitor. I look past those manipulations to get to the real story.

Edited August 14, 2016 by bilgistic

[PBSLover]

22 hours ago, bilgistic said:

That mirror message, especially, didn't make much sense to me coming from (pardon me but) a crack whore.

I so agree.  It made no sense.

[jewel21]

Space finally got back to me. Season 5 of Paranormal Witness will air on September 1 at 10:00pm, eastern standard time.

[Frozendiva]

22 hours ago, jewel21 said:

Space finally got back to me. Season 5 of Paranormal Witness will air on September 1 at 10:00pm, eastern standard time.

Yay. The Conjuring ep was on yesterday. I watched part of it again.

[bilgistic]

The "From Hell" episode was FANTASTIC!!

Ouija boards/spirit boards have been around forever. Milton Bradley made ouija boards with plastic planchettes in the 1960s(?). My mother had one of those. The possessed daughter was about my age (40ish), so her mother would be about my mother's age. I know the parents immigrated to America, but to not know what spirit/ouija boards are about? She knew to take her daughter to a "witch doctor"/"bruja". That just seemed weird and contradictory to me.

Everything else (well, except for Syfy fakery shenanigans with the face pushing through the wall) was so terrifying and made for a great episode. I kept thinking that I couldn't imagine going through that. I wonder if the family wrote a book about the experience.

Edited August 18, 2016 by bilgistic

[Soobs]

On 8/17/2016 at 8:39 PM, bilgistic said:

The "From Hell" episode was FANTASTIC!!

Ouija boards/spirit boards have been around forever. Milton Bradley made ouija boards with plastic planchettes in the 1960s(?). My mother had one of those. The possessed daughter was about my age (40ish), so her mother would be about my mother's age. I know the parents immigrated to America, but to not know what spirit/ouija boards are about? She knew to take her daughter to a "witch doctor"/"bruja". That just seemed weird and contradictory to me.

Everything else (well, except for Syfy fakery shenanigans with the face pushing through the wall) was so terrifying and made for a great episode. I kept thinking that I couldn't imagine going through that. I wonder if the family wrote a book about the experience.

I found one at a yard sale when I was about 13 and begged my mother to buy it for me and my argument was how dangerous could it be if it was made by Milton Bradley? She did not buy it and after watching this episode, I'm profoundly grateful!

I remember hearing on one of these ghost shows that the spirits that come through oujia boards were mentally ill people/ and or suicides who just want to mess with people's heads.

[bilgistic]

Correction to my post: Hasbro made the modern, commercial ouija board.

Here's the interesting Wikipedia post detailing the long history of spirit boards.

Edited August 21, 2016 by bilgistic

[Frozendiva]

Canadians will see it in a month or so. 

Most people using the Ouija board or other spirit board probably won't summon much of anything, except a few laughs. Someone is always moving the planchette - mostly voluntarily. Some is the ideomotor response. Some folks have had some nasty experiences and actually have the ability to summon.... something. You don't always know who is behind the paranormal door you are knocking on and sometimes something answers and you might have an unwanted visitor for a while (til you call up your nearest parapsychologist or a good, real psychic for help). You do need to open and close the board properly.

[bilgistic]

I stream the show, and my stupid internet connection dropped out AGAIN right as they were bringing Eric into the house, and his heartbeat was slowing, per the "pastor". What happened after that?

I have lots of thoughts about this episode.

And Time Warner Cable internet can bite me.

[Sheenieb]

You print some illuminati type of deal off the Internet that some chat room creeper mentioned and weirdness happens? The Internet!

I thought this episode was horseshit. Seemed more like an undiagnosed mental illness.

I missed the first 15 minutes because I have my priorities straight and watched the season finale of Real Housewives of New York. So I don't know if it started out well but then descended into manure shortly after.

He was a teenage Faust!

Edited August 25, 2016 by Sheenieb

[bilgistic]

The first 15 minutes was this: He was 22 and decided to finally leave home. His sister and her husband and kid were living there "to save money to buy a house". Mom was painting son's bedroom when she first heard whispering. Sis and bro-in-law moved into brother's room. Wackiness ensued.

Here are my issues, and they are many. The "godly man" (bless Mama's heart) was called "pastor". He had also baptised the son at the church, as in, dunked full under water. Both of those things are Baptist or Baptist-adjacent. The "happenings" took place in Kentucky, so chances are better than average that the family is (Southern) Baptist(ish).

I grew up Baptist (note: I did NOT say "I am Baptist"), and this is what I know: Baptist "pastors" do not "bless" homes nor exorcise demons. They do not use holy water, nor cross on the forehead using it. Baptists do not believe in demons or ghosts as entities that can inhabit a person or become corporeal (real beings like the dude with the fancy car). The Holy Ghost is the only ghost, and the devil (in Hell) is the only demon. Angels, though, get a waiver--maybe, sometimes, they could be real. Jury's still out.

I don't know what to make of what the other family members saw (the tall man in black).

Edited August 25, 2016 by bilgistic

[Iboatedhere]

While I buy that The Devil could be a guy in an internet gaming chat room (or really any guy leaving douchey comments on a youtube video) I don't buy that you can print out a contract with him on your home computer. He's at least got to mail it to you. But this was a really good example of why you shouldn't open any links from someone you don't know or that look fishy. It's all fun and games until your soul gets sold.

All in all I thought this episode was a mess but the guy that played Eric was cute enough to keep my attention. He kind of had a Chris Messina vibe to him.

Edited August 25, 2016 by Iboatedhere

[Eme]

Great Points Bilgistic!  The Pastor threw me off also!  Only the Catholic church can do exorcisms and bless the water.  Thought it was very interesting that he had the Mother bring him a pan of water and a sponge which he "blessed" on the spot.  Hmmmmmm?  That was a weird detail.  Also think they sketched out on the details re: the contract.  Maybe he DID get it in the mail?  Who knows?  He certainly did get creeped out about the whole thing when he started to hear voices.  My Main Question:  What happened to him when he LEFT the house?  Did nothing follow him?  Wouldn't that thing be attached to HIM wherever he went?  Also, how could he leave his family in there without telling them to "be careful" at least? Find it hard to believe that his parents didn't share with him their "experiences" when he left and he just stayed Mum?  Really?  Lots of questions..... Mr. Eme just reminded me that the pastor told the guy that he had opened the door, but did not close it -- so he'd gotten rid of the devil for Himself via the baptism, but it hung around the house.  Okay then.  Selfish anyways....

Edited August 26, 2016 by Eme
More info from DH.

[bilgistic]

12 hours ago, Iboatedhere said:

He's at least got to mail it to you.

This made me laugh. Then I got to thinking about the U.S. Postal Service being implicit in stealing souls. You know, along with your mail.

The show stole the "escaping demon" FX (black smoke erupting from the mouth) straight from Supernatural.

Edited August 26, 2016 by bilgistic

[PBSLover]

On August 25, 2016 at 7:56 AM, Eme said:

Only the Catholic church can do exorcisms and bless the water.

And Reiki specialists if they know what they are doing......if anyone believes this.

[bilgistic]

Again with the ouija board. DON'T MESS WITH OUIJA BOARDS, PEOPLE.

[Frozendiva]

And the show returns to Canada!

Kinda a mess of a premiere. Lots of speculation but no real facts or evidence to tie the Harper Lee unfinished/missing novel backstory to the current story. Just an air of mystery and 'what if'? Maybe the book was terrible and the author destroyed it.

I saw the bugs when the family first moved in to the house. Bingo, the house is old, there was a bug nest and the bugs hatched. Squirrels or insects scuttling across the windows/eaves. I don't recall if the folks moved in to the house with it unseen or being shown old photos that didn't have the blue walls. No one bothered to ask the realtor/property manager why the walls were blue? Attics can be sealed shut due to things like winter! And air pressure. I noticed the voodoo 'eye'.

Quiet house in the country, where you don't get city noises. Animal noises, absolutely. Folks driving by late at night partying, absolutely.

Most seemed run of the mill til Jenny was "pushed" down the stairs. She certainly recovered quickly - a trip to the hospital would have been likely. Loud radio? Technical problem. Fixated on the house, the voodoo vampire may very well have been imagination and sleep paralysis. The dog death could also be explained by coyotes in the area looking for food.

Again, it's 2012 and the Internet search engines weren't working? No chats with the landlord or previous tenants?

[Frozendiva]

On ‎2016‎-‎08‎-‎11 at 6:08 AM, Iboatedhere said:

I thought last nights episode was a lot better than last weeks.

When she was sitting at her computer and the woman was slowly inching her way closer behind her....I couldn't even look. I watched out of the corner of my eye and I was watching it this morning in the daylight. I wouldn't have slept at all if I watched it live. Also the very end where she was hanging and the rope snapped then she climbed up the bed.....nope nope nope.

I would have called the cops at the first sign of trouble especially if they knew that there had been squatters in the past. I also would have been on the phone to the brother instead of the father a lot more often. The brother was 5 minutes away! Call him!

Obviously the salt ring did something so they should have stayed in the living room. If it ain't broke, don't fix it!

Canada had this episode this evening.

The computer scene was pretty creepy. As was the 'apparition' hanging and then climbing up the bed.

The girls could have asked the landlord for some sort of alarm system given that the house is in a bad neighbourhood.  Even a big baseball bat at the door. We don't have the power box outside - and that seemed odd. Anyone passing by could open the box and play with the breakers.

The neighbour lady should have been a bit more forthwith.

The salt probably didn't do much of anything except give them some peace of mind. You just don't find something in a paranormal book and hope it works. It may not. You have no idea what you are dealing with and not all things will be effective.  It may work for a short time, but you'll be buying even more of it!

I'm assuming that the 'ghost' or 'entity' has been there quite some time and is just 'stuck'. Nothing against the current occupants; just residual energy.

Having Internet access, they can just use a search engine to find someone who can actually help them.  Of course, being three 21 or 22 year olds in a house, all with active imaginations, doesn't really lend a lot of credibility. At least they didn't call a priest.

[bilgistic]

The house I grew up in that my folks still live in has the breaker box outside. The house was built in 1973-1974. We regularly had to go outside to turn the switches because the microwave and window air conditioning unit running simultaneously would flip the circuit. The boxes are usually configured for a lock, but we never put one on ours.

My apartment has the box inside the storage room on the balcony. My building is circa 1969. I lived in a 1920s-era apartment building with the breaker box (with tube wiring) in the kitchen. No rhyme or reason to the construction of them. I would guess there's probably state and/or federal codes now on new construction.

RE: The mothman episode--this one scared me. You don't mess with ouija boards, and you don't mess with the mothman! I took a shower last night after watching the show, and I was scared someone's hand was going to be on the other side of the shower curtain.

There's a very good (IMO) movie featuring Richard Gere about the mothman phenomenon. It's the reason I'm afraid to stop my car (in traffic) on bridges. There's also a pretty bad Syfy-produced movie about the mothman.

Edited September 9, 2016 by bilgistic

[AManfred]

7 hours ago, bilgistic said:

RE: The mothman episode--this one scared me

Yes! This was a good episode. The mothman legend is so creepy, and yes, the Richard Gere movie is great. I've seen many TV specials about the mothman and the part that always stuck with me is how the eyewitness said when they sped away in the car, the mothman was directly next to the car-- I sometimes think of that when I'm driving by myself at night!

It's one thing to reside in a new building and have creepy things happen, it's another when something seems to follow you home. The woman said they always liked their house, but the mothman occurrences made her no long feel safe in a place that used to be their own-- and that is terrifying!

[Frozendiva]

9 hours ago, bilgistic said:

The house I grew up in that my folks still live in has the breaker box outside. The house was built in 1973-1974. We regularly had to go outside to turn the switches because the microwave and window air conditioning unit running simultaneously would flip the circuit. The boxes are usually configured for a lock, but we never put one on ours.

My apartment has the box inside the storage room on the balcony. My building is circa 1969. I lived in a 1920s-era apartment building with the breaker box (with tube wiring) in the kitchen. No rhyme or reason to the construction of them. I would guess there's probably state and/or federal codes now on new construction.

RE: The mothman episode--this one scared me. You don't mess with ouija boards, and you don't mess with the mothman! I took a shower last night after watching the show, and I was scared someone's hand was going to be on the other side of the shower curtain.

There's a very good (IMO) movie featuring Richard Gere about the mothman phenomenon. It's the reason I'm afraid to stop my car (in traffic) on bridges. There's also a pretty bad Syfy-produced movie about the mothman.

Maybe living in a cold climate means the electrical panel is usually in the basement, and sometimes on the porch area (enclosed). US southern states probably can have them outdoors, although it makes it easy for folks wandering by to turn off the breakers (unless the panels are locked).

[jewel21]

I caught the second episode that aired in Canada. I found it really creepy. That dead girl gave me chills. Overall, I think I'm enjoying this season more than last season. Of course, only time will tell for sure.

[Iboatedhere]

I thought last nights episode was pretty solid. The older daughter had great hair!

Yay for original recordings. I didn't hear Stephen, I thought it was too scratchy, but "Richard" and "Yes, she better run" were really clear and made me shiver.

And the dog made it to the end!

[bilgistic]

I didn't understand how they made the leap from the two names to "infamous serial killer from the 1800s". He never lived on the property, right? It was definitely a good story, but there were holes. And sleep paralysis. That's not a haunting. Terrifying (I have it very occasionally), but not a haunting.

[Frozendiva]

On ‎2016‎-‎08‎-‎17 at 9:39 PM, bilgistic said:

The "From Hell" episode was FANTASTIC!!

Ouija boards/spirit boards have been around forever. Milton Bradley made ouija boards with plastic planchettes in the 1960s(?). My mother had one of those. The possessed daughter was about my age (40ish), so her mother would be about my mother's age. I know the parents immigrated to America, but to not know what spirit/ouija boards are about? She knew to take her daughter to a "witch doctor"/"bruja". That just seemed weird and contradictory to me.

Everything else (well, except for Syfy fakery shenanigans with the face pushing through the wall) was so terrifying and made for a great episode. I kept thinking that I couldn't imagine going through that. I wonder if the family wrote a book about the experience.

Canada had this episode today.

I remember playing with a friend's Ouija board when I was young. Nothing happened. The girl was lonely, bullied, angry, desperate. Proper energetic foodsource for a malevolent little entity. She didn't use the board properly - to open it properly, close it properly. One doesn't go around and play with the paranormal. When you knock at that door, someone or something will answer. Usually it's the tricksters or the more disturbed spirits. The girl was obsessed with talking to her new 'friend'. It's doubtful that the spirit got the class bully expelled. More like a series of bullying complaints would do the trick. Trying to shoot her father? Maybe a bit of wishful thinking. I do wonder if the spirit did actually inhabit the house energetically and just took advantage of the open portal.

The not so good spirits can and do break someone down. Read a book a long time ago about a man who was sucked in to the channelling world.

Most cultures do have some sort of Ouija board or other spirit communication device. The witch doctor probably wasn't exactly qualified to do an exorcism (a Catholic rite) but managed to expel the entity.

[auntieminem]

I watched the Mothman episode since I grew up in Point Pleasant and was a kid when it was reported.  I was a bit distracted because of things that were not accurate, such as name of the local paper.  My dad's explanation for the story a bunch of drunks.  The area was where people went to party, especially underage drinking.  This weekend was is the Mothman festival, not much left in the town so they really play this up.  

[bilgistic]

@auntieminem, do you have any insight into the Mothman phenomenon? Personal experience? I'd love to hear more!

I read a post on another board--I think it was in American Horror Story--where the commenter said the producers of Paranormal Witness had been courting her for years. She wouldn't do the show because they wanted to change (maybe sensationalize?) parts of her story.

I've always thought that was the case with PW. It started so strong with actual video, photos, audio recordings, etc. In my opinion, it's become "based on actual events", where they take a couple of elements from the truth and spin a wild tale around it. What the eyewitnesses/victims are saying is just a seed of what's being shown in the reinactments. It's very disappointing to me.

Edited September 18, 2016 by bilgistic

[PBSLover]

30 minutes ago, bilgistic said:

 

@auntieminem, do you have any insight into the Mothman phenomenon? Personal experience? I'd love to hear more!

I read a post on another board--I think it was in American Horror Story--where the commenter said the producers of Paranormal Witness had been courting her for years. She wouldn't do the show because they wanted to change (maybe sensationalize?) parts of her story.

I've always thought that was the case with PW. It started so strong with actual video, photos, audio recordings, etc. In my opinion, it's become "based on actual events", where they take a couple of elements from the truth and spin a wild tale around it. What the eyewitnesses/victims are saying is just a seed of what's being shown in the reinactments. It's very disappointing to me.

 

on A&E’s Paranormal State (I have the app so looking now if the show is still up - it is), they did a show on the Mothman.  There was a good bit of history thrown in as well as photos, witnesses.  If you like the Mothman, you should watch.  You will need a cable provider to unlock the episode.

[auntieminem]

I was only about 11 or 12 so not much insight except that most people did not believe their was a bird man, which is what we called it, not mothman.  Most believed it to be a sandhill crane.  There were really no validation of any of the sightings but there were a few pranks reported.  All the extra sightings came out from the book, The Mothman Prophecies.   It was mostly a joke growing up and even now though lots of paranormal groups visit the town.  I didn't know anyone personally who saw it or believed it.  I haven't ever been to the museum or the festival.  I was going to go this year with a friend but we had to cancel.  The rest of my family stayed in Point Pleasant but there is only my sister left so I do go back often.  

I have seen the Paranormal State episode.  It was filmed in the town and area, which I am not sure the PW was except for a couple of street shots.  The one woman interview on PW was also interviewed for PS and they also interviewed a few others and talked to the guy who runs the Mothman museum.  

[Frozendiva]

On ‎2016‎-‎08‎-‎24 at 11:00 PM, bilgistic said:

The first 15 minutes was this: He was 22 and decided to finally leave home. His sister and her husband and kid were living there "to save money to buy a house". Mom was painting son's bedroom when she first heard whispering. Sis and bro-in-law moved into brother's room. Wackiness ensued.

Here are my issues, and they are many. The "godly man" (bless Mama's heart) was called "pastor". He had also baptised the son at the church, as in, dunked full under water. Both of those things are Baptist or Baptist-adjacent. The "happenings" took place in Kentucky, so chances are better than average that the family is (Southern) Baptist(ish).

I grew up Baptist (note: I did NOT say "I am Baptist"), and this is what I know: Baptist "pastors" do not "bless" homes nor exorcise demons. They do not use holy water, nor cross on the forehead using it. Baptists do not believe in demons or ghosts as entities that can inhabit a person or become corporeal (real beings like the dude with the fancy car). The Holy Ghost is the only ghost, and the devil (in Hell) is the only demon. Angels, though, get a waiver--maybe, sometimes, they could be real. Jury's still out.

I don't know what to make of what the other family members saw (the tall man in black).

The ep aired in Canada this evening. I was puzzled. What I got out of it was don't click on any email attachments you didn't ask for. Usually you get a nasty virus, and not selling your soul. Eric never bothered to read the fine print. He also has an amazing printer set-up that doesn't require that you actually hit 'print'.  At first I thought that Magus was one of Eric's high school buddies (or one of their relatives) playing a prank on him. His friends knew he liked gaming so why not pretend to be something out of The Secret!  Manifest what you would like. Til nothing actually manifests. Or if it does, it comes with a price.  The Universe is not an ATM. Give the school nerd/loser a break. People who didn't give you the time of day for most of your life will not start because you signed some stupid pact. Humans are fickle creatures. Any devils wouldn't have to go through the time and expense of a 'game'. Too many easy folks to 'recruit' in a far simpler manner.

The 'recruiting' folks to join the Contract part was odd. Eric should have read the contract. Or at least done an ISP search for the site.

If it was that simple to sell your soul, there'd be millions - like an infomercial! Buy one at $29.99 and get another free! And free shipping! Maybe there was something in the house that took advantage of the 'open door' courtesy of Eric's playing around with the paranormal. The pastor probably would have referred Eric to a mental health specialist first (like the Catholic church - it doesn't do exorcisms on demand - there is a process - and then called in the superiors. He probably couldn't eradicate the evil forces on his own, on ONE try. The Devil has been around for eons - what's one measly little attempt at an exorcism going to do?

The dark energy probably would not be confined to the home. It's very likely that Eric would have carried it around with him. The old PC should have been taken to the local eco-station for recycling. Problem solved.

Somewhere in here, there is a story.

[bilgistic]

The California bikers episode--I don't know, y'all. Until it got to people being grabbed, everything else could be scientifically explained. I do completely believe in the supernatural, but there are so many alternative explanations for things. The record  supernaturally "turning" on the wall was ludicrous. It could easily just be more heavily weighted on the side it kept falling toward.

Why wouldn't the homeowner call the police after learning from the medium that there was a murder and possible burial on the property? Missing persons reports could be searched that matched the woman's description, per what the medium saw, if anyone did report her missing.

Hana Tek is a semi-famous tattoo artist. I recognized her name immediately. One thing this show does well is matching the reenactors to their real-life counterparts.

[Soobs]

4 hours ago, bilgistic said:

The California bikers episode--I don't know, y'all. Until it got to people being grabbed, everything else could be scientifically explained. I do completely believe in the supernatural, but there are so many alternative explanations for things. The record  supernaturally "turning" on the wall was ludicrous. It could easily just be more heavily weighted on the side it kept falling toward.

Why wouldn't the homeowner call the police after learning from the medium that there was a murder and possible burial on the property? Missing persons reports could be searched that matched the woman's description, per what the medium saw, if anyone did report her missing.

Hana Tek is a semi-famous tattoo artist. I recognized her name immediately. One thing this show does well is matching the reenactors to their real-life counterparts.

I was wondering why they didn't call the cops too. Maybe they wouldn't come out to investigate, maybe they would. At least give them a call. This episode reminded me of a news story I read awhile back where people living in a home were convinced it was haunted only to learn there was a homeless man squatting in their basement. It's funny to me how people go straight to "it's a haunting" before checking out faulty wiring, drafty windows etc.. There's wanting to believe and then there's wanting too much to believe. The grabbing of the hair thing was the only really unexplained thing that happened. Too be honest, I didn't believe that part.