I hear something there in the shadow down the hall...
Looky looky, not even a week and I remember my challenge post. This is the fourth in a series of posts suggested by readers in the second Kapgar Lyrical Challenge. Today's title suggested by SJ, who was really hoping to learn more about my haunted townhouse. Well SJ, despite our earlier e-mail convo, the story has advanced a bit. So enjoy!
Katie and I have a new housemate.
Uninvited... but not necessarily unwelcome.
Oh, and we have never actually seen him. Not yet, anyway.
I've always kidded around that our townhouse was haunted and I know SJ is firmly convinced of it. Yet I never really bought into it until Katie and I came home one night a week or so ago...
Katie: Hi. We're home.
Me: Of course we are. Who are you saying that to?
Katie: Our ghost.
Me: Our what?
Katie: Our ghost.
Me: You actually believe we're haunted?
Katie: Kinda. I hear a lot more things that you don't get to hear after you leave for work.
Me: Really? So who do you think it is? Only one other family lived here before us and they all moved out intact.
Katie: I think it's the guy who lived in the end unit. He died, remember?
Me: So why doesn't he haunt his unit? He didn't even know us.
Katie: That's just it... he didn't know us, but he knew everyone else. So now he's introducing himself. He just walks in and says hi and checks up to see how things are going.
Me: A bit late for that, don't you think?
Katie: Nah.
After we established that Katie believed it, my own belief began to increase. So it then became time to get a bit more cordial with our guest.
Me: I think we should name him Bernard.
Katie: Our house ghost?
Me: Yeah.
Katie: Why Bernard?
Me: It sounds cool and somewhat distinguished. And we can call him Bernie for short.
Katie: That sounds too much like Weekend at Bernie's.
Me: Well, they're both dead, so it works out.
Katie: Sure, why not.
I think our house ghost likes having a name, even if it wasn't necessarily the name he had when he was, well, not dead.
He also digs on being acknowledged. If we wish him good night and good morning, he stays quiet. But, if we don't, he can make an awful ruckus. Besides just the footsteps I've reported before, you can occasionally hear doors and drawers opening and closing when none of our fellow townhouse denizens are home. They typically sound like they're coming from our attic.
We're doing our level best to work these salutations into our daily routine.
We sleep better for it.
So what do you think the odds are of us getting Bernie to chip in on the mortgage?
Totally Unrelated Aside (TUA): Okay, this isn't really unrelated. I was just not in the mood to come up with a naming convention for yet another way to list a semi-divergent topic in a post. So...
You wanna talk about something really creepy? Check out this video podcast from National Geographic (yes, you can watch this right on your computer screen if you have QuickTime). Now that's just a bit disturbing.
I think that Bernard is a perfectly good name for a ghost! Have you busted out the ouija board yet?!
Posted by: Bre | Thursday, 09 August 2007 at 08:13 AM
ghosts scare me! you guys are handling this MUCH better than i would.
Posted by: sizzle | Thursday, 09 August 2007 at 08:59 AM
Your ghost could be someone who died on that site a long time ago, before your townhouse was ever built. I once worked with a woman whose modern home was also inhabited by the spirit of a very territorial, very short Native American. They actually had to have a spiritualist come out and "guide" him to the Other Side.
Maybe your ghost's name WAS Bernard, and he whispered that name to you in your sleep. Very good choice, and I'm so happy to hear you've gotten more comfortable with him!
P.S. I thoroughly enjoyed the update, thanks!
Posted by: SJ | Thursday, 09 August 2007 at 09:50 AM
Bre, no ouija boards. I have a, shall we say, "thing" against them. Whole other story.
sizzle, he's pretty cool to us so long as we're cool to him. So no worries.
SJ, never thought about the idea that he whispered the name or otherwise passed it on to me to use. He does like it, though. And I figured you would like this post. Right up your alley.
Posted by: kapgar | Thursday, 09 August 2007 at 11:29 AM
I bet there will be more than just drawers slamming if you ask Bernie to chip in on the mortgage.
Posted by: Dagny | Thursday, 09 August 2007 at 12:15 PM
Great, now I've got the Ghostbuters's theme running around in my head.
Posted by: Dustin | Thursday, 09 August 2007 at 12:43 PM
I think most ghosts are harmless and friendly. I am 100% convinced that my landlady's deceased mother was walking around in the attic above my apartment. Either that, or the landlady moved furniture around up there at really odd hours.
Posted by: diane | Thursday, 09 August 2007 at 01:22 PM
Dagny, so much for that idea.
Dustin, it could be worse.
diane, I think she just may have been really old and confused.
Posted by: kapgar | Thursday, 09 August 2007 at 05:26 PM
Like SJ, I beleive in ghosts. The retreat centre where I worked one summer was haunted. One very friendly lady hung out around the A wing, some grumpy spirits were in the library and some rather malevolant ghosts were in one of the three guest houses. I hated having to clean that place alone...
Posted by: suze | Thursday, 09 August 2007 at 07:03 PM
Any personal encounters with the spirits?
Posted by: kapgar | Friday, 10 August 2007 at 06:06 AM
I never even thought to name my ghost. Then again, he/she might have got too bored with the ho-hum life I lead and left the house. Haven't seen or heard him/her in quite awhile now. Maybe if I come up with a name... nah!
Posted by: Lisa | Sunday, 12 August 2007 at 01:31 PM
Lisa, so are you trying to tell me you miss your ghost? ;-)
Posted by: kapgar | Monday, 13 August 2007 at 06:04 AM