I'm 39 years old and I've always been pretty skeptical about such things as ghosts and spirits. However, over the last 6 months I have had some unusualy activity in my home that is opening my mind to accept that I may have been wrong.

It all started in late May or early June. I began catching quick glimpses of shadows around the house. I didn't think anything of it the first couple of times it happened. I figured it was an optical illusion or an electricity spike that caused my eye to detect a moving shadow. But then I continued to see these shadowy figures and have even watched them for as long as 3 seconds. The shadows are relativley plain in shape and appearance. Basically a rough, elongated oval shape is how I'd describe it.

Then soon after I started seeing these shadows or dark patches something else unusual started happening to me. Not every night, but I would say an average of 4 or 5 nights per week, I would be awaken to a sound. It was not always at the same time but it has always been in the time frame of midnight and 2:00 AM. The sounds began as whispers. Sometimes it would be my name and other times it would be just utter nonsense words. I seldom recall what was said. But I do remember one night being awoken by a very clear voice which said "You know what that is like." The phrase means absolutely nothing but I laid awake for an hour afterwards just repeating those words to myself. The whispering then became clear speaking at a conversational volume. And when it wasn't a voice it would be bells (like a ship's bell or a couple of times it was an old telephone bell) and buzzes.


The latest thing which I have been noticing for about a month now is touching. Whether I'm in front of the computer or watching tv or working around my home I have had about 20 or 25 instances of feeling something or someone touch me. It's always been on my feet, ankles and calves. The feeling is simply like someone slowly rubs their hand over you - then it is gone.

I've also been hearing creaks and cracks in the house that I never heard before. But the house is 60+ years old so I won't put much emphasis on that.

These occurrances: whether it be the sight of a shadowy figure or being spoken to at night or having something brush over my feet while I'm typing on the computer; are always brief. They last just long enough to make me question my sanity. However at 39 years old and having never halucinated before I can't imagine I would begin now.

If it were to be a "spirit", the only thing I can think of as to why or how he entered my home is through another object that has entered the house. I love to visit auction sales. I like to buy worthless old household items like old dishes, tea pots, tea cups and saucers, dinner and flat wares etc.. It's not valuable stuff but I collect it. Maybe it came in with something like that I had purchased?

Does anyone have any ideas? Any thoughts? Any suggestions? I'd love to hear what an uninterested party might think.

P.S. Probably unrelated - but definitely funny. This is the 3rd time I've had to type this message. The previous 2 times I was typing I blew a fuse and the computer powered off. It's my own fault for plugging in the kettle while my electric heater is running. But even funnier is that I'm always bright enough to remeber to turn one heating element off before turning on another one.

[ December 23, 2004, 01:49 PM: Message edited by: CandleMan ]

Interesting story there CandleMan, and by the way, welcome to our little corner of cyberspace. I think you're going to like it here.

One thing I've learned over the years of studying ghost encounters, is there are a lot of common elements between them. It definitely seems like you have something in your house. Some of those common elements include: seeing shadows, hearing sounds, feeling things, having odd things happen in the house. Since you said you collect things from auctions and estate sales, it's very likely that your spirit came along with one of the items you picked up. Spirits are most often bound to a place, but they can be bound to an object that was close to them, and then when the object changes hands, the spirit can come along for the ride.

Besides feeling like you're being touched, do you ever feel an unusual disoriented sensation, goose bumps, or chills? These are commonly associated with paranormal phenomena as well.

Some things you can try to "prove" the existence of whatever it is, is to try taking a picture of it, or try and get a sound recording or EVP (Electronic Voice Phenomena). There are many posts on here with tips on how to do both of these things. You might even try talking to it. Some spirits just want you to know they're there, or are looking for attention.

As for the fuses blowing, ghosts can cause this too, or it could just be too many heating elements plugged into one circuit. =)

Anyway, welcome to SpiritKeep, have a merry Christmas, and post more stories if/when you have them.

Really interesting story CandleMan, and no, you definitely are not insane! Most of us at one time or another have experienced something like that. I think Kevin gave some good advice on this. I would also suggest just casually, verbally acknowledging the presence. You might feel like a nut at first, but I promise it works! I had a "visitor" in our guest bedroom that terrified my nephew a few years back. One day, I sat on the bed while I was alone in the house and had a "heart to heart" talk with the spirit. Essentially, I told it, it was welcomed to stay, but no more scaring the munchkin. From that day on, we still had things happen, but my nephew was left alone.

How long have you lived in the house? You mentioned it was over 60 years old -- do you know anything about the previous owners, or the history around the property? Those are always good things to start out with when you investigate a haunting and want to know more about who may be haunting a place and why. More than likely, your local library may help provide some clues if the have a section on local history.

I'm an antique and flea market nut, so you may very well be on to something being attached to something in your house. It does happen, and it is something to be cautious about.

Good luck! Keep us updated!

Did the time the cold feeling in your sleep started coincide with the start of the other occurrences? Or did it start happening after you brought home a particular auction item? That might help clue you in as to which item the spirit is attached to.

It might not hurt to check with a doctor, in case your cold feelings are caused by some sort of underlying health issue. Chills and ghosts often go together, so it wouldn't surprise me if there's a connection there.

[ December 23, 2004, 03:15 PM: Message edited by: Kevin P ]

I might suggest ... don't know if I am right or wrong ... but if you could narrow down the items that you think you bought in that time period and carefully pack them up and store them offsite for a few weeks to see if there are any changes .. and if so bring the items back one at a time and watch for more changes in the happenings. Might narrow down just which object it is ... thinking of my collection ... it would be a momumental task as i collect almost the same items as you described.

Hi Candleman,

I have to agree with everyone it surely does sound like you have a visitor. One that seems quite eager to make him/herself known to you. I too agree it is possible that something you brought home had a previous owner still attached to it and also possible this is linked to you or your home. Lots of great advice given here already, no need to be repetitive with more of the same. A few questions for you though:

Is the voice you hear male or female? Have you noticed any scents that last very briefly, like say smoke or perfume or a food smell? Have any of the older items you've purchased moved, even if slightly and you chalked it up to your doing so but just forgetting you had? In particular anything purchased just prior to all this starting. Or have you found something personal of yours (not the auction items) in a different location then where you thought you had left it?

Taking pictures, using a recording device are good ideas as is trying to talk to whoever is there and doing some research on your home. Along with asking he/she who they are and what they want you may want to ask him/her if one of the items was theirs and to provide you with some indication as to which piece it is. It just may help with determining if this is linked to an item, the home itself or a spirit visit not associated with either.

Do let us know if anything new occurs. Good luck with the pic taking and recordings. Thanks for sharing this experience with us. Cat =)

Hi Candleman:

I thought I'd share this with you: When I was a teenager, I used to babysit for some friends in our neighborhood. The father was agnostic and didn't believe in anything he couldn't see. He and his wife, used to go antique shopping on the weekends. They ran across a couple of old Victrolas and brought them home. Almost immediately, within a day or so, things started happening in the house. It took them a week or so to realize that there weren't always logical explanations for some of it... i.e. the heat turning on by itself, things being moved, noises they had never heard in the house before. They have 3 daughters and one evening, the oldest found herself unable to get out of the bathroom after her shower. He ended having to take the door off its hinges. The mom was drying her hair the next day and thought one of the girls had come in the bathroom to ask her something. She looked up in the mirror, expecting to see one of them standing behind her; instead, it was a mist in a human form, floating behind her. Things continued, the girls saw the shadow of a little boy on the wall, and were disturbed by dreams etc... Anyway, a friend of the mom's who had had paranormal experiences, suggested that it was related to one of the antiques they had recently purchased. They decided to part with both of the Victrolas, and the problems ceased. So, yes I do believe sometimes ghosts are attached to an object.

There is a post on Oct 24, 2004, in Ghosts & Spirits, Subject: The goings-on in my apartment. I went into some detail there about the recorder I use and how I get my EVPs, if you want to check it out. =)

Hi everyone. Let me first say that I hope you all had a very happy holiday! And also I want to thank you all for the positive responses you have sent me. I'll try to answer as many of the questions as possible.

Some background on the house: The house was built in the 1940's and has gone through several owners. Over the years I have lived here I have asked some of the long-time residents of the street about history and nothing unusual or spectacular has happened here. The owners previous to me were an older couple in the 70's. They hadn't actually lived here very long (less than 10 years). The gentleman had been ill with cancer I've been informed. He was receiving home health care but eventually died in hospital (not at the house). Previous to them was a young couple who also didn't live here more than 4 or 5 years. And beyond that I don't know any specific details but I have been informed by some neighbours that it's been fairly uninteresting.

Assuming that my visitor has entered the house through something that I have picked up at an auction sale or flea market, it will be fairly easy to narrow down wich items. I only started noticing the strange activity in the house in late May or early June and as May was very rainy and cool here in Ontario, I didn't go out to many auctions or flea markets. In fact I only went to one in May and prior to that was sometime in March. I only purchased a few items at the sale. A few of them went into my store to be used as decorating or display items and the others went home. The only things brought into the house was 2 sets of dishes.

And I think I may be able to narrow it down even more to one particular set of dishes. Upon bringing the dishes home I immediately put the boxes into the basement. About a month or so ago I brought one of those boxes of dishes upstairs to wash and put into my china cabinet. As I was washing them I felt something brush across my feet. That was my first experience with the touching feeling that I've been noticing. At first I thought I had splashed some water out of the sink but the floor and my feet were completely dry. This has now happened many times since that evening. It is not always my feet, but it is always below the knee. Perhaps if I remove that set of dishes from the house I can see if anything changes over time.

I was asked in an earlier post if the voice I hear is male or female. I am fairly certain that the voice is masculine.

Since posting on here and reading the replies I have begun trying to communicate with him. I have spoken, aloud, to him several times now. I've acknowledged his presence and asked him to let me know what he needs or what I should be doing. I've also told him that I do not fear him as he's given me no reason to. I really haven't received any messages or signs but I'll continue to speak to him. Now maybe I am grasping at straws here, but there might have been a sign from him on Christmas eve. Something interesting happened to me. It's kind of personal so I won't post it publicly. Nothing bad or dirty For those who are curious or able to help, I'll gladly email you the details.

I was also asked about scents and if things are being moved around on me. I haven't noticed any strange or different smells. But then again, being a candlemaker, I work with scents everyday. My nose is pretty much immune to smells - unless they're pretty strong LOL ... And I really haven't noticed any of my personal items being moved around or gonig missing. It may have happened and I've simply not paid enough attention to notice it. It's something I'll be watching for in the future.

It's been pretty quiet here this weekend. I haven't noticed any activity. The last thing that's occurred that I attribute to me visitor happened a few nights ago. I was sitting in the rec room and surfing the net. I heard my dog scratching himself. It was that familiar friction sound of claws on fur being accompanied by the jingle of dog tags. The scratching sound last for about 5 seconds or so. When it stopped I looked over at the dog - but he wasn't there. So I went on a hunt for him. I found him upstairs, in the livingroom asleep on the couch - breathing heavy and eyes closed (really asleep). I don't think he could have gone upstairs and fallen asleep in only a few seconds.

I will still keep everyone posted on the unusual goings on here. =)

It's interesting to me that you mentioned the dog. As I was reading your post and you mentioned that you feel the touchng below the knees, it made me think it could possibly be an animal. I don't believe in "ghost" animals; however, the spirit of an animal may visit or perhaps it could be your totem animal there to protect you from your "visitor." Would you happen to know what your totem animal is? Has your dog ever reacted to any of the strange goings on? It would be cool if you could snap some pics around when you feel or hear your visitor. I was wondering too, if anyone else (friends or family) have experienced anything at your house?

I do share the house with one other person. He is not at the house often. However I have discussed this "visitor" situation with him. Inbetween his giggling and smirking, he said he has not had the same experiences as I have.

I'm not sure what you mean by "totem animal" so I can't really answer that at the moment.

But yes, I agree with you that since the touching does occur below the knee, it is almost as thought it could be an animal of some description. Interesting.....

I already have the batteries of my digital camera charged up and am now getting myself in the habit of carrying it with me everywhere I go in the house and waiting for something to happen so I can snap a few shots.

I just had a chat with my roommate again about what I think is going on. He asked me, "If there's a visitor here, why aren't I experiencing the same things you are?". Good question. I told him that maybe it's because I am totally wrong or possibly he is experiencing them and hasn't realized it yet. I was seeing shadows and hearing voices for a few months and I completely ignored it. I was being too closed minded to open up to supernatural possibilities. It wasn't until I had actually been physically touched by the presence a few times that I started to piece my evidence together and conclude that there may be something strange going on. I asked him to try to be more aware of the surroundings and to let me know if anything happens that is even slightly irregular. He said he would try to do that.

It's all I can ask...

A totem animal is a spirit guide. Some people think we choose them before our soul comes to earth, to be with us and protect us. Some people believe that the totem animal finds us. I always have had a cat as a pet, it's like I can't live without one. My totem is a large black cat, I've seen it twice and have been aware of it off and on all of my life. The most recent time I saw it was when my friend died in June of this year. It appeared on my sidewalk that night when I was standing outside. At that time, I didn't know she had died. I'm not saying this is your visitor, but wanted to give you some info on it. The fact that you feel this below your knees is what got me thinking of it being an animal. Anyway...here's a link about totem/power animals:
Totem/Power Animals[/URL]

Here's a link about contacting spirit guides: Find Your Spirit Guide[/URL]

This would not explain the voices, so sounds like you may have a ghost or poltergeist or who knows... Good luck with your pictures.

[ December 27, 2004, 01:20 AM: Message edited by: SavannahSilkie ]