To think ghost stories are BS, but my experience was a bit odd?

[BigMoan]

I moved into a 1950’s house previously occupied by a couple. They were the sole occupants since it was built. The husband died, and a few years later the wife moved to a care home. The house was then put on the market.

Our first night in the house, we’d put a car seat centrally on a table. It fell off.
Few days later, I heard our piano being played - I went in the room and no one was there.
Then a week or so later - daughter went to the bathroom, froze and said there’s someone in there. She described the person as a male, like a shadow and wearing a suit. I hadn’t mentioned anything about ghosts to her, and told her it was just a shadow - perhaps Daddy had walked past when she was about to go in. For a few weeks after she was scared of the bathroom, wanted an adult with her. And now - if ghosts come up in a book/on TV - she always refers back to this experience.

A few other weird things happened. And then nothing else. The house felt ‘creepy’ for a while. Absolutely nothing creepy about it now.

If course it’s ridiculous to think it was a ghost, but what was I experiencing? Was it just the strangeness of moving somewhere new? Just wondered if anyone else had had a similar experience?

Why do some people think it's ok to be so rude to other posters on threads?

Do they think it makes them sound clever, i wonder?

A = it doesn't.

Believe in whatever nonsense you like. If you want to believe that you have ‘the sight’ and are special, go ahead. If you want to convince yourself that you have been visited by a leaf deity who wants you to do his work on earth, do it. If it brings you comfort to think that your granny visited you on the anniversary of her death, good luck to you.

What you shouldn’t do is attempt to spin your beliefs, or the experiences you think that you have had, into an assertion that ghosts definitely exist and are ‘100% real’, on the basis of no evidence.

(And no, I don’t count the Netflix programme signposted upthread as independent evidence of the existence of ghosts).

[quote Wagsandclaws]@EstherOnions please can you tell me about the Banshee!?

My dad was from Cork born in the 1930's and told me about a little about them. He was a very practical Irishman, he died 22 years ago this February but his stories live on! [/quote]
Ooh, how I can resist a direct request!
Did your dad's surname start with the letter 'O', as in O'Brien, O'Sullivan, O'Neill? Apparently banshees are much more likely to follow these families.
Anyway, let me start by saying this didn't happen to me, but to my mother and father, cousins and uncle, so I only have a second-hand account of what went on. The story goes:
It was evening in Ireland and my cousin was chatting to a girl on the phone. He kept getting distracted, though, as the most unearthly sobbing and wailing had begun somewhere outside. Born and raised in the country, he knew it didn't sound like a fox or any other animal he had heard before.
My parents also heard it where they were in the house, as did my uncle and my other cousin. They all began to walk around the house, opening the doors at the front and back to try and identify where the noise was coming from.
My dad and cousin took up torches and went out on the road. While the house was surrounded by fields on three sides, it was on a fairly busy road. Animals were killed on it regularly, and they thought perhaps there was an animal lying injured somewhere. They walked briskly up and down, shining their torches into the ditches on either side, but found nothing. The unearthly cries and guttural sobs continued.
The next morning, the family members were awoken first thing by the phone ringing. It was a relative calling to break the news that my uncle's mother - my cousins' grandmother - had died in the night. She was elderly and frail, yes, but hadn't been considered at the end of her life, so the news was a shock. And, yes, the family name starts with an 'O'.

So that's it, the banshee story. Who knows what it was, but to this day my cousin can't talk about it without his eyes filling with tears of fear.

Iamthewombat - ''What you shouldn’t do is attempt to spin your beliefs, or the experiences you think that you have had, into an assertion that ghosts definitely exist and are ‘100% real’, on the basis of no evidence.''

Why?
And why do you sound so aggressive?

'Hat man the fallen angel dude' (although mine did not have a penchant for hats, I hear it is common amongst shadow figures) was in my house at night, yup. Standard, I know xD

But I was awake when I saw him, I had literally just turned out my bedside light and was still sitting up in bed and it came into the room. Guessing the light maybe kept it out before. I could see it in the dark, because it was darker than the rest of the room. You could feel it too, watching.

And,sorry, as this is going to sound like I'm having you on even more but - it came from a luck spell on the back of a magazine. Yes, I know. Horror budget level bs lol (But tbf i now consider a lot more where the idea from these horror films originated from lol).

But in 30 years I've never seen anything, and on the one day that I think 'hey, this looks like a lark, I could use some luck' is the only time I've ever experienced anything like that. Before or since.

I had not given it a moments thought since that afternoon so it most certainly was not my imagination running away with me. Nor was I under the influence of any booze or drugs.

Nor was it sleep paralysis because believe me, I shimmeyd as far away from the bloody thing on my ass as I could as fast as possible when it showed up lol. Whilst still trying to pretend that I hadn't seen it. Luckily it left after what felt like an age but was probably only 20 minutes.

As for those enquiring as to my sources... I mean, what would you consider a reputable source on hobgoblins and monsters? Lol.

But, Shadow men, djinns, witches familiars, fallen angels and the urban legend of the hat man are talked about in many books and sources and j've read my fair share, as anyone probably would if they have had such an experience.

So, I'd love to say I was dreaming or high or had a wonderful imagination but alas, none of that is true. I'm just a twat who accidently summoned a shadow demon one day. If there was another explanation for what I saw then I'd bloody well choose it and so would you I daresay. I guess I always believed in the possibility of ghosts and the supernatural before but you just never expect to see it. Until you do.

I should add though, that I treat it as a good experience. Because now any time I meet a challenge in life, I think 'hey, you've got this, you once considered kicking a ghost in the bollocks in order to escape it, so this is nothing'. Lol. Also i figure if there are dark things in the world like that then, there are probably equally bright things too. Which is a nice thought.

Iamthewombat I wouldn’t bother haunting your either.

I’m a ghost skeptic completely, but have no explanation as to why I had “no one” shout loudly in my ear, or that my friend had at a completely separate time and neither of us had told the other. I don’t believe in any god, but I can’t say definitely none exists. I can’t say ghosts do or don’t exist. I keep an open mind

@Laiste

Iamthewombat - ''What you shouldn’t do is attempt to spin your beliefs, or the experiences you think that you have had, into an assertion that ghosts definitely exist and are ‘100% real’, on the basis of no evidence.''

Why?
And why do you sound so aggressive?

Here we go. You’re losing the argument so you’re crying about aggression.

Here is why you shouldn’t use your own questionable supernatural experiences as the basis of a statement that ghosts, or ‘hat men’, or fallen angels, or ‘orbs’, or whatever, 100% exist.

It’s because your anecdote doesn’t constitute an evidence base. That’s how science works. What do you think that physicists do all day? Play with Van Der Graaf generators, giving each other electric shocks for a laugh? No, they are gathering evidence to form and support theories and having their work, and the supporting evidence, peer reviewed.

Even then, few scientists would confidently assert that a theory is 100% true without incontrovertible evidence. Yet you think that because someone half-awake in bed thinks that they have seen a cat/a shadowy figure/ a small child etc looking at them, that’s all the proof that is needed.

Don’t plan on attending the Nobel prize ceremony any time soon. A PP, I think Kanaloa, said upthread that where something definitely exists, it’s easy to prove. Salford, pencils, birds. Give that some thought.

I agree backstreet, I totally understand people being on the fence or saying 'I've never experienced so I don't know'. That makes sense. And tbh I have experienced and whilst I would deem it a supernatural experience, that still doesn't mean I have any answers.

But i don't understand people who say 'absolutely not'. And they enquire as to what evidence there is. But then scoff at millions of peoples experiences as if they dont count as evidence. I mean, they can't all be codswallop. Something is clearly going on.

@Backstreetsbackalrightdadada

Iamthewombat I wouldn’t bother haunting your either.

I’m a ghost skeptic completely, but have no explanation as to why I had “no one” shout loudly in my ear, or that my friend had at a completely separate time and neither of us had told the other. I don’t believe in any god, but I can’t say definitely none exists. I can’t say ghosts do or don’t exist. I keep an open mind

Great! I am happy that you won’t be wasting your time haunting me.

The conversation is about proving that something exists. Posters upthread have stated confidently that ghosts etc definitely exist because they themselves have seen one. I dealt with that in my previous post.

You are now talking about proving that something doesn’t exist. Anybody would be a fool to try, because as any logical person can tell you, it is impossible to prove that something doesn’t exist. So anybody who wants to make a case for ghosts being real needs to prove it, and nobody ever has.

But i don't understand people who say 'absolutely not'. And they enquire as to what evidence there is. But then scoff at millions of peoples experiences as if they dont count as evidence. I mean, they can't all be codswallop. Something is clearly going on.

Who has said ‘definitely not’? You and other posters have been asked to provide a proper evidence base, and you haven’t. The existence of ghosts has never been scientifically proved despite hundreds of years of stories. Why is that?

As for the stories not all being codswallop: they might be. Is it inconceivable to you that people who are grieving, or are suffering from mental health problems, or who are substance abusers might imagine things that aren’t there? Or that drama kings and queens might, you know, make stuff up to attract attention, or make money, or jump on a bandwagon? Do you believe that Derek Acorah and Psychic Sally are 100% genuine?

I'm not arguing or taking about proving anything. All i've asked is why you're so aggressive and determined no one should believe in anything that you don't.

Iamthewombat - You and other posters have been asked to provide a proper evidence base, and you haven’t.

No one has to provide evidence for anything or anyone demanding it here. There's no excuse to be bullish. It's not a court of law it's a mumsnet thread about people's odd experiences

Lots of people comment on these threads tonsay they absolutely don't believe in such things.

Here's the thing though Iamrhewombat, why do we have to prove our experience to you? Why are you getting raging that other people believe in something you don't. The tone of your posts are like a condescending arsehole who is talking to their 3 year old who's just stuck a pencil up her nose for the 8th time that week.

And why would I necessarily believe in psychics?
Just because you are all or nothing, doesn't mean everyone else is.

Iamthewombat so you’re saying we can’t prove ghosts exist (despite our experiences; even though I remain a skeptic) and you can’t prove they don’t. We’re discussing our experiences. If you’re offended by that perhaps you need to live in a sensory deprivation tank or consider why this thread is so offensive to you. I don’t know what your posts bring to this. There needs to be a name for the mumsnet principle of someone de-railing a thread for “you’re all idiots, don’t you know that already”.

and apparently i'm crying about aggression here ...

Someone has a very over inflated view of their own importance.

@Laiste

I'm not arguing or taking about proving anything. All i've asked is why you're so aggressive and determined no one should believe in anything that you don't.

I actually said, a few posts ago, “believe whatever nonsense you like”. I am happy for you to do so. I am not determined to prevent you or anyone else believing things that are unsupported by evidence. Believe that the earth is flat, if you like, or that the moon is made of Roquefort. Just don’t use your own beliefs to support a statement that something 100% exists when you can’t prove it.

@Laiste

Iamthewombat - You and other posters have been asked to provide a proper evidence base, and you haven’t.

No one has to provide evidence for anything or anyone demanding it here. There's no excuse to be bullish. It's not a court of law it's a mumsnet thread about people's odd experiences

You have to produce an evidence base if you are going to assert that something definitely exists. That’s how it works.

The title of the thread actually includes the words, “AIBU to think that ghost stories are BS”. Did you miss that bit?

Why though? What terrible thing is going to happen if someone believes in something which isn't proven?

No i didn't miss that bit.

Why are you so aggressive and condescending?

@Pinkbonbon

Lots of people comment on these threads tonsay they absolutely don't believe in such things.

Here's the thing though Iamrhewombat, why do we have to prove our experience to you? Why are you getting raging that other people believe in something you don't. The tone of your posts are like a condescending arsehole who is talking to their 3 year old who's just stuck a pencil up her nose for the 8th time that week.

And why would I necessarily believe in psychics?
Just because you are all or nothing, doesn't mean everyone else is.

As above: if you are going to claim that something is definitely, 100% true, you have to provide proof.

When did I say that I was “all or nothing”? I am having a good laugh at the turn this thread has taken. Not raging. Sorry to disappoint!

I also believe in presence.

We had one in my flat for a while.

I've told this story before. But I couldn't find my hairbrush. It's always in the same place. I assumed I'd put it somewhere else. Hunted everywhere.

Then one day said out loud about it frustrating me. A hour or so later walked to my bedroom and there it is - laying in the middle of the hallway

Another day ds and I were in the lounge when we heard a noise in the kitchen.
Went out to find a small plastic clipboard that was at the back of the worktop - snapped in 2 in the middle of the kitchen floor.

There were other strange things but we just ignored it as annoying iyswim?

I think the poster who said not giving it credence maybe onto something.

@Laiste

No i didn't miss that bit.

Why are you so aggressive and condescending?

Aha! Here come the insults. I was waiting for this.

Did anyone ever tell you that when you start resorting to insults in an argument, you have definitely lost? It means that your argument has failed and you’re upset about it.

I am happy to do so now.

Today 18:13 Iamthewombat

So now you’re lumping us all in together, despite maybe the only thing we have in common being our experiences. You want us to have a common response to “Do you believe that Derek Acorah and Psychic Sally are 100% genuine?”. I doubt my response would be the same as others’, we aren’t supposed to operate as hive minds. You think we’re here as some homogenous group out to scam. You think if people are grieving they cannot experience this, and it not be caused by grief? Everything is anecdotal, unreliable and usually now historic. Does that make it untrue?

Honestly your judgement doesn’t matter but your condescending tone regarding others does.

@Laiste

Why though? What terrible thing is going to happen if someone believes in something which isn't proven?

As I said above, believe whatever nonsense you like. Your choice, your consequences. Just don’t attempt to build a statement of fact on such flimsy foundations. Facts being sacred, and all that.