90 thoughts on “Do you want to hear a ghost story?”

Read comments below or add one.

  5. Dang and this is why you have awesome stories, you’re just willing to jump right in.

  7. Omfg. I was following this on Twitter, but left after the photo of the chair. I was wondering what had happened to the hearse, because would be such a hoot to have, and now I find out your father bought it!?! Best ghost story ever! p.s. what about the scarf???

  10. Spooky! The ghost in the house where I used to live just liked to toss things out of the medicine cabinet and into the toilet. He was a real jerk but not that scary unless he was tooling around with the baby monitor!

  12. I’ve seen spirits (as far as I can remember) since I was 18. That’s more than 45 years. I totally believe. Plus, one of my daughters, when she heard me talking about our most recent spirit, said, “Oh! –I know him!” and my other daughter, and her husband, both scientists, have seen that same ghost and experienced his shenanigans and have become believers. But that padlocked room is weird – a bit TOO weird, even for me.

  14. Oh yeah … got several encounters I could tell you about. Used to use a Siamese cat like a Geiger counter; held her over chairs before sitting down in them at a house I used to live at. Cat sensed the ‘unseen occupant’ and would freak. If we sat down without checking with the cat, the ‘occupant’ would shove sometimes us out of the chair. Learned to just live with it.

  15. Wow that is quite the story, love it.
    I think you have to take the chair to a church and have them bless the water and sprinkle it over. I had my car blessed by an Episcopal church. I bet they would do it for you.

  16. Betsy A @ comment 8, I’m trying to figure that out too! Seriously, probably the most unbelievable part of the whole story.

  17. NO WAY would I have brought that thing home! I’m with Victor holding my head in my hands. You may need to call a priest for an exorcism! Good luck, it was great reading your books and blog if something happens..LOL

  18. Wait. What? You lived in the attic of an antique store? I can’t get past that statement. So many questions.

    (Ha. I needed a comma in there. I lived in the town. ~ Jenny)

  19. I gotta tell you, when I saw the photo of that chair, even before I read your post, I got goose bumps. Yep, there’s a ghost tied to that chair for SURE.

  21. So….I work in a haunted saloon/hotel. If you need a short vacation destination….

  22. I said it on Twitter and I’ll say it again here, you need to meet up with Amy Bruni from Kindred Spirits. 😉 Also my mom says the chair is gorgeous and just needs to be cleaned up a bit and the seat rewoven. 🙂

  25. The Viking and I stayed at an honest-to-Gawd 13th-century castle in Germany and in the alcove of every window buttress was a mannequin dressed in Medieval type clothing and at night the lights in the hallway were motion detectors and when I had to go down to the front desk for the WiFi password I almost pooped my pajama pants because it’s totally fucked up that mannequins jump out of alcoves to scare the bejesus out of me. And the damned place moaned and groaned and shrieked all night long! I can now say, definitively, that I am not a fan of sleeping in 13th-century castles.

  27. Is that the store that was a “house of ill repute” during WW2? On E. Chonco.

    (No, that’s Miss Hatties. It’s a block away. But close! ~ Jenny)

  28. My daughter wanted me to tell you that in the photo of the chair in the attic, the chair has no shadow. Just in case you wanted to be freaked out a bit more.

  29. 😝😂😱 well we’ll all know what happened if we dont hear from you lady👀👻

  30. Okay, so, “If Walls Could Talk” is the best name for a haunted store- EVER! I wonder if they had to provide proof of haunting before they could register that business name? I also want to see the Stevie Nicks shawl now… now I’m wondering if you took your Teddy Bear skin from the other day up to that room in the store if the ghost would try it on? That would be terrifyingly hilarious…

  31. I assume someone has told you this already, but every Catholic church has a holy water container, usually it’s metal with a cross on it and a spigot, and you use it to fill your own holy water bottles to take home. No big deal, just grab a water bottle and fill it up! heck, maybe two…

  33. Knowing my subconscious, I’ll probably have dreams about chairs in attics and a lady sitting in the chair tonight.

  34. Marvelous story and beautiful chair. It will be a lovely addition to your home.

  37. This is an awesome story – and yes, please post a photo of the hearse. As for the little old lady, I’d say get her chair fixed so she can have somewhere nice to sit. Thank you so much for sharing a story that made me laugh so much!

  38. If all the buildings share an attic I wonder if that weird tiny room has another secret door that opens into a DIFFERENT attic and that’s how the ghost gets through buildings.

  39. I just have to say that I lived in San Angelo for 6 months while my husband was training at Goodfellow and I think it is super cool that you’re from there!

  40. My husband used to refinish and cane chairs and then sell them. In my attic and basement, I have 300-400+ creepy-ass chairs that he intended to fix and sell. He now sells mid-century furnitire, so the chairs sit abandoned and lonely. I can only imagine who/what we might have brought home along with the chairs. If anyone wants a ghost, I mean, chair, let me know. BTW, your chair is really pretty and will be beautiful when finished. Maybe your new “friend” will be happy that you took the time to make her chair pretty again. If you still have trouble with her, burn some white sage and wave it around the chair. Ghosts hate that, so I hear. Good luck!

  43. Great story. Beautiful chair. You totally look like Stevie Nicks with that shawl!

  45. The women in my family with only a few exceptions, can see ghosts. My daughter can too. The weirdest encounter: I was at a friends house studying in her dining room table which faced the kitchen. She went upstairs to get a book and I glanced up and saw a man in a flannel shirt go into her kitchen and then turn around and go out the back door. My friend camesback and I said, “Hey I think your Uncle (who lived nearby) came by and just left”. My friend looked at me, and
    said her uncle was in PA.
    She paused a moment and gasped. “OMG, I think you saw my dad!”. Her father had been dead over 15 years.

  46. This will mean nothing to you, but in my family it is documented fact that I get chill bumps and the hair on the back of my neck stands straight out when a spooky thing is real. I hear story after story, supposed sighting after sighting, girl in middle of road with cut out eyes, yada yada. No, not real. The instant I read hearse and corner and chair I got chills and hairs standing out. You’re not eeking, but I am eeking!

  47. Holy water is free at any Catholic church. I left you more info on your Twitter feed. I loved this story and especially that it went on for years. And that your dad bought the hearse.

  48. Yep lived in an haunted house as a child, a nice old lady that used to play with me in the night, my parents would find toys down from shelves I couldn’t have reached every morning. When asked I would say the nice old lady got them for me. That was told me me by my mom.

    The house I live in now had a very unhappy spirit when I moved in, my friends boy friend refused to come in after he got hit with a vase one evening. Another friends brother asked it to leave and blessed the house and it never bothered us again. I sometimes think we still have one as the cats will sit on the stairs and rub thin air as it they are being fussed and I have felt someone/thing push me back onto ladders when I fell back.

  49. That’s a lovely chair. You’ll be repairing it, I assume? Unless fixing it is a breech of after-life etiquette… I dunno, I’m a bit fuzzy on these things. Also, Florida water might be a nice option for cleansing it… It’s sorta holy water, but with a flourish of floral. Seems the sort of thing an elderly Victorian lady might like.

    Somehow I’m not the least bit surprised your dad bought the hearse, because OF COURSE HE DID.

  51. So about the padlock. It looks to me like Mar-tique is in a building with shared walls. It’s entirely possible that previous business owners bought or rented space in the adjoining building and cut a door between the two. When the lease was up, the other building’s owner padlocked the door. And then the buildings were sold separately so someone blocked off the entire room without unlocking the door.
    Personally if I owned the space I’d cut a hole in the door and reach through to cut the padlock because if I’m paying taxes on it I want to be able to use it. Even if it’s just to put it on the district’s Halloween ghost tour.

  52. There is a select number of houses in old town Portsmouth, va that have ghost stories. The houses go back to before the civil war. While my mom was driving down one of the roads there, I saw a child peeking out a window there. I look back and not only was there no child but the kid I seen was higher then he should have been able to get.

  53. I’ll sometimes get a quick “flash” of someone out of the corner of my eye. Don’t know if its a ghost or just getting older…

  55. Loads of holy water for sale online. The river Jordan water seems to be the hottest item going.

  56. What about this door behind the chair though. The hinges are on the outside. Let’s take the hinges off, cutie store-owner!
    And what about the cinderblock, as I’m wondering how old it is. Wouldn’t be original to a 100-year-old building.

  57. You can go into any Catholic Church and get holy water. You can get holy water from the baptismal fountain-looks like a little baby pool of water. You just need a bottle-i used an old clean travel shampoo bottle to get some holy water once when my husband I were having trouble-I bought magnets from an antique store-yes, just little old magnets, and something extra came with those. I knew the store was super haunted, but I thought I’d be fine with the magnets. WRONG.

    In the end I actually had to throw the magnets out just to be safe. Antiques really can hold energy-just please be careful. Not trying to scare you, just mean it from a protective loving place. I am an empath and there are some haunted places I can’t even WALK into without feeling physically drained or harassed by spirits. Just keep an eye out in the coming days-if you feel strange/off or if strange things begin to happen, don’t doubt yourself and throw that thing out!

  58. Now I want to go get into that room. Get a drill, a saw, and a crowbar and go through the door. We need closer.

  60. I’m kind of worried that the poor old lady ghost doesn’t have anyplace to sit now. Someone should take her a bean bag chair or something else squishy. She’d probably enjoy something padded.

  62. Jenny, you might be an empath, sensitive to spirits and stuff. I would have bolted as soon as I saw anything resembling a ghost, even if it was just a creepy old woman buying something in that store.

  63. Today I learned that you can get free holy water from Catholic churches. Who knew? (You did.)

    So here are the answers to the questions:
    The store has a freight elevator so that’s how the hearse got up there and back down. The owner of the shop from 20 years ago used to bring it down and serve drinks on it. Because who doesn’t want a hearse refreshment.

    My dad kept the hearse for a bit, fixed it up and then it went to Fort Chadbourne. Not sure if it’s still there. I see a reference to a hearse there on a pintrest link but the link is dead now so?

    The padlocked room door has the hinges on the inside so you can’t take it off the hinges. It’s built against the outside of the attic so it never lead to any other room. The owner thought it was weird but he didn’t seem to want to break the door down. Meanwhile, I would have knocked it down like I was the koolaid man. I sent him a link to all of this so if he ever does break the door down maybe he’ll let us know.

  65. Thank you for the answers Jenny! Inquiring minds need to know. Most ghosts are quite harmless, as you no doubt already know. And if the owner ever wants help breaking down the door, I’m sure you can round up the volunteers.

  66. Like many others here, my first thought on reading this is that there is a pissed off old lady ghost whose favorite crotchless chair was ganked by some breather.

  67. San Angelo? We go once a year – museum: ceramics invitational. So I browsed Google Maps Street View to see the antique stores you mentioned. Oops! Street views are from 2012 and a lot has changed since then. Nada re the stores. But I did see a store front for “The Man Store” (For men or can I find a Man there? Inquiring minds need to know). Also looked for our fav for decent food- The Twisted Root. Yes, it exists, but Google Maps Street View has NO clue. We’ll be back in June and I’ll look for the Walls-Talk and pretend you and I are BFFs and see if I get a discount when I mention your blog posting. And ask for a ghost sighting. All things come to those who beg.

  69. Oh, my gosh. The Twitter response that said “Bitch stole my chair” is KILLING me. I just keep snorting and giggling over it.

  70. The padlocked doom is driving me crazy! Are there bones in there??

    So… any ghosts at your house yet?

  71. Ok, first thing’s first… if you want holy water, just bring a container and take some, it isn’t guarded.
    Now, for my ghost story…I was nine years old, and at my great aunt’s house. Usually she sends the kids out to play in the fields, and stays inside gossiping with the moms, but it was raining. She sent me into the living room so that they could gossip in peace. I was playing with the dolls that lived in my purse, when I started staring at this metal box on the top shelf of the book case. I don’t know why, but I really wanted that box. Then this little man (like just over 5 ft. tall) walks in from the outside dressed in a wool suit, a brocade vest, and a bowler hat. I said hello, and he stopped dead, turned slowly and said hello back. Then he asked me if I was one of his grandchildren. I told him that I didn’t know, so he asked me if the lady in the other room was my grandmother. I told him that she wasn’t, Lea was. He said that that was impossible. He saw me looking at the box and offered to get it for me. Then he left. I got in big trouble for having the box when my mother and great aunt came into the room (it was full of pictures). I explained to them that the man had gotten it for me, and they asked me to describe him. That went well. She wouldn’t let me back into her house until I was 16 years old. On the ride home my mom told me that I had described my great aunt’s husband who had died before I was born. Then my mom had to explain why he had told me that my grandmother wasn’t really my grandmother.

    And that is how a ghost tried to take my grandmother away.

  73. Assuming the old lady accompanied the chair to your house, what are you going to call her? When things start happening, you can’t just say “old lady, please don’t piss off Ferris Mewler.” Obviously, she had a name when she was alive, but since you probably can’t find out who it is that is haunting the chair, I’m DYING to know what you will call her.

  74. Well that gave me all the heebie jeebies. Somewhere along the way I developed a profound fear of ghosts and the most dramatic, easy to trigger startle reflex. Just imagine a grown woman startling full on like a cartoon character, complete with good air clearance and high-pitched scream.

    …the startle happens so often my husband doesn’t even try to scare me and goes out of his way to aleet me he’s on the move…i still jump. And I’m not allowed to watch ghost movies without daylight, xanax, and my husband present ever since the time I sobbed through a movie and didn’t sleep after. (But I’m totally your girl for blood and gore! Zero issies there!)

  75. So. Creeped. Out. WHYYYYYYYYY would anyone go there…
    My kind of ghost story was on the Great British Baking Show when Mel and Sue were speculating about whether the Curse of the Star Baker was a thing (star baker last week, terrible this week), and Mel wondered if it could have anything to do with the fact that the baking tent was built over an ancient Indian burial ground.

  76. Love hearing all of the ghost stories! The area where I live in western Washington State has it’s fair share of haunted places. The local historical society used to be a train station that has ghost tours around Halloween. I’ve been on a couple and had some interesting experiences. Last fall, there was a ghost walk to our downtown stores. For example, we have a haunted bar/hotel, a former hotel that has entities that tidy-up (wish I had some of those at my house), a kindly old lady who’s spirit still visits the bookstore, and there are angry spirits that were victims of a riot. These events always sell out!

  77. That was a wild ride from start to finish. I love your blog and your book (I constantly read your convos with Victor to my husband because I feel like you’re a slightly more awesome version of us), but this is the first time I’ve ever felt the need to comment. Just … wow. You can’t make this stuff up!

  78. The previous owner of our house died and was sold by her daughter. It was vacant for several (13) years and stayed furnished as it was when she was living. A friend of ours sees spirits so naturally we showed her listing pictures while house hunting. As she was scrolling through the photos, she commented looks good, looks good, don’t keep that chair the lady is still sitting in it….

    The furniture was removed and we remodeled almost every room but I think she is in a perpetual ‘bitch stole my chair’ mood because she and her cat(s) decided to stay in the house. Things have died down quite a bit over the two years we have been there, but we can hear her clanging pots and pans in the middle of the night, the very distinct sound of cats jumping off the counters in the kitchen, someone walking around on the second floor, my 3 year old said someone said “hey!” to him while he was eating breakfast. I could go on…

  79. This is where we learn that your Dad knows how to re-cane that seat so the poor ghost lady doesn’t get ring around the patootie from sitting on it.

  81. Actual re-enactment from cinderblock room. Please release Daniel Craig, STAT.J

  86. Jenny, have you ever been to Alex Raskin Antiques in Savannah, GA? Giant historic mansion, literally crumbling apart, crammed floor-to-ceiling full of old furniture and creepy art and mannequins and books and all sorts of weird things. It gets weirder and spookier and in more disrepair as you keep ascending to the upper floors. One of the craziest damn buildings I’ve ever been lucky enough to wander around in.

  87. Wow! I believe in spirits, and I also wouldn’t seek them out (I ‘watch’ horror movies with my eyes closed, until the music eases up from the intensity, then I quick open my eyes to see how the characters are doing). I coached myself through reading this whole story. This was awesome to follow along with.

  88. OK, I have a Twitter account that I rarely use. Had to look up my user name and password because I HAD to read the rest of your tale. You bought the chair? Oh, my! But it is pretty polished and with the flowers. What the heck is your dad doing with the hearse??????

  89. Jenny, I’m late to the party but have to say that I think you might be safe with the chair. The old lady clearly spent most of her time on the floor, trying to claw her way through (to the left of the chair, in the picture). THAT was the creepiest part to me! Also, yes, of course, Kool-Aid Man your way through that door. I mean, honestly. Who can sleep at night while living with that mystery?

  90. Pingback: Posts I Love | Redefining Perfect

Leave a Reply

MY BOOKS:


shop

Subscribe to the bloggess, y'all.

Enter your email address and receive notifications of new posts by email. It\'s like I\'m stalking you, but more efficient.

Archives

ALL THE COOL KIDS ADVERTISE HERE:

I fucking love these people & not just because they support my wine-slushee habit:

Flourish in Progress: (T)hug Life: Part hood. Part good.

Pregnancy Calendar at Alpha Mom: Amalah’s week-by-week guide to the miracle of pregnancy and all the various indignities that come with it.

The Mack Files: Digesting life in bite-sized pieces through the lens of clichés, quotes & “truisms”.  Often irreverent, always honest.

Barking at the Moon: If your dog is your furry child, you will laugh out loud at Tracy Beckerman’s book about her family & a one-dog wrecking ball named Riley.

Kieran’s Humor: Not suitable for children, the sensitive or those hoping to get into heaven.

Go Doc Yourself Podcast: When a good doc ends, the klatch begins… Join hosts, scientists, and friends, Erin McCourt and Erin McCartt in weekly documentary dissection.

Welcome to xanaru: A mostly funny blog about the quest for happiness through authenticity, Great Danes and indiscriminate swearing. Plus hand-painted, custom artwork on bags, jackets, backpacks & more.

How the Hell Did I Not Know That?: Humorist Lucie Frost shares daily Instagram reels with learnings of the day—words, music, whatever–with plenty of laughs and all the curse words.

Beautiful Writers book: Writers! This coming-of-career memoir (w/ the BEST advice from celeb authors, real shit you haven’t heard) is life. A page-turning beach read doubling as how-to. #Magic

The Dating Days of Marta O: When I told my sister I was building a blog she said: “Do people still read blogs?” I do not know, but if YOU want to read it, here it is. Keep in mind, my stories about dating after 40 are for the brave.

Where Do I Belong? A memoir of Sarah Carrington: The unbelievable story of growing up in a religious cult in the mountains of Northern British Columbia. What happens to you in life doesn’t make you strong; rising above it does.

CONNECTED: A Personal Journal for Ketamine Therapy Created by writer & patient Katherine Davis for this powerful clinical treatment. If considering ketamine for major depression, check out this essential tool.

Hyperbole and a Half by Allie Brosh: SO GOOD.

Discover more from The Bloggess

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading