This Old House Peep Asks “Do You Believe in Old House Ghosts?”

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It’s true.  I haven’t really had a ton of time recently for discretionary posts.  But what kind of self-respecting weblogger would I be if I didn’t at least try to do a little something for everyone’s favorite holiday (come on, admit it), Halloween!? (And even if it is already a day or so late . . . . )

And as I thought about what I’d do – hmmmm … “scary home improvements.”  And no . . . I won’t hit you with the obligatory … The Money Pit, nor would I give you anything that would include ghouls or goblins, zombies or vampires . . . . Nowadays, they are all, just, sooooo main stream; Right? *Yawn!* … with a capital explanation point.

Maybe I’d do something a little more, well, old school . . . “pagan” — celebrating the dead, or then again, maybe — the saints.  (Nah… that would require too much research.)  Then I tried with . . . “the scariest thing I could think of.”   And well, OK, yeah — death is scary (… kinda).  Maybe not so much mine, but . . . and that is actually pretty complex.  (Pass.)

Failure can be scary, so can success; plumber’s crack is scary; attractive, older … single . . . clients who always seem to have a fixer-man project – they can be a little scary (and maybe you’ve heard some stories); carpet in a kitchen, or in a laundry room, or in a bathroom (Sorry, No! scary. Scary. Scary! and a shout out on this one to Lisa M.).

Truth is, though — personally, I really can’t think of too much, in the way of home improvement projects (or products), that scares me all that much.  Everything seems to have its place, and its time, and most of “these things” (I tell myself) seem to want to work themselves out . . . in the end.

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I did divert myself briefly on . . . “matters of home improvement safety.”  Smoke detectors and carbon monoxide (Great article here from Sean L.).  Don’t play with live electric (in that . . . “don’t stick a paper clip into a wall socket” scary kinda way).  Don’t fall from a 32-foot ladder, or from a roof, don’t saw your hand off, and don’t . . . you. get. the point . . . do anything, well, scary.  And, Oh! Always wear eye protection.

But. On all these post topics I have decided to pass.

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. . . now little kiddies gather round . . .

I have mentioned maybe in passing that my wife, the real estate agent, has purchased a house that she is now in the process of, and for lack of a better word – flipping.  On this project, she is working with her friend (not me … m.e.) — the guy who did our bathrooms towards the end of last year.  I call him “The Other Man” . . . TOM, for short.  And really, I am not involved.  (OK, I give my thoughts . . . when asked, and seriously this is the best way to be.)

The house is only a few blocks from where we live.  It is a decent structure, probably built in the 20s or 30s (see how I don’t really know).  It sits on a good, quaint, and Elm-lined street.  It had fallen into slight disrepair in recent years (before foreclosure), but for the most part — it is certainly something to work with . . . . And my wife simply got a steal.

But, wait! . . . and well, of course, wouldn’t you know it – the place has, well, you know — a ghost.  This house is haunted, or so it is believed.

I myself have only been over once.  So I haven’t seen it, felt it, or . . . and who the hell am I kidding?!  I am an absolute non-believer, and I can’t even begin to fake it.  But.  My wife is a believer, and The Other Man believes, and The Other Man’s current helper believes.  And this ghost so far has been, well, nice.

It does have a tendency to shut the jobsite’s Dewalt radio off (possibly when it doesn’t agree with what’s on) from time to time.  TOM‘s helper says, “Yeah, I can feel it moving back and forth behind me.  But I just try to ignore it.”

The Other Man, while a true believer, is, for the record — not frightened by this, or probably any, ghost.  “You simply need to tell them ‘What’s What.’”  He’d say.  “No, Don’t shut the radio off . . . . Thank You.”  And he goes on about his work.

My wife, though, and Yep! She will not go over to the property alone, and I wonder how much this effects her overall productivity . . . . Hey, it’s her thing; and she will grab our doggie if she needs to run over.  Truth — and she admits, she was that way with our house too.

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Have Old House Will . . . ?

So all that said, Building Moxie, i.e. JB (me) wants to know (for reals) — Do you believe in ghosts? And if so, do you work on, or live in an old house?  Do you have “special measures” you take in regards to your “extra-spiritual” relations?  Or does any of that even matter?  They are all just (and this one too) ghost tale(s).  Let me know what you think.

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As always — the comments section is open, thanks for reading, and please have a Happy and Safe November. ~jb

Note on Photos:  All images googled and not so graciously borrowed from this post here >> http://www.toptenz.net/top-10-famous-ghosts.php.