Day 88: Cats or ghosts?

Between You, Me and the Lamp Post

Day 88: Cats or ghosts?

I want to tell you a story. Actually, it’s not a story, it’s actual events, not a word of a lie, no embellishments. In short, strange things are happening at my place.

This morning I got out of bed and the first thing I noticed was that a book was lying face down on the bottom shelf. The book, ‘Stolen Beginnings’ by Susan Lewis. It’s an old book, dating back to 1990.

On the shelf next to it, I noticed this ... a book partially pulled out.

In this case the name of the book ‘Name Dropping’ by Jane Heller, published in 2000.

I haven’t looked at either of those books in years and years. So why was one lying face down on the shelf and was the other one was partially pulled out? Am I to assume that my cats have suddenly developed an interest in reading? Or is it something more sinister?

Where it comes to weird things happening, this is not the first time. There have been other incidents. Long-time readers may recognize the story, but for the sake of new readers let me tell it again.

I was alone at home (Dieter was on vacation in Belgium), had gone to bed around 11:00 p.m. and before going to sleep I was reading a few pages of a book. Pitoe and Floppy were sleeping at the foot end of my bed.

Suddenly the kitchen window rattled violently like someone got hold of it and shook it with all their might. The cats lifted their head and I stopped reading. What was that?

When all remained quiet, I relaxed somewhat, but suddenly there it was again, that violent rattle of the kitchen window. I dove under the duvet up to my eyeballs, glaring at the cats who also seemed alarmed. And I thought to myself … if this happens again, I’m outa here.

Five or ten minutes passed and then … the violent rattling happened again. I didn’t think twice. I got out of bed, slipped on my peignoir, grabbed my car keys and drove to my friend’s house. Joan laughed when I told her what happened, said that my imagination was running away with me, but agreed that I could sleep in her spare bedroom.

To cut a long story short, I slept at Joan's house for two nights, but when I saw a neighbor peeking from behind her curtain, seeing me come home at 6:00 in the morning, I realized that this couldn’t go on. I would have to brave it.

To celebrate Dieter’s homecoming, I invited Joan and her son Brendan for coffee and cake. I was in the kitchen when the window once again rattled violently. Joan, Dieter, and Brendan came flying into the kitchen. 

“What was that?” they said in unison. “That,” I said, “was what I heard that night.”

All of them were suitably shocked. 

“No wonder you were scared,” Joan stated. 

“Hm, now imagine this happening in the middle of the night,” I said. 

Joan wasn’t laughing anymore.

Now to go back in time a little bit … while all the creepy stuff was happening, another friend, Cheryl, invited me to her house for a long weekend. Eager to get away from my creepy house, I accepted.

After dinner and a movie, Cheryl, her mother and I retired to our bedrooms. Being out in the country my bedroom was pitch dark.

Shortly after I turned off the light, I heard the bedroom door opening and closing. Next, I heard cabinet doors softly being opened and closed and drawers equally softly being opened and closed. Whether it was Cheryl or her mother, one of them was obviously looking for something but didn’t want to wake me.

Suddenly, I felt someone sitting down next to me on the bed. I became alarmed, Cheryl was a good friend, but she wasn’t that good a friend – if you know what I mean. So I reached over and switched on the light … there was nobody in my room. I left the light on for the remainder of the night.

The next morning at breakfast I told Cheryl and her mother of what happened. “Oh dear,” her mother said, “not again.” Over coffee and croissants, they told me that strange things had been happening in that room. 

“And you put me there!” I said. 

“What else could we do?” Cheryl said. “We couldn’t very well put you in the blue room.” 

“The blue room?” I questioned. 

“Oh that room is definitely out of bounds,” her mother said. “That room is constantly ice-cold even now in the middle of summer.”

They showed me the room, and while I didn’t go inside, they were right … ice-cold air met me in the hallway.

Even though I had initially agreed to stay three days, I made a swift exit never to return to Cheryl’s house again.

---------------

http://connymanero.weebly.com/store.html

Day 70: Dust, bugs or orbs?

Between You, me and the Lamp Post

Day 70: Dust, bugs or orbs?

Some thought it might be dust. Others claimed it might be bugs. Others still said they were orbs. Personally, I’m inclined to believe the latter. Before I go any further, take a look at this video and see what you think.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7StU4QO0MoI

You’ve no doubt seen three lights, leaving a trail. Have you ever seen dust taking such a specific path? No, dust floats and certainly doesn’t leave a trail. Bugs might leave a trail in the right light conditions, except, there was no light in the living room at that time. The camera filmed via infrared. The path the ‘bugs’ take is also rather specific. One comes in from the left and curves its way to the cat tree, joined by another coming in from the center. Then one comes in from the ceiling and in one swoop jumps into the top basket of the cat tree. So that leaves us with the possibility of several orbs.

This activity is a nightly occurrence. Let’s say for argument sake that they are orbs. Sometimes there is only one, other nights there are several.

These orbs, if that’s what they are, would explain why the cats have been acting so strangely, especially Holly.

Holly often looks up at the ceiling, not just staring at it but seemingly looking at something very specific. In the process, she turns her head this way and that way, as if following something that is flying around. Other times she does more than just looking, she makes babbling sounds. Not meowing as such, but short noises. Those of you who have cats will know exactly what I mean.

Just how long we’ve had these orbs in the house we don’t know. We bought a monitor some two weeks ago and that’s when it started. That very first night the camera recorded this video. In the beginning, you’ll see Halley, but near the end of the video, you’ll see the first orb. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=59MO22fKS70

There will be those who will argue that they are not orbs. In pictures, these round glowing things also show up and this is what one website had to say:

However, with higher shutter speed, those flashes off of the particles in the air show up as a bunch of orbs. They aren’t paranormal at all and are nothing to be afraid of.' 

I can understand that, but what I'm showing is not a picture, it's a video and one can clearly see how these lights follow the cats up the cat tree and up the cabinet. 

Have another look and see if you can make sense of it. 

Day 111: I need your help deciding

My Project: 365 Creative Writing Prompts

Day 111: I need your help deciding

Every writer knows it’s of the utmost importance to capture the reader’s attention from the first paragraph. I have an idea for a new story, but I can’t come up with a good start.

Which of these three do you like best? Or do neither of them appeal to you? Please take a moment and give me your response. It can be as limited as 1, 2 or 3 or something more in detail.

Option 1

Holly Edwards watched the smile die on her husband’s face and drain of all color when he opened the door to their condo and switched on the light.

“Jason, what is it?” she asked in alarm. “What’s wrong? Did someone break in?”

Not waiting for an answer, she pushed passed him and froze on the spot, her mouth opening, her breath caught in her throat. All the doors of the kitchen cabinets were open and the content lay in smithereens on the countertop and floor. “What the hell … who would do something like this?

Option 2

The building looked like an ordinary building, sixteen floors of concrete with spacious balconies where some residents kept red geraniums or some other type of flowers. The condo where Holly and Jason moved in was like any other condo, an L-shaped living room, a kitchen with white cabinets and stainless-steel appliances, an equally modern bathroom, two bedrooms, a walking closet and a small space meant for a washer and dryer.

They must have visited over twenty condos before they come across this one and none of them were right. Some were too small, others too expensive, others still were in a location that would require a long commute to work. When they came across 301 Prudential Drive, they loved it on sight. It was bigger than any condo they’d seen, the location was perfect and judging by the brand-new kitchen and bathroom, gleaming hardwood floor and spotless soft grey walls it was clear that the place was recently renovated. When the real estate agent mentioned the price, they jumped at it.

In hindsight, they should have asked the agent how long the unit had been on the market and the low price should have set off alarm bells. But they were first time home buyers, they didn’t care about how long condo had been for sale and the price was a steal.

It didn’t take long though for them to notice that this was no ordinary building. During the day everything was fine, there was nothing unusual about the place, but at night, that was a different story. The first time Holly took out the trash to the garbage chute, the corridor felt all wrong, like something sinister and she had a distinct feeling that someone was watching her. Not to mention the corridors in the basement where the swimming pool was, the party room, where every unit had an assigned locker, and which gave access to the underground parking. You couldn’t pay her to do down there alone, day or night.

As for their condo, strange things were happening there too.

Option 3

“You’re not going to believe what happened to me today,” I said when Jason, my husband, came home from work. “Go and change, I’ll make coffee and then sit down because this is going to knock you sideways.”

When Jason came back into the living room, having swapped his suit and tie for jeans and a T-shirt, he flopped on the couch and looked at me expectantly.

“Remember the story I told you a few days ago about the Indian woman in a blue sari I saw in the front garden of this building?”

“Of course,” Jason said. “The woman was standing in the garden with a small dog by her feet. When you got outside the woman was gone, you looked for her but she was nowhere to be seen. I suggested that she might have lived on the ground floor and climbed over her balcony, but you said that dressed in a sari that was unlikely.”

“Right. So today I went to the management office to pay our maintenance fees and that where I heard it … the woman and her dog are dead. They were on their way to the vet and there was an accident.”

“So, what are you saying?” Jason frowned, the beginning of a smile tugging at his lips. “That you saw a ghost? Two ghosts if you count the dog.”

“What other explanation is there?”

“It could have been any woman. There’s more than one Indian woman living in this building.”

I was slowly but surely losing my patience. “I asked the woman of the management office, Jason. I asked her what kind of dog the woman had and she said a Maltese poodle. The dog I saw by the woman’s feet was a Maltese poodle.”

Jason scratched his head, curved his index finger over his chin and looked at me. “That is indeed strange.”

“There’s more,” I said. “Let me get the coffee and I’ll tell you.”

“Another mystery story?”

“There are ghosts in this building,” I said ignoring his quip. “Not just one ghost, but three. Some ten years ago a man living on the 7^th floor was found dead in his unit, stabbed. A few years later a boy drowned in the swimming pool, and around the same time a man jumped to his death from his 15th-floor balcony.”

“That’s terrible,” Jason said, “How do you know all this?”

“Our neighbor from across told me.”

“You met our neighbor?”

“Yes, he seems like a nice man.”

“And what do these three dead people have to do with ghosts in this building?”

“Apparently they never left.

www.connymanero.weebly.com

Day 28: Cheap Halloween decorating ideas

My Project: 365 Creative Writing Prompts

Day 28: Halloween - Cheap Halloween decorating ideas

If you’re planning on having a family gathering or throwing a big Halloween party, turning down the lights and playing some scary music is not enough, you need to create the right atmosphere. Halloween night belongs to ghosts and goblins and when the dead rise from the grave and crows, rats, and spiders are there to welcome them. 

To party with them or at least be sympathetic to their plight, your house needs to be suitably attired. The following are some cheap Halloween decorating ideas.

Ghosts

You will need two or more white balloons for this trick. Fill the balloons with helium, attach different lengths of string and secure the string with weights so they don’t float to the ceiling. Cover the balloons with a white curtain or bed sheet. To get some movement in the balloons, enlist the help of a fan turned on to the lowest setting. Your ghosts will gently sway in the breeze.

Spiders

Fill a black balloon with Helium and let it float to the ceiling. Cut eight pieces of black streamer and attach one end with tape to the black balloon and the other end to various points on the ceiling or walls, thus creating the look of the spiders’ legs. If you want you can give the spider a face by using white or silver paint to paint eyes and a mouth on the spider. A word of advice though, this is not a good idea if any of your guests are afraid of spiders.

Coffins

If you have a couple of shoeboxes, you can paint them black or brown and decorate them to look like coffins.  For an open casket, place a skeleton on top of a pile of cotton wool or Kleenex tissues.

Tombstones

Get some Styrofoam and cut it so that it’s flat on the bottom and rounded on top. Paint the Styrofoam grey with the letters R.I.P. in black with your guests’ names and a message. That will creep them out.

Cardboard

Get some black cardboard and draw various sizes of bats, rats, and birds on it.  With a red pencil or paint, give the animals eyes, a mouth, and whiskers. Cut out the drawings and attach them with sticky tape to the walls or windows.

On orange cardboard, you can draw pumpkins and jack o lanterns. After cutting them out decorate them with leafs drawn and cut out from green cardboard.

-----

Halloween decorating ideas for the office

While you can go all out decorating your house for Halloween, you might have to tone it down a bit with Halloween decorating ideas for the office. After all, the office is a place of business where management meets clients, customers or patients.

That is not to say that you cannot bring a little atmosphere to your office or cubicle. In fact, a few tasteful ornaments might gain you popularity.

To start off, you might want to decide on a good place to decorate. This can be a corner of your desk, the top of a filing cabinet, a windowsill, or even some floor space.

To create the right setting, start off with either a black or an orange piece of cardboard. If you mainly want to use decorations such as ravens, bats or spiders, orange is your best choice.  If on the other hand, you are thinking of using or pumpkins, jack-o-lanterns, or other colorful items, then black cardboard will be better suited.  Creating contrast is key.

A word of advice though, be sympathetic to your colleagues’ feelings. If you know of someone who has a phobia for spiders, best not to use them. You don’t want to give someone heart failure when coming face to face with a lifelike tarantula.  

However, if nobody in your area is afraid of spiders, they make for great decorations. You can have them sitting on your desk, crawling on walls, dangling from the ceiling, whatever you fancy.

Alternatively, you can use witches and scarecrows. Nobody is likely to go screaming when they see a witch or scarecrow in your office and they make for great, colorful decorations. Along with witches, you can add little details such as cauldrons, poison bottles, broomsticks, and apples.

Other Halloween decorations for the office could be a touch of the sinister. How about some coffins or headstones?  To jazz things up a bit you could add a ghost or two. 

Then there are the ever-popular vampires. Whether you work with dolls or pictures, nothing says Halloween like a blood-sucking creature. To give extra character to your display, you could make use of a few bats and goblets filled with some type of red liquid. 

If management doesn’t allow creepy Halloween decorations for the office, you could just stick to pumpkins and jack-o-lanterns. Providing you have space, you could have the real thing in your office or cubicle, or you could have pictures or a banner.

If you don’t overdo it, most offices will have no problem with having a few decorations. Keep it simple, keep it tasteful and be considerate. 

Want to share your thoughts? Comments are welcome.

www.connymanero.weebly.com

Two aliens and a ghost

Are we alone in the universe or are there other life forms? This question has inspired movies, TV series, books, and countless stories. After last night, I have a story of my own.

I was in bed when I suddenly saw a blue light flickering in the living room. It wasn’t a continuous light, but rather blinked on and off and on and off, with a certain rhythm to it.

As I lay there I wondered what was going on. 

Being on the 11^th floor of a condo building, there are no neon lights nearby, no car light can shine in a room that high up, and I couldn’t hear an airplane or helicopter.

I watched the light going on and off and on and off and wondered what it could be. The movie “Close encounters of the third kind” came to mind. Had aliens landed on the balcony and were they trying to communicate?

A short time later I noticed a white light in my bedroom, also blinking. This was getting too much, first a blue light in the living room, now a white light in my bedroom ... I had to check this out or I wouldn’t get a wink of sleep.

I carefully slid out of bed and padded to the living room. On my way I passed the bathroom and saw the shower curtain move. Good Lord I just about peed in my pants.

In less than three steps I was back in my room and jumped into bed. Then I got to thinking, aliens in my home ... neih, there had to be a rational explanation for all this.

Ever so carefully I climbed out of bed again and by the light of the moon I noticed my cell phone on one of the night stands. Ah so that’s where the white light was coming from, every time I got a message the light alerted me.

If there was a reason for the white light, then the blue blinking lights would probably have a normal reason too. And they did. Once in the living room, I noticed four blue lights on the WiFi box, blinking in rhythm.

Okay, so no aliens in my home, just electronics.

But what about the shower curtain, there was nothing in the bathroom that could explain the shower curtain to move and while I had been brave enough to investigate the blinking lights, there was no way I was about to pull the shower curtain aside to see what caused it to move.

Back in bed I could sleep though. I kept looking at the bathroom and thinking of that moving curtain. Damn why did this have to happen to me? If there was a ghost, why couldn’t he visit the neighbors?

Still scared, but royally ticked off, I got out of bed yet again, switched on the light and made my way to the bathroom. As the curtain moved my heart just about stopped beating and my breath caught in my throat.

I backed away toward Dieter’s room. No way could I handle this. My dear son could deal with whatever or whoever was behind that curtain.

I was about to wake him when I heard a thump coming from the bath. I knew that thump, I’d heard it before. I made my way back to the bathroom, switched on the light and peeked behind the shower curtain.

And there he was, in the bath by the tap, looking at me ever so innocently ... Gabriel. To my statement “You just about gave me a heart attack!” he let out a meow as if to say “Got ya.”

Halloween music playlist tips

Your house may be decorated to give even those with nerves of steel the hibijibis; your costume may be as lifelike that even your family doesn’t recognize you; but if you’re playing happy, carefree music, the Halloween spirit you are trying to create will go right out the window.

What you need is a Halloween music playlist, tunes so creepy, so blood curling, they will scare the pants of anyone attending your party.  The following is a small selection to consider.

Thriller - Michael Jackson

From the first note, this song will indicate that you mean business.  Whether your guests are dancing or stand around talking, when Jackson starts his dialogue, hitting off with “Darkness falls across the land, the midnight hour close at hand”, all of them are sure to feel their neck hairs rise.  Not to mention Vincent Price’s laughter concluding the song.  That will rattle a few bones.

The Monster Mash – Boris Picket and the Crypt Kickers

Whether your guests were born in the fifties or nineties, everybody loves The Monster Mash.  Although scary and as such suitable for Halloween, The Monster Mash is perfect to end all conversation signalling it’s time for your guests to start kicking up their heels. 

Black Magic Woman - Santana

Of course, wild dancing can only last so long.  Every now and then you’ll have to throw in a slow tune so your guests can catch their breath and smooch a little without leaving the dance floor.  Rely on Santana and Black Magic Woman to do just that. 

I Put a Spell On You – CCR

Keep the slow pace without losing any of the Halloween atmosphere.  Spells and potions are right up there with ghosts and witches.  Put a spell on your guests with the help of Creedence Clearwater Revival.

Soundtracks

If you don’t like individual songs, how about some movie soundtrack music?  Think Psycho, think Poltergeist, any of the Freddie Kruger movies or even some Resident Evil tunes.  All of them are guaranteed to be bone chilling and if your guests have seen the movies, the music will bring back some memories.

Alternatively you can go for the soundtrack of the classics such as Dracula or Frankenstein movies.  The visuals were scary, but it was the music that had many on the edge of their seat and gave them nightmares.

Whatever you decide, mix up the fast with the slow; the old with the new; and give your party guests a Halloween to remember.

www.connymanero.weebly.com

Halloween decorating ideas for the office

While you can go all out decorating your house for Halloween, you might have to tone it down a bit with Halloween decorating ideas for the office.  After all, the office is a place of business where management meets clients, customers or patients.

That is not to say that you cannot bring a little atmosphere in your office or cubicle.  In fact, a few tasteful ornaments might gain you popularity.

To start off, you might want to decide on a good place to decorate.  This can be a corner of your desk, the top of a filing cabinet, a windowsill, or even some floor space.

To create the right setting, start off with either a black or an orange piece of cardboard.  If you mainly want to use decorations such as ravens, bats or spiders, black is your best choice.  If on the other hand you are thinking of using or pumpkins, jack-o-lanterns, or other colorful items, then orange cardboard will be better suited.  Creating contrast is key.

A word of advice though, be sympathetic to your colleagues’ feelings.  If you know of someone who has a phobia for spiders, best not to use them.  You don’t want to give someone heart failure when coming face to face with a lifelike tarantula. 

However, if nobody in your area is afraid of spiders, they make for great decorations.  You can have them sitting on your desk, crawling on walls, dangling from the ceiling, whatever you fancy.

Alternatively you can use witches and scarecrows.  Nobody is likely to go screaming when they see a witch or scarecrow in your office and they make for great, colorful decorations.  Along with witches you can add little details such as cauldrons, poison bottles, broomsticks and apples.

Other Halloween decorations for the office could be a touch of the sinister.  How about some coffins or headstones?  To jazz things up bit you could add a ghost or two. 

Then there are the ever popular vampires.  Whether you work with dolls or pictures, nothing says Halloween like a blood sucking creature.  To give extra character to your display, you could make use of a few bats and goblets filled with some type of red liquid. 

If management doesn’t allow creepy Halloween decorations for the office, you could just stick to pumpkins and jack-o-lanterns.  Providing you have the space, you could have the real thing in your office or cubicle, or you could have pictures or a banner.

If you don’t overdo it, most offices will have no problem with having a few decorations.  Keep it simple, keep it tasteful and be considerate. 

www.connymanero.weebly.com