1 00:00:11,480 --> 00:00:14,599 Speaker 1: This encounter took place in a small town on the 2 00:00:14,599 --> 00:00:18,640 coast of northern California. A friend and I decided that 3 00:00:18,719 --> 00:00:22,480 we wanted to grow a garden on his property. The 4 00:00:22,519 --> 00:00:24,800 trail to get there was half a mile through some 5 00:00:24,920 --> 00:00:29,559 thick pine forest and huckleberry bushes. The garden itself was 6 00:00:29,640 --> 00:00:33,200 trellised on the hillside with a small man made pine 7 00:00:33,240 --> 00:00:36,479 that we used to water the plants. My friend and 8 00:00:36,520 --> 00:00:39,079 I would ride our dirt bikes to check on it daily. 9 00:00:40,640 --> 00:00:43,679 One day in midsummer, we decided to camp there with 10 00:00:43,759 --> 00:00:48,240 another friend. My two friends pitched a tent, but being outdoorsy, 11 00:00:48,640 --> 00:00:52,439 I made a shelter underneath a fallen tree. I used 12 00:00:52,439 --> 00:00:55,000 the branches to close off the back of the sides, 13 00:00:55,240 --> 00:00:58,200 and I had a large branch for a door. Also 14 00:00:58,280 --> 00:01:00,920 had a blanket. Knowing it would get chili that night. 15 00:01:02,439 --> 00:01:04,760 Before going to bed, I had the thought to leave 16 00:01:04,799 --> 00:01:07,599 my writing boots on to protect against any would be 17 00:01:07,760 --> 00:01:12,120 critters trying to get frisky. Mountain lions and the occasional 18 00:01:12,239 --> 00:01:16,560 bear are a thing, although they are rare, Better safe 19 00:01:16,599 --> 00:01:19,719 than sorry, I thought, keeping my feet. Toward the opening 20 00:01:19,760 --> 00:01:23,519 of the shelter, we talked about our day and what 21 00:01:23,599 --> 00:01:26,280 we had planned for the garden. The three of us 22 00:01:26,319 --> 00:01:29,959 fell asleep. I woke up some time later to something 23 00:01:30,000 --> 00:01:33,400 heavy walking right next to my shelter. It shook the 24 00:01:33,400 --> 00:01:36,040 ground when it walked, as if it wanted to make 25 00:01:36,079 --> 00:01:38,920 a point and say that it was the biggest thing around. 26 00:01:40,280 --> 00:01:42,959 My immediate thought was that a big bear was rooting 27 00:01:43,120 --> 00:01:46,280 around the camp. That is until I noticed it was 28 00:01:46,319 --> 00:01:50,640 walking on two legs. As if that wasn't alarming enough, 29 00:01:51,040 --> 00:01:54,519 it started looking into my shelter. I froze stiff, and 30 00:01:54,560 --> 00:01:57,239 I could hear it breathing and sniffing as it made 31 00:01:57,239 --> 00:02:00,680 its way inside through the door that I had made. 32 00:02:01,239 --> 00:02:03,719 I had a big branch pulled in to block the door, 33 00:02:03,799 --> 00:02:06,680 but this thing didn't seem to care. I had a 34 00:02:06,719 --> 00:02:09,879 three three rifle laying next to me, but the thought 35 00:02:09,919 --> 00:02:13,759 of protecting myself with it never crossed my mind. I 36 00:02:13,840 --> 00:02:17,400 was too stunned to move or think straight. The sniffing 37 00:02:17,439 --> 00:02:20,919 and probing went on for what felt like hours, and 38 00:02:21,120 --> 00:02:23,319 just when I thought it would finally back out and 39 00:02:23,439 --> 00:02:26,960 leave me be, I felt its giant hand grab my 40 00:02:27,080 --> 00:02:29,680 leg and tug on it, as if trying to see 41 00:02:29,719 --> 00:02:32,280 if I was a piece of wood or something else, 42 00:02:33,199 --> 00:02:35,680 and when it grabbed me, I screamed like a pack 43 00:02:35,680 --> 00:02:38,800 of stuck pigs. I must have scared it as bad 44 00:02:38,840 --> 00:02:41,919 as it scared me, because it let out a high pitched, 45 00:02:42,000 --> 00:02:45,520 horror stricken scream, and it took off toward the woods, 46 00:02:45,599 --> 00:02:50,319 ripping the top off my buddy's tint along the way. Well, 47 00:02:50,360 --> 00:02:54,120 we were terrified. All three of us had heard and 48 00:02:54,360 --> 00:02:57,560 seen it. We stayed as quiet and as still as 49 00:02:57,639 --> 00:03:00,479 we could until the first light showed over the mountains, 50 00:03:00,879 --> 00:03:04,719 and then we got to our bikes. No sooner had 51 00:03:04,759 --> 00:03:06,960 I gotten to my bike and got it moving when 52 00:03:07,000 --> 00:03:09,599 a baseball sized rock hit me in the side of 53 00:03:09,639 --> 00:03:12,919 the head and it knocked me off my bike. My 54 00:03:13,000 --> 00:03:15,960 buddy behind me stop and helped me back up, and 55 00:03:16,039 --> 00:03:19,159 we hotailed it out of there and we never went 56 00:03:19,240 --> 00:03:24,319 back to that area again. Hey, welcome to the podcast. 57 00:03:24,400 --> 00:03:27,879 My name is Cameron Buckner. This is the Dixie Cryptid 58 00:03:28,080 --> 00:03:33,520 YouTube podcast, also known as the what If It's True Podcast. 59 00:03:34,000 --> 00:03:37,639 On any podcast app that you're using, just do a 60 00:03:37,680 --> 00:03:41,360 search for Dixie Cryptid or what If It's True podcast 61 00:03:41,479 --> 00:03:46,039 on your Apple podcast app Spotify. Any podcast app you're 62 00:03:46,120 --> 00:03:48,520 using should be right at the top and you can 63 00:03:48,560 --> 00:03:52,159 follow along. I'm gonna tell you something about the audio 64 00:03:52,360 --> 00:03:56,800 only podcast. People complain about the ads that run in 65 00:03:56,879 --> 00:03:59,919 my videos on YouTube. I have nothing to do with it. 66 00:04:00,120 --> 00:04:03,000 That I do have a little control. There is a 67 00:04:03,039 --> 00:04:05,759 little button when I upload a video that I can 68 00:04:06,159 --> 00:04:10,199 place ads, but they YouTube never uses it. I spent 69 00:04:10,439 --> 00:04:14,199 four or five years doing that, just placing my own ads. 70 00:04:14,240 --> 00:04:17,720 But the ads if I place three in a one 71 00:04:17,800 --> 00:04:20,920 hour long video, they're still going to put six. But 72 00:04:20,959 --> 00:04:23,360 here's what I want to tell you. If you go 73 00:04:23,480 --> 00:04:26,560 to the podcast app, if you look me up on 74 00:04:26,600 --> 00:04:30,920 the podcast app, you may have one ad interrupt your 75 00:04:30,959 --> 00:04:34,959 listening experience. On a podcast app, there are not near 76 00:04:35,199 --> 00:04:40,319 as many ads on Apple podcasts, Spotify, Spreaker. You can 77 00:04:40,360 --> 00:04:44,319 listen on on the Spreaker app. S p R e 78 00:04:44,639 --> 00:04:48,240 A K e R. You can download all these apps 79 00:04:48,240 --> 00:04:52,680 for free. Starting account doesn't cost you anything. Look up 80 00:04:52,759 --> 00:04:55,959 all the podcasts you want to listen to look mine 81 00:04:56,079 --> 00:04:59,439 up first, and you won't get interrupted with ads. I 82 00:04:59,439 --> 00:05:02,040 don't know why people don't use it. I use it 83 00:05:02,079 --> 00:05:04,600 all the time now. I watch a lot of YouTube, 84 00:05:04,680 --> 00:05:08,560 but I only watch that for visual stuff. This podcast 85 00:05:08,639 --> 00:05:12,399 is an audio podcast. The stuff you see running on 86 00:05:12,439 --> 00:05:14,439 the screen is just stuff I have to put in 87 00:05:14,439 --> 00:05:19,800 there simply because YouTube is a visual platform. Anyway, I 88 00:05:19,839 --> 00:05:23,000 just want to drop that. What do they call them hacks? 89 00:05:23,319 --> 00:05:27,000 That's an ad hack. Go to Apple podcast or Spotify, 90 00:05:27,399 --> 00:05:31,800 or I use Podbean the pod Bean app. It seems 91 00:05:31,800 --> 00:05:34,920 to work really well, but it really doesn't matter. These 92 00:05:34,959 --> 00:05:38,199 podcasts are streamed anywhere. So anyway, enough of that, onto 93 00:05:38,240 --> 00:05:40,399 the story. I think I've got six or seven in 94 00:05:40,480 --> 00:05:43,800 this podcast. I certainly hope you guys enjoy it. So 95 00:05:44,199 --> 00:05:52,519 all right, here we go. When my son was four, 96 00:05:52,759 --> 00:05:56,439 we went Noword to visit my aunt and uncle. At 97 00:05:56,439 --> 00:05:59,560 the time, they lived on a beautiful property spanning eighty 98 00:05:59,639 --> 00:06:05,079 are not too far from Huntsville, Ontario. My uncle was 99 00:06:05,120 --> 00:06:08,079 born and raised in rural Quebec, and he grew up 100 00:06:08,120 --> 00:06:11,800 in the woods among the wildlife. Later, as a young man, 101 00:06:12,000 --> 00:06:15,759 he lived and worked in logging camps in Ontario and Quebec. 102 00:06:17,040 --> 00:06:21,959 Their property was a nature lover's dream. Deer routinely wandered 103 00:06:22,000 --> 00:06:25,879 into their backyard, along with bears and other wildlife, and 104 00:06:25,920 --> 00:06:29,639 a host of other birds and smaller wildlife. It was 105 00:06:29,680 --> 00:06:33,920 one of my favorite places to be on this visit. 106 00:06:34,079 --> 00:06:36,519 It was winter, and we were sitting around in their 107 00:06:36,560 --> 00:06:39,879 living room as the woodstove chugged out heat, and the 108 00:06:39,920 --> 00:06:43,959 conversation worked its way around to strange things my uncle 109 00:06:44,000 --> 00:06:46,879 had seen and heard in the forest in his lifetime. 110 00:06:48,160 --> 00:06:51,199 He began telling a story about a deer hunting trip 111 00:06:51,240 --> 00:06:55,759 that he took part in many years prior. Near North Bay, Ontario. 112 00:06:57,160 --> 00:07:00,240 He and his hunting partner had come up dry since 113 00:07:00,240 --> 00:07:02,279 it was getting dark, they were heading back to the 114 00:07:02,319 --> 00:07:06,759 warmth of their lodging and a hot meal. As it was, though, 115 00:07:06,839 --> 00:07:09,519 they got somewhat off the beaten path and ended up 116 00:07:09,519 --> 00:07:13,079 taking the scenic route. It was dark by that point 117 00:07:13,160 --> 00:07:15,879 and they were cold and miserable, when all of a 118 00:07:15,879 --> 00:07:19,160 sudden they heard the sound emanating from the woods. They 119 00:07:19,240 --> 00:07:23,360 could only be described as an angry monkey scream. My 120 00:07:23,519 --> 00:07:26,959 uncle and his buddy froze solid when it went off again, 121 00:07:27,120 --> 00:07:31,160 only louder. By this point, they were starting to mentally 122 00:07:31,240 --> 00:07:34,199 take inventory of what animals could have made that sound, 123 00:07:34,759 --> 00:07:38,120 but they came up empty. They stood there for a minute, 124 00:07:38,160 --> 00:07:42,199 facing out into the dark woods. The ensuing silence was 125 00:07:42,360 --> 00:07:45,199 every bit as scary as the noise they had just heard. 126 00:07:46,319 --> 00:07:49,439 They decided not to wait around for an encore and 127 00:07:49,560 --> 00:07:52,240 instead to double time it back to their cabin, where 128 00:07:52,279 --> 00:07:56,399 not one more word was said about this incident. Now, 129 00:07:56,439 --> 00:08:00,000 my uncle never once mentioned the word sosquatch or even 130 00:08:00,079 --> 00:08:03,240 and heinted at it. But given his location at the 131 00:08:03,319 --> 00:08:06,439 time and the sheer ferocity of the sound, and the 132 00:08:06,439 --> 00:08:10,360 fact that it froze him, a seasoned hunter in his tracks, 133 00:08:10,800 --> 00:08:16,560 I would not discount sosquatch. In August of twenty eighteen, 134 00:08:16,639 --> 00:08:19,000 I took my son to visit my aunt and uncle 135 00:08:19,040 --> 00:08:22,240 again on their property. While we were there, we had 136 00:08:22,240 --> 00:08:24,959 a great time exploring the woods and walking down to 137 00:08:25,000 --> 00:08:29,120 the beautiful beach about a mile away. But in typical fashion, 138 00:08:29,240 --> 00:08:32,919 my internal clock went into overdrive and the first day 139 00:08:32,960 --> 00:08:37,360 there I found myself awake at four am. Well, I figured, 140 00:08:37,440 --> 00:08:40,879 rather than lying beds doing about being awake, I'd go 141 00:08:40,919 --> 00:08:45,279 downstairs and do some painting until everyone woke up. This 142 00:08:45,360 --> 00:08:48,519 house did not have air conditioning, so they routinely left 143 00:08:48,519 --> 00:08:52,559 windows open to create a cross breeze. Between that and 144 00:08:52,679 --> 00:08:55,879 the shade from the huge trees all around, the house 145 00:08:55,960 --> 00:08:58,559 was always at an nice temperature, even when it was 146 00:08:58,600 --> 00:09:01,879 sticky out. And there I was in the dining room 147 00:09:01,960 --> 00:09:05,200 table with my watercolors in front of me, beside a 148 00:09:05,279 --> 00:09:08,200 huge open window, listening to the birds in the forest 149 00:09:08,399 --> 00:09:12,440 as they began to wake and go about their daily routine. 150 00:09:12,519 --> 00:09:16,600 Outside it was washed with a silvery blue pre dawn light, 151 00:09:16,840 --> 00:09:20,559 and except for the birds, everything was quiet. I was 152 00:09:20,600 --> 00:09:23,679 painting away happily, when all of a sudden I noticed 153 00:09:23,679 --> 00:09:27,320 that even the birds had stilled. I felt little of it, 154 00:09:27,360 --> 00:09:30,279 and I kept on painting until in the distance I 155 00:09:30,320 --> 00:09:33,480 heard the distinct sound of wood hitting hard against another 156 00:09:33,519 --> 00:09:37,360 piece of wood. My head shot upright and I listened. 157 00:09:37,960 --> 00:09:40,120 There were three knocks, and then a pause, and then 158 00:09:40,159 --> 00:09:44,320 a couple more, and then a short, distant, lyrical whood 159 00:09:44,480 --> 00:09:47,720 sound that started low and went higher towards the end. 160 00:09:48,440 --> 00:09:52,919 No freaking way, I thought to myself. I immediately realized 161 00:09:52,960 --> 00:09:55,279 my son would be furious with me if I didn't 162 00:09:55,360 --> 00:09:58,600 capture the sounds, so I reached for my cell phone 163 00:09:58,639 --> 00:10:02,000 and turned on the video. Even though there was another 164 00:10:02,120 --> 00:10:05,600 faint moan in the distance. When I played back the recording, 165 00:10:05,639 --> 00:10:09,120 the only audible sound was that of my rather excited breathing. 166 00:10:10,480 --> 00:10:12,679 I told my son at breakfast what I'd heard, but 167 00:10:12,759 --> 00:10:15,799 he thought I was kidding with him to this day, 168 00:10:15,840 --> 00:10:18,519 I'll never be convinced that what I heard that morning 169 00:10:18,679 --> 00:10:23,200 in the twilight was not a sisquatch. The wood knocking 170 00:10:23,600 --> 00:10:26,799 was intentional, and the whooping sound was like nothing I'd 171 00:10:26,840 --> 00:10:30,639 ever heard before or since. Keep doing your good work. 172 00:10:30,919 --> 00:10:37,440 Your non judgmental approach and fantastic accent make you one 173 00:10:37,480 --> 00:10:39,399 of the best on YouTube. And my son and I 174 00:10:39,440 --> 00:10:43,960 love your channel. Sign Nancy, that was a really nice compliment. 175 00:10:44,120 --> 00:10:48,279 Not many people compliment my accent, but I can't change it, 176 00:10:48,320 --> 00:10:50,399 and I just roll with it. And there's plenty of 177 00:10:50,440 --> 00:10:53,320 people that talk like me. So we go through life 178 00:10:53,440 --> 00:10:57,440 not understanding each other. Hay yack, Get all right. Thank 179 00:10:57,480 --> 00:11:00,000 you Nancy for the story. This was great. Thank you. 180 00:11:05,039 --> 00:11:08,600 My encounter occurred in the summer of nineteen seventy five. 181 00:11:09,320 --> 00:11:13,440 I was thirteen years old at the time. My cousin Jim, 182 00:11:13,480 --> 00:11:17,000 and I decided to go camping near my home, located 183 00:11:17,080 --> 00:11:21,440 in the southeastern corner of Mecklenburg County in North Carolina, 184 00:11:21,879 --> 00:11:24,799 in an area of woods that is known as Colonel 185 00:11:24,879 --> 00:11:29,480 Francis Bady Park. This section of the country was remote 186 00:11:29,600 --> 00:11:34,759 in the nineteen seventies, with sparse development. The woods comprising 187 00:11:34,960 --> 00:11:39,399 several hundred acres included a beautiful section where several large 188 00:11:39,480 --> 00:11:43,720 creeks converged with a mature section of hardwoods and pines. 189 00:11:44,600 --> 00:11:47,559 There's a high tension power line extending through the eastern 190 00:11:47,639 --> 00:11:50,639 corner of this track, which I now realized may have 191 00:11:50,720 --> 00:11:55,399 been the pathway for our visitor. The land was bordered 192 00:11:55,399 --> 00:11:58,240 by planet fields on two sides and a road on 193 00:11:58,320 --> 00:12:02,480 the other two sides in some development. Essentially, it was 194 00:12:02,519 --> 00:12:07,639 an oasis of hardwoods surrounded by fields. By the age 195 00:12:07,679 --> 00:12:11,639 of thirteen, I was already an accomplished camper, having camped 196 00:12:11,639 --> 00:12:14,879 in the wilderness areas for week long stretches with my 197 00:12:15,039 --> 00:12:19,120 father since I was six. I was accustomed to being 198 00:12:19,159 --> 00:12:22,480 in the woods at night, having taken several frog gigging 199 00:12:22,519 --> 00:12:26,240 trips with my father to remote ponds throughout Union County, 200 00:12:26,759 --> 00:12:30,440 where we would spend hours tromping around the darkness up 201 00:12:30,480 --> 00:12:34,240 to my chest and water. It was not unusual for 202 00:12:34,360 --> 00:12:39,480 us to encounter snakes, deer, raccoons, and other wildlife. Jim 203 00:12:39,519 --> 00:12:42,240 and I hiked about two miles and made camp in 204 00:12:42,279 --> 00:12:45,840 a clear area of hardwoods just above a waterfall in 205 00:12:45,919 --> 00:12:50,360 the creek in the center of the track. Accompanying us 206 00:12:50,519 --> 00:12:54,320 was my dog, Alicia. She was a German shepherd who 207 00:12:54,399 --> 00:12:59,000 was fiercely loyal and followed me everywhere. Back then, there 208 00:12:59,000 --> 00:13:02,639 were no leash laws, and she patrolled my family's seven 209 00:13:02,639 --> 00:13:07,039 acre home site religiously, chasing off all manner of animals. 210 00:13:08,559 --> 00:13:11,240 She was accustomed to the wildlife in our area, and 211 00:13:11,279 --> 00:13:13,759 it was common for her to wake us up after 212 00:13:13,840 --> 00:13:17,480 cornering a possum or a raccoon on our patio late 213 00:13:17,519 --> 00:13:22,679 at night. After exploring the area all day, we settled 214 00:13:22,679 --> 00:13:26,279 in for the night with a knight's fire. Sometime late 215 00:13:26,320 --> 00:13:28,799 in the evening, we were both awakened by my dog. 216 00:13:29,679 --> 00:13:33,600 Lesha was making a weird combination of noises, sort of 217 00:13:33,600 --> 00:13:37,960 a mix of whining and growling. She came in the tent, 218 00:13:38,120 --> 00:13:42,000 pacing and cowering between us. She had never done anything 219 00:13:42,159 --> 00:13:46,679 like that before, and it baffled me. She couldnot be consoled. 220 00:13:47,399 --> 00:13:52,039 Lesha would bark incessantly at strangers, dogs or wildlife, or 221 00:13:52,080 --> 00:13:55,440 she would chase them off without hesitation. But I had 222 00:13:55,480 --> 00:13:58,039 never seen her behave the way that she did that night, 223 00:13:58,559 --> 00:14:00,919 nor did I see her act that way again after. 224 00:14:02,399 --> 00:14:05,879 As we sat awake pondering what was causing her reaction. 225 00:14:06,519 --> 00:14:10,679 There were noises out in the woods. The first one 226 00:14:10,720 --> 00:14:14,240 that got our attention was a tree falling. We heard 227 00:14:14,279 --> 00:14:17,559 distinctive cracks and then the sound of a massive tree 228 00:14:17,639 --> 00:14:20,960 hitting the ground. It was a familiar sound to me 229 00:14:21,279 --> 00:14:24,360 because we would push over rotten pine trees and kill 230 00:14:24,399 --> 00:14:28,360 pine beetles for the fun. This usually required at least 231 00:14:28,360 --> 00:14:31,480 several boys to slowly push a tree at its base 232 00:14:32,000 --> 00:14:34,519 until it began to sway, and then push into each 233 00:14:34,600 --> 00:14:37,600 sway until the momentum caused it to break near the 234 00:14:37,639 --> 00:14:40,919 base and fall. It wasn't an easy feet but we 235 00:14:40,960 --> 00:14:44,759 would get it done. Dead or rotten tree fall and 236 00:14:44,919 --> 00:14:49,600 living tree fall has distinctively different sounds. When the dead 237 00:14:49,639 --> 00:14:53,360 tree falls, the cracking is dry and quick, there is 238 00:14:53,440 --> 00:14:57,159 no resistance. But when a healthy tree falls, you hear 239 00:14:57,200 --> 00:15:00,399 the moisture in the wood protesting. You hear the tearing 240 00:15:00,440 --> 00:15:03,799 of the bark and the trunk resisting as the fiber split. 241 00:15:04,879 --> 00:15:07,320 Several of us would never have been able to push 242 00:15:07,360 --> 00:15:10,120 over a living tree, no matter how hard we tried. 243 00:15:11,679 --> 00:15:15,399 The tree we heard was green, it was alive. The 244 00:15:15,480 --> 00:15:18,000 sound of hitting the ground was heavy and dense with 245 00:15:18,080 --> 00:15:21,919 moisture and shook the earth under our tent. When I 246 00:15:21,960 --> 00:15:23,879 heard it break in the middle of the night, in 247 00:15:23,919 --> 00:15:27,639 the middle of nowhere, I got a shiver. I knew 248 00:15:27,679 --> 00:15:31,000 that whatever had made this happen was something big, and 249 00:15:31,080 --> 00:15:34,519 my dog was afraid of it. I shared my concern 250 00:15:34,639 --> 00:15:38,120 with Jim, and we began to hear distinctive footfalls in 251 00:15:38,159 --> 00:15:41,440 the dry leaves. The foot falls were heavy and they 252 00:15:41,480 --> 00:15:46,240 sounded like a person slowly walking. The footsteps grew fainter. 253 00:15:46,639 --> 00:15:50,879 We heard another living tree fall, and then silence. It 254 00:15:50,960 --> 00:15:53,279 took some time for my dog to settle down, but 255 00:15:53,519 --> 00:15:57,840 she never barked or chased after whatever it was. We 256 00:15:57,879 --> 00:16:00,279 did not go to sleep at all after that, and 257 00:16:00,320 --> 00:16:03,399 we couldn't wait for daylight to get out of the woods. 258 00:16:04,240 --> 00:16:07,080 I still live in this area and frequently travel through 259 00:16:07,120 --> 00:16:10,440 that section of woods. Because it has now been converted 260 00:16:10,480 --> 00:16:14,200 into a public park, I have continued to camp and 261 00:16:14,320 --> 00:16:16,720 hunt in and around this area for as long as 262 00:16:16,759 --> 00:16:20,799 I can remember. That particular area was, for many years 263 00:16:20,840 --> 00:16:24,840 prior to the park's establishment, my favorite deer hunting area 264 00:16:25,240 --> 00:16:29,080 due to the abundance of the animals. The northern section 265 00:16:29,240 --> 00:16:32,960 is surrounded by farmland and the entire track is intersected 266 00:16:33,000 --> 00:16:37,960 by several creeks which now form a big lake. In 267 00:16:38,000 --> 00:16:40,559 all my time in the woods, I have never encountered 268 00:16:40,639 --> 00:16:44,879 anything that would explain what we heard that night. I 269 00:16:44,960 --> 00:16:48,720 recently became interested in the Bigfoot phenomenon, and I've been 270 00:16:48,759 --> 00:16:55,480 researching accounts in folklore. This unusual childhood experience remains vivid, 271 00:16:55,879 --> 00:16:58,720 and it is now quite evident to me that sosquatch 272 00:16:58,919 --> 00:17:03,879 explains everything we heard. It is, in my opinion, the 273 00:17:03,919 --> 00:17:06,680 only creature that would have had that kind of effect 274 00:17:06,839 --> 00:17:10,559 on my German shepherd, and the only creature that would 275 00:17:10,599 --> 00:17:13,799 have had the ability to push over a massive, green 276 00:17:14,079 --> 00:17:22,759 living tree. I grew up in a small town outskirts 277 00:17:22,799 --> 00:17:26,359 of Cincinnati, Ohio. My father and I lived in an 278 00:17:26,400 --> 00:17:29,079 old log cabin situated in the middle of the woods. 279 00:17:29,880 --> 00:17:32,319 He used to always cut trees for heat in the winter, 280 00:17:32,799 --> 00:17:35,119 and on the weekends I would help him load the 281 00:17:35,160 --> 00:17:39,440 truck and whatnot. Our white German shepherd named Duke was 282 00:17:39,480 --> 00:17:43,319 my favorite companion. He was beautiful and in the winter 283 00:17:43,519 --> 00:17:45,680 he would come busting out of the woods on either 284 00:17:45,720 --> 00:17:48,359 side of the trail and look like a majestic wolf. 285 00:17:49,000 --> 00:17:53,480 He was my best friend. One day, my father, Duke 286 00:17:53,519 --> 00:17:56,279 and I were walking the creek after a day of swimming, 287 00:17:56,440 --> 00:17:59,279 when we came up on a set of tracks that's 288 00:17:59,279 --> 00:18:01,759 about ten years years old at that time now. I 289 00:18:01,839 --> 00:18:04,960 asked my father if they were dukes. He said, no, 290 00:18:05,079 --> 00:18:08,839 they weren't. They were from a feeline, probably a big 291 00:18:08,880 --> 00:18:12,720 bobcat or something of that nature. Well, put it out 292 00:18:12,720 --> 00:18:16,559 of my mind and we continued on. I'm not sure 293 00:18:16,559 --> 00:18:19,839 how much longer this was, since when you're a kid, 294 00:18:19,920 --> 00:18:23,039 time really does fly. But Duke and I were outside 295 00:18:23,079 --> 00:18:26,039 of the log cabin, playing in the yard as kids do, 296 00:18:26,759 --> 00:18:29,240 when all of a sudden, Duke got so close to 297 00:18:29,279 --> 00:18:33,039 me that I couldn't walk without tripping over him. That's 298 00:18:33,079 --> 00:18:35,640 when I looked up at our long gravel driveway and 299 00:18:35,720 --> 00:18:39,759 I saw what made those tracks. It was a massive 300 00:18:40,079 --> 00:18:43,920 eight foot long black cat slinking its way from us 301 00:18:44,079 --> 00:18:48,359 up the long gravel driveway. I know things seemed larger 302 00:18:48,440 --> 00:18:51,000 when you're a kid, but this thing really was big. 303 00:18:51,759 --> 00:18:55,160 I never saw its face, just its long, slender body 304 00:18:55,200 --> 00:18:58,839 and its tail whipping left to right. I know a 305 00:18:58,880 --> 00:19:01,480 cat when I see one, just like everyone else in 306 00:19:01,519 --> 00:19:04,799 the world does. It had the grace and agility and 307 00:19:05,000 --> 00:19:09,519 stealth of an assassin. My German shepherd was a good size, 308 00:19:09,759 --> 00:19:13,519 maybe eighty pounds, but this cat dwarfed him. That's what 309 00:19:13,680 --> 00:19:17,359 I realized. Duke had saved my life. If I had 310 00:19:17,359 --> 00:19:20,640 been out there alone, that cat would have easily killed me. 311 00:19:22,240 --> 00:19:25,160 If you search the internet for black panthers living in 312 00:19:25,240 --> 00:19:28,319 North America, the answers you will get or that they 313 00:19:28,359 --> 00:19:31,880 flied out don't exist here. But I know what I saw. 314 00:19:32,519 --> 00:19:34,720 Maybe it was a pet that got too big to 315 00:19:34,880 --> 00:19:39,160 keep and was set loose. In the nineteen eighties and nineties, 316 00:19:39,279 --> 00:19:42,319 people had a thing for exotic pets intended to let 317 00:19:42,359 --> 00:19:45,400 them loose when they got too big. All I know 318 00:19:45,640 --> 00:19:48,640 is that I saw a monster panther that day, and 319 00:19:48,720 --> 00:19:52,839 my German Shepherd saved my life. I'll never forget that day. 320 00:19:53,279 --> 00:19:56,960 I'll never forget that cat or my dog, Duke. Thank 321 00:19:57,000 --> 00:20:05,599 you for reading this. Signing off. In two thousand and ten, 322 00:20:05,720 --> 00:20:08,200 I lived in an old house with a couple of 323 00:20:08,240 --> 00:20:12,480 acres and a swamp nearby. It was in southeast Georgia 324 00:20:12,519 --> 00:20:17,359 and Bullock County, about an hour northwest of Savannah. There's 325 00:20:17,400 --> 00:20:20,559 a ditch between my property and my grandmother's property that's 326 00:20:20,640 --> 00:20:24,920 four feet deep. Red swamp maple grows on both sides 327 00:20:24,960 --> 00:20:27,559 of it, and you wouldn't know it was there unless 328 00:20:27,559 --> 00:20:30,119 you're paying attention when you're passing it from the road. 329 00:20:31,000 --> 00:20:33,319 It runs in a tee from the front of the 330 00:20:33,359 --> 00:20:36,160 property back to the swamp behind the house, and then 331 00:20:36,240 --> 00:20:39,880 into a vernal pond that dries up every summer. It 332 00:20:39,920 --> 00:20:43,640 hadn't rained, so the ditch was dry as a bone. 333 00:20:43,720 --> 00:20:47,119 Our family reunion was held at my grandmother's property every 334 00:20:47,240 --> 00:20:50,440 April and has been held every year there for sixty 335 00:20:50,440 --> 00:20:54,079 five years. My brother and I and our families were 336 00:20:54,119 --> 00:20:57,480 always last to call it a night. It was getting 337 00:20:57,559 --> 00:21:00,839 late when we heard a strange sound outside. One of 338 00:21:00,839 --> 00:21:02,839 my brothers said it could have been a screech owl. 339 00:21:03,759 --> 00:21:05,960 We left it at that and said our goodbyes, and 340 00:21:06,240 --> 00:21:10,680 I headed for bed. I had become disabled the year before, 341 00:21:10,720 --> 00:21:13,880 and I used a wheelchair. I could stand, but I 342 00:21:13,920 --> 00:21:16,279 couldn't walk for because the cartilage in both of my 343 00:21:16,400 --> 00:21:19,880 hips had worn out. I had learned that sleeping on 344 00:21:19,920 --> 00:21:22,759 the couch was easier to get out of than getting 345 00:21:22,759 --> 00:21:25,400 out of my bed, so I'd taken to sleeping in 346 00:21:25,440 --> 00:21:28,920 the living room. I never left any lights on because 347 00:21:28,920 --> 00:21:32,240 the windows faced east and west, and the yard light 348 00:21:32,400 --> 00:21:34,680 lit up the interior of the house enough for me 349 00:21:34,759 --> 00:21:36,640 to use the bathroom in the middle of the night. 350 00:21:38,039 --> 00:21:41,240 There were three windows in the living room, each three 351 00:21:41,240 --> 00:21:44,839 feet wide and five feet long. These were old windows 352 00:21:44,880 --> 00:21:47,920 that my dad had removed and rebuilt, and were made 353 00:21:47,960 --> 00:21:51,000 of that thin old glass that looks like it's melting. 354 00:21:51,880 --> 00:21:54,920 The window that faced west was five feet off the ground. 355 00:21:56,640 --> 00:21:59,000 That night, it was just me and my pug, Blinky, 356 00:21:59,119 --> 00:22:02,039 who was then eight years old. He was a good 357 00:22:02,119 --> 00:22:04,720 little watch dog, and he sounded like he was ten 358 00:22:04,759 --> 00:22:07,359 feet tall when he went on alert, even though he 359 00:22:07,440 --> 00:22:11,599 only weighed twelve pounds. I just laid on the couch 360 00:22:11,680 --> 00:22:14,240 and blink. He laid down on the floor beside me. 361 00:22:14,920 --> 00:22:17,839 I was almost asleep when all of a sudden, an 362 00:22:17,920 --> 00:22:22,079 ungodly scream came from the ditch. It sounded like the 363 00:22:22,119 --> 00:22:24,839 one my brothers and I had heard earlier, but it 364 00:22:24,920 --> 00:22:30,200 was closer and louder and wilder this time. I started 365 00:22:30,200 --> 00:22:33,039 to sit up when Blinky sailed up to my chest, 366 00:22:33,119 --> 00:22:36,039 knocking my breath out of me and banging like he 367 00:22:36,160 --> 00:22:39,960 was a huge dog. He barked for a good five minutes. 368 00:22:40,400 --> 00:22:43,839 His fur was bristling like I'd never seen before. He 369 00:22:43,880 --> 00:22:46,359 wouldn't let me sit up, and he kept jumping onto 370 00:22:46,440 --> 00:22:49,440 my chest every time I moved him down to my legs. 371 00:22:50,279 --> 00:22:53,240 I found my big flashlight, which I kept between the 372 00:22:53,279 --> 00:22:56,079 couch and the cushions, and I shined it out into 373 00:22:56,119 --> 00:22:59,119 the swamp maples, shining it back and forth and then 374 00:22:59,200 --> 00:23:02,880 up and down the tree. Blinky finally got off me 375 00:23:02,960 --> 00:23:05,640 and I was able to sit up. I turned off 376 00:23:05,680 --> 00:23:09,480 the flashlight, using my furniture as a support. I went 377 00:23:09,559 --> 00:23:13,039 into the bathroom with Blinky following me, looking through the 378 00:23:13,079 --> 00:23:16,839 window in the bathroom outside, but I couldn't see anything. 379 00:23:18,079 --> 00:23:21,759 I was still afraid. That night, Blinkie and I slept 380 00:23:21,759 --> 00:23:25,359 in my master closet with the interior door shut tight 381 00:23:25,480 --> 00:23:30,680 and lock. I've heard a black panther before. There's one 382 00:23:30,720 --> 00:23:34,200 in the Pennsylvania Zoo that screamed right at me, so 383 00:23:34,319 --> 00:23:37,920 I knew what I heard wasn't a panther. We had 384 00:23:38,000 --> 00:23:41,039 bobcats and foxes on the farm, and it wasn't either 385 00:23:41,119 --> 00:23:45,759 of them. We don't have porcupines and raccoons and possums 386 00:23:45,799 --> 00:23:49,119 don't scream like what I heard that night. I don't 387 00:23:49,160 --> 00:23:51,880 know what Blinky and I heard, but I've never been 388 00:23:51,960 --> 00:23:55,839 so scared in all my life. Blinky passed away in 389 00:23:55,960 --> 00:24:00,480 my arms in twenty sixteen at thirteen years old, and 390 00:24:00,559 --> 00:24:04,200 I moved to the Arizona Desert last year. There are 391 00:24:04,200 --> 00:24:07,079 no trees here, and that means that there's nowhere for 392 00:24:07,119 --> 00:24:10,240 any large animals or mystery creatures to hide, or so 393 00:24:10,440 --> 00:24:15,079 I'm told. Now, I just have to be aware of rattlesnakes, tarantulas, 394 00:24:15,319 --> 00:24:20,559 and bark scorpions. Oh that was a great story, but 395 00:24:20,680 --> 00:24:23,119 I'm so sad about your pug, Blinkie. We have a 396 00:24:23,119 --> 00:24:26,480 little pug. Her name is Lily. Oh my gosh, I 397 00:24:26,559 --> 00:24:29,680 love that dog. She's a stinky little thing and she's 398 00:24:29,720 --> 00:24:33,440 a snorty snorter. You know how pugs are. They're just 399 00:24:33,519 --> 00:24:37,839 little footballs and their faces are all alienike. Have you 400 00:24:37,880 --> 00:24:40,720 ever looked in a pug's mouth. They have the weirdest 401 00:24:40,759 --> 00:24:45,119 skull structure of any dog I've ever seen. But it's 402 00:24:45,119 --> 00:24:49,960 one of the oldest breeds in human history that I think. 403 00:24:50,000 --> 00:24:52,039 They come out of China, but they're the I want 404 00:24:52,079 --> 00:24:55,119 to just tell y'all, if anybody's looking for a family pet, 405 00:24:55,920 --> 00:24:59,880 a pug is the absolute best family pet you can buy. 406 00:25:00,680 --> 00:25:03,839 I love labs. I have a little pit bull mix. 407 00:25:04,680 --> 00:25:07,720 We have a hairless Mexican Terrier. He's a great dog. 408 00:25:08,359 --> 00:25:10,680 And all of our dogs are good, but that pug 409 00:25:11,279 --> 00:25:13,680 she may or may not be my favorite. But if 410 00:25:13,720 --> 00:25:17,279 you're looking for just a family pet, a dog that's 411 00:25:17,319 --> 00:25:21,279 good with kids, it's a lap dog that's lovable. I 412 00:25:21,279 --> 00:25:25,079 mean their faces are shapes so that they just can't 413 00:25:25,119 --> 00:25:28,359 hardly bite you. They're a great dog to raise with 414 00:25:28,440 --> 00:25:31,240 a family. So anyway, that's my dog advice for the day. 415 00:25:31,680 --> 00:25:33,640 Thank you to the writer for the story. I thought 416 00:25:33,680 --> 00:25:42,039 it was good. Thanks. In July of two thousand and nine, 417 00:25:42,319 --> 00:25:46,680 I moved to Murphisboro, Tennessee, to begin graduate studies in 418 00:25:46,759 --> 00:25:51,960 the biology program at Middle Tennessee State University. It was 419 00:25:52,039 --> 00:25:54,799 during the tail end of a recession, and I had 420 00:25:54,839 --> 00:25:57,599 been working for a surveyor who could only pay me 421 00:25:57,759 --> 00:26:00,240 for three days a week, so I didn't have a 422 00:26:00,279 --> 00:26:04,839 lot of money. I drove around downtown Murphisborough and was 423 00:26:04,960 --> 00:26:10,319 overtaken by a nostalgic mood. This quiet, old downtown neighborhood, 424 00:26:10,319 --> 00:26:12,920 in the tree lined streets leading up to the old 425 00:26:12,960 --> 00:26:16,319 courthouse on the Square was where I had lived ten 426 00:26:16,440 --> 00:26:20,240 years prior to this. I ran these old streets in 427 00:26:20,319 --> 00:26:23,640 the fall of nineteen ninety nine, with their turning leaves 428 00:26:23,960 --> 00:26:27,160 the orange and yellow of the sugar maples leading up 429 00:26:27,160 --> 00:26:31,799 to the square. I would be attending Navy Officers Candidate 430 00:26:31,880 --> 00:26:34,559 School at the beginning of the next year, and I 431 00:26:34,599 --> 00:26:38,400 wanted to get in shape. A decade later, I had 432 00:26:38,400 --> 00:26:42,680 come to take advantage of the educational opportunity my service 433 00:26:42,799 --> 00:26:46,920 had afforded me. I saw a four rent sign at 434 00:26:47,000 --> 00:26:50,359 an old building on Lydall Street, just a block from 435 00:26:50,400 --> 00:26:54,240 the campus. I walked into the open front door. There 436 00:26:54,279 --> 00:26:57,880 was an apartment on either side. I walked up the 437 00:26:57,920 --> 00:27:01,440 creaky wooden stairs to find two more apartments up top. 438 00:27:02,440 --> 00:27:05,200 The door stood wide opened to one of them. It 439 00:27:05,240 --> 00:27:09,680 was dirty. Animal feces was on the floor. A large 440 00:27:09,759 --> 00:27:13,599 old window was open, letting in the ninety degree air. 441 00:27:14,799 --> 00:27:16,920 While this could have been a sign to run away, 442 00:27:17,279 --> 00:27:19,519 to me, it was a sign that the rent might 443 00:27:19,559 --> 00:27:23,720 be cheap. I called the number on the sign out 444 00:27:23,759 --> 00:27:26,119 front and was told to drive up the street to 445 00:27:26,200 --> 00:27:30,519 the owner's law office and sign the rental agreement. I 446 00:27:30,599 --> 00:27:34,200 chose apartment three upstairs, across the hall from the one 447 00:27:34,240 --> 00:27:38,119 I had walked into on my initial visit. It had 448 00:27:38,200 --> 00:27:41,599 just been repainted and the floors were swept. A small 449 00:27:41,680 --> 00:27:44,240 air conditioner did what it could do to cool the 450 00:27:44,359 --> 00:27:47,880 large rooms with the old drafty windows, but I didn't 451 00:27:47,920 --> 00:27:50,920 mind the heat too much. Air Conditioning in the summer 452 00:27:50,960 --> 00:27:55,599 has always given me chills. Some friends helped me move 453 00:27:55,680 --> 00:27:59,599 my belongings down from Nashville. Everything I owned at the 454 00:27:59,640 --> 00:28:02,000 time could be carried in two loads in the bed 455 00:28:02,000 --> 00:28:05,640 of my Ford Ranger pickup truck. I settled into my 456 00:28:05,720 --> 00:28:09,000 new apartment and in a couple of weeks classes began, 457 00:28:09,119 --> 00:28:13,160 and I enjoyed being back on college campus, pretty girls, 458 00:28:13,440 --> 00:28:17,720 thought provoking conversation, not being on a tight work day schedule. 459 00:28:18,559 --> 00:28:22,079 There was a learning curve also as a graduate student, 460 00:28:22,200 --> 00:28:26,119 I had earned extra money teaching biology labs. I had 461 00:28:26,160 --> 00:28:30,279 forgotten statistics, and my first lab found me teaching students 462 00:28:30,319 --> 00:28:33,640 about the tea test, which I did not recall having 463 00:28:33,720 --> 00:28:38,519 ever heard before this lab. Incidentally, it was invented by 464 00:28:38,559 --> 00:28:42,359 the head brewmaster at Guinness in the early nineteen hundreds 465 00:28:42,400 --> 00:28:45,480 as a way to do a statistical quality control on 466 00:28:45,640 --> 00:28:49,599 batches of that fine stout. Some days I would walk 467 00:28:49,720 --> 00:28:52,880 back home between classes and take a nap. I've always 468 00:28:52,880 --> 00:28:55,480 been a napper, but rarely do I fall into a 469 00:28:55,559 --> 00:28:59,319 deep sleep, definitely not enough to enter a dream state. 470 00:29:00,440 --> 00:29:03,680 I was surprised to suddenly be awakened by a loud whistle, 471 00:29:04,480 --> 00:29:07,319 sharp like when someone puts their thumb and finger in 472 00:29:07,400 --> 00:29:10,519 the edge of their mouth and really blows. I looked 473 00:29:10,559 --> 00:29:14,079 outside and saw that the school two doors down was 474 00:29:14,160 --> 00:29:17,240 letting out, and cars lined up the street waiting to 475 00:29:17,279 --> 00:29:21,400 pick up their children. Other kids were running down the sidewalk. 476 00:29:22,079 --> 00:29:25,039 Shortly after this, I was asleep one night when again 477 00:29:25,200 --> 00:29:29,079 I was awakened by that whistle. I rose up and 478 00:29:29,160 --> 00:29:31,480 the only sound in the room was a steady hum 479 00:29:31,559 --> 00:29:35,079 of my fan. I looked out the open window by 480 00:29:35,119 --> 00:29:38,000 my bed, but I didn't see anyone walking around in 481 00:29:38,039 --> 00:29:40,759 the darkness. The hair on the back of my neck 482 00:29:40,799 --> 00:29:43,240 stood up a little, and I didn't sleep well for 483 00:29:43,279 --> 00:29:47,039 the rest of that night. A short time later, I 484 00:29:47,160 --> 00:29:49,839 was out in the front yard smoking a cigarette and 485 00:29:49,880 --> 00:29:54,079 talking with my neighbor. She, with her husband and daughter, 486 00:29:54,359 --> 00:29:58,759 lived in apartment one downstairs. The other two apartments were 487 00:29:58,799 --> 00:30:02,359 still empty as IRA call. Now. This doesn't have much 488 00:30:02,400 --> 00:30:04,680 to do with the story, but I believe it bears 489 00:30:04,720 --> 00:30:09,440 pointing out that she was a witch. She always wore black, 490 00:30:09,640 --> 00:30:13,440 but this, being Murphers Burro goth was always in style. 491 00:30:14,440 --> 00:30:16,559 But one day I had seen her and her husband 492 00:30:16,680 --> 00:30:22,599 walking across the backyard slowly ceremoniously. Her husband was a 493 00:30:22,640 --> 00:30:26,079 normal enough ponytail guy who worked at the bunny bread 494 00:30:26,119 --> 00:30:30,319 plant in town. Or maybe it was Pillsbury, I can't remember, 495 00:30:30,720 --> 00:30:35,039 it's irrelevant. She carried a round mirror with a candle 496 00:30:35,200 --> 00:30:38,799 and a pentagram made from dried weeds on top of it. 497 00:30:39,720 --> 00:30:44,039 They walked to the dilapidated woodshed out back. Hours later, 498 00:30:44,319 --> 00:30:48,440 I walked out and found the mirror and pentagram of weeds. 499 00:30:49,039 --> 00:30:51,799 It was still setting in that shed when my girlfriend 500 00:30:51,799 --> 00:30:54,799 and I moved out to our apartment several years later. 501 00:30:55,680 --> 00:31:00,599 I'm getting a little ahead of myself here. Talking with 502 00:31:00,759 --> 00:31:03,240 my neighbor, who was sitting in the arm of a 503 00:31:03,279 --> 00:31:09,359 dogwood tree on an overcast November day after general pleasant trees, 504 00:31:09,680 --> 00:31:13,240 she asked me if I had ever experienced anything strange 505 00:31:13,279 --> 00:31:17,240 in the house. No, not really, I said, why do 506 00:31:17,319 --> 00:31:22,559 you ask? Just wondering, she said. I was about to 507 00:31:22,559 --> 00:31:25,799 walk back inside when I said, you know, there is 508 00:31:25,880 --> 00:31:29,119 one thing I think it's strange. You get the whistle 509 00:31:29,200 --> 00:31:34,160 don't you, she said. Suddenly a shudder ran over me. Yeah, 510 00:31:34,440 --> 00:31:37,839 I said, My daughter gets the whistle too. She said 511 00:31:38,279 --> 00:31:43,160 she's learned to ignore it. We said about talking some more, 512 00:31:43,480 --> 00:31:47,400 and we talked about supposed haunted houses in downtown Murphisboro. 513 00:31:48,279 --> 00:31:50,599 My neighbor told me about one house she had heard 514 00:31:50,599 --> 00:31:54,319 about with a child's handprints that couldn't be painted over. 515 00:31:55,480 --> 00:31:59,079 She heard that they just kept bleeding back through. Oh 516 00:31:59,079 --> 00:32:04,319 that's creepy, I said, and then walked back inside. Either 517 00:32:04,440 --> 00:32:06,440 that night or the next, I was sitting on the 518 00:32:06,480 --> 00:32:09,799 hardwood floor in my living room working on a project 519 00:32:09,839 --> 00:32:13,839 for a class. Not having an overhead light, I had 520 00:32:13,880 --> 00:32:15,880 set the lamp in the floor next to me so 521 00:32:15,960 --> 00:32:19,000 I could see while I glued leaves and stems to 522 00:32:19,119 --> 00:32:23,079 some thick paper. The light at this low angle cast 523 00:32:23,079 --> 00:32:26,119 a room in a new perspective, and looking up, I 524 00:32:26,160 --> 00:32:29,480 saw it. In the corner on the wall next to 525 00:32:29,519 --> 00:32:33,519 the kitchen door were two small handprints. It appeared to 526 00:32:33,559 --> 00:32:37,279 be two right hand prints from a child, and my 527 00:32:37,519 --> 00:32:42,720 jaw dropped. I ran down to my neighbor's apartment and 528 00:32:42,759 --> 00:32:45,839 got her and her husband to walk up. I didn't 529 00:32:45,839 --> 00:32:48,240 tell them what for, I just said you're not going 530 00:32:48,319 --> 00:32:53,000 to believe this. My neighbor reacted as expected, with a 531 00:32:53,039 --> 00:32:58,960 string of expletives signifying incredulous surprise. They walked back downstairs, 532 00:32:59,000 --> 00:33:03,599 still dumbfound by the prints on the wall. I finished 533 00:33:03,599 --> 00:33:05,400 my work for the night and I went to bed, 534 00:33:05,759 --> 00:33:08,440 and I rationalized the hand prints as being from a 535 00:33:08,559 --> 00:33:12,039 child who had left an indelible mark in a workman's 536 00:33:12,240 --> 00:33:17,119 fresh plaster many years ago. Well time went on, and 537 00:33:17,160 --> 00:33:20,119 I would occasionally show the handprints to friends who came 538 00:33:20,160 --> 00:33:23,880 over to the house, a curiosity in an old house 539 00:33:23,920 --> 00:33:27,680 that would elicit a reaction of creepy surprise, but little more. 540 00:33:28,559 --> 00:33:31,920 Also don't remember getting the whistle anymore by this time. 541 00:33:33,400 --> 00:33:36,640 A year later, in November of twenty ten, I was 542 00:33:36,680 --> 00:33:40,440 taking a course in statistics and had a mild romantic 543 00:33:40,599 --> 00:33:44,200 interest in a pretty girl in the class. She came 544 00:33:44,240 --> 00:33:47,920 over one evening before a test to study. Heated up 545 00:33:47,920 --> 00:33:50,680 some frozen chicken nuggets, and we sat on my bed 546 00:33:50,839 --> 00:33:55,119 studying and watching TV. After a while, we got tired 547 00:33:55,160 --> 00:33:58,480 of studying and just talk for a while. I poured 548 00:33:58,480 --> 00:34:00,759 her a glass of wine and I had a beer. 549 00:34:01,160 --> 00:34:05,519 Around eleven o'clock, she went home. I took her wine glass, 550 00:34:05,599 --> 00:34:07,599 and I set it on the counter by the sink, 551 00:34:07,759 --> 00:34:10,960 and I went to bed. I woke up sometime in 552 00:34:11,000 --> 00:34:12,719 the night and walked to the kitchen to get a 553 00:34:12,800 --> 00:34:16,239 drink of water, and there it was, the wine glass, 554 00:34:16,280 --> 00:34:19,400 sat upright on the kitchen floor, eight or ten feet 555 00:34:19,480 --> 00:34:22,400 from the sink, in the middle of the doorway where 556 00:34:22,400 --> 00:34:26,719 the handprints were. Now. Maybe I was preoccupied with my 557 00:34:26,880 --> 00:34:30,159 date that evening, but for whatever reason, I didn't think 558 00:34:30,280 --> 00:34:34,000 anything of it. I was just glad the glass hadn't broken. 559 00:34:35,400 --> 00:34:37,880 The next morning, I got up and made my oat meal, 560 00:34:38,000 --> 00:34:40,920 heating up the water in a little red camping cup. 561 00:34:41,920 --> 00:34:45,320 After eating, I washed my travel mug for coffee, and 562 00:34:45,400 --> 00:34:48,039 I sat on the counter and began washing my spoon 563 00:34:48,119 --> 00:34:52,079 and bowl. The travel mug fell off the counter somehow, 564 00:34:52,119 --> 00:34:56,119 traveling halfway across the kitchen. It struck me as odd, 565 00:34:56,280 --> 00:34:59,400 but then again, things could easily fall off around it 566 00:34:59,559 --> 00:35:02,920 edge of an old enameled countertop if placed too close 567 00:35:02,960 --> 00:35:06,360 to the edge. So I walked onto class with my 568 00:35:06,440 --> 00:35:09,559 coffee in hand. I think I had to teach labs 569 00:35:09,599 --> 00:35:12,159 that day, because I didn't come back until four or 570 00:35:12,239 --> 00:35:17,280 four point thirty that afternoon. As I walked up the sidewalk. Levi, 571 00:35:17,719 --> 00:35:21,280 who lived downstairs, and our friend Jason were sitting on 572 00:35:21,320 --> 00:35:25,039 the points drinking a beer. Over the course of that day, 573 00:35:25,440 --> 00:35:28,480 I thought about the wineglass being moved across the kitchen, 574 00:35:28,519 --> 00:35:31,880 and to some extent, my coffee mug flying across the counter. 575 00:35:32,960 --> 00:35:35,039 I told them what had happened, and was met with 576 00:35:35,159 --> 00:35:40,320 the dude that's weird reactions that I had expected. I 577 00:35:40,360 --> 00:35:42,800 sang a few bars of the Twilight's On theme and 578 00:35:42,840 --> 00:35:45,320 then suggested that we go up to the booro and 579 00:35:45,360 --> 00:35:48,920 get some beers. They agreed that was a good idea. 580 00:35:49,000 --> 00:35:52,159 So I walked upstairs to drop off my backpack, and 581 00:35:52,239 --> 00:35:55,360 my draw dropped and chills ran all over my body. 582 00:35:55,480 --> 00:35:58,840 When I walked in the door, the little red cup 583 00:35:58,920 --> 00:36:02,320 that I had heated water that morning was now sitting 584 00:36:02,440 --> 00:36:05,960 in the kitchen doorway, exactly where the wine glass had 585 00:36:06,000 --> 00:36:09,760 sat the night before. I ran back downstairs and I 586 00:36:09,800 --> 00:36:12,400 got my buddies to come up. We all looked at 587 00:36:12,440 --> 00:36:16,639 each other in disbelief, and then we walked back downstairs 588 00:36:16,679 --> 00:36:19,440 and went to the bar. I don't recall if it 589 00:36:19,480 --> 00:36:22,159 was later that evening or the next, but Levi and 590 00:36:22,199 --> 00:36:25,400 I were sitting up in my apartment. It may have 591 00:36:25,440 --> 00:36:27,679 been the same evening, because I remember I was a 592 00:36:27,679 --> 00:36:31,079 little scared to be there by myself. I sat at 593 00:36:31,079 --> 00:36:34,480 my desk, which was right beside the kitchen door, right 594 00:36:34,519 --> 00:36:38,599 across from the handprints. Levi stood in the kitchen doorway. 595 00:36:39,719 --> 00:36:43,800 We drank beer and talked about girls and guitars and songwriting, 596 00:36:43,840 --> 00:36:48,000 and are usually topics of conversation, but we also talked 597 00:36:48,000 --> 00:36:51,880 about the unexplainable events of the last twenty four hours. 598 00:36:52,719 --> 00:36:57,039 And that's when I saw it move. A metal yard 599 00:36:57,079 --> 00:36:59,960 stick was leaning up in the corner where the handprint 600 00:37:00,079 --> 00:37:03,559 and swere five feet from where I sat. I looked 601 00:37:03,559 --> 00:37:07,320 in the corner and the yarchstick began to shake vigorously. 602 00:37:08,440 --> 00:37:12,079 I grabbed Levi and pointed to the corner. The yardstick 603 00:37:12,119 --> 00:37:14,679 shook for a couple of more seconds, and then it stopped. 604 00:37:15,639 --> 00:37:18,719 At this point, the kitchen door, which was always open, 605 00:37:19,239 --> 00:37:23,480 slammed on Levi's back and shoulder. We looked at each 606 00:37:23,559 --> 00:37:27,239 other because this was just too odd. But as soon 607 00:37:27,280 --> 00:37:30,280 as he pushed the door back, it slammed again. I 608 00:37:30,320 --> 00:37:32,599 don't recall for sure, but it may have slammed a 609 00:37:32,639 --> 00:37:36,800 third time. We both stood in the doorway, jumping and 610 00:37:36,920 --> 00:37:40,000 leaning hard into the door, trying to make it close again, 611 00:37:40,199 --> 00:37:43,119 just to see if Levi could have jarred the door 612 00:37:43,440 --> 00:37:46,599 causing it to close. We never got it to move. 613 00:37:48,400 --> 00:37:51,320 After a while, Levi went downstairs to go to bed 614 00:37:51,400 --> 00:37:53,400 because he had to go to Worth. The next morning, 615 00:37:53,920 --> 00:37:56,440 I crawled into my bed, but sleep was hard to 616 00:37:56,440 --> 00:37:59,639 come by. The Next day, I was talking to a 617 00:37:59,679 --> 00:38:03,280 girl who sat next to me in my medicinal plants class, 618 00:38:03,639 --> 00:38:06,079 and I told her about the strange events that I 619 00:38:06,079 --> 00:38:09,599 had experienced. She told me that this sounded like a 620 00:38:09,679 --> 00:38:13,039 spirit that was about to manifest itself and it could 621 00:38:13,119 --> 00:38:17,480 be in a terrifying form. Well, this was not encouraging, 622 00:38:17,639 --> 00:38:20,960 since I thought perhaps this was just a friendly ghost. 623 00:38:21,559 --> 00:38:25,039 She suggested that I burned sage to clean the house. 624 00:38:26,719 --> 00:38:30,239 Without going into a long sidetrack as to why, I'll 625 00:38:30,280 --> 00:38:33,079 just say that I already had a bundle of sage 626 00:38:33,079 --> 00:38:36,440 in the house. I went home that evening and sat 627 00:38:36,480 --> 00:38:39,760 on the front porch with Levi's roommate, who was named Mike. 628 00:38:40,360 --> 00:38:44,440 After a beer, we walked upstairs and we lit the sage. 629 00:38:44,639 --> 00:38:47,519 Only the kitchen light was on, and I don't recall 630 00:38:47,599 --> 00:38:50,119 why I didn't turn on any of the other lamps. 631 00:38:50,880 --> 00:38:53,440 I walked through the apartment with the sage and making 632 00:38:53,519 --> 00:38:57,440 up a cleansing ritual as I went. There's nothing but 633 00:38:57,519 --> 00:39:00,960 love here, I said, I bring nothing but love, but 634 00:39:01,079 --> 00:39:04,360 I live here. I pay rent. You don't belong here. 635 00:39:05,440 --> 00:39:10,280 And then Mike interjected, but if you're here, show yourself. No, no, 636 00:39:10,480 --> 00:39:13,400 I never want to see you. I have nothing but love, 637 00:39:13,480 --> 00:39:16,320 but you need to go wherever you're supposed to go. 638 00:39:17,079 --> 00:39:21,719 I pay the rent here, I continued to say. Afterwards, 639 00:39:21,760 --> 00:39:25,519 Mike went back downstairs, and I sat alone in the apartment, 640 00:39:25,920 --> 00:39:28,920 and the aroma of the sage strong throughout the rooms. 641 00:39:29,800 --> 00:39:32,480 I went to bed that night and slept well. I 642 00:39:32,519 --> 00:39:36,480 slept well from then on. There were no other ghostly occurrences. 643 00:39:37,599 --> 00:39:39,960 Those events so many years ago left me with a 644 00:39:40,000 --> 00:39:43,239 good ghost story to tell. But the event has also 645 00:39:43,400 --> 00:39:47,599 left me with something more. When someone I love passes 646 00:39:47,639 --> 00:39:51,079 away and friends and family attempt to comfort us by 647 00:39:51,119 --> 00:39:55,599 talking about the afterlife, I tell them, I know we 648 00:39:55,679 --> 00:39:59,320 live on past our earthly bodies. Don't say this based 649 00:39:59,360 --> 00:40:03,880 on faith. I know it from experience. I learned that 650 00:40:04,039 --> 00:40:08,760 ghosts are real on Lytle Street, on those overcasts. November 651 00:40:08,840 --> 00:40:13,039 days many years ago. The building still stands with its 652 00:40:13,119 --> 00:40:18,199 quadruplex of apartments, creaky wooden floors and stairs, but it 653 00:40:18,239 --> 00:40:22,000 has been completely renovated now with modern windows that keep 654 00:40:22,039 --> 00:40:26,960 out cold drafts and modern cabinets and countertops. No one 655 00:40:27,000 --> 00:40:29,599 I know lives there any longer, but I would like 656 00:40:29,639 --> 00:40:32,719 to stop by one afternoon and strike up a conversation. 657 00:40:33,519 --> 00:40:36,079 I want to ask, do you ever hear a strange 658 00:40:36,119 --> 00:40:39,719 whistle at night? Okay, I think that's going to do 659 00:40:39,760 --> 00:40:43,280 it for this podcast. I certainly appreciate you finding me 660 00:40:43,440 --> 00:40:48,960 out on the podcast network, whether you're listening from Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Podbeam, 661 00:40:49,440 --> 00:40:53,159 any podcast app a good five star review if you 662 00:40:53,360 --> 00:40:55,480 enjoyed it would be a huge help to me. If 663 00:40:55,480 --> 00:40:57,559 you can find that in the app. I can never 664 00:40:57,639 --> 00:41:00,280 find it, but some people leave me review and I 665 00:41:00,320 --> 00:41:04,880 would appreciate that it helps my podcast grow and helps 666 00:41:04,920 --> 00:41:07,920 me keep doing this. Gives me a lot of encouragement. 667 00:41:08,119 --> 00:41:10,360 So thanks for listening, and we'll see you guys on 668 00:41:10,400 --> 00:41:10,960 the next one.