My Jouney to a Haunted House

[Miss Whiplash]

As "the veil between worlds" is somehow supposed to be thin as we approach Halloween, I took it upon myself to visit Raleigh's much ballyhooed haunted house Mordecai, today. Supposedly, the place is haunted by a ghost named Mary. Among the standard ghostly things she does, if you are an "unbeleiver" she will drain any battery you may have on your person.

I went, but today was a wash out. They were booked for school tours until after 1 PM. I didn't feel like hanging around downtown Raleigh for 2 hours, so I left the park office and went back to my car. As I was not in a good mood and impatient (and getting a headache the size of Newark) I sat there and had a private, miniture 3 second tantrum. I then returned home and checked my batteries. After all those insults I muttered, they were all still at full charge.

So, as I have nothing else to do this week, I've made arrangements to return tomorrow at 1PM for the public tour. As many local "ghost hunters" photograph orbs and "faces", I will be using my trusty Canon D30 camera and 430 Speedlite flash. I want to see what I will get.

So, does anyone have any suggestions about what I should document on this little adventure? This will be one of my rants on MondoSkepto for sure. The park was besieged by amateur ghost hunters after TAPS and Ghost Hunters visited and did an episode on the supposed haunting. I do not want to utter the word "ghost", "paranormal" or 'skeptic" on the grounds as it's a sure way to be shown the door. Also, the park has signed on a group called NC Paranormal to do "ghost tours" of the place and I really do not want to deal with them at all.

 

[Jesus Baby Daddy]

So, does anyone have any suggestions about what I should document on this little adventure?

If you see any people on the tour that look like they are big into the ghost thing, take a picture of their eyes. Those type of people always have these huge bug eyes, that rarely blink. Kind of a paranoid look.
Don't do it for any real purpose though. I just like to point and laugh at those people. Makes me feel better.

 

[Miss Whiplash]

So, does anyone have any suggestions about what I should document on this little adventure?

If you see any people on the tour that look like they are big into the ghost thing, take a picture of their eyes. Those type of people always have these huge bug eyes, that rarely blink. Kind of a paranoid look.
Don't do it for any real purpose though. I just like to point and laugh at those people. Makes me feel better.

The ghost tour proper is on Saturday night. I went to the regular public tour today at 1PM. The guide on duty today was a bit exasperated with the whole ghost/Halloween thing. She summed it up: "I swan, I'll be glad when this ghost mess is over with. The phone has been ringing off the hook all day!" All except a few tickets have been sold. Volunteers were busy making goodie bags for children and unpacking boxes of white cotton gloves for those with curious fingers in a house full of fragile antiques. The staff is bracing for a huge crowd on Saturday night.

As there were only 4 other people in the group (they were all elderly tourists), I was able to talk to the staff members and guide after the tour. The origin of the ghost tale remains about the same from person to person - it was simply a tall tale that grew with time. Mention of ghosts to the staff will prompt eye-rolling and snickers. The "haunting" is also used as a prank played on new employees.

It's very easy to understand how someone would think they see something moving out of the corner of there eye. It's due to the lighting and windows in the place. Not only do the windows have Victorian lace curtains, they have clear plastic shades between the curtains and window glass to protect the glass, insulate and reduce UV from sunlight. It's extremely reflective. When the heat or AC comes on, of course the shades and curtains move in the draft created. Reflections and shadows then abound. Like all old houses, it creaks and groans, traffic outside will cause the ancient piano to jingle. A huge black walnut tree will add to the SFX when walnuts hit the roof.

Though the staff is too polite to say it, the paranormal crowd is viewed as kooky. The episode of Ghost Hunters last year did increase visitors, but attention by self proclaimed paranormal experts was an unwanted side effect. Personally, I hope the tour does well as funding has been cut again and it takes a lot of work and money to keep the house from falling into disrepair.

 

[joobz]

As "the veil between worlds" is somehow supposed to be thin as we approach Halloween, I took it upon myself to visit Raleigh's much ballyhooed haunted house Mordecai, today. Supposedly, the place is haunted by a ghost named Mary. Among the standard ghostly things she does, if you are an "unbeleiver" she will drain any battery you may have on your person.

I went, but today was a wash out. They were booked for school tours until after 1 PM. I didn't feel like hanging around downtown Raleigh for 2 hours, so I left the park office and went back to my car. As I was not in a good mood and impatient (and getting a headache the size of Newark) I sat there and had a private, miniture 3 second tantrum. I then returned home and checked my batteries. After all those insults I muttered, they were all still at full charge.

So, as I have nothing else to do this week, I've made arrangements to return tomorrow at 1PM for the public tour. As many local "ghost hunters" photograph orbs and "faces", I will be using my trusty Canon D30 camera and 430 Speedlite flash. I want to see what I will get.

So, does anyone have any suggestions about what I should document on this little adventure? This will be one of my rants on MondoSkepto for sure. The park was besieged by amateur ghost hunters after TAPS and Ghost Hunters visited and did an episode on the supposed haunting. I do not want to utter the word "ghost", "paranormal" or 'skeptic" on the grounds as it's a sure way to be shown the door. Also, the park has signed on a group called NC Paranormal to do "ghost tours" of the place and I really do not want to deal with them at all.

I don't quite get why a ghost would have something against electric potentials. But heh.
Um, Maybe you could expand the battery test and take a battery connected to a volt meter. Have two of them. Go to the haunted house and find a ghost hunter and ask to perform an experiment.
Give said ghost hunter 1 of the batteries connected to a volt meter unit. Then proceed to argue with this person on how ghosts aren't real and that they are just being silly.

Before and after the conversation, monitor the voltage of the batteries. record the values of voltage. Perform this experiment 3 times for statistics.

Perhaps you may need to find an agnostic person as a type of control.