Tag Archives: #haunted

The Haunted House of a Pagan High Priestess

Informant: A

Interviewer: B

Text:

A: “So I have a friend who, she was like 22 or 23 when I met her, but that doesn’t really matter, but she is like a certified Pegan High Priestess um a very interesting lady um and we stayed the night at her house one time uh me and my boyfriend at the time and we stayed at her house because we were all going to go to an anime convention the next day. Um and we were staying in her room and she was like “I have to warn you that my house is haunted” and we were like ‘Kimi what do you mean?” *laughs* “What does that mean?” and she was like “As a kid I did a ritual to summon a demon in my basement” and she didn’t realize it was a demon but she did the ritual to summon something in her home and since then, she was like 12, and since then it has been in her house. And we’re like “okay” and she was like “do not go down this specific hallway” and we’re like “okay umm” *strained voice* So um we stayed the night at her house and neither of us could sleep because of this feeling of awful. We were both like “did you just feel dreed all night” and we were like “yeah” and I don’t remember if it was that night or a different night but I distinctly remember um her coming to us and telling us that she woke up with gouging scratch marks on her back which she showed us and we were like “oh that’s fun and cute, how did you sleep through that” and she was like “this happens not infrequently because my house is haunted” and we were loke “COOL were not gonna spend the night at your house again, cool goodbye” and I’m pretty sure to this day that her house is haunted which is weird because she like cleanses houses, like she cleansed one of our rooms, but apparently she can’t get rid of the demon so *laughs* that’s the tale.”

A: “One is always skeptical when a friend of yours comes over and tells you they’ve summoned a demon and in hindsight I had a very high impression of this person because I met her when I was like 14 and she was like 20 something and so I like I already had a very, they’re like an older sister role model to me um but I did believe her because um idk it felt off before she told us that her house was haunted and there were actively, again this could be placebo, but my boyfriend at the time, we had concluded, we had seen things on her balcony. I guess this is a separate story but whenever we went up the stairs you would get up to the top of the stairs and, not out of breath or anything, not out of exertion, but our chests would feel heavy and other people had reported, had told us this too that “your upstairs has bad vibes”, and there was no reason for the upstairs to have bad vibes but it did and we had like seen things on the balcony like shadowy figures and were like you know what this is not good, so she like came and cleansed it and it helped. So obviously it could the placebo and the kind of wanting it to be better but um and I think a lot of ghost stories, their reliability has to do with how much you believe in it sometimes. I don’t know I think it’s fun and I hope she’s not being hurt by something that might be in her house.” *laughs*

B: “What was the house itself like?”

A: “It was a very normal house, the only thing is, it wasn’t out out in the middle of nowhere, but it was kind of on the outs. It was less suburbia and more like, I don’t know if other people use this terminology, but it’s what I would call ‘out in the country’ so but like the inside was perfectly normal. It’s not like the pool where it has an inherently creepy vibe, it was just like a house, yeah.”

Context:

The informant learned of the haunting as they were spending the night in their friend’s house. The informant and the owner of the house had been friends for years prior to the incident. The informant believes that the haunting is real and that the High Priestess is telling the truth. The informant saw deep cuts on the High Priestess’s back the night after sleeping in the same room together and barely sleeping due to a feeling of dread. Given that experience, the informant believes that the simplest explanation is that the High Priestess is telling the truth about the demon haunting.

Analysis:

I’m sure that understanding the particular form of Paganism that the High Priestess practices would help provide further context to interpret the haunting. However, the informant does not recall the specifics of the High Priestess’s beliefs. From preliminary research on overarching principles of Paganism, the inclusion of demons appears to be quite sparse. Perhaps the lack of information regarding demons in Paganism is why the High Priestess has not been able to remove the demon. It is also noteworthy that the house itself seemed quite normal and was not an uninviting space—further emphasizing the power of the High Priestess’s beliefs. I do not know what to make of the gauges in High Priestess’ back. The informant reported that the High Priestess’ back was smooth before going to bed and that she shared a room with two other people, none of whom slept deeply or left the room. Given that information, I cannot easily see an explanation for how the cuts appeared. However, I doubt the High Priestess felt that she was in frequent mortal danger as she did invite two friends to stay the night.

Haunted PED Basement

Text:

“Um so this was a story told to me by one of the designers um that I’ve worked with being a wardrobe supervisor. Um because everyone always jokes that um I’m sure both of you are aware but in case you’re not underneath the Bing, not the Bing, underneath PED there is a defunct pool that has been revamped to house all of the costumes for the School of Dramatic Arts. Um I hate it down there *laughs* and um it’s a running gag for all of SDA that it is haunted cause you know creepy pool everyone is like “Oh it’s haunted bla bla bla” *high-pitched whimsical tone* um so we were talking about it one time, I don’t remember which designer told me this, but we were talking about it and um they were like “no, it is legit haunted down there” and we were like “what are you talking about?” And they were talking about one time that they were down there pulling stuff for their show and they heard a voice and um so they turn around and there’s just a person standing there, looks like a student, uh a younger person, and I don’t remember what they said to them but they said something about “oh I’m lost” or “oh I need something” like a “I don’t know what I’m doing around here” and the designer is like “oh”—had never seen this person before—and was like “Oh I thought I was by myself, what show are you working on? What do you need help with?” And they kept not answering the question and suddenly the designer turned back and the person was gone. There was no trace of this person. Umm so I was like “Do we know someone who has died in SDA in recent years?” and he was like “I have no clue” so yeah. Yeah, apparently there is live “evidence” *makes finger quotes around evidence* or an actual report of someone seeing a ghost um in the pool. *laughs*

I’m the kind of person who has always believed in spirits because 1. I think it’s interesting and 2. I don’t know I think I feel shit sometimes, but I also know that theater kids are dramatic *laughs* guilty. But on the other other hand, this was a designer, not an actor so I am—not to hate on my fellow actors, but it did lend itself to a bit more credibility in my eyes that it came from not someone who enjoys being on stage. So I don’t know I think there is a possibility. I definitely would be interested into doing research into if anyone in the program has passed away, there definitely had to be somebody who passed away during their time in this school …I just hate going down there. I feel like it has bad vibes down there I don’t know if it’s just that you can’t see around the corners because of all the stacked clothes or what. I get weird vibes in spaces. There’s something about the space itself, it has classic horror movie vibes what with the old tiles of the pool and it’s musty and gross.

Context:

The informant is heavily involved in the USC School of Dramatic Arts and has spent countless hours working for SDA in PED (Physical Education Building). The informant was first told of the haunting by their boss, a designer for SDA. The informant has moderate belief in the haunting but is not thoroughly convinced.  

Analysis:

I am not going to judge the validity of the haunting. However, I am not surprised that a haunting was reported within the PED basement. People involved in theater, work late nights during show rehearsals, and often the stage crew and behind-the-scenes personnel are working on their own for mini-assignments. Because of these factors, there are many opportunities for people to be alone and tired, at night in an old building. Furthermore, theater shows will often try to foster a sense of community and a shared experience such as a haunted room could aid in building comradery.