Author Archives: Travis Dang

Ouija Board Ghost

Nationality: Vietnamese
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: 5450 Monterey Highway Space 91
Performance Date: October 30, 2011
Primary Language: English
Language: Vietnamese

My friend Nelly who personally experienced this told this story to me.

“Ummm… so we were… Nancy introduced the Ouija game to us. So she came over after school and then uhhh, we like… yeah we don’t play by the game, like the board game. We play by paper. So when you play by paper you have to rip it up when you are done. It’s like an instruction you know? So we decided to play and ummm… we were playing, we barely started and then ummm, we heard my dad coming to the living room so we stopped and then like you’re supposed to rip up the paper, but me and Melody, we just like let go and like was sat back down and then umm… Nancy, she didn’t let go and she was just like,”ahhh!” and then she gasped but she didn’t let go and like she was holding on to the paper and I was like, “Rip it up!” And she was like, “Yeah, yeah I know.” My dad came up and he was like what are you guys doing and I was like, “Uhhh… watching TV.” Ummm… she put the paper down and he was like, “Ok.”

So then he went back to the kitchen and then she set the paper down and then like we were just pretending to be you know doing whatever. So Melody… she like…  me and her, we went like to the computer and Melody was like, “Oh, lets play the Sims.” And then ummm… Melody suggested that we should play the Sims game… and then Nancy brought over the Sims game because like…   thats why she came over, to play and to teach us how to play the Sims game. And then ummm… and then I was sitting next to Melody and then I was like, “Uhhh okay lets play the game.” So then Melody was like, “Oh where’s the game?”  And I was like, “I don’t know.” So then we turned to Nancy and she was like, “Nancy, where’s the Sims game?” And she was like “What are you talking about? Who are you?” And then ummm… and then like we were like, “Oh stop kidding around.” And then she was like, “You know… the Sims game.” She was explaining, “That’s why you’re here, you’re going to show me how to play the Sims game, so where is it?” And she was like, “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Who are you? Where the hell am I?” And we were like, “What the heck.” And then ummm… she started crying and I was like,” What the heck? Why is she crying?” So I was like, “Nancy are you okay?” and like I was walked to the living room because the computer… it’s sorta near… it’s like in between the living room and the kitchen, so I walked towards her, the sofa, and was like, “Are you okay?” And she wouldn’t respond. She kept crying and she kept looking at the ceiling and she was like crying and it seemed like… she was grabbing onto her backpack. Like she grabbed it and was holding on so tight. I was like, “Okay, what the hell? Stop kidding around.” I was like getting angry at her. I was like, “Stop messing around. Like why are you crying?”

And then my dad came over and I was like, “Oh my god, he’s going to be like, ‘what the fuck is going on?’” And then he came up and I was like, “Dad, she’s crying.” And then he came up to her and said, “What’s wrong sweetie? Why are you crying?” Ummm and then… she started yelling at him. She was like, “Who are you? What do you want?” It seemed like she was about to get raped or something. She was crying and holding on to her stuff like her life was about to end or something. She kept screaming and I was like, “Calm down that’s my dad… what are you doing?” And she was like, “No! Get away from me!” And she was just screaming and was crying and kicking. And then I was like, “Daddy… I don’t know what to do.” And then.. so… like she stopped and then she was covering her face and everything and I was like, “Daddy, just leave her alone.”

And then he went back to the kitchen and like he was talking to us like, “What did you guys do?” And I was like, “I don’t know. We were just watching TV, thats it.” And then it came up and I was like, “What the fuck, you didn’t rip the shit!” So then I started ripping the paper. Like me and Melody were like ripping the paper and then she just sat there after five minutes she was like, “What are you doing?” And then I was like, “What the hell?” Like we left her alone because I didn’t know what to do and then ummm she was like, “What are you guys doing?” And we were like,”…. what are you doing?” She was like, “Aren’t we going to play the Sims?” And I was like,”… do you have the Sims? Like what the hell…” and then ummm my dad told her, “Oh go wash your face.” and then she did and she came out. And I was like you don’t remember that you were screaming and yelling at my dad? And then she was like, “No… all I remember is us sitting here about to play the Sims or something like that.” And I was like, “The fuck?” And she doesn’t even remember till this day. Even when I remind her, she’s like, “No, I seriously don’t remember.””

This story might not be an obvious ghost story when first read, but there are a few indicators which put this story into the ghost genre. The Ouija board game is a popular board game which is known and has been played by many people. It has also been used in the movie Paranormal Activity to help persuade and scare viewers into believing the house in the movie is possessed. The board has letters and words on it with a marker where the players place their fingers. The marker then moves to specific letters or words which are supposed to make a message to the players. Supposedly, the marker is being moved by a paranormal entity which makes the whole game scary. Other supernatural stories relating to the Ouija board have been around and only make it more believable. Because Nancy is “possessed” after using the Ouija board, it is easier believable that the story is paranormal. The entity which possessed Nancy had a personality which makes it easier to believe it was a ghost. Nelly emphasized the fear that was instilled into Nancy after she was possessed; “It seemed like she was about to get raped or something”. Many ghosts come from people who have had a tragic life or unfinished business. The terror and panic that came from Nancy gives reason to believe a ghost who had a tragic and fearful life possessed her.

Despite the scary possession that happened to Nancy, it can’t help but be thought of as the consequence of their “fun”. Nancy was possessed only after they didn’t rip the paper and that she went back to normal as the paper was ripped. It’s as though the paper, once used as the game board was an entrance for spirits to come through. This story shows the consequences of meddling with the supernatural world and not following it’s rules.

 

 

Senter Road Haunted House

Nationality: Vietnamese
Age: 17
Occupation: Student
Performance Date: November 1, 2011
Primary Language: English
Language: Vietnamese

Travis: So what ghost story are you going to tell me today?

Lina: Ummm about the haunted house on Senter Road.

Travis: What does the house look like?

Lina: It’s a one story house with a white gate, big round rocks on the front yard, and a blue roof.

Travis: So what happened at the house?

Lina: Okay. So I heard at the house three people were murdered and someone committed suicide at the house.

Travis: Where did you hear this?

Lina: I don’t really remember. I heard about it so long ago, but everyone knows about it. So anyways, people they move in and house after only living at the house for a few weeks. One story I heard… ummm that house, they were trying to sell it right. So this guy bought the house because it was really cheap and he had no idea why, but he            bought it anyways and when he got into the house he moved everything in.

Travis: Did he live alone?

Lina: Yeah. Everything was normal. Everything was good, until he went to sleep one night and ummm in the middle of the night he woke up because something was pulling on his leg. And it pulled him out of bed and it was like yelling, screaming in his ear. Itwas just screaming at him saying get the hell out of here and stuff. Yeah, it pulled himout of his bed and said, “This is my room. This is where I belong. Get the hell out of here.” Stuff like that. So afterwards the man moved everything out and left. That house, no one wanted to buy it anymore because they heard of the story. And umm they got three rocks I think and put it in the front to basically hold down the spirit or control it. And its just three rocks equally distributed to control the spirit there. Yeah… and every year, kids go to the house to see if they can find the ghost. Most kids are too scared to go inside though. Ummm… one year in Halloween there was a sign on the door that said, “Get the fuck out of my house”. And that’s what I know about the haunted house on Senter Road.”

This ghost story carries a very important lesson. When buying items which have been owned by others, find out the history of the item; especially if the offer given is particularly unusual.  Not only does this ghost story entail a very important lesson, but it also tells a little bit about the culture of the people who live around area. The people who live around the area are mostly Asian and are very superstitious. The local communities belief in ghost and customs are revealed when they placed three rocks behind the gates of the house to keep the spirit contained. However, another side of the community can be seen through the sign on the door. With the house being near many schools where academic performance is low and many students are troublesome, there is a disregard for private property, local belief, and vandalism.

Living near the house, I passed it everyday as I went to school. Growing up in the area it’s nearly impossible not to hear about it or talk about it at least once. It’s a little landmark which everyone knows about. From the outside it looks like a very nice, maintained, regular house, but has not been inhabited for over eight years. I’ve never gone inside the house, but I have pasted it many times and every time I pass the house, I get a very… eerie feeling.