Episode 143: The Night I Met Mothman

[00:00:00] [SPEAKER_00]: Odd Trails is a true paranormal podcast. If you have a story to share, send it to stories at oddtrails.com. Enjoy the show!

[00:00:22] [SPEAKER_02]: The Night I Met Mothman by Eric

[00:01:03] [SPEAKER_02]: 27 years ago, I was just an 11-year-old kid living in the quiet town of Galapally,

[00:01:08] [SPEAKER_02]: Ohio, nestled in Vinton County. Our home was a weathered brick house that stood across from

[00:01:15] [SPEAKER_02]: an old overgrown cemetery. It had seen better days. There was also an abandoned barn nearby,

[00:01:23] [SPEAKER_02]: complete with rotting beams and rusted nails. The playground at school was just a stone's

[00:01:30] [SPEAKER_02]: throw away. But my brother and I, along with our cousins, found our misguided adventures in the

[00:01:36] [SPEAKER_02]: shadows of the graveyard. We weren't disrespectful, just hood kids from the city playing tag among

[00:01:43] [SPEAKER_02]: the tombstones. I vividly recall rushing home every night, breathless and sweaty as the streetlights

[00:01:51] [SPEAKER_02]: flickered on, a warning that trouble awaited if I lingered too long, or worse, if I faced an

[00:01:58] [SPEAKER_02]: inevitable ass whooping. You know, the kind that makes you question your life choices as you scramble

[00:02:05] [SPEAKER_02]: for safety. On one particular night, my brother and I heard the unfortunately familiar sound of our

[00:02:13] [SPEAKER_02]: parents fighting. Eager to get away, we slipped out to the porch. There was a full moon. I

[00:02:20] [SPEAKER_02]: turned to my brother and suggested we venture across the street to the cemetery for a little

[00:02:25] [SPEAKER_02]: game of tag. He was a bit sleepy, but followed along. As we wandered, the peacefulness of the

[00:02:34] [SPEAKER_02]: night was suddenly interrupted by a dark shadow soaring overhead. We exchanged bewildered glances

[00:02:41] [SPEAKER_02]: but shrugged it off, thinking it was just a bat. However, a second swoop sent a chill down my

[00:02:50] [SPEAKER_02]: spine. By then, we were near the far end of the cemetery, far from the comforting glow of our home.

[00:02:59] [SPEAKER_02]: My brother, now visibly frightened, bolted back toward the house. Something was clearly wrong,

[00:03:07] [SPEAKER_02]: so I curiously trailed behind him. Once we got back inside, he muttered that he was off to bed.

[00:03:15] [SPEAKER_02]: But my adventurous spirit urged me to go back outside.

[00:03:20] [SPEAKER_02]: I tiptoed back to the cemetery, glancing up every few seconds, the adrenaline coursing through my veins.

[00:03:28] [SPEAKER_02]: Time felt distorted as I wandered around, lost in thought until a loud swoosh echoed,

[00:03:37] [SPEAKER_02]: like a giant bird gliding in for a landing. Heart pounding, I looked up just in time

[00:03:44] [SPEAKER_02]: to see a colossal figure silhouetted against the moonlight.

[00:03:49] [SPEAKER_02]: At first, I was confused, remembering a character from a show I used to watch called The Tick,

[00:03:56] [SPEAKER_02]: who had a sidekick with butterfly-like wings. But this creature was no cartoon.

[00:04:03] [SPEAKER_02]: The figure was enormous, its wings spreading wide, casting a shadow that engulfed me.

[00:04:10] [SPEAKER_02]: As it glided closer, I caught a glimpse of its face, an unsettling, moth-like visage with

[00:04:18] [SPEAKER_02]: beady black eyes that seemed to shine with an otherworldly light. Fur or hair that appeared

[00:04:26] [SPEAKER_02]: dusty gray covered its body, and I felt dread wash over me. In a panic, I turned and ran,

[00:04:35] [SPEAKER_02]: my heart racing as I sprinted back toward the safety of my home.

[00:04:39] [SPEAKER_02]: Swoosh, the creature swooped again, the sound echoing, and I could feel the rush of air as it passed

[00:04:47] [SPEAKER_02]: overhead. I reached my front porch, gasping for breath, my mind racing with questions and fear.

[00:04:58] [SPEAKER_02]: I stumbled inside and collapsed into bed, trying to convince myself that it was just a

[00:05:03] [SPEAKER_02]: figment of my imagination. The next day at school, I couldn't shake that same feeling of dread.

[00:05:11] [SPEAKER_02]: I told my friend about the encounter, and later that day, a teacher pulled me aside.

[00:05:18] [SPEAKER_02]: I heard you saw the moth-man, she said with a grave expression. He's been around since the

[00:05:25] [SPEAKER_02]: 80s. If you leave him alone, he'll leave you alone. But if you've caught a glimpse,

[00:05:31] [SPEAKER_02]: brace yourself for some bad luck. I told her what happened, and she just smiled knowingly,

[00:05:39] [SPEAKER_02]: adding, make sure you stay out of that cemetery from now on. How did she know?

[00:05:46] [SPEAKER_02]: Kids being kids, I ignored her warning and returned to the cemetery with my cousins.

[00:05:53] [SPEAKER_02]: We were having a great time playing tag until I ran too close to the old barn

[00:05:58] [SPEAKER_02]: and stepped directly on a rusty nail, the pain shooting through my heel like a lightning bolt.

[00:06:05] [SPEAKER_02]: I was trapped, surrounded by boards with nails sticking out, feeling like the walls were closing

[00:06:12] [SPEAKER_02]: in around me. My cousin heard my cries and rushed over. In a panic, he stepped on the other end

[00:06:19] [SPEAKER_02]: of the board, which managed to remove the nail out of my foot. It was a strange kind of fear,

[00:06:26] [SPEAKER_02]: one that both intrigued and terrified me. The kids at school had been buzzing with stories

[00:06:33] [SPEAKER_02]: about moth-man, but I hadn't known anything about him until I asked a few friends during lunch.

[00:06:40] [SPEAKER_02]: They filled me in on the legend, how he was said to be a harbinger of doom,

[00:06:46] [SPEAKER_02]: a creature that appeared before disasters. I listened wide-eyed as they recounted

[00:06:52] [SPEAKER_02]: tales of sightings and point pleasant West Virginia, just a short drive away.

[00:06:58] [SPEAKER_02]: Some said he had been spotted near bridges before they collapsed.

[00:07:03] [SPEAKER_02]: Others claimed he was seen before fires or accidents. I had never been one for ghost stories,

[00:07:10] [SPEAKER_02]: but this was different. This was real. I had seen him with my own eyes.

[00:07:17] [SPEAKER_02]: As the days passed, I couldn't shake the feeling that my encounter had somehow marked me.

[00:07:24] [SPEAKER_02]: The shadows in the cemetery felt heavier, the rustling of leaves seemed more ominous,

[00:07:31] [SPEAKER_02]: and even the playful laughter of my cousins took on an unsettling edge.

[00:07:36] [SPEAKER_02]: I became hyper-aware of every creek in the house, every flicker of the street lights

[00:07:42] [SPEAKER_02]: outside. My brother, who used to be my partner in crime, now seemed preoccupied,

[00:07:49] [SPEAKER_02]: his demeanor shifting as well. We no longer ventured into the cemetery,

[00:07:55] [SPEAKER_02]: and I began to dread the thought of being outside after dark.

[00:08:00] [SPEAKER_02]: One evening, as I sat on the porch watching the sun dip below the horizon,

[00:08:06] [SPEAKER_02]: I felt an overwhelming urge to confront my fear. I told myself that I had to go back

[00:08:13] [SPEAKER_02]: to face whatever had terrified me that night. Maybe it was a way to reclaim my childhood,

[00:08:20] [SPEAKER_02]: to prove that I wasn't afraid of some myth. So once the sun set, I made up my mind.

[00:08:29] [SPEAKER_02]: I slipped out of the house, my heart pounding as I crossed the street to the cemetery.

[00:08:35] [SPEAKER_02]: I felt a mix of dread and determination as I stepped deeper into the graveyard.

[00:08:42] [SPEAKER_02]: As I wandered, the silence grew deafening. I called out half-heartedly,

[00:08:48] [SPEAKER_02]: Mothman, are you here? My voice trembled, echoing in the stillness.

[00:08:56] [SPEAKER_02]: For a moment, I felt ridiculous, standing there in the dark like a fool.

[00:09:02] [SPEAKER_02]: But just as I was about to turn back, I heard it, a low haunting sound that sent a shiver down

[00:09:09] [SPEAKER_02]: my spine. Swoosh, I froze. It was that unmistakable sound of wings slicing through the air.

[00:09:22] [SPEAKER_02]: My heart raced as I looked up, and there he was, silhouetted against the moonlight,

[00:09:29] [SPEAKER_02]: his massive wings unfurling like a dark omen. The fear that had become a part of me surged back,

[00:09:38] [SPEAKER_02]: overwhelming and paralyzing. I could hardly breathe as I stared into those beady black eyes,

[00:09:46] [SPEAKER_02]: feeling like a moth drawn to a flame. And then, just as suddenly as he appeared,

[00:09:54] [SPEAKER_02]: he vanished into the night, leaving me standing alone in the cemetery, trembling and breathless.

[00:10:01] [SPEAKER_02]: The night felt heavier now, the weight of that shadow more pronounced.

[00:10:07] [SPEAKER_02]: I turned and ran, my instincts kicking in, propelling me back to the safety of my home.

[00:10:15] [SPEAKER_02]: When I finally slammed the door shut behind me, I collapsed against it, heart racing.

[00:10:22] [SPEAKER_02]: I had faced Mothman, and now I understood the true weight of his legend. It wasn't just

[00:10:29] [SPEAKER_02]: about the creature, it was about the fear that lingered long after the encounter,

[00:10:35] [SPEAKER_02]: the knowledge that some things in the dark were better left undisturbed.

[00:10:41] [SPEAKER_02]: From that night on, I knew I would never plain the cemetery again.

[00:10:46] [SPEAKER_02]: The laughter of my childhood had faded into a haunting memory, replaced by the weight of

[00:10:51] [SPEAKER_02]: an experience that would stay with me forever. The world felt different now, darker, heavier,

[00:10:59] [SPEAKER_02]: and full of shadows that whispered of things best left unseen.

[00:11:29] [SPEAKER_00]: A skeptic becomes a believer by shy Sarah. I've always been a skeptic when it comes to the supernatural.

[00:11:36] [SPEAKER_00]: I had very little confidence in anything that could not be proven or explained by science,

[00:11:42] [SPEAKER_00]: until some unusual occurrences happened to me several years apart.

[00:11:47] [SPEAKER_00]: I grew up in a small farming town about an hour south of Columbus, Ohio and the United States.

[00:11:54] [SPEAKER_00]: Over the summer and autumn, when I was around 18, a strange event happened that was seen by

[00:12:02] [SPEAKER_00]: the majority of folks living in this area. Strange bright discs were seen above the

[00:12:08] [SPEAKER_00]: clouds on cloudy nights. It never happened when it was raining or starry out,

[00:12:15] [SPEAKER_00]: only on gloomy nights. Imagine two bright discs at the end of a pendulum being swung in circles

[00:12:23] [SPEAKER_00]: opposite of each other and passing together again just to swing away and then repeat this pattern.

[00:12:30] [SPEAKER_00]: Now imagine being the little humans looking up at the underside of the clouds.

[00:12:35] [SPEAKER_00]: The discs must have been gigantic because they could be seen at any point for miles around

[00:12:41] [SPEAKER_00]: this farming area. Miles away from where we lived, my work friend's wife saw it and called the cops,

[00:12:50] [SPEAKER_00]: not that they took her seriously. It became a regular occurrence that on those cloudy nights,

[00:12:56] [SPEAKER_00]: I would go outside looking for them and was frequently rewarded with the appearance of

[00:13:02] [SPEAKER_00]: those dancing lights. Some of the explanations I heard from different people were hunters

[00:13:07] [SPEAKER_00]: spotlights, someone playing pranks with lights, and spotlights from a company's blowout sale,

[00:13:14] [SPEAKER_00]: which at this point was rarely ever used anymore. None of the reasonings were likely

[00:13:21] [SPEAKER_00]: since the lights looked like they were beaming down from above the clouds.

[00:13:27] [SPEAKER_00]: These strange discs were just too bizarre. The last strange event that happened occurred

[00:13:34] [SPEAKER_00]: sometime in autumn. This time, it was a starry night and I was at my older sister's house

[00:13:40] [SPEAKER_00]: just a few miles away. We were having a cookout with several family members that evening.

[00:13:47] [SPEAKER_00]: Standing outside in the driveway was me, my boyfriend, my dad, my brother-in-law,

[00:13:52] [SPEAKER_00]: his dad, and their military friend. My brother-in-law and his dad were both in the

[00:13:57] [SPEAKER_00]: military and their friend had brought the most advanced amateur telescope I had ever seen.

[00:14:04] [SPEAKER_00]: It had a green laser on it to help pinpoint celestial objects in the sky.

[00:14:11] [SPEAKER_00]: We were out for quite a while observing the night when the friend decided to move

[00:14:17] [SPEAKER_00]: the laser to another spot in the sky. Before he ever used the laser,

[00:14:23] [SPEAKER_00]: everyone took a good look across the sky for oncoming planes as it is a federal crime to

[00:14:30] [SPEAKER_00]: point lasers at planes and we didn't want any accidents. We all focused on a passing plane

[00:14:36] [SPEAKER_00]: in the area where he was going to point his laser. We were watching it casually pass when

[00:14:42] [SPEAKER_00]: it suddenly burst into such a bright ball of light that, like fireworks, lit everything up

[00:14:49] [SPEAKER_00]: for a mere second and then shot across the sky at an unfathomable speed, then disappeared into

[00:14:57] [SPEAKER_00]: the blackness of space. This happened in seconds and not a sound was made. It looked like something

[00:15:04] [SPEAKER_00]: out of Star Trek as silly as that sounds. I started ranting about what we had seen,

[00:15:10] [SPEAKER_00]: though everyone else kind of laughed and blew it off going right back to the telescope.

[00:15:15] [SPEAKER_00]: I was freaked out and went inside with my mom and sister.

[00:15:19] [SPEAKER_00]: They also kind of blew it off. Only my husband, who was my boyfriend at that time, remembers it.

[00:15:27] [SPEAKER_00]: No one else does when I've mentioned it over the years. To me, it was unbelievable. It was like

[00:15:34] [SPEAKER_00]: the visitors said their goodbye because that blast off was the last strange phenomena that

[00:15:41] [SPEAKER_00]: happened over that summer. The other more grounded supernatural occurrences happened years later

[00:15:49] [SPEAKER_00]: when I was working at a local used bookstore. While many strange things happened while I was there,

[00:15:55] [SPEAKER_00]: I will only mention a couple otherwise this will be a very long story.

[00:16:00] [SPEAKER_00]: The building that the bookstore was in was probably pre-20th century.

[00:16:06] [SPEAKER_00]: Despite research being done by both myself and the bookstore owner,

[00:16:10] [SPEAKER_00]: neither of us could find any history of the building's past inhabitants.

[00:16:15] [SPEAKER_00]: When I first started working there, the owner told me about a few times ghost hunters

[00:16:20] [SPEAKER_00]: came to investigate. They caught EVPs and videos of flashlights flickering on and off,

[00:16:28] [SPEAKER_00]: answering questions. The skeptic that I was,

[00:16:32] [SPEAKER_00]: I thought that she was a crazy ghost lady. Once I got to know her, I realized she was a good

[00:16:39] [SPEAKER_00]: business woman, rational and wasn't susceptible to outlandish ways of thinking. Maybe she was on

[00:16:46] [SPEAKER_00]: to something. Anyway, there were often days that I would walk into the bookstore to open up

[00:16:53] [SPEAKER_00]: in the morning and immediately feel someone's presence even though no human was there.

[00:16:59] [SPEAKER_00]: I just figured it was the spirit of Elliot. We gave it that name jokingly because we heard it in an EVP.

[00:17:07] [SPEAKER_00]: I thought maybe Elliot was lingering amongst the book aisles,

[00:17:12] [SPEAKER_00]: and it gave me a bit of a shiver. I kind of felt safer with the presence there as I usually

[00:17:18] [SPEAKER_00]: worked alone all day and frequently had unsavory folks that would loiter outside and

[00:17:24] [SPEAKER_00]: occasionally inside. Anyway, I started thinking Elliot was a bit of a playful entity or maybe just

[00:17:33] [SPEAKER_00]: wanted attention. One incident happened when the owner stopped by and we were chatting at the end

[00:17:40] [SPEAKER_00]: of one of the aisles. She had bought a bunch of metal shelving units from a closed Kmart

[00:17:47] [SPEAKER_00]: and there were several of the metal shelves stacked up vertically on the base of the metal

[00:17:52] [SPEAKER_00]: structure to get them off of the floor and out of the way. While we chatted, we suddenly heard a

[00:17:59] [SPEAKER_00]: bunch of metal banging as if the shelves had fallen over. We didn't stop talking nor did it phase us

[00:18:06] [SPEAKER_00]: because we both assumed it was one of the bookstore's cats that was being mischievous.

[00:18:12] [SPEAKER_00]: Without a pause in our conversation, I walked backward to that aisle and casually glanced

[00:18:18] [SPEAKER_00]: down it, expecting to see a mess of shelves everywhere. But there was nothing out of place.

[00:18:26] [SPEAKER_00]: All was as it should be with no cats around. Despite the shiver down my back, I joined her

[00:18:32] [SPEAKER_00]: in chuckling and she said, it must have been Elliot. One evening I was working alone. The

[00:18:40] [SPEAKER_00]: store closed at five but a few people came in after 3.30. That evening, I was sitting at

[00:18:46] [SPEAKER_00]: the counter studying for exams. Right behind me sat the cash register. It was a very basic

[00:18:54] [SPEAKER_00]: old school cash register. It was more like an oversized calculator with a cash drawer.

[00:19:00] [SPEAKER_00]: Anyway, at around 4 p.m., a couple came up to buy their stack of books. I typed in the price on

[00:19:08] [SPEAKER_00]: the big chunky keys, hit total to give them their cash and then I hit the cash drawer button

[00:19:14] [SPEAKER_00]: to open the drawer. It popped open. I gave them their cash back and they left. I immediately sat

[00:19:21] [SPEAKER_00]: back down next to the register and started studying again. 30 minutes later, another couple came up

[00:19:28] [SPEAKER_00]: to pay for their books. Now I was paying attention this time because it was close to closing

[00:19:33] [SPEAKER_00]: and I was getting antsy to get home. I rang them up as usual but this time,

[00:19:38] [SPEAKER_00]: when I hit the cash drawer button, it didn't open. I kept pulling on it but it wouldn't budge.

[00:19:45] [SPEAKER_00]: I made a few jokes about it and the couple politely laughed.

[00:19:50] [SPEAKER_00]: I lifted the register thinking that maybe a pen got stuck under it preventing the

[00:19:55] [SPEAKER_00]: drawer from opening but there wasn't anything there. After a few moments of struggling to

[00:20:00] [SPEAKER_00]: get it opened, I noticed the little key in the front of the drawer was turned to lock.

[00:20:07] [SPEAKER_00]: A shiver went down my spine and I knew right away something wasn't right. I chuckled and told

[00:20:13] [SPEAKER_00]: the customers I must have accidentally hit the key but that never happened to me before

[00:20:19] [SPEAKER_00]: or to the owner. The key was always in there but there was really no way by how it was positioned

[00:20:26] [SPEAKER_00]: that it could have been accidentally bumped or turned plus it was kind of hard to turn anyway.

[00:20:34] [SPEAKER_00]: Between the time of the first normal transaction in this one, I never left the counter and I was

[00:20:40] [SPEAKER_00]: sitting inches from the register. Even if I did walk away there was only one quiet couple

[00:20:45] [SPEAKER_00]: casually browsing the books and they wouldn't have walked behind the counter to turn this

[00:20:51] [SPEAKER_00]: tiny unnoticeable key. That would be silly. They creeped me out but it was also kind of

[00:21:03] [SPEAKER_00]: open the register door. Many other things happened over the three years that I worked there

[00:21:08] [SPEAKER_00]: including picking up the ringing phone to hear static and a strange and unidentifiable voice

[00:21:14] [SPEAKER_00]: saying hello back. That was probably the creepiest incident since the voice didn't sound male or

[00:21:21] [SPEAKER_00]: female but it sounded distant and cold. After these other worldly experiences, I now believe

[00:21:29] [SPEAKER_00]: something is going on in this world and outside of it that we cannot explain. At least not yet.

[00:22:04] [SPEAKER_02]: My Spooky Stories by Jesse. Recently while listening to your podcast with my mom,

[00:22:13] [SPEAKER_02]: I figured it'd be a good idea to submit some of my spooky stories. I've got a couple for you.

[00:22:19] [SPEAKER_02]: The first story happened at around 10 o'clock at night at my home in Michigan.

[00:22:25] [SPEAKER_02]: It could perhaps be best described as an apartment in the woods

[00:22:29] [SPEAKER_02]: so it's always scary when it's dark out. It was snowing really hard so my mom asked me to brush

[00:22:36] [SPEAKER_02]: off the car. I went and grabbed our snow scraper and walked outside. As I stepped out and started

[00:22:43] [SPEAKER_02]: walking to the car, I looked out into the forest. It was really hard to make out anything

[00:22:49] [SPEAKER_02]: past the trees but it didn't concern me at the time. I brushed the car off and began walking back

[00:22:55] [SPEAKER_02]: to the house. As I was walking back, I happened to take another look out into the woods.

[00:23:03] [SPEAKER_02]: I froze and my heart sank. I saw a four-legged creature with black, disheveled fur that appeared

[00:23:12] [SPEAKER_02]: to be standing up. It had red eyes that pierced through my soul. I immediately started running home

[00:23:22] [SPEAKER_02]: but as I started to run, a loud noise hit my ears. It almost sounded like a scream.

[00:23:29] [SPEAKER_02]: Whatever it was, it hurt but I kept running and eventually made my way back home.

[00:23:37] [SPEAKER_02]: My mom told me the next day that it was just our neighbor's dog. Perhaps my own mind was playing

[00:23:43] [SPEAKER_02]: an elaborate prank on me but it definitely wasn't the neighbor's dog.

[00:23:49] [SPEAKER_02]: This next story is about the Hatman. Earlier this year, I found out that the Hatman sightings

[00:23:57] [SPEAKER_02]: aren't as rare as I thought but I would still like to share my experience anyway.

[00:24:03] [SPEAKER_02]: I was about five years old when he started appearing and hasn't stopped since. He looks to be at least

[00:24:11] [SPEAKER_02]: seven feet tall and wears a trench coat and fedora, kind of like the guy on those neighborhood

[00:24:17] [SPEAKER_02]: watch signs. You know the ones. The first time I saw the Hatman, I was in the produce aisle with

[00:24:24] [SPEAKER_02]: my mom. I was in the child seat of the car and I saw him just casually picking out groceries

[00:24:32] [SPEAKER_02]: which freaked me out. I tried to talk to my mom to get her to turn around and see him for herself

[00:24:39] [SPEAKER_02]: but when she did, he instantly vanished. Poof!

[00:24:46] [SPEAKER_02]: I would see him periodically throughout my life and each time he'd be just a little bit closer

[00:24:52] [SPEAKER_02]: to me than the last. One day, he showed up when I was lying on my bed. It made me jump

[00:25:00] [SPEAKER_02]: but he didn't feel threatening. He walked up to my bed and said in a low voice that he was my

[00:25:08] [SPEAKER_02]: guardian angel and that he was here to protect me. Then, he just turned around and left.

[00:25:15] [SPEAKER_02]: To this day, I still see him and I like to think that we all have someone watching over us.

[00:25:41] [SPEAKER_00]: Was it a projection by Huckleberry Cake? So this is something that has been tickling at the back

[00:25:49] [SPEAKER_00]: of my head for decades now. My apologies for having to give a backstory but I'm not sure

[00:25:55] [SPEAKER_00]: the question would make sense without it. So my birth mom was a druggy. Swore up and down she never

[00:26:03] [SPEAKER_00]: used while pregnant but definitely used before and I know that she used after because her dealer

[00:26:09] [SPEAKER_00]: was tasked with watching me while my mommy and daddy of the week shot up. The older I got,

[00:26:17] [SPEAKER_00]: the less I saw of her and by the time I was four, it was only the occasional weekend.

[00:26:23] [SPEAKER_00]: From the time I was born until I was about six, she didn't exactly have secure living conditions,

[00:26:30] [SPEAKER_00]: bouncing around with whatever guy that she was seeing, couchsurfing, living out of her car at one point.

[00:26:38] [SPEAKER_00]: Some of this I remember, some of it was told to me by her mother who ultimately

[00:26:44] [SPEAKER_00]: legally adopted me and raised me to adulthood. Some things I'm not sure if they were dreams

[00:26:52] [SPEAKER_00]: like the creepy guy standing by my bed and watching me sleep but there was one dream

[00:26:59] [SPEAKER_00]: that always really bothered me. I'm on the beach with my mom. I know we're hiding from someone,

[00:27:06] [SPEAKER_00]: from a bad person. We're hiding behind a sand dune and I don't know what we're supposed to

[00:27:13] [SPEAKER_00]: do next. My four-year-old self looks around the dune and sees him cut off jeans stringy

[00:27:20] [SPEAKER_00]: blonde hair, white undershirt looking around the beach like he's trying to find something.

[00:27:26] [SPEAKER_00]: I know we have to run but that's when I wake up. It's always so unsettling.

[00:27:34] [SPEAKER_00]: Well fast forward about a decade. I'm visiting her over the summer and we start talking about

[00:27:41] [SPEAKER_00]: weird dreams. One of her examples was her dreaming that she was being chased at the same

[00:27:48] [SPEAKER_00]: time that her police husband was dreaming that he was chasing a criminal. He reached out and grabbed

[00:27:54] [SPEAKER_00]: her in his sleep and scared both of them. I tell about a dream with these really creepy guys smiling

[00:28:03] [SPEAKER_00]: at me through the mini blinds before they just bust down the door with an axe and slaughter the

[00:28:10] [SPEAKER_00]: family, cousins and all. Fun times I know. At any rate it's her turn to tell a dream again.

[00:28:20] [SPEAKER_00]: It's about being on the beach. I'm a toddler and I'm there with her. There's a man trying to

[00:28:28] [SPEAKER_00]: hurt us. We make it to the lifeguard stand and she realizes we're still exposed there

[00:28:34] [SPEAKER_00]: so she tells me to run for the sand dune. She describes the guide to me when I ask.

[00:28:43] [SPEAKER_00]: The guy is wearing jean shorts, has dirty blonde hair and a white undershirt.

[00:28:49] [SPEAKER_00]: At the time she just chalked it up to a weird coincidence. I was never comfortable as a teen

[00:28:56] [SPEAKER_00]: asking about my childhood so it was never brought up again to find out if any of it was based

[00:29:02] [SPEAKER_00]: in truth. She died several years ago and I'm not really on speaking terms with anyone that she might

[00:29:09] [SPEAKER_00]: have confided in so long ago. So what do you think? A temporary visitor by plus p38.

[00:29:40] [SPEAKER_02]: I moved into my first house about six months ago. It's approximately 100 years old in a

[00:29:47] [SPEAKER_02]: somewhat historically significant town in the northeast US or at least one that at one point

[00:29:54] [SPEAKER_02]: had quite a few people traveling through it. Basically nobody would be surprised to find

[00:30:00] [SPEAKER_02]: a haunted house around here is what I'm saying. My family and I were all a bit skeptical before

[00:30:06] [SPEAKER_02]: this although at one night at a cabin we sat and listened to the unmistakable sound of

[00:30:13] [SPEAKER_02]: boots walking back and forth on the wooden porch at 11 p.m. like someone was patrolling.

[00:30:21] [SPEAKER_02]: Anyway while doing some minor renovation work at the house my father myself and my mother

[00:30:28] [SPEAKER_02]: in that order had brief experiences that ended as abruptly as they started.

[00:30:35] [SPEAKER_02]: First my father heard the faint sound of the old doorbell in the kitchen ringing

[00:30:41] [SPEAKER_02]: like someone was fiddling with the ringers. It's an older style with actual metal plates and

[00:30:48] [SPEAKER_02]: solenoids that hit them. It's not hooked up to buttons anymore but it is powered so he assumed

[00:30:55] [SPEAKER_02]: it was just some kind of interference. It's also never happened since though.

[00:31:02] [SPEAKER_02]: Days or weeks later he was replacing an outlet on the second floor

[00:31:07] [SPEAKER_02]: and I saw him suddenly stop and look at the stairs that came up just outside the room.

[00:31:13] [SPEAKER_02]: He swore he saw a cat walk up the stairs towards us.

[00:31:19] [SPEAKER_02]: We both just brushed it off as being a corner of the eye shadow.

[00:31:25] [SPEAKER_02]: Then at some god-awful hour of the late night or early morning I went to grab a drink from

[00:31:31] [SPEAKER_02]: the fridge and heard a resoundingly clear meow right behind me near the bottom of those same stairs.

[00:31:41] [SPEAKER_02]: Finally my mother was sitting in the well-lit living room in broad daylight when she looked

[00:31:48] [SPEAKER_02]: up and asked if I just saw a gray cat walk out of the room through the wall. I did not.

[00:31:58] [SPEAKER_02]: Ever since my mother watched that cat leave in the most stereotypically ghostly way possible,

[00:32:05] [SPEAKER_02]: not a single odd thing has happened in that house. Now I'm left wondering if these were

[00:32:11] [SPEAKER_02]: just coincidences or if a local stray was checking out the new residence.

[00:32:37] [SPEAKER_02]: The big day is getting closer. Probably a good time to remind our listeners that

[00:32:42] [SPEAKER_02]: I'll be joining you at the live Salt Lake City show for Let's Not Meet. A little impromptu odd

[00:32:48] [SPEAKER_00]: trails bonus. Yeah on September 19th Brandon will be doing a story for my live set and sticking around

[00:32:56] [SPEAKER_00]: for the meet and greets afterwards so make sure that you grab your tickets while you can. VIP

[00:33:01] [SPEAKER_00]: tickets are pretty limited that's where you'll get to hang out with us. Hell yeah it'll be a

[00:33:05] [SPEAKER_02]: nice time we'll go ahead and put the link for the tickets in the show notes. Yeah and I

[00:33:10] [SPEAKER_00]: know we have SLC fans because I've been looking at our analytics. You guys gotta come out.

[00:33:15] [SPEAKER_02]: I might be able to pull in some ravers but I think story time on a Thursday night might not

[00:33:21] [SPEAKER_02]: be their vibe but hey don't let it being Thursday discourage you. We are prime time

[00:33:27] [SPEAKER_02]: entertainers. Let's sip on some sparkling water at the bar afterwards or something.

[00:33:32] [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah it'll be fun. Anyways I have to ask you did you ever read Spine Chillers as a kid?

[00:33:39] [SPEAKER_00]: No I just assumed they were bad goosebumps ripoffs. Well they kind of were so we started

[00:33:47] [SPEAKER_00]: talking about goosebumps on the odd trails discord server the other day and it jogged my memory

[00:33:53] [SPEAKER_00]: of this series of books called Spine Chillers that I read as a kid they were basically the

[00:33:58] [SPEAKER_00]: Christian or quote unquote Christian alternative to goosebumps. I think I remember reading one

[00:34:03] [SPEAKER_02]: at some point now I think my grandma actually got me a copy. Yeah there wasn't anything overtly

[00:34:09] [SPEAKER_00]: Christian about the stories but someone would always say something like sorry guys I have church

[00:34:14] [SPEAKER_00]: in the morning or it's so and so's dad was a pastor or something like that. Yeah yeah yeah

[00:34:20] [SPEAKER_02]: basically referencing things about living in a Christian home but it wasn't like

[00:34:24] [SPEAKER_02]: horror stories about bible characters. Exactly. Jonah etching pentagrams inside the whale

[00:34:30] [SPEAKER_00]: stomach. Yeah though to be fair the bible has plenty of horror stories if that's what you're

[00:34:39] [SPEAKER_02]: interested in. Oh yeah I love a good revelation story Deuteronomy is pretty metal too. Oh yeah

[00:34:45] [SPEAKER_00]: I love those early books anyways I talk about Carly Beth's Haunted Mask last time it spawned

[00:34:53] [SPEAKER_00]: this trip down memory lane with all goosebumps stuff and I even went ahead and ordered the

[00:34:59] [SPEAKER_00]: book that I remember liking from the Spine Chillers series it was titled Pizza with Extra Creeps

[00:35:06] [SPEAKER_02]: I got it for four bucks. I love how easy it is to find some hidden gem from our childhood

[00:35:12] [SPEAKER_02]: for just like a few bucks on eBay and have it in our hands in just a few days just instant

[00:35:17] [SPEAKER_02]: it's almost uncomfortable because I kind of like the chase back in the day of going

[00:35:21] [SPEAKER_02]: to the Goodwill and looking for those old Nintendo cartridges and all that but now it's all behind

[00:35:25] [SPEAKER_02]: a glass counter and you have to look out for the resellers it's just there's no fun in thrifting

[00:35:29] [SPEAKER_00]: anymore and going on that hunt. Yeah it's like that picture I sent you literally this morning of

[00:35:35] [SPEAKER_00]: those two Game Boy Advance they were a hundred dollars behind glass and they looked like crap.

[00:35:42] [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah it's ridiculous I don't like the state of things but whatever get off my lawn I guess.

[00:35:47] [SPEAKER_00]: Yep exactly I remember my friend's older sister buying stuff on eBay in the early days of the

[00:35:52] [SPEAKER_00]: internet and I was thinking like man that's so cool I'll never have enough money to do that.

[00:35:59] [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah yeah the way our minds were blown by the internet as kids it was such like

[00:36:04] [SPEAKER_02]: it was like this amazing little world now it's just kind of life everywhere you turn

[00:36:09] [SPEAKER_02]: everybody's on their phones connected and can't get away from it which you know it has its

[00:36:13] [SPEAKER_02]: pluses and minuses and I don't want to say it's always necessarily a bad thing but I do miss

[00:36:19] [SPEAKER_02]: the simpler times when we weren't constantly connected 24-7 and there's that like unwritten

[00:36:24] [SPEAKER_02]: assumption or expectation almost that you can reach somebody at the drop of a hat and it's rude

[00:36:28] [SPEAKER_00]: not to respond within 24 hours you know. Yeah I'm guilty of that thinking that you have something

[00:36:35] [SPEAKER_00]: against me if you don't respond to me within like an hour or so I think oh man he's mad at me.

[00:36:41] [SPEAKER_02]: No it's Instagram I don't really have too much time for but like send me a text message I'm around.

[00:36:46] [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah yeah the way that our minds were blown by the internet as kids it was such an amazing new

[00:36:52] [SPEAKER_00]: world and now it's just life I mean I remember being at work and thinking I can't wait to get

[00:36:57] [SPEAKER_00]: home and get on the internet it was just so exciting. And now it's like oh I gotta go home

[00:37:03] [SPEAKER_00]: and get back on the internet. Yeah that's lost its magic do you know about the dead internet theory?

[00:37:10] [SPEAKER_00]: Is it that creepy pasta story? Yeah yeah but it's been adopted as like this genuine conspiracy

[00:37:16] [SPEAKER_00]: theory that the internet is mostly just run by bots in AI and they're creating the majority

[00:37:21] [SPEAKER_02]: of content as fake people online. Oh yeah I have seen something recently they I know voice

[00:37:28] [SPEAKER_02]: AI has made huge strides but now they have real people in the flesh that are just reading these

[00:37:34] [SPEAKER_02]: scripts and they look so real it's insane like I can't imagine another two years from now let alone

[00:37:40] [SPEAKER_02]: a decade things are going to be weird. Yeah life is going to be so strange. Yeah yeah I haven't

[00:37:47] [SPEAKER_00]: been on Facebook in over a year but sometimes I'll watch my mom or dad scroll through it when

[00:37:52] [SPEAKER_00]: they're visiting because you know parents are on their phones constantly nowadays like

[00:37:56] [SPEAKER_00]: I remember being like it's their Game Boy get off your Game Boy now look at them.

[00:38:00] [SPEAKER_00]: That's exactly what I was gonna say and also don't put all your information on the internet

[00:38:04] [SPEAKER_00]: they just share anything and everything on there now. That's the norm now I never thought there'd

[00:38:10] [SPEAKER_02]: be a day where I would share my face and full name on the internet that is so weird but when

[00:38:14] [SPEAKER_02]: everybody's doing it is it really that you know risky but probably yeah probably it definitely

[00:38:21] [SPEAKER_00]: what we just do anyway. Yeah but I'll be like looking over their shoulder and I'll see

[00:38:26] [SPEAKER_00]: all these it's scary how many bots there are that have created accounts that my parents and

[00:38:31] [SPEAKER_00]: other people follow and these bots are just posting some of the most bizarre AI shit.

[00:38:37] [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah or like on Instagram something will be completely unrelated to politics and then

[00:38:42] [SPEAKER_02]: the bots will just be like typical Biden voter yeah like oh typical Trump supporter

[00:38:47] [SPEAKER_02]: it's like whoa whoa and people take the bait and it's aggravating I don't like this is what it is

[00:38:54] [SPEAKER_02]: it used to be like you would go to your little favorite coffee shop but now everybody goes to

[00:38:59] [SPEAKER_02]: that coffee shop and it's no longer quaint in your little slice of heaven that's how the

[00:39:03] [SPEAKER_02]: internet feels yeah because you have people that take this bait and then you have the AI and

[00:39:08] [SPEAKER_02]: all the profiteering which always was there but now it's just more than ever all about

[00:39:12] [SPEAKER_02]: our information our attention it's yeah it feels so good to disconnect I'm gonna go back to the

[00:39:18] [SPEAKER_02]: family cabin here shortly and spend like a good weekend just away from it all I need it.

[00:39:24] [SPEAKER_00]: Very nice I do too I want to get away I keep telling my wife we need to go to the beach

[00:39:28] [SPEAKER_00]: just like get like a place to rent out there like an Airbnb and just leave our phones in the car

[00:39:34] [SPEAKER_02]: like screw it. Yeah yeah that's the way to go I fully plan on getting a camper van and just

[00:39:40] [SPEAKER_02]: saying goodbye to everything once I'm done with my day job three more years yeah that's the plan just

[00:39:46] [SPEAKER_02]: soft retire and hit the road and do nothing or whatever I feel like doing be free. Yeah I get it

[00:39:53] [SPEAKER_02]: I wonder what the internet is going to be like in another 20 years. I mean back to the AI thing I

[00:40:00] [SPEAKER_02]: think it's going to control everything and we're going to lack even more individuality

[00:40:05] [SPEAKER_02]: life is just going to feel like a lifeless wasteland in some way sorry to be a Debbie Downer

[00:40:11] [SPEAKER_02]: but things could take a turn you never know I do hope that we can all unify and not be so divisive

[00:40:18] [SPEAKER_02]: and take a stand against whatever it is that I'm against I don't even know what I'm saying.

[00:40:25] [SPEAKER_00]: I support the current thing and I'm against what's bad

[00:40:30] [SPEAKER_00]: yeah but whatever shallow take let's leave it in. Speaking of staying connected I want to let

[00:40:36] [SPEAKER_00]: the listeners know we listen to all of your feedback whether we like it or not it's probably

[00:40:41] [SPEAKER_00]: not healthy for us but I just want you all to know of course we read every little thing that we

[00:40:47] [SPEAKER_02]: get sent or commented. That's actually cool there was somebody who wrote a dissertation

[00:40:53] [SPEAKER_02]: about podcasts paranormal podcasts and we were on there like mentioned quite a bit I don't

[00:40:58] [SPEAKER_02]: remember it off the top of my head but I can link it in the show notes if anybody's curious

[00:41:03] [SPEAKER_02]: but yeah I was I was really surprised to see that I was pretty awesome. Yeah yeah we're learning that

[00:41:09] [SPEAKER_02]: some of the folks who are more vocal with their feedback about the show aren't listening to the

[00:41:13] [SPEAKER_02]: tail end of the episodes. Oh yeah yeah the lizard story. Yeah yeah either they didn't listen to

[00:41:21] [SPEAKER_02]: our analysis of the story and the reasons as to why we included it or they just didn't pick up

[00:41:27] [SPEAKER_00]: on what we were talking about which is fine. Yeah yeah and to be fair we refrain from using the

[00:41:33] [SPEAKER_00]: obviously offensive term lot lizard and we did that for a reason so maybe we were just being

[00:41:39] [SPEAKER_02]: a bit too vague for some. Possibly there were a few people who wrote in to tell us the truth

[00:41:44] [SPEAKER_02]: about what was going on in the story. Yeah yeah they're probably just trying to help and

[00:41:48] [SPEAKER_02]: be a resource I get it. Yeah all these lizards but where which lots where do I go find them?

[00:41:54] [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah but yeah all the messages were kind and polite at least. Yeah definitely and the reason we

[00:42:00] [SPEAKER_00]: wanted to steer clear of that term is because I had watched this documentary about the subject

[00:42:05] [SPEAKER_00]: called lot lizards and it was such a sad account of the lives of some of the people

[00:42:11] [SPEAKER_02]: that are involved in working in that world. Yeah it can be brutal no need to stigmatize

[00:42:16] [SPEAKER_02]: the people who end up in that line of work out of necessity for any reason really

[00:42:20] [SPEAKER_02]: and if that's your calling and you want to do it by all means be good at what you do do your thing.

[00:42:25] [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah definitely anyway so all of you know we read all of your feedback and it's definitely clear

[00:42:33] [SPEAKER_00]: that some of you tune out before this section of the podcast. I know it's so funny looking at

[00:42:39] [SPEAKER_02]: the analytics and our little dashboard like 25% of the listeners just turn it off after the last

[00:42:46] [SPEAKER_02]: story ends I think they just hate our personalities they only want us for our voices. Yeah absolutely

[00:42:52] [SPEAKER_02]: and they're clearly missing out on some golden content. I know this is the trailing off come on

[00:42:59] [SPEAKER_02]: but yeah so the spooky stories by Jesse were a real treat I guess maybe a 20 year old could

[00:43:07] [SPEAKER_02]: have been listening to the podcast with their 40 year old parent but I like to think we have a

[00:43:12] [SPEAKER_02]: passionate youngster in the ranks who has a talent for writing. Yeah I saw their email and I thought

[00:43:17] [SPEAKER_00]: the same thing they go by gamer Jesse yeah and I thought it was really sweet that they signed the

[00:43:23] [SPEAKER_00]: email as fan for life. Fan for life yeah I love that. Yeah I had a young fan of let's not meet give

[00:43:31] [SPEAKER_00]: me a drawing that he did of the podcast art at my show last week and his name was Jackson

[00:43:37] [SPEAKER_02]: very cool kid. Yeah yeah I saw that that was so cool what what if Jesse really is 20

[00:43:44] [SPEAKER_00]: and we're just casually sitting here treating them like a child. Yeah it's like when uh

[00:43:50] [SPEAKER_00]: when Mike Tyson picked up uh what's his name? Hasbulla? Yeah and started kissing his cheeks.

[00:43:57] [SPEAKER_02]: I had tears from laughing so hard at that he definitely didn't know that Hasbulla was

[00:44:03] [SPEAKER_02]: actually 20 or something. I mean it's Mike Tyson maybe he did. True true I wouldn't put it past him.

[00:44:09] [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah and for anybody who might not know Hasbulla he's a three foot like three-ish social media guy

[00:44:15] [SPEAKER_00]: with dwarfism who happens to have a very young looking face. Yeah yeah let's just assume

[00:44:22] [SPEAKER_02]: Big Mike was trying to pull some weird alpha male thing on somebody a third of size. Yeah

[00:44:31] [SPEAKER_02]: Oh yeah I liked that the hat man they saw it didn't seem threatening. Oh yeah and that they

[00:44:38] [SPEAKER_02]: saw him in the middle of the day in the grocery store or something like that. It's a bit different

[00:44:43] [SPEAKER_00]: than the usual about to fall asleep encounter. Yeah exactly the comparison to the neighborhood

[00:44:49] [SPEAKER_02]: watch sign is pretty clever too. I hope those signs actually work kind of like a music festival

[00:44:55] [SPEAKER_02]: with a no drugs policy. Duh you've got to respect a sign. Only stop signs and signs from the good

[00:45:02] [SPEAKER_02]: lord or the universe for me. Yeah that's a good start maybe no trespassing while you're at it.

[00:45:09] [SPEAKER_02]: I mean if it's not residential I honestly I just see it as a challenge. That's actually fair

[00:45:15] [SPEAKER_00]: it was so much fun when we climbed on that roof like 13 years ago or something like that

[00:45:21] [SPEAKER_02]: we talked about aliens. Yeah the beginning of odd trail was the long slow start and we even

[00:45:27] [SPEAKER_02]: picked up our trash and then some when we left it was more like ethical non-compliance. Yeah yeah

[00:45:33] [SPEAKER_02]: Oh I also liked Eric's story. Yeah so he's a regular on our discord. Indeed thanks a bunch

[00:45:39] [SPEAKER_02]: for sending that in man I still can't believe you went back to the cemetery though.

[00:45:43] [SPEAKER_00]: I get it kids are being kids but yeah I guess we can call him brave for that right.

[00:45:50] [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah sure it's not like he was directly threatened by that first encounter you can't kill curiosity.

[00:45:56] [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah imagine being 11 hanging out with your friends on the weekend and you tell them that

[00:46:01] [SPEAKER_00]: you can't do something because the teacher said not to. So uncool yeah each time he described

[00:46:09] [SPEAKER_02]: the encounter I kept getting the visual of Tim Burton's Batman the the intro on the roof.

[00:46:13] [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah yeah that scene definitely gets my blood pumping every time. Yeah yep there's a Mothman

[00:46:20] [SPEAKER_02]: festival in Point Pleasant West Virginia. We should add that to our non-existent list and hope it ends

[00:46:27] [SPEAKER_00]: up happening. Yeah that actually looks very cool even if it ended up being like any other

[00:46:33] [SPEAKER_00]: Main Street middle America type shindig the area is beautiful and it would be so cool to

[00:46:40] [SPEAKER_02]: talk to some locals about Mothman. I'm so down we can we can take a trip when I get my campervan

[00:46:45] [SPEAKER_02]: and hit the road yeah we can uh get a moth milkshake for a nickel and ride our bikes back to the

[00:46:51] [SPEAKER_00]: motel. They have those? Probably okay all right well take your word for it. Thanks everybody so much

[00:46:58] [SPEAKER_00]: for listening make sure to send your stories into stories at oddtrails.com if you want to hear

[00:47:03] [SPEAKER_00]: them on the show and sign up for a patreon for ad free versions of all of our episodes

[00:47:06] [SPEAKER_00]: at a higher bit rate for the best listening experience at patreon.com forward slash odd trails

[00:47:12] [SPEAKER_00]: and make sure to check out the new episodes of my other podcast like let's not meet

[00:47:16] [SPEAKER_00]: cryptic encounters and the old-time radio cast all at crypticcountypodcasts.com

[00:47:21] [SPEAKER_00]: wherever you get your broadcast I'll see you all next week everyone stay safe peace out

[00:47:45] [SPEAKER_01]: you

[00:47:46] [SPEAKER_01]: don't let the ghosts and the ghouls disturb you