Episode 50: Your Urban Legends III

We’re back with another round of your Urban Legends! From werewolves to werepanthers to haunted trolleys, we have a few drinks and happily stumble through some of the creepiest things that have happened to our listeners. Also featuring a Haunted Trolley Problem, why possession is the same as a concussion, and how old timey people got it on.

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Transcript

AM: Welcome to Spirits Podcast Episode 50: Your Hometown Urban Legends Part III. 

JS: I can't believe that we are up to 50 episodes of Spirits. 

AM: Me neither. 

JS: That's insane. 

AM: I, I don't think I've done 50 of anything in my life. 

JS: No. I think --

AM: Including sit ups or maybe, maybe me sit ups, but not pull ups.

JS: I've – I've definitely done sit ups. 

AM: Yeah. I remember I think the presidential fitness test. Remember how fucked up that is? 

JS: Yes. 

AM: Yeah. I think I was able to do like 100 sit ups. Like, sit ups, I'm fine with. It's push ups I can do maybe three. 

JS: Yes, agreed. And, also, pull ups, I just cannot do a pull up to save my life. 

AM: That's why we’re podcasters.

JS: That's why we’re podcasters.

AM: It's a prerequisite for podcast fame. But you know who can do pull ups, Julia, like forever and ever?

JS: I imagine it's our new patrons. 

AM: It is Mercedes and Ashley. I hear they actually set the record for the presidential fitness exams. 

JS: Yo, that's awesome. 

AM: And, and they are accompanied by other legends in the physical fitness world. Wow, look at this metaphor. So, so, both Ashley, our new patron, and LeAnn, Cassie, Cammie, Shannon, and Erin are legend level patrons.

JS: They're amazing. 

AM: They are gonna be getting an actual physical box of amazing stuff. Limited Edition Spirits stuff that we made exactly for you. This week in the mail. 

JS: It's gonna be really cool. We actually just signed all the cards --

AM: We did.

JS: -- for your packages. And they're gonna be amazing. 

AM: And we are also so grateful to our supporting producer-level patrons: Neal, Chandra, Philip, Dylan, Julie, Sara, Kristina, Robert, Lindsey, JST, Sandra, Eeyore, MCF, Debra, Kimmo, Phil, Ryan, and Catherine. 

JS: Listen, they get whatever dish they want from Spaghetti Warehouse Comp. every single time they go. 

AM: Oh, my god, guys, I, I don't even want to talk about Spaghetti Warehouse. 

JS: I love Spaghetti Warehouse. 

AM: It was such a – it was such a – this episode's a lot. 

JS: It's a lot.

AM: But we love it. And, actually, this is a good time to tell you. We are doing Hometown Urban Legends every single month.

JS: Every single month now. 

AM: Every month.

JS: So, you should definitely send your stories to us, because we need some new stories to kind of move the plot along so to speak. 

AM: We do. And it can be the town you went to school in, the town next door, something that your grandma saw, something that a cousin tells you at a family reunion. The word hometown means a place that you identify with. 

JS: Yeah.

AM: So, don't worry about like sticking to the letter of the law. 

JS: Yeah. Any story you want to tell us, we are here to read it and then possibly say it to our audience. 

AM: Absolutely. And you can do that by emailing spiritspodcast@gmail.com or by going to spiritspodcast.com and clicking on the little contact button. 

JS: Either way, it totally works. And we'd love to get emails and stories from you. It's always a delight to read a story on our inbox. And then I'll text Amanda and be like, “Did you see that one?” It’s so funny. 

AM: And I’d be like, “Yeah, I did. It was amazing.” And I like creep myself up before I even getting out of bed in the morning. 

JS: It's really good. 

AM: I also love to wake up to messages in our Tumblr inbox. We have an incredible Tumblr that Julia is doing such an amazing job with.

JS: Yes. So, if you like anything that is creepy and cool, you should 100 percent go, check, and follow our Tumblr account. We're at like about 900 followers right now. 

AM: Let’s get to that 1K.

JS: I'd like to hit that 1K within a month. That would be cool. 

AM: Yeah. It's spiritspodcast.tumblr.com. And we don't like to promote the podcast and stuff. 

JS: Yeah. 

AM: Like we just read blog stuff that we think is awesome. 

JS: Exactly. Like you won’t be like, “Well, I already listened to the episode. I'm not gonna reblog a think about the new episodes.”

AM: Yeah. Listen --

JS: No. We just have cool shit that you would want to check out. 

AM: We've worked in marketing. And we know things that market things badly. And, so, whenever we like share something on Instagram or tweet something funny or, you know, reblog an amazing photo set of like a modern day – I don't know –  heck it or something, like we are doing it because we, we think it's baller. And it will enrich your life. 

JS: Exactly. 

AM: So, we hope that these Hometown Urban Legends also enrich your life. We're so grateful for them. We thought they were really funny. We're so happy to be joined by Eric Schneider and get the team back together for our 50th episode. I really – I can't talk about it too much or I'll start crying. But --

JS: It only gets a little bit off the rails.

AM: It always gets a little bit off the rails. And, if it – by the way, if you're a new listener and want to listen to some vintage Spirits and, basically, the silliest I've ever been, you should listen to our Tailypo episode with Eric Schneider early on in the podcast. It is bananas. 

JS: It is seriously bananas. Amanda ends up pitching us a movie that stars -- 

AM: Kat Dennings, my girlfriend.

JS: And Liam Hemsworth or Chris Hemsworth.

AM: Chris Hemsworth. 

JS: With their adopted shelter dog. 

AM: It is – there's just a lot happening. And, you know, that's a – that's what this podcast is all about. 

JS: It's all it – it's all it is.

AM: All the weirdness. It's about being your maximum self and having people around you that really appreciate that. 

JS: And that's exactly what we're here for. 

AM: So, without further ado, please enjoy Spirits Podcast Episode 50: Your Hometown Urban Legends Part III.

Intro Music.

AM: Hey, hi. Hello. We are back with some Hometown Urban Legends. 

JS: Oooh.

AM: I can't wait. I don't know why I feel like I'm emceeing this episode. 

JS: Right. It’s because you started it. 

AM: But we have Eric this week. Hi. 

ES: Hello. 

JS: What's up, buddy? How’s Ohio? 

ES: Not much.

JS: Spooky? 

ES: What? Oh, it's very spooky as you just heard on our last episode.

JS: Ooh.

AM: Ooh.

ES: Right. Is it – do I have the canon of order, correct?

JS: Nope. Nope. La Lechuza is gonna be in between this.

ES: Okay. Well, two episodes ago. It was about Ohio. It's spooky like that episode. Go back.

AM: We have a crapload of urban legends that y'all have sent to us over the past few months. And I think we're just gonna go round-robin style. Julia, why don't you start us off?

JS: Okay. I'm gonna start us off with a email from Joseph Ruteredeli. I hope I pronounced that right. It's super Italian. So, he starts the email. This story isn't mine. I heard it from a distant relative at a family reunion in Maine. 

AM: Oh, my god. This is gonna be great.

JS: He claims that this story happened to him when he was doing charity work in Africa. I don't recall the country. I heard this about 10 plus years ago. He was out late one night in a rural village and had to walk back to where he was staying, which required him to take a dirt path through the wilderness alone. Possessing some less than great decision making skills, he set off. While walking on the moonlit path, he came to a section where the road dipped down, then curved back up into a little valley. On the other side of this, he saw a man coming the opposite way, walking downhill towards him also alone. 

AM: May I just say from a social anxiety perspective, this is the worst case scenario. 

JS: Yes.

AM: There's no other people around to deflect the attention of the stranger. There's no alternate path for you to take and walk 10 minutes out of your way so that you don't encounter a stranger. There's no dog to focus your eyes on instead of the person. Just the person. Continue. 

JS: Oh, I, I appreciate the dog thing too, because I literally did that the other week. We were having a garage sale. A man with the dog walked by and I said, “Hello,” made eye contact with his dog only and then let him walk by. 

AM: Yeah. I’m talking of a t-shirt that says, “I'm not flirting with you. I'm just happy to see your dog.”

JS: Yeah. It is 100 percent accurate to you. 

AM: I know. 

JS: Okay. So, my relative found that a little spooky, but he continued trying to act casual in cases, man was a mugger looking for a vulnerable mark. Same. 

AM: Good. Good. Good idea. 

JS: The two men walk toward each other as they approach the bottom of the valley, but something changed when they reached each other. The other man wasn't what passed my relative by on the road. Instead, it was a big black panther that hardly regarded him as it walked by.

AM: Yikes. 

JS: My relative --

ES: I mean that good mostly.

JS: I mean like --

AM: Yeah.

ES: Like – so, like not, not like you want to be near a panther probably. But like, in terms of like interactions with a panther, not caring is a great state for a panther to be near you.

JS: Also --

AM: You want the most blaze panther.

JS: Yeah. Also, interacting with another being, I'm super glad that panther wasn't interested in me and also that I didn't have to make small talk with a man that was approaching me. 

AM: I know. You're win, win right now.

JS: Yeah.

AM: It's like a Punnett Square of like real good, real bad; either, it eats you or you can like escape without having to talk to a human, both of which pretty good

JS: Yeah. I think this next sentence is basically me. My relative freaked out and power walked back to his quarters. He claims to have only learned that werecats were a thing from locals the next day.

AM: Wooh.

JS: He insists that the moon was definitely bright enough to be confident that the figure was 100 percent a man when it was on top of the hill and 100 percent a big cat at the bottom when it passed him. He saw no transition between the two forms in spite of the fact that they were facing each other the entire time. 

AM: Just a blink, panther. Blink and it’s a panther. That's the tagline. 

JS: I like it. 

ES: I mean it might have just been like a druid. Can't Druids like becoming panthers and shit? Or, is that just like World of Warcraft? I don't know what actual druids can do.

JS: No. Indeed, they can do that.  Well, in real life, druids are just a religious organization.

AM: On D&D. 

ES: Yeah, but surely they have – surely, they have some kind of Druidic animal communion thing.

JS: I mean I haven't seen a druid turned into any sort of animal. So, I cannot confirm personally. 

AM: In Join the Party, our favorite lesbian boat captain, Captain Alex, can turn into an octopus. And it is beautiful.

JS: Is that her only form?

AM: Nope. She's a swordfish also. 

JS: Sweet.

AM: Any animal. Any marine creature.

JS: I think I'd want to be a sea lion if I was going with nautical animals to turn into.

AM: To fuck?

JS: If I was going with nautical animals to turn into.

AM: Oh, yikes. 

ES: Yeah. I'm so like, "What?"

JS: Let me finish the sentence. 

AM: I said that because my character in Join the Party has a big, big crush on Captain Alex. 

JS: On the octopus, Amanda? Huhuhu. 

AM: No. So, I mean --

ES: Uh, uh. Uh, uh. Fine guys. Off the rails.

AM: You know, I'm just not gonna say no. Not gonna say no. 

JS: All right. We're moving on. 

AM: Maybe it looks like I would say no.

JS: Do you have a story or is Eric next? 

AM: Eric's next. 

JS: Okay.

ES: This next story comes from Headey, and it is titled, The Hairy Hands of Dartmoor.

JS: Already love it.

AM: Oh, my god. 

ES: I would like to tell you about an urban legend that takes place nestled among the foggy dark English hills of Dartmoor or specifically on the B3212 Road, a road that I have driven down myself at least twice but never at night.

AM: My favorite thing about England is that the town names and stuff like could not be more quaint and adorable and idyllic, but all the roads are just letters and numbers. Like they're just serial numbers. 

ES: Apparently. Yeah.

AM: And it's so great. Either it's like a weirdly numbered highway or it's like country lane. It's great.

JS: Wow. That's really specific. Thank you, England.

ES: My grandfather warned me at a very young age of the Hairy Hands of Dartmoor. Here's the lowdown.

AM: No. Is it just a neighbor who's into kids?

JS: Amanda. 

AM: I’m sorry. 

JS: What is --

ES: So --

JS: Why, why does your mind immediately go to pedophelia?

ES: So, just – just so everyone knows, we review these before we do them. So, for some reason, Amanda just thought that I read what she just suggested. I was like, “That's good. That's good for the podcast. Great for the listeners.” Here's the lowdown. Since around 1910, drivers and cyclists have reported suffering unusual accidents along the road between post bridge and two bridges. Wow. A lot of bridges there. 

JS: So, all the bridges.

AM:  All bridges. All moors. All cliffs. All rivers.

JS: How many – how many creeks/creeps do you guys have around there?

AM: They’re brooks. 

JS: Brooks? 

AM: Yes.

ES: They’re all brooks there. 

JS: I don't know the difference. 

ES: In many cases, the victims reported that their vehicle had jolted or swerve violently and steered off the side of the road as if something had taken hold of the wheels and wrenched it out of their control.

AM: Yes.

JS: Or, it sounds like you were texting while driving. 

AM: Or, getting a handjob.

JS: Dude, Amanda, what is wrong with you?

ES: In 1910 – I mean, in 1910, definitely not texting. Possibly, the other thing. You know, sometimes, I think about like old-timey people. It's like, “Wow. They had sex too.”

AM: I know.

JS: Old-timey hand jobs. 

AM: All – on their four sets of core sets. Like so many. 

ES: It's just so crazy to think like, “Oh, they probably did sex stuff.”

AM: Yes. With like that facial hair, those mutton chops, like that weird bouffant on top of your head. Fucking like lead paint and, and birds up in there. No. 

ES: Wait. In that hair?

AM: In the hair. Julia, in the hair. Come on, Julia.

JS: It still makes no sense when you say it.

AM: In, in like Marie Antoinette era of France. Yes, they did. They had like lead paint, white kinky make up.

JS: That's not the 1910s though, my dude.

AM: No, going back further. I’m going back [Inaudible 12:08].

ES: Just going back further.

JS: Right. Whatever. 

ES: That's reasonable. I'll give Amanda this one. 

AM: Thank you. 

ES: I'll give Amanda that one. 

AM: Thank you for once.

JS: Whatever. 

ES: One of my friends also mentioned these infamous hands to me a few years ago. One smoggy night, I was on a military school trip to Dartmoor more for training. It's not unusual for British military to camp out in the harsh, cold countryside. They were traveling via bus and, while they were not swerved off the road of Dartmoor, they told me in graphic detail how, when they awoke from an hour drive, the impression of a large, almost clawed handprint was pressed against the window due to the cold. She was sitting next to no one and the gap between the seats was too small for someone to creep their hands onto her window for a good scare. 

AM: Yikes.

JS: Oh, shit. 

ES: Oh – and the handprint was on the outside of the bus. Sweet dreams.

AM: Yikes.

JS: Oh, no. Thank you for ending it like that.

AM: I'm also picturing the very dismal BBC crime drama, Broadchurch, which is great and super sad. And, if you're feeling really good about your life and just want to like take that down a notch, watch Broadchurch. But it's all about like a body being found on the moors, and it's great.

JS: Oh, well, my mind immediately went to an American Werewolf in London.

AM: Which I have not yet seen. 

JS: Oh, it's literally about a kid – like two American kids, who are backpacking. And they're going to a small town. They're like don't go out in the moors at night. And then they go out in the moors at night. And then his friend gets like, you know, murdered by a werewolf. 

AM: Oh, no. 

JS: And then he turns into a werewolf.

AM: The friend or the other guy?

JS: The other guy get turned into a werewolf. The other guy is just straight up murdered.  

AM: Oh, I was hoping that the murdered one gets turned into werewolf instead. And then they fall in love. 

JS: That's not what happens. 

AM: No. No.

JS: He does fall in love with like a weird nurse. And it's a very rushed thing. And she's like, “Oh, you don't have a home. Come live with me.” It’s like, “Oh, okay.”

AM: It’s not a good idea.

ES: Anytime I hear of a spooky story involving a car, I just assume it's gonna be the guy with the hook

JS: As one does. I understand.

ES: Like I just assume that that's who it's always going to end up being.

JS: I do love the, the hook hand story and how it's just permeated all of our culture.

AM: Yeah. 

ES: What's that guy up to? 

AM: You want to get sex in  the back of a car? 

JS: What is that guy up to? Amanda printed hers out like a fancy ass motherfucker. Look at that fully work. It's beautiful. 

AM: Boom. All right. Our next urban legend comes from Sarah in Lincoln, Nebraska. 

JS: Yeah. 

AM: So, she says her first story is the story of The Witch of the Woods. So, it's unclear whether this witch got her nickname before or after the story takes place, but in the early 1900 about half a dozen kids went missing from the Lincoln area. 

JS: Always bad.

AM: Always bad. Most people believe that they just ran away, but some people said that they went missing in Wilderness Park which is a stretch of woods that's been protected by the local legislature. Wilderness Park.  Come on.

ES: I was just about to say it. Not good at all.

AM: Come on. 

JS: You know, a little better of a name. It's too on the nose. 

AM: These claims were wholly unsubstantiated until a boy went missing. And his sister reported seeing him with a woman, who lives in a secluded shack deep in the woods. Classic. Secluded crone deep in the woods. Naturally, police searched the area and the bodies of the children were found. How sad. The Witch of the Woods was taken in for questioning, and she claimed to know nothing about the children or the disappearances. Only that the children were always running all over her property, and she wasn't too fond of it. 

JS: Same. 

AM: Same. Because of the lack of physical evidence, she couldn't be arrested. A few days later, thanks to the goodhearted denizens of Lincoln, she was found hanging from a tree in Wilderness Park on a chain. 

JS: I don't know if it's goodhearted. 

AM: Oh, no.

ES: No. Goodhearted. 

AM: I mean I don’t know. They're strong hearted. And they're strong willed. Oh, god. So, as the story --

JS: To commit a murder. 

AM: Sarah, you're really leading me astray here. So, as the story goes now, if you stay in Wilderness Park too long after dark and wander too near what remains of the witches shack – that should have been burned right to the ground.

ES: Oh, yeah. Salt the whole thing. 

AM: Salt the Earth. You can hear her shrieking and rattling the chains that killed her. Some people say that you can even find buried chains in the park that lead to the tree where the witch was hanged.

JS: Why did they use chains? 

AM: I don't know that feels like a waste of resources, right? 

JS: Yeah. Like there's – just use rope. 

AM: I know. I know. People were very wasteful back in the day. They did not know about recycling. And --

ES: Unlike, today, where no one's wasted anything. 

AM: No one – no one has waste. We have eradicated waste. It's great.

JS: I'm just concerned about the method in which they murdered her. 

AM: I know I am. In any case, Sarah says, it's advised that you take great care when following the chains. 

JS: Don't follow the chains.

AM: Like you – I mean, A, don't; B, take care because the witch was buried in the woods with the chains still tangled around her.

JS: No, shit, man.

AM: As far as the children a shrine was built in their memory, but has since been lost. I love how the chains were kept, but the fucking shrine was lost.

JS: We lost the shrine of the children. We have some chains though. 

ES: I want to – I want to play out a couple of these inconsistencies with the story. 

AM: Please.

ES: Number one, the Shrine, obviously, that seems like something you would make sure you have around. Also, I feel like if you hang somebody, they don't then get like a proper burial.

AM: No, they get put in a potter's field. And just Sarah adds about the shrine, if you happen to wander near it at night, you'll probably be able to hear the sounds of children playing or soft footsteps behind you. Some people have even reported apparitions of children in the woods at night.

ES: Here's the thing about these places at night. Just stay in home – stay at home. 

AM: Just don't. Just don't.

JS: Just stay at home. 

ES: Just stay at home. 

AM: Netflix is $10

ES: I recently saw a tweet, and I don't know who tweeted it. But it said, “Why go big when you can go home?” And I think that -- 

JS: Same. Can I get that tattoo on my body? 

ES: -- is the one of the best tweets ever.

AM: Yeah. I need the needle point about STAT. 

ES: Just one best sense. It’s just like what – just I could go home instead. Why go into the woods at night where there's creepy ghost children, undead witch -- 

AM: Chains.

ES: -- when I could just watch Hot Fuzz on Netflix?

JS: Or Stranger Things if I really wanna get creeped out.

AM: When I could just watch Top Chef.

ES: Yeah.

AM: Or American Vandal, or Master Chef, or Master Chef.

ES: Yeah. Listen to the podcast.

AM: Or Mastermind or Mindhunter. 

JS: Or any of those.That was some – that was so good -- 

AM: I made up the one in the middle, but --

ES: That is a thing. I was about --

AM: Mastermind? 

JS: Yeah.

ES: I was trying to wonder what it was. I think it's – is it a BBC show?

JS: Mastermind? 

AM: I don't know. But Mindhunter --

ES: Or is it just a board game? 

AM: -- is what I was going for. Oh, I think it’s a board game.

JS: I think Mastermind might have been like a game show, too.

AM: I don't know. In any case, watch Mindhunter on Netflix. That's great.

JS: Yes. Also, our friend Todd Faulkner of the Uncanny County Podcast is on Mastermind.

AM: Hey.

JS: Mindhunter. 

AM: What?  

JS: Mindhunter.Yeah.

AM: Really?

JS: Yeah. 

AM: Where? 

JS: Episode 8. 

AM: What? 

JS: Yeah. 

AM: Please show me a screenshot later. 

JS: 100 percent will.

AM: Go Todd. Anyway. But Sarah also has a first hand story. 

JS: Oh.

AM: So, Sarah says last summer a friend told her about the cemetery about 10 miles outside of town, 12 miles from her house at the intersection of 202nd Street and Havelock Avenue. Like in Nebraska. What up? The cemetery, to my knowledge, does not have a specific name, but it is claimed to be one of the most haunted sites in Nebraska. I'm not gonna make a Nebraska joke, but I really wonder what the other haunted sites are. I’m really excited. According to my friend’s report, he and his wife drove past the cemetery. And his daughter, who was three at the time, said that they were being chased by huge specters with flowing cloaks and gleaming red eyes.

JS: Children continue to be the creepiest motherfuckers in the world. 

AM: I love it. In addition to this, both Sarah's friend and his wife saw multiple apparitions by the side of the road. Naturally, Sarah writes, my roommate and I immediately decided we had to check it out for ourselves.

JS: Oh, Sarah.

AM: Girl after my own heart. So, that night, we rounded up a couple more friends and ventured out to the cemetery around midnight. Why not? Why not? If you're gonna go big, go big. We explored a little bit. The cemetery isn't really that big. Initially, it was more sad than scary, because there are quite a few little children buried there, who died from yellow fever --

JS: Yes.

AM: -- as young as a few days old give up.

JS: Yep. Yep. Yep.

AM: Oh, god. Lincoln, get your shit together. 

JS: At any like Northeastern --

AM: Yeah. Yeah.

JS: Yeah.

AM: That's true. Like those family plots. Oh, sad. But I don't think anybody had been buried there in 50 plus years, because about half the cemetery is still empty. 

ES: That's wild. 

AM: In any case, a bad feeling came over all four of us simultaneously. And we decided to get the hell out of dodge. 

JS: Yep. 

AM: Sarah, the first good choice you've made all night, girl. As we were leaving, I asked my roommate if she thought that anything would have followed us. And her lit cigarette exploded like a firecracker in her hand. 

JS: The fuck.

AM: Burning her legs. After that, apparently, I passed out and started talking, insisting that my name was John, and demanding someone tell me where I was. 

JS: Sarah, what the fuck?

ES: No. I don't like this.  I feel like this is getting a ghost into the audio now. 

AM: Nope. Nope. I don't want.

ES: And it's gonna get stuck in there.

AM: I don't want you in this. 

ES: I we're gonna get like a techno demon.

AM: Yeah. I don't want you in this mp3, John. So, Sarah says, I do not remember this happening at all. I do remember coming to, feeling all foggy, and like I wasn't fully in control of my mental faculties. After I came to, we all decided to stay together and not sleep that night. Thank you, Sarah.

JS: Solid choice.

AM: So, you won't get fucking possessed again. 

JS: It's what you're supposed to do with concussions and possessions.  

AM: Concussions and possession. Just remember the acronym. Don't go to sleep.

JS: That was a great acronym. Good job.

AM: Finally, okay, the next morning, Sarah's roommate and, and her went to inspect her car. The roommate’s car is black. So, they completely expected it to be covered in dust from the gravel roads since we were outside of town. What we didn't expect, however, was the car being absolutely covered in handprints. The hood, the windshield, the roof, the doors, you name it, it had handprints on it. One of the doors looks scratched. Like something had been scratching to get in. 

ES: See, there's the hook guy.

AM: Nope. 

ES:  He always shows up. He always shows up.

JS: There's a hook.

AM: We immediately decided to go get a car wash. Thank you, Sarah. Good idea. Getting a sandwich. Get yourself together.

JS: Maybe do it in holy water. I don't know. Maybe.

AM: I don't know. Why not fire eggs the holy water? No one's done it. Let's try it. And, on the way, they were discussing who or what may have made the handprints on the car. At that moment, I looked up and happened to see a window cling on the back of a van. This may not seem significant until I tell you that the window cling was a circle of handprints. And, in the middle, it said, “It was me. Haha.” And that was the scariest moment of my life. 

JS: That's fucking horrifying.

AM: Sarah, get yourself to the nearest exorcist and sort your shit out. 

JS: Just like, you know, sage everything please. 

AM: Just salt circle over your threshold to keep yourself out if that's what it needs to do. Good god. 

JS: Yeah, Jesus.

AM: Ha. 

ES: That's a lot – that's a lot of different things

JS: That’s a [Inaudible 22:44].

AM: That's so much. Wow. Well, thanks. And I'm sorry and good luck.

JS: Spirits Podcast.

ES: That’s my new Spirits motto. Thanks. I'm sorry. Good luck.

AM: She is staying creepy. She's already cool since she listens to the podcast.

JS: I mean that's true.

AM: But like damn Sarah. Damn.

JS: Straight up staying creepy. Yeah. 

AM: Yeah. 

ES: Stay less creepy. Get a little – get a little less creepy.

AM: Get a little less creepy. Slightly less creepy. Focus on the cool part. Get some white vans.

ES: Yeah.

AM: Get some fidget spinners. Fucking figure it out.

JS: Get some glow in the dark fidget spinners.

AM: Oh.

JS: Oh, for the ghosts. So, here's my story. This is from Ginevra Little John. I just finished the werewolf episode. And, at the end, you say, if there's any neat little local stories, you want to hear about it. So, I have one. I didn't want to post this on Tumblr, because, frankly, it's the kind of thing that might cause a really understandable fight. It kinda sounds like white girl magic Indian stuff that people talk around campfires up. 

AM: Okay.

JS: We appreciate Ginevra your understanding that like this is a trope that a lot of people play into, but, because you're saying -- 

AM: Right.

JS: -- it's a story that you actually experienced, we're going to read it on air.

AM: Yes. And we read it with trepidation, but it ended up being very freakin cool. So, we're stoke to share it with you,

JS: She says it sounds like total bullshit, particularly, from the remove of 16 or 17 years and a couple of thousand miles, but it's the truth. She goes I was raised in a small city of Verde Valley in Arizona. I moved there with my family as a four year old in late 1986. And lived there until I was a little bit past 20 and escaped for greener claims. I know that my hometown is a lot more developed now than it was in 2002. But, back then, there were about 8000 people spread across 10 square miles. 

AM: Quick. Word association. 2002. Kelly Clarkson.

JS:  I don't – I don't know.

AM: Justin Timberlake’s really frosty hard-gelled hair.

JS: Is that like the year that he --

ES: I think that --

JS: -- was – he did the Janet Jackson. 

AM: No. No. That was later.

ES: That is – that is --

AM: That was later. That wasn’t in '02.

ES: No. No. It was 15 years. That's 15 years ago, because [Inaudible 24:54] --

AM:  What?

JS: Wait. Eric, I got the date – like I think you’re right. 

AM: I think he [Inaudible 24:55] for 15 years?

JS: Holy shit.

ES: I'm, I'm, I'm pretty sure because I thought – because today they announced he's doing the Super Bowl. And they – I'm pretty sure I heard that it's been 15 years.

JS: Eric, bless you for --

AM: Damn.

JS: -- for totally validating me there. I really --

AM: I thought that was like --

ES: I could be – I could be completely wrong. 

AM: I think you’re completely wrong. Can you please Google this, producer? Because I'm pretty sure '02 was from Justin to Kelly.

ES: Yeah.

AM: Hold on. 

ES: Yeah. Okay. Here we go.

JS: Hold on. There's googling happening. I'm so sorry.

ES: You – no. Keep reading. I'll chime in like a producer.

AM: It was in 2003 from Justin to Kelly. And it does have one star on IMDB. Also, that wasn't Justin Timberlake. That was Justin – the other one from American Idol. 

ES: Yeah. That was – yeah. I’m like, “That’s not even the right Justin.” 

AM: Oh, man. 

ES: Oh, I was wrong. It was 2004.

JS: Oh, you’re so close.

AM: I mean that not that much later. 

JS: Yeah, it was only two years. 

AM: Fuck. 

JS: Anyway.

AM: I remember that happening.

JS: Yes, I do too. 

AM: Oh, god.

JS: And I didn't remember what the big deal was, because I was like it’s just a boob. 

AM: And I was like, “It's a boob.” I was really excited. Anyway.

JS: Back to Ginevra’s story, she goes, my parents, being at best neglectful, I was largely allowed to run around --

AM: Oh, no.

JS: -- as I pleased provided I brought my half dozen younger siblings with me. We spent -- 

AM: Babe, I hope you’re in therapy. You sound like a boxcar child. And I hope you turned out okay.

ES: But they solve fun mysteries. 

AM: I know.

JS: We spent our childhoods dodging rattlesnakes in dry stream beds, looking for pieces left behind when the railroad was pulled out, and hunting for interesting rocks. 

AM: Same. I'm so glad that you guys are all alive. 

JS: We take breaks from the desert to go get sodas at the corner store on the edge of town, brown bag, a bunch of sugary snacks, and then go back out again. 

AM: Oh, I love that that kid experience is so universal. 

JS: I fuckin love the 80s.

AM: I love it so much. Also, shout out to the video Hot Cheetos and Takis, which might be my favorite video on YouTube.

JS: I love Hot Cheetos so much. 

AM: Corner stores.

JS: Okay. Sometimes, when we came in for drinks, we'd see an old man. He looked like, no shit, a very stereotypical idea of a presumably multi-ethnic copper miner. He wore Levi's and flannel shirts with suspenders, and a very bedraggled cowboy hat and boots. 

AM: Okay. 

JS: Unlike a lot of people around, who weren't much pleased to see all these brown-skinned kids and teens, no matter how polite we were careful to be, he was always very kind to us. His skin was dark too and so are his eyes. He'd seen a lot of sunlight. His wrinkles had wrinkles. He always seemed to be on his way somewhere when we saw him. And, frequently, every time I saw him but one, he was accompanied by this massive black dog. 

AM: Sirius Black.

JS: Seriously, this dog – this dog never barked. This dog was never on a leash, nor wore a collar, but hugged the man's hips at almost all times. The dog was probably three feet high at the shoulder. And its front legs were weirdly long giving it a gate that made it look sometimes as if it was creeping instead of striding. Its fur was strange, a coat of long, soft, shining curls that hung several inches, and swayed bouncily when it walked. The fur always reminded me of my brother's hair. I never saw it run. I never saw it excited. I never saw it pee on a street corner. Basically, it never once, in the couple dozen times I saw it, behaved like a dog. 

AM: Oh, my god, this is great. Eric, what is your prediction? 

AM: You're about halfway through.

ES: Oh, my prediction. I have no idea where it's going. Someone gets transformed into dogs. Someone gets possessed by a dog.

AM: Okay.

JS: Okay. I was a pretty shy kid. I didn't talk to the desert guy. We'd nod at each other. And, if one of my younger siblings did something amusing, he might vent a little chuckle, but, beyond that, we had no communication. This went on for years. I'd run into him a few times a year. We'd nod. He and his dog would pass one way, and I'd pass another. And that was it. Eventually, my family moved to another part of town and these particular counters stopped happening. Until one day, now a teenager without any of my siblings in tow for the afternoon, I got a craving for an Orange Dream Soda. That's adorable that you remember the exact soda you had during this. 

AM: Oh, my gosh. Also, like how great is that if the Chronicles of Narnia started with like, “I really want an Orange Dream Soda. So, I went to the bodega.” 

JS: I really like that one.

AM: I opened the fridge. And like, whaboom, you're a Narnia.

JS: There was only one place in town that I knew sold it. The little hippie health food store at the edge of town, where I used to go with my siblings.

AM:  Health food store. I'm sorry. Something doesn’t square here.

JS: It was across town for me now, but I figured, “What the hell?” And I took a walk. It's like it hadn't been five years. I turned around, and there was the guy in his flannel shirt with his massive dog, which looked no older. No white on its muzzle. I don't know maybe because I was alone so none of my siblings could be endangered or led astray by my talking to a stranger. But I said, “Hi, it's been a while.” The guy smiled and allowed that it had been some time. His voice was quite a little rough, higher than I expected. I said, “I never said before, but I love your dog. What's his name?” The man cocked his head, “You didn't ask my name?” I stammered, “You – I'm sorry. That was rude. I'm Jen.” And I stuck out my hand. He shook it. His palms were warm and calloused. The dog gives and he said a series of words in either Yavapai or Western Apache. One of the languages that was local and which I had heard on occasion. I said, “That's really pretty.” He says, “It means man who walks like a dog.” I froze. He said, “My name is,” and the string of lovely polish symbols. He didn't wait for me to ask, which was good because the hairs on my neck – my arms were already standing up. It means he said, “Dog who walks like a man.” He smiled at me and tipped his hat and walked down the sidewalk. As it passed me, the dog looked up – Not very far. It was very large at close up into – my face for the first time. Its eyes had visible white sclera, which is the white part around the pupil. And his pupils were tiny and the irises were a very lovely, very human gray blue.

AM: Aaaaaah!

ES: I don't know what to do – I don't know what to do with that.

AM: Amanda, the dog that walks like a man. Aaaaah! 

JS: Anyway, Jen says, thanks for reading. I love your podcast, and definitely intend to share it around.

AM: Jen, you gotta be a writer, because that had me on a whole journey girl. 

AM: That was really fucking good.

ES: I had no idea. I did not expect the dog and the man to be like a joint thing. .

AM: Double twist.

JS: Oh, boy. 

AM: God, so good. 

JS: I, I got like a rush telling that story.

AM: Huh. Yeah, Julia. You looked like you were about to like possess a hawk or something 

JS: Possessed a hawk. All right.

ES: Fly away.

AM: Your shirt right now has like big broad shoulders. And I feel like it's, you know, very hawkish. I don't know.

JS: It's my superhero dress. 

AM: It looks good.

ES: It's me now. Okay. 

AM: Tell me a story. 

ES: Our next story comes from Sarah, and it's titled Haunted Restaurant and Creepy Kid – Creepy Kids. They, they creeped me out far too much. 

AM: I love it. 

ES: That's not part of the story. That's just me.

JS: No. Same. Same. Same. 

ES: I – woof, I don't know. I don't know why I picked this one. I hate creepy kids.

JS: Whoopsie-daisy. 

ES: All right. So, here's how it starts. So, based on the first creeptober episode, shout out to creeptober Spirits podcast.

AM: Creeptober.

JS: Creeptober.

ES: I want to tell you the story of a creepy kid. There was this restaurant in downtown that opened in a disused warehouse in the 70s. It's called Spaghetti Warehouse.

JS: What? Spaghetti Warehouse.

AM: Spaghetti Warehouse?

ES: I think – I think this is my favorite, because I like the sound of Spaghetti Warehouse and --

JS: Of course.

AM: Wait. It’s real? 

ES: It's – yeah. It's the best name.

AM: Fuck. That's so good.

ES: Because I just like to imagine these giant boxes filled with spaghetti. Like an actual Spaghetti Warehouse --

AM: Like a Cosco.

ES: -- where they just store all of the spaghetti.

AM: Yeah. 

JS: Have you ever been to Five Guys? They just have crates of open --

AM: Peanuts.

JS: -- peanuts around

AM: They do. 

JS: I'm just imagining that, but spaghetti.

ES: Yeah. So, you've got a Spaghetti Warehouse. You've got Cheesecake Factory.

AM: You got Macaroni Grill. Well, macaroni is gonna die.

ES: Exactly. 

JS: It’s a violent image. Thank you for that.

ES: It's called Spaghetti Warehouse. And it's one of the most haunted places in Houston. It, unfortunately, was destroyed by Hurricane Harvey. But they're looking for a new location. Gotta get that spaghetti.

AM: Copy.

JS: Gotta get that spaghetti without the haunts.

AM: I'll have a spaghetti sans haunts.

ES: Yeah. I mean it’s like you would want to move just, because of the – of the haunting. When they opened the restaurant, they filled it with antiques from all over the world. 

JS: Bad choice.

ES: First mistake.

AM: Nope. Nope. Nope. Nope.

ES: A staircase out of a European castle, a Tiffany chandelier from Penn State. 

AM: No.

ES: Even a full size trolley.

AM: No.

ES: And, of course, with some of the objects, they brought spirits with them. 

JS: No shit.

ES: I mean obviously. Obviously, that's gonna happen.

AM: Oh, god.

ES: One of the most haunted objects – because that’s how it goes bad. 

JS: One of the most haunted.

ES: Because this is one of the most haunted objects.

AM: Among the many hauntings.

ES: One of the most – there's a scale here of the hauntings of these haunting objects.

AM: Hold on. Question. 

ES: Yeah.

AM: If you go to a spaghetti warehouse and you ask the waiter like, “What's good here? What do you like? What's the most popular thing on the menu? What do they say?” 

JS: The, the spaghetti ala vodka, ala woman who murdered her husband. 

AM: Spaghetti ala vodka. No. 

ES: Don't say that.

JS: It's Spaghetti Warehouse.

AM: But like – but is everything spaghetti?

JS: Yes.

AM: What if you don’t like about spaghetti? 

JS: Fuck you.

ES: It's – they, they only play that remix of the Eminem song, where they say spaghetti. One of the most haunted objects beside the trolley car – does not explain what's up with the trolley car – is a pretty unassuming gray cabinet.

JS: If we were gonna do this, the sequel is to what happened with the trolley car. 

AM: So, I'm gonna need a sequel. What happened with the trolley car? 

ES: What happened with the car? 

AM: The Trolley Problem Part 2: The Haunting.

ES: You've got five ghosts on one track. And one ghost on another track. 

AM: It's where you go for your philosophy master's degree. You gotta just sell The Trolley Problem Part 2. They don't tell you about that in philosophy undergrad. 

ES: It’s way harder. 

AM: It's way harder. 

JS: This just goes off the rails every time we do them, guys.

ES: Yeah. But this one’s – this one only took like 30 minutes to get off the rails -- 

JS: Oh, no. No. We were pretty off the rails at the beginning. 

ES: -- of the trolley car – of the trolley car. 

AM: I get it. I get it. I get it. I get it. 

ES: The rails. It's, at least, a century old. And it's painted with a nice floral fruit arrangement. But the activity around the cabinet has led folks to believe that it was an urn cabinet and once stood in an orphanage. 

AM: No. 

JS: Wait. Hold the fuck up. 

ES: People sitting close to the cabinet hear bouncing balls, tiny footsteps, and children both laughing and crying from inside the cabinet. 

AM: Nooo!

JS: I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Why is there an urn cabinet --

AM: No.

JS: -- that was in an orphanage? 

AM: No. 

JS: Why?

AM: None of those things should be true. You should never open a thing and find an urn of ashes. Never. Urn should be on your mantle --

JS: My grandma's – my grandma’s closet has an urn and ashes in it. 

ES: Maybe sometimes. 

AM: An urn should be on your mantle, up in your closet, because you can't face it yet. 

JS: That's it. 

AM: No, no shame. Or buried. They should not be in a fucking purpose-built like cabinet bureau. No.

JS: Wait. I have – I have a story really quick. 

AM: Okay.

JS: So, my fiance, Jake's favorite show in the world is Ghost Adventures. 

AM: Of course, it is. I love it. 

JS: Which is hosted by a man named Zak Bagans. Now, just, just take a moment.

AM: Bilbo's great, great grandchild, the disappointment of the family. 

JS: It's spelled differently. 

AM: Zak Bagans. 

JS: Okay. So, take a moment. 

AM: Zak Bagans only wears those skater sneakers from the early aughts.

JS: Okay. Take a moment. 

AM: Okay.

JS: Think of like the epitome of a – just dude in a frat. 

AM: Yep.

ES: Yeah. 

JS: Now, imagine he like got possessed by a ghost once, and, now, that's the rest of his life.

AM: Whoa.

JS: That's who Zak Bagans is. 

AM: Whoa. 

JS: And, so, Jake was making me watch a video with Ghost Adventures. 

AM: Naturally. 

JS: And Zak Bagans is going through his "dungeon," which is his basement.

AM: Oh, no.

JS: And he's showing us all of these haunted artifacts that he has. And he goes – he's like going like, “This is like a branch from a tree that like 16 people hung from.” And then he goes – he holds up this thing that just looks like someone's aunt made it in a like drunk pottery class maybe.

AM: Cool. 

JS: And he goes, "Yeah. I bought this off of some old lady. She didn't want anymore, because it cursed her life," and then just moved on. 

AM: Nooo! Zak Bagans. 

ES: See --

JS: Just – it was – I cracked up for five minutes, because the delivery was just like, "She want – she didn't want it anymore. It cursed her life," and then just moved on. 

AM: Can you please find that video? And we'll put it in the description. 

JS: We're 100 percent gonna do that. 

AM: Thank you.

ES: See, I don't even like thrift store shopping, because I'm worried that it might be a dead person's clothes. 

AM: Yeah. No. 

JS: It probably is. 

ES: And this guy is – instead of doing that, collecting --

JS: Yes. Yes. 

ES: -- a bunch of stuff that could be haunted.

AM: We talked two episodes ago about how we don't fuck with the estate sales. 

JS: Yes.

AM: Because you don't fuck with the house that someone just died in. 

JS: I still have that the deadly Singer sewing machine though. 

AM: Their spirit is hot. Okay. First of all, a Singer sewing machine is like – is like the – what it is called if you have a  list of people you can fuck with the --

ES: Yo, free three. 

AM: Yes. A singer sewing machine you, you go through hell for. 

JS: Yes. 

AM: Fair enough. However, otherwise, estate sales, you don't fuck with. You don't go into a house --

ES: There was just an estate sale next to my girlfriend's house. 

AM: No. I hope you didn't go. 

JS: Did you go in there, Eric? 

AM: Because you don't – you don't enter a house that a spirit has just vacated. 

ES: I did not go in. 

AM: It's hot, fresh off the kitchen, y'all. Come on. 

ES: Speaking of the kitchen, there was once a family eating in the area when the restaurant first opened. And, all of a sudden, the little boy with the family started to cry. He was saying – so, that's a little actual human boy. 

JS: Not a ghost boy.

AM: Cool. Cool. I'm glad you grounded us in our actual reality. Yes.

ES: Well, hold on.

AM: Oh, no. 

ES: We're about to – we're about to --

AM: Take off again.

ES: I'm about to – I'm about to unground you real quick. He was saying, "Mommy, make him stop." And, when his mom asked what was happening, he told her he was seeing a creepy little boy silently beckoning him – well, I'm actually getting creeped out with this. He was seeing a creepy little boy silently beckoning him to come and play with him. 

AM: No. 

ES: Of course, the mom then told their waiter. And he told her about the restaurant's haunted status. So, she asked for her check as you would. 

JS : Samesies. Also, I wouldn't give up that information and be like, "Oh yeah. You know, like that cabinet you're eating right next to, super haunted. Lots of dead children."

AM: How did – how did that whole interaction go? How did the mom decide to disclose her poor son's like fucking hallucination? Why did the waiter play along? Why did she ask for the check and not just walk away? Like what, what's happening? 

JS: Because you have to pay your bill, Amanda, even if you are being haunted during your meal.

AM: I don't know about that.

ES: That's not at all. I think there – I think there are a handful of occasions that you don't have to pay your bill. 

JS: So, you pay your bill, and then you leave that one star Yelp review. That's all I'm saying.

ES: What – I mean, unless you don't have cash, here's what you do. You can just kind of throw down the amount – appropriate amount of money for what you've been served.

JS: Yes.

ES: And then just leave. 

AM: And GTFO. Yes.

JS: Whatevs. 

AM: Like you find a bug in your food, the service is horrible, you gotta like run suddenly, you – whatever. Like you just put the cash down on the table, and you leave.

ES: On the ghost tours, people get all sorts of orbs and shadows in their pictures around the cabinet. I have one of these pictures, which includes a pretty clear shadow of a little kid standing in a corner when no one else was around when the picture was taken. So, yeah, that's my creepy kid story.

AM: Nope. Never had kids or be near them.

ES: Now, they do continue and say that they will tell us more Houston legends. And the first one we're going to need is the trolley car. 

AM: I need to know about the trolley.

JS: The trolley car. 

AM: I need to. I need it.

ES: Also, the trolley car was in the restaurant. That just seems like a lot for decor. 

AM: You know, everything is bigger in Texas. 

ES: Like that seems gaudy.

AM: Guys, I actually have a local hometown urban legend to share with you of mine. 

JS: Wooh. 

AM: Yeah. It is from Astoria, New York. New York City, where I live. And it's about Hell Gate Bridge. which connects Queens to Manhattan in the Bronx right near my apartment.

JS: I'm 95 percent sure that they name dropped that in Batman. 

AM: Props. 

JS: Yeah.

AM: Yeah. It's like Hell's Kitchen, but an actual place. Nice. Sick burn. Hell's Kitchen. Get at me. You're like six blocks of Manhattan. 

JS: That is true. 

AM: Yeah. Anyway. So, Hell's Bridge crosses over the East River. And sailors went up and down it all the time. So, Hell's Gate used to be the most dangerous part of New York's harbor. An average of 1,000 ships were damaged or sunk in Hell Gate every single year during the 1850s. This was due to whirlpools in the water, which made the waters treacherous. And the US Army Corps of Engineers blasted the underwater rocks to alleviate this problem in 1885. 

JS: Good job, engineers. 

AM: But between that span – thank you, US Army Corps. But, for those 35 years, like shit was really bad. And people sink all the time. 

JS: That sucks. 

AM: The worst accident in Hell Gate was General Slocum's disaster in 1904. The deadliest tragedy in New York City's history up until 9/11. A steamboat carrying residents from Little Germany on the Lower East Side to a picnic on Long Island caught fire soon after disembarking on the East River, killing more than 1,000 people mostly women and children.

JS: Did we know why it caught fire?

AM: No. 

JS: All right. 

AM: It's just – it was the, the 19th century everything caught fire all the time. 

JS: It was steam. 

AM: Yes.

JS: Steam engine.

AM: Steam, steampunk fire punk. It happened. This is --

ES: What is fire punk?

AM: -- this is my suggestion for a new wave genre. Steampunk I think has been played out. Vampire core I think has been played out. 

ES: Yeah.

AM: Werewolf romance I think has been played out. I propose to you, fire core. Julia is just looking at me.

ES: What are the – let's – I'll, I'll play with you this space. What, what, what are the three core tenets of fire core --

AM: Go ahead. 

ES: -- young adult literature?

AM: Characters must all dress in black. 

JS: Okay.

ES: Okay.

AM: You must uphold the tenets of punk.

JS: Okay. 

ES: Okay. 

AM: And you must desire to destroy the patriarchy, man.

ES: You know what? I'm in.

JS: Actually, I will support that for social good. 

AM: Right? Am I wrong? 

ES: For a second, it's - as it started and I was like, "This is just – this is just werewolf and vampire young adult fiction." But then you, you pulled it out. You changed it.

AM: That's what I tried to do. So, it's such a chaotic fiery scene 1904. People were jumping off into the dangerous waters to try to save themselves. The life preservers, which were made with cork at the time, had turned to dust and they were ineffective in saving lives. They were too old.

JS: Well, yeah, as dust. I'm not surprised.

AM: Yeah. Also, cork is as close to dust as a solid substance can be like is characterized by all the holes that it has inside it. 

JS: No, but it is --

ES: Yeah. 

JS: It is like floatable.

AM: It is indeed floatable. I guess – I guess the word --

JS: Buoyant.

AM: Buoyant.

ES: Buoyant. 

JS: We literally all got it at the same time. 

AM: Good job, fam. So, there – it was terrible. There was wreckage. There were bodies on the shoreline. And the fiery wreckage actually floated to North Brother Island, which is a small island between the Bronx and Rikers Island, which is a prison now, that housed a quarantine hospital where it then burned to the ground. A modern day historian actually spoke with a relative of a postman who was working that day, who said that he threw his mail back down, ran to Astoria Park shoreline to save people. They said that he couldn't walk along the beach to the water without stepping on a body. And this is a beach that I've walked along a lot and played with dogs on. And it's really like shocking to me to have this be invoked in a story. So, anyway, the local legend, the folklore of all this is Hell’s Gate Bridge is a railway bridge. And, so, it passes over the river, where this disaster happened. And, so, the legend is that when freight trains stop at midnight in the middle of Hell Gate Bridge, which they do sometimes, it was completed in 1917, this bridge. So, it was kind of raised up in the shadow of this disaster. The lore says that it's letting off the ghosts of the souls who died there.

JS: Duded, this reminds me of the Hey Arnold episode, where they get on the ghost train.

AM: Oh, shit. 

ES: Yeah.

JS: Yeah. 

AM: I forgot all about that. 

JS: That’s a good fucking episode.

ES: Yeah.

AM: That is a really good episode.

ES: Really good episode. 

AM: I love – I love all ghost trains. I love all ghosts trains.

JS: Yeah. We've been talking about trains a lot recently.

AM: I mean trains are my favorite thing.

JS: Yeah. Yeah. 

AM: If you love bridges and trains and freight boats, move to Astoria. We got all of those. 

JS: Not bad. 

AM: They're amazing.

JS: Good ghost train, Amanda.

AM: So, that is my neighborhood. And, from my kitchen, you can see and hear the freight trains going over Hell’s Gate Bridge. And I --

JS: So, you can see the ghosts. 

AM: -- now think every time, if I'm up at midnight getting a drink of water, I'm gonna look out my kitchen window and wonder if I see little souls shimmering under the nighttime sky.

JS: Adorable. Adorable and deadly.

AM: Spirits Podcast.

JS: All right. I think that is all the time we have for stories, right?

AM: I think so. 

JS: All right. 

ES: Yeah. 

AM: Eric, thank you for joining us --

ES: Of course.

AM: -- on this freight train to nowhere. And remember, listeners.

JS: Stay creepy. 

AM: Stay cool.

JS: And next time we'll take a trolley car.

AM: Trolley problem aaah!

JS:  Haunted trolley car.

Outro Music.

AM: Spirits was created by Amanda McLoughlin, Julia Schifini and Eric Schneider with music by Kevin MacLeod and visual design by Allyson Wakeman.

JS: Keep up with all things creepy and cool by following us on Twitter, Tumblr, Facebook and Instagram @SpiritsPodcast. We also have all our episodes, collaborations, and guest appearances plus merch on our website spiritspodcast.com.

AM: Come on over to our Patreon page, patreon.com/spiritspodcast, for all kinds of behind the scenes stuff. Throw us as little as $1 and get access to audio extras, recipe cards, director's commentaries, and patron-only live streams.

JS: And hey, if you like the show, please share us with your friends. That is the best way to help us keep on growing. 

AM: Thank you so much for listening, till next time

Transcriptionist: Rachelle Rose Bacharo 

Editor: Krizia Casil