S1 Ep14: It's Ok Karl

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Terms and conditions apply. Need to hire? This is a job for Indeed Sponsored Jobs. Astonishing Legends Network. The views and opinions expressed by hosts and listeners on the Astonishing Dead Letter office are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of Astonishing Legends Productions, the Astonishing Legends Network, or any affiliated entities or guests. When something unexplainable happens to you, it can make you feel isolated or alone. But trust us, you're not. For over a decade, you've been sending your strange stories to Astonishing Legends. And now it's time for our fellow legenders to hear them too. Join us weekly in the vault beneath Blanket Fortiana, which we call The Astonishing Dead Letter Office. Tonight's episode, it's okay, Carl. You know, Tess organized these for us, and she really just did an excellent job. For those of you who don't listen to our regular main show, Astonishing Legends, Tess is our right-hand woman. She's been part of Astonishing Legends for nine years now, so a shout-out and a big thank you. Oh, yes. Thank you so much, Tess, for all your wonderful work. And we're indebted to you forever for everything that you do, you have done and do for us. All right, so this story is short but sweet, literally. It comes to us from Carl. It's the story of a benevolent haunting. Hi, guys. I'm Carl, longtime listener. I've sort of been meaning to share this story for a long time. Being from New England, I have a lot of small ghost stories, but this one has some real meat, so to speak. It's really more my mom's story, but I've heard it so many times that I feel I can do it justice. As long as I can remember, my dad has owned a small house in Gorham, New Hampshire. We call it the camp. It was always pretty rustic, but had electricity, plumbing, etc., not just a cabin in the woods. My dad would always go up on weekends with his friends and party. One of those friends was named Andy, and he was up there practically every weekend. I don't remember him, but I guess he and my father were extremely good friends, and he was a really good guy. Then Andy died. It was cancer, and it came fast. My dad said it was just this steep decline, and then a phone call from Andy's wife, and then suddenly one of his best friends was gone. Thing is, we don't think he did go. Some strange things were happening at the camp. There was a mesh screen door at the front of the camp that was suddenly deformed. It had been pushed out from the inside, and my dad always swore that from the side, it looked just like Andy's face. Like he pressed his face into it and left the imprint. Unfortunately, no one ever took a picture. If smartphones were a thing in the 90s, that photo would exist, but alas, the door was rotted out as it was, and by the time anyone thought of it, my dad had replaced it. The other thing was that we had a streetlight screwed to a tree near the campfire. It was a real redneck solution to the dark side of the camp, but it worked, and we'd use it to get the fire going at night. It never had any issues before Andy passed, but afterward, it would go out all the time, and it would only take my father saying something like, Andy, cut it out, and the light would come back on again. Could it have been faulty wiring? Well, absolutely. It was. After all, a streetlight screwed to a tree. But it happened all the time, as in multiple times a night, and it always turned back on if we talked to Andy about it. Now, for the real story. I think at this time, I was around six or seven, and I was a notorious bedwetter. Just couldn't keep it in. Beyond that, I'd always sneak into bed with my parents after they'd fallen asleep. So, one night at the camp, after sneaking into my parents' room, I wet the bed. My dad never even woke up, but my mom, being used to this, stripped the bed, tossed a blanket on my dad, and brought me out to the couch to sleep for the rest of the night. We both fell asleep there, and a couple hours later, I wet the couch. Now, my mom was mad. She always says that at this point, she exclaimed, Carl, we're running out of beds. And so, she started ripping the blankets and sheets off the couch, and I was standing next to her, ashamed, face pointed at the floor. She glanced over at me and saw, kneeling next to me, a figure. It was a man, and he had his hand on my shoulder, as if consoling me. He looked up at my mom with a smile, a genuinely friendly smile. My mom, seeing some strange figure next to her son, instinctively reached out and pulled me away from him, and he disappeared. It was only after the initial shock wore off that she realized it had been Andy. He wasn't some smoky form or shadowy figure. He looked just the same as he had in life, and he was just as caring. Well, what a just a heartwarming, simple, but evocative ghost story, you could say. And not your typical, you know, something scary. I mean, it's shocking to see that. I'm sure his mom was shocked. But, yeah, not every ghost story is a horrific one. And in this case, with the details of it, well, first of all, a brave story to tell, because it's about something that, you know, you were embarrassed of as a child, and not something easy to relay. So we applaud Carl for sharing the story in the first place. But that is a major element of the story in that he needed some consoling, and it came in the form of a ghost that was there, Andy. Yeah. Speaking of faces pressed into doorways, and we just did a story not too long ago about the shape of a face coming through a blanket being hung up at a military barracks. Yes, that was another dead letter office. That was another dead letter office, and something kind of peering through and leaving a shape. And that seems to be a common thing. Not terribly common, but we have heard of that before. Even into things like a metal door, a face coming in and out of it. The door did not have an impression left in it, but somebody saw a face appear as if we were being pressed through and then recede. And the same thing with the blanket. And here, with the mesh metal screen, it looks like Andy was just looking out. Yes, looking out from the inside out, and it kind of stuck. And just the fact that it was defined enough that they would think that it looked like their friend Andy, dad's friend Andy, and that it had enough shape to it. Like, you wouldn't just think like, oh, well, who's punching the door? Or dad getting mad, like, okay, stop banging on the screen part of this from the inside out. I have to replace this now. That it looked like them and reminded them. And just the light. They don't describe Andy as being a prankster, but this goes to my other theory about how some spirits, when batteries are always drained or electronics go wonky or lights go out, and sometimes it's a bit of the prankster-ish element to it, the trickster element, I think, perhaps, something trying to get your attention. But sometimes, perhaps, it's just their presence affecting electronics. And then Andy wasn't trying to be a jerk. He just, whenever he got near and people were gathering near the campfire and he was there, that had an effect. But he also, after you told him, like, Andy, knock it off. Cut it out. Turn the light back on. That he was able to also keep the light back on or turn it back on somehow. And that, so maybe he wasn't trying to be a jerk or playing a prank. It just happened when he showed up, but he was able to fix it. But I can picture that. I know with the sodium streetlights at night at a remote place, I can picture that totally. And then with the warm light of the campfire, a very evocative form appearing in my mind here. And also that it was a full body apparition. So as he was saying, it just wasn't a smoky form or shadowy figure. He was just appeared. He had enough energy in that moment, enough caring, nurturing energy to show up as a full body apparition. And that takes a lot of energy we've heard to manifest oneself. Or it's just enough of a strong bonding moment that he was able to appear. And how shocking that must have been when he appeared and then just vanished. And again, that's something that would have lasted with his mom. So not a misty kind of thing happening around him, but like just the guy was there. Yeah. And he sounds like a really good guy. You know, I'd be curious to know how long this manifestation lasted, because I would kind of think that it probably wasn't indefinite. You know, but I wonder how many, you know, weeks or months or whatever they were communicating with the streetlight and how long after this happened, like what, you know, what happened next? Maybe I'll, maybe we'll send Carl an email and ask if there was, how it wound up going away. Well, Carl, I think it's good to know that Andy was looking out for you. With any luck, we've all got a few people like that watching over us from the other side. Thank you for sending your story into the Dead Letter Office. The Astonishing Dead Letter Office is hosted by Scott Philbrick and Forrest Burgess, and is executive produced by Tess Feifel. The show is edited and mixed by Sarah Voorhees-Wendell at VW Sound. The theme is based on the Astonishing Legends theme by Judson Crane at Founder Music, arranged by Alan Carissia, who composes all the other music in the show. Tommy Beaver Design created the logo. The announcer is John Bowler. That's me. Stories are lightly edited for length, content, and readability, but otherwise presented as they're sent to us. We're always looking for more Dead Letters, so if you have a story of your own you'd like to share, email it to deadletteroffice at astonishinglegends.com. Please include how you would like to be credited. First name only? First name last initial? Anonymous? A pseudonym? Let us know. Due to the number of emails coming in, we often cannot respond, but we do read them all. No part of this show may be reproduced anywhere without permission. Copyright, Astonishing Legends Productions. Protein bars often feel like you're choosing between taste and nutrition. If it tastes good, you flip it over only to discover it's made with a whole paragraph of ingredients you've never heard of. Or artificial sweeteners do all the heavy lifting. It's basically dessert in disguise. You shouldn't have to choose between tasty and nutritious. And that's what makes Aloha stand out. 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At CVS, it matters that we're not just in your community, but that we're part of it. It matters that we're here for you when you need us, day or night. And we want everyone to feel welcomed and rewarded. It matters that CVS is here to fill your prescriptions and here to fill your craving for a tasty and, yeah, healthy snack. At CVS, we're proud to serve your community because we believe where you get your medicine matters, so visit us at cvs.com or just come by our store. We can't wait to meet you. Store hours vary by location. Success starts with your drive, and American Public University is here to fuel it. With affordable tuition and over 200 flexible online programs, APU helps you gain the skills and confidence to move forward. Whether you're changing careers, starting fresh, or pursuing a lifelong passion, our programs are designed for people who never stop. You bring the fire, APU will fuel the journey. Learn more at apu.apus.edu. 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