The full story of Buddy the ghost

[Damian]

Hello all.  I've talked a little bit about my experiences with Buddy the ghost, and I thought I'd take the time to type up and share my full experience with Buddy the ghost.

I used to have what I assumed to be a ghost that hung out in my apartment.  Back when I was 21 and living on my own for the first time, I rented an apartment from my best friend?s uncle (who was also my History professor at City College) in a small apartment complex off 39th Street and Adams Avenue about 2 blocks away from Kensington.

One morning I was folding laundry and I realized that I needed to leave for work or risk being late.  So I left my folded laundry on my bed organized in piles so that I could easily put it away when I came home from work.  This is how I was taught to do laundry and so that?s how I always do it.  Well when I came home from work that night, I went to put my clothes away and I noticed that my laundry had been slightly rearranged on my bed, but it was still folded.  I thought that was strange, but didn?t assume it was a ghost.  I called my landlord to see if he had been in my apartment to do some repairs or something, and he told me that he had not entered my apartment.

This rearranging of my laundry would happen on occasion, and I just thought maybe I was forgetting how I organized my laundry.  So I decided to leave my laundry in piles again and this time make note of how I left it, and put measures in place to make sure no one was coming into my bedroom (where the rearranged laundry would happen) and sure enough my clothes were rearranged when I came home from work, with no signs of entry into my bedroom.

I began to notice the occasional cold spot that I could feel roaming around my apartment.  This was strange to me because my apartment was on the second floor and had no air conditioning.  In the summer time it wasn?t unusual for my apartment to be around 90-degrees inside?but then I would feel a cold spot that felt like I was standing in front of an open refrigerator.  I would walk through the hallway and walk through one of these cold spots.  Then the spot would move.  I could literally walk around my apartment inside this cold spot as it moved around.

That?s when I finally acknowledged that I probably had a ghost hanging out in my apartment.  I remembered hearing somewhere that when a ghost makes itself known to you, it?s probably just wanting to be acknowledged.  And I figured that if the ghost was going to hurt me, it probably would have done so already.  So I decided to name my ghost ?Buddy?.  When I would leave for work I would say aloud ?See you later Buddy.  Take care of the place while I?m out.?  When I would get home from work, I would say aloud ?Hey dude, I?m home.  Thanks for keeping the place clean.?

One day I was sitting in front of my TV eating some fried chicken and watching South Park.  I had my front door open, but the heavy-duty screen door closed so that I could get some fresh air circulating through my hot apartment.  The screen door opened on its own.  I assumed that I hadn?t closed it all the way, so I simply got up and closed the door making sure to give it a good tug to ensure it was closed all the way.  I sat down and continued with my greasy meal.  About 5 minutes later the door opened again.  Buddy had never done anything other than mess with my laundry, but this was starting to get annoying.  This time I closed and secured the screen door by locking the deadbolt on it, and sat back down for dinner and South Park.  About 10 minutes later my door opened again and the deadbolt was unlocked.  I was annoyed, and I shouted at Buddy, ?If you want to hang out here, that?s cool, but if you?re gonna mess with me while I?m trying to eat dinner you gotta GET OUT!  Enough already!?  I closed and locked the screen door again, and there was not another door incident.

Another day I was showering in the morning getting ready for work.  The bottom of my shower curtain physically lifted up all the way to about my belly button which is noticeably high because I?m 6?3?.  I shouted at Buddy, ?Knock it off damnit, I?m trying to get ready for work!?  The shower curtain dropped immediately.

I was wondering if I was the only one in the apartment complex experiencing these kinds of happenings.  I invited the 2 girls that lived across the way from me to come over for drinks?they were really cute and I was single at the time, but also I felt fairly comfortable around them and I wanted to see if they had weird goings on at their apartment.  They came over.  We had some drinks, and I sheepishly asked if they had anything strange happening at their place.  Their expressions both changed and they became very serious.  They looked at each other and proceeded to tell me about a small nightstand that one of them had beside their beds.  Sometimes when they would come back home from work or when waking up after sleeping all night, the nightstand would be moved elsewhere in the bedroom.  This had happened a handful of times.  Then one of the girls told me that on another night she awoke in the middle of the night and saw a black figure standing at the foot of her bed.  The figure raised its hands up from its side, then disappeared.

I shared my experiences with them, and we all felt pretty happy that someone else was experiencing these strange things.  It?s weird because you really begin to question your own sanity when this stuff happens.

I went back a couple of years ago to try to talk to the tenants of the apartments to see if they had strange experiences there too, but sadly the apartments are now demolished and that area is now an empty lot by the Adams Avenue exit from the 15 South.  I even went so far as to check with the County Clerks office to see if I could find any deaths that took place on the property but I came up empty.  I always wish I could?ve found out more about that property, and it continues to be a source of curiosity for me.

[PPI Tim]

That is a cool story. That area is a old part of San Diego. I know a lot of the residences date back to the 20's and 30's.

[Gary]

It's almost sad that the apartment got torn down... I hope Buddy was able to find himself a new place.  That is quite an exciting story though.  I think it would be really cool to discover such a playful spirit in your place, and then be fortunate enough to share it with some cute neighbors... Always a PLUS!   

Does it make you wish you would have done more to investigate it at the time??? 

[PPI Debra]

Thanks for sharing your adventures with Buddy. Recently, I complained on my blog that there are no etiquette manuals on how to deal with paranormal events. What do you say to the hidden beings that share your space, etc?  I've had a lifetime of phenomena, with very few answers. Of course, it's difficult living in a culture that denies these things. Being with PPI now, maybe we can all slowly change the denial to education.

[Damian]

Yeah, I feel the same way Gary.  Aside from not being able to investigate the apartment now, it would be cool to live with a friendly spirit like that again.  Once I got over my initial shock, then fear, then questioning of my own sanity, it was pretty cool to share a space with a spirit.

Being kind of a shy guy around women, it was a giant risk for me to ask the girls over for drinks.  I'm so glad I'm married now...I was never any good at dating. 

[Damian]

Debra, part of my initial weirdness with having a spirit in my apartment was figuring out what to do, so I definitely can relate to what you're saying.  When I finally sat down and thought about what might be going on in my apartment, and I looked at it objectively and without fear, that's when I realized that "Buddy" probably just wants some attention, and I also realized that whoever or whatever "Buddy" was, it was probably at one time human.  So with those realizations I decided that I would just talk to "Buddy" like he was my roommate.  I will admit, however, that I felt COMPLETELY nuts talking out loud to a ghost in my apartment.  Thinking back now, it would've been pretty comical to watch myself go through that learning process.   

[PPI Debra]

Laughter is good!

[PPI Tracy]

Debra, part of my initial weirdness with having a spirit in my apartment was figuring out what to do, so I definitely can relate to what you're saying.  When I finally sat down and thought about what might be going on in my apartment, and I looked at it objectively and without fear, that's when I realized that "Buddy" probably just wants some attention, and I also realized that whoever or whatever "Buddy" was, it was probably at one time human.  So with those realizations I decided that I would just talk to "Buddy" like he was my roommate.  I will admit, however, that I felt COMPLETELY nuts talking out loud to a ghost in my apartment.  Thinking back now, it would've been pretty comical to watch myself go through that learning process.   

Damian....don't EVER feel "nuts" talking out loud to any unseen presence in your home.  How do you think people "take back their homes" from the spirits that are occupying their space?  It's your home.  You belong there.  Anything else....does not.  If something happens that bothers you and you believe it is caused by "Buddy" or anything else, you have every right to tell "him" or anything else, to knock it off.  That is what I have done in my home.  It got to the point where if things did not mellow out, "I" was going to go nuts.  Myself and my family were well on our way, believe me.  Talking to it worked.  For a while anyway and then I had to do it again.  Comical to some?  Maybe.  But you live with it.  The fear is not comical, so why should addressing the spirit who is responsible for it, be?

[ljiljanac]

I like it, Damian        I think your reaction and solution is great.  Has your wife experienced "Buddy"?

[PPI Debra]

TAPS Tracy :
"Damian....don't EVER feel "nuts" talking out loud to any unseen presence in your home.  How do you think people "take back their homes" from the spirits that are occupying their space?  It's your home.  You belong there.  Anything else....does not.  If something happens that bothers you and you believe it is caused by "Buddy" or anything else, you have every right to tell "him" or anything else, to knock it off.  That is what I have done in my home.  It got to the point where if things did not mellow out, "I" was going to go nuts.  Myself and my family were well on our way, believe me.  Talking to it worked.  For a while anyway and then I had to do it again.  Comical to some?  Maybe.  But you live with it.  The fear is not comical, so why should addressing the spirit who is responsible for it, be?"


I totally agree with Tracy. This is the best advice and attitude for dealing with this type of phenomena. I have taken the same attitude with the "beings" that are hanging out in my current home, including reasserting myself periodically. (the links to some of that story are here: http://www.pacificparanormal.com/forums/index.php?topic=2683.new;topicseen)

I have given this same advice to alien abductees. Stating boundaries and saying no is very important.

When I said laughter is good I was thinking about the times I also laughed at myself while learning, like you described... I certainly don't feel anyone going through paranormal circumstances is something to laugh at.

[ljiljanac]

One night I came home and found a window open that should not have been.  I believed the house to be haunted, and Richard Ramirez "The Night Stalker" was out running around my neighborhood.  Not using sound judgement and frustated by the feeling of "invasion" and of what I was experiencing in that house, I stomped through the house throwing open doors and charging into rooms yelling angrily, "Get the f**k out of my house!!!  Get the f**k out, m**ther f***er!"  I did this until I had cleared the entire house and found no one there and no signs of anyone having been there.  After that, for just a few minutes, I felt in control and powerful over my house and what was happening.  It was as if energy drained from the walls, and the house itself was frozen in time.  Then reality and common sense kicked in and fear set in over my lack of caution and care for my own safety.  I felt like everything stopped but nother ever left.

I love the idea of "taking back your home" and addressing the entities that may be there.  I hope it works for people more often than not.   

[PPI Tracy]

Actually, getting angry is the worst thing you can do.  You may feel like it gives you the upper hand but more often than not, it can really backfire.  You want to be assertive but remain CALM and in CONTROL.  If you aren't, whatever is there can actually draw energy from your own anger and it can spiral further OUT of control. 

By the way....I lived in a neighborhood very close to where the Night Stalker was running around.  His pattern was breaking into homes that were about a mile from the freeway, yellow in color and had bars on the windows.  These were the common denominators.  Odd. But he always got in through an unlocked door or window.  Maybe he squeezed through the bars.  At least that is what was written up in the papers after he was caught.  I lived in that same neighborhood / house type scenario.  Scary. 

Boy, that was a buzz kill.  Sorry.... 

[ljiljanac]

Not at all, Tracy.      The fact that nothing got worse leads me to believe that it was all in my head that night.  A couple was murdered during that time a block and a half from my house, and everyone was saying it was him.   :o

Getting back to Damian...I love that fact that you accepted "Buddy" and talk to him all the time.  That really is like having "Casper the Friendly Ghost" in your house.

[Damian]

Fortunately I no long feel crazy talking out loud if I feel a presence, but overcoming that initial feeling of insanity that very first time I spoke aloud to to Buddy was a little scary.  But like you said Tracy, I did it in a calm and assertive way (when needed) and it had a noticeable effect.

Lillie, unfortunately my wife never got to experience Buddy.  I lived in that apartment as a bachelor, long before I met my wife.  But, she loves hearing the story!

[PPI Jason]

I stomped through the house throwing open doors and charging into rooms yelling angrily, "Get the f**k out of my house!!!  Get the f**k out, m**ther f***er!" 

I do this all the time. Which probably explains why the CPS worker comes over so often.

[Gary]

What is the CPS?  The Couch Potato Squad?  I'd like to join that group.   

[ljiljanac]

CPS is "Child Protective Services".        Still wanna join?

[Gary]

DOH!   ::|

[Shellshock]

I really enjoyed reading about your experience. Thanks for sharing! 

[Damian]

My pleasure!