On television, when there is a haunted house show being shown, featuring a
“specialist” carrying around something like a ghost detector and the black and white video is shot so that spirits can be spotted with infrared heat, I am too scared to watch.
When I go to New York, I go for business, hanging my art show and then I go back three weeks later, to take it down.
I used to stay at the Salisbury Hotel. The staff knows me by name. It is centrally located in Midtown and the breakfast is luxurious, very inexpensive and on the second floor.
But during the last three or four years, I became fond of staying in a boutique hotel in the Lower East Side. Close to SoHo and Little Italy, and the new gallery district on Orchard Street, I could do a lot of walking. It had been the hotel of choice for rock stars. I have the love of celebrity in my blood, therefore seeing Kirsten Dunst on the steps was exciting also.
Nostalgia has its grip, though, and one New York stay, The Salisbury beckoned me back. Just for the weekend, it said. It was to be a very short trip since this solo show consisted of a video being shown across a seventeen foot wall, and most of the take down was fairly simple.
That night at the Salisbury Hotel, in my room, my by nightstand, I became unexpectedly cold. In fact, at first, only cold in one spot of the room. Intensely cold. I asked the front desk for extra blankets. Then more, more. I think I had ten extra blankets piled up on my side of the bed. I kept trying to jump out of the cold spot, but it did not release me. My husband, who was with me this time, was not affected. In fact, when he was in the bathroom, I screamed “Come out this minute!” Terrified he came out. I told him about the intense cold and he was annoyed at something so trivial.
You would think the hotel staff would be irritated at having to send up so many blankets to one room. Maybe it was because they knew us.
I put a camera next to my side of the bed the second night (I can’t believe I stayed there another night!) I told myself, I would aim in the darkness and take a picture when I woke up. I woke up in pitch black, aimed the camera but was too afraid to take the picture. More precisely, too afraid at what would show up.
The next day as I was leaving, I called the front desk and said, “Our room was abnormally cold the last few nights!” “What room were you in?” I told him. He pauses and let out a sigh. “Ah!”, he said with a little mischief in his voice……….“Room 237!”
After I wrote this story and I was searching around for a visual, I found out most of the horror movie, “The Shining” took place in non other than Room 237! I knew nothing about this! Never saw the movie! It was a total surprise. But let me caution you, the weirdness of this tale is true and I would not book my honeymoon hotel in a room with the number 237!
That would have freaked me out, Hollis! I probably would have requested another room…I’m a chicken. 🙂
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You know for someone who can’t even watch those TV ghost shows….. (Although, see, I had my husband, a former GA Tech student, to talk me out of thinking it was anything spooky or abnormal)
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I think this tops our tornado story!
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Lorraine, I am going to save that story for another blog. No, I disagree….that one was pretty strange too! In fact, I was telling our story to someone the other day and he was spooked!
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I would have blamed it on food poisoning.
By the way, the Shining is one of my favorite horror movies. I’d have a hard time getting to sleep in a hotel room designated 237.
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At least you knew! I had no idea! First I heard about it was yesterday typing out this blog and then looking for a door that had 237 on it for my visual. Truth stranger than fiction! Thanks for stopping by and reading my story,Eric!
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😉
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How scary! Good thing you weren’t alone!
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I know. I think my imagination would have gotten me carried away. As it was, it was pretty bad. Good old Doug, though, thinking I was being silly….he was totally unaffected. He kept things as calm as they could be. What gets me, is, I couldn’t even WATCH those shows on TV! And here I was, in the middle of one.
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Interesting that your husband wasn’t affected. Some people do sense that kind of thing more than others. Good that you weren’t alone but was it even scarier to be the only one feeling it?
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No, it was actually calming.I knew what was happening. I couldn’t believe it, but I had that hard core “knowing.” If Doug would have freaked out, I think I would have run screaming from the hotel! 🙂
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Ooh, spooky, Hollis. Typical husbandry reaction though – mine would’ve been the same. Nice to link with the literary connection but it doesn’t make you feel calmer, does it? !
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No I still have to do that show!!!!!! This is a great way to enjoy myself and still be doing something while procrastinating! Oh, now I know what you mean. I thought you were talking about these wonderful writers I am enjoying blogging with (as I do you)! NO, the literary aspect of the experience! Jenny, this is a very public forum here, but I will say this: when I started writing about Room 237, my printer started to print.Now….if I can handle that……!
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I am so astounded that once you started ordering extra blankets, that none of the staff mentioned this. Me, on the other hand, am not scared of ‘ghosts’ or spirits, and would have thrived on such a scary experience. I wonder if there was a ‘real’ occurrence, or just the film being made there? I mean, there wasn’t a killing here, right? At least you found out the reason, which always takes some of the fright factor out of it, right? Hugs, Robin
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Robin, the movie, thankfully, was not made in the room where I stayed. I was blissfully ignorant about the movie,”The Shining”! The fact that apparently all the scenes from this horror movie took place in a room numbered Room 237 was shocking to me, after the fact!
The coincidence is amazing!
Creepy and fun, like you said. Thanks so much for your comments. I love the way you see things! Sort of like I do. Fun and scary and certainly good blogging material, but a way to see life too!
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Like you mentioned to Jill, having your husband there, helped a great deal, along with the extra blankets to keep you warm. It is strange that he wasn’t cold, though. It is very unusual that the situation was not felt by both of you, you can see me Still trying to figure this one out, Hollis!
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Robin. I don’t know what to say. It was metaphysical yet I tolerated it. But on the up side, it makes a great blog, right?
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There isn’t enough space here to discuss this in depth but………. 1. you never need to be afraid in a situation like that 2. you probably have an ability that you may want to explore [I have it, but don’t tell anyone] 3. sometimes all anyone wants is to be acknowledged…… and I do mean anyone.
It is not uncommon for writers to admit that ‘they are not sure where their inspiration comes from’…… this particularly applies to great writers. Artists in general and writers in particular are well ‘tuned in’…… poets are probably too well tuned in…. I worry for them, but that’s another story. Your next step might be to find someone, or a group of someones, who you trust to explore and develop your ability…… or not, it is up to you.
In any case, you are in for an interesting adventure. Enjoy.
Terry
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Terry: Thank you for your validation. Every now and then, I go to an artists retreat where we all eat dinner together. (Otherwise we are in cabins alone creating our stuff) Every writer and artist talks about being inspired in the manner you talk about. How characters will “write” themselves, etc.
There is a fine line between being sane and believing and yet having fun with it.
The ghost story I told is fun only in retrospect. and only because my husband was there.
The weirdest thing was I had no idea about the amount of research that went into the room 237!!!!! Relating to the movie, not the one in my hotel…..
Thanks again for your validation. Have a good week!
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I am conflicted: I don’t believe in spirits and ghosts, yet I’ve had an experience much like this one that I am convinced was ghostly!
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Who knows, mareymercy! I am conflicted too. I think if I really REALLY believed in them, I would be a lot more upset. Do you know what I mean? It’s a true story. And now that it is over it is fun to talk about it! And fun to blog about it! Hope the awful Parents Meeting went without a hitch! 🙂
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Marey. Saw the Free People skirt you bought last summer ( this summer) and I even tried it on!!!! May buy it!!!!! It’s great and is haunting me!
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It is great – totally worth the price. Also it’s sturdy, unlike some of their pieces which are on the delicate side. i just bought a pretty expensive sweater from them that had a hole snagged in it the first day I wore it. Booo! But the skirt is still a winner.
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Oh gosh where to begin!! I believe. I can’t even pretend not to because I have had more than one ‘ghostly’ experience. The house I grew up in was haunted and that is a long blog post for another day 😀 I think you were very brave Hollis and I have to echo an earlier comment and say I am glad hubby was with you.
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Thank you, Yolanda! I think I was brave too! (looking back) But I have to think that living in the South has made me a little Southern after all these years. And I do love to tell a good story! So I tried to make it as real as it was but I hope that people take the humor and fun in it to heart as well! I know you do! I want to hear your story!
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What the heck! Omigosh, that just creeped me out. I’ll never forget to check my room number again!
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Me either!!!!
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That is so cool and creepy. I would have loved it. Well, not the being cold part, but the rest, especially when told of the significance of room 237. 😀 Fantastic story!
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Thank you, Elizabeth!
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Hollis, you already know how much I love this story – but I do have to add how these sort of experiences also happen to me. The catch is – it is ONLY when my husband is in a completely different room of the house, not even our pets are around!! I agree that it is simply frightening when it happens – but your story really had me go “Wow!!” The visual you posted above (photo) is perfect!
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Thank you!
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Patricia, I don’t like that your “experience” only happens when no one is around. Not that my husband did anything. He was pretty cool to me about it, actually! haha. But at least there was another person there doubting. I asked him the other day, if he remembered what happened to me and he said, “Yeah, how could I forget?” I said “You remember me getting very very cold?” He said “Yes!” Go figure. Men!!!!!!!! (Or why did he keep insisting it was nothing?)
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Oh Hollis, I can’t believe it! The Shining is one of my all time favourite horror films but so scary and I definitely wouldn’t have stayed in that room because of it! That is a spooky tale and may I say wonderfully told! I’m so glad to have finally made it over here to your lovely blog and can only apologise for not doing so before now. I feel as I’ve been on permanent catch up for months…but lovely to be here now 🙂
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Thanks, Sherri. I know the feeling! I feel that blogging is incredibly satisfying, but one does have the feeling of always having to “tend!” Thank you for reading my story and thank you for your comment!
I guess, after all, I am brave! And only finding out about the significance of Room 237 after! Not that it would have made a difference in my experience, but I would not have stayed in the room! Jack Nicholson’s image for that movie always scared me. Those types of movies are unbearable for me to see. I once thought “Hpw bad can ‘The Exorcist’ be on a small black and white TV?” I found out! Had to shut it off! Thanks again for visiting!
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The Exorcist is very bad…I couldn’t face watching it either so I fully understand!
You are more than welcome Hollis, I enjoy your visits also to my blog very much 🙂
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That’s so freaky. I think I’d have been afraid of what the picture would capture too. 🙂
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Oh Kourtney! That is exactly right! But the camera was ready!
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