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Encounters Archive:

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2011 Encounters:
Happy House of Spirits - Columbus, Ohio

Licorice Scented Saxophones - Tacoma, Washington

Spooky Deparment Store - Saginaw, Michigan

Grandpa's Visit - Jellico, Tennessee

Alexander Noble House - Door County, Wisconsin

Babysitting Alone - Livingston, Montana

Message From Grandma - Falls Church, Virginia

Tio Pete's Last Goodbye - Tolleson, Arizona

Strange Creatures - Beloit, Wisconsin

Tech Savvy Spirits - Covington, Georgia

Freaky Dreams - Morena Valley, California

Remembering Childhood Experiences - Annapolis, Maryland

Ringing Phantom Phone - Ellendale, Delaware

Scary Voices - Colington, North Carolina

Life Changing Experiences - Bradenton, Florida

Fright Night in Philly - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Spooked in the United Kingdom - Birmingham, England

Enlightened Rosary - Phoenix, Arizona

Spooky Third Floor - Wethersfield, Connecticut

Haunted Cinema - Brighton, United Kingdom

The New House - Pheonix, Arizona

Haunted School Bathroom - Philippines

Signs from the Departed - Malibu, California

Haunted State Park - Ohio

Cool Personal Experience - Tokeland, Washington

Dorm Room Freakiness - Pippa Passes, Kentucky

Insane Asylum Weirdness - Ontario, Canada

Ghosts Are Real - Houston, Texas

Strange Events - Provo, Utah

Phantom Burglar - Holiday, Florida

Spirit Attachment - Walsall, United Kingdom

The Anguished Man Strikes Again - Cumbria, United Kingdom

Phantom Texts and Phone Calls -- Cincinnati, Ohio

Lady in Black - Los Angeles, California

Sports Loving Ghost - Surrey, United Kingdom

Lost Earthquake Ghost? - Houston, Texas

The House of Many Spirits - Escanaba, Michigan

Comforting Presence - Sussex, England

Mysterious Church Yard - Worthing, United Kingdom

Rocco the Ghost Cat - Constance Bay, Ontario, Canada

The Glowing Entity - New Port Richey, Florida

The Anguished Man Continues - Cumbria, United Kingdom

Battlefield Ghost - Chancellorsville Battlefield, Virginia

Be Careful in the Cemetery - Troy, New York

Red Eyes - San Bernardino, California

Angel or Ghost? - Silsbee, Texas

Weirded Out in San Francisco - San Francisco, California

Haunted Nightmares - Australia

Ghostly Railroad Greeting - Aiken, South Carolina

Calling the Spirits - Chester, West Virginia

Haunted Bedroom - Boston, Massachusetts

Home Alone - North Berwick, Maine

Spooky School Day - Edinburg, Texas

Mystery in Meerut - India

Phantom Girl in Vietnam-Vietnam

Living Room Orbs and Phantom Voices- Denver, Colorado

The Girl in My Room - Rainbow City, Alabama

Matthew's Returning Spirit - Grand Prairie, Texas

Ghostly Figure Near My Dad - Palm Beach Gardens, Florida
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Opening All of the Cabinets - Arlington, Massachusetts

The Anguished Man - The United Kingdom
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December 6, 2011

Licorice Scented Saxophones

Rate this encounter:
Votes:29 Rating: Rating = 5.59 Ratings Breakdown


Melynda -- Tacoma, Washington -- September 1999

I was 13 years of age and had just started playing the clarinet in junior high band at this time. My grandpa was excited that I had begun studying music, and he gave me a C Melody tenor sax that had belonged to his mother, my great-grandmother.

These saxophones are rare. They don't make tenors in C-pitch anymore (with good reason, they sound terrible!). Of course, I was over the moon about this instrument. It was SO COOL to my 13-year-old self.

Every time I played with it, though, the smell of black licorice would fill the room. I found this to be odd but thought nothing of it. However, the feeling that I was not alone began to bother me. I felt as if I had invisible company in the room. I didn't feel watched, just that someone else was there.

I finally thought to ask my mom about the licorice smell. She smelled it, too. My mother informed me that my great-grandmother had always carried Black Jack Gum (licorice-flavored, very pungent) in her purse for the grandkids.

We talked more about this lady I had never met. I learned that she had been killed in a car accident about three miles from our home. I began to suspect that the presence I felt had to be hers.

One Saturday, my folks went out for a dinner-and-a-movie date. I was happy to have the house to myself and brought my clarinet and sax into the living room to practice in front of the TV (a bad habit I still have, except I am now a 26-year-old recording artist). The licorice smell permeated the room immediately. I started to get a little nervous and felt again that I was definitely not alone.

I turned the TV off and listened for any sounds evidencing a presence. I heard nothing, but a plant in the doorway of the living room began to quiver inexplicably. I watched it in fascinated horror. One of the leaves was pulled forward as though someone passing by was brushing it with their hip. As the "person" passed, the leaf then sprang back to its position and wobbled back and forth for a few seconds with the momentum!

I was absolutely terrified. So scared! I ran as fast as I could down to my grandparent's house and stayed there until my folks got home. I told them all about my experience, and they seemed skeptical but could not deny that something had happened.

This "haunting" only continued for a couple more months. I realized quickly that I had nothing to fear from the entity I assumed was my great-grandmother. I think she was just curious about me, her great-granddaughter. Nevertheless, she always scared me. I think when she left it was because she didn't want to keep terrifying me.




2014 Haunted New England Wall Calendar by Jeff Belanger photography by Frank Grace
Check out the 2014 Haunted New England wall calendar by Jeff Belanger and photography by Frank Grace!


Paranormal Conferences and Lectures
Don't miss the following events and lectures:

Jeff Belanger and “The Bridgewater Triangle” at Dedham Community Theatre - April 6, 2014 9:00PM

The Spirits of the Mark Twain House - Hartford, Connecticut - April 12, 2014

Paracon Australia - East Maitland, New South Wales, Australia - May 10-12, 2014





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