‘I ain’t ‘fraid of no ghost’

I’m starting to believe in ghosts. In fact, I think I have proof that we have one in our house. Oh, it’s friendly enough, but still a ghost.

Our long time family pet, Nittany, died in February. In the last week alone, my wife has twice found wisps of wavy white hair. Nittany was a Lhasa-Apsa – Bichon Frise and had white and black fur. Throughout her life, we kept her trimmed and she rarely shed like most dogs. Despite that, my wife found a long wisp on our stairs and later in our kitchen. We’re pretty meticulous about cleaning, so it’s kind of shocking that we would find Nittany hair now.

The hair could be from anywhere. Maybe the hair was stubborn leftovers. But it gets better.

Doing doggie business

The other morning, I woke up kind of early. I heard our neighbor’s car start up and pull away. He normally leaves for work around 4:30 a.m. so I knew I still had an hour or so to sleep in. Next I heard the pitter patter of tiny paws and scratching at the door. “Nittany, go back to bed,” I said. The reality of the words hit me as soon as they were out of my mouth.

I popped out of bed and I ran downstairs. I saw nothing. I wasn’t sure what I was expecting, but I turned and went back to bed. Sure enough, I heard the pitter patter again. When I got up later, the only thing I could find was a grocery bag that had made its way from our kitchen to the living room.

Doggie dinner

Finally, one last ghost story. When Nittany died, I put her water and food bowls in our garage. I didn’t want to see them everyday and have a constant reminder of what we were missing. When I take the garbage out now, I’ll routinely look down at them. “Miss you girl” I’ll say to myself.

I went into the garage this week and looked down, the bowls were missing. I didn’t throw them out. Where did they go? I turned on the light and looked closer. They weren’t where I had left them. A quick search showed that they had been moved closer to a sunny spot near the door. Nittany liked to be near the sun. She used to like to look out the window and catch a few rays of sun. It was her favorite spot.

When I walked in the house, I asked my wife if she had moved the bowls. She shook her head. She didn’t even know what I had done with them. I asked my son. I thought maybe since he’s been home, he might have moved them. Nope, he hasn’t even gone to the garage. No one else has been in the house.

Insert scary horror music here.

I’m like Ray Parker Jr. singing the song Ghostbusters, “I ain’t ‘fraid of no ghost.” Come out, come out wherever you are. Of course, if it’s not her, I could be in real trouble.

I’ve got a Ghost Doggie on the loose!

Images are from Pexels.