A Ghost Story

In honor of Halloween, here is a spine tingling tale for your reading pleasure. This story is NOT for children.

The Drive

As he climbed into his car after pulling a 12 hour stretch, all Chase could think was how much he hated this shift. The clock in his car said 2:55 AM and Chase just wanted to go home and collapse into his bed. Ten more minutes and he would be able to do just that. Given the hour the roads were deserted which was just fine with Chase. Part of his route included a lonely quarter mile stretch with only empty fields and one abandoned house. Of course, there was a story about this house as there usually is. Chase didn't know the details having only lived in the area for six months. Rumors were that a gruesome murder had taken place inside, thus leaving the house haunted and uninhabitable. Chase thought it was a crap story invented to keep trespassers away from the crumbling structure. He was wrong.

As he approached the house, the clock tripped over to 3:00 AM. Chase rubbed the back of his neck and wished again for his warm bed. The temperature seemed to be falling and Chase shivered as he reached out to turn up the heat. A moment later he slammed on his brakes as a deer darted across the road. He sat for a moment, making sure the deer hadn't brought along any friends. A movement in the rear view mirror had him glancing up. At first his mind couldn't comprehend what he saw. But it only took a split second for his blood to freeze.

There was a girl sitting in his backseat. His mind registered the long brown hair, the big eyes, the pale skin, even the pink shirt. He saw it all, couldn't tear his eyes away, but even as he stared she changed. Her eyes darkened. Her skin, already impossibly pale became whiter until it almost seemed to glow. She lifted one pale hand, pressing it to her chest. As she pulled it away, red began to spread across the pink of her shirt. As Chase stared helplessly, unable to move or speak, she lifted the hand to her throat. Blood began pouring through her fingers. Her mouth gaped as more blood dribbled through her lips. Her other hand reached up, reached toward Chase's reflection in the mirror. Her fingers curled and the dashboard lights glinted on a silver ring on her thumb. Her eyes met Chase's for the briefest of seconds, then she was gone. Just gone.

Chase's heart pounded, his palms sweated. He was scared to turn around. He was more scared not to. Very slowly he shifted, turning carefully. He swallowed hard then made himself look. There was nothing there of course. No girl. No blood. Chase swiveled back to the wheel and stomped on the gas. He didn't know what he had just seen and he didn't want to wait around to find out. But he no longer doubted the rumors.



Carving pumpkins as a family tradition

Guest post written by Kelly Herman

One of our family's fall traditions is to make a whole Saturday out of picking pumpkins to carve, carving them and then baking the pumpkin seeds to eat afterwards. I used to do it with my family when I was growing up and always looked forward to it. So I decided to start doing this tradition with my family too. It's quite a hit and the kids always start asking when we're going to do it once I start making them wear jackets to school again. I guess they know that it's about that time then!
Even after all of those pupmkins that I've carved, I'm still not very good at making the designs myself, so I always make templates from pictures that I fidn on the computer. I looked up some different themes with our wireless internet Nashville this year to carve on the pumpkins. I found all kinds of stuff, even a transformer for my son.
As soon as I started traciing the transformer on the pumpkin, I knew that it was going to be quite a task to actually carve out so I left that to my husband.

Dog makes 6?

Our dog snapped her leash and ran away nearly a month ago and we haven't been able to find her. The kids still occasionally ask where she is and when/if she's coming back. My 3 year old keeps telling me he needs a doggie to play with. My 4 year old recently pleaded for a Spitz puppy. My husband, however, claims he is enjoying not having the responsibilities of a dog. But I'll give you 2 guesses who was recently checking out available dogs... Yep.

So, where do we go from here? After a month, realistically I don't believe we'll ever find Bella. So do we start looking for a new dog? And if so, what kind and where? There are a lot of things to think about when you consider adopting a dog. The only thing I know for certain is that it darn sure won't be a chiuahuah or any other rat sized dog. A, it would never survive with 3 very enthusiastic kids. And B, I just don't like them. Jeff Dunham once said something like if it bounces when it barks, it's not a dog. I agree.

On the other hand, I've got a baby crawling around. I love big dogs, but some of them don't realize how big they are, especially when compared to a baby. I know some are gentle giants though. My fur-niece Maggie is a perfect example. She's a Golden Retriever and one of the most awesome, gentlest creatures I have ever met. But not all big dogs are as wonderful as Maggie.

So, maybe a medium sized dog.
But what kind? And from where? In theory, adopting a rescue dog is wonderful. But how do you know if it's a good rescue? How do you know if you can trust them when they say the dog is good with kids? But we want to avoid puppy mills and bad breeders. As for what kind, I'm pretty open. I have no problem with mixed breeds, mutts are awesome. I do have an issue with a mixed breed  being given a cutesy name and a huge price tag though. 

So, as I said there's a lot to think about. But that's ok, this isn't a decision to make hastily and with little thought. When the right dog for us comes along, we'll know.