[steven]

I frequently go to a closed down school because I can use it to build stuff or work on things that I would normally not be able to do in my apartment. I've been there at all hours of the day and all hours of the night. It's in the middle of the mountains and is a Taisho era school. Driving up to it at night with my headlights on, I can tell it has that tetxbook haunted house feel to it (and looks like something out of resident evil 4). Someone else who goes there is a carpentar, and sometimes her machines turn on for seemingly no reason... Also, one night I was loading some tatami into a room and for the first time I had the distinct feeling I wasn't alone. I was holding a big tatami mat (one of the bigger sizes). It's not like the new kind with styrafoam and stuff in the middle. If it had anything in the middle it was like solid wood. It was mostly grass that they actually make tatami out of. It seemed so heavy... but I had that weird feeling that I wasn't alone so I didn't wanna walk too quickly with it in my hands. Once I got it to its destination and set it down, I went to grab another mat. The feeling was gone. As I walked into the room with the other mat, I saw two lizards crawling out of the mat I had just carried before.

I totally do not believe in the "paranormal" and think there are always reasons for these things. I probably subconsciously knew the lizards were there by their smell and breathing and slight movement. The machines turning on without reason are probably due to electricity flowing into them. It's nothing to be afraid of. In fact, I would argue that it's a way to make money for some people. I think that there may be some people who believe really strongly in the paranormal, but I think that has to do with chemicals in the brain. If you've had a lot of relatives pass away recently, then you're bound to be looking for answers or trying to communicate with them. That's where the money taking and schemesters come into play.

My wife believes in ghosts and stuff a little bit... so I think she doesn't like the place I go to (when I go at night)... but frankly, I would be more worried about the wild dog that got upstairs at around midnight one time when I went there. There are also bears and things, too. In the cities, you have a bunch of weirdo people. Whether you live in the city or a more country area, there are always more important things to worry about then the "paranormal", which may or may not exist (evidence?). Frankly, I am a little let down in how seriously a lot of Japanese believe in this kind of stuff!