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Candy Man

By jennie
(1 stories) (9 posts) (the author is a middle age adult)
Date: 2016-06-30
Country: Australia
Paranormal Category: Apparitions / Voices / Touches

This happened about 4 years ago. I was sharing a house with a friend and her two teenage daughters. There was a lot of ghostly activity at this house. For example, if you had a shower at night the light in the bathroom would always turn off, things would spontaneously fall off benches, things like that.

The house was made of bricks and the windows were high up, impossible to reach without a ladder.

One afternoon the youngest daughter asked me if I had seen the movie called Candy Man. In the movie if you look into a mirror and say candy man three times the 'candy man' appears and does bad things. Anyway the daughter asked me if I would look into a mirror and say candy man three times, which I would not.

These girls loved playing practical jokes, and I heard them whispering to each other. Then the youngest came into the kitchen, where I was, and asked me to say candy man into the mirror. I wouldn't so she said "Just say it once." I was aware that the eldest daughter was in the adjoining hallway so I knew one of their tricks was about to happen. So to make them happy I said candy man into the mirror once. Instantly their was a banging noise. The eldest daughter came into the kitchen, looking terrified and said "That wasn't me". She had tears in her eyes and had gone pale. I decided to play it down and told them not to worry about it and went about my business.

The girls wouldn't calm down and wanted all of us to hold hands and say "You are not welcomed in this house." So we did, almost as soon as we said this there was three loud bangs on the wall, very loud and so violent it made the window panes shake.

We had three dogs out the back and during this they didn't bark, which ruled out anybody outside doing this. And being a brick house, no human could bang on it that hard (we tried at a later date).

So anyway, all three of us panicked, we ran outside and just stared at each other crying, then we prayed. Needless to say, we never said the word candy man in that house again.

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Comments about this paranormal experience

The following comments are submitted by users of this site and are not official positions by yourghoststories.com. Please read our guidelines and the previous posts before posting. The author, jennie, has the following expectation about your feedback: I will read the comments and participate in the discussion.

Jubeele (26 stories) (899 posts)

7 years ago (2017-09-22)

Jennie, I just want to reassure you that saying the name multiple times doesn't result in anything untoward. The movie was based on a short story by Clive Barker. Totally make-believe. I've had people who tried to spook me that way when the movie came out in 1992. Nothing weird or scary happened to us as a direct result of it. If it makes you or the girls feel better, the ritual in the story states it has to be said 5 times, not 3.
I agree with Biblio that the banging could very well be hammering in the pipes. That happens at the kitchen at my workplace and I certainly jumped the first time I heard it.
However, there is such a thing as the power of suggestion. Dabbling in these matters while unprepared may inadvertently open the way to other unclean influences. Please take care and blessings on you.

jennie (1 stories) (9 posts)

8 years ago (2016-07-29)

Yes Bibliothecarius, the timeline is as you wrote, except I didn't think about the dogs not barking until much later. I don't live at that place anymore so its impossible for me to look into it any further, as in how bad were the leaky pipes, how much mould etc. I do know the girls didn't do the first knocks as they would have told me by now (they took great pleasure in letting you know they had fooled you) The second banging could not have been man made, the only explanation that makes sense to me is hallucination

Bibliothecarius (9 stories) (1091 posts)

9 years ago (2016-07-27)

Jennie:

Since Rook posted about his findings (he is a very good researcher; we often approach problems from opposite directions and find ourselves in agreement) I've been looking into mist and fog formation, in case I'd misunderstood. Rook's points are well-made, and clearly explained, but I still cannot find evidence of mists forming within a house, because the need for a steady airflow against a cold surface most often occurs with a window, so it appears as condensation (*literally* it is moisture which has condensed into droplets on the cooler surface). You'll have noticed this process if you've ever boiled water near a cold window. "Curse the 'dew point'" indeed!

He states, "Leaky pipes lead to a moist environment... Add a wee bit of warmth and you get Mold... Some types of mold can lead to hallucinations... Either visual or a audio..." and he is absolutely right. Look up "ergot poisoning symptoms" or "mold spore poisoning symptoms" in Google, and the first thing to pop up is the American Association of Poison Control Centers' 1-800 phone number! ANYWHERE that damp is not a good environment for human beings to breathe for an extended period. Mold may indeed have been a factor in your experiences.

Would you make sure I'm clear about the timeline of events, here: you expected a prank, and when the "punchline" of the prank manifested, the girls told you they hadn't done *that.* However, the second set of "explosive" bangs occurred when you were all holding hands and telling it that it was not welcome, you then ran outside crying, which is when you discovered that the dogs hadn't reacted to any of the events you've mentioned?

Thanks,
Biblio.

jennie (1 stories) (9 posts)

9 years ago (2016-07-27)

The first banging sounded like someone knocking loudly on a door, the second one was like explosions (there was three knocks both times, not four). I was expecting nothing more than the first knocking as this was what would normally happen, ie something strange would take place but nothing after that. I was on edge but not overly scared until the second banging. I can't speak for the girls but they appeared worried.

rookdygin (24 stories) (4458 posts)

9 years ago (2016-07-26)

Interesting point about the dogs... Pretty sure they would have heard the sound of pipes banging...

As far as the 'group audio hallucination' goes... That depends... Was everyone anticipating the response to come in the form of knocking/banging? I am not really so sure... However if everyone was 'on edge' because of the first sound then everyone's senses were heightened when the next sound happened and this may have caused it to sound... Exaggerated is a good word... So everyone got scared.

Can you remember just what each 'bang' sounded like? The first one? The last 3? If you remember the sound it made is (was) there ANYTHING in the house that could have made those two different noises?

Just a thought.

Respectfully,

Rook

Manafon1 (7 stories) (722 posts)

9 years ago (2016-07-26)

Jennie--It is possible that after hearing the first single banging sound you and the teenage girls had, in essence, created an atmosphere of "expectation" and subsequently imagined the three further knockings. This is something that is always considered by psychical researchers when investigating a potentially haunted location. Expectation shouldn't be underestimated.

If all three of you were keyed up and one of you imagined they heard something and then said, "what was that weird banging sound", it could follow that because of the expectation something was about to happen that the other two people would also "hear" the banging. It's something to consider.

jennie (1 stories) (9 posts)

9 years ago (2016-07-26)

I was making toast before the event, no water. And the white mist didn't happen before the 'Candy man' event. Like I said before, I am very happy to have a non paranormal explanation I think all of that has to be ruled out first. I find the mould comment very interesting, would a group hallucination be possible? As in the first knocking was just the pipes but then we all were expecting something scary. The dogs in the backyard didn't hear anything as they were not barking.

rookdygin (24 stories) (4458 posts)

9 years ago (2016-07-26)

jennie,

Sounds like the girls were trying to 'prank you' and that on the second attempt you decided to 'play along'...

"Then the youngest came into the kitchen, where I was, and asked me to say candy man into the mirror. I wouldn't so she said "Just say it once." I was aware that the eldest daughter was in the adjoining hallway so I knew one of their tricks was about to happen. So to make them happy I said candy man into the mirror once."

Or did I read that wrong... Anyway here are a few questions and a possibility or two...

What were you doing in the Kitchen at this time? If you were doing something in the sink, something that involved H20? If so is the house on a public water system or on a well? If public is it kept in a water tower?

Sorry about all the 'H2O questions but if an air bubble (s) developed in the water line then there is a chance you could have experienced a 'water hammer' effect which caused the thumping you heard... Just a 'bad timing' thing.

You mentioned in your comment that the home was...

" This was a badly built house with pipe leakage under the house so that could explain other things that happened there."

Leaky pipes lead to a moist environment... Add a wee bit of warmth and you get Mold... Some types of mold can lead to hallucinations... Either visual or a audio... And if the temperature difference is enough possible a 'fog or mist' could form in the home... Curse the 'dew point'.

I am not saying this is what you, and others experienced in the home, however, as it has been pointed out, ALL natural explanations have to be considered.

Respectfully,

Rook

Manafon1 (7 stories) (722 posts)

9 years ago (2016-07-26)

Hi Jennie--I wanted to agree with Biblio's comment. I certainly wouldn't have been offering up possible alternative explanations to your account had you mentioned the white mist preceding other "ghostly events". That said, you do mention in the same comment that, "This was a badly built house with pipe leakage under the house". This could explain at least some of the sounds you heard.

Your added information does lead one to believe that the bangings heard in conjunction with your use of the words "Candy Man" and the subsequent bangs after the three of you told the unseen presence that it wasn't welcome, that something paranormal was probably taking place.

Bibliothecarius (9 stories) (1091 posts)

9 years ago (2016-07-26)

Jennie:

I think you got quite a few responses immediately, Jennie, because it read like you were giving precise details in an honest and straightforward manner. As far as I can tell, we ALL believe your description of the events.

I am going to provide a gentle critique, here (if you'll permit me), about your response in which you mention "preceded by a white mist in the kitchen." In journalism, putting a vital fact in paragraph two or three is called "burying the lead," as in "this information should be in the first paragraph, leading people to read the article." Now, this mist apparently did not occur during the "Candy Man" events, but a passing mention of it would have given us more pause for thought before supplying "normal" explanations.

Mists do not form naturally WITHIN houses. (This is an OVERSIMPLIFIED explanation.) Mists may form outside and enter through an open door or window, but mists need damp ground or water to form as the cooling of air produces moisture droplets BUT the damp surface beneath does not absorb the moisture immediately, so it starts to collect while suspended in the air.

If we'd had that mist information first, perhaps fewer of us would have tried to debunk your narrative. I admitted that "I cannot account for the banging noise's return, nor its intensity, during the prayer to expel it." Sometimes, --and I know this from first-hand experiences-- the most frustrating thing is to have an experience which could be explained/debunked, despite your knowing that the sensible explanation doesn't quite fit the experience.

Thanks for the clarification, and I'm going to agree with Valkricry's initial response.

Best,
Biblio.

jennie (1 stories) (9 posts)

9 years ago (2016-07-26)

Thanks for all your responses. I would be more than happy to put a man made explanation to this and it is possible, but the timing was very freaky. This was a badly built house with pipe leakage under the house so that could explain other things that happened there. I really think it was something letting us know it wasn't to be messed with. During other ghosty events in that house they would always be preceded by a white mist in the kitchen, but all the other activity could be explained, like from teenagers over active imaginations.

Bibliothecarius (9 stories) (1091 posts)

9 years ago (2016-07-25)

Greetings, Jennie:

I'm going to endorse Manafon's initial response, because coincidences sometimes occur which appear to be confirmation of the paranormal because our minds are anticipating a reaction (in this case, you were expecting to be the victim of a practical joke). The unexpected event which scared the kids may have multiple explanations, such as air in the water pipes. That said, I cannot account for the banging noise's return, nor its intensity, during the prayer to expel it.

Interesting account.
-Biblio.

Manafon1 (7 stories) (722 posts)

9 years ago (2016-07-25)

Shelbyloree--Poltergeist activity does indeed seem to occur most often in households with kids going through puberty. Reported poltergeist activity does seem to occur more frequently with girls than with boys but as only a limited number of families who have experienced poltergeist activity actually report it, the numbers are probably more evenly spread than is usually assumed. Certainly in psychical literature the reports are surprisingly even.

To consider four knocks, with no further sounds/ movement of objects/other sounds, to be a poltergeist is assuming too much. I think the knocks in this account are too brief to be considered a poltergeist case. It could be paranormal, as the timing was instantaneous but it could also have been a natural or man made phenomenon (if it was the result of an underground percussion).

shelbyloree (5 stories) (285 posts)

9 years ago (2016-07-25)

Probably poltergeist. Teenage girls tend to trigger those. Cause things to fall off shelves, bangs, etc. Subconsciously. Plus they had seen the movie, knew the 'pattern' and so on.

Manafon1 (7 stories) (722 posts)

9 years ago (2016-07-25)

Hi jennie--Your story was interesting and I can see why you and your friends daughters would have been freaked out by the loud banging. When sounds like bangings are heard in reported cases of paranormal activity, psychical researchers always look for "normal" explanations first. There have been exhaustive research articles on natural alternative explanations for what are often considered to be paranormal sounds in the Proceedings and Journal of the Society of Psychical Research.

During periods of above normal rainfall, underground water sources can cause sounds that could easily be mistaken for footsteps, knockings and banging. If a house is built on two types of rock, one being "softer" like sandstone, there can also be minor shifting of the foundation of a house which can also cause loud bangings that would sound louder than what a person would be capable of.

If there is a quarry nearby, underground detonations are often employed which can rock nearby foundations, rattle objects and even knock items off of shelves. I experienced this once and it was truly impressive! It was later reported on the local news that an improperly large amount of explosive was used in a quarry several miles away and hundreds of homes reported bangings, knocks, china falling off of shelves and so on. Minor natural earth tremors can also cause the sound of knocking as the foundation and frame of the house shift a bit.

I just wanted to throw out a few possible alternative explanations for what the three of you experienced, especially as it seems to have effected you all so profoundly.

valkricry (49 stories) (3287 posts) mod

9 years ago (2016-07-25)

Whoa! Of course we know that 'candy man' is fictional, but this makes you wonder if something decided to teach you all a lesson about making fun of the paranormal. Thanks for sharing!

ashar123 (6 stories) (168 posts)

9 years ago (2016-07-25)

The account is bit interesting where something came true out from a movie. Thank God you all are safe and that trouble went away.

Thanks for Sharing! 😊

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