Let's Go Haunting: The Vintage Ouija Edition

The date was September 22nd. It was a breezy Saturday morning and knowing that the flea market season would soon come to an end here in Philadelphia, I decided to take a look around a few local spots.

I didn't find much, just a few records. When I was about to leave my second flea market, I spotted a sign. Across the street, tucked away just behind a sharp turn of a small residential street, was a homemade cardboard sign marked "Yard Sale." I decided to check it out before grabbing a cup of coffee. 

There was a small assortment of inexpensive dolls, scuffed and worn handbags and Christmas crafting supplies. Then, I saw it. Seemingly out of place, I found this William Fuld Talking Board.

While the Ouija board in its earliest form was born in 1890, this particular incarnation  of the Mystifying Oracle was sold to Parker Brothers in 1966.

I love the solid masonite board...

...and the cream color of the plastic message indicator...

...and the graphics with the detailed instructions on the back of the box.

Did you know that the Ouija rules state a preference to the two persons using the board being "a gentleman and a lady?"

According to the instructions, "it draws two people using it into close companionship and weaves about them a feeling of mysterious isolation..."

And in keeping with the mysterious, above all else I love this flea market find because...

September 22nd, if you recall, was the start of the autumnal equinox. Yes, I bought a vintage Ouija board.... secondhand... from some random yard sale...on the autumnal equinox---the celestial equilibrium between day and night.

OOOOHHHH creepy. Of course, you know my theories on secondhand scares and personal the imprint of the former owners. And with me bringing a secondhand Ouija board into the house, I feel like I'm just sending an open invitation to any ghost who just happens to be hanging 'round the neighborhood. Well, it is October after all.

Incidentally, this is how Regan's problems started. Just saying...

William Fuld Talking Board Ouija, 1966: $2

Ghost: Free with purchase

Secondhand Scares: Have You Been Haunted?

As many of you might know, I'm a big fan of horror movies. From cult classics and 70s slashers to the supernatural, I love the adrenaline rush of a good scare. (Or at the very least, a good laugh from an impeccably baaaaaaddddd horror movie. And there are many titles that fall into the latter).

But this weekend, a new horror movie hit the theaters, one which I am really intrigued by and am eager to watch. The Possession is the story of a young girl plagued by demonic spirits after buying a mysterious box. And while I was originally skeptical of the often-used tagline, "Based on a true story," I did my homework. And the described events that inspired The Possession are disturbing. 

Now. Before I lose my core readership, let me just point out that in both the backstory of events surrounding the "dibbuk box" and in the inspired movie that resulted...the supernatural experiences were provoked by a...secondhand purchase.

While I try not to let my open-mindedness cloud my better judgment in matters such as these, I have to to admit a personally long-held theory when it comes to shopping secondhand. 

I believe relics of the past hold a personal history. They are a token of a time and a place. But I also believe these items have an imprint from the previous owner and that my new ownership is just resuscitating a life that was already lived in that item. I'm not sure if that makes sense to anyone other than myself. But, hey! That's me.

But all that being said, is it possible to go to a flea market or a thrift store or an estate sale and bring back more than a memento from the past? Is it possible to bring back something...ominous? Something haunted? 

What do you think? Have you ever felt uneasy or even haunted by an item you've bought secondhand? 

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