spookies,ghosts,poltergiests, we've all heard the names that people make up for them. we've also seen the completely fake image that hollywood imposes. however ghosts are nothing like what hollywood makes them out to be. ghosts come in may shapes and forms, and can be investigated with many tools.

****DIFFERENT TYPES OF SPIRITS***

*residual: the spirit may be seen in one place at many times doing the same thing over and over again. for example, at night you might see a lady walking up and down the steps over and over. battlefields may be a good example.

*anniversery: spirits come back to one place on a certain night. for example a lady that used to live in a house before she died might return on the night of her birthday every year because the house held importance to her.

*intelligent:spirit may interact with humans, or make its prescence known. it may seem to be a type of poltergeist as it may move things or cause odors to appear in a certain area.This, however, is only to make its prescence known.

*Poltergeist: german for "noisy spirit". These spirits may turn lights on and off, close and open doors, throw things, or physically harm a person.  these spirits may not generally be evil, they are just active and want to make their prescence known.Places of Strong emotion generally attract hauntings.

***STAGES OF A HAUNTING***

~STAGE 1:mainly revolves around the senses:occurences include cold spots,strange noises,odd odors and smells, hearing footsteps, unusual animal activity (dogs/cats running from room etc.),feelings of being watched....

~STAGE 2:stage 1 becomes more direct:occurences include:whispers,laughs or giggles; moans or shreaking; moving shadows; breezes in closed areas; visible clouds (base apparations); strong static electricity; markings on floors or walls(not writings)

~STAGE 3:begins to be hard not to notice things in stages 1 and 2. cant dismiss it as a mind trick:occurences include: lights and other electrical appliances turning on/off; unseen hands grabbing/touching people; writings on walls or pattern markings; doors that open/close or lock/unlock; hearing voices or words clearly; full apparations or dark figures; showing levels of communication with people.

~STAGE 4: all of this activity becomes much more dangereous:occurences include: flying or moving objects; objects dissapearing and reappearing elsewhere; shaking furniture; shaking or pushing people; household objects breaking for no reason; levitation.

~STAGE 5:take this stage very seriously, the poltergeist is at its highest energy level and should be considered very dangereous. it may not nessecarily want to hurt you, but it may involuntarily because of the high energy level.  occurences include: dangereous activity; biting, slapping,or punching; animating objects; use of household systems; hair pulled; heavy objects falling.

****TYPES OF SPIRIT ENERGY****

~ORBS/SPHERE:circles of energy. more commonly called simply orbs. most common in photographs. be careful not to get a false "spookie" in photos, as it could be dust on the camera lens or rain.

~ECTO/MIST:long white swirls, or a cloud like apparation.

~VORTEX/VORTICES:swirling column of light(usually verticle) false spookies could occur if that in fact in the photos turns out not to be a vortex, but your camera strap!

*FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS!*

CAN SPIRITS HURT ME?

~yes they can, but most of the time the spirits you will encounter are non violent. if you should encounter a violent spirit, do not taunt, or aggrivate it. should things turn physical, for example you getting  hit, that is when you should leave the area, before you leave be sure that you tell the spirit that you meant no harm and they should stay there because they can sometimes attach themselves to you, or an object. also, there is the danger of posession, this is a very real danger and should be taken seriously. poltergeists can be violent, but not always. ghost can be, as they are the same as ghosts as their disposition was on earth. if they were mean and evil spirited in life, they will continue to be.

WHAT ARE SOME OF THE TYPES OF GHOSTS?

~ghosts,poltergeists,residual,anniversery, intelligent. for a full definition of each, see above.

WHEN IS THE BEST TIME TO GO GHOST HUNTING?

~between 9 PM and 6 AM. 2AM to 3AM being the peak times for activity. however, it is important to know that you can always go ghost hunting, even during the day time.

WHAT DO I NEED TO BRING WITH ME?

~ i would suggest you bring the following common items:

*extra batteries  just in case your taperecorder or video camera or even camera (if youre not using throw away) runs out of batteries.

*flashlight if its night time when you go

*tape recorder/tapes for EVPS.

*video camera to record the experience

*camera and film for your investigation!

*notepad to record everything in... area, time, what was seen,where, and when. weather conditions too are  very important.

*tote bag to carry it all in

*compass :any abnormal ghost activity will make the compass point at least 30 degreez from magnetic north.

*first aid kit: just in case!

*watch~ so you can keep accurate notes of what happened and when exactly it happened.

*proper clothes: dont wear anything binding or tight.dress for the weather.

*id:just in case the authorities should ask for it, say if you were trespassing and got caught. make sure you abide by all laws as it makes other investigators look bad as well.

*extra film and tapes: just in case!

*candles and matches: just in case your flashlight goes out. lanterns work well.i wouldnt reccomend a kersone lamp unless its all you have.

*cell phone: just in case your car should run out of gas or quit on you, or you should need immediate help for any reason.

*gas for your car: keep it in the back of your trunk just in case

for the more advanced hunter:

* EMF DETECTOR: ghostly activity will disturn EMF fields.you can usually tell if there is a ghostly prescence by fluctuations in EMF readings in an area. major appliances, electrical lines, power lines, and major appliances can also set off high EMF readings so make sure you know where those things are as you don't want to get a false reading.

*Motion Detectors:good for spirits that you cant see to detect ghostly prescences. make sure you place it strategically out of the way of tree limbs, etc. Those things could set off the motion detector and make you think somethings there that isn't.

*Thermometer: good for indoor/outdoors. Doesn't really matter. if you should encounter an area thats abnormally cold you will want to investigate it more thoroughly, as this is a sign of a spiritual prescence. make sure,however, that this area and only this area is cold, for example, a certain area of a room that is otherwise toasty being freezing. that is cause for investigation.

*Hand Held Radios: good for keeping in touch and investigating with a group. NEVER GO ALONE! this is especially useful if everyone in your group doesn't have a cell phone, or they dont have coverage in the area you're investigating.

        *****WARNINGS*****

#1: NEVER GO ALONE!: ghost hunting is difficult and dangerous. theres always more of a chance of getting a more accurate picture or EVP if you have at least one more person with you. for example,  you could take pictures while the other person does an EVP. just not huge groups, i'd say no more then 5 at a time. 5 is a good estimate.

#2: never play around with Quija boards. those things are just plain bad. you may invoke a spirit with it and not set it free and it may make a place haunted. or for example, you may not know what youre invoking and it may hurt you. these things are NOT a joke. don't be stupid and test your luck because one day it might run out.

#3:don't do spells, etc. this sends off energy and attracts spirits. i myself dont know if spells actually do anything or not, but a friend of mine did one and it supposedly backfired on her. it also may anger the spirits present. don't mess around in stuff you don't know about, period. thats just common sense.

#4: don't taunt or disrespect the spirit. if it isnt already violent it may turn violent. these things CAN hurt you. always be respectful of the spirit and the area it inhabits.