If the ghost existed, he'd be disappointed too.

I live in a spooky old house on the west side of town, and I love it.

And when people see my house, they always ask me

“Is your house haunted?”

And of course, I always answer yes.

Because it is.

I love ghost stories. And our quaint, little town of Pocatello, which was founded in 1889, has an interesting past that lends itself to good old-fashioned haunts.

And when you grow up in Poky as I did, the chilling tales of our town’s haunted landmarks become inescapable.

So when I ran across an article on the Local News 8 website titled “Paranormal Poky-Chilling Footage Could Explain Decades of Ghost Stories”, I was stoked. Then I found out the article and accompanying footage had made national news. Our little town had hit the big time!

The wheels in my brain began to twist and groan, because you know I’m all about showcasing Poky, and so I started to think:

“Maybe some reality TV show like Ghost Hunters will hear about this and feature Poky High on an upcoming episode.”

I mean, one can dream right? After all, this story had gained national attention!

And people love ghost stories. In fact, this genre is becoming so popular people are now booking haunted vacations.

I thought, “Maybe this article could spark enough interest to gain some REAL attention.”

And a bit of attention would be great for Poky, right? Right.

But then I read the article. Dreams shattered.

First off, if you are going to write an article about a ghost story, have a ghost story. Unfortunately, all we get is a hodge-podge of Poky High history, sprinkled with a bit of shady testimony from a local paranormal research team, followed by some unprofessional, grainy surveillance footage…of nothing.

Second, where’s the beef? The title suggests the “footage is going to explain decades of ghost stories”, but these decades of stories are never discussed. I want the stories. That’s the draw! We don’t need a resolution if we don’t have a problem. I don’t need to see video footage of a ghost that doesn’t exist, at least in myth and legend.

And lastly, the footage sucks. We’re a visual society. We believe what we see. So regardless of how crappy your article is, if you have a halfway decent shot of something that can’t quite be explained, I’m all in! But they didn't. They had this.

Now I’ll admit, I could see lights flicker and some sort of shadowy haze moving about the screen, but it happened 1:28 seconds into the 1:49 second video. WHAT!? I can’t even believe I watched that far. It’s called editing.

Bottom line, this article was a tease and a disappointment. A tease because it didn’t come through on what it had promised, and a disappointment because it lacked the two most important aspects of any good ghost story, haunting images and chilling narrative.

Now one might argue that anytime you’re writing an article about paranormal activity, it’s hard to be taken seriously. But I would disagree.

There are plenty of websites and articles showcasing spooky abandoned places and paranormal activity that actually cultivate interest in the locations and stories they describe.

Like this abandoned Wizard of Oz Theme Park in North Carolina. Who knew this existed? Well now I do, and I want to go!

These websites suck the reader in with images and videos that provide detail. Detail. Precisely what the Local News 8 article lacked.

Now before I dig myself too far into this pessimistic grave, I will say that I did enjoy one aspect of the article…the end. And not just because it was over, but because it finally touched on the most important aspect of all of this ghost story mumbo-jumbo; it all comes back to history.

I have no doubt that there are many past-Pocatellans who love this town so much, they don’t ever want to leave. And their spirits share the halls of our schools, the barstool next to us at the local pub; maybe even watch us while we sleep.

So although this article and accompanying footage didn't showcase any real evidence (or story), at least it got me thinking about the historical aspect of this town I love so much. And that’s important. Because without our history we have no insight into what we were or what we can become.

I know Halloween is long past, but I’m back in ghost mode. And this creepy, hundred year old dwelling that I call my home is going to be the site of investigation. Yep, I am officially a ghost hunter.

And I challenge you to do the same.

Check out some of Poky's oldest buildings at this weeks Old Town First Friday Art Walk. Take a real good look at the windows of that old abandoned storefront, you just might see someone peering back.

And be camera ready!

Let’s get some remarkable ghost footage and really put Pocatello on the paranormal map.

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