Hello friends! We're going to be doing something a little different.
Those that follow me on twitter might have already heard about my new job, but for everyone else; I am now working as a housekeeper at Hotel/Bathhouse. It is old, having been in operation since 1928, and VERY haunted. I have only been there about two weeks now and have already had several experiences. As an unexpected side effect, I have found myself inspired to write! Hotel Gothic will be a new series on this blog where I share some of the experiences that i have been having at work and some from my coworkers! I'll still continue to do my regular short stories and writing prompts, but this new project has just gotten me really amped up to write! This will be the first of many installments and i hope you enjoy
Day One: The Spirits Aren't Shy
My first day of work, my coworker told me that the hotel was haunted. This was something that i already knew; a town rumor that almost everyone was familiar with. And all though i believed her, nothing could have really prepared me for my first work shift. I had some experience housekeeping before so i was essentially just dropped off in one of the halls and left on my own. I started on the rooms at the very end of the hall and worked in complete silence.
There were no rooms rented out so when i heard the foot steps coming up the hall, i assumed it was one of the other housekeepers. I caught the silhouette of a person in the hall so i turned to great them, only to find the doorway completely empty. I peaked curiously out the door, but their was no one in the hall. I went back to my work and heard the footsteps walking back the opposite direction. It was strange but didn't bother me to much.
It happened again. I heard footsteps walking up the hall towards the room. I saw someone standing in the doorway, a different figure this time, something about the shape and colors in the corner of my vision was just off. When i turned to look the figure was gone, but i felt like i was being watched. I said a simple hello and the footsteps turned back down the hall and away from the room.
This happened a total of twelve times, in an hour. None of the presences felt hostile or even scary. If anything it just seemed like curiosity, you know "Hey, who's the new girl?". It was an interesting first day to say the least, and more activity then i had been expecting for a hotel that stays fairly busy.
Some other strange observations that don't really warrant a full story include:
-The hall will be empty but I've seen the shadows of people and animals walking back and forth on the walls
-Housekeepers will here their name being called only to be lead down an empty hallway
-three rooms (non of them close to each other) smell rotten. Not like rotten wood, or mildew, but like something inside is rotting. We've bleached every inch of these rooms, checked all the pipes and the vents, but the smell doesn't go away. The house keepers that worked there before us said they couldn't get the smell out, and claimed the housekeepers that came before them said the same thing. We try not to spend more time then we have to in those rooms
-There is a little balcony with a fire escape at the end of each hall. One of them has a glass door and i can see a black shape that always runs past. It comes into view on the left side then leaves on the left. There is a black Chow dog that like to hang out outside the hotel so i didn't think anything of it, until i was asked to vacuum that end of the hall today. I had never seen the balcony up close and i found out it is very tiny, and the stairs only go up on the left side. For someone or something to run from left to right and completely leave the view of the door, they would have to jump off the balcony
-Last but no least, the woman in white with multiple arms, that hangs out in the alley between the outdoor cabins 4 and 5. I have not seen her, but several others have
Sounds fun right?! I'll be posting another update tomorrow with a story that happened yesterday, but i figured i'd pace some of these stories out. Until next time, and thank you for reading!
