Author: Stacy Horn

Years ago I posted a ghost story on my blog for my book Unbelievable: Investigations into Ghosts, Poltergeists, Telepathy, and Other Unseen Phenomena from the Duke Parapsychology Laboratory. A ghost was said to haunt a building on Bank Street in the West Village, a few blocks from where I live. The picture you see here is of a tin of ashes that I scanned from one of Hans Holzer’s books (a once famous ghost hunter). The ashes fell from the ceiling in the Bank Street Building and belonged to Elizabeth Bullock, who everyone believed was the ghost who haunted the building.

Because I live when I do, and have things like the internet, I was able to find out more about Elizabeth Bullock and everyone else connected with this story than they were able to when the story broke in the 1960’s. I could probably find out more now, come to think of it. I love this kind of thing. I could research stories like this all day long, every day.

It’s ultimately a sad story, as ghost stories so frequently are. If you start looking you’ll find that beneath the scariness is almost always love and loss. You can read what I discovered here.

Because he got to curl up with Bleecker.

Visited Bloomingdales on my way back from the Weill Cornell Medicine Archives. It was a nostalgia stop, I used to shop there in the 1980s. Weirdly, it has hardly changed, except I couldn’t get on the subway from within the store, unless I forgot and went the wrong way. I planned to take more pictures but I was only inspired the the art deco elevator doors.

It’s time for the Choral Society of Grace Church Holiday Concert! This year we’re singing a wonderful selection of music spanning six centuries including Bach’s Cantata No. 34, my favorites Palestrina and Victoria, and many others along with our regular audience carol sing. If you buy tickets from me, you get a discount (they’re $25 vs $30). Just let me know how many tickets you would like and for which performance, the dates and times are below:

Friday, November 30, 8:00pm, Saturday, December 1, 3:00pm
10th Street and Broadway

This one was from the Haunted Subway in Union Square. This scary ass clown tried to high five me. I declined. Which cracked up the people around me. But come on. Look at him!!

Mummies. More haunting, and poignant, than scary.

One of my favorite decorations, which was part of a larger display which you’ll see below. But even then not the whole thing.

Why oh why must animals die?? I even feel for dead rats. When they run around on the subway tracks I always think, ‘please be careful, rats!’

This clown was on Charles Street last year, at the building which always has among the best decorations. I think someone different did them this year though.

This was another good one. Hands coming up of out a sidewalk basement grate.

Pumpkins! I didn’t see a lot of carved pumpkins this year, which was weird. Maybe people have gotten tired of having to pick up a rotten pumpkins later.

A more serious photographer taking a picture of the display which included those skeleton birds above (in the middle right of this shot). FYI: This is the Perry Street Sex and the City block.