In the spirit of Halloween...

Having just read a rather creepy article on Cracked.com, I now give you the urban legends of our time that are completely true. Enjoy.

1. The feeling of being watched.

You all know the feeling. You're alone in your house, and suddenly, you just feel like someone is there. You can ignore it and rationalize it all you want, but it doesn't go away. The creepy part is that sometimes... you may actually be being watched. A man had this happen several times, and so, when he went to work, he set up cameras in the style of Paranormal. He then watched the tapes when he came home, and had the scare of his life. Nothing for a while, then a surprise. A woman walked out of his pantry, did some things around the house, and went back into the pantry, and did not come out again... the pantry that was literally inches from where he sat watching the video. A quick search discovered her, and he found that apparently she had been in the house for over a year, eating and showering while he was at work.

2. The body in the hotel bed.

An often-cited story that winds up at every campfire party. A couple rents a hotel room, and it smells funny, but they don't want to complain about it, so they just sleep and change the sheets the next morning. What they find is a tangle of rotting flesh, bones, and clothes under the mattress. This actually happens more than you might expect; a motel mattress is a great place to hide your dead body if you think about it.

3. The man-eating escalator.

Sure, we've all feared that machine of metal that carries our lazy rear ends to the next level when we were little, but we're mature enough to know that it's an irrational fear, right? Wrong. The contraptions known as escalators thirst for human blood. No joke. On several occasions, shoelaces have been caught in the joints and crevices, and people have bent to get them out. I can't stress this next part enough: do not, on any account, try to get them out with your hands unless you want a few less fingers. Escalators have minds of their own, and will not hesitate to rip your fingers from your hand. To quote a nationally-certified escalator safety manager: "It's unbelievable what an escalator can do to human flesh."

People have died by strangulation as well when their hoods are caught in the system. People have lost pieces of feet, toes, and hands to these things. Maybe a ski lift made from chainsaws will be next.

So, now that I've made you wince at least once, happy Halloween!