The Johnson House Ghost

With an iPad I can now draw in bad light. It used to be that I was always looking for the best light to draw in, but with my electronic paper I am now looking for the lowest light.  

This means that I can spend a lot of time drawing  in bed at night. After Sandi has gone to sleep I can easily draw and sketch for another couple of hours.  Usually I have music or talk radio going on softly in the background.  I have been known to wake up in the middle of the night with an iPad flat against my chest. I can always find the final mark trailing off the screen that I made before falling asleep.

Last night after 1:00am there was a "click" and the radio went off along with everything in the house. The safety lights went on and my iPad was like a beacon.  I wondered it if was just my house or the entire neighborhood that had lost power.  I got up and walked to the front of the house to see if the street lamp was on.  It was easy just to let the iPad light my path.  

Just before entering the den I felt something brush against my leg. I figured it was my dog Boo. She usually follows me when I get up at night. I had taken her collar off for her to sleep.  The jingle of the tags helps me keep track of her at times like this, but at this moment I was not sure where she was.

I lowered my iPad light source to shine on the floor as I continued into the den but couldn't locate the dog.

I said, "Boo..... Booo" and heard a rustle ahead of me.  I shined the iPad toward the source of the sound which was followed by a yell that did not come from a dog.  I responded with a startled yell, which was followed by an expletive from the darkness.

It was my son Taylor who had fallen asleep on the couch. He woke up just in time to hear something say Boo accompanied by a floating glow in complete darkness.  

At the time this is the picture that I was drawing and what my son saw in the darkness.  

It was not funny at the time as he thought I did  it on purpose. It was not until the next morning that we straightened out the actual events.  It was a neighborhood break in service that lasted an hour.  For me and Taylor one moment of that hour will be remembered for a long time.

As you were,

Jay