Encounters x312 - Haunted Holidays

It’s our final Encounters episode of 2025, and we’re closing out the year with a festive mix of fear and cheer. We’ve got holiday miracles, spirit helpers, cryptids crashing the Christmas party and more. Stories Include: A bouncing Christmas orb that sparks a debate on whether Santa might be a cryptid, fae, or alien. A mirror apparition caught on camera during New Year’s Eve preparations. A rescue cat whose perfectly timed arrival (and heartbreaking departure) feels guided from beyond. A Texas Bigfoot encounter, featuring trailer shaking, rock throwing, and one unforgettable stare in the moonlight. The holidays have a way of thinning the veil—and the paranormal don’t take the season off. Watch the video version here. Have ghost stories of your own? E-mail them to us at [email protected] New Episodes are released every Thursday and Sunday at 12am PST/3am EST (the witching hour, of course). Corinne and Sabrina hand select a couple of paranormal encounters from our inbox to read in each episode, from demons, to cryptids, to aliens, to creepy kids... the list goes on and on. If you have a story of your own that you'd like us to share on an upcoming episode, we invite you to email them to us! If you enjoy our show, please consider joining our Patreon, rating and reviewing on iTunes & Spotify and following us on social media! Youtube, Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and Discord. Edited by Jaimi Ryan and produced by Emma Leventer and Jaimi Ryan, original music by Arms Akimbo! Disclaimer: the use of white sage and smudging is a closed practice. If you’re looking to cleanse your space, here are some great alternatives! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:00Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  I'm so excited. I'm getting my whole body MRI scan from Prenuvo in a couple of weeks.

• 0:05Corinne Vien?

  It's honestly so important. It's like one of those things where getting older and aging has provided me so many anxieties about like what's going on.

• 0:12Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  I recently had some medical issues in my family and everyone in my family is like, let's just do everything we can to get ahead and take our own health into our own hands. Prenuvo's whole body scan is a radiation-free MRI designed to help provide a detailed, non-invasive look at your body in under an hour, and it helps evaluate across major organs and systems, including the brain, spine, abdomen, pelvis, and more. Prenuvo's whole body scan can help detect many cancers, aneurysms, and hundreds of other conditions. And they have memberships that bundle MRI scans, blood panels, and a personalized results review to track your health year after year.

• 0:47Corinne Vien?

  To learn more about Prenuvo and get $300 off your whole body MRI, go to prenuvo.com/tgog and use code TGOG. That's P-R-E-N-U-V-O.com/tgog. Terms and conditions apply.

• 1:01Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Receive $300 off Prenuvo whole body scans and executive and comprehensive memberships through January 31st. For full details, visit Prenuvo's website to read their terms and conditions and privacy notice. Prenuvo gifted me a whole body scan. A Prenuvo scan is a screening service, not diagnostic. Diagnosis and treatment are determined by your healthcare provider.

• 1:18Speaker 02

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• 2:08Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Hi, everyone.

• 2:09Corinne Vien?

  Hello.

• 2:10Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  This is Two Girls, One Ghost.

• 2:12Corinne Vien?

  Two Girls, One Ghost.

• 2:14Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  And we are your ghostesses. That is Corinne.

• 2:16Corinne Vien?

  Hello.

• 2:17Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Hi, I'm Sabrina. And this is Sven.

• 2:20Corinne Vien?

  Oh, yeah. Hi, Sven. Who's joining us?

• 2:22Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  An elf on the shelf.

• 2:24Corinne Vien?

  Who I'm ignoring because I find them very creepy.

• 2:26Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  He's been so benign. He's just hanging out.

• 2:28Corinne Vien?

  Yeah, he hasn't moved so far.

• 2:30Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  He does have very cute freckles. Look at his freckles.

• 2:32Corinne Vien?

  Oh, very, no.

• 2:35Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  They kind of look like... Like the glitter gems that you could put under your eyes.

• 2:40Corinne Vien?

  Oh, the people, like, back when everyone did that for, like, Coachella or whatever?

• 2:43Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Mm-hmm.

• 2:44Corinne Vien?

  Or, like, the year everyone went as an alien for Halloween?

• 2:46Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Oh, for Halloween, yes. I was like, when?

• 2:48Corinne Vien?

  Where?

• 2:49Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  To Coachella as an alien.

• 2:51Corinne Vien?

  It were, I mean, yeah, sure. Okay, but this is a holiday episode because it's the end of the year. And so we usually try to do encounters themed with holiday-related stories that you guys send in.

• 3:02Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Or, like, encounters that happened around the holidays.

• 3:06Corinne Vien?

  So we have those.

• 3:07Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  I picked mine so long ago that I don't remember if I went scary. I feel like it would be natural.

• 3:12Corinne Vien?

  I can't remember either.

• 3:13Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Who wants to go first? Should we rock, paper, scissors, shoot?

• 3:15Corinne Vien?

  I think I have to go first because I have four.

• 3:17Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Oh, you have four?

• 3:18Corinne Vien?

  Yeah.

• 3:19Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Oh, my God, what a treat.

• 3:20Corinne Vien?

  Some of mine are pretty short, so.

• 3:22Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Okay. I was excited to rock, paper, scissors, shoot.

• 3:24Corinne Vien?

  We can still do it.

• 3:25Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Okay, ready?

• 3:26Corinne Vien?

  Rock, paper, scissors, shoot. I go first.

• 3:31Corinne Vien?

  See, it's still fair.

• 3:32Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  I feel deflated.

• 3:34Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  But, yeah, you won. Okay, go ahead.

• 3:35Corinne Vien?

  Okay. Is Santa a cryptid, an alien, a fae? This is from Tony. Hi, ladies.

• 3:42Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Hi.

• 3:43Corinne Vien?

  I've written to y'all several times, probably enough for y'all to block me. I wouldn't blame you.

• 3:48Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  We love when you email multiple times.

• 3:50Corinne Vien?

  I know. We ask for that. Like, if you have a story, email it. However, you guys and Heart Starts Pounding, shout out to Kaylin Moore, are the only two podcasts that I've ever interacted with. Anyway, most of my experiences are with ghosts and demons. But while listening to y'all, which I do nearly every night while walking through an empty haunted building, it occurred to me.

• 4:10Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  I'm sorry, I need to know more about this.

• 4:12Corinne Vien?

  Yeah, are you... This is like a night shift job.

• 4:15Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  It must be.

• 4:17Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Probably in another one of the emails.

• 4:18Corinne Vien?

  You're very brave. It occurred to me that I have one thing that I cannot explain. Let me transport you through time to 1983, or maybe it was 84. Anyway, my parents divorced when I was very young and I spent every other weekend with my mother. This also meant that I spent every other Christmas with her. My mother stayed in a small apartment with two bedrooms. My sister and I, seven and eight at the time, shared the bedroom whose door was facing the living room. We always slept with the door cracked open and the hall light on. However, during Christmas, the tree lights sufficed for a nightlight as we could see the whole right side of the tree. On Christmas Eve, I woke up and I don't remember hearing a noise. I just woke up.

• 4:59Corinne Vien?

  I looked at the door and I saw a small little ball of light bouncing back and forth in front of our Christmas tree.

• 5:08Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Why do I feel like this is a common story we hear of hauntings around Christmas?

• 5:12Corinne Vien?

  Like the ball of light?

• 5:13Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  The ball of light specifically.

• 5:14Corinne Vien?

  My little heart jumped with fear and with joy because I just knew this had to be Santa joy. And I didn't want him to catch me peeking.

• 5:23Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Oh, so pure.

• 5:25Corinne Vien?

  I watched for a few moments and then I fell back to sleep. The next morning, I so badly wanted to tell my sister and my mom what I'd seen, but out of fear that he wouldn't come back if he knew that he had been spotted. Santa sees everything, you know? I didn't tell anyone.

• 5:40Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Oh.

• 5:41Corinne Vien?

  My mom passed away in the spring of 85, so I was never able to share my story with her. But I think she knows it now. Now, 40 years later, that memory still sticks in my mind. I think you kids call it a core memory.

• 5:54Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Us kids.

• 5:55Corinne Vien?

  Us kids. That raises my question, though. Being that I only saw a ball of light and I just knew it was Santa, does that make him a fey? Or maybe is Santa an alien? Could he be a cryptid? I mean, I definitely would consider him a cryptid. He's not.

• 6:10Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  For sure. He's a magical being.

• 6:11Corinne Vien?

  A normal human.

• 6:12Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  No.

• 6:13Corinne Vien?

  Yeah. Anyway, I hope you all have an amazing day. Please keep doing what you all do. See you on the other side. Tony.

• 6:19Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Tony, that's so special.

• 6:21Corinne Vien?

  How cool.

• 6:22Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  I love that.

• 6:23Corinne Vien?

  Around the Christmas tree too, like checking out all the ornaments, maybe like scooping out like

• 6:27Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  The cookies.

• 6:27Corinne Vien?

  The layout of like where the presents are gonna go.

• 6:31Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  That is something that I'm always impressed with Santa for doing is presenting the gifts under the tree in such a beautiful way.

• 6:38Corinne Vien?

  Yes, and like understanding the space, stacking, knowing how many presents will fit in in the corner.

• 6:44Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Santa would be the best at packing a trunk for a trip.

• 6:47Corinne Vien?

  Of course.

• 6:47Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  The Tetris game.

• 6:48Corinne Vien?

  Magical.

• 6:49Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  That was special.

• 6:51Corinne Vien?

  Yeah.

• 6:51Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Also, that just made me think about, we used to do those like Victorian candles in the windows for every Christmas. And I remember those being my nightlights for all of the winter.

• 7:00Corinne Vien?

  Oh, yeah.

• 7:01Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  And there's something so peaceful and safe.

• 7:04Corinne Vien?

  Yeah.

• 7:04Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  About that, even to this day, like I feel.

• 7:06Corinne Vien?

  Actually, my suction cups for my candles are coming in today.

• 7:10Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Oh.

• 7:10Corinne Vien?

  Just stick them on the window, because we did that too.

• 7:12Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Yeah.

• 7:13Corinne Vien?

  And I was so scared of the dark that my parents kept my candles in my.

• 7:17Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  All your own?

• 7:18Corinne Vien?

  Lights, like, yeah.

• 7:19Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  I love that.

• 7:20Corinne Vien?

  It's also like very New England.

• 7:22Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  It is very New England. It's like colonial homes.

• 7:24Corinne Vien?

  Yeah, yeah, colonial homes.

• 7:26Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Okay, this one that I picked is a New Year's story, but it also has a ghost caught on camera.

• 7:35Corinne Vien?

  Whoa.

• 7:36Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  This is from our listener Brendan. Hi ladies, I attached a photo of what appears to be a ghost or spirit of some sort that I captured on New Year's many years ago. This photo was taken of my friend holding two dogs at the time. He and I were decorating for a New Year's Eve party at my house, and he and I were the only ones home at that time. I lived in Irodonquit, New York, right near the bay of Lake Ontario, where the French landed and slaughtered the Native Americans. So, a lot of history there. I lived on high ground at the top of a big hill, and I really do believe there's a lot of bloodshed that happened in the area that I found out about later. The apparition in the photo appears to be of Native American appearance, and you can see in the photo.

• 8:20Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Also, at the time, I did not notice the ghost in the photo until I looked at it years later. I was living in the home for years, not knowing that I captured it.

• 8:29Corinne Vien?

  Oh my gosh, imagine how many people have captured things and just like never revisit the photos when they're taking. It's like you take like thirty of one photo, you just pick one.

• 8:36Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  I mean, think about art, how easy it is to take pictures now on your phone. There's so many photos that I don't go back and look at.

• 8:42Corinne Vien?

  No.

• 8:42Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  So, we're gonna pull up the picture. The ghost is captured in the mirror behind my friend on the right side of the photo. Notice how you can see the white ladder in the reflection, the shelf?

• 8:54Corinne Vien?

  Yeah.

• 8:54Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  But the ghost appears in front of it, in the reflection, in the mirror.

• 8:58Corinne Vien?

  Oh my god.

• 9:00Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  This is really gruesome, but doesn't it look like the bottom of their face is like blown off?

• 9:04Corinne Vien?

  I was thinking that exact same thing. It does look like they were shot in the face.

• 9:10Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Oh geez.

• 9:12Corinne Vien?

  And they have like long dark hair, it looks like it pulled back in like a ponytail or something. They look injured.

• 9:18Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  It's a scary image just because they do look really injured, but otherwise it looks like they're just passing through.

• 9:25Corinne Vien?

  Yeah.

• 9:25Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Like they don't seem to be interacting with Brendan or the person in the photo at all.

• 9:30Corinne Vien?

  No. Wow. They got thick hair too. Nice, healthy hairline on that spirit.

• 9:36Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  And the dogs are not reacting, like, you know, nothing odd was happening at the time.

• 9:40Corinne Vien?

  Even like the light is reflecting on its forehead. That is wild. Okay, I'm trying to like look at exactly where things are in the mirror. Oh, you know what's weird? Okay, so the ladder is to the left-hand side of the photo.

• 9:55Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Yeah.

• 9:56Corinne Vien?

  But it looks like they're coming through the door and the door is cracked right behind him, right behind his

• 10:01Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Oh, interesting.

• 10:02Corinne Vien?

  left shoulder, like right next in the mirror. It's like almost impossible, it feels like impossible for that to actually be

• 10:08Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Happening?

• 10:09Corinne Vien?

  Happening.

• 10:10Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Right. Also, just the way that mirrors work and like the way that light reflects is so crazy. Like you could literally, just those videos where people are standing in front of the mirror, covering themselves.

• 10:20Corinne Vien?

  Yeah.

• 10:20Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  But then if you're standing over here, that person can see you, your reflection in the mirror still.

• 10:25Corinne Vien?

  Yeah.

• 10:25Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  It blows my mind.

• 10:26Corinne Vien?

  I hate it. I don't understand it and it feels

• 10:30Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  It feels illegal.

• 10:31Corinne Vien?

  Scary.

• 10:32Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Yeah.

• 10:32Corinne Vien?

  It feels scary. It's like, how does the mirror know what I look like if I'm covering up the mirror?

• 10:36Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Because the light knows what you look like. And it's reflecting off of.

• 10:40Corinne Vien?

  Light, mind your business.

• 10:42Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Mind your own business.

• 10:43Corinne Vien?

  Except, mind all my business because I'm afraid of the dark, so I want you around, light.

• 10:47Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Yeah.

• 10:48Corinne Vien?

  Jeez, oh, that's so creepy.

• 10:50Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  We'll put the photo in YouTube and then we will also put it on our socials so that you can see it. Also, if you ever are looking for ghost photos, we have a highlight saved on our Instagram that has all the ghost photos. Probably not all of them we've ever talked about, but like if we share them on our story or on our feed, we'll save it in the highlights. To make it easier so you don't have to scroll back a hundred years.

• 11:16Corinne Vien?

  Okay, this is called The Christmas Mystery. Hi, ghostess, my name is Elise and I just discovered your podcast about a month ago. I've been binging it ever since and I have many stories to share with you guys, which doesn't really make sense. Because I feel like I've been a skeptic for so much of my adult life. You're right, it doesn't make total sense.

• 11:34Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  But this is, you're not the only one like this.

• 11:37Corinne Vien?

  Anyway, listening to your podcast on YouTube has helped me feel more like a believer again.

• 11:41Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Yay.

• 11:42Corinne Vien?

  I love that you think of all the ways a ghost story could be real before any of the ways that it couldn't be.

• 11:48Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  That does.

• 11:49Corinne Vien?

  I'm embracing that more now because life is short, so why not believe in the after-party?

• 11:54Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Exactly.

• 11:55Corinne Vien?

  I love calling it the after-party.

• 11:57Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  The after-party.

• 11:57Corinne Vien?

  That's great.

• 11:58Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  That's the only after-party I will go to.

• 12:00Corinne Vien?

  Yeah, oh, insane. Can you imagine having to stay up late?

• 12:05Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  It's awful.

• 12:05Corinne Vien?

  Okay, enough of my rambling and on to the story. I have a Christmas story to share with you all today. My mom told me about this a couple of years ago for the very first time. My parents were very young when they got married and they had all four of us kids back to back. So it didn't really give them much time to settle financially until, until their twenties. How young were they and how did they get money in their twenties?

• 12:27Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Could have been a typo.

• 12:29Corinne Vien?

  Maybe their thirties?

• 12:31Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  I don't know.

• 12:32Corinne Vien?

  There was one Christmas where we were so stressed and we were getting older now, I believe I was about seven. So we were at the ages where we would really be holding on to memories from our childhood. And this worried my parents. They had absolutely no money, we were in debt, they had cars repossessed. They were barely managing the roof over our heads, which was never an easy thing during the holidays. My mom was really upset because she couldn't get us many presents and was concerned about how many Santa would bring for us. It really stressed her out every time someone said, be good for Santa this year. My parents didn't tell anyone about their inability to get us anything. They spent Christmas Eve trying to come up with something to say. They were concerned, maybe Santa was also gonna run late to our house.

• 13:17Corinne Vien?

  The next morning, my mom woke up, like most parents do on Christmas Day, with all of us kids jumping on her and urging her to get down to the tree. And that is when she saw it. In our living room, surrounding our tree, were so many wrapped presents.

• 13:33Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  I'm gonna cry.

• 13:34Corinne Vien?

  My mom was stunned. She looked at my dad. He didn't know what to say. Again, they had not told a single soul that they were not able to get us any presents. My mom said that it was more presents than she had ever gotten for us before. It was just a ridiculous amount. They checked all the tags on them. Nothing. They gushed to us about how good we must have been for Santa that year.

• 13:58Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Oh.

• 13:58Corinne Vien?

  But after we were all done opening presents and we went off to play with our new gifts, my parents began checking the doors, the windows, everything. Everything was locked shut. So, how did Santa get us all of these presents? How did all these presents get into our house when all of the doors are locked? No one had a key? And there was no chimney? How did they do it? While my parents had been up for so much of the night, how did they do it without any of us hearing? My mom and my dad started calling around and asking. Everyone seemed confused. I was really shocked. My mom had never told me the secret before. When she finally did, she ended by saying that this is the strangest thing she has ever experienced. She said she still doesn't understand how, to this day, it happened.

• 14:43Corinne Vien?

  She says she thinks about it a lot.

• 14:45Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  This miracle.

• 14:46Corinne Vien?

  It's left her so stumped. So, in the spirit of believing, this is my Christmas mystery about how Santa is very, very real. From Elise.

• 14:56Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  That is beautiful.

• 14:58Corinne Vien?

  Yeah.

• 15:00Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  I have a very, this is not about Elise at all. I don't think this is true. I want to believe in the miracle too, but I just did an episode with Meredith for Rattled and Shook. And one of the stories that she shared with me was this horrifying, like right before Christmas, burglar who was going house to house and like stealing, literally the Grinch, like literally stealing all these Christmas presents and stuff. And the encounter is horrifying because he had like a gun and he was very, very scared and he was never caught. But like, he stole a bunch of gifts. And I was, I'm like, what did he do with those gifts?

• 15:34Corinne Vien?

  So what happened?

• 15:35Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  We were conspiring, like what happened to them? But I'm like, what if it was her dad?

• 15:39Corinne Vien?

  Oh my god.

• 15:41Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  And that's where all the gifts went. No, but I don't think that's true.

• 15:44Corinne Vien?

  Interesting. I don't know how this.

• 15:46Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  I'm curious how many other people have mysteries like that. Cause also as a child, or as a parent, you would never ta- tell your child that until many years later, right? Cause you want them to enjoy the miracle, enjoy the magic of Christmas, even though you as a parent are plagued by this mystery, like what the hell?

• 16:02Corinne Vien?

  Yeah, like how am I gonna address?

• 16:04Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Yeah, but I'm curious how many other people out there, how many other parents have experienced this? I like to believe it's just magic.

• 16:11Corinne Vien?

  It is magic. You know what I loved doing?

• 16:13Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  What?

• 16:14Corinne Vien?

  I should look if they have stuff like this around here too. But when I lived in Vermont, every single year, me and my mom, there was like this giant warehouse in Burlington, where all the donations of presents got sent to this one warehouse. And my mom and I would sign up for shifts. And it was so fun because it's like, you get to shop amongst all the donated things. So you'd get like your tag of what your kid wanted. And then you get to go around to like, just try to find like as much as you can for that. And I loved doing it. It was like personal shopper.

• 16:43Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  I feel like there are so many iterations of angel tree.

• 16:46Corinne Vien?

  Yeah.

• 16:46Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  If you are looking to give back this holiday season, I highly recommend finding something like an angel tree or this donation center where you can gift gifts. You can find tags of like specific gifts that specific kids want because everyone deserves to have a little magic.

• 17:04Corinne Vien?

  Also, some years, the McDonald's would have seniors. So sometimes we would pick seniors. And do gifts for seniors.

• 17:13Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  That is very special.

• 17:15Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  I'm so excited. I'm getting my whole body MRI scan from Prenewvo in a couple of weeks.

• 17:20Corinne Vien?

  It's honestly so important. It's like one of those things where getting older and aging has provided me so many anxieties about like what's going on.

• 17:27Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  I recently had some medical issues in my family and everyone in my family is like, "Let's just do everything we can to get ahead and take our own health into our own hands." Prenewvo's whole body scan is a radiation-free MRI designed to help provide a detailed, non-invasive look at your body in under an hour, and it helps evaluate across major organs and systems, including the brain, spine, abdomen, pelvis, and more. Prenewvo's whole body scan can help detect many cancers, aneurysms, and hundreds of other conditions. And they have memberships that bundle MRI scans, blood panels, and a personalized results review to track your health year after year.

• 18:02Corinne Vien?

  To learn more about Prenewvo and get $300 off your whole body MRI, go to prenewvo.com/tgog and use code TGOG. That's P-R-E-N-U-V-O.com/tgog. Terms and conditions apply.

• 18:16Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Receive $300 off Prenewvo whole body scans and executive and comprehensive memberships through January 31st. For full details, visit Prenewvo's website to read their terms and conditions and privacy notice. Prenewvo gifted me a whole body scan. A Prenewvo scan is a screening service, not diagnostic. Diagnosis and treatment are determined by your healthcare provider.

• 18:33Speaker 04

  Low energy, unfocused, foggy? You might be dehydrated. Gatorade Zero powders have been scientifically designed to help improve hydration balance in the body. With a clinically proven electrolyte blend and no artificial colors or flavors, great tasting hydration no matter where you're going. Shop now online or at retailers nationwide. Gatorade. Hydrates better than water. Is it in you? Symptoms noted are signs of mild to moderate dehydration. Consult a healthcare professional if symptoms persist.

• 19:03Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Everyone deserves a little Christmas miracle, and this is a story from our listener, Sarah. It's called "Fig: Our Christmas Time Miracle."

• 19:14Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Hello lovely ladies. My name is Sarah and I found your podcast near the beginning of 2025 when I caught up with all my other spooky podcasts. When I first saw I had like seven years worth to catch up on, I was a little intimidated and upset that I hadn't discovered you years ago. But that quickly went away because then I just got excited about how much content I had to binge. I'm now on encounters 105 and I just listened to this story about the cat who jumped on the gurney to go inside with the woman who was dying.

• 19:41Corinne Vien?

  Oh, heartbreak all over again.

• 19:44Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  It was that story that made me realize what I wanted to send to you, even though technically it's not a ghost story. In mid-December of 2021, on a very cold night, I stopped at a gas station and this skinny little cat came running over to me, instantly super loving. I crouched down and he jumped in my lap purring like crazy. I immediately video called my mom and was like, I can't leave him. It's supposed to be extremely cold night and it was already very cold. And this did not look like a house cat. He looked like he'd been on the street for a long time. So I brought this cat home and I called him Fig. We decided we would contact the vets and different pounds in the area where we found him, just in case someone was looking for him.

• 20:26Corinne Vien?

  Yeah.

• 20:26Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  But no one ever contacted us. We ended up calling him our Christmas miracle because what are the odds that I would find him at almost midnight at a random gas station when it was supposed to be below freezing?

• 20:37Corinne Vien?

  Oh, I'm so glad they did.

• 20:39Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  It's like cat distribution system.

• 20:41Corinne Vien?

  I know.

• 20:42Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  We instantly fell in love with him because he reminded us so much of multiple of our cats that we had lost over the years. But especially our cat Aurora, who was about 17 and had passed in October of 2020. Aurora had been my mom's cat. She was the only other cat that we had who loved drinking out of the sink. And the vet said that Fig was at least a year old or maybe two. So we didn't think he could be her reincarnation, but it was so coincidental that they were so similar. The reason I'm telling you this is because I had so badly wanted my mom to have a companion cat again. And then Fig found his way into our life at a perfect time. He slept with my mom every night. He brought us so much joy until March of 2022. My mom unexpectedly passed away.

• 21:28Corinne Vien?

  Sorry.

• 21:29Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Within two weeks of my mom's passing, Fig got very sick.

• 21:34Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  I brought him to the vet and I found out that his heart was not only enlarged, but it was in the wrong place. They were amazed that he survived at all. And I ended up sadly having to put him down as there was nothing they could do. I fully believe that the universe sent Fig to my mom to be with her those last couple of months before following her to the other side. It hurts remembering how devastated I was to lose them both so close to each other.

• 21:57Corinne Vien?

  Yeah.

• 21:57Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  But it was truly a miracle that not only had he survived, but that he made it to us. This sad yet happy little miracle felt like one I needed to send. I'm so happy I found this podcast and have so much content to catch up on. I'm the type of person that has to start at the beginning, so I probably won't catch up until like 2026. Love you guys. I feel like we would get along so well. I've attached a picture of Fig because he was the cutest boy with the sweetest eyes and a photo of me and my mom the day I brought her out for a hike and food a few days after her cat Aurora had passed away. Looking forward to eventually catching up and who knows, maybe by the time I do, this will have made it onto the podcast. P S. I named Fig after a lazy, sun-loving forest creature in a book I'm writing. His personality fit it too well. I absolutely believe Fig.

• 22:42Corinne Vien?

  I know. Look at his beautiful eyes, his tiny little pink nose. Oh, cat noses are so cute.

• 22:51Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  I know. And the way that while this is like very sad, I fully believe like Fig's heart broke too when Sarah's mom passed.

• 23:00Corinne Vien?

  Right.

• 23:01Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  And was like, I have to go be with her.

• 23:02Corinne Vien?

  Fig had to be the shepherd, the guardian, but how lovely that you were able to save Fig in a way and that Fig got to return the favor by being with your mom.

• 23:12Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Yeah. I love animals.

• 23:14Corinne Vien?

  I know.

• 23:14Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  They're so sweet.

• 23:15Corinne Vien?

  We're due for an animal episode.

• 23:17Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Cue the tears for that one.

• 23:18Corinne Vien?

  I know. We can't have two animals too close to the heartwarming episode.

• 23:22Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  We need, we need some time.

• 23:23Corinne Vien?

  Yeah, we do. Okay. This is called a Christmas Eve paranormal experience. I feel like most of mine actually happened like on Christmas. Hi, girls. I hope you both had a very merry Christmas. I'm just gonna jump right into it. So my husband's a pretty big skeptic when it comes to the paranormal. It's partly due to the fact that he's never experienced anything firsthand.

• 23:41Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Until Christmas Eve.

• 23:43Corinne Vien?

  This was sent just a few days after Christmas back in 2020.

• 23:47Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  So like it just had happened?

• 23:48Corinne Vien?

  I think so. Quick backstory. Last year in early December, my husband's grandpa, Ernest, passed away.

• 23:56Corinne Vien?

  They were very close and my husband looked up to him and he always aspired to be like his grandpa Ernest.

• 24:01Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Hmm.

• 24:02Corinne Vien?

  When my husband was younger, he spent a lot of time with his grandpa, hunting, fishing, working on just about anything you could imagine, et cetera. He learned so much for him. Okay, back to present day. My husband's family has a tradition of getting together every Christmas Eve for a party. This party is normally held at his grandparents' house, the house where Ernest had lived, or at his aunt's house, which is directly across the gravel road from his grandparents. This year, the party was at his aunt's. We were all drinking and having a good time when my husband got overwhelmed in the moment and started missing his grandpa pretty bad. So he went outside to go collect himself. And seeing how upset he was, one of his cousins and my brother-in-law followed him out.

• 24:43Corinne Vien?

  They all stood out there reminiscing and talking about how much they missed Ernest and how crazy it was that he wasn't there with them anymore. All of the sudden, while they're having this conversation, the light bulb outside of their grandparents' basement door exploded.

• 24:58Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Ah.

• 24:59Corinne Vien?

  They were all mind blown. It could very well be a coincidence, but I personally think that it was their grandpa stopping by to say hello and to let them know that, yeah, he heard them talking about him. I'm pretty sure that's what my husband thinks, too.

• 25:12Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Oh, I love that.

• 25:13Corinne Vien?

  It was able to bring him some comfort and also open his eyes to the paranormal world a little bit. Thanks for reading, Kenzie.

• 25:20Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  That is very sweet.

• 25:21Corinne Vien?

  Mm-hmm.

• 25:22Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  And special.

• 25:23Corinne Vien?

  I hope you guys cleaned up the glass, though, so Grandma didn't have to do it.

• 25:27Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Yeah, a light bulb exploding is pretty inconvenient, but it's almost like grandpa wanted so, I had so much energy

• 25:34Corinne Vien?

  Mm-hmm.

• 25:35Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  that like it literally exploded the bulb because he was like, I need you to know.

• 25:39Corinne Vien?

  Right. Ah, so cool.

• 25:41Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  That reminds me a lot of the encounter I had with my grandma after she passed away. Do you remember this? I was, it was like two days after she had passed and I was walking into, I lived in Playa del Rey at the time. I was walking into the front gate and there was a woman, like an older woman on a bike.

• 25:57Corinne Vien?

  Mm-hmm.

• 25:57Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  And so I held the gate open for her and she just stopped me and started talking to me and literally starts telling me about how she went to Columbia for grad school for teacher, for teaching, which is what my grandmother did. And I just like instantly knew it was like a message from my grandma.

• 26:12Corinne Vien?

  Yeah.

• 26:12Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  And as I was walking into my actual building, thinking about and like feeling her presence, all of the lights.

• 26:20Corinne Vien?

  Oh, that's what it was, the lights. For some reason, I thought it was the fire doors closing, but it was the lights.

• 26:24Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  All of the lights flickered.

• 26:26Corinne Vien?

  That is wild.

• 26:28Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Yeah, I was like.

• 26:29Corinne Vien?

  I also wondered too, like specifically for this story, if Kenzie's husband got really sad thinking about his grandpa because grandpa was already there, like felt his presence. And then it was just like extra confirmation of the light bulb.

• 26:44Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  I do think that happens a lot.

• 26:45Corinne Vien?

  Yeah.

• 26:46Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Sometimes if you feel, or if you're thinking about someone who has passed a lot, I think sometimes it means.

• 26:52Corinne Vien?

  They're there.

• 26:53Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Cause they're there. Okay. So this is a ghostwarming, or whoa, a ghostwarming. A ghostwarming. This is a heartwarming ghostly story. It's about family traditions and help from the other side to make it happen. It's called Ghost Story, New Year's Eve, Twelve Grapes, A Lost Gravestone and a Ghostly Helper, from Alyssa. Hi ladies. I was introduced to your podcast through National Park After Dark and I've been binging it ever since. After listening to two Encounter episodes, I knew I wanted to submit a story of mine. And this is an important story because it's the only time I've talked with a ghost. Other ghosts I've seen lurking in a classroom, riding a bike down the street, or just being in the same space as me, but I had never talked to them

• 27:37Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  or had them talk to me, or even seemed to acknowledge that I can see them. So this is a story that happened on New Year's Eve when I was 11 years old. I'm from a proud Chicano culture in Denver, Colorado. And on New Year's Eve, we eat 12 grapes at midnight to bring us good luck in the new year.

• 27:55Corinne Vien?

  I love that.

• 27:56Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Yeah.

• 27:56Corinne Vien?

  But is it like specific? Can you eat green grapes, red grapes?

• 28:00Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  I don't know. My great grandparents often recanted to us younger generations that the only years they didn't eat grapes at midnight was during the strike to support the United Farm Workers Movement. That's the only time.

• 28:12Corinne Vien?

  Wow. Power to them.

• 28:14Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  My great grandfather.

• 28:15Corinne Vien?

  Also, that means I have to stay up until midnight.

• 28:18Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  I don't think I've made it to midnight in years. My great grandfather Salvador suffered a stroke and died in 2003. He served in the army and was awarded a Purple Heart. And because of this, he is buried in the military cemetery in Denver. So on New Year's Eve in 2006, my mother was feeling extra sentimental and missing her grandfather, who was basically her father. So to honor him and our tradition, she packed up some grapes and we planned to visit his grave site before midnight. It had been a while since we visited his grave, but we knew generally where it was. So we decided to go before sundown because a cemetery at night seemed like, no, thank you. About an hour before sunset, my mom packed my two younger sisters and I in the car.

• 29:04Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  And as we entered the cemetery, we noticed just two people visiting other graves. It seemed pretty empty otherwise. And my mom mentioned we should be quick because the cemetery might be closing soon. We drove to where we always park when we visit my great grandfather and other family members who were buried close by. My mom got out and gestured over to an area where my great grandfather is buried. We start looking for his name. My youngest sister couldn't read, so she was just following us around complaining about how long it was taking. We had to double back, row by row. And for some reason, we could not find Salvador's headstone. So my mom considered going to the visitor center for help, but it was already closed for the day and it was getting dark. The moon that night was half full, so there was very little light. Just as we were about to give up and get in the car, a woman approached us.

• 29:49Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  She asked my mom if we needed help finding a gravestone and we said yes. She took a flashlight out of the utility belt around her waist and proceeded to walk with us as we searched. I remember her and my mother walking side by side and within a minute, my mom caught a glimpse of my great grandfather's gravestone. She said, "Thank you." She touched the gravestone and placed the 12 grapes on the ground. I looked back to say, "Thank you" as well, but the woman was gone. It was dark. We didn't see her walking away and we didn't see any car lights anywhere. I asked my mom where the woman went and she told me to stop talking about it.

• 30:26Corinne Vien?

  So she clearly clocked it. Yeah.

• 30:27Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  We went back to the car and she was like, let's go home to watch the ball drop. And I could tell my mom was uneasy about the disappearance of the woman. And my love of spooky stories overcame the feeling to leave it alone. So I asked my mom, what was she dressed as, Mom? Like a park ranger? My mom replied, no, Alyssa. That was a military uniform. I didn't at the moment connect the military cemetery with a woman wearing a military uniform. So I said, is she still in the military? Like, I thought she's old. She, how come she's not retired yet? My mother, far more observant than my preteen self, began to point out the fact that she was also wearing a pink bandana on her head with a pink ribbon. She seemed to just disappear when we were in a military cemetery.

• 31:10Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  I began to put the pieces together and realized we saw a ghost. Now that I think about it, the ghostly helper didn't talk to me, only my mother. So I personally have yet to speak with the ghost and I'm okay with that. It was just very kind of her to help us when we were about to give up. As I processed the fact that a ghostly woman just helped us in a cemetery, I had a final question for my mom. How does a ghost use a flashlight? Thanks for reading, Alyssa.

• 31:36Corinne Vien?

  That is a good question. How'd a ghost do anything?

• 31:39Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  It's so interactive.

• 31:40Corinne Vien?

  Right. And it does, it keeps making me think like, was it someone? Then it's like, where would she go?

• 31:45Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  And why would she be wearing a military uniform?

• 31:48Corinne Vien?

  And how would she, being older and having a flashlight, just disappear suddenly without them being able to see where she is in the night?

• 31:56Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  This reminds me, someone on Campfire Stories last week shared a story very similar.

• 32:00Corinne Vien?

  Hmm.

• 32:01Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Where like when she was in high school, they lost a friend and they went to go to the cemetery and it was like her sister's story. And they were looking for the grave, couldn't find it, couldn't find it. And an older man showed them to it.

• 32:12Corinne Vien?

  Yeah.

• 32:13Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  And he too disappeared.

• 32:15Corinne Vien?

  Which is kind of an amazing thing to do. Like if you're a spirit who's wandering around a cemetery to just like help other people find.

• 32:21Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  People?

• 32:22Corinne Vien?

  People, I like that, helping spirits.

• 32:24Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Damn.

• 32:25Corinne Vien?

  Damn.

• 32:26Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  It's very cool. Also, now I'm curious, I want to know other people's traditions. Like, what do you do that's similar to the twelve grapes around the holidays?

• 32:35Corinne Vien?

  Like, do you do the seven fishes?

• 32:37Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  My, I mean, I don't eat fish, but my Italian, yeah, my family does. We go to my cousin's for Christmas Eve and they have the seven fishes.

• 32:45Corinne Vien?

  They do it?

• 32:46Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Yeah.

• 32:47Corinne Vien?

  Brian's family does, is the Danish side, they do. There's like a nut in pudding. And everybody gets a scoop of the pudding and you have to eat your pudding and then whoever finds a nut in their pudding gets a present.

• 32:59Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Oh, that's fun.

• 33:00Corinne Vien?

  It's a prize.

• 33:00Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Kind of like a Fat Tuesday or King's Day.

• 33:03Corinne Vien?

  Yeah, it's exactly like that.

• 33:04Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Yeah.

• 33:04Corinne Vien?

  But there's no little baby, there's just a nut.

• 33:06Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  What's the prize?

• 33:07Corinne Vien?

  It's whatever my mother-in-law buys. It's like a bottle of wine or something like that.

• 33:13Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Yeah, I've been loving all like the family games on TikTok where you like have a long counter. Everyone gets like a little ping pong ball and there's like little cups on the edge of the counter, but you don't know where they are.

• 33:26Corinne Vien?

  Oh, so you're just rolling.

• 33:27Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  So you're rolling and there's like one gold cup that matches like a gold cup with like a prize in it.

• 33:32Corinne Vien?

  Yeah.

• 33:32Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  And like that has like the best prize, but like every cup correlates to another cup.

• 33:36Corinne Vien?

  Dang.

• 33:37Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  I'm like, oh, that's fine. I love holiday games.

• 33:39Corinne Vien?

  There's so many like fun things like that.

• 33:40Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Yeah, my family doesn't play them.

• 33:42Corinne Vien?

  No, but we pitched it, me and Laney pitched games to my family last year. Nobody wanted to do it. I was like, God, this is so boring.

• 33:49Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  The best thing about having your own family is that you get to do those things. You get to create those.

• 33:54Corinne Vien?

  Yeah, yeah. And once we start hosting, it's like, sorry, you have to play the game.

• 33:58Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Play the game.

• 33:59Corinne Vien?

  You have to play the game.

• 34:01Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Which also at the same time sounds like my nightmare, like going to someone's house.

• 34:04Corinne Vien?

  Being forced into playing.

• 34:06Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Have to be forced to play a game, yeah.

• 34:07Corinne Vien?

  Yeah.

• 34:08Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  I want to play a game when I want to play a game.

• 34:12Speaker 04

  Low energy, unfocused, foggy, you might be dehydrated. Gatorade Zero powders have been scientifically designed to help improve hydration balance in the body. With a clinically proven electrolyte blend and no artificial colors or flavors. Great tasting hydration, no matter where you're going. Shop now online or at retailers nationwide. Gatorade hydrates better than water. Is it in you? Symptoms noted are signs of mild to moderate dehydration. Consult a healthcare professional if symptoms persist. Low energy, unfocused, foggy, you might be dehydrated. Gatorade Zero powders have been scientifically designed to help improve hydration balance in the body with a clinically proven electrolyte blend and no artificial colors or flavors.

• 34:56Speaker 04

  Great tasting hydration, no matter where you're going. Shop now online or at retailers nationwide. Gatorade hydrates better than water. Is it in you? Symptoms noted are signs of mild to moderate dehydration. Consult a healthcare professional if symptoms persist.

• 35:12Corinne Vien?

  Okay, I have one more story to share.

• 35:14Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Okay.

• 35:15Corinne Vien?

  Hello, ghostesses. My name is Alexander. I recently started listening to your show. I was listening to Parcast's Haunted Places and they advertised TGOG.

• 35:23Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Whoa.

• 35:24Corinne Vien?

  When?

• 35:25Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  When was this?

• 35:26Corinne Vien?

  2019.

• 35:27Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Yeah, that's like a long time ago.

• 35:28Corinne Vien?

  Oh, well, thanks again.

• 35:30Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Thanks, Parcast. Appreciate you.

• 35:32Corinne Vien?

  I immediately subscribed. My podcast subscriptions consist of about 90% horror and supernatural podcasts.

• 35:38Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Hell, yeah.

• 35:39Corinne Vien?

  The first episode I listened to was one that featured Railroad Stories and you mentioned Shame Road in San Antonio, Texas, which I am very familiar with, though I've never visited the road myself. I am from and currently live in Texas. I've grown up and lived all around the eastern and northern eastern portion of the state, most specifically the Dallas and Fort Worth area, and I have a few creepy happenings from my life in Texas and I would like to share them. So let's start with east Texas. When I was a young boy, all the way up to when I was around 11, I spent a huge portion of my childhood on what was our family land at the time. My mom and pop pop's home was settled on the red dirt road in the middle of the whole heap of Texas pines in a small town called Sugar Hill.

• 36:21Corinne Vien?

  It got that name due to all of the sugar that was toted up and down the town to produce moonshine way back in the prohibition era.

• 36:28Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Have you ever had moonshine?

• 36:29Corinne Vien?

  Yeah.

• 36:30Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  You like it?

• 36:32Corinne Vien?

  Um, well, when we were in college and it was like

• 36:34Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Was it the fruit ones?

• 36:35Corinne Vien?

  My big in sorority worked for that company, like the moonshine, that like specific brand, moonshine, because they had a distribution center like

• 36:42Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  The only time I've had moonshine is like when it's like the peaches soaked in it and I don't mind, I didn't mind those because it was like, I ate the peach.

• 36:50Corinne Vien?

  Yeah.

• 36:50Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  It still tasted like a peach.

• 36:51Corinne Vien?

  The only time I've tried it was like, I don't think I tried it on its own. It was like mixed into something and it was super flavored.

• 36:56Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Yeah.

• 36:57Corinne Vien?

  So I'm sure I wouldn't actually, I don't like. Alcohol. Alcohol. Alcohol. Alcohol at all anymore. I don't drink hard alcohol. No. Anymore. I drink wine every once in a blue moon. Very different from. Very moonshine, two ends of the spectrum. Yeah. There was a single old oil top road that led to the arteries that would take you into town. Arteries. Creepy way to maybe say road. Maybe. I guess it kind of makes sense. Okay. There is no limit to the frightening things that this little slice of southern pie had to offer. I'm talking ghosts, demons, Sasquatch, native animals at every turn.

• 37:37Corinne Vien?

  We would hear angry wild hogs everywhere. Bobcats would jump through the tall grass behind our house. You'd hear the sound of them at night, the screeches of the mating bobcats, the loud snorting. Terrifying. Angry wild hogs, the hoot of the owls. Peaceful. As a toddler, this would really frighten me, but after a while you did get used to it and you were able to pick out the individual sounds of each animal. But there was a specific vocalization that we never could quite put our finger on. A very primal scream. Shit. Bigfoot. It was all at once animalistic and human. Something like the sound of a tropical bird screeching and a pained man's yell and a lion being heard in unison.

• 38:23Corinne Vien?

  I asked my Papa what it was and he told me it was just old Arkansas's Billy Bob. It was years later that I realized that that was another name for Bigfoot. Old Arkansas's Billy Bob? Billy Bob? Interesting. Never heard that before. It's just big old Billy Bob. Billy Bob. Sometimes you'd hear the sounds too close for comfort. You'd feel the thumps of elephants walk right through your backyard. They would get bored, it seems, and sometimes they would start throwing debris at the trailer.

• 38:55Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Which they, they do.

• 38:57Corinne Vien?

  Holy moly. I never really thought about Bigfoot's in Texas before.

• 39:00Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  I guess they could be anywhere.

• 39:02Corinne Vien?

  Yeah. It was one night on Christmas Eve and our power went out. It was freezing and all the trees would just snap and fall over the power lines. So that's what happened and the power was out.

• 39:13Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Yikes.

• 39:13Corinne Vien?

  We sat around our candles, eating canned ravioli. One of my family's favorite pastimes was telling some scary family stories. And so we also did that.

• 39:23Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Why do I feel like this is kind of a magical Christmas Eve? Like,

• 39:25Corinne Vien?

  I know, this sounds great.

• 39:26Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  It's not ideal to be in the cold and only have candlelight, but there's also something like very Victorian and romantic about it.

• 39:33Corinne Vien?

  Yeah, it's different. So it's like fun. It's like getting to go camping or like a different type of sleepover. We were only halfway through my dad's famous horse story. When we started to hear the sounds of something scraping across the side of the trailer, back and forth. And then on the other side, we sat silent, not knowing really how to act, rationalizing what it might be. But it continued and we continued to stay silent, listening until it stopped. Some minutes went by and we all started to regain the courage to talk and start speaking again. We just shrugged it off and kept telling our stories and also telling ourselves that it was just the branches brushing up against the trailer.

• 40:12Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Never mind, you know, no one actually thought that because they all sat there and quiet.

• 40:16Corinne Vien?

  Right.

• 40:17Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Listening to it.

• 40:18Corinne Vien?

  Anyways, never mind the fact that that night, everything was still. And though we were surrounded by trees, there were none close enough to touch the trailer. After a little while, I suppose our creature or creatures did not like our lack of feared response to its actions. So next thing you know, there are loud, continuous but unstudied bangs on either side of the trailer. It reminded me of the sounds of a large hail hitting a tin roof.

• 40:40Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  No.

• 40:41Corinne Vien?

  This time around, we were not so quiet. My two cousins, Katie and Mandy, and I were shouting at the verge of tears. My aunt and my mother stood up saying, what the hell? Both at the same time. And my father, being the hulking tough guy, he just cussed in anger. He said, this shit has got to stop. Assuming that it was some local people on drugs just screwing around, my father goes and grabs a pellet gun and goes outside screaming and yelling and cursing and bluffing that his pellet gun was certainly more than a pellet gun.

• 41:12Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Mm hmm.

• 41:13Corinne Vien?

  I sat there in hesitation for a few moments, part of me wanting to be a brave little kid for my dad and the other part just so scared for my dad. So I finally worked up the courage to go out there, ignoring my mom and my aunt's demands for me to stay inside. I leaped out the front door and I was immediately taken aback by a crime scene.

• 41:33Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  What?

• 41:33Corinne Vien?

  There were several rocks of various shapes and sizes from golf balls to softballs, all there, several dents on the side of the trailer, bare tree branches on the ground. So I picked up one of the branches as a weapon.

• 41:44Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  A crime scene as in like the evidence, not an actual like bloody crime scene.

• 41:49Corinne Vien?

  Well, a crime scene doesn't have to involve murder.

• 41:51Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  I know, but I'm, I'm, I'm picturing, when I hear that in a story, I'm thinking that there's a murder.

• 41:57Corinne Vien?

  You assume dead body.

• 41:58Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Yes.

• 41:59Corinne Vien?

  Crime also doesn't always involve murder.

• 42:01Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  No, it doesn't.

• 42:02Corinne Vien?

  I was not sure which direction my father went in, but I had an idea. So I headed back down the oil top road to my grandparents' house from my Aunt Connie's trailer, which is where we were currently at. My aunt, my grandparents had, oh my God, the way that they said it's just so abrupt. My aunt and my grandparents had been dead for a few months now. So we constantly were having to go check on my grandparents' home to make sure that no one was trying to cook meth in the house, which was something that happened a lot in that area. None of us wanted to stay in the house, so we stayed at our Aunt Connie's old trailer.

• 42:33Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  I love how you chose the most terrifying Christmas story to end this one on.

• 42:37Corinne Vien?

  Say last.

• 42:39Corinne Vien?

  As I kept a steady pace down the road, inching closer and closer to my intended destination, in the distance, I heard that old guttural man slash lion slash bird scream. So I picked up the pace. You could probably imagine how scared I was. I went from a speed walk to a sprint in less than a second, still clutching the large bare branch in my hand. I finally made it to the old house, but my father was not there. No one was. I quietly shouted, Dad, where are you? Dad?

• 43:07Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Seems like a scary place to be out tied alone.

• 43:09Corinne Vien?

  But no reply. Then to the left of me, I heard the rustling of the trees just across the small watering hole beside the house. I reluctantly twisted my neck to that direction. And I dropped the bare branch. What I saw nearly made me shoot myself. Caught only by the glimmering moon nestled between the trees was what appeared to be a very tall man with dark shaggy hair. He had hazel eyes that glowed with the moonlight. Eyes that I knew were now centered on my own. I couldn't see the rest of his body through the shade of the trees, but I didn't want to. His eyes were enough. They held intelligence and potential harm.

• 43:49Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  We always knew Bigfoot was intelligent.

• 43:51Corinne Vien?

  Mm hmm. Not like a killer's eyes, but the eyes of a man who would kill to protect his loved ones. The man huffed loudly and then turned around. I finally got a hold of myself and I jetted back down the road to Connie's. My dad met me about two thirds down the road yelling at me, reprimanding me for running off. And I told him what I saw. And though he was scared, he did not seem surprised.

• 44:12Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Why do I feel like Bigfoot was not looking for this listener, but for their dad? Like the way that they made eye contact and the Bigfoot like huffed like, kind of like, oh, you're not who I'm looking for.

• 44:22Corinne Vien?

  He was just the kid. I know, because it attacked the trailer. Like someone in the trailer had pissed off this.

• 44:28Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Daddy-O made a promise to Bigfoot and didn't uphold.

• 44:32Corinne Vien?

  Right. Supposed to get invited to the Christmas Eve celebration.

• 44:36Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  I was gonna bring wine.

• 44:38Corinne Vien?

  Or moonshine.

• 44:39Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Moonshine. Bigfoot. Sorry, just obsessed with the idea of Bigfoot just out in the woods making moonshine.

• 44:48Corinne Vien?

  In the watering hole. I don't know what I saw that night. I'm not entirely sure it was Sasquatch and I'm not entirely sure still if Sasquatch even exists. I'm the kind of person that likes to find a rational conclusion, but

• 44:59Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  You came to the wrong place.

• 45:00Corinne Vien?

  You just can't. All I do know is I've gained a lot of respect for the forest. Thanks a million. Love, Alexander. Well, that is a terrifying Christmas Eve.

• 45:11Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  It started out so like, yes, spooky, but magical, like under candlelight, ghost stories.

• 45:17Corinne Vien?

  You're with your relatives and power goes out and everyone's just like, oh, we're just gonna have a fun time together.

• 45:21Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  You got party crashed by Bigfoot.

• 45:25Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  That is a terrifying one to end on.

• 45:27Corinne Vien?

  Thanks, Alexander.

• 45:28Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Thanks, Alexander. And thanks to all of you for sharing your stories.

• 45:31Corinne Vien?

  Surprise if you're watching on video, outfit change.

• 45:33Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Outfit change.

• 45:35Corinne Vien?

  And no more Christmas decor in the background.

• 45:37Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  And if you loved today's Christmas stories, or holiday-themed stories, we've got one more for you over on Patreon. So join us over there if you are, if you're interested, if you just itching, craving.

• 45:50Corinne Vien?

  A little bonus.

• 45:51Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Yeah, bonus over there.

• 45:52Corinne Vien?

  So we hope you guys all have, do we hope you have hauntings? I'm not sure.

• 45:56Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Positive hauntings, or whatever hauntings you want, we hope you have it. We hope you get it.

• 46:02Corinne Vien?

  Or that you collect ghost stories.

• 46:04Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  We hope you get what you deserve.

• 46:06Corinne Vien?

  Get what you deserve.

• 46:07Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Why does that sound so menacing?

• 46:09Corinne Vien?

  It sounds very threatening.

• 46:10Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  But if you deserve good things, then it's not.

• 46:13Corinne Vien?

  Right.

• 46:14Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  However you interpreted that, maybe that's the mirror.

• 46:18Corinne Vien?

  Wow, we're really looking inwards right now.

• 46:21Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  So much holiday cheer.

• 46:25Corinne Vien?

  Are you going home for the holidays, or are you gonna spend it with family?

• 46:27Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Of course. With my little nieces.

• 46:30Corinne Vien?

  Yeah, yeah. This is our first year doing Christmas here.

• 46:34Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  You're hosting? You can make everyone play games.

• 46:36Corinne Vien?

  I know.

• 46:37Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  What Christmas games do you want to play?

• 46:38Corinne Vien?

  Now we have the young child.

• 46:40Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Yeah, everyone comes to you.

• 46:42Corinne Vien?

  So Santa comes here for him, so you guys have to come here too. We're not gonna pack it all up.

• 46:46Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Right. My sister and John are hosting too.

• 46:49Corinne Vien?

  Yeah, it makes sense. Where are you gonna get your nieces?

• 46:52Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Oh man, I'm so excited. I got Noemi, she's gonna be upgrading to a big girl bed. So I got her a princess quilt and princess sheets and princess towels that are embroidered with her name.

• 47:07Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  And then I'm getting her and Delphina this like play, they're like those cushions that you can fold into a bunch of different shapes and stuff.

• 47:13Corinne Vien?

  Oh, the nugget couch?

• 47:14Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  No, it's like a, more of like a jungle gym type of couch thing.

• 47:18Corinne Vien?

  You got Noah a ball pit last year, and he loves it, and he like jumps into it. But this reminds me of one of our producers, Emma. She has a child and she posted on Instagram saying like this happens multiple times a day. And it's her daughter just like gently giving her like the sweetest little kisses over her face. And I responded and I said, that's so funny. I get a different type of experience multiple times a day. And I sent her a picture of Noah just like climbs on me and then diaper slam. Just like repeatedly tries to like slam his diaper on my head.

• 47:48Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  That was so funny.

• 47:49Corinne Vien?

  It's like, oh, we're both getting something.

• 47:51Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  You're both getting something. Sven, what would you like for Christmas? Would you like to go haunt all of our listeners? You're more than welcome to. You already do without our permission anyway, so.

• 48:01Corinne Vien?

  For those who did receive our holiday card, there is potentially Sven in the picture.

• 48:07Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  I know, it's wild.

• 48:09Corinne Vien?

  We can talk about it now because they've already been sent out. People.

• 48:11Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Yeah, we were told.

• 48:12Corinne Vien?

  If you missed it, sorry, you missed the deadline. Join Patreon so you can be a part of it next year. But we went to House Witch, which is where we recommend everyone who ever goes to Salem to go to get their auras photographed. We've gone so many times to get our auras photographed there.

• 48:25Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  It's our go-to.

• 48:26Corinne Vien?

  So we're like, oh, holiday card, let's go get our auras photographed.

• 48:29Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  So we each did an individual photo. That was also wild because it's the first time my aura has ever been something other than blue and white emotion openness. It was like friggin' fall colors, everything, Boss era. Yours was back to normal.

• 48:45Corinne Vien?

  Yeah.

• 48:46Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  With some like.

• 48:47Corinne Vien?

  From my fight or flight moment.

• 48:48Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  More blue. And then ours together was beautiful. We were photobombed by the, she was telling us, she was like, it's a spirit that clearly is connected to the two of you together.

• 49:00Corinne Vien?

  Because it doesn't appear in the individual shots. But like, when you look at the aura photograph, if there is like the bright lights above your head, like at the top of the frame, there, it's usually representing spirit guides. So it's like, oh, you have like three spirit guides or you have five spirit guides or whatever.

• 49:14Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Whatever, yeah.

• 49:15Corinne Vien?

  So we both had those.

• 49:17Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Yeah.

• 49:17Corinne Vien?

  But what was really interesting is two of ours were both really, really bright. And so she was like, I wonder if you guys share the same spirit guides? And then only in our photo together was one of the balls kind of like.

• 49:31Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  It wasn't, it was like on, it wasn't even a ball anymore. It was like a body almost right next to us.

• 49:35Corinne Vien?

  Bleed through, like a person, like a white being behind us.

• 49:39Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  And she was like, it only shows up in the photo of you together.

• 49:41Corinne Vien?

  So it's someone for both of you, not just one of you.

• 49:44Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  It has to be Sven.

• 49:45Corinne Vien?

  That has to be, like, who else?

• 49:48Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  Yeah.

• 49:49Corinne Vien?

  That was crazy.

• 49:50Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  So cool.

• 49:51Corinne Vien?

  Yeah.

• 49:51Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  But yeah, that also reminds us, we do holiday cards every year. And if you missed it this year, join Patreon, you can get it next year. You have to be a Patreon member in November into December of next year together. We hope you have an amazing, wonderful holiday. We love you all so very much. If you have any ghost stories of your own, or if you experience anything or learn anything fun and spooky from your family and friends this holiday season, please email it to us at [email protected].

• 50:18Sabrina Deana-Roga?

  And thank you so much to our editor and producer, Jamie Ryan. Thank you so much to our producer. Producer. Producer with a little accent, Emma Leventer. We are so grateful for all of you as well. Thanks for listening. And we will. See you in 2026.

• 50:43Speaker 05

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