Saru Posted August 1, 2003 #1 Share Posted August 1, 2003 This is from someone that contacted me via E-Mail seeking a solution to a strange, possibly paranormal smell of Cigarettes that he can't seem to get rid of. See what you make of this, and feel free to post any potential explanations or solutions. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I am unable to explain the sickening smell of cigarette smoke throughout my town house. I am a non-smoker. My investigation began about a week ago, when I returned home from shopping. As I opened the door from the garage to the downstairs hall, I immediately detected the stench of cigarette smoke. Since there hasn't been any cigarette smoking in my home for the past twelve years, I suddenly surmised that a burglar was probably at work upstairs. Slowly but very cautiously, I checked-out the downstairs, then moved up to the main floor. Nobody here either. If a burglar was here he would surly be on the top floor. As I had been burgled some several years ago, I hesitated. Should I call the police? Should I get my baseball bat from the lower floor? I couldn't decide what action to take. I quietly waited and listened. There was not a sound, but the smell of cigarette smoke was beginning to cause me to gag. After what seemed to be an hour, it was in fact only a few minutes, I slowly made my way up to the top level. The guest room was my first entry. No burglar or sign of any intruder here. I moved a bit quicker, but with continued caution, moved from room to room. No intruder and no burglar, caused me to assume the burglar had come, burgled and exited my home. I wasn't frightened any longer, but another fear came upon me. What was missing? What was stolen? I checked and rechecked the entire house. Nothing was gone. Nothing was even disturbed! Something was out of sorts and my first inclination was my new neighbour. What kind of cigarettes do you smoke Sully? Why I haven't smoked in years. Why do you ask, he exclaimed? I briefly told Sully my story. I haven't had any company since moving in either, he said. The smoke must be coming from your neighbour on the other side, Sully quipped. No, I've been taking care of John and Lonnie's home while they are away, I said. There was only one other place where the smell could come from, the bush behind my property. Some under-age kids must be in there smoking. I went upstairs and gazed out my bedroom window onto the bush. Ahha, I said. As I saw something move... I rushed to get my binoculars. Two blue jays were playing or mating or whatever. I eliminated all the possibilities that I could think of, then decided to call my wife. Sharon, I've got a problem and I know only a sleuth like you can help me solve it. By the time I finished my story she interrupted and said, It's your mother! I immediately replied, You mean her spirit or ghost? She then went on to tell me that she also smelled cigarette smoke in her home only yesterday. What else could it be I said? Tonight there's a slight breeze outside and all of my windows are open. In spite of this, the entire house simply reeks of cigarette smoke. What do I do next? Oh yes, one other thing. My mother of eighty-nine years, passed away on February 21st of this year. She was a heavy smoker up until a few years ago, when she entered a medical centre for the aged. It's all up to you now my friend. How do I get rid of this sickening smelly cigarette smoke? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bizarro Posted August 1, 2003 #2 Share Posted August 1, 2003 weird. sounds like it might be a ghost Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Althalus Posted August 1, 2003 #3 Share Posted August 1, 2003 I agree, it does sound like a ghost, if your mother was a heavy smoker then this is possibly her way of telling you that he is still around and watching over you. I nearly said a poltergeist, due to the smell that is lingering, but then i remembered an old account I once read, that mentioned the smell of roses that pervaded a house that was also the site of a haunting. What you can do is either leave the ghost alone, or you can have it exorcised, and ask it to leave. The priest of your religion should be able to do it for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angel_psychic Posted August 1, 2003 #4 Share Posted August 1, 2003 sometimes its perfume/cologne. IF it is a ghost/poltergeitst, then it would be what ever was most familiar with the person while alive. In this case, cigs. I would acknoledge the entity, let her know he knows she is there, and she should move on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TerrorToad Posted August 1, 2003 #5 Share Posted August 1, 2003 Throughout my childhood and up to this day, i have xperianced al lot of strange things, i put this donw to being open minded, and i consider, slightly phsycic, but however this storey concerns my mother... when my mother was young her and family, (my now family) moved to a house in a village near macclesfield. it wasnt an old house but this was the 60's and it was old then. At the time, my mothers father, my grandfather smoked ciggarettes, but he had to smoke outside due to having small children.. In the house in which they lived, had a small sitting room at the back of the house surrounded by windows but cut off from the rest of the house by a door. The part of the stoery which i am taking my time to get to is that, this door was always left open, as the dog they owned used to sit in there, until one day it was left shut whilst everyone was out. My grandparents and my mother as a child then returned home to find the room in which the dog slept, and not forgetting that the door was shut. the room had filled up with thick pipe smoke.Pipe smoke is denser than ciggerette smoke and and has a yellow cream tinge to it, and lingers.. they found that the smoke would only appear when the door was left shut. This intrigued my grandmother and father, and decided to look into it. They then found that the previous previous, owner of the house to be an old lady and gentle man, the gentle men who in which had died in his sleep sat in the room with the smoke, and loved a puff on his pipe whilst sitting with his dog. thankyou for taking the time to read this, i will be posting more sightings that i have had and ghosts where i live and that i have felt.. laura x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kismit Posted August 2, 2003 #6 Share Posted August 2, 2003 Thanx again for your story Terror Toad As for the original story I think Al is right it's Mum letting you know she's O.K. but I would like to ad that the smell will go away when you realise she is happy now .. Q:If she gave up smoking a few years before she died why would her spirit smoke ? A: Because she can She want's you to know she's happy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uranium101 Posted August 2, 2003 #7 Share Posted August 2, 2003 nice elephant kismit. i have to agree with everyone else, i'm afraid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kismit Posted August 3, 2003 #8 Share Posted August 3, 2003 Thanx Uranium Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uranium101 Posted August 3, 2003 #9 Share Posted August 3, 2003 maybe it's because i'm a republican... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cat_dewitt Posted August 3, 2003 #10 Share Posted August 3, 2003 My grandfather passed away and after he died there would be the smell of his pipe in my parents' car or near me when i went into a store or just around me when i was at home. I'd say that it's your mom to let you know that she's there. i hope that you have a good relationship with her but if you don't then now would be a good time to talk to her spirit and reconcile things so that she can rest easy. Good luck and may her presence be a comfort. Cat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
melissa Posted August 4, 2003 #11 Share Posted August 4, 2003 i have experiencrd smells as an auora or a clue to pay attention. something would always happen shortly after and i would then remember the smell.sometimes there would be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inspekta_X Posted August 4, 2003 #12 Share Posted August 4, 2003 Ive head many stories like this, As already stipulated it could very well be the ghost of his mother, But being a reformed smoker myself, i can now detect even the slightest cigarette smell, Just accross from my office building is a Kitchen manufactuing workshop, Everytime they have smoko (Morning Tea for you non-aussies ) The smell wafts all the way from them through walls, stairs & windows into my nose So it is still possible that the smell could be comming from a neighbour a bit further away from this guy, Cig smoke is daym strong and can travel great distances. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cerberus Posted August 6, 2003 #13 Share Posted August 6, 2003 As ever, i had a brainwave. lol You should start a quit smoking campaign, where ppl come into your house, smell the awful smell they are unaware they smell of, and then you can ask a fee! As for houses haunted by the smell of roses... You save a fortune on deodorising sprays and plug in air fresheners for your house! See, im not just a pretty face... Actually... lol i aint got a pretty face come to think of it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aslan Posted August 6, 2003 #14 Share Posted August 6, 2003 Just as a question, why would cigarettes in particular be the choice of an intelligence which wishes to make it's presence known. I understand that the grandmother smoked for many years, but she had stopped for some years before she died. Surely in these intervening years there something else would arise that would be inextricably associated with her - something she said, maybe, the way she laughed, some object she loved, the clothes she always wore. If this is, as some people have suggested, the spirit of the grandmother offering some token of her survival, surely she would have chosen something less ambiguous. I mean, it's quite an important message, isn't it - here is evidence of my immortality. Why choose something so open to interpretation ? And even the original post points out that his grandmother smoked almost as an afterthought, indicating that it wasn't very near the top of the list when he was trying to figure it all out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Althalus Posted August 6, 2003 #15 Share Posted August 6, 2003 Hmm, good question. Could it be that the phenomenon, in this case the cigarette smoke, is actually caused by some sort of unconscious link between the dead grandmother and the person being haunted. The link would have to be something that the person attributes with the dead person, and is affected by, but it does not have to be a modern or fresh association, as you said: If this is, as some people have suggested, the spirit of the grandmother offering some token of her survival, surely she would have chosen something less ambiguous. I mean, it's quite an important message, isn't it - here is evidence of my immortality. Why choose something so open to interpretation ? And even the original post points out that his grandmother smoked almost as an afterthought, indicating that it wasn't very near the top of the list when he was trying to figure it all out. Why indeed. If the grandmother smoked a while back, and it used to leave an impression on the person being haunted, then the smoke as the result of a haunting would not be totally out of place, as the person haunted would of either liked the smell, or not liked it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aslan Posted August 6, 2003 #16 Share Posted August 6, 2003 If the grandmother smoked a while back, and it used to leave an impression on the person being haunted, then the smoke as the result of a haunting would not be totally out of place, as the person haunted would of either liked the smell, or not liked it. Very true, but my point is that if you read the original post, the linking of cigarette smoke to the grandmother happens a long way down the line. That his grandmother had returned from the grave was not the first conclusion he arrived at, or by the sounds of it, the second or third. It's not even his finalconclusion, or he wouldn't be asking the question. So here's the thing...why would the grandmother deliver her message in this ambiguous way, when patently even her grandson isn't sure it's her ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Althalus Posted August 6, 2003 #17 Share Posted August 6, 2003 (edited) Could it be just another ghost that at the time of it all starting just happened to latch on to the idea of a smell of smoke, because that is what he was thinking of at the time. And that it is his grandmother, is just an afterthought, as you said. Or, it could be that he is smelling a smoke like smell, and it is something else entirely, the bin liners or something? Or could it be that he thinks he is smelling smoke, and his smelling of it, ans his telling everyone of it, makes others think they are smelling it also. Edited August 6, 2003 by Althalus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aslan Posted August 6, 2003 #18 Share Posted August 6, 2003 Or, it could be that he is smelling a smoke like smell, and it is something else entirely, the bin liners or something? Or could it be that he thinks he is smelling smoke, and his smelling of it, ans his telling everyone of it, makes others think they are smelling it also. Yes, this is it, I think. Somewhere around here is our 'ghost'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lionel Posted August 7, 2003 #19 Share Posted August 7, 2003 The post does not mention if there are any children in the family, it could be the son or daughter of the couple smoking in the absence of their parents and getting away before its time for their return. It also fails to mention the time this smell appears...Does it linger all day ? or does it appear at certain hours ? or Does it appear on and off all through the day ? or Does it appear on certain days ? etc... A few posts in this thread list several other possiblilites which might just be the case. Before we term this experience as paranormal lets remove all other possiblilities... Good Point Aslan.... Why would a spirit like to manifest itself with cigarette smoke.. I'll go with you on that. I have one question....In the spirit world are cigarettes available ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pendragon Posted August 9, 2003 #20 Share Posted August 9, 2003 I have another question that goes along with points made my Aslan and Lionel - why would the spirit of a loved one make its presence known by using a stimulus, in this case, a smell, that sickens the target family member. Thanks, mom. E.g. " How do I get rid of this sickening smelly cigarette smoke?" (from SaRuMaN's original post). I think the writer of the letter needs to investiage other Earthly sources of the odor -starting in the basement and working his way up. I once detected a heinous odor that permeated my house. I later discovered that my landlord had sealed a few holes on the roof and trapped several pigeons in the rafters above the attic. What I was smelling was rotting pigeon. mm mm good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tendo Posted August 13, 2003 #21 Share Posted August 13, 2003 well, if u have kids, maybe its them...but if it is a dead relative trying to get in contact with u, and the smell of smoke comes...where exactly do u think hes contacting u from? lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raziel Posted August 20, 2003 #22 Share Posted August 20, 2003 God, i just read this and i have the same thing in my kitchen! My mum used to be a smoker, but that was way over 5 years ago, and nobody else in the house smokes and nobody ever comes to our house that smokes, my mum doesnt let them light up. Yet this smell inexplainably manages to emerge from somewhere. Its definately in the kitchen, cos outside, no smell, and none in the next room. Its quite creepy, not knowing where its coming from. Any ideas? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tendo Posted October 12, 2003 #23 Share Posted October 12, 2003 hey! if a person that smoked when they were alive contacts us with a cigarrette smell...what would they do to get in touch if they were, say, a proctologist? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mentalcase Posted October 12, 2003 #24 Share Posted October 12, 2003 what would they do to get in touch if they were, say, a proctologist? I just hope I never find out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thepsychoticseaotter Posted October 12, 2003 #25 Share Posted October 12, 2003 I recently lost my great uncle who in some ways was like a father to me. It has not been easy for me to loose someone so close and I think of him every day. His house and he had a certain smell to him that I recallw hen I think of him (an association of sorts) At times i swear I can faintly smell it. Could it be that when the writer thinks of his gradmother the smoke is an association as well? It would not be unbeliveable if he was having a hard time dealing with her death. he could be unconciously thinking of her and he begins smelling the smoke. Perhaps he just no noticed he was doing this when he rented the townhouse? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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