A loud click or snapping noise

     Since we moved into this house,  in the summer of 1979,  we have experienced an unusual loud noise in the master bedroom. I cannot say for certain that it occurs every night because we often turn in after 11:30  and the sound usually occurs sometime after 11 but before 11:30. It sounds like a loud snap  which usually repeats, slightly less loudly, a few minutes later. The sound appears to come from the southwesternmost corner of the room where a dumbwaiter used to be located. The dumbwaiter was taken out of service and walled off sometime in the late 1940s. But if we chance to turn in a bit early, we about always hear this snap or click. The dogs do not appear to take notice of it. I tend to think it has something to do with temperature change in the old sealed dumbwaiter shaft. But precisely what????? I have no idea. Nor why the noise is always in that short time window.

Snatched Book?

 It happened a couple of days ago. I've mulled it over and tried some experimentation before deciding to include it here. Monday night, my wife and I turned in early as we were tired and we both had books we wanted to read. Once the dogs settled in, one at the foot of the bed and the other in his bed on the floor, all was peaceful. I read in bed, lying on my back but the wife prefers a side position. I had only read a few sentences when my wife exclaimed,"What?" My response."Whats the matter?" "Something jerked my book out of my hand". "You just dozed and dropped it," I replied. "No, she protested, I was in the middle of reading a sentence". Then bending over the side of the bed she said,"Where is it?" Playing dumb, I asked,"Wheres what?" "Wheres my book, I don't see it?" My suggestion was "Run your hand just under the bed it probably landed on end and flipped under the bed". "No, it didn't,"she replied as she slid out of bed and was looking under it. Then crawling half under the bed she says, "Its here, halfway under the bed." So how did it get halfway under the bed? She says, "I told you, it was jerked out of my hands." I did not persue the matter. But what??? jerked it out of her hands? Why was it jerked out of her hands? And....What was the point of taking it halfway under the bed? Yesterday afternoon, trying to figure out how in blazes that book got halfway under the bed; I went upstairs and laid on her side of the bed, opened the book and dropped it several times. changing position several times as I did so. That book landed in plain sight every time. So, as I think this is a bit strange, I have included it on this journal.

Mysterious broken pitcher

   My wife collects those old potbellied white clay pitchers that are so commonly seen in Victorian pictures and even older representations. The pitchers are definitely bottom heavy. As they are a favorite of my wife's. it would be most unlikely that she would place one where it would be in danger of being broken. Our kitchen has a doorway that opens into a short hall (no door) off to the left are the rear stairs to the upstairs, straight ahead brings you through another doorway into the diningroom and off to the right takes you through a doorway (with door) into the downstairs bathroom. A wide shelf, well secured to the wall and top of the door, runs across the top of the doorway out  of the kitchen. That shelf is solidly anchored on both ends as well with heavy brackets. On that shelf my wife has placed one of her pot bellied pitcher plus two other pitchers and a couple of chicken figures. I was working upstairs in the front bedroom doing nothing heavy, I might mention, and my wife was painting details on the bathroom wall. Both dogs were sacked out in the dining room. Suddenly a loud crash was heard, bringing us all from different directions. The white pitcher was in pieces on the kitchen floor . Nothing else on that shelf was even moved and the shelf is still very solidly fixed. Only that pitcher which was bottom heavy (surely too bottom heavy to tip) was off the shelf and broken. There appears to be no explaination for this. So what happened?

Strange occurance

   Though the house has been quieter than normal, we did have a strange experience last night. It was about 9:30pm, My younger dog and I were in the kitchen finishing up some leftovers. My wife with our older dog at her feet, was working on the computer. As the house is rather large, I had left the lights on in the diningroom, I knew I'd be coming back through that way. The kitchen lights were on, a couple of lights burn in the kitchen 24/7. The Library has a small lamp that is also always on. When I had cleared up the mess in the kitchen, my dog and I started back though the doorway to the short hall that leads to the diningroom. Before I reached the diningroom, the lights went off in the diningroom. Thinking my wife had quit on the computer and was coming through to the kitchen, I said something to that effect. My wife answered me from the Library. So what happened to the lights in the diningroom? My first thought was I'd have to trek down into our dungeon of a cellar and see which breaker blew. But turning I saw the lights that I had left on in the kitchen were still on. Part of the kitchens lights are on the same circuit as those in the diningroom. So I figured we must have a malfunctioning lightswitch. Going over to the wall switch I found it in the "OFF" position. Who turned off my lights before I entered the room? My wife was in a different room and my dogs are too short to reach the switch. This is the second such episode this season. A few weeks back the lamp timer was changed, but not by us. We have experienced less of the walking noises this year, but did we trade it for a poltergist? Ideas anyone?

Candleabra bulbs

   The missing bag of lightbulbs is still missing. I had to buy new ones. Its very frustrating.

Intruder

 This occurred last Thursday. I debated whether or not to include it here. I'm fairly certain it was no paranormal experience. On thurday, in the morning, I went up to the local post office , only about 3 blocks from my house, not a long walk. My wife was preparing to go into town. My wife stopped at the post office on her way into town to ask me if I had come back into the house after I left for the post office, I told her I hadn't. She said that after I had left she heard the back door open and supposed it was me. She said, "Wasn't Larry at the post office today?" At that time the dogs went berserk and she knew it wasn't me. Then she heard the door slam. I went back down to the house from the post office. Our intruder had something white on his shoes and he had tracked it nearly across the kitchen carpet. Whatever it was it was difficult to sweep up because it just smeared into the carpet. Whoever it was wore a size 6 or 7 shoe. The prints were small. Nothing was taken; apparently the dogs scared whomever away. This is a small community; almost no one ever locks a door in the daytime and some never lock their doors ever. In the past 3 years or so there have been a few burgled businesses and possibly one private home entered. It only takes one rotten egg to spoil a community. At lest I now know my burgler alarm works.

Lightbulbs no show

   The missing bag of candleabra lightbulbs has not resurfaced. Again, how does a sack containing 4 or five new 60 watt candleabra bulbs just disappear? If you have read the previous post; you would know there really isn't anyplace for them to be concealed. The diningroom table sits in the center of the diningroom. It is surrounded with six chairs; one on each end and two on the sides. The chairs, the floor, as well as the table were checked for those bulbs. They may not reappear for 6 months or longer; or we might find them almost anyplace, tomorrow. Creepy isn't it.