The Ghost in the Machine

I AM afraid of that ghost!

I'm not one to get caught up in the supernatural.  I'm more of an "I'll believe it when I see it" type of guy.  That doesn't mean that I don't hope that the Loch Ness Monster and Bigfoot and the like exist.  I think the world would be a much more interesting place if these things existed. 

Ghosts on the other hand?  No thanks.  Aside from Casper - can you think of one ghost that's not super creepy and wants share their pain and rage with the living?  They're all trying to scare the bejeezus out of everyone.  Well, we've been having some unexplained phenomena happen at our house lately, and while I'm not ready to call Peter Venkman just yet, it is a bit strange.

Both events have happened in our garage, specifically in the corner where our washer and dryer sit.  First, the light in our dryer started working after almost six years of not functioning.  The thing has NEVER worked since we moved in back in 2006 (washer/dryer came with the house.)  Strange, but not spooky.

This morning, however, was a little more unsettling.  Rachel started a load of laundry just as I was getting ready to leave for work.  She came back in the house and picked up Jocie.  On cue, Jocie spit up all over.  Rachel stops me as I'm heading into the garage and asks me to throw the burp cloth in with the load running already.  I say "it's not running, you left the lid up...were you planning on putting something else in there?"  She says "what are you talking about, I shut the lid when I came back in."  Since my wife is A.) Responsible, B.) Very meticulous about her household chores, and C.) Not crazy, I believe her.  She's never done this before, and running a load of laundry is something you don't even have to think about.  You ever been driving home, the same route you drive every day, and you just kinda space out for a few miles, then go "wow, I'm here already?  What just happened?"  You're so used to doing it, your mind is almost on auto pilot and you can make the turns and stop at the lights without even consciously thinking about it.  That's how laundry is for Rachel. 

So what's messing with our laundry?  As far as I know, nobody has ever died in our house.  It was built in 2001, and we knew the previous owners, all of whom were alive when we bought it.  The only thing I can think of is that there was a cat that died outside of our garage on the side of our house a few years back.  The idea that there might be a ghost cat is altogether horrifying.  Rachel's dislike of cats is unrivaled.  This could get ugly.

Also, have any of you had experiences with unexplained paranormal activity?  I'd like to know what happened and how you got rid of it.  Thanks.