Cemetery worker describes a smiling figure that faded away
A caller the host introduces as [quote withheld] says they mow cemeteries. They describe a single daytime encounter with a figure they glimpsed while working. They say the figure, which the caller compares to a short, fat Abraham Lincoln with something on his head, turned, smiled at them, and seemed to speak to them in their head, telling them [quote withheld] Then it walked away and faded. The story ends with the caller saying they really believe they saw a ghost that day and the host replying that not all ghosts are scary.
This clip comes from the source recording. AI chose where it starts and ends, so it may start or end a little early or late. The word-for-word transcript is not published. You can hear the source recording on the Internet Archive (file “Ghost to Ghost 2006.mp3”, starting at 2:13:09). Is this you, or someone you know? Ask for a correction or removal.
The story as told
The host introduces the caller as [quote withheld] on the Wild Card Line. [name withheld] says they mow cemeteries ([quote withheld]) and that they have a story about cemeteries. [name withheld] says that one day they caught a figure out of the corner of their eye and turned back quickly to look at it. It looked, [name withheld] says, like [quote withheld] with something on his head (the phrase is garbled in the transcript). [name withheld] says they looked at the figure for a second, looked down again, and looked up. The figure turned, looked at them, and smiled. It was as though the figure met them in their head and told them [quote withheld] [name withheld] adds that the place looked good. [name withheld] says the figure then turned, started walking away, and faded until it was gone. [name withheld] says it was not a scary ghost story, but that they really believe they saw a ghost that day. The host replies that not all ghosts are scary and not all ghost stories are scary. He then continues more generally about belief in life after death. No date, cemetery name, or second witness is given anywhere in the story.
Reported events, in order
- 0:05
The host hands off to [quote withheld] [name withheld] greets him and says they have a story about cemeteries, adding that they mow “marble gardens.”
- 0:24
[name withheld] says that one day they caught a figure out of the corner of their eye and turned back quickly to look at it.
- 0:27
[name withheld] says the figure looked like a short, fat Abraham Lincoln with something on his head (the phrase is garbled in the transcript).
- 0:37
[name withheld] says they looked at the figure, looked down again, and looked up. The figure turned, looked at them, and smiled.
- 0:37
[name withheld] says it was as though the figure met them in their head and told them they were doing a good job, and that the place looked good.
- 0:57
[name withheld] reports that the figure turned, started walking away, and faded until it was gone.
- 1:06
[name withheld] says it was not a scary ghost story, but that they really believe they saw a ghost that day.
- 1:06
The host replies that not all ghosts are scary and not all ghost stories are scary.
Claims
Each claim is labeled as something the person telling the story noticed (observation), what they made of it (interpretation), something others told them (hearsay), or something the host said (host statement).
- observation· 0:24
The caller says they caught a figure out of the corner of their eye one day.
- observation· 0:27
They say that when they turned back to look, the figure resembled a short, fat Abraham Lincoln with something (garbled in the transcript) on his head.
- observation· 0:37
They report that the figure turned, looked at them, and smiled.
- observation· 0:37
They say it was as though the figure met them in their head and told them they were doing a good job.
- observation· 0:57
They say the figure turned, started walking away, and faded until it was gone.
- interpretation· 1:06
They say that, although it was not a scary ghost story, they really believe they saw a ghost that day.
- host statement· 1:06
The host states that not all ghosts are scary and not all ghost stories are scary.
Scores, with reasons
An AI model gave these scores using a fixed set of scoring rules (scoring-v1). They are editorial judgments and rough guides, not the odds that anything paranormal happened. How scoring works.
A brief but internally coherent firsthand story with a clear sequence and an openly hedged conclusion. Specificity is low (no date, place name, or witness), and an ordinary reading, a glimpse of a walking person at the edge of their vision, fits easily. That holds the score in the middle of the range.
Evidence for and against
- Firsthand story from the person who reports the experience.
- Coherent, ordered sequence with no contradiction: glimpse, second look, exchange of looks, departure.
- [name withheld] labels the conclusion as belief rather than asserting it as fact.
- A concrete work context ([quote withheld]) that frames when and where the sighting happened.
- No date, cemetery name, or other details that can be checked.
- The first sighting was a glimpse at the edge of their vision ([quote withheld]), which fits easy misidentification.
- The “fading” and the mental message are not backed up by anyone, and nothing about them can be checked.
- The story runs about one minute, and the host notes the line is breaking up.
- It is not stated when this happened, how long ago, or which cemetery.
- Part of the description ([quote withheld]) is garbled in the transcript, so the figure’s headwear is uncertain.
- Some lines around the call are labeled as the host but seem to carry the caller’s words, so who said them is uncertain.
- 0:09
- 0:24
- 1:06
What the model inferred (not said on air): The component scores are my editorial judgment: closeness to the source 16 (firsthand but brief and partial), specificity 7 (few concrete details that can be checked), internal consistency 16 (no contradictions, answers fit), alternative explanations 6 (misidentification and a living person who walks out of sight fit easily), calibration 10 (perception labeled as perception, belief labeled as belief).
The story rests on [name withheld]’s word alone. The only details that could be checked are the caller’s state and work. No physical evidence or second witness on air is claimed, which places it at the bottom of the scale.
Evidence for and against
- [name withheld] gives a work detail that seems checkable ([quote withheld]) and a state (“Illinois”).
- The story is given firsthand by the person who reports the experience.
- No document, photograph, recording, or physical trace is offered.
- No other person is said to have seen the figure, and none speaks on air.
- The only specific detail beyond the caller’s state is the caller’s work.
- No outside check was done. Nothing in the story has been verified.
- It is not stated whether other workers were present, despite the phrase [quote withheld]
- 0:09
- 0:27
What the model inferred (not said on air): Under the scoring guide this falls in the 0 to 10 band (the caller’s word only). The caller’s work and state are not enough to reach the [quote withheld] band, so I place it near the top of the lowest band.
The story is gentle and even affirming, and [name withheld] says it was not scary. The mild unease comes only from the vanishing figure and the silent mental message, which places it low on the scale.
Evidence for and against
- A figure that looks like a living person, seen in a cemetery, then walking off and fading away, is uncanny.
- Being addressed inside the head by a stranger is mildly unsettling.
- The setting (a graveyard during [name withheld]’s work) carries its own atmosphere.
- The figure is described as smiling and as communicating approval rather than threat.
- [name withheld] says outright that it was not a scary ghost story.
- There is no physical contact, no harm, and no escalation.
- The tone and details of the figure’s departure come through in short, fragmented transcript lines, so the exact impression cannot be fully judged.
- 0:37
- 1:01
What the model inferred (not said on air): I weight [name withheld]’s own framing and the absence of threat heavily, while allowing a small amount for the uncanny fading and the cemetery setting.
A familiar frame (a figure appears and vanishes in a graveyard) with one distinctive detail: the figure silently approves of the mowing crew’s work. The Lincoln-like description is also unusual. That places it slightly above a purely stock story.
Evidence for and against
- The distinctive detail is the mental, approving message about the mowing work, which is an unusual framing for a ghost encounter.
- The figure is described by comparison to [quote withheld] an unusual description rather than a standard type of ghost.
- The witness is a cemetery worker who meets the figure during their own maintenance work.
- A figure seen in a cemetery that then fades away is a familiar ghost-story frame.
- The individual elements (a sudden figure, a vanishing) are stock.
- The story is very brief, with little development or unusual structure.
- The comparison with the rest of the archive cannot be estimated meaningfully from this part of the broadcast alone.
- 0:27
- 0:37
What the model inferred (not said on air): This is a provisional model judgment. The comparison with the rest of the archive carries little weight in a small pilot, so the published value would be close to this score.
Scoring confidence 0.60 · analysis confidence 0.70 · checked against outside sources: no · evidence available: [name withheld]’s own live, firsthand story; No physical evidence, document, photograph, or record offered; No second witness speaks on air. The originality score blends the model's score (55) with how rare the story's details are across the archive. This method is still provisional.
Ordinary explanations to consider
These are possibilities only. None is a finding about what happened.
- A shape glimpsed at the edge of their vision was mistaken for a person, with details (the comparison to Lincoln, a hat) filled in as the caller tried to make sense of an unclear glimpse. · The caller says the figure was first caught [quote withheld] and that they then [quote withheld]
- A living person on the cemetery grounds (a visitor or worker) who walked off. The apparent “fading” would be that person passing out of sight behind monuments or out of [name withheld]’s view. · They report that the figure “started walking away” and then could no longer be seen.
What stands out
The reported encounter is framed as approval rather than menace. The figure is said to have smiled and to have conveyed, in [name withheld]’s head, that the mowing crew was [quote withheld] The description of the figure by comparison to [quote withheld] is also unusual.
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