I watch too many horror movies for sure, but I love them. So I find myself in a movie situation one day, what would you do?
I get a call from a funeral home to clean some windows, actually two funeral homes from the same people. First one goes well as there were people around working and all on a nice sunny day. Although I did stumble upon a body in the embalming room that kinda freaked me out, but I skipped that window!
Now the next day, I was to do the other building in the next city over, small city about 10 miles away. I was to meet somebody there to let me in as it was closed on that day. Well as luck would have it, it was a dark gloomy rainy day. “Wonderful” I thought to myself. So I meet the guy there and we chat for a bit as he opens the door. But he doesn’t go in. “Let me know when you’re done and I’ll come back and lock up”. “Uh, you’re leaving?” I said. “You ok with that? he replies. I’m like " oh yeah that’s fine!” (Shit no don’t leave, I’m thinking.) And…there he goes.
Well, I’ll do the outside first like I always do. There was an overhang so the rain wasn’t hitting the windows, therefore a reschedule was not in the cards. The outside was trashed and there’s about 35 windows, all one story. I finish that up, just like any other job. Now for the inside…
I realize I don’t have any water on the truck before I go inside so I need to get it from inside. I go in, of course the place is very dim and I have to look for some lights. Found a couple of switches and voila!
It’s raining harder now and there is a little rumbling of thunder. Yes frickin thunder!!! Well I need water so here we go, searching for the utility room. Every business has one right? I lurk down a hall that looks like it may lead to a room of some sort with water. I find a door. I open the door. There’s the embalming room, sigh, and there’s a water source, sigh…wait for it…and there’s a closed casket in there too. Lucky me!
Enter or not, that was the question. So yeah, I entered. Constantly looking over my shoulder, I fill the bucket up, stare at the casket for 10 seconds, and leave the room.
So I’m cleaning away, and none of the rooms are very well lit, and it’s gloomy outside. Again, constantly looking over my shoulder, I clean windows, in the dead silence other than the rain, by…my…self.
About half way through, I can’t stop thinking about the casket in the back Hall. What if the dead body comes out and gets me? Is there even a body in there? I need to know and I need to know now!
So I put my tools down, arm myself with the dealdy weapon known as the window scraper, and walk slowly down the back hall. I find the embalming room and slowly open the door to see if the casket is really there. Yup, there it is. Empty or full? Hmmm. I walk up to it very slowly, place my hand on the handle and lift up the lid. It is empty! I looked under and around to make sure it didn’t get out or something, and left the room.
I finished the job, all the while having that creepy feeling something was going to grab me from behind, because you know, when cleaning windows, your back is to everything. I then got the hell out of there and called the guy to come lock up and that was that.
To this day I can’t believe I did that job and looked in that casket by myself, just like the movies. I’ll never ever forget it!
