Happy Friday!

There is a house near mine that I have to drive behind to get to the gas station. At the rear of the property are a few dilapidated sheds. One spring afternoon I drove by and saw someone sleeping on a mattress in the corner shed. Over the winter the Tyvec sheeting had been ripped exposing the inside of the shed. A few days later I saw the same person sleeping on a tattered mattress. There are a lot of homeless people and drifters in Boise due to the generally mild winters. I figured some homeless person had been sleeping one off under cover of the roof to keep out of the rain.

The next week, on the way to work, I saw the same person again in the shadowy shed, in the same position. In my line of work it isn't uncommon to find homeless people of folks that partied too much end up freezing to death outdoors. I got to work and told my boss about what I saw and decided to go back and check things out.

One of the new deputies rode with me in the van while I told her the story. We arrived at the gas station and I drove right up next to the shed and she saw the person immediately. So I wan't crazy after all. We were both a bit creeped out, but got out of the van to get a closer look. That is when we spotted the other body. We got in the van and I drove to the front of the property where the house sat.

We got out, badges and all, and went to the door when a woman in a tank top and cutoffs came around the side of the house asking "can I help you?'' I used my best Joe Friday voice told her who we were and asked her about the shed. She replied "Oh, you're here for the dead bodies!". I had to ask what she was talking about. She got the hugest smile and said "The Coroner's office is actually here for my dead bodies!"

"What?" I asked.

"Those are my witches" she exclaimed. "I hang them for the telephone pole for Halloween". "I had a few people make complaints over the winter that there were homeless people frozen to death in my shed".

Why she never moved them is obvious. She loved the attention. I was duped by a Halloween decoration.  They weren't wearing pointy hats and there were no brooms in sight, BTW.

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