Monsters Among Us – S19 Ep41: "Paint It Black" (Sept 2, 2025)

Host: Derek Hayes

Episode Overview

Theme:
This episode’s unifying thread is the color black in the paranormal—a collection of first-hand stories featuring black birds, beasts (dogs, cats, and shadow figures), mysterious objects, and spectral beings. Derek curates listener accounts that tap into the culturally loaded symbolism of black: omens, otherness, evil, mystery, and sometimes, protection.

Key Discussion Points & Accounts

Introduction to the "Paint It Black" Theme (02:57)

• Derek reintroduces the color-themed episode format after success with "the color red."
• Tonight, every submission centers on paranormal entities or phenomena described as black—shadow figures, animals, cryptids, UFOs, and more.
• "So I'm bringing that feature back tonight, the painted black episode, where each and every call somehow centers around the color black. Black shadow figures, black beasts." - Derek Hayes (03:13)

1. Black Bird Omen & Family Tragedy

Caller: Amanda in Washington
[03:31–05:01]

• As a child, Amanda witnesses a blackbird repeatedly flying into her grandparents’ window for a week.
• Despite attempts to deter it, the bird persists, finally drawing blood and cracking the glass—and then disappears.
• Within 12 hours, her grandfather died, echoing old folk tales of birds as harbingers of death.
  • "There was like an old tale...when a blackbird appears...it can be a bad omen or something bad's gonna happen to someone you love." – Amanda (04:39)
• Derek provides additional context on the superstition and notes its wide reach, but also points out the statistical likelihood of such events coinciding (05:05).
  • "A billion birds are killed each year...by running into Windows. And over 3 million Americans die each year. So those two facts are bound to occur together from time to time." – Derek Hayes (05:42)

2. Black Dog with Glowing Eyes and Vanishing Sparkles

Caller: Donald, South Carolina
[06:56–08:13]

• Donald’s wife spots a black dog with glowing eyes in a tree at dawn. When checked via security footage, the dog isn’t visible—only “different colored sparkles” that flickered for several minutes, then faded away.
  • "I did not see a dog. I saw these weird sparkles...it was like right up against a tree and it was different colored sparkles." – Donald (07:51)
• They later remove the tree; the event remains unexplained.
• Derek floats paranormal and mundane explanations, referencing omens and possible animal burial under the tree.

3. Shadow Figure Greets Witness ("Oh, hello there")

Caller: Jay, North Carolina
[11:14–14:29]

• Jay wakes at night, sees a “solid shadow” (not human-shaped, more like black, flowing smoke but denser than anything around it) standing over seven feet tall, almost touching the ceiling.
• The figure calmly (but unsettlingly) greets him: “Oh, hello there.” Then vanishes “like smoke from a campfire.”
  • "It turned around towards me and in an absolutely clear and earnestly lifted voice says oh hello there. It was so polite and oddly calming that it sent shivers down my spine." – Jay (13:22)
• Reeling with dread, Jay notices a face with two “darker than black” eyes before retreating. He stays up, light on, convinced it wasn’t a dream.

4. Black Cube UFO Over New England

Caller: Deb, Massachusetts
[16:27–20:45]

• On a highway drive, birdwatcher Deb spots a big, black, cube-shaped object moving linearly at great speed, passing through clouds far too high for balloons or helicopters.
• She rules out birds, balloons, and aircraft, describing it as her first UFO sighting.
  • "It almost looked cube shaped. And I thought perhaps it is a helicopter...but this object is now high enough that it is going through a cloud...it’s going fairly quick, almost at a pace of big airplane." – Deb (17:36)
• Derek notes that while black triangles are commonly reported in UFO lore, black cubes are rare but not unheard of (20:45).

5. Black-Eyed Bloody Woman ("BEK" or Something Else?)

Caller: Nick, Ontario, Canada
[24:27–28:56]

• During the early pandemic, Nick takes his dog to a deserted field and encounters a pale teenage girl, “vampire level pale,” with blood-smeared face, bloody clothes and feet, and “black eyes.”
  • "She lifted her head and looked me down the eye. And her eyes were black. And I got chills all over my body." – Nick (27:07)
• She tries to answer his questions but only gurgles. His dog pulls away, Nick flees, and discovers three hours have passed instead of the expected fifteen minutes.

6. “Alien Black Cat” – Kentucky Cryptid

Caller: Shelby, Kentucky
[30:14–32:16]

• Shelby recounts her grandmother’s story of seeing an enormous black cat (“the size of a fully grown male goat”) with a long tail crossing the road in daylight, decades prior.
• Similar recent local sightings point to the persistence of the “ABC” (Alien/Anomalous Big Cat) phenomenon in the Ohio Valley region.

7. Man with Black-Tipped Fingers (The “Painter” at the Wood’s Edge)

Caller: Correspondent 44, Indiana
[34:26–41:12]

• In his 20s, living rurally, the caller sees a silent, overalled man with void-black fingertips motioning for him to approach from the woods at 3am.
  • "All I can describe it as is if you have a bucket of oil and you dip your fingertips into it and pull it out, you have black tipped fingers. That’s how his fingers were motioning to me to come over to the edge of the woods." – Correspondent 44 (37:27)
• The figure’s face is “a black hole” where the mouth should be; afterwards, he’s haunted by dread but never sees the entity again.

8. Shadow Entity at Boston Gas Station

Caller: David, Boston
[43:37–46:29]

• While standing outside with a co-worker around 2am, both witness a five-and-a-half foot faceless black shadow figure swiftly moving across a closed gas station lot.
  • "Moving very quickly past the gas pumps was a black shadow figure. It was about 5 foot 6… in the shape of a person… This thing didn’t make any sound and disappeared in a matter of about 5 seconds." – David (44:37)
• Later, mechanic shares security footage showing the same figure; sightings have continued and always move toward a nearby cemetery.

9. Black Ring in the Sky

Caller: Stephanie, Florida (re: Virginia sighting)
[47:23–49:22]

• Stephanie correlates a recent online story of a black ring over Williamsburg, VA, with her own 2007 sighting at King’s Dominion.
• The ring floated and drifted, not resembling smoke or birds, and reminded her of footage from Paranormal Caught on Camera, where Derek himself commented on the phenomenon.

10. Gigantic Jet-Black Thunderbird

Caller: Joe, Northern Michigan
[51:02–53:34]

• As a preteen, Joe sees a monstrous black bird with a wingspan as wide as the river (estimated 40 ft), flying over Reedsburg Dam during a family fishing trip.
  • "I seen what I can only explain as a Thunderbird jet black. This bird...wingtip to wingtip was as wide as the river." – Joe (51:31)
• No one else in the group witnessed it; adult Joe wonders if it was just a vulture, but is convinced it was far larger.

11. Black Shadow in Hospital Bathroom

Caller: Anonymous, Pittsburgh
[55:01–56:31]

• Two nurse’s aides simultaneously see a black blur dart into a bathroom in a patient’s room; upon entering, nobody is there.
• The other aide later downplays her experience, but the caller stands by the event.

12. The Woman in Black, Searching for Children

Caller: Frank, Kahnawake Mohawk Reserve (near Montreal)
[58:37–64:09]

• At age five, Frank’s father and friends see a woman in all-black, face covered, floating (no visible feet), near their doghouse at night. She says she’s “looking for [her] children.”
  • "He noticed that he couldn’t see her feet. He said it looked like she was floating...she replied, ‘I’m looking for my children.’" – Frank (59:55)
• Psychic later claims the land was a former Catholic school operated by nuns and destroyed in an ambush; the woman’s garb could match a nun’s.
• Even decades later, the house’s basement is unnaturally unnerving to visitors.

Notable Quotes & Moments

• “It was so polite and oddly calming that it sent shivers down my spine.” – Jay, on the shadow entity, (13:24)
• “I started at the jaw and noticed her lower face was smeared in blood...she lifted her head and looked me down the eye. And her eyes were black.” – Nick, on the black-eyed woman, (27:09)
• “I saw these weird sparkles...like little miniature lights, kind of blurry. It was there for actually a couple of minutes and then it just faded away.” – Donald, black dog transformed into sparkles, (07:51)
• "If you have a story just as creepy as Jay’s, give my hotline a call at 888-608-NIGHT." – Derek Hayes, recruiting new stories (14:53)

Thematic & Cultural Context

• Color Black Symbolism: Derek devotes a brief segment to the cultural meaning of black (mourning, authority, elegance, the supernatural, and death) in both Western and Japanese traditions (23:57).
• Paranormal Diversity: The episode features the gamut of paranormal archetypes: omens, shadow people, cryptids, UFOs, lost spirits, and “BEKs.”
• Regional Focus: Many stories are anchored in Appalachia, the Midwest, and New England—areas with rich folklore traditions (see Derek’s enumeration of “alien black cat” hotspots: 32:16).

Mini Marathon & Variety (47:23–56:31)

• Derek notes the shorter calls in this episode allow for a rapid-fire series of stories, enhancing the episode’s breadth—ranging from “black ring” sky phenomena to cryptids and yet more shadow people.

Finale: The Floating Woman in Black (58:37–64:09)

• The episode concludes with Frank’s haunting encounter with a spectral woman in black—powerfully blending haunted ground, Catholic history, and Mohawk heritage.

Final Thoughts

Derek maintains a mixture of skepticism, folklore appreciation, and open-minded curiosity throughout. He frequently contextualizes the stories with personal anecdotes or broader paranormal knowledge, inviting listeners to both find patterns and delight in the mystery.

Quick Reference Timestamps for Key Segments

• [03:31] Black Bird/Omen (Amanda)
• [06:56] Black Dog and Sparkles (Donald)
• [11:14] Shadow Figure Says Hello (Jay)
• [16:27] Black Cube UFO (Deb)
• [24:27] Bloody Black-eyed Woman (Nick)
• [30:14] Big Black Cat (Shelby)
• [34:26] Painter with Black-Tipped Fingers (Correspondent 44)
• [43:37] Gas Station Shadow Figure (David)
• [47:23] Black Ring in Sky (Stephanie)
• [51:02] Giant Black Thunderbird (Joe)
• [55:01] Hospital Bathroom Shadow (Anonymous)
• [58:37] Woman in Black, Searching for Children (Frank)

Monsters Among Us Podcast—Keep it spooky!