Spooked – Episode: "Zuru Zuru"

Podcast: Spooked (KQED and Snap Studios)
Host: Glynn Washington
Episode Release: December 12, 2025

Overview: Ghosts, Ribbons & What Lingers

This episode of Spooked, titled "Zuru Zuru", explores true supernatural encounters in Japan, focusing on themes of memory, haunting, and the invisible threads that tie people, places, and events together—sometimes across decades. The centerpiece is Max Dionisio’s chilling experience in a Yokohama apartment, underscored by Glynn Washington’s own reflections on eerie encounters abroad and the uncanny persistence of the past.

Main Story: Max Dionisio’s Night in Yokohama

Arrival and An Ominous Room (09:48–14:46)

• Max arrives in Japan, thrilled to explore Yokohama and stay with his friend, Jeff.
• The apartment has a quirky, slightly shabby charm. Jeff hands over house rules but emphasizes one strange warning:
  "Do not sleep in the living room. When you go to bed, sleep in the bedroom." (12:36, F)
  • Max is puzzled but assumes it’s due to pests or comfort.

The Zuru Zuru Incident (17:06–26:23)

• On the third night—alone, cold, and tired—Max breaks the rule, opting to sleep under the cozy kotatsu table in the living room.
• He wakes around 1 or 2 AM, paralyzed except for his head and eyes.
• He hears a soft ‘zuru zuru’ sound—the sliding of silk. Looking down the hallway, he sees feet in traditional Japanese tabi socks.
• The feet belong to a woman in a kimono, her face unseen, gliding slowly toward him.
• Terrifying moment:
  “It was just bone chilling, terrifying. It was a kind of terror that I really never known in my life.” (20:44, F)
• She steps over his head, moves through the apartment, and disappears into the bathroom. After this, Max is able to move.
• He spends the rest of the night rattled, glued to the TV for comfort.

Confirmation: She’s Real (26:23–26:58)

• The next day, Max calls Jeff, who immediately understands what happened.
  • Jeff:
    “Oh, you slept in the living room. That means you’ve met her there.” (26:51, F)
• Jeff explains that both he and the landlady have experienced the same apparition—the reason for the infamous sleeping rule.

The Landlady's Story: The Woman in Kimono (29:19–34:16)

• Max returns the apartment key to the landlady and, over tea, gently presses for answers.
• She tells the story of a young woman who came to Yokohama decades ago to find a better life, ended up working as a hostess (possibly for yakuza-controlled bars), was ostracized, and ultimately died by suicide in the bathroom.
• Crucial detail: “Whoever sleeps in the living room is destined to meet her ghost. She does not cause any harm. All she does is try to get them to come to the bathroom.” (32:19, F)
• Max is unnerved but grateful to have closure and deeply empathetic for the lost woman:
  “It’s a tragic story. And of course I feel quite poorly for that poor woman who had to suffer so much.” (33:13, F)
• He concludes:
  “But you can be sure I am never stepping anywhere near that apartment again.” (34:04, F)

Host Glynn Washington: Reflections on Haunting & Connection

Haunted Neighbors in Kyoto (02:56–09:48)

• Glynn shares his own story as a young man in Kyoto, stuck renting next to a neighbor who builds a “monstrosity” in hate, and who constantly curses him with the word “kore” ("this"—which is contextually ambiguous but, here, deeply hostile).
• Long after the neighbor dies, Glynn returns and finds the anger, the “thing”, still radiating in the alley—proof that some energies, resentments, or spirits linger.

The Mystery of “Ribbons” (37:53–38:18)

• Glynn circles back to his recent visit to Japan, where serendipity reunites him and a friend with an old companion, as if fate (the “ribbon”) pulled them all together spontaneously.
  “The ribbon pulls you back.” (37:50, F)
  “What ribbon did this? How does any of this work?...Are these ribbons only in Japan or am I just missing them back home?” (38:05, A)

Key Quotes & Timestamps

• Max on the ghostly encounter:
  “I could hear something as well. And it’s a soft, soft sound. It’s a zuru zuru sound...I turn my head...and I happened to see a pair of feet. They were in these traditional socks that are called tabi.” (18:40, F)

• Max’s terror:
  “It was just bone chilling, terrifying. It was a kind of terror that I really never known in my life. I could feel my heart starting to pound in my chest. I’m thinking to myself, please, I don’t want to see her face.” (20:45, F)

• The aftermath:
  “Even though I’m shaken up and a little bit perturbed, I calm myself down… But you can be sure I am never stepping anywhere near that apartment again.” (29:19, 34:04, F)

• Glynn on lingering malice:
  “Wild, overgrown, his thing reeking of madness, still burning with malice. I know for sure this man has long since left this earth, but his echo remains.” (08:39, A)

• Glynn on fate and cosmic threads:
  “The ribbon pulls you back…What ribbon did this? How does any of this work?...They are both glowing like lanterns. I wonder. I wonder if I’m glowing too.” (37:50–38:10, A)

Notable Moments & Structure

| Timestamp | Segment | |-------------|--------------------------------------------------------------| | 02:56-09:48 | Glynn’s story of the cursed neighbor in Kyoto | | 09:48-14:46 | Max’s arrival in Yokohama | | 17:06-26:23 | Max’s supernatural experience in the living room | | 26:23-26:58 | Jeff confirms prior knowledge of the haunting | | 29:19-34:16 | The landlady shares the tragic backstory of the ghost | | 37:53-38:18 | Glynn’s reflection on fate (“the ribbon pulls you back”) |

Tone & Atmosphere

The episode is steeped in unease, wonder, and empathy. The hosts and guests speak candidly, with a tone that is both suspenseful and full of genuine cultural curiosity. There’s reverence for the supernatural, but also compassion for the tragedies behind ghosts and the memories people leave behind.

Conclusion

"Zuru Zuru" is a classic Spooked—not just a ghost story, but a haunting meditation on memory, shame, the afterlife, and the inexplicable bonds (“ribbons”) that draw people, stories, and spirits back together over time.

For listeners interested in the supernatural, Japanese folklore, or the ties between place and memory, this episode offers a moving, chilling, and beautifully told experience. Be afraid—and be moved.