# Ouija board? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 10, 2024, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-board/998661 "2024-03-10T01:47:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![brasstacks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d26b3c/32.png) [@brasstacks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brasstacks)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2024, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-board/998661/81 "2024-03-11T22:39:26Z")
My weird archeologist aunt once tried to play ouija with me and my brother who is now into spiritual stuff and collects rocks. I didn’t do it because I didn’t trust that bitch. I was told later she also tried to move the stylus and he just went with it. This woman is a Christian. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2024, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-board/998661/82 "2024-03-11T22:44:07Z")
> [@GIGObuster](#): > > When participants were asked, verbally, to guess the answers to the best of their ability, they were right only around 50 percent of the time, a typical result for guessing. But when they answered using the board, believing that the answers were coming from someplace else, they answered correctly upwards of 65 percent of the time. I’m not in the least surprised. Many years ago, in high school, I took an exam in such a state of exhaustion that I couldn’t think at all. I just wrote stuff down with no idea whether it was right or wrong. I got the best score I’d ever gotten in that class. The back of my head had absorbed more of the instruction than my conscious mind had. And some years later, I went with my mother on a trip to Europe; and wound up in France in a similar state of exhaustion. I had taken several years of French in high school, all of them from teachers with different accents, speaking different versions of French, and with varying levels of experience in the language; and if prompted to write or say something in French couldn’t come up with much more than baby talk. But, surrounded by people speaking French, I found to my surprise that while I still couldn’t myself compose much in the way of coherent sentences, I could understand a great deal of what other people were saying. I think that’s a fairly common phenomenon. (The first night in France, I also ran into an odd difficulty: I’ve had since early childhood a string of words running continuously through my head. In exhaustion and surrounded by people speaking French, that automatic string of words started trying to switch into French. But I didn’t know enough French to think coherently in it. But I couldn’t think in English because the French was getting in the way; so I effectively couldn’t think coherently at all. Luckily, I thought it was funny – if I hadn’t thought it was funny, I’m pretty sure it would have been terrifying. After a night’s sleep I could think in English again.) > [@TruCelt](#): > > > [@thorny\_locust](#): > > > > The front of my head thinks I’m just talking to the back of my own head. The back of my head isn’t so sure. But in any case it’s good to have the front and back of one’s own mind on speaking terms. > > This states the case so beautifully; thank you. I don’t THINK so, but I can feel it. My lizard brain is a dang psychic. Whew. I’m glad that made sense to somebody besides me! I wasn’t sure that it would. ---
**Author:** ![brasstacks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d26b3c/32.png) [@brasstacks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brasstacks)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2024, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-board/998661/83 "2024-03-11T22:48:59Z")
> In exhaustion and surrounded by people speaking French, that automatic string of words started trying to switch into French. But I didn’t know enough French to think coherently in it. But I couldn’t think in English because the French was getting in the way; so I effectively couldn’t think coherently at all. That sounds terrifying if true. Have you ever experienced drowning? ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2024, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-board/998661/84 "2024-03-11T22:52:13Z")
It’s certainly true that it happened. I’ll do you the favor of assuming that you’re not accusing me of lying about it. I said specifically in the post that if I hadn’t found it funny I would probably have found it terrifying; but I did find it funny, so I wasn’t scared. I don’t know what drowning has to do with it. I’ve never come close to drowning in water, if that’s what you mean. ---
**Author:** ![brasstacks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d26b3c/32.png) [@brasstacks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brasstacks)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2024, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-board/998661/85 "2024-03-11T22:57:27Z")
It sounds like a situation that’s hard to escape. It may have just come to mind. I apologize if I sounded like I was calling you a liar. I like to assume constantly that there’s a very high chance I don’t know what I’m talking about and that may have leaked into this. I appreciate you extending the benefit of doubt for me. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2024, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-board/998661/86 "2024-03-11T23:00:26Z")
No problem. I escaped it easily by getting some sleep. I think that some part of me probably understood what was going on and guessed correctly that it was caused partly by exhaustion. ---
**Author:** ![JaneDoe42](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/janedoe42/32/14104_2.png) [@JaneDoe42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JaneDoe42)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2024, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-board/998661/87 "2024-03-11T23:20:44Z")
> [@thorny\_locust](#): > > I got the best score I’d ever gotten in that class. The back of my head had absorbed more of the instruction than my conscious mind had. I’m a pothead, I started smoking when I was 16. One of the things I learned in college was to always take tests in the same mental state I was when I was studying. If I was stoned when I learned something, I might not remember it when I was straight and visa versa. Minds and memory are very weird at times! ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2024, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-board/998661/88 "2024-03-11T23:32:55Z")
> [@JaneDoe42](#): > > One of the things I learned in college was to always take tests in the same mental state I was when I was studying. If I was stoned when I learned something, I might not remember it when I was straight and visa versa. Did that apply to all tests, or just tests that rely on memory (as opposed to critical and/or creative thinking or problem-solving)? ---
**Author:** ![JaneDoe42](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/janedoe42/32/14104_2.png) [@JaneDoe42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JaneDoe42)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2024, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-board/998661/89 "2024-03-11T23:47:30Z")
Do you know, I can’t remember. I know that I always got high marks for critical and/or creative thinking and problem solving but that’s probably because I was a smart pothead who didn’t want to go to jail because I was habitually committing felonies. I _had_ to be good at planning and problem solving while stoned. But this is a hi-jack, I just brought it up because of the connection to minds playing tricks on people so maybe we should go back to ouija boards. My grandmother had one. She also had crystals and divining forks and all kinds of fun things for tweenaged girls to play with. I figured out that I was the one moving the ouija board pointer because it always spelled like I did and high or not, speeling has never been my strong point. The dousing rods were more fun because at the time, you could dig just about anywhere in her neck of the woods and hit damp earth. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2024, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-board/998661/90 "2024-03-11T23:52:17Z")
I like to claim I’m psychic. I’m not. I am empathetic and I do lots and lots of listening to people wagging their mouths. I seem to have some ability to retain these things. Just like I retain trivial facts. My head swims with them. (As I am now it’s harder to pull stuff up, occasionally. I was once much much better) I still shock people what I remember about them. I have to set my own boundaries to not seem creepy or stalky. ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2024, 10:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-board/998661/91 "2024-03-12T10:59:42Z")
You should develop a Creole accent so that you sound like a voodoo priestess. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2024, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-board/998661/92 "2024-03-12T13:01:11Z")
> [@brasstacks](#): > > My weird archeologist aunt once tried to play ouija with me and my brother who is now into spiritual stuff and collects rocks. I didn’t do it… This isn’t a whoosh, is it? Sounds suspiciously like the plot of ‘The Exorcist’ movie: > In northern Iraq, priest Lankester Merrin takes part in an archaeological dig in the ancient ruins of Hatra. During the dig, he finds a stone talisman of a winged being that evokes a concerned look on his face. He then has a vision in which a giant version of the same being appears nearby, silently confronting him. Which leads to a girl named Regan making contact with, and then being possessed by, the demon through use of a …_Ouija board_ 😱 You almost got to meet Captain Howdy! > **[The Exorcist](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Exorcist)** > > The Exorcist is a 1973 American supernatural horror film directed by William Friedkin from a screenplay by William Peter Blatty, based on his 1971 novel. The film stars Ellen Burstyn, Max von Sydow, Jason Miller, and Linda Blair. The story follows the demonic possession of a young girl and her mother's attempt to rescue her through an exorcism by two Catholic priests. > Blatty, who also produced, and Friedkin, his choice as director, had difficulty casting the film. Their choice of relative u... ---
**Author:** ![brasstacks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d26b3c/32.png) [@brasstacks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brasstacks)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2024, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-board/998661/93 "2024-03-12T21:19:06Z")
After looking into this all I can say is I think Captain Howdy probably knows their way around a shovel or two. ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2024, 8:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-board/998661/94 "2024-03-14T08:06:25Z")
We haven’t discussed the most important issue, wee-jah or wee-jee? And if wee-jee, why is that?? It’s wee-jee in my neck of the woods, but the spelling has never made any sense to me. ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2024, 8:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-board/998661/95 "2024-03-14T08:08:49Z")
Glad you brought that up, because I always thought it was “wee jee.” ---
**Author:** ![chappachula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d2c977/32.png) [@chappachula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chappachula)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2024, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-board/998661/96 "2024-03-14T12:15:55Z")
> [@TruCelt](#): > > And if wee-jee, why is that?? Obviously, it is wee-jee. Because it’s fun to say. Wee-Jah makes you sound like a nerd. Didn’t you ever have sleep-overs? 🙂 And now for my next question: Who here in SDopeland is the oldest person to have used a Ouijah board? I’ve only seen them among kids, up to about 14. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2024, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-board/998661/97 "2024-03-14T12:32:36Z")
> [@TruCelt](#): > > We haven’t discussed the most important issue, wee-jah or wee-jee? And if wee-jee, why is that?? If we were being true to the word’s supposed origin as “oui” + “ja,” it would be “wee-yah.” I don’t know where “wee-jee” came from, but it may just be as @chappachula said: because it’s fun to say. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2024, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-board/998661/98 "2024-03-14T13:00:15Z")
> [@chappachula](#): > > Obviously, it is wee-jee. > Because it’s fun to say. > > Wee-Jah makes you sound like a nerd. > Didn’t you ever have sleep-overs? 🙂 I always said ‘wee-jah’. It’s spelled ‘Ouija’, not ‘Ouijee’, after all. Then again, I am kind of a nerd. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2024, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-board/998661/99 "2024-03-14T13:13:16Z")
The most common pronunciation is “weejee”. I don’t think I’ve ever heard “weejah”. After I learned that flamboyant press photographer Arthur Fellig was nicknamed “Weegee”, I thought I’d figured out how something spelled “Ouija” ended up being pronounced “Weegee” – they took it from the then-current photographer’s pseudonym. (there was a surge in popularity for the board in the 1920s, which I assumed coincided with Weegee’s rise as well.) Only, of course, I was wrong. The rise in Weegee’s fortunes didn’t coincide with the Ouija boards. And it’s possible that Weegee got his nickname from the pronunciation of the Board, not vice-versa. (That’s the contention of the guy at the Ouija Board Museum, although Wikipedia feels differently about it.) > **[Weegee](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weegee)** > > Arthur (Usher) Fellig (June 12, 1899 – December 26, 1968), known by his pseudonym Weegee, was a photographer and photojournalist, known for his stark black and white street photography in New York City. > Weegee worked in Manhattan's Lower East Side as a press photographer during the 1930s and 1940s and developed his signature style by following the city's emergency services and documenting their activity. Much of his work depicted unflinchingly realistic scenes of urban life, crime, injury and ... ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2024, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-board/998661/100 "2024-03-14T13:30:34Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > The most common pronunciation is “weejee”. I don’t think I’ve ever heard “weejah”. Now I’m not even sure how I say it. If I just say the word ‘Ouija’, pronouncing it ‘wee-jah’ sounds best to me. But if I say ‘Ouija board’, I think I’m saying ‘wee-gee board’. It’s easier than the other pronunciation when saying both words, or something. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-board/998661.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ouija-board/998661.md?page=6)