Haunted Hotels Don't Scare Me!

I'm heading to Austin in a couple of weeks and I'm so excited! I've never been, so when booking our hotel, I really didn't know which one was going to be the nice one, and close to the capitol, restaurants, and shops so I randomly googled... saw the Driskill, thought this is nice and booked it.

We didn't take time to look anywhere else so we were both crossing our fingers we weren't going to a bedbug hotel!

Then we did our research.... it is one of the most haunted places in the US!!

At first I thought no way, I've seen Unsolved Mysteries, I've seen Ghost Haunting, I've seen the Most Haunted Places show... no way am I going to spend my weekend seeing, hearing, or imagining ghosts.

But then the excitement kicked in! I watch all those shows because I find it intriguing! I do believe in spirits, and I think to a certain extent some aren't at peace and still roam? maybe? I don't know, but as I am typing this I'm sounding crazy?

Not sure if this has to do with anything, but the night after we booked this hotel, I was talking to one of my co-workers from our sister station and I was telling her how cool it was and that I wasn't really scared but more excited about my trip.
And I was... until I went to bed that evening and started dreaming and maybe feeling spirits? (again, I might sound crazzzzyy)

Before I went to bed, I felt as if someone was throwing something at my face, I kept jolting back and opening my eyes but nothing or no one was there and then I felt something hit my eyelashes, again nothing was around so I just fell asleep.
Then I had a dream. (side note-my grandfather died almost 3 months ago, and he was my second father) My dream was about him, and he came to me and finally told me he was proud of me, he said he never understand all I had to go through to get to where I am today, but now he does know, and he is proud. I woke up thinking, wow, he finally said it to me and I truly believe that it was him coming through.

Next night. I tossed and turned all night, I wasn't felling too well, just kind of an anxious feeling... anyways, when I finally fell asleep.. when I hear a big bang, I jump up and look towards my window and one side of my blinds unhooked itself and fell. Creepppy! The next couple of night, same feeling as if someone was there but no one was. Anyways, I don't think this has to do with booking the hotel at all but talking about ghosts and spirits definitely has kicked my paranoia up a notch!

Back to the hotel...
HERE ARE JUST A FEW OF THE DRISKILL'S HAUNTINGS (from HauntedTexas.com)

* Colonel Driskill himself is said to wander through the original side of the hotel. His ghost is marked by the smell of cigar smoke and a fascination with bathroom lights.

* The spirit of a young child bouncing a ball haunts the first floor lobby, the ladies bathroom on the second floor near the bar, and along the stairs leading to the mezzanine. In 1887, while the Texas Senate was in session, the daughter of a Senator fell to her death while chasing a ball down the grand staircase. Her death was the first at the hotel. Within a week she was back running around and playing. Her spirit is also the first recorded ghost at the Driskill.

* Singer Annie Lennox and her band, the Eurythmics, enjoyed more than just "sweet dreams" during a stay in the 1980s. In her room before a show she laid out two dresses on the bed. Unable to decide which to wear, she decided to take a shower. After nearly 45 minutes of primping, she stepped out of the bathroom to discover only one dress left lying on the bed. The other was hung up nicely in the closet! Taking the recommendation of her visitor, she wore the dress on the bed. What's even more interesting is that her room was locked, and she was the only one with the key. Also, she had not yet unpacked, and the closet was completely empty except for the dress.

* During a conference held by IBM, a man returned to his room to find that his bathroom was full of steam, as though someone had taken a shower. The pad of paper next to the phone had been moved and was covered with illegible scribbling. Only a few years later, in 1998, the exact same haunting was reported by a couple staying in same room.

* In the first floor lobby, usually in and around the elevators, can be seen P.J. Lawless. Lawless was a ticket agent for the International Great Northern Railroad (later merging into the Missouri Pacific Railroad -- the MoPac Austinites know today.) Perhaps unable to get out of his lease, he actually lived in the Driskill for about 31 years, even while it was closed and between owners. He is easily spotted amongst guests due to his early 20th century ticket taker's uniform and is known to check his railorad watch as though still tracking phantom trains! Lawless will look at and acknowledge the living, unlike other spirits who don't seem to be aware of us.


* Room 525, which in 1998 re-opened after years of unuse, is one of the hubs of ghostly activity in guest rooms. For years the Driskill staff had closed the room and used it as storage. The doorway leading into the bathroom had been bricked up due to an Austin urban legend known as the "suicide brides." This legend claims that two women had committed suicide in that bathroom 20 years apart to the day. This is far from confirmed. Although a woman is known to have ended her life on the 4th floor, room 525 is one floor up and had already been closed off by then. The exact history of 525 may never be known, since the room's closing predates all current staff members. When reconstruction forced the re-opening in 1998, many strange things happened. The room needed to be painted four times, as the walls kept peeling. An air conditioning vent that was left lying on the floor blew cold air. When it was moved the blowing stopped. One of the workers described an unusual but distinct humming in his chest upon entering the bathroom. When the brick was torn down, the bathtub was full of crystal clear water. The faucet was not dripping, the floor was dry, and that room had been closed off for years!

These Are My Confessions.

I say I'm not scared but the moment we get there I bet I wont be able to sleep! I'll be too paranoid and with every little noise I hear, I will probably scream.

Do you believe in Ghosts? Have you stayed at the Driskill? Any advice before I head down to Austin?