Dumb

"People are dumb about ghosts," Rana said casually, as if she had been talking about it for some time. "How so?" Merton responded, confused. "Well, sure, battle fields are haunted," she explained, "but they're awful. How could you expect a place like that to be calm and peaceful?" Merton nodded, seeing the logic. "And houses - well, I think all houses are haunted, too, but they're a crapshoot," Rana continued. "If you had a happy life you didn't want to leave, you might loop back all sparkly. If you were poor and crazy and sitting around in a pool of your own hate, then ... just burn that place down." Merton came to a stop on the sidewalk and put a hand on her arm. "Where is all of this coming from?" he asked (having resisted the more direct question of what the hell are you talking about and why). She pointed; Merton turned to look and they had been passing alongside a fenced dog park for a couple of blocks. "They make friends, they make trouble, they play, and they pass," Rana whispered. "They lock these places at night, but the dogs come in the morning and there are new messages all over. They're looking at something in the corner, wagging their tails, but they're not shaking or crying. You want a happy haunt, you go to the dog park."