A Question of Belief

So I'm right now watching a program on National Geographic about "Vampires, - Is It Real?"   I am intrigued, not because I believe in it, but because there are so many people that do. And I wonder why. 
I generally feel that there are many people out there who feel so drawn to a character, who want so badly to act the part of someone who is supposed to be a sexy, attractive, romantic (classical sense) being who entices and fascinates others, that they will do whatever necessary to prove that they are truly that character. They loved the movie they saw or the book they read, or another person they witnessed playing the part so much, that they need to be a part of it somehow. And they need to do it better, throwing themselves into it with fervor and intensity. I've seen it quite a bit....
On the other hand, I do accept the fact that there are things I cannot, and will never be able to explain.  There are things I don't understand and cannot rationalize. I believe in life outside of our planet, absolutely. No creepy aliens, so to speak. But... life, yes, without a doubt.  And I believe in ghosts.  I do now. I always saw myself as a skeptic who wants to believe. I have my Dad's scientific mind. I don't access it that often, I'll admit, (she writes with a wry smile),  but I don't just believe what people tell me, because they've said it, or because they themselves believe it.  I was raised to search for truth for myself, no matter what it is; religion, philosophy, true history.....  I do my homework because I hand someone my trust.  I have experienced things that there is no way for me to explain. I've smelled cigarette smoke here in my house out of nowhere, as strongly as if I had just walked through a cloud of it, and no one here smokes. Neither do our neighbors, nor the people who lived here before us. My husband is a very rational man, and he has also had things happen in his presence that he could not explain as well as smelling the smoke where there was no smoke. My father experienced things. And so did his father. My Grandmother had a gift, and everyone knew it. She knew things before they happened, and she could look at their telephone and tell my dad, "it's for you," and the phone would ring.  And it was for him. I believe that not every single one of the thousands and thousands of individuals out there who claim to be psychics or mediums, or who have "seen dead people" are liars. I believe there is truth out there that just is what it is, whether I believe it or not. And I like it that way.  I like that there is more than meets the eye to this world.  Now vampires, I doubt it.... but just as I finished my sentence there, a paper bat just fell from my living room wall to the floor by my chair, as if to punctuate the conclusion of this blog entry.... coincidence?