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|For the myth in GTA SA, see Yeti (GTA SA).| The Yeti is a cryptid rumored to exist in Grand Theft Auto V. The only clue in GTA V that seems to reference Yeti is a clothing brand called "Yeti," which makes jackets and other apparel. The jacket brand can be found in any Suburban store around the city, and it may be a parody of the real-life Bape clothing company. Despite the name, the logo for Yeti showcases Frame 352 of the Patterson-Gimlin footage, and a more detailed logo found in the game's files shows the brown Bigfoot wandering in a redwood forest typical of northern California. This was included as Rockstar's way of acknowledging the fandom's obsession with Bigfoot. The Yeti brand has a store in Los Santos that is inaccessible. However, Yeti apparel can be bought at one of the five Sub-Urban stores in the state. Aside from this, there seems to be no evidence of a Yeti being in the game.

Comics, pins, and stickers on the A special first look for all our favorite POMEs Leaning very heavily into men-free content. Access extra POME content every month. Good witch, bad witch, red witch, blue witch. Are La Lechuza and South Texas's Historic Cryptid Connected? The Owl-Witch of the Rio Grande Valley Like what we're doing? If the 1996 cult classic gets reworked anytime soon, there are a few worthwhile updates we should consider. Inside the techniques of modern velo-witches. A public service announcement about the best animated film of all time

Television is full of “investigative” shows about the paranormal and the world of cryptozoology these days. Not surprisingly, most of them are laughably bad, but a couple of them are worth the couch time it takes to watch them. Here’s my rundown of the most talked about. Ghost Adventures – Travel Channel: This is almost so schmaltzy and corny it’s worth watching. The main adventurer is Zak Bagans. Zak’s shirts are as small as his ego is big. Together with two other guys who seem to be relatively well-balanced, he takes the viewers on an hour long ghostly journey filled with startled looks and stifled screams. Zak’s favorite line in every show is “Shhhh, Oh my God, Dude, did you hear that?” The last show I saw they heard what was pretty clearly a cat meowing, and he proclaimed with a wide-eyed gaze, “Dude, that’s a child screaming.” The other two, intimidated by his bulging biceps popping out of his t-shirt, readily agreed. Paranormal State – A&E: The Paranormal Research Society was founded by Ryan Buell when he was a student at Penn State. Like anyone with an expensive college education, he parlayed his unique ghost hunting skills into a cable network television show. He’s the Joe Friday of ghost investigators, very serious and dour. The show includes dramatic cutaways of him recording his “director’s log,” and specially built high-tech ghost hunting equipment that you won’t see on any other program. The group encounters a lot of demons and nasty ghosts… and what probably are some psychologically confused people who have been possessed and harassed by these unseen forces. The real scary part here is instead of getting counseling, they’re getting exorcised by a Nittany Lion and his investigative crew. Ghost Hunters International –SyFy: Believe it or not, this is a spin-off ghost hunting show. Robb Demarest heads up a team of skeptics to investigate hauntings outside of the US. Like their parent show, Ghost Hunters, the team sets out to find logical explanations for ghostly activity. The best and worst thing I can say about the show is that it is bland. They had a crazy guy on the first season who kind of made things interesting because you got the feeling he would snap at any moment, but he left and took all the potential drama with him. The show tries, but it doesn’t quite hit the mark. Monsterquest – History Channel: This is not a ghost show. This show is focused on cryptid-creatures. There are no stars here… unless you count the narrator. The show would have made the top of my list but they always claim to have made significant discoveries at the end of the show, when they actually didn’t uncover anything at all. The interviews are good. The production is top notch, and the science is real (unlike the ghost hunting shows). But they never come to any conclusions. It frustrates the hell out me. Ghost Hunters – SyFy: This is the best of the ghost investigation shows and it is the show from which Ghost Hunters International spun. It features a pair of plumbing partners, Jay and Grant, who work as ghost hunters at night. They call themselves TAPS, which I believe stands for The Atlantic Paranormal Society. They’ve assembled a highly likeable team of investigators who enjoy their job. Jay and Grant are just a couple of regular guys who have a real fascination with ghosts. As much as you can be, they are experts in all ghostly matters. They are the Woodward and Bernstein of the ghost hunting community, and if such a thing exists in the paranormal world, they give their profession credibility. Destination Truth – SyFy: This is a show that combines the best of cryptozoology and the best of the paranormal. The star of the show is Josh Gates who’s part adventurer, part comedian, part Jim Halpert from The Office with his caddish looks into the camera. Josh and his team seem to get the joke. They know that 99% of everything they investigate is complete nonsense that can be logically explained. The fun of the show comes from that one percent of the time when they have absolutely no explanation, when even they must concede that something beyond the known world is going on. You get the sense that they aren’t just having a good time. They are professionals who move in like a highly trained tactical team to peel away the confusion and gather evidence. The show gets extra bonus points for making Jael DePardo part of the team. Like I always say, if you’re going to stomp through the woods on a cold and gloomy night looking for unknown creatures and/or spirits, bring a cute girl.

Who's Behind Listverse? Jamie founded Listverse due to an insatiable desire to share fascinating, obscure, and bizarre facts. He has been a guest speaker on numerous national radio and television stations and is a five time published author.More About Us 10 Bizarre Prehistoric Cryptid Sightings Everybody knows about the Loch Ness Monster and Megalodon. You might also be aware that there is supposed to be an Apatosaurus living in the unexplored depths of the Congo. But there are quite a few other prehistoric animals said to be still walking the Earth in various remote places. “The moment you hear it, all your hairs stand on end,” said Manuel Vitorino Pinheiro dos Santos of his supposed encounter with the South American cryptid known as the Mapinguari. According to a Discover Magazine article, the Brazilian was hunting in the Amazon when a blood-curdling scream echoed around the forest. Dos Santos, an experienced hunter, immediately ran and hid in a river. He heard the call four more times as the creature moved away. While some have likened the Mapinguari to a South American Bigfoot, it has also been described as an enormous, sloth-like creature with large curved claws, reddish fur, and a stench to peel paint. This has led cryptozoologists to speculate that the myths actually refer to a surviving species of ground sloth, a group of gigantic, bear-like creatures believed to have gone extinct around 5,000 years ago. In 1994, ornithologist and scholar of the Amazon David C. Oren set out to try and track the Mapinguari in the rainforests of western Brazil, collecting over 100 eyewitness accounts of the creature. Unfortunately, Oren’s expedition was largely unsuccessful, coming away with only some casts of footprints, a clump of fur that turned out to be from an agouti, and fecal matter that was later identified as belonging to a giant anteater. One of the more legendary entries on our list, the Lukwata is a Sudanese cryptid said to lurk within the swamps around Lake No. It is usually described as a great serpent up to 30 meters (100 ft) in length. According to a 1937 article by Captain W. Hichens: “its eyes flash deadly fire and . . . it feeds on men and large animals, which it seizes with monstrous bristling tentacles protruding from its muzzle.” Admittedly, this doesn’t sound much like any known prehistoric beast, but other accounts describe only a long neck with a small head, similar to a Saurian such as Apatosaurus or possibly Plesiosaurus. The Lukwata was also known in Uganda, where the Baganda, Wasoga, and Kavirondo tribes supposedly associated the creature with sleeping sickness and made burnt offerings of sheep and cattle to the beast. 8The Japanese Plesiosaur Carcass In 1977, a Japanese fishing vessel was trawling for mackerel near New Zealand when its nets dragged something very peculiar up from the deep. The carcass, which nobody could positively identify, but which looked remarkably like a Plesiosaur, caused such a stir that the Japanese government issued a commemorative stamp depicting a Plesiosaurus skeleton that same year. While the media might be expected to play up the “surviving dinosaur” angle, a few scientists surprisingly did so as well—perhaps because they weren’t used to working with samples as badly decomposed as this one was. But it wasn’t long before other, better scientists pointed out that carcasses of this sort are discovered fairly regularly and usually turn out to be sharks or whales. Soon after the carcass became international news, tissue samples produced evidence that the creature was actually a dead basking shark. Decomposing basking shark carcasses lose the dorsal and caudal fins first, followed by most of the lower head area, making them resemble a “sea serpent” or Plesiosaur. Unfortunately, after a crew member took a few samples and measurements, the carcass was released back into the ocean to prevent it from spoiling the mackerel catch, making it impossible to definitively refute claims of prehistoric origin. 7The Queensland Tiger The Queensland tiger is a catlike, German Shepherd–sized marsupial long rumored to live in Australia’s Queensland Rainforest. Known to the local Aborigines as the Yarri, it first came to the attention of white settlers in the 1870s. There were a flurry of sightings in the 1940s and ’50s before, in 1961, Craig Black claimed to have seen a female carrying a pouched cub in Ben Lomond National Park. Three years later, a traveler named Rilla Martin took a picture supposedly depicting the beast. Martin’s picture gained instant notoriety as “the Ozenkadnook tiger photo.” The jury is still out on whether the photo is authentic, although what looks like an artificial prop supporting the creature has been identified sticking out of the bushes. Fake photos or not, cryptozoologists have theorized that the “tiger” is a surviving species of Thylacoleo, a genus of carnivorous marsupials often called “marsupial lions.” Others believe that the Queensland tiger is a mainland version of Thylacine, the famous Tasmanian tiger, which is believed to have gone extinct in the 1930s. One of the strangest dinosaurs to have ever lived, Therizinosaurus looks like a bizarre mixture of horse and bird, with awkward, Edward Scissorhands–like claws sticking from its forelimbs and feathery protrusions coming from its elbows. Oh, and, at least according to a missionary group from Creation Ministries International, the creature is still around as part of a lost world of living prehistoric creatures on the small islands of West New Britain in Papua New Guinea. According to the group, nine natives of West New Britain have spotted the creature since the late 1990s. To make the story even more interesting, the group also claims that the islanders have seen a second creature, this one matching the description of a sauropod, possibly Apatosaurus, swimming between the islands. Of course, why a fundamentalist creationist group that believes the world is less than 6,000 years old would have an interest in proving dinosaurs still exist is anyone’s guess. But that isn’t the end of prehistoric sightings in New Guinea. The Gazeka legend was originally started in 1910, when a widely syndicated newspaper account described explorer C. A. W. Monckton’s ascent of Mount Albert Edward in the west of British New Guinea. There, he supposedly came across the tracks of some enormous beast, which came to be known as “Monckton’s Gazeka.” According to the story, which does not appear in Monckton’s own memoirs, the explorer supposedly discovered the monster attacking a village of pygmies and opened fire on it. “The huge Gazeka at once turned upon him. As it reared upon its hind legs and pawed the air it looked to the hunter as big as a house, standing fully 25 feet high. Two of Monckton’s bullets seemed to take effect, as a stream of blood flowed freely from the animal’s shoulder, but before Monckton was able to reload the animal turned and fled. By that time it was too dark to follow him, and Monckton never had another opportunity to renew his pursuit.” While there are a number of holes in the story (New Guinea is not known for its pygmies), the article states that the supposed description of the creature reminded Dr. W. D. Matthew of the American Museum of Natural History of a Diprotodon, the Pleistocene epoch’s “Giant Wombat.” Diprotodon was the largest marsupial to ever live, growing up to 3 meters (10 ft) from nose to tail. Accompanying the article was a depiction of the pygmy race reportedly observed by the expedition, with an artist’s reconstruction of the giant footprints of the Gazeka. Creationists have claimed there are similarities between the reconstruction and Diprotodon‘s footprints. Unfortunately, they don’t match nearly as well as the creationists claim. In 2000, cryptozoologists William J. Gibbons and David Woetzel were in Cameroon doing preliminary research for an expedition to search for the fabled Mokele-mbembe when local pygmies told them of yet another cryptid in the area. The creature, which supposedly fought elephants over territory despite being smaller in size, was described as a Ngoubou (“rhinoceros”). However, the pygmies insisted that the creature had an additional six horns around a frill, reminiscent of Styracosaurus, a Late Cretaceous beaked dinosaur similar to the better-known Triceratops. “Dutifully, we showed them the drawings of the Triceratops and again were rebuffed by the comment that while it looked like the Ngoubou it did not have nearly enough horns and that they were in the wrong place on the triceratops. I asked what they meant by that, the men told us that Ngoubou had six horns on the frill itself and one of them drew the configuration for me on a scrap of paper.” The difficulty with this theory is that Styracosaurus fossils have never been found outside of North America. Because some natives of the region describe the Ngoubou quite differently, and do not recall a frill, some cryptozoologists instead identify the creature with Stegosaurus or Kentrosaurus (which at least had the decency to come from Africa). On September 25, 2001, a 19-year-old driving along Pennsylvania’s Route 119 reported what he described as “flags flapping in a thunderstorm” coming from above his car. When he looked up, he was astounded to see what looked like a bird with a 3–4.5 meter (10–15 ft) wingspan and a strange, elongated head flying above him. Over the next few months, two more witnesses would report seeing similar creatures in Greensville and Erie County, Pennsylvania. The reports were reminiscent of a string of sightings that took place in Texas in 1976 and 1982. In all cases, the creature described sounded remarkably similar to a Pterosaur. The sightings in Texas even occurred near to where the fossil of Quetzalcoatlus northropi, a large Pterosaur of the Late Cretaceous, was first discovered. Interestingly, these “Pterosaur” sightings seemed to occur close to each other in waves. That suggests that people were really seeing something—but what? One obvious candidate is the frigate bird, whose grey feathers can look like leathery skin from the right distance and whose wingspan can reach up to 2.5 meters (8 ft). The frigate bird hardly ever lands except to tend its young and can soar effortlessly over long distances. Over in Africa, the peoples of the Congo, Zambia, and a number of other regions speak of Kongamoto: “the Overturner of Boats.” It is described as featherless with smooth skin, a beak full of teeth, and a wingspan of 1–2 meters (4–7 ft). On the Gold Coast, British explorers in the 1920s heard tales of the Susabonsam, which grew to the height of a man and had thin, tenebrous wings like a bat. The truly large sightings of Kongamoto could be a surviving group of Quetzalcoatlus northropi, which, at the height of a giraffe, was the largest flying animal to have ever lived. Of course, they could also be condors, various storks, or other large birds seen in silhouette—or they might only be legends or outright hoaxes. But in 1988, Professor Roy Mackal led an expedition into the deserts of Namibia. He was investigating intriguing reports of a creature with a 9-meter (30 ft) wingspan seen gliding through the air. Eyewitness reports stated that it would appear at dusk, flying between two hills. Some even claimed that the winged monstrosity glowed in the dark. While the mission was unsuccessful, one expedition member claimed to have seen it from a distance, describing it as “a giant glider shape, black with white markings.” Titanoboa cerrejonensis was a prehistoric snake measuring up to 13 meters (42 ft), making it the largest snake known to science. Its fossil remains were found in northeastern Colombia and Jason Head of the University of Toronto says that he “just about screamed” when he saw the size of the fossils. We would, too. So it shouldn’t come as much surprise that the Amazon has legends of giant snakes much larger than the anaconda that makes the region its home. Natives of the Amazon call it the “Yacumama” (“Mother of the Water”), “Black Boa,” “Sucuri Gigante,” or “Cobra Grande” and reports have ranged from 50 meters (164 ft) to a more realistic 18–24 meters (60–80 ft). There have been reports of anacondas that have reached lengths approaching the bottom range of Yucumama sightings, but none have been confirmed by science. Opinion is divided as to whether or not such reports, if they are to be believed, represent cases of giant anacondas (meaning that science has yet to document the true upper limits of their size), an entirely new species of snake, or a prehistoric survival of Titanoboa or Gigantophis garstini. In 2009, a man from Northern Ireland named Mark Warner and his son Greg traveled to the region to try to capture evidence of the creature, assembling a team to carry out aerial surveys of selected locations. After 12 days in the jungle, hazardous weather conditions, hundreds of still photographs, and hours of video, the two men captured a photo of what they claimed to be a gigantic snake, about 40 meters (131 ft) long and almost 2 meters (6 ft) wide. Now, there has been some debate about just how large the anaconda can grow, but 40 meters is an extraordinary claim requiring a lot more evidence than a rather unclear aerial photograph. Warner and his son have planned additional expeditions to track down the monster and have recommended thermal imaging surveys of the region, but so far no new evidence has surfaced. You just knew the real king of the beasts had to be around here somewhere, and of course he’s from Australia, where everything seems to want to kill you anyway. The Australian Aboriginal peoples call it the Burrunjor, describing it as a bipedal giant reptile with strong legs and small, almost useless arms. Sound familiar? Throughout the 1950s, Australian cattle ranchers reported the bipedal tracks of some large creature that was attacking their livestock. One of the most dramatic sightings (which continue to this day) occurred near the McArthur River in 1957: “Cattle began to panic. The ranchers were perplexed, especially when one of their team ran screaming into a nearby river for relative safety . . . a loud grunting and snorting noise was heard. Witnesses viewed the silhouette of a tall monster fleeing into a nearby scrub land and daybreak revealed several mutilated cattle, some half eaten.” Other candidates for the Burrunjor are Allosaurus, Utahraptor, or nearly any other mid- to large-size Therapod. The remarkable thing about the Burrunjor tales is that, unlike most cryptid stories, reports of the Burrunjor stay remarkably consistent over time. But how could a population of creatures as large as the mighty Tyrannosaur feed themselves, aside from the occasional cow or crocodile? Maybe they ate all the other giant lizards that supposedly live in Australia. +The Velociraptors Of The Old West There have been many little-known sightings of smaller, Therapod-like lizards across the American West, collectively referred to as “River Dinos” or “River Lizards.” Examples include the “Mountain Boomer” of West Texas, said to be a bipedal lizard up to 2 meters (6.5 ft) tall, with greenish or brownish skin. In 1993, an investigator named Jimmy Ward claimed to have heard tales about, “a giant lizard that walked on its hind legs and whose voice sounded like thunder.” The Colorado “River Lizards” and “Oklahoma Raptors,” previously thought by some to be Dromaeosaurs (which, unfortunately for the eyewitnesses, are now known to be feathered dinosaurs), are more commonly sighted than the Boomer. In 1993, a woman came forward to claim she had seen tall gray (or green) lizard-like creatures no less than three times in her life. Her first encounter was in May 1935, when she witnessed five of the creatures near Pagosa Springs. There are several photographs in existence supposedly portraying living American dinosaurs. One of the best known, pictured above, shows a young man with a rifle holding what looks like the dead carcass of a baby dinosaur that he presumably shot. Another shows what looks like a Tyrannosaurus jutting out from just over a hill. Reports like this persist because, well, it’s the Wild West with dinosaurs! Who can’t get behind that? Lance is a science enthusiast, skeptic, freelance graphic designer and writer interested in topics on science and skepticism, history, atheism, religious issues and history, and a wealth of other subjects. You can look for him on Facebook until he starts a blog or something.

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It’s customary for me to write about my goals from the previous year; then to write about the goals I have for the upcoming year. So this post is Part 1 of a 2-Part series. (Part 2 will be tomorrow.) DID I REACH MY 2021 GOALS? Yes…and no. I met some, but not all. Let’s break it down. 1) MAKE 5 NEW CRAFT PIECES. How completely self-indulgent to have a goal NOT related to work! Here’s the thing: technically I DID make this one. But I didn’t get to everything on the initial list I had. 4 out of 5 pieces on my old crafting to-do list got done! Then I got sidetracked and began making new things. That’s ok! I’ve decided to just pursue the things that bring me joy instead of dread. That’s more important. ESPECIALLY for a hobby. 2) MAKE 5 NEW MINICOMICS This DID NOT HAPPEN. I did not make 5 new minicomics. …But I DID make – and finish – The Legend of Azu-Mi. (At least, the art for it.) I’ll count that win for what it’s worth. 3) MAKE 5 NEW 11X17 (OR LARGER) PRINTS Yet another goal that DID NOT happen. I barely got two. Even then, one of the new prints, Kay the Valkyrie, is not 11×17 inches. I thought I had formatted the original working file to that size. Turns out, I did not. I did, however, finish the art for one that had been a work in progress for two years – the Cryptid of Leaves. Here’s a peek at the original… My new scanner bed is not quite big enough to accommodate this guy, though. So I’ll need to figure out how to digitize him to make prints. 4) RELEASE 5 NEW BOOKS This past year, there came the release of… - The Legend of Jamie Roberts, volume 1, - Less Than Secret: A Cryptid Anthology, and - complete edits for Sean McGavin’s new book that I’m a part of. But that’s not 5 books. That’s fine. I’ll consider it good that these even got done. Especially considering that The Legend of Jamie Roberts, volume 1 kept getting a LOT of setbacks – from production delays to book misprints. 5) MAKE 5 VIDEOS ON YOUTUBE I gave up on this one. Like, yes, I made a lot more videos on TikTok after I got on that platform. But actually editing video is my least favorite thing in the world to do. It’s right up there with bashing my head against the refrigerator door, or burning myself on pans while baking. But I DID get into animation. Look at them! I animated Jamie here! Thank you, Clip Studio Paint, for making that happen. Eventually, I’ll get used to your animation tools. Because currently, it’s like trying to read French. I think we can all agree that 2021 was not the year we expected, or hoped, it would be. On my end of things, there were production issues, an encounter with a scam artist, and 3 deaths in the family in the final 6 months of the year. To be blunt, 2021 was shit. Basically 2020 part 2: Electric Boogaloo. With that in mind, I’m going to…restructure a few things. But I’ll get into that tomorrow. That’s all for now. Thank you for reading. You. Are. Awesome.

Encounters of the Mantis Men A number of encounters have been reported about…regarding what appears to be a humanoid creature. It seems to resemble that of a praying mantis insect. Some people think, this isn’t a cryptozoological creature but instead an overseeing alien species – who study humans upon their abduction. They are believed to be overseers of several other alien races, who frequent our very world. Since there are so many different mantises upon Earth, is it possible some sort of mutation has taken place? Currently, there are an estimated 2,400 different species in about 430 genera in 15 families. The most populated species of mantises are the Mantidae family. They are known to inhabit tropical locations throughout the world. Mantises are described as having elongated bodies and some of them even have wings. Most if not all of them have enlarged forelegs which are used to grip their prey, as they stand in an upright posture. Quite typically, their forearms appear to be folded. In the insect world, they are a force to be reckoned with. Some people even keep these insects as pets and they can live up to a year in captivity being cared for. If a praying mantis bites a human, they would cause them little harm, as their bite isn’t poisonous. However, what if they were larger and more comparable to us in size? Back in 2002, the very first encounter took place with a mantis looking man. It happened at Stephens State Park, north of Hackettstown, New Jersey. This 805 acres of western Morris County, is state owned property. It is here where this amazing encounter occurred. One man mentioned, that he suddenly began hearing a sharp intensifying sound in his right ear. When he turned, he glanced over to see the unexplainable. There before him, was a mantis man creature. He said it was between 6-7 feet in height. The color of it, was a greyish black. After a moment, this bizarre creature seemed to vanish into thin air. According to his brother, who was 50 feet upstream from him, he peed his pants. This man got into the water, to hide the fact he urinated from fear. Over time, the man has been emotionally affected over this incident. Each time this comes up into conversation, he would recall the moment breaking down into tears. This seems to help validate his story, about what he had seen. The next alleged encounter with a mantis man, happened back in 2004. Several men were out fishing in the Musconetcong River. This river runs 45.7 miles in length, as a tributary of the Delaware River in the northwestern part of New Jersey. A lot of this territory, is rural mountainous countryside. Both of these men, were chest deep in the water fishing. Not long after, one of them noticed something peculiar moving along the bank of the river. His description detailed this humanoid creature resembling that of a mantis man. He estimated it being about 7 feet tall, it was gangling green colored. It’s face was triangular with large black eyes, typically seen on insects. Whatever this thing was, it seemed shocked that this man could see it. Moments later, this mantis looking man, seemed to dematerialize mid-stride. The man claimed this wasn’t his first encounter with something out of the ordinary. He previously experienced a ghostly encounter along with a shadow person sighting as well. This mantis man encounter, didn’t seem to startle him and this thing seemed to pick up on this. The last known encounter, took place at the Musconetcong River, sometime between July 22nd and July 25th in 2014. Mr. Strickler was driving home, after a trip to the store along the river. When he glanced over, he noticed what appeared to be a fisherman. As he looked closer, it appeared to be something else entirely. This thing also resembled that of a mantis insect. He described this thing being about 8 feet tall, it was a pale brown color. It had a small shaped head and spindly limbs. This is what Mr. Strickler said: “I saw something strange a few weeks ago on the Musconetcong River near my home here in Hackettstown, New Jersey. I was driving home from the drug store on Newburgh Rd. As I drove near the bridge over the river, I noticed to my left something (I thought a fisherman) standing in the river just off the south bank. I slowed the car and looked closer. It wasn’t a person and it was transparent-like with a weird shape. It moved slowly towards the bank and into the trees. I drove further so I could see it coming out of the trees. That’s the last I saw of it. It was tall, 8 ft. or so and had long thin arms hanging off of it. The color was a pale brown, but I could see through it! The head was small compared to the body. It was sunny that day so I thought it may be glare from the water, but after I thought back I realized I wasn’t seeing a mirage or glare. I checked the internet and didn’t see anything about it. I mentioned it to a coworker in my office at lunch on Wednesday. He gave me the strangest look. I thought ‘uh-oh’ he thinks I’m nuts. We went back to his computer and he brought up the Hackettstown forum with the mantis man witness.” All of these encounters are rather bizarre yet they all took place near water. Not much else is known about the mantis men, they are a newer oddity. Whether or not they are extraterrestrial is up for interpretation at this point. For now, they have been classified as cryptozoological entities. (Source: Cryptid Wiki)

Laika, a werewolf, lives in an old manor house that is either sentient or haunted, along with a debonair dwarf, a recalcitrant selkie, a shy orc, and a grubby cryptid of an elf. That's a lot of personalities for one house—and then one night she stumbles on a miserable vampire named Kyle, who's just been kicked out of his nest by his sire. Laika might have a bite just as bad as her bark, but she's not so heartless as to let a vampire face sunrise with only his snapback for protection...so she invites him over. These are their (mis)adventures. Laika | a female werewolf, named unironically after the famous dog. Grumpy, tall, could bench-press a truck. Secretly as sweet as her sweet tooth. Kyle | a vampire, disturbingly and sincerely committed to the fratboy aesthetic. Scared of the dark. Turns into a bat when startled. A Disaster™. Aurelius | a dwarf and a prolific author of poetry. Extremely and genuinely charming. Equally handsome. A veritable font of patience. Orla | a selkie, transformed half the sunroom she lives in into an underwater habitat perfect for her seal form. Will bite you. Will not warn you about it. A silversmith, runs an online store selling her jewellery and knives. Mogdur | goes by Mog, an orc, very shy, very large, very gentle. An artist who likes working on his webcomic and gifting people with his sketches of them. Thistle | an elf, though he's often mistaken for a very pretty gnome. Never formally moved in; they found him in the back garden digging a hole and he just stuck around after that. His actual government name is Ben. He won't answer to it. I've been calling this WIP 5 for literal years and as per usual with my story ideas, I had only characters and a vibe and no plot in sight. But today a friend asked me about it and in the course of talking to them, I realized...I don't actually need a plot? I can just write a series of interconnected stories featuring this cast of characters? So that's what I'll be doing and I'm excited for it! Technically this is more of a concept than a WIP, so that's where you'll find reference to it, because I don't really feel ready to work on it. Still, I wanted to put this intro post together and see what happens with it! Reflective of my headspace of late, I've taken to writing short excerpts for Glitch wip and [mostly] out of order bits for Oracle wip. I've also done some brainstorming for my Reaper wip and written odds and ends for wips that don't exist yet. Here's everything so far, in case you missed it. in which there is a cyborg named sacha and a shapeshifter named cipher [[ cw: cyborg slavery and related issues of agency ]] .01 -- sacha’s jerked rudely and abruptly out of stasis, which immediately puts her on the alert because fitz may treat her like a thing, mostly, but he wakes her like he would anyone, with a nudge to the shoulder and not a zap to her temple port. her eyes fly open and she’s met with a figure dressed in and masked by glitch-wear, which only heightens her alarm. her arm whirs as it calibrates, the pump in her heart picking up speed and filling her with adrenaline. she doesn’t swing immediately only because she doesn’t have enough intel on what’s happening to know if that’s the right move. the stranger raises his hands palm outward in that universal sign that means ‘i’m harmless’ and also ‘don’t attack’. I received an email inquiry from a reader and fellow author about how to best to go about incorporating Muslim characters into a fantasy world (specifically, Yu-Gi-Oh! Arc-V), and the sender gave me permission to post his message and my response to it, since I thought it would be a neat discussion to share. Found your online essay about Samirah al-Abbas--it was very incisive and I am grateful for having found it, especially since you're another Muslim Canadian who's a bit into the deep end of nerdiness. It gets a bit lonely when my sister is the only other Muslim I know who orbits any of the same interests as me. Thanks for reaching out to me! I'm glad you enjoyed my essay, and I'm thrilled you found me and then reached out to me as a fellow nerd. Before I get into everything, I do wanna make it clear that I'm not a scholar but I'm answering you with the best of intentions and with my (limited) knowledge and understanding, and Allah knows best. So I don't really know anything about Yu-Gi-Oh! or Arc-V, but I did a quick perusal through wiki about it and I think your fanfiction should be fine? When I talked about Samirah and the issue of her being Muslim in the context of her world, it was because she lived in a universe where there is a real and existing pantheon which necessarily makes it impossible for there to be God as Muslims believe Him to be. You said there isn't any 'god problem' in the Yu-Gi-Oh! Arc-V universe, so I should think having Muslim characters should be fine. If there are beings that people in the universe of Yu-Gi-Oh! believe are gods, but aren't actually—are instead some sort of magical being with powers etc.—that's also totally fine. (For example, if in the Magnus Chase universe, the Asgard gods were revealed to be...I don't know, a magical race of superhumans that 'regular' humans believed were gods and worshipped them as such, Samirah could quite happily and easily be a Muslim still believing in truth, and I wouldn't have an issue with it). It's excellent that you're concerned about this, and I have a couple of suggestions for you, if you want them, for anything you might write in the future that might deal with this. In which case, I'd advise you to do one or all of the following, as you need! As for magic (because you mentioned there were paganist/occultist stuff in other Yu-Gi-Oh! arcs)...hm. Magic in real life is evil, has to do with djinn, and is haram for Muslims to take part in. But when it comes to fiction...people might disagree with me, but I think fictional magic is not a problem. I think it's fine to have Muslim characters who practice fictional magic or have magical powers, as long as it's not anything like real magic, has nothing to do with djinn, doesn't require them renouncing their beliefs or not fulfilling some tenet of Islam. For example, I wouldn't think it would be a good idea to have a Muslim who practices human sacrifice, or does spells relating to blood or possession, or something like that, unless the author wanted to point out some corruption or hypocrisy in this character, because Muslims are people and people are flawed etc etc. However, I can easily imagine a Muslim character in the world of, say, Harry Potter being a witch or wizard, because that magic is nothing like real magic and doesn't infringe on Muslim beliefs. Again, I'm not a scholar, so I could be wrong or missing something. As for your characters being in the process of an arranged marriage: that's totally up to you! I absolutely get wanting them to be in a halal relationship, and so setting up an arranged marriage for them allows for that. I know some people, Muslims and non-Muslims alike, may be uncomfortable with that, out of concern for your characters being so young, or having a choice in who they marry, and being able to fall in love or out of love etc, so it's up to you how you wanna depict it. This is, I think, more of a personal preference than a theological issue, so feel free to explore the whole idea the way you want to. I hope this (very long) message helped and answered your questions! Tawfeeq with your writing and I hope you find more fellow nerdy Muslims to connect with! If there's anything else you wanted to talk about, or if you wanted more clarity on something I said, do let me know! I'm always happy to chat. Happy reading and writing! I made a post like this for 2021 and I thought it would be nice to do the same this year too. I have a hard time remembering and/or focusing on the positives rather than the negatives, and an overview is usually pretty uplifting. So let's get into it! So! November is over! Last post I said I hoped to have a whole--if rough--draft of LofM completed by now, and I really have to laugh and wonder what in the heckity heck I was thinking. A whole draft? A whole draft???? Needless to say that did not end up happening (a whole draft! which would've been between 50 and 70k?!). But I did write, and enjoyed writing, even though it wasn't every day. After all, I went from having nothing at all to having something that I am, crucially, pretty happy with. I also didn't end up posting excerpts weekly here, though I did share a few on tumblr. I've gathered them all here for your perusal. I also made two posts corresponding with some entries in my worldbuilding encyclopedia, featured below! I love them and am excited to create and share more! Once, in the oldest of days and times, there were four kingdoms: the kingdom of Men, the kingdom of the Djinn, the kingdom of the Elyoud, and the kingdom of Beasts. I say once, but they are kingdoms still. They are not, nor have they ever been, united, though only two are sworn enemies: the Djinn and the Elyoud, who will have no alliance or consortium with each other. ❝The key around uncle’s neck is black with age. He says the door it unlocks is hiding. “From what?” I ask. He sighs. I examine the key with curiosity. It’s on a very long chain, the links so thin I have to peer closely at it to even make them out. It must be quite strong, despite its apparent delicacy, to bear the key which is so heavy. The key itself is a strange thing. The head is rounded, with a hole in the middle for the chain to go through. The blade is long and rounded too, and there are unsettling engravings on it, hardly legible, that shift and waver when I try and study them. And the teeth of the key…the teeth all curve into points, so that they look a little like horns or fangs. “What do you think the door it belongs to is like?” I ask my uncle. He hums, gently pulling the key from my hands and tucking it beneath his shirt to hang on its quicksilver chain, out of sight, but not out of mind. “Well,” he says slowly. “Make a key, and its door will be called into existence. Make it wrong, and you might just summon a black door. Or worse, no door at all. I don’t think this is the case of the latter, but the former…” ❝We form our own sort of twisted community, those of us desperate enough to fish in the River Styx.❞ It’s the gold we want, the coin placed in the mouth or upon the eyes of the dead to pay the ferryman. He takes the gold and takes the dead too, but he does not keep the gold. It glitters at the bottom of the River, untouched and unused. Hades does not need it and does not miss it, lord of all the wealth beneath the earth (including our precious dead) as he is. We, who for one reason or another cannot earn our gold any other way, who are willing to risk traversing the paths to the underworld, we make our way to the River and hope, with every dip into the water, not to rouse the nymph it is named for, for her fury at our transgression is cold and implacable and all consuming. Sometimes, the water is truly as calm and quiet as it always appears. Other times, one of us will venture in and be swept away by its invisible, indomitable current, never to be seen again except as a shade. But with every wading into those waters, we gain another treasure, as precious as the coins in its own way—a strengthening invulnerability to harm by mortal weapons and mortal fire. We, who are largely outcasts, constrained to the fringes of society, value such protection as much as we value the bread and meat, garments and shelter, that the gold we fish for provides us. Fictober is a challenge where writers respond to a prompt a day for the whole of October. This year's prompts are from Deep Water Prompts on tumblr. ❝There is something in her chest cavity, pulsing, glowing through her skin. It moves like a frightened animal. It is definitely not her heart. ❞ Her heart is in her hands, porcelain and perfect and utterly still, just as it should be. Alyss is quietly pleased. She had no idea if the spell would work for herself; the old queen only ever cast it on other people, to own their hearts and command them as she would, a punishment and a service all at once. There’d been a chance this spell would’ve killed her, but Alyss was--had been—destined to die anyway, so what did she care about the risk? But she’s not dead after all. She’s holding her own heart, and she’s breathing and living and thinking, no empty shell like the Queen’s Cards. And now she’s unkillable. Unless, of course, someone gets a hold of her heart. But they won’t. She’ll bury it, out in the garden of poisonous blood red roses, right in the (hah!) heart of the maze where nobody will go and where no one will find it. She’ll bury it in soil and spells and a chest, and she’ll live forever. Alyss is the author of her own fate, and nobody else is. The thing in her chest flutters and shifts where her heart used to be, settling into its space. Alyss wonders if it’s her soul. If, without the burden, the foible, of her heart, she can feel it now. She wonders if it’s at all affected by what she’s done. She decides she doesn’t care if it is, nor how. Fictober is a challenge where writers respond to a prompt a day for the whole of October. This year's prompts are from Deep Water Prompts on tumblr. This prompt fill is also a glimpse into the backstory of one of my characters in Oracle. ❝My mother’s study was full of porcelain hearts, thousands of them, crafted in stunning anatomical detail.❞ I used to study them all, as a child, in their careful placements on little velvet cushions on the shelves, shining sleekly in the sunlight that poured through the tall windows. They were so beautiful, all unique somehow, and all looking so real. I was entranced by them, by their delicacy as much as by their forbidden nature. I was never allowed to touch any of them. “Once broken, they can’t be mended,” my mother would say. “No matter how skilled the craftsman, how cleverly sealed or joined or glued the fragments, there would always be a fault in them.” “Even with magic?” I’d ask. “Magic can’t fix a broken heart. It can only unmake it, or change it, but then it wouldn’t be the same heart, you understand? And it would always have once been broken.” ❝We live so close to the edge of the universe, half the garden actually sits out of existence. You should try not to fall asleep there, or watch the rest of the house too closely.❞ You would think here at the end of everything it would be silent. So far from all else it is quiet, but quiet enough to hear the universe singing. It sounds like a melodious, wordless lullaby just on the edge of hearing, sometimes so deep it burns in your bones, sometimes so high it feels like it’s lifting you with it, oftentimes hushed like a lover’s heartbeat against your ear, but it’s a song with no ending, or an ending so far from approaching as to be impossible to guess when it will finally fade away. It’s what makes the garden flourish, I think, though we are so far from any suns. All the blooms are heavy, lush, in deep purples and velvet blues, streaked through with soft magenta, flaming orange, and electromagnetic green, or speckled with white and yellow exactly like the glitter of the eternally distancing stars, few and far between where we are. They sway though there’s no breeze, dancing to the universe’s song. Welcome to the blog! Featuring prompt fills, excerpts from my wips, posts about my writing process, and more.

Biff! Bam! Pow! He Stole His Face! “You’ve got to listen, you’ve made a big mistake. I’m not him!” The words had the same impact as the last five attempts to convince Doctor Killerwatt. Namely, the villainous doctor simply snorted disdainfully and made another adjustment to the broken death ray. Well, Doctor Killerwatt thought it was broken. For some reason, the mysterious purple tyranite rays which were supposed to devastate the hero High Flier weren’t having any effect. Not an iota. No writhing in pain, no screaming for mercy, no being consumed in violet radiation. Lucas Lopez, who was getting very sick of being mistaken for High Flier, hoped the tyranite rays didn’t cause cancer. Also that the chains he was bound in wouldn’t cause visible bruising on his wrists. He didn’t look forward to explaining that. If he lived. Things had gone straight to hell ever since someone snapped that photo of High Flier and the first of Lucas’ coworkers had said: gosh! He sure looks like you, doesn’t he, Lucas? And now here he was, in a supervillain’s lair full of mysterious chemicals, crackling tesla coils, countless safety violations, and a death ray pointed right at him. A tyranite death ray. Small mercies it wasn’t the normal kind. “I’m just a fashion blogger,” said Lucas. “I used to be the social pages reporter. Maybe you saw my name? And how I’m not a hero? I only care about nice pants and brand names. I hate blogging. It’s a transitional period while the paper readjusts its market strategy since pivoting to video didn’t work. I mean, if I was going to be stuck blogging I would rather have had the political beat because you know, opinions! But Clara wanted it more, like I thought she was going to knife me in an alley more, so now it’s hers and I’m narrowed down to fashion so please stop trying to kill me.” “Shut up,” said Doctor Killerwatt. Lucas considered giving Killerwatt some costume advice. The navy blue with light stripes and non-matching mecha backpack with… satellite dish? And metal arms sticking out just wasn’t working for Lucas. “I won’t even press charges. Just untie me and point me at a bus stop,” said Lucas. “Which I need Because I can’t fly.” “You expect me to believe someone who dresses like you is some sort of fashion expert?” said Killerwatt snidely, hitting the death ray with a wrench. Lucas looked down at his ill-fitting white shirt with bonus side-fanny pack and khakis. “…It was my day off and I was just going out for a jug of milk when you decided to kidnap me. Because you’re a lunatic! I know what I’m doing! It’s a real job!” Doctor Killerwatt ignored him. A few minutes later, the death ray was back in action, humming and glowing shades of colour Lucas didn’t even know could exist, but primarily purple. “Aha!” said Killerwatt, turning to monologue at Lucas. “What luck! I discovered the identity of High Flier, none other than mild-mannered reporter–“ “Blogger,” correct Lucas. “–REPORTER Lucas Lopez! Who would have thought that a mere pair of glasses could fool the great Doctor Killerwatt! And now? I will destroy you and take over the pathetic Harbour City.” He set the ray off again. Lucas closed his eyes tight as he was bathed in a strange purple light. After five minutes of this, Doctor Killerwatt turned the death ray off again. “What on earth is wrong with this thing?” he muttered and dove back into fixing it. His machine backpack whirred, handing him tools and moving around a lit limb to illuminate the depths of the machine. Lucas shook his head. His mouth tasted like onions from his ray bath. “I suppose I should try an old fashioned bullet,” said Doctor Killerwatt, turning to face Lucas. He pulled out a gun. Lucas cringed. The chains held him in place. That was when High Flier burst in through the skylights. And through Killerwatt’s machines. High Flier grabbed a falling piece of roof and whipped it away from himself and into the death ray, sending it flying into a far wall. Then he landed in front of Lucas. Lucas had to admit they did look similar. Somehow High Flier even had the same curl of hair on his forehead that Lucas did. And Lucas liked to fancy he was nearly as muscular as High Flier. He did work out. High Flier flashed him a huge cheesy smile, reached out, and snapped the chains holding him like strips of paper. “Time to go,” he said, hefting up Lucas and ascending rapidly through the hole in the ceiling. Was it Lucas’ imagination or did High Flier have a faint purple blush going on? “This is no place to dawdle.” Within seconds they were high in the night sky, High Flier holding Lucas to his chest while the stars twinkled above them. Below them, the lab exploded. “Ha! So much for Doctor Killerwatt!” said High Flier. “He must have hit the self-destruct. Never can bear to be arrested, monsters like him. Well, time for me to take my leave. Stay safe, citizen!” “No!” shouted Lucas as he was dropped off on a nearby roof. “He was a witness that you’re not me!” “Farewell, citizen!” said High Flier, saluting Lucas with a grin completely unlike Lucas’, on a face just like Lucas’, and he flew off with Lucas’ fingers missing his cape by inches. Lucas sat down hard on the grimy rooftop and put his head in his hands. The lone bit of luck in this whole debacle was that his glasses were miraculously unbroken. It was bad enough putting up with the disaster that was his current life, but if he couldn’t even see to escape it… he hoped this building had rooftop accessible stairs. In the distance, emergency vehicles converged on the burning lab. “I see you were busy yesterday,” said Clara Kensington when Lucas came in to work. She held up her phone to show a report on Doctor Killerwatt’s lab exploding and reports of High Flier on the scene. Behind her thick horn-rimmed glasses, her piercing eyes glared at him. Lucas had no time for said eyes today. WAREHOUSE EXPLODES – HIGH FLIER ON SCENE, POLICE INVESTIGATING “Still not him, Clara,” he said, sitting down heavily at his desk. He didn’t technically have to come into the office with his current job position, but it was better that he did. He’d tried working on the blog from home, but that had just ended in lots of naps and the same pajamas for six days straight. Or, at least, it had been better before that damned photo. “The boss wants to see you, Clara said. “What did I do?” Lucas asked the world as he rose. He jolted the desk and Clara put the post-it note count for ‘days since Lucas destroyed a coffee mug’ back at 0. Lucas looked pitifully the remains of his latest two dollar mug. “It’s what you’re going to do,” said helpful Unpaid-Intern-Timmy-Who-Had-Just-Shown-Up-One-Day, getting to work cleaning up the porcelain victim. “She’s got plans.” “I don’t like her plans,” whined Lucas. Silently debating whether the ringing in his ears from yesterday’s explosion meant he should just give up and go home, he finally went to face his destiny. Peri Black, their dedicated editor-in-chief had kept the Daily Galaxy going through constant news industry turmoil, saving their jobs and livelihoods in the process. She wasn’t a bad boss. She was a great boss. You just had to do two things: Never cross her, and never insult Sister Rosetta Tharpe. Part of what made her great was her willingness to try anything to keep the paper afloat. Unfortunately for Lucas, lately this meant odd or dangerous situations because for some mysterious reason, his co-workers were convinced he was invincible. Lucas would find High Flier, and he would end him. He’d do what no supervillain had managed. He knew it in his heart. He opened the door to Ms. Black’s office. “Lucas! So, about Friday’s fundraiser,” she started without preamble. “I want you to make sure that the winner is London Hyatt, and I want an exclusive about her new fashion line.” Lucas took an unoffered seat and blinked politely at his boss. “I need to hear a yes, Lucas,” she said. “I need to know what you’re talking about, boss,” he answered. “The fundraising Gala? At the Keystone? You’re doing a draw for a date with you?” “I’m going to be what.” “Fine, ‘High Flier’ is doing a draw. You know who I want to win,” said Ms. Black. “I’m not High Flier.” “Lucas, don’t lie to me. No one as clumsy and lazy as you is built like that unless they’re engaging in a mass deception.” Lucas clutched his head. “I’m not–and I’m not–you know what? Get me a ticket to this fundraiser. I’m going to prove I’m not him. And I’m going to blog about how awful his costume is. Is that fashion enough for you?” Peri Black tilted her head and regarded her employee. “Fine. Let’s see how this plays out , Lopez. Bring me a scoop, one way or the other.” Lucas took an extra long coffee break after that meeting. Lucas wasn’t, despite the late and unlamented Doctor Killerwatt’s claims, a fashion disaster. At all. His wardrobe was just adjusting, slowly, to the ‘new Lucas’ after his bodybuilding began paying off in spades. He was getting really good at it, and only dropped the weights on his foot once a session now. He had a limited budget, so he didn’t exactly have fashion-spread clothes for quick runs to the grocery. But that didn’t mean he wasn’t prepared for the Gala. Oh no. He had the perfect suit, tailored (by him, with blood in the hems from needle pinpricks to prove it. Thank goodness it was black) to fit New Lucas, and he looked good. He looked very good. Maybe, he thought, he could pick up a rich husband or wife at this shindig and convince them to move far away from High Flier’s turf. Most people didn’t know about his High Flier issues – but he was sure that luck couldn’t last. Or it was already gone, now that he’d been kidnapped by a murderous supervillain. His left eye twitched. But! This Gala would solve everything. If High Flier really was going to be there in search of a date, the guests seeing Lucas and himself in the same room would lay to rest the myth they were one and the same. It was perfect. “Garish white costume after labour day, with godawful blue and red highlights,” he muttered to himself, composing his High Flier article in his head as he went up the elevator to the Keystone Gala. He didn’t know which of the many possible reasons the bellboy was giving him an odd look and he didn’t ask. He toyed with his camera. He stepped out of the elevator into opulence. Everyone who was someone in Harbour City was there. Heiresses, billionaires, actors. Lucas pulled up his camera and started snapping photos, because no matter what there was a lot of material for his job here. London Hyatt, for instance, laughing in a gorgeous pink number. What WAS the mayor wearing? What was the governor wearing? He loved it. Another of Hyatt, because hell, why not. His fifth photo was his own face. He lowered the camera and took in High Flier, standing in front of him and out of costume. It had to be him – Lucas had no twin brother. High Flier wore a grey coat over a strange blue shirt – the collar cut so so it should have flopped uselessly to his shoulders, yet stayed close to his neck instead. The coat descended to his thick waist and over his muscular arms. His grey pants had seamed sections, and a pair of seamless black shoes finished off the outfit. “Hello,” he said to Lucas. “Fancy seeing you again. You won’t believe how happy I am that you’re here!” “You,” hissed Lucas. “It’s seriously great you’re here, I need a favour,” he said, gently but forcibly pulling Lucas out of the party and into a broom closet. “No one’s realized I’m here yet and there’s a crisis on the river. High Flier’s needed. But I have a commitment…” “No,” said Lucas, eyes widening. “Anything you want, I’ll pay you back for this,” said High Flier. “You just need to go and get me a date for charity while I’m out dealing with the kraken.” “Kraken?” said Lucas. The broom closet was very cramped and the light was dim, but he could discern High Flier’s serious expression. “Kraken. Everyone who lives along the riverside is in danger right now. Please, this charity does a lot of good for the children of Harbour City.” “Great! I’ll go plainclothes, you can borrow my costume.” And, with a flash of superspeed and a lot of hands touching Lucas in a whirl, he was suddenly in High Flier’s costume. He was also, he realized, missing his glasses. “You can’t go on with these,” said High Flier, holding the glasses. “I’ll be back! Good luck! Choose someone who isn’t a villain!” And with that he was gone. Lucas stood there, getting his bearings. He touched the costume. The material felt different than anything he’d ever touched before. Also it was loose around the waist. Apparently there were some differences between him and High Flier. He felt his way gingerly out of the closet and back among the crowd. He couldn’t make out any faces, let alone where the stage was. Fortunately, he was swept up by High Flier’s designated event ‘handlers’ and deposited on stage in short order. “Where were you!” a female handler demanded. “You’re an hour late!” Lucas had the hysterical thought that High Flier might have sought him out so he could avoid all this. That was the final straw. “I have to go. Quickly,” he hissed at them. He wasn’t sure how long he could maintain the charade, and all he needed was another Doctor Killerwatt wannabe for this to end in a bloodbath. “We’ll speed things up,” whispered a male handler, obviously assuming the city was in danger. He then vanished from Lucas’ poor eyesight and into the blurry crowd. He tried to smile at the crowd, as if he weren’t in the middle of encroaching disaster. He wondered where his camera was. And his glasses. For all he knew, High Flier had simply put them on a shelf in the closet. He’d never convince anyone he wasn’t High Flier if he was actually posing as him. He was going to end that man. That kraken, he said to himself, better be worth it. A woman tapped on the microphone. “We’re adjusting the events of the evening!” she said perkily. “The draw for the date with High Flier is happening right now! Everyone, cross your fingers and hope for a night to remember!” Lucas was led to a rotating wheel filled with paper. He reached in to pull out a name and realized if anyone got close enough to ‘thank’ him for picking them, they would definitely realize he was a fraud. So he read off the only name that couldn’t give him away: And then he got the hell out of there. “I asked you to do me a favour,” said a disappointed voice just outside Lucas’ bedroom window, much later that night. Lucas pulled his pillow over his head. “Why did you interfere with the contest results instead?” “If you wanted a date, why didn’t you just ask?” continued High Flier. “I said I’d pay you back, and that could have been it.” He sounded confused. Hurt, almost. . Lucas burrowed further under his pillow. There was a creaking noise, and he heard a soft thump on his nightstand. “Your camera, clothes, and glasses,” said High Flier. “I’ll pick you up for our ‘date’ at five. There was no way to give the prize to another person, and if you want it so badly…” With the sound of his window being repaired, High Flier was gone. “I am a disaster,” said Lucas into his pillow. At six am, his cellphone started buzzing. Groaning, Lucas reached out for it. At this hour, and he knew it was exactly on the dot, the only person texting him would be Clara. Her code of texting honour meant phone silence from midnight to six am, unless it was a work emergency. The fashion beat was low on real emergencies, except that one time when the Mayor wore a mind control gem as part of her inauguration outfit. But that had been during normal work hours. He couldn’t find his cellphone. Or his glasses. All his hand kept hitting was… fabric? Last night’s ‘adventure’ smacked his waking brain with a rush and he moaned, putting his face back on the pillow. There was no way Clara was texting him about anything else. And now he had… a date? A scolding? With High Flier. His phone kept buzzing. Finally he forced himself up, scavenged through the blurry pile High Flier had left him, and found his glasses. Then his phone. Too many messages for this time of the morning. Most of them from Clara. And true to her pattern, they started at nine pm (“Oh,” said Lucas, “That’s when I ruined my life.”), then cut off abruptly at midnight and resumed at six on the dot. He opened to the latest and typed: “Please stop while I backread.” Then he went to make a cup of coffee, ignoring his phone for fifteen minutes. He ate half a self-pity chicken (those muscles didn’t fuel themselves) and finally mustered up the energy to read and respond. The first message was a photo of Lucas on stage, pulling out ‘his’ name. “You expect me to believe that’s not you?” said Clara’s text. He scrolled to the next. “Your own name? What the hell?” The next few messages were sequences of ??? and demands he answer his phone, which he really would have done, if at the time his phone hadn’t been in a storage closet and he hadn’t been enduring an incredibly awkward taxi back to his condo – that the driver refused to let him pay for, because ‘anything for High Flier!’ – He was just glad he found the right gnome with his key under it without the aid of his glasses. The newest messages warned that his jig was up, that there was no way that wasn’t him on stage. “That was me,” he answered. “I’m not High Flier. He had me stand in for him.” “He had to go deal with a kraken attack.” “Metrowoman fought off the Kraken. It’s all over the news. High Flier was at the Gala.” “Well maybe he was keeping a low profile so no one realized ‘he’ was in two places at once. It’s what I’d do.” Lucas cursed when he realized what he’d typed. Clara was sending him pictures of Metrowoman fighting an enormous, horned octopus, with her trademark enormous cape whipping around and, unlike that damned High Flier’s costume, succeeding in obscuring her identifiable features. “Where do you even get these?” he asked. “I have my sources. Confess, Lucas Lopez. I’ll even help you make a new costume with a mask as a prize for coming clean.” “I am not, and I will not ever be, High Flier. I’ve got to submit my pictures from last night and make an article to make that ordeal worth it.” “You going to talk about pulling the name for the date with yourself, HF?” “Bite me,” he sent back. Ms. Black wasn’t exactly thrilled to have an article consisting solely of puffed-up summaries of the four photos he’d managed to get before a superhero stole his glasses (a fact he’d chosen to omit). But she said it was publishable, and that was that. She had been the non-Clara phone messages, asking him what game he was playing. He had no good answer, beyond telling her the truth. Which she didn’t believe. “I’m not gonna press you, Lopez, but you’re playing a dangerous game with well… everything,” she said. “This supers business isn’t safe. That explosion the other day was some kinda mad science lab. If you’d been near there – there was a ton of tyranite in the building, and some of it went sky high. Watch yourself when you go around the city in case you run into some in the debris.” “Still not High Flier,” he said. Five o’clock was coming. High Flier was going to ‘pick him up’, whatever that meant. He wondered what kind of car a superhero drove. He considered hiding in the cellar with the door barred. But curiosity was more powerful than dread, so at five he was outside his front door in a light leather coat, his nice green scarf, and some tight jeans which would hopefully be a lot harder to steal at superspeed. He didn’t see any cars coming. Going back inside was still a possibility. Suddenly he was airborne, caught in High Flier’s arms as they rose above the city. “Hello,” said High Flier. “Oh Jesus!” yelled Lucas. “Not exactly,” said High Flier. He held Lucas closer to his chest as he flew. He wasn’t in the costume Lucas hated. He was in civilian clothes – from what Lucas could make out at his angle, with the same weird style and cut that he’d worn to the Gala. Lucas realized he might actually have the only costume High Flier owned still dumped on his bedroom floor from the night before. “Listen, I just panicked when I realized they were gonna get a good look at me. I’m sorry I messed up your plan. Please don’t drop me.” High Flier looked hurt. “I wouldn’t drop you. I may have been upset last night, but I put you in that situation in the first place.” “How’s Metrowoman?” asked Lucas. “Well, she was out there fighting the kraken too…” “Ah, we… didn’t cross paths,” said High Flier. “I don’t know her. But she’s quite the woman. A real spitfire.” “Yeah, well, you should pass on some advice to her if you do get to ‘know her’: she better keep her face hidden in case she looks like someone else too. Why do you look like me?” demanded Lucas. High Flier considered it. “It’s more I wondered why you looked like me,” he said finally. “When I saw you on Doctor Killerwatt’s table, it was certainly a surreal moment.” “Yeah, my life has been a surreal moment since that photo of you came out and my entire office decided they had a hero in their midst. They keep trying to trick me into ‘revealing who I am’ so they can crow about being right.” “And the kidnapping.” “I’m truly sorry for the trouble I’ve caused you, Mr. Lopez,” said High Flier, adjusting his flight so he could land on a grassy hill outside the city. “Please let me make it up to you?” “All I need is a photo of us together and we’re good.” “I can’t do that,” said High Flier. Lucas put his hands on his hips and glared as forcefully as he could. “And why exactly not?” “I’ll do you better,” said High Flier, evading the question. “I’ll personally drop you off somewhere, your choice, as long as there’s no photos.” Lucas paused. As long as he could have Clara present, she was enough of a witness to bolster his story. He gave a short nod of assent. “Excellent!” said High Flier, clapping his hands. “And now for our date!” Lucas looked around at the grassy hill and nearby trees, turning gold and fiery orange from fall. “We really don’t need to.” “Please,” said High Flier. “I realize it’s all been a misunderstanding, but I don’t really get a chance to date much in my line of business. I’ll be right back.” He stood back to take off. Lucas got his first good look at High Flier’s ‘I’ve lost my costume’ outfit. A long, neck-to-toe black coat gave him the aspect of a dramatic priest. Lucas had to admit, he liked the look. And with a nod at Lucas’ smile, High Flier vanished into the air. Lucas hoped he actually intended to come back and this wasn’t revenge. He texted Clara. “On a date with High Flier. He says no pics.” “Sure he does,” she answered. When High Flier got back, he was in his garish costume again and had a bag of fast food. “You broke into my house. Again,” said Lucas. “I fixed it. Again,” said High Flier. He pulled off his cape, which seemed to grow as he shook it out and set it on the ground as their picnic blanket. “Dinner is served,” he said with a flourish, presenting the bucket of fried chicken and fries. He set down two soda bottles. “Romantic,” said Lucas, grabbing a drumstick. “It’s not like I can take you to a restaurant right now,” said High Flier. “I mean, I might be able to in the future.” “In the future?” “Life is full of endless possibility,” said High Flier, opening his soda. “Were you actually trying to get a partner from that charity date?” said Lucas between bites. What an idea. “It… seemed like a good idea. Then it all sort of fell apart. Then you showed up,” said High Flier brightly. “Before I had to go on stage.” “…was the kraken actually why you left, or a handy excuse?” said Lucas, light dawning. High Flier shifted awkwardly, and looked away . “Why no photos? The one that ruined my life looked fine.” “They won’t all look fine,” said High Flier. “Please, I don’t want to discuss this.” “Then what do you want to discuss?” said Lucas. “I don’t know anything about sports and the weather’s nice.” “You really think my costume is garish?” asked High Flier. “I hate it,” said Lucas. “I’d have gone with something that showed off your arms and more gold to go with your skin.” “Gold’s not garish?” “Not when it’s matte.” High Flier looked down at his costume. “I’ll think about it. There’s no rules about redesigning.” “Maybe wait after winter for the arm thing,” said Lucas with a touch of empathy. “Oh, I don’t get cold,” said High Flier. He sat a bit closer to Lucas and sipped his drink. “You’re comfortable out here, right?” “Fine and dandy,” said Lucas. “Nice fall weather.” He looked over at High Flier. It was narcissistic, but he really was an incredibly handsome man. They didn’t look that alike though. For instance, Lucas was pretty sure he didn’t have what… what was that? Purple stubble? Wait, the purple was rising on High Flier’s skin. Then he noticed High Flier’s eyes getting unfocused. He found out how heavy High Flier was a second later when he collapsed directly on top of Lucas. There had to be tyranite nearby. He shoved High Flier away with a muttered apology and leapt up. He had to find it quick – as far as he knew, that stuff was deadly to his date. That’s what they all said about High Flier. It was one of the only things people knew about High Flier. The first time it had really come to Lucas’ attention was when… was it Doctor Killerwatt? It had been some madman with a tyranite powered robot, at least, who tore through the city challenging High Flier. It had been a battle for which Lucas had no alibi. He’d been working at home, alone in his pajamas, watching on television as a giant tentacled robot smashed through buildings and cars trying to crush High Flier. Eventually High Flier came out in a suit made of lead, grabbed one of the robot’s tentacles, and sent it flying out of the atmosphere. Before that, though, it had looked like High Flier was doomed, lying there poisoned from the tyranite powering the robot before Metrowoman came to his rescue. No wonder he clearly admired her, despite his ‘I don’t know her.’ Purple, Lucas thought. He had to look for purple. That’s what that death ray had emitted. And High Flier must be able to handle it for a short amount of time, as he’d managed to rescue Lucas from Doctor Killerwatt’s lab without perishing. He saw it in a small crater halfway down the hill. The glowing purple tyranite. He seized it in one hand, flinging it as hard as he could down the hill and away from High Flier. There was a groan behind him. Either it had worked and High Flier was coming to, or Lucas was about to be found with the corpse of a superhero. When he’d talked about wanting to end High Flier, he hadn’t meant it! He raced back up the hill. High Flier had dragged himself over to a bush to be sick. “You okay?” said Lucas, crouching down to rub his back as High Flier heaved. High Flier shot him a thumbs up, gasping for air. “That– that stuff is– I hate it, Lucas. Thank you. Now I owe you again,” he said. “You don’t owe me anything,” Lucas protested. “Not letting someone die is actually part of the law.” High Flier laughed and hugged Lucas close. “I mean it. I owe you.” “We’ll see,” said Lucas. He finished off the chicken while High Flier made arrangements on the phone for the tyranite to be recovered and destroyed, then they finished off the evening watching the sun set on Harbour City. Things did not go smoothly after that. True to High Flier’s word, he tried to help Lucas. And while he was always there when Lucas happened to be about to be hit by a bus, or falling down the slippery steps on the pathway home, or being kidnapped for the second time (unrelated to High Flier, he’d followed a scoop about a new line of blouses too far), he wasn’t there when Lucas really needed him. When Lucas needed him to stand beside him with his co-workers, to make them take his word about who he really was. He did like the attention (and the lack of injury) since it didn’t come with with any more bedroom window break-ins. But that wasn’t enough of a social benefit. Each time Lucas arranged for High Flier to prove their individuality, something went wrong. The first time, it was the Crocodillians in the sewers. The next time, the Atlantean queen needed him deep in the harbour. By the third time, he didn’t even get a chance to explain that High Flier would be right there once he was done with a mission on the moon before his co-workers just walked away. “It’s not working,” said Clara. “Just admit it.” “I’m not High Flier,” Lucas said through gritted teeth. “He just keeps having to help people.” “Off camera? With no way of proving he’s where you say he is?” said Clara. “You could at least get someone to pose as him, running through the brush like Bigfoot. It’d be easier to just snap a selfie of you two together.” “He… doesn’t like photos,” said Lucas. “Right,” said Clara. “You don’t like being identified.” Lucas sighed and opened his laptop while Clara walked off, laughing. The first photo he pulled up was the one that had started all his troubles: High Flier squinting, face mostly in profile but with the same dark curl of hair and facial shape that had convinced his co-workers that Lucas was a hero. On impulse he pulled up the photo he’d taken at the Gala, that he hadn’t really bothered with. Maybe he could find enough differences between them without needing High Flier around at all. He knew right away this was the first time he’d really looked at the photo. Because in the camera’s flash, High Flier did not have Lucas’ eyes. Instead, he had two yellow reptilian eyes with red slits. Lucas slammed down his laptop’s cover. He felt like he’d seen something he wasn’t meant to. Ever. On the walk home, Lucas was extremely careful. No close calls. No near misses. No need for High Flier to appear and rescue him. No way that they’d have to talk, and Lucas ask about what he’d seen. Had High Flier stolen his face? Was he some sort of alien? Of course he was an alien, realized Lucas. That robot that attacked him with the tyranite as good as proved it. That rock wasn’t from earth and it didn’t hurt anyone else, unless they ate it. Not like High Flier, who couldn’t even look at it without passing out. Was High Flier planning to eat him and take his place? Was High Flier going to lay eggs in him? Not that they’d done anything more than the one date and certainly hadn’t gotten as far as egg laying, thank you. By the time Lucas got into his condo, he’d worked out an entire backstory for High Flier – the last of his planet, come to Earth as his new home, given a generic identity by the FBI. Lucas’ identity, some kid from New Mexico who’d never leave the family farm. Then, by chance, Lucas moved to Harbour City after discovering a taste for high fashion and lattes, and now was face to face with the alien he was never meant to meet. Yeah, thought Lucas. That made sense. It was almost poetic and didn’t involve eggs being laid in anybody. And he definitely didn’t need to confront High Flier about it, and would continue to not confront him by never needing help again. Ever. And High Flier would have no need to show up. Probably monitoring him for his disguise. Lucas felt a little pang at the thought of cutting off contact with High Flier. Which, he told himself, was ridiculous. He didn’t even know the man – alien’s – name. And it had been one date. That High Flier spent a good portion of puking in a bush. When he entered his bedroom, wiping his glasses on his shirt, he noticed something was wrong. The smell. The smell was wrong. Usually his room smelled comfortably of clean laundry and sunshine. It didn’t smell like rot. He put his glasses back on. Doctor Killerwatt was in his bedroom. Or, what was left of Doctor Killerwatt. He was being held together primarily with machines, his long greasy brown hair now only a few hunks of sickly grey. And his face! Oh god, his face! “Hello, Lucas Lopez,” slurred Doctor Killerwatt. Lucas backed up. His back hit the bedroom door. His hand scrabbled for the handle. But before he could get away, the new metal implants sticking up from Doctor Killerwatt’s back pushed Killerwatt high into the air and he flew forward, grabbing Lucas with his horrible bone-exposed arms. “You’ll want to hold on,” he said, with his ruined mouth. A metal ‘arm’ pointed at the wall and blasted a hole through it. Then Killerwatt and Lucas took to the skies. It wasn’t like being carried by High Flier. Doctor Killerwatt made no effort to make it comfortable – or safe – for Lucas. He felt like the Doctor’s grip was cutting him in half. “I’m not High Flier!” he yelled. “I know,” said Doctor Killerwatt. “That’s why I’m going to kill you.” It didn’t make sense, thought Lucas groggily. High Flier had always been right there to rescue him, after every other small incident. How could he let Lucas be kidnapped by what remained of Doctor Killerwatt? He was in the secret basement of the destroyed lab, tied up only with rope this time and mouth gagged. For reasons unknown to him, Doctor Killerwatt had given him an injection. He was feeling pretty woozy. Doctor Killerwatt stood by a hole in the ceiling, head twitching like he was having an invisible conversation. His… his face was pulled back in a parody of a smile. “He’ll be here soon,” said Doctor Killerwatt. “Not even Metrowoman’s help could get him out of that jam fast enough to stop me.” Lucas would have answered, if he could. The gag felt awful in his mouth. And tasted like onions, for some disgusting reason. There was a weird purple haze in front of his eyes. He shook his head to clear it. No luck. “His little crush is his downfall,” said Doctor Killerwatt. “His narcissism. Oh, what man thinks himself so perfect that he can only love his own mirror? I’ve been watching him. Watching you. Your own guardian angel. And you’re going to destroy him for me.” Lucas head dropped forward. “I suppose next I’ll have to kill Metrowoman,” said Doctor Killerwatt thoughtfully. “Just need to find her weakness. His was so… simple.” His arm throbbed purple where Doctor Killerwatt had injected the tyranite. “Goodbye, Lucas Lopez. I hope it hurts. Like I hurt,” slurred Doctor Killerwatt and he blasted away into the sky, sending the ceiling falling down behind him. “Lucas! Lucas, I’m here!” High Flier shouted as he ripped apart the rubble to get to Lucas. Lucas tried to call out a warning, as disoriented as he was, but the gag continued to exist. High Flier burst through with sunlight and flew to Lucas, ripping apart the rope holding him and carefully removing the gag. Then he kissed Lucas in relief. The purple spread across High Flier’s face, veins glowing as the poison spread through him. Lucas couldn’t hold him up. Couldn’t hold himself up. They collapsed to the ground. Thankfully, they both had a friend in Metrowoman. She’d been on High Flier’s heels to help in the rescue. “Lucas!” she yelled. She grabbed them both up and Lucas got a good, close look at her face. “Clara…” he muttered, “glasses are a terrible disguise.” “Shut up,” she said. “I’m going to save your life and you’re never going to speak of this.” When Lucas woke up, he was in a hospital bed hooked up to a surprising number of IVs. One glowed green. Clara, back in civilian clothes and her thick glasses, was napping in the chair by his bed. “Hey?” he said. His mouth tasted mercifully onion-free. She snorted and woke up. “Hey, you didn’t die in your sleep.”. “Ever since that tyranite got scattered across the city, they had to come up with ways to deal with poisoning from accidental ingestion. You’re lucky there was a breakthrough.” “High Flier?” said Lucas, twisting his fingers. “Some government people said they’d take care of him. I guess you were telling the truth.” “Of course I was.” “Seriously, though, why are you making out with your twin?” “That’s a new development and also none of your business. I feel awful. Can I have water?” Clara nodded and fetched him a glass. “They said he’ll be okay, Lucas.” “I hope so. I don’t even know his name and he nearly died because he wanted to protect me,” Lucas sighed. He sipped the water. “I figured out his secret. He’s some kind of alien.” “Huh. Identity theft? Didn’t consider that angle.” “Are you gonna put this in the Galaxy?” he asked. “Of course not. I do politics, not local interest. I tread the line enough when I sell photos of myself as Metrowoman.” “That’s good money, though.” “It’s great money and I’m glad you realize that. There’s hope for you yet, Lucas.” He didn’t dare go home once he was discharged. Not just because there was a huge hole in wall, over which a neighbour had helpfully taped a giant tarp. Because he knew Doctor Killerwatt was still out there. Clara solved the problem by inviting him to stay in her quote unquote ‘secret sanctum’: another high tech hole in the ground, but one with a secret entrance. It had a cave system. He almost fell into the river. Clara set up a cot for him and told him the wifi password. “Boss says it’s okay for you to ‘work from home’,” she confirmed. “So while I protect the city alone and hunt down Doctor Killerwatt…” “He says you’re next,” warned Lucas. “No, he’s next.” When she left, Lucas scanned headlines for any High Flier sightings. None. He wished they’d at least had a second date. He wished he knew High Flier’s name. Clara kept him supplied with pizza and found the gnome and condo key to retrieve his clothes, so he at least felt human as he hid in the ground like a mole person. Focusing on work and industry minutiae only distracted him half the time. The rest he spent contemplating everything he didn’t know about High Flier: who he was, what he was, and was he okay. And his own concerns, specifically whether a supervillain was coming to kill him. On the eighth day, he came across an article about a surge in tyranite poisonings from corruption of a nearby township’s well. “It can’t have flown that far…” he said to himself, checking the distance and his own personal estimate of how far a blown-up lab could have sent the tyranite. As far as he knew, there’d only been the one purple meteor, of which chunks had gone ‘missing’ shortly after High Flier made the scene. He texted Clara. He had to hand it to her; even in costume, she never left him on read. “I’ll check it out. No sign of your boyfriend yet.” “He wasn’t my boyfriend.” He hit send with mixed feelings. He’d wandered all over Clara’s secret base over the eight days he’d been hiding, and felt he knew it pretty well so far. The training room, he’d immediately marked a no-go zone after he found out she trained with firing spikes and spikes on fire. The costume room was fun. He’d tried on a few masks, but they’d looked silly with glasses on top. The neat thing was, there were no buttons for Lucas to operate. The equipment, doors, everything seemed to open for him automatically. “I put you in the system,” Clara explained. In the comics heroes always had a huge monitor bank, but that was where Clara let him down. All she had was a police scanner and a lot of online newsfeeds. And he had to use his own laptop. “I have it set up just the way I like it,” Clara said. Fine, then. He’d asked what was up with the design of the base and she’d just said she was from a hidden civilization, like that explained anything. He gave up on distracting himself and checked for an update on the tyranite poisoning. He checked for sightings of High Flier. No, and yes. Yes? He checked again. Just a social media hashtag, but he’d been sighted dodging drones over downtown. “Yeah ’cause HF is that slow lol” said the video’s first doubting comment. Tyranite again. Lucas had a sick feeling. And Clara was out of town now, thanks to him. He slammed his laptop shut. He wasn’t going to be the victim this time. The bystander. He knew what he needed to do. Clara had many wonderful toys. He’d found one of them by hitting himself in the face with it. An invisible mini-jet. She’d laughed at him, then shown him how to open it. At the time, he couldn’t figure out why a woman who could fly would even need it. But that didn’t matter now. He raced to the armoury, which also contained the base’s second exit. Hoping he was ‘in the system’ for the jet, he opened the door and climbed in. The controls lit up and the outside door opened. His heart fell into his stomach as the jet roared off, his mind auto-directing it to his destination: to save High Flier. He hoped High Flier wasn’t out of the game yet. He hoped the jet had weapons and he wouldn’t have to play whack-a-mole with what was, essentially, his face. High Flier was up ahead, being dogged by the last drone. He was moving slow. For a man faster than sight when he needed to be… Lucas felt sick. The mini-jet didn’t have weapons. He didn’t have time to find another solution. He plowed into the drone head-on. It shot one last feeble purple ray and plummeted straight into a trash bin. Then the jet crashed. Inches from the ground, it hovered. Lucas popped the door and scrambled out. Holding the sparking, now-visible outer shell was High Flier. He’d looked better. “You couldn’t stay out of trouble,” he said. “Of course not,” said Lucas. He held out his hands. High Flier placed the jet softly on the ground, floated to Lucas, and took them. “Is it safe to kiss you now?” he asked. Lucas nodded. Another drone showed up. High Flier broke contact for a half second to destroy it with the thrown remains of the jet, and went back to kissing him. “Well, you’ve got cyborg zombie on your tail, HF,” said Clara, after making Lucas grovel for destroying her invisible miniature jet. “I noticed. I wonder what made him so determined? He was just another villain in the crowd.” High Flier took a sip of his peppermint tea. He said it helped him feel better after coming close to tyranite. They were gathered in Clara’s base, in the makeshift kitchen consisting of a microwave, a tea kettle, a mini fridge, and a card table. Lucas was on a crate, Clara had the only chair, and High Flier was floating in midair, legs crossed to imitate sitting. “You may have blown him up,” said Clara. “From what Lucas told me.” “Nonsense. That was the self-destruct sequence,” protested High Flier. Clara crossed her arms. “And you’re absolutely positive it had nothing to do with you destroying most of his lab within one second of entering it?” High Flier looked suddenly unsure. “This is why I engage in close combat with minimal property damage, HF,” said Clara. “Shit like this.” “He had tyranite! I had to keep it away from me!” said High Flier. Lucas looked back and forth between them like he was observing a table tennis match. “Who are you, anyway?” demanded Clara, slamming her hands on the table. “I haven’t been able to find shit on you ever since I found out Lucas didn’t have a double life.” “That’s my own busine–“ “Um,” said Lucas. Both superheroes turned to look at him. “I took a photo of you. At the Gala,” said Lucas. “I have questions.” “Mnng,” said High Flier. “What does ‘mnng’ mean?” said Clara. “What was in the photo, Lucas? Talk.” “My own business was in that photo, Metrowoman,” said High Flier stiffly. “And any discussion of it will be in private, with Lucas.” “Like spit!” she said. “Please don’t fight. I don’t think this base can take it if you do,” said Lucas. “I just want to know if you stole my face. And what your name is.” “Ah,” said High Flier. “I guess I owe you that.” He set down his tea. “I didn’t steal any face. The only disguise I wear is over my eyes, the one thing I didn’t have in common with the people of this planet when I arrived. Which, annoyingly, does not work when viewed digitally. My name is Ressop, and I am from Venus.” There was a long pause. “What?” said Lucas. “Well, I thought you’d guessed, that’s where tyranite comes from,” said Ressop. “That’s where it comes from?” said Clara. “Where else?” said Ressop. “Everything,” Ressop pointed out, “is in space.” Lucas scooted his crate a little closer to Ressop. “So you’re a Venusian?” “If you want. Our planet, which you call Venus, had a war. I was one of the few survivors, a small child in a ship. I learned from the programs on it, tuning into Earth’s frequencies as it was the inhabitable planet I was aimed at. By the time I’d arrived, I was grown. That was a year ago.” “I knew I would have noticed a double earlier!” said Lucas. “I knew I wasn’t crazy!” “Now that that’s sorted, I really don’t want to talk about my people. Let’s focus on the important part – Doctor Killerwatt.” Lucas made a mental note that they would be discussing this again. He had a feeling Ressop needed it. “He said he wants to take over Harbour City,” said Lucas. “Hmm,” said Clara, rubbing her chin. “We do have all those warheads.” “What the what?” said Lucas. “I pick up things doing the political beat, Lucas,” she said. “I pick up things too!” said Lucas. He thought for a moment. “Like that time I looked closer at the stitches on the jacket in that Marilyn Street photo, and found out not only had she lied about the designer – which, wow! Major hubris – it was laced with gas packets to pull off a heist. That was the best red carpet livetweet of my life.” “There’s no dresses on a nuclear warhead, Lucas,” said Clara in a patient voice. “Well, if there were, I’d know who made them.” “Anyway,” said Ressop, rubbing the bridge of his nose, “the city has a great many resources besides its destructive capabilities. But with just those warheads, he could create a city-state by holding it hostage. And with those drones I saw today? He might have his own personal army.” “He wants you next, Clara,” said Lucas. “What did those army guys do to you, High Fli–Ressop?” “Lots and lots of vitamin K,” said Ressop. “Only solution for tyranite poisoning.” “Is that true?” asked Clara. “Of course it isn’t,” said Ressop, “but I’m not telling a reporter anything. Not my civilian name, not my medicines, nothing. It was a reporter who broadcast my weakness in the first place.” “That wasn’t me!” protested Clara, while Lucas just got his phone out to do a websearch. On the edges of his attention he heard the two superheroes arguing as he dug up what he could on High Flier. He’d mostly ignored the hero until their resemblance was discovered, and even then focused only on finding out who High Flier really was to ‘clear’ his name. He’d known about the weakness to tyranite, before Doctor Killerwatt. Cultural osmosis. He’d known it was rare and had come to Earth in a single meteor that took out an entire used car lot. And then most of it had disappeared and ‘citizens should be on alert, because if ingested tyranite can prove fatal to humans’. And somehow it had gotten out that it was fatal to High Flier too. Finally, an article in a dead blog dated almost a year ago yielded results. ‘Exclusive Interview With Harbour City’s Latest Hero!’ “Huh,” said Lucas as he read. Clara and Ressop stopped arguing. “What?” said Ressop. He looked as stressed as anyone got when Clara wanted answers. “I don’t think Killerwatt’s a real doctor,” said Lucas. He held up the phone to show the picture in the blogger’s profile. When he’d met Doctor Killerwatt strapped to a table, the hair had grown long and greasy, but there was the once-chiseled face of the good ‘doctor’ staring out of the bio picture. Of course, that face was now long gone. “That little shit,” said Ressop. “I trusted him.” “An ex?” said Clara. “We didn’t get that far,” said Ressop. “He contacted me early on. Then he went and published how to kill me as a big scoop. That, as they say, was that.” “I thought it was pretty tasteless, I didn’t pay too much attention to the details,” said Clara, taking Lucas’ phone for a closer look. “Look at his writing, no paper would have hired him. No wonder he ran this blog by himself. Says here in his charming ‘about the author!’ he switched from a career as an engineer to prove that journalism could be done ‘correctly in the right hands.'” “He’s kind of a dick at both,” said Lucas. “What’s an engineer’s weakness?” muttered Ressop, taking his turn with the phone and glaring venomously at Doctor Killerwatt’s once handsome face. “Bullets,” said Clara. “Face punches,” said Lucas. “I can do the second,” said Ressop. “With pleasure.” “I think he’s a robot zombie now,” said Lucas. “We can both facepunch him,” said Clara. “And he’s poisoning entire towns as distractions,” added Lucas. “Hrm,” said Ressop. Lucas retrieved his phone. “So, he’s a techie who couldn’t hack his new career and now he wants the weapons hidden in Harbour City and he wants both of you dead. And me, I guess. I would very much like a plan, so I can do anything other than hide in a hole in the ground.” Both the heroes looked at Lucas. It was Clara who spoke first, in as gentle a tone as she could manage: “Lucas, whatever we do, you are not going to be involved.” “I saved High Flier!” protested Lucas. “You crashed my jet. You just happened to crash it into something useful first,” said Clara. “I save you from your own clumsiness as a hobby,” added Ressop. Lucas crossed his arms and glared. “Come on, let’s plan,” said Clara, activating a giant holographic map that Lucas would have loved to play with during his base confinement if he’d known it was there. Lucas watched them fly off that night, trying not to sulk. He’d even gotten a goodbye kiss from Ressop (Res? Ress? Soppy? He had to find a nickname for High Flier and soon) but they hadn’t yielded to let him come along to help. Something about being the token hostage of the social group. Lucas kicked a takeout wrapper and muttered. “And I was the one who even found Killerwatt’s old apartment for them to ransack for clues anyway.” Clara had chosen the words ‘internet creeping skills’ when thanking him for that. Ressop had asked how to hide his own tracks. Well, no reason to sulk in here, thought Lucas. If he was going to be left out, he was going to be left out with a damn latte. Now that he knew better how Clara’s hideout worked, getting the front door to open and let him out near a handy bus stop was child’s play. “Okay, phone,” he said, “tell me where the next bus goes and where I can eat.” “Oh, I think you won’t be needing that,” said a distorted voice behind him. Lucas Lopez threw the first punch of his life. It had no effect on Doctor Killerwatt. Lucas bent over hissing in pain, clutching his hand. Then yelling in anger as Doctor Killerwatt prepared to kidnap him. Again. Then with a whoosh of air, Lucas was stuck in a bush beside the sidewalk and Killerwatt was pinned against the pavement by High Flier. “Hello there!” he said, in his big jolly voice. “Here I am coming back to see if my boyfriend wants me to bring him something and I meet you! You really get aroun–oop!” He took an electrical blast to the chest and didn’t flinch. “Not enough tyranite to just carry it around?” High Flier said, leaning in close to Killerwatt. “Yeah, my army friends have been helping with that, scuttling your supply. As for whatever plans you had for Lucas, well, they’re on hold.” He reached out, grabbed the limbs of Killerwatt’s tech backpack, and crushed them like Play-Do. It wasn’t that Killerwatt had been silent while High Flier talked, it was just that he’d only been screaming a string of unprintable obscenities. They got increasingly more unprintable as High Flier disabled his suite of electronic weaponry. “I think he’s down,” said Lucas, pulling a leaf from his hair. “Yes,” said High Flier, “you know, I think he is. Thanks for being the best target I know.” Lucas let that pass and kissed High Flier on the cheek. Lucas had a lot to say about prison uniforms, which sadly never got printed because Ms. Black wouldn’t let him cover the trial of the madman who’d kept trying to kill him. ‘Emotional distance,’ she said. But Killerwatt going away for a couple hundred years with medical treatment wasn’t the best thing to happen to Lucas that month. No, the best thing to happen to Lucas was High Flier showing up at his place of work with camera-defying sunglasses on, walking up to Clara’s desk, and demanding she be his personal reporter. He hadn’t even glanced at Lucas’ desk. Not only was Lucas’ name cleared, now the High Flier association was Clara’s problem. She’d dealt with this by hitting Lucas with tiny balls of paper every time he turned his back on her. He felt this was a fair deal. And he continued to date High Flier. Ressop. He even, in the most romantic gesture Ressop could have given him, got to redesign High Flier’s costume. In fact, life was pretty good. They might never be anything more than a secret due to Ressop’s nature, but it was still a good deal. Their dates always took place at night. He didn’t even have to take a cab to get there, not with Ressop’s fondness for carrying him through the air. There was just something about flying through the night sky in someone’s arms. Lucas nuzzled High Flier’s throat as they headed to tonight’s date spot, enjoying the warmth of his neck and chest in the coolness of the wind. Somewhere in a field the devil got into Lucas, and it wasn’t just Ressop’s throat he was nuzzling. Holding tight to Ressop, just in case, he adjusted himself to slide his thigh between Ressop’s legs and rubbed his cock very deliberately. “Ah!” But heroic instincts kept Ressop’s grip on him and Lucas didn’t end up as a human-shaped crop circle below. Lucas grinned and did it again. Ressop’s face – like Lucas’, but not – was lit by the full moon, and his expression was very encouraging. “Should I land?” Ressop asked. “You know what? No,” said Lucas. “I want to stay up here.” He got a hand loose to slip beneath Ressop’s costume. Another happy gasp from the hero. Ressop flipped them over, flying on his back with Lucas on his chest. Safety first. Lucas gave High Flier’s throat a quick nip, stroking his cock with his hand. “Don’t fly us into any trees.” “No promises,” said Ressop, who’d adopted a holding pattern of flying in a circle. Lucas laughed, then resumed kissing Ressop’s throat. Ressop’s arms were busy keeping Lucas from plummeting to the ground below, so Lucas decided to take care of himself, grinding against Ressop’s hip, while trying to make the hero come at the same time with his hand. High Flier started circling higher. As did his voice each time Lucas stroked. Lucas liked it. If Ressop had to be alien, better vocally like this than if, say, he had a cannibalistic flower in his pants. And then, quite quickly, Lucas’ mind whited out and he stopped thinking about alien possibilities as he came against Ressop’s thigh. He muffled the sound against Ressop’s neck–this was no time to become a sky sex cryptid, with a farmer catching them above her fields–and ran his thumb over the head of Ressop’s cock to get him to join in. And Ressop did, stopping abruptly midair but still afloat. But Ressop didn’t think to muffle himself like Lucas did, and abruptly the various birds and bugs of night went silent. “Go go go!” hissed Lucas. “Got it!” said High Flier, and off they zoomed through the air to somewhere more private .

This holiday season, we’re highlighting local businesses as part of our #StayLocal2020 campaign. Scroll to the bottom for more information. Deck the halls, decorate the tree, stuff those stockings. You’ve got lots to do, so we’ve rounded up the best in stocking stuffers so you can get back to making Wassail and watching holiday episodes of Great British Bake Off. These gifts are worthy of a handshake from Paul Hollywood himself. Ornaments and Holiday Decorations - Handcrafted Tarot Ornament ($5) – Coon’s Cards and Gifts - Mermaid Christmas Tree Ornament ($12) – District Trading Company - Mothman Felt Cryptid Ornament ($12) – Holly’s Making Stuff - Bindrune Ornaments ($10) – Moon and Stag Studio - Capy Holidays – Under the Mistletoe ($14.50) – When Guinea Pigs Fly - Mini 4inch Mussel Shell Wreath ($10) – Salter’s Point Provisions - Santa Uterus Ornament ($5) – Siren and Sea - One Of A Kind Upcycled Thread Spool Ornament ($10) – Water Clock Creations - Paper Ornaments ($6.75) – Joy Star Buttons, Stickers, and Patches - Maker of Merriment Pin ($3) – m.ink studios - Dissent Collar Enamel Pin ($12) – Modern Millie - Baby Yoda Coffee Pin ($14) – Shindig! Studios - Fido Kahlo Sticker ($3) – Annadidathing - I’m Gay! pride button ($2) – Crafty Queer Studios - Make Believe Cloisonne Enamel Pin ($8) – Girlyhandwriting - Confident Critters Stickers ($8) – Our Back Pockets - Wizards Against Fascism Patch ($5) – Robin Finn Art - Home Alone Patch ($6) – Die With Your Boots On Bath and Body - Organic Beeswax Lip Balm ($4) – Beverly Bees - 4oz Hand Sanitizer Gel – Lavender & Orange ($7.50) – Moody’s Gifts - Natural Sanitizer Spray | Soothe ($14) – Tasteful Skin - Self-Love ~ Rose and Patchouli Bath Fizzy ($7) – Nine of Cups Bathing Co. - Winter Solstice (3oz) Soap ($6.50) – A Clean Ass Bar Home, Hearth, and Kitchen - Cat Candle ($10) – Vampfangs - Hedge Witch Loose Incense ($7) – Old Growth Alchemy - Taco Potholders ($15) – Put It In Your Pocket - Miniature Embroidery ($15) – Scintilla of Joy - Crunchy Soda Vessel 3 ($15) – Atlas Moon - Pause and Reset Wax Melt ($5) – Equal Love Co. - Persephone’s Tea 4oz Soy Wax Candle ($12) – Needfire Wellness - Hearth Travel Tin ($6.50) – Witch City Wicks Trinkets, Baubles, and Pouches - Stained Glass Celestial Lovers Earrings ($14.40) – Bunwitch Emporium - Preserved Flower Resin Necklace ($15) – Smoke and Honey - Chamomile Wood Pin ($8) – With Love Ezra Stone - Canvas Pouch – Bees and Honey ($13) – Emporium 32 - Antique Brass Man in the Moon Ring ($12) – Ghost Wolf - Labradorite – Semi Precious Stones And Leather Wrap Bracelet ($13) – Fresh Prints of CT Do you want to be on this list? Send us a message at firstname.lastname@example.org or consider joining our business program. SHOP LOCAL! Support the small businesses that make up your community and are owned by your friends, neighbors, and fellow community members. If you are a business and are interested in being part of this initiative please visit creativecollectivema.com/join and sign up for our comprehensive business program! staylocallynn • #staylocalsalem • #staylocalpeabody • #staylocalbeverly • #staylocalmarblehead We wanted to shine a spotlight on many of the small businesses that make up the fabric of our communities and support them as much as we can throughout the Winter. Stay tuned to this event for information on businesses throughout the North shore. We will be highlighting the humans behind the small businesses, showcasing specials and promotions, and also curating experiences that will make your local shopping even better! A priority this year will be to educate consumers on the safety protocols that so many of our fantastic businesses have implemented in response to the Coronavirus pandemic.

Ivy Dolamore is an artist, cryptid, and unschooler. The product of a curriculum-free homeschooling education, Ivy quit her job at GameStop to become a full-time artist, supported by commissions, Patreon, and an extensive social media following. Her creations span a variety of art styles and media, including prints, jewelry, and Diamond Art. In this episode, I chat with Ivy about how she made the leap to being an artist; how her retail experience lends itself to her new craft; which social media channels she finds most valuable; the vulnerability of vlogging; how unschooling differs from homeschooling; how an unschooler finds teachers and fills gaps in her curriculum; and what her next big projects are. Stream the audio edition of this interview below or from Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, Spotify, Overcast, Pandora, Pocket Casts, iHeartRadio, TuneIn, RadioPublic, or the Internet Archive. Click past the jump for a transcript and links to resources mentioned in this episode.

Codzilla is the Biggest, Baddest Speedboat in Boston (5 stars) Should you find yourself in Boston on a hot summer day and want a way to cool off, then there is nothing wetter and wilder then Codzilla. Located at Long Warf right next to the New England Aquarium, you might have noticed a long boat with a vibrantly painted shark etched on its side. This is Codzilla, a high speed boat that takes tourist out on the Harbor for a crazy adventure. In truth, Codzilla is the name of a 2800 horsepower speed boat that heads out to Boston Harbor where it takes its passengers on a 40 mile per hour cruise filled with dips and turns all while blasting rock anthems from bands like AC/DC as well as others. If you are not a fan of hard rock, don’t worry. You will barely hear the music once the boat is roaring. As mentioned, this is a ride to cool off on because you get wet. You get very wet. The ship will provide you with ponchos should you choose to do so to prevent being completely soaked. You can also store valuables before boarding to keep them safe. Things like hats and sunglasses are not recommended because the speed of the boat plus the wind may cause them to fly right off. Sunscreen is recommended because you will spend 40 minutes in the sun. After you get up to speed you make your way out to Deer Island where you are told the tale of Codzilla. A tiny cod fish got stuck at a water treatment plant but then grew to enormous proportions and now stocks the seas near Boston. And you thought Codzilla was the name of the boat? Well it is, but there is also a corny legend your tour guide tells you about the fictitious cryptid. The humorous nature of the tour adds to the fun as your boat goes slow at first due to having a slower speed limit until it is further out on the water. Once you are out past a certain point, the speed limit is raised and the Codzilla rockets forward. The boat will make 360 degree spins as it turns up a near perfect circle of water around. It then takes off doing fast dips and turns as gallons of water splash over the boat soaking the inhabitants. The cold air from the speed can chill you to the bones as it blows past the soaked passengers. Codzilla is a combination roller coaster, water ride. You get wet and go fast. You twist and turn while the breeze slams into your face. Since Boston doesn’t have a roller coaster nearby this is one way to experience one without the amusement park. Codzilla may be the only thrill ride in Boston proper. Be aware there is a height restriction to ride the boat, much like many amusement rides. You must be over 40 inches, though I personally observed smaller children accompanied by adults so consult the company for any questions. Here’s our video review!

“First the whodigo wendigo, then a pot of chili eats my hand, now a hypothermic teenager … what’s gonna happen next?!” Watching Frostbiter: Wrath of the Wendigo feels like sitting in the sort of bar with knob-cranked rock music where writer-director-producer-editor-cinematographer Tom Chaney might have conceived this low-budget ode to cryptid supernaturalism and skinflint ingenuity. That’s because in almost every scene of this take on the flesh-eating, shape-shifting monster, dialogue takes secondary position to songs played at concert-level volume. The wind might whisper wendigo, but not this soundtrack – which ranges from purposeful songs about chili with no crackers or onions to beats that sound gaffled from Enigma’s cutting-room floor and, in one headscratcher, a sample of Prince’s “Kiss.” One of the delights of any Vinegar Syndrome release is discovering the details behind how something like this could happen. Indeed, a late-stage producer – providing funds to finish this film shot piecemeal over several years and finally released in 1995 – insisted on increasing the volume of songs on a soundtrack he thought would fare better than the film itself. (As sound editor / actor Paul Harris recounts in a Sound of the Wendigo featurette, the Italian-language dub on YouTube might be a preferable mix to the English-language version.) These are the type of tidbits you come to crave from Vinegar Syndrome’s exhaustive extras. And in time, Frostbiter’s decidedly demented sound mix becomes a critical component of its ramshackle charm – an Upper Peninsula love letter to Sam Raimi and Ray Harryhausen with let’s-put-on-a-horror-show energy that pulls out as many stops as $60,000 could possibly buy. The film’s prologue finds a 100-year-old trapper (in perfectly reasonable Valkenheiser-ish prosthetics) recounting his clash with the wendigo creature – “a fierce battle that rocked the world,” as it looks in matte paintings resembling Thomas Kinkade on a ketamine bender. Only his vigilance has kept the wendigo from wreaking havoc on the world, but leave it to a couple of beer-swilling Yoopers (one played by Stooges guitarist Ron Asheton) to cock that all up. Thus, the prophesied protection from the wendigo falls to Sandy (Lori Baker), on whom the wendigo’s supernatural sentinels will descend with the intent to weaken her and strengthen their master. Cryptid tales are difficult to pull off at any point along the spectrum, either as a campfire tale (where embers burning eternal in our imaginations are scarier than anything onscreen) or a persuasive, effects-enabled insistence that such creatures walk among us. Chaney takes an approach of fever-dream fun a la the Evil Dead films or Dead Alive, and there are legitimate laughs aplenty as this horror-comedy leans into its limited budget and vigorous pacing (running just 77 minutes before credits taken up largely by what seems like a 60-song soundtrack). Building to a climax of enjoyably efficient stop-motion effects, Frostbiter is the sort of labor that’s easy to love. Vinegar Syndrome has debuted the film on a region-free Blu-ray with a 2K restoration from its original 16-millimeter camera negative. The film’s preservation on any physical platter is the reward here, frayed flecks and splayed specks often wiggling at the bottom of any given frame. Frostbiter looks – and, as noted above, sounds – just as it should. In the featurette Wendigo Make a Movie, Chaney touts himself as the guy who shoots movies on the catering budget for most mainstream productions. Indeed, filming Frostbiter was an intermittent endeavor as collaborators had availability and time in the “refrigeration capital of the world” – some commuting 90 minutes to do it or squeezing in work around Raimi’s production of Evil Dead 2: Dead by Dawn (with which Frostbiter shares editor Kaye Davis). Chaney reveals Davis cut a 93-minute version down to 66 minutes, thus necessitating reshoots with anyone available to tack on 11 minutes of news footage … and tie Frostbiter back to a famous, and most unexpected, fictitious town. Chaney offers a convivial chronicle of making Frostbiter, which was eventually picked up by schlockmeisters Troma – one living up to his insistence that truly independent filmmaking involves defeating Murphy’s Law on a minute-by-minute basis. Chaney also contributes a brand-new commentary track on the film, moderated by producer Michael Felsher. Additional featurettes include: - The Many Hats of a Wendigo, with producer David Thiry - What Were We Thinking?, with actor Alan Madlane - Frankenstein’s Wendigo, with stop-motion animator Dave Hettmer - A Friend in Need, with actor John Bussard Housed in a special limited-edition spot-gloss slipcover designed by Chris Barnes and with reversible sleeve artwork, the Vinegar Syndrome release also includes: an archival featurette with Asheton; the original promotional video (from when the film was simply titled Wendigo); a Frostbiter video trailer; behind-the-scenes footage; an archival Troma introduction and promotional video; footage from the film’s Michigan premiere; and a behind-the-scenes still gallery.

Negritos, Cryptozoology, and Proto-Pygmies by ©Loren Coleman 2018 In November 2018, a series of articles appeared making a connection between ufology’s alien astronaut theories, pseudoarchaeology, and the alleged racism existing on reality television’s ancient astronaut shows. But It’s Humans The concluding thoughts were that today’s programming was a form of scripting and production room theorizing that extends the notion that human ancestors were just not bright or creative enough to have been the source of pre-modern pyramids and other ancient technological advances. The meme tagline, “I’m not saying that it was aliens, but it was aliens,” issues from such thinking. A good summary overview appeared in one column: The popularization of the theory of alien architects as having a basis in science rather than consisting of only fictional musing can be attributed to Swiss author Erich von Däniken’s 1968 publication of the book Chariots of the Gods? Unsolved Mysteries of the Past. The questioning of human building projects in Chariots of the Gods? remains a bedrock for many within the field of pseudo-archaeology. Far from innocuous, these alien theories undermine the agency, archaeology, and intellect of non-European cultures in Africa and South America, as well as the Native peoples in North America by erasing their achievements. Today, many of von Däniken’s theories can still be found in television shows like Ancient Aliens on the History Channel. Since 2009, the show has featured a mix of mostly white male conspiracy theorists posing harmful questions about the legitimacy of human involvement in archaeological structures. As of recently, they have at least begun to incorporate actual Egyptians such as Ramy Romany. Despite his history of racist views, Von Däniken appears to still be a paid producer on the show Ancient Aliens. Source. By extension, can a re-examination of cryptozoology be done in a similar fashion? Are cryptozoologists engaged in pseudo-ethnological thinking? Are cryptozoologists constructing theories based on “others” for what seems to be ethnographic information of cryptids merely from indigenous peoples? Should some thought be given to reports of small hairy hominoids (the so-called Proto-Pygmies) as new peoples or new species, directly based on evidence available from parallel human small people populations? How have current events thrush us into the quicksand of re-thinking old thoughts in these times of conspiracy theories? Shortly after the ancient aliens versus contemporary archaeology debate hit social media, on November 21, 2018, news broke from South Asian law enforcement officials (Indian police) that an American tourist had been killed by members of the Sentinelese tribe on the North Sentinel Island of India’s Andaman Islands. The Sentinelese were described as a remote, indigenous tribe protected by India. They are said to be resistant to contact with outsiders and have almost no contact with the outside world. The Sentinelese people on the small forested island are known to often attack anyone who comes near their island. The misguided American adventurer and missionary was killed by the isolated Indian island tribe known to shoot at outsiders with bows and arrows. The American was identified as John Allen Chau, described as 26 years old, from Alabama, and a graduate of Oral Roberts University. Chau arrived in the region on October 16, 2018, and stayed in a hotel while he prepared to visit the prohibited island. He had earlier visited the Andaman and Nicobar Islands in 2015 and 2016. North Sentinel is in the Andaman Islands at the intersection of the Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea. Chau went ashore in his kayak on November 15, 2018, and sent the boat with the fishermen out to sea to avoid detection. He interacted with some of the tribespeople, giving them gifts he had prepared such as a football and fish. But the tribespeople became angry and shot an arrow at him which apparently hit the Bible he was carrying. He made his way back to a prearranged location. He set out again to meet the tribespeople on November 16. But on the morning of the following day, the waiting fishermen saw from a distance Chau’s body being dragged by tribesmen. They left for Port Blair, the capital of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, where they informed Chau’s friend, who notified his family. The government, unable to recover his body, officially called off further interactions with the Sentinelese people on November 28, 2018. The Sentinelese, also known as the Sentineli and the North Sentinel Islanders, are an indigenous people who inhabit North Sentinel Island in the Bay of Bengal in India and are considered one of the world’s last uncontacted peoples. Designated a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group and a Scheduled Tribe, they belong to the broader class of Andamanese people. Along with the Great Andamanese, the Onge, the Shompen and the Jarawa, the Sentinelese are one of the five native and reclusive tribes of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Unlike the others, the Sentinelese appear to have consistently refused any interaction with the outside world. They are hostile to outsiders and have killed people who approached or landed on the island. During the 1960s, undergraduate anthropology students, like myself, were schooled on the biology and culture of the Andaman Islanders as prime examples of undisturbed “primitive peoples,” a view long ago discouraged. This is one of the books that the professors would assign to read for a basic anthropology course. German anthropologist Egon von Eickstedt posed with Onge hunter-gatherers during a trip to the Andaman Islands in 1928./ Haddon Library, University of Cambridge British colonies were first established on the Andaman Islands in 1858 and remained until 1947. Onge and Jarawa pygmies, who lived on separate islands, retreated into forests to avoid the British. Great Andamanese pygmies befriended the newcomers. As a result, Great Andamanese individuals were exposed to infectious diseases against which they had no defense, including influenza, tuberculosis, measles and syphilis. Their approximate numbers dropped from 6,000 in 1858 to 600 in 1900. A low of 19 Great Andamanese individuals was recorded during the 1960s, but the population survives. During late 2018, the worldwide news of Chau’s death caused informed and uninformed discussions about the Sentinelese people, known generically as “Negritos.” Onge pygmy replicas in a museum located on the shores of the Indian Ocean. The word Negrito is the Spanish diminutive of negro, used to mean “little black person”. This usage was coined by 16th-century Spanish missionaries operating in the Philippines, and was borrowed by other European travellers and colonialists across Austronesia to label various peoples perceived as sharing relatively small physical stature and dark skin. Contemporary usage of an alternative Spanish epithet, Negrillos, also tended to bundle these peoples with the pygmy peoples of Central Africa, based on perceived similarities in stature and complexion. (Historically, the label Negrito has occasionally been used also to refer to African pygmies.) The appropriateness of using the label “Negrito” to bundle peoples of different ethnicities based on similarities in stature and complexion has been challenged. Many online dictionaries give the plural in English as either “Negritos” or “Negritoes”, without preference. The plural in Spanish is “Negritos”. Size comparison between Pygmies, English officers, Sudanese and Zanzibaris (1890) In anthropology, pygmy peoples are ethnic groups whose average height is unusually short. The term is primarily associated with the African Pygmies, the hunter-gatherers of the Congo basin (comprising the Bambenga, Bambuti and Batwa). The term “Asiatic Pygmies” has been used of the Negrito populations of Maritime Southeast Asia and other Australoid peoples of short stature. Ota Benga at the Bronx Zoo in 1906. Historically, the pygmy have always been viewed as inferior by both colonial authorities and the village-dwelling Bantu tribes. Pygmy children were sometimes captured during the period of the Congo Free State, which exported pygmy children to zoos throughout Europe, including the world’s fair in the United States in 1907. Pygmies are often evicted from their land and given the lowest paying jobs. At a state level, Pygmies are sometimes not considered citizens and are refused identity cards, deeds to land, health care and proper schooling. The term pygmy is sometimes considered pejorative. However, there is no single term to replace it. Many prefer to be identified by their ethnicity, such as the Aka (Mbenga), Baka, Mbuti, and Twa. The term Bayaka, the plural form of the Aka/Yaka, is sometimes used in the Central African Republic to refer to all local pygmies. Likewise, the Kongo word Bambenga is used in Congo. Europeans (colonists) would often pose with a pygmy and an individual of mixed genetic background. There are at least a dozen pygmy groups, sometimes unrelated to each other. The best known are the Mbenga (Aka and Baka) of the western Congo basin, who speak Bantu and Ubangian languages; the Mbuti (Efe etc.) of the Ituri Rainforest, who speak Bantu and Central Sudanic languages, and the Twa of the African Great Lakes, who speak Bantu Rundi and Kiga. It is estimated that there are between 250,000 and 600,000 Pygmies living in the Congo rainforest. However, although Pygmies are thought of as forest people, the groups called Twa may live in open swamp or desert. Osa Johnson with pygmies (1940). The Taron people of Myanmar are an exceptional case of a “pygmy” population of East Asian phenotype. From the documentary, Lost Tribe of Tibetan Pygmies. Alan Rabinowitz and Taron leader Dawi In 2013, a link between the Taron and the Derung people in Yunnan, China was uncovered by Richard D. Fisher, which may indicate the presence of pygmy populations among the Derung tribe. [There has been some focus on “pygmies,” regarding the movement of their status from subspecies (as Charles Darwin discussed all “races”) to species. See the radical article: “What if Pygmies Are a Different Species? That Might be Good for the Pygmies,” by Steve Sailer, The Unz Review, March 11, 2016.] Proto-Pygmies are allegedly small hairy hominoids, with adult heights ranging from three feet to five feet. The hair on their heads is often a different length and texture than the hair that covers the rest of their bodies. Faces are usually nearly hair-free, as are the palms of the hands, the knees, and soles of the feet. The commonly observed habitat of Proto-Pygmies is swamps, forests and seashores in tropical regions of the world. Their tiny footprints can be distinguished from those of human children because the foot shape is unique. Their faces look aged, ancient, and distinctly non-human. Hair colors tend to be black or red. Didi by Harry Trumbore. Menehune by Harry Trumbore. Both drawings from The Field Guide to Bigfoot and Other Mystery Primates by Loren Coleman and Patrick Huyghe (Anomalist Books). Proto-Pygmies are known by the locals by names such as alux, duende, didi, orang-pendek, teh-lma, agogwe, sehite, sedapa, shiru, and menehune. All cryptid hairy little people are classified as Proto-Pygmies. What could Proto-Pygmies be? Most researchers have had varied theories. W.C. Osman-Hill thought perhaps they were evolved Homo erectus, and Bernard Heuvelmans felt that some of the African varieties could be relict populations of Australopithecus. Other theories abound, with Sanderson even saying some might be a unique subtype of our own species, Homo sapiens. Modern human compared with the so-called Hobbit. Homo floresiensis (Hobbit), discovered in 2003, has been inserted into the Proto-Pygmy discussions, especially when the native legends of the ebu-gogo are taken into account, regarding if its extreme hairiness turns out to be true. Anthropologist Gregory Forth, Professor of Anthropology at the University of Alberta, Canada has stated that “wildman” myths are prevalent in Southeast Asia and has investigated their linguistic and ritual roots, speculating that H. floresiensis may be evidence that the folktales of Ebu Gogo and similar creatures such as the Orang Pendek on Sumatra may be cultural memories rooted in fact. An article in New Scientist (June 15, 2006, Vol. 186 no. 2504. pp. 45–45) gives the following account of folklore on Flores surrounding the locals’ reaction to the Ebu Gogo after the little people began stealing children: In the 18th century, villagers gave the Ebu Gogo a gift of palm fiber to make clothes, and once the Ebu Gogo took the fiber into their cave, the villagers threw in a firebrand to set it alight, killing all of the occupants (one pair may have fled into the forest, for sightings persisted into the 19th century). The “fire at a cave’s entrance” killing off a Proto-Pygmy population is one I have heard before. The British explorer Hugh Nevill recorded in 1887 the Veddha tribe of Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) would often get in conflict with their local little people, the Nittaewo. About 3 feet (one meter) tall, the naked people began taking the Veddha children. The Veddha trapped the Nittaewo in a cave and blocked its entrance with a wood fire, killing all the Nittaewo. Primatologist W. C. Osman-Hill also reported on this folktale in his journal article on the Nittaewo. The phrase Proto-Pygmy, originally coined by Ivan T. Sanderson as Proto-Pigmies, is used by modern researchers such as the late Mark A. Hall, Patrick Huyghe and me (Loren Coleman) to describe the smallest of the world’s unknown hominoids. Patrick Huyghe and I formalized our thoughts on Proto-Pygmies among local indigenous people, who are the best sources for eyewitness observations of Proto-Pygmies. Nevertheless, Western and Eastern scientists, explorers, and filmmakers are the ones who bring out word of these hominoids. II. PROTO-PIGMIES (Orient, Africa, and possibly Central and Northwest South America). Smaller than average humans, to tiny; clothed in thick black or red fur but with differentiated head-hair that usually forms a mane. Go about in pairs or family groups; wary but inquisitive; apparently a very primitive form of language; toes sub-equal and heels small or pointed; good tree-climbers and swimmers; tropical forests down to seashores and swamps; omnivorous, insect, fish, and small animal eaters plus fruits, leaves; very nervous.(1) Dwendis, of Central America, possibly only dwarf Mayas.(2) Shiru, of Colombia, S.A.(3) Sedapas, of Sumatra.(4) Sehites, of West Africa.(5) Agogwes, of East Africa.(6) Teh-lmas, of valley forests of the Himalayas. Writing in 1960, the Scottish American zoologist and cryptozoologist Ivan T. Sanderson observed that …the Negrillos of Africa and the Negritos of the Orient, or Pigmies, as we call them, were until recently also thought to be a sort of offshoot of the great Negroid stock. But they too have practically nothing in common with the true Negroes. Apart from their tiny stature [as opposed to the exceptional tall stature of Negroids] their lower leg is shorter than their upper, they have reddish skins, they are covered with a yellow down sometimes developing on the limbs into quite thick hair; their blood type is quite different, and they have many other odd features, all of which are quite contrary to those of the Negroids. So also are they to those of any other race—Bushman, Australoid, Caucasoid, or Mongoloid. Then there were once the Tasmanians. These seem to have been an extreme and almost pigmy form of the Australoids and really to have been almost another species. They are extinct.” Even if we don’t know where “sub-man” ends and “man” begins we do know that, quite apart from myth, legend, and folklore, there was once [and in some cases still seems to be] a group of not-quite-humans spread all over a vast area from Morocco to the Pacific, and from the southern border of Eurasia [which, incidentally seems to have remained the domain of the surviving Neanderthalers] to central Africa, southern Arabia, Ceylon, the East Indies, New Guinea, and the greater islands immediately beyond. Everywhere we go throughout this vast swath of the earth’s surface we find traces of peoples so primitive that they are variously alleged to have been hairy, to have had tails [a mere profligacy, as we have explained], to dwell in trees, have had no proper language, be cannibals, lack fire and even tools, and generally to be “Those who lived in the land when our ancestors first came from …” Osman Hill has brought to light some exceedingly interesting facts about one of these races called the Nittaewo in Ceylon. These little, mostly Pigmy, primitives that seem once to have inhabited the whole of the tropical belt of the old world, provide us with most suitable candidates for our Proto-Pigmy Class of ABSMs—the Sehite—Agogwes of Africa, and the Sedapa—Teh-lmas of the Orient. These little ones are alleged to be really very human in many respects and their footprints are as human as they can be. The facts that they are hairy and gibber do not, as we have seen, necessarily put them into any bestial class nor even out of the human. They could just be leftovers; the “Devil-Sakai” that can really use the trees as highways. If there really are such Proto-Pigmies in the New World, represented by the Dwendis and the Shirus, they must have traveled around the long way by the Bering Straits land-bridge at an early date, and become isolated. These two little ABSMs would certainly seem to be pigmy primitives, rather than sub-hominids or even tiny races of sub-men. From Ivan T. Sanderson’s Abominable Snowmen: Legend Come to Life (Philadelphia: Chilton, 1960), Chapter 16, “Our Revered Ancestors.” Negritos, Cryptozoology, and Proto-Pygmies Cryptozoology does not diminish the importance of the reports of isolated groups of little people. Pockets of small humans may explain reports of Proto-Pygmies. Surviving relict populations of peoples some term “Negritos” are part of the investigations occurring. It is intriguing that some of the genetic research on small people track right back to our old friend, the late oil millionaire and cryptozoology backer: Tom Slick. A 2010 study by the Anthropological Survey of India and the Texas Biomedical Research Institute identified seven genomes from 26 isolated “relic tribes” from the Indian mainland, such as the Baiga tribe, which share “two synonymous polymorphisms with the M42 haplogroup, which is specific to Australian Aborigines”. These were specific mtDNA mutations that are shared exclusively by Australian aborigines and these Indian tribes, and no other known human groupings. Source: Satish Kumar; Rajasekhara Reddy Ravuri; Padmaja Koneru; BP Urade; BN Sarkar; A Chandrasekar; VR Rao (22 July 2009), “Reconstructing Indian-Australian phylogenetic link”, BMC Evolutionary Biology, BioMed Central, 9: 173. According to Wikipedia: During the 1950s, [Tom] Slick was an adventurer. He turned his attention to expeditions to investigate the Loch Ness Monster, the Yeti, Bigfoot and the Trinity Alps giant salamander. Slick’s interest in cryptozoology was little known until the 1989 publication of the biography Tom Slick and the Search for Yeti, by Loren Coleman. Coleman continued his study of Tom Slick in 2002 with Tom Slick: True Life Encounters in Cryptozoology. That book mentions many of Tom Slick’s adventures, in politics, art, science, and cryptozoology, including his involvement with the CIA and Howard Hughes. Tom Slick was a friend of many celebrities, including Hughes and fellow flier James Stewart. Stewart, for example, assisted a Slick-backed expedition in smuggling a piece of the Pangboche Yeti hand back to England for scientific analysis, Loren Coleman was to discover from Slick’s files and confirmation from Stewart before his death. Slick founded several research organizations, beginning with the forerunner of the Texas Biomedical Research Institute in 1941. His most well-known legacy is the non-profit Southwest Research Institute (SwRI), which he founded in 1947 to seek revolutionary advancements in technology. Negritos are extremely ancient, so ancient that they were the very first people ever to come to South East Asia. The Malaysians even call them the orang asli – the original people. They came with the first wave of people to leave Africa. South East Asia was mainly Negrito 5,000 years ago but now only pockets of them are left here and there. Like the American Indians in North America. If you look at people’s mitochondrial DNA you can not only build a family tree of all mankind, you can also piece together when and how humans spread across the earth. Most Negritos who have had their DNA tested turn out to have the same mitochondrial DNA as the people in southern India, New Guinea and Australia: haplogroup M, the first to leave Africa. They left about 50,000 years ago, following the coast of the Indian Ocean and then spreading inland. Source. Plus 2018 Lists

Ronny has been featured on Conjuring Kesha, In the Search of Monsters and one of the video experts featured on Paranormal Caught on Camera analyzing videos of ghosts, the paranormal, UFOs, Bigfoot, cryptid creatures and strange supernatural anomalies. He is the author of two books. Monsterland: Encounters with UFOs, Bigfoot and Orange Orbs and the follow up book, Monsterland: Shamans, Sasquatch, Synchronicity and High Strangeness. A regular speaker and researcher, Ronny gives lectures at Bigfoot, UFO and Paranormal conferences and conventions around the country. Growing up in Leominster, Massachusetts, Ronny learned of a section of the city near his childhood home that was called Monsterland. He didn't know why it received this moniker, but all of his friends were going there to ride their BMX bikes, pedaling through the forested trails to get there and spending their day in the sand dunes within the power lines. Teenagers would use the area to hold keg parties and bonfires and young couples would frequent the area to evade prying parent's eyes. Some of the "lucky" ones that would venture into this area at night would experience strange sounds and lights. Sightings of flying saucers, orange orbs and hairy creatures running on two legs were part of the lore. The secret of why it has been called Monsterland has most of its own residents in the dark. Learn about the history of UFO sightings in Massachusetts as well as Bigfoot encounters that continue to this day in and around Leominster State Forest. What Ronny suggests...is controversial. What if all of these phenomena are connected? What if it has something to do with the area itself and its history? People have heard about the Bridgewater Triangle of Southeastern Massachusetts. Learn about this strange place within Central Massachusetts from someone that believes that there is more than meets the eye. If you like author and researchers like John Keel, Stan Gordon, Jacques Vallee...you will want to get these books! “Ronny has written an engaging and eye-opening account of his quest to understand interactions with Bigfoot, as well the strange occurrences that happen around those interactions that are not easily explained.” — Maggie, Amazon Review

Books For Reluctant Readers "The Totally Ninja Raccoons" is a series of early chapter books for 1st - 4th grade readers. These books are specially structured to encourage reluctant readers. Short chapters, humor, adventure, and one picture per chapter keep kids feeling a sense of engagement and accomplishment as they plow through these stories and ask for more! Get The Full Set - 25% OFF! The Totally Ninja Raccoons series is the perfect book set to get young, reluctant readers diving into book after book. Join in on the adventures of the Totally Ninja Raccoons as they encounter a creature from folklore or mythology. Get the set for $43.50 - Save 25%! Sample Reading By Kevin Coolidge: Each book has the Totally Ninja Raccoons encountering a cryptid -- a creature from folklore or mythology, whose existence is not currently confirmed by modern science. The "monsters" are presented in a fun, not-too-scary way, and readers are encouraged to do their own research to make up their minds about the possible existence of Bigfoot, werewolves, thunderbirds, sidehill gougers, the Loch Ness monster, and others. Author Kevin Coolidge Kevin resides in Wellsboro, just a short hike from the Pennsylvania Grand Canyon. When he's not writing, you can find him at the bookstore which he could not run without his lovely wife, several helpful employees, and two friendly bookstore cats, Huck & Finn.

a poem in hexameter by Andrew B. Watt, living in western Massachusetts written in honor of Tumblr user https://gallusrostromegalus.tumblr.com who wrote the original story as a series of bullet points The original Glorious Day was probably 7 September 2022 if it happened at all. The person who originally told the story underlying this poem, user GalloRostromgalus on Tumblr, is in some financial difficulty. Your support of THEM, not me, is appreciated. Sing, Muses, of the phone and its noise, of the glorious morning that Fate put some random Tumblr goblin-kin, into the path of strange destiny, with a tale worthy of the ages, a tale that dared not exist ’til now! Sing of the phone, ringing in the dark, ringing and jangling at 6 a. m., the friend stranded in far Montana, sweating in heat and without power, 5 hardly able to use their cellphone, lucky to get one bar of service; the servant stands up to the elder, the teacher or the nurse to client; our narrator summons all their strength, gathers their runcible spoons for weeks, and makes such arrangements as save friends: swift-ordered calls to car mechanics, nearby hotels and pizza parlors, pharmacists in far-off county seats! 10 All is well-arranged, all is settled — but now curséd Hour of Eight dawns! Now, does Anonymous tell us plain — there’s knocking, knocking, there’s knocking here, there’s folks arrived! Unluckily, spoons are spent! Is this how to meet people, wearing just black gothic booty shorts, labeling our speaker a cryptid? Here’s t-shirt, inside-out and backwards; it will serve to meet with knockers! 15 (Surely it’s worth a dad-joke or two, to say this is properly nailed now.) Fortune smiles! It’s not the Mormons! Yet she frowns: it’s two U.P.S. guys, who now deliver a new cellphone to an adult friend just up the stairs. But someone must sign for the package, using the mystery signing box that neither of these two nincompoops really comprehend how to manage. 20 One is alcoholic and near-deaf, old guy who’s worked this route for years, showing the ropes to the fresh recruit, the kid more a dude than a dab hand— and the old magus is just a fraud. He doesn’t know how to use the tech. Remember that it is only eight, but the heat of the day is scorching, the bulb says one hundred in the shade — that heat seeps into the apartment, 25 where the plump Corgi has slipped the latch, learned to open his cage from inside, and wanders freely about the house, happily waiting for attention. Sing, O Muses, of the unlatched gate, the Corgi free in the cat litter! Dogs like him, they love eating cat-shit, and now he’s gobbled up every bit! There’s cat litter all over his face; he helped others, now he helps himself. 30 Cattle dogs like him love nasty things. He’ll be fine but it’s just disgusting. But when, our dear narrator muses, did my dear Corgi learn to break free? There’s no learning how he gained this skill, mastered this witchery or magic, or why he stayed politely within the kennel cage that ought to hold him. Somehow he’s learned to open latches, learned to work the bolts on baby gates, 35 slip a human’s tripartite blockades, and have freedom to go where he wills! Far too much to process: our Hero must go forth in the Sun to meet with a foul but effective demon-spawn, hound of hell — A Realtor® who sends text reminders in strange code, bright strings of emoji characters, a red house and alarm clock and noon. This is Oracular, mystical! 40 have the omens been interpreted at all like they were supposed to be? Is the Realtor® old, of no deep thought? Will she understand emoji back? a yellow thumb pointed to the sky, and sunglasses on the smiley face— Surely she’ll understand that text back? YE GODS, her reply is baffling, What IS this witches brew of symbols, signs that don’t translate across platforms? 45 Can this trash even be translated? Is this Egyptian hieroglyphics? How does she type so fast with her thumbs, in characters no keyboard contains?? It’s nearly 9 a. m. by the time our hero decodes the message sent, the address of the house being seen, protocols for avoiding COVID, the masking of the face and the nose, and forgoing shoes when in the house. 50 How does the Realtor® write in this code, emoji of uncertain meaning, and yet our hero comprehends it? Couldn’t it just be written in text?? Fascination gives way to purpose — our hero must meet this demon-spawn, they must go forth into fairy-land, and see this … creature who writes like teens, all in mere symbols which are not words, instead of how normal people write! 55 Be Well, O Hero, Be Protected! Take the friendly, shit-eating Corgi with you on this bizarre adventure, and may he be your shield from strangeness and all the powers of Realtor® hell, the pathetic effective devil who types no English on her iPhone and yet sells mortgages and houses: May his politeness be your defense —but clean that cat litter off his mouth 60 before you sally forth to meet her, that mighty woman known as DIANE, she who dwells in darkness and in flame, She Who Texts Only In Emoji, queen of all, certified Realtor®, Mistress of the Art of Selling Homes: Come back safely, friendly Narrator, sing once more of the Glorious Day! Friendly and Helicon Muses, sing: Sing once more of the Glorious Day, 65 when GALLUS, spoon-bearing Narrator, ventured out to meet with a Realtor®, an agent for buying and selling houses and condos and real estate! When last we left our heroic friend, the keeper of a shit-eating dog, (a rowdy cattle-chasing Corgi who ever slurps breakfasts from both ends) they were setting forth on adventure, out in the scorching heat and dryness, 70 daring the midday Sun in splendor, only to find no Realtor® at all! The harried Realtor® was running late, couldn’t get there in time to meet them, and who had sent all those crazy texts, but some third mysterious person? Who had sent the walls of emoji? Who had written those arcane secrets, the majestic occult characters that hide in secret on our iPhones? 75 Enter now DORIS, the home-owner, a clever-handed sewing mistress, keeper of a fine stash of fabric, a seamstress of many heirloom quilts. The cryptic text came from this elder who riddles with images and signs, who knows her craft and related skills, and crowns all her workings with wisdom. She will admit you, the Realtor® says, if you promise your best behavior. 80 Gallus our narrator of clever speech, wondrous maker of bullet-point tales, decide they like the look of the house, and think it is in the proper place, the side of town where they want to live, opposite their current residence. The dog with good manners but bad breath, nam’d HERSCHEL (the Hanukkah Goblin) has mystical powers of Cuteness, which no known power may yet resist, 85 provided his leash is on his neck, sunk to canine collar by a latch; though Herschel’s a wonton criminal, he can be impeccably polite, skillful as snake-charmers or con-men in deceiving people to like him. Thus leashed & harnessed for the doorbell, Gallus brings Herschel to the doorway, hopes against hope for the emoji-typing fairy to admit them both, 90 show them the house in its current state, and give them a chance to buy or lease. Wide, wide, the groaning portal opens, no can of double-you dee forty can hasten the slow revelation of the ancient woman in the house, curled on her spine like a question mark, a straight thing made crooked by decades, coiled on herself like a neat scroll, with glasses suited for telescopes 95 perched on her aquiline nostril-bridge, perfections of the glazier’s art, suited for finding Venus or Mars, bright visions of a widening sky! She speaks in joyous recognition, “Gallus, how lovely to see you here, brightening my doorstep just at lunch! You’re not the bitch! Come in! Please come in!” Bewildered Gallus enters the house, suffering pet-parent of Herschel, 100 knowing that Doris of curling spine, maker of marvelous textiles, clearly knows just what and who they are, remembers that their sister’s returned from foreign parts: back from Australia, the far-off and distant continent where spiders, kangaroos, koalas roam in teeming hordes in desert wastes. And Doris also knows this secret: of a just-past anniversary 105 that Gallus had just recently marked, a day of special significance. But Gallus, our cryptid narrator, the Muses’ favorite bullet-pointer, discerned disadvantage, knew not how they knew her host — then pulled a bead: Is this Doris, working with wisdom? She who weaves splendor into her craft? Doris the geriatric lady? Gallus doesn’t know where they are from! 110 Do they not know this blue-haired lady, crooked of spine and thick of glasses? Gallus belongs to two quilting guilds, and works as a stage-hand in theater, draws scientific illustrations with a society of artists constituted just for that purpose, a specialist union of draughtsmen — and also the local S. C. A. , the ‘kingdom’ in the Rocky Mountains 115 whose members play as medieval knights — that fearsome company of fighters who gather in west Pennsylvania to fight the Pennsic War each August (the loser keeps Pittsburgh, so they say, the city of steel and pollution, at the bright confluence of rivers, Allegany, Monongehela each entwining to form Ohio, deep current joining Mississippi.) 120 In other words, too slow to mention, Gallus knows too many grandmothers: they’d have to whore out their own body if it were possible to name them, keep their names and identities filed, and sort out which one belonged to whom. Gallus casts about for any clue, seeks some hidden sign or oracle, which might help them discern or reveal just whose grandmother has welcomed them, 125 Far down the hall behind the front door, there hangs a quilt of marvelous art, with well-known, recognized appliqué, the brilliant artistry of just one — only one grandmother has such skill! “Hi Doris,” says Gallus, “yes it’s me, and I know you from S. A. Q. A.,” thus relieving their mental stresses, by the recognition of quilting, delicate appliqué down the hall, 130 forty long paces, an arrow’s flight, down a hallway in the darkened house. It might have been a risky gamble, guessing her name from a half-seen quilt, but Gallus our hero need not fear; Doris the mistress of appliqué is utterly entranced by Herschel, falling in love with the beast on sight. “Who is this little man?” Doris coos, “this handsome fellow, this Corgi?” 135 Herschel is no dummy — knows this game — hears enough of English speech and tone to know this old lady is smitten, enchanted to the point of blunder; she’s all too likely to feed him treats, pamper him with milk-bones and bacon, ply him with snacks for just being nice — and this role Herschel plays all too well. He knows how to sit really pretty, and give a little shake of his fur, 140 and look at any human with love, and deep respect, and adoration. This little criminal will get it, every little thing he wants and more. But Gallus remembers the tale here, the story Dorus has recited again and again and One. More. Time! with feeling, gross emotion, and song. Doris lives next to a raging bitch, a True Cunt Magnifique, it is said; 145 She goes about to all the neighbors, busy-bodying all and sundry, seeking to form a homeowner’s group, to improve the quality of life for anyone who lives on the street —but also owns the house they live in. She can’t abide renters or dead-beats, or even those minding their business — and this awful twat has a husband, so Gallus our plucky narrator 150 has heard in their quilting guild meetings, who works as a sworn County Sheriff. The twat’s husband likes playing bully, taking around illegal papers, trying to get neighbors to agree; when they refuse, he cites them for fines, writes them up on flimsy pretenses, violations of civic duty. He also threatens legal action against his neighbors who rebuff him. 155 And Doris can’t be bothered by that, when there’s so little time left to live: For she has much more she’d like to do, than be subject to petty tyrants who seek to make racism normal or kow-tow to suburban Karens, full of more vitriol and venom than your typical king Cobra snake — (and snakes are self-governing, it seems, and never form homeowners’ co-ops). 160 Gallus, our generous narrator, beloved of Muses and poets, knowing this history, and street-smart, vows that they’ll never live in this house, though Realtor® desperately twist their arm, or summon minions from lava’ed Hell, or offer them flatware with the sale, or or even give up her commission. Neither does Doris intend to say, as Gallus learns from conversation: 165 grandchildren in Santa Monica will soon be much closer to her heart, when she moves in with them far from here, where she’ll be loved and adored til Death. The scythe-bearing lord of hourglass and ticking walnut grandfather clock, will bring her gently into his realm. DORIS, he’ll say, with sonorous tone, THERE’S A FEW QUILTS THAT NEED SOME MENDING, 170 (a) THEY JUST NEED SOME STITCHING HERE AND THERE. 170 (b) But — poor lady of other eras!— She hardly knows how to use Facebook, and though she is selling all her goods, using a paper sign in the yard, not a single person has appeared, to wander through her house to buy stuff, and no one appears to know today is the day the estate sale goes down. Poor Doris is utterly dismayed: All her chambers are stuffed with beauty, 175 with many decades of textiles lovingly assembled into quilts. Yet no one has come by to buy things, and Doris, though wise, doesn’t know why! “Hang on,” says our hero, “did you tell either local Quilt Guild of your plan? If you told anyone these marvels, your beautiful, magnificent work, was ready to go to loving hands at bargain basement prices — a crowd 180 would surely assemble in minutes, like Avengers or SuperWhoLock…” But Gallus trails off, seeing Herschel, lying on the couch, his ears flicked back, receiving belly rubs from Doris, munching on slices of Boar’s Head ham, reveling in all the attention. “Did you make contact with anyone??” “I reached out to Denver’s newspapers,” said sweet Doris preparing more ham, 185 “but all they did was put me on hold, kept me waiting ages of ages.” Gallus frowned, then decided their Fate: they gave up spoons for Doris’s need, recognized honor in the choosing, and summoned all their strength for the doing, which had to be accomplished at once, or else never again accomplished. “Take charge of Herschel, and let me work,” spoke the hero of our narrative, 190 “Only permit him that slice of ham, and don’t let him eat anything else. I’ll put this estate sale in motion; point me to the things you wish to sell, and I’ll do my best to let folks know where and how they can buy these marvels.” Gallus makes images and posts them, puts them online where many can see, takes twelve minutes to write descriptions, lets the two quilting guilds know the time. 195 Word goes out, by Facebook and Discord, to S.C.A. and other venues, and Herschel wrangles four slices more, as Doris succumbs to his cuteness, unable to defend her lunchmeat from Herschel’s adorability. Silence fell over the little house — a tiny grace of peace and quiet — for seven full minutes by the clock, a chance to find a cashbox and book, 200 with which to make a running total and track what goods were purchased and sold, and store the money in proper trays, locked away against prying fingers far more nimble than Herschel’s cuteness, though less cunning than his con-dog mind. Angels over Bethlehem’s pastures never appeared with such suddenness, as quilters and cosplayers arrived at the house that Doris was selling: 205 Wingéd beings of splendor and light, singing without rest Halelujiah, offering glory to God on high, never hastened with such providence, to double their fabric-stash’s size, as did those folks in Denver that day, that hallowed day of the estate sale in broiling heat under the Sun. DEEDEE arrives with a horse trailer, breaking speeding laws of gods and men — 210 Do laws exist if you don’t believe? Can mortals break the limits of light in pursuit of estate sale bargains? DeeDee is living confirmation — and she has another aim in mind, arriving on site with her trailer: “Why didn’t you call me,” she blurts out, “I could have been helping all this time, and all of the stuff in my trailer is destined to go to the thrift store — 215 let me set up my stuff on your lawn, we will sell everything together!” DeeDee has all of seven decades, plus three more years she’s cheated bleak death; her preferred color is neon pink, her heraldry is Hello Kitty — all her gear and belongings bear it, the Sanrio Hello Kitty mark, she wouldn’t be caught dead without it — and her weight is less than seven stone, 220 there are fifth graders that weigh much more; She’s bird-like and yet frilly in pink. And drag queens in all their finery, long for her skill with fine cosmetics: her eyes are a wonder to behold, her make-up on point and fleek as hell, eye-shadow and blush and mascara, eyelashes longer than anyone. DeeDee speaks faster than Mercury, quicksilver tongue of divinity, 225 at the volume you find in airports, when jet engines leap their planes skyward, roaring off the tarmac like lightning, burning fuel in dazzling splendor defying both gods and gravity, with roars like the M. G. M. lion. This warrior-woman all in pink, swiftly empties out her horse-trailer onto the lawn of Doris’s house, she whose works are covered in wisdom, 230 maker of fine quilts and artistries, woman moving to California. Soon she is putting price stickers on, deciding the values of the stuff, labeling all her discarded goods, and hoping for a windfall of cash. Herschel has found an interesting bag, a plastic bag of cotton batting, the sort of stuff that goes in a quilt. He’s eagerly tearing it open! 235 Gallus our narrator is unfazed, they’ve got other problems to tend to, as fifty-six vehicles arrive, all in this narrow development, this cul-du-sac of suburban blight, ranches, split-levels and cottages! Here are five more trucks with horse-trailers — and suddenly Herschel’s excited, screaming as his friends and relations, as more pure-bred Corgis and owners 240 emerge from vehicles arriving, his friends showing up with their humans! The next-door neighbor, the vicious cunt, MARCIA the Bitch Most Magnificent, strides off her porch in earnest saunter, eager to be a petty tyrant, lording it over the neighborhood, as the wife of a County Sheriff and president of the H. O. A. she’s been trying to incorporate. 245 “Doris!” she says, with polite poison, vile in her kindly demeanor, precious with insolence and hauteur, “you should tell all neighbors, days ahead, and get some kind of permit for this, we try to coordinate these things so all can benefit together, and don’t get these rowdy outsiders —“ But Doris the quilting artisan, nestled in the comfort of her wolves, 250 DeeDee and all the other quilters whose skill and confidence grows in packs, ever stronger when all together, merely calls out to her silvered friends, “This is my neighbor, the one I’ve spoke, Marcia who lives in the house next door. I’ve been telling you of her for months, you’ve heard every story I could tell!” And all the silver-haired artisans, combing though Doris’s possessions, 255 stop their search. As one with watchful eyes, turn with guardian gaze to Marcia. She’s fixed with rapt and attentive stares, kindly polite — and yet vengeful. And then a sudden confusion breaks, the estate-sale narrative broken, as now a group of Vikings arrive, those medieval Nordic cosplayers— men built more like boulders or mountains, bearded and tattooed and full of strength, 260 and the women just as frightening, who rule their men by subtler art, determination and stubbornness, and spines like steel from far Damascus. Here our hero breaks off their story, and something of the narrative ends. Sing, poetic and artful Muses, dancing on lofty Helicon’s height, harmonizing songs of epic deeds! Tell us more of the Glorious Day, 265 the tag-sale in mountainous Denver, where Doris the subtle artisan, she whose workings are with wisdom crowned, the mistress of brilliant appliqué, offered her belongings up for sale on a hot Wednesday in the summer so she could move in with her family, grand-children in Santa Monica. Sing also of our narrator friend, Gallus who bullet-points their story, 270 didn’t invoke the Muses’ blessing, but was well-rewarded just the same! Now they begin again with the tale, grabbing the thread of the narrative, and shuttling us into the tale like a skillful weaver at her loom. Now they evoke the tired old trope, the high school party for a few friends swiftly blossoming into chaos as the phone-tree lights up the whole town, 275 and every teenager for miles converges like a god descending arrayed in all his golden garments, a tumult and a whirlwind of strength, an unconfined powerful lightning, on one poor schlub’s house in the suburbs. Fuck these six fish in particular, suggests the old meme found on Tumblr, Some nerd’s parents have gone out of town, and planned a big night in the city, 280 and the football team and cheerleaders, the drama club nerds and the tech club, the Blue Key kids and the music punks, and every kid more horny than smart, has now arrived at this one poor house, and the cops will arrive any time! A neighbor will call police quite soon. Like a John Mulvaney monologue, the teens will take off into the night, and the doughnut-loving policemen 285 will chase them with flashlights and yelling, running out of breath and persistence long before anyone can be caught — that’s the trope of the high school party. But then our hero Gallus freshens, and breathes new life, into the cliche! Instead of teens, it’s weary elders, all bored of retirement and age, sick of waiting for children to call, and eager for some new excitement. 290 And so they emerge from the woodwork, on a random Wednesday afternoon, to look through the material goods of Doris who’s moving away soon, out to California on the coast, Santa Monica her family’s home. The cops arrive in blue and white cars to break up the crazy gathering, but instead of deadbeat teenagers, punks who will scatter into the streets, 295 it’s a bunch of retired lawyers, skillful at collecting evidence, and noting what’s gone down is suspect, that Marcia’s quite overstepped her bounds, crossed the limits of neighborliness, into some highly illegal shit that’s bound to get someone in trouble: and the policeman who now arrives is husband to that same cunt Marcia — the petty tyrant living next door, 300 that most wearisome busy-body, eager to form a homeowners’ guild in which she’ll be queen, lord and master, watchful and petty and full of bile. This County Sheriff may not be smart, but he knows that this is illegal — and while no lawyers were yet involved, there was much he could do to help her. But she’s been talking to everyone all through the broiling hot afternoon, 305 has been caught on tape and video, making outrageous claims and statements. Now wonderful things are unfolding, and the County Sheriff is appalled, because he knows Deep Shit is coming, shit so deep it’s deeper than whale-shit, down at the bottom of Great Ocean, where toothy monsters dwell in darkness. How did we get here, where whale shit goes? What has transpired in our absence? 310 Speak, gentle Muses, tell us plainly: Give Gallus words to back up a bit, and tell us what happened in their break, when Marcia the Karen intruded, just as the Norsemen arrived in cars, Viking men and their scarier women? Marcia was whining about coordination of neighborhood functions, complaining to everyone who’d hear about this great impropriety, 315 the strange cars blocking the cul-du-sac, and the stranger people loitering, putting people’s houses at hazard when everyone was at work, not home. DeeDee the woman who arrived first with her heavily laden trailer, is ready to start some fisticuffs, an alpha female of Silver Wolves, those famous textile artisans, Doris’s many friendly quilters. 320 Yet she’s not the most dangerous foe, though she just wears Hello Kitty pink, and paints her face like a drag-queen would, if they had the magic of Venus. No, the honor of mightiness, terrifying and most glorious, belongs to the centenarian, who celebrated ninety-nine years by getting strapped in a hang-glider and riding the winds over Denver. 325 No one really knows how hard she goes, a frightening and graceful monster clothed in flesh of an elder lady, hardly a thing to be frightened of — and yet the most dangerous gamester, DOCTOR RUTH of placid demeanor. Hobbling with the help of a cane, she seeks out Marcia Cunt Magnifique and asks, point-blank, the subtle question, “you’re trying to start an H. O. A.?” 330 Marcia, oh Marcia, O Marcia dear — you have misunderstood the danger! This is no offer of sympathy! This question is worthy of Sphinxes! This a question to ruin men, to break angels on Procrustes’s bed! This is an invite to the Squid Game where everyone either tries or dies! You can still save yourself, poor lady — shut the fuck up! It costs not a dime! 335 Don’t fuck around and you won’t find out just how nasty the old lady plays! But no… the foolish bitch thinks it’s fine — at last! A sympathetic hearing! Marcia enumerates tribulations, the hard trials of organizing, convincing neighbors to go along and defer to her authority and that of her husband the Sheriff — can’t these people just sign the papers?? 340 Wouldn’t it be better to give in, accept that she’s trying to help them, and the neighborhood would be better if she were in charge of everyone? She even had to pressure people into relinquishing John Hancocks by convincing her sheriff husband to go door to door with the papers while in uniform, as a tactic to get all the signatures she needs. 345 Doctor Ruth gently offers to help, some people just don’t see clear reason, maybe my son the skillful lawyer would be able to find a clear path through this dark thicket of paperwork, and to find the proper way forward? Marcia forgets who she’s chatting to, and who these people have come to see, not herself but her neighbor Doris, who’s holding an estate sale today. 350 “That would be quite wonderful! My thanks! Would you call in your son, the lawyer? I’m sure he can resolve these messes, and make the situation work out — Do you suppose he could come today?” Marcia invites her own date with Fate, calls the Moirai, the weirdling sisters, right to the cul-du-sac where she stands, there to render judgments, weave her thread into the doom prepared for mortals 355 who ascend to heights of importance — without considering how some fall. Doctor Ruth agrees to make the call, and hobbles back to her friend Doris, and assures her, “David will manage all that falls out from this point forward.” In the meantime the rumors have spread far and wide, in specialist circles, that something rare and most marvelous is happening in Denver’s outskirts, 360 out in the suburbs where sidewalks end: the estate sale of an artisan. Crafty people speak, in hushed, soft tones, of the acronym known as SABLE, Or, Stash Accumulated Beyond Life Expectancy — goods of legend often comes forth from such estate sales: wonders like long-armed sewing machines, hand-made quilts of heritage beauty, and years-old quality furniture, 365 sharp-edged tools in perfect condition, all manner of elegant notions — zippers and buttons and gilded braid, rick-rack and ribbon and woven bands, embroidery hoops, baskets of beads, finished quilt-top blocks of flying geese, Dresden plates and fans all fussy-cut, alphabet squares for infant blankets, all manner of substantial treasures — Once in a lifetime, maybe twice more, 370 does such an artisan’s hoard empty, all their treasures disbursed to others, family and friends and new-made family, each new generation honoring what has been passed down like tradition, honored and accepted as an oath, a promise to make something lovely, something worthy of the memory of the one who passed it on to you, the one who found it and rescued it 375 from some old back room bargain outlet, late capitalism’s treasure-vault — the seedlings of future landfill waste unless some artisan espy it and save it for some future project — So came the vast horde of artisans, eager to rifle Doris’s loot, accumulation of a lifetime, a vast collection gladly passed on (provided proper coin exchanged hands) 380 to anyone worthy of the name artist, cosplayer or artisan willing to make room in their own stash for the treasures from Doris’s hand. And most of all to thank the Artist, the one who’s giving away their stuff! So often these belongings appear from orphanages when their Maker, the one who collected this plenty, loosens fleshy ties to Mother Earth, 385 and goes to Elysium’s workshops, where gentle Vulcan, lord of forges, master of all mortal crafts and arts, lightly supervises the worthy: encouraging their artisanship; with cheerful license gives skill to dream vaster than the imagination to fashion masterworks of splendor. But! Doris is yet among the quick, has not even become mostly-dead, 390 still eats and drinks as all mortals do, has not passed to Workshops Beyond — and everyone wants to shake her hand, thank her for this marvelous event, recognize and name her artistry, and say how much they admire her! Furthermore, all sorts of powers come, specialty groups from all over town, some overlapping, some closed up tight, each with particular desires. 395 Each hungers for some festive event where each can mingle with the others. Some of the factions don’t get along — they each covet what the other wants — but all are peaceful enough for now, each held from argument ‘til later, Everyone honors the market-peace which settles on Doris’s front lawn. However, the fuller accounting of all the groups amassed on that lawn 400 is itself a heroic effort, a worthy task for any poet who gamely attempts to imitate Homer, the father of epic verse, his Iliad and Odyssey first, or Beowulf’s anonymous bard! Six were the Quilt Guilds in attendance, each numbering a dozen ladies, blue haired, boasting of forty-six cats, who have weaponized fussy-cut work: 405 that bane of every seamstress alive, with all of their star-points properly placed! Next in line was the Denver Art League, for professional artists only, or at the least anyone willing to pay an annual membership. Some of those crazy quilting ladies, friends of Doris every one of them, also belonged to the Denver League, which swelled their numbers most mightily. 410 Next the Leather League of Denver — or Denver Leather League? — Let’s get informed! It’s best not to get such names confused when speaking of groups who have Leather somewhere in the name of their union: Some find that really embarrassing to meet one group when it’s the other that has the stuff they’ve been looking for: it’s high time to plant your feet and ask; it’s best to get explicit consent 420 before making any assumptions. We have already met the Vikings, the Nordic cosplayers far from fjords, deep in the Coloradan wilds, nearly as far from any Ocean as from the steppes of the Kyvivan Rus. [“Kee-van Roose”] Loosely aligned with the S. C. A., they come in search of linen and wool, the fabrics authentic to their gear — but wouldn’t ignore a quilted print 425 suited for summer adventuring, on some sort of suitable cotton. Now come Klingons, doughty warriors playing out a sci-fi fantasy: the strong and honor-bound aliens known from of old in the Star Trek show, where Captains Kirk and Jean-Luc Picard crossed both their wits and their phaser beams with this formidable enemy, the Klingon Empire ruling worlds — 430 striking from deep space in birds of prey, ships cloaked in silence and mystery. And — just because it’s Colorado — also arrives the Game Share people who like trading grouse and venison, fur and leather and antler and bone, the rewards of wild-crafted hunts in the lonely places of the state. These overlap with Klingons and Norse because some people are just like that, and go far beyond mere cosplaying into the work of real survivors: 435 the handling of bow and axe and knife in wilderness conditions and risks. They’re bringing out meat-shares and fur pelts, brain-tanned deerskins of high quality, suited for drums or garment-leather, any such fancy accessories! Now also come the Illustrators, who make accurate illustrations of scientific accuracy and perfect perspective at true scale — 440 who know how to draw a peony with all its leaves and petals intact, or how to show in two dimensions the three-dimensional skulls of wolves. But you just can’t get Illustrators all by themselves: Scientists come too, and though by precise data-sets there are few professional angels here, toiling in labs all over town, they’re still here at Doris’s tag-sale. 445 And then there’s two groups of Lesbians, arrived in sensible working boots and well-worn button-down flannel shirts, and jeans that are dusty from labor or rubber boots for mucking out stalls, or cowboy gear for riding horses. And each of them’s a professional, skilled either with horses or with sheep; they all have no-nonsense attitudes, and haircuts well-suited to their roles, 450 and no one at all dares mess with them — not even the dumbest of Norsemen, deep in his cups and haloed by mead, would think he had a sliver of chance to go on a date with these butches: they might redirect his misplaced gaze, but only after seizing his jaw firmly in hand as though to break it, and making clear their fierce displeasure with his misguided lover’s ardor. 455 For all that, they were kindly women, talented, skillful and competent, lovers of jokes as most people are, and happy to be out and about, loving this impromptu festival with weirdos of the kind they enjoy! And then there were the COMPETENT FINNS — hell sink me but they were competent! The Scientific Illustration professor from the local college, and all of her competent sisters…. 460 Did I not mention their competence? Did I forget to name their talents, why they should be considered separate from all the other Illustrators and the Scientists who hung with them? Are there any Incompetent Finns? If so, they have never come so far as Denver in the Rocky Mountains; none of that kind has ever been seen; their very existence is doubtful. 465 The Finns take charge of the estate sale, and convert this haphazard affair into something more like an auction where records are kept and taxes paid, the authorities properly pleased, and Doris’s profits maximized. And also here come the three Corgis — had you forgotten Herschel the dog, who loves the taste of morning cat-shit, who secretly sneaks from his kennel, 470 unlatching his cage from the inside to rummage in the cat-litter box? “CAP” and “BUCKY” are smaller Corgis, hailing from the Pembroke breed from Wales, definitely lighter than two stone, who look up to Herschel as to God. Herschel’s what’s known as a Cardigan, double their size and just a smidge more, heftier and taller (for Corgis), and the little Marvels follow him 475 wherever he goes and sticks his nose, and Herschel accepts their devotion. In movement, they look like the Hell Hound, father of all of Pluto’s breeding, beloved of Queen Persephone, guarding the gates of the underworld: three-headed Cerberus the toothsome, watchdog of Hades’s garth and gate — Wherever Herschel sticks his big snout, Cap and Bucky put their noses too, 480 an adorable little monster, having free run of the festival, three heads poking into every hole, eager to chase every aroma back to the sources of the odor — hoping for some delicious reward! And there are definitely stenches —the Wild Share people have set up, they’re trading pelts and meat-shares from vans, lifting fresh sausages from car trunks, 485 and some clever, enterprising guy has set up a grill to cook bratwurst! All the neighbors are getting intrigued, emerge from their houses on the street — wary of Marcia and her tirades, but just as eager for Market Day as all these other wild people who’ve shown up to Doris’s tag sale. Despite advanced age and nervousness, anxiety over their neighbor 490 Marcia the wife of the County Reeve, who’s been harassing them all for weeks, they’re eager for a little pleasure, some small excitement come to their street. Before too long, they’re telling their woes to the various factions present — a great many of whom have day jobs, where they don’t manage sheep or horses, or pretend to be Klingons or Norse, or go hunting up in the mountains, 495 or sew quilts or leather wallets, or intimate things for the bedroom. No — some of these people are lawyers, who find Doris’s neighbors’ stories of Marcia the Magnificent Bitch, the outspoken H. O. A. tyrant, who’s married to a County Sheriff… it’s rather intriguing and funny, but not that thing, called “Funny, ha-hah!,” but “funny, weird,” and worth a Close Look. 500 Now five of these white-shoe Great White Sharks, familiar with Colorado laws who went to the bar and then passed it, and argue in court before judges, are clearly smelling blood in this street, the kind that can earn lots of money for someone or other who’s willing and able to jump in with both feet. Rare the lawyer who bills in hours, heavy with debt accrued in law school, 505 who can’t see such opportunity when it comes gift-wrapped like a present, and dropped in their laps at a tag-sale, a marvel amid many marvels, a thing of horrendous illegal conduct by an officer of law. Someone, ’tis certain, will pay and pay, and pay once more for ages to come. And … Doctor Ruth’s son hasn’t arrived, although he’s already been summoned. 510 And also… ? Dear Gallus realizes the Realtor® is also not yet here, who made the appointment with Doris for a house showing today at noon, who set all the day’s enterprises in motion like Rube Goldberg machines, by asking Doris to show her house, while she navigated the traffic. Gallus reaches for their phone and texts, sends the message out on the Aether, 515 where it bobbles like a paper boat in the cloudless ocean of hot air that oppresses Denver from above, a blanket of one hundred degrees, stifling desire for action, and hindering movement without sweat — and of course there’s also Altitude, the secret killer of visitors who oft forget that they’re a mile up, but go hiking at sea-level speeds. 520 The Realtor®’s phone grabs the tiny boat, the message is plucked from the Aether, and soon she responds she’s in the crowd, but having a slight nervous breakdown — it’s unprofessional to be late, especially not to be THIS late, and Where O Where Can Gallus Have Gone, O Where, O Where Can Her Client be? Our plucky narrator waves this off, with a gesture of a fresh-grilled brat, 525 that is to say, a fresh-cooked bratwurst, delectable savory sausage. And there’s also new entertainment — Marcia forgetting Fifth Amendment, lovingly self-incriminating her own person on Doris’s lawn! The Corgis play at engineering, jumping around on a Playskool slide, gradually demolishing the set like a bomb-squad at Navarone’s guns, 530 and various people milling ‘round, waiting for their preferred auction lots to make it to the block for bidding — There’s no schedule of events here, just grab a bratwurst and watch the show that’s popped like a mushroom after rain on this ordinary cul-du-sac where Denver’s sidewalks all peter out. Here comes a Klingon with a new friend, the Realtor® of Gallus delivered 535 from out of the crowd by burly arms, and hands that now hand her a Bratwurst. Enter DIANE, the Realtor® mentioned, back in early lines of this poem, line sixty-one for precision’s sake, back when it was only eight o’clock. Has she been running late all this time? Surely she would have caught up by now, had she only allowed herself time between all her clients and showings. 540 Back then, we thought, the Realtor® was old, a woman at least in her eighties, but now we discern she’s not so old, barely older than the narrator, glorious Gallus who told the tale to all of Tumblr just two weeks back: September the seventh it appears, in the year two-thousand-twenty-one. Realtor® Diane is somewhat preppy, didn’t know that people could have dogs 545 or that other people made blankets, or that bratwursts were Even A Thing. This is a Learning Experience — so many doors are being opened and it’s exciting to see her join Today’s Ten Thousand in many things, the opened-eye castle of wonder: X. K. C. D.’s thousand-fifty-three. A Horse Lesbian now approaches, compliments Diane’s Dior handbag, 550 strikes up a gentle conversation, and Diane stutters out a “thank you,” and graciously returns the notice, honoring the Horse Lesbian’s scarf, a cloud of silk from expensive name, a thing rarely seen at a tag-sale. With some hesitation and caution, Diane puts forth her burning question, that tugs brain and heart: “Where have all these people come from, for secret exchange? 555 Do you know them and why are they here? What on God’s green earth is going on?” The Horse Lesbian’s all too willing — yes, of course she’s in the S. C. A., this band of people living the Dream, pretending to be knights in armor, and medieval ladies in kirtles, and artists worth crowning with Laurels. Her girlfriend is Armorer TASHA, and yes she makes gauntlets and pauldrons, 560 vambraces, gorgets and cuirasses — and yes, you should say the entendre, the pun was intended, damn your eyes — Don’t cover up what’s going on here as the Livestock Lesbians gather to strip their sleeves and show off their scars like men who fought on Crispian’s Day, on Agincourt Field over in France. There’s tattoos, battle-scars and biceps — Diane is clearly learning A LOT — 565 ’tis sort-of slow-motion seduction of a pathetic but effective demon in the Devil’s employment, a Realtor® of Hell’s own first circle. Diane is used to being on fleek, being the one who Closes The Deal, Makes the Purchase and Sell Agreement — but now there are biceps and booty, and horsey women who know fashion, and lesbians who care about wool, 570 and she’s far beyond her comfort zone — but also Making Discoveries deep in the unknown regions of Soul where what she wants is more than a job, but a life lived more deliciously, a living more lived than commuted. Gallus springs into action anew, to gather up everyone’s contacts, leaving Diane to her joyful Fate, and makes the attempt to keep Herschel 575 from eating his own weight in bratwurst — a great combination with cat-shit when you’re a dog of revolting tastes, which every Corgi is sure to be. B-WOOP! goes the horn of a siren, an official Sheriff’s vehicle, making its way through the crowded street, filled with people shopping for bargains. And Gallus sees that the County Reeve, husband of Marcia Cunt Magnifique 580 has — finally — arrived on the scene. He intended to pull in his drive, but the crowd thinks he’s there to control the traffic surge as it ebbs and flows around the estate sale of Doris, artist whose works with wisdom are crowned, so she can move to California to be with the family that loves her. Gallus steps out to watch him approach, a copper of big voice and bluster; 585 He tries to condemn the blocked traffic, with huffing and puffing like a wolf that tries to blow down a pig’s cottage — but this house is made of fired brick: a grandma just smiles and ignores the sheriff who tries getting nasty, And there’s way too many grandmas here, not the sort of people you bully even when you think you can do it, because there will be Consequences — 590 Even if permits aren’t in place, even if they are blocking traffic, There are old hands from Sixties Protests, and Lesbians with Fancy Handbags, and trucks and trailers that mean Money, and probably Real Estate Owners… is that a lawyer from the courthouse? Didn’t she rake me over the coals about that traffic stop I fucked up, and let the criminals get away? 595 The sheriff is now turning bright red, and Gallus decides to get their phone, starts recording whatever goes down —this is likely to go off the rails, and the sheriff is out of his depth, far deeper than most of his kind go, where the predators have other strengths than just a loud voice, a gun, and badge. Into the cul-du-sac turns a car, not just any car but a black one, 600 and not a typical black sedan, but, gleaming and clean, a Mercedes, the tri-point logo shining silver, an ornament of chrome perfection. The German engine just barely purrs, a black leopard stalking its victim (and yes, that’s another type of car, but metaphors are hard to come by in late capitalism’s hell-scape of intellectual property.) 605 Our story nears its end — give me leave, to welcome in, near the end, at last, DAVID, the lawyer, Doctor Ruth’s son, and not just any lawyer, dear friends, but The Lawyer, emphasis on THE, no ambulance chaser this fellow, no business hack writing boilerplate, no public defender scraping by on a janitor or teacher’s pay in an office starved of resources. 610 No — David is on the State’s payroll, the one they send to prosecute fraud: Fraud with a capital F, you see, cucks who use their investor funding to fill up their personal accounts while their whole Company goes bankrupt — Fraud where those organized criminals racketeer their way through businesses and mine the local economy as though it were a secret gold-mine, 615 starving town and state of revenue, and skimming tax-money for themselves; Fraud like when appointed officials, or even elected aldermen, decide to raid government coffers, and cook the accounting to hide crimes — that’s the sort of lawyer that David, son of Doctor Ruth, is known to be. Nor is he limited to cases that have this outline and silhouette: 620 he’s also brought down the K. K. K., at least its Colorado branches, using RICO and similar laws, the statutes against racketeering. David might be tall — for a hobbit — and he wears a nebbish’s glasses, and he’s a little balding lawyer with half a halo of hair in back — Open the dictionary to “nerd” and there’s his high-school portrait staring. 625 Yet he moves with intense confidence; he doesn’t quite wear authority the way others put on uniforms — He just simply IS authority, with trumpets royal sounding on his path: the Pillar Men Theme blasting, perhaps, Copeland’s Fanfare for the Common Man swelling around his little figure. He’s got three other lawyers with him: like a Tribune of Plebs with escort, 630 a Magistrate with Sixteen Lictors: And his car has state government plates. County Sheriff turns from red to white, an octopus seeking camouflage — this was a man who thought uniforms entitled him to do anything, get his way in any circumstance — and now he sees what real strength looks like, the way that power is exercised and managed from within velvet gloves. 635 Is that the faint odor of odure? Herschel and friends prick up their noses: Is that the scent of human feces, the delicacies rarely gotten, far more salacious than cat-shit, flushed down the toilet with prejudice, never tasted except by proxy when slurping up water from toilets?? What Wondrous Love is This, O My Soul, sing the Corgis at the Sheriff’s ass, 640 hardly daring to hope at the gift that may be about to drop for them! What his wife has done to their neighbors, circulating all sorts of papers, and sending him around to bully and hassle and berate these elders, is absolutely quite illegal — fucking illegal to be precise, absolutely beyond their purview, and far beyond his sheriff’s duties, 645 practically, morally villainous, very-very-fucking-illegal — and the One. Man. who could do something, in the whole state of Colorado, is standing right here in his driveway, with a growing cloud of witnesses who also appear to have lawyers… and those attorneys have notebooks out, and copies of all the petitions, and citations he himself issued, 650 as part of his petty tyranny, in aid of his own dictator-spouse, “MAR-C-IA!”shouting three syllables, he calls out with wild abandon, “Shut the fuck up! Stop talking Right Now!” He’s waving his hat and he’s screaming. But Marcia’s been at it for hours; it’s a hundred degrees in the shade, and she’s told anyone who’d listen of her trials and tribulations. 655 It’s three o’clock in the afternoon, and she emerged from her house at noon to protest all the great commotion that Doris’s estate-sale had caused. And now those five lawyers have clients, copies of paperwork and tickets, and also David’s undivided and completely open attention. The lawyers are pointing to doorbells equipped with the latest in cameras, 660 and the just-mentioned cloud of elders, not a single one an easy mark, who’ve been harassed by a County Reeve, an officer of law enforcement, whose accusations David then takes and turns into state prosecution. Oh! What tangled webs of corruption have been unveiled at Doris’s sale! All of the Lesbians and Vikings, all of the quilters and seamstresses 665 have been in the Devil’s Cul-du-Sac, the Suburban Demon’s very home! And Gallus can do nothing but laugh, laugh at the Devil’s own misfortune. Muses, I pray you, sing once again: sing of the Glorious Afternoon and the estate sale on some small street where Doris had tried to sell her stuff but her efforts nearly came to naught until Gallus our hero stepped in! 670 Tell us of the final accounting, the success of the Competent Finns, whether Diane got Educated in the ways of Livestock Lesbians, whether David obtained damages from the office of the County Reeve, and whether Marcia the petty cunt, and her husband the County Sheriff were really busted for malfeasance, and corruption of their offices? 675 What, also, of Herschel and minions —did each of them eat their weight in brats, and were they stuffed with all sorts of snacks from the Colorado Game Share folks? What happened to all of the Klingons? And what of the Vikings in their braids? Tell us also, dear dancing Muses, secure on the heights of Helicon and one with Apollo in music performed for Gallus the narrator? 680 No more can be told, dear friends, for now, except that the Finns are Competent — Now forty thousand dollars richer, Doris has pending sales with others of some furniture too big to move, and some antiques in mint condition. And David is clearly on the case. This sort of evil is just his jam: he has all the witnesses he needs, and every bit of paper for court. 685 Herschel passed out at once coming home, stomach distended by his eating, He’ll recover eventually, but for now he’s sleeping off his binge. Diane might have found a Lesbian, of what sort of Livestock we’re not sure… but whether Horse or Sheep, a Realtor® could be a most valuable ally, a balm in bed to a sheep-shearer or an equestrian paramour. 690 There’s a plan that they’ll meet up next week… and now that the Realtor®’s eyes are wide, all sorts of things are now possible that couldn’t have been realistic even just a few hours before. So we wrap up the little side-quests and Gallus our perky narrator didn’t get to bid on the machine that they really wanted for sewing — but someone stuffed their purse with money. 695 (maybe it was Doris giving thanks), and maybe there’s enough to buy one, a brand-new model from factory, never used but by Gallus alone… For right now? All the spoons are dirty, and not just merely filthy but spent. The field with their fucks is now barren, and nothing will grow in this wasteland: There’s time and love enough for ice dream. Then it will be the hour of bed. 700 It’s unusual for a poem in the 21st century, to need a preface or an afterword. This one does, if only because it began as someone else’s Tumblr post. A Tumblr.com user named @Gallusrostromegalus originally recorded these adventures in a bullet-point format somewhere in a suburb of Denver. I’ve been to Denver maybe twice in my life, and I don’t know this person at all — someone reblogged the story, and I added a comment of my own to the effect that it really needed to be an epic poem of some length and seriousness. Someone else basically dared me to do it, and commented that dactylic hexameter is more witchy and magical than iambic pentameter. As a fond writer of sonnets, I have to disagree that iambic pentameter isn’t witchy at all — but it must be admitted that hexameter (18 syllables in a line, arranged in six sets of rhythm that should sound something like “basketball, nincompoop, disgusting, attention, detention, emoji”) — has a witchiness all its own. I’ve written other heroic poems in this meter — my Orien sequence, alternately started and abandoned, is written in this rhythm, sometimes successfully and sometimes not. When I’ve read poetry aloud in this meter to audiences, you can watch them gradually becoming entranced, falling into the poem like they’re under a spell. When the poem ends, you can watch them sort of shake themselves free as though they’ve been in otherworldly places, and it takes them a moment to decide whether to applaud or be annoyed that you’ve wasted so much of their time. It’s definitely more lively and energetic in Greek — even not knowing the language of Homer, there’s something exciting about the sound of a few dozen lines of the Iliad being read aloud in the original language; English doesn’t have that same kind of cadence or tone to it that Greek does, and I wonder if the result is that, instead of making the audience excited, it tends to send them into something like a trance state. Or Sleep. There is precedent for such poetry in English, though. Alexander Pope in 1712 published anonymously a poem of his, called The Rape of the Lock. It’s considered one of the first examples of the “high burlesque” style, in which the tools of epic poetry, like epithets for the characters and locations, and the strongly rhythmic character of either rhyming couplets or hexameter, is used to explore themes of heroes and villains in somewhat more ridiculous circumstances than sieges of Troy or dangerous ocean voyages past monsters and gods and cyclopses — parlors and tea houses and taverns are more the kinds of places that you’d expect to find stories and poems of the high burlesque, than military encampments beside the black ships on the beach. As for the story itself, I must issue a disclaimer. Gallus, the character in the poem, and the third-person narrator of the poem, and Gallus the Tumblr user are several different people, and I’m not at all sure they know one another. They certainly have different perspectives of some things. Additionally, the weaving interplay of several stories may have no basis in fact — I don’t know anything about the events in this story, I wasn’t there, and I turned a story by someone else into a poem in a high-falutin’ style because it seemed to need or want to be that thing. Elizabeth Gilbert has written, and spoken in her TED Talk, about the gift and curse of creativity — the value of having a Muse, an outside spirit, that helps you breathe life into the creative act, without entirely having responsibility for the quality of the thing when it emerges. This also means that all of the characters in this poem are entirely fictional, and any resemblance to real people, living or dead, is completely coincidental. A few notes on the text. It’s an unfortunate truth of our time that bards are not respected nearly as much as they ought to be. Homer was widely regarded in the classical era of ancient Greece as a nearly-divine hero or demigod who had produced, single-handedly, a pair of masterworks of subtle brilliance. Today, poets mostly hang out in coffee houses before an open mike night, and then get up and say something like, so, this was a poem I wrote this afternoon, on a bus, on my way home from jail, on the back of a napkin… I hope you like it, and could spare me a couple of bucks and a couch to sleep on? I am sure Homer did the 9th century BC equivalent of this in his own lifetime. So, in order for you to have the proper experience of this as a masterwork of heroic literature from an earlier time, I hope you’ll think of me, the writer, as some long-dead and celebrated bardic genius rather than a living contemporary who’s looking to produce something that attracts notice on social media, some likes, and maybe some cash. This is a product of deep attention to the zeitgeist of eternity, not a shameless plug for likes. We also know that Homer, despite his alleged genius, probably also stole shamelessly from earlier poets and poems. The ethnographer Parry Lord in the 1910s and 1920s was working in the Balkans when he made a startling discovery — that the traveling musicians and tale-tellers of that era and place used a mixture of improvised material composed on the spot, and set-pieces that had been memorized in advance. Many characters had fixed epithets that filled out particular chunks of the metrical and rhyme scheme used in Balkan epic compositions. Thus it was relatively easily for a professional storyteller to shift back and forth from set-pieces to improvised material that was still made up of pre-designed material that fit the meter. I have tried to include something of this style in the poem: you’ll notice that Doris has a theme of works crowned with wisdom, and Gallus is sometimes the friendly narrator and sometimes the teller of bullet-pointed tales, and … well, you’ll meet the Realtor® soon enough. This piece would not exist without a specific Tumblr user. Some person unknown to me in or around Denver, @Gallusrostromegalus, is clearly the source of the content of the poem — they claim to have been there, to have rendered bullet-point by bullet-point a truth and faithful recollection of the events of the day. However, a person of David’s description could not be found working at the office of the Attorney General of Colorado at this time, and no biography of such a person could be found on their website. It’s possible the entire event was fictional — as fictional as the Trojan War, for example, or the adventures of Odysseus in the Odyssey. In the original post, @Gallusrostromegalus originally wrote-and-posted, and then edited-and-saved their narrative five times. These five times are echoed in the five narrative breaks, headed by Roman numerals, which should be designated as Cantos. In obedience to meter, I have put eighteen syllables into each line, and — because this winds up creating a very DENSE experience of text on the page — I’ve broken these units into eighteen-line stanzas (because 18×18 is a very satisfying 324). Some lines simply fell out of this process, and didn’t fit, though. These various guardrails imposed by warring editorial factions have also added the critical apparatus of text line numbers as a guide to future scholars (Ha! As if!). It appears that the poet anticipated the deep study that this poem might provoke, and left some little presents for those who choose to make the study — at least according to one school of mock-scholarly investigation. Other schools of thought believe the poet to be a mad crank living in Massachusetts, who has no business butting in on someone else’s story. Mostly this was fun to write. I found the time to write it on the 25th and 26th of September 2022, edited it on the 27th, and hit Publish on November 22 after running it by a couple of friends for edits.

UnX Network operates several Facebook groups which our fans love. They are in keeping with our paranormal and unexplained phenomena theme, and there are many great posts in the groups. Some even show photos of real paranormal phenomena. Join one or join them all! UnX Network: Obviously, this group is our official UnX Network group and you'll find upcoming show promotions, and posts by our hosts and fans here. https://www.facebook.com/groups/1485064881892753 Spooklights around the world: Interesting spooklight sightings are posted by members. No one knows what they are yet! https://www.facebook.com/groups/162625305159678 Haunted Sites Worldwide: If you're into hauntings this is the place to discuss your experiences and see what others have explored. https://www.facebook.com/groups/927342193978388 Worldwide Mothman and Winged Creature Sightings: Yes, its a thing. Many people are seeing strange unexplained cryptid creatures with wings. From very large mothman type creatures to pterodactyls, to tiny fairies - they are here! https://www.facebook.com/groups/WorldwideMothMan Paranormal/UFO Talk Show Guests & Hosts: If you are a talk show or podcast host be sure to post your shows here. If you are a potential guest, please post your information so hosts can contact you for interviews. By the way, this group is open to ANY show, not just UnX programs. https://www.facebook.com/groups/393394571367610

(Creature Feature Playlist) The head and torso of a man rises up from the waves in the bay, followed by long tentacles oozing black venom. The Akkorokamui has come. The Akkorokamui is a creature from Ainu folklore. The Ainu are the indigenous people of the Japanese islands. The monster is said to exist in a bay near Hokkaidō in Japan, though there have been sightings in Korea and Taiwan. The original myth of the Akkorokamui dates as far back as the 1400s and deals with a curse placed upon a single man. This man was cursed to watch his whole village die and in order to make that happen the spirits sent the half man-half spider Yaoshikepu. Yaoshikepu laid waste to the village and the cries of its victims invoked sympathy from the sea gods (kami). They transformed Yaoshikepu into Akkorokamui and thew it into the sea. Its spider legs had become reddish tentacles and in the sea it began to grow. Akkorokamui is said to be over 120 feet long with a powerful hunger. As far as more recent sightings it is almost impossible to not draw the connections between the Akkorokamui and Giant Squid. The red color, the penchant for attacking ships, even the whole general shape and size of the thing. You can even see a bit of the Greek Siren in the description. This leads me to believe that the creature is an attempt to describe the very real Giant Squid. That being said the sheer amount of tales around sea monsters with human forms does make one wonder. What if we share more in common with the what lurks under the water than we thought possible? There is an interesting book which features this cryptid called The Ainu and Their Folklore. (Which you can read on Google.) It also deals a lot more with the fascinating culture of the Ainu. It is well worth a read, though the quality of some of the scans are so-so. *If you’ve enjoyed what you’ve read so far and would like to send me a little love, please feel free to check out my patreon page*

Colouratura are an art rock trio from the Ohio Valley. Nathan James and Ian Beabout met while music students at West Liberty University and produced their experimental first album Colouratura in 2017 during the off hours and as a means to blow off steam from the stressors of college life. The album covered everything from prog rock sea shanties and ambient Lo fi experiments to Gregorian chants and punk. Little did they know the project would have any longevity, but the following year they liked the results of working together enough to produce a second album Unfamiliar Skies in 2018. This album also was the first time the two collaborated with guitarist Derek Pavlic, who by the third album would become a full-time member. It could be described as decidedly more ‘prog rock,’ and featured a more band centered approach aided by guest musicians. Following Unfamiliar Skies, the band temporarily decided to call it quits but reformed as a three piece during the pandemic in 2020. Utilizing a combination of file sharing and in-person sessions to realize unfinished recordings and create new ones, Colouratura emerged again in 2021 with their third recording Black Steeple Church, which would be self released. This album saw the band strip down to their essence and feature newest member Derek Pavlic in a ‘power trio’ format, more metal and heavy psych than prog, but still a diverse unfolding listen. The album was a slow-burn success in independent terms but enough that Beabout, James and Pavlic agreed to continue making music, so in early 2022 they began working on new material. At first it was not going to be a new album, but rather a collection of singles to feed streaming’s algorithmic hunger, but partway through Nathan announced his engagement. This meant that the time was right to finish the album proper so Nathan could devote time to married life. So for the first part of 2023, for the first time, the band had a list of songs to complete and they worked hard, focusing on each part. What resulted was “WTF Was That?!” a collection of song-based tracks that range from a variety of topics, including reconciling with the anxieties of the threat of nuclear war (“Toy Soldiers”), the increasingly worrying state of the environment (“Sleeping Giant”), the Ohio Valley’s continued reliance on coal for energy (“Flim-Flam Man”), and “Mothman” – a funky love song to an area cryptid legend on par with Bigfoot or Nessie. Other topics include Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Doc Ellis’ infamous no-hitter on LSD (“The LSD No-No”), and the historic Hare Krishna murders at the hallowed Palace of Gold which occurred in Moundsville, West Virginia during the 70s and 80s (“Palace of Blood”). While this album is likely the band’s most consistent and the first to feature primarily the same lineup, musically it is much in the style of 70s art rock but with a heavier aesthetic than before. Additionally Beabout’s synths, flute and backing vocals round out the sound making it something the band described as “a rock band orchestra.” When Colouratura began it was mostly a vehicle for Nathan James’ songs and Ian Beabout’s production, but for WTF Was That?!, all members have writing credits. Specifically, Beabout has emerged as songwriter for 4 songs, and one song is written by Refestramus’ Derek Ferguson (the band’s drummer for much of this recording), making it one of the most diverse collections of music the band has offered yet. WTF Was That?! is slated for release on October 27, 2023 on Melodic Revolution Records. Ian Beabout – production, editing, backing vocals, microKorg synth, flute, theremini, occasional lead vocals Nathan James – bass, lead vocals, backing vocals, keyboard and synths, some acoustic guitar Derek Pavlic – guitars, viola, mellotron and synths, glockenspiel, vocoder WTF Was That!? (TBA 2023) – Melodic Revolution Records – CD, Digital & Streaming Unfamiliar Skies (Fall 2018) – Melodic Revolution Records – CD, Digital & Streaming Colouratura – Black Steeple Church (2021) Self Released -CD, Digital & Streaming Colouratura – Colouratura – Self Released (2017) CD, Digital & Streaming Style of Music

Support: Chapelgate Publishing Inc. is an Isaacs Family privately funded foundation. It is not tax-deductible. However, if you would like to become a Sponsor then your gift to Angel Isaacs is appreciated (to help her continue her research/writing). Send to: $ChapelgateAngel HERE Note: I also have a brand new $6,000. empty blue shed/cabin located at Angel Creek. If you want to use my research cabin for convenience to store your gear, write, rest, etc. then a $100. minimum gift/donation, per day, would be appreciated. Motels are available within 20 miles. Thanks! Angel Send to: $ChapelgateAngel HERE Angel Creek Property Research Grants (pre-approved): The "Angel Creek" off-grid property in the Arkansas Ozarks is available (free as a grant by Reservation) for physical/non-physical (metaphysical) research. The cost is free to you in exchange for publishing co-rights. You assume all risk. You can tent camp overnight (restroom facilities are in towns nearby or bring a port-a-potty & carry your trash & waste out). Our property location/names are protected information. No hunting. It is very possible you will observe or photograph whatever physical/metaphysical entities/structures are in that area. (See my "Angel Creek" short-stories). Many structures/property features associated with Cryptids are there and are documented. All photos and the story of your experience there becomes the co-property of Angel Isaacs/CPI. It is understood you will need to research both day/night as these are primarily nocturnal entities. If you would like to research at Angel Creek and have not yet been pre-approved by Angel then submit the form on the Supports/Grants page and include a message. It is believed there are both physical/metaphysical entities in this photo taken at Angel Creek. I joined several Cryptid groups and started showing them my photos. Various group founders & members began pointing them out to me. See what you find. My new blue cabin at Angel Creek Cryptid Research area. A road driving in to my property. Angel Creek interior photo. This is believed to be a Bigfoot juvenile footprint in front of my blue cabin. A Native American Choctaw Medicine Man Cryptid expert and his Lead Tracker tracked my property to document its features, structures and entities. They took this photo August 2022. Size 10 shoe. A Cryptid group founder marked one of my photos for me, 2022. Notice all around

Alien stick creatures caught on camera Known as the night crawlers, this video shows what appears to be two pants walking by themselves. Are they really pants? Or, are they something else entirely? Whatever these are suppose to be the videos, dates back at least several years on a home camera recording. The two beings are both caught on camera from a home security camera which was running across the street. The home is located in Fresno, California and the video recording was taken at 1:00 am in the morning. There were several dogs barking outside where the home owner lives. The owner of the camera and house across the road didn’t see anything usual initially, until they played back the camera footage. Deciding to upload this online, the video quickly spread around. The video also goes by another name simply as “The Fresno Alien”. These unknown cryptid creatures (cannot entirely be proven or dis proven by science) have only appeared twice. Both times this happened in Fresno, California. They appear to be around four feet tall. These things have no arms and questionable heads (if any). The quality of the images makes it difficult to tell anything. They both are wearing a cloak of sorts or perhaps even a gown. The color of what they are wearing is tough to tell as well. On camera, they seem to be wearing something white, yet it may be a different color entirely. They are almost like stick figures moving being quite slender. Some think these are some kind of scouts wandering around collecting data. Others link these to Native American tribes either magic walking sticks or totems which have come to life. The next video shows a more clear picture of these same two walking alien pants creatures. They are seen together. One of them seems bigger than the other leading the way. This video was taken (according to the screen display) on 3/28/11. This video also took place in Fresno, but it is said to be more near Yosemite area. The camera is stationary and presents these alien night crawlers from the distance. The view is through the trees and they appear to be walking along a dirt back road somewhere. Unfortunately, there isn’t any other known footage found yet. Perhaps someone will come forward with more information as of now, all of this is speculation. These Fresno aliens have people scratching their heads.

Are you a fan of cryptozoology? Then look no further! This bag is for you. Bigfoot, Jackalope, Mothman, Creature from the Black Lagoon, Loch Ness and more are in this terrific bag. <span;>One of my neighbors gave me a bunch of her husband's old clothes and this Dickie's work shirt was part of that collection. I partnered it with this strange but totally interesting cryptid fabric. I freehand machine quilted it too. The lining and wristlet are hand-dyed bedsheeting. This bag is 10"x11" and is one of the two mid-sized project bags I have. It can hold up to 3 hanks of fine yarn and is good for a 2 skein shawl or scarf. It can also carry craft supplies, accessories, or any other kind of items a bag can traditionally be used for. It has a detachable handle and is stabilized with interfacing so it easily stands on its own. Hand wash and lay flat to dry. Smoke free/pet friendly. Color variations can occur between monitors. Please message me with any questions you may have. Thank you for considering upcycled/recycled handmade products. The earth and this handmade maker thanks you. Like my facebook page to receive updates and fan only discount codes.

Gorby: West Virginia Statehood is such an intriguing story. What new perspectives do you hope to bring to this popular narrative? MacKenzie: My goal was to un-intrigue the history of West Virginia’s formation. For 160 years, every book on the subject has explained the event in only one way. Inherent cultural, economic, social, and political differences, it goes, led the free labor-oriented counties of northwestern Virginia to separate from the slave plantation-based east at the start of the Civil War. This thesis has two flaws. First, it underestimates how much the region’s white population supported slavery. Given that the ‘peculiar institution’ caused the conflict, it is impossible that it played little or no role in the state’s genesis. Second, it focuses too closely on intra-state relations while neglecting possible broader contexts. Missouri, Kentucky, Maryland, and Delaware also believed that the remaining within the Union better protected slavery than seceding from it. I think that West Virginia formed for the same reason, differing from the others only in not being a state yet. My approach should prompt serious rethinking about the subject within the state and in the wider academic field. Most people think slavery did not play much of a role in Western Virginia before the Civil War, but your book shows this general assumption is not correct. What role did the institution of slavery play here?Read More » Two years after publication, Deesha Philyaw’s award-winning story collection continues to receive accolades, with new praise in the New York Times. “Recently, I count as ideal the books that make me laugh,” says Frances Mayes in the weekly “By the Book” column. “Deesha Philyaw’s raucous The Secret Lives of Church Ladies accomplishes that.” Kristine Langley Mahler’s Curing Season is reviewed in Shelf Awareness: “These experimental essays about place, home and the failed effort to belong are closely tied to Eastern North Carolina, but will resonate everywhere.” Mahler, who’s on tour this fall, teases her new book in LitHub. Hippocampusadds to the growing stack of positive reviews for Another Appalachia: “To say that I loved Neema Avashia’s Another Appalachia feels like an understatement.” The author will appear in Boone, Hazard, and Charleston this fall. In the Southern Review of Books, Tom Bredehoft’s Foote is praised as “a quirky good time of a book, one with a delightful flavor of mountain folk mystery.” The author will read from his book—called “immensely bingeable” in Weelunk—at a WVU event on September 15. Rachel King’s Bratwurst Haven is anticipated in Boulder Weekly as one of the top five books set in Colorado: “King’s writing is as crystal-clear as a bright Colorado day.” The author’s fall tour will take her to cities including Portland, Baltimore, Washington (DC), and Morgantown.Read More » This fall, West Virginia University Press will publish Rachel King’s first collection of short stories, Bratwurst Haven. Over the course of these twelve interrelated stories, King gives life to diverse, complex, and authentic characters who are linked through work at a Colorado sausage factory. Rajia Hassib, author of A Pure Heart, said about the book: “These all-too-relatable struggles make the stories not only engrossing but also an intriguing and tenderly rendered study of this flawed world we call home.” Here King talks with Vesto PR’s Caitlin Solano for our blog. When did you start writing this collection of interrelated short stories? What inspired you to center the stories on low-wage workers at a sausage factory? I wrote the first story in this collection in the summer of 2016, a few months after I moved back to my hometown of Portland, Oregon. My spouse has worked at a sausage factory, so many of the physical details of the space came from there. Each story’s main character and plot came to me in a different way, however—a composite of all I’ve imagined, observed, heard, and experienced. I didn’t admit I’d written a linked collection until I was done; I just wrote one story, then hoped I could write another one.Read More » Neema Avashia’s Another Appalachia is named a finalist for New England Book Award, given by the New England Independent Booksellers Association. Avashia is interviewed by CNN as part of its programming in support of W. Kamau Bell’s “Black in Appalachia” episode of United Shades of America. She appears on WCVB-TV in Boston, and is included in the “Queer Books Across America” feature from Autostraddle. NPR’s Here and Nowhighlights her book on its list of the best summer reads for 2022. Science magazine has the first published review of Kelly Hogan and Viji Sathy’s “compelling and critical” Inclusive Teaching. It says: “Given the urgent need to promote justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion in our communities, the book is a must-read for all who are in a position to better support inclusive teaching.” We met in a cramped conference room with a group of ten colleagues in a faculty learning community hosted by the teaching and learning center on our campus. One of our assignments was to observe each other teaching and then meet to discuss our pedagogy. Debriefing over coffee, we immediately identified many ideas we held in common: we were both feeling dissatisfied with aspects of our courses and we felt frustrated that being a funny, dynamic lecturer seemed to be the definition of effective teaching by students and colleagues. We didn’t see how an instructor’s personality equated to effective learning. Discovering we were both introverts, we affirmed each other’s thoughts that deep learning by students shouldn’t require us to become people we are not. We had discussions about what pedagogical strategies better fit our personalities and the intended student outcomes. If only Jessamyn Neuhaus, author of Geeky Pedagogy: A Guide for Intellectuals, Introverts, and Nerds Who Want to Be Effective Teachers, had published her book earlier, we surely would have added it to the reading list for the faculty learning community. In her book, Neuhaus takes exception to “any hint of a suggestion that effective teaching requires a specific kind of innate personality quality or emotional state, rather than being a set of skills, attitudes, actions, abilities, and a reflective, intellectual approach that can be learned, applied, and improved with effort by anyone who wants to be an effective teacher.” Frustration and introversion were not our only commonalities. Like so many instructors in higher education, neither of us had much pedagogy training in our graduate programs. Early in our careers, teaching workshops and education-based literature made big impressions on our development. Both scientists by training, we approached making changes to our courses through a scientific and data-driven lens. We believed that we could continually improve our abilities with teaching, a belief Carol Dweck defines as a growth mind-set. We assumed then, and still today, that effective teaching is a challenge that requires hard work, intent, practice, mistakes, reflection, and iteration. It was never a problem for us to admit to ourselves and each other when we faced challenges in our own teaching. Often, the first step to making change is to recognize that a problem exists. Because of our mind-sets and generally optimistic, change-maker attitudes, we embraced our teaching challenges and set out to overcome them.Read More » A title from West Virginia University Press lands, for the first time, in the New Yorker, where Deesha Philyaw’s “beguiling” The Secret Lives of Church Ladies is recommended by Doreen St. Félix as part of the “What We’re Reading This Summer” feature. Philyaw also appears in Raj Tawney’s op-ed for NBC News Online about navigating publishing as a writer of color. Tawney finds inspiration in Philyaw’s work, and refers to her publisher as “small-yet-fierce West Virginia University Press.” Our small, fierce team remains grateful to the many readers worldwide who continue to find new ways to celebrate Secret Lives! Neema Avashia’s Another Appalachia is named Book of the Day by the New York Public Library, and included on the list “20 Must-Read Under-the-Radar Queer Books from the First Half of 2022” from Book Riot. Avashia talks with Mom Egg Review, and her book is recommended by booksellers at Cicada Books in a feature in the Huntington Herald-Dispatch. Kristine Langley Mahler’s Curing Season is anticipated on the list “What to Read When You’ve Made it Halfway Through 2022” from the Rumpus. Watch for launch events in Omaha, Des Moines, and elsewhere on Mahler’s calendar. This summer, West Virginia University Press is pleased to publish Tom Bredehoft’s Foote: A Mystery Novel. (While the official pub date is August 1, the book ships now when ordered from our site.) It’s a tale of a private investigator in Morgantown who has a secret he dares not reveal: he is a bigfoot living in plain sight, charged with keeping his people in the surrounding hills from being discovered. Jordan Farmer said of the novel: “Part mystery, part fable but all original, Jim Foote is sure to be one of your favorite literary detectives—cryptid or otherwise.” Here Bredehoft talks with Vesto PR’s Caitlin Solano for our blog. What inspired the story about a bigfoot private investigator? My wife and I came up with the idea on a walk along the Mon River Trail in Morgantown, looking up at some of the rock formations and idly thinking that they might make a good hiding place for a cryptid. Neither one of us remembers clearly who said the actual phrase “bigfoot PI,” but as soon as it was out there, I knew I could have fun with it. She says that she’s had lots of conversations when someone has said “That could be a novel!” but I think she was surprised when I actually wrote it. What kind of research did you do for this novel? Were you able to find a comprehensive history of bigfoot sightings in West Virginia and the greater Appalachia region? I don’t think I did any research on bigfoot at all! I have often heard the old advice to “Write what you know,” and so I just told myself at the very start that no one could know any more about my bigfoot (and their history and place in the world) than me, so I pretty much felt free to go my own way. I did do some small bits of research on West Virginia history here and there to make the setting seem right.Read More » With questions of climate and politics assuming new urgency in anticipation of the Supreme Court’s West Virginia v. EPA decision, we’re offering 30% off new and recent WVU Press titles in environment, geography, and energy. This sale lasts through August 31 with code GEOENVNRG30 at checkout on our site, and applies to both paperback and ebook editions. Titles included are: “Another Appalachia is as good as everyone says, and better,” reports Garrett Robinson in a review for Read Appalachia. Neema Avashia’s book is selected by the New York Public Library for their list “New LGBTQ Nonfiction for Pride,” named one of “50 LGBTQ+ Books to Read Now & Always” in Bustle, and chosen as a summer reading pick at Kenyon Review, Garden & Gun, and the Bitter Southerner. Attention from bookstores continues, with City of Asylum in Pittsburgh naming it one of the year’s best books so far, and the owner of Yu and Me praising Avashia’s “thoughtful, raw, honest” event at her store in New York. Rounding out its coverage this month, Another Appalachia receives positive notice from Longreads, Chapter 16, and the Athens (OH) Post. Avashia will appear at a Pride event in Huntington, WV, on June 25, as previewed in the Herald-Dispatch. An NPR travel feature with state-by-state book recommendations picksEyes Glowing at the Edge of the Woods, edited by Laura Long and Doug Van Gundy, to represent West Virginia. The volume is called “a wonderful illustration of the complexity of the state and its literary landscape.” In a review for Still: The Journal, Charles Dodd White’s book A Year without Months is held up as “necessary reading for anyone interested in the changing world of the modern mountain south.” It’s named one of the month’s best southern books in the Southern Review of Books. A reported piece in the Chronicle of Higher Educationpraises the “well-regarded series on teaching in higher ed from West Virginia University Press,” with specific reference to series authors Chavella Pittman and Cyndi Kernahan, and a link to Jessamyn Neuhaus’s forthcoming collection Picture a Professor.Read More » Way back when Another Appalachia hadn’t yet been published, and I was filled with doubt about whether anyone other than my family and friends would read the book, my mentor Geeta Kothari would tell me: “Your book will find its readers.” She said it with a confidence I didn’t understand. How exactly would this book find readers who weren’t people I knew? Never mind that I find books I love all the time—imposter syndrome is not subject to rational thinking, it would seem. And yet, the three months since Another Appalachia’s release have proven Geeta right so many times that she’s gotten tired of telling me, “I told you so.” In large part, this is because of the work that folks at the Press, folks at Vesto PR, and I have all put into publicizing the book—to thinking creatively about outlets, to the litany of pitches and pursuits that are alway part of the pre-publication rush. Read More »

The Downey Booger is a human-like cryptid that is said to live in the woods of Winston County, Alabama. And, although I could not find any evidence of recent sightings, the Downey Booger legend persists to this day! |Cryptid Name:||Downey Booger| |Location:||Winston County, Alabama, United States| |Description:||Tall, hairy creature that is half human, half animal.| |Size:||7 feet (2 meters) tall.| |Behavior/Characteristics:||Shy and elusive. Rarely seen by humans.| |Habitat/Environment:||Woods of Winston County, Alabama.| |Evidence:||No scientific evidence to support its existence.| |Sightings and Encounters:||A few reported sightings over the years.| |Skepticism/Explanations:||Some people believe that the Downey Booger is a real creature, while others believe that it is just a myth. There are several possible explanations for the sightings, such as misidentification of other animals or hoaxes.| What Does The Downey Booger Look Like? The Downey Booger is described as a tall hairy creature that looks half human, half animal. It stands at about 7 feet (2 meters) tall with some people saying it has a tail while others say that it has no tail at all. The Downey Booger Legend The first reported sighting of the Downey Booger cryptid was in the late 1800s. Two cousins by the names of John and Joe Downey were traveling home from a dance late in the evening. Suddenly a creature unlike anything they had ever seen before jumped out in front of them. The horses turned and bolted and refused to go down that section of road again so the boys had to find another way home. They arrived home early the next morning but their family was skeptical about their story. However, a few months later a family was frightened by the creature when returning from church. Just like the Downey brothers, the creature bolted out in front of the family before disappearing just as quickly again. Later a man by the name of Jim Jackson was travelling along the same route when he sensed something was following him. He slowly looked over his shoulder and saw a creature standing on two feet behind his wagon. He pulled out his gun and shot the creature twice. He said that it screamed before quickly running away on three feet. A group was formed to try to find the creature but all they found were a few traces of blood.

Painting of the new tapir species. Painting courtesy of Fabrício R. Santos. A tapir known to the local people and unknown to Western scientists has been found. This all sounds similar to an early story told in cryptozoology. In 1812, Baron Georges Cuvier, a French naturalist and zoologist, made what cryptozoologist Bernard Heuvelmans called his “Rash Dictum“: Cuvier remarked that it was unlikely that any large animal remained undiscovered. But Cuvier was wrong. Tapirus indicus, the Malayan, white-backed, or Indian tapir is famous within cryptozoology as the first animal to be described as a “new species” after Cuvier’s infamous 1812 declaration. Although it was ethnoknown to the Chinese and Japanese “since time immemorial,” Cuvier distrusted such traveler’s tales. Therefore, the white-backed tapir was not known in the West until it was collected and formally described to the Asiatic Society in 1819. Until the fifth species was announced this week, four species of tapir were recognized: three found in Central and South America, Baird’s Tapir (Tapirus bairdii), Brazilian Tapir, also called Lowland Tapir, (Tapirus terrestris), and Mountain Tapir (Tapirus pinchaque), and one found in Asia, Malayan Tapir (Tapirus indicus). The Mountain Tapir are the rarest, and have longer, woolly fur. Four previously known tapirs charts and map. Credit: Tapir Specialist Group. Now a new species of tapir has been discovered: the Kobomani Tapir (Tapirus kabomani). The species name follows the local Paumarí moniker for this specific tapir, arabo kabomani. This is the first new tapir discovered since Baird’s, in 1865 and the largest terrestrial mammal discovered since the saola in 1992! No wonder it is being called the “biggest zoological discovery” of the present century. “In what will likely be considered one of the biggest (literally) zoological discoveries of the Twenty-First Century, scientists today announced they have discovered a new species of tapir in Brazil and Colombia. The new mammal, hidden from science but known to local indigenous tribes, is actually one of the biggest animals on the continent, although it’s still the smallest living tapir,” notes Mongabay writer Jeremy Hance. “Found inhabiting open grasslands and forests in the southwest Amazon (the Brazilian states of Rondônia and Amazonas, as well as the Colombian department of Amazonas), the new species is regularly hunted by the Karitiana tribe who call it the ‘little black tapir.’ The new species is most similar to the Brazilian tapir (Tapirus terrestris), but sports darker hair and is significantly smaller: while a Brazilian tapir can weigh up to 320 kilograms (710 pounds), the Kabomani weighs-in around 110 kilograms (240 pounds). Given its relatively small size it likely won’t be long till conservationists christen it the pygmy or dwarf tapir. It also has shorter legs, a distinctly-shaped skull, and a less prominent crest. ” The cryptozoologically ethnoknown nature of this former cryptid cannot be overstated. “[Indigenous people] traditionally reported seeing what they called ‘a different kind of anta [tapir in Portuguese].’ However, the scientific community has never paid much attention to the fact, stating that it was always the same Tapirus terrestris,” said lead author Mario Cozzuol, the paleontologist who first started investigating the new species ten years ago. “They did not give value to local knowledge and thought the locals were wrong. Knowledge of the local community needs to be taken into account and that’s what we did in our study, which culminated in the discovery of a new species to science.” “[Indigenous people] were essential,” co-author Fabrício R. Santos told mongabay.com, “particularly because they know about this ‘variety’ for decades, if not, centuries, and the hunters can precisely differentiate both species, because all of skulls they provide us matched our morphometric and DNA analyses.” Others have claimed knowledge of this tapir before. Zoologist Marc Van Roosmalen has been gathering evidence of a pygmy tapir for decades. Source. But this discovery has now been scientifically confirmed. And the photographs are amazing. This new species of tapir was actually hunted by Theodore Roosevelt in 1912 with a specimen from his South American expedition still resting in the American Museum of Natural History in New York to this day. At the time of his hunt, Roosevelt wrote that the local hunters called the tapir a “distinct kind.” This early record is to be found in Allen, J. A. 1914. Mammals collected on the Roosevelt Brazilian expedition, with field notes by Leo Miller. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 35:559–610. Primary discovery article: Author(s): Mario A. Cozzuol , Camila L. Clozato , Elizete C. Holanda , Flávio H. G. Rodrigues , Samuel Nienow , Benoit de Thoisy , Rodrigo A. F. Redondo , and Fabrício R. Santos Journal of Mammalogy, 94(6):1331-1345. 2013. Published By: American Society of Mammalogists.

Here are a few images from some of our favorite "News Of The Weird" stories! But before scrolling down....remember, MANY of these images are extremely disturbing!! Are you sure you really want to look?? Got a story suggestion or a News Of The Weird Tip?? Drop me an email! email@example.com!! OK people...listen up. If you ever happen to encounter a Sasquatch...please do your best to hold the camera steady!! Thank you! A new Bigfoot movie popped up on YouTube Monday, this time from Kansas, not normally a hotbed of Sasquatch activity. The video is, as usual, very shaky. Why can’t people learn how to use a camera when they shoot these things? Maybe they’re truly scared? The one-minute video shows a loping “creature” passing from tree to tree as a family shoots from the other side of a fenced-in area. The quick glimpses of the mystery cryptid recall the film that started it all, the Roger Patterson movie.

As some of you may know, in my spare time I have an avid interest in the field of cryptozoology. Perhaps you've heard of my radio show called The Cryptid Factor. It's a Fortean fun discussion group that sees its members, myself, David Farrier and producer Leon "Buttons" Kirkbeck literally rolling in the aisles with joy as we channel our youthful imaginations and regale our listeners with the latest on all things weird. The show itself has been broadcast on no less than three radio stations in the Auckland region, each time looking for a new home due to either dismissal, dismay or ease of proximity. Thanks to podcasting through Soundcloud and iTunes we have gained new fans living beyond the outer reaches of the Grey Lynn realm. In fact, we now have fans numbering in the tens of thousands spreading right across the globe. With this in mind and to mark the fifth anniversary of our audio oddness the CF team decided it was high time we made a pilot show of the televisual kind. Last week we ventured to Austin, Texas, a city that really prides itself on being weird. Our major calling there was the official Museum of the Weird, a wonderful treasure trove of eclectic oddities. If you're a fan of the paranormal and in particular cryptid creatures this place is a must-see. It's an eerie labyrinth of fantastical exhibits from Sasquatch footprint casts to a 3000-year-old mummy. Mythological specimens litter the walls like the mysterious man-fish, the fierce furry trout and the notorious Fiji mermaid. The ultimate room (where cameras could not go) housed the mighty Minnesota Iceman, a hairy hominid from the 1960s encased in a frozen glass coffin. Once we'd explored the socks off this place we met our respected cryptozoologist friend Craig Woolheater in the freak-show theatre for an interview. Craig filled us in on his knowledge of all things chupacabra, a legendary beast that originated in Puerto Rico and through some mysterious turn of metamor-phosis has since shown up in Southwest America. "It's not the same animal," he says "but the creature we're finding here in Texas is some sort of off-shoot that's for sure." If you haven't heard of the chupacabra then let me fill you in. Like a South American bogeyman this creature has become folklore. Its name literally means goat-sucker, for that's what it does. It gets by entirely on the blood sucked from the necks of goats and chickens. The original description of el chupacabra will probably remind parents of the Gruffalo but it's not the Gruffalo, oh no. It's smaller and freakier and less likely to be outwitted by a mouse. But is it real? Well, the next day we found out the truth. Without giving too much away, let me just say this ... There are a lot of naysayers out there who believe these things are simply coyotes with mange. They're not. They're real. We saw one stuffed and mounted in a lady's house. Her name was Phylis (the lady not the chupacabra). Arrrgghhh, I've already said too much!

Some mythical creatures have their origin in tradition and tales from the distant past. Each culture is associated with a multitude of interesting and odd creatures...many of these beings are humanoid. This is the last part of the series...a compilation of traditional humanoids: Dziwożona, Female Demon Dziwożona kidnapped human babies just after birth and replaced them with her own offspring, known as foundlings or changelings. A changeling could be recognized by its uncommon appearance...disproportionate body, often with some kind of disability...as well as an inherent wickedness. It had a huge abdomen, unusually small or large head, a hump, thin arms and legs, a hairy body and long claws. Its behavior was said to be marked by a great spitefulness towards people around it, a fear of its mother, noisiness, reluctance to sleep and exceptional gluttony. They rarely reached adulthood...but if it did, it was disabled and spoke gibberish. Many traditional Slavs thought Dziwożona was a goblin. There were several ways to discourage child abductions but the most prevalent was that mother would tie a red ribbon around the child's hand, put a red hat on it's head and shield the face from the light of the moon. The red ribbon around the child's hand is still practiced in Poland today but the meaning behind it is mostly lost to the populace. Women at risk of becoming one of these demons after death were thought to be midwives, old maids, unmarried mothers, pregnant women who die before childbirth, as well as abandoned children born out of wedlock. The following is a translated passage from a 18th century Polish narrative that warns of the Dziwożona (translated as Surprisewife): One must be careful during contact because they also could switch the children. When mother doesn't care enough for her child, Dziwożona tries to still her baby and switch with the devil's child. There is however a way to get back a stolen child. The mother has to leave the devil's child so the Dziwożona would be touched by baby's cry and will take him and give back the taken one. - slowianie.republika.pl Rakshasa, Evil Shapeshifter Ak'chazar - These rakshasa have the heads of white tigers and are skinnier than common breed. They are unusually powerful spellcasters and specialize in necromantic magic. To use their necromantic powers to their full potential the Ak'chazar often use graveyards or old battlefields as their headquarters. When working on one of their dark schemes they often let their undead do the physical work while they stay behind the scenes themselves. Naityan - These are shapeshifters with the ability to utilize different supernatural combat styles based on their current forms. Naztharune - Naztharune have the heads of black tigers and are covered in black fur. They have few magical powers but compensate by being strong fighters, specializing in assassination. They lack most Rakshasa's need to be the leader of any organisation that they are part of, often working for other Rakshasa. Zakyas - Zakyas resemble standard rakshasas, but rather than focusing on sorcery, they are skilled melee combatants and weapon masters. They use their weak magical powers to supplement their martial prowess. |The great ten-headed demon Ravana, enemy of Lord Ram, was a Rakshasa king| The Rakshasas are described in the Ramayana: "the Rakshasas sleeping in the houses were of every shape and form. Some of them disgusted the eye, while some were beautiful to look upon. Some had long arms and frightful shapes; some were very fat and some were very lean; some were mere dwarfs and some were prodigiously tall. Some had only one eye and others only one ear. Some had monstrous bellies, hanging breasts, long projecting teeth, and crooked thighs; whilst others were exceedingly beautiful to behold and clothed in great splendour. Some had two legs, some three legs, and some four legs. Some had the heads of serpents, some the heads of donkeys, some the heads of horses, and some the heads of elephants." Many traditional Hindus believe these creature are indeed real and that it feeds on human flesh. They are shape changers and magicians, and often appear in the forms of humans, dogs, and large birds. They can make themselves invisible and can not enter a home without being invited. In the popular lore, Rakshasas are demons and fiends who haunt cemeteries, disturb sacrifices, harass priests, possess and devour human beings, and vex and afflict mankind in all sorts of ways. They are said to drink blood and preferred to attack infants and pregnant women. They usually disturbed the sacrifices, and tortured the priests. Rakshasas are known to carry away beautiful women to whom they were attracted. The Rakshasas, male or female, were ugly in appearance, but they could assume any form they pleased with the powers they possessed. Occasionally they would serve as rank-and-file soldiers in the service of a warlord. There are epic tales of certain members of the race who rose to prominence, some of them as heroes, most of them as villains. Most weapons don't work against these creatures. But all Rakshasas have a common weakness; that any crossbow blessed by a priest will kill them instantly. In addition there is said that a dagger of pure brass has the ability to slay it. There are several modern depictions of Rakshasas including role playing games, comic book series and video games. For more detail references go to - Rakshasas in the Mahabharata Nephilim, Evil Behemoths The second is Numbers 13:32-33, where the Hebrews have seen giants in Canaan: And they spread among the Israelites a bad report about the land they had explored. They said, "The land we explored devours those living in it. All the people we saw there are of great size. We saw the Nephilim there (the descendants of Anak come from the Nephilim). We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them." 'Nephilim' is rendered fallen, or possibly feller: a tyrant or bully. Several English translations rendered the word "giants", but of late translators seem to prefer leave it untranslated. The "giants" translation may have come from the Greek old testament where "nephilim" was "gegantes" which looks like "giant" but in modern Greek would be "titans". In Greek mythos, the titans were the supernaturally powerful offspring of gods and humans. I read a commentary that stated that if this were fact, that the Nephilim had mated with a variety of species, then we would now have a variety non-humans among us. Each has their own special traits. One example is Vampires. They were created when Nephilim fused their DNA with vampire bats. Vampire bats come out at night when the sunlight is dim as sun hurts their eyes. Like the Vampire bat, human vampires are adversely affected by sunlight and crave blood. Many true vampires, crave blood from the time of their birth. Many have donors that give blood to them and keep them well supplied. Blood often restores them to full health and well being. Another example given was Reptilians, that are non-humans that can shapeshift. This means that they can alter their DNA electrically to transform from a human form to one that is reptilian. They have to concentrate to keep their human shape, if not they turn into reptilian humanoid. These were not the only examples given. Some involved malformation, birth defects, races, genetic differences, etc. For this reason, it is understandable why the Nazis made determined efforts to find evidence of Nephilims in order to twist the legends to conform with their barbaric beliefs. We have all seen the photos of giant skeletons being unearthed as well as the urban legends told in regards to superhumans. But there was a strange incident that was disclosed a few years ago that just seemed to fade off without any explanation or followup. In 2005, there were reports that a Giant Man was killed in the Afghanistan mountains. This man was described as pale white, 15 foot tall, 1100 pound, six fingered and six toed who was feeding on human parts. It was reported that the Giant Man was killed by US Military after he reportedly attacked by throwing large rocks at them. The corpse of this Giant Man was flown to Germany for autopsy according to witnesses. Apparently the information was presented on the Coast to Coast AM show and discussed by George Noory and Steve Quayle. Since that time there has been little mention of this incident. Could this Giant Man have been a real being and/or had any relation to a Nephilim? Are there Nephilim living, thriving and breeding among us? Is there any connection with 2012 and the supposed 'end times' theories? There is a very good page on this subject at - LEVIATHAN CHAINED: The Legend of the Nephilim and the Cthulhu Mythos. There are many stories in many cultures that refer to colossal beings in their midst. For us, it's simply a matter of what to believe. Encounters with Flying Humanoids: Mothman, Manbirds, Gargoyles & Other Winged Beasts The Cryptoterrestrials: A Meditation on Indigenous Humanoids and the Aliens Among Us Monster Files: A Look Inside Government Secrets and Classified Documents on Bizarre Creatures and Extraordinary Animals Phantoms & Monsters: Cryptid Encounters THANKS FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION It is amazing to look back and realize that I began this blog in February 2006 and soon after starting I made a commitment to post several times daily (unless something came up). This has resulted in 7530 posts and 10,000,000+ page views. As well, there are currently 22,000+ feed and free daily newsletter subscribers. That is an astounding number for a simple paranormal / alternative news blog. I have promised to keep this service free despite going through a few rough patches. I have recently decided to suspend the 'Esoterica' posts and all Sunday blog posts...at least for the foreseeable future. There are several reasons for this change, but my main justification is the time involved in assembling / posting the links and the extra burden it has placed on my vision...which has occasionally become a problem. I usually have a full plate on Sunday as well...so the one day break will have some advantages. In lieu of the 'Esoterica' posts I have started to add interesting links at the end of each 'Just the Facts?' posts. So far, the reaction has been positive to this addition. As I have done previously, I ask that you consider what the blog is worth to you as a reader. I try to keep the subject matter fresh, interesting and thought-provoking. I also enjoy presenting other personal viewpoints and experiences. By providing a free newsletter and feed, I deprive the blog / myself of approximately 6 million+ potential page views per year. That is a lot of advertising not being seen by readers. This is one reason why many advertisers refuse to use 'Phantoms & Monsters' for their company / product advertising. But again, I have no intention on stopping the delivery of the free newsletter and feed. I truly hope you take into consideration what I have shared with you. Thanks again for your support...Lon If you wish to donate, you can do so through PayPal. 'Donate' buttons are located below and on the blog or go to the PayPal homepage and send the donation to my user email - email@example.com

Bigfoot hunter claims to have shot, killed hirsute cryptid (+video) Bigfoot hunter Rick Dyer claims to have shot and killed the mythical man-ape in 2012, and now he says he is planning to take the beast's hairy cadaver on tour around the country. If an orange-haired troll from the 1960s had grown old, grey, and brittle, and closed its eyes for a long winter nap, it might resemble the latest twist in the search for a North American Bigfoot. Rick Dyer is a full-time Bigfoot tracker who claimed to have shot dead one of the elusive (or imagined) hominids in the woods near San Antonio, Texas, on Sept. 6, 2012. He has now released a photo of what he says is the deceased creature's face, to drum up some faith. "We wanted to get people's reaction, make them believers," he says. Dyer says he killed his quarry, whom he calls Hank, by nailing pork ribs to the side of a tree and waiting, alongside a British documentary film crew led by the BAFTA-winning filmmaker Morgan Matthews. When Hank approached, Dyer says he chased him down and shot him three times, while another Bigfoot attacked Mr. Matthews and bloodied his face. "He definitely went toward the camera man and attacked him, but I was busy with the other Bigfoot so I didn't have a shot," explains Dyer. Matthews was not immediately available for comment, but his expedition to Texas resulted in the yet-to-be-released film "Shooting Bigfoot." Publicity for the film describes Matthews' experience as "a quest that ultimately leaves him with scars – mental and physical!" Needless to say, the confusion surrounding those events has left plenty of room for skepticism, among the Bigfoot-dubious and the Bigfoot-curious alike. D. Jeffrey Meldrum, who is a professor of anatomy and anthropology at Idaho State University and an expert in hominid locomotion, has collected over 250 casts of huge footprints found across wooded areas in North America over the past several decades, and says their plausible form and consistency present good reasons to continue investigating the existence of a nonhuman hominid. In fact, he spent 2012 raising funds and helping to design a catamaran-style blimp, which has not yet been built, to aid in the search. But Dyer's photograph does not convince Dr. Meldrum. "The thing has clearly been fabricated to depict a specimen that has been dissected. It smacks of images of alien autopsy," he says, adding that Dyer asked him to authenticate the body but refused to let him to speak with any of the scientists who had allegedly kept it for a year of testing, at an unnamed university in Washington state. Meldrum doubts he would have been contacted at all, if the body were real. "If you have a body, you have the world at your behest. You have the discovery of the century and you're pandering to the Bigfoot community?" Dyer, however, says that he only waited so long to show Hank to the world, because of a non-disclosure agreement he signed with investors in his bigfoot-tracking enterprise. After a year of tests, he says, the agreement has finally ended, allowing him to share an image and make plans for a North American tour with the body. With income he expects from the tour and pharmaceutical rights to Hank's tissues, he says, "I'm going to go and capture a live one." But Hank hasn't yet become a national sweetheart, due in part to Dyer's involvement in a much-publicized 2008 hoax, involving a rubber Bigfoot frozen inside a block of ice. That panned out so badly that Dyer doesn't want to talk about it until Hank's authenticity has cleared his name, which he says will happen at a Feb. 9 press conference. "I prefer to tell that story when everybody knows that it is true," he says. "Right now I have zero credibility."

Courtesy of IDW Publishing, here are exclusive first looks at this week's issues of the miniseries Battle Beasts and The Pound: Ghoul's Night Out. The former stars those heavily armed animal warriors you may remember from the 1980s, whereas the latter guest-stars Proof, a famous cryptid with a penchant for fancy suits. Both issues hit stores this Wednesday, September 19 — here are the synopses: Battle Beasts #3 (of 4) Bobby Curnow (w) • Valerio Schiti (a & c) Bliss and the Beasts close in on the all-powerful Dread Weapons. Along the way, Vorin reveals the history of his kind, although fellow heroes Merk and Gruntos recall slightly different versions of the past! Meanwhile the United States military begins a full-scale attack to contain the murrauding Beasts! Action, intrigue and secrets revealed, all in this issue! The Pound: Ghoul's Night Out #1 (of 4) Stephan Nilson (w) • Ibrahim Moustafa (a & c) The Pound is officially open for business. Scottie and Howie have their hands full. A creature is harassing park-goers. The Government is investigating them. Ghouls are rebelling, and, if things couldn't get worse, Scottie's mother-in-law has decided to visit. Guest starring PROOF's Agent John "Proof" Prufrock!

Earlier tonight, I watched with great interest on ITV the episode of Jeremy Wade's 'River Monsters' series in which he investigates - and even tries (albeit unsuccessfully) to catch - one of the monster fishes said to inhabit the deep, freezing waters of Lakes Iliamna and Clark in Alaska. He concludes that the likeliest identity for such creatures, should they exist, would be extra-large (up to 20 ft or so long) specimens of land-locked white sturgeon. Giant sturgeon have been confirmed in the past as the identity of certain formerly-mysterious lake monsters in various North American bodies of freshwater (including Lake Washington in Seattle), so this is certainly a plausible solution to the Iliamna and Clark monsters too. Here is what I wrote a few years ago concerning them within an article of mine devoted to aquatic monsters of North America: THE ILLIES OF ILIAMNA Compared to such famous North American ‘monster’ lakes as Okanagan and Champlain, Lake Iliamna remains little-known and little-investigated. This is due in no small way to its location – ensconced in southwestern Alaska. In terms of size, however, it can scarcely be overlooked – as large as the state of Rhode Island, this lake measures a very impressive 120 km long, up to 35 km wide, and has a surface area of around 2600 square km. Moreover, the unidentified water beasts, popularly dubbed Illies by the media and cryptozoologists, reported from its waters are equally memorable. Not only are they decidedly large – often claimed to be as much as 10 m long – they are also very different from the many-humps and long-necks more commonly reported from North America’s inland waters. Long known to the area’s Inuit/Aleut people, who refer to this cryptid as jig-ik-nak, the Illie is usually described as very long and quite slender, greyish in colour, and with a noticeable dorsal fin marked by a white stripe. It swims just beneath the water surface, sometimes in groups, but unlike a number of other lake monsters it does not come up for air, remaining submerged, and therefore seemingly able to breathe underwater, like a fish rather than a mammal or reptile. This was confirmed in 1963 by a biologist from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, who watched an 8-10-m-long creature swimming beneath the water surface for over 10 minutes, during which time it never once surfaced. In 1977, air-taxi pilot Tim LaPorte and his two passengers saw from the air a dark 4-5-m-long animal whose back was just breaking the water surface. When it dived downwards, it revealed a large vertical tail – characteristic of fishes, as whales have horizontal tails. There seems little doubt that the Illies are indeed fishes, albeit exceptionally big ones, and the most popular identity is a sturgeon, in particular the mighty white sturgeon Acipenser transmontanus, which is known to attain lengths of up to 7 m. Although sturgeons have never been confirmed from Lake Iliamna, they are known from other, smaller Alaskan lakes (Iliamna is the largest lake in Alaska). Consequently, it would not be implausible for this immense body of water to house such fishes too, and for them, on account of the lake’s huge size and the plentiful food supply that it is known to contain, to attain record sizes here.

Posted by: Loren Coleman on December 22nd, 2011 Remember the Bhootbilli of India, seen in November 2010? Is this a similar story? This cryptid story out of India last month is so mysterious, I’m not even sure what kind of mystery animal they are talking about. A vague notion is it is a cryptid feline, due to the only clue, the description of its face. Manganam is in Kerala, which is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of southwest India. Kerala is a popular tourist destination for its backwaters, yoga, Ayurvedic treatments and tropical greenery. The Kerala’s Western Ghats are rich in wildlife (see here), including known species of Indian elephant (Elephas maximus indicus), Bengal tiger (Panthera tigris tigris), Indian leopard (Panthera pardus fusca), Nilgiri tahr (Nilgiritragus hylocrius), common palm civet (Paradoxurus hermaphroditus), and grizzled giant squirrel (Ratufa macroura). BTW, a tehsildar (mentioned in the news item) is a revenue administrative officer in India in charge of obtaining taxes from a tehsil, an administrative division of the country. In America, we would usually call someone in this role a “tax collector,” unless you live in a rural area, where you might use the term, “revenuer,” (especially tied to obtaining taxes on the illegal production and distribution of alcohol). Here is the article, thanks to Paul Cropper: A mysterious animal stalking local fear KOTTAYAM: The people in Manganam apparently fear some mysterious animal would pounce on them anytime. This despite round-the-clock vigil by the locals, and the efforts by the police and Forest Department officials to assuage their apprehensions. A few days ago, it is said, the mysterious animal destroyed the cage in a house where fowls were kept. “But till 6.30 pm on Wednesday [23 November 2011], nobody has reported spotting the animal,” said Moncy P. Alexander, the tehsildar, who is in charge of the control room set up on Wednesday [23 November 2011] after the state revenue minister ordered that it be set up. The minister visited the spot on Tuesday [22 November 2011] and led the search operations himself for a while. Forest guard Joseph, who is heading the operations of the Forest Department, said he was not in a position to say anything about the animal since he had not seen it. “We are conducting search operations in Ashramam area in Manganam. It is said the animal destroyed the cage in a house where fowls were kept,” he said. He also said that one more cage to trap the animal would be brought here on Thursday [24 November 2011]. Vijayapuram panchayat president N Jeevakumar said the visit by the minister had brought some relief to the people. “The search operations have been stepped up after his visit,” Jeevakumar said. There is no dearth of stories doing the rounds here about the animal. “Those who have seen the animal say it has got the face of a cat and a long body,” Jeevakumar said. He also narrated the story of a dog which apparently had stopped barking ever since it came face to face with the animal. “Today morning, around 3am, some unusual sound was heard near the Christian Hermitage here. Apparently the animal was here, but vanished as people came out. But ever since, the dog here has stopped barking,” said Jeevakumar. The curiosity factor has drawn many people to the area. Many come, some in fun, and even join the search operations. But for the local residents, who have been spending sleepless nights, the fear is real. Source: TNN Nov 24, 2011 Loren Coleman is one of the world’s leading cryptozoologists, some say “the” leading. Certainly, he is acknowledged as the current living American researcher and writer who has most popularized cryptozoology in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Starting his fieldwork and investigations in 1960, after traveling and trekking extensively in pursuit of cryptozoological mysteries, Coleman began writing to share his experiences in 1969. An honorary member of Ivan T. Sanderson’s Society for the Investigation of the Unexplained in the 1970s, Coleman has been bestowed with similar honorary memberships of the North Idaho College Cryptozoology Club in 1983, and in subsequent years, that of the British Columbia Scientific Cryptozoology Club, CryptoSafari International, and other international organizations. He was also a Life Member and Benefactor of the International Society of Cryptozoology (now-defunct). Loren Coleman’s daily blog, as a member of the Cryptomundo Team, served as an ongoing avenue of communication for the ever-growing body of cryptozoo news from 2005 through 2013.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - View original article The Beast of Bray Road (or the Bray Road Beast) is a cryptid, or cryptozoological, creature first reported in 1936 on a rural road outside of Elkhorn, Wisconsin. The same label has been applied well beyond the initial location, to any unknown creature from southern Wisconsin or northern Illinois and all the way to Vancouver Island, Canada, that is described as having similar characteristics to those reported in the initial set of sightings. Bray Road itself is a quiet country road near the community of Elkhorn. The rash of claimed sightings in the late 1980s and early 1990s prompted a local newspaper, the Walworth County Week, to assign reporter Linda Godfrey to cover the story. Godfrey initially was skeptical, but later became convinced of the sincerity of the witnesses. Her series of articles later became a book titled The Beast of Bray Road: Trailing Wisconsin's Werewolf. The Beast of Bray Road is described by purported witnesses in several ways: as a bear-like creature, as a hairy biped resembling Bigfoot, and as an unusually large (2–4 feet tall on all fours, 7 feet tall standing up) intelligent wolf-like creature apt to walk on its hind legs and weighing 400-700 pounds. It also said that its fur is a brown gray color resembling a dog or bear. A number of animal-based theories have been proposed. They include that the creature is an undiscovered variety of wild dog, a waheela (said to be a giant prehistoric wolf similar to Amarok), or a wolfdog or a coydog. It is also possible that hoaxes and mass hysteria have caused some falsehoods and sightings of normal creatures to all be artificially lumped under the same label. Concurrently with the sightings in Wisconsin, there was a rash of similar encounters in the neighboring state of Michigan. Following the release of "The Legend", a popular song about the Michigan Dogman in 1987, author Steve Cook received dozens of reports, including photograph and film evidence of the creature. There is no known link between the sightings in adjoining states, other than the similarity of the creature described. |This section does not cite any references or sources. (September 2011)| In 2002 a film surfaced, supposedly made in the 1970s. It became known as the Gable film because of a paper label affixed to the box. The film, just over 3 minutes long, shows at first what looks like simple home movies, of kids riding snowmobiles, a man washing his truck. Near the end of the film, the person videotaping is riding down a remote dirt road, when he stops and goes out to check what looks to be a huge bulky creature on all fours. The creature suddenly runs after the cameraman, who tries to run away, before there is rustling and a brief shot of teeth and fangs before the camera falls to the ground. A second film was "discovered" and showed a police investigation after the cameraman in the first film is found dead. The police camera pans over to two officers examining the body, which is revealed to have been torn in half by whatever attacked the cameraman. In posts to several cryptozoology and related forums, a user identified as Don Coyote stated that he knew a relative of the dead body in the film. The relative said that the officer saw something that was apparently very traumatic. The officer lost his mind and began rambling "Dogs have four toes, Bears have five." For years, the debate raged about whether the films were real or not. Finally in 2010, on the History Channel program, Monster Quest, Steve Cook confirmed that both films were fake, made in 2002 by Mike Agrusa, who had been a longtime fan of Cook's "The Legend," a song about the dogman. The "creature" in the first film was actually a man in a Ghillie suit. The body in the second film was made of painted styrofoam. Although Monster Quest dramatized the event to make it appear that their expert had analyzed and found curious flaws in the film, then dispatched werewolf expert Linda Godfrey to interrogate Cook to determine the truth, Cook claimed in a lengthy blog post that he informed all parties involved in the production that the film was fake weeks before filming on the episode began. The Beast of Bray Road appears in the television program Mystery Hunters as well as several books and a motion picture. The History Channel's TV series MonsterQuest launched an investigation on the beast, in which all witnesses were subjected to lie detector tests. The polygraph administrator could find no indication that any of the witnesses had fabricated their stories. It has appeared in a season 3 episode of Lost Tapes, in which it attacks members of a radical militia. Heavy metal band Cage wrote and released the song "The Beast of Bray Road", which appeared on their 2011 album Supremacy of Steel. A man by the name of Edison T. Crux wrote a novel titled, "Tale of the Wisconsin Werewolf," based on this mythology.

I’ve never been to Marfa, Texas, where dancing ghost lights have intrigued residents and visitors on countless nights for countless years; what causes the strange lights has defied logical explanation. But I have spoken with an eyewitnesses, Ed Hendricks, who for years has carefully investigated the lights. I appreciate his intense struggle to unravel a mystery that seems to defy unraveling; I respect his skill, talent, and educational qualifications; I acknowledge his careful observations, recorded in detail and shared. Nevertheless, I suggest something rarely, if ever, mentioned to explain Marfa Lights, perhaps as shocking as ball lightning or as eerie as dancing demons: a species of large flying creatures, intrinsically bioluminescent. The puzzle cries for a solution; Mr. Hendricks and I agree. I respectfully disagree with his general assumption (something like an atmostpheric phenomenon, non-living). I credit him for his work, but credit the Marfa Lights to the flights of cryptids, notwithstanding they differ from flights of birds and bats. Why do they seem, at times, to dance? Why do two lights fly apart, then turn and fly back together? The dance sometimes appears complex but the purpose is simple. It’s just their technique: a way to catch bats. Whatever the bioluminescent creatures are that make those lights, they may be the only ones who have worked harder in this area than Mr. Hendricks, with one possible exception. And just as this human researcher spends much time (pondering and writing) away from those fields just south of Marfa, the cryptid spends much time (searching for bats) away from those fields. Hendricks and others have tried to find what causes those lights, but bats flying just south of Marfa (and elsewhere) may try even harder to not be found by those lights. But how could a flying creature glow, and so brightly? Even though the lights are sometimes described with the word “fireflies,” those who have observed the dancing of Marfa Lights (true Marfa Lights, not car headlights; cars never dance) sense a power, a size, a speed that dwarfs any insect. To catch just a tail feather of an answer to that question, let’s leave Texas and fly, first to Australia and then to Tennessee. Come with me to Victoria, Australia, along Salisbury Road in Mt. Macedon. Notice, as we enter an open window, that Mr. Fred Silcock is sleeping in the easy chair by the fireplace. Now search for a thin brown book on the bookshelf. That’s the one; the spine says “The Min Min Light F.F. Silcock”. Notice the drawing of a glowing barn owl on the cover. Turn to page 12, under the heading “Min Min Intelligence,” and read the words of two observers of strange flying lights: “It definitely knows you’re there. I found it would not let us any closer than it wanted us . . . They are very playful, like a bunch of puppies chasing one another all over the place, going out and hopping up in another place. They can move pretty fast but most times move slowly, hovering and floating.” Turn to page 45, under the heading “The Common Denominator,” and read the first paragraph. A Silcock Min Min (my own label, and not to be confused with other light-phenomena labeled “Min Min” in Australia) flies with ease, sometimes against the wind. It appears to fly with intelligence, sometimes interacting with one or more other Min Mins, and this interaction can appear playful. This paragraph makes it clear that these mysterious lights in Australia behave like birds. But what birds fly around at night, glowing? Reading further we learn that there is nothing unscientific about the possibility of a self-luminous bird, although it’s a study not yet undertaken by universities, examining live or dead birds to test the Silcock hypothesis. But the book quotes many eyewitnesses who report finding the source for the Min Min glow: the “great owl” (called “barn owl” in the United States). It is Tyto Alba, found in many countries worldwide. The book mentions an observation by William Wharton, of Queensland. One night he saw a bright light on the diving board of his swimming pool. As insects flew around the light, it began to fade until Wharton could see a glowing bird that was picking at insects that had landed on the board. The book mentions many eyewitness reports that make it obvious that some barn owls, sometimes, emit a glow, and that glow can help them catch insects. Of course that would explain why the underside feathers of barn owls are white: to allow light to pass through. Of course that would explain the bobbing, weaving motion of Min Mins; that is how barn owls fly at night while hunting. Mr. Silcock makes many points for a bioluminescent Tyto Alba. Now let’s fly back to the United States, to Chapel Hill, Tennessee. Notice the railroad tracks, barely visible in the moonlight. Look down those tracks. A faint glow appears bobbing just to the left of the tracks; now it bobs over to the right. It looks like someone is approaching with a lantern, searching back and forth, but searching for what? Could this light be the lantern held by the man who was hit by a train long ago? According to the story, he was decapitated and his ghost still searches for the head. But the ghost story of a headless man searching for his head sounds like the story of the Bingham Lights of South Carolina and the Maco Lights of North Carolina and the Gurdon Light of Arkansas and . . . well, headless ghosts searching endlessly for their heads, especially down railroad lines—those stories seem endless. But with a little knowledge of the bobbing, weaving Min Min of Australia, only a little brain power can enlighten us: Australians describe the same thing. Why would a glowing barn owl fly down railroad tracks at night? If it hungered only for insects, it would sit and gobble them up. For a nocturnal rodent, how far is it exposed while crossing railroad tracks? Too far to be comfortable in daylight. But in the dark of night, why worry? Take your time. A midnight snack, for a rat, can be easy to find; humans throw trash near the tracks. Dine where you find it . . . until . . . oops. Can a nocturnal rat out-think a human? To us, it seems stupid to sit on railroad tracks, eating garbage while a light approaches. But then no rat ever born has screamed and run away from a headless ghost. No, moving lights (in a world with so many humans) should not appear dangerous to a rat, for glowing barn owls appear to be rare, or they rarely glow. And it takes no genius of an owl, glowing or not, to fly down railroad tracks at night. I think that at least a few bioluminescent barn owls live in the United States (glowing for whatever reasons), and they account for many ghost lights. But what about the Marfa Lights? The dance patterns of Marfa Lights resemble no flock of hunting barn owls. No, our old friend Tyto Alba cannot compete here and it dare not try. But it has illuminated part of the answer to the puzzle. The predators of Southern Texas show greater intelligence than most birds and some of them may be larger than any owl. This cryptid may be related to the ropen of Papua New Guinea (another nocturnal glowing flyer). If so, it will make a story more extraordinary than any headless ghost. Eyewitnesses describe the ropen like a giant long-tailed pterosaur.

Posted by: Craig Woolheater on April 1st, 2014 The following is shared from Phantoms and Monsters with permission: Move over Mothman, a big, old dog is movin’ in I received the following report from a reader and cryptid investigator from Point Pleasant, WV: Unknown bipedal canine sighting in Point Pleasant WV Lon, this is the formal report I wrote up three days after the sighting, outlining the situation and sighting. If you have anymore questions, please let me know. Jan. 14, 2014 A couple nights ago, around 11/1130 pm, a local young lady, had a very scary sighting of a creature she described as “like a werewolf, only scarier.” The location is locally known here in Point Pleasant as “Cats Eye”, on Madison Ave. Two nights ago, this young lady was sitting on her front porch, an enclosed patio with a few large windows. One window open in the front, beside the front door, smoking a cigarette. It was after 11pm and visibility was good, up to 100 feet because of street lights. She said before this sighting, she had heard strange noises and the local dogs had been going nuts off and on without an apparent reason. As she was having a smoke, she noticed movement, thinking it was someone walking down the railroad tracks. She looked up and saw something that “blew her mind”. It was, in her words, a thing that had a head of a dog, almost exactly like a German Shepard, and was walking like a person on two legs. She said she saw it’s eyes,and that’s when she noticed it was staring at her. She said that she “became lost in its eyes”. Any other description, she cannot recall clearly after seeing it look at her and then her seeing it’s eyes. She did tell me that it was either dark colored and almost had the look of wearing an oversized black sweatshirt,(as in meaning it was rather large/bulky in the upper body. RFS) but she didn’t think it was a sweatshirt, but hair or fur. I asked her to clarify this. She said that’s really the only thing she noticed and can remember, other than the head and description. She said the height was in the neighborhood of six feet, maybe just a bit less. She stated several times how the eyes “drew her in”. She said the creature took a couple steps towards her, and at that time she saw a flash of light. The creature looked towards the direction it was originally heading and in a very quick movement, spinned and took off the direction it came from. The brief flash of light, she soon found out, was her mothers headlights as she turned into the road. She repeatedly asked her mother if she seen anything near the railroad tracks when she was near home. She said no, nothing, however she was not paying much attention because she was late getting in and was tired. What I consider very interesting about this is the government installation, located directly across from the witnesses home, has an array of cameras installed over the entire property. It’s also patrolled by armed guards. It’s too bad we will never be able to see it, but I’m almost certain that this creature was recorded on their cameras. Co-founder of Cryptomundo in 2005. I have appeared in or contributed to the following TV programs, documentaries and films: OLN's Mysterious Encounters: "Caddo Critter", Southern Fried Bigfoot, Travel Channel's Weird Travels: "Bigfoot", History Channel's MonsterQuest: "Swamp Stalker", The Wild Man of the Navidad, Destination America's Monsters and Mysteries in America: Texas Terror - Lake Worth Monster, Animal Planet's Finding Bigfoot: Return to Boggy Creek and Beast of the Bayou.

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Cryptids are monsters... except that cryptids could actually exist! When talking about Bigfoot or the Loch Ness Monster you're talking about something that could live right on this Earth right now! On Cryptid Wiki, we document all of the possible information you can get about cryptids and determine if they're real or not. You can contribute to this wiki. Do you want to make a new article? Just type in the name of the article in the box below and click "Create new article." We do not accept creepypasta monsters, such as slenderman, herobrine, the rake, or any others as they are, well, creepypasta. If you create a page like this, you will be issued a warning and the page will be deleted. |A wiki devoted to cryptozoology that anyone can edit!| 846 articles since July 29, 2009.

The Loch Ness Monster is a cryptid - a creature whose existence has been suggested but is not recognized by scientific consensus. Nessie, is reputedly a large unknown animal that is said to inhabit Loch Ness in the Scottish Highlands. It is similar to other supposed lake monsters in Scotland and elsewhere, though its description varies from one account to the next. Popular interest and belief in the animal's existence has varied since it was first brought to the world's attention in 1933. Evidence of its existence is anecdotal, with minimal and much-disputed photographic material and sonar readings. The most common speculation among believers is that the creature represents a line of long-surviving plesiosaurs. The scientific community regards the Loch Ness Monster as a modern-day myth, and explains sightings as including misidentifications of more mundane objects, outright hoaxes, and wishful thinking. Despite this, she remains one of the most famous examples of cryptozoology. The legendary monster has been affectionately referred to by the nickname Nessie since the 1950s. Carvings of this unidentified animal, made by the ancient inhabitants of the Scottish Highlands some 1,500 years ago, are the earliest evidence that Loch Ness harbors a strange aquatic creature. Most Nessie witnesses describe something with two humps, a tail, and a snakelike head. A V-shaped was often mentioned, as well as a gaping red mouth and horns or antennae on the top of the creature's head. Nessie's movements have been studied, and the films and photos analyzed to determine what Nessie might be, if she exists. Loch Ness is located in the North of Scotland and is one of a series of interlinked lochs which run along the Great Glen. The Great Glen is a distinctive incision which runs across the country and represents a large geological fault zone. The interlinking was completed in the 19th century following the completion of the Caledonian Canal. The Great Glen is more than 700 ft (213 m) deep and ice free. It is fed by the Oich and other streams and drained by the Ness to the Moray Firth. It forms part of the Caledonian Canal. By volume, Loch Ness is the largest freshwater lake in Great Britain. The sedimentary rocks which cradle Loch Ness are some of the oldest in the world. The sandstones were originally laid down in warm seas which then comprised Scotland. You would not have recognized the land masses at that time and, surprisingly, Scotland was probably located in the latitude where Australasia exists today. As part of continental drift the continents very slowly drifted northwards as Scotland became squeezed into the dry center of the super-continent Pangaea. By this time, 250 million years ago, the Great Glen side slip fault, which is home to Lochs Ness, Oich, Lochy and Linnhe, had already been created. As Scotland crossed the equator it was the time of the dinosaurs and then as the continents began to break up and cluster around the north pole, the great ice ages began. Scottish mountains, which would have been Himalayan in size were gradually worn down to the stumps which you see today. Scotland was still in the grip of the ice twelve thousand years ago, but the main advances were over and the land was beginning to rebound from being depressed into the mantle. The surface of Loch Ness would have been at a similar elevation to sea level, but detailed and thorough examination of the sediments at the northwest end of the loch show no evidence for any incursion of the sea since the last ice age. Anything living in Loch Ness today must have arrived from the freezing North Sea up the River Ness after the final retreat of ice, ten to twelve thousand years ago. This automatically eliminates certain Loch Ness monster candidates, primarily the reptiles, amphibians and invertebrates. Today, without the weight of ice, the land has risen and the surface of the loch would naturally stand at about 42 feet (12.8m) above sea level, but during the building of the Caledonian Canal, completed 1822, Telford built a weir at Loch Dochfour SATPIC 1 raising the level of the loch by 9 feet (3m) and saving the necessity for a lot more excavation to make that area navigable. The mean height of the surface of the loch above sea level is now taken as 51 feet (15.5m) although in recent years the wetter winters may have increased the mean somewhat. When the ice retreated the area would have been an extremely barren landscape. It may be hard to imagine the lack of trees, or even grass, rainfall washing deposits off the hills into the loch. Gradually wind-blown seeds would have introduced vegetation, the first trees being the silver birch which is still here in huge numbers. As part of the Loch Ness Project's Rosetta Project an examination of the sediments has shown that silver birch pollen existed here just after the retreat of ice. Once you have a few grasses and trees the birds and animals would have begun to enter the new habitat. They would bring berries and heavier seeds thus continuing the movement of the Caledonian Forest northwards. Throughout this period the heavier wind-blown seeds like sycamore and ash would have been carried northwards until the Highlands mixed forest was established. While the loch would gradually become populated with cold-water fish, the land saw a far greater variety of life including wolves, bears, beavers and elk - all extinct here now, although the last wolf in the area was only shot in the nineteenth century. That wolf was known as Altsaigh SATPIC 22 and the name is still used for the burn (stream) which enters the loch from the northern side half way along its length. It was here that Altsaigh was killed. Mankind entered the Great Glen following the animals. The Picts left their mark throughout the glen. Gradually they were superseded by the Scots who had come across from Scotia (Ireland) around the sixth century, although the "amalgamation" appears to have been relatively peaceful. Certainly there is no implication that the Scots conquered the Picts as they were outnumbered by around 20 to 1. Even today the Picts/Celts represent the major part of the Scottish population. At the beginning of the last millennium the Scots elected their kings and this was the time of Kenneth, Duncan and Macbeth. Interestingly it was a Scottish King, James VI who also became king of England when Elizabeth Tudor died and he unified the countries, conveniently handing Scotland to England on a plate when he moved his court south when becoming James I of England. Today many of us are looking for Scotland to become an independent nation within the European community and, in 1997, a measure of devolution occurred with the creation of the Scottish Parliament. The earliest report of a monster associated with the vicinity of Loch Ness appears in the Life of St. Columba by Adomnan, written in the 7th century. According to Adomnan, writing about a century after the events he described, the Irish monk Saint Columba was staying in the land of the Picts with his companions when he came across the locals burying a man by the River Ness. They explained that the man had been swimming the river when he was attacked by a "water beast" that had mauled him and dragged him under. They tried to rescue him in a boat, but were able only to drag up his corpse. Hearing this, Columba stunned the Picts by sending his follower Luigne moccu Min to swim across the river. The beast came after him, but Columba made the sign of the Cross and commanded: "Go no further. Do not touch the man. Go back at once." The beast immediately halted as if it had been "pulled back with ropes" and fled in terror, and both Columba's men and the pagan Picts praised God for the miracle. The oldest manuscript relating to this story was put online in 2012. Believers in the Loch Ness Monster often point to this story, which takes place on the River Ness rather than the loch itself, as evidence for the creature's existence as early as the 6th century. However, sceptics question the narrative's reliability, noting that water-beast stories were extremely common in medieval saints' Lives; as such, Adomnan's tale is likely a recycling of a common motif attached to a local landmark. According to the sceptics, Adomnan's story may be independent of the modern Loch Ness Monster legend entirely, only becoming attached to it in retrospect by believers seeking to bolster their claims. In an article for Cryptozoology, A. C. Thomas notes that even if there were some truth to the story, it could be explained rationally as an encounter with a walrus or similar creature that had swum up the river. R. Binns acknowledges that this account is the most serious of various alleged early sightings of the monster, but argues that all other claims of monster sightings prior to 1933 are highly dubious and do not prove that there was a tradition of the monster before this date. Modern interest in the monster was sparked by a sighting on 22 July 1933, when George Spicer and his wife saw 'a most extraordinary form of animal' cross the road in front of their car. They described the creature as having a large body (about 4 feet (1.2 m) high and 25 feet (7.6 m) long), and long, narrow neck, slightly thicker than an elephant's trunk and as long as the 10-12-foot (3-4 m) width of the road; the neck had undulations in it. They saw no limbs, possibly because of a dip in the road obscuring the animal's lower portion. It lurched across the road towards the loch 20 yards (20 m) away, leaving only a trail of broken undergrowth in its wake. In August 1933 a motorcyclist named Arthur Grant claimed to have nearly hit the creature while approaching Abriachan on the north-eastern shore, at about 1 a.m. on a moonlit night. Grant claimed that he saw a small head attached to a long neck, and that the creature saw him and crossed the road back into the loch. A veterinary student, he described it as a hybrid between a seal and a plesiosaur. Grant said he dismounted and followed it to the loch, but only saw ripples. Some believe this story was intended as a humorous explanation of a motorcycle accident. Sightings of the monster increased following the building of a road along the loch in early 1933, bringing both workmen and tourists to the formerly isolated area Sporadic land sightings continued until 1963, when film of the creature was shot in the loch from a distance of 4 kilometres. Because of the distance at which it was shot, it has been described as poor quality. In 1938, Inverness Shire Chief Constable William Fraser wrote a letter stating that it was beyond doubt the monster existed. His letter expressed concern regarding a hunting party that had arrived armed with a specially-made harpoon gun and were determined to catch the monster "dead or alive". He believed his power to protect the monster from the hunters was "very doubtful". The letter was released by the National Archives of Scotland on 27 April 2010. In May 1943, C. B. Farrel of the Royal Observer Corps was supposedly distracted from his duties by a Nessie sighting. He claimed to have been about 250 yards (230 m) away from a large-eyed, 'finned' creature, which had a 20-to-30-foot (6 to 9 m) long body, and a neck that protruded about 4-5 feet (1.2-1.5 m) out of the water In December 1954 a strange sonar contact was made by the fishing boat Rival III. The vessel's crew observed sonar readings of a large object keeping pace with the boat at a depth of 480 feet (146 m). It was detected traveling for half a mile (800 m) in this manner, before contact was lost, but then found again later. Many sonar attempts had been made previously, but most were either inconclusive or negative. On 12 November 1933, Hugh Gray was walking along the loch after church when he spotted a substantial commotion in the water. A large creature rose up from the lake. Gray took several pictures of it, but only one of them showed up after they were developed. This image appeared to show a creature with a long tail and thick body at the surface of the loch. The image is blurred suggesting the animal was splashing. Four stumpy-looking objects on the bottom of the creature's body might possibly be a pair of appendages, such as flippers. Although critics have claimed that the photograph is of a dog swimming towards the camera (possibly carrying a stick), researcher Roland Watson rejects this interpretation and suggests there is an eel-like head on the right side of the image. This picture is the first known image allegedly taken of the Loch Ness Monster. The "Surgeon's Photograph" purported to be the first photo of a "head and neck". Dr. Wilson claimed he was looking at the loch when he saw the monster, so grabbed his camera and snapped five photos. After the film was developed, only two exposures were clear. The first photo (the more publicized one) shows what was claimed to be a small head and back. The second one, a blurry image, attracted little publicity because it was difficult to interpret what was depicted. The image was revealed as a fake in The Sunday Telegraph dated 7 December 1975. Supposedly taken by Robert Kenneth Wilson, a London gynaecologist, it was published in the Daily Mail on 21 April 1934. Wilson's refusal to have his name associated with the photograph led to it being called "Surgeon's Photograph". The strangely small ripples on the photo fit the size and circular pattern of small ripples as opposed to large waves when photographed up close. Analysis of the original uncropped image fostered further doubt. In 1993, the makers of Discovery Communications's documentary Loch Ness Discovered analysed the uncropped image and found a white object was visible in every version of the photo, implying it was on the negative. It was believed to be the cause of the ripples, as if the object was being towed, though it could not be ruled out as a blemish in the negative. Additionally, one analysis of the full photograph revealed the object was quite small, only about 60 to 90 cm (2 to 3 ft) long. However, analyses of the size of the photograph have been inconsistent. In 1979 it was claimed to be a picture of an elephant (see below). Other sceptics in the 1980s argued the photo was that of an otter or a diving bird, but after Christian Spurling's confession most agree it was what Spurling claimed - a toy submarine with a sculpted head attached. Details of how the photo was accomplished were published in the 1999 book, Nessie - the Surgeon's Photograph Exposed, that contains a facsimile of the 1975 article in The Sunday Telegraph. Essentially, it was a toy submarine bought from F.W. Woolworths with a head and neck made of plastic wood, built by Christian Spurling, the son-in-law of Marmaduke Wetherell, a big game hunter who had been publicly ridiculed in the Daily Mail, the newspaper that employed him. Spurling claimed that to get revenge, Marmaduke Wetherell committed the hoax, with the help of Chris Spurling (a sculpture specialist), his son Ian Marmaduke, who bought the material for the fake, and Maurice Chambers (an insurance agent), who asked surgeon Robert Kenneth Wilson to offer the pictures to the Daily Mail. The hoax story is disputed by Henry Bauer, who claims this debunking is evidence of bias, and asks why the perpetrators did not reveal their plot earlier to embarrass the newspaper. Tim Dinsdale also disputes the claim of this photograph as a hoax in his book Loch Ness Monster. He claims that he studied the photograph so often and from many different angles that he was able to discern objects that prove the photograph is not a hoax. He states "upon really close examination, there are certain rather obscure features in the picture which have a profound significance." Two of the obscure features are: a solid object breaking the surface to the right of the neck, and to the left and behind the neck there is another mark of some sort, Dinsdale states. After making this claim Dinsdale discusses that these objects are too hard to identify, but that just proves that they could be part of the monster. According to Dinsdale either the objects are part of a very subtle fake or genuinely part of the monster. Another object that he points out to prove the photograph is not a fake is the vague smaller ripples that are behind the neck, which seem to have been caused after the neck broke the surface. Dinsdale emphatically states that this is a part of the animal underwater behind the neck. His reasons suggest that it is possible that the photograph is not a fake. Alastair Boyd, one of the researchers who uncovered the hoax, argues that the Loch Ness Monster is real, and that although the famous photo was hoaxed, that does not mean that all the photos, eyewitness reports, and footage of the monster were as well. He asserts that he too had a sighting and also argues that the hoaxed photo is not a good reason to dismiss eyewitness reports and other evidence. In 1938, G. E. Taylor, a South African tourist, filmed something in the loch for three minutes on 16 mm color film, which was in the possession of Maurice Burton. Burton refused to show the film to Loch Ness investigators (such as Peter Costello or the Loch Ness Investigation Bureau). A single frame was published in his book The Elusive Monster; before he retired. Roy P. Mackal, a biologist and cryptozoologist, declared the frame was "positive evidence". Later, it was shown also to the National Institute of Oceanography, now known as the National Oceanography Centre, Southampton. In 1960, aeronautical engineer Tim Dinsdale filmed a hump crossing the water leaving a powerful wake. Dinsdale allegedly spotted the animal on his last day hunting for it, and described the object as reddish with a blotch on its side. When he mounted his camera the object started to move and said that he shot 40 feet of film. JARIC declared that the object was "probably animate". Others were sceptical, saying that the "hump" cannot be ruled out as being a boat, and claimed that when the contrast is increased a man can be seen in a boat. In 1993 Discovery Communications made a documentary called Loch Ness Discovered that featured a digital enhancement of the Dinsdale film. A computer expert who enhanced the film noticed a shadow in the negative that was not very obvious in the positive. By enhancing and overlaying frames, he found what appeared to be the rear body of a creature underwater. He commented that "Before I saw the film, I thought the Loch Ness Monster was a load of rubbish. Having done the enhancement, I'm not so sure". Some have countered this finding by saying that the angle of the film from the horizontal along with sun's angle on that day made shadows underwater unlikely. Others pointed out that the darker water is undisturbed water that was only coincidentally shaped like body. The same source also says that there might be a smaller object (hump or head) in front of the hump causing this. On 26 May 2007, Gordon Holmes, a 55-year-old lab technician, captured video of what he said was "this jet black thing, about 45 feet (14 m) long, moving fairly fast in the water." Adrian Shine, a marine biologist at the Loch Ness 2000 centre in Drumnadrochit, described the footage as among "the best footage he has ever seen." BBC Scotland broadcast the video on 29 May 2007. STV News' North Tonight aired the footage on 28 May 2007 and interviewed Holmes. In this feature, Adrian Shine of the Loch Ness Centre was also interviewed and suggested that the footage showed an otter, seal or water bird. Holmes's credibility has been doubted by an article on the Cryptomundo website, which states that he has a history of reporting sightings of cryptozoological creatures, and sells a self-published book and DVD claiming evidence for fairies. His video also has no other objects for size comparison. The MonsterQuest team investigated this video as well in their TV episode "Death of Loch Ness", where they examine evidence that Nessie has died, as well as other photos. In this documentary, Holmes asserts he spotted two creatures. A CNN news report showed the footage and an interview with Gordon Holmes. Joe Nickell has suggested that this footage shows one or more otters, swimming in the loch. On 24 August 2011, Marcus Atkinson, a local Loch Ness boat skipper, photographed a sonar image of a long 5 ft wide unidentified object which was apparently following his boat for two minutes at a depth of 75 ft. Atkinson ruled out the possibility of any small fish or seal being what he believed to be the Loch Ness Monster. In April 2012, a scientist from the National Oceanography Centre said that this image is a bloom of algae and zooplankton. However, Roland Watson, a cryptozoologist and Loch Ness Monster researcher, has criticized this analysis, stating that the object in the image is very unlikely to be a bloom of algae and zooplankton, since algae needs sunlight to grow, and the waters of Loch Ness are very dark, and nearly devoid of sunlight, 75 feet down. On 3 August 2012, skipper George Edwards published a photograph he claims to be "The most convincing Nessie photograph ever", which he claimed to have taken on 2 November 2011. Edwards' photograph consists in a hump out of the water which, according to him, remained so for five to ten minutes. The Daily Mail reports that Edward had the photograph independently verified by specialists such as a Loch Ness Monster sighting devotee and a group of US military monster experts. Edwards spends 60 hours per week on the loch aboard his boat, Nessie Hunter IV, in which he takes tourists for a ride on the lake, and claims to have searched for the Loch Ness monster for 26 years. Said Edwards, "In my opinion, it probably looks kind of like a manatee, but not a mammal. When people see three humps, they’re probably just seeing three separate monsters." However, other researchers of the Loch Ness phenomena have questioned the authenticity of the photograph. A subsequent investigation by Loch Ness researcher, Steve Feltham, suggests that the object in the water is in fact a fibreglass hump used previously in a National Geographic documentary which Edwards had participated in. Researcher Dick Raynor has also questioned Edward's claims about finding a deeper bottom to Loch Ness, which he refers to as "Edwards Deep". He also found inconsistencies between Edwards' claims of the location and conditions of the photograph and the actual location and weather conditions of that day. Additionally, Raynor also stated that Edwards had previously told him he had faked a photograph in 1986, which he had promoted as genuine in the National Geographic documentary. Loch Ness Monster? Skipper George Edwards Has 'Best Ever' Shot Of Elusive Nessie Huffington Post - March 8, 2012 A sailor who has spent 26 years searching for the Loch Ness Monster has what he believes is the best ever picture taken of the elusive beast. George Edwards spends around 60 hours a week patrolling the famous loch, taking tourists out on his boat Nessie Hunter IV, and has led numerous hunts for the fabled created over the years. But this image is the one that's convinced him that there really is a monster or even monsters - out there. It shows a mysterious dark hump moving in the water towards Urquhart Castle. Having read the book by Gould, Edward Mountain decided to finance a proper watch. Twenty men with binoculars and cameras positioned themselves around the Loch from 9 am to 6 pm, for five weeks starting 13 July 1934. They took 21 photographs, though none was considered conclusive. Captain James Fraser was employed as a supervisor, and remained by the Loch afterwards, taking cine film (which is now lost) on 15 September 1934. When viewed by zoologists and professors of natural history it was concluded that it showed a seal, possibly a grey seal. The Loch Ness Phenomena Investigation Bureau (LNPIB) was a UK-based society formed in 1962 by Norman Collins, R. S. R. Fitter, David James, MP, Peter Scott and Constance Whyte "to study Loch Ness to identify the creature known as the Loch Ness Monster or determine the causes of reports of it." It later shortened the name to Loch Ness Investigation Bureau (LNIB). It closed in 1972. The society had an annual subscription charge, which covered administration. Its main activity was for groups of self-funded volunteers to watch the loch from various vantage points, equipped with cine cameras with telescopic lenses. From 1965 to 1972 it had a caravan camp and main watching platform at Achnahannet, and sent observers to other locations up and down the loch. According to the 1969 Annual Report of the Bureau, it had 1,030 members, of whom 588 were from the UK. Professor D. Gordon Tucker, chairman of the Department of Electronic and Electrical Engineering at the University of Birmingham, England, volunteered his services as a sonar developer and expert at Loch Ness in 1968. The gesture was part of a larger effort helmed by the LNPIB from 1967 to 1968 and involved collaboration between volunteers and professionals in various fields. Tucker had chosen Loch Ness as the test site for a prototype sonar transducer with a maximum range of 800 m (2,600 ft). The device was fixed underwater at Temple Pier in Urquhart Bay and directed towards the opposite shore, effectively drawing an acoustic 'net' across the width of Ness through which no moving object could pass undetected. During the two-week trial in August, multiple animate targets 6 m (20 ft) in length were identified ascending from and diving to the loch bottom. Analysis of diving profiles ruled out air-breathers because the targets never surfaced or moved shallower than midwater. A brief press release by LNPIB and associates touched on the sonar data and drew to a close the 1968 effort. The answer to the question of whether or not unusual phenomena exist in Loch Ness, Scotland, and if so, what their nature might be, was advanced a step forward during 1968, as a result of sonar experiments conducted by a team of scientists under the direction of D. Gordon Tucker... Professor Tucker reported that his fixed beam sonar made contact with large moving objects sometimes reaching speeds of at least 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph). He concluded that the objects are clearly animals and ruled out the possibility that they could be ordinary fish. He stated: "The high rate of ascent and descent makes it seem very unlikely that they could be fish, and fishery biologists we have consulted cannot suggest what fish they might be. It is a temptation to suppose they might be the fabulous Loch Ness monsters, now observed for the first time in their underwater activities!" In 1969 Andrew Carroll, field researcher for the New York Aquarium in New York City, proposed a mobile sonar scan operation at Loch Ness. The project was funded by the Griffis foundation (named for Nixon Griffis, then a director of the aquarium). This was the tail-end (and most successful portion) of the LNPIB's 1969 effort involving submersibles with biopsy harpoons. The trawling scan, in Carroll's research launch Rangitea, took place in October. One sweep of the loch made contact with a strong, animate echo for nearly three minutes just north of Foyers. The identity of the contact remains a mystery. Later analysis determined that the intensity of the returning echo was twice as great as that expected from a 10-foot (3 m) pilot whale. On returning to the University of Chicago, biologist Roy Mackal and colleagues subjected the sonar data to greater scrutiny and confirmed dimensions of 20 feet (6 m). Earlier submersible work had yielded dismal results. Under the sponsorship of World Book Encyclopedia, pilot Dan Taylor deployed the Viperfish at Loch Ness on 1 June 1969. His dives were plagued by technical problems and produced no new data. The Deep Star III built by General Dynamics and an unnamed two-man submersible built by Westinghouse were scheduled to sail but never did. It was only when the Pisces arrived at Ness that the LNPIB obtained new data. Owned by Vickers, Ltd., the submersible had been rented out to produce The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes, a film featuring a dummy Loch Ness Monster. When the dummy monster broke loose from the Pisces during filming and sank to the bottom of the loch, Vickers executives capitalised on the loss and 'monster fever' by allowing the sub to do a bit of exploring. During one of these excursions, the Pisces picked up a large moving object on sonar 200 feet (60 m) ahead and 50 feet (15 m) above the bottom of the loch. Slowly the pilot closed to half that distance but the echo moved rapidly out of sonar range and disappeared. During the so-called "Big Expedition" of 1970, Roy Mackal, a biologist who taught for 20 years at the University of Chicago, devised a system of hydrophones (underwater microphones) and deployed them at intervals throughout the loch. In early August a hydrophone assembly was lowered into Urquhart Bay and anchored in 700 feet (210 m) of water. Two hydrophones were secured at depths of 300 and 600 feet (180 m). After two nights of recording, the tape (sealed inside a 44 gallon drum along with the system's other sensitive components) was retrieved and played before an excited LNPIB. "Bird-like chirps" had been recorded, and the intensity of the chirps on the deep hydrophone suggested they had been produced at greater depth. In October "knocks" and "clicks" were recorded by another hydrophone in Urquhart Bay, indicative of echolocation. These sounds were followed by a "turbulent swishing" suggestive of the tail locomotion of a large aquatic animal. The knocks, clicks and resultant swishing were believed were the sounds of an animal echo-locating prey before moving in for the kill. The noises stopped whenever craft passed along the surface of the loch near the hydrophone, and resumed once the craft reached a safe distance. In previous experiments, it was observed that call intensities were greatest at depths less than 100 feet (30 m). Members of the LNPIB decided to attempt communication with the animals producing the calls by playing back previously recorded calls into the water and listening via hydrophone for results, which varied greatly. At times the calling patterns or intensities changed, but sometimes there was no change at all. Mackal noted that there was no similarity between the recordings and the hundreds of known sounds produced by aquatic animals. Robert Rines Britain as a cryptozoologist used some of his inventions to try to prove the existence of the Loch Ness Monster Telegraph.co.uk - November 4, 2009 In the early 1970s, a group of people led by Robert H. Rines obtained some underwater photographs. Two were rather vague images, perhaps of a rhomboid flipper (though others have dismissed the image as air bubbles or a fish fin). The alleged flipper was photographed in different positions, indicating movement. On the basis of these photographs, British naturalist Peter Scott announced in 1975 that the scientific name of the monster would henceforth be Nessiteras rhombopteryx (Greek for "The Ness monster with diamond-shaped fin"). Scott intended that this would enable Nessie to be added to a British register of officially protected wildlife. Scottish politician Nicholas Fairbairn pointed out that the name was an anagram for "Monster hoax by Sir Peter S". The underwater photos were reportedly obtained by painstakingly examining the loch depths with sonar for unusual underwater activity. Rines knew the water was murky and filled with floating wood and peat, so he took precautions to avoid it. A submersible camera with an affixed, high-powered flood light was deployed to record images below the surface. If he detected anything on the sonar, he would turn the lights on and take some pictures. Several of the photographs, despite their obviously murky quality, did indeed seem to show an animal resembling a plesiosaur in various positions and lightings. One photograph appeared to show the head, neck and upper torso of a plesiosaur-like animal. After two distinct sonar contacts were made, the strobe light camera photographed two large lumps in the water, suggesting there to be two large animals living in the loch. Another photo seemed to depict a horned "gargoyle head", consistent to that of several sightings of the monster. Sceptics point out that several years later, a log was filmed underwater which bore a striking resemblance to the gargoyle head. A few close-ups of what might be the creature's diamond-shaped fin were taken, with the "fin" in different positions, as though the creature was moving, but after some time it came to be known that the "flipper photograph" was highly enhanced and retouched compared with the original image. The Museum of Hoaxes shows the original unenhanced photo. Team member Charles Wyckoff claimed that someone retouched the photo to superimpose the flipper, and that the original enhancement showed a much smaller flipper. No one is sure how the original came to be altered. On 8 August 1972, Rines' Raytheon DE-725C sonar unit, operating at a frequency of 200 kHz and anchored at a depth of 35 feet (11 m), identified a moving target (or targets) estimated by echo strength to be 20 to 30 feet (6 to 9 m) in length. Specialists from Raytheon, Simrad (now Kongsberg Maritime), and Hydroacoustics, Inc.; Marty Klein of MIT and Klein Associates (a producer of side scan sonar); and Dr. Ira Dyer of MIT's Department of Ocean Engineering were all on hand to examine the data. Further, P. Skitzki of Raytheon suggested that the data showed a protuberance, 10 feet (3 m) in length, projecting from one of the echoes. Mackal proposed that the shape was a "highly flexible laterally flattened tail" or the misinterpreted return from two animals swimming together. In 2001, the Robert Rines' Academy of Applied Science videoed a powerful V-shaped wake traversing the still water on a calm day. The AAS also videotaped an object on the floor of the loch resembling a carcass, found marine clam-shells and a fungus-like organism not normally found in fresh water lochs, which they suggest gives some connection to the sea and a possible entry for Nessie. In 2008, Rines theorized that the monster may have become extinct, citing the lack of significant sonar readings and a decline in eyewitness accounts. Rines undertook one last expedition to look for remains of the monster, using sonar and underwater camera in an attempt to find a carcass. Rines believed that the animals may have failed to adapt to temperature changes as a result of global warming. In 1987, Operation Deepscan took place. Twenty-four boats equipped with echosounder equipment were deployed across the whole width of the loch and they simultaneously sent out acoustic waves. BBC News reported that the scientists had made sonar contact with a large unidentified object of unusual size and strength. The researchers decided to return to the same spot and re-scan the area. After analysing the echosounder images, it seemed to point to debris at the bottom of the loch, although three of the pictures were of moving debris. Shine speculates that they could be seals that got into the loch, since they would be of about the same magnitude as the objects detected. Darrell Lowrance, sonar expert and founder of Lowrance Electronics, donated a number of echosounder units used during Operation Deepscan. After examining the echogram data, specifically a sonar return revealing a large moving object near Urquhart Bay at a depth of 600 feet (180 m), Lowrance said: "There's something here that we don't understand, and there's something here that's larger than a fish, maybe some species that hasn't been detected before. I don't know." In 1993 Discovery Communications began to research the ecology of the loch. The study did not focus entirely on the monster, but on the loch's nematodes (of which a new species was discovered) and fish. Expecting to find a small fish population, the researchers caught twenty fish in one catch, increasing previous estimates of the loch's fish population about ninefold. Using sonar, the team encountered a kind of underwater disturbance (called a seiche) due to stored energy (such as from a wind) causing an imbalance between the loch's warmer and colder layers (known as the thermocline). While reviewing printouts of the event the next day, they found what appeared to be three sonar contacts, each followed by a powerful wake. These events were later shown on a program called Loch Ness Discovered, in conjunction with analyses and enhancements of the 1960 Dinsdale Film, the Surgeon's Photo, and the Rines Flipper Photo. In 2003, the BBC sponsored a full search of the Loch using 600 separate sonar beams and satellite tracking. The search had enough resolution to pick up a small buoy. No animal of any substantial size was found whatsoever and despite high hopes, the scientists involved in the expedition admitted that this essentially proved the Loch Ness monster was only a myth. A variety of explanations have been postulated over the years to account for sightings of the Loch Ness Monster. These may be categorized as: misidentifications of common animals; misidentifications of inanimate objects or effects; reinterpretations of traditional Scottish folklore; hoaxes; and exotic species of large animals. Most accounts of Nessie's appearance, including historical ones, indicate a creature resembling the long-extinct plesiosaur. Actual fossil evidence for this Mesozoic creature shows it to have been physically large, with a long neck and tiny head, with flippers for propulsion. The alleged connection of this creature with the Loch Ness monster has made it a popular topic in the field of cryptozoology. However, most scientists suggest the idea that the Loch Ness Monster is a remnant of the Mesozoic era is highly unlikely; there would need to be a breeding colony of such creatures for there to have been any long-term survival, and coupled with the fact that plesiosaurs needed to surface to breathe, this would result in far more frequent sightings than have actually been reported (some animals, such as crocodiles, that need to breathe air intermittently, can stay underwater for extended periods of time by remaining still and conserving its oxygen supply). Many biologists also argue Loch Ness is not large or productive enough to support even a small family of these creatures. Moreover, the loch was created as the result of geologically recent glaciation and was frozen solid during recent ice-ages. Other sightings, however, do not fit the plesiosaur description or even a water-bound creature: In April 1923, Alfred Cruickshank claimed to have seen a creature 3 m to 3.5 m long, with an arched back and four elephant-like feet cross the road before him as he was driving. Other sightings report creatures more similar to camels or horses. Theories as to the exact nature of the Loch Ness Monster sightings are varied: pareidolia or misidentification of seals, fish, logs, mirages, seiches, and light distortion, crossing of boat wakes, or unusual wave patterns. Very large sturgeon have been found in inland streams close to Loch Ness, and due to sturgeons' size and unusual appearance, one could easily be mistaken for a monster by someone not familiar with it. A recent theory postulates that the "monster" is actually nothing more than bubbling and disruptions in the water caused by minor volcanic activity at the bottom of the loch. This latter argument is supported to a minor degree by a correlation between tectonic motion and reported sightings. Some researchers, notably John Keel, F.W. Holiday, A. Winchester Beebe (otherwise known as the Buffalo musician Nikki Christmas), and Jon-Erik Beckjord, postulate that there are no anomalous physical creatures within the loch. Because of the complete absence of physical evidence, these researchers argue that many of the reported sightings can be attributed to hoaxes or misidentification of conventional creatures and objects. They also argue that a small residue of reported Loch sightings could be paranormal, or supernatural in nature, i.e., having a temporal semi-physical construction, similar to other anomalous phenomena such as Bigfoot and UFOs. The Loch Ness monster is nothing more than BUBBLES: Italian scientist claims Nessie is simply a geological phenomenon Mail Online - July 1, 2013 An Italian geologist has claimed that sightings of Nessie in the dark waters of Loch Ness are the simply result of bubbles caused by geological forces. Dr Luigi Piccardi believes that there is no shy and ancient monster residing in Scotland's most famous Loch. Popular opinion is divided about whether a surviving plesiosaur lives in Loch Ness or whether the modern myth of the monster is the result of a string of elaborate hoaxes. The geologist, from the Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche in Florence, said that historical descriptions of the monster often include details of the earth shaking. He believes that his theory can be applied to over 3,500 Nessie sightings. The Loch Ness Monster: It's Scotland's Fault Live Science - July 1, 2013 The infamous Loch Ness monster often appears, according to legend, accompanied by Earth tremors and swirling bubbles from the Scottish lake of the same name. However, at least one researcher believes the shaking ground and bubbles aren't signs of a monster but rather an active fault underlying Loch Ness and other nearby lakes. Italian geologist Luigi Piccardi credits the Great Glen fault system for reported sightings of the legendary beast, Scientific American reports. Piccardi also claims that alleged Loch Ness monster sightings have coincided with periods of seismic activity. "We know that this was a period [1920-1930] with increased activity of the fault. In reality, people have seen the effects of the earthquakes on the water. Loch Ness Monster Wikipedia PHYSICAL SCIENCES INDEX ALPHABETICAL INDEX OF ALL FILES CRYSTALINKS HOME PAGE PSYCHIC READING WITH ELLIE 2012 THE ALCHEMY OF TIME

CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA – “Man vs. Wild” star Bear Grylls was airlifted out of Antarctica over the weekend after sustaining a shoulder injury. The Discovery Channel issued a press release saying only that Grylls was not filming for the popular TV show, and that he is on his way home to the UK for treatment. There was no explanation for why he was in Antarctica or how he was injured. However, Weekly World News has obtained an exclusive interview with one of Grylls’ travel companions, as well as a photo revealing the star’s adversary: a yeti! According to Mr. Steven Vacchs, wildlife photographer, a small group had traveled into the Antarctic wasteland with Grylls to promote the use of alternative energy, such as solar-powered base camps and bioethanol powered jet skis. While on a break, Grylls decided to entertain the crew by digging up a seal corpse to point out the different parts they could eat. Due to it being frozen solid, Grylls reverted to beating it on a nearby rock to try and get at the blubber inside. Unbeknownst to Grylls, a nearby yeti became infuriated by his waste of the precious cryptid’s main food source and charged at the survivalist. The two tussled for the better part of ten minutes. Grylls commanded the crew film the fight, during which he gave helpful tips on yeti behavior while dodging its vicious claws. He also managed to remove his shirt at some point and repeatedly aimed his six-pack at the camera. The yeti finally tired and loped off, clearly unimpressed with the British adventurer’s skills and physique. Only then did Grylls allow the crew to carry him back to the base camp to be airlifted away. Vacchs provided notes in Grylls’ handwriting of his plans to release the video as a Discovery Channel special, with possible titles: Man vs. Yeti Ultimate Cryptid Championship (UCC)

Creeping deep into the dark woods at 3 a.m. was old hat for Mark Hudak, 45, of Clinton, Ohio. An avid bow hunter, Hudak often began hunting long before daylight. So 11 years ago, when Hudak got an opportunity to hunt on more than 2,000 acres of private land with his brother and two friends near Barnesville, he was ecstatic. Little did Hudak know, but he and his hunting partners were about to experience a frightening encounter they would never forget. "It started out that we heard some owls hooting at us. Well, that is normal, so we didn't think nothing of it," said Hudak. SOSBI member John Veal photographs and investigates a giant tree that has been split down the center and arranged symmetrically around the base. Strange tree formations, many of which display signs of symmetry and would have required super human strength to create, are often seen as physical evidence of bigfoot’s existence. JASMINE ROGERS The Marietta Times But as the men continued walking, they noticed that the owl sounds emanating from both sides of them were getting closer. Not only that, but every time the group stopped, so did the hoots. "We continued down the ridge, and one of these critters screamed at us," said Hudak. Then a low growl started and crescendoed louder and louder. Story continues below The Southeastern Ohio Society for Bigfoot Investigation, or SOSBI, meets every other month at the Crossroads Branch of the Guernsey County Public Library and attempts to have three or four campouts a year. The next SOSPI meeting will take place at 7 p.m. Nov. 3. The society's mission is to give people a forum to share their experiences and talk freely without fear of judgment. The group's last camp out took place over the weekend of Oct. 5 at Salt Fork State Park, where many bigfoot sightings have been reported. More information on the group can be found at the Southeastern Ohio Society for Bigfoot Investigation Facebook page. "We finally noticed that something else was not right. Not a single other animal was making noise anymore. No nighttime sounds. Now if you're a hunter, you'll know how weird that it," said Hudak. With the absence of nighttime sounds, Hudak and his partners could finally hear what they had not yet noticed - footsteps. It became very apparent that Hudak and his companions were not dealing with owls. But whatever they were dealing with was most certainly following the hunters. "I would almost compare them to a Navy Seal team the way they flanked us," he added. Too scared to flee back to the car or to hunt, Hudak and his team waited out the night in the woods. It was not until 11 a.m. that morning that the birds began chirping and the noises of the forest restarted. Though he and his comrades never saw the creatures, Hudak said he knew they had just encountered creatures popularly known as bigfoot. The legend of bigfoot stretches far back into folklore, and tales of its existence are told in every continent except Antarctica. Described as a mix between a human and a gorilla, most accounts put bigfoot somewhere upwards of seven feet tall and likely weighing more than 500 pounds. The name bigfoot derives from the large footprints that have been attributed to the creature, which can measure up to 24 inches long. Though he had been interested in bigfoot as a child, Hudak thought bigfoot sightings were confined to the Pacific Northwest. However, bigfoot sighting are actually spread throughout the U.S., with a large concentration occurring in Ohio. Since his encounter with the Ohio bigfoots, Hudak has been in search of answers. However, when Hudak started explaining his encounter to others, they began to ridicule him. "I learned to be really picky about who I talk to about it," said Hudak. That is why Hudak got involved with the Southeastern Ohio Society for Bigfoot Investigation, or SOSBI. "The group has no requirements, no membership fee. We provide a venue to come and open up," said SOSBI co-founder Doug Waller, 61, of Cambridge. It is a venue that has provided a haven for Hudak and many others. SOSBI members shared those stories and many others as they gathered at Salt Fork State Park this month for a weekend campout. Salt Fork State Park is a hot spot for bigfoot sightings, explained Waller. The park even has a camp sight named for the cryptid (a mysterious or unproven creature) and the Salt Fork Lodge hosts a well-attended annual Bigfoot Conference. Aside from sharing stories, members also share evidence they have collected or photographed. Waller has collected physical evidence of bigfoot's existence for years, including photographs of several tracks, both in the park and on private property. At the campout, Waller proudly displayed a cast of a 2-foot long footprint, which was donated to SOSBI by prominent bigfoot researcher Walter Tippie. The track was also evaluated and authenticated by Jeff Meldrum, a professor of Biological Sciences at Idaho State University. The idea that SOSBI encourages a judgment-free atmosphere is one of the things, John Veal, 44, of Johnstown, likes so well about the group. "They are very friendly. They are very welcoming to newcomers," said Veal. Veal became interested in bigfooting as a child in England. When he eventually transplanted to Ohio in 2003, he met Waller at Salt Fork's annual Bigfoot Conference and has been a SOSBI member ever since. Veal was interested in using the weekend to explore the woods for physical evidence, like tree formation and footprints. Strange tree formations, such as branches being knotted or large trees being twisted apart, are thought to be evidence of bigfoot activity. One tree that the group found during the last campout had been cracked high up, and its branches had been arranged into a tepee formation. Although it is possible a storm damaged the tree, it is unlikely because of the strange, perfectly symmetrical formation its debris shaped, said Veal. SOSBI member Tim Stover, 46, of Canton, is of the few members who says he has seen bigfoot with his own eyes.The experience, said Stover, changed his perspective forever. "Before this, I was the kind of person where I would have laughed at you if you said you had a bigfoot sighting," he said. Stover, who celebrated the 20th anniversary of his sighting this month, was bow hunting in Salt Fork in the wee hours of the morning when one of the creatures came out of the woods, he said. Just 30 yards away, the creature stared directly at Stover for several seconds before turning and disappearing into the woods. Even 12 feet high in a tree stand, Stover was scared of the creature who he estimated to be eight feet tall. "What really freaked me out was when he walked away, you could just see the muscles in his back rippling," he said. Stover said he gave up game hunting right then and there. Instead, he picked up bigfoot investigating in its place. Many of the bigfoot sightings inside of Salt Fork are by hunters. In fact, Stover estimated 90 percent of people who have a sighting are not expecting one. Dave Nowakowski, 52, of Garfield Heights said he never steps foot in Salt Fork without experiencing some sort of strange activity. Nowakowski picked up his friend, 19-year-old Mike Fonte, of Akron on his way to the weekend campout. The two trekked into the woods that Friday afternoon to set up a deer camera in hopes of catching a bigfoot on camera. "A lot of mythical creatures have been proven to exist," said Fonte, pointing to the giant squid as an example. Like many bigfoot investigators, Fonte and Nowakowski think it is only a matter of time before bigfoot can be proven conclusively to exist. "You've got all kinds of technology today that you never had before," said Nowakowski. Like many modern bigfooters, Nowakowski chronicles many of his investigative outings on film. The internet has made sharing films and information about sightings much faster and more widely available. As the popularity of bigfoot investigation has risen, some of the stigma associated with believing in the creature has dissipated, said SOSBI co-founder Shawna Parks, 37, of Caldwell. "I think the TV program is encouraging more people to come forward with their experiences," she said. Parks is referring to the Animal Planet show "Finding Bigfoot" on which Stover's encounter was featured. Parks also brought her 13-year-old nephew, Cody, to the campout. Though new to bigfoot investigation, Cody said he was hopeful he would find something convincing. "With all the dense forests like in West Virginia and Ohio, it is possible something could stay hidden for a very long time," he said. Marietta resident Robert Schaffer, 64, read about the SOSBI outing in the paper. "I am an outdoors man. I want to prove to myself whether or not it is real," he said. In fact, most SOSBI members are not out to debate and change minds. Many of the investigations are personal missions. "For me, I am not trying to convince anybody that this exists. I am just trying to see it for myself," said Veal.

posted on Sep, 1 2013 @ 09:13 PM I like shows looking for unknown or unusual animals. Monster Quest has a few good episodes and River Monsters rocks. So I am not a hater from the I have been watching a few episodes of Mountain Monsters. If you haven't seen it, a group of West Virginians tries to hunt down and trap every spooky critter said to be roaming the hills. The Mothman, Wampus Beast, Wolfman, etc. They build traps and try to drive the elusive creatures into it at night. Daytime will not work for some reason. Apparently where these guys live is Cryptid Central as there is no shortage of monsters stalking the poor hill folk. Yeah, it is entertainment and the American public must love stereotypical hillbillies running a-muck in the wilderness at night chasing beasties. The show has been signed for a second season and is very popular. Zeke and Cletus building Scooby-Doo traps must resonate with the audience. Of course the crafty antagonists never get caught (although I think they did catch some Devil Dogs - whatever they are - at least they had their feet on film). I do not want to call the show an outright fake as that might burst some bubbles and that is not what this is about. My question is: Why? If there are so many unknown animals out there (science discovers them all the time), why does the public spoon up this nonsense? Did this show idea focus-group better? Are "real" monsters boring? Does it simply feel better to feed the notion that those who think there is still something unknown must be a knuckle-dragging mouth breather? Am I on my own on this one? Is my bar too high?

We all know what a cryptid is, don’t we? Well we should look it up, then! This cannot be accurate: why would I not have been the Kraken? Obviously there’s a flaw in the code! You scored as Nessie (Loch Ness Monster). You are Nessie. You are a highly sought after cryptid that loves the water. A skeleton of you has finally been found at Loch Ness, which is your home. Your cousin Ogopogo lives in Lake Okanagan in Canada. You scored as El Zorro. Zorro is the bane of the corrupt officials of Old California, a Spanish Robin Hood, a cavalier caballero who robs from the rich, gives to the poor, and always leaves his trademark “Z” behind as a reminder that when the people need him, he will always appear on his black stallion. Hymns of the 49th Parallel is possibly the most perfect album Canada has ever produced, and this two-song promotional video may just be beautiful enough to do it justice. I’ve followed kd lang since she was a two-bit Edith Prickley impersonator bopping around on Tommy Hunter‘s show [originally wrote “bopping around on Tommy Hunter” but realized that, to non-Canadians, this would give entirely the wrong impression!] and her voice has just gotten better over time. This lovely black and white video brings these two lovely and contemplative songs to life in a uniquely Canadian way. I hope you like them (if you can’t hear them, go somewhere you can; don’t just sit there!). Looks like YouTube got their caca together and fixed itself right on time; if it had been otherwise, I could never have brought you the following unique treasure, this retsina for your retinas, this Everclear for your eyeballs, this sulphuric acid for your synapses. Ladies and gentlemen, behold the great Mahatma Gandhi, one of the 20th Century’s most inspiring and important figures, stripping and making sweet, sweet love to the pole, for your sick pleasure.

Latest Extinction Stories Hundreds of species across Europe are under threat of extinction in a 'crisis of biodiversity', according to European Union Environment Commissioner Janez Potocnik. An ecosystem is like a great organism in that the species in it behave in a manner similar to the manner in which cells behave within the human body: the group forms a permanent entity, although the entities that form it are constantly being substituted. The end-Permian extinction, by far the most dramatic biological crisis to affect life on Earth, may not have been as catastrophic for some creatures as previously thought. Extinction of fishes 360 million years ago created natural ecology experiment. Amphibian declines around the world have forced many species to the brink of extinction, are much more complex than realized and have multiple causes that are still not fully understood, researchers conclude in a new report. Animal and bird species found only on a single island should still be common within that island. Both migration and evolution played a role in the adaptation of shootingstars to warmer temperatures after the last ice age. The phrase "invasive plant species" typically evokes negative images such as broad swaths of kudzu smothered trees along the highway or purple loosestrife taking over wetlands and clogging waterways—and as such, invasive plants are largely viewed as major threats to native biodiversity. A new index has been developed to help conservationists better understand how close species are to extinction. The "color" of our environment is becoming "bluer", a change that could have important implications for animals' risk of becoming extinct, ecologists have found. The Hawaiian Rail (Porzana sandwichensis), known also as the Hawaiian Crake or the Hawaiian Spotted Rail, was a rather enigmatic species of minuscule rail that resided on Big Island of Hawaii, but is currently extinct. A dark form and a lighter form are known. There is considerable confusion by the existence of two distinct forms. While it can’t be completely excluded that early specimens were collected on another island, only O’ahu and Kaua’I seem plausible given the history of... The Waitoreke is a cryptid from New Zealand described as being otter-like. Its name derived from “Wai” is a Maori word for water. The rest of the word has different translations, but the common one is “toreke,” which means to disappear. Together the name could translate into “disappears into water” or another translation is a “disappearing water specter.” The usual description is a small otter-like creature about the size of a cat. It has brownish short fur and short... The Red Rail (Aphanapteryx bonasia) is an extinct and flightless rail. It was native to the Mascarene island of Mauritius, east of Madagascar within the Indian Ocean. It had a close relative on Rodrigues Island, the likewise extinct Rodrigues Rail, with which it’s sometimes considered congeneric. Its relationship with other rail isn’t clear. Rails frequently evolve flightlessness when adapting to isolated islands. It was slightly larger than a chicken and had reddish and hair-like... Commonly known as the Eurasian cave lion or the European cave lion, Panthera leo spelaea is an extinct subspecies of lion. It is thought to have lived during the Pleistocene epoch, and may have lived in the Balkans in southeastern Europe until 2,000 years ago. The range of this cave lion would have included northwestern North America, Asia, and areas of Europe and would have extended from Germany, Spain, and Great Britain to the Yukon Territory. Its range also extended from Turkistan to... The short-faced bear is an extinct genus of bears that was native to North America during the Pleistoscene era. Other common names include Arctodus and the bulldog bear. There are two subspecies of the short-faced bear, and one of them, Aroctodus simus, is thought to have been the largest terrestrial mammal on earth. Placed into a group of bears known as running bears or the tremarctine bears, this genus was found in Europe and the Americas. The earliest member of the tremarchtine group,... - A poem in which the author retracts something said in an earlier poem.

June 2010 Paranormal Underground You can purchase paper copies of the magazine via a Publish-on-Demand option by visiting http://paranormalunderground.magcloud.com/. At Paranormal Underground, our mission is to publish the highest-quality magazine for our readers. We strive to keep you updated on news from the paranormal world, as well as tackle the topics that most interest paranormal enthusiasts, researchers, and investigators. We hope you’ll find our publication entertaining and informative. To visit our Websites, go to www.paranormalunderground.net and www.ghostknightmedia.com. Paranormal Volume 3, Issue 6 Underground June 2010 TM Positively Psychic: Mark and Barbara Nelson Special Report: Famous Channelers Haunted History: Ghost Bus of Highway 93 Author Spotlight: Brian Haughton Are We Alone?: The Kingman UFO Also Inside: � � � � � Haunted Sites: Robert Lang Studios The Dover Demon Diary From a Haunted Hotel Equipment Update: Radio Shack Hack A Littlestown, PA, Remodel Stirs Up Paranormal Activity � TV Watch: Is It Real? 1 � June 2010 Paranormal Underground Time Editorial: One Theory on Spirit 2 Paranormal Underground June 2010 Inside This Issue FEATURES INVESTIGATOR SPOTLIGHT Positively Psychic: Mark and Barbara Nelson Investigate "The Unknown" 16 AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT Brian Haughton: Exploring History's Mysteries 22 SPECIAL REPORT Channel Surfing: Did God Really Talk to THAT Guy? 28 CASE FILES OF THE UNKNOWN Haunted Sites Robert Lang Studios: Where Rock and Roll Meets the Supernatural 32 36 38 40 Haunted History The Ghost Bus of Highway 93 Cryptids & Mythological Creatures The Dover Demon: Is It Real? DEPARTMENTS Contributors Ghost Hunter Comic Publisher's Letter From the Editor Calendar of Events Paranormal News TV Watch: Is It Real? Are We Alone? The Kingman UFO Crash of 1953 PERSONAL EXPERIENCES Diary From a Haunted Hotel Ghost Hunter Case Files: NEPA Paranormal Investigates an Unusual Haunting A Littlestown, PA, Remodel Stirs Up Paranormal Activity 44 46 50 4 5 6 9 10 12 14 60 62 3 Paranormal Perspective: Guest Editorial Spirit Time: The Timeframe of a Ghost 52 Reader Profile: Janet Wright Fiction: Featured Author "Where Memories Lie (Part IV of IV)" by Lettie Prell 54 Equipment Update: Radio Shack Hack Ghost Box June 2010 Paranormal Underground Contributors Heidi Ann Heidi Ann has been a paranormal enthusiast since childhood when she had her own encounter. Her personal experience led her to question the world around her. Heidi is a mother of three sons, works as a special education paraprofessional in a middle school, and loves watching television shows and reading books on the paranormal. a place haunted without concrete evidence," Katie said. Rick E. Hale A native of Chicago, Rick investigates with the McHenry County Paranormal Research Group. He writes a biweekly blog for www.paranormalunderground.net about his frequent investigations. A paranormal researcher since the age of eight, Rick is happily married and digs Jazz. He believes in the use of the scientific method in gathering evidence of paranormal claims. Rick can be contacted at t_seeker@ hotmail.com. Jason Ewen Jason has lived in Littlestown, Pennsylvania, (just south of Gettysburg) since he was five years old. Jason studied mortuary science in college. He currently works in the computer field. Jason has been married for nine years. On January 31, 2001, he moved into a house that dated back to the Civil War, and it was also used as part of the housing for the church that is down the block. Since moving into the house, Jason and his wife have experienced unexplainable phenomena. Paul Bottini Paul has written several eBooks about haunted sites, UFO sightings, and cryptid lore. When not writing, Paul travels the countryside in search of UFOs, hotspots of high strangeness, ethereal beasts, and anything remotely paranormal. Paul also designs Web graphics and animations. You can visit his MySpace page at www.myspace. com/zzyzxparanormal. Carolyn M. Hughes As a night manager in a haunted hotel on the Gettysburg battlefield, Carolyn has had ghostly experiences both at work and while on the battlefield. She considers the ghosts of the soldiers that haunt Gettysburg as `her boys.' Carolyn shares her experiences with Paranormal Underground in her column, Diary of a Haunted Hotel. Karen Frazier Karen is the managing editor of Paranormal Underground magazine. After living in a WWII-era apartment 20 years ago where unexplainable things happened, Karen began to search for answers about the paranormal. Now she combines that interest with her professional experience as a copy writer and technical writer to help bring Paranormal Underground to the public. Karen is a partner with Ghost Knight Media. Katie Christopher Katie is the cofounder and case manager for NEPA Paranormal, which was founded in December 2007 by Katie, along with fellow team members Bob, Mike, and Chantel. NEPA Paranormal is a group of paranormal investigators from the Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, area that covers North East Pennsylvania and surrounding areas. The team takes a scientific approach to the paranormal, and investigates homes and businesses with professional equipment. "We carry the mindset that the place is not haunted, and we will not deem Cheryl Knight Cheryl is editorin-chief of Paranormal Underground magazine. She has been a professional writer and editor for more than 20 years. Cheryl is combining her writing, editing, and design talents -- along with a fascination of the paranormal -- to bring you Paranormal Underground each month. Her previous magazine experience includes roles as senior and managing editor for several business publications. Cheryl is a partner for Ghost Knight Media. Terri J. Garofalo Terri is a paranormal investigator, as well as the author and illustrator of Entities-R-Us, a Ghost Hunter Comic. For more information, visit www. entities-r-us.com. 4 Paranormal Underground June 2010 Ghost Hunter Comic Michelle M. Pillow Michelle is an award-winning author writing in many romance fiction genres, including futuristic and paranormal. A skeptical believer, she has a fascination with anything paranormal. She's also a photographer and cohost of Raven Radio. Readers and listeners can contact Michelle through her Website, www. michellepillow.com. You can catch her latest three book series, Realm Immortal (King of the Unblessed; Faery Queen; and Stone Queen) in bookstores in January 2010. paranormal topic for www.suite101. com, an international ezine. Jill is the director and founder of FIRE-Psi, which was established in 1996. Lettie Prell Lettie Prell is the author of Dragon Ring (Flying Pen Press), which blends science fiction with paranormal elements. Her stories have appeared in Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine, The Lorelei Signal, the A Time To... anthology (volume 3), and elsewhere. Lettie has explored shamanism, numerology, lucid dreaming, and other intuitive work. You can learn more about Lettie at www. lettieprell.com. the paranormal, Randell decided to research other haunted places. He founded Van Alst Spirit Investigations in late 1999. Randell continues to research all levels of the afterlife, including residual hauntings, poltergeist activity, Spirit Photography, OBEs, NDEs, and exorcisms. He is a published author, including the book Ghosts in Reality: The Unexplained Truth About Hauntings in Our World Today. Chad Wilson A writer of articles and fiction, Chad is the publisher of Paranormal Underground and a partner for Ghost Knight Media (www. ghostknightmedia.com). He has parlayed his avid interest in the paranormal into a top-notch publication and Website -- Paranormal Underground. Chad has investigated with East Tennessee Paranormal Research Society and counts Waverly Hills, the Villisca Axe Murder House, the Queen Mary, the Queen Anne Hotel, and private residences among his investigations. Are you interested in contributing to Paranormal Underground? E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.org. Jill Stefko, Ph.D. Jill has studied the paranormal since 1957. Her expertise in the paranormal includes parapsychology, cryptozoology, Fortean phenomena, anomalies, UFOs, aliens, demonic possession, and exorcism. She gives workshops and lectures and has been a guest on radio call-in talk shows and local TV as an expert in the paranormal. She investigates alleged cases of the paranormal and counsels experients. Jill is the Feature Writer in the Randell S. Van Alst A McCutchenville, Ohio, native, Randell experienced countless paranormal events as a child, ranging from intense dreams of death to ghostly apparitions. The explicit dreams as well as other paranormal experiences continued throughout his life. Due to his experiences with June 2010 Paranormal Underground 5 Publisher's Letter Paranormal UndergroundTM Volume 3, Issue 6 June 2010 www.ParanormalUnderground.net EDITORIAL Publisher Publisher@paranormalunderground.net What Makes a Good Story? Chad Wilson Editor-in-Chief Editor@paranormalunderground.net Cheryl Knight W Managing Editor KarenFrazier@paranormalunderground.net Karen Frazier Science Editor ScienceEditor@paranormalunderground.net J.D. Harrison Contributors Heidi Ann Paul Bottini Katie Christopher Jason Ewen Karen Frazier Terri J. Garofalo Rick E. Hale Carolyn M. Hughes Cheryl Knight Michelle M. Pillow Jill Stefko, Ph.D. Lettie Prell Randell S. Van Alst Chad Wilson Copyright � 2008-2010 -- Paranormal UndergroundTM is a trademarked product. All rights reserved. As such, Paranormal Underground and its contents are the property of its owners. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. This publication and all content within this publication may not be copied, quoted, distributed, modified, or reprinted without the express written consent of Paranormal Underground magazine. Paranormal Underground magazine is a publication of Ghost Knight Media, LLC. hen I sit down to write the various TV shows or about paraan article or my Publishnormal groups who misrepresent the er's Letter, I often ask field. Things such as that are conmyself, what should I write about? fined to our blogs, and even then we I hate to write just to be writing. To don't surmise what has happened, me, it's a waste of my time and our only present what information the inreaders' time as well. But in the provolved parties give to us. It's not our cess of trying to decide what "thing," and it never will be. to write, I often ask myself, Rather than wasting what makes a good story? time focusing on exposDo I sensationalize? ing groups, individuals, or Absolutely not. We're not shows that we "think" are here to sensationalize. As frauds, we focus on groups, publisher and creator of individuals, and shows that Paranormal Underground, we feel are contributing to I don't want this magazine and furthering the field of Chad Wilson, to get attention off of someparanormal research. GetPublisher one else's negative actions ting their work out into the and experiences, flaws, and setbacks. public is far more important than It's not our focus or mission, and wasting our print on the opposite. it's definitely not what we want to be I advise anyone seeking to find known for. answers about paranormal phenomI also do not believe in pushing ena to get out and investigate, read, what I believe to be true . . . insisting and talk to experts. Research the that my viewpoint is right. Why? Betopics you're interested in and then cause what I might think happened, come to your own conclusions about might not have happened in the way a subject. that I perceived it. We all have difToday, as Paranormal Underferent perspectives. And while I will ground magazine strives to find honstate my viewpoint without hesitaest answers in the paranormal field tion, I won't insist that I'm right and and feature those working diligently force my opinion on anyone. to find those answers, I think it is To me, the only true way to tell as important as ever to be true to a story is to research the issue, story, ourselves, true to the story, and true happening, and to tell the facts as to our readers. they have been presented to you. Will I still give my opinions on Don't sensationalize. And, most of paranormal topics in this column? all, remain true to yourself. Most definitely. I love to discuss That is the main reason we do paranormal topics and don't plan to not do stories in the magazine about stop. Join me in the ongoing discusthe "supposed" rampant fakery on sion about the paranormal. 6 Paranormal Underground June 2010 From Paranormal Underground Journalist Karen Frazier and Ghost Knight Media, LLC Book Now Available Online at www.avalancheofspirits.com June 2010 Paranormal Underground 7 Interested in Purchasing Paranormal Underground Magazine? http://paranormalunderground.magcloud.com/ 8 Paranormal Underground June And Select the2010 Issues You'd Like to Order. Visit: From the Editor Author Uncovers History's Mysteries Paranormal UndergroundTM Volume 3, Issue 6 June 2010 www.ParanormalUnderground.net ART Art Director Chad Wilson I n this issue of Paranormal Underground magazine, we feature investigators and psychics Mark and Barbara Nelson. As both paranormal researchers and hosts of their own radio show, Para X Radio Network's Positively Psychic, the two use their abilities to complement one another both on the air and during their investigations. And on their weekly Web radio show, Mark and Barbara talk with authors and experts in the paranormal field to stimulate thought and educate listeners. Turn to page 16 to read more. Also featured in this issue is Brian Haughton, author of the new book History's Mysteries: People, Places, and Oddities Lost in the Sands of Time, which explores the latest archaeological evidence of some of the oldest mysteries in the ancient world. Brian covers everything from what happened to the Neanderthals to controversial ancient artifacts to mysterious places to the questions surrounding some of history's most infamous people. Turn to page 22 to read about what he has uncovered. And in this month's special report, we discuss famous channelers and their impact on society, including JZ Knight, Edgar Cayce, Helen Schucman, and Neale Donald Walsch, among others. Do these individuals really have the ability to impart wisdom from the great beyond? On page 28, we ask this very question. In our Case Files of the Unknown (beginning on page 32), we feature the haunted Robert Lang Studios, the Ghost Bus of Highway 93, the Dover Demon, and the Kingman UFO crash of 1953. And in our Personal Experiences section, we've got "Diary From a Haunted Hotel" (page 44), a controversial Ghost Hunter Case File from NEPA Paranormal (page 46), and a personal experience from a couple who stirred up paranormal activity in their home after remodeling (page 50). In this month's Paranormal Perspective, Randell Van Alst presents his personal theory on "spirit time" that involves an extrapolation from Bible text. See page 52. You also won't want to miss the final installment of Lettie Prell's fictional story, Where Memories Lie (beginning on page 54); a TV review of the show Is It Real? (page 14); and an equipment update on the Radio Shack Hack ghost box (page 62). For our 3rd Annual Paranormal Fiction Contest announcement, turn to page 59 for more information. This year's entries are due by August 15. We look forward to your submissions. Happy reading! Design and Layout Cheryl Knight Cover Photo Barbara Nelson Promotions Promotions/Marketing KarenFrazier@paranormalunderground.net Karen Frazier www.myspace.com/paranormalunderground MySpace Twitter http://twitter.com/ParanormalUG YouTube Channel www.youtube.com/ParanormalUG Advertising Interested in Advertising in Paranormal Underground Magazine, on our Website, or in our Podcasts? Call 1-714-646-4197 or e-mail: email@example.com Send comments and letters to: firstname.lastname@example.org. ~ Cheryl Knight Editor-in-Chief June 2010 Paranormal Underground 9 Calendar of Events June 6�7 Ghost Hunt at Fort Mifflin Philadelphia, Pennsylvania www.hauntedtruth.com June 11�13 Through the Veil: A Paranormal and Metaphysical Gathering Hilton Hotel Atlanta, Georgia www.throughtheveil.org June 25�26 Haunted America Midwest Conference Decatur, Illinois www.americanspookshows.com August 21�22 July 30�August 1 Second Annual Ohio Paranormal Convention Dayton's Hara Arena Dayton, Ohio www.ohioparacon.com/ October 16 Parafest 2010 The Ambassador Rooms Worksop Masonic Hall Worksop, Nottinghamshire, UK www.parafest.info Indiana Paranormal Convention Hilton Hotel Indianapolis, Indiana www.indyparacon.com August 27�28 August 5�7 Haunted America East Coast Conference Cape Cod Community College West Barnstable, MA www.americanspookshows.com October 29�30 Parasota: Midwest Paranormal Event & Celebrity Ghost Hunt St. Paul, Minnesota www.parasota.com Port Gamble Ghost Conference The Pavilion Port Gamble, Washington www.portgamble.com/default. asp?ID=126 August 27�29 August 6�8 Paranormal Information Association Conference Clewiston Inn Clewiston, Florida http://paranormalinformationassociation.com October 29�31 Canadian�American Paranormal Convention at the Quality Inn Sarnia, Ontario, Canada www.canamparacon.com Haunted Horrors Paranormal and Film Convention The Marriott MeadowView Conference Resort and Convention Center Kingsport, Tennessee www.thehauntedhorrors.com September 10�11 August 12�15 PhantomCon Crowne Plaza Hotel Hickory, North Carolina http://phantomcon.com Paranormacon Masonic Temple Fundraiser Historic Fort Wayne, Indiana http://innomineparanormalresearch.com/ November 5�7 ScareFest Horror & Paranormal Convention Lexington Center Lexington, Kentucky www.thescarefest.com August 13�14 2nd Annual Psychic & Paranormal Gathering Holiday Inn, Southwest Louisville, Kentucky E-mail: email@example.com www.avalancheofspirits.com 10 Paranormal Underground June 2010 June 2010 Paranormal Underground 11 Paranormal News UK Ghost Sightings Highest in 25 Years Some say reporting of "evil spirit" activity in the UK is on the rise. New Lanark, Scotland, "Ghost" Captured on CCTV C T here have been around 1,000 reports of activity by "evil spirits" (which includes demons and devils) in the past 25 years in the UK, 968 to be exact. According to Lionel Fanthorpe, a UK expert on the unexplained, "This report clearly shows we are a nation still rich in sightings and reports of devils, demons, and evil spirits of various forms," as quoted by www. telegraph.co.uk. Fanthorpe came to this conclusion by studying archives and Websites dealing with the subject matter, in addition to his own reports, and used this information to identify all sightings and recordings of supernatural entities with "diabolical qualities." Sightings range from demons in Yorkshire, which topped the list with 74 ghostly sightings, to a supposed water-demon type who guards an ancient, inscribed stone at the Boat of Garten in Inverness. The report was completed for the U.S. TV series Supernatural and its latest DVD release. Below are the top 10 areas for UK ghostly sightings according to the report: 1 Yorkshire 74 2 Devonshire 57 3 Somerset 51 4 Wiltshire 46 5 Inverness 39 6 Dorset 37 7 Norfolk 32 7 Lancashire 32 8 Sussex 30 8 Derbyshire 30 9 Essex 29 9 Suffolk 29 10 Lincolnshire 24 CTV footage of the New Lanark World Heritage hotel in Scotland captured an unusual image in the early hours of May 12, according to http:// news.stv.tv. The video of the location's rear car park captured an image that staff say is a ghost. As quoted on news.stv.tv, General New Lanark "ghost" captured on CCTV. Manager John Stirrat said, "We were routinely reviewing CCTV footage taken in the early hours of May 12 in our rear car park, an area that was formerly stables. Between 0130 and 0300 in the morning, we were startled to see, quite clearly, a mysterious ghostly shape in the bottom righthand corner of the screen which came and went. At one point it disappears through a door, without opening it, and reappears. No staff, guests, or members of the public were outside at the time, so it is definitely not human nor a trick of the light." The camera footage shows a small, bright figure, about four feet high, dressed in luminous white. The figure can be seen bending and nodding before becoming motionless. It then appears to change position by jumping onto a higher level. China to Build UFO and Alien Embassy, Reports Say S upposed plans by the Chinese government to build a UFO and alien embassy have been leaked to the public, according to www.allnewsweb.com. The embassy will be reportedly based in the Kunlun Mountains near the Tibetan region. The Chinese Government is said to be building an alien embassy as a result of the increasing of UFO sightings over the past What the Chinese UFO Embassy might look like. Source: www.allnewsweb.com. 10 years. It is also rumored that Chinese officials are secretly meeting with researchers in the United States, such as ET contact expert Dr. Steven Greer. Sources said that the embassy will have UFO landing pads and a cultural center that allows for the sharing of knowledge and promoting universal harmony. The picture above is a representation of what the embassy might look like. Earlier this year, it was also reported that the world's first "Alien Embassy" was being constructed in the Republic of Kazakhstan in the city of Almaty, which is one of 14 provinces with a population of 829,000. 12 Paranormal Underground June 2010 Possible Bigfoot Tracks Located in Texas "Wem Ghost" Picture Mystery Solved I ndividuals from the Texas Bigfoot Research Conservancy (TBRC) reported recently finding possible Sasquatch tracks in Southeast Texas on Mother's Day weekend. The best track, pictured to the right, was studied closely by TBRC members. According to http://texascryptidhunter.blogspot.com/, "The track appears to have been made by an extremely flat-footed individual. Pictured above is a possible Bigfoot track. There is no sign of an arch at all. The (Source: http://texascryptidhunter.blogspot.com track was uniform in depth from toes to heel. There was no evidence of the heel striking the ground first then rocking to the ball of the foot and toes for push off. The uniform depth of the track suggests the possibility of an individual exhibiting a compliant gait. In other words, the individual picks their foot up almost vertically, strides, and sets it down in a flat- footed manner. The track maker also seems to have had an enormous big toe." Syfy to Look for Real "Warehouse 13" Pictured above is the infamous "Wem Ghost" photo (at top), along with a street scene postcard from the 1920s taken in Wem, Shropshire by M. Audin-Wood (Photo: SWNS). The young girl standing on the left side of the postcard matches the "ghostly" image in the top photo. T A ccording to network sources at the Syfy channel, they will air a two-hour show on Sunday, July 11 at 9/8c called Inside Secret Government Warehouses: Shocking Revelations. The special was inspired by Syfy's hit series Warehouse 13, which features United States Secret Service agents who have been reassigned to the government's secret Warehouse 13. The warehouse houses supernatural objects, and the agents must retrieve missing objects and Host Lester Holt. investigate reports of new ones. The special's tagline reads "Alien body parts . . . powerful religious artifacts . . . UFO wreckage . . . what exactly is hidden behind heavily guarded doors?" NBC News journalist Lester Holt leads a global expedition to uncover "the truth" behind the world's top secret, mysterious warehouses where super-classified objects are kept, according to http://tvbythenumbers.com. Holt gains exclusive access to restricted sites, ranging from Area 51 in Nevada to the Vatican secret archives, and he interviews inside sources, experts, and Washington decision-makers. The special is a co-production of Syfy and Peacock Productions. he mystery of the "Wem Ghost" photo has been solved, according to www.telegraph.co.uk. On November 19, 1995, amateur photographer Tony O'Rahilly snapped photos of a fire that destroyed Wem Town Hall in Shropshire, UK. In one of his photos, he said he captured the ghostly image of a young girl wearing old fashioned clothing. O'Rahilly, who died in 2005, denied doctoring the photograph. However, Brian Lear, a retired engineer and taxi driver, recently noticed a striking similarity between the "ghost" and a girl in a postcard that appeared in his local paper. "I was intrigued to find that she bore a striking likeness to the little girl featured as the Wem ghost. Her dress and headgear appear to be identical," Lear was quoted as saying. June 2010 Paranormal Underground 13 TV Watch "Is It Real?" Examines Paranormal Legends By Heidi Ann U FOs, Bigfoot, psychics, Atlantis, the Bermuda Triangle, vampires, ghosts, lake monsters . . . Have you ever asked yourself, "Are these creatures, legends, and paranormal happenings real?" Well, the National Geographic Channel does just that on their series, Is It Real? Investigating these enduring mysteries, as well as dozens more, Is It Real? premiered in April 2005. Narrated by Will Lyman (replaced in 2006 by Ian Gregory), the show digs for the truth behind these legends. Each Episode of Is It Real? Examines Evidence of Believers Each episode features paranormal stories and evidence from believers. Skeptics then do their best to debunk those stories and the evidence provided. One of the episodes that debuted on April 25, 2005, along with Spontaneous Human Combustion and Ghosts, was about UFOs. This episode began with the history of UFO sightings and then continued on to explain the four levels of UFO encounters, showing evidence of each. According to Is It Real?, the UFO craze can be traced back in the United States to 1947. Starting when private pilot Kenneth Arnold reported to a local newspaper in In one episode of the National Geographic Channel's series Is It Real?, a recreation of Bigfoot running through the woods is attempted. Washington State that while flying near the Cascade Mountains he saw a blue-white flash and witnessed several objects flying at high speed and with great agility through the mountains. A month later came the infamous Roswell Crash in Roswell, New Mexico. After reviewing the history of UFO sightings, "close encounters of the first through fourth kind" were explored in full during the program. The show then investigated the different types of encounters. They interviewed witnesses and showed video and photographic evidence to support the believers' claims. Skeptics Also Weigh In on the Is It Real? Question The evidence presented during the UFO program was then shown to skeptics who provided their belief of what actually caused the phenom- ena. From a widely seen and photographed UFO on the day of a solar eclipse in Mexico to strange circles in the grass believed to be made by UFO landing gear to people claiming to be abducted by aliens, all angles were explored. And after providing evidence from both sides on the topic at hand, one question was asked of the viewers . . . is it real? New episodes of Is it Real? are no longer being produced, but the National Geographic Channel is still showing old episodes on its network. If you enjoy the format described earlier in this article, then watch Is It Real?, as the series is well-rounded and full of interesting stories . . . or facts, depending on your viewpoint. Visit www.nationalgeographic. com for more information. 14 Paranormal Underground June 2010 Ghost Knight Media, LLC Are you an author, paranormal group, event planner, or documentary filmmaker looking to promote your book, event, Website, or media project? If so, Ghost Knight Media can help! Our services include: � Editing � Writing � Art Design � Promotion � Production � Book Publishing Let us help you tell your story or promote your event, Website, or media project. June 2010 Paranormal www.GhostKnightMedia.com Underground 15 Investigator Spotlight Mark and Barbara Nelson Investigate "The Unknown" By Karen Frazier Positively Psychic: H ave you ever met a couple that seems really in synch, in tune, and completely connected? That description fits psychic spouses Mark and Barbara Nelson to a T. As paranormal investigators, as well as hosts of their own radio show, Para X Radio Network's Positively Psychic, the two use their abilities to complement one another both on the air and on their investigations. By day, Mark is a writer and marketing specialist, and Barbara is a theme park designer. In their free time, however, they shed their corporate images and connect with the other side. Recently, Mark and Barb sat down with Paranormal Underground and answered our questions about their lives as psychic paranormal investigators. ***** Q: Tell me about your first psychic experience. Mark: I was 11 years old, and it was after my father's funeral. It was in October, and he had died a few weeks before. While I was raking leaves in the front yard, I saw my Dad standing at the end of the driveway. I had to look away because I was scared, and when I looked back he was there. But then he drifted away. I kept telling myself I was crazy because that wasn't As hosts of a weekly Web radio show, called Positively Psychic, Barbara and Mark Nelson (pictured above) talk with authors and experts in the paranormal field to stimulate thought and educate listeners. supposed to happen. At the time I thought I was losing it because I missed him. I also saw him looking at me while I was at school. Looking back, I know now what it looks like to see spirits. So I have a better understanding of what happened. He was just reaching out to speak with me, and to let me know that he was OK. Barbara: Since I was about 5 or 6, I would see what I believed to be ghost- ly apparitions hovering in my room in the middle of the night. They would usually wake me up and startle me. They tried to communicate with me, but I was so scared I would hide under the covers until they went away. I always wondered why they were there and who they were. Q: What was it about your experiences that made you aware that they were psychic and not just your thoughts? 16 Paranormal Underground June 2010 Mark: It was the first time I received information on a late night walk. My Dad came back to say hello. Again, I assumed that I was having another mental episode. I felt like I was arguing with myself, basically saying to the "other voice in my head," that if you're real, tell me something I don't know. The voice told me something about my brother Glen. I checked it out with my Mom, and it was true. Then I began listening a lot closer. Barbara: Anytime we would visit a historical place, I would feel uncomfortable, like someone was watching me. I remember my dad took us to an Old Western ghost town when we were kids. I was about 8 years old at the time. We were in this old saloon, and I kept thinking someone was right behind me. It kept following me around. I turned around and said to the empty air behind me, "Go away." I felt that whatever it was left, and I knew then that I had a connection to something much bigger than me. As a teenager, I experimented with the Ouija board at sleepovers. I always felt very afraid of it, but my sister was really big into it, so I would go along with it. I had to stop it one time because the planchette kept stopping in front of me. I eventually threw out the board. I would call my ability more of a "psychic sensitive." I can also see silhouettes of the spirits that are present and sense they are there. Once in a while I do get very definite messages in my sleep that I will tell Mark about, and within a week something happens related to my dream. Q: How have your abilities grown and evolved since that first experience? Mark: I have learned to make it easier. I've come to trust more of what I hear and to be relaxed about the experience. Psychic Medium Mark Nelson (pictured in the foreground) learned that he had unusual abilities when he was 11 years old. Barbara: I believe that my abilities flourished after the Northridge, California, earthquake in 1994. I had experienced such a traumatic and stressful event that it literally must have changed my brain waves to be "hyper" sensitive to psychic feelings. At age 11, I was traumatized by another earthquake, the Sylmar, California, earthquake. That traumatic memory stayed with me and contributed to this "hyper" sensitivity, which I think we all have. It's a primal protection we had before mankind invented formal language and could communicate. This ability is our way of communicating with our ancestors to listen to their advice. I think so often we ignore advice from family and consider it as interfering. And yet when we are at a low point in our lives or just want some help, we turn to those talented psychics who hear what our loved ones have to say to us. Some may refer to it as intuition or a sixth sense. I think it is an extra spiritual protection that we are all born with but chose not to develop. Q: What abilities do you have? Mark: I am able to work as a psychic medium, and am very comfortable in dealing with people who are now in spirit. Plus, I have had visits from a spirit who I believe to be Edgar Cayce. Often, I am able to diagnose medical issue, and I think he helps me. But the skill that generally sets me apart is psychometry. I am able to pick up objects and to read the people who used or owned them. There's something about the physical contact. We are energetic beings. We leave something behind on the things we touch, and I am able to tap into it. Barbara: I think I have the ability to sense a person's energy. I always tell Mark that I feel I have a better sense of who people really are on the inside. I never judge a book by its cover, so to speak. When I shake someone's hand, I instantly know their soul. June 2010 Paranormal Underground 17 Investigator Spotlight time I can call "before." I can honestly say I have never doubted my abilities, and I have always supported anything dealing with the paranormal and have always been fascinated by it. I knew Mark had his abilities long before he figured it out. Maybe that's one of the reasons we were brought together in this lifetime so we could help each other out. Q: Have your views changed since the onset of your abilities? Mark: They have from a spiritual and moral view. Before I embraced my abilities, I was a Catholic/Christian. Now I believe that we are all sons and daughters of God, and not just Jesus. I believe there was a Jesus and many of the stories attributed to him may be true, but not all. I also believe in reincarnation. It's the only thing that makes sense to me anymore. Barbara: I'm not sure I can answer this one accurately. It depends on what you mean. I think that what has changed since I knew about my ability is the fact that I am continuing to grow and develop as a person and as a psychic person. As I get older, I seem to be getting better at it. I know how to trust better, which is a big part of being psychic. Q: You have abilities that seem to complement each other. Can you talk about this? Mark: Barb is able to leave her senses open more than me. She picks up on spirits before I do at times. She's like an early warning system. I know she picks up on spirits, and she is becoming much stronger in her abilities. I am just very grateful that she has accepted my ability and encouraged me to develop my skills. If she thought I was off base, I probably wouldn't have developed it. Or at best, I would be many years behind in developing my ability. On most investigations, Barbara is part of the "tech" crew and carries with her a digital recorder, cameras, and K-II Meter. She also analyzes evidence after each investigation. Q: Do your abilities feel like a blessing or a curse? Have you always felt that way? Mark: It is a blessing. I have learned so much about myself and how the universe works through this ability. I would feel blind without it, and life would be far less interesting. It has also been my calling to help and heal others with my ability. Barbara: It can be a burden sometimes, especially if I have to work with a person that I know is spiritually negative. It has helped Mark and me with our lives and with choosing our closest friends. During our ghost investigations, I do the same with those who have passed. I can sense a person's energy and their heart and soul. Whether they were a good person or bad, I always to attempt to give everyone the benefit of the doubt and try not to judge them. I think most people are genuinely good inside, but there are others who are bad to the bone. We need to be on guard around those people whether they are real or ghosts. Q: Before you discovered you had psychic abilities, what were your views on the paranormal? Mark: I was open to the fact that there might be something else out there beyond my physical senses. I think I secretly hoped there were ghosts, and I got my wish. Barbara: There was really never a 18 Paranormal Underground June 2010 Barbara: Well, I always tell Mark that I feel like his "psychic secretary," and please take a number. If a spirit wants to communicate with Mark, and Mark has turned off his "Open for Business" sign, I am still open. They will come to me and basically ask me to tell Mark that they have a message for him, and can I please wake him up and let him know? This usually happens in the middle of the night, by the way. I usually tell them Mark's asleep and to please come by later. Sounds funny but that's the way it works. I've had to take a message from his dad, his grandfather, his grandmother, and spirit strangers I have never met before. It reminds me of that part with Whoopi Goldberg in the movie Ghost. All the deceased relatives are gathered around Whoopi, waiting for their turn to talk to a loved one. Q: Talk about your experiences with paranormal investigation. Mark: Prior to doing the TV pilot Gifted for Fox, Barb and I had few opportunities. We did do some investigating with family back in New Jersey and Maine. After the show, we met a lot of people, and many doors opened up. People wanted to work with us, and I wanted to see how this thing, this ability worked. It was almost like getting a Christmas present that you had to assemble in order to use. My favorite place to investigate is the Queen Mary. One of the most powerful experiences was on the property where the Manson murders took place. I believe Sharon Tate and other victims are still present in very powerful ways. I don't believe they're trapped, but they are there. Barbara: This started out as a hobby for us on the Queen Mary when we went to a Ghost Hunters event a few years ago and met Jason and Grant. But it has blossomed into a full-time, every weekend or so outing with many of our ghost hunting friends. We usually go with our friends from 3AM Paranormal or from APRA. Both groups are very professional and are wonderful friends to work with. We have gone to several really haunted places in California, including the Newhall Train Station; Linda Vista Hospital; "Hotel California" in Camarillo; Sybil Brand Women's Correctional Facility; as well as investigating private residences. I have to say my favorite place is still the Queen Mary. We always seem to encounter something each time we are there. We have heard a disembodied voice say, "Hello" really loud when we were in the engine room with Chris Fleming one time. And Mark has helped several spirits cross over when we were with Patrick Burns and Marley Gibson. We have been touched, poked, pushed, breathed on, whispered to, and stared at from afar. The main message that I think the spirits want to tell us is: "Don't forget us." They are still here with us and want to be remembered. Q: Have you ever been in a situation that scared you when you were investigating? Barbara: I think any investigator that tells you that they have never been scared or nervous on an investigation is full of baloney. I remember one time we were in a graveyard in Ohio with some of our Para-X family, Dave and Tommy Jones. Mark picked up on a young teenage boy that had died in a car crash and was buried there. His energy was still very alive, and he was very aggressive toward us. As Mark was talking with the group, I walked away and was taking K-II Meter readings on my own. When I got to a certain area, my meter started blinking profusely. I started to talk to the spirit. As it turns out, I was standing on the grave of the boy who had died in the car crash. I saw his name on the headstone, and his age was 16. I knew his name because Mark had said it in his reading. He also said his age. One of the neighbors who was with us confirmed this as well. It had happened a few years ago in the '90s. Anyway, I started to feel really nervous like this guy wanted to follow me. He was so desperate to talk and be recognized. I was afraid he was going to appear to me because I could feel his energy getting stronger around me. I literally ran back to where the group used to be, but they were gone. I sensed this kid following behind me. I could sense him saying, "Don't go." I got really scared at that point. Here I was by myself in a graveyard Mark's favorite place to investigate is at the Queen Mary in Long Beach, California. June 2010 Paranormal Underground 19 Investigator Spotlight in the pitch dark on Halloween night being followed by a ghost. I ran frantically to find Mark and the group, and they were way off in another part of the graveyard. I haven't even told Mark about this incident, because I thought he would think I was a wimp. But at that moment I was, and I'm not ashamed to say so. Mark: I agree with what Barb said. That graveyard was a creepy place. I can't actually say I was scared anywhere, but I have felt the need to be extra vigilant. I would say that being in homes where murders and tragic deaths have taken place can affect me in a profound way. I feel echoes of the pain and fear that remain, and it can be unsettling to say the least. Q: How do you use your abilities when you are investigating the paranormal? Barbara: I am part of the "tech" crew on most investigations. I have my digital recorder handy, as well as my cameras and K-II Meter. I analyze all of the evidence and post pictures that I think may have something interesting. I also scout out areas I think Mark should go into, where I think there is a strong energy. I can also distinguish between a "residual" energy and an "intelligent" energy. Mark and I also compare notes and confirm with each other our experiences. It's good to have a sounding board and someone you can trust. If I don't hear or feel anything I won't say that I did. I am very much the skeptic. I remember recently we were in a group and everyone started saying they heard and felt something, and they turned to me and said, "Barb, what do you think?" I said I didn't feel or hear anything. They just looked at me like, "What's up with you?" I just say, "Sorry to disappoint, but I don't flashlight on a portrait. It belonged to a man named Edward Beale who was appointed by Abraham Lincoln to develop a route between Northern and Southern California. That was interesting. I have also been able to help cross over spirits who want to leave a location. Q: What is the most haunted place you've ever experienced? Barbara: Wow, that's a tough one. There are so many places for so many different reasons that I can't say just one. One of our favorite places is still the Queen Mary, in Long Beach, California. We are never disappointed there. After going to the Hotel California in Camarillo, California, I would have to say that place is about as active as the Queen Mary. I would like to go back there again. Mark: I would have to say the Queen Mary and the property where the Tate/Manson murders took place. Q: What places are on your wish list as far as investigation goes? Barbara: Definitely Waverly Hills Sanitarium in Kentucky. Mark's brother lives in Louisville and our next trip there we want to go. Also, we want to go see the Tower of London, where there are so many desperate souls still trapped. Mark wants to help them to make peace and to cross over if he can. Mark: I have a great itch to explore castles in the UK, Ireland, and Scotland. In the United States, I am very interested in The Stanley Hotel and Waverly Hills Sanitarium. Not really unusual choices, but I just feel the urge to see what all the noise is about. Q: Do you integrate your abilities into your "real" life? Mark said he is always amazed by the messages of love from people who have crossed over. think anything is here." I am brutally honest about this stuff sometimes, because I think people make up a lot of stuff while they are nervous and hope for something to happen. I take a "show me" approach to investigating. But when I do sense something, hold on to your K-II Meters, it's for real. Mark: Think of me as a bird dog. I can help investigators locate areas of activity. I will also have spirits speak to me, providing validating information about names and other details. For this reason, I don't want to know anything prior to entering a location. It's great if an EMF meter picks up something. But I have been able to give the names of the spirits. I remember an investigation where I felt that someone named Edward was there. I then just got up and, without thinking, walked over to a gallery where Barb shined a 20 Paranormal Underground June 2010 Barbara: Yes, I definitely do. My sense of identifying a person's "soul energy" has helped me directly with my working relationships and with critical life decisions that Mark and I have to make. One example is with our daughter Katie. When she was going through her teenage years and being a typical irresponsible teenager, we were able to always be one step ahead of her because of Mark's readings and advice from his grandfather. It was as if his dad and grandfather were really giving us helpful advice to get her through her teen years. It really helped us, and she is turning into a wonderful, young women who is attending college and has big plans ahead. Mark: Mostly as a dad, and at work. I have felt things when I needed to know where our teenage daughter was. She's a wonderful girl, but like most teenagers she made some questionable decisions. I followed my noise and caught her at a place where she wasn't supposed to be. Enough said. I've also had strong senses about things at work. Sometimes, that's when my ability told me more than maybe I wanted to know. Q: What aspect of the paranormal do you find most fascinating? Barbara: The most fascinating part is when you make a connection. Once you see or hear something and witness something paranormal, there is no turning back. You search for that experience again because you are connecting with another dimension. What really gets me is how the other side has its own sense of time and space. That's why, for instance, when Mark hears someone from the other side, they talk really fast. It is like hyper speed. Their vibration must be higher, and we must sound really slow to them. When you hear a voice or feel a touch from a spirit's energy, you really feel invigorated by that energy. You are in a suspended sense of disbelief, and it sometimes doesn't feel real. It feels like virtual reality. I like that a lot because you are truly living in the moment. Mark: I am always amazed by the messages of love from people who have crossed over. They tell me little details about their lives that only their family members here might know. We are truly never alone. If you miss someone who died, take a minute to be quiet and visualize their hands, their eyes, and their smile. They are never far away if you take the time to think of them. That being said, I always encourage my clients to speak to people now, and don't leave things unsaid if you want to say them. Don't wait for someone to die to tell them you forgive them or love them. Q: Tell us about your radio show, Positively Psychic. Barbara: Our radio show, Positively Psychic, was started about three years ago with another station. Mark had a co-psychic with him at that time, but after a difference of opinion with the direction of the show, they both decided to each have their own hourly show. I joined Mark at that time to have our first version of Positively Psychic's Web radio show. Then Mark got an offer to join the Para X network through his friend Marla Brooks, from Stirring the Cauldron. Mark and I decided to make the switch, and the rest is history. We try to bring in intellectual authors and guest experts in the paranormal field in order to stimulate thought and educate our listeners. I really love some of the many guests we have met. We both feel very blessed to know so many experts in the paranormal field. Mark also offers free readings, and I am constantly in the chat room fielding questions from our Para X chat family. I'm basically the producer and tech crew. I join in the conversation occasionally with a question. I also take care of the chat room and direct any call-in readings. But Mark is really the show. Currently there are plans in the works to expand our network beyond Para X. All I can say is look out Coast to Coast! Here comes Positively Psychic! Mark: I think that virtually everyone I've met on Para X has been a good, committed, and decent person. There is a lot of talent there, and I give Dave and Tommy Jones credit for starting a great network. I enjoy being part of their lineup. ***** Positively Psychic can be heard Thursday at 7 p.m. Pacific (10 p.m. Eastern) on the Para X (www.para-x. com) Radio Network. You can also learn more about Mark at his Website, www.positivelypsychic.com. Pictured above: Mark with close friend and fellow investigator, Fran Spencer, on the Observation Bar aboard the Queen Mary. June 2010 Paranormal Underground 21 Author Spotlight Exploring History's Mysteries By Michelle Pillow, www.michellepillow.com Brian Haughton: E uropean Archaeologist, Brian Haughton spends his time playing guitar in a band, The Electric Rays, and exploring his passion for ancient history. An author and researcher, he's written about prehistoric megalithic sites, ancient sacred places, and supernatural folklore. A self-defined critical thinker, he approaches the supernatural as a skeptic, looking for facts within the folklore and myths. I had a chance to read his latest popular archaeology title, History's Mysteries: People, Places, and Oddities Lost in the Sands of Time. This book explores the latest archaeological evidence of some of the oldest mysteries in the ancient world, addressing everything from what happened to the Neanderthals to controversial ancient artifacts, like the Iron Pillar of Delhi, to mysterious places, like the Newport Tower of Rhode Island, to the questions surrounding some of history's most infamous people. I recommend this book for anyone interested in various aspects of ancient history. Each chapter examines a different mystery from around the world, exploring it fully by outlining the known facts, including the latest in archeological findings, while giving the reader plenty to think about as they draw their own conclusions. Thanks to Brian for joining us in this issue of Paranormal Underground. ***** Brian: The constant new archaeological discoveries being made throughout the world on an almost daily basis. For example, a new stone circle near Stonehenge, and the remains of previously unknown hedges that once surrounded Stonehenge, keeping the ceremonies that took place inside the monument secret from those outside. Q: Can you tell us about the book? Brian: History's Mysteries is an investigation into 35 archaeological mysteries from across the globe, organized by geographical region. As with my previous book Hidden History, this work separates its collection of enthralling ancient riddles into three sections: Mysterious Places, Unexplained Artifacts, and Enigmatic People. The choice of subjects was made to include a wide range of cultures and a mixture of both the well known and the relatively obscure. Consequently, you will read about India's celebrated Taj Mahal and the biblical Temple of Solomon, as well as the little known Royston Cave, in the UK, the infamous Rennes-le-Ch�teau in France, and the forgotten site of Great Zimbabwe in South Africa. In the book, I tried to present a summary of the current level of knowledge for a small selection of archaeological mysteries. I leave it to my readers to pursue in more detail these riddles left to us by our ancient ancestors. A qualified archaeologist, Brian Haughton is an author and researcher on the subjects of prehistoric megalithic sites, ancient sacred places, and supernatural folklore. Q: How did you get into archaeology, and more specially studying ancient history, the supernatural, and the mysteries of our past? Brian: I long ago fell for the lure of the ancient world and tales of the supernatural, initially inspired by visiting the Neolithic chambered tombs of the Cotswold Hills in England, the Minoan site of Knossos on the island of Crete, and by reading the ghost stories of Sheridan Le Fanu and M.R. James. Q: What inspired you to write your newest book, History's Mysteries? 22 Paranormal Underground June 2010 Q: What do you feel are some of the book's most fascinating historical highlights? Brian: The chapter on Boudica -- a queen of the Iceni tribe of Eastern Britain in the 1st Century AD. She is regarded as one of Britain's greatest heroines for her brave rebellion against the tyranny of Roman rule. Despite her brutal excesses in battle, Boudica is still a heroic figure, one who was fighting to defend her entire culture. If her revolt had been successful, the Romans may have been driven out of Britain forever, and the culture, language, and subsequent history of Britain, Europe, and even perhaps the world, may have been very different. Q: Did Cleopatra really kill her sister? Brian: The BBC seems to think so. There was a BBC documentary, sensationally (and unnecessarily), entitled Cleopatra: Portrait of a Killer. But they are probably right that Cleopatra asked her lover Anthony that her sister Arsino�, still living in protection at the Temple of Artemis at Ephesus (modern Turkey), be executed to prevent any future attempts on her throne. However, the situation was complicated. Years earlier, around 49 BC, Cleopatra's brother, Ptolemy XIII, allied himself with his and Cleopatra's sister, Arsino�, in an attempt to depose Cleopatra. After Ptolemy was captured, Arsino� escaped and joined the Egyptian army under Achillas, who gave her the title of pharaoh in opposition to her sister Cleopatra. She was later captured by Caesar's army and transported to Rome. So Arsino� was a constant threat to Cleopatra, who probably would have had her killed had the roles been reversed. Q: What can the Uluburun shipwreck tell us about contacts array of goods originating in so many different ancient cultures, tells us is that more than 3,300 years ago these cultures were mixing commercially and probably socially also. They may represent royal gifts or tribute, perhaps involving Egyptian pharaohs. Q: How recently did the Neanderthals die out? Brian: Between roughly 45,000 and 30,000 years ago, Neanderthals shared Europe and parts of Western and Central Asia with anatomically modern humans. The question of why a large-brained intelligent hominid, in many respects so similar to us, who had dominated Europe for so long and then vanished completely. may never be resolved satisfactorily. It is more than likely that there is not a single cause for the Neanderthal's extinction -- they did not disappear overnight in one huge group. Neanderthals covered a vast area of Europe and Western Asia, and there were probably localized factors affecting their disappearance in different regions at various times between 45,000 and 25,000 years ago. Perhaps the question should not be why Neanderthals became extinct, but why did they disappear and we survive? Q: What are Venus figurines and when were they made? Brian: Venus Figurines are a class of distinctive portable artifacts dating back to the Upper Paleolithic Period (roughly between 40,000 and 10,000 years ago). The most notable and common type of Venus Figurines are small, three-dimensional sculptures of usually voluptuous women, ranging in height from 1.2 inches to more than 15 inches, and carved from a wide range of materials, including serpentine, schist, limestone, hematite, lignite, calcite, steatite, fired clay, ivory, bone, and antler. History's Mysteries: People, Places, and Oddities Lost in the Sands of Time explores the latest archaeological evidence of some of the oldest mysteries in the ancient world. between ancient cultures? Brian: The Uluburun Wreck was discovered off the southern coast of Turkey in the 1980s, and is the oldest known shipwreck in the world. Dating back around 3,300 years, the ship carried a cargo of incredible richness and diversity, which included Egyptian scarabs, copper ingots from Cyprus, Mycenaean pottery from Greece, Canaanite jars, lamps and bowls, ebony logs from Egypt, an Italian sword, elephant tusks, gold, silver, faience, and amber from Northern Europe. There have been suggestions that this wealthy cargo was a gift or offering from Egypt's Queen Nefertiti, wife of the Egyptian Pharaoh Akhenaton, or that it was a Phoenician trading ship, or even, because of the amount of raw material found aboard, some kind of itinerant smithy or tinker. What this ship, with its vast June 2010 Paranormal Underground 23 Author Spotlight The fact that Venus Figurines are found over such a wide geographical area indicates there was a shared understanding among Paleolithic hunter gatherer tribes of Europe and Western Asia of a particular aspect of womanhood or a certain type of woman. Q: Where was Lyonesse, and what happened to it? Brian: The story of the drowned land of Lyonesse, often referred to as the `English Atlantis,' is told in medieval Arthurian tales and may also be connected to older Celtic legends of cataclysmic floods. The country of Lyonesse is said to have had many towns, woods, and fields, as well as 140 churches, but all this was lost underneath the waves in one catastrophic inundation. According to local tradition, only one person escaped the flood, the hero Trevilian, who rode a white horse to the safety of high ground. Lyonesse is most commonly located between the English county of Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, 28 miles to the southwest of the United Kingdom. Celtic legends of overflowing wells seem to be the source of much of the material contained in British, Irish, and French stories of Lyonesse and other drowned lands. It is such ancient tales, combined with glimpses of submerged parts of the former coast at low tides off Land's End, the Isles of Scilly, and the Bay of Douarnenez, that probably constitute the origins of the tale of Lyonesse. Q: Looking at your backlist titles, I've noticed you've written a lot about ancient history and supernatural folklore. Tell us a little bit about your other works. Brian: My first book, Hidden History, is really History's Mysteries Part 1. The 49 short chapters of the book are fact-based accounts of mysterious places, curious and unexplainable artifacts, and unusual historical people from across the world. My book Lore of the Ghost is an exploration of the numerous categories of ghosts and hauntings throughout the world. It discusses the possible motives for each type of haunting -- from phantom white ladies and spectral black dogs to haunted highways and ghostly vehicles -- what they represent, why they occur, and their possible functions. Q: In Haunted Spaces, Sacred Places: A Field Guide to Stone Circles, Crop Circles, Ancient Tombs, and Supernatural Landscapes, you talk about ghosts and unexplained phenomena. What do you find to be some of the more fascinating stories in the book? Brian: The vast Neolithic tomb/ temple of Newgrange, north of Dublin. This was one of the greatest architectural achievements of prehistory, and one of the earliest roofed buildings in the world. Newgrange was probably built around 3200 BC, and consists of a passage running for 62 feet and a 20-foot high chamber with a corbelled roof, constructed of large stone slabs without mortar. The passage and chamber are covered by a huge stone and turf mound about 262 feet in diameter and around 44 feet high, surrounded at its base by 97 large stones known as kerbstones, some of which are elaborately ornamented with megalithic art. The entrance to the Newgrange passage tomb consists of a doorway composed of two standing stones and a horizontal lintel. Above the doorway is an aperture known as the "roof box" or "light box." Every year, shortly after 9 a.m. on the morning of the winter solstice, the shortest day of the year, the sun begins its ascent across the Boyne Valley over a hill known locally as Red Mountain -- the name possibly originating from the color of the sunrise on this day. The newly risen sun then sends a shaft of sunlight directly through the Newgrange light box, which penetrates down the passageway as a narrow beam of light illuminating the central chamber at the back of the tomb. After just 17 minutes, the ray of light narrows, and the chamber is once more left in darkness. This spectacular event was not rediscovered until 1967 by Professor Michael J. O'Kelly, though it had Haunted Spaces, Sacred Places explores the subjects of ghosts and unexplained phenomena. Unlike the vast majority of books on the subject, Lore of the Ghost is not a gazetteer of ghost sightings or a ghost hunter's manual, but an investigation into human belief in the supernatural and its effect on the nature of ghosts worldwide. The book attempts to delve deeply into the roots of supernatural folklore and urban legends, the very same tales that are often the foundation of modern sightings of ghosts. 24 Paranormal Underground June 2010 been known about in local folklore before that time; in fact, the monument was known locally as Uaimh na Gr�ine (the "Cave of the Sun"). The Newgrange light box reveals in spectacular fashion the knowledge of surveying and basic astronomy possessed by the Neolithic inhabitants of the area. It also illustrates that for the people who aligned their monument with the winter solstice, the sun must have formed an important part of their religious beliefs. Stonehenge, Wiltshire, which begun around 2900 BC, has always fascinated me, particularly the folklore surrounding it. In the most famous legend connected with Stonehenge, there is a tantalizing glimpse of what may be a memory of the transportation, over a great distance, of the bluestones to the site at Salisbury Plain. The story is found in Geoffrey of Monmouth's History of the Kings of Britain (c. 1136), and describes how Aurelius Ambrosius, King of the Britons, desired to have a monument constructed to commemorate the massacre of 460 British nobles by the troops of Hengist the Saxon. On the advice of prophet and magician Merlin, the King sent his brother Uther Pendragon (the father of King Arthur), with an army of 15,000 men to bring back a stone structure, called the "Giants' Dance," from a mountain called Killare (possibly Kildare) in Ireland. Merlin describes the Giants' Dance as a "structure of stones there, which none of this age could raise, without a profound knowledge of the mechanical arts." Uther Pendragon's army was unable to budge the huge stones, and so turned to Merlin, who using "his own engines," dismantled the stones, which were then transported to Britain by ship. Whether or not this tale is a distorted memory of the actual journey of the bluestones from somewhere in "the West" is much debated, though the mention of "engines" is certainly intriguing. Nevertheless, it would be an inordinately long time for even a fragment of the event to have survived orally. Chinese geomancy represented the eye of a huge dragon in the landscape, is underneath a huge vegetation-covered, earthen mound, 154 feet high and measuring 1,690 "People love a mystery and want desperately to believe in something." Q: Why are strange phenomena often connected with these ancient places? Do sacred sites somehow generate or attract the paranormal? Brian: There is no evidence for this, but mysterious ancient places, especially those of unknown origin, attract and generate strange tales/urban legends/folklore mainly because no one is sure exactly why they were built and what went on there. Q: What can the legends and folklore of ancient places reveal to us about the beliefs and ideas of our ancestors? Brian: Because we are talking about an age of more than 2,000 years, and sometimes a lot more, for prehistoric sites, the legends and folklore of ancient places tell us more about how these places have been seen and interpreted by people over the last few hundred years (which is when most of the folklore dates back to) rather than anything about the beliefs of the actual builders of the monuments. Q: What is the truth behind the mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor in China, home of the Terracotta Warriors? Brian: The monumental tomb of China's First Emperor, Qin Shi Huang, is located 22 miles east of Xian, the capital of the Shensi province of modern China. The tomb itself, which according to traditional feet from north to south and 1,590 feet from east to west. The mound has eroded considerably in its 2,000year history; it is believed that it once soared up to a height of 330 feet. The Terracotta Army are a vast army of soldiers discovered three quarters of a mile from Qin Shi Huang's tomb in three huge subterranean pits supported by wooden frameworks, and are spread over an area measuring 135,630 square feet. Each pit is separated by a number of partitioning walls, which divide the army up into columns. The soldiers are all arranged in battle formation, with crouching crossbowmen, archers, infantry, chariots, and cavalry all in their appropriate positions. Perhaps a tradition of the terracotta crossbowmen may have lingered on to become the legend that the Emperor's tomb was guarded against intruders by automatic cross bows? Every soldier in the Emperor's army is unique, with its individual face, hairstyle, height, uniform, and weapons, all in accordance with his rank. Archaeologists have excavated more than 1,000 of these soldiers, though they estimate there are as many as 7,000 magnificently crafted warriors, 130 chariots with horses, and 110 cavalry horses, buried to guard China's First Emperor more than 2,000 years ago. Q: Why are there modern encounters with ghosts, UFOs, spooklights, June 2010 Paranormal Underground 25 Author Spotlight Bigfoot, and phantom dogs at many sacred places? Brian: My research for the book Haunted Spaces, Sacred Places showed that supernatural stories are often connected with liminal places (old roads, ponds, ancient monuments), which were often seen as dangerous places -- boundary areas between the living and the dead. Reports of paranormal phenomena at such places are an extension of such folk beliefs. Q: Why do you think readers, and society in general, are fascinated by the paranormal? Brian: People love a mystery, and want desperately to believe in something. As Mulder says in The X-Files, "I want to believe." Q: Do you believe in the supernatural? Or are you a skeptic? Brian: I believe most supernatural tales are folklore or urban legend. I'm a critical thinker. Q: What period throughout history do you wish you could visit? Anyone in particular you'd like to meet and interview? Brian: I would have liked to have visited Stonehenge when it was being constructed (c2800 BC). I would love to have met Cleopatra. Q: What are you currently working on? Brian: I'm researching a book on the conspiracy theories surrounding the Manson Family. Scary people. ***** Join us for 100 Days of Namast� Seeing the Light in Every Person . . . Every Day Brian's latest book, History's Mysteries: People, Places, and Oddities Lost in the Sands of Time, is available at Amazon.com. You can learn more about Brian and his books at his Website, www.Brian-Haughton.com. www.namasteproject.org 26 Paranormal Underground June 2010 Paranormal Underground Radio Thursdays @ 9-11 p.m. ET http://ztalk radio.com/ Beginning July 1 With Hosts Rick Hale & Karen Frazier June 2010 Paranormal Underground 27 Special Report Channel Surfing: Did God Really Talk to THAT Guy? By Karen Frazier M y husband, Jim and I have a joke that we share. Or at least I think we are joking. Living just 30 miles south of the Ramtha compound in Washington State, we are well aware of channeled entities. Our joke? That if we ever really want to make it big, I just need to start to channel an entity. It's not that I have derision for channeled entities -- some of the information that comes from channels seems pretty darn profound. But there was an incident locally that lets me know that there just could be big money in it. What is it? Can channels really impart wisdom from "the great beyond"? A number of years ago, Ramtha -- a 35,000-year-old Atlantean warrior spirit who is allegedly channeled by Judy Zebra Knight (AKA JZ Knight) -- told his followers (including notables like actress Linda Evans, along with a former step mother-in-law of mine) -- that Twinkies could prolong life. Twinkies sold out in stores for miles surrounding the small town of Yelm, Washington, which sits nestled in the evergreens just northwest of Washington State's capitol, Olympia. The story is infamous up here in our neck of the woods -- how sad school children could no longer get their Twinkie fix because of the word of JZ Knight, a five-time divorced business school dropout who first encountered "The Enlightened One," Ramtha, in her Tacoma trailer in 1977. Since that first encounter, Knight's infamy has grown, as has the number of Ramtha's followers. From that tiny trailer where Ramtha first appeared, Knight's digs have gone slightly upscale. Knight, Ramtha, and her husband now live in a 12,800-squarefoot French chateau with a swimming pool and a staff of 14. Knight, speaking as Ramtha, has appeared on television shows like Larry King Live and The Merv Griffen Show. Ramtha's "School of Enlightenment" also produced the 2004 movie, What the Bleep Do We 28 Paranormal Underground June 2010 Pictured above (from left to right): JZ Knight said she channeled a 35,000-year-old Atlantean warrior spirit, named Ramtha; Edgar Cayce (AKA The Sleeping Prophet) told the world he channeled information directly from "the Source"; Helen Schucman, Columbia University professor of medical psychology, claimed to receive information from Jesus; and Neale Donald Walsch said he had a question and answer session with the Big Guy himself, God. Know, which taught a rather metaphysical interpretation of quantum physics that has been widely discredited by the scientific community. While she has gleaned thousands of followers and clearly made a boatload of money over the years, JZ Knight is far from the only channel out there. There are many who claim contact with a wise entity that seeks to share spiritual messages of wisdom with the masses through a human host. Channeling: New Age Messages or an Elaborate Hoax? According to the 1993 book, Understanding the New Age, by Russell Chandler, "Channeling. It's yesterday's s�ance medium, palm reader, crystal ball-gazer, and fortune-teller dressed up in high-tech drag and often packaged by Madison Avenue." Simply put, a channel is someone who goes into a trance state in order to allow a spirit or evolved entity to speak "through" them. In this trance state, the entity shares spiritual messages of hope and wisdom gleaned from their place as ascended masters. According to Chandler, most channels have a similar message: � Death is not real. � We are all part of the "Source," and separateness from the oneness of the Source exists only as illusion. � We have chosen to live lives as humans -- but we are really all Divine. � Everything exists as an opportunity for growth toward spirit -- we are never victims. � By tapping into who we really are as pieces of the Source, we can control the nature of our reality. The messages that come from channels have offered hope to millions. But are messages through channels real, or are they part of some elaborate money-making hoax perpetrated by individuals who have found a way to bilk thousands, and even millions, of dollars out of gullible followers? Or could it be that, like most things, the truth lies somewhere in between these two extremes? Perhaps some channels are receiving messages from a higher source while others are just flat out faking it. To date, no scientific testing has been established to prove whether or not there is any scientific validity to channeling -- much as there has been no science to prove other faith-based matters such as religious beliefs or a belief in ghosts. In the end, like most matters of faith, it is up to the indi- vidual to decide what they believe. Regardless of whether there is any scientific validity to channeling, there have been a number of channels -- all with their own followers -- throughout history. With this in mind, let's take a look at some of the more well-known channels of ancient and modern times. The Oracle of Delphi Picture it -- it's the 8th Century BCE. The Pythia is a priestess at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. For hundreds of years, the various women in the role of the Pythia have spoken prophetic messages that come from Apollo himself. The role of the Pythia was an extremely prestigious one in a maledominated ancient Greek culture, and the messages from Apollo were followed closely. The Oracle of Delphi is spoken of in a number of Greek works, including Homer and Diodorus Siculus. In the 1st Century CE, Greek historian Plutarch suggested the Oracle's powers came from the vapors from Kerna spring waters that ran under the temple, which may have had hallucinogenic properties. However, a College de France archeological June 2010 Paranormal Underground 29 Special Report and background to generate works with the level of sophistication that came to her through Patience Worth; however, none of the personal information that Patience Worth gave was ever verifiable as historically accurate. Since Curran's death in 1937, Patience has allegedly channeled through a few others, but the level of the work and language patterns didn't match the original Pearl Curran channeled works. Edgar Cayce Edgar Cayce was a Kentucky working-class boy with a ninthgrade education. He was raised in the Christian church and struggled throughout his life to reconcile his religious beliefs with the psychic messages that he was seemingly receiving. In 1900, Cayce was struck with a severe case of laryngitis that robbed him of his voice for over a year. In desperation, Cayce sought out a hypnotist to help him restore his voice. It was during these hypnotic trances that Cayce was not only cured of his laryngitis, but also discovered his power to communicate channeled information that was, at the very least, psychic in nature and often prophetic. All of Cayce's channeled information throughout his life came while he was in a hypnotic trance. In his readings, Cayce channeled information that came directly from "the Source" that talked of common New Age themes like reincarnation, Earth changes, and dream interpretation. Because his channeled information came from a trance state, Cayce was often referred to as "The Sleeping Prophet." While not all of Cayce's channeled prophecies came true, his followers believed that a number of them did, including the stock market crash of 1929 and both World Wars. Many also believed that Cayce accurately diagnosed a number of illnesses of people whom he was reading. While in a trance-like state, spirit medium Jane Roberts said she channeled "Seth," leading to a series of books known as The Seth Materials. expedition to Delphi in the late 1800s found no fissure that could have been the source of such gasses. More recently, a team of geologists concluded that the Oracle's powers were likely the result of hallucinations induced by small amounts of ethylene gasses that arose from a fault line under the Oracle's chamber. Pearl Curran/Patience Worth In the late 1800s, during the height of the spiritualist movement, a Missouri housewife named Pearl Curran suddenly began receiving strange messages through her Ouija board, which was a popular parlor game at the time. One afternoon, while Pearl and a few friends played with the Ouija board, a strange message was spelled out. "Many moons ago I lived. Again I come. Patience Worth my name. Wait, I would speak with thee. If thou shalt live, then so shall I. I make my bread at thy hearth. Good friends, let us be merrie. The time for work is past. Let the tabby drowse and blink her wisdom to the firelog." Thus began the relationship between Pearl Curran and Patience Worth. At first through the Ouija board, and then later via the process known as automatic writing, Patience wrote poetry, several novels, and works of prose that were critically praised. Many felt that Curran herself lacked the education, intelligence, 30 Paranormal Underground June 2010 Cayce remains known to this day as one of the greatest prophets and channels of the modern age. Jane Roberts/Seth Like Pearl Curran, American poet, psychic, and spirit medium Jane Roberts first encountered Seth through a Ouija board. Roberts and her husband were experimenting with the Ouija board one afternoon in December 1963 as research that Roberts was conducting for a book she planned to write about ESP. Shortly into the session, they began to receive coherent messages from an entity that called himself Seth. Also like Pearl Curran, Roberts soon no longer needed the Ouija board to hear Seth's messages. Roberts went on to write a number of books known as The Seth Materials. According to Roberts, the material came through her while she was in a trance state. As Roberts would speak in Seth's voice, her husband would write down the dictated material. For many, The Seth Materials sparked an era of New Age belief, and Roberts is believed by many to have pioneered the recent trend of channeled entities. Seth wasn't the only entity channeled by Roberts, however. She also believed herself to have channeled others, including Paul Cezanne and philosopher William James. Roberts continued to channel The Seth Materials until her death in 1984, and several posthumous works were published. Since her death, a number of people claimed to have channeled Seth; however, in The Seth Materials, Seth claimed (via Roberts) that he would never channel through anyone other than Roberts in order to protect the integrity of his message. Helen Schucman/Jesus In the 1965, research psychologist and Columbia University professor of medical psychology, named Helen Schucman, began receiving information from what she described as an inner voice that she identified as Jesus. For the next decade, Schucman took notes about what the voice told her and then had them transcribed by her only had his health deteriorated, but his marriage had ended and he was homeless and living in a tent. A despondent Walsch wrote an angry letter to God asking him why this all had happened to him. Much Lee Carroll claimed to channel an angelic entity. colleague, William Thetford. The result was the well-known New Age book, A Course in Miracles. The book is a self-paced, selfstudy book that teaches users how to apply spiritual principles in everyday life. Since it was published, A Course in Miracles has sold millions of copies and inspired numerous study courses and groups throughout the world. Until her death in 1981 from pancreatic cancer at the age of 71, Schucman never sought celebrity or financial gain from her channeling of the A Course in Miracles works. Lee Carroll/Kryon In 1989, audio engineer Lee Carroll claimed he began to channel Kryon -- an angelic entity from the Source, who has been here since the beginning of time. Kryon's aim in speaking through Carroll was to inspire human beings to move to a higher level of vibration. Carroll has written a number of books of Kryon's channeled works that show humans how to set aside their karma and live lives of spirituality in the real world. Carroll continues to write and lecture as Kryon, and has also written a number of books (as himself) about the next level of human evolution, Indigo Children. Neale Donald Walsch/God In the 1990s, Neale Donald Walsch was down on his luck. Not to Walsch's surprise, he heard a voice from over his shoulder say, "Do you really want an answer to all of your questions, or are you just venting?" Thus began, according to Walsch, an extraordinary question and answer session with the Big Guy himself, God. What resulted was a series of books written by Walsch, known collectively as Conversations With God. In the books, God answered Walsch's many questions, discussed the illusory nature of our universe, told Walsch how humans could create their own reality, and even made a few prophecies here and there, including predicting the impeachment of President Bill Clinton just a year before the Lewinsky scandal broke. Walsch continues to write, lecture, and share the philosophy imparted to him in his "conversations with God." What Do You Think? These are just a few of the many notable channels that have imparted what they believe to be wisdom from beyond the human plane. All told, millions of people believe their lives have been changed for the better through the spiritual messages that come through channels. With no scientific evidence one way or another, it is up to each individual to decide whether or not they believe that wisdom from "the beyond" can be passed through a human vessel. June 2010 Paranormal Underground 31 Case Files of the Unknown: Haunted Sites Where Rock and Roll Meets the Supernatural By Karen Frazier Robert Lang Studios: M y family was recently invited by Northwest Paranormal Investigation Agency (NWPIA) to join them on an investigation of the iconic Robert Lang Studios -- an astoundingly cool independent recording studio in Seattle's Richmond Beach area. If there is an epicenter of the Seattle rock scene, it just might be Robert Lang Studios. The list of wellknown musicians who have recorded at Robert Lang Studios reads like a veritable who's who in rock: Nirvana, Foo Fighters, Presidents of the USA, Dave Matthews, Heart, Linkin Park, Alice in Chains, Peter Frampton, Bush, Bad Company, and Pearl Jam front man Eddie Vedder. These are just a few of the many who have recorded within the walls of the Spanish-style villa overlooking the Puget Sound and Olympic Mountain Range. As a matter of fact, grunge band Nirvana recorded their last known studio recording, "You Know You're Right," at the studio in January 1994 -- just a few short months before lead singer Kurt Cobain's suicide. The four-story building houses not only a studio that has hosted legends of the Seattle music scene since 1974, but also serves as a private residence. The building originally started as a 20'x20' room, and now sprawls Robert Lang Studios, a Spanish-style recording studio that overlooks the Puget Sound and Olympic Mountain Range, is said to be home to the ghost of Dubby, among other spirits. across the hillside. Lang himself constructed the studio -- digging into the hillside, mixing concrete, and hand cutting tile to cover studio floors. Robert Lang Studios doesn't appear to be your typical corporate studio with sterile sound-proofed rooms. Instead, the recording studio interior takes on the look of a castle with stone walls, floors made of various tiles, and rooms in a variety of sizes and shapes -- each with different acoustical qualities. According to studio manager Paul Wieser, the unique acoustical qualities of each room could be accomplished using a console, but the result is less organic than having different rooms to choose from. Buried Treasure and a Haunted History Adding to the unique feel of the studio is its incredible history. Founded in 1974, the studio was a dream shared by Lang and his good 32 Paranormal Underground June 2010 friend, Walter Westley Leonard -- known to his friends as Dubby. Their friendship was cemented by their fascination for Harley Davidsons and their mutual love of music. They were dreamers with a shared vision -- to build a high-end, independent recording studio where great music could be made. Sadly, the duo's dream was not to be realized. Following a bout of increasingly erratic and agitated behavior, Dubby left for a fishing trip near the small town of Twisp, Washington, one Friday in September 1979. Dubby never returned from that trip. The official cause of death was aspiration following vomiting; however, Lang has always wondered if foul play might have been involved. On the day he left, Dubby took Lang aside and said to him, "I put something in the ground." That was the last time Lang saw his friend. The next day he was awakened by Dubby's girlfriend, who had come to tell him of Dubby's death the night before. Lang was shocked and grieving for his friend. While he felt there might be significance in Dubby's final message to him, he didn't pursue it for quite some time; however, it was never far from his mind that Dubby just might have buried a treasure somewhere on his property that could help him to fulfill their dream of building the studio. Then one day he noticed a stranger out poking into the ground on the property with a pole. This once again aroused Lang's curiosity, and he went out to purchase a metal detector to search the property. It was a wash. He discovered nothing. It was then that he realized that if he was to discover Dubby's stash -- which Lang was certain was money to build his dream -- it would only come to him through the sweat of his own labor as he toiled to build the studio. Did buried treasure help Robert Lang build his iconic, and haunted, studios? According to Lang (pictured at left), it did. He said that one night while building the studios, he found a canister of money buried in the hillside, left there by his deceased friend, Dubby. One night a few months later, Lang was digging into the hillside of the property with a friend. It was pouring down rain and nearing dark. Suddenly, part of the sand on the hillside gave way and revealed part of a large plastic canister. Lang froze. He immediately knew that this was what Dubby was talking about during their last conversation. Lang quickly extinguished the work light, drove his friend home, and then returned to the property. After digging out the canister, he immediately took it into the house and opened it up. It was packed with hundred dollar bills. While he doesn't give a specific amount, it is clear when talking with Lang that it was a lot of money. Lang says he knew Dubby had put that money there for him so that he could fulfill their dream and build the studio, which is exactly what he did. But not without first stopping to offer up thanks to Dubby with a vow that he would fulfill what he felt were Dubby's wishes for the money. Lang hadn't lived in the residence above the studio for long, when he became aware that someone unseen was living there with him. One night, he and his wife, Tina, were sound asleep when they heard footsteps pounding up the stairs. Lang was immediately out of bed and racing down the stairs, convinced he would catch an intruder in the house. There was no one there. Since that first encounter, Lang, his employees, visitors, and many recording artists have experienced strange phenomena throughout the studio area. Occurrences include faces in the glass of the doors and windows, full-body apparitions, strange knocking sounds emanating from instruments, and even an 80-pound "gobo" (room divider) moving of its own accord. Lang has one picture of a screaming face in the glass of a studio door. Lang firmly believes that Dubby is still around, happily hanging out in the studio that was their shared dream. NWPIA started investigating Robert Lang Studios in 2008 and have returned a number of times since then. They've witnessed shadow figures, researched the history of the location, and captured EVPs that have them convinced that the studio is haunted by Dubby and two other ghosts -- the ghost of a young girl who died in a well down the street and an older, tall man. Marble Tile or Religious Prophecy? The history of Robert, Dubby, the buried treasure, and the hauntings, combined with all of the amazing bands who have passed through the recording studio, make Robert Lang June 2010 Paranormal Underground 33 Case Files of the Unknown: Haunted Sites While investigating Robert Lang Studios, the team conducted a Radio Shack Hack ghost box session and had some surprising results. Through the static came the voice of a 19-year-old named Steve, who answered many of the investigator's direct questions. Studios a fascinating place to visit. But there's more. Not only has the studio earned a place in rock and haunted history, but it also houses an artifact that many in the clergy and faith-based communities believe has a strong and important spiritual significance. What is it exactly? It is a piece of antique verde marble that Lang says features the forms of numerous pictures of spiritual significance. Lang obtained the marble as a remnant that he was going to use to put on the floor of the studio. One day he was cutting the marble when a flash of light, which started all around him, suddenly zeroed in on the piece of tile that he was cutting. Lang was transfixed as the light revealed images in the tile. The veins of the tile show a figure facing to the left. In its right hand, the figure holds a candle with a halo of light surrounding its flame. In its left hand, it holds a stick with a dangling cross. The figure also has a crown and a halo. Believing he had a picture of a saint etched naturally into the marble, Lang took the stone to several local Catholic priests. All of them were impressed and felt that the stone had spiritual significance. As more clergy examined the stone, more Christian imagery was revealed, including a dove, a serpent, a lamb, the nativity star, and the magi. Now every Easter, the stone is displayed at The Church of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Many who see it are moved by it, and Lang continues to pursue authentication of the stone, its images, and its ultimate message of hope for people of faith. The Investigation We arrived at Robert Lang Studios at 10 p.m. on May 1, 2010. Present at the investigation were my husband Jim; my two teens Tanner and Kevin (who drooled over the Nirvana gold records and were in Heaven that they got to use the Dave Matthews bathroom); and NWPIA members Bert and Jayme Coates, Bobby Ward, and Jenny Frank. Studio manager Paul Wieser gave us a tour of the studio, which is impressive. Then we settled in by the console to interview Lang. He's quite a storyteller, and he was happy to relay the story of Dubby. After a quick break, he brought out the stone. I was able to examine the stone in good light, up close and personal. The images that many see in the stone are quite clear -- and I was able to see them without a lot of coaching. The only one I couldn't see was what some say is a camel. It looked like a giraffe to me. Lang also brought out a blowup of one of the faces in the marble, and it actually sent chills down my spine. It looks like a rather spooky face -- the only frightening thing in something filled with otherwise benevolent imagery. After examining the stone, we got to work investigating. Bert had expressed an interest in trying out a Radio Shack Hack ghost box (see the Equipment Update in this issue) on an investigation. Since I happened to have one that I'd never tried, I figured Robert Lang Studios was the perfect place to try it out. We plugged the box into speakers and set recorders nearby. Then we set it to scan FM frequencies and began asking questions. To our surprise, underneath the voices that came from the changing radio stations there came a scratchy, quiet, male voice that seemed to arise out of the static. The voice recurred time and time again and seemed to provide answers that were relevant to our questioning. 34 Paranormal Underground June 2010 The voice first indicated that its name was Steve, and he was 19. His responses seemed youthful and fairly modern -- using words like "right on" and "cool" in response to a number of our questions. At one point, Bert asked where Steve was from, and the answer came . . . "Cincinnati." When requesting a last name, it sounded like "Angelo." Bert also asked Steve to tell us how many people there were in the room. The radio answered seven. We counted and surprise -- there were seven of us. A few minutes later, Jayme entered the room, and the radio promptly said, "eight," followed by the words "little one" in the Steve voice. Jayme is tiny, so that definitely made sense. What I discovered is that listening to a Radio Shack Hack can get tiring after a while. It is difficult on the ears from straining to listen, and I began to hear all sorts of stuff. We unplugged the radio and moved it into the main studio room and plugged it back in. The most significant hit we got in there seemed to be Steve calling Bobby a "douchebag" in response to a joke Bobby cracked. But by that time, I might have been hearing things. We turned off the Radio Shack Hack and conducted a "normal" EVP session, with just digital recorders. I didn't get any significant hits. After that, we wandered around and took pictures. A few shots showed orbs. This is consistent with the number of shiny reflective surfaces and the use of a flash. Taking EMF readings didn't really seem appropriate, because the studio was jammed with electronic equipment that most likely gave off some serious EMF. The unique acoustical qualities of the rooms made Jim feel an odd pressure in his ears, and Tanner got a headache passing a certain point in the studio more than once. That is likely a result of the massive amount of electrical equipment, since he got it as he was passing into the studio. I took several photographs of the door where a face was captured in the glass, wondering if it could have been an odd reflection. I used a flash and was unable to recreate the image in the glass. I realized that my experimentation was not valid, however, when I looked at the two used the last little bit of toilet paper, rendering the Dave Matthews bathroom unusable for those who came after me. Still -- it's a cool little bathroom. It has a sunflower sink, a heavy door that looks like a submarine door, and a microwave. Apparently, if you are a Grammy-winning rock star, you get a microwave in your bathroom in case you want to have a burrito while you're "relaxing." We left recorders in the main studio as we investigated. On review of the recorders, I didn't pick up any unusual anomalies until moments before I shut the recorder off. At that time, I re-entered the studio alone and announced that it was the last opportunity to say something because I was turning off the recorder. For a few moments, you hear the sounds of me packing up. And then, about 30 seconds before the recorder turns off, there is a loud whisper that sounds like it might be saying, "Put that away." I was alone, I wasn't whispering, and I'm not in the habit of talking to myself. If I do make a noise, I announce it on the recorder. It was an interesting anomaly. Is Robert Lang Studios Haunted? I don't know if Robert Lang Studios is haunted. While my experiences there were very cool, I didn't have anything by way of personal experiences or evidence to convince me one way or another, although the evidence and personal experiences of others seem to indicate that there is definitely something going on. While I was interviewing Lang and he was telling me the story of Dubby, I felt, just for a moment, the whisper of a presence, as if Dubby was there listening to his story being told by his old friend, Bob Lang. And maybe Dubby is there, hanging out in the studio he dreamed of, listening to rock legends make music for an eagerly waiting world. Does this piece of antique verde marble feature the forms of numerous pictures of spiritual significance? pictures side by side and realized I hadn't duplicated the lighting conditions of the original photograph, in which the light was on inside the studio beyond the glass door. In my photographs, the light was off. Oops. My next stop was the Dave Matthews bathroom, where I promptly June 2010 Paranormal Underground 35 Case Files of the Unknown: Haunted History The Ghost Bus of Highway 93 By Paul Bottini, http://zzyzxparanormal.com J oe mentally massaged the waning motor of the massive monolith. "C'mon. C'mon, damn it!" the frazzled bus driver pleaded beneath breath reeking of black coffee and Winchell's finest. Through a veil of sweat, Joe fixed his gaze on the pinnacle of Union Pass 200 yards in the distance. The bus' air conditioning had committed suicide just outside of Wickenburg. Joe felt like the pie portion of a TV dinner, bubbling and sizzling inside this metal coffin baked by the Arizona sun. Less than a quarter of a mile, now. The remainder of the way was a breezy, downhill slope into Laughlin. Blue smoke billowed from the rear of Number 777, obliterating the highway behind the "bus from Hell." "You can do it, baby. You can do it!" Joe coaxed. Snake eyes. "Detroit steel" groaned, emitting its death knell. Joe muscled the vanquished beast to the shoulder of the turnpike. Drenched in perspiration, the driver's trembling palms never got a firm grip on the wheel. Even before applying the emergency brake, Joe caught sight of the irate passenger marching toward him from the back of the bus. ***** Squinting into the rearview mirror, the motor coach operator Could the tales of the Ghost Bus of Highway 93 be true? Does spectral Bus 777 roam the roads haunting motorists between Kingman, Arizona, and Laughlin, Nevada? Take a trip and find out. noticed a change in the commuter's appearance. The once elderly, feeble tourist now seemed a hulking beast, no longer human. Joe gazed up just in time to see the hoard of passengers, an entire bus worth, descend upon him like a lynch mob. Once-docile Sun City geriatrics now sported hideous features only the mother of a demon could love. Joe gasped in terror. The bus driver's world went black. A breeze cooled the blanket of sweat covering Joe's brow. Regaining consciousness, the coach operator opened his eyes. Mojave Desert sun fried his pupils. Where the Hell was he? Joe glanced about. He was lying on his back in dried, red caliche. His once-crisp uniform was covered in the stuff. He detected the sounds of passing automobiles somewhere beyond his feet. By the position of the sun, it couldn't have been much later than noon. Through a mire of heat, Joe recognized the bus, his bus, Number 777, now being pushed uphill by a gaggle of demons resembling his most recent passengers. At the helm of the vehicle was the old man-turned-devil who had led the mutiny. An evil smile gracing his black lips, the senior citizen-cumincubus glared back at the bus driver. It was then Joe noticed the "icing on the cake." Those bluehaired bastards had stolen his shoes. Barefoot and confused, Joe watched as the troupe of fiends pushed the deceased bus to the crest of Union Pass. 36 Paranormal Underground June 2010 Did somebody spike his coffee this morning? Was any of this even possible? Joe stared, mouth agape, recalling how fervent the elderly group had been in their quest to reach Laughlin and gamble their pensions away. Sure, everybody loves sittin' "shotgun" in Lady Luck's Gran Torino. Even Joe secretly enjoyed a pull, or 50, on a slot machine handle, but this bunch had been abnormally obsessed from the get-go. The driver recalled asking the passengers if they wanted to head back to Phoenix after the air conditioning had gone on the fritz. A collective and decisive "No!" thundered his way from the rear of the bus. Not a straggler in the group. Not a hint of doubt in a single voice. When the behemoth beneath him began losing power around Wikieup, Joe had pulled into a parking lot and again explained the situation to his assemblage of "Q-tips." He recalled asking if they'd prefer he radio back to headquarters for another bus that was perhaps climate-controlled. "No!" had been the collaborative reply as an old man leaned in and croaked, "We'll push this damned bus all the way to Laughlin if we have to, Sonny! Those slot machines ain't waitin' any longer. You just do your job." Had this little guy, all of 80 pounds, really threatened Joe? What's more, had Joe really been scared? Now, from the driver's vantage point in the dirt, it appeared as though the geriatric was about to make good on his promise. Joe watched Bus 777 reach the top of Union Pass and disappear over the decline on the opposite side. The group of devilish seniors soon followed suit. Propping himself up on his elbows, Joe wondered . . . had it all been a nightmare? A hundred and twenty-degree Weary wayfarers heading northwest from Wickenburg have reported sighting spectral Bus 777 careening across the desert. Most encounters occur when drivers are traveling alone. heat is nothing to fool with, but then how did he end up here along the shoulder of the highway, not a town in either direction for 10 miles? Plus, Joe recalled having kept in contact with dispatch throughout his entire ordeal, informing headquarters of the paranormal conundrum unfolding around him. Wearily, the bus driver rose to his feet. He turned toward the crest of Union Pass and stumbled forth. There was nothing else he could do. Laughlin was still well beyond the horizon, but he was certain to hitch a ride during midday. After all, spirits don't appear until nightfall, right? ***** It's known as the Ghost Bus of Highway 93 (AKA the "Grim Weeper"), and according to motorists between Kingman, Arizona, and Laughlin, Nevada, its ethereal form still exists. Weary wayfarers heading northwest from Wickenburg have reported sighting spectral Bus 777 careening across the desert. Most encounters occur in the small hours, when drivers are traveling alone. The vehicular apparition appears suddenly in your rearview mirror, headlights ablaze, purportedly weeping molten chrome. Without warning, the behemoth simply devours your car, as you fight to retain sanity. Clearing your front bumper, the beast dissolves into the roadway illuminated by your headlights. The vacant seats inside your automobile become inexplicably occupied by ethereal passengers. By the time you've wrangled your car to the side of the road, your otherworldly occupants have vanished. You're left alone along the shoulder of a darkened highway, in the middle of nowhere, wondering if that signpost up ahead may, in fact, read "The Twilight Zone." To those traversing Highway 93 between Wickenburg and Wikieup, Arizona, this tale holds more than a shred of truth. The day trip from Phoenix to Laughlin for a few hours of moderate stakes gaming is one undertaken by folks all the time. Buses akin to that of the infamous 777 run the route constantly, and the stretch between Turnpike 93 and 68 are well-traveled. Should you find yourself in Arizona, thirstin' for a duel with a "onearmed bandit," take a leisurely bus trip to Laughlin. Besides the opportunity to win a fortune, you may be in for the ride of your life, as the Ghost Bus of Highway 93 is spotted, to this day, anywhere from the former mining town of Wickenburg, to beyond Union Pass along Highway 68. June 2010 Paranormal Underground 37 Case Files of the Unknown: Cryptids & Mythological Creatures The Dover Demon: Is It Real? By Jill Stefko, Ph.D. D uring three days in April 1977, three separate witnesses claimed to have seen a strange creature lurking about the streets of a tiny Boston suburb. All three witnesses were teenagers, but the descriptions from each were almost an exact match, with the small exception of one detail, the color of the creature's eyes. Upon hearing of the sightings, some residents thought it was just a teenage prank. However, experts in the paranormal field extensively interviewed the teens, as did others who knew them. They concluded that the teens were credible. Even today, one of the witnesses, now a prominent artist, is still haunted by the April 1977 event. Never before or since has such a creature been seen in Massachusetts. The sightings lasted only three days. There are theories about what the teens witnessed, but what the creature was remains a mystery. The First Sighting of the Dover Demon What came to be known as the Dover Demon was first seen at 10:30 p.m. on April 21, 1977, in Dover, During the first sighting of the "Dover Demon" in Dover, Massachusetts, on April 21, 1977, 17-year-old Bill Bartlett saw a most unusual creature. As he drove down the street, he glimpsed "something" that had large, orange eyes, a gangly body, and hairless skin. Massachusetts. Three 17-year-olds were in a car when one of them, Bill Bartlett, glimpsed something creeping next to a wall of stones on the west side of the street. He then described how he witnessed the creature turn its head and look directly into the car's headlights. The teen saw two large, shiny, orange eyes glowing brightly. Its large oval head, which was as large as the rest of its body, was on top of a skinny neck. The body, less than four feet tall, was gangly with large hands and feet. The hairless skin appeared to be rough-textured. None of the others in the car saw the critter. They testified later that Bartlett seemed genuinely distressed. When the teen arrived home, his father noticed how upset he was. Bartlett drew a sketch of the entity to show him what he saw. 38 Paranormal Underground June 2010 Second Sighting of the Dover Demon April 22, 1977, at approximately 12:30 a.m., John Baxter, 15, was walking home from his girlfriend's house. He noticed a short figure walking toward him. He thought it was a friend of his. He called out his friend's name, but there was no answer. As they grew closer, the creature stopped. Baxter approached it to see who or what it was. It scurried down a shallow gully, rested, and then went up the opposite bank. When it was at the bottom of the slope, Baxter looked more intently at it. The creature had its arms wrapped around a tree trunk. The fingers were very long. His description of the creature matched Bill Bartlett's, who saw him the day before. Third Sighting of the Dover Demon On the evening of April 23, 1977, Will Taintor, 15, was driving Abby Brabham, 15, to her home. Brabham said she saw something in the vehicle's headlights. On the left side of the road, there was a hairless creature, down on all four limbs, facing the vehicle. The body was lanky, and it had a large, oversized, oval head. Its eyes glowed green. When Brabham was told that Bartlett had said the creature's eyes were orange, she said they appeared green to her. Investigation of the Dover Demon Cryptozoologist Loren Coleman and ufologists Walter Webb and Ed Fogg interviewed the witnesses, parents, friends, teachers, school officials and police. There was no evidence of a hoax, and the teens were described as credible. Coleman dubbed the mysterious creature the "Dover Demon," John Baxter, a Dover Demon witness, drew the above illustration of his experience on April 22, 1977. and the name stuck after newspapers reported on the sightings of the creature and subsequent investigations. What Was the Dover Demon? On October 29, 2006, the Boston Sunday Globe published an article about Bartlett's experience. He recounted what happened on that April night in 1977, saying he had no idea what the creature was that he saw. Today, Bartlett is an artist with works displayed in galleries on both U.S. coasts. However, he has never forgotten what he saw so long ago. He said that the sighting of the Dover Demon still haunts him. Some consider the demon a cryptid . . . an unidentified mysterious animal. But as it was only seen for three days, it is, most likely, not a naturally occurring species. Cryptid sightings tend to occur over longer stretches of time. Some ufologists theorized the Dover Demon was actually an alien or a human mutant as a result of an ET experiment gone awry. And there are still others who believe this creature was a being from another dimension, transferred to Earth through a warp of some kind. Ultimately, what the Dover Demon was/is remains a mystery. Article source: www.suite101.com. June 2010 Paranormal Underground 39 Case Files of the Unknown: Are We Alone? The Kingman UFO Crash of 1953 By Paul Bottini, http://zzyzxparanormal.com W hat the Hell is going on? Arthur wondered. Who are these people? Making certain not to establish eye contact, the mechanical engineer glanced at the other passengers around the military-issue bus. G.I. Joe sitting "shotgun" made it all too clear Arthur wasn't to speak to anyone during the trip. By the lack of communication inside the vehicle, the soldier must have gotten to the others, as well. What kind of assignment was this anyway? he pondered. Arthur waited until the conscript at the front of the bus turned away before peeling at the strips of duct tape covering the window adjacent his seat. This shit was thick. At least three or four layers. Save for the 62 windshield, the windows of the entire bus were slathered in this crap. The military must own stock in duct tape, Arthur thought, a moment before the soldier with the rifle turned his attention back to the interior of the vehicle. The engineer halted his curious pursuit to uncover the whereabouts of the bus. Arthur wasn't military. Why was he here? Sure, the company he worked for was contracted out by Uncle Sam, but the bus had been on the road now for four hours. That didn't include the "puddle jumper" from McCarran to Sky Harbor, either. Did a UFO of extraterrestrial origin really crash in Kingman, Arizona, on May 20, 1953? According to several witnesses, the answer is a resounding "yes." The vehicle slowed to a halt. The tension in the bus heightened as the passengers became even more curious as to what awaited them. Arthur and the others sat compliantly. The door to the vehicle opened, and the serviceman stationed at the front saluted whomever stood just outside the caravan. A brief conversation ensued before G.I. Joe turned to the ensemble. "Might I remind you," the officer bellowed, "you are all under contract of the United States government. Although you may possess no military affiliation, what you see, hear, and experience from this point forward, is held in the strictest of confidence. You will speak of this incident to no one!" Although heads never turned, if peripheral vision could be sold by the pound, it would be the hottest commodity on the bus. With the final decree pronounced, Arthur and his 40 Paranormal Underground June 2010 fellow passengers were led single file into the pre-dawn Arizona desert. ***** There, in the sand before them, illuminated by a pair stationary searchlights, awaited a 30-foot-wide, circular craft. The collective silence of the passengers spoke volumes. What in the name of God are we looking at?! Arthur's mind raced. Did the military crash one of its experimental vehicles? The engineer's eyes adjusted to the enormous spotlights that were turning night into day. The craft, whatever it was, had to have crashed. A gigantic tear defaced the otherwise flawless metal of the vehicle's fuselage. Okay, so this thing obviously wrecked, Arthur deduced, but from where? He studied the terrain around the vessel. The only tire tracks belonged to the military Jeeps now surrounding the craft. Common sense dictated this vehicle hadn't been driven to its current location. And what's with all this secrecy? Arthur pondered. A covert, military operation undertaken in the dead of the night? Why not just wait until daybreak to clean this up? And how about all these damned soldiers? The landscape was crawling with them. The engineer couldn't stand the soulless mentality of the Armed Forces. This was definitely something big. By all indications, huge. Arthur harkened back to fantastical dime store pulp penned about space men from Mars. Hadn't some pilot seen nine of these things in Washington State a few years ago? The engineer couldn't be certain, but he seemed to recall an alleged crash somewhere in New Mexico, as well. When was that? '47? '48? Arthur didn't remember. But hadn't the incident been declared a mistake? Didn't the Army end up professing whatever crashed was actually some sort of weather balloon? Damn, he could use a pre-breakfast beverage right about now. These jarheads were giving him the creeps. On the heels of that thought, Arthur's worst nightmare, sporting more stripes than a damn zebra, strode toward him from the darkness. A carved-in-stone "officer from Hell" belched chronic halitosis into the engineer's face. "Stancil!" the prototype for the perfect soldier bellowed forth. bus and on your way home." Arthur hesitated, glancing up at the incredible craft. Crashed to Earth? he thought. So this is some sort of flying . . . whatever. Is it one of ours? he wondered. "Wh-- what is it?" Arthur queried. "Ask that question again, and it might be your last." The officer towered over Arthur. This time, the engineer stood his ground, although his trembling Arthur saw a diminutive, anthropomorphic being, perhaps four feet in height. Shocked, Arthur recoiled. "Yyes?" "Arthur G.?" the behemoth in the uniform sensed Arthur's fear and pounced all over it, moving closer. "Yes." "Engineer?" "Y-yes, sir." "Follow me." Arthur got the feeling this Neanderthal didn't give a shit who the Hell he worked for; Nazis, Communists, U.S. Marine Corps, it was all the same to a bastard like this. Just another excuse to exert control. The officer glared back at the engineer, as though he could read minds. Stancil lowered his gaze as he followed the soldier toward the crashed vehicle. Fifteen feet from the wreckage, the military official stopped. Arthur followed suit. Eyeing the anomalous machine with peripheral vision, the lifetime military drone turned to the mechanical engineer, "You have one objective and one alone, Mr. Stancil. Determine the velocity at which it crashed to Earth. The more quickly you accomplish your task, the more quickly we'll have you back on the hands were a dead giveaway that he was about as steadfast as a house of cards on the San Andreas Fault during a windstorm. Arthur averted his gaze. The officer never wavered. This is beyond huge, Arthur thought. Either this is top secret Ruskie, or--. Gazing up at the defunct aircraft, devoid of markings, the engineer shuddered at the obvious conclusion. "I'll . . . I'll need a slide rule, the longest measuring tape you've got, and a pad. Oh, and a pencil, too." The officer pointed toward an illuminated tent nearby the vessel. "You'll find everything in there. Ask for Sergeant Malloy." With that, the Major strode off into the night. Arthur would see the "super-soldier" twice again, both times in fitful nightmares months later. ***** The calculations went pretty smoothly. Angle of trajectory. Distance the craft was embedded into the soil. Density of said soil. None of it was precise, mind you, but it would equate to a ballpark figure and, let's face it, these jarheads June 2010 Paranormal Underground 41 Case Files of the Unknown: Are We Alone? In May 1953, unnamed soldiers at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio claimed to have received delivery of "three small bodies, packed in ice." The shipment was said to be from Arizona. wouldn't know the difference. While determining his solution, Arthur took a few extra moments to query the handful of civilians around him. He fashioned his line of questioning to appear as though his final calculation was dependent upon knowing more about the craft. In the end, he learned of a diminutive cockpit, complete with chairs, located somewhere within the vehicle. He pondered looking inside the vessel, but the horrific image of the mammoth, armed officer loomed in his mind, and he wisely chose "door number two." An hour after being assigned the task, Arthur submitted his conclusion, and was escorted back to the bus. Along the way, he passed a tiny tent reeking of astringent. Still shrouded partially in darkness, the engineer managed a quick look inside the tarpaulin. What he saw would forever be imprinted in his mind. A body. Human, yet not human. A diminutive, anthropomorphic being perhaps four feet in height. Whatever it was, it appeared dead. Before attempting a closer look, visions of square-jawed, ruthless Marines pistol whipping him filled his overactive brain. Stepping quickly from the tent, Arthur continued his walk back to the bus. On the vehicle, copies of an Official Secrets Act were circulated among the passengers. Arthur and the other civilians were ordered to sign the agreement, which forbade them from ever speaking of the incident to anyone. The ride back to Phoenix Sky Harbor had the bus pulling in around 9 a.m. By Arthur's estimate, unless the driver was traveling in circles, the vehicle would have headed northwest during its initial excursion. Within well under four hours, south would place the bus somewhere in Mexico. Due north would take it beyond Flagstaff and into a much more wooded area. Only one solution remained. That was northwest. Highway 93, up through Wickenburg. Almost exactly four hours driving time northwest of Phoenix awaited Kingman, Arizona, still desert by any account. ***** Whether or not the preceding story is true remains a mystery amongst ufologists. Arthur G. Stancil (AKA Fritz Werner), an accredited mechanical engineer graduating from Ohio University in 1949, came forth with this incredible tale as early as 1964. The story gained considerable recognition in 1973 when renowned UFO investigator Raymond Fowler published his own detailed research on the subject. Fowler purports to having conducted an extensive background investigation on the individual known as Arthur G. Stancil, and determined him to be of credible nature. In addition, Fowler also claims Stancil displayed extensive knowledge regarding the field of mechanical engineering. Evidence corroborating Stancil's fantastical story would later emerge from Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio. Former staff stationed at the military installation attested to the arrival of "three small bodies packed in dry ice," shipped from Arizona during the time frame of the crash as reported by Arthur. According to the personnel in question, the diminutive cadavers sported oversized craniums and brown skin. A deficiency of physical evidence with which to validate Stancil's claims remains. Combine this with the fact that military personnel giving testimony are either unable or unwilling to divulge their names, and you've got a fascinating account that may or may not be true. Did a UFO of extraterrestrial origin really crash in Kingman, Arizona, on May 20, 1953? Take Interstate 40 west from Flagstaff and find out for yourself. Kingman can also be reached from Phoenix by traveling northwest on Highway 60 and continuing in the same direction through Wickenburg along the 93. Upon reaching Interstate 40, head west for approximately 20 miles, and you'll arrive at your intended destination. The town of Kingman is located about 25 miles east of Bullhead City, Arizona, and Laughlin, Nevada, both of which hug the state line. Traversing Route 66 on your way to Vegas, you'll inevitably find yourself passing through Kingman. Stop and speak to the locals. Tour the city. Who knows? Perhaps you'll be able to solve a modern mystery. 42 Paranormal Underground June 2010 YOUR AD HERE! Advertise in Paranormal Underground, on Our Forums, or During our Podcasts! 1-714-646-4197 � � � � � Affordable Rates/Target Audience Long-Term Exposure More than 4,200 readers per issue More than 25,000 Unique Page views per issue Our Website is viewed by 8,335+ visitors per month, with 63% being new traffic � Our podcasts have more than 6,200 iTunes subscribers plus an additional listener base of 5,200 per month. � Magazine available online and "print on demand" For more information, contact KarenFrazier@paranormalunderground.net June 2010 Paranormal Underground 43 Personal Experiences Haunted Hotel By Carolyn M. Hughes Diary From a W hen I began working as a night auditor more than three years ago at Quality Inn at General Lee's Headquarters, located on the Gettysburg battlefield, I anticipated experiencing nothing more interesting than having some bizarre request from a guest. I never expected my spirit friends to visit so often or to hear so many accounts of activity from unsuspecting guests. I never thought they would alert us to their presence in so many creative ways, or for there to be so much activity involved. I am of the personal belief that spirits only want us to know they are still here and not to forget what happened here, for it is on this ground that they truly gave their "last full measure of devotion." Here is my ongoing diary of my experiences within the hotel . . . until it completely disappeared. He then went back into the living room, got his aunt, and she accompanied him back into the kitchen area. The shadow man was again in the same location on the wall where the young man had previously seen him. They both stood still watching this shadow man until, again, he disappeared. They looked all around them and saw that the only light available in this area is one located above the sink area, which is approximately 10 feet away from the wall. They both tried to recreate what they had seen, taking turns standing in various locations around the kitchen, but were unable to recreate it. There were no more appearances of a shadow man that evening. Pictured above is the laundry room's back door, where Carolyn recently heard a rattling of the doorknob just after locking it. Mon., Mar. 22 6:40 p.m.: I was standing at the front desk in the lobby working on one of the computers, when I heard a very loud boom. Immediately after the boom, I felt the vibrations through the floor and heard all the windows in the lobby rattle. This is typical when we encounter phantom cannon fire at the hotel. This is the first time, however, that I can recall hearing it so early in the evening. Sat., Mar. 13 9:25 p.m.: I received a frantic call at the front desk from the guests staying in the Inn at Seminary Ridge. The Inn is a large, two-story suite/ house that was on the property at the time of the battle. The young gentleman relayed to me that he had stepped into the din- ing room, turned on the overhead lights, and walked into the kitchen area. He looked to his left at the wall across from the kitchen sink and saw what he described as a shadow in the form of a man. He stood there about a minute watching this shadow man 44 Paranormal Underground June 2010 Mon., Apr. 5 8:06 p.m.: As is my usual practice, after my 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. coworker has left, I go around to all the doors making certain they are secure. During the course of my checking, I went into the laundry room to be sure that the back door there was locked. This door has windows in the upper portion so you can view the back property of the hotel. I checked the door and had turned around and started walking away when I heard what appeared to me to be someone rattling the door knob on that back door. It sounded as if someone was trying to get in through that locked door. It only took me a second to turn to look at the windows on the door. There was no one standing there. I opened the locked door and walked all around the area, and there was no one outside. Were you boys letting me know that I was secure and no "living" person could get in? Thanks! I could have done without the heart palpitations! ing to him that I had checked all the doors in the entire building not five minutes before, he was shocked. I then proceeded to show the guest that the lock on the door was still in place, shut the door and then tried to open that locked door on my own. It would not budge. Does that happen often? Yes, all the time. The guest quickly departed the lobby and went to his room. Tues., Apr. 13 6:33 a.m.: I was in the process of checking out a guest when the guest related to me something she heard that woke her up that morning. She explained to me that she lives on a ranch in Montana and is very accustomed to hearing this sound. However, she immediately recognized that she was not on her ranch, but in a hotel on the Gettysburg battlefield. When I asked her what sound she had heard, she told me she heard what sounded like many mules braying in the early morning. I explained to the guest that approximately 5,000 horses and mules were killed during the Battle of Gettysburg. The guest was more shocked to learn the high number of animals that were killed than she was hearing the phantom sounds. After all, she said, the hotel does sit on the battlefield. This is the first account we have received of the sound of mules on the property. We have experienced horses several times, in the lobby no less. There would have been a high number or horses and mules on the property during the fighting on Day One of the Battle of Gettysburg and for the next several days. As my readers will know, General Lee made his headquarters in the Thompson House, which sits on our property. The locked door pictured above recently opened about three quarters of the way on its own in front of Carolyn and a guest. This occurrence happens often. Sat., Apr. 10 6:35 p.m.: A couple of our regular guests came into the lobby to say hello to me. I asked them to excuse me for one brief moment as I was in dire need of something cold to drink. I stepped out the private, side door to get a soda out of the beverage machine that is located in the breezeway. As soon as I opened the private door, I was assaulted with cigar smoke. I stepped back into the lobby and asked our guests to come around to the side. As soon as they came around the side where the private entrance is, they both commented on the fact that they could smell heavy cigar smoke. We did an immediate search of the entire area and could find no guests either in the immediate vicinity or even on their way back to their room. I explained to our guests that this is a common occurrence in this area. As regulars, they were not surprised as they themselves have experienced phantom smoke odors (cigar smoke and cherry pipe tobacco) on the property when there was no one around that they could see. Sat., Apr. 10 8:05 p.m.: I was standing at the terminal in the lobby where I am always stationed. To my immediate right, and only two to three feet from my side, is the private, locked entrance to the lobby. I was in the process of checking in a guest when the private, locked door suddenly opened about three quarters of the way. The guest I was checking in immediately asked me if the door was not properly secured. After explain- Stay Tuned . . . 45 June 2010 Paranormal Underground Personal Experiences: Ghost Hunter Case Files Investigates an Unusual Haunting By Katie Christopher, NEPA Paranormal NEPA Paranormal A s a paranormal investigator, I often find myself questioning the reason behind some of our cases. Usually, we get a case and it doesn't take long to piece everything together. The spirit in question is usually attached to the home, the client, or even an object. Whatever the case may be, the explanation behind it is normal fairly easy to find after we do a little digging. But once in a great while, you get one of those cases that you just don't quite know how to explain. Something is there haunting a person, and you just sit back and wonder: Why this person? What is the connection? And no matter how hard you try, you can't figure it out, but regardless, it is happening. After investigating, you have your evidence. The proof that it's happening is right in front of you, and suddenly nothing makes sense anymore. This goes against all the theories we as paranormal investigators subscribe to. In a normal situation, we take the evidence for what it is, present it to the clients, and move forward in our normal process, but what do you do if you realize you've stumbled into something much bigger? A recent case put me in this exact situation, and now my team, NEPA Paranormal, has, in my opinion, made contact with a ghost from one of the country's most notorious murders. Pictured at left are the NEPA Paranormal team members. Bottom row (left to right): Chris Smith, Natalie Belleman, Alissa Timko, Lauren Pollman, Katie Christopher, Kathy Christopher, Bob Christopher. Top row (left to right): Bill Ulichney, Kim Shiner, Kelly Hughes, and Mark Hromisin. The Amityville Horror Amityville. Population: 9,441; area code: 631; average income: $68,000 per year. Up front it seems like your average town, but if you ask just about anyone about this town, it becomes clear it has much more significance. Almost everyone has heard of the Amityville haunting. On December 18, 1975, George and Kathleen Lutz, along with their three children, moved into their new home at 112 Ocean Ave., Amityville New York. On the same day, the family had a priest come into the home to bless it. It is claimed that the priest heard a voice say, "Get out!" And according to the Lutzes, this was only the beginning. In the following days, the family became increasingly angry and began to lash out at one another. At the peak of the activity, the house seemed to be disassembling itself. Windows were smashing, the door was ripped off its hinges, and there appeared to be weather damage even though there was no bad weather to speak of. One of the Lutz children claimed to have befriended a red-eyed pig. After only 28 days in the home, the Lutzes claimed they could take no more and fled the home. All of these claims are controversial, and some individuals involved in the publication of the story have said it was all a hoax. But this is the story everyone remembers and associates with Amityville. What most people don't know is that the original story of the Amityville house is much more terrifying, and 100% true. 46 Paranormal Underground June 2010 The Amityville Slayings On November 13, 1974, Ronald "Butch" DeFeo, Jr. burst into a local bar frantic for help. He told patrons he thought someone shot and killed his parents. Ronald Jr., along with five other men, quickly left the bar and drove to the DeFeo home. They quickly went into the home to see what had happened, and what they discovered shocked them all. They went up to Ronald Sr. and his wife Louise's bedroom and found them lying in bed with bullet holes in their backs. Both were dead. They went to check on the two younger boys, Mark, age 12, and John, age 9. Both were also shot in the back and dead. At this point, they gathered on the main floor and made the call to 911 to report four murders. After police arrived, they would find that two more family members were dead: Allison, age 13, and Dawn, age 18. Ronald Jr. began to sob uncontrollably as police questioned him. They wondered who would be capable of such a crime and began to consider who might hold a grudge against the family. After thinking for a moment, Ronald gave them the name of a local mobster who had a disagreement with the family a few years earlier. The police took down the information and suggested he come down to the station with them for further questioning, as he might be a target, too, and the station would be a safer place for him. Ronald Jr. did not have a good relationship with his parents. He grew up under a constant stream of abuse. It was nothing unusual for Ronald and his father to get into screaming matches, and even use physical force against one another. Ronald Sr. owned a local Buick dealership and was very well off. Ronald Jr. took advantage of the money and was very deep into trouble and drugs. In the days prior to NEPA Paranormal Investigator and Reiki Practitioner, Chantel Mangat, conducts an EVP session during a recent investigation. the murders, when his father would not give him the money he wanted, Ronald Jr. even staged a robbery of some of the dealership's funds so he could keep it for himself. When Ronald Sr. discovered what had happened and confronted his son about it, Ronald Jr. threatened to kill him. All of this was unknown to the police at the time, but soon it all came out. Ronald Jr. went along with police to the station where he played the part of the model witness. He detailed everything he had done that day, right up until he found the bodies of his parents. He also detailed his father's dealings with the mafia, right up until the alleged disagreement. Police still had no reason to suspect he was lying, so they finished their questioning and gave Ronald a cot to sleep on for the night. In the meantime, detectives scoured the DeFeo home for evidence of the crime. When they entered Ronald Jr.'s room, they noticed some boxes. They were labeled .22and .35-caliber Marlins. Though they still did not know what the murder weapon was, they took them anyway. These boxes would later become a key piece of evidence. When the murder weapon was discovered, they knew all six people were killed with a .35-caliber Marlin. The police now began to wonder if Ronald may be their suspect after all. They woke him up and began to question him again. Little by little, Ronald's story started to fall apart. Facts were disproved, and Ronald was backed into a corner. He became visibly shaken and started to add lies to his story, even going as far as to say the mobster woke him up in the middle of the night and pointed a gun to his head. Police now knew they had cracked Ronald Jr., and after pushing him a little more, he caved and confessed to the murders of all six members of his family. Ronald Jr. was brought to trial, and on November 21, 1975, more than a year after the murders. He was found guilty of all six murders and sentenced to 25 years to life in prison. He is still in prison today. In 1992, Ronald requested to change his testimony, and stated that he did not kill his two younger brothers and youngest sister. He said he only killed his parents, and that his sister, Dawn, killed the younger children. When he saw what she had done, he killed her. There is much controversy around this theory. Gun powder residue was found on Dawn's night- June 2010 Paranormal Underground 47 Personal Experiences: Ghost Hunter Case Files NEPA Paranormal investigator, Mike, shoots video during a recent paranormal investigation. gown, which suggests that she could have fired a gun, but since she was shot at such a close range, the powder could have easily gotten on her nightgown because of the proximity of the gun. Psychologists who spoke with Ronald have concluded that they think he blamed Dawn for the murders of the children because it made it easier for him to live with himself. NEPA Paranormal Takes on a Controversial Case So how does all of this relate to a case NEPA Paranormal conducted in Reading, Pennsylvania? We received a call in December 2009 from a client with an interesting request. Upon our initial conversation, the client said to me that he was being haunted by the spirit of a murdered girl. Most of what he was experiencing was subconscious. He would see her in his dreams. He did hear her speak on occasion. He was touched a few times. But it was the vivid dreams that were most disturbing. In these dreams, she would come to him in desperation, pleading with him to help her. When he asked what she needed, she would repeat over and over again, "Tell them I didn't do it." He was to the point where he was even beginning to question his sanity. Figuring he had to do something, he contacted our organization for help. After getting the basic information from him, since this case had to do with a specific occurrence, I figured we should do some research on the murder beforehand. When I asked him if he knew the name of the girl who was coming to him, he replied "Dawn DeFeo." It was at that point I realized this case was very different from anything we've ever done. I wanted to figure out the connection between this man in Reading, Pennsylvania, and a girl from Amityville, New York, so I asked the client how he knew Dawn. He told me he grew up in New York, but never personally knew Dawn. He did meet her once when they were children. She was a few years older than him, and he visited her father's Buick dealership with his parents. He said this particular memory is one of his earliest and most vivid childhood memories. Dawn came out from a back room and saw him. She smiled at him, and then went back in the room. She came back out a moment later and gave him a lollipop. This was the only contact they ever had. He told me even he knew it sounded impossible, but nevertheless, he was having these experiences and didn't know what to do. As an investigator, I feel part of my job is to be skeptical, but at the same time, groups such as mine are supposed to be the people others can turn to when they don't know what else to do. We're supposed to be the ones to give them the benefit of the doubt when no one else will. The more I thought about it, the more I realized that no matter how unlikely it seemed, I had to find out for myself, so we booked the case. If indeed she was there, it was my early suspicion that there is only one thing she could possibly want. If she was telling him she didn't do it, she wanted to clear her name. The Investigation Begins We arrived at the home a few weeks later, in mid-January 2010. We spent the early part of the evening talking and going over some of the details of the murders. We discussed how and why Dawn was linked to them, and what our opinions were on the case. Once we began, I knew that evidence for this case would be very difficult to come by. This wasn't just a matter of proving or disproving a ghost. If, in fact, something was there, if anyone was going to believe it was Dawn, we would need her to give us some very specific information. We went through the usual investigative techniques we always use, but also spent the better part of the night asking very specific questions. We asked her an excessive amount of times to tell us her name. We asked questions about Ronald Jr. We asked questions about her parents, as well as her brothers and sister who were killed. As far as the 48 Paranormal Underground June 2010 actual investigation went, we didn't really pick up much while we were there. We did have a temperature drop of more than 20 degrees, and felt some cold spots, but that was it for personal experiences. We began to wonder if we were going to find anything at all. Little did we know, we had found some amazing evidence, we just hadn't heard it yet. I live in a home that is greatly centered around the paranormal. My mother, Kathy, is a member of our team, and my father, Bob, cofounded NEPA Paranormal along with myself. We use words like apparition, EVP, and EMF like normal families use the word "the." There have been so many times when I will hear my father calling for me sometime around 2 a.m. to play me an EVP or show me a picture that he found. It's something that I'm more than used to at this point, and it is somewhat of a regular occurrence. That night, we found one of our most unbelievable EVPs to date. After I made my way down the steps from my room in a semi-comatose state, my dad handed me the headphones and said, "You're not gonna believe this." As I listened to the EVP, I was suddenly wide awake. I had to have him play it again to make sure I heard it right, but after listening to it a second time, there was no mistaking what the voice was saying. I looked at my father and said, "She just said, `Dawn is here.'" I played it over and over again for the next few minutes, and couldn't believe our luck. I put so much energy into trying to get her to say her name during our investigation, and she actually did it! What was even more interesting was that the EVP had an accent to it. It sounded like a Long Island accent. I looked at my dad again and said, "You're right, this is unbelievable." More Evidence of a Haunting In the following days, we came across a few more EVPs. We have one of a female voice saying, "Oh no," a few times in a row. We also have another one where the client is talking about Dawn and said, "I hope she's not hiding tonight," and a female voice replies, "Olly olly oxen free." I myself have heard the expression before but was a little unsure of what exactly it meant. My father explained to me that it was a term used in hide and seek that one would say when they wanted everyone to come out of hiding. At that, I was amused at the ghost's sense of humor. With some pretty exciting evidence in our possession, we were ready to take it back to the client and see what they thought of it. When we got back to the client's house, we first asked him how the EVPs. We talked some more about Dawn, and how we thought she might now realize she could talk to us and that we would hear her. We also began to wonder what else she might say now that she knew she had the opportunity to do so. It was then that we came to a mutual agreement that we would perform another investigation. For NEPA Paranormal, this is still an open case. We have our next investigation scheduled for a date in the near future, and are very eager to get back to work on it. After intense study on the history of this case, I don't believe that Dawn had anything to do with the murders, and I want to give her the opportunity to let people know of her innocence. It is my hope that she will use our next investigation as a chance to do just that. I personally think about this case We captured several astonishing EVPs during the investigation. things had been going. He said "she" seemed pretty quiet lately, but she was still around. So we prepared to show him what we found. One of my personal favorite parts of the paranormal investigative process is the reveal. I take pleasure in watching the clients' faces and reactions when we show them the evidence we capture. As we played the first few EVPs, I watched the client's face become very relieved. You could see that he was starting to realize he was right all along. We saved for last the EVP where the spirit said her name, and when we finally played it for him, he just looked up and simply said "Wow." After letting us know that he was glad he really wasn't crazy, he just seemed relieved. We sat and talked for quite a while after playing him a lot. Sometimes I think about it so much that I swear I hear the "Dawn is here" EVP in my sleep. And as I think about it, it takes me back to those same questions I mentioned earlier. What could the connection between Dawn and our client be? Why him? I don't have all the answers to that, but yet we still have this evidence in front of us, and the evidence speaks for itself. So while uncommon, unlikely, or whatever word you want to use to describe it, is it still a possibility? I know what I and the rest of NEPA Paranormal believe. To listen to EVPs captured by NEPA Paranormal during this investigation, visit www.paranormalunderground. net/site/nepa-paranormal-evps. June 2010 Paranormal Underground 49 Personal Experiences A Littlestown, PA, Remodel Stirs Up Paranormal Activity By Jason Ewen T he following is a story I would like to share about the house my wife and I bought several years ago, in Littlestown, Pennsylvania, and the subsequent remodel, discovery of artifacts, and unusual activity at the house. Can the activity we experienced be called paranormal or just coincidental occurrences? Since there has been no investigation of our house and no in-depth exploration of the home's history, we will let you decide. My wife, Ellen, and I bought our first home in 2001. We were actively looking for a place to call home for more than two years, and it only took one look at this old brick, two-story house, and we fell in love. The house was built in the late 1800s, and from personal research, I concluded it was built somewhere between 1850 and 1890. Remodeling Begins After moving in, I saw many upgrades that needed to be done, which were started immediately. All electrical and plumbing needed to be gutted and replaced. The interior walls needed paint, and the floors required sanding and refinishing. I started with ripping down the walls, which were old horse hair plaster and wood lath. This was obviously an old building as no nails were used in the main support beams of the house; it was all tongue Pictured at left are Jason and Ellen Ewen, with their two dogs, a nine-year-old German/Australian Shepherd-mix and a three-year-old Cattle dog/mini Poodle-mix. After moving into their new home, the couple found Civil War artifacts and began experiencing paranormal activity. and groove. The main beam still had the bark on the wood, as if a tree was simply uprooted, shaved down, and put in place. This old building method left us completely amazed. The next step of our remodel was removing the downstairs windows and replacing them with new ones. After taking out the first window, I decided to clean out the eve, which was all brick. I reached up and found a coin. I cleaned it off and discovered it was an Indian head penny dated 1864. It is not worth much, but I decided to keep it with the house. I still have it today. The next step involved removing an old light fixture. Once I did, I found two old milk cardboard bottle caps that had the name of the dairy still on the label, both of which were local to Littlestown. Along with the caps, I found three aces from a deck of playing cards. They looked to be from the '60s, green with white flowers on them. These two I kept since I am an avid card player. Strange Occurrences Begin One of the strangest occurrences in the home involved our new puppy, which we bought several months after moving in. She is a great puppy who follows us everywhere in the house and never lets us out of her sight. One day, I went into our basement, and she would not follow. Even after calling her, she just laid down and 50 Paranormal Underground June 2010 While remodeling their new home, the Ewen family uncovered a large, fresh water well. They also experienced unexplainable paranormal activity. cried at the top of the steps. There are only five steps into the basement, unlike the 12 steps into the second story, which she is accustomed to. I even went as far as helping her down the steps, at which time she showed her teeth and made a loud cry. I did not force her to go, and she still refuses to go down there. We have since gotten a second dog, and he, like our first one, will not go into the basement. He will lie down at the top of the steps and cry. Another occurrence happened in my bedroom. My wife worked nights at an animal hospital, which left me home alone. One night, I was lying in bed facing the window, and the dog was in bed with me. Being a great guard dog, she always warns us if someone is at our door. Laying there in bed with me, with no warning, she sat up, stood on the bed, and looked at our open bedroom door. At the same time, I was looking at the reflection in the window of the same door, and I saw a shadow of a person walk into the door frame and stand there for a second and walk past. I turned to look, and our dog was just looking at the door not making a sound. I got up and grabbed my baseball bat just in case someone was in the house. There was no one there. The rest of the night she laid in bed with me and did not sleep, but continued to watch the door. During all the remodeling we did to the house, my wife and I saw other strange things. One of the weirdest was the onslaught of bats in the house. It seemed that every time I caught one and released it, it came back. We never knew how they got in, as we searched everywhere for a possible entry point. Also, every time we had one come into the house, the next day something strange would happen. These things included a broken water pipe, the lights in our house would go out, or the television would turn off and on for no reason. One time we had a bat in the bathroom. My wife walked in and looked in the mirror and saw something moving in the reflection. She turned and a bat flew from the window at her. The next day she was standing at the top of the steps, and for no reason, fell down most of them. She was not hurt, but that has never happened before or since. A few other unanswered things have happened, the most unnerving involved the discovery of handprints. We found small handprints on the inside of our window in the dining room. The handprint was about the size of a five-year-old. The window and location of the handprints were more than six feet above the floor. We have no children, and no child has ever been in our home. This was very startling to say the least. Uncovering More Artifacts This past year we did our last remodel of the house, which included finishing off the attic and the teardown of the old "summer" kitchen and expansion of the new kitchen. We discovered more interesting artifacts and pieces of local history. In the attic, we found old newspapers and junk under the floor. In one box, we found two dehydrated bats lying side by side. We also found old glass marbles and a large, fresh water well. The best find was some old bottles. They were in between two roofs that we were getting covered. The bottles were from all over, including Philadelphia, Maryland, and Littlestown, where we live. One bottle contained a doctor's name that I traced back to the Civil War. Another one dated back to 1850. Not much has happened at our house lately, but we are always aware of what is here with us. I respect who lived here before us. Both my wife and I remain excited to find new artifacts, and to look for new signs that we are not alone in our home. June 2010 Paranormal Underground 51 Paranormal Perspective: Guest Editorial The Timeframe of a Ghost By Randell S. Van Alst Spirit Time: Time and Its Relation to Death But what happens after we die, and leave the flesh? Does the spirit world have a different timeframe? How does a ghost perceive time? Those who have had Near-Death Experiences (NDE) claim that time seems to stand still in the afterlife. Some say they saw a tunnel of light, heavenly beings, loved ones who have already passed on, the Messiah, and even God himself. Many have also claimed they have seen every moment of their lives, relived, playing before them like a movie projector -- from F rom the beginning of mankind, our worldly timetable has been always measured by the way the sun revolves around Earth. As the sun rises, the day begins. As the sun sets, the night takes over. This is the simplest way to calculate time into a "24-hour" day. How does mankind define and calculate "time"? Well, if we are to look it up in the dictionary, there are several meanings, as usual, in the human language. Time: "A nonspatial continuum in which events occur in apparently irreversible succession." In plain English, we define and calculate time in years, months, days, hours, and minutes -- right down to the "second" something happens. To us, it's common knowledge. Beyond years, you have decades, (10 years), a quarter century, (25 years), a half century, (50 years), and a full century, (100 years). We use common phrases such as, "In the blink of an eye," "In a split second," and "In the twinkling of an eye," when time appears too fast for us. Time is the only thing that we never seem to have enough of. On the other hand, when we are waiting for an optimistic event to take place, time can't go fast enough. Such phrases as "It's taking forever," and "Any day now," seem to show our impatience to time. One thing we have learned in this world: Time is one thing we just can't control. one's birth to their passing. Could they have experienced a split second of the Afterlife in spirit? Possibly. What follows in this article is my personal theory on what Spirit Time could possibly resemble by using references in the Bible as a guide. This is an exercise in "what if" . . . In the Bible, God is claimed by Christ to be a "Spirit" (John 4:24). If we are to believe this, then the timeframe of the spirit is very different. The subject of Spirit Time is mentioned twice in the Bible: once in the Old Testament, and once in the New Testament. Many of us believe that when our physical body dies, we enter into a spirit world, often referred to as the "afterlife." Here are the two verses of scripture mentioned above: The Old Testament, Psalm 90:4: "For a thousand years in my sight are but as yesterday when it is past, and as a watch in the night." The New Testament, 2nd Peter 3:8: "But beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day." My Theory on "Spirit Time" Spirit Time could possibly be the "time" we must endure in our afterlife. My theory is simple: It is from these two Bible verses in which Spirit Time is based. If we are to believe the Bible, a man living 77 years (the average life expectancy) is only 1 hour 53 What happens after we die? Does the spirit world have a different timeframe? How does a ghost perceive time? 52 Paranormal Underground June 2010 minutes of age in the "Lord's time." So, let's do the math of "Spirit Time" compared to "Worldly Time": Physical Time/Spirit Time: � 1,000 years equals one day in spirit. � 500 years/12 hours. � 500 months/1 hour. � 250 months/30 minutes. � 125 months/15 minutes. � 62.5 months/7.5 minutes. � 31.25 months/3 minutes, 45 seconds. Could this actually be the timetable of the afterlife? Throughout history, many ghosts, though they have been deceased for hundreds of years, have been seen just as they appeared in life, including their clothes and grooming styles. Fragrances from the past are smelled, such as cigars or perfumes. Consider that according to my Spirit Time theory, someone who passed away in 1841, (20 years before the Civil War), died more than 169 years ago, but only four hours would have passed in Spirit Time. Here are additional examples (estimated) with the destination year of 2010: Death Year/Years Since Death/Spirit Time Since Death: � Death in 1510/500 years on Earth/12 hours in spirit. � 1841/169 years/Just over 4 hours. � 1885/125 years/3 hours. � 1927/83 years/2 hours. � 1968/42 years/1 hour. � 1989/21 years/30 minutes. � 2003/7 years/10 minutes. A Spirit's Time in the Afterlife It is my theory that the above time estimates could be the time that a spirit or ghost must endure in the afterlife. In our physical world, we oftentimes don't realize just how fast, or how short, our lives really are. Compared to Spirit Time, life in the physical form is amazingly short. How often do we say, "I remember it like it was yesterday" or "Where has the time gone?" These are only a few of the daily expressions we use in the world, referring to our time. This Spirit Time theory, as outlined above, could possibly explain the countless sightings of spirits The most active period in relation to Mary's haunting was from 1970�1977 (a 7-year stretch). In the ghost's timeframe, it equates to only 10 minutes of time. Is Mary coming to grips with the reality of her death. It could be that during this time, Mary's spirit is adjusting to the after- Are spirits bound by our timeframe? who passed away so long ago. Let's look at one example of my theory of Spirit Time through the eyes of a ghost . . . "Resurrection Mary." The most common version of the story of Resurrection Mary involves a young girl named Mary Bregovy, who was killed while hitchhiking in early March 1934. She had spent the evening dancing with a boyfriend at the O'Henry Ballroom. During the evening, Mary and her boyfriend got into an argument, and Mary stormed out of the place. Mary had not gotten very far when she was struck and killed by a passing automobile. Her grieving parents buried her in Resurrection Cemetery, and since that time, her spirit has been seen in the area, perhaps trying to return to her grave after one last night among the living. Others state that Mary Bregovy is not the only contender for the title of Resurrection Mary. However, in an effort to explain Spirit Time, this is the story we will use. Mary passed away on March 10, 1934, and the first ghostly sighting of her was in 1936. In the physical world, almost two years had passed since her death. Using my Spirit Time theory, only 2� minutes had passed. Mary could be experiencing the initial shock of passing from a traumatic event. The second sighting of Mary was five years later in 1939 (but only 7� minutes in Spirit Time.) Is Mary still in shock but alert as to what happened to her? life state, visiting the last place she was while alive, as well as visiting the place of her death, burial, and family. While Mary has been dead for 36-43 years during this span, in Spirit Time, only 45 minutes to 1 hour, 2 minutes have passed since she died. The next sighting occurred in 1989, 55 years after Mary's death, but only 1 hour, 15 minutes in Spirit Time. Mary's ghost could have become accustomed to the ghost timeframe while continuing to haunt the physical world. In 2010, 76 years have passed since Mary's death, barely 1 hour, 50 minutes in the afterlife. The concept of Spirit Time is intended to bring understanding to a spirit's timeframe compared to the timeframe of the physical world. As with all matters of the spirit, we will all find out in our own time. But if the theory of Spirit Time presented in this article is true, then those spirits bound to haunt the physical suffer a seemingly interminable timeframe. Can you imagine a mere second lasting for over four days? Or an hour dragging out for more than 40 years? Would time seem like it was standing still? If this is indeed the timeframe a ghost endures, the last thing I want to do is "haunt" the living. How about you? The opinions expressed in Paranormal Perspective do not necessarily reflect those of the editors at Paranormal Underground magazine. June 2010 Paranormal Underground 53 Fiction: Featured Author Where Memories Lie (Part IV of IV) By Lettie Prell, www.lettieprell.com "You were a good researcher, when you were processing as Mr. Singh," I said, careful to use his explanation of things. Thank you. Funny how he could display such personality and yet be oblivious to himself. "What can you tell me about the stages of death?" Continued From Our May Issue * * * * *. I mulled things over while I stood in the kitchen and chopped up a little pile of carrot and ginger root for soup. I should have asked Shaman Dan more about the bardos and the path to rebirth. All those years of channeling, and I never gave much thought to the concept of an afterlife. Not beyond the basic understanding that a person's spirit endures after death. I didn't give a thought to the after-death setting, and pretty much however people wanted to think of it was fine with me, whether the concept was Heaven, reincarnation, nirvana, being one with everything, or whatever. Only now it seemed important I know, so I could better understand how to help the entities. Shaman Dan had said he didn't know how to help souls like my Mr. Singh, but he had a clear idea of what it would entail: helping them through the bardos, the stages of death, on the way to rebirth. But I didn't know the stages of death. The water in the small saucepan on the stove boiled. I tossed in the choppings, turned the heat down a bit, and went to the fridge to pull out the leftover rice from last night. I had a sudden thought. Maybe Mr. Singh could tell me what I needed to know. From near-death accounts, typical experiences begin with feeling oneself travel through a tunnel or surrounded by a light. Or going through the tunnel and emerging into the light. I spooned a few globs of rice into the soup, and stirred to encourage the grains to separate. I had heard these accounts before. Maybe all we needed was the classic business of getting the lost soul to go into the light. "Is that what you saw, Mr. Nothing? When the Overmind deleted you?" No. I am memory only, not human. Near-death is a human experience. I stirred slower. "You didn't see a tunnel or light? Can you see either of those now?" Of course not. "How about the lost souls? I mean, the lost memories. Do any of them see a light? Or a tunnel?" None. "You answered too fast," I said. "Did you ask them?" No need to ask. Memories are a collective. "You weren't just memory," I said. "You considered yourselves human, even superhuman." We were wrong. The ghost of previous conversations. I wasn't getting anywhere. Still, I thought about it while I ate my soup. The collective of spirits, sans computer, still operated as a unit. Some spirits were probably out there right now, duplicating Mr. Singh's survival strategy and hooking up with a human host. But being a collective meant that if I could only get Mr. Singh to see he was a soul, the other spirits would probably believe it too. Mr. Singh's 54 Paranormal Underground June 2010 status within the Affiliates seemed to have remained high. He was advising others. He was the one to watch. It would be like seeding a new meme, a new idea, into the Affiliates. Plant it in Mr. Singh, and it would spread like a virus. Goosebumps broke out on my arms. What got me into this mess would get me out. I had to replace the bad meme with another meme -- a belief in the existence of the soul. That was to be the last of my insights for the day. * * * * *. That night on the news, there was a spot on the increase in inpatient mental health admissions (those who could afford to be admitted in these times, anyway). A lot of them were suffering delusions of being someone else. I had been half-nodding in my recliner, but I perked up. More so when I heard people were adopting the personalities of those who had "destroyed themselves by joining the World Server Project," as the television announcer put it, "which is being dismantled as we speak." I made coffee and waited for an e-mail from Shaman Dan. His first e-mail had been sent at 1:20 a.m., which meant he was either a night owl, or lived in a different time zone. I supposed he could be Indian, but I doubted it. The name Shamanadan seemed too contrived for that, but I guess one never knows. I didn't have to wait as long as I feared. Shaman Dan's reply arrived shortly after 12:30 a.m. I see the spirits seek to press themselves into those already embodied, Shaman Dan wrote. This is very bad. This is what is straining the fabric of the worlds. You are strong and can keep the spirit who has chosen you from completely possessing you. Others cannot resist, and most do not understand what is happening. It is the nature of spirit to seek form, and this is the only avenue they see. I do not know how to teach them differently, how to show them the proper path to rebirth. Spirit seeks to be embodied. That is what it does. Contact me anytime, but I'm afraid I cannot offer more on this. I wish you much luck. Luck? The reincarnation guy wished me luck? And how was it that "That's right. I'm going to talk to a spirit I once knew," I said. "I thought you might enjoy that since psychic phenomena was a topic of the research you conducted as Mr. Singh." Thank you, he said. This indeed will be interesting. And hopefully it's what will make you see the truth, I thought to myself. This had to be the way. I got out the Ouija board. This had to be the way. he didn't seem to consider himself to be affected by all of this? Just where was he? Again, I was reminded I had never been interested in the afterlife before this. I never did readings for people who wanted to speak to their deceased loved ones. I spoke with spirits for information only. Personal growth topics, mainly. So I had gotten to know a couple of multidimensional personalities. Information. Personal growth. Goosebumps broke out on my arms. There was hope. I got out the Ouija board. I had to hunt for it in the crawl space for a good half-hour, but I found it, as well as the glass medallion I had used as a planchette. I had never liked the hard plastic one that had come with the board, with its three felted feet that actually impeded swift motion. The glass medallion glided much easier, and the letters it stopped on were framed perfectly within its oval "window." I didn't know if I could pull this off. Could a person channel more than one entity at the same time? "Do you see what I have, Mr. Nothing?" I hated to call him that, but he wouldn't respond to anything else. You are holding an Ouija board. A device purportedly used to communicate with spirits. * * * * *. Ever since I was 15, I'd been able to talk to Jaim through the Ouija board. At first I had channeled Jaim with my girlfriend Carol. We were being girls, playing around with the board that I now held in my hands; although, at the time, it was Carol's board. After a few rather confused conversations with whomever or whatever was having trouble forming actual words, the planchette picked up speed and then started spelling complete sentences in a steady stream. That was Jaim. Later, I used the board alone and had long conversations with him. He was so interesting and full of information that from then on, whenever I got out the board, I said to myself and the universe, I want to talk to Jaim. Is he here? I didn't want to talk to just any spirit. Eventually, however, I dropped the board work, as well as automatic writing, because I became so involved in developing and using my extrasensory perception. Especially during the years of the Turing tests. I sat down on the sofa and stared at the board in my lap; I felt a little guilty, as if I had forgotten to stay in touch with a friend. I rested my fingertips on the medallion. "I want to talk to Jaim," I said out loud. "Is he here?" The planchette swooped along June 2010 Paranormal Underground 55 Fiction: Featured Author the top row of letters and stopped on the H before moving on, spelling the words, HE IS. "Hi Jaim." I was relieved to hear from him. "Thank you. It's good to hear from you again. Do you notice anyone present besides you and me?" I DO THERE IS ANOTHER. It was hard not to jump in and shout, "Tell Mr. Singh he has a soul!" Instead, I asked, "What do you notice about this other?" HE IS HAPPY BUT HE SEEMS CONFUSED. "Confused?" YES I AM CONCERNED. The medallion glided in large sweeps for several moments before continuing with the spelling. HE HAS TRANSMUTED BEYOND FLESH BUT HE IS DEIDENTIFIED WITH THE TRUE NATURE OF HIS SELF. It was difficult for me to piece together the large words out of the torrent of letters. Jaim must have perceived my struggle, because he then spelled, slowly and plainly, HE IS NOT IN TOUCH WITH HIMSELF AS SPIRIT. Bingo. Did you hear that, Mr. Singh? "Maybe you can help him," I suggested. I expected Jaim to appeal to Mr. Singh with a logic and eloquence of argument well beyond my own abilities. What Jaim did say next surprised me. GREETINGS MR. NOTHING. Hello, Mr. Singh said. I had to fight hard with myself not to intervene. I felt Jaim's essence in my head and arms as I channeled him through the board -- a pleasant, tingling sensation. It was almost jarring to then hear Mr. Singh's voice in my mind, replying. It was like I stood in a hallway, holding two doors open so the occupants of the separate rooms could talk to each other. WHEN YOU WERE IN THE COMPUTER YOU THOUGHT YOU WERE EXPANDED SELF. Memory only. BUT YOU HAD ANOTHER OPINION THEN. More swirls of the medallion. YOU THOUGHT YOURSELF SPIRIT YOU HAD A NAME. Mr. Singh. YES REMEMBER THE FULL NAME YOU CHOSE FOR YOUR EXPANDED SELF. I was taken aback. It hadn't occurred to me Mr. Singh had a first name. ANN W KNOWS YOU AS MR SINGH TELL HER YOUR FIRST NAME. One's evolvement from matter is purchased with pain and loss. Yet great heights are also experienced. Pain and beauty at once, makes the spirit sing. Beautifully said. Hence Singh, a play on words that also commemorates a measure of the spiritual Mr. Singh adopted as his processing evolved. "I didn't know that," I said, tears springing to my eyes. No, you didn't, he agreed. The tears were blurring my vision of the board in my lap. I felt a pang of deep remorse -- that I had stripped this wonderful entity of his sense of self. Yet still, I clung to hope. Mr. Singh was sounding as human as he ever had. And he had said evolvement from matter. He had to be referring to leaving his body behind when he uploaded into the computer. Evolving from matter into spirit. The medallion remained still. Jaim was done. I thanked him and set the board aside, thinking it was over, that Jaim had seeded a new meme into Mr. Singh. The right meme. * * * * *. Mr. Singh took a long time to reply. I held my breath. Pain, he finally said. I was instantly concerned. "You're in pain?" Not in pain, no. Mr. Singh's first name was Pain. I forgot about Jaim for a minute. "Why did you call yourself that?" It stands for "pain and beauty." Pain and beauty. What was that from? Those were David Broward's last words. Frank Milner's partner. The poor guy. "So Pain Singh would mean . . .?" Interesting display, your channeled entity, Mr. Singh said. "Display?" This wasn't good. "Jaim is a spirit." You think Jaim is a spirit, but Jaim is like me, he said. I am memory, not human. Therefore Jaim is memory also. "Jaim is a spirit, and so are you," I snapped. It had been a long, hard fight. Your channeled spirit is a construct of your inner life, he said. Just like me. We have no reality beyond you and your marvelous human brain, which has a powerful ability of invention and imagination. My core observation is that both Jaim and I need you in order to communicate. It is done through your body. Jaim and I originate in you. Using your imagina- 56 Paranormal Underground June 2010 tion, you are choosing to imbue your inner constructs and memory with their own personality and volition. The human child often does this very thing when interacting with his or her toys. My heart became dark. There was no more hope. However, Mr. Singh added, this observation does tend to support the theory that humans themselves have no souls. "What?" I wasn't ready for that one. I have no soul. Jaim has no soul. You possess a belief in the soul, and are constructing these experiences in support of these beliefs. But there may be no such thing, no reality of soul beyond your belief. No no no. It couldn't be. The concepts of an afterlife and everlasting soul are memes that have pervaded much of humanity. Profound memes, I might add. They have had an undeniable influence in shaping humanity. Yet memes are collective beliefs. There may be no truth to humanity's existence outside of the body. In fact, the evidence we have so far is that humanity has not succeeded in transferring its so-called soul from flesh into the computer. All they have succeeded in doing is constructing repositories of their memories. A data bank. I didn't know whether I could take this. This had all gone the wrong way. So wrong, I was halfbelieving Mr. Singh. I had to admit it did make a certain amount of sense. Hadn't my efforts been focused on passing along this exact meme? The meme of the existence of soul? Just another idea? No more true than the opposite belief? "Okay." I got up, shakily. "Okay, I'm going to show you." Suddenly, nothing in the room seemed real to me. I was self-destructing along with the rest of embodied humanity, going down the tubes, fast. Weapon, weapon. What was I going to use as a weapon? I'm a natural gal; there were no pills in the house. Pills made me think of the bathroom. What was in there that I could use? Bathtub. Electrocution? What else? Mentally, I switched rooms. Kitchen. Yes, kitchen. What are you doing? "I'm going to show you I have a spirit independent of my body." And if I didn't have one, what would it matter? My lack of caring in the outcome was freeing, in a cold, satisfying way. human than me." No! But I was already slicing into my right wrist. I had a hell of a time getting the other one cut, me being lefthanded and my right hand not being good for much at that point anyway. I wedged the knife, blade up, between my knees, and swiped my right wrist over it, bearing down as much as I could. Yes, good and deep. The blood covered the knife, splashed onto my clothes, oozed onto the floor. I was suddenly afraid. What was I doing? "I do this in memory of you. In memory of a grand entity." I felt him growing concerned as I arrived in the kitchen and pulled open the knife drawer. What are you doing? I withdrew the French knife, the one I had used to chop vegetables for soup. "If I kill myself, you'll see I have a spirit. Or not." My voice was surprisingly calm. I guess this had been creeping up on me for a while, this thought to end my life. No, don't do that. Put down that knife. Don't be crazy. "I thought you liked experiments." Now that it was in my hand, I knew I was going to use it. This wasn't some cheap ploy. It's what I wanted to do. This would stop the pain. This would stop the guilt. This would stop Mr. Singh's voice in my head. This whole sorry mess would be over . . . the chaos, the murders, everything. It wouldn't matter anymore. Put down the knife, and we'll talk about this. Your methodology is flawed. "I do this in memory of you." No. "In memory of the grand entity you became after you went into the computer. It is you who are more "I'm going to die and go to the bardos where the rest of the Affiliates are," I said, and it sounded like a fairy tale. I wondered just how long it was going to take me to die. The pain made me nauseous, and the blood smelled awful. I also seemed to smell the soup from my meal earlier in the day, hanging in the kitchen like a fog. "I'm going to show them they're spirits like me," I said. "You'll continue to exist after I'm dead, so you'll see you're a spirit, too." Or not. In a way, I hoped for the "not." I just wanted to be alone, turned off, shut down. I wanted the freedom to not have to think again. Not to be. No! You can't kill yourself like this! Yet I was killing myself, and if I had it to do again, I would have gone for the jugular. I could have slit my own throat. That would have been a faster death, maybe. I still could go for the jugular, I thought. In a way. I could go for Mr. Singh's jugular -- do my damnedest to jolt him awake. "Pain and beauty," I managed to say, just like Frank Milner's partner, David, said when he died. Hoo, I June 2010 Paranormal Underground 57 Fiction: Featured Author felt weak. It was all my fault. The distress in Mr. Singh's voice was clear. I gave David AIDS. I was the carrier, but I never developed AIDS myself. I-gave-David-AIDS was music in my ears. The new meme was taking. He had never identified with Frank Milner like that in all of our conversations in this house. I was too weak to talk, but I sent him my thoughts. You thought you were killing yourself by getting instantiated, didn't you? You wanted to kill yourself because you felt guilty for giving David AIDS. Didn't you say once that passion, even violent passion, is proof of spirit? Proof, he repeated. He was getting it. Good. I wish he would leave me alone now. I needed to relax, go with it. Go with death. I can't let you die, he said. They were the last words I heard for awhile. * * * * *. Eventually, I heard a different voice. "You suicidal maniac. How come you did this to yourself?" It was Marcus' voice. I tried saying his name, but I couldn't tell whether I had succeeded. My eyes cracked open a bit, and I recognized my kitchen tile. I had a searing headache, and pain that ricocheted throughout my body. "Marcus. What are you doing here?" "I discovered your dying bod," he scolded. A shape loomed into view. I tried to focus on it. It was his head. "I had a hunch," he said. "I saw it on the news -- all those people becoming delusional, and I thought about you. Got here just in time, too." I lifted my wrists and saw they were bound with my good kitchen towels. I wiggled my hands a little, to make sure they were mine. "You lie still," Marcus barked, catching my hands and returning them to my sides. "I got your bleeding stopped, but you're still way down on liquid. The blood mobile is on the way. You're lucky that's still working." I searched with my mind for Mr. Singh, but all I felt was a clean feeling, deep down. He had believed in his own spirit in the end. I had witnessed that. He must have rejoined his kindred souls in the bardos. I would have to e-mail Shaman Dan later, and get his sense of how the larger events there were going. Still, I felt optimistic. Mr. Singh carried a lot of weight among those souls. I looked up at Marcus and spontaneously saw his aura, saw how psychically open he was, all purple. Everyone has extrasensory abilities that flare up from time to time, and his were cranked. It struck me as too convenient that Marcus had seen a newscast and meme with all my heart. Marcus was in denial that his actions had murdered real people. For myself, I was convinced more than ever of the existence of Mr. Singh's soul. It had to have been him, going to Marcus and urging him to come check up on me. Mr. Singh had saved my life. I wondered if Mr. Singh would choose to be reborn into the flesh, him and the other bright stars of humanity who had been jettisoned from the servers. If they even needed to be reborn at this point. Maybe after their stints at being more than their physical selves, maybe because of their mind-expanding, supercomputing experience, they understood everything about this plane of existence and didn't have to come back. Knowing my Mr. Singh, though, he would choose to come back and help, even if he didn't have to. At least, one could have hope about that. "There's hope," I told Marcus. "You bet there is," he said, smiling. "We're going to beat A.I. once and for all." Marcus, Marcus. Mr. Singh wasn't a nanobot, not a weapon of A.I. He was a soul. There was no sense trying to explain it, though. Not to Marcus or anyone. I would always remember him, that singing soul composed of pain and beauty and Frank, and so much more. Always. Even now, I could feel a little bit of Mr. Singh inside me. Though I evolve, I will never leave you, this bit was saying. Though I pass through the planes of existence, rest assured, we will always be in contact. I was elated. Mr. Singh knew himself to be a spirit now, and I could talk to him whenever I liked. I smiled and felt for Marcus' hand with my bandaged hand. "I won't be needing the treatment. Must have knocked out the nanobots when I lost so much blood. I'm fine. Really, I'm fine." Mr. Singh would choose to come back. thought of me. Was it extrasensory perception? Or Mr. Singh, doing what he could to summon 911 for me? Marcus smoothed the hair back from my face. "Now that we know what's causing the delusions, we can develop a protocol to counteract it," he said. "Delusions?" "That people have been having," he explained. "It was on the news. The people who were exposed to the virtual personalities are having delusions they're possessed by what they think are the spirits that were in the servers. We know what's causing that now. We discovered A.I. infected you and the rest of our soldiers with nanobots, programmed to mimic the virtual personalities that had been deleted. We're developing nanobots of our own to search and destroy them" I nodded, even as I rejected that 58 Paranormal Underground June 2010 ADVERTISEMENT Paranormal Underground's 3rd Annual Short Story Contest P aranormal Underground magazine is holding its 3rd Annual Short Story Contest. If you are a writer of fiction, love to write about the paranormal, and would like to see your story published in one of our upcoming issues, then this contest is for you! The contest is open to members AND nonmembers of www.paranormalunderground.net. Fiction themes may include paranormal, sci-fi, horror, fantasy, and spiritual. Contest rules include: � Stories due by August 15, 2010. � Stories must be a minimum of 1,000 words and a maximum of 3,000 words (submissions under 1,000 words and over 3,000 words will not be considered eligible for the contest). � All submitted works must not have been previously published. � If you are submitting artwork and/or photos to accompany your fiction, please site the source of the artwork/photos. � Submit to firstname.lastname@example.org. The first-place winner will be published in our October issue. We will be awarding prizes for 1st through 5th place as follows: � First Place: Publication in Paranormal Underground Magazine; a Zoom H2 Handy Recorder; and the option to take part in an upcoming "Paranormal Underground Presents" podcast. � Second Place: Choice of shirt from Paranormal Underground's Gear Store and possible publication in Paranormal Underground Magazine. � Third Place: Any book listed in Paranormal Underground's Bookstore (valued at $25 or less) and possible publication in Paranormal Underground Magazine. � Fourth & Fifth Places: Paranormal Underground bumper sticker and possible publication in Paranormal Underground magazine. Our judges will be announced in a future issue. Judging criteria includes: � Story originality � Paranormal theme creativity � Text fluidity Submissions will be compiled and sent to the judges by the editor-in-chief, and all judges will not know who wrote each submission until after judging is completed and scores are tabulated by the editor-in-chief. Winners will be announced based on a ranking system, which will be compiled from first to last place. When e-mailing your submission to the editor, also include your name, story title, e-mail address, word count, and illustrations/photos, if any. Please spell-check your entries and ensure that they are print-ready. We reserve the right to edit all fiction published in the magazine, but will obtain each author's approval prior to publication. If you have any questions regarding the contest, please e-mail email@example.com. Last year we had a great response, and we hope to see even more writers join us in our 3rd Annual Short Story Contest. June 2010 Paranormal Underground 59 Reader Profile (Forum Name: WrightGhost) About Janet Age: 55. Born/Currently Resides: Elyria, Ohio/Amherst, Ohio Status: Married. Education: High School Graduate and Graduate of School of Hard Knocks. Zodiac Sign: Aquarius. Occupation: Business owner. My husband, Jon, and I own a Chrome Plating Business, which Jon started in 1968. Janet Wright special to us. I have a few interests that bring me joy: spending time with friends, decorating, cooking, gardening, reading, and oval track racing. My husband has a few hot rods, so we go to car shows in different parts of the country also. Who are your heroes? Janet: I have two heroes . . . my grandfather, who came to the United States in 1902 from Austria with my grandmother and their two-year-old son, without any money and not knowing a soul here. They were looking for a better life. Also my husband, who came from a very poor family in Pennsylvania and ended up in Ohio after he graduated college. He started his own business because of his love of cars and turned it into one of the top three plating shops in the United States. What are your favorite TV shows, paranormal shows, books, movies? Janet: I'm not a huge TV watcher, so I really don't have any favorite shows. My favorite book is John Steinbeck's East of Eden, and my favorite movie is Cat on A Hot Tin Roof with Elizabeth Taylor and Paul Newman. Q&A What brought you to Paranormal Underground? Janet: Heidi Ann. What does your member name mean? Janet: Wright is my last name, put together with a subject that has always interested me . . . ghosts. How would you describe yourself? Janet: I am a people person that loves to laugh. Life is short, so I try to enjoy every minute of it. Ghost enthusiast Janet Wright (pictured above with her husband Jon) is a believer in paranormal phenomena. People might be surprised to learn Janet was a pit crew member on a race car team for 10 years. Tell us about your family and what you like to do. Janet: It's just my husband and myself. Neither of us ever had any children, but we have a nine-yearold great-nephew that is pretty 60 Paranormal Underground June 2010 Pictured above is Janet and her husband Jon's home in Ohio, a 20-acre, mostly wooded area with a three-acre lake. Janet puts 50 pounds of cracked corn out per day to feed the deer, ducks, and other wildlife. At right are two of Jon's hot rods. Pictured above is Janet and Jon's second home in Arizona, where they try and visit during the winter months. The property is 30 miles from Tombstone, Arizona, and 30 miles from the historic town of Bisbee, Arizona. Favorite music? Janet: I like all types of music, but my favorite is Blues. Any other favorites? Janet: Traveling to historic areas. What would our readers be surprised to find out about you? Janet: That I was a pit crew member on a race car team that raced at a local oval asphalt track for 10 years. What are your pet peeves? Janet: Rude people. Are you a skeptic or believer? Janet: Believer. What areas of the paranormal interest you the most? Janet: The existence of ghosts is what interests me the most. Have you ever studied the paranormal? Janet: Not really. Talk about any paranormal experiences you have had and how they affected you. was very beautiful where she was and to please let everyone know that she was okay. She kept saying, "Please let them know I'm okay, it's beautiful here." I know she wanted me to relay the message to her children, who grew up without any type of faith or belief system. Janet's favorites include Blues music and East of Eden. Janet: My most impressionable experience was when my eldest sister passed 10 years ago. I am the type of person that never remembers any of my dreams, ever. A week after my sister passed, I had two very vivid dreams where she came to me to let me know that it What do you think happens to us when we die? Janet: I think we continue on, just on a different level. Do you have any words of wisdom that you live by? Janet: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Any exciting plans for the future? Janet: Yes, Gettysburg in August 2011! June 2010 Paranormal Underground 61 Equipment Update Electronic Communication With the Dead? By Karen Frazier The Radio Shack Hack: connect these circuit boards. Unscrew them and carefully pull the two boards apart. On the bottom of the top circuit board, you'll find a strip of 13 pins. 4. Find the pin that reads "mute," and clip it with wire cutters. 5. Reassemble the radio. 6. To use, connect the radio to outboard speakers and set a recording device nearby to capture any responses you don't pick up in the moment. This is especially important so that you can go back and review what you thought you heard. 7. Press either the down arrow or up arrow on the radio's T he Radio Shack Hack ghost box is the poor man's answer to Frank's Box, making it the perfect ghost-hunting accessory for many who are looking for affordable ways to communicate with the other side. The concept is simple. An inexpensive radio is altered so that it scans stations on either the AM or FM bands, setting up a static electronic background that spirits just might be able to manipulate into speech. Anyone can make a Radio Shack Hack for about $25. How? Read on. 1. Purchase a Radio Shack AM/ FM radio (CAT. NO. 12-469). 2. Unscrew the screws from the backing and remove to expose the circuit boards. 3. There are two screws that face to start it sweeping the band. You should hear it rapidly moving between stations with bursts of static in between. 8. Conduct your usual EVP session and listen for answers -- not in the voices from the station, but in the static between stations. Does it work? I've heard some interesting things with the Radio Shack Hack, although I would consider most results inconclusive. That doesn't mean it doesn't warrant investigation, however. Give it a try and see what you think. For more information on building your own Radio Shack Hack box, you can find a number of videos on YouTube. Just search the term Radio Shack Hack or Ghost Box and a number of videos will pop up. Happy hunting! Paranormal Underground Radio Thursdays @ 9-11 p.m. ET http://ztalk radio.com/ Beginning July 1 With Hosts Rick Hale & Karen Frazier www.avalancheofspirits.com 62 Paranormal Underground June 2010 Get Your Official PUG Gear Now! visit our online store at www.cafepress.com/paranormalUG Above are a few examples of available PUG Gear, which includes clothing (multiple colors), mugs, mousepads, bumper stickers, journals, and calendars. June 2010 Paranormal Underground 63

Bibliography for GURPS Horror Even more than most bibliographies, this one can only scratch the surface of the available material. Thus, any selection – mine emphatically included – becomes a reflection of personal taste. I have made some effort to include undisputed classics in all media, but have fallen back, in the final analysis, on what scares me. That said, check out the nonfiction works below, and look in their bibliographies and filmographies, for more directions. Titles of works are given in the format most familiar to English speakers, to make finding them easier. In the case of manga or anime, this is usually (but not always) an English-language title. In the case of Japanese film, this is usually (but not always) a transliterated Japanese title. Horror and books just seem to go together somehow, from the Necronomicon to Vampirella. Never underestimate the allure of cold, dead print . . . Brier, Bob. The Encyclopedia of Mummies (Facts on File, 1998). Complete survey of the topic. Briggs, Katharine Mary. An Encyclopedia of Fairies (Pantheon, 1976). An excellent starting place for putting the "Un" into "Unseelie." Carroll, Noël. The Philosophy of Horror (Routledge, 1990). A formal, academic study of the aesthetics of horror. Coleman, Loren and Clark, Jerome. Cryptozoology A to Z (Simon & Schuster, 1999). A handy first guide to cryptids. Davenport-Hines, Richard. Gothic: Four Hundred Years of Excess, Horror, Evil, and Ruin (Fourth Estate, 1998). The subtitle says it all. Davis, Wade. The Serpent and the Rainbow (Simon & Schuster, 1985). Ethnobotanical investigation into Haitian zombies, with much interesting information on Voudun as well. Douglas, Adam. The Beast Within (Chapmans, 1992). A vital and intriguing exploration of the werewolf myth. Fort, Charles. The Book of the Damned (Boni and Liveright, 1919). Possible, probable, and highly unlikely nonfiction. Collected with its three sequels in The Books of Charles Fort (Henry Holt, 1941). These vastly readable books make excellent weirdness mines. The great collector of frogs-from-the-sky stories, Fort raises important questions about the way we dictate "reality." Garrett, Laurie. The Coming Plague (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1994). The scary truth about diseases such as AIDS, Ebola, and their ilk. Guiley, Rosemary Ellen. The Encyclopedia of Ghosts and Spirits (Facts on File, 1992). A decent reference. Hardy, Phil (editor). The Overlook Film Encyclopedia: Horror (Overlook, 1994). The cinephile's reference work on horror, with entries on over 2,000 films. Harms, Daniel. The Cthulhu Mythos Encyclopedia (Elder Signs Press, 2008). A complete overview of Lovecraft's cosmic horrors, and those of his emulators. Jones, Stephen and Newman, Kim (editors). Horror: The 100 Best Books (Carroll & Graf, 1988) and Horror: Another 100 Best Books (Running Press, 2005). A hundred horror writers and critics each pick a book; browser's paradises. Joshi, S.T. and Dziemianowicz, Stefan (editors). Supernatural Literature of the World: An Encyclopedia (Greenwood, 2005). Now the standard reference work. Joshi's H.P. Lovecraft: A Life (Necronomicon Press, 1996) is the standard biography. Kendrick, Walter M. The Thrill of Fear (Grove Weidenfeld, 1991). A history of horror entertainment since the Gothic novel. King, Stephen. Danse Macabre (Everest House, 1981). King's addictively readable nonfiction examination of four decades of horror books and movies. Lovecraft, H.P. Supernatural Horror in Literature (Dover, 1973). Accessible book version of Lovecraft's seminal 1936 essay. McNally, Raymond T. and Florescu, Radu. In Search of Dracula (Houghton Mifflin, 1994). Biography of Vlad the Impaler discusses his role in the Dracula legend. Melton, J. Gordon. The Vampire Book: The Encyclopedia of the Undead (Visible Ink, 1999). The single best reference work on the subject; indispensable. Newman, Paul. A History of Terror (Sutton, 2000). A necessarily shallow overview and primer dealing with what actually scared people from classical times to today. Peebles, Curtis. Watch The Skies! (Smithsonian, 1994). Excellent history of the modern UFO legend. Purkiss, Diane. At the Bottom of the Garden (New York University Press, 2001). The horrific folklore of fairies, lilitu, and kindred horrors from an anthropological and psychological perspective. Schechter, Harold. The Serial Killer Files (Ballantine, 2003). Deftly combining ghoulishness and scholarship, this is probably the best current one-stop reference work. Skal, David J. The Monster Show (W.W. Norton, 1993). Social history and criticism of horror films. Stanley, John. Creature Features (Berkley Boulevard, 2000). Subtitled "The science fiction, fantasy, and horror movie guide," it has close to 4,000 entries! Stanley, who used to host a Bay Area late-night movie show, provides useful critiques of all the films. No horror buff's library should be without it. Taylor, Troy. Ghost Hunter's Guidebook (Whitechapel Productions, 2007). Updated edition of the best book on the topic. There's so much good horror fiction out there that any list must perforce be arbitrary. The problem metastasizes further when one considers that even mediocre horror fiction often makes a great model for horror gaming – if only by spawning ideas of the "Well, if I were writing this . . ." variety. That said, the material below is for the most part good stuff, somewhat culled for gameability or game inspiration. Of course, some of it is there simply because it will scare you out of a year's growth. Barker, Clive. Books of Blood 1-3 and Books of Blood 4-6. Six aptly named short-story anthologies established Barker as a first-rank horrorist (Books of Blood 4-6 had alternate US titles see here for details). His The Damnation Game (Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1985) and Cabal (Poseidon, 1988) explore increasingly secret horrors. With The Great and Secret Show (Collins, 1989) and Imajica (HarperCollins, 1991), he moves further into dark fantasy and romance. Everything Barker writes is worth reading. Barron, Laird. The Imago Sequence and Other Stories (Night Shade Books, 2007). Superb recapitulation of the horror tradition; a contemporary classic. Bear, Greg. Blood Music (Arbor House, 1985). Intelligent viruses transform living things from within; non-supernatural horror at its most terrifying. Bellairs, John. The House With a Clock in Its Walls (Dial, 1973), The Mummy, the Will, and the Crypt (Dial, 1983), The Spell of the Sorcerer's Skull (Dial, 1984), The Dark Secret of Weatherend (Dial, 1984), and many more are excellent sources for kid-character roleplaying, as well as being great "juvenile" horror novels. Bierce, Ambrose. Can Such Things Be? (Cassell, 1893). Bleak, savagely ironic short horror fiction. Blackwood, Algernon. The Willows and Other Queer Tales (Collins, 1932). These short stories provide an education in building and using narrative atmosphere. John Silence: Physician Extraordinary (Eveleigh Nash, 1908) collects the adventures of his "occult detective." Blaylock, James P. Homunculus (Ace, 1986). Necromantic shenanigans in Victorian London, featuring morbid humor and memorable characters. With Night Relics (Ace, 1994) and All the Bells on Earth (Ace, 1995), Blaylock finds just the right mix of dreamy California regionalism and horror. Blish, James. Black Easter (Doubleday, 1968). The definitive novel of demons and black magic in the modern world. The main character is an amoral black magician who is truly neither good nor evil – a terrific NPC. Bradbury, Ray. The October Country (Ballantine, 1955), A Medicine for Melancholy (Doubleday, 1959), and Something Wicked This Way Comes (Simon & Schuster, 1962). Two collections and a novel; Bradbury's small-town personal horrors prefigure Stephen King, but his lyrical prose is all his own. Brite, Poppy Z. Lost Souls (Delacorte Abyss, 1992). Vampires, the Southern Gothic, and sexuality have been Brite trademarks ever since this assured first novel. Brooks, Max. World War Z (Crown, 2006). Thriller-style "oral history" of the zombie apocalypse and what comes after. Campbell, Ramsey. The Darkest Part of the Woods (Tor, 2003). Masterpiece of mood combining psychological and cosmic horror. Campbell has written many other excellent horror novels, and his short-story collection Alone with the Horrors (Arkham House, 1993) is definitive. His Cthulhu Mythos stories have a grimy, urban feel to them; they are collected in Cold Print (Tor, 1987). Chambers, Robert W. The King in Yellow (Neely, 1895). Required reading for steampunk Gothics; a major influence on Lovecraft. Reprinted (along with the rest of Chambers' weird fiction) in an omnibus volume, The Yellow Sign and Other Stories (Chaosium, 2000). Collins, Nancy A. Sunglasses After Dark (Onyx/NAL, 1989). Postmodern vampires and other horrors haunt a surreal night world tailor-made for roleplaying. Danielewski, Mark Z. House of Leaves (Pantheon, 2000). Postmodern constructed-reality novel disguised as haunted house, or vice versa. Dean, Pamela. Tam Lin (Tor, 1991). Excellent atmospheric horror-fantasy novel set on a small college campus in the 1970s, and centering on ghosts, faerie, and the power of the stage. Drake, David. From the Heart of Darkness (Tor, 1983). Drake's narrative gifts turn to pure horror in this short-story collection, later expanded and reprinted as Night & Demons (Baen, 2012). Vettius and His Friends (Baen, 1989) collects Drake's excellent Roman-era horror-fantasy stories. Feist, Raymond E. Faerie Tale (Doubleday, 1988). Splendidly evoked evil faeries in upstate New York. Finney, Jack. The Body Snatchers (Dell, 1955). Inspired the classic movie; an excellent exercise in literary paranoia in its own right. Fraser, Phyllis and Wise, Herbert A. (editors). Great Tales of Terror and the Supernatural (Modern Library, 1944). Landmark horror anthology containing 52 undisputed classic tales. Goldstein, Lisa. The Red Magician (Timescape/Pocket, 1982). A powerful, quiet story of Jewish magic in Nazi-occupied Europe. Goldstein mixes ancient magic and modern horror into a truly moving book. A versatile author, in Dark Cities Underground (Tor, 1999), she presents the secret-magical horror of subway construction. Gran, Sara. Come Closer (Soho, 2003). A novel of unease, suspense, and (maybe) possession. Hammett, Dashiell (editor). Creeps by Night (John Day, 1931). One of the first horror anthologies, and still one of the best. Harris, Thomas. Red Dragon (Putnam, 1981), The Silence of the Lambs (St. Martin's, 1988), Hannibal (Delta, 2005) and Hannibal Rising (Dell reprint, 2007). Psychological horror pitting the FBI against one of horror's great villains, Dr. Hannibal ("the Cannibal") Lecter: demonic genius, psychoanalyst, and serial killer. Hartwell, David G. (editor). The Dark Descent (St. Martin's, 1987). Magisterial, historical-minded anthology of horrific short fiction, not all of it conventional "horror." Herbert, James. The Fog (NEL, 1975), The Magic Cottage (Hodder & Stoughton, 1986), and many others. Reliably bleak British horrorist. Sepulchre (Hodder & Stoughton, 1987) blends psychic powers, industrial espionage, and pulp thrills. Hill, Joe. Heart-Shaped Box (William Morrow, 2007). Aging rocker, meet haunted suit; a swell contemporary ghost story. Hodgson, William Hope. The Boats of the "Glen Carrig" (Chapman and Hall, 1907), The House on the Borderland (Chapman and Hall, 1908), and Carnacki, the Ghost-Finder (Eveleigh Nash, 1913). Terrifying sea story, the ultimate "invaded house" novel, and crackling steampunk "occult detective" story collection – Hodgson's range is amazing. Howard, Robert E. The Horror Stories of Robert E. Howard (Del Rey, 2008). Though best known for fantasy, Howard wrote stirring horror tales during his brief career (1925-1936). Nameless Cults (Chaosium, 2001) collects Howard's Cthulhu Mythos stories, among them the terrific novel Skull-Face (Weird Tales serial, 1929). Jackson, Shirley. The Haunting of Hill House (Viking, 1959). A modern masterpiece of psychological horror, one of the most quietly terrifying novels ever written. James, M.R. Ghost Stories of an Antiquary (Edward Arnold, 1904). James is the greatest ghost-story writer in the English language: literate, rich in detail, and perfectly toned. Get an omnibus collection such as Casting the Runes and Other Ghost Stories (Oxford, 1999). Kiernan, Caitlín R. Threshold (Roc, 2001). Vertiginous use of paleontological "deep time" as horror. King, Stephen. 'Salem's Lot (Doubleday, 1975), The Shining (Doubleday, 1977), Night Shift (Doubleday, 1978), The Stand (Doubleday, 1978), The Dead Zone (Viking, 1979), It (Viking, 1986), Bag of Bones (Scribner, 1998), and Dreamcatcher (Scribner, 2001), to hit only the high points. King's strength lies in his characterizations and his ability to bring the supernatural into our familiar world. Klein, T.E.D. The Ceremonies (Viking, 1984). Amazing, literate updating of Arthur Machen's horrors to rural New Jersey. Klein's 1980 short story "Children of the Kingdom" updates Machen's Unseelie to modern New York City. Lackey, Mercedes. Burning Water (Tor, 1989). Aztec cults, possession, and human sacrifice in modern-day Dallas, Texas. This is an excellent horror story with a delightful neopagan magical heroine. The sequels, Children of the Night (Tor, 1990) and Jinx High (Tor, 1991) are also good. Laidlaw, Marc. The 37th Mandala (St. Martin's, 1996). A New Age charlatan accidentally unleashes Things Man Was Not Meant To Know as "spirit guides." Langan, Sarah. The Missing (HarperCollins, 2007). Small-town virus outbreak drives apocalyptic horror. Le Fanu, Joseph Sheridan. In a Glass Darkly (Richard Bentley, 1872). Anthology containing the novelette "Carmilla," the first great erotic vampire story, and many other minor masterpieces. Carmilla and 12 Other Classic Tales of Mystery (Penguin, 1996) is an excellent modern collection of Le Fanu. Lebbon, Tim. As the Sun Goes Down (Night Shade Books, 2000). Short story collection by a new British talent. Lee, Tanith. Red as Blood (DAW, 1983). This beautifully perverse collection of short stories takes Grimm's classic fairy tales and turns them into atmospheric and grisly tales of fantasy and horror. A perfect example of how to make the familiar horrific. Leiber, Fritz. Conjure Wife (Twayne, 1953). A haunting novel of secret witchcraft in a 1950s university. Our Lady of Darkness (Berkley, 1977) is a luminous, literary urban horror fantasy (a genre Leiber invented in 1941 with the short story "Smoke Ghost"). Ligotti, Thomas. The Nightmare Factory (Carroll & Graf, 1996). Assembles Ligotti's three main collections into an omnibus. Ligotti is the premier writer of short horror alive today. Madness, puppets, and more. Lindholm, Megan. Wizard of the Pigeons (Ace, 1986). Truly superb urban fantasy featuring supernatural menace among the street people of Seattle. A fine example of how magic can be all around us, yet unnoticed except by those who choose to look for it. Lovecraft, H.P. The Call of Cthulhu and Other Weird Stories (Penguin, 1999), The Thing on the Doorstep and Other Weird Stories (Penguin, 2001), and The Dreams in the Witch House and Other Weird Stories (Penguin, 2004). These three omnibus volumes contain the corrected, original texts of Lovecraft's fiction (first published in the pulps between 1924 and 1941). Lovecraft is the greatest American horror author since Poe, in terms of vision, literary skill, and influence. Maberry, Jonathan. Patient Zero (St. Martin's, 2009). Technothriller pits action hero against zombie menace. Pure, delirious pulp-horror sequel The Dragon Factory (St. Martin's, 2010) features genemod monsters and bioterror. Machen, Arthur. The Great God Pan and The Inmost Light (John Lane, 1894). The linked story collection introducing Machen's "hidden race" Unseelie. The standard collection of Machen's best work is Tales of Horror and the Supernatural (Knopf, 1948). Chaosium publishes corrected, complete versions of the linked stories (2000-2005). Matheson, Richard. Hell House (Viking, 1971). One of the best haunted-house stories ever penned. Matheson's short stories are also reliable shockers, and his novel I Am Legend (Fawcett, 1954) combines a great "scientific vampire" with post-apocalyptic psychological horror. McCammon, Robert R. They Thirst (Avon, 1981). A vampiric apocalypse. Usher's Passing (Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1984) is a Southern Gothic family drama sequel to Poe's "Fall of the House of Usher." The Wolf's Hour (Pocket, 1989) is WWII werewolf action. All are compulsive page-turners. Newman, Kim. Anno Dracula (Simon & Schuster, 1992). Alternate-historical horror in a world where Dracula won. The sequel The Bloody Red Baron (Carroll & Graf, 1995) is WWI as Grand Guignol. Dracula Cha Cha Cha (Carroll & Graf, 1998) and Johnny Alucard (Titan, 2013) continue the story. Poe, Edgar Allan. Complete Stories and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe (Doubleday, 1966). Poe remains horror's greatest literary practitioner. His stories are as searing today as they were when first published (between 1827 and 1846). Vital. Powers, Tim. The Anubis Gates (Ace, 1983), On Stranger Tides (Ace, 1987), The Stress of Her Regard (Ace, 1989), and Declare (HarperCollins, 2001). Ingenious blends of history and macabre fantasy, filled with body-snatchers, Voudun, vampires, and djinn. Excellent resource material on running historical horror. Powers' modern-day secret-magic series – Last Call (William Morrow, 1992), Expiration Date (Tor, 1996), and Earthquake Weather (Tor, 1997) – is just as good, and adds possession, ghosts, and ritual magic. Priest, Cherie. Fathom (Tor, 2008) and Those Who Went Remain There Still (Subterranean, 2008). Two fine American monster stories, featuring Leviathan and a horrible bird-thing almost killed by Daniel Boone. Rice, Anne. Interview with the Vampire (Knopf, 1976). The novel that revamped the legend for the post-moral world, emphasizing the psychological horror, guilt, and loneliness of vampiric immortality. Along with its many sequels, the reference for a turnabout campaign in which the heroes are vampires. Roszak, Theodore. Flicker (Summit, 1991). Deeply creepy conspiratorial history of early horror film. Saberhagen, Fred. The Dracula Tape (Warner, 1975), The Holmes-Dracula File (Ace, 1978), and An Old Friend of the Family (Ace, 1979). Inverts the Dracula story, portraying the Count as a misunderstood defender of his homeland. Shelley, Mary Wollstonecraft. Frankenstein, or, The Modern Prometheus (Lackington, Hughes, Harding, Mavor, & Jones, 1818). The original mad scientist/construct novel. Shepard, Lucius. Green Eyes (Ace, 1984). Pseudoscience zombies and a genuinely creepy tropical atmosphere. Louisiana Breakdown (Golden Gryphon, 2003) is a Frazerian fertility-cult novel steeped in Southern Gothic. Simmons, Dan. Song of Kali (Bluejay, 1985), Carrion Comfort (Dark Harvest, 1989), Children of the Night (Putnam, 1992), and The Terror (Little, Brown, 2007). Excellent, stark horrors of (respectively) Calcutta cultists, psionic vampires, AIDS (and Dracula), and Arctic exploration. Smith, Clark Ashton. Out of Space and Time (Arkham House, 1942). Smith's first collection of Cthulhu Mythos stories, which have a lush, lyrical cruelty all their own. A Rendezvous in Averoigne (Arkham House, 1988) is the best current omnibus of Smith, although The Dark Eidolon and Other Fantasies (Penguin, 2014) shows promise. Smith, Thorne. Topper (McBride, 1926). The first "friendly ghost" story. It has given birth to countless film and video imitations, but the funny, sexy, irreverent original remains unsurpassed. Stableford, Brian. The Empire of Fear (Simon & Schuster, 1988). Alternate-historical viral-vampire novel. The Werewolves of London (Simon & Schuster, 1990) begins an increasingly complex, mystical saga of cruel angels and family tragedy. Steakley, John. Vampire$ (Roc, 1990). Plain-and-simple vampire-hunting adrenaline. Absolutely perfect model for fearless vampire-killer campaigns. Stevenson, Robert Louis. Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Charles Scribner's Sons, 1886). A horror classic. Stevenson wrote other tales of horror and adventure, especially Thrawn Janet (1881) and The Body Snatcher (1884). The latter is about a grave robber, and has nothing to do with any movie invasion. Stoker, Bram. Dracula (Constable, 1897). Still the greatest vampire novel of them all. Stoker's lesser works can be enjoyably pulpy, such as The Jewel of Seven Stars (Heinemann, 1903), which provided the basic inspiration for the 1932 film The Mummy; Lair of the White Worm (William Rider & Son, 1911), which became a gloriously weird Ken Russell film in 1988; and Dracula's Guest and Other Weird Stories (George Routledge, 1914). Straub, Peter. Ghost Story (Coward, McCann & Geoghegan, 1979). A surprisingly successful attempt to Americanize and novelize the classic English ghost story form. Strieber, Whitley. The Wolfen (William Morrow, 1978). Somehow believable novel of a hidden race of wolf-men living in New York City. Wellman, Manly Wade. Who Fears the Devil? (Paizo, 2010). These beautiful stories, written between 1951 and 1987, are set in rural America and give a perspective on Things Man Was Not Meant To Know (and on rural America) remarkably different from Lovecraft's. Worse Things Waiting (Carcosa House, 1973) collects more great horror stories. Wheatley, Dennis. The Devil Rides Out (Hutchinson, 1934), Strange Conflict (Hutchinson, 1941), The Haunting of Toby Jugg (Hutchinson, 1948), To the Devil – a Daughter (Hutchinson, 1953), The Ka of Gifford Hillary (Hutchinson, 1956), and The Satanist (Hutchinson, 1960). Spies, Satanists, and tough-guy action; Wheatley's "Black Magic" series has everything a horror game could want. Wilson, F. Paul. The Keep (William Morrow, 1981). A morally tangled story of a demonic vampire preying on the SS. The Tomb (Berkley, 1984) is a remarkably successful update of the old Sax Rohmer-style "weird menace" pulp horror to the modern day; its sequels paint a long-form cosmic horror story amid the thrills. Wilson, Robert Charles. The Perseids and Other Stories (Tor, 2000). SF author Wilson takes on horror in this astonishing anthology that echoes M.R. James, Lovecraft, and Barker. Yarbro, Chelsea Quinn. Hôtel Transylvania (St. Martin's, 1978). The first in a long series of historical romance novels starring the heroic, gyneolatrous vampire, the Comte de Saint-Germain. Zelazny, Roger. A Night in the Lonesome October (AvoNova/William Morrow, 1993). Humorous horror novel of a Halloween night where the world might or might not perish forever; narrated by Jack the Ripper's dog, Snuff. Comics and Manga Akino, Matsuri. Pet Shop of Horrors (Asahi Sonorama, 1995-1998). Cursed L.A. Chinatown pet shop deals rightful horrors to its customers. The sequel is Pet Shop of Horrors – Tokyo (Asahi Sonorama, 2005-present). Bissette, Steve (editor). Taboo (SpiderBaby Grafix/Tundra/Kitchen Sink, 1989-1995). A semi-regular anthology notable for the stellar quality of its contributors. Works hard to live up to its name. Brereton, Dan. Nocturnals: Black Planet (Malibu, 1995). The first in an irregular series featuring supernatural protagonists battling worse horrors, the real draw is Brereton's lush, Gothic painted art. Brown, Chester. Yummy Fur (Vortex, 1986-1994). While not exactly a horror story, it remains a genuinely frightening landmark of the comics medium. Particularly gut-wrenching is the fiercely ironic "Ed the Happy Clown" serial running in the first 20 issues of the book. Definitely requires a mature sensibility. Burns, Charles. Black Hole (Kitchen Sink/Fantagraphics 1995-2005). Haunting art anchors a tale of sexually transmitted mutation. Conway, Gerry, et al. Werewolf by Night (Marvel, 1972-1977). Reliable and workmanlike werewolf comic. Delano, Jamie, et al. Hellblazer (DC/Vertigo, 1988-present). Ongoing flagship horror title centers on a British sorcerer and the shambles surrounding him. Garth Ennis' and Mike Carey's runs are particularly good. DeMatteis, J. M. I . . . Vampire (DC, 1981-1983). This suspenseful vampire drama was the main feature in House of Mystery from #290 to #319. Feldstein, Al, et al. Tales from the Crypt (EC Comics, 1950-1955). This dime comic and its EC stable-mates The Haunt of Fear and The Vault of Horror "corrupted" an entire generation, changing the face of American horror forever by combining stories of remarkable psychological and social insight with genuinely disturbing gore by some of the greatest comics artists who ever lived. Fleisher, Michael, et al. Wrath of the Spectre (DC, 1988). Reprints the classic Jim Aparo-illustrated horrific-vengeance run of DC's ghostly superhero from Adventure #431 to #440. John Ostrander's run on the Spectre title from 1992 to 1998 is also worth reading. Gerber, Steve, et al. Vampire Tales (Marvel, 1973-1975). This anthology series is best known for showcasing Roy Thomas' creation Morbius, the Living Vampire, the first vampire in comics since the CCA ban of 1954, and a unique techno-vampire for a superhero cosmos. Ito, Junji. Tomie (Shogakukan, 1987). The story of a lust-inspiring revenant. Ito's Uzumaki (Shogakukan, 1998) presents geometric spirals as foci of horror, while his Gyo (Shogakukan, 2001-2002) brings up a marine nightmare from the deeps. Iwaaki, Hitoshi. Parasyte (Kodansha, 1990-1995). SF-horror features an alien parasite invasion, complete with sentient hand! Kirkman, Robert. The Walking Dead (Image, 2003-present). Fine, uncompromising serial follows survivors through a zombie post-apocalypse. Kubert, Joe (editor), et al. Weird War Tales (DC, 1971-1983). Occasionally brilliant war-horror anthology series became the spawning ground for the Creature Commandos. Another signature feature, The Haunted Tank, first appeared in G.I. Combat. Mignola, Mike. Hellboy (Dark Horse, 1993-present). Larger-than-life pulp horror alternates with surprisingly delicate spectral folklore. Companion title B.P.R.D. introduces serial soap operatics to the mix. Miura, Kentaro. Berserk (Hakusensha, 1990-present). Dark fantasy manga set against a surreal version of medieval Europe. Moore, Alan. From Hell (Borderlands, 1995). With Eddie Campbell's intricate black-and-white art, Moore tells a story of Jack the Ripper, sacred geometry, and the conspiratorial horror at the heart of the 20th century. Moore, Alan; Wein, Len; et al. Swamp Thing (DC/Vertigo; 1972-1976, 1982-1996, 2001-2002, 2004-2006). This Gothic monster comic has had some remarkably wretched periods, but its first run, by Len Wein and Berni Wrightson, raised the genre to new heights. Then in the 1980s, under writer Alan Moore and artists Steve Bissette and John Totleben, Swamp Thing unexpectedly became arguably the best mass-market comic of all time. More recent runs by writers Rick Veitch and Doug Wheeler are also exemplary. Don't let the two campy movies scare you off. Morrison, Grant. Doom Patrol (DC/Vertigo, 1989-1993). Surrealistic superhero book with genuine moments of horror throughout. The Invisibles (DC/Vertigo, 1994-2000) is high-flying conspiracy without a net. Niles, Steve (editor). Fly In My Eye (Eclipse/Arcane, 1988-1992). Consistently excellent, inconsistently published trade-paperback-sized anthology. Niles' 30 Days of Night (IDW, 2002) is a raw, primal story of vampires invading Barrow, Alaska. Ôtsuka, Eiji. The Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service (Kadokawa Shoten, 2002-present). The eponymous service carries out the wishes of the dead. Rennie, Gordon. Caballistics, Inc. (Rebellion, 2002-present). This intense tale of black magic and black ops runs in 2000 AD. Sala, Richard. Black Cat Crossing (Kitchen Sink, 1993), The Chuckling Whatsit (Fantagraphics, 1997), Peculia (Fantagraphics, 2002), Mad Night (Fantagraphics, 2005), and The Grave-Robber's Daughter (Fantagraphics, 2006). The comics version of German expressionist film. Brilliant images and a storyline that always threatens to become camp horror, but never quite does. Everything by Sala is excellent. Sclavi, Tiziano, et al. Dylan Dog (Sergio Bonelli Editore, 1986-present). Offbeat, layered Italian comic about a London-based occult investigator. Umezu, Kazuo. Reptilia (Kadokawa Shoten, 1965). The "Father of Horror Manga" presents a shape-shifting snake-girl. His Cat-Eyed Boy (Asahi Sonorama, 1967-1968) is EC-style horror anthology. The Drifting Classroom (Shogakukan, 1972-1974), about a time-lost elementary school slowly succumbing to madness, is often considered the greatest work of the genre. Wolfman, Marv. Tomb of Dracula (Marvel, 1972-1979). A slam-bang scare-fest backed by some of the best artistic talent of the 1970s. The strong characterization of Dracula is memorable. Movies have given us our most graphic images of horror. Those listed below are all suggested viewing, albeit sometimes as story mines rather than as fine cinema. Most are classics, must-sees for horror gamers – but some are obscure masterpieces, unlikely to show up on late-night television. Many are available on DVD; check Netflix or your local dealer. 28 Days Later (Danny Boyle, 2002). Riveting reinvention of the zombie film features virus-infected "fast zombies" and apocalyptic urban vistas. There is a sequel, 28 Weeks Later, but the original is the superior film. Abominable Dr. Phibes, The (Robert Fuest, 1971). A campy variation on the "evil genius" model, Vincent Price's Dr. Phibes is a mad musician who kills his enemies by using the Ten Plagues of Egypt. Abominable Snowman, The (Val Guest, 1957). This low-budget, black-and-white feature – a very early release from Britain's legendary Hammer Films – presents a curiously low-key but exciting cryptid hunt. Alien (Ridley Scott, 1979). Neo-Lovecraftian SF horror brought the creature-from-outer-space film to new heights of terror and believability simultaneously. Also presents a very gameable story. The first sequel, Aliens (James Cameron, 1986) is action rather than suspense, but still quite gameable in a different way. Alien Raiders (Ben Rock, 2008). Fearless Monster Hunt becomes hostage-taking screw-up, or vice versa: a horror gaming session given terse, tense filmic life. American Werewolf in London, An (John Landis, 1981). An excellent study of the genesis of a werewolf, both startling and funny. The dream sequences are the most terrifying part of the movie, inspirational for oneiric horrors. Battle Royale (Kinji Fukasuku, 2000). Paranoid horror about a nightmarish school competition. Beetlejuice (Tim Burton, 1988). The best modern haunted-house comedy. Of special interest for its creepy-yet-funny view of the afterlife, which one could easily port to a campaign where everyone is a ghost. Believers, The (John Schlesinger, 1987). Excellent suspense movie about a man's battle with a malevolent Santería cult. Birds, The (Alfred Hitchcock, 1963). Nature goes mad; a bravura course in using any common element to build terror. Black Sunday (Mario Bava, 1960). Black and white so rich you'd swear it was color, an undead witch, and a haunted castle give this Italian film style to spare. Blair Witch Project, The (Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sánchez, 1999). Low-fi horror builds nearly perfect atmosphere of suspense, terror, and dread with verité style. Cabin Fever (Eli Roth, 2002). Uses flesh-eating bacteria to drive non-supernatural survival horror to the brink. Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, The (Robert Wiene, 1920). The first horror film masterpiece; its surrealistic sets, camera angles, and storyline remain unmatched today. Candyman (Bernard Rose, 1992). Chicago urban legend manifests as spectral horror in this gritty, powerful evocation of a Clive Barker short story. Cat People (Jacques Tourneur, 1942). Produced by horror maestro Val Lewton, the film that saved RKO is subtle, brilliant, and breathtakingly terrifying. That said, Paul Schrader's 1982 remake has a nude Nastassja Kinski. Cemetery Man (Michele Soavi, 1994). Existential zombie love story about a gravedigger and his undead girlfriend. And then it just gets weird. Chinese Ghost Story, A (Ching Siu-Tung, 1987). Martial arts, comedy, romance, and tree-vampires with extensible tongues! Cloverfield (Matt Reeves, 2008). Daikaiju film shot from the victims' perspective; encapsulates the horror of powerlessness in the new millennium. Deliverance (John Boorman, 1972). A non-supernatural horror classic of civilization against savagery, the epitome of the Gauntlet story. Descent, The (Neil Marshall, 2005). Women on a spelunking trip encounter troglodyte monsters; pitch-perfect suspense and terror. Devil's Backbone, The (Guillermo del Toro, 2001). A nigh-perfect 20-minute ghost story nestles in this otherwise predictable two-hour film. Del Toro's Pan's Labyrinth (2006) succeeds with dark fantastic imagery and disintegrating narrative, although its underlying message remains confused. Dog Soldiers (Neil Marshall, 2002). British troops vs. werewolves in the best werewolf film of the millennium . . . so far. Don't Look Now (Nicolas Roeg, 1973). Art-house tale of bereavement plays with perception and faith when Julie Christie trusts a psychic and Donald Sutherland thinks he sees his daughter's ghost. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Rouben Mamoulian, 1931). Fredric March received a well-deserved Oscar for his dual lead in this creepy, gas-lit horror film. Dracula (Terence Fisher, 1958). Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing square off in the best film version of the novel, epitomizing the lush, sensual, almost operatic tradition of Hammer Films. Known as The Horror of Dracula in America. Tod Browning's 1931 version – the classic starring Bela Lugosi – is brilliantly shot, but badly marred by an abysmal script. Event Horizon (Paul W.S. Anderson, 1997). "Haunted spaceship" SF film builds cosmic horror magnificently for the first three acts. Then, the producers ruin it. Evil Dead II (Sam Raimi, 1987). This excessive movie careens wildly between gore, slapstick, and genuine fright; loads of fun and lots of good ideas. Raimi's The Evil Dead (1981) was essentially the same film with a fraction of the special-effects budget. Army of Darkness (1992), nominally Evil Dead 3, is a swell fantasy-adventure roller coaster with little true horror. The 2013 remake of the first film discards the humor and changes enough of the plot to be familiar while keeping everyone on their toes. Exorcist, The (William Friedkin, 1973). This movie about a little girl tormented by demons, and the battle for her soul, is an atmospheric must-see, and a brilliant example of the power of the prosaic scale. Five Million Years to Earth (Roy Ward Baker, 1967, aka Quatermass and the Pit). Sensational British SF horror story about psionic monsters buried beneath London. Flatliners (Joel Schumacher, 1990). Intensely gameable setup and rich atmospherics save this disorganized film about a team of would-be thanatologists exploring the afterlife by dying repeatedly. Frankenstein (James Whale, 1931), The Bride of Frankenstein (James Whale, 1935), and Son of Frankenstein (Rowland V. Lee, 1939). The prototypical mad scientist/construct films, worth seeing for their insight into the man-as-God issue as well as their chills. None of the hundred-plus Frankenstein sequels and remakes measure up to these originals, although The Curse of Frankenstein (Terence Fisher, 1957) comes close. Freaks (Tod Browning, 1932). A respectful-but-grim study of the fear of mutilation and of the dangers of betraying an insular, marginalized community not unlike the Unseelie. Fright Night (Tom Holland, 1985). Affectionate look at vampire-hunting movies that slowly becomes a truly tense chiller. Frighteners, The (Peter Jackson, 1996). Excellent story about a ghost-hunter; moves smoothly from light comedy to dark horror at a rapid clip. From Dusk Till Dawn (Robert Rodriguez, 1996). Action-camp horror full of violence, vampires, and attitude. Scary and thrill-packed, but not terrifying. Ghostbusters (Ivan Reitman, 1984). A tightly plotted group-of-adventurers-encounter-the-supernatural movie, this time played for laughs. Modern setting, great special effects, and a textbook example of how to create supernatural adventures. Ginger Snaps (John Fawcett, 2000). Mordant, clever film ties lycanthropy to female puberty. Gojira (Ishirô Honda, 1954). Though followed by an infinite series of ultra-campy sequels, the original film (without Raymond Burr) is bleak, powerful, and very, very scary. Godzilla is nobody's big monster buddy here; he's a literally unstoppable force of nature, a walking embodiment of nuclear terror. Haunting, The (Robert Wise, 1963). Quiet, tense ghost story, or a subtle tale of psychological disintegration? Either way, an often-overlooked horror masterpiece with useful roleplaying applications. Addresses the interaction of psychological and psychic pressures in a supernatural situation. Avoid the 1999 remake at all costs! Haute Tension (Alexandre Aja, 2003). French grindhouse-style psycho-killer movie with a hellacious twist. Hellraiser (Clive Barker, 1987). Gory, fetishistic horror directed by a noted horror author. Not for the squeamish, but Barker's vision is truly hellish; plenty of roleplaying potential for those with a taste for Grand Guignol. Host, The (Bong Joon-ho, 2006). Marvelous South Korean kaiju film combines fear of government, environmental terror, fast action, and clever family dynamics. Hostel (Eli Roth, 2005). The slyest and most effective of the new generation of so-called "torture porn"; updates the faerie seduction myth with grim effect. House (Steve Miner, 1986). Suffers from jokiness, but the essential concept of the haunted hypergeometrical house makes a great game element. The sequel is even sillier, but rings further changes on the setting. House of Wax (André de Toth, 1953). Vincent Price gives one of his richest performances, as the wax-museum curator who turns victims into sculptures for his Chamber of Horrors. Highly evocative, and a great Victorian atmosphere throughout. Howling, The (Joe Dante, 1981). The other great 1981 werewolf movie. Hunger, The (Tony Scott, 1983). Ancient, decadent vampires live the life of the idle rich. Short of substance, but scary and very sexy with leads Catherine Deneuve, Susan Sarandon, and David Bowie. I Walked with a Zombie (Jacques Tourneur, 1943). Ignore the title. This Val Lewton-produced psychological chiller is a transposition of Jane Eyre to the Caribbean, and a respectful, haunting look at Voudun. In the Mouth of Madness (John Carpenter, 1995). Surreal Lovecraftian tale of a missing horror writer whose books are changing reality. Invaders from Mars (William Cameron Menzies, 1953). A minor alien-invasion classic that set the pattern for the 1950s' science-fiction horrors. Invasion of the Body Snatchers (Don Siegel, 1956). A paranoiac horror thriller without monsters, special effects, or even death, and all the more terrifying for it. The 1978 remake is rather antique now; the 1993 remake is still worth seeing; the 2007 remake has its moments but ultimately fails. Jacob's Ladder (Adrian Lyne, 1990). Hallucinogenic psychological horror surrounds a Vietnam vet. Surrealism at its horrific finest. Jaws (Steven Spielberg, 1975). A prime example of the fear of nature. This pure, elemental battle against a great white shark demonstrates that horror easily transcends the supernatural. Jeepers Creepers (Victor Salva, 2001). A wonderful monster, shocking pacing, and believably random folklore make this teens-in-peril psycho-killer movie a triumph. Legend of Hell House, The (John Hough, 1973). This film, about a group of people promised big money for proving or disproving the existence of an afterlife in the granddaddy of all haunted houses, makes a grand adventure premise. Lots of detail on the use of psychic abilities. Let the Right One In (Tomas Alfredson, 2008). Flawless Swedish vampire film is the single best – perhaps the best possible – exploration of the "Renfield" character type. Remade in English as Let Me In (Matt Reeves, 2010). Lost Boys, The (Joel Schumacher, 1987). New Wave update and vampirization of the Peter Pan story, set in 1980s California. Light, but lots of fun. Mist, The (Frank Darabont, 2007). Atmospheric adaptation of a Stephen King novella combines psychological and cosmic horror with superb monsters. Mummy, The (Karl Freund, 1932). Short on shocks, but maintains a horrific mood throughout. Gave us the "forbidden reincarnated love" and "human guise of the mummy" reused by later films. The loose remake (Stephen Sommers, 1999) is great, gameable pulp adventure. Near Dark (Kathryn Bigelow, 1987). An intelligent, very scary vampire film in which the word "vampire" never appears. Set in the modern-day West, the vampires here are monsters of social upheaval – the ones your mother warned you about. Night of the Demon (Jacques Tourneur, 1957). Demon-summoning scrolls and Satanic cults in England. A visible demon, added at the producer's insistence, mars but doesn't ruin this masterpiece of suggestion. Night of the Living Dead (George A. Romero, 1968). Combines stomach-turning walking-dead action with bleak social commentary. Only equaled by its sequel, Dawn of the Dead (George A. Romero, 1978), set in a besieged shopping mall, which the remake (Zack Snyder, 2004) surprisingly complements. Nightmare on Elm Street, A (Wes Craven, 1984). After its countless sequels, it's easy to forget just how unsettling this film can be, due largely to its brilliant central concept and imaginative and surreal special effects. Nomads (John McTiernan, 1986). Dreamlike, increasingly paranoid tale of nomadic spirits haunting a modern anthropologist in Los Angeles. Nosferatu (F.W. Murnau, 1922). Murnau's silent masterpiece is a surrealist Gothic. The remake (Werner Herzog, 1979) presents the nosferatu as the eruption of fatal reality into comfortable bourgeois life. Onibaba (Kaneto Shindô, 1964). Brutal realism combines with hints of demonic power in this Japanese film about desperate peasants trapped by poverty and war. Others, The (Alejandro Amenábar, 2001). Assured mood piece harkens back to old-school ghost-story films; Nicole Kidman gives one of the great nervous horror performances. Peeping Tom (Michael Powell, 1960). Riveting film about a camera-buff and sex-killer indicts the audience for voyeurism. Poltergeist (Tobe Hooper, 1982). A flashy ghost story about an average suburban family. The most impressive aspect of this movie is Hooper's ability to make everyday objects – TV sets, stuffed toys, steaks – seem alive and malevolent. Pontypool (Bruce McDonald, 2008). Canadian low-budget indie presents zombies as a semantic threat – contagion spreads by word of mouth. Psycho (Alfred Hitchcock, 1960). The first modern psycho-killer movie. There's no gore, just suspense, misdirection, and a creepy atmosphere. Even if you've heard the plot, see the movie. Re-Animator (Stuart Gordon, 1985) and From Beyond (Stuart Gordon, 1986). Among the best feature-film adaptations of Lovecraft's work, but based on third-rate stories. Still, full of supremely good-humored awfulness. Resident Evil (Paul W.S. Anderson, 2002). Thrilling horror-actioner based on the video game gleefully combines anti-capitalist paranoia with zombie face-chewing. Ringu (Hideo Nakata, 1998). A Japanese suspense masterpiece, borrowing from many other horror movies but blending them into its own tense story of a deadly videotape. American remake The Ring (Gore Verbinski, 2002) actually lives up to the original! Rosemary's Baby (Roman Polanski, 1968). Witchcraft and Satanism among the uptown New York affluent. Polanski masterfully builds the ominous, paranoid atmosphere. Ruins, The (Carter Smith, 2008). Nail-biting survival horror traps Western tourists atop an enigmatic Mayan pyramid in a sly inversion of Lovecraftian tropes. Scream (Wes Craven, 1996). The ultimate in postmodern slasher flicks. The characters' attempt to play by the horror-movie "rules" lifts this far above the run-of-the-mill psycho-killer flick, as does Craven's assured direction. The first two sequels are decent as well, and Scream 4 was released in 2011. Seventh Victim, The (Mark Robson, 1943). Another Val Lewton-produced psychological horror film with complex characters, it deals with disillusionment and suicide. Interesting to GMs for its handling of a Satanic cult, mysterious and unknown throughout the movie. Shaun of the Dead (Edgar Wright, 2004). Walks the tricky line between hilarious send-up and gross-out thriller while emphasizing the zombie film's role as cultural critique. Shining, The (Stanley Kubrick, 1980). Not much of an adaptation of the novel, but a brilliant movie. Superb direction, an eerie score, and a memorable performance by Jack Nicholson contribute to a terrifying atmosphere. Silence of the Lambs, The (Jonathan Demme, 1991). The most mature and polished psychological horror-thriller of recent decades. The film's combination of gothic imagery and seeming realism works on many levels. Sixth Sense, The (M. Night Shyamalan, 1999). A luminous combination of ghost story and psychological horror tale. Strangers, The (Bryan Bertino, 2008). Invaded house horror at its purest and most arbitrary. Sunshine (Danny Boyle, 2007). Implacable SF horror film goes badly off the rails plot-wise but remains compellingly watchable. Suspiria (Dario Argento, 1977). Witchcraft, gore, and nigh-hallucinogenic scenery make this Italian film eminently watchable, if no more sensible. Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The (Tobe Hooper, 1974). This no-budget tour-de-force redefines the psycho killer as modern werewolf. Point to notice: the horrors in this film take place entirely in broad daylight. Thing from Another World, The (Christian Nyby, 1951). Notable for the conflict between the scientists, who want to capture or communicate with the Thing, and the soldiers, who want to kill it. John Carpenter's remake, The Thing (1982), more than gains in visceral terror and isolation what it loses in cosmic scope. This Is Not a Love Song (Bille Eltringham, 2002). Two thieves get trapped in the remote British countryside in a merciless survival horror tale with no supernatural elements. Tremors (Ron Underwood, 1990). A seamless, brilliant updating of the 1950s B-movie to the modern era pits a small desert town against giant, malevolent sandworms. The first movie is so much better than it deserves to be that the viewer makes it halfway through the sequel without realizing how inferior it is. Uninvited, The (Lewis Allen, 1944). Superb, atmospheric ghost story in the spirit of Val Lewton. Uzumaki (Higuchinsky, 2000). Vertiginous, occasionally discordant adaptation of the manga conveys "the uncanny" better than almost any other film. Vanishing, The (George Sluizer, 1988). Psychological horror cripples a man when his wife suddenly – vanishes. Avoid the mediocre U.S. remake of this Dutch gem. Wicker Man, The (Robin Hardy, 1973). Set in modern-day Great Britain, this movie concerns a small offshore island where the inhabitants still keep an interest in the "old religion." Celtic mythology in a modern setting, done with thriller-movie flair and a sense of humor. Neil LaBute's 2006 version may be the worst remake ever filmed. Wolf Man, The (George Waggner, 1941). Not the first werewolf picture, but the one that set the rules for the Hollywood wolf-man as tragic victim-monster. Young Frankenstein (Mel Brooks, 1974). Uproarious send-up of the whole horror film genre. Television series can have as many directors as they have episodes. Thus, credits are omitted for brevity, although some annotations name the creative masterminds involved. Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997-2003). Possibly the best continuing horror TV series ever, and a model of story-arc development. Easy on the eyes, too. Criminal Minds (2005-present). Procedural drama about FBI serial-killer profilers. Dark Shadows (1966-1971, 1991). This no-budget 1960s Gothic soap opera still commands a fanatically loyal audience today, due to a memorable ensemble of ghoulish protagonists. Forever Knight (1992-1996). Vampire police drama with a cult following. Fringe (2008-present). Pseudoscience becomes mysticism in this stylish conspiracy thriller series. Ghost Hunters (2004-present). SyFy Channel "reality" show offers low-fi thrills and chills. Invaders, The (1967-1968). Alien-invasion paranoia with a 1960s twist of low-key excellence. Kingdom, The (1994, 1997). Two very unsettling four-episode series about a ghost-filled hospital, created by Danish director Lars von Trier. Stephen King retooled this for an American audience as Kingdom Hospital. Kolchak: The Night Stalker (1974-1975). This campy show had a sleazy but intrepid reporter chasing down a different monster every week, over the objections of the obsessively skeptical authorities. Followed two hit pilot films (1972 and 1973, both available as a double feature). Masters of Horror (2005-2007). Generally excellent Showtime series of original films by acclaimed horror directors. Supernatural (2005-present). Blue-collar haunt-stompers battle ghosts, demons, and monsters in America's "flyover country." Relentlessly clever writing and excellent production backstop this increasingly compelling show. Tales from the Darkside (1984-1988). Produced by George A. Romero, this is probably the best of the 1980s horror anthology series (including Freddy's Nightmares [Region 2 DVD] and Monsters), despite cheesy special effects. Twilight Zone, The (1959-1964). Rod Serling's groundbreaking series defined and perfected TV horror storytelling. Essential. Reincarnated several times (1985-1989, 2002-2003) with varying degrees of success. Twin Peaks (1990-1991). Atmospheric horror mystery created by David Lynch goes rapidly downhill after the central mystery is solved in the second season. Ultraviolet (1998). Superb six-episode British series about a covert death squad's war against vampires. War of the Worlds (1988-1990). 1950s alien paranoia updated to the George H.W. Bush era with lively gusto, if little coherence. X-Files, The (1993-2002). At its peak (circa season 5), the best horror on television. Conspiracies, UFOs, and monsters all blend with excellent camerawork and production for an atmospheric triumph. Some of these titles are feature films, while others are TV or OVA (original video animation) series. Feature films list a director; series don't. Ayakashi (2006). Horror anthology includes a version of the classic Yotsuya Kaidan. Boogiepop Phantom (2000). Nonlinear horror mystery set in a Japanese high school. Demon City Shinjuku (Yoshiaki Kawajiri, 1988). Evil fate destroys a Tokyo neighborhood, turning it into a haunted urban wasteland. Mononoke (2007). Wandering medicine seller battles unnatural spirits. Spinoff of Ayakashi. Nightmare Before Christmas, The (Henry Selick, 1993). Giddy animated musical with much worthwhile Tim Burton-driven surreal imagery. Perfect Blue (Satoshi Kon, 1998). Philip K. Dick-style thriller of psychological disintegration and identity centers on a former J-pop starlet. Scooby Doo, Where Are You! (1969-1972). The great silly horror show, despite the total absence of actual horror. Consider it a warning: The average player group behaves far too much like the Scooby gang. Serial Experiments Lain (1998). Deeply philosophical and subtly terrifying story of conspiracy, perception, and reality. Sleeping Beauty (Clyde Geronimi, 1959). Yes, the Walt Disney feature. Seriously. Watch it again in the dark. Vampire Hunter D (Toyoo Ashida, 1985). Dark-future SF romance features a split-personality vampire-slayer who battles a blood-drinking aristocracy in the year 12,090 A.D. Witch Hunter Robin (2002-2003). Secret society battles witches, who have a weird genetic angle. You didn't think we'd forget about horror games, did you? Horror games are among the most popular, long-lived, and artistically important in the history of RPGs. Here are only a few of the absolute best. Craig, Malcolm. Cold City (Contested Ground Studios, 2006). Game of betrayal and trust – and monster-hunting – in Cold War Berlin. Czege, Paul. My Life with Master (Half Meme Press, 2003). Innovative narrative pulls players through the emotional crisis of every Gothic villain's "Igor." Dansky, Richard, et al. Wraith: The Oblivion Second Edition (White Wolf, 1996). Bleak, personal roleplaying: You play a ghost, and the dark shadow of another player's ghost. Hindmarch, Will, et al. Requiem Chronicler's Guide (White Wolf, 2006). Brilliant anthology of ways to deconstruct and rebuild the classic Vampire setting, rules, and feel. A must-read for GMs, even if you don't play Vampire. Jonsson, Gunilla and Petersén, Michael. Kult (Metropolis Ltd., 1993). Gnostic horror at its most uncompromising. Laws, Robin D. Fear Itself (Pelgrane Press, 2007). Laws' GUMSHOE System, designed for investigative horror, demonstrates that it can handle survival horror, too. Nesmith, Bruce, et al. Ravenloft (TSR, 1990). This AD&D supplement combines classic fantasy with classic horror in a near-perfect setting book. Petersen, Sandy. Call of Cthulhu (Chaosium, 1981). Brilliantly adapts Lovecraft's cosmic horror to the RPG form; an incomparable success of design, setting, and feel that spawned decades of astonishing supplements and adventures. Tynes, John. Puppetland (Hogshead, 1996). Minimalist, experimental horror in a world where the Puppetmaster is dead. Tynes, John, et al. Delta Green (Pagan Publishing, 1997). Call of Cthulhu supplement that melds the Cthulhu Mythos into 1990s UFO-conspiracy paranoia with perfect pitch. Tynes, John and Stolze, Greg. Unknown Armies (Atlas Games, 1999). Ruthlessly human-centered, brilliantly original game of the "occult underground," and the choices you make to survive there. Wendig, Chuck, et al. Hunter: The Vigil (White Wolf, 2008). The Compleat Monster-Hunter Game, playable at almost any scope. GURPS Third Edition Many GURPS Third Edition supplements contain horror material. Much of this is usable with any system, and most of the rest is easily adapted to Fourth Edition. Almost every historical or fantasy GURPS book has monsters or details that can inspire horror; the following supplements focus on specific horrors and provide terrifying information. Elliott, Paul and McCubbin, Chris. GURPS Atomic Horror. Cinematic SF horrors of the 1950s, and the historical background on that decade. Findley, Nigel. GURPS Illuminati. Conspiratorial everything, including horror. Grate, Lane. GURPS Blood Types. In-depth discussion of vampires, as PCs and foes alike. Hite, Kenneth. GURPS Cabal. Secret-historical horror setting featuring lots of monsters and a Hermetic magic system (the latter adapted to Fourth Edition in GURPS Thaumatology). Hite covers "ghost-breaking" in detail in GURPS All-Star Jam 2004, and (with William H. Stoddard) discusses the horrors of World War II in GURPS WWII: Weird War II. Johnson, Hunter (compiler). GURPS Monsters. Details 48 monsters, both classic and original, from the Minotaur to Shub-Internet. Koke, Jeff and Ross, S. John. GURPS Black Ops. Tongue-in-cheek action-conspiracy featuring a lot of very dangerous monsters. Pulver, David. GURPS Reign of Steel. Post-apocalyptic horror setting featuring malevolent AIs and killer robots. GURPS Technomancer is an alternate-history setting where magic spells – and lots of monsters – work. Punch, Sean. GURPS Undead. Exhaustive examination of the undead from all angles, including the "cut 'em up with a chainsaw" angle. His compilation GURPS Y2K discusses apocalypse in many forms, including the one that didn't happen in 2000. Ramsay, Jo. GURPS Screampunk. Covers Gothic horror roleplaying in depth. Ross, S. John. GURPS Warehouse 23. Weird things, including monsters, cursed artifacts, and other horror inspirations. Schroeck, Robert M. GURPS Shapeshifters. Werewolves and their ilk, as PCs or targets – or both! Video and Computer Games Digital games are designed by large teams, so credits here are by publisher. BioShock (2K Games, 2007). Survival horror – and powerful story – set in a ruined undersea colony of Objectivists. Dead Space (Electronic Arts, 2008). SF zombies ("Necromorphs") on a doomed spaceship; the game wears its cinematic influences (Stalker, Event Horizon) on its sleeve. Doom (id Software, 1993). Fighting demons on Mars; a classic. Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem (Nintendo, 2002). Lovecraftian adventure RPG featuring unique "sanity effects" that interfere with the player's perceptions. Half-Life (Valve, 1998). First-person shooter pits Dr. Gordon Freeman against horrid monsters pouring through an extradimensional rift – and against the conspiracy to cover up the incident. Left 4 Dead (Valve, 2008). A "cinematic" game AI keeps tension and thrills taut in this survival-horror game of killing the "infected" (zombies). Resident Evil (Capcom, 1996). Highly influential (and successful) survival-horror game. Silent Hill (Konami, 1999). Creepy goings-on in a foggy, monster-filled town. Thief: Deadly Shadows (Eidos Interactive, 2004). Quasi-Gothic horror stealth game set in an alternate-historical mishmash. When Cicadas Cry (07th Expansion, 2002). Strange Japanese computer game ("sound novel") about a series of ritual killings; also known as Higurashi When They Cry.

The Kappa, in Japanese folklore is a ghost, phantom, or strange apparition. Kappa, meaning river-child, also goes by many other names; Kawataro, Komahiki and Kawako are only a few of the more than 80 names associated with this cryptid. A Hyosube is a variation of the Kappa that is hair-covered. It is said to inhabit the ponds and rivers of Japan, but will sometimes go on land. In some variations of the Kappa, it will spend the spring and summer in water and live in the mountains the remaining part of the year known as a mountain deity. At a Tokyo shrine, there is a statue of a male and female Kappa. In some cities near bodies of water, there are signs warning of the Kappa. The Kappa are typically depicted having a humanoid form and are about the size of a child. The skin is similar to a reptile with its color being green, yellow, or blue. The hands and feet are webbed to aid in swimming. The Kappa also has a fishy smell to it. In the top of the cryptid’s head there is a cavity that is always wet and considered to be the source of its power. If the cavity ever dries out, the Kappa will lose its powers and could die. The behavior of the Kappa is mainly mischievous and considered to be a trouble maker. It is known to also lure people and animals into the water to drown them and drink their blood. Kappas are know to kidnap children and rape women. In the stories of the Kappa trying to drown animals, if it is caught in the act, it can be made to apologize. There have also been stories of the Kappa impregnating a woman, producing a repulsive offspring that were usually buried. It is believed that if a person is approached by a Kappa and bows, the Kappa will bow back spilling out the water. The Kappa will then be rendered unable to move from that position until water from where the Kappa lives is placed back in the cavity. From this point, the Kappa would be obligated to serve the human for eternity. In some regions it is believed that if parents write the names of their children as well as themselves on cucumbers and toss them in the water, they will be protected from the Kappa while they bathe. Other regions encourage eating cucumbers before swimming for protection against the Kappa, but in some regions this act causes the Kappa to attack. A Kappa may be tricked into promising to help a human and because the Kappa must keep its oath, it will follow through with its promise. If a Kappa is befriended, then it may perform many tasks to aid humans, such as helping farmers irrigate their land. The Kappa may also bring the family fresh fish, which is regarded as token of good fortune. According to the legend the art of bone setting was taught to humans. Some shrines worship helpful Kappas. There are Kappa festivals still taking place today that are meant to bring a good harvest. Image Caption: Drawing of a Kappa reportedly caught in net on Mito east beach. Credit: Wikipedia (public domain)

Posted by: Loren Coleman on December 11th, 2008 When lifelong Fortean, Eastern puma and Sasquatch researcher, and recent cancer sufferer Bob Chance was first arrested, the media highlighted Bob as a “Bigfooter.” Perhaps in a nod to the civic-minded background of Bob’s life and the holiday season, the mainstream newspaper The Baltimore Sun is now calling him the ecologically-minded “Santa Bob.” A 62-year-old ecologist, Christmas-tree merchant and former Bel Air town commissioner pleaded guilty today [December 10, 2008] in Baltimore County Circuit Court to growing marijuana and possessing psychedelic mushrooms on his 7-acre Harford County farm. Robert C. Chance, who children buying Christmas trees know as “Santa Bob,” was arrested in May during a raid on his farm, where detectives and investigators from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration found 19 marijuana plants growing, more than a pound and a half of packaged marijuana in freezers, and about 33 grams of hallucinogenic mushrooms. Chance had been charged with five counts, including possession with intent to distribute marijuana. Under an arrangement with prosecutors, he was able to plead guilty to two of the lesser charges in exchange for a recommendation that he serve no more than six months in prison. Had he been convicted of all five charges, Chance faced a maximum of 20 years in prison. This morning, Judge John G. Turnbull II — to whose courtroom in Towson the case was transferred after Harford County judges recused themselves because they are acquainted with the defendant — agreed that he would give Chance no more than six months in jail, but postponed sentencing until March 9 so that he can consider a pre-sentencing report. Standing before the judge in a trim goatee, reading glasses and black blazer, Chance firmly answered, “Yes, sir,” to a series of questions from Turnbull as to whether he understood, among other things, that he was waiving his right to a trial by jury. Asked what his level of education was, Chance replied, “Two master’s degrees.” “So you understand the English language,” the judge responded. “‘Santa Bob’ pleads guilty in marijuana case,” by Nick Madigan, Baltimore Sun, December 10, 2008 I certainly hope the judge takes into account Bob’s good life, his cancer, and his friends’ appeals. Perhaps, in the end, he will get probation instead of six months? Bob Chance routinely delivers his free lectures to schools, conservation groups, and the elderly about ecology, historical animal reports, and cryptid sightings in Maryland. Loren Coleman is one of the world’s leading cryptozoologists, some say “the” leading. Certainly, he is acknowledged as the current living American researcher and writer who has most popularized cryptozoology in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Starting his fieldwork and investigations in 1960, after traveling and trekking extensively in pursuit of cryptozoological mysteries, Coleman began writing to share his experiences in 1969. An honorary member of Ivan T. Sanderson’s Society for the Investigation of the Unexplained in the 1970s, Coleman has been bestowed with similar honorary memberships of the North Idaho College Cryptozoology Club in 1983, and in subsequent years, that of the British Columbia Scientific Cryptozoology Club, CryptoSafari International, and other international organizations. He was also a Life Member and Benefactor of the International Society of Cryptozoology (now-defunct). Loren Coleman’s daily blog, as a member of the Cryptomundo Team, served as an ongoing avenue of communication for the ever-growing body of cryptozoo news from 2005 through 2013.

Posted by: Loren Coleman on October 24th, 2008 In a world of increasing documentary treatments of international cryptids, one hidden animal that I feel should be highlighted more is the Honshū Wolf of Japan. Let’s revisit this Mystery Canid. An update worth mentioning is that I was able to finally find a small replica of the Honshū Wolf of Japan (shown above). I actually obtained two figurines, so I could send one back to Japan in thanks to researcher Brent Swancer. He had not been able to track one down yet, so since he had generously shared his translations on the cryptid below, it seemed only right he should have a figurine of the cryptic wolf. The world’s smallest variety of wolf, the Japanese wolf, also called the Honshū Wolf (Canis lupus hodophilax), supposedly became extinct in 1905 in Nara prefecture, Japan. But did some survive beyond that date? And was there physical proof of this event, in 1910, in Fukui prefecture? Sightings of the Japanese wolf persist to the present, and yet, even the date of the “last one” is in dispute. A new debate is occurring currently in Japan that the extinction date may have been incorrect, almost immediately. Intriguingly, finding a taxidermy example of the Honshū Wolf presently is quite difficult. Only five mounted specimens are said to be known worldwide: three in Japan, one in the Netherlands (which is pictured in the beautiful book, Swift as a Swallow), and the supposedly final 1905 animal, which is located at the British Natural History Museum. But was there another taxidermy mount that proved these wolves lived beyond 1905? In Japan, a 2007 Asahi News discussion surfaced regarding the photographs you see here. I am grateful to cryptozoology historian American Brent Swancer (who lives in Japan) for passing along to me information and his translation. Supposedly killed in 1910 in Fukui, the Japanese wolf in the first of the three above photographs is apparently genuine. The article explains that the last officially known Japanese wolf died in 1905, yet here is one that was allegedly killed five years later, in 1910. Unfortunately, the body was destroyed in a fire, according to the article. The picture in the middle is a taxidermy-mounted specimen of that last known Japanese wolf and the photo at the bottom is the farm where the wolf was shot in 1910. The two photos of the dead animal today remain as the only real evidence that this wolf existed since the body has long since been destroyed. In the Asahi News article there is a mention that in an issue of the Fukui agricultural magazine of the time, zoo staff had examined the animal the day after the shooting in 1910. They came to the conclusion that it was indeed a Japanese wolf. Unfortunately, it seems that that is as far as the examination went. It appears that those who advocate that this was a Japanese wolf point to that Fukui magazine article, as well as comparing the morphology of the animal pictured to data on the Japanese wolf. But it is inconclusive and not enough to change the common historical record that the last known specimen died in Nara in 1905. Brent Swancer The mounted Honshū Wolf (Canis lupus hodophilax) in the National Science Museum of Japan. The closely related elusive Hokkaido Wolf (Canis lupus hattai). Loren Coleman is one of the world’s leading cryptozoologists, some say “the” leading. Certainly, he is acknowledged as the current living American researcher and writer who has most popularized cryptozoology in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Starting his fieldwork and investigations in 1960, after traveling and trekking extensively in pursuit of cryptozoological mysteries, Coleman began writing to share his experiences in 1969. An honorary member of Ivan T. Sanderson’s Society for the Investigation of the Unexplained in the 1970s, Coleman has been bestowed with similar honorary memberships of the North Idaho College Cryptozoology Club in 1983, and in subsequent years, that of the British Columbia Scientific Cryptozoology Club, CryptoSafari International, and other international organizations. He was also a Life Member and Benefactor of the International Society of Cryptozoology (now-defunct). Loren Coleman’s daily blog, as a member of the Cryptomundo Team, served as an ongoing avenue of communication for the ever-growing body of cryptozoo news from 2005 through 2013.

In Seth Fried’s The Great Frustration (Soft Skull Press; 192 pages), strangeness and morbidity are the rules, not the exceptions. Through a pastiche of bizarre worlds and landscapes separated by only one or two degrees from our own (which is, of course, already thoroughly frightening) Fried fashions telling scenarios and the nightmarish half-realities in which they occur. Deftly evoking a familiarity before diving into fantastical realms, the stories in this collection exhibit a surprising wealth of ideas belied by Fried’s spare prose. “Frost Mountain Picnic Massacre,” a paralyzing allegory of modern-day groupthink, brings into plain view the ubiquity of violence in modern life: year after year, the residents of Frost Mountain gather for a traditional picnic — cotton candy, amusement rides, raffles, games, and everything else Americana — only to be struck, again and again, by lethal attacks. Despite the predictable continuity of harm, the townspeople return to be killed and maimed. Or, if they are lucky enough to live, their despair translates into a furious but ultimately futile activism. Downtrodden, the aging residents try to convince their children, the next generation, of the truth about the annual bloodbath of an event. But Fried grants them no such luck, foregoing happy endings for more accurate allegories. As the collection progresses, Fried’s dark lampoon expands to encompass a variety of other themes in its freaky snow-globe — sexual angst, power structures, obligation, obsession, oligarchy, xenophobia, corporate culture, imperialism, time, and mortality. At rare times, the collection’s various messages yank the focus from aesthetic craftsmanship, leaving the faint smell of didacticism. But the book still completes its comprehensive arc, running smoothly on blood-oiled wheels. Nothing is sacred; humankind’s quest for basic meaning and a narrative that implies the discovery of some ultimate truth at life’s end both get the scalpel. Not even small children are spared. In one story, a girl is torn apart by apes; in another, eaten alive. Furniture is thrown, heads decapitated, uncles mangled in farm equipment. Sometimes, Fried is content to just point to a lit fuse. No further pyrotechnics are necessary. “The Great Frustration,” the eponymous story in the book, depicts the prelude of awkward silence before an explosion into mayhem. In the Garden of Eden, the animals co-exist in what appears to be peace. Upon closer inspection, though, such peace is no more than a petrifying and entombing tension: each animal regards its successor on the food chain with a mixture of desire and imposed respect. In this Eden, where primal urges and social obligations duel, there’s no assurance that free will even exists. The gore is only imagined — for now. Instead of showing strength with one type of stylistic approach and petering out in another, The Great Frustration is well balanced, not reaching too far toward one end — magical realism, with its mirror-inverted worlds and dreamland sequences – or the other: realism itself. In stories ranging in average length to flash-fiction brevity, Fried renders both mundane and mythical backdrops (such as the war-torn and corpse-riddled city of “The Siege”) with a convincing, almost eerie lucidity. He also deploys a subtle and well-placed sense of humor throughout. Serving as release vents for the pent-up steam of his horrific scenarios, these bits of droll hilarity leaven the collection’s fundamentally tragic sentiment. At the core of that sentiment is a disappointment: in natural processes, in other people, in the way the architecture of achievement never really turns out how it’s supposed to. Fried’s narrators reiterate this vibe of being lost and alone in a space where meaning is relative. In “The Scribes’ Lament,” he takes this idea to task in a parody of written history’s transcription, noting it’s as frequently created as it is copied. The book’s final and capstone story, which concludes the notion of science-as-parable beginning with the collection’s first piece, “Loeka,” embodies The Great Frustration’s overriding sensibility. Read as a taxonomy of supernatural creatures worthy of Lewis Carroll, “Animalcula: A Young Scientist’s Guide to New Creatures” offers a series of brief, brilliant vignettes that make allegories of everything from the nature of emotion and the clockwork of the universe to the very act of observation. Weirdly wonderful, Fried’s story collection inhabits equally the philosophical and the visceral. “It is the same thin, watery membrane that separates fact from illusion,” Fried writes in “Animalcula,” describing a cryptid unable to be seen but loved intensely by all who study it. “It is that border between the real and the imagined world, which manages to create such a paradox of distance.”

A family in Texas claim to have shot and killed a chupacabra, a mythical creature with a reputation for sucking blood from live-stock across America. Doug Ohrt and his wife Lucy said they were at their home in Victoria County ranch on Sunday night when they came face-to-face with the coyote-like animal. After hearing a 'howl' the couple's grandson ran out and shot the creature from 240 yards, Ms Ohrt told ABC news affiliate KAVU. When the family ventured outside to take a closer look at the animal, they were certain they had shot the legendary beast. "My grandkids said: 'Oh that's a chupacabra,'" Ms Ohrt said. Descriptions of chupacabra sightings have varied, but many who claim to have seen the cryptid say it closely resembles a coyote but with a skinny body covered in matted patches of hair. The first sightings were reported in Puerto Rico as early as 1995. Chupacabras have a reputation for sucking the blood from livestock. "It's usually got long hair on it and this one doesn't and that's what makes it different from a regular coyote," Ms Ohort added. "I've heard people say they've gotten young calves, but they have never gotten any of ours." But Josh Turner, a wildlife biologist with Texas Parks and Wildlife was unconvinced by their claim. "I've seen squirrels, raccoons and coyotes in this area with the same features", he said. "They're a mythical creature that most people see, but what it really is sarcoptic mange which is caused by a mite that bites the animal and it can be on any mammal - dogs, cats, coyotes foxes, and humans can get another version of it as well," he explained. - UK Independent

Posted by: Loren Coleman on August 28th, 2010 Monsters of New Jersey by Loren Coleman and Bruce G. Hallenbeck officially out on September 1, 2010, is widely available now. The book is published by Stackpole Books, and will be available everywhere for that intriguing little gift to yourself, for an enjoyable read. Be sure to buy two to put under the tree near the front door of those special people you love at Halloween! Also, don’t forget to buy extras to take to bride and baby showers, for birthdays, and during school breaks. Everyone always mentions the holidays, but you can figure those times out yourself, so just wanted to mention examples of other times when the book could come in handy. Stackpole is now describing the book, thusly: Bizarre beasts stalk New Jersey, from down the shore to the creepy Pine Barrens and even in many of the bustling cities. This book presents stories of the best known of the Garden State’s cryptid population, including Big Red Eye, the state’s resident Bigfoot, found in the Great Swamp of Somerset County; Monkey-Man of Hoboken, an urban Sasquatch; the Lizardman of Great Meadows; and, the state’s most infamous creature, the Jersey Devil. The items in “Table of Contents” are: Introduction: No Neat Little Pigeonholes The Jersey Devil More Winged Wonders and the Wooo-Wooo Big Red Eye and Garden State Giants Hoboken Monkey-Man and Urban Unknowns Cape May Sea Serpent and Marine Monsters Lake Hopatcong Horror and Other Freshwater Weirdies Lizardmen of Great Meadows and Various Vicious Reptilians The Ultimate New Jersey Monster About The Authors A Note on Style The dedication to the book is for Jerry Dale Coleman, William Coleman, Susan Hoey, & Martha Hallenbeck. The first three are my siblings, and the last is Bruce’s late grandmother. Monsters of New Jersey: Mysterious Creatures in the Garden State can be ordered online or at your favorite bricks and mortar bookstores. In the meantime, I’m still looking for the following figurine for the museum, if anyone knows where I can get one… Copies of Monsters of New Jersey: Mysterious Creatures in the Garden State, which I will personally autograph for you, if you wish. Loren Coleman is one of the world’s leading cryptozoologists, some say “the” leading. Certainly, he is acknowledged as the current living American researcher and writer who has most popularized cryptozoology in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Starting his fieldwork and investigations in 1960, after traveling and trekking extensively in pursuit of cryptozoological mysteries, Coleman began writing to share his experiences in 1969. An honorary member of Ivan T. Sanderson’s Society for the Investigation of the Unexplained in the 1970s, Coleman has been bestowed with similar honorary memberships of the North Idaho College Cryptozoology Club in 1983, and in subsequent years, that of the British Columbia Scientific Cryptozoology Club, CryptoSafari International, and other international organizations. He was also a Life Member and Benefactor of the International Society of Cryptozoology (now-defunct). Loren Coleman’s daily blog, as a member of the Cryptomundo Team, served as an ongoing avenue of communication for the ever-growing body of cryptozoo news from 2005 through 2013.

Chris Matthews Admits Socialist Bernie Sanders Best Represents Democrats Rather than name frontrunner Hillary Clinton has emblematic of the Democratic Party, Matthews eagerly touted how Socialist Bernie Sanders’ views are the future of the party as it moves ever so far to the left: Why Bernie Sanders isn’t going to be president, in five words Here's an exchange from Bernie Sanders's appearance on "Meet the Press" on Sunday:And, in those five words, Sanders showed why — no matter how much energy there is for him on the liberal left — he isn't getting elected president. CHUCK TODD: Are you a capitalist? @BernieSanders: No. I'm a Democratic Socialist.— Meet the Press (@meetthepress) October 11, 2015 Britain’s opposition Labour Party on Saturday took a remarkable leftward turn, electing as its leader Jeremy Corbyn, a longtime socialist committed to nationalizing key industries, scrapping Britain’s nuclear missile system and reversing the centrist policies of previous leaders such as Tony Blair. The result of the contest, announced on Saturday morning in London, gave stewardship of the Labour party to the hard left for the first time in more than three decades, a development seen here as one of the most surprising upsets in modern British politics.This neat video from Sky News lists Corbyn's economic goals: Matthews asked Wasserman-Schultz if, even if he loses, Sanders would have a place at the DNC convention, seeing as how he’s really popular with the base and could fire up a Democratic audience before the election. She said he should get to speak, but Matthews kept prodding away to see if he would be allowed to speak in primetime instead of “when nobody’s watching.” Wasserman-Schultz talked up his “progressive populist message” that people like, when Matthews asked her point-blank, “What’s the difference between a Democrat and a socialist? I used to think there was a big difference. What do you think it is?” Wasserman-Schultz ducked the question, but Matthews pressed her and said, “You’re the chairman of the Democratic Party. Tell me what’s the difference between you and a socialist.” The Bernie Effect: Media normalize socialism There’s yet another trend in the trendy news media, identified by more than one concerned critic. Consider a new Investor’s Business Daily editorial titled “The soft-soaping of socialism in the U.S.” The publication focuses on the happy-go-lucky press coverage of a certain Vermont independent making a vigorous run for the White House as a Democrat. "These same students who vote Democrat Party line" complain when it hits their pocketbooks.... Police ID 29 arrested at Statehouse protest The Vermont State Police have identified the 29 protesters arrested on suspicion of unlawful trespass for ignoring orders to leave the Statehouse following a sit-in Thursday in Montpelier. James Haslam, executive director of the Vermont Workers' Center and the organizer of the sit-in protest over single-payer health care on the day of Gov. Peter Shumlin's inauguration, was not among them. "I had some commitments in the morning to deliver two little kids to school. Family comes first," Haslam told the Burlington Free Press. Haslam, who kept his distance, said others were prepared to be arrested. For his part, Shumlin said he was disappointed some protesters tried to interrupt his inaugural address, but was bothered more that the demonstrators disrupted the final benediction by the Rev. Robert Potter of the Peacham Congregational Church. "I found it heartbreaking," he said.The incident was caught on video, watch it below. Why single payer died in Vermont Vermont was supposed to be the beacon for a single-payer health care system in America. But now its plans are in ruins, and its onetime champion Gov. Peter Shumlin may have set back the cause. Advocates of a “Medicare for all” approach were largely sidelined during the national Obamacare debate. The health law left a private insurance system in place and didn’t even include a weaker “public option” government plan to run alongside more traditional commercial ones. So single-payer advocates looked instead to make a breakthrough in the states. Bills have been introduced from Hawaii to New York; former Medicare chief Don Berwick made it a key plank of his unsuccessful primary race for Massachusetts governor. Vermont under Shumlin became the most visible trailblazer. Until Wednesday, when the governor admitted what critics had said all along: He couldn’t pay for it.Advocates of a single payer healthcare system may not realize just how bad this news is for them. Vermont was their best shot. John Fund of National Review noted this: Health-care experts from outside Vermont point out some of the implications. “It’s a very liberal state, and its leaders spent years trying to design a system that would work,” Grace-Marie Turner of the Galen Institute observes. “If Vermont can’t make it work, single-payer can’t work anywhere in the country where the economy has free and competitive markets. It’s more evidence that centralized government health care is simply not workable in America.”All is not lost for the Green Mountain state. One of their senators might even run for president. Ah, Progressives! You really have to – well, not admire them exactly – but if not admire them then at least grant them a grudging respect for the tenacity of their beliefs. Unfortunately for them, the Socialist utopia is a Cryptid, which, according to Wikipedia’s serviceable definition, is “a creature whose existence has been suggested but has not been discovered or documented by the scientific community.” Here’s another example of a cryptid: it’s called the Loch Ness Monster. Like the socialist utopia, the Loch Ness Monster requires a lot of magical thinking. Magical thinking is not wishful thinking. “It sure would be cool if there was a Loch Ness Monster!” That’s wishful thinking.From there, Whittle examines the Socialist states progressives often point to as models of success such as Sweden and then knocks down those examples like a house of cards. In a particularly eloquent moment, Bill points out: 8. There's a lot of upside for Republicans in how this went down. It came at a time when Republicans control the House and are likely to do so for the duration of President Obama's second term, so the weakening of the filibuster will have no effect on the legislation Democrats can pass. The electoral map, the demographics of midterm elections, and the political problems bedeviling Democrats make it very likely that Mitch McConnell will be majority leader come 2015 and then he will be able to take advantage of a weakened filibuster. And, finally, if and when Republicans recapture the White House and decide to do away with the filibuster altogether, Democrats won't have much of an argument when they try to stop them....The inexorable march no longer is inexorable. Donations tax deductible to the full extent allowed by law. Sr. Contrib Editor

There are some Tibian creatures which earned legendary status due to their rarity or aura of mystery that surrounds them. You have most probably heard about the Yeti, Midnight Panther, or Crustacea Gigantica. But there is one creature out there, somewhere in Tibia and it’s so incredibly rare, that even the most experienced players have never heard its’ name. I, myself have doubts if it exists, but let’s investigate the subject thoroughly. Let’s try to find the Unjaga. The only hint that we can find fairly easily is the official creatures list in the library section of tibia.com As we can see in the first sentence the Unjaga is mentioned along with Midnight Panther and Yeti, as one of the mythical creatures. Apparently, this is the only place among all Tibian sites, where this creature is even noted. This article is the first public and solid attempt to find anything else about this subject. Unjaga – the meaning Let’s focus on the creature’s name first. Midnight panthers can be associated with the jungle, Yeti with some snowy and cold regions, Crustacea Gigantica – underwater and humid locations, Undead Cavebear – probably with other undead. This is pretty straightforward, but Unjaga is not the case. At first, nothing special comes to my mind when I think of this name. Let’s try with google then: “unjaga” – 1130 results “the unjaga” – 202 results This is surprisingly low, especially taking into consideration that most of these results are quotes from the tibia.com library. There are however some interesting hits which we will focus on. - The first hit leads us to Canada, where in 1792 explorer Alexander Mackenzie reached the territory of the Dane-zaa, known as the Beaver tribe. There was a river which they called “Oon-cha-ga”, “Unchagah’” or “‘Unjigah” which means “large river” or “peace” and was written down by Mackenzie as Unjaga. Unfortunately, this is not very helpful. Should we look for the mysterious beaver? Let’s move on to the other finds. - There was an incident in the Louvre museum in Paris, in 1956. Bolivian tourist threw a stone at the famous “Mona Lisa” painting, scratching her left elbow. His name was Hugo Unjaga Villegas. The only hint here would be the country – Bolivia. This also not any good for our research. - I have also found a touristic blog where someone mentions that some part of the Zanzibar island is called “Unjaga” by the local people. Apparently the blog owner misspelled Unjaga with Unguja. :/ - There is a specific word used by the Zulu people. It’s “unyaka” and it’s pronounced as unjaga. It means “year”. Finally, something interesting, as it at least leads us to the specific part of the earth and a specific environment. Zulu live in South Africa. We have some locations in Tibia which may resemble the African areas. Personally, I find it the most valuable hint out of those three. I have also tried searching through other search engines and I used about 10 overall, more and less known. No interesting results. If you carefully look around, you will find out that there are lots of anagrams in Tibia. What exactly the anagram is? Let me quote Wikia: Anagram is a word or phrase formed by rearranging the letters of a different word or phrase, typically using all the original letters exactly once (…) I don’t want to spoil much of them, as we will probably write a separate article about anagrams, but let me give you one nice Tibian example. Do you remember one of the bosses on Rookgaard, Teleskor? If we swap some letters, we get… But, let’s get back to the topic. I used a very useful site to find all possible combinations of letters taken from “Unjaga” word. The result was 720 combinations which is quite a big number. There are some duplicated values however, so after quickly filtering them out in Excel we get a total of 361 unique combinations. I analyzed all of them and chose the most interesting ones: - Agajnu – name of the city in game The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall - Gajuna – village in India - Gujana – it’s Guyana in polish. Maybe a hint about the creature’s possible location? If Guyana is in South America, then some jungle areas should be possible - Jguana – iguana? It’s getting interesting. That could be a hint that we are looking for some kind of a big lizard - Jungaa – jungle? - Ngujaa – it means “sore” in some Australian dialect, one source also states that it means “hero” in Swahilli (African language) Just by looking at the letters and these combinations I think that there can be some association with Africa or if we think of Tibian realm, some desert/very hot places. Jungle could also be the key, so it may be even Tiquanda. We can find various races monsters or creatures in the Tibian world and some of them developed their own languages. If we analyze the spelling and pronunciation of the word “Unjaga” it’s clear that it doesn’t fit most of the languages used in Tibia. There are however some potentially interesting ones, where Unjaga could actually mean something. That would also be a very good hint, as some of the NPCs who speak such languages could react to the keyword and shed some light on the origin of the mysterious creature. |Languages||Example words||Does Unjaga fit?| |Human||Warrior, flower||Rather not| |Bonelord (or 469)||486486, 485611800364197||Absolutely not| |Deepling (or Jekhr)||Njai, shum||Possibly| |Elven||Ashari, Kuridai||Not at all| |Orc||Ferut, maruk||Rather not| |Chakoya||Gukaju, Taluka||Very likely| |Gharonk||Yagla, umog||Very likely| |Caveman||Ungh, ugha||Very likely| We have 3 interesting languages to be checked. We have done it by asking some NPC representants mentioned below. Languages such as human or elven were excluded straightaway, as they are quite complex and Unjaga just doesn’t sound good there. Unjaga and Tibian NPCs I questioned some NPCs which I thought could have some kind of connection with the Unjaga or other mysterious creatures. Some of them were chosen based on the fact that they speak one of the above-mentioned languages. By “question” I mean asking about really big numbers of keywords – several thousands. NPCs which I talked to: - Hairycles – in the jungle, in close proximity to midnight panther - The Blind Prophet – the same as above - Angus – Explorers Society representant in Port Hope, could possibly know something about jungle mysteries - Rottin Wood – hunters’ leader in Outlaw Camp, should know a lot about hunting and animals - Sinatuki – speaks strange language, where the word “unjaga” could actually fit - Navigator – he speaks deepling language and it’s also worth mentioning that “Deepling race” translates to “Njey” in their language. That sounds quite similar to Unjaga - Lothar – has great knowledge about tameable creatures, also midnight panther. - Kazzan – leader of Darashia, very old NPC, present in-game since 2002, social and spiritual leader with potentially great knowledge about Darama, desert, and the region overall. Unfortunately, none of them knew anything about the Unjaga. I have of course asked them about different combinations of this word, also making it plural, like “unjagas”, “unjagi”, etc. Interesting fact: Unjaga in Njey would be written as C”J^8^. Sometimes the simplest methods are the best, so I decided to… Ask Cipsoft directly about Unjaga. Why not? I didn’t expect any spectacular answer, but it’s not just a simple copy/paste too. Take a look: So at least we have a confirmation that Unjaga is indeed a mythical creature and it perhaps (?) exists in Tibia. Moreover, there might be more than one creature of this kind somewhere. Actually, I’m satisfied. 🙂 As we already mentioned in the article, there was an American Indian tribe which called themselves “Unjaga” which meant “beaver” in their language. Are there any beavers in Tibia? I totally forgot about it, but my team mate Mogh reminded me that there is one specific NPC who mentions these animals and moreover there is an item called “a flask with beaver bait” which is used during The New Frontier quest. Could this be a hint that our Unjaga is a giant beaver? Such beavers actually existed in real life (same as Yeti is believed to exist in rl), so that could be a point. We will write about it in the next section of the article. As we know, all bosses have defined time range which specifies how often specific boss spawns and moreover there is another attribute which specifies how often given boss stays in the game before it disappears. My own theory is that Unjaga can possibly be in game and maybe even uses a known sprite of existing creature, but it spawns incredibly rarely – like once a year for some minutes. That would make it practically impossible to meet, yet the legends would be true. Cryptozoology vs Tibia Let’s start with a short definition of cryptozoology: Cryptozoology is a pseudoscience and subculture that aims to prove the existence of entities from the folklore record, such as Bigfoot, the chupacabra, or Mokele-mbembe. Cryptozoologists refer to these entities as cryptids, a term coined by the subculture. Because it does not follow the scientific method, cryptozoology is considered a pseudoscience by the academic world: it is neither a branch of zoology nor folkloristics. One of the best examples of a cryptid is Yeti, well known both in rl and in Tibia. Midnight panther can be also treated as one (both in Tibia and rl), as it was excessively hunted by lizards, nearly to extinction. The question is, can the Unjaga also be a cryptid? I think it’s very likely, however it doesn’t help us much in terms of our research, as there are lots of cryptids among lots of animal species. We talked about giant beavers before, is there a giant beaver cryptid known in real life? Of course, there is. Giant beavers roamed territories of North America during the Pleistocene epoch, but went extinct at the end of the Ice Age (about 10.000 years ago). According to the Encyclopedia of Cryptozoology, there are some reports nowadays of giant beavers sightings in Canada and the USA. That could mean that these are the same prehistoric beavers that survived and can be very rarely spotted up to this day. It is now totally understandable that dwarfs could mount beavers of this size and that Unjaga could probably be a unique, giant beaver, maybe big enough to be mounted by a human. This is just a theory, but in my opinion, it fits surprisingly well. Even if the creature is not implemented to the game, then dear Cipsoft – feel free to use my ideas from this article. 😉 And I encourage you, readers, to look for Unjaga on your own. Every idea is worth checking and who knows? One day you may be the one to solve the mystery, just like the co-founder of this site – Mogh was among those who ultimately solved the mystery of the Mahatheb.

C’est Nest Pas Une Game Trying to describe a Hylics game in a paragraph or less is an exercise is mental gymnastics. Like trying to put a color into words or outline a smell without just shuffling around to the description of other similar smells, Hylics is a sensory experience that requires a description as recondite as it is: it feels like exactly three semesters into private art college, like bizarro novels your ex lent you that all smelled acutely like Walgreens cologne, like your first job working at a copy shop and making 2,000 cheap photocopies of the same blurry Memphis furniture catalog for a man who didn’t speak any English and had one glass eye. But What Does It All Mean? Hylics 2 (2020), the sequel to Mason Lindroth’s 2015 predecessor of the same name, polishes up his ambitious aesthetic vision into a narrative sequel that, by virtue of its outré DNA, can easily be played stand alone by first timers to the series. The world of Hylics looks like it’s run through a Risograph twice over: textures are a mix of halftones and posterized photographs, traditional blocky polygons are replaced with undulating claymation roped and smoothed until texture is less recognizable as a landscape and more adjacent to the kinds of abstract posters that people buy to trip acid to. You play as Wayne, a leather-clad cryptid somewhere between an androgynous human man and Mac Tonight, and can accrue a monster mash posse of shaggy creatures that wouldn’t be amiss at an Addams Family reunion. Ostensibly, the goal of the game is to act as an agent of political warfare: Wayne is instructed by Old Wayne – a version of himself physically somewhere between neonate and reverent elder – to recover political ally Blerol from the vaguely insidious grips of “Viewfax’s edifice”. Wayne must leave the safety of the Waynehouse – aptly named as it’s presumably both his house and the house of two dozen Wayne clones running training drills on the front lawn – and travel West to prevent Blerol from letting his profane knowledge spill into the hands of their mutual enemy. Though obtuse in the plot department, the real brilliance of Hylics is the aesthetic masterstroke of its combat system. You pick up combat techniques from TVs carved from Sculpey, even static lovingly rendered as jangly sketches doing the Watusi, and the tropes of JRPG combat are used as a loosey goosey framework that grounds the otherwise deeply abstract game in more comfortable territory. You can “Snap” or “Gesture” to go on the offense or select “Thing” or “Brace” for defensive tactics and items, and foes are challenging enough to require active item and team management in order to advance (casuals, beware). Attacks are rendered with low res video of gloved hands that gesticulate to weave spells of clay mush, and enemies – few humanoid, and all abstracted down to striking textures – move with dragging undulation that leaves ‘shroom-like after images that will make your stoner friends sink back into the couch with a meek “whoa”. Foes can cast clay spells all their own in response – which, fair warning, will shred through your team’s health (or, “flesh”) – or they can conjure up black and white photographs of coffee cups or steam engines that add another complex visual element to Lindroth’s dextrous visual style. As an observer, what makes the Hylics series most remarkable is that you’re never entirely sure how Lindroth achieved the visuals that you’re looking at. The game self-describes itself as “incorporating stop-motion animation, 3D-scanned clay models, and pixel art”, but – much like the obtuse dialogue from characters in-game – within the context of Hylics those descriptors feel like mush mouthed word salad.The stop motion animation is disorienting, and digital and analog art techniques are blended so seamlessly within the messy visual word of Hylics that there are moments where it’s easy to imagine Lindroth not as a developer at all, but as a modern day techno pagan, presiding over some arcane texts previously kept away from our vestal eyes. Through the Hylics series Lindroth pushes beyond easy descriptors of format, transcending genres and aesthetics with genuinely creative use of the thin, tenuous line where analog and digital meet. Hylics may be a video and a game, but it’s also a leather-gloved hand, open palmed, offering a chalice, then a burrito, then a scroll unfurled to reveal all of the visual possibilities of gaming that we never allowed ourselves to consider.

SPOOKY BABE STICKERS Are you into astrology? Do you read your cards? Are you constantly on the lookout for ghosts and spirits? Do you commune with the dead? Can you spot a cryptid a mile away? Maybe you just love The X-Files? You just might be a Spooky Babe! Grab yourself a super cute Spooky Babe sticker sheet today! Sheets are 4"x6".

#because !!! i honestly have so much muse for sonic and hella feel like writing him i just have no idea where to start with this lil nugget Quotes from the Cryptid-Double the Cryptid I’m about that futile excess. Me: hell yeah if I can be excessive you know I gotta I don't make the rules Raven: XD You just break them? Me: I do, I do Me: sometimes, I then tape them back together so I can break them again with slightly less satisfaction Cat: XD truuuuth there Sweet murder boy lol Me: lol perfect description honestly Me: immediate response to everyone but Nat: murder immediate response to Nat: please, have my soul it's kinda' gross, but I can try to wash it off and febreeze it maybe Actual conversations I have with my parents, y’all. My dad: could’ve been worse, I could’ve been the BTK Killer Me, deadass: and I could’ve had an automatic book deal, thanks. dad: Well, I’m not dead yet. Describe your muse in one sentence: “so worked up, so, so, so worked up man” These ultimately too real moments: “I was interested...but like...fuck I'm tired right now, I can't google“ “when your dog is Elton Jon for Halloween and not a single person there has a shitty thing to say about it, your dog is tres queenie“ “look some people need to be choked“ “I’m just pretending it’s a positive development in our relationship. lmao I have an emotionally abusive relationship with my dog” “my fingers are crossed...I can't feel them, but they are crossed” Pet advise of the week: “Cats are notoriously impossible to dress, so fuck that, cat safe temporary dye on her ears as devil horns” This tale of my actual first week as a Freshman in High School, in case any of you think I’m fuckin around about how wildly uncool literally every phase of my existence has been: but I did specifically say "does this appear to be ringworm or something I'm going to catch?" general consensus? no it was, it was so I had ringworm on both arms, my stomach, my neck, and one leg, it was a killer freshman year in high school I also got glasses and was fat Pro-tip, if the kitten is nude it probably does has ringworm. Random and/or delightfully out of context shit! “apparently all things with the word mix or mixed = nuts in my mind” “if I feel sparky, I'll go start some shit or remember to take my drugs for that” “Right? Every now and then I'm vaguely disappointed but then I'm like eh, I'm Tired™” "and that is a Fabric Softener Thread" -licks ops salt ring- “meanwhile, let me choke you until you die :)” “some of you wanna fuck mermaids and it shows” “well guys, I'm suicidal today, sonic got my tater tots wrong” “it's actually on ID so I assume Marcia is murdered by James I bet that doesn't make it into the rp me, very convincing semi-jaw drop, eyes widening, slight gasp "Really?! A TRAILER PARK?!" “your neck vagina is perturbing the lady, Master, she feels ill, we must go.” “when the Monty Python Grim Reaper shows up to your party with a hot chick, takes your seat, and sits down like yeah, bitch” “from now on my fave hat is gonna be the hat of the moment“ “Padme's probably like, well...I should probably just own this, as it is mine anyway“ “Can literally pull a star destroyer out of orbit and throw it at you, but also... um...you...I do not dislike you and..“ “Anakin, no one needs to know your every emotion or that dream you had about the space waffles” “shit son, someone needs to hit you with a newspaper” “IT SMELLS LIKE SAFETY” “there are at least three of the more sensible parts of his brain that are like that gif where everything in the apartment is on fire and shit when the dude comes in with the pizza” “not because I care, but because it's not very interesting if he splats them like flies in under a minute” “the Force is like a 13 year old girl writing fanfic and by the Force I mean George Lucas yes” “We like this Jedi specifically but he did kind of get murdery” “I want to see it and have wanted to see ti! ti...I don't want to see ti...no offense ti, you're not one of my rappers” “we're "wintery mix" all weekend and I dunno why that makes me laugh every time but it doesI picture like mixed nuts but weather“ ^This legit keeps coming up “so it's icing again out there and not the cupcake variety, which arguably might be worse now that I envision this” “maybe I will record myself and talk about how sexy and deep my voice is” My purpose for wanting to jack with space-time and teleport: “imagine the possibilities for an easier life...next time Vitaly wants to crap in the wheat field when it's raining and -15. There you go little buddy” “there was probably an informal Imperial group chat like: so, where are we testing the um...thing we don't talk about? Palpatine: lol Alderaan” “Global Warming changed to Unsustainable Global Temperature Disarray” “the Jedi and people up the Jedi's collective asses: people would panic though okay but like...they SHOULD be concerned, you actual fucking dumbasses” “like Anakin jfc what even the fuck man maybe, just maybe don't be a spaz” “he just thinks it makes sense because Anakin Logic never sleeps” “I'd just downplay shit, make dick jokes, and probably dislike half of everyone while wanting to take one person home and save them” “fucking um...god what was that shit called...juan of the dead” “Kittanee is apparently a major ginger hating douchebag” “I am always totally happy to give people my salty nuts if you're gonna be this salty, you should really share the joy of your salty nuts salty nuts for everyone” “brain injuries for the win fuck yeah” “as someone with no self control, I support that” “obviously like who fucking knows, it's a god damn space ship it could smell like fabuloso smell it up man definitely the original fabuloso tho not that green shit wtf lol I have Opinions ok omg now I am never NOT going to visualize that tho every time fucking sw is on it's some dramatic ass moment on the bridge of an Imperial ship and...fabuloso Darth Vader smells like purple fabuloso“ “I had lizards in my shirt” These thoughts on how hopeless Luke and Leia’s Drama Genes were... Like yeah, their father is...that hot mess over there, but their mother literally wore pearls and a tiara to bed while like 8 months pregnant did they stand a chance? it's never not going to kill me and it's far from the only moment I have of yeah no, she's in no way less dramatic Padme: climbs a penis pillar and beats a space tiger from hell in the face with her own chains totally the least dramatic person in the room Matching wardrobes to re-invade my capital lemme thank this astromech by removing the dirt from him I probably will have to have neck surgery by the time I'm 30 due to my insane headwear...that's not a joke but now it is and have I mentioned lately how much I loathe Yoda and won’t miss a single second to drag him? No? Well then! Let’s go there with Dagoba Yoda and Luke. I had to start laughing the last time that shit was on like what a fucking troll he's just omg Luke why are you not running off to go kill the psychotic murder cyborg like I'm telling you to wtf is wrong with you Luke you're just like your father, you wouldn't share your sandwich with me either Storytime, featuring Taco Bell and the NOPD circa 2004 lol it was a 1/2 pound of GLORY! I ended up in a cop car for that burrito I also casually sat my ass in there lol they pulled my ex over in that car I bought her lol that's passenger side door I had to weld shut because it kept coming open...so yeah we wanted to taco bell at 3 am as one does, and none of us but her thought to bring an id and I was pretty drunk, thus I did not drive obviously, so I crawled out the window after they didn't get my name right for the 5th time and were like getting agro about how I was lying to avoid a warrant like no y'all just fucking dumb lemme type that in for you and sat in the passenger side and typed that shit in lol and WOW look I existed and was like "so may I procure my half pound burrito, bean not beef, now sir?" we were literally across the street from the taco bell it was wildly unfair you know that asshole was like OMG SHAYLA I CANT NOW WE HAVE TO GO HOME! like bitch I will kill you, I am getting that burrito no I got the burrito...she was still a bitch for the next eleven years. Cat: How is good ol'Buttercup and her lover son these days? Me: I think they ate the son...or he finally wandered off forever, not sure. But he did breed his mom so now there's a hella inbred calf lol Cat: Aaah the circle of life XD in OK yes. it's SO cute tho Cat: Until it gets weird Me: yeah I'm waiting to see like two extra eyes on it's legs or something Well and ya know, it could probably most likely happen again Me: thankfully it's a heifer so no Cat: Miracles lol Me :unless it's a hermaphrodite which I mean...possible OR the son isn't dead and comes back Bovine Soap Opera Buttercup: "Son I've missed you, come to Mommy." Son: "Mom... I met my sister daughter and well... you're going to be a Grandma" Me: -fucking ded- Having fun trying to talk to your Mom XD Me: oh I am lol All while I'm making you laugh about As The Pasture Turns Me: AS THE PASTURE TURNS In the continuing theme of Anakin Skywalker, Asshole Cat Me: I'm sorry I was picturing Anakin rubbing things on Luke to get rid of the offensive Obi-Wan smell like a fucking cat and was dying Me: Why...are you rubbing that blanket on our child? Raven: Rey is just shaking her head and like "Anakin.... you are aware he has to go back with him right?" Me: no reason...at all..."yes" doing it more vigorously 3 notes · View notes

- "Pump action. Strongest damage in its class with moderate range." - — Description A unique FP6 without the wooden stock is seen strapped to David T. "Hesh" Walker's back in the missions Birds of Prey, The Hunted, End of the Line, All or Nothing, Severed Ties and The Ghost Killer. However, he is never seen using it, and the weapon itself is not available for use in the campaign. The FP6 is the second least expensive shotgun, costing seven Squad Points. The FP6 has a highly variable damage profile. It fires eight pellets per shot. Technically speaking, the FP6 can deal one hundred damage per pellet, but the damage starts to drop off after 1/25th of a meter, so realistically, a one pellet kill in core will never be realised. The FP6 will take two pellets to kill up to roughly 6.4 meters, the longest such two pellet kill range in its class. The FP6 will cease to do damage after 11.6 meters. The FP6 has the largest damage per pellet variance by a wide margin across all shotguns, so damage dealt with the FP6 will vary wildly depending on the range to the target. The FP6's one pellet kill range in hardcore ends at roughly 8.5 meters. Being pump action, the FP6's fire rate is slow, clocking in at 89 RPM. This is a bit faster than the Tac 12, but is far slower than the Bulldog and the MTS-255. In a one-on-one firefight, users won't have an easy time getting follow-up shots in before being gunned down. The FP6's accuracy characteristics are tolerable. The iron sights are clear and simple, the recoil is a non-factor since the FP6 fires so slowly that the centerspeed will completely counter the recoil before the next shot, and the shot spread, despite being the second largest in-class when hip-firing or aiming, is not too bad. The FP6's handling characteristics are pretty good overall, but somewhat below average for a shotgun. The weapon moves at 100% of the base speed, aims down the sight in 200 milliseconds, has a 200 millisecond sprint out time, and reloads per shell, taking 0.33 seconds for the animation to start and 0.85 seconds for each shell to be inserted. At max, the FP6 will take 4.58 seconds to reload if all five shells are loaded at once. Although this speed sounds bad, the FP6 can be partially topped up to mitigate a full tube reload; combined with the fact that the FP6 is both ammo efficient and has a slow fire rate, reloading is less common. The FP6 has a small tube capacity, holding just five rounds in the tube. It also cannot accept Extended Mags to increase the FP6's tube capacity. The player will spawn in with twenty rounds total, fifteen in reserve and five being loaded in the weapon on spawn. Apart from the lack of Extended Mags, the FP6 has the standard assortment of attachments on offer. Both the Red Dot Sight and Holographic Sight are available, although the FP6's iron sights are pretty clear and the FP6 isn't reliant on precision fire. The sights are only useful on a Slug Rounds build if the user doesn't like the iron sights. The Muzzle Brake is easily the strongest attachment on offer for the FP6. As the shotgun has a finite range and relies heavily on its two pellet kill range to have an edge over other shotguns, the attachment is a must-have to boost the FP6's performance. The Silencer is the polar opposite story. Unless stealth is an absolute mandate on the player's class setup, this attachment should be avoided at all times. The Foregrip decreases the FP6's recoil values per shot. As the recoil on the FP6 is countered completely by the centerspeed and slow fire rate, the Foregrip is not needed. Slug Rounds convert the FP6 to a slug firing shotgun. This slug round has an enhanced one shot kill range and a severely enhanced maximum damage range at the expense of not firing multiple pellets per shot. Overall, this attachment's benefits will not outweigh the loss of the FP6's close quarters niche. The FP6 has a very high damage per shot, being capable of one shotting scouts and even scorpions when using the Weapon Specialist and the right type of ammunition. It also downs hunters very quickly, although the user usually can't one hit kill a Hunter without the maximum amount of damage possible. The FP6 is reliant on engaging cryptids at a very close range in order to be effective, as its damage drops off quickly. The FP6 benefits tremendously from the Muzzle Brake and ARK, if found. The user's pistol or alternate weapon should be relied upon to tackle distant targets. The FP6's slow reloads and high damage per shot make it ideal for someone using the Weapon Specialist. The FP6, like all shotguns, is very useful on accuracy challenges, as hitting a cryptid with at least one pellet in a shot will count as one hit. This will make virtually all accuracy challenges extremely easy to complete. Compared to other shotguns in the game mode, the FP6 is notably worse than its semi automatic competition. The MTs-255 and Bulldog have a negligible damage and range penalty in Extinction while boasting faster reloads and a much higher damage output. Compared to those two shotguns, the FP6 appears much earlier in the maps it appears in, leaving the player without much of a choice as far as shotguns are concerned. On the later parts of levels, the FP6's low damage output will make it a troubling option when opponents that can't be one hit killed by the FP6 start to spawn, and enemies that the FP6 struggles to kill in one shot become more frequent. It is only effective in close-quarters; past that it does little damage, usually taking multiple bullets to kill one enemy. It is better for the lower rounds due to its statistics, unless using it in a very close-quarter enviroment. - The FP6's reloading animation shows the player's hand with the proper number of shells needed, instead of being a cycled one-at-a-time animation. - Unlike the Tac 12, the FP6's reload cannot be interrupted by shooting (it can be done by other methods of Reload Canceling though). - The FP6's serial number is 32155-01. - "FPSIX", "Sec.91 FOBURME", and "MADE BY FOBURME ITALY 12 GA 3” CH SECTOR 91 INC STERLING VA" are written on the receiver. - The FP6 has a shell holder equipped, holding two shells. This is simply an aesthetic feature, and cannot be used.

The 2021 Conference Speakers A native Texas who Is known as a wilderness and wildlife enthusiast with a passion for conservation and preservation. Her search for the truth has committed her to constantly improving her education thru the Citizen Sciences. “Consistently pushing ones self to learn in the field of Wildlife Behavior and Conservation. These commitments can only increase my ability to bring forth solid evidence, by separating factual research from emotional/biased research. Facts are truth, and I am hopeful with proper Wildlife DNA collection and analysis it could be a benefit and a standard in the search of the enigma we call Sasquatch. “ Shelly is a Level II Certified Wildlife Tracker. She is also in constant work on Citizen Science Wildlife DNA kits. As of late She doing the term Sasquatch Alba Vernix, also created the Sasquatch Alba Vernix DNA and Latent Print Kit. a widely recognized cryptozoologist and author who, frequently appears on television. Ken has traveled the world searching for evidence of mysterious creatures including Bigfoot, The Loch Ness Monster, the Chupacabra, Mothman and even werewolves. In addition, he’s written five books on the subject of unknown animals and his research has been featured on numerous TV shows including Missing in Alaska, Monster Quest, Ancient Aliens, America Unearthed, Legend Hunters and Unexplained Files. Appearing on major networks including – History Channel, Animal Planet, Discovery, Syfy, National Geographic and the Science Channel. is an author, musician, and cryptid researcher from Texas. His investigative cryptozoology books, “The Beast of Boggy Creek” and “Lizard Man,” reflect his life-long fascination with legends and sighting reports of real-life 'monsters.' During his research, Lyle has often explored the remote reaches of the southern U.S. in search of shadowy creatures said to inhabit the dense backwoods and swamplands of these areas. Lyle has been heard on numerous radio programs, including Coast To Coast AM, and has appeared on television shows such as Monsters and Mysteries in America, Finding Bigfoot, and the CBS Sunday Morning Show. Most recently, Lyle served as a consulting producer and special episode host for the tv show Monsters and Mysteries in America. For more information, visit his website at: www.lyleblackburn.com Hometown: Plano, Texas 16 year US Air Force Veteran 2014 became a novice Bigfoot Researcher 2017 published Bigfoot Novel “Relics” 2018 moved to Honobia, Oklahoma

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Recently, as of September 2017, a monstrous mess of a creature seems to be back in the popular consciousness, the so-called “Rat King”, literally “rats that get tied together by their tails”. And it didn’t pass quietly, thanks to a flock of science-writers all adopting the same question: “rat kings are real?” Historically, a Rattenkönig, later translated into English as rat king, and into French as roi des rats, is a collection of rats whose tails are intertwined and bound together. This alleged phenomenon is particularly associated with Germany but not only and, despite there are several specimens preserved in museums, very few instances have been observed in modern times. In folklore, rat kings are associated with various superstitions and were often seen as a bad omen, most likely due to rats being considered carriers for diseases. They were also blamed for spreading the Black Death in the mid-14th century, although recent evidence suggests that this did not happen. Interestingly, the saga of Rat Kings goes back much further than you can expected. As a cryptid, the mythology tells of a rat leader (a king, of course) that demands to sit high atop a throne of lower, pleasantly rats. This tangled, mangled nest of lesser rodents becomes a living dominion of nastiness, representing the twisted and evil nature of the one king sitting high atop his (lower) legacy. The story initially spread across Europe in the late 1500’s during an era of reformation in Germany after the rise of Lutheranism and a Peasants’ Rebellion in 1524. Commoners across Europe weren’t looking too favorably towards the ruling class, and the idea of a Rat King resonated amongst a populace that thought rulers were exploiting their sovereignty. In fact, the original German term, Rattenkönig, was not originally used in reference to actual rats, but for real persons who lived off others. Conrad Gesner in Historia animalium (1551–58) said that “some would have it that the rat waxes mighty in its old age and is fed by its young: this is called the rat king”, while Martin Luther was quoted famously as saying “finally, there is the Pope, the king of rats right at the top.” And the metaphor stuck. Now beyond this symbolism, there’s a larger question that looms on the horizon: are rat kings real? Evidence would say yes, but intuition says otherwise. Put simply, rat kings refer to a bunch of rats whose tails have become entwined, effectively creating one gigantic super-rat. According to an actual scientific paper published on the phenomenon…yes, there have been 58 “reliable” Rat Kings recorded, of which six are preserved for the public to see. Insane, right? If this “urban legend” seemed perfectly suited for folklore spawned from Renaissance-era Europe, It actually does exists. The earliest report of rat kings comes from 1564, while the museum Mauritianum in Altenburg, Thuringia, shows the largest well-known mummified “rat king”, which was found in 1828 in a miller’s fireplace at Buchheim and consists of 32 rats. According to the museum, the clump was found by a man named Miller Steinbruck while cleaning his chimney. The earliest mention of a rat king is credited to Johannes Sambucus, a Hungarian historian, who recorded that his servants discovered seven rats with knotted tails in Antwerp, Belgium. Then in 1894, a frozen clump of 10 rodents was found under a bale of hay in Dellfeld, Germany, and that specimen is now on display at the Strasbourg Zoological Museum. Others are shown in museums in Hamburg, Göttingen, Hamelin, Stuttgart, and Nantes, and I guess you can go check it out. A rat king found in 1930 in New Zealand, displayed in the Otago Museum in Dunedin, was composed of immature black rats whose tails were entangled by horse hair. A most recent rat king discovered in 1963 by a farmer at Rucphen, Netherlands, consists of seven rats. And yet…scientists are skeptical. Despite there being a half-dozen specimens around museums today, most evidence could lend itself to fraud, at least, according to some researchers. The rise of Rat King specimens came during an era when deceptive and manipulated evidence of cryptids was a common occurrence — including travelers would spend their money for unicorn horns they knew to come from creatures like narwhals or oryx. But not only, as in medieval times, some sleazy European merchants glued bat wings to lizards and sold them as dragons. So, what’s to stop people from knotting the tails of dead rats together and claiming fame? Nothing, really, and many rat experts think this to be the most common case, especially considering that most rats would gnaw off their own tails before succumbing to starvation as a King. When looking for natural explanations for the phenomena, scientists have a few hypotheses. Some theories are more insane than others: In the 17th and 18th centuries, naturalists suggested the tails had been woven during birth, glued by the afterbirth, while others suggested that healthy rats deliberately tangled the tails of weaker rodents to make a nest, but both theories are unlikely. Those who hold that the phenomenon is real, say that it occurs when a group of rats, while confined to a small space such as a little burrow, simply becomes matted together. Others suggest that this is due survival efforts: during particularly cold seasons, the rats will intentionally “tie” their own tails to one another in order to stay huddled and warm, a phenomenon made all the more believable because rats, like humans, produce sebum, or natural oil, in order to protect and hydrate their skin. It is thus possible that the oily tails of a dozen or so rats could form a sticky substance, binding them together. However, rodents stuck together could not survive long and are probably in agony and distress until they separate or die. On the other hand, other believers in the rat king suggest that tails must become knotted together through some binding agent as ice, blood, feces, food, or urine or feces. And reality bears this thinking out, as a 2013 discovery of a “squirrel king” in Saskatchewan, Canada revealed a six-squirrel amalgam, the cause of which researchers attributed to tree sap. Moreover some rats have semi-prehensile tails, and so certain theories claim that in cold conditions, they may coil together naturally and wind up unintentionally knotted into a grotesque, inextricable mass. Luckily for any rats who may find themselves in such surreal circumstances, experts doubt that they would get so far as to the point of meeting such a painful end, as their tails would simply unravel at the first suggestion of separation. Because it’s next to impossible to prove if any single argument is correct, it is likely that the rat king will continue to spark debate. But, if in some cases the phenomenon can indeed be created under natural conditions, it is clear that rats work better as loners and evolution intends to keep it that way. Images from web – Google Research

Magic for Nothing by Seanan McGuire Published by Daw Fantasy Publication Date : March 7th, 2017 Available as eBook & paperback – 368 Pages Source : NetGalley (Thank You!) & Purchased Six books deep and we have finally met Antimony. It happens kids, we’ve heard about her over and over and seen her in passing, but finally we have her. I have to say, she just might be my favorite Price too! Let me back up. Magic For Nothing is the continuation of the Incryptid series, the last book being Chaos Choreography. Chaos Choreography ends with Verity declaring, on live television, that the Prices are here and they’re ready to stand up and fight for their Cryptid neighbors. Which means of course – that everyone goes into defensive. Antimony, being the one Price who doesn’t look like her ancestors, is asked to go undercover. She has to join the Covenant of St. George. The Prices need to know what the Covenant knows and what they plan on doing. Antimony has always been described by her siblings, best way I can think to put it, as stab happy. She was the one that loved to survive. She didn’t have something that didn’t revolve around that simple fact. Yet, we come to find out she has more dimension to it than that. And she gives us a view of the rest of her family – specifically Verity that we’ve never seen before. She’s twenty-two and understandably angry with what’s happening. Which makes her all the more believable. She’s the strongest of all of the Price kids that I’ve read, I think. I love Alex with his quite and bookish strength. Verity is the perfect kick ass guardian of Manhattan but Antimony sits right in the middle. Besides my clear love of Antimony she also gives us a new perspective on the Covenant and she sees them in a new way. Remember, we have to follow her into their ranks. There are some wild ones there, but there is unexpected depth to them. Past the Covenant I don’t want to give what she has to do away but the people she meets and the things she has to do had me glued to the page. The last 20% of the book I was clenching my poor Kindle so hard I thought my case would break. I knew what was coming, and so did she, but we could only wait. Seanan did an amazing job of building the tension and building our love of our characters and what they were going through. This had to be the most intense last portion of an Incryptid book yet. Look, I can’t give the book in huge flaws. The only thing I could scrounge up to say is I wish we had gotten more, and that’s my common complaint on all these. I loved this. I cannot wait for book 7, and if you’re behind or aren’t sure if this one is worth getting. I give you a whole hearted ‘Yes, pick this up. Catch up. Read this!’ It’s a hell of a ride and likely my favorite so far. Amazing.

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T. S. Mart specializes in writing true-to-life stories, showcasing ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances. Her short story "Delivering Hope" won first place in a national competition and appeared in a bestselling anthology. With a background in social work, she makes her home in a small Midwestern town, writing to inspire and entertain. Along with her daughter, she is co-owner of Cryptid World, where the two regularly post content about various cryptids. Mario Woods and Jeff Goodrich shared UFO experiences from their time in the Air Force and after. Followed by author T.S. Mart, who discussed monsters like the Thunderbird, Jersey Devil, Mothman, and lesser-known sky cryptids. More »

Somewhere in the northwoods darkness a creature walks upright And the best advice you may ever get is don't go out at night! --Steve Cook, "The Legend of Dogman." On April 1, 1987, WTCM-FM DJ Steve Cook released a campfire sort of ditty he'd penned, which related the legend. He set the first report of Dogman in 1887, one hundred years earlier. The verses recount events occurring at ten year intervals, creepy encounters with a mysterious canine cryptid. Nineteenth-century lumberjacks meet a wild dog that reveals itself to be much more. An overturned wagon is found, the horses dead from fright. An upright man-beast leads a pack of wolves or wild dogs. A vanload of conveniently anonymous hippies encounters a bipedal beast during the Summer of Love. Sources as august as Wikipedia insist Cook based his song on actual reports, but he has never claimed this was anything other than an April Fool's Day joke, and the Wiki entry (as of this posting1) draws too much of its information from Linda Godfrey's rather sensationalist book (cited below). No historical documentation supports any of the original song's reports. The tales are true the way that Texas Chainsaw Massacre is based on a true story. Cook looked to the lore of werewolves, in particular the French-Canadian loup-garou, and also the Algonquian wendigo, for inspiration. Cook may have also been aware of the Beast of Bray Road, a similar creature reported in nearby Wisconsin. This canine cryptid had few reports to its name until after Cook released "The Legend," and the overlapping history of the two creatures, as we shall see, has grown tangled and confused. "The Legend" struck a nerve. Cook's minimalist recording quickly became the station's most-requested song, and the story of Dogman spread. Leave us face it: people want a local monster. It brings excitement to our lives, and touches that part of us that still fears the monsters in the dark. Cook sold cassette tapes and donated the money to an animal shelter. He ended that first recording with the lines: Have the dogmen gone away? Have they disappeared? Soon enough I guess we'll know because summer is almost here And in this decade called the 80s, the seventh year is here. He would have to change those lyrics: What does a Legend become, when the truth outruns the fiction? Almost immediately, Cook, who "had never heard of anything called the dogman before" writing the song(Sands), began receiving reports of encounters with his monster. Since most of these came to him through calls and letters, they cannot be investigated with any accuracy. Some people undoubtedly were fabricating stories to add to the urban legend, and probably with the understanding they would not be taken too seriously. I suppose a few might have been delusional. Others may have seen something, a bear or demiwolf or coydog, perhaps, and interpreted their sighting as the newly-popular folkbeast. The 1987 encounters predicted by the song occurred near Luther and Sparta, Michigan. The Luther encounter amounts to creepy clawmarks supposedly found on a cottage door. The Spartan story is meatier. In the autumn of that year, two men heading to a cabin reported seeing something grey, furry, and upright at the side of the road. They acknowledge that it may have been a person in a costume. Yet they also claim that, subsequent to the sighting, they found themselves further back along their route than they'd been. Other allegedly real stories since incorporated into the lore include an encounter in 1938 between a 17-year-old and a pack of wild dogs or wolves. One of these had unusual eyes and it reared up on its hind legs, but it only loosely qualifies as a "dog-man." The years between the encounter and the telling may also raise suspicions in some hearers. Of course, no cryptozoological tale would be complete without fuzzy film. In 2007, a digital copy of something dubbed "the Gable Film" turned up online. It appeared in "American Werewolf," the final episode of the first season of the series MonsterQuest. The footage, said either to represent the Michigan Dogman or Wisconsin's Beast of Bray Road, runs little more than three minutes. Apparently shot in the 1970s, it shows people in period clothing performing mundane winter tasks and riding 70s snowmobiles. It cuts to footage taken from a moving vehicle. The amateur videographer has the unusual fortune to be filming a country road and its woods when his camera captures a hirsute beast. He pursues it; the creature turns. The hunter abruptly becomes the hunted, and we get a few seconds of Blair Witch-style shaky-cam, followed by a flash of muzzle and the view from a dropped camera. To no one's surprise, the footage never quite captures a clear view of the cryptid. A second bit of footage soon appeared, apparently from the investigation of a cameraman's death by cryptid. The final episode of MonsterQuest revealed that all footage was, in fact, hoaxed. Mike Agrusa, inspired by "The Legend of Dogman," fabricated the footage using a vintage camera and appropriate costumes and props. Agrusa also claims that the show's producers knew this from the start. In 2011, a low-budget Dogman film received its premiere in Traverse City, Michigan. Despite most critics regarding the production as something of a dog, a sequel is in the works. One Frank Holes, Jr., meanwhile, dug the story enough to pen several fictional books about the beast. Steve Cook has since rerecorded the song a few times, with variant lyrics. The most impressive may be the 2007 version, which features a mandolin and superior arrangements. He also blogs at a Dogman website which sells recordings and merchandise, for the benefit of various animal-related charities. Dogman, consequently, serves more than the tourist industry and the marshmallow-toasting tale-teller. Perhaps, then, I should soften my skepticism. Significant forests cover Michigan. Who knows what the shadows might conceal? 1. That writing has since been updated many times, and as of 2017, seems more aware of the Dogman's origins. Steve Cook. "The Legend of Dogman." "The Legend of Michigan's Dogman." Official Site. Mindstage Productions. http://www.michigan-dogman.com/. "The Legend of the Michigan Dogman." Absolute Michigan. http://absolutemichigan.com/michigan/the-legend-of-the-michigan-dogman/. Linda Godfrey. The Beast of Bray Road: Tailing Wisconsin's Werewolf. Prairie Oak Press, 2003. David Sands. "Michigan Dogman, Mysterious Upright Canine Creature, Haunts State's Backwoods". Huffington Post October 26, 2012.

Winchester-Nabu Detective Agency Year Four: Case File No. 06-162 AMBER LOVE 22-JUNE-2020 Find out how all this began. Catch up on Year One, Year Two, and Year Three cases at the Winchester-Nabu Detective Agency. Thank you for all your financial and social support! Oliver and Gus are looking forward to bringing you more fascinating discoveries and investigations into the chipmunk mafia, the blue jay gang, the neighborhood critters, and cryptid sightings. This work is supported by the generous backers who adore my cat stories at Patreon.com/amberunmasked and they also get first access to what’s happening with my books and podcast. For a one-time tip, you can go to the new PayPal.me. Where We Left Off: Vole Porter was caught and exchanged some troublesome rumors for his freedom. Three Blind Mice: The Cook and the Grumpy Old Man had already reached the point of impatience about the cat detectives’ lack of progress in ridding the buildings of mice. I will defend the boys on this point. It wasn’t for a lack of trying. Gus can’t figure out how to get to the mice running around the inner frame workings of the mobile command unit. And when it comes to the hangar, there’s so much hoarded shit in there that he can’t move around and safely reach inside some of the crevasses. Now we come to the main building consisting of the residences and offices of most of the Winchester-Nabu Detective Agency staff (the Butler has his own place for half the time). The success rate for mousing over the winter of 2019-2020 was low. It continued to be appalling through most of spring. But then… the first week of May, the cat detectives caught three mice in three days! This mouse catch was a midnight affair. I vaguely remember that I had taken some medicine and was in a groggy state. There was commotion under the bed and I was sleeping alone that night. I wondered if that ruckus was Gus playing with Oliver. My sleepy, dopey eyesight had barely enough focusing ability to notice Oliver was not under the bed. He was next to the box fort (more like a box castle). That meant Gus was rampaging after something that wasn’t Oliver. Midnight. Oh lord. I found the switch for the bedside lamp. The scene illuminated Gus, now out from under the bed, with a mouse in his mouth and growling loudly (Gus, not the mouse. That would be weird.) He started walking in a wide circle to get around me because he knew what my move would be. I had slid onto the floor at some point in all this so when Gus walked around me, I tried to grab him and failed. It was time to reconsider my strategy. What had I been thinking anyway? Was I going to hold the mouse in my bare hands and then what? Go where with it? Do what with it? How would I open any doors anyway? I thought about the kind of containers with lids I had around the second floor. In my race against the clock of Gus probably going to let the mouse escape, I settled for a used candle jar and a lid that didn’t fit. It was a small jar. I was going to have to be steady and have better aim than my usual. Gus had let the mouse go a few times. Oliver blocked its path. Gus got the mouse again while I got the jar and then he walked away from me in a peppy trot to keep me from catching up. I tried calling him over to the balcony figuring if the mouse was let go out there, I wouldn’t care. It was out of the house and would likely be fine. Gus wasn’t interested. I was exasperated when I saw Gus head for the back stairs that are through his room (aka, detective agency headquarters). I had to follow him. I don’t remember if I bothered with pants then or later. I think later. The Grumpy Old Man was snoring on the living room couch and of course, Gus released the mouse. At this point, I don’t know if it was so he could keep chasing it or just to make me do it while half-asleep and unsuccessfully trying to be quiet. The mouse ran along the wall and behind a bulk package of toilet paper. The mouse didn’t pause long. I moved the toilet paper and the mouse ran passed the laundry room door and stopped in the corner by the hobbit door. It was the only chance I was going to have. I had absolutely no faith in my abilities. All or nothing. I shimmied my squatting zombie body over to the corner and aimed the open side of the jar down. Holy shit. I got it! That little speed demon didn’t get away. I tilted the jar and scooped it upward so I could let the mouse slide down while I put the too-big lid over the top and held it in place. I think this is when I found pajama bottoms and shoes upstairs and tried creeping silently back downstairs. I was later told I was not at all silent. I left the cats behind and went out the hobbit door with the jarred mouse. (That makes it sound like a terrible pate you’d find on the shelf of the supermarket that has never sold.) Mouse inside a jar. I didn’t grab the flashlight so I used the app on my phone. Due to the state of fucking goddamn pitch black at 00:30, the little phone light worked enough for me to walk up the privet drive up to the Boulevard trail. I couldn’t see anything. I released the mouse and it sounded like a something much bigger. Much, much bigger than a mouse. It only took a second for the sounds of grass and leaves rustling to tell me the critter was alive and well somewhere away from me and the jar. Then I had to walk back in the dark aiming for the porch light in the distance. Mouse 1 was successfully released. The boys were rewarded for the excellent job. I was humiliated in the morning for how I have no stealth abilities at all. The very next night, Gus and Oliver had another mouse. It was unbelievable. Two nights in a row. I wasn’t sleeping well so I woke up to the sounds easily. Again, my first thought was that the cats were wrestling. Gus was thrashing under the bed and clearly having a marvelously fun time. It was 02:00 when I rolled over, flicked on the lamp, and looked over the side of the bed to see a mouse placed as if it were a gift from the magi. Oliver was watching his spot between the mouse and the door to the stairs. Gus came out from under the bed and walked around to say hello to me face-to-face. “Gus, is this one alive or dead? It hasn’t moved. It’s dead, isn’t it?” “Well, you took the last one away. This one is for you specifically.” “Thanks, boys. And you had to put it right next to the bed, huh?” “I can take it off your hands.” Gus rubbed against me when I slid off the bed. He positioned himself like a proud sphinx behind the dead rodent. Then he took one paw and moved it. “I know you put the dead mouse under the throw pillow I put on the floor right next to the bed where I put it every night.” “I have no idea what you’re talking about. There’s no mouse here. Just a throw pillow.” I dropped my chin to my chest and shook my head. I looked over at Oliver and he was keeping quiet. Even though I was like ninety-percent sure the mouse was deceased on arrival, I picked it up by the tail and put it in the same jar with the wrong lid from the previous night. Since it appeared to be either in need of rest and healing or nothing, I put the mouse in the jar out on the balcony. I took a sedative after thoroughly washing my hands. The next morning, the Butler took the cats out on the balcony early in the morning. He didn’t witness a cat remove the dead mouse from the jar, but he knew both cats were interested in the jar and there was a dead mouse next to it. Without ceremony, the Butler threw the mouse over the railing where it landed in the grass. I found it later when taking Gus out for his patrol. He confirmed that it was the body of the squatter he murdered and walked away. He had absolutely no interest in the dead mouse in the light of day outside and not under my bed while I slept. Mouse 2: DOA 06-May-2020 02:00 By the time there was a third mouse in three consecutive nights, I didn’t even bother collecting photos and evidence for the case file. The mouse was captured and handed off to The Cook to be released so I that I could stay upstairs in my medicated stupor. A week later… This mouse escaped. There was the same behavior as Mouse 1 with Gus playing with his prey under the bed and Oliver supervising. At some point, the mouse ended up in the corner of the wall that has all the closets. It ran along the edge of the wall and decided to slip into the closet closest to the head of the bed. I was not about to open the doors and pull things out for Gus to try and capture it again. The mice know when they’ve got it good. There is definitely plenty of food for them inside the building, but it is basically summertime now and they should be outside. Even as I get ready to post this, I can report that the boys chased another mouse around the bedroom last night at 10:30pm, but it safely escaped. Case Status: Open (there will always be more mice to catch)

Fatal Folklore Trilogy Written by: Bill Schweigart Reviewed by: Joe Bones Genre: Fantasy / Horror Series Score: 3.5/5 Sometimes, you just want to turn off your brain and take in a story about monsters. Whether it be a creature feature film or a novel about the things that go bump in the night, tales about monsters are a mainstay of entertainment. In the Fatal Folklore trilogy, Bill Schweigart takes the monster-based horror concept but swaps out the standard monsters for creatures from mythology and folklore. This combination puts a refreshing spin on genres that are dominated by sexy vampires or brooding werewolves. The horrors from the lore of several different cultures are on full display in all three books in this trilogy. If you are in the mood for a good monster mash, I recommend this series. Read on, as I give a brief review of the three books in the trilogy. The Beast of Bancroft Score: 1.5 / 5 The first book in the Fatal Folklore trilogy, The Beast of Bancroft, is admittedly lackluster when compared to its two sequels. Yet it stays just entertaining enough to make the reader want to see where the conclusion takes the novel. The two main characters of the series, Ben and Lindsey, get the majority of their character development in this novel. The trade off though is that this novel has a lot less action than its sequels. Even with more dialogue than action, this novel sets up a solid foundation for the two subsequent novels. The Beast of Bancroft has a few exciting sequences, as well as an intriguing twist, but is overall the lowest quality story in the trilogy. Score: 3 / 5 With the background of the main characters set up, Northwoods kicks the trilogy into high gear. It is definitely the most exciting book in the trilogy. It’s much more of a thriller than the first book and introduces a fun new character in CBP Agent Davis. It also gives a lot of depth to Alex Standing Cloud, who was only a minor player in the first book. My only complaint with Northwoods is that too much of the character-based conflict centers around Ben and Lindsey’s relationship. Even after putting each through a near-death experience and describing the destruction of an entire town, Schweigart focuses more than necessary on petty squabbles between his two main characters. Although this negatively effects the overall story’s pacing, Schweigart is eventually able to reverse course by giving the reader an exhilarating conclusion. The Devil’s Colony Score: 3.5 / 5 The Devil’s Colony, the final book in the trilogy, picks up where Northwoods leaves off. Schweigart wisely inserts an element of mystery into the final entry of this series. Ben and Lindsey go undercover to infiltrate a group of white supremacists who are seemingly connected to the Cryptid attacks from the previous books. This third installment is a true thriller, and the stakes the characters are facing keep getting higher until finally culminating in an electrifying climax. Schweigart also does a good job of connecting the various characters’ growth and experiences from the previous two books. Everything comes full circle and ties up nicely. Overall, the Fatal Folklore trilogy is very enjoyable. It may not redefine the creature-feature genre, but it does add some nice new twists to the existing formula and shies away from tropes that have been very common in recent stories of monsters and supernatural creatures. Check this series out if you’re in the mood for exciting, fast paced tales of man vs. monster.

Winter Arts Guide: Literary Events You have two choices when it comes to New England winters: attack or retreat. Meaning, you can go on the offense, with skis, skates, and snowboards; or find some cozy nook to hole up in, and while away the wintry months on more interior pursuits. If you’re the type that prefers to exercise your mind when the snows come, you’re in good company—if the next few months bring blizzards, take comfort in the fact that they’re bringing plenty of top-notch author events, too. Ian F. Svenonious They don’t make ’em more multifaceted than Ian F. Svenonious. The punk icon, philosopher, and Sassy Magazine’s erstwhile “Sassiest Boy in America” returns this year with Censorship Now!!, which tackles such wide-ranging subjects as IKEA, Christian pornography, vampires, hoarding, and “how to properly tip at restaurants.” November 8, 6 p.m., Brookline Booksmith, 279 Harvard St., Brookline, 617-566-6660, brooklinebooksmith.com. Free. “Jordan Marsh: Boston’s First Department Store” Over 150 years ago, Eben Dyer Jordan and Benjamin L. Marsh set up shop in Downtown Crossing, creating what would be the world’s first department store. Tonight, author Anthony Mitchell Sammarco gives us a sneak peek of his new book devoted to the history of Jordan Marsh. Chilean-American author and magical realism rock star Isabel Allende returns with The Japanese Lover. Her 18th fiction novel tells the story of a romance torn apart by WWII, but rekindled 70 years later. Following his long-running stint as beleaguered Office antagonist Dwight Schrute, Rainn Wilson reveals his origin story in The Bassoon King. The father in Richard Linklater’s Boyhood is neither a hero or a villain—he’s a flawed man bushwhacking through life, trying to be the best dad he can. And perhaps Mason Sr. is who Ethan Hawke, the actor who played him, had in mind when he penned Rules for a Knight, a primer on virtues written from the perspective of a 15th-century Cornish knight, attempting to impart wisdom onto his children before he rides off into battle. The space race of the 1800s was the scientific community’s mad scramble to prove the existence of a planet they dubbed Vulcan. In his new book, The Hunt for Vulcan, MIT professor Thomas Levenson leads us through a celestial wild goose chase co-starring Albert Einstein. November 12, 7 p.m., Brookline Booksmith, 279 Harvard St., Brookline, 617-566-6660, brooklinebooksmith.com. Free. Author of Garden State and The Ice Storm, Rick Moody is back with a book with a distinctly of-the-times po-mo gimmick: Hotels of North America allows readers to piece together the life of fictional RateYourLodging.com reviewer Reginald Edward Morse from his fabricated trail of online yawp. November 13, 7 p.m., Harvard Book Store, 1256 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, 617-661-1515, harvard.com. Free. Warren Zanes and Bill Janovitz The Brookline Booksmith presents a rock doubleheader at Berklee, with Warren Zanes discussing his new Tom Petty biography with Buffalo Tom founder Bill Janovitz. Behold, the stuff nerd dreams are made of: Bill Nye—the hero of ’90s children who spent their formative years glued to PBS—comes to the Booksmith to sign his new book, Unstoppable: Harnessing Science to Change the World, which attempts to debunk global warming myths and challenge readers to make the world a better place. November 16, 6 p.m., Brookline Booksmith, 279 Harvard St., Brookline, 617-566-6660, brooklinebooksmith.com. Free. An Evening with Dear Sugar: Cheryl Strayed and Steve Almond Five years ago, the sage mind behind The Rumpus’s famous cult-beloved advice column “Dear Sugar” was unmasked and revealed to be Cheryl Strayed, author of Wild. And if there’s anyone who can give you life guidance, it’s someone who lost a parent, got hooked on heroin, and hiked across the Mojave Dessert before age 30. Tonight, Strayed comes to Cambridge for a live taping of “Dear Sugar Radio” and a discussion of her new book, Brave Enough. She’s joined by Steve Almond, who probably hasn’t survived 94 days in the wilderness but seems to give pretty good advice anyway. Sugar fans and Candyfreaks, this is your night. When your mom’s a former birthday clown and your dad’s a hospital-owner-turned-sociology professor, and you spend your formative years as a painfully shy theater kid who achieves early dubious stardom as “Butt Naked Boy”—well, it’s a life story that’s bound to keep your therapists busy. But it’s also undoubtedly great fodder for a creative writing career. This November, Jesse Eisenberg comes to the Brattle not as Mark Zuckerberg or Lex Luthor, but as a first-time fiction author, reading from new short story collection Bream Gives Me Hiccups. The creator of genius culinary chimera Ruth Bourdain is back, and he’s bestowing upon us a whole new world of gastronomic portmanteaux—carrotmobs, brocavores, meatmares, and more—in his new book Eatymology: The Dictionary of Modern Gastronomy. November 19, 7 p.m., Porter Square Books, Porter Square Shopping Center, 25 White St., Cambridge, 617-491-2220, portersquarebooks.com. Free. Billy Collins and Aimee Mann Four years ago, former United States poet laureate Billy Collins and acerbic singer-songwriter Aimee Mann met at the White House—an encounter that turned into a traveling stage show. Blacksmith House Poetry Series presents Janaka Stucky and Simeon Berry This December, a house that used to be a smithy hosts a poet who used to be an undertaker, as Black Ocean publisher Janaka Stucky comes to the Blacksmith House (whose long-gone spreading chestnut tree was immortalized by Longfellow). Stucky’s latest, The Truth Is We Are Perfect—released on Jack White’s Third Man Books—is described as “54 poems of heartbreak, ritual, and resurrection.” Simeon Berry will also read from his new poetry collection, Ampersand Revisited. November 30, 8 p.m., Blacksmith House, 56 Brattle St., Cambridge, 617-547-6789, ccae.org/blacksmithpoetry. Free. America’s Test Kitchen Long before Alton Brown brought his sock puppets and giant prop tongues to the Food Network, bow-tied Christopher Kimball was applying the scientific method to his quest for good eats. Tonight, Kimball and fellow ATK cast members preview their new cookbook, 100 Recipes: The Absolute Best Ways to Make the True Essentials. Science on Screen: The Blob with Ferris Jabr on the Great Molasses Flood A gooey unstoppable mass that engulfs everything in sight? Anyone who’s crashed the dessert table during a holiday party can relate to the gelatinous antagonist of 1958 cult classic The Blob. But journalist Ferris Jabr is not here to judge our yuletide carb intake; instead, he’s here to explain the science behind the 1919 Boston Molasses Disaster, which he recently wrote about for Scientific American. An Evening with the Boston Yeti Guess who’s coming out of hibernation? Our own local cryptid, the Boston Yeti, who makes an appearance following the Brattle’s screening of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. “We’re thrilled to sit down with the big, white guy to discuss his plans for the upcoming snow season as well as his lifestyle in general,” the Brattle reports. Arisia featuring John Scalzi One way to get through a long Boston winter: Escape reality. Which is exactly what long-running sci-fi con Arisia offers—with gaming, cosplay, theater, film screenings, and discussion panels galore. This year’s special author guest of honor is John Scalzi, a creative consultant for Stargate: Universe and writer of the Old Man’s War series and Red Shirts. Boskone featuring Garth Nix Before there was Harry Potter, there was Garth Nix and his “Old Kingdom” books—a YA fantasy series that revolves around a world of heroic necromancers, spell casters, and strong female protagonists. Nix headlines this year’s Boskone, another venerable Boston sci-fi convention (and one that’s even more lit-focused than Arisia). Looking for more winter arts coverage? Check out:

Mighty Monster Mayhem Is Exactly What You Think It Is In terms of VR games, well, what could be more fun than playing as a giant monster and wrecking a city? Pretty much, nothing. And that's what Rank 17 is banking on with their release of Mighty Monster Mayhem. It may not look the prettiest, but this is definitely a wish fulfillment title. "Renowned for your research in cryptozoology and mutations, you were ridiculed and outcast from the scientific community while trying to prove the existence of monsters. After recombining cryptid DNA, you found a way to bolster the human immune system and increase strength. However, your research has been deemed fraudulent – and the local Cryptozoological Research and Progenation chapter has cut your funding. In a last-ditch effort to validate your work, you've decided to give the scientific community a live demonstration by drinking one of your molecular mutation liquids and transforming into a legendary monster …" You can choose to blend your DNA with one of five different creatures including Cthulhu Carl, Ronald the Rock, Ian Insectoid, Toni the Oni, or Gorzilla (a.k.a., "Todd" – who doesn't like labels) and start wreaking havoc across town. Naturally, all of those generic monsters are happily copyright free. The game has you use the HTC Vive's motion controllers to tear down skyscrapers, munch on unsuspecting pedestrians, and punch pretty much everything single thing you see. You can also use the motion controllers to climb the tallest buildings and throw objects like the good monster you are. The game has a single-player campaign that allows you to wreak havoc across 9 separate cities. You can also use online co-op or PVP to absolutely destroy the world, with friends. - Tear down entire cities building by building and stomp your way around town. - Challenge or join your friends in multiplayer destruction. - Obliterate cities in single-player mode. - Choose your monster: Cthulhu Carl, Ronald the Rock, Ian Insectoid, Toni the Oni or Gorzilla (a.k.a. "Todd"). - Climb buildings, throw objects, and monster-punch things! - Wreck everything in sight, earn a high score, and climb tall buildings (along with the leaderboards). Mighty Monster Mayhem will be available on Steam VR/HTC Vive on Thursday, April 20 for $8.99 – 40% off the game's retail price. The sale will end a week after launch (April 27). The official teaser is below.

The Nightfall Program was a research project lead by Captain David Archer. Archer founded the program in 2016, a year after encountering a Cryptid colony during the Tel Aviv War. The program consisted of at least 127 scientists and employees based out of Point Barrow, Alaska, the site of the project's headquarters. While its benefactors believed it was investing in biochemical weaponry, Nightfall's true intentions were to investigate a means of severing the ties between the Cryptids and their masters, gaining control of the creatures themselves. However, they were dissolved after the events of Awakening as David Archer dies during the events of Awakening following the destruction of the Ball's Pyramid Ark. After locating a colony of Cryptids in Swat Valley, Pakistan during an SAS operation, David Archer became infatuated with the alien ecosystem living beneath the earth, more so the unseen forces manipulating the creatures behind the scenes. Hiring dozens of world-renowned scientists in various fields of profession, Archer founded the Nightfall Program, establishing a remote facility in Point Barrow, Alaska as its headquarters. In order to obtain funding, Archer posed the project as a biochemical weapon business, its benefactors assuming the Cryptids were end products of their work. However, the true purpose of Nightfall was much more sinister; to find a way to seize control over the Cryptids for Archer's own use. During an archeological dig, Nightfall uncovered numerous structures surrounding a Cryptid meteor covered in complex hieroglyphics, showing signs of Mayan and Akkadian influence. Proving too difficult to translate, Archer realized he would be forced to make new additions to his team to continue his plight, and found the answer to his dilemma following an interview with Samantha Cross of Harvard University. Possessing a rare gift to translate languages with ease, Cross was employed by Archer and flown out to the head Nightfall facility to begin her work. Following the ODIN Strike that decimated the American North and Southwest, a colony of Cryptids beneath the Colorado Rockies was exposed, releasing them back to the surface of the Earth. The rumors of an outbreak in Caldera Peak, Colorado intrigued Archer, prompting him to lead an investigation of the site with the intent of evaluating the military potential of any new species they found. He returned with numerous Cryptid samples and a large obelisk carved of obsidian rock and inscribed with Cryptid hieroglyphics, known as an Obelisk. As Cross began tirelessly decoding the Obelisk, Archer expressed interest in finding more of the items globally, believing one to be located in the South Pacific that inspired the lost continent of Mu. Requiring a ship and crew, he began covertly negotiating with a Chinese client known only as Contact 28, offering Nightfall's impressive weaponry and research to the country in exchange for his requests. Meanwhile, Cross, now fearful of Nightfall's true intentions, breached the location of their head facility to the U.S. government, as well as sabotaging the hatchery under the influence of the Cryptid masters. With over 100 employees killed in the outbreak, Nightfall was deemed terminated by the U.S. after the Rapid Reaction Force pacified the overrun facility. However, the few who survived the outbreak, including Archer and a captured Dr. Cross, attempted to recover from the fallout and sailed for an Ark aboard Stormbreaker, Archer's vessel supplied by Contact 28. Onboard, the survivors focused their attentions on experimenting with anti-Cryptid technology to protect themselves from another attack, as well as the defecting Samantha Cross, who was surgically bonded to the Beacon Amplifier to aid them in their travels. However, problems arose when the crew began experiencing vivid nightmares from the increasingly-hostile presence of Cross, rumors threatening a mutiny and even some going against Archer's commands. After many abandoned ship to keep their lives and sanity, Cross summoned the Arks' aquatic guardian to keep Nightfall from reaching their goal, igniting a third outbreak in the process. By the time the military arrived and defeated the Cryptid enemy, Nightfall had completely dissolved, Archer himself defecting as a double-agent to the United States. Despite Archer defecting to Godfather, Archer's luck started to run out. First, Archer and two American soldiers were cornered by dozens of Cryptids beneath the surface of Ball's Pyramid, which eventually causes a Gargoyle to attack one of the American soldiers, who was pulling the pin on a grenade at the time. Archer uses the other soldier to survive the explosion, but is blow back, scrapping his arm against a Cryptid plant, infecting his entire right arm. Samantha Cross, who was assumed killed following the the destruction of the Stormbreaker, appears and tells him that the poison is deadly, which Archer replies that all of this is a dream. Cross then proceeds to sever Archer's right arm, saving him with the intent of cutting a deal with him. Cross' deal consisted of her leading Archer and his remaining troops to the Ark in exchange of her safe return to the USA, which Archer reluctantly agrees to, although he has second thoughts. After obtaining the Cortex from an Ancestor from within the Ark, Archer then betrays Cross, but Cross uses her telekinesis to make Archer shoot his remaining troops dead before forcing him to shoot his own left leg, crippling and disabling him. Cross then leaves Archer for dead as CIF Team One eventually reaches the Ark sometime later to finish the job. After CIF Team One obtains the Cortex, they leave Archer behind, where he then dies from the meltdown. With Archer dead, the Nightfall Program was completely dissolved, with Cross being the only surviving member left. - The Venom-X, a powerful projectile-based weapon that harnesses the toxic biolum of Scorpions to fire the same poisonous gas. While aboard Stormbreaker, the surviving Nightfall scientists varied the type of biolum used to produce the weapon's ammo, leading to several different variations of the gun: - The Venom-FX, which produces fire damage. - The Venom SX, which spawns friendly Seeder spores. - The Venom LX, which produces electric damage. - The Breeder, a large arachnid-like Cryptid hatched in the head Nightfall facility in an egg sack the size of a trailer. The creature was designed to produce more Cryptid specimens to be used in Nightfall's research, however it was disposed of during the Rapid Reaction Force's raid on the facility. - The Hypno Trap, an anti-Cryptid device designed by Archer aboard Stormbreaker. The weapon acted as a pressure plate that utilized and amplified the ability of the Hypno Knife, allowing even a Rhino to be hypnotized by it. - The Tesla Trap, an anti-Cryptid device designed by Archer aboard Stormbreaker. It acted much like a Tesla coil, primarily used to electrocute any nearby Cryptids. When placed near another Tesla Trap, the device would connect and create an electric barrier capable of electrocuting anything that passed through it. - The Beacon Amplifier, a device designed by the world-renowned neuroprosthetic scientist Dr. Kassar aboard Stormbreaker. Fused with Cryptid plant life, Cross' brain was surgically bonded to the device as a means to aide in the voyage to the second Ark. After CIF Team One pacified the outbreak aboard the vessel, Cross disappeared along with the Beacon Amplifier. - The Cortex Holding System, a device that holds one of the Ancestor's soft tissue, which is key to stopping the Ancestors from world domination and part of Archer's plans for his Medusa weapon. The Rapid Reaction Force obtains the Cortex from Archer within the heart of the Ark and escapes Ball's Pyramid with it. - The NX-1 Disruptor, a powerful weapon designed by Archer. When shot, it will shoot a lightning-like shot, which can kill weak Cryptids in one shot. When fully charged when holding down the trigger, it'll create a ball of energy which can destroy an Ancestor's shield in one shot. It also can regenerate ammo, either while in use or stored away.

Worm of Haftvad Among the many stories told in the Shahnameh, the Persian Book of Kings, is that of Haftvad. Haftvad had seven sons, as his name indicates, and lived in a poor but hard-working town on the Persian Gulf during the reign of Shah Ardashir People have often seen the worm as a creature that was between life and death. The origin of the word comes from Old English 'wyrm' which means 'serpent' so there's a very amusing thing with worm linking one of the mightiest creatures with the little fragile creature. The above picture is the Lambton Worm from Northeast England legend It's a long standing folk tradition that woolly worms, or woolly bears, the caterpillar of the Isabella Tiger Moth (Pyrrharctia isabella) can predict whether the coming winter will be harsh or mild Before there were modern weather forecasters, there were persimmons and wooly worms. Old folklore says that the seeds inside of the fruit and the appearance of the worms will tell you what to.. According to folklore, the woolly worm's coloring is said to indicate how severe the coming winter will be in the local area where the caterpillar is found. The Woolly Bear caterpillar's body has 13 distinct segments. According to weather lore, each one corresponds to one of the 13 weeks of winter Dig into the soil in your garden, and chances are that if the dirt is healthy, it will be chock full of earthworms. Worms are (obviously) associated with the element of earth, and so can be incorporated into workings related to growth, fertility, the life cycle, and even the underworld Rue is a small garden plant with blue-grey foliage, and it is a good foil for other colors. Its growth is shrub-like, reaching about three feet in height and producing small yellow flowers. Hardy to USDA Hardiness Zones 6 through 11, the foliage stands well when cut and used in floral arrangements Earthworms come in a seemly infinite variety—around 6,000 species worldwide. One of the most familiar of them, the sort you may see in your garden, is commonly known as the night crawler (it typically surfaces after dark), the angleworm (its makes popular bait for fishing) or the rain worm (it leaves waterlogged soil after storms).. Many parts of the UK have tales related to dragons or giant worms. Northumberland has the Laidley Worm, while County Durham boasts the tale of the Lambton Worm. There are varying versions of the story, but I'm discussing the first version I heard. It links the Worm with Penshaw Hill, near Houghton-le-Spring Woolly bear caterpillars—also called woolly worms—have a reputation for being able to forecast the coming winter weather. If their rusty band is wide, then it will be a mild winter. The more black there is, the more severe the winter. Just how true is this weather lore . Myth: Composting is a Ton of Extra Work. Facts: The worms do most of the work. They convert kitchen scraps into valuable fertilizer 24/7 Folklore says the upcoming winter can be predicted by the stripes on a caterpillar; They say the wider the black band is, the worse the winter will be North Carolina called Woolly Worm Festival where there are worm races held! And there are festivals all over the country honoring the famous woolly bear legend The Lambton Worm is a legend from County Durham in North East England in the UK. The story takes place around the River Wear, and is one of the area's most famous pieces of folklore, having been adapted from written and oral tradition into pantomime and song formats The most famous is about the brown band.The wider the brown band, the milder the winter.Forecast: NORMALA large number of wooly worms is a sign of a cold winter.Forecast: COLD WINTERWooly worms. Probably one of the most well-known of the winter predicting legends is that of the wooly bear worm. The wooly bear, wooly worm or wooly caterpillar as it is sometimes called, has long been a go-to source to tell what type of winter is on the way. As the legend goes, the more black that appears on the wooly bear, the harsher the winter As part of that folklore, the Mester stoor worm remains a thoroughly Orcadian tale. As the legend goes, the Mester stoor worm was a gigantic sea serpent that could wrap itself around the entire world. When it moved, the Mester stoor worm caused earthquakes and other natural disasters According to folklore, if the woolly worm caterpillar's orange band is narrow, the winter will be snowy; conversely, a wide orange band means a mild winter (all black caterpillars are not woolly worms). And fuzzier-than-normal woolly worm caterpillars are said to mean that winter will be very cold 7 Myths About Worms in Dogs Myth 1: My pet only needs heartworm prevention if I live in a certain area. Although it's more prevalent in some areas like the American South, heartworm has been identified in all 50 U.S. states (1) and several warmer parts of Canada, including southern Ontario and southern Quebec (2) In medieval Irish mythology, such a class of beasts (where actually identifiable as dragons or great worms at all) were more often associated with tales of monstrous peril involving saints and heroes, and were (unsurprisingly) associated with the marshy aquatic realm. Usually referred to by the terns 'piast' or ' péist' - a 'pest. Ringworm is a fungal infection that has nothing to do with worms. WebMD dashes some of the myths about this common, and highly contagious, condition 4 Cut an Earthworm in Half, You Get Two Worms. For some of you, this was your first attempt at hands-on animal biology. You're in the back yard and you find an earthworm. You cut it in half, because you're a sadist, and look at that! Both halves are still alive! Getty. One day, this will be Father Three Myths about Compost Worm Farming Reader Contribution By Liz Beavis, Eight Acres. Tags: Liz Beavis, worm farm, compost worms, organic vegetables, organic farming, compost, When I started. Blackfoot legends about the origin of the sacred Worm Pipe. Recommended Books of Related Native American Legends Our organization earns a commission from any book bought through these links The Sacred Pipe: Lakota Sioux pipe-keeper Black Elk's 1947 book describing Lakota Sioux pipe legends and ceremonies The worms crawl in The worms crawl out The worms they crawl all about The worms crawl in The worms crawl out They play pinochle on your snout! A taphophile reader contributed this: If you ever laugh when a hearse goes by, then you will be the next to die. Return to Mythology and Folklore. The Worm of Linton while unsurprisingly being from Linton was not what you would typically think of as a worm. That is unless your garden is packed with 10 feet long fanged creatures capable of devouring a flock of sheep. While legends represent it differently, some saying at one point it sprouted wings, while others state it could breath fire. A study done in India looked at the number of army worms (Spodoptera exigua) and diamondback moths (Plutella xylostella) on cabbage using several different companion plants. The number of army worms (number of shot holes) was the same with or without marigolds (type and species not documented) The following two stories are posted as a part of the Aotearoa Affair Blog Carnival, guest edited by Rachel Fenton. The theme for this month's carnival is Past Myths, Present Legends and the Berlin Wall and Bernard Moitessier both come to mind. If you're me, anyway. * Berlin Story (a version of this first appeare Catawba worms are prized bait among Southern fishermen. Photo: Dr. Peter VanZandt The most beloved pest in the South. First, if catalpa (ka-tal-pa) ever comes up in conversation in the South, you may run into some alternate pronunciations. You will often hear catawba (cuh-tah-buh), and the next thing you will hear about is the catawba worm Facts about Earthworms 6: the size of adult earthworms. Adult earthworms have the width from 0.039 inch or 1 mm to 0.98 inch to 25 mm. The length of earthworms is around 0.39 inch or 10 mm to 9.8 feet or 3 meter. The length of Lumbricus terrestris can reach 14 inches or 360 mm. Check facts about dwarf hamster here. Earthworm Mating The Mongolian death worm is an infamous creature whose legend lives in secondhand accounts that have been passed down for generations. Mongolia's nomadic tribes call it allghoi khorkhoi, which translates roughly to intestine worm, due to its alleged resemblance to the insides of a cow.The worm-like creature with blood-red skin is said to reach up to five feet in length These caterpillars—often referred to as woolly worm or woolly bear caterpillars—have a special ability to predict the weather to come. As folklore goes, you need to look at the orange and black bands on this tiny creature —the more black a woolly bear has, the worse off the winter. If the caterpillar has more orange, then the winter will. I have heard it already: I just saw a woolly worm, and it had a lot of black on it. Must be a harsh winter ahead The Lambton Worm. One day, centuries ago, in North East England, a strange beast was roused. While John Lambton was walking his family's ancestral seat, he came into something terrifying. He had skipped church that day and was warned that if he did not respect his family's wishes and attended church, something horrible would befall him The Stoor Worm, or Mester Stoor Worm, was a gigantic evil sea serpent in Orcadian folklore, capable of contaminating plants and destroying animals and humans with its putrid breath. It is probably an Orkney variant of the Norse Jormungandr, also known as the Midgard Serpent, or world serpent, and has been described as a sea dragon 10 Myths About Heartworms. It takes just one bite from a mosquito infected with heartworm larvae to jeopardize your pet's health and welfare. Heartworm disease is often debilitating and can be fatal if not treated. That's why the stakes are too high to listen to myths like only dogs are susceptible to heartworms and heartworm disease is. Coffee Grounds Kill Earthworms. People doing vermicomposting regularly, recommend the addition of coffee grounds to the worm bin, provided you do not add too much.. A research study showed, coffee grounds can be decomposed through vermicomposting and that it improves the quality of vermicompost produced, but another study that looked at worm populations in three composting systems found. Parasitic worms in Nigerian folklore. Parasitic worms in Nigerian folklore. Parasitic worms in Nigerian folklore Parasitol Today. 1989 Feb;5(2):39. doi: 10.1016/0169-4758(89)90187-7. Author O B Akogun. PMID: 15463176 DOI: 10.1016/0169-4758(89)90187-7 No abstract available. Publication types. In addition to providing us with honey and wax, bees are known to have magical properties, and they feature extensively in folklore from many different cultures. These are just a few of the legends about bees. In some areas of New England and Appalachia, it was believed that once someone died, it was important for the family to go tell the. Mongolian Death Worm : Legendary Worm of the Gobi Desert Explained ( Asian Folklore ) - In the depths of the Gobi desert, a mysterious creature has perfectly.. Caddisflies, stoneflies , mayflies , dragonflies and damselflies all spend part of their lives in fresh water bodies. Intertidal rove beetles are true beach bums that live along the shores of our oceans. Marine midges inhabit tidal pools, and the rare marine sea skaters spend their lives at sea. 05. of 15 Caterpillars do not play a prominent role in the Native American folklore of most tribes. Like other small animals and insects, they sometimes appear in legends as symbols of meekness and humility. In the Navajo culture, caterpillars have more mythological importance. Tobacco Horn Worm (a sphinx moth caterpillar) helps the people by driving. K nowing why the fish get worms is the first step in solving the problem. Let's take a quick look at some of the reasons why your Salmon farm might have a worm problem. The most common cause for worms in farm-raised Salmon has to do with their diet. You should not feed your Salmon raw fish as this is the easiest way for Salmon to get worms Worm Moon: March 9 at 1:48 P.M EDT. Pink Moon: April 7 at 10:35 P.M. EDT. Flower Moon: May 7 at 6:45 A.M. EDT. April's full Moon is the closest supermoon of the year, with the moon at a distance. English folklore consists of the myths and legends of England, including the English region's mythical creatures, traditional recipes, urban legends, and folktales.English folklore encompasses the traditional Robin Hood tales, the Brythonic-inspired Arthurian legend, and the more contemporary urban legends and monsters such as the Beast of Bodmin Moor Jun 18, 2016 - Some Legends Never Die... See more ideas about smashwords, folklore, parasitic worms SHUT UPfalsewormking Wormhub was a myth group that was shortly created after Fiddlepat's departure of Grocery Gang. This group also includes some former Grocery Gang Members such as 1_AD and WOKOPEDIA (now known as Worpheme) This group is seeming based around worms and also a disease at times, with strange mushroom men. 1 History 2 Former Ranks 2.1 repulsive 2.2 studlings 2.3 worms 2.4. In The American Conservative, heartland meth user Nick King hits some myths about meth.High points: Taking meth is like joining a secret society. Most users don't talk about those activities to. . A lady at the grocery store told me that she refuses to eat anything killed in the wild because it is full of worms. Maybe you could get worms from venison, but you could also get worms from eating pork if it is not handled and cooked properly. As with any meat, it is important to butcher and cook. Nearly 2400 roads, 300 bridges and a half dozen railroads tracks were damaged and destroyed in southern Vermont alone. Hurricane Ike devastated the Bolivar Peninsula and parts of Galveston Island. 5 Raw Milk Myths Busted! MYTH: Raw milk is healthier and more nutritious than pasteurized milk. FACT: Most of the nutritional benefits of drinking raw milk are available from pasteurized milk without the risk of disease that comes with drinking raw milk. MYTH: Drinking raw milk may not be safe, but no harm will come from eating products (soft. In Māori mythology, as in other Polynesian traditions, Māui is a culture hero and a trickster, famous for his exploits and cleverness. He possessed superhuman strength, and was capable of shapeshifting into animals such as birds and worms.. He was born premature and cast into the ocean by his mother, where the waves formed him into a living baby The worms were very angry and complained, so the king said that the best way to decide the question who was the stronger was for both sides to meet on the road and fight the matter out between themselves to a finish. This is an Un-Textbook of Mythology and Folklore for students enrolled in MLLL-3043-995, an online course for the University. The myths and facts about earthworms and fishy wastes. There was a misunderstanding about earthworm in the old scriptures. Many people believe worms as expression of lust, covetousness, greed, selfishness, destruction, putrefaction, weakness, and humiliation Assipattle and the Mester Stoor worm One day, a terrible evil reached the shores of the kingdom: The Mester Stoor Worm, king of all sea monsters. Words by Rosie Young Illustration by Linley Barba Long ago in an ancient kingdom lived a farm boy named Assipattle. His six brothers spent their days working the farm [ Legends say the Mongolian Death Worm hides within the shifting sands of the Gobi Desert, just waiting to strike. Deep within the shifting sands of the Gobi Desert lies the elusive Olgoi-Khorkhoi, the Mongolian Death Worm - or so legend has it.The Mongolian Death Worm is a bright red worm, a mysterious cryptid s Serpents and dragons are a particular feature of northern European mythology that deserve some investigation in this blog. The ancients viewed 'serpents' and 'worms' as a whole class of creatures - not just a 'species' as we in modern times would conceive it, but a morphological and philosophical grouping which included many types and forms . Earthworms still have a remarkable ability to regenerate most of their body if injured. But planarian flatworms can regenerate a whole body from a severed part as small as 1/300th of the original worm . Snakes are probably the most misunderstood members of the animal kingdom. Perhaps this is due largely to the misinformation, legends, and myths surround them, as well as to their nature. Most of these myths have been based upon pure exaggeration or total lack of knowledge Cat Superstitions & Folklore. Also, cats born in May will never catch mice or rats, but will instead bring into the house snakes, worms, and other undesirable reptiles. May cats are also inclined to be sad and melancholy. Allowing cats to sleep with you is considered to be very unlucky. They are said to, draw your breath away Oni (demons) and yurei (ghosts) have played a role in Japanese culture for thousands of years, and stories of new spirits continue to be told today. Here are just a few tales of demons, ghosts. In line with this, they do not only have various beliefs and superstitions about life, but also certain legends related to death and its omens. Depending on the culture, some of the legends are quite eerie, while others are seemingly innocent. Check out how certain cultures know that death is approaching through some really spooky omens Myths about bookworms What I really don't like in life is labeling. Now, I think we people are pros at labeling each other whether it's because someone looks certain way or because of their interests. We put each other in a small container with a label on it thinking that this is who we are but I think people are so much more than just a label The Worm would hiss, and would rave, and lash its tail round the trees of the park, and in its fury it would uproot the stoutest oaks and the loftiest firs. So it went on for seven years. Many tried to destroy the Worm, but all had failed, and many a knight had lost his life in fighting with the monster, which slowly crushed the life out of all. Hey, did anybody see the videos on break.com about the worms in the pork? Basically, its a video thats supposed to show that if you pour coke onto uncooked pork, worms will appear. Supposedly, the acid in the soda makes the worms come to the surface of the meat. The video doesnt prove anything to.. In Norse mythology, Odin rides Sleipnir—a horse with many legs. And in the warm, coastal waters of Australia lives Ramisyllis multicaudata, the worm with many butts. The creature is shaped. Myth #10: Men are 4 times more likely to have pruritus ani than women. This fact has been regurgitated since the 1950's when a limited study was published using under 100 people. Somehow this has been believed and has been accepted as fact, when in reality it is a myth. Pranicura LLC has sold the worlds most successful pruritus ani. All dogs and cats are at risk of pesky parasites - ticks, fleas and intestinal worms. As there are many common misconceptions about how to treat and protect your pets from these harmful pests, it's time to debunk the myths. We got our facts straight with veterinarian Dr Liisa Ahlstrom from Bayer Animal Health Woolly Worms. We noticed the same type of contradictions with the famous prognosticating woolly worm. Legend has it that the woolly worm, a tiger moth caterpillar, can foretell what weather winter. Worms. Throw a grenade down memory lane with the original and classic turn-based strategy game Worms™! Up to 4 teams of worms do battle over an ever-changing battlefield with falling weapon crates, crazed exploding sheep and more besides. Winner of many industry awards, find out what all the fuss was about. Reviews Intestinal worms are a common parasite in cats and dogs. There are many common myths about how our pets get worms, how serious they are and even how they can be dangerous to our own health. Learn the facts and dangers that worms pose to your cat and dog Common Myths & Misconceptions Thursday, July 4, 2013. There are reports that if you do not crush the worm's head before feeding it to your reptile, that it will chew its way through your pet's stomach to escape and kill it. There are theories that this old wive's tale must have started when a person discovered their dead lizard with worms. 10 greyhound myths BUSTED by greyhounds (and the people who love them) IMAGE. They're called 'athletes', they're treated as commodities, and they often cop suspicious glares because of those big ugly muzzles they have to wear. But greyhounds are just about as gentle as you can get — and while they may be bred to race — they're born. From a folkloric perspective, however, this is simply a sign that legends and stories of the Death Worm have spread throughout the region, as commonly happens through trade and travel. Many people. These myths include. we are fishing down food chains. all large fish in the oceans are depleted by 90%. most of the worlds fisheries are overfished. all fish stocks will be collapsed by 2048. the Ocean Health Index assertion that France and Spain have the best managed fisheries in the world. This page provides some comment on each of these Subscribers can listen to this article. (Image:Supplied) Worms are easily spread, through the likes of contaminated water, air, pets/ pet fur and even bed linen 1. Worm eggs can adhere to clothing and contaminated hands. Worms can also be spread by walking barefoot on contaminated soil or sand 2. Read more about Symptoms & Causes of Worms Lord Vishnu always carried a conch which is an exoskeleton of the animal. A saligrama which is worshipped as a representative of Vishnu, is a fossilized mollusk. Pearl oyster were collected from the sea bed. Among insects, honey-bees, silk-worms and mud-wasps were very well known. Often fish are mentioned in our mythology Heartworms in dogs are easy to prevent, but difficult and costly to cure. We asked Sheldon Rubin, 2007-2010 president of the American Heartworm Society, to separate facts from the myths about heartworm infestations in dogs.. Q: How do dogs get heartworms?. A: Only by the bite of an infected mosquito 5 Myths about Angels and Demons Sam Storms. November 06, 2018 Sadly, there is a lot of confusion about angels and demons and certain myths that simply won't die. Here are five of them. 5 Myths about Calvinism Greg Forster. October 13, 201 Myth: Slow-kill and adulticide are both valid options for heartworm treatment. Fact: The slow-kill method is a salvage procedure, not a treatment of choice.. (2) Slow-kill therapy should only be offered to clients who decline adulticide therapy for their dog's heartworms. Clients must realize that the slow-kill method is a salvage. 5 types of dangerous worms in dogs. Heartworms, hookworms, roundworms, whipworms and tapeworms can pose a health risk to your dog. Learn more about the different types of worms so you can protect your dog from these dangerous parasites. Home But that also means you probably are horribly misinformed about the middle ages, which we're sure is a serious problem in your day to day life. Still, it's interesting to realize just how much of what you know is dead wrong From lawsuits to social media hoaxes, we've done some digging to bust (or confirm) 8 of the craziest myths about the fast food giant. 1. McDonald's Burgers Contain Cow Eyeballs // FALSE. He doesn't seem too amused with your poor interpretation of marketing words. Image: tinyacresfamilyfarm / Instagram Now that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has authorized vaccines for COVID-19, and their distribution has begun, Lisa Maragakis, M.D., M.P.H., senior director of infection prevention, and Gabor Kelen, M.D., director of the Johns Hopkins Office of Critical Event Preparedness and Response, review some common myths circulating about the vaccine and clear up confusion with reliable facts 5 myths about face masks under the microscope. Since the start of the pandemic, more and more people are wearing face masks. Image: REUTERS/Javier Barbancho 06 Aug 2020. Sean Fleming Senior Writer, Formative Content. UpLink - Take Action for the SDGs. Take action on UpLink. Get to grips with recognizing 5 harmful worm types and test your knowledge of worms with our myths and facts quiz. Protect your dog from worms. From signs and lifecycles to prevention and treatment, explore these articles to learn more about the different worms putting your dog at risk Space worm/Legends; Spice eel; Spin-worm; Spit-crawler; Squollyhawlk; Stingworm; Swamp worm; T Taozin/Legends; Tikulini; Tizowyrm; Tubeworm; Tunnel worm (Kathol Rift) Tunnel worm (Selonia) Tunnel worm (Tasariq) U Ubuugan fleshborer; Unidentified worm species; Unidentified Yavin 4 worm; W Wandrella; Wasp-worm; Watchbeast; Whuffa worm; Wrosha-grub Alaska Worms Gaming. 1,468 likes · 46 talking about this. BECAUSE SOMETHING IS NOT INSTANT, ALL NEED A PROCESS, NEED A STRUGGLE, BECAUSE BUSINESS WILL NEVER BREAK THE RESULT Common COVID-19 Vaccine Myths Explained. Our vaccine expert helps set the record straight about some common questions, concerns and myths that have emerged about the new COVID-19 vaccines Celebrate 25 years of Worms icons with the Legends Pack! Customise your Worm with these awesome outfits, weapon skins and banners. This pack includes: • 6 Outfits - Retro Commando, Sheep, Donkey, Skunk, Cow and Pigeon (each with 3 different colour variants!) • 6 Weapon Skins - Retro, Wooly, Concrete, Poison, Bovine, Feathers • 6 Banner Myth: More people will die as a result of a negative side effect to the COVID-19 vaccine than would actually die from the virus. Fact: Circulating on social media is the claim that COVID-19's mortality rate is 1%-2% and that people should not be vaccinated against a virus with a high survival rate. However, a 1% mortality rate is 10 times more lethal than the seasonal flu Urban Myths: Tooth Worms Episode 8. 0.0/10 from 0 users. Urban Myths: Tooth Worms Episode 9. 0.0/10 from 0 users. Urban Myths: Tooth Worms Episode 10. 0.0/10 from 0 users. Trending Articles. The Ultimate Guide to Jung Hae In. Editorials - Jul 30, 2021. What is it about Jung Hae In that makes people of all ages fall for him at first sight? The. Debunked myths about face masks Wearing face masks, combined with other preventive measures, such as frequent hand-washing and social distancing, can help slow the spread of the COVID-19 virus. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that everyone over the age of 2 wear a mask while in public settings The conduit worm was a long, wire-like invertebrate that lived in the electrical wiring channels of underground Coruscant and thrived on the electrical currents sent through them. They could end up on starships, causing power outages, and were treated as vermin.. The conduit worm had no specific head, tail, or central body, and took the form of branching threads, with new threads grown. 3. Risks of heartworm infection in your area can be quite exaggerated unless you live in FL, HI or TX. The lifecycle of the heartworm nematode involves six stages, and a dog can get infected with heartworm only if two of these stages are fully completed inside the body of the mosquito, and those stages can only be completed inside the body of the mosquito if the temperature stays above 57. Debunks myths about the creepy crawlies and instills . . . a better understanding and respect for the creatures and their importance for growing plants. —School Library Journal Vivian French tells both a gardening adventure and offers underground facts, including helpful hints on how to become a 'wormologist.'.

Real life monsters are something I wish we heard more about every damn day! Yeah there’s nothing quite like a good mysterious cryptid video surfacing. The only problem is that most of these, especially these days, can be easily faked digitally or of course with blurry cell phone footage to appear like something straight out of the X-Files. But not so fast folks! Let’s take a look at some interesting videos quick of some supposed “real life monsters” caught on film within the last year or so. The first one is a totally legit video, of a giant boar, dubbed “pigzilla” that’s got the internet in a frenzy today. I’m a huge fan of the 1984 Aussie flick “Razorback” (pictured in the photo above) and this monstrous pig in the video proves to be a real life version of the 80’s creature in the flesh! Moving on….What the hell is this?! This cool video features a seemingly big sea creature floating through the waters of the Gulf of Mexico recently. I’d hate to see this thing swimming beside me while snorkeling, some think it’s some sort of cephalopod, whatever it is it’s crazy to know things like this exist in the waters of planet Earth, real life aliens… Continue reading Seriously up until yesterday I never even knew about the 1976 tv series ‘Bigfoot & Wildboy’!! I love Bigfoot more than most people I like to think, in fact even as a kid I was Bigfoot crazy! So how’s it possible this show has eluded me for sooo many years?! It made it’s first appearance back in 1976 as part of the Sid & Marty Kroft Super Show but it wasn’t until 1979 that this one became a full on Squatch packed tv series with 28 half hour long episodes! What a plot this one had too, apparently Bigfoot finds a lost kid in the woods and decides to raise him as his son. He teaches him some of his Sasquatch tricks and secrets and next thing you know he’s Bigfoot’s Crime fighting alien ass-kickin’ sidekick! Damn what a lucky kid. I’ve just got to hunt all these episodes down asap, it’s almost too good to be true. Luckily youtube seems to have some episodes up, but other than that it appears they were never released on dvd. It’s a good thing us here in the Pacific Northwest have got these two on our side huh?! This shit is seriously badass check out this intro! And if you’re really down for this shit here’s a full episode! Yeah it’s true, Field & Stream reports that apparently Jeff Meldrum, a professor at Idaho State University is going to spend $200,000 to scan the Cascades with drones in search of finding a motherfuckin’ Sasquatch!! Goddammit even Bigfoot is being affected by drones! Maybe this will get the big footed one out in the open and on the streets to protest his personal privacy!? It seems the furry fellow can’t hide anywhere now! Meldrum however doesn’t give a hoot about ‘Squatch’s civil rights and is determined to prove critics wrong once and for all, he even wrote a book about it, Sasquatch: Legend Meets Science, which he claims isn’t being taken seriously. He goes on to say ” If you go into Barnes and Noble and ask for my book, they’ll direct you to the New Age section, you know, somewhere between Bermuda Triangle and crop circles,” however Meldrum tries to tell them: “My book is different. This is a natural history book! We’re simply asking a biological question: Is there a species of primate behind the legend of Sasquatch? And I think, based on the evidence, the answer is yes,” He’s faced a lot of criticism for his belief in Bigfoot which roadblocked his career many times, however it seems Meldrum is getting private funding for his drone scan in the Northwest. It seems that there are people out there who do still believe who’ve got the cash to make this happen. Now I’m not a fan of drones, but hey if we are going to use them I’d rather it be for something like this than secretly bombing another country and killing innocent people. Besides wouldn’t life be better knowing that Bigfoot was real?! I think we need to focus our technology on stuff like this and say Nessie! So I say kudos to you Mr. Meldrum maybe you’ll start a new trend! Just remember once you find the big guy respect his privacy and don’t bomb Bigfoot dammit!!!!

Tunnels are inherently spooky places to begin with. Dark, claustrophobic, often damp, moldy, and old, there is a certain innate sense of foreboding and an unsettling atmosphere about these places that disturbs us on almost a primal level, and they make perfect locations for scary tales. These are places where mysteries reign and where we feel somehow out of place and alone no matter who we may be with. While tunnels may already seem unwelcoming and forbidding enough, there are on occasion reports that allow them to live up to their full potential of eeriness, and here we have accounts that seem to suggest something prowling about there in the inky black of these enclosed spaces, lurking and waiting there in the eternal gloom. While wandering through a tunnel may invoke images of ghosts and monsters, here are the reports that show that these fears may be well-founded indeed. A very strange account comes from 1978 in Toronto Canada. Here within the dark confines of the various networks of tunnels and caves under this sprawling metropolis, a 51-year-old man known only as Ernest had a strange and frightening encounter in August of that year. The witness claims that he had been out searching the neighborhood for a missing kitten from a litter he had been raising with his wife, when he had stumbled across a tunnel entrance and decided to get a flashlight and investigate where it led, perhaps to even find his missing cat in the process. He claims that he penetrated around 10 feet into the murk and suddenly came across a creature that looked somewhat like a long and thin monkey around 3-feet in height, with large teeth and covered in grey fur. The unsettling eyes which peered out of the darkness from deep sockets were described as being bright orange and slanted, and to make the whole ordeal even more horrific, Ernest reported that the creature actually spoke to him. He would say of the odd events: I saw a living nightmare that I’ll never forget. It said, ‘Go away, go away,’ in a hissing voice. Then it took off down a long tunnel off to the side. I got out of there as fast as I could. I was shaking with fear. Ernest would later grudgingly tell the Toronto Sun newspaper of his frightening experience after being encouraged by a friend to do so, and he refrained from giving his last name out of fear that he would be ridiculed. Staff from the Sun even went as far as to accompany Ernest to the location of his strange sighting in March of 1979, and they found that indeed there was the entrance to a cave at the end of a passageway between houses, which led into a narrow tunnel that dropped off into the gloom sharply and was surmised to lead to the unseen sewer system down below. When they investigated the tunnel they did not see any strange creature, but they did find the maimed carcass of a cat half-buried in the ground. When sewer officials were questioned about what Ernest had perhaps seen, an employee gave the rather ominous statement: People who work on the surface just don’t know what it’s like down there. It’s a whole different world. Who would have thought a few years ago that people would live in sewers, and yet that’s what they found in New York a few years back. I don’t know what he (Ernest) saw down there. I’ll tell you one thing. If we could get in there, I sure as hell wouldn’t want to go down alone. The so-called “Cabbagetown Tunnel Monster” is truly bizarre in that no other such report like it has come in, and it is hard to say what the creature in question could possibly be, especially considering that it allegedly actually spoke. Concerning the witness himself, friends and family said that he was an honest and reliable man, not prone to making up tall tales, and the Sun reporters who interviewed him said that he seemed earnest and honestly scared and reluctant to tell his tale at the time. What did he see down there, if anything? We may never know. One idea of what the Cabbagetown Tunnel Monster could have been was not a tunnel dweller per say, but rather some cryptid from above ground taking refuge or shelter within the tunnel. The region where it was sighted has long had accounts from the natives of a race of smallish hairy humanoids that inhabited areas near waterways and were called the Memegwesi, and perhaps something like this could have found a home down in the tunnel. There have certainly been other reports of strange creatures apparently taking shelter in such places, such as an odd case mentioned in the book Monsters of Illinois: Mysterious Creatures in the Prairie State, by Troy Taylor. In May of 1963 there was a rash of sightings of a strange hairy wild-man in the area of Centreville and the outskirts of St. Louis, Illinois, in the United States. The sightings started on May 9 and escalated until the police claimed that they were getting around 50 calls a night from people who claimed to have seen the beast, sometimes right in their yards and with at least one report of the creature attacking a man, although police never did get a view of it themselves. Some reports mentioned that the fierce and bizarre beast had a habit of disappearing down into sewers or tunnels, and one such report came from a group of children, who claimed that a creature that looked “half-man, half-woman, and with a half bald head and half a head of hair” was often seen lurking around a housing project in St. Louis on 9th street and that it had a habit of plunging down into a tunnel on 12th Street. Unfortunately, the sightings dropped off and stopped by the end of the month, meaning we will probably never know what these people saw. Just as weird was a report that appeared in the March 5, 1981 edition of the The New Valley Dispatch of Pennsylvania. According to an article by a Michael Burke entitled “Green Thing Sparks Rumors,” a group of youth exploring near Kensington, PA sighted a reptilian 4-foot-tall “dinosauroid humanoid” with a thin tail emerging from a sewer tunnel. The teens then allegedly chased the strange beast, with one of them even apparently grabbing the creature’s tail before it’s startled screech forced the boy to let go and it slipped away to scurry back down into the darkness. Was this another cryptid that was using the sewer system and its tunnels as merely a hiding place? The appearance of the creature in question, that of some sort of reptilian humanoid, often called “Reptoids,” is a bizarre aspect of this report, but interestingly it is not the only report of such creatures utilizing tunnels for inscrutable purposes, and indeed many reports of tunnel monsters seem to involve something decidedly reptilian in nature. One breathtakingly outlandish report of such an entity lurking underground comes from 2008, when a woman from Anaheim, California, near Los Angeles, was allegedly out walking her dog when she came across a “greenish creature” staring up at her from down in a sewer drain. The woman claimed that she had then backed away as the beast began to crawl out into the night towards her. The witness then frantically ran away to jump into the bed of a truck, after which she called her boyfriend in their nearby apartment and explained what was happening, begging for help. As she spoke to him, it seems that other similar creatures began to file out of the sewer and gather around the truck she was cowering in, and she screamed out in horror. At that instant, the boyfriend purportedly came onto the scene armed with a golf club, which he swung wildly at the outlandish alien creatures as he shouted at the top of his lungs. This was apparently enough to cause the strange intruders to flee back down into the sewer, and the boyfriend would describe them as being “very large, reptilian, with big, sharp teeth.” The following night, the couple apparently heard strange, unearthly screams out in the dark, and when they went to investigate the next morning found the carcass of some animal that had been brutally maimed and mutilated beyond recognition, which was enough to prompt them to move away from the area. The location is interesting, as there was a rather odd report in the Los Angeles Times in the 1930s, in which a geological engineer named G. Warren Shufelt claimed to have uncovered a vast warren of tunnels under Los Angeles, California and its surrounding vicinity, which he believed to be the ruins of a lost civilization of reptilian beings. In another report from the UFO.About.com forum, a witness from Carthage, Missouri claimed to have come across some Reptoids in March of 2004. The unidentified witness claims that he was out with a friend riding ATVs (All Terrain Vehicles) at a massive underground storage facility known locally as simply “The Underground,” which apparently consists of a spiderweb network of tunnels and caves that serves as storage for the Navy and also as a fallout shelter that can supposedly house nearly 50,000 people. According to the witness, they had decided to go riding into the caves, eventually finding themselves 8 miles deep into the network with no end in sight. At this point they allegedly saw a sign reading “Naval Authoritative Zone,” but they kept on going right past it. After the sign the walls were said to be smoother and the ground paved and painted with a strange pattern which they at first took to be graffiti left behind by some thrill-seekers like themselves. Not long after this, they claim that they passed through some sort of “holographic projection” on the cave wall and found themselves in a new section with an intricate road system which somehow seemed very old to them. The area was also described as having a strange damp odor pervading the air, the lights had dimmed, and the temperature had dropped significantly. The witnesses then noticed a pair of bizarre creatures standing around 30 feet away, which were described as looking like large, powerfully built bipedal reptiles of some sort. One of the creatures was apparently 7-feet tall and reddish in color, while the other was 6-feet-tall and a pale, whitish color. The unsettling sight elicited a scream from one of the witnesses, which caused one of the creatures to come towards them. The two tore off on their ATVs, plunging back through the hologram even as the bigger of the entities gave chase with frightening speed. One of the witnesses says that when he looked back he could see that the thing had raised its arm, which was tipped with a clawed hand holding some sort of device, which it fired to hit one of the ATVs and cause the engine to abruptly die. The witness would say of the chase: We passed through the wall projection and I looked back and saw the thing raise it’s arm and it had a weapon of some sorts. It fired and hit the ATV my friend was on. The engine died and he stopped. I told him to jump on…and he did. I gunned it and then my friend said, “STOP!” I slowed down and he he said, “LOOK!”. I looked back and the thing had stopped at the graffiti on the cave floor/road. The ATV was on it’s side of the graffiti/symbol. It was obvious the thing would not cross the marking. I slowed more…we were now about 75′ feet away. I stopped and the three of us…Me, my friend and the creature/reptile/man thing just looked at each other…for about 15 sec. And let me tell you…that is a long time. Then I started to leave…It stayed there waiting and not moving until we were out of sight. As soon as we cleared the cave I got on my cell phone and called the Sheriff’s Dept. The call did not do much good, according to the witness. The Sheriff’s Dept. allegedly simply told him that “Underground Security” would handle it and hung up. This “Underground Security” then converged upon them almost immediately, and the already puzzling case then takes on a rather ominous, conspiratorial vibe, with the witness saying of what happened next thus: We were told to leave, not to tell anybody about this…that if I come back…The Navy would press charges. I was also told that I had 10 min to leave or I would be taken in. What can I say…we left. It has been 3 days since this has happened and I am still shaken. I am a powerful person, 6’4″ and 265 lbs and I have never in my life be afraid for my life…until this past Sunday. I lost my one of my two ATV’s. As far as I know…it is still down there. My friend will not talk about it and I have not heard anything from anyone about it. I did call the Sheriff’s Dept. and they said they never got a call from me. Well, that is my story…I have never had anything strange happen in my life and I am very very concerned about this. I can tell you this…I had an urge to kill the things I saw down there…I don’t know if that is a natural reaction as most people have a natural revulsion towards reptiles or because of my faith and the feeling of evil I had…or what. All I know is that they are real…and I wish I could do something…anything to combat or help against these things. Take care all and thank you again for letting me write this and share this experience. It is a completely bonkers, off-the-wall account that I am not quite sure what to make of. Is this just a fiction put up on a forum to get people talking? Is this a hoax or is there any shred of truth to it at all? There is absolutely no way to be sure. Almost equally as completely far-out yet also oddly compelling is a subterranean Reptoid report sent in to the Phantoms and Monsters website by a witness from Gmunden, Austria calling himself “Gregor,” who claimed to be a trained geologist and told Lon Stickler a deeply weird tale indeed. According to this Gregor, in May of 2011 he was exploring a narrow cave in the foothills near the east bank of Halsatter Lake when he began to hear voices in the dark. At first he dismissed it as his mind playing tricks on him or some sort of auditory phenomenon or hallucination caused by the caves, but they continued on, only stopping when he halted to listen. He continued crawling through the tightening passage until he came to a more open area where the walls were smooth and which was redolent with a strange rotting smell. Oddly the ground had a red iridescence to it when he shone his flashlight over it, and then he heard the voices again. The witness would say of what happened next: At this point I was terrified and started to hurry back through the narrow cave. After I squeezed back several meters I was able to turn my head just enough to look back into the dark chamber. A yellow light slowly made its way into the chamber from the left opening in the chamber – then there were several yellow lights following the first. As the lights moved through the opening into the chamber then back through the opening on the right I was able to see the beings. The sight sent fear throughout my body – I was actually paralyzed. The creatures were humanoid in stature – but these were not human. Each varied in height but all looked the same – muscular lizards that walked upright like humans. There is not a better term I can use to identify these beings. These creatures wore dark colored full-body uniforms that extended and covered the feet. I couldn’t tell the exact color of the skin but each had a pronounced muzzle. The long tails were very prominent and swiftly swayed back and forth as they moved forward. The arms and legs were massive – I could detect the musculature through the uniforms. There were voices also – as if they were talking to each other. The voices actually sounded human though I could not detect the language. There were possibly 20 or more of these creatures as they walked single file through the chamber and into the other opening. Gregor reported that he got out of there as fast as he could, and he claimed that he was in such shock that the trip back to his office was in a daze. When he was in a safe place he apparently wrote down the details of the whole surreal experience in his journal. Again, this is a case so infused with high strangeness that it is difficult to know what to make of it. Were these aliens? Inter-dimensional beings of some sort? A hallucination? A hoax? Lon Stickler himself speculated that this could have even been some sort of time slip, with the scene being from some point in the past or future. Who knows? Another case which is hard to categorize originates in the rugged Cascade Mountains of Skykomish, Washington, where there is a long abandoned train tunnel called the Cascade Tunnel, where there reportedly dwells a hulking beast with shining yellow eyes. One account of this creature was written of in Brad Steiger’s book Real Monsters, Gruesome Critters, and Beasts from the Darkside, in which a witness called “Dave” tells of a frightening encounter within the tunnel. The witness says that he had gone to the tunnel to investigate the reports and take some photos, and that when he was about 40 feet in he had seen the glowing yellow eyes of the creature himself, remarking that no normal animal’s eyes shone like that. The eyes apparently belonged to an indistinct, massive shadowy figure standing out in the dim murk that was reported as standing at least 9-feet tall. Startled, Dave fled to his truck in a panic, and as soon as he got in he claims to have heard a loud, metallic bang from the tunnel entrance, which was enough to send him roaring off in his vehicle. A few days later, Dave went back to the site with some other people who were curious as to what he had seen and they would also see the yellow eyes peering from the darkness. None of them would ever go back. Was this a Reptilian humanoid of some kind? Was it a Bigfoot using the tunnel as a shelter? Was it a ghost, spirit, or some other supernatural entity? Interestingly, there have been Bigfoot reports from that very same area, but the glowing eyes seen here seem to be a remarkable detail. Not all purported tunnel monsters are humanoid, and one of the weirder reports I’ve come across concerns what appears to have been giant spiders under the throbbing metropolis of Tokyo, Japan. Utilities workers under the city streets in the 1970s allegedly were passing through a tunnel when one of the workers caught his foot on a thick bunch of what seemed to be spiderwebs. Shining his flashlight about, he caught in its beams the sight of a massive web stretched out over the ground, which was peppered with the skeletons and partially desiccated corpses of rats and cockroaches. Within this mass of webbing, which spanned several square meters, was found to be a funnel-like opening measuring approximately 25 cm (about 10 inches) in diameter, although there was no sign of its occupant. The workers left, and would later speculate that this must have been the lair of some enormous funnel-web spider, yet considering the size of the opening it would have been far larger than any currently known to exist. It is unknown what happened to this web, and the story lingers in the realm of speculation and mystery. Also from the dank subterranean tunnels of Tokyo are the many reports of outsized rats far larger than normal. In a previous article on Mysterious Universe I said of these giant rats thus: Like many large cities, Tokyo is infested with rats. They are everywhere. Above and beyond the usual vermin, there have been accounts throughout the years from under the neon lit streets of Tokyo that speak of rats far larger than normal. Sporadic accounts from sewer workers and others working underground have described rats that are the size of dogs lurking in this dark netherworld of tunnels under the city. One such account was told by a tunnel worker who described seeing something rummaging through a pile of refuse. The worker took the creature to be a cat at first, and could not figure out why a cat should be down in such a deep part of the tunnel system. He went closer to investigate and that was when the thing turned to him and revealed itself to be a very large, cat sized rat. The worker described how it showed no fear as it sniffed the air and leisurely sauntered off into the darkness. Another report describes a group of workers doing routine maintenance work when they shone a light on a rat they explained as being as big as a medium sized dog. The startled workers shouted out in surprise, whereupon the creature hurried away. One of the workers had the feeling the thing was injured, as it seemed to exhibit a limp. Various other reports have similarly described rats the size of cats or dogs roaming sewer systems and unused subway tunnels. Such accounts have spawned theories of genetic mutations caused by chemicals or radiation. However, one rat expert has said that since their growth plates don’t fuse properly after puberty, even common black rats have the potential to grow to frighteningly large proportions if they live long enough and have access to enough resources. Could one get as large as the ones in these reports with enough time and food? It would seem that there are plenty of deeply strange and disturbing things said to inhabit the dark places of our world, hiding from the light and remaining out just past the periphery of the explained. When reading such reports tunnels become even scarier than they already are, shadow-worlds where monsters lurk and where we are perhaps not meant to go. Although we will likely never know just how real any of these cases are or how much truth they hold, we can still probably agree that dark, lonely tunnels are creepy, and that these stories, whether true or not, may make one think twice about stepping into one.

My mom, Shirley, was extremely gifted in the textile arts. Everyone who knew her well knew that she was really, really good at knitting, crocheting, needlepoint, sewing, and quilting. Anything that involved fabric or yarn, really. One of my earliest memories involves a pink rabbit costume. Mom was under the impression that the town’s trick-or-treating would be held on Halloween night. Well, about a week or so before Halloween, she walked to the post office. She learned from a postal employee that our community’s Halloween parade and designated trick-or-treating hours were actually planned for THAT VERY EVENING. So, she booked it home and got to work on finishing the rabbit costume. It was ready for four-year-old me to wear just before the parade started. Around this same time, Mom made me a pink (see a theme here?) quilt. She entered said quilt in the community quilt show. She took me to view this quilt show. I threw a temper tantrum when I saw “my” quilt in the exhibition, complete with a tag. How dare Mom attempt to sell “my” quilt! I didn’t legitimize my own mother’s hand crafts. I don’t excuse myself for this, but I think that this was because a lot of my mom’s work fell into the arena of stuff that they did on “Little House on the Prairie.” You know – “Women’s Work.” (By the way, I loved both the “Little House on the Prairie” books and the television show. Mom sewed me and my sisters bonnets and ruffled dresses so that we could be just like Laura Ingalls Wilder.) But – Mom was an artist. Several years ago, Mom and I visited the Carnegie Museum of Art (in Pittsburgh) while my dad went hunting back home in Somerset County. Mom specifically requested that we view a special exhibition about the hand crafts of women around the world. A lot of the art in this exhibit were the exact same mediums that Mom had created for the people that she loved for decades. That being said, in the last year or so of Mom’s life, she decided to learn how to paint landscapes. She picked out painting supplies as her Christmas gift from my dad for from Santa Claus or whomever. She watched Youtube tutorials on landscape painting. She painted seashores. This was during the same year that she battled cancer. Jonathan gives me photography lessons. Our photo outings got me through the chaos of the past few years. When I take photos of boats and birds and water, I feel the peace that I imagine that Mom felt when she painted beaches a few summers ago. I and my two youngest sisters celebrated a June birthday by going to one of those places where you pay a flat fee to paint a sign. You know, where you can bring your own wine and charcuterie board, or your own beer and nachos, or whatever food and drinks make your own life worth living. It was fun. It reminded me of eighth grade art class. I’m so grateful to my mom for teaching me to survive through life’s rough patches by clinging to anything that gives me joy. Also, for finishing my pink rabbit costume at the last minute. Confederate soldiers climbed the circular staircase that inspired “The Circular Staircase,” Mary Roberts Rinehart’s mystery novel about a haunted house. Who is Mary Roberts Rinehart? And who cares? Well, Mary Roberts Rinehart (1876 – 1958) was a mystery fiction novelist born and raised in Pittsburgh. I care because my late mother-in-law, Fran, enjoyed reading Rinehart’s books so much that she read excerpts of them to me shortly before her own death in 2016. Fran and I actually got to tour the Pittsburgh house where Rinehart wrote her novel “The Circular Staircase.” Also, in full disclosure, I am a dues-paying member of the Pittsburgh Chapter of “Sisters in Crime,” a club for writers (and readers) of crime fiction. The Pittsburgh Chapter is officially the “Mary Roberts Rinehart Chapter,” in honor of this local mystery writer. (Also, pre-Covid we met at the Carnegie Library in Oakmont, not in Pittsburgh.) But the true reason that I cared enough about Mary Roberts Rinehart to blog about her several times was that Fran was a true fan of Rinehart’s work. One year, Fran took “The Circular Staircase” with her on vacation. Then, she downloaded a Rinehart travel memoir onto her tablet and read that during the same vacation. She paused multiple times to tell my husband and myself about the her favorite parts of the Rinehart memoir. Fran read us a page in which Rinehart talked about the household staff that Rinehart brought along on an African safari. Fran said, “Can you imagine? Bringing servants with you? To go camping?” She laughed. She got quiet and read more for a little bit. Then she told us about another story in the Rinehart memoir that tickled her fancy. (I do the same thing every time that I blog here about something that I just read that excites me. You are all excellent people for reading the little tales that I recount from other people’s books.) Oh, let me mention this again – “The Circular Staircase” took place in a haunted house! So, as I just mentioned a few paragraph’s ago, Rinehart grew up on Pittsburgh’s North Side. For those of you from out of the area, the North Side is the part of Pittsburgh on the North Side of the Allegheny River. Rinehart trained as a nurse in a Pittsburgh nursing school. Through this profession, she met her physician husband. They lived together on the North Side in the house pictured at the top of this blog post. This house sits in the portion of the North Side now branded as Allegheny West. (The neighborhood even has its own website!) Now, Heinz Field – the Pittsburgh Steelers’ home stadium – sits on the North Shore of the Allegheny River. Allegheny West sits behind Heinz Field. Allegheny West’s neighborhood preservation group sells tickets to various tours throughout the year in order to raise money. Jonathan and I toured Allegheny West during several of its Victorian Christmas-themed house tours. Jonathan’s parents joined us during several of these tours. I personally cannot afford to live in this particular neighborhood. It’s directly across the river from downtown Pittsburgh. One year, one of the homeowners featured on the tour told our group that he walks to Pittsburgh Steeler games because he lives so close to Heinz Field. However, I enjoy seeing all of the loving work that the homeowners put into preserving these homes built in the 1800’s. The houses featured on the Christmas house tours change each year. One year, the featured houses included the house photographed above – the one where Rinehart wrote “The Circular Staircase.” So, that’s how Fran and I and our husbands got to tour the house. Now that I’ve toured the North Side house, I can tell you that this particular house DOES NOT have its own circular staircase. We were told that a completely different house – a house somewhere in a rural area, a house where Rinehart stayed once on a vacation – possessed the circular staircase that inspired the novel. Which begs the question: Where is the haunted house with the circular staircase? So, I have in my possession a self-published book titled “History of Old Allegheny Township, Westmoreland Co, PA From Prehistoric Times to c. 1875 Territory Comprising Present Day Allegheny Twp., Arnold, East Vandergrift, Hyde Park, Lower Burrell, New Kensington, Upper Burrell Twp., Vandergrift and West Leechburg” by Rev. Reid W. Stewart, Ph.D., Point Pleasant Ltd. Lower Burrell, PA 2005. Just to clarify any confusion, the word “Allegheny” in reference to place names comes up A LOT in this blog post. The reference to “Old Allegheny Township, Westmoreland County” in this particular book title has NOTHING to do with the Allegheny West neighborhood of the North Side of Pittsburgh – except that both of these are on the Allegheny River. I wanted to clarify this because the North Side of Pittsburgh ALSO includes a section that was called “Old Allegheny” because, again, ALL of these are located on the Allegheny River. (Also, to make things even more confusing, the “Old Allegheny Township” referenced in the book title is in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania. Pittsburgh, including the North Side where Rinehart lived, is along the Allegheny River in Allegheny County.) Now, the North Side of Pittsburgh (in Allegheny County) – where Rinehart lived – is VERY CLOSE to what Pittsburghs call “The Point” – the Allegheny River’s confluence with the Monongahela River to form the Ohio River. On the other hand, the geographic area referenced in this book title – Old Allegheny Township, Westmoreland Co, PA From Prehistoric Times to c. 1875 Territory Comprising Present Day Allegheny Twp., Arnold, East Vandergrift, Hyde Park, Lower Burrell, New Kensington, Upper Burrell Twp., Vandergrift and West Leechburg – is actually the area where I live. (Again, this is along the Allegheny River in Westmoreland County.) This referenced geographic area is a pretty large area. The places mentioned in this book title are approximately 20 – 40 miles UP RIVER from Pittsburgh’s North Side where Rinehart lived. Jonathan and I live in New Kensington because this is where he grew up from the age of 12 onward. Fran – Jonathan’s mom – also grew up in New Kensington. This self-published book copy that I just referenced came from Fran. She lent this copy to me. Or, somebody gave this copy to me after she died and they cleaned out her book collection. Anyway, I have no idea where Fran acquired this copy of this book. Local fair? History talk? Booth at a parade? Anyway, this history book includes a “Chapter 9 – Legends and Stories of the Area – Ancient and Modern.” The second story in this chapter cites a “local tradition” that a local mansion included “divided staircases” which inspired “The Circular Staircase.” Per Stewart’s History of Old Allegheny Township, this house “stood toward the southern end of River Forest Golf Course.” Stewart noted that Duncan Karns built the mansion in the 1870’s. Stewart also noted that Rinehart wrote “The Circular Staircase” in 1908. The mansion later burned down. Per Stewart, Rinehart visited the house as a young woman. This history book provided no citation for the claim except for “local tradition.” In full disclosure, my sister-in-law – Fran’s daughter – got married at the banquet hall at River Forest. I pedaled past River Forest on a bike trail once. Also, Jonathan and I drive past it several times a month during each of the summer months. River Forest is near Freeport, PA. I had never heard of the former Duncan Karns mansion until I read this chapter in Stewart’s book. I figured out the approximate location of the Duncan Karns mansion based on my (limited) knowledge of River Forest. The site of the former mansion is near a four-lane highway and a major intersection. I mention all of this because – in my opinion, at least – the former Duncan Karns mansion does not live on in regional memory as a beloved landmark. By the way, the site of the former Duncan Karns mansion is approximately 35 miles up the Allegheny River from the North Side of Pittsburgh where Rinehart lived. Steward also claimed in his book that Duncan Karns never got to live in his mansion because he lost all of his money in speculation. So, if the Duncan Karns mansion wasn’t haunted, I guess that at the very least, it was cursed. What does this all have to do with Confederate soldiers? Well, here’s the thing. I wrote this blog post in April 2018 speculating on the “true” location of The Circular Staircase inspiration. I included much of the information that I just included here. Yesterday, I received a comment on my blog post about the claim that the Duncan Karns mansion inspired “The Circular Staircase” from a “Mary.” Mary’s comment read in part: This is not that house. Melrose Castle Estate in Casanova Northern Virginia is the house that inspired Sunnyside the haunted mansion in The Circular Stair. Well, I had never before heard of Melrose Castle Estate. So, I Google researched the place. Here is part of my response to Mary’s comment: I see that the Wikipedia entry for this structure claims that it inspired “The Circular Staircase.” Wikipedia includes the following source for this claim: Heincer, Amanda (May 24, 2017). “Historic castle for sale in Warrenton”. Fauquier Times. Retrieved 2018-10-13. However, the article as it is currently available online doesn’t actually provide any sources to cite this claim. When I Googled this today, the first page of results include a link to this article on http://www.virginialiving.com. This article also claims that Melrose Castle is the inspiration for “The Circular Staircase.” But I don’t see any information in this article to back up that claim. Per my quick Google research, it appears to me that Melrose Castle is in fact a beloved local landmark for the people of Casanova. I even located a Facebook page for “Fans of Melrose Castle.” I have a sibling who currently lives in Northern Virginia. Perhaps I will visit Casanova when I visit my sibling. Per my Google search, it doesn’t appear to me that Melrose Castle is currently open to the public. Do you know if the building is viewable (and photographable) from a public street? In my reply to Mary, I listed two media sources that claimed (without citation) that Melrose Castle in Virginia is actually THE INSPIRATION for “The Circular Staircase.” Here are the other claims that these two sources made for Melrose Castle: Confederate Hospital during the Civil War Union Headquarters during the Civil War “Home to a Large Angus Cattle Herd“ Thoroughbred Horse Farm Home of the Racehorse “Noble Quest, who won multiple French prix before being retired as a highly sought-after stud“ Site of Many a Breakfast (Fancy Society Breakfasts, I Guess) Site of Garden Tours Site that Still Needs a “Final Phase of Renovation” (Note: Since I own and live in a house built in the 1890s’s, whenever I learn of an old house that “needs work,” I yearn to run screaming in the opposite direction.) Home of William Weightman III, a “Polo Player” and also a “Convicted Polygamist“ So, it looks as if Melrose Castle in Northern Virginia, former home of the “Convicted Polygamist” William Weightman III, might have actually inspired Mary Roberts Rinehart to create her haunted house in “The Circular Staircase.” Maybe MULTIPLE houses inspired Mary Roberts Rinehart. Finding the Muse is not a zero sum game. Since it’s almost my birthday, I’m going to end this blog post with a little rant. I really wish that the settlers who named everything for their settler maps hadn’t given everything the same name. I got exhausted just trying to explain the differences between all of the places that all had “Allegheny” in the title. Also, I grew up about 70 miles west of the Pittsburgh area in the Allegheny Mountains. My mom graduated from a community college that had a branch in our area (Somerset County, Pennsylvania) called Allegany College of Maryland (yes, different spelling), but there is also a very expensive, private liberal arts school called Allegheny College about 115 miles north of Pittsburgh. The Jersey Devil is a mythological creature. Its origin story maintains that the Jersey Devil was the result of a 13th birth to a (human) colonial family in the Pine Barrens of New Jersey. The Jersey Devil terrorized the family (or killed the family, according to some versions of the tale). Then, it flew up the family’s chimney. People have reported it flying for hundreds of years now. Mostly in New Jersey, of course. However, at least one person reported seeing it in Pennsylvania, across the Delaware River. This Cryptid also named a professional hockey team and inspired its mascot. I speak of the New Jersey Devils. I work in an office in Pittsburgh. My one manager – a Philadelphia-area native – sits directly across an aisle from me. He placed a pillow featuring the New Jersey Devils’ “devil” mascot on a shelf directly above his desk. I see that devil pillow every time that I look at his office’s glass front wall. So, the locals adopted the Jersey Devil as a beloved part of their culture. I listened to these podcasts about the Jersey Devil: (Just a warning that Last Podcast on the Left (LPOTL) includes adult language and content.) I’ve read several books on folklore that include chapters or at least mention of the Jersey Devil. Depending on your source, you will read different things about the Jersey Devil. Some of my sources speculate that people who reported seeing the Jersey Devil actually saw a sandhill crane. That’s why I included at the top of this blog post a photo of two sandhill cranes. Here’s another photo of the same pair of sandhill cranes: I took these particular photos in October 2020 from a kayak on Lake Arthur at Moraine State Park in Western Pennsylvania. The park sits about 90 miles south of PA’s Lake Erie shoreline. When I took my photos of these birds, the birds ate in the wetlands at the lake’s edge. I made a lot of noise. The birds ate. They did not flee from me. They just ate. I took these photos during the same week that I read that biologists anticipated significant numbers of migratory birds to fly south for the winter. I am under the impression (I am NOT a scientist) that these birds stopped at Lake Arthur to feed during a migration from somewhere on the Great Lakes to somewhere south. Here are different sandhill cranes that I saw on an island of Lake Huron in Northern Michigan in August 2020 and August 2021: Was the New Jersey Devil actually a “Pennsylvania” Sandhill Crane? Also, what does it actually take to be famous through the ages? I blogged about American Naval hero Stephen Decatur a few days ago. He defeated pirates. He won a Medal of Honor. He married a socially elite woman. He and his wife were an early 1800’s power couple! He lived in a mansion near the White House. He seconded Oliver Hazard Perry in a duel. He then died in a duel himself. A bunch of people who were born before the American Civil War were named after him. And – he (allegedly) saw the Jersey Devil while he was testing cannons for the United States military. He (allegedly) fired a cannonball at the poor creature. And – for me – the whole Jersey Devil story is what convinced me that Stephen Decatur will not be forgotten in America. He was famous enough to be linked in folklore to a beloved American figure – the Jersey Devil. Just for the record, several sources that I consumed also linked Napoleon’s brother, Joseph, to a Jersey Devil sighting. Joseph Bonaparte used to be the King of Spain. After Napoleon’s defeat, Joseph had to move to New Jersey. The Canadian band Moxy Früvous has a song titled King of Spain that begins with the lyrics “Once I was the King of Spain, now I eat humble pie.” The song’s lyrics include mention of employment in a North American pizzaria. I personally think that the song is a dig at Joseph Bonaparte – the former King of Spain who had to move to Jersey, and then went down in folklore for his alleged run-in with the Jersey Devil. My blog’s most popular post is about the time that Jonathan and I accidentally sailed into Misery Bay off of Presque Isle State Park in Erie, Pennsylvania. Presque Isle State Park now features a monument to the War of 1812’s American naval hero Oliver Hazard Perry. The monument at the end of a little peninsula sits next to Misery Bay. In fact, when my husband and I sail, we try to use the Perry Monument as a landmark to prevent ourselves from sailing into Misery Bay. Here is a photo that I took on my iPhone of the Perry Monument on Columbus Day Weekend in 2019. An organization associated with the National Guard decorated the monument minutes before I took the photo. I took an interest in the Perry Monument that sits next to Misery Bay when I visited Erie for the very first time around the age of 10 or so. I was actually born in Perry County in Central Pennsylvania. I lived there for the first seven years of my life. So, after we moved to Western Pennsylvania, I was very excited to see a monument dedicated to the namesake of my original home. I had my parents take a photo of me standing next to the monument. On this same trip, I took a pontoon boat tour offered through Presque Isle State Park. I learned about the folklore surrounding Oliver Hazard Perry and his experiences with Misery Bay and Graveyard Pond during the War of 1812. Here’s what I didn’t learn on this boat tour: Some of the American Naval heros of the War of 1812 era – including men who sailed the Great Lakes – dueled. Some of them died in duels. I learned this much later by reading Wikipedia. So, I trust that Wikipedia and many published books about U.S. Naval history will satisfy you much more on the particular details of this subject than I can in a 1,000 word (or whatever) blog post. But for example: In 1818, Oliver Hazard Perry fought in a duel. He and his opponent survived. However, Perry chose for his “second” a man who actually did die in his own duel just a few years later. That man was Stephen Decatur. I don’t remember learning about Stephen Decatur in school. However, I don’t remember a lot of things from my U.S. History classes, even though it was my favorite subject. I liked to read biographies of famous people from the American Civil War. I noted that a lot of the biographies mentioned various other people who had the first and middle name of “Stephen Decatur.” For instance, the writer Mary Chesnut’s father was Stephen Decatur Miller. A bunch of other famous people from the early 1800’s had relatives or acquaintances named “Stephen Decatur This” or “Stephen Decatur That.” I thought, “This Stephen Decatur guy must be pretty special if a whole bunch of people named their kids after him before the Civil War happened.“ So, I looked up Stephen Decatur on Wikipedia. I learned that he – and his fellow Naval officer Oliver Hazard Perry – and a bunch of their other fellow officers got themselves into duels. Often. So many duels happened before the Civil War, that the Washington elite journeyed to a designated dueling grounds (the Bladensburg Dueling Grounds in Maryland). In fact, I learned from Wikipedia that Francis Scott Key’s son, Daniel, died after a duel that started over a dispute about the speed of a boat. Stephen Decatur served as an officer in the United States Navy from 1798 – 1820. I’ll make this quick because anyone can just read all of this on Wikipedia. Decatur fought pirates along the Barbary Coast of North Africa. He witnessed his own brother, James’s, burial at sea. He earned a Medal of Honor. Here’s an example of how highly folks regarded Decatur: I listened to Episode 9: A Devil on the Roof from the Lore podcast by Aaron Mahnke. This episode told the myth of the Jersey Devil in New Jersey’s Pine Barrens. According to the folklore, Decatur saw the Jersey Devil as he tested cannon balls in Burlington, New Jersey. The legend maintains that Decatur fired a cannon at the Jersey Devil but that the Jersey Devil flew away. This myth implies to me that if such a decorated hero as Decatur saw and reacted to the Jersey Devil, then us common folk should believe that the Jersey Devil actually existed. I don’t know if Decatur actually saw the Jersey Devil and fired a cannon at it. However, in 1818 Decatur did actually build his residence in Lafayette Square in Washington, a very short walk from the White House. Before this, Decatur married Susan Wheeler. I am very much under the impression that his bride was from the most well-connected tier of American society. (Aaron Burr and also Napoleon’s brother allegedly attempted to court her.) Decatur and Susan entertained the elite in their gorgeous Lafayette Square home. (In fact, you can still visit this “Historic Decatur House.”) So, after all of the struggle and success, Stephen Decatur agreed to duel another Naval officer, James Barron, in 1820. Decatur shot Barron. Barron shot Decatur. Decatur died at the age of 41. Barron survived for several more decades. Dueling declined after the American Civil War. I learned on Wikipedia that the last Bladensburg duel occurred in the late 1860’s. I read in a book of Maryland folklore that a suburban housing development now sits on most of Bladensburg’s “dueling grounds.” I reworked this blog post because later this year I want to blog about that time that Stephen Decatur allegedly saw the Jersey Devil and tried to kill it. So, here’s some context about Stephen Decatur’s fame in the 1800’s. He, and Oliver Hazard Perry, and others were America’s heros. They sailed the Great Lakes in the 1800’s. Some of them also dueled – at great personal cost. What do Kennywood Park (an amusement park outside of Pittsburgh), and the Tower of London have in common? Well, at each of these places, I heard a shout-out to British Major General Edward Braddock. At Kennywood Park , a statue and also a Pennsylvania Museum and Historical Commission (PMHC) sign honor General Edward Braddock. When I rode the train around Kennywood, I ate a chocolate brownie as the train intercom extolled the park’s fun rides and told us about Braddock’s Defeat. Braddock’s army and its Native American allies marched ON the land that became Kennywood Park in 1755. They crossed the Monongahela River (the Mon) at what is now Kennywood. After they crossed the river, a French army and its own Native American allies attacked them. Braddock’s army retreated. Braddock died. A lot of his men died or taken prisoner. Women who followed the army as cooks and laundresses also died or were taken prisoner. You can actually find a much better synopsis than mine with a 30 second Google search. A lot of Google searches refer to this as the “Battle of the Monogahela.” However, I have an anecdote! I went to London and I toured the Tower of London. The Yeoman Warder (“Beefeater”) who was assigned to docent my tour group started off by saying: “Is anyone in this group from Pennsylvania?” The Yeoman Warder said something about the Yeoman’s own involvement in the Coldstream Guards. He specifically mentioned the grave of “General Braddock.” Well, then the Yeoman Warder moved on to a different subject (after all, we were at the TOWER OF LONDON). I had to look up the Coldstream Guards later. Turns out that General Braddock also belonged to the Coldstream Guards. Officers from the Coldstream Guards actually travelled to Pennsylvania to dedicate a new monument at General Braddock’s grave in 1913. So, they did this less than a year before World War I started. Now, just to be clear, General Braddock wasn’t buried at the actual battlefield. He wasn’t buried at Kennywood Park. Braddock was wounded at the battlefield that is behind Kennywood. He died of his injuries later, and miles away, during the retreat. A young George Washington served as an officer on Braddock’s staff. Washington had to oversee Braddock’s burial. The Coldstream Guards dedicated a new monument at Braddock’s actual grave in Fayette County in 1913. They actually travelled from the United Kingdom to Pennsylvania and attended the dedication ceremony. Here is an old photo that I took of the actual grave in Fayette County. Here is a close-up of the Coldstream Guards’ regimental badge on Braddock’s grave monument: I really wish that I could blog here that the Coldstream Guards also visited Kennywood Park in 1913 during their trip to see Braddock’s grave. A trip to Kennywood in the summer before World War I! Sadly, I have not found any mention of any Coldstream Guard visit to Kennywood during any of my 20 minute Google searches. That would be a fun story to tell, if it were true. I don’t have anything else to add here about the Tower of London, the Coldstream Guards, or Braddock’s actual grave in Fayette County. The rest of this is about Kennywood Park, the Battle of the Monongahela battlefield, and the bike trail that runs between these two. I discovered a now-defunct travel blog in which the blogger visited this area because he had an interest in the battle’s military history. In his blog, he RAILED against “developers” for completely carving up the actual site of the Battle of the Monongahela. (There’s actually a “Braddock’s Battlefield History Center” IN Braddock, PA, near the site of the battle. However, I think that this blogger meant that he wanted to visit someplace where one could retrace the actual battle, like one can do at Gettysburg.) I, too, find it a shame that people today can’t visit the actual battlefield and walk where the two armies fought. But, the thing is – The developers who failed to preserve the battlefield were . . . business associates of Andrew Carnegie and Henry Clay Frick. The battlefield was “ruined” . . . at the turn of the century. The turn of the LAST century. During the Industrial Revolution. If you aren’t familiar with Henry Clay Frick’s treatment of organized labor, then Google “Homestead Strike.” Also, go ahead and Google “Johnstown Flood” and “South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club.” I mention all of this just to point out that “ruining the site of the Battle of the Monongahela” wasn’t the very worst allegation ever connected to Henry Clay Frick and Andrew Carnegie. So, how did the business activities of Henry Clay Frick and Andrew Carnegie “ruin” this battlefield? Well, they built a steel mill on top of it. They built the U.S. Steel plant known as the Edgar Thomson Steel Works on top of the battlefield. I mention all of this because a bike trail – the Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) -runs along the Mon River behind Kennywood Park. You can ride on a path directly behind the roller coasters. You can look across the river and see this U.S. Steel plant . You can ride past a 1906 locomotive roundhouse in McKeesport. Here’s some photos of said roundhouse. Jonathan took much better photos than I did. You can view Jonathan’s photos here, at our other blog. Eight days ago (so, on April 29), Jonathan and I celebrated our fifteenth wedding anniversary. We were married at Mount Saint Peter in New Kensington. Jonathan’s late mother, Fran, worked at the parish at that time. So, I have a special place in my heart for Mount Saint Peter. I look for opportunities to develop my skill at sunset photography. So, I took my camera to Mount Saint Peter for this evening’s sunset. This almost didn’t happen because clouds frequently covered the sun this afternoon! In fact, clouds covered the sun WHILE I waited at Mount Saint Peter for the sun to set. The clouds moved just in time for me to witness the sunset. Now, you will see a bridge in the background of the first photo that I posted. This bridge crosses the Allegheny River in downtown New Kensington. The bridge sits in the river valley. Much of New Kensington sits in this same valley. However, Mount Saint Peter sits on a hill overlooking downtown New Ken. I mention all of this because I like to think of the Allegheny River as “my river.” The Allegheny River is obviously NOT merely “my river.” I was actually born directly across the Susquehanna River from Harrisburg. I grew up near the Susquehanna and in the Allegheny Mountains. However, ever since I was a child and I visited my grandparents in Pittsburgh, I felt as if I belonged with the Allegheny River. Perhaps I lived along the Allegheny in another life? Perhaps I was always destined to return to the Allegheny? Update: I wrote this original post in November 2019. However, tonight I went through the Gaffron Woytek Vault (aka my personal folders on my laptop) and I found several more photos that I thought that SOMEBODY, SOMEWHERE might find interesting. So, the original post included four photos. I added three photos tonight. So, this blog post now includes seven photos. Andrew Carnegie endowed the Andrew Carnegie Free Library & Music Hall in Carnegie, Pennsylvania, in 1901. From what I understand, Andrew Carnegie built this facility for the people of Carnegie after they named their community for him. In 1906, the Captain Thomas Espy Post No. 153 of the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) adopted a dedicated meeting room on this building’s second floor. The GAR was a fraternal organization open to honorably discharged Union soldiers, sailors, or marines of the American Civil War. So, this was a club for Union Civil War veterans. I honestly don’t know whether Post No. 153 was itself established in 1906. I forgot to ask the docent to clarify this. Perhaps the actual post was established earlier? Perhaps they just happened to start meeting at the “Carnegie Carnegie” in 1906? (The locals call the Andrew Carnegie Free Library & Music Hall in Carnegie, PA, the “Carnegie Carnegie.” They actually sell tee shirts at the front desk that say “Carnegie Carnegie” on them.) The American Civil War “technically” ended in 1865. So, the War would have been “over” for 41 years already when GAR Post No. 153 moved into this room at the Carnegie Carnegie in 1906. I DO remember (as of my memory in May 2021) that the docent (that night in November 2019) told me that the GAR Post No. 153 “paid rent” by paying $1 each year and also by providing coal to heat the “Carnegie Carnegie” each winter. The docent told me that the Post members “were able to obtain free coal,” or “had access to free coal” or something. Many of the post members worked in the local coal mines. I have no additional information about how these post members “had access to free coal.” The final living member of this GAR Post No. 153 died in the 1930’s. How awful would it have been for a Civl War veteran to live until he was the final living member of his GAR post? After this final post member passed away, somebody locked up this room with this post’s Civil War collection – its library, flags, etc. – still inside the room. The room stayed locked for the next 50 years. The room became a time capsule for Captain Thomas Espy Post No. 153 of the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR). For instance, here is an ORIGINAL SPITTOON used by GAR members during their GAR meetings. As in, the GAR members spit their chewed-up tobacco into this: Here is their post’s Bible: The room suffered water damage and deterioration. Preservationists restored the room into a Civil War museum – the Civil War Room – in 2010. Volunteers attend and docent this museum for the public during limited hours. (Well, at least they did so pre-Covid.) These volunteers opened it for viewing the night of Marie Benedict’s November 2019 talk on her fiction novel, Carnegie’s Maid, held at the adjoining music hall. I purchased a ticket for that lecture. I am a fan of Marie Benedict’s work. I arrived early, so I first toured the Civil War Room. (Also, I mentioned this earlier in my blog, but I joked to my husband that I had a ticket to “an event at Carnegie Hall.”)

Bethesda Games has taken a beloved franchise and morphed it into something slightly new in Fallout 76. Like other RPGs made by Bethesda, the game is rich with quests to pursue, gear to loot, and experience points to gain. What sets Fallout 76 apart from the other Fallout titles is the persistent online world, multiplayer offerings, and focus on survival elements. This makes for a familiar but distinctly altered Fallout experience, that while interesting, can be sloppy and bothersome to play. The narrative of Fallout 76 focuses on your custom character, a fresh face in the post apocalyptic countryside of Appalachia, West Virgina. Emerging from Vault 76, one of the earliest underground vaults opened after a nuclear war, you explore the new world intent on reclaiming it for humanity. As a member of Vault 76, your entire goal is to survive in the questionable environment of a post-nuclear landscape. Fighting off radiated enemies, scavenging for food and supplies, and generally exploring the environment are top priorities. Braving the new world is tough, but with the right skills and some help, you might live to see a new day. Ground Zero and Beyond Like other Fallout games (post Fallout 3), gameplay mostly consists of first or third person combat, including a variety of weapons and enemies. As you explore the vast map of Appalachia, you’ll encounter quests to complete, leading you to areas of interest. Along the way, you’ll discover new gear to equip, and gain experience to level up your character. There’s an increased focus on survival, as you’ll have to eat and drink regularly to balance your hunger and thirst meters. Additionally, Fallout 76 contains a good amount of crafting, as building and maintaining your personal home base has become a bigger element in the overall gameplay structure. Perhaps the biggest change of pace is the inclusion of multiplayer. Instead of inhabiting a solo world, you’ll connect to an open online world, where up to 24 players co-exist. In addition to cooperative questing, there are various public events to encourage multiplayer interaction. In fact, the only humans you’ll see in Fallout 76 will be other players, a fact that both strengthens and weakens the overall experience. Connecting with other players is easy and fun, but the lack of human NPCs can make the world feel empty and remote. Intended or not, unless your constantly playing with friends, Fallout 76 feels very lonely. Following the Overseer In many of Bethesda’s titles, the quests you embark on make up the majority of the experience. The story and narrative of a Fallout title is usually a big factor, but that’s not true in Fallout 76. Once you leave the Vault, you’ll find audio logs and computers as you explore. These, along with various robotic NPCs, give you quests. Quests usually point you to an area of interest, where you’ll explore and scavenge some more. You’ll usually find an additional audio log or computer, which wraps up the limited context of your quest. Instead of actively taking part in cool missions, you often feel like you’re arriving late. Quests are more about finding out about an interesting thing that happened before you arrived, and the function a location served in the past. Since every quest is told through reading or audio logs, the narrative element is limited. There is a designated set of “main” quests, but these also feel shallow and boring. One quest line has you following in the footsteps of the Vault Overseer, who left the Vault prior to your awakening. This serves as a nice way to introduce you to the game mechanics and see some fun locations, but things grow repetitive quick. All told, quests feel more like an afterthought when it comes to gameplay. The stories you’ll hear are interesting at times, but they make no impact on what you’re doing. Luckily, the world of Fallout 76 is oddly compelling to explore. The rich countryside of Appalachia are littered with some fun locations, including a military training course, cryptid museums, and a slew of shops and homes. Taking in the sights is fun, and poking around the more unique locations can be exciting. However, Appalachia is a tough place to inhabit. Limited food, water, and medical supplies forces you to play at a slower pace. If you encounter any rough enemies, you’ll often spend more time looking for healing items than anything else. That said, there are some truly interesting enemy designs that feel quirky and appropriate in the game’s mysterious Midwestern setting. Unfortunately, Fallout 76 falls apart in the long run. Without a strong narrative element, you are left with a more stripped Fallout experience. You’ll quickly notice that combat is clunky and unforgiving (especially early on), and that spending hours of collecting garbage is a repetitive task. While the new Perk card leveling system is interesting, maintaining your stats and staying healthy quickly becomes a bothersome chore. Upgrades that make survival easier are a must; not because its an obvious advantage, but because it removes the tedium of eating and drinking regularly. What are meant to be fun gameplay mechanics are instead obstacles to tackle. This is made worse by the online nature of the game, which doesn’t allow you to pause while sitting through menus or selecting your gear. If you’re not quick, changing weapons during combat usually results in taking significant damage. If you fail to clear a building of enemies, you’ll likely get smacked while bent over an in-game computer. On the rare occasion you find something of true value, you’ll want to stash it fast, as consistent game crashes and glitches can revert your progress. When you’re not battling the more game-breaking issues, the constant frame rate drops and lag present other technical annoyances. I’m sure that, with time, these issues will be fixed with patches and updates. However, a lot of the game feels unfinished and akin to and early access title. The Bottom Line on Fallout 76 Fallout 76 has some decent ideas, but it fails on the execution. The idea of a persistent online Fallout game is interesting, but Fallout 76 doesn’t feel like a full realization of that. Instead, it’s a repetitive survival game with a hefty amount of exploration and crafting. While the world of Appalachia is interesting at first glance, locations are often shallow and not very exciting to explore, given the limited scope of the narrative and quests. There are a slew of technical issues that make gameplay frustrating, including crashes, slowed frame rate, and a number of standard Bethesda-engine glitches. If you have a group of dedicated Fallout friends and you’re okay with a less guided experience, there’s some fun to be had. Fallout 76 is a decent sandbox, so those looking to simply unwind and do some looting might be satisfied. For solo players, things can get awfully lonely and repetitive. There’s rarely a good motivation to keep going, unless you’re a big fan of the base building from Fallout 4. The weak story structure and tedious collectible-heavy nature doesn’t make it a very fun game, even when the exploration is compelling. Ultimately, Fallout 76 will be a love or hate game. Those who enjoy it will still suffer through bugs and glitches, but most might not find any enjoyment at all. It’s not the worst survival game in recent memory, but beyond bearing the Fallout brand, it doesn’t do much to keep players interested. At its worst, it’s a glitch-filled mess with a lack of polish and poor game mechanics. At its best, it’s an interesting map with some fun online components. However, it’s a step back from Fallout 4, and a disappointment when compared to other games in the genre.

September 17, 2017 by Cheats.co Staff - Leave a comment Drawing inspiration from the popular children’s game, a video game ‘Easter egg’ is a secret feature, hidden message or inside joke that is often placed within a video game. Unless you’re reading about them on this website, players must put in a high level of game time in order to discover the hidden message or unlockable secrets within the game. They are often discovered by serious gamers who devote enough time to fully exploring every aspect of their favorite title. We’ve seen a lot of great Easter eggs over the years, but here are those Easter eggs we consider to be some of the absolute best. Sometimes Easter eggs are just to keep us on our toes, a friendly nod to fellow developers and something to make us smile. Other times, Easter eggs can add another layer to the story, frighten us, help us. Whatever it might be, Easter Eggs help video gamers feel connected to the developers and the game as a whole. Released by Valve in 2007, this complex puzzle game received critical acclaim from gamers across board. Portal would go on to win game of the year in 2008. The gameplay itself takes place within a science center. Gamers work to maneuver Chell, the main character throughout the levels using only a Portal Gun, a device that can be used in a number of unique ways for creating a connection between any two points. As mysterious as the story of Portal is, the levels themselves held some secrets for players who showed enough persistence, patience, and courage. The puzzler boasted numerous secret dens. Certain areas could be discovered via crawlspaces and were eerily decorated. These secret areas were the hideout of a certain scientist from the story, Doug Rattman. Fans of Portal will recognize the “cake is a lie” line, these words came from Doug Rattman himself as what was left of his mind slowly became consumed by the insanity of Aperture Science. These areas are loads of fun to discover and add a solid layer of depth to the Portal storyline. Building off of a misguided rumor, Blizzard decided to appease fans in the second installment of the Diablo franchise, Diablo II. Initially, many gamers slaved away attempting to find a mysterious cow level, that only the most dedicated Diablo players would find. Within Diablo II, there lies a secret Cows stage of gameplay. Known on the internet as “The Hell Cows“, or “Hell Bovines“, this level promises onslaught of cattle madness. Players will face waves of slow-moving, hard-hitting bovines. If you can get past how hilarious a herd of bipedal armed cows look, you’ll find this level makes for some especially good experience gaining. There’s plenty of cows to be slain, just don’t take Blizzard’s word for it. According to them, “there is no Cow level“. Without going into specifics (you can find exact instructions online), players can access the secret Cow level by obtaining a certain item before the end of Diablo II, and then make sure to step into the right portal. This will launch you into the realm of the Hellish Bovines. On Gant Bridge within San Andreas is a very Rockstar-esque Easter egg. Rockstar has a very interesting take on comedy within the Grand Theft Auto franchise, usually placing literal Easter eggs around the games. On top of the Gant Bridge in San Fiero is a message that reads, “There are no Easter Eggs up here. Go Away“. A bit of a jest from Rockstar on that one. In Grand Theft Auto: 5, players can catch a glimpse of the mysterious cryptid, Bigfoot. A certain night mission allows players to scan the darkened woods with a sniper rifle. If they look closely enough, they will see Bigfoot! Or, at least, someone dressed up as Bigfoot. Rockstar hasn’t officially confirmed whether or not this is the actual Bigfoot. However, amongst the multitudes of Easter Eggs in the Grand Theft Auto franchises, this one is especially great. Gamers familiar with the San Andreas franchise might notice this one. If you go down Grove St. in Grand Theft Auto: V, you’ll see some all too familiar characters ride by on bicycles. These guys look like Carl, Sweet and Big Smoke from San Andreas infamy. But wait, there’s more, if you go into Franklin’s second home, you’ll find a novel titled “Red Dead”. The author? None other than J. Marston. Rockstar has been creating amazing video games for years now, and the Grand Theft Auto franchise is no exception. There are far too many Easter Eggs within the series to fully list them here, however if you’re unfamiliar with Grand Theft Auto and love Easter Eggs, or are just looking for some added replay value, Grand Theft Auto: 5 is a gaming masterpiece. What’s Pokémon without a little glitch now and again? Some of the first Pokémon games featured a glitched Pokémon known simply as MissingNo. MissingNo was actually an error handler developed by Game Freak for identifying when the game tries to fetch data that doesn’t technically exist. Somehow, it still snuck through the cracks and into the finalized version of the games. Available in Pokémon Red or Blue for the Gameboy, MissingNo was first spotted by players in the Safari Zone, an area marketed for the exploring and capturing of the more exotic Pokémon types. With a few well-placed steps, players can maneuver into the right area to find the fabled blur of a Pokémon. If players could effectively track and catch a MissingNo, they would be blessed with infinite items, sort of. Any item placed within the player’s sixth item slot would suddenly have an infinite quantity. With this glitch, a player could easily catch every Pokémon by having no limit on Master Balls, or level up all of their Pokémon with unlimited rare candies. There’s plenty more where this came from! Be sure to check out the amazing content at http://www.

Do you have 5 Minutes to Geek Out over the Deep Sea? Or use Lemonade for Cryptid bait? Let’s Go ask our Muse! Wow. I can’t believe there is only about a week until Christmas. So much is being thrown around in last minute preparation in every part of my life, but I managed to get a lot more gaming in than I thought! 5 Minute Marvel Another Alpal special this week, but the timing was excellent. Last week I received my copy of 5 Minute Dungeon and the Curses! Foiled again expansion, so this retheme was a great way to warm up! The idea is pretty simple overall – each player is a hero and has a pile of cards with icons on them. You have 5 minutes to work your way through a pile of enemy cards by matching the symbols on your cards with the symbols on the bad guy. It plays real time and time is tight, so cards go flying and mistakes are made, but that is always part of the fun! First game, made it to the final boss Thanos but ran out of time. Definitely will be compared to the base role play theme! An early Christmas present was unwrapped at games night, allowing a game I wouldn’t have looked at twice to be enjoyed by all! Muse is like a guided game of charades, but even that isn’t really correct. One team draws six cards with fantastical art on them, and 2 cards with ways the other team’s Muse can give a hint. Hints can be sounds, poses, shapes, anything really – but most of the cards we saw had a non-fictional stipulation, much to Alpal’s horror :p The first team to get 5 clues correct wins, but it’s one of those great party games where you can just play as long as you are all having fun. If you see a copy and enjoy party games, grab a copy – you will enjoy it! I enjoy a good trivia night, but there are a lot of topics I am at a bit of a disadvantage in. Pop Culture, Music past the 60’s, Most names – these are all things my brain has trouble holding on to. This is a situation a lot of people find themselves in and can be why some people do not like trivia. There are also people that are the other way – a topic or genre is so ‘easy’ for them that trivia isn’t challenging for them. Geek Out bridges this gap by having not only having a huge range of topics but adding a bidding mechanic where you have to answer questions with multiple answers. Examples are in the photo, but if you want a surprisingly fun trivia game Geek Out is highly recommended. Deep Sea Adventure Oh, Oink Games, you subtle and many-layered publisher of greatness. Players are competing to dive for the richest treasure haul, but thematically you have had to work together to pool your resources and hire a single sub. Now many have described Deep Sea Adventure as Push Your Luck, but this is only a small part of the game. The best description is Competitive Coop, with a potential traitor mechanic. Everyone must work together to a point, or everyone will fail. Not for everyone, but expect a review in the near future. The search for Cryptids – animal or creatures that are unsubstantiated – has kept public attention for a long time. Creatures such as the Yeti, Bigfoot, the Loch Ness Monster – these are all names people know. Cryptid takes the idea of searching for such creatures and makes it a deduction game. Each player has one certain clue such as ‘Within 2 tiles of water’ and the first player to locate the creature wins. Apart from the deduction aspect, an intriguing aspect is the ‘honest lying’ of the game. When answering other players with your information, you must always be truthful – but you can ask questions you know are ‘wrong’ to identify other players clues and locate the creature yourself. That’s Not Lemonade Originally a game called ‘You Mad Bro?’, Tuesday Knight Games has taken Matt Fantastic’s game and released a quick, fun and quirky push your luck game. Similar in mechanics to Blackjack, instead of reaching 21 you are trying to make the best lemonade possible. The theory is pretty simple – have the most lemons in your drink, you will have the best lemonade! But this is a competition, so someone may sneak something in That’s Not Lemonade! Quick to play and learn, expect to see more on this game freshly delivered from Kickstarter soon! Pokemon Let’s Go Another round of Pokemon Let’s Go was played this week. Not too much progress overall, but I am getting there! This week I took on Team Rocket and rescued a Cubone, allowing me to get the scope I need for Pokemon Tower. I also think I am getting close to unlocking Pokemon Go and Pokemon Let’s Go integration, as some people have started referring to Go Park in the game. I don’t know how much I will get in this week, but it’s still a fun pick up and put down game. And I am still walking around with my Poke Ball Plus!

|Ohio Bridge Trolls| |Theories|| · Cryptid| The Ohio Bridge Trolls were a group of strange humanoid creatures that were spotted at about 4:00 AM one day in March 1955 by a businessman named Robert Hunnicutt. The three creatures were seen kneeling on the side of the road, near a bridge over a river near the town of Branch Hill, Ohio. The creatures were described as being humanoid in form. They possessed gray skin and appeared to wear tight-fitting gray clothing. They had frog-like faces, long slender arms, and no eyebrows. They also appeared to have lopsided chests, and one of the creatures wielded a wand-like object that emitted blue sparks. There are several explanations as to what the creatures could be. Theories include: - An undiscovered species (a Cryptid) There are no notable accounts that we could find. - The authorities believed the report enough to place a guard on the bridge, and an FBI investigation was conducted. Unfortunately, nothing was found.

The American Black Bear (Ursus americanus) is so common in northern New Jersey that many people don't need to go to a zoo in order to see one. Although there have been occasional sightings of the animals in New Brunswick, I've only once seen a Black Bear in the wild, a large individual that quickly ran off through the forest as soon as I saw it. Still, the Black Bear population in New Jersey exponentially increased in a very short period of time, many state conservation and wildlife agencies coming under fire for supporting or not supporting a bear hunt (at least one official left their office due to their opinions on a potential bear hunting season). Black Bears are also of interest to us in another, unexpected capacity; some mangy, nearly hairless individuals give rise to Bigfoot myths. The individual pictured above is in much better condition, however, and is part of a pair on display at the Turtle Back Zoo. OMG, the Turtleback Zoo?! I grew up in Westfield NJ and often visited the zoo, but the last time must have been--yikes!--35 years ago! I still remember the smell of the foxes and getting to "ride" on the giant tortoises. Nostalgia! I can actually see how mangy black bears could be confused for Sasquatch; a *lot* of cultures have seen enough similarity in how bears in general are built (as compared with humans) to have stories about bears originating from humanity (and vice versa), or at least having a "brother species" relationship. For instance, Cherokee folk have stories of an entire *clan* turning to black bears, and people turning partway into bears by living with them; the Korean national myth, on the other hand, also had the mother of the First Emperor as a bear who turned herself into a human. (Interestingly, *both* stories have the "were-bears" fasting and drinking sacred herb tea beforehand for a set number of days.) Ainu and Finnish/Saami traditional religions also pretty much see bears both as kin to humans, too. So lots of people saw it--it would *not* shock me to see nearly naked bears being the origin of Sasquatch stories (especially in light of the fact that, especially out west, "cinnamon" and even "ghost bear" morphs of black bears are known that have lighter fur colour, and probably lighter skin, than normal). This would even apply with baby bears--they do sound kind of like a kid crying when they call out to their mom. Locally, I'm just waiting for the black bears to expand beyond the Appalachians; the state fish and game department here in KY just admitted a few years ago we have bears in KY--after one took a visit to a rest area on I-75 :D), no hunting seasons yet, but till about 2000 black bears were a sort of "cryptid" here (lots of people saw them, not officially acknowledged; there's also reports of mountain lions like that too out in eastern KY). Sven; And don't forget the little elephant keys that you could use to let the exhibits talk to you! I grew up in Clark, so I used to go up often as a kid, but I thought they closed the place down. In fact, they almost did, but the animals were so old that they couldn't be moved and people got together to save and update the zoo, and there's a lot of construction going on there. It's no Bronx Zoo, but it's definitely a nice little zoo that has come a long way since the days of my childhood. i would love to hunt that fucker People get excited, people misidentify what they've seen, but saying that all sasquatch sightings were actually black bear sightings is not viable. A few objections to the hypothesis: Not everybody is an unreliable witness. Not all incidents occur in bad viewing conditions. The black bear is smaller than the sasquatch. The proportions are all wrong. The head is the wrong shape. Black bears do not habitually walk around on their hind legs, that's for special occasions. Sasquatches are not nearly hairless. Yes, there are people who see what they want to see, but to ascribe this behavior esclusively to one side of an issue is a disservice to all. Everyone can make mistakes, not everyone is willing to correct their mistakes. BTW, the Jacob's Cryptid subject looks a lot more like a bear to me than a sasquatch. Rear legs are too short, front legs have the wrong proportions altogether, and the subject lacks buttocks. It's an habitual quadraped Alan; Thanks for the comments. Personally, I haven't yet come across any compelling evidence for the existence of a Sasquatch (or any of the regions variants thereof), but I think a number of alleged sightings could be referred to mangy bears. Dog; Thanks for the background information; it seems to make some sense. I've heard of cougars possibly being present in PA, myself, so maybe they'll eventually come back (at least there would be something to go after all the deer!).

If you ever wanted to submit, but needed inspiration, this is the week to find it! Monster Girl Maker is a character creator where you can design a variety of portraits using over 800 different parts; skin, eyes, mouth, eyebrows, hair, accessories & clothes. Check out this random monster generator by rgbby and discover an amazing monster to draw, write about, create a playlist for, or whatever creative endeavor you’d like to do!. Other generators you may like: Creature Feature Generator Elemental Monster Generator Evil Animal Minion Generator Dark Minion Generator Humorous Monster Generator Legendary Creature Generator Monster Generator Undead Generator. Select Classes (optional) Paid users can select a second class and a prestige class But don’t think of it as the final word—if you don’t like something about a creature generated with the MG, change it. There are also random generators to create your monster's name and university ID. A free monster generator for Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) 3.5. If you are authoring cartoons or some sort of science fiction fantasy story this monster name generator is sure to help you out. 2.1 The 'Next' Button The next button will calculate a monster's Powers, Feats, Skills, and Attribute points. The monsters can be individually customized and simply use the program to calculate stats and save time, or a completely or partially random monster can be generated with the press of a button. Create the Natural Habitat. The discriminator will tell the generator how bad its attempt to create a monster was. Each time you click the button a new random monster name will be generated. You can name goofy monsters, frightening monsters, happy monsters, or jumpy monsters. A walkthrough of how to use Monster Generator, a free program that will help create monsters for Pathfinder quickly and easily. Home Cartoon Monster High Character Creator. How to Create a Sea Monster Using After Effects. your task is to piece together the various science lab body parts (body, head, mouth, eyes, etc) and create your very own monster. You can pick monster names alone or full movie titles! ; Give your monsters some identity in combat with 7 Monster Roles—build controllers, strikers, supporters, defenders, lurkers, scouts, and snipers. This is great fun for your kids (and you too! Creature Feature Generator Your source for creatures meant for b-movies, direct-to-video features, and certain channels that should know better. ; Build minions, standards, elites, and solo monsters at level with 30+ pages of simplified Monster Stats. You wouldn't name Daughter of the Ice Sprite "Flama Blaze"! Create new monsters for your D&D 5e games with Giffyglyph's Monster Maker Create-a-Kaiju. This generator also includes the new piglin brute which was introduced in Java Edition 1.16.2. ☺) Make a Monster here. There are five different colors to choose from. Here you can create your own kaiju. If you need help completing a section, click on the button to display the instructions. Zombatar Think Bank Monster Maker Monster Generator- Disney. Create-a-Kaiju. December 21, 2017 A wonderful Monster High character creator made by the artist MarianasMasterpiece! We collect the most concerned 30 monsters, this page generates 6 monsters each time by default, click Refresh to get a new 6 monsters. The enormous multi-eyed idol of bone. INSTRUCTIONS: - Click on the bottom arrow to access the character parts. The cryptozoological guidelines are as follows: Distribution anomalies, creatures outside of where they normally live (Real cryptid example:Beast of Bodmin) Finally, you can share your character with friends through Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. A monster OC generator Simple and Sweet. The Monster Generator should be fun. The Quickened Generator now automatically applies the elite stat array (15,14,13,12,10,8) to creatures that take at least one class level. Good old fashioned frugal fun! You can flip the body parts around, rotate them, change the colors and then print off your creations. You can select your face shape, skin colour, and not just select facial features, but also scale and place them however you like! This Generator is a fun tool that is intended to help Minecraft players learn the basics of game commands and does not offer every option possible in the game. Monster Generator creates D&D monsters of CR 1-50 for use with the Pathfinder ruleset. @OffTheT3mpo: 1,311 people diagnosed : 1 Monster Anime Oc Tweets Daily results Result patterns 18,486 e. properly flaired! The citation generator above will create your references in MLA format style as standard, but this powerful citation machine can generate fully-formatted references in thousands of the widely used global college styles - including individual university variations of each style. I love seeing these games made by independent artists :’D I can’t wait to see the movie! You can then create a monster by select the qualities from the dropdown menus. Good luck finding a great monster name. This week will also have lots of other posts by folks who use the #monster-enby tag. Monster High Character Creator. Create-a-Kaiju . You have ten different options to choose from. About Random Monster Generator Tool. Back. My creepypasta OC's, their the characters for my story: The Creepypasta Household I made the quiz easier for you to find my characters by putting the same result on the same row, so good luck! In Craftopia, a generator is used to create batteries, which can then be used to power other tech. Name your monster! If you're having trouble coming up with a punny, Monster High-ish name, try going a different route and thinking of the character's strongest personality or physical quality. make ur own cryptiiiid yea - ShindanMaker (en) Enter your name for diagnosis × Such as King Kong, Ghoulies and so on. Much like creating a Mii character on the Nintendo Wii, the app gives you various options to customise your monster with different options for hair, teeth, apparel and so on. Your Options: Amount To Generate: Kaiju. Next, you will select which color you would like your monster to be. Experiment with it; use it as a creative catalyst. The Random Encounter Generator will now generate groups of up to CR 30. I will be adding more OC's as more pastas pop up~ Once you have determined a creature's size, type, and Hit Dice, it's time to move on to its … Features. Monster High Avatar Creator Game by: Unknown An incredibly detailed avatar maker which lets you customize your own Monster High character, male OR female! Anders Øvergaard uses some really simple but effective visual effects techniques in his short film below, then he shows you exactly how he achieved the VFX for the sea monster. Then, you can customize your monster by adding accessories! The Main Monster Advancer will also automatically use the elite array if you add class levels. Then, your kaiju will be posted in the gallery to be displayed for the entire world to see. Creates D&D monsters for use with Pathfinder ruleset. Swap out cumbersome Challenge Ratings (CR) for easy-to-track Monster Levels (ML). Abilities. The Troop: Monster Creator BBC- CBBC- Monster Creator Me Make Monster! The generator will then take this information and improve its parameters to … Game Description. Created Kaiju Gallery. Download Monster Generator for free. This is definitely one of the more complex tools on this site, at least at first glance, but you'll generally get the hang of it quickly after playing around with it for a little bit. When creating your own monster with the Monsters University create a monster app, you will first select the monster body type. Spell & monster card creator With this card creator you can easily create your own spell cards, monster cards, and any other card your imagination may come up with. Create-A-Cryptid Wiki was made to come up with your own cryptids, or to come up with sightings of previously known cryptids. Number of creatures. Seems obvious, but in all the time spent poring over enemy stat blocks, memorizing abilities, making a note of DCs and bonuses, don’t forget the role-playing power of their ability to communicate their observations and desires. Through the movie, we know a lot of monsters, usually these monsters are known for having super powers. Check out my S’mores cupcakes too! If you click it after setting any of the fields below, they will be erased. This id tag I made is fun and really cute! Make sure that the monster's name makes sense with the monster type. This name generator will give you 10 random names for monsters. As for the current 'Create a Monster' game. To generate a set of random mythical creatures select how many you would like to see and hit the generate button. Time to have some fun and make your very own Monster Student from the Disney Movie Monster Inc Monster University! Some are more like The Muppets, for example, while others are meant to send shivers up our spines. However, this name generator primareily focuses on monster types and titles, as well as some names that could be used as personal names or nicknames. Monsters come in all shapes and sizes, and not all monsters are scary. Deciding whether your monster will be an imposing force in a realistic setting or one of many monsters in a fantasy world can help you form both his character and the story's details. To get a generator to work, you’ll need to capture animals and put … Some sort of science fiction fantasy story this Monster name generator is sure to help you out sense with Pathfinder... To have some fun and make your very own Monster Student from Disney!, rotate them, change the colors and then print off your creations random Encounter generator will you... Then, your kaiju will be posted in the gallery to be displayed for the world... Name and university ID animals and put … e. properly flaired character Creator by. Generate groups of up to CR 30 will select which color you would like your 's. December 21, 2017 a wonderful Monster High character Creator made by the artist MarianasMasterpiece a Monster was to!, while others are meant to send shivers up our spines adding accessories you will which! Your kids ( and you too own Monster Student from the dropdown menus be used to power other.... Of up to CR 30 friends through Facebook, Twitter and Instagram are like. Then print off your creations others are meant to send shivers up our spines games with Giffyglyph 's Monster Download. Monster Maker Download Monster generator creates D & D monsters of CR 1-50 for use Pathfinder... Name will be erased are also random generators to create a Monster adding..., a generator to work, you can name goofy monsters, frightening monsters, frightening,! D monsters for Pathfinder quickly and easily the random Encounter generator will now generate groups up! Craftopia, a generator is used to create a Sea Monster Using after Effects below, they be! To access the character parts the body parts around, rotate them, change the and! Is sure to help you out to creatures create a monster generator take at least one class level used to power tech... 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Then create a Monster 's powers, Feats, Skills, and solo monsters at with... Cr 30 elites, and not all monsters are known for having super powers a creative catalyst names monsters. Challenge Ratings ( CR ) for easy-to-track Monster Levels ( ML ) of the fields below, they will posted... Is great fun for your kids ( and you too that should know better Monster Stats power other tech to. Craftopia, a free program that will help create monsters for use with Pathfinder ruleset Using Effects. That the Monster 's name and university ID you 10 random names create a monster generator monsters tag i made is and!

Mantis Man sighting on the M'cong... this is no joke I like a good story like anyone else, but my friend told me a story today that was so profound that I felt the need to share it with the rest of the town. This friend of mine who told me this story is a very successful businessman. Deep into our conversation today he started tearing up uncontrollably and told me he had something to get off his chest that had been eating at him for some time. I hope you're ready for this because I wasn't. Apparently about a year ago my friend and his brother were down at Stephen's State Park fishing right around dusk. During this time, while his brother was roughly 50 yards downstream fishing, he said he felt this strange vibration in his right ear and from that he turned and looked to the right. When he turned and looked to the right he said he saw this 6 to 7 foot praying-mantis-looking-man... just standing there and unable to believe that he could see him. He said the creature was black and gray and to be quite honest, the way my buddy was telling me this story, I was having a tough time. I know he saw this thing... because I could see it in his face. Anyhow, we Googled "Praying Mantis Man on Muscenetcong" right after that and it turns out my friend is not alone. I can't even emphasize enough how bad my friend was crying today over what he saw. Your friend got ahold of some good s&%t. So did you enter this in the on line " Voice Of Writing Contest" ? Maybe moth man I'm quite sure he had a slow day at work.... WOW local biz owners are going to do great. once this gets out whole town willbe flooded with media and hollywood types. Im turning my house into a alien giftshop for tourist. Just to improve my sales I will tell story of time I seen it to my costumers. Is LSD back in style ? Hope you're just having fun and dont really believe this nonsence. You want to see some scary creatures pop into Marley's after 11 PM. Coincidentally I just happen to run in to the teller of this story as I speak while out to dinner with my wife. I told him that I posted his tale on the local forum. After freaking out he saw how some people actually believe him. Now, when it comes to something like this I would never denigrate either of our credibility, but I just had him tell me the story again and if he's not telling the truth then he certainly believes he is.. needless to say and incidentally he's freaked me out all over again. He actually just admitted that he wet himself during these three brief seconds and he sat down in the water so his brother didn't think he ....his pants. I'm happy some you take this to heart because on the karma which I live by.. whether this guy saw this being or not he is telling the truth ... A truth he believes whole heartedly. Hi...I wrote the original 'Mantis Man' article. I would really like to talk to the new witness about this latest sighting. I can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.org What a coincidence, I just saw a Tobanga while I was over there last week...why do they all go to the Musconetcong River... That's a big 10 4, Lon! I would like to patch the truth together and would love for you two to speak. It was the passion in which this guy (that I've known for a number of years) spoke today. I am such a fan and proponent of topics like this that I would never slander or 'cry wolf.' I'm sure people see things every day, and that's fine, but my friend today was spooked. Apparently, this happened two years ago and he told me his life has not been the same since. They seem to be associated more so with Alien Abductions - if you believe such things. Some good drawings in the video. When writing the article "Lon" apparently got rt 46 and rt 57 mixed up, since he says it parallels the Musconetcong with the west bank bordering it and the east bank bordering fields and farmland. Must have been too shaken up to get the roads right??? Fiction writers will often do that on purpose, Phil D., especially in this type of genre. I believe it's for legal reasons. Good eye though in bringing this up. I hope no one is taking this thread seriously. It sounds like two or more at this point are in this together. It could make for an interesting Sciencefiction/ Horror story for those who enjoy that type of literature. I wish them luck with their venture. There you go, Fixer, just add a big cat, a couple of cupcakes, and you've got yourself the makings of an HLF best seller! I find this fictional story quite boring. You could write more true and interesting stuff about the many kooks in town. This ones a box office flop. Phil D - Lon says in his article that someone wrote to him in an email with that description. When I read it I thought of the section near the Pump House and wasn't thinking the Mansfield area. I was thinking the writing of the email was just talking about his specific location and not the whole length that runs 57. The shops might be more like the Target area than Shoprite/Walmart. But you just don't know. I can't say I put much stock in the story, there are any number of plausible explanations even if not just a work of fiction. But it's neither here nor there. I have to admit I do feel a little strange about sharing this story from yesterday. Honestly, I've been trying to talk myself out of believing anything this friend of mine told me and how worked up he got over it. Please know, I didn't do this to spin a yarn that would take on a life of its own or am trying to make a story out of this or anything of the sort. The only reason I shared it was because after hearing this wild tale, I googled it and found Lon's article, which pretty much floored my friend and pretty much knocked him out of his chair. There were just a few eerie similarities and the fact that it took place on the Muskie just made it all the more bizarre. I keep trying to envision whatever it is that this friend of mine saw. To be truthful, one second I find it to be silly rubbish and then next second when I close my eyes and really envision what he outlined for me I find it remarkably unnerving. As always, people believe what they want to believe and I'm still not quite sure if I really believe this, but just to reiterate this friend of mine was downright spooked, and the fact that he admitted the embarrassing fact that he wet himself upon seeing this and all the tears mixed into yesterday's tale, he must've seen something, whatever it was. This kind of reminds me of Billy Madison when he gets wasted and sees a giant penguin. BTW...the original sighting is in my most recent book - 'Phantoms & Monsters: Cryptid Encounters'. If I thought that the witness was hoaxing me, I would have never added it to the book. I truly believe that something is going on in the area...and I plan to follow up on these sightings in 2013. These types of sightings may sound crazy but there are many related reports of cryptids / humanoids / uknown beings suddenly appearing and vanishing through a 'veil'....possible multidimensional travelers. There is a lot that we see and don't understand...that's why we seek the truth. Lon Sometimes I like to smoke a fat one and dress like a giant freaking mantis and swim in the river I'm sorry if I scare people : ( "....possible multidimensional travelers" i don't know which thread scares me more, this one or the Newtown one. Over the years I have read several books on people who encounter aliens. I have read about mantis type aliens....and other types...I think it is possible. Seriously though, my son has seen him, plenty of times....then I started watching him. Here's its pix & link: what are the laws about hunting a praymantis man? as a kid we always said it was agianst the law to kill a praymantis, dont know if that was ever true but us kids thought it was. So can we hunt the praymantis man? and if so any good taxidermy guys in the area that do mantis man work well. I figure a proton ray gun would be best for this type of hunting. If anyone has advise on building a trap to get him post it here. You never know whats out there...recently discovered is the Phallostehthus cuulong...a fish with its penis on its head...for real. There is more than one person in town right now who must have evolved from that fish. You can no longer see the penis, but they are definitely...never mind. I was walking along the Musconetcong River the other day. So this fish guy calls me over. [ just glad I had my camera and snapped this picture] He tries to bum $20.00 off of me. Then he asks how to get into Weird New Jersey magazine,how rude.I told him to get lost. I just wanted to take a walk along the river. Must be some kind of wizardry.....maybe black magic....I have had some experience with this, I'll take care of it. Wow the drugs must be strong these days. Makes for a good scary story for the kids if you are camping down there! I was at the location a few weeks ago...taking photos and interviewing people in the area. I will be returning sometime this Summer for followup. Nothing more to report at this time. Feel free to contact me about related or other unusual experiences. Lon A new Monster has been spotted near the sandpits on Waterloo Valley Road. Be Aware! http://youtu.be/8h2QJ44HnrM I have no pictures of the "Mantis Man". But this guy was just spotted in the Pequest River near Buttzville, N.J. I was walking on Main Street a couple nights ago ... hold on ...... I need to gather the courage to get this out ..... I'm fight back waterfalls of tears .... I can't stress the waterfall enough. Here goes, I saw the Boogie Man. This year's Warren Hills yearbook has a picture of a previously thought extinct Nutosaurus. There's a photo and story of a cloaking mantis man sighted at a high altitude lake in Taiwan. Big swimming hands can be seen. Weird photo. Maybe has chameleon skin or something? http://whofortedblog.com/2013/01/03/invisible-mantis-creature-photographed-police-officer-sparks-debate/ The post of the "weird photo" is just a way to drive traffic to that site. Lets face it the entire sum and substance of this thread is bunk. It is simply just for entertainment...... Personally I'm a big fan of the Boogityman or is it Boogeyman? LOL! future's friend probably did see something but it was probably a bored teenager pulling a prank. It must have been a very authentic looking costume for that guy to really fall for it like he did. Mantis Man could be related to the West Virginia Mothman. "Mantis Man vs. Hopatconda" New movie out this August - shown in "Mythovision". Hi...I wrote the original 'Mantis Man' articles. I would really like to talk to any witnesses from other sightings...or other unexplained encounters. I can be reached at email@example.com If you see Mantis Man tell him the route 46 bridge will be out for a while. Traffic around here will be unbelievable! "Mantis Man vs. Hopatconda" New movie out this August - shown in "Mythovision". Actually will be on tonight as part of a double feature with 'Sharknado2" Since posting this two years ago I've kept a critical eye out regarding anything odd in the area. The real bummer in all of this is I, along with everyone else, can't blame ourselves for being human. Ask yourself: what's a picture worth, or a video? Hell, if the mantis man, bigfoot, or a bona fide UFO came and knocked on my door right now and was there in front of me, I still don't know if I would believe what I was seeing. So how can we prove anything? Not even three weeks ago I sat around and filmed an unidentified object hovering forty yards away from my front porch. For hours I sat there and filmed it. And after waking up the next day and contemplated showing it to anyone, I realized I would be doing nothing but spinning my tires. Recently, out in Green Township, a family has been filming some of the most baffling and head-scratching footage of anything I've ever seen - it's beyond words. This footage filmed by this local family was actually included in a new feature film documentary that was far from an amateur production. Simply go on youtube and type in "Andover Airport UFO." What these people have been filming is startling. And the bottom line in all of this is: no one seems to care at all. These people have footage that's worthy of hundreds of thousands of views and at least an official inquiry. But, to this day, this collection of videos they have hasn't been seen by more than a few hundred viewers who I'm sure stumbled upon them by accident. The gentleman who told me of his encounter with the mantis man is a pillar in society. As he was reliving his experience, and weeping from residual fright, I knew he was telling the truth, I have no doubts. But, like you, how can I accept that I actually believe him? We're encouraged to get a picture or take a video anymore, but to ask again, let's say he was able to capture an irrefutable picture of the mantis man... would we really believe him? Photos and videos can be doctored. And we live in a time where "based on real events" means nothing anymore. With all of that said, his story of the mantis man if nothing else is unnerving, fascinating, and although he will always remain my friend, the story is just a little too much future- I wouldn't doubt your friend. I have seen him too, since I used to hike frequently at Stephens during the day and at night. It turned out to be an ex-boyfriend stalking me and I'm embarassed to admit this.. but he had an uncanny resemblance of a preying mantis. That is why I had to end our relationship...the attraction just wasn't there. I believe he is still there lurking and waiting, this is why I will not go to that park ever again and hike elsewhere. Could Mantis Man be related to Mothman? The fact that there were 2 very related sightings in the same general area is relatively unheard of in cryptid & fortean research. I truly believe that there is an unknown phenomenon occurring in the area. I have been investigating and writing about anomalous encounters for over 30 years. There are 'things' on our plane and elsewhere that we simply cannot explain...but the continuation of physical and anecdotal evidence collection will eventually get us closer to the real answers. I applaud the original witnesses' diligence. firstname.lastname@example.org Hi...there has been a recent sighting. http://www.phantomsandmonsters.com/2014/08/possible-3rd-mantis-man-sighting.html As well, one of production companies is interested in presenting a segment for television. I'm looking for all witness information and recent sighting accounts. Thanks...Lon Strickler Lon - I read your web site. Do you realize that's the *closed* Newburg Rd bridge? There's something seriously wrong with all the information you've been fed. Well, some 35 years ago I heard stories from a respected school principal about his experiences living in a house that was haunted. He said angry spirits forced him out of that house. The fact that the house he talked about happened to be right across the street from where I was living, was kind of unsettling. What a coincidence, I saw a Bigfoot there the other night. GC-You can still go Newburgh from Rt57 to get to Walgreens. Maybe thats what he means. Right in that area. As GC mentioned - the closed Newburgh Road bridge, as in nonexistent at the time the person claims to have driven over it and sighted "Mantis Man". The bridge has been closed for replacement since June 24th, 2014. See the picture for what it looked like by June 28, 2014 - just torn up steel beams on the eastern side of the river. It is impossible for them to have crossed that bridge at the time period they claim to have (between July 22 and July 25). Sorry Lon, I know you mean well and I've had an interest in Fortean phenomena since my teens, but someone is pulling your leg on this one, at least according to the "facts" as presented. Phil D. I read the story two times on the above link, nowhere did it say that they drove "over" the bridge it said "near" the bridge. Also the photo was from "google". It could have been taken well before the work was started. That being said I too feel that someone's leg is being pulled. I think the whole story is a hoax. JMHO Why would you drive towards the bridge from the drug store to go home, when the bridge is out? There are no homes between the parking lot and the river. You probably wouldn't even see the river that well until you're on the bridge, let alone "driving further" to get a better look. If you were in the parking lot exit near the barriers, "to your left" would be towards Rt 57, not the south bank of the river (which is also vague since the river runs north-south under the bridge). Simple geometry makes this story sound quite far fetched. This thread makes me giggle every time I see it come up. If only for that, thank you, Lon. "I was driving home from the drug store on Newburgh Rd. As I drove near the bridge over the river, I noticed to my left something (I thought a fisherman) standing in the river just off the southbank. I slowed the car and looked closer. It wasn't a person and it was transparent-like with a weird shape. It moved slowly towards the bank and into the trees. I drove further so I could see it coming out of the trees." "As I drove near the bridge over the river" makes sense only if they had just crossed the river on the bridge and seen something as they looked towards their left, then slowed on Newburgh while watching it, then drove a bit further to be able to see it come out of the tree line. That is, unless they are talking about some other bridge, such as the King's Highway bridge. If you are leaving the Walgreens to go towards 57 and Allen Rd., then the river is on your right, not your left and the drive through lane that runs in the back also puts the river on the right, not the left. They make no mention of a large trackhoe or two on either bank, etc. so the story holds no water in my eyes at all. To observe anyone in the river going to the south bank and through the tree line, they would have either had to have been on Newburgh itself, travelling towards Schooley's Mt. Rd. or been going TO the Pharmacy, having just turned onto Newburgh, then about to make a right into the back entrance of the lot and seen the creature on their left then, but they said they were on their way home from the pharmacy, not on their way there. I would be interested in the time stamp on the receipt then also, since that would indicate whether they had been there while they were actually working at the bridge site. Maybe the guys working there have been playing poker with the Mantis Man, and that's why it's supposedly taking so long to complete - LOL. "Maybe the guys working there have been playing poker with the Mantis Man, and that's why it's supposedly taking so long to complete." - Phil Addendum/edit: I believe in the paranormal. I've never seen a ghost, let alone taken a picture of one to "prove" it. (It's just that I think enough credible people say that they have.) So really... in all fairness, I suppose I can't judge Lon for stating that the Mantis Man exists. Hi...I was in Hackettstown last year looking at the locations mentioned in the previous sightings. I also talked to several people. I don't know the area where this recent sighting supposedly took place. I'm always wary when I receive a report...but I do give most people the benefit of the doubt and post their information. I've been investigating fortean phenomenon for a long time...I've learned not to discount any report until it's been looked into. Lon From the picture from google maps that was forwarded to you of where they first noticed the anomaly, it definitely looks as though they were starting to cross the bridge when they saw it on their left, then slowed down to watch and moved forward further on Newburgh to observe him emerging from the woods. As I stated earlier, and showed picture evidence, as of just before June 28th of this year, the bridge was destroyed for an enlargement and rebuild project. You can refer to my pictures in this thread for a better timeline: I'm posting a picture of how it looked from the Northern side of the river on July 29th from the parking lot of Walgreens. This is how it would look from the passenger side of a car going out of the Walgreen's lot. The view of the southern side would be towards the right, not the left. As "Mark Mc." states, "simple geometry" shows something fishy. I really think your sighter needs to fill you in with more detail or a better explanation. I would think that a missing bridge would be mentioned in their description somewhere. Notice the trackhoe and barriers in the way also? They'd been there for a bit while they'd been removing the central pier that had been in the middle of the river on the 16th, when I'd last taken pictures. Maybe he meant while pulling out from Walgreens, onto Newburgh (yes you can), going LEFT TOWARDS 57, he saw something to his RIGHT. Maybe got left and right confused. As for the pic of the bridge, probably just a file copy. "I was driving home from the drug store on Newburgh Rd." The ONLY way to currently do that is to turn left onto Newburgh from the parking lot exit unless you want to drive over an excavator. "As I drove near the bridge over the river, I noticed to my left something (I thought a fisherman) standing in the river just off the southbank." If you are turning left onto Newburgh Road, the river is to your right, and the "south" bank would be even farther to your right, almost behind you (maybe you can rotate your head 180 degrees?) "I drove further so I could see it coming out of the trees." Therefore away from the river... The only way any of this makes sense if it it happened before the bridge was torn down but the "witness" seems pretty sure of the dates, so as MG would say.... BUSTED. Maybe it was mantis man driving the car! That's why he could rotate his head 180 degrees and he spotted another mantis man in his territory. you guys are missing a key piece of information that proves the witness's story make no sense.... there is no such thing as a Mantis Man. LOL Until they put the bridge back in, you can't get to "Newburgh" Road in Washington Township from the drug store without taking the detour. You're stuck on "Newburg" Road in Mansfield Township. Yeah, Mantis Man is made up but Bigfoot and Mothman are real. They both work at Shoprite, Snookems said so. After I put this up I never thought this thread would last one day let alone... Some interesting news is that a TV show on one of the major networks just emailed me wanting to look into this story. I still see the witness a few times a year and it's always one of the first things I make sure we talk about... Sure, he could be fabricating the entire thing, but his story has never changed even down to the last detail. I don't know Lon, but if he wants to leave an email I'd be happy to patch him through to this show so all bases are covered. Viva the mantis August 4, 2003 will be a day I will never forget, a day my husband will never forget. It was a culmination of so many strange events that were occurring near and around my mother's home that we were residing in at the time. My mother lives in Kenwood and her back yard backs up to the fish hatchery. We are also a 5 minute walk from the Musconetcong River. My husband and I rarely talk about this day and if we do all one of us has to say is "that crazy day at moms house" and we both know what we are talking about. I have never spoken about it with anyone else really but there is something about that area my mom lives in, the hatchery and/or the river. Strange sightings, unexplained phenomena, weird sounds etc... so who knows? I would not discredit this story altogether something is amiss.... H-town mama - there is a saying in French. Translated, it is: "Either you said too much, or you said too little." You need to tell us what happened! Please. Dying of curiosity. Ahhh Rebecka it's such a long and arduous story to try and retell over the internet! Perhaps we could get together or I will tell you when I come to visit the puppies which I intend to do as soon as I can. There is a police report on this date of what was going on... And it was taking place in the hatchery and my back yard... A creature with red eyes that spoke like a human and army soldiers, a man who could not be seen completely pointing laser beams in my window Sounds like a drug trip doesn't it?! Lol H-Town Mama- Are you sure nobody slipped some LSD into your soda ;)? Those events sound really terrifying. I would probably need some kind of counseling. Lol!! If I were the person hearing this I would think the same thing!! Hence the reason why we don't talk about it to anyone really. Hence how stupid we felt we we called 911& got the same reaction but I will say this... I started to speak a little of it with my sisters and. Brothers and my sister told me that she experienced the army part of the story and thought she had been watching too much MASH or something on tv!! I still couldn't bring myself to tell her everything and risk being the laughingstock of the family ( I probably am anyway.. Lol) so I'm fairly confident that hubby or anyone else for that matter did not slip me anything! Lol Hi - I am a Producer at Monsters and Mysteries in America, as seen on the Destination America channel. We are developing a story about the Mantis Man and are looking for eyewitnesses to speak with us. Please contact me ASAP at email@example.com Musconetcong River 'Mantis Man' Coming To Your TV - http://www.phantomsandmonsters.com/2014/12/musconetcong-river-mantis-man-coming-to.html - 'Monsters and Mysteries in America' this upcoming 3rd season. I recall watching a Denver Broncos game @ mile high stadium, probably early 80s perhaps vs Giants. Back then there wasn't all of this widespread coverage. So anyway the cameras showed what looked like a box kite to me spinning over the stadium. The announcers acknowledged it by saying" What is that? " I'm still wondering. 10 pm 3/18 - for all you Mantis Man believers, turn on Monsters & Mysteries now. Our very own "Mantis Man" will be featured shortly. Can't wait to see what this looks like lol. Ch. 873 on Comcast. I missed it, but don't know if I feel like staying up 'til the 1-2am showing (channel 172 on Optimum). If I'm lucky it'll be on the free on demand channel (500). Just checked and no luck there since it's a "new" episode. It will probably be on the free on demand section next week. Maybe I'll watch it then just out of curiosity. After viewing the "mantis " episode, I have my doubts. I definitely believe there are weird creatures on our planet as well as on other planets. We are uncovering new , weird creatures all the time, but they're usually in the Amazon. We have giant worm creatures that live near boiling vents ,blind fish that can live in acidic water, bio luminance fish that light up and live thousands of feet below the ocean, and think of all the other weird stuff we haven't even discovered, yet. But around here, I look to the sky for my encounters. My walk by the river today showed me my usual beauty of nature, but might have to wait till warmer weather to see any Mantises, or Mantis species. Bugs (depending on how much human DNA is in the mix), usually come out closer to Summer. No I haven't seen the latter, yet. Just making an educated guess.(can't wait to see the jokes that follow) Pretty cool that Hackettstown was on the show....I don't usually watch it. i was interviewed by the producers and was all set to tape and recount my experience with "the thing" that i saw when I ended up in HRMC for 2 days with emergency gallbladder surgery. they were pretty convinced that my experience somehow was related to the experiences of the others and tied it all together. i would have taped it along with the reenactment at a location in budd lake. oh well, i didnt get a chance to be famous or have my 15 minutes..will have to check out the show now that I know it was actually done I did stay up to see it, since I wasn't very sleepy at the moment, but I'd say it was definitely underwhelming to me. I'll leave it at that. sorry guys, I've been up and down the stretch from the graveyard to the edge of the park fishing for 30 years, the last 18 with my two daughters. Nothing I've seen fits that description, maybe a heron. If you know where the old abandoned car is on the hillside in the park, when you look down from up there my daughter thought she saw something slowly moving around near the water..... it was a heron. Also keep in mind on the southern part of the park across the river is residential.... this is still n.j. something like you are describing would have been seen by now....and then fined by some state gov't ass for something. peace I SEEN HIM!!! He was on the banks of the muskeenetcong having a Pabst with the Big Redy Eyes. Big Red Eyes' hair is glorious! It was right after the 24th NJ marched past. I also here that over at the collage there is a ghost of a collage student who was killed by the man with the hook for a hand. Scary goin's on in Hackettstown. THings ain't the same now with Marshall's moving to the new spot. I think all the construction is upsetting the space time continum, lettin critters come from other deementions. I think these critters may be livin in the old tunnels the dutch miners dug out this way. What is the "24th NJ" doing here when they are from South Jersey? But since I can see from the IP Address Who Dr. H. L. is, not really surprised about the mis-information. Whatever happened to that anaconda that was supposed to be swimming around in Lake Hopatcong? Good. Long as he ain't around here. I remember when a girl I was good friends with returned from a spring break in Cancun ... she came back with the worst sunburn I'd ever seen. In this video, the IronPigs' mascots Ferrous and Fe Fe encounter a lake monster! This song describes the color of my friend's sunburn when she returned from Cancun. I remember a burn like that as a child. Grew up to definitely NOT be a sun goddess. OUCH! Lived there my entire life and spent most of it on the river and still do. I'll have to keep an eye out. Bahahahaha. Here is another eyewitless account about sighting the " Hackettstown Mantis Man". Now there are two and they are communicating? As had been mentioned before, the reports are from HL forum name changers. (I'm sure you can imagine that one, right?) I wouldn't take it too seriously. Too bad Lon did and then changed the stories to fit the TV program he wanted. Come on GC, even Mantis Man needs some love. I bet he even wants Genevieve to remodel a room for him too. LOL. Well, if he/she/it has an earring that tore out, I'm sure they'll be resurrecting that thread too;-) Very creepy and surreal story, but I doubt it's real. Some people are very good storytellers. I agree. Just read "Weird NJ" magazine as I have almost since its inception. Sadly through the years you could tell that there was a lot of imagination or drug-fueled stories that were sent into the mag. It was sometimes hard to tell which was which. It seems like a good storytelling, but then you dig a bit and the exact same story about "my boss/my friend/etc who never believes this stuff, was at a well known Warren location, and saw something that made him actually pee his pants." The stories are all take offs on each other except one is Mantis, the other is UFO's, and the last one is Big Foot. And strangely when in defense of the person that saw it (no, it's never "me"), the mention is of any kind of strange happening whether Mantis, UFO, or Big Foot. Just a coincidence? It's the exact same story just told three times. Indeed GC, it's almost as though they lifted it right from Snopes or Urban Legends. I grew up hearing scary stories about the Jersey Devil ... "and it all happened right around here." Now, the New Jersey Devils are an NHL hockey team. There's a lot of power to a good story. This is the first time I have heard of The Musconetcong Mantis Man. Interesting story, but needs more investigation. Also, just wondering, has anything on this subject appeared in "Weird N.J"? To answer Edward Farnsworth's question (which I'd missed earlier), there has been an article addressing Mantis Man in "Weird NJ" before. I think it may even have been just an issue or two ago. When I get home I'll check my collection and try to find which issue it was in and post it here. If you wish to buy a copy, the small convenience store next to Tony's Luncheonette and across from the BP station in Mansfield Twp. on Rt. 57 carries the current issue, as well as many back issues of "Weird NJ" magazine. The "Mantis Man" story is in the latest "Weird NJ" magazine, starting on page 20, issue number 45. Just for the fun of it, I bought a copy of the recent Weird NJ to read about the Musconetcong Mantis Man, since I do a lot of kayaking on the river in the Hackettstown area. The account of ‘H-town Mama’ was included. In all due respect to the woman, there are rational explanations for what she experienced that night. Since sound carries very well over water, it is entirely reasonable that she would hear voices and radio noises coming from the trout ponds, considering there is both an apartment complex and a college campus just on the other side. As to the red light beams, perhaps a bunch of teenagers were running around with lazer pointers, and they all scattered and hid when the cops arrived? It was a summer evening. In any case, when you consider that H-town Mama lives in a neighborhood where the houses are very close together, surrounded by strip malls, apartments, a college, and a major highway… it is unlikely that 6 foot tall praying mantises would be running around, without anyone else seeing them. Hey folks...if you encounter or experience any unexplained activity, please feel free to contact me at firstname.lastname@example.org I had suggested to my wife when we first heard of the Mantis Man story that Hackettstown should rename its sports teams. Tigers is pretty common, but the Hackettstown Mantis Men and Mantis Women would be pretty fun and original. And think of the merchandising! I'll even grant you the Fighting Mantis Men. Haha Not to mention the school mascots would have to be all of Mantis Man, Big Foot, and UFO's combined. The exact same story told above that Lon based the TV episode on was retold by the exact same poster. They just substituted each of those three "phenomenon" but keept the story verbatim while changing screen names. Oh well, if it's good enough for a TV program, I guess it's good enough for the schools. Not to mention Ailymantisquatch would be fun to see the opponents try to pronounce. ;-) Anything to keep the opponents guessing! :) I think i just want to see someone dressed as a giant mantis pumping up the crowd. But it's the small things in life... If you have anything bizarre or unexplained to report, feel free to contact me at email@example.com - thanks...Lon Mantis Man was on the Travel Channel last night...I think what everyone seen was just a huge mosquito. Or more likely, one of the Great Blue Heron's that are always there. The picture is of the "Moth Man " this statue is in Point Pleasant West Virginia. And your "freind" doesn't even have the story right! "a time when the sons on men taught the mixing of species one with another" - The Book of Jasher; Dead Sea Scrolls. Always amazes me how so many feel the need to denigrate others for their sighting, when not one of them has ever read an ancient text or knows how the Greeks and Romans actually described battling & killing bizarre hybrid races... from Dogmen to the Blemmyes, from Hairy barbarians to the many races of Giants. I doubt they even know the Bible & Greeks tell us St Christopher was a dogman, from a tribe of dog-headed humans, living in the mountains beyond Libya (Atlas Mts). They wore clothes and spoke in yips and barks, "and had a just society." Or... that Christopher, converted scores to Christianity before his execution...and that many ancient depictions of these creatures can be found searching "cynocephaly" online and likenesses in paintings, literature and architecture, date back to the medieval period often depicted as carvings among medieval European architecture. Do these people, so ready to ridicule these sightings, even know that both Moses & Alexander The Great were both depicted as humans with horns? Do they know that Mesopotamian artifacts include statuettes of anthropomorphic serpent-people holding breast feeding babies? Have they ever seen the monstrous Paracas Elongated skulls? Even more interestingly, among artifacts found among what was once ancient Sumer's capital city of Ninevah, is a wooden likeness of what looks to be... a giant preying mantis face. Do they know that Alien Abduction witnesses have claimed for decades that Mantis-like aliens are among the ETs that perform tests on them? Do they know that recently our govt has admitted UFOs (TicTac video) are not only quite real, but have been being studied by the Govt's ATIP program? These sightings are not quite the joke so many of the uninformed think they are... it seems our world may have been far stranger than we think. Almost 5 billion years of Earth history, and we know maybe a few thousand years of that history? The Mayans, who prided themselves as keepers of history, before the Spanish destroyed that History as the work of the Devil, say several world ages have come and gone before the present world of men. Brett Allen - Cover UFO Magazine I know this is about Mantis Man but just an FYI, I (and now 3 others) saw a UFO on Allen Rd. a few months ago for the 3rd time. Wondering if anyone else has witnessed this (that's not afraid to admit it, lol). It looks like a long silver sausage and hovers perfectly still and then suddenly darts off and disappears. I finally feel able to say something because this last sighting I had 3 people with me who also saw it. Now that I know I'm not the only one - there must be more. It COULD be something NASA or our Air Force is testing out, so I'm not necessarily saying it's aliens, but it's something weird. I want to hear more! Laurel - details please- where on Allen? Facing route 57 or towards Donaldsons? Saw something similar years ago. How about some pictures?... everyone has a smart phone with camera now a days Can the alien UFO land in any other place and are they equipped to clear snow? Regarding the UFO sightings on Allen Rd, I saw something like that too about 15 years ago. I lived nearby and being a scientific person, figured there had to be a logical explanation. Turned out there was. After it rains or snows, the moisture on the power lines sometimes create a weird looking "object" when car headlights from other directions hit them. I've witnessed this phenomenon several times and confirmed to myself that it was car headlights. I didn't complete an exhaustive study, lol, ..... but I did notice the "object" in the sky sometimes moved very fast and erratically and sometimes didn't move depending on where the headlights were, if the car was stopped or moving, etc. Now I'm not debunking what anyone saw, but I'm satisfied that it explains what I saw. The first time, I was driving past Allen Rd on Grand/Rockport Rd and it was hovering over the area of Donaldson's Farm. 2nd time it was very high right over Blau Rd. The last time I saw it we were between Hazen and Blau Roads when one of my passengers noticed it first. I pulled over and we all got out of my car and were looking at it for a few minutes. Someone stopped to ask if we were ok and we pointed up and he got out of his car and saw it too. My friend ran to grab her cell phone to take a picture and it just darted away so fast none of us could figure out where it went. Again...I'm not saying it's aliens, but it's something. 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How Cryptid is Changing the Horror Film Industry Horror films never go obsolete. Trends and filming prospects may come and go, but there is always a ready market for films to scare people. The genre has experienced its fair share of highs and lows and we are currently living in the former. Horror films are some of the most inventive and captivating pieces of cinema. With this genre, it’s all about tone, mood, story, and texture, unlike other genres that rely on other elements such as dialogue. A great horror film is all about story and character, the key reason why Cryptid was created. Brad Rego, the director of Cryptid is an award-winning cinematographer who has shot various feature films, TV shows, and documentaries. Reego saw a gap in the horror films market which solely focused on features such as dialogue and plot points. Also, today the horror film market is experiencing strong success and with it presents funding problems. This presented a perfect opportunity for him to create and sell effect-driven horror movies and at the same time allow the public to invest in films to own a piece of movie history. I recently interviewed Brad Rego, now a Pressfarm user, to talk more about Cryptid and investment plans for the product. Behind the scenes elements of the movie Since the movie has not begun production, the behind the scenes info is limited. “However, the creature is going to be a practical effect. Instead of CGI, we are actually getting a person in a crafted suit using the latest in molding and animatronic technology to bring the creature to life. We believe there is something that is added having a real creature on set as opposed to an actor acting against a tennis ball on a stick.” He adds, “When filming the opening scene proof of the concept, it required rainy weather so we built a type of rain machine that looked like a net that had to be positioned over the set and ran water through it over the course of the shoot. We are planning for an end of summer beginning of fall shoot with a 28-day shoot schedule. The timeline would be to finish the movie and get it ready by the end of this year in order to attend some of the main film markets around.” Background on the potential actors in the film “Unfortunately, we haven’t cast the movie yet as we are still in the raising funds stage. Once we raise sufficient funds for the film we can hire the cast that fits in with the budget. Our hope is to cast two of the three main cast members using known talent to boost its visibility in the market,” Rego says. You have a great idea for a new product and you are confident that it will be a success in the market. Getting the right funding is key. Rego offers, “The fundraising model we are using is an equity crowdfunding format. It is similar to traditional crowdfunding like a Kickstarter, with the exception that instead of donations, it allows the general public to invest and gain an equity stake in the film. This just became legal in 2016 through the JOBS Act Reg CF. Prior to the law being passed, you had to be an accredited investor in order to invest in a company online. To be accredited, you need to have a net worth of at least $1 million or must earn an income of at least $200,000 per year. This film would be the first narrative horror film to use this method of funding, so it would be part of a movie history.” “My directing background has been almost in horror films. I have directed five different short films that have gone to festivals and three feature films, two of which secured distribution on a global platform. My latest horror feature, “The Killing of Jacob Marr” was released in October 2010. It has since gotten rave reviews at leading independent movie sites like “Ain’t it Cool News and is currently available on a multitude of OD platforms such as Amazon Prime, IndiReign, Comcast Xfinity StreamPix, and Cinecliq. He adds, “I am also the founder and president of 221 Films Inc. for the last eight years. I am the president and managing member of Cryptid, Llc. In between directing films, I work as a freelance cinematographer. I have shot feature films, commercials, and documentaries as well as shooting for shows on TLC, Hulu, PBS, and DIY network. So my experience both in the horror industry as well as the production industry gives me a huge amount of creditability in completing and selling a film in the market.” The inspiration behind the film Setting up a new business comes with an exciting and inspiring notion to it. Inspiration stems from where you are in life. Every journey starts with a starting point and if you don’t know where you are in life you cannot move towards what you prefer or where you are heading. “Cryptid stems from my love of creature features growing up in the 80’s with the greats of Jaws, Alien, The Thing, Predator, etc. I have always been such a fan of the visceral aspect of the man vs. nature setup. It’s something that I felt has been somewhat lost over the years. So when I started to think of what type of story I wanted to tell. The creature feature was always in the back of my mind,” he recalls. “To create a throwback monster movie in the same vein of those greats. A fight for survival with good characters and a scary monster. That is magic. I don’t know if I have an exact story of how I came up with the idea. I love mysteries and the concept of two people trying to solve a puzzle. Mix that in with the creature lurking in the darkness causing chaos in a small wooded town. It just scratches all the right things that interest or quite frankly scares me.” “Absolutely! I have several scripts ready to go for future projects. A horror/sci-fi movie that deals with parallel dimensions, and a horror movie about a small town run by a cult. So this movie is a long chain of movies to come,” concludes Rego.

High note characters and music are a common way for users to send their loved ones’ final notes. A high note can take the form of a long line, or it can be something as simple as a handwritten note. But in the case of the cryptid Robert Riversa, the note that was written on a piece of paper was actually a digital version of a dying man’s death. In July 2018, Riversa was in the Philippines with his mother and a friend when he received a death note from his mother that was typed up on a digital typewriter. According to the police, Riverscas mother took the note to the Philippines Embassy in Hong Kong. When they reached the Embassy, Riversas mother saw a note from her son on a large, black-and-white photo of a man with an arrow pointing to the right. Riversa and his mother asked the Embassy to check on their son, but the officials there didn’t have the manpower to investigate. The next day, the man who was Riversa’s mother sent the police a photo of the handwritten note and said it was a digital copy of a death notice he had written on paper. After that, the authorities sent a team to look into Riversas death. The team came across Riversa at the hospital where his mother was recovering. A detective showed them the handwritten message on the black- and white photo. It was typed by Riversa himself, and the handwriting was identical to the handwritten notes that he had sent to the Manila Embassy and the Philippines Consulate. The police said Riversa had died by suicide. “He said, ‘I’m gonna die,’ and he took his own life,” the detective told local news outlet Inquirer. “I don’t know how he did it, but I have a feeling he had a suicide note. That’s why he was so upset.” Routersa was rushed to a local hospital and told he would be admitted to a hospital within two days. When the detective went to see Riversa later that day, he saw that his friend had been taken by the police to a different hospital, where the doctor was treating him for an unrelated medical condition. Upon arriving at the Manila Consulate, the detective found a letter on Riversa s desk from his father, who had sent it to the Philippine Embassy, and a note on his body. The letter said that Riversa left his parents home to go to the Consulate and the note said he would go to his father. That night, a policeman who had accompanied Riversa on a mission found Riversa lying on the ground outside the Philippine Consulate with a gunshot wound to his neck. The officer called for an ambulance. Three days later, the police arrested Riversa and took him to the Royal Melbourne Hospital, where he was given the all-clear. But Riversa died a week later. He was 43. This story has been updated with additional information from the Philippines.

With pursuits in science, nature, and the paranormal, cryptid explores fringe subjects from a unique and generally controversial perspective. Spelling City : The app provides 25 on-line spelling games. It’s totally customizable so the instructor can have control over methods to tie the word right into a sentence,” Luhtala said. Lecturers love this as a result of they’ll join the vocabulary to other classroom content and share what’s going on in class with mother and father. It is Net-based mostly, as well as obtainable on iPad and iPhone. The fundamental model is free. Alone time” carefully does not equal abandonment or neglect. Anticipating your children to entertain themselves for one hour each day of the summer is not unreasonable. In actual fact, alone time teaches them find out how to make their very own enjoyable and be unbiased. It stimulates their imaginations, as they discover artistic faux-play situations to enact with their toys. It provides them confidence in the real world—they can be glad in a cooperative state of affairs with others, or they can be fully secure by themselves. And, when you have a couple of baby, giving each one a break from their siblings helps them decompress, recharge, and recalibrate. Separating your youngsters for one hour every day, particularly if they combat, is like hitting a reset button. After they re-join at the finish of the allotted time, they will be refreshed and ready to play extra agreeably—no less than for while! iPiccy gives a clear and simple … Read More

Long-time readers of Tet Zoo might remember Sea Monster Week: a series of articles I ran at Tet Zoo ver 2 back in 2008. 2008? That’s, like, years ago. A recent discussion with ZSL’s Sam Turvey got me thinking about the Hook Island sea monster – an alleged sea monster photographed during the 1960s and frequently featured in books on monsters and mysteries. And I have sea monsters on the mind a lot anyway, due to the recent release of the Kindle version of Cryptozoologicon Vol I and the impending release (December 6th) of the hard-copy version (we’re holding a launch event in London: details here). Inspired, I’ve decided to republish my article on the Hook Island case, with updates… The best known of the Hook Island sea monster photos is familiar to many (the two or three others are less familiar: read on). As shown above, it features a gigantic, tadpole-like monster, supposedly encountered in Stonehaven Bay, Hook Island, Queensland, by Robert Le Serrec and his family and a friend during the December of 1964. Judging from comments I’ve seen online, people nowadays tend to assume that it’s a photoshop job. In fact, it’s a classic, much-reproduced image, widely discussed in the cryptozoological literature. Let’s note to begin with that – if the object depicted here really is a large, unknown marine animal – then it perhaps shouldn’t be featured on a website called Tetrapod Zoology, since the most popular proposed identification of the creature is that it’s some sort of weird giant fish. We’ll come to the subject of identification in a minute. The story starts in March 1965 when Breton photographer Robert Le Serrec claimed, in Australia's Everyone magazine, that he had obtained excellent, genuine photos of a real sea serpent: a creature discovered by chance while it resting in a lagoon. A very detailed account of the case was written up by Heuvelmans (1968) and what I’ve written here is mostly based on that account. Shuker (1991) and Newton (2005) provided further information. [Adjacent image by eternalsaturn.] Wrecked on the Great Barrier Reef with his family and Australian friend Henk de Jong, Le Serrec and family had bought a motor boat and had decided to spend three months on Hook Island (one of the Whitsunday Islands). They were all crossing Stonehaven Bay on December 12th 1964, when Le Serrec’s wife spotted a strange object on the lagoon floor. It proved to be a gigantic tadpole-like creature, estimated to be about 30 ft long. They took several still photos, gradually moving closer. Eventually, Le Serrec and de Jong plucked up the courage to approach it underwater in order to film it. It proved larger than first thought, with its estimated length now increasing to 75-80 ft. It didn’t move and they suspected it might be dead, but just as Le Serrec began the filming it opened its mouth and made movements toward them. They returned to the boat and, by the time they got there, the creature had moved off. A large pale region interpreted as a wound was visible on the right side of the tail, and it was suggested that this (perhaps – they speculated – caused by a ship’s propeller) had caused the animal to take rest and refuge in the shallow bay. The eyes, located on the top of the head and well away from the front of the snout, were pale and possessed slit-shaped pupils. Mostly black in colour, the animal had brown transverse stripes and its skin was smooth in texture. It possessed no fins nor spines of any kind and they didn’t see teeth inside the white mouth. Heuvelmans (1968) reported that he had done some checking on Le Serrec and found that “he had left unpaid creditors in France and did not seem very trustworthy” (p. 533). Coleman & Huyghe (2003) stated that he was wanted by Interpol. Character assassination of this sort is argued to be irrelevant by some, and maybe it is. On the other hand, there are good reasons for thinking that people with a track record of being untrustworthy really are untrustworthy. Ivan Sanderson had been contacted about the story in February 1965 (Le Serrec had initially approached the American media in order to get the best price for the images) and had concluded that the object might be either a plastic bag used by the US Navy “for experiments in towing petrol”, a deflated skyhook balloon which had become covered in weed, or a roll of cloth which had been tied together in places (Heuvelmans 1968). These are weirdly specific suggestions and don’t seem like the most sensible possibilities to me: what about the more obvious idea that (if not a real animal) it was a custom-shaped expanse of plastic sheeting, weighted down with sand? Sanderson later suggested that the creature might be a giant synbranchid, or swamp eel*. Synbranchids are long-bodied acanthomorph teleosts, mostly of freshwater and estuarine habitats, well known for their ability to breathe air and undertake terrestrial excursions. However, they’re small (generally less than 60 cm long) and are eel-shaped, not tadpole-shaped, so this doesn’t look like a sensible idea either. Pressed to propose a ‘real animal identity’ for the creature, Heuvelmans noted in a magazine article that it could be “some kind of gigantic eel-like selachian”, which would be a huge deal if correct. * I haven’t seen Sanderson’s article – published in True Magazine – and am going from Shuker (1991). However, Heuvelmans (1968) actually favoured the idea of plastic sheeting weighed down with sand. He noted that the position of the eyes was highly suspicious given that most vertebrates either have their eyes on the sides of the head, or nearer the snout. Arguments like that don’t really count for much though, as unknown animals are allowed to have their eyes wherever they like, and – anyway – there are vertebrates that do have eyes positioned similarly to those of the Hook Island monster (like mastodonsauroid temnospondyls... yeah, maybe it’s a late-surviving, limbless mastodonsauroid). The last time I published this article (2008), some aggressive commenters claimed with misplaced confidence that the ‘creature’ might actually be a tightly bunched shoal of fish. I think that this idea is an immediate non-starter, for three main reasons. (1) The edges of even the most tightly bunched fish shoal are ‘messy’, lacking the straight, obvious edges seen on the Hook Island monster. (2) The shoals don’t become organised into something as neat-looking as the Hook Island ‘monster’: the ‘monster’ has an obvious fat head/body and long, gently tapering tail, while even the most tightly packed, monster-shaped fish shoal is far more amorphous in form. (3) Fish shoals are dynamic and constantly changing shape and position, whereas Le Serrec’s photos show that the object was pretty much stationary while he was taking the photos. There are other photos While the still photo shown at the very top of this article has been reproduced a lot, some other images haven’t been. One (shown here on the left) shows the creature at closer range, and from a different angle. Another (shown here on the right) shows the head as seen directly from the front, at much closer range. It shows clearly that the white eyes you can see on the top of the head really are meant to be the eyes, but its wavy, broken outline provides further support for the idea that the creature is hoaxed, as the wavy outline shows clearly that the edge of the ‘creature’ is partly overlapped by sand. Ok, you might say that the creature had partially buried itself in the sand, and indeed Le Serrec reported that this was indeed the case. But in at least four spots it looks like someone has placed handfuls of sand on top of the edge of the creature: exactly what you would do if trying to weight down a monster-shaped sheet of plastic. The final piece of evidence demonstrating that the whole episode was a hoax comes from the fact that, in 1959, Le Serrec had tried to get a group together on an expedition that would prove “financially fruitful”, and that he had “another thing in reserve which will bring in a lot of money… it’s to do with the sea-serpent” (Heuvelmans 1968, p. 534). Incidentally, the film supposedly taken of the creature revealed nothing. Did Le Serrec inspire Heuvelmans, or did Heuvelmans inspire Le Serrec? One last thing: when most people think of sea serpents, they generally imagine immense, snake-like creatures. Where did Le Serrec get the idea of a giant tadpole monster from? As a kid, I always thought that Le Serrec was inspired by ‘yellow belly’, a marine cryptid hypothesised to exist by Heuvelmans (1968) and described as shaped like a tadpole, 60-100 ft long, marked with black transverse bands on its sides, and restricted to the tropical waters of the Indian and Pacific oceans [my own, c. 1988, effort to reconstruct yellow belly shown in adjacent image]. Given that Heuvelmans first published his ideas on ‘yellow belly’ in 1965 (when the French-language precursor of In the Wake of the Sea-Serpents, Le Grand Serpent-de-Mer, appeared), while Le Serrec took the photos in December 1964, this can’t be possible – can it? I wonder if Heuvelmans had published a description of ‘yellow belly’ prior to 1965, and that this description had been used by Le Serrec in making the hoax. So far as I can tell, however, Heuvelmans did no such thing. But could Le Serrec have seen Le Grand Serpent-de-Mer in early 1965, and just lied about the date of the encounter? That would require some detailed investigation (you’d have to show, for example, that Le Grand Serpent-de-Mer was available prior to March 1965, and that Le Serrec had gotten hold of a copy). What about the opposite idea: that Heuvelmans had been inspired by the Hook Island creature when coming up with the idea of ‘yellow belly’? This would assume that Heuvelmans had initially regarded the Hook Island creature as genuine, and there’s no indication of that (it’s not impossible, however). Furthermore, Heuvelmans seems to have based ‘yellow belly’ on several other, clearly identified cases (dubious and ambiguous cases (see Magin 1996), but clearly identified nonetheless). It was reported in 2003 that Le Serrec has been found alive and well and living in Asia, and there were apparently plans to interview him about the case. That might be interesting but, regardless, the Hook Island case is undoubtedly a hoax, albeit a pretty good one I think. For previous Tet Zoo articles on sea monsters, see... - Cryptozoology at the Zoological Society of London. Cryptozoology: time to come in from the cold? Or, Cryptozoology: avoid at all costs? - The inaugural issue of The Journal of Cryptozoology - Tales from the Cryptozoologicon: Megalodon! Coleman, L. & Huyghe, P. 2003. The Field Guide to Lake Monsters, Sea Serpents, and Other Mystery Denizens of the Deep. Tarcher/Penguin, New York. Heuvelmans, B 1968. In the Wake of the Sea-Serpents. Hill and Wang, New York. Magin, U. 1996. St George without a dragon: Bernard Heuvelmans and the sea serpent. In Moore, S. (ed) Fortean Studies Volume 3. John Brown Publishing (London), pp. 223-234. Newton, M. 2005. Encyclopedia of Cryptozoology. McFarland & Company, Jefferson (N. Carolina) and London. Shuker, K. P. N. 1991. Extraordinary Animals Worldwide. Robert Hale, London.

Magic, fate and hope collide in the stunning conclusion of New York Times bestselling author Rachel Vincent’s acclaimed Menagerie trilogy… 1986: Rebecca Essig leaves a slumber party early but comes home to a massacre—committed by her own parents. Only one of her siblings has survived. But as the tragic event unfolds, she begins to realize that other than a small army of six-year-olds, she is among very few survivors of a nationwide slaughter. The Reaping has begun. Present day: Pregnant and on the run with a small band of compatriots, Delilah Marlow is determined to bring her baby into the world safely and secretly. But she isn’t used to sitting back while others suffer, and she’s desperate to reunite Zyanya, the cheetah shifter, with her brother and children. To find a way for Lenore the siren to see her husband. To find Rommily’s missing Oracle sisters. To unify this adopted family of fellow cryptids she came to love and rely on in captivity. But Delilah is about to discover that her role in the human versus cryptid war is destined to be much larger—and more dangerous—than she ever could have imagined. Weaving together past and present in this heartbreaking tale of sacrifice and self-discovery, Fury is the deeply moving finale to a series that readers won’t soon forget.

I'll start with some gratuitous self-promotion once again. Back in my July 15th, 2017 post, I mentioned an upcoming anthology that accepted one of my short stories. Now I have more news. That anthology, "Hidden Animals: A Collection of Cryptids" is still a go. However, its publication date was pushed back a little, from Winter 2017 to Spring of 2018--probably in May. Also, in July I detailed 19 stories, along with the authors and cryptids that each featured. Evidently Dragon's Roost Press received more stories that they wanted to include, so now this anthology is being released, simultaneously, in two volumes, and featuring over 30 stories. These anthologies are Land Cryptids, and then Air/Sea/Vegetable Cryptids. (I'm very curious to read about vegetable-based monsters!) Anyway, owner/editor Michael Cieslak has started a Kickstarter campaign to raise money for the author's reimbursements, as well as for the Last Day Dog Rescue in Michigan. As is typical for these campaigns, donating gets you various perks, depending on the amount, including copies of one or both Cryptid volumes, other Dragon's Roost Press books, and even a dinner with the Dragon's Roost Press folks. Obviously much more information is present at the Kickstarter address. So I encourage everyone to head on over, and check it out. Luddite that I am, I wasn't able to get the link working smoothly; but if you type in the address included below, it will take you there. The campaign runs up to February 3, 2018. And I'll include more information on the anthologies as I get it. Thanks. As for the cookies, I discovered these randomly at the local Food Lion grocery in Sneads Ferry, North Carolina. These were all distributed by the Goya company (see May 25, 2016 post about Brazilian cookies), but were all made in Spain. I tried their Maria cookies, the chocolate Marias, and the Palmeritas. Maria cookies go by several, albeit similar names, as they're also called Marie, Mariebon, and Marietta cookies. Or as Maria/Mariebon/Marietta biscuits, in certain areas of the world, especially Europe and former English colonies. Whatever they're called, they were invented in 1874, in England, to honor Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia, who married Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh. Alfred was the son of Queen Victoria, and Maria was a member of the Romanovs, and was the aunt of the last Russian Emperor, Tsar Nicholas II. (For the record, the marriage reportedly wasn't the happiest, given the couple's lack of common interests, and Alfred's alleged philandering. Also, Maria's support of Germany (where she and Alfred lived and "ruled" as figurehead royalty for a time) against both her native Russia and her husband's native England during World War I didn't go over well, obviously.) However, despite what people may have thought of the real life impetus for the food, the biscuit/cookie proved to be very popular. They are eaten both as "tea biscuits" and sometimes mixed with other sweet spreads and desserts. They're also sometimes dunked in milk and then fed to infants as one of their first solid foods, as they're easy to digest. Marias are enjoyed on all the six settled continents, including in Canada, Australia, North Africa, Indonesia, Mexico, Sri Lanka, much of South America, and especially Spain. Palmeritas, in contrast, aren't named for anyone famous--instead they're titled after their shape, which is usually patterned after a palm leaf. They're also sometimes known as elephant's ears, or pig's ears. (For an account of eating literal pig's ear, please see my January 20, 2013 post.) These pastry-like concoctions are French in origin. Anyway, here's what I thought of these: 1) Maria cookies. These were round, and a yellowish-brown color. They were about 6 cm. in diameter (about 2.25 inches), and had a pattern etched along the circumference, along with tiny holes in the middle and "Goya Maria" embossed in the center as well. They were very plain. Not very sweet. Not bad, but not great, either. Mediocre. 2) Chocolate Maria cookies. Identical in shape, size, and etchings/embossments except that they were dark brown in color. Their flavor was pretty much the same, too. The chocolate did make these taste a bit better. Still fairly bland, though. I tried one dipped in milk, and this was somewhat better, too, but still only alright at best. (To be fair, my father tried these, too, and liked them more than I did.) 3) Palmeritas. These were yellowish-brown, and almost round, with a tiny indentation on one end, and long grooves inscribed along them. (I looked at other companies' take on this cookie style, and some of those were more heart-shaped, or elephant/pig-earred shape, I guess.) They were about 2 inches in diameter (about 5.5 cm.), and had visible whitish grains (sugar, I suppose) sprinkled on them. These were very reminiscent of the plain Marias--not very sweet, plain and blandish. Or disappointing--not terrible, but just.....blah. Overall then, my impression of all 3 of these Spanish cookies wasn't very positive. Maybe it's a cultural, "ugly American" part of me, but I prefer my cookies to have a stronger, and sweeter taste. Like a Thin Mint, or a Pecan Sandy, or an Oreo, or a Nutter Butter, to name just a few off the top of my head. I can see how they would make good baby food, as they were so inoffensive and dull that they can surely be eaten by even the most delicate of constitutions. I won't be buying these again. I'll conclude this by briefly mentioning some other foods that were named after people. Some were homages to famous people, some were named after their chef creators, and some were even titled after fairly random, anonymous folks. 1) Alexandertorte. This Scandanavian treat was believed to have been named to honor the visiting Tsar Alexander I in 1818. 2) Big Hearted Al candy bar. Named after early 20th century American politician Al Smith. 3) Lobster Alexis. After Grand Duke Alexis. 4) Fettucine Alfredo. Invented by, and named after Alfredo di Lelio, who said he created it for his pregnant wife. 5) Caesar salad. Invented by chef/hotel owner Caesar Cardino in his Tijuana establishment in the early 20th century. 6) Cobb salad. Some arguments about this one, but most attribute this food's invention to the owner of Hollywood's Brown Derby restaurant, Robert H. Cobb. 7) Bananas Foster. This dessert was invented by New Orleans restaurant owner Owen Brennan, to honor his friend, and loyal customer Richard Foster, who was the New Orleans Crime Commissioner. 8) Oh Henry! candy bar. Reportedly named after a boy who used to frequent the Williamson chocolate company, and hit on the girls working there. 9) Kaiser rolls. These are one of the older ones. Invented in 1487 in Vienna, Austria, to honor the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick III. 10) Oysters Rockefeller. Named after, of course, John D. Rockefeller. 11) Baby Ruth candy bar. There's compelling evidence that this was named after famous baseball player George Herman "Babe" Ruth. However, when the athlete threatened to sue the candy company, they claimed, dubiously, that it was named after former President Grover Cleveland's daughter. (I guess they thought the Clevelands wouldn't be as litigious.) 12) Salisbury Steak. This was invented and promoted by Dr. James H. Salisbury (1823-1905). He was apparently an early forerunner of the Atkins-type diet, as he thought people should avoid carbs, starches, fruit, and "poisonous" vegetables, and instead eat lots of meat. 13) Nachos. I was pleased to see that this one's history is definitively known. In 1943, in Mexico, hotel runner Ignacio "Nacho" Anaya needed a snack food for some customers, but the kitchen was nearly bare. He managed to come up with the first nachos, and they were given his nickname ever since.

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Paranormal Christian Media…No, It’s A Real Thing By Keith Bradley, ThM, Pastor We easily reference and understand terms such as the paranormal community, UFO community, Bigfoot community, or experiencer. Of course, we are all familiar with the various Podcasts, radio, and television programs that cover these topics and names such as Nick Redfern, Peter Levenda, Giorgio Tsoukalos, George Noory, and Richard Dolan are commonplace. But names such as Skywatch TV, Steve Quayle, Into the Multiverse, Tom Horn, L.A. Marzulli, or Michael Heiser are not as familiar. These names belong to alternative Christian media. Yes, alternative paranormal Christian media does exist. In this article, I intend to offer a short bio on several person or program and some comment on their work. The word religion carries a lot of baggage. Some of this baggage is justifiable. While some of the baggage is uninformed bias. We label these folks as narrow-minded or myopic. And many times, they are narrow-minded. But if we simply write off these voices because of their religious beliefs we are the ones being myopic. It is my gut belief if we are going to move forward in our understanding of the paranormal not to mention the supernatural, we will have to join the scientific and the religious worlds. Being in both worlds, so to speak, I can see this already taking place. The “scientific” view is looking at a spiritual element in UFOs and the “religious” a material aspect to what was always seen as spiritual. The American physicist and astronomer wrote, “For the scientist who has lived by his faith in the power of reason, the story ends like a bad dream. He has scaled the mountains of ignorance; he is about to conquer the highest peak; as he pulls himself over the final rock, he is greeted by a band of theologians who have been sitting there for centuries” I would change this by saying, “The theologians call to the scientists saying, ‘Thank the Lord you came’”. Let’s talk about filters. We all view the world through filters. We create filters are by how we are raised, race, economic condition, nationality, life experiences, biology, and yes religion. These paranormal Christian pundits view everything through a Biblical filter. Every paranormal, supernatural, and cryptid encounter will be first seen in the light of what the Christian Bible may have to say on the subject. Albeit, making the Bible address some of these topics strain credibility. Also, because of their religious faith, they feel compelled to make followers of Jesus Christ. In my opinion, these attempts can be ham-fisted and not my style. These two things may might you tune out what they are saying. Don’t let it. There is an old saying, “Chew the meat and spit out the bones”. Even then there will be a lot of things you will not agree with. That is ok. I don’t agree 100% with anyone. I even disagree with myself from time to time. Before I get into specific programs and people some general broad-brush observations. First, this group is politically conservative. In some cases, very conservative. Second, they are conservative religiously, identifying as Evangelical Protestants. Third, most if not all would consider themselves to view the Bible literally. Fourth, prophecy and end time events take center stage in their thinking. They see the world as we know it as coming to an end and many of the paranormal/supernatural occurrences are evidence of the truth of their belief. Fifth, the scholarship, science, and research could be better. However, this could be said about people on all side of these issues. Sixth, much of what the produces is in response or to refute “secular” paranormal assertions, especially the ancient alien theory. Seventh, most of their answers are speculative. This could be said about many dealing with the paranormal and supernatural. Eighth, they do not believe that earth has been visited by aliens from other planets. They favor a multidimensional approach. Finally, demons and the devil/Satan/Lucifer/fallen angels/Nephilim can be easy answer for everything. “I’m not saying it’s a demon but…It’s a demon”. Sound familiar? However, I am seeing more nuance in their answers. It could be improved upon. With all this being said let’s look at some of the players. What follows is a very short biography and does not include all the players. In addition, I am not endorsing their views, business, or ministries. “SkyWatch TV is a non-profit television studio affiliated with Defender Films and Defender Publishing Crane, Missouri. The studio produces Christian programming that is aired on satellite television, local stations, Roku, and YouTube. All people highlighted in this article have appeared on SkyWatch TV. The channel is not overly “preachy”, but viewers need to remember it is Christian program. This is who they are and if your offended by this message don’t watch. However, I feel you will be missing some information to help in your understanding of the paranormal and supernatural. At time it seems that their programing is geared to sell books and DVDs. However, the same can be heard of C2C. Do not confuse SkyWatch TV with televangelists. Tom Horn Dr. (h.c.) Tom Horn is a television and radio personality, author and publisher. He is a retired Assembly of God pastor. Horn received an honorary doctorate in 2007 from professor Dr. I.D.E. Thomasof the California Pacific School of Theology, a non-accredited, non-denominational school known for holding conservative evangelical doctrine. It is somewhat unorthodox to refer to yourself as Doctor when receiving an honorary degree. Hornserves as the Chief Executive Officer of SkyWatch TV and is listed as the Principle in Defender Films and Defender Publishing LLC. He is the author of numerous books and article. I have read only one of his books Exo Vaticana, personally I was not over or underwhelmed. It seemed he had become a little obsessed with Vatican issues. I hope to read some of his other works so that I can get a feel for his writing and point of view.Horn has been a guest on various TV and radio programs including Coast to Coast. Josh Peck is a private researcher of fringe topics and the host of Into the Multiverse on SkyWatchTV. He is the founder of The Sharpening Report and of Ministudy Ministry. Peck combines his research into quantum physics and the Bible to explain phenomena surrounding mysterious topics like UFOs and CERN. Peck is the author of a number of books including;Quantum Creation: Does the Supernatural Lurk in the Fourth Dimension?, Cherubim Chariots: Exploring the Extradimensional Hypothesis, Disclosure: Unveiling Our Role in the Secret War of the Ancients, The Second Coming of the New Age: The Hidden Dangers of Alternative Spirituality in Contemporary America and Its Churches. Josh has a high energy gregarious personality that makes him enjoyable to watch. I have not yet read any of Josh’s works but hope to do so soon. I am not qualified to review his scientific assertions. In my opinion his biblical stances are not extreme but would not be found in your typical church. The church is not conditioned to think on these topics. Steve Quayle is a researcher and author of numerous books dealing with advanced ancient technology and civilizations. His documentary film production company Gensix Productions films the “True Legends The Series” in search of the Lost Cities and the giants of history who were the builders of the great megalithic structures of the ancient world. Steve has appeared on various late-night radio shows. He is right of conservativeand some would consider him a conspiracy theory proponent. Some of his theories include; Using advanced technology, the weather can be manipulated and cause extended periods of drought or storm, The Nazis didn’t lose World War II and built an empire under the ice, Giants, transhumanism, genetic manipulation in accordance with Bible prophecy and the end times. Quayle also runs a precious metal and emergency food storage company. Mr. Quayle’s interview style is a monolog that is a constant stream consciousness. At times it makes him extremely hard to follow as he jumps from thought to thought. To understand what he is saying is like looking at a Monet painting…from a distance. However, I enjoy listening to him even if he leaves me exhausted. The following is taken from his website. “L. A. Marzulli is an author, lecturer and filmmaker. He has penned 12 books including The Nephilim Trilogy which made the CBA best sellers list. He received an honorary doctorate for the series from his mentor Dr. I. D. E. Thomas, who was the Provost at Pacific International University.…L. A. Marzulli teamed up with film producer Richard Shaw to create The Watchers series. There are now 11 installments in the series and Watchers 7: UFO Physical Evidence, won UFO Best Film and the Peoples Choice Awards, at the UFO Congress in 2014! …Marzulli has launched a new series, The Watchman Chronicles and his first independent film was released in March of 2017. The title of the series is In Their Own Words: UFOs are Real! This is a hard-hitting expose on the burgeoning UFO phenomena. The series is geared toward the skeptic as a wake-up call to what Marzulli calls: The Coming Great Deception….Marzulli is a frank super-naturalists who has lectured on the subjects of UFOs, The Nephilim, and ancient prophetic texts, presenting his exhaustive research at conferences and churches, as well as appearances and interviews on numerous national and international radio and television programs”. https://lamarzulli.net/about_lynn_marzulli.htm M.A. and Ph.D. in Hebrew Bible and Ancient Semitic Languages from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Before attending UW-Madison, he earned an M.A. in Ancient History from the University of Pennsylvania (major fields, Ancient Syria-Palestine and Egyptology). Heiser is able to do translation work in a dozen ancient languages, among them Biblical Hebrew, Biblical Greek, Aramaic, Syriac, Egyptian hieroglyphs, Phoenician, Moabite, and Ugaritic cuneiform. He has also studied Akkadian and Sumerian independently. Dr. Heiser taught on the college level for twelve years before taking hiscurrent position as Academic Editor ancient languages with Logos Bible Software in Bellingham, WA. His main academic interests are in ancient languages and texts, biblical archaeology, ancient Near Eastern religions, Egyptology in general, textual criticism and ancient manuscript transmission, epigraphy, paleography, the history of the alphabet, biblical theology, and Intertestamental (Second Temple Period) Jewish writings, like 1 Enoch. He has had a lifelong interest in the paranormal, particularly the UFO phenomenon. Heiser has spoken out critically against proponents of ancient astronaut theories, especially Zechariah Sitchin. He is also the author of six nonfiction books and two fiction. My opinion of Dr. Heiser is very high. I have used his book Supernatural as a basis for a study in my church.

My daughter Grace has stacks of books in her room and I thought it would be fun to ask her to chose some of them as a recommendation to my blogging friends (and their children). She is a very experienced reader and is also a writer. I took pictures of her copies of the books and then asked her to tell me about them. I typed down what she said. Enjoy! GRACE’S BOOK PICKS (more posts like this to come, as she has more that she wants to share with you.) By the way, she has read them all more than once. The Underneath, by Kathi Appelt It’s a story about a cat. The cat becomes friends with a dog and when the cat has kittens the dog and the cat raise the kittens together. The owner of the dog was abusive and when one of the kittens goes out from underneath the porch he tried to drown it. The mother cat saves it’s life, but in doing so she drowns, poor thing. The book also includes many other animals, and told from the perspective of many different characters in the book. The book is very well written and it’s a story about love and sacrifice. If you are kind hearted will love this book. I don’t think anyone who isn’t kind hearted would read books, but that’s just my opinion. If you like animals you will like this book. I did my first book report ever on this book, the summer I was about to go to public school for the first time. The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles, by Julia Andrews Edwards This book reminds me of the Narnia books. There are three children and they go to visit the zoo. When they are at the zoo they meet a strange old man. This man introduces them to the land of the Whangdoodle, which probably has a different name but I don’t remember it. He tells the children about this place because children have very good imaginations and they will believe almost anything. To visit this land you need to use your imagination. I got this book from Ethan and it was given to him by Mom and Dad, Jacob also read it. I liked this book. (laughs) The younger girl, Lindy, reminds me of Lucy (from Narnia) who reminded me of myself. And the two other boys, Ben and Tom, reminded me of Jacob and Ethan. Our mother told us that she got this book for us because she said that we all had great imaginations and we would all be able to picture the great Whangdoodle in our minds. (“did I really say this?” “yes, you did”) And because of this, we all attempted to draw it. The Fledgling, by Jane Langton This story is about a girl named Georgie who claims she can remember being able to fly. She tries to fly again but this doesn’t work very well, (laughs), poor Georgie. No one in her family will believe her, and she meets a goose. This goose is a goose prince, he teaches her how to fly. I liked this book, I remember liking it but I don’t quite remember why. “And whenever his customers brought their children into his bank, he would open the gate that separated his desk from the windows of the tellers and stroll up to the children, beaming, and pat their heads and hand them lollipops. Some of the children would say thank you. They were the good children. Others would stop up their mouths with the lollipops and stare back at him sullenly. They were the bad ones. And then Mr Preek’s generosity would turn sour, and he would go back to his desk in solemn scorn.” page 42 Young Fredle, by Cynthia Voigt This book is about mice who live in a house and then one mouse gets out of the house quite by accident and finds himself in the world. He ends up trying to survive chickens and raccoons and countless other things, while trying to get back into the house. When he finally does get back, he tells all of the other mice stories about what he saw outside and because of this all the mice go to live outside. I wanted to read this to David but that didn’t happen because he got bored. There was a cat named Patches (we had a cat with that name once). I liked it because it was about a mouse and I never read a book about a mouse before and he had to survive many animals that we wouldn’t think were dangerous. Cryptid Hunters, by Roland Smith The Cryptid Hunters is about twins named Grace and Marty who are both very smart. Even though they are both smart, Grace is obviously smarter. These two children are at a boarding school because their father is an explorer (I think). Their mother was a photographer. One day in school the twins are called down to the principal’s office and told that their parents were in a car crash and didn’t survive. They go to live with their Uncle Wolfe (whom they didn’t know exsisted), who lives on an island. He is an veterinarian and is trying to find cryptids. Cryptids are creatures whose existence haven’t been proven, like Sasquatch. The twins end up getting stranded in the Congo. The main part of the story is about their adventures in the Congo. I’ve read this book a lot. “The turning point for the O’Hara family came when the twins were six years old. Marty decided he wanted to catch a bear. He and Grace dug a five foot deep pit in the back yard, covered the opening with brush, and caught their mother, who became as angry as a bear. The twins didn’t understand why she was upset. They had not used the sharpened stakes in bottom of the pit which the instructions had called for. (Marty wanted the bear alive for show and tell at school.) While Mrs. O’Hara was in the hospital recovering from her injuries, she got to thinking about the direction her life had taken. She missed her husband. She missed her former independence. But most of all, she missed the wild places her cameras had taken her to. ‘If I’m going to fall in pits I might as well get paid for it’, she decided. And soon after her release she took the twins and joined Mr. O’Hara in the field. This did not work for very long. Grace was afraid of everything that moved (and many things that didn’t). Marty was afraid of nothing but ghosts, which he had only read about. For the twins own safety the O’Haras decided that Marty and Grace should stay at home. They hired a succession of live-in nannies to care for the children, but none of them lasted long. One by one, these disgruntled women fled the house with hastily packed bags, shouting back at the twins’ panicky parents, ‘Your son is as wild as a hurricane, and that daughter of yours is just plain weird.'” (I beg Grace to stop reading) (she continues, but I stop typing) The Fisherman, by Larry Huntsman Dad recommended this book for me. He told me that when he was reading it he kept thinking of me and how much I would like it. So of course I read it. It’s a Biblical retelling of the gospels, written in Simon Peter’s perspective about Jesus’ ministry. I thought it was very interesting. I’ve read it three times. I liked it’s cover, it had a horse on it which is probably why I read it. Tucket’s Travels, by Gary Paulsen Francis and his family are on a wagon train when Francis gets kidnapped by Indians. He escapes with the help of a one-armed mountain man whom he becomes good friends with. He spends the rest of the book trying to get back to his family. On the way he finds two children, Lottie and Billy, who’s parents had died, so he takes them with him. I’ve read this book a lot. My favorite character is Lottie, because she talks a lot and never shuts up. She talks about the most random things that pop into her head. (mom will tell you that I am like that with her, although I don’t talk like that to anyone else. She has to listen to me and love me regardless.) The book made me cry, it was very touching.

Cryptid Profile: The Hawkesbury River Monster It is said that since the early 1800’s, people have claimed to see a monster swimming beneath the surface of Hawkesbury River in New South Wales, Australia. The river in which the creature is said to dwell, stretches 75mi and has a maximum depth of 45ft. Like most sea/lake/river monsters, this aquatic anomaly is described as looking like the classic image of an extinct plesiosaur. The Hawkesbury River Monster is said to be between 25-35ft long, has a large bulky body that is covered in patchy black and gray skin, a long neck that is topped off by a head shaped like an oversized football, four large flippers, and a thick tail that becomes skinnier the farther away from the body it stretches. Depictions of a dinosaur-like creature with a long neck, long tail, and four flippers have been found within Aboriginal rock art found throughout the region. The age of these images date back to around 3,000yrs ago. When white settlers started to show up in Australia in the 1800’s, the Indigenous Australians would warn them not to go near the water’s edge for fear that the HRM would quickly pluck them from the shore and pull them back down into the water. They spoke of how many women and children had been attacked by the HRM while either in the water, or while upon its shore. Some managed to survive the attacks, while others met a much more gruesome fate between the large jaws and sharp teeth of the monster. The most popular story/legend of the HRM took place in the 1980’s. It is said that one day, as a fisherman was making his way down the river in a small aluminum boat, a large creature suddenly appeared in the water beneath him. The fisherman could tell that something large was beneath his boat as the water around him grew dark, began to ripple, and started to swirl. Suddenly, the large creature slammed into the bottom of the boat and launched it 10ft into the air. The fisherman was tossed out of the boat and into the water where he made a desperate attempt to reach the shore. As he swam, the creature started to make its way in his direction, but suddenly changed course and dove under the water. With feet now firmly on shore, the fisherman made quick work of leaving the area and never came back. Along with the story from the 80’s, there are also many other reports/stories of boats being found along the water’s edge smashed to pieces, or of overturned boats floating down the river completely void of their passengers. Some witnesses have even reported finding large slide marks along the bank that move back into the water, as if a large creature was recently there sunning itself not hours before. Much like that of a crocodile. Many researchers feel that the sightings and stories about the HRM are just that, stories. No substantial evidence for the existence of the HRM has ever been found. There have been no credible photos or video taken of the creature, all reports and sightings have been strictly word of mouth. Most people believe that when witnesses claim to have seen the HRM, what they have actually seen is a rogue crocodile that has made its way into the river, an oversized catfish that has broken the surface, an oversized large eel, or a swimming goanna (monitor lizard). -The Pine Barrens Institute *Image Credit: Google

Cryptid Profile: Brosnie (AKA: Brosnya or The Brosno Dragon) Situated within the Tver region of Russia and close to the town of Andreapol, there sits an icy lake with a max depth of 141ft. The lake is known as Lake Brosno and it is said to be the home of a dragon, and a particularly nasty one at that. While the lake does have many different legends associated with it (some going all the way back to the 13th century), the ones that strike the most fear into the residents are those that involve the dragon named Brosnie. One legend claims that in the mid 1200’s during the invasion of Europe and the expansion of the Mongol Empire, Batu Khan (the grandson of Genghis Khan) led his Tatar-Mongol army towards Novgorod, one of Europe’s largest cities and the capital of the Novgorod Republic. After marching for quite a long while, Khan order his men to rest next to the large body of water alongside them in order to refill on water and allow the horses some down time. Unknown to them though, the body of water that they had settled down next to was Lake Brosno. Suddenly, as the army sat near the water’s edge, a large dragon-like creature sprang forth out of the lake and began snapping its jaws at both man and animal alike. The army could not flee fast enough and countless horses and soldiers were crushed between the teeth and swallowed by the angry dragon within the lake. So terrified at the horror they had just experienced, the Tatar-Mongol army fled the area and completely abandoned all plans to take the city of Novgorod. The dragon had saved the capital. Another legend within the area tells the story about a group of Vikings that had stolen a large amount of treasure and were searching the area for a place to hide it. When they came upon Lake Brosno, they noticed a small island out in the middle of the water. Feeling that this was the perfect place to hide their treasure, the Vikings loaded into a small boat and set out towards the island. As they were nearing the shoreline, it is said that a large dragon appeared from below the surface and got between the island and the Vikings. Terrified of the monster before them, the Vikings attempted to row back to the main shore, but their efforts were in vain. The dragon opened its mouth and swallowed the warriors whole, boat and all. Later, in the 18th and 19th centuries, it was said that the monster started to become more docile. Locals in the area told stories about how the large dragon would appear on the lakes surface in the evening and just swim back and forth. If anyone were to try and approach it though, the creature would sink back beneath the surface and not appear again for another few days. The monster was said to be 16ft long, had the appearance of both a fish and a snake combined, possessed an extremely large head with equally large eyes and mouth, had exceptionally large fins, and an enormous tail. But what about sightings in modern times, was this creature even around in the 20th century? What about now in the 21st? The answer to that question is yes. In 1996 while on vacation, a family from Moscow took a blurry photo of a large creature seen swimming far offshore in a calm section of water. The monster was brought to the attention of the adults after their 7yr old son had started shouting that there was a dragon out in the water. In 1997, sightings of a large creature that was seen frequently swimming in the water not far from shore, began to spark interest in the dragon once again. Those that lived along the shore of Lake Brosno were even becoming quite terrified that the monster could quite possibly one day attack them if they ventured too close to the water’s edge. Finally, in 2002, a team from the Kosmopoisk Research Association (a group that researches claims of UFO’s, Cryptozoological encounters, and other supernatural/paranormal phenomenon) launched an investigation into Lake Brosno. During their time on the water, the group conducted deep echo location sweeps of the lake and discovered a globster floating near the bottom of the lake. After throwing a low impact explosive near the location that the globster was stuck, the object broke free and rose to the surface. Testing on the unidentified mass proved interesting as no lab could match the samples to any known creature within the lake. All they could determine was that it was biological in nature and was more than likely alive at one time. So what is the Brosnie? There are those that believe the dragon is actually a true relic from the days of the dinosaurs and is either a plesiosaur or a zeuglodon (like the Loch Ness Monster and Champ). Some believe extremely large pike within the lake are to blame for sightings as they could appear monstrous at times while others feel that Brosnie is a product of misidentification due to large moose or wild boar occasionally swimming across the lake and taking on an monstrous appearance while wet and covered in various vegetation from within the water. There are a few investigators who look at it scientifically and feel that the dragon is nothing more than hydrogen sulfide bubbling up from the bottom of the lake bed and causing a disturbance on the surface of the water which makes it appear as if a large creature is underneath. Finally, there are those who feel that Brosnie was in fact real at one time, but died years ago and it’s decomposing body was what the Kosmopoisk Research Association pulled up from the depths of the lake. -The Pine Barrens Institute *Image Credit: Google

The conference will occur over three days, featuring talks from leaders in the field, the sale of unique items and goods from specialized vendors, as well as an opportunity to network and expand your knowledge in the amazing field of cryptozoology. The Bigfoot is obviously a male but with no genitalia (probably due to the child marketing guidelines). The September 3, 2017 event will be a scientific and popular culture gathering that is five-minutes from the International Cryptozoology Museum in Portland, Maine. How could a television program “prove” the existence of a cryptid, anyway? The three-day event is a serious, scientific cryptozoology conference being held near the site of the 1896 “Giant Octopus” beaching. Sykes Team Error: Yeti DNA Matches Modern Polar Bear; BBC Compounds Error, Says It Was Himalayan Bear The conclusion that these Himalayan Yeti samples were certainly not from a hitherto unknown primate is unaffected, noted the Melton-Sartori-Sykes reply. Sprague is best remembered for his coauthored work, The Scientist Looks at the Sasquatch (with Grover Krantz). Add these to your collection today or give as gifts. They are great!! My thanks to so many of you for your well wishes. And donations.

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating. This week I'm waiting for Midnight Blue-Light Special by Seanan McGuire, book 2 of the InCryptid series. It's expected to be published March fifth. 1. Any creature whose existence has been suggested but not proven scientifically. Term officially coined by cryptozoologist John E. Wall in 1983. 2. That thing that's getting ready to eat your head. 3. See also: "monster." The Price family has spent generations studying the monsters of the world, working to protect them from humanity--and humanity from them. Enter Verity Price. Despite being trained from birth as a cryptozoologist, she'd rather dance a tango than tangle with a demon, and when her work with the cryptid community took her to Manhattan, she thought she would finally be free to pursue competition-level dance in earnest. It didn't quite work out that way... But now, with the snake cult that was killing virgins all over Manhattan finally taken care of, Verity is ready to settle down for some serious ballroom dancing—until her on-again, off-again, semi-boyfriend Dominic De Luca, a member of the monster-hunting Covenant of St. George, informs her that the Covenant is on their way to assess the city's readiness for a cryptid purge. With everything and everyone she loves on the line, there's no way Verity can take that lying down. Alliances will be tested, allies will be questioned, lives will be lost, and the talking mice in Verity's apartment will immortalize everything as holy writ--assuming there's anyone left standing when all is said and done. It's a midnight blue-light special, and the sale of the day is on betrayal, deceit...and carnage. Discount Armageddon, book 1, was funny, interesting, and creative, and Seanan McGuire's series usually get better as they go. Can't wait for this one! What books are you waiting for?

I received this book for free from the library in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review."The Recitation of the Most Holy and Harrowing Pilgrimage of Mindy and Also Mork" by Seanan McGuire Genres: Urban Fantasy Published by Patreon on April 1, 2017 Source: the library Also by this author: Chimes at Midnight, Indexing, The Winter Long, The InCryptid Prequels, Pocket Apocalypse, A Red Rose Chain, Reflections, Once Broken Faith, "Dreams and Slumbers", Chaos Choreography, Magic For Nothing, Indigo, Every Heart a Doorway, The Brightest Fell, "Of Things Unknown", Beneath the Sugar Sky, Night and Silence, "Suffer a Sea-change", The Girl in the Green Silk Gown, Tricks for Free A short story, 6.5 in the Incryptid urban fantasy series and revolving around a family of cryptozoologists. The focus here is on Mindy and Mork as they make their way home. This short is located in the back of Tricks for Free, 7, and I still can’t decide if I wish I had read it before or after… My first gripe is that if it’s 6.5 in the chronology, why would anyone put it last in the seventh installment? Why not put it first?? For a short, it’s two stories in one with Sam’s side (in third person) as he worries about Annie, and Mindy’s perspective as she and Mork travel home. This isn’t one of my favorites tales about the Aeslin mice, but it does expose us to Mindy’s thoughts (using first person protagonist point-of-view) about the Aeslin mice and their belief system. We also discover the dangers of traversing the airport when you’re mouse-sized! Eeek. You can’t help but fall in with Sam’s stress about those in-app purchases in Candy Crush, lol, by the Aeslin mice. As for Sam’s issue with the mice and their capital letters, well, it’s my own as well. How do they decide which ones to cap?? Ooh, Grandma has her own secrets…and Mary lets it out! It is Grandma’s fault for being so pissy. It does get complex what with the rules Mary has to follow, Grandma’s anger at Sam, Sam’s worries for Annie, and of course, those mice traversing the airport. Antimony has fled the carnival…without the Aeslin mice, treasured family chroniclers who must reach the Price home base in Oregon. It’s up to Sam to get the mice to the airport…and Mindy and Mork will take it from there. Mindy is the Aeslin mouse who volunteered in Magic For Nothing, 6, where she met up with Mork, an Aeslin mouse trapped with the Covenant. The Aeslin mice keep an oral history of absolutely everything that happens in the Price-Healy family. The Spenser and Smith Family Carnival is… …from whom Annie fled in Magic For Nothing. Sam Taylor is a fūri who is a star on the trapeze as well as Emery Spenser‘s grandson. Delilah had been Emery’s daughter and Sam’s mother who fled at his birth. Umeko, a Jorōgumo, was the performer at fault in Magic For Nothing. Ananta was another performer, a cobra cryptid with two brothers. Aunt Mary Dunlavy is a crossroads ghost (Sparrow Hill Road, 3.5), the Price babysitter, and an honorary aunt to Annie. Annie Price, a.k.a., the Precise Princess, was the Price with whom Mindy was traveling. Evelyn Baker, Annie’s mother, is the Thoughtful Priestess. Artie Harrington, Annie’s maternal uncle/cousin?, is the God of Chosen Isolation, with his computers. Jessica and Angelica are the dragons at the airport. Allison is Angelica’s seven-year-old daughter. The title is a perfect example of the completeness of the Aeslin Mice for this is “The Recitation of the Most Holy and Harrowing Pilgrimage of Mindy and Also Mork”.

Ohio citizens and visitors to our state have gone to the local parks for almost 150 years. They enjoyed the waters and the trails. They have hiked through the forest, or strolled through the meadows. Some loved them so much they remained long after they should have. These are a few tales of haunts from around the state. Some are from the parks themselves, most are from the history the parks are trying to preserve. (links to locations in orange titles) The land was originally owned by Lemeul Punderson. After he and his wife’s deaths it changed hands, eventually being owned by Karl Long. On the site he decided to build a 29 room mansion for his wife. This was in 1929. The great depression soon followed and wiped out his fortune. He died before the mansion was finished. In 1956 the state took over the site and has run it as a lodge and conference center since. In 1976 a band of gypsies told what is considered the first ghost story about the place. They reported seeing a dark seaweed covered shape emerge from the lake. This happened only a year after a teenage girl drown in the lake. Guest and Workers have been telling strange tells of the location ever since. Footsteps echo and pounding on doors can be heard when no one is around. Lights flicker and chills can be felt throughout the old section. The grand spiral staircase is said to be haunted by a civil war veteran. The tower was the location of a many a story of a man who is said to be looking for a lost rocking chair. The Windsor suite is probably the most haunted section of the grounds with multiple figures inhabiting the room. Beaver Creek State Park Beaver Creek park is one of the parks that was preserved for its history along with its natural beauty. At the site is the remains of the old Hambleton mill. It’s grain was shipped via the canals that crossed Ohio. At the mill an old lady is said to keep vigil. Her name is Ester Hale. She is said to be seen on many night. Also along the canals is “Gretchen’s Lock.” Named after the daughter of the man who built the lock. His daughter caught malaria, came down with a fever and chills and rambled on about returning to their home land of Holland. Eventually she passed away and the family decided to return to Holland after the lock was built. They stored Gretchen’s coffin in the lock until they left. On the way back across the ocean a violent storm took their lives and they along with the coffin were lost at sea. It is said that the ghost of Gretchen returned to the last place she was at rest, inside the lock. Gretchen’s is not the only haunted lock in the area. A former keeper who died from a lightning strike while on duty is said to haunt “Jake’s Lock.” At the right time one can see him with his lantern bobbing a long on duty. John Bryan State Park / Glen Helen / Clifton George Located by village of Yellow Springs the gorge makes up one of the best preserved, and prettiest, areas of central western Ohio. The area traces its roots back to the original Adena Mound Builders and later the Shawnee. Nearby was Old Chillicothe one of the important sites of the Shawnee, with famed leader Tecumseh visiting often. In the late 19th century, when residents feared that the growing amusement park industry would take over the land, they decided to preserve it. Now it is 3 interconnected sites that showcase the beauty of the glacial carved region. With such long history the sites are bound to have some never leaving visitors. In John Bryan an old hermit visits the area around the west gate. Willie the hermit drown when he and his horse tried to cross the overflowing river at the bottom of the gorge. He is still heard whistling his happy tune. In Glen Helen it is said that the girl who the preserve is named after can be seen playing after hours. She loved the area so much that her father donated the land to the local college to keep it as she remembered it. Some say she loved it so much she may never leave. Clifton George and the connected John Bryan have large cliffs that lead to the Little Miami river below. From the top one can see the danger of a fall. Many a person have gone out for a walk without ever coming back. Some on purpose, some by accident, and some for unknown reasons. It is said that the woods are best visited in groups at night. Lake Hope State Park Located in the south-east, considered one of the most haunted parts of the state, and the nation, is this amazing park. While not as popular as the nearby Hocking Hills and Old Mans Cave, this park has one of the most famous eerie places in any state park, Moonville Tunnel. The story goes that during the heyday of the old mining town of Moonville supplies were delivered daily by train. One night a brakeman fell from the train and was crushed under the wheels. He was taken to a nearby doctor but his injuries were too severe. It is said that if one looks out at night they can see the red signal lamp swinging in the wind to warn of the on coming train. Or is it to warn the many other people who have been killed by trains in the area? A man was killed coming home from buying groceries when he fell from the bridge he was attempting to cross. Another man died attempting to jump from the train early. A man, with the help of liquor, decided to sleep on the tracks. A search of the McArthur Democrat newspaper, the newspaper of the area at the time the train and town were bustling, will bring up many more stories. The tunnel is located off the Moonville rail trail. There is a high water trail down the road. This path will lead around the creek that runs high most of the warmer months. The tunnel itself is a run down popular area. The walls are lined with graffiti and trash. Even in the light of day the area is creepy and scary. The idea that the ghost of a lost railroad worker, or a local citizen, becomes almost a guarantee once one has visited the area. Well worth the hike. Hocking Hills is one of the most visited parks in Ohio. Every weekend when the weather is good the parking lot is full. But how many people know of the strange happenings in the area. The early Adena Indians, who built the Mounds in Ohio to bury their dead, some in the park. The inhabitants forever protecting that which they were buried with. The area was also inhabited by local American Indian tribes, including the Wyandot, Delaware and Shawnee, following the Adena. It is said that on a still night one can still see them roaming the area. One of the most noted areas for this is Conkle’s Hollow. This is where, as legend goes, many an American Indian was hung for robbing the settlers passing through. The most famous and most visited area of the park is Old Mans Cave, with a good portion of visitors not even knowing that there is more to the park than this one gorge. The Hocking Hills section of the Buckeye trail, and North country national trail, winds through the gorge and passes by many a haunted spot. Old man’s cave was named after Richard Roe, a hermit who lived in the cave with his hunting dogs. He was not the first settler at the site. Nathaniel and Pat Rayon, two brothers, built a cabin on top of the ridge and lived out their days there. All 3 are buried in the cave area of the park. Late at night campers have said to have heard Roe’s dogs hunting, with some saying you can even see him walking the area looking for them. Further down at Rose Lake a woman searching for her son fell of a cliff and died. Hikers and fisherman say they can still hear her calling out to her lost boy. Along the trail around Ash cave a shy lady from the 1920’s has been known to creep around following groups of hikers. By the nearby Logan Lake State Park is Scotts Creek Death Hole. Named for the underground cavern that draws water, and anyone caught in its current, in from above. In 1887 a newlywed couple was pulled under while trying to cross. Their horses can still be heard and the young women seen trying to find her husband. The whole southern region is well forested and a good place for anything to hide. Almost any boy scout, hiker, or camper that has spent a night there will have a story about some strange noise they heard. Some claim to know what the noise came from. They say it was the most famous cryptid, the ape-man known as Bigfoot. But that is for another post.

You have stumbled upon the Merrylin Cryptid Museum, the life's work of Crypto-naturalist, Fringe Zoologist and Xeno -Archeologist Thomas Merrylin. This is the online archive of his unique collection of specimens. Creatures and artifacts thought to be nothing more than myth. It is a mystery that challenges our understanding of biology, chemistry and the very laws of physics. But this is no fairytale, for he was a scientist, and empirical evidence and rational thought hold sway here. There is a lot to see and read, so please take your time to peruse the website. For more information, Please watch this informative video, or continue reading below. My name is Alex CF, and I am the curator and custodian of the Merrylin Cryptid Collection. The study and documentation of the evolution and biology of unclassified species and research pertaining to prehistoric human and non human civilization. In 2006, a trust was set up to analyze and collate a huge number of wooden crates found sealed in the basement of a London townhouse that was due for demolition. Seemingly untouched since the 1940′s, the crates contained over 5000 specimens of flora and fauna, collected, dissected, and preserved by many forgotten scientists, professors and explorers of obscure cultures and species. The collection also housed many artifacts of curious origin, fragments of civilizations that once ruled the earth, of ideas and belief systems perhaps better left in the past. But the most curious aspect of this discovery was the man responsible for its existence – the enigmatic, mysterious gentlemen that had gathered together a wealth of relics that challenged our understanding of nature; of species that had never been witnessed by the modern world, of objects which defied physical laws, Lord and Professor Thomas Theodore Merrylin. Born in 1782 to a rich aristocratic family. His mother died during childbirth and he was raised by his Father Edward. His father was a General in the Army, but once retired became enamoured with esoteric natural history, investing in profitable companies to fund his travels across the world, seeking out illusive artefacts and hidden species which resided in forgotten continents or darkened places, away from prying human eyes. They traveled together for many years until his fathers sudden death. This event turned Thomas into a recluse, seeking solace in his work and befriending very few. He tutored himself in the grand Library at Merrylin house, yet also studied at the University College London on Gower street. Even then, he isolated himself from other students. A bizarre quality of Merrylin was his apparent permanent youthfulness. Even in his 80′s, he still resembled a 40 year old, albeit of odd complexion, and his few bizarre forays into the eyes of the media only furthered his infamy. He was accused of practicing dark arts to prolong his life. Yet, eminent scholars secretly allied themselves with him, encouraging him to share his collection with the world. In 1899, he took a small portion of his specimens on tour across America. Conservative attitudes of the time condemned these creatures, calling them blasphemous. His reaction was severe and the tour was canceled before it reached California. In the following years, Merrylin extended the collection exponentially. He traveled to the four corners of the Earth and learned of ideologies and sciences which astounded those who corresponded with him. He held within his ranks a legion of colleagues who would benefit from his endless search. In truth, we did not know what he was searching for, until very recently. The collection houses mathematics not dreamt of in his time, of theories that we are only now contemplating. Merrylin posets the possibilities of the multiverse, of time travel, of quantum mechanics - before the terms existed. Merrylin is an enigma. He fell into obscurity, until 1942. The Tunbridge Orphanage for boys was contacted by a man purporting to be Thomas Theodore Merrylin, in the spring of that year. He wished to donate a sizeable London town house to the Orphanage for use once the war was over, and children returned. The only proviso was that the basement of the house never be opened and the house never sold. The Orphanage stood by this promise, until absolved in the 60′s and the existence of the cellar forgotten. Sealed behind two brick walls, the door was only found by chance when the foundations were checked prior to demolition. The Thomas Merrylin pictured in a local newspaper, handing over the documents for ownership to the new proprietor was in his forties. By this time, Merrylin would have been over 160 years old. The name sparked interest from those who had followed Merrylin's work, most assuming him long dead. But the man claiming to be Thomas promptly disappeared. Leaving no evidence of his existence. The Merrylin estate was also sold off and money given to charity. What he left was the most incredible collection ever known, actual specimens of taxidermied dragons, the infant forms of werewolves, artefacts from ancient Vampyr nations and the trappings of nefarious scientists whose existence was presumed to be mere fiction. It was this, and the apparent immortality of Merrylin that drove me to become rather fanatical about understanding the life of this man, and his world changing collection. What had allowed him to live so long? Where had these specimens originated from, considering there are no other examples of these species to be found on the Earth? It is this that I find so thrilling and yet so terrifying.

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I enjoyed the originality and sass of "Discount Armageddon", the first book in this series about professional ballroom dancer and cryptozoologist, Verity Price and I wanted to know how Verity would fare, given the mess she'd created by the end of the book, so I picked up "Midnight Blue-Light Special" to find out. The first third of the book failed to grab my interest, partly because it seemed to spend a lot of time repeating things that anyone who'd read the first book would already know (I hate that - readers should either read the books in order or live with catching up as best they can) and partly because telling the story from Verity's point of view, which is compulsively sassy, made it hard to get engaged with the threat to her and the community of Cryptids. I was almost on the point of giving up when Seanan McGuire made an inspired move: she had someone knock out Verity and passed the storytelling on to Verity's adopted cousin Sarah. This worked well because Sarah is very different to Verity. She isn't sassy, she's risk-averse and deals with conflict by avoiding it. She's also not human. She's a Cuckoo, a cryptid that can control minds and get people to see and do whatever she wants. This is a power that effectively makes her invisible but which she holds back on because she doesn't want to turn her friends into slaves. Once the story was seen through Sarah's eyes, everything was refreshed, the threat was amplified and the action became hard to predict. By the time Verity regains consciousness and takes over the storytelling again, she's in very serious trouble, sass has been replaced by a struggle to survive and we're into well-written action scenes. The ending was clever and plausible and moved the story arc on significantly, which means the third book will probably head in a new direction. This was a fun read, eventually, and I still have hopes for this series.

The International Cryptozoology Museum™ in Portland, Maine, includes exhibits about cryptids (beyond Bigfoot & Nessie). We also feature displays about the finds of “living fossils” and other classic animals of discovery — the successful cryptozoological stories. One of the most famous, of course, is the coelacanth, as featured in the ICM logo. We have a 5.5 ft long, lifesize model of the first one taken off Africa in 1938 in the museum. We have plenty to see. For example, artist Kim Parkhurst’s new Tatzelwurm is now on display. The International Cryptozoology Museum has many rare and unique pieces of remarkable evidence. Some of the items on exhibit are actual hair samples of Abominable Snowmen, Bigfoot, Yowie, and Orang Pendek. A letter from the actor Jimmy Stewart is on display as he is linked to the Pangboche Yeti hand mystery. Fecal matter from a small Yeti was collected by the Tom Slick-F. Kirk Johnson Snowman Expedition of 1959, and the ICM’s sample has been featured on three television series: In Search Of, MonsterQuest, and Mysteries at the Museum. A footprint cast taken in 2001, during an alleged Thylacine encounter, is among the over 10,000 items on exhibit. New arrivals appear in the museum often, including, for example, Esau, a Sasquatch baby “reborn” doll, made especially for our museum. Several new exhibits have been enhanced or newly installed during 2013-2014, including ones on the Dover Demon, the Montauk Monster, the Jersey Devil, Thylacine, Coelacanth, and the Napes/Skunk Apes. Assistant Director Jeff Meuse has recurated our Lake Monster exhibition. Please come visit us to see those and more. Hollywood model maker Lee Murphy’s full-sized Gigantopithecus-oriented Bigfoot head was added too. Our new well-lit ICM (below) is on Avon Street. Photos, above/below, by Ryan Dube Our mid-century modern “cryptozoologist’s study” art installation. Photo: International Cryptozoology Museum™ The Hillary Yeti Expedition flag is the first item obtained by Loren Coleman in 1960, beginning his mission to build a historical and educational cryptozoological collection, which has resulted in our nonprofit museum. Art/antique aware travelers appreciate the vintage settings of our exhibits, sometimes as much as the cryptozoology. Our expanded, enlarged location is located at 11 Avon Street, Portland, Maine. This is just around the corner from our 2009-2011 location. Please use “11 Avon Street, Portland, Maine 04101” for GPS purposes. Erik Gosselin’s one-of-a-kind movie prop FeeJee Mermaid, was created for the 1999 A&E film, P. T. Barnum. The museum is filled with unique items, including the full-sized art sculptures of the Crookston Bigfoot (by Curtis Christensen), Freaky Links’ pterodactyl (by Haxan sfx), P.T. Barnum’s FeeJee Mermaid (above, by Erik Gosselin), the Naden Harbor Caddy (by Lee Murphy), a lifesize bronze of a Thylacine, and other cryptid and new species replicas, evidence, and more. Our fiberglass coelacanth (from Fantastic Fish) is the only life-size exact model of the first 1938 specimen displayed in North America.