Shh...Don't Tell The Human!

GH Live Tonight & November is Cryptid Month on GHT!

The month of November is going to be devoted to cryptids. Oh, you know, everything from Jersey Devil to Tasmanian Tiger, Sasquatch to Congo Dinosaurs. A whole month of insanity and a Cryptid Giveaway, as well. No, I'm not giving away a living cryptid.

Zak'isms: The Best of Zak Bagans

Happy Halloween/Samhain, y'all!

I thought we'd have a little giggle on Halloween by appreciating all that is special about Zak Bagans of "Ghost Adventures." I laugh at the show and have a weekly drinking game based on it, but honestly it's purely entertainment, not ghost hunting, so let's enjoy Zak's wonderful lines from some episodes that prove what an entertainer he is!

"I'm standing here with wax figures, some of whom are dead now." (Madam Tussad's Wax Museum in Vegas)

Ah, Zak, lambie, ALL of the wax figures are dead, dear.

"I'm gonna set it right here in between my legs because that's where I hear the incubus likes it best." (Rams Inn, England)

Ah, Zak sugar foot, the incubus (male ghost looking for sex) appreciates your accommodating his needs, dear.

"We hear you don't like people in here renovating this place...Why am I being like this to you? Because I don't like bullies! (The Riddle House)

I'm sorry to hear that, Zak, honey. Then, I suppose you're really hating on yourself about now, huh?

"I know what you did to that big guy earlier and I want you to do it to me...You wanna grab my ankles, go ahead!" (Wolfe Manor)

Oh, Twiddlebug, that's what you say to all dates in their apartments.

"This is a guard key...I'm to go open up all the doors and hopefully they will come out and try to kill the guards." (Eastern State Penn)

Zak, sweetums, the invisible ghosties aren't really locked in cells and there are no guards, dear. The prison is closed and has been for some time.

"If this is the portal of hell, why don't you come up out of the ground and get us?" (Bobby Mackeys)

Sweet cheeks, that's a well you're talking to. It leads to water. Satan has a bigger and more fiery entrance to his domain.

*Check out the newest zombie housewives post*

Zombie Walk Phoenix 2011 Videos

Over 4000 people participated. It was freaking amazing! Police blocked the downtown roadways and the thousands of zombies stumbled through the streets and moaned, lunging at the witnesses.



I'd like thank HalloweeNut for his very kind words. He is one of the best Halloween enthusiasts I have ever known and embodies the spirit of the season in his art and his craft.

LAUGH: Finding Bigfoot in the Snow! NEW SPOOF!

In honor of tonight's wicked awesome 2-hour special of Animal Planet's "Finding Bigfoot" episode, I'm making a new installment of my LAUGH series. Other installments can be found above on the "LAUGH" tab. I have a tendency to make loving fun at the shows I most love. "F'ing Bigfoot" (as I like to refer to it) is my most beloved new show on TV.

In this episode, we find the team searching for BF in the icy mountainous terrain of Colorado in search of the popularly termed "Snowbeast."

Ranae: (Lifts her pack over her shoulders and hikes through the snow) Boys, if you are all done urinating your names into the fresh snow, could we please move on before nightfall?

(the men track in after her towards the treeline)

BoBo: So, I don't get it. Technically, if this is a Snowbeast, it should be white. That'd make it a Yeti, right? So, what's Yeti doing in Colorado? Does his coat change when he goes down in the off season to lower elevations. If he does that, wouldn't it make him like a mood ring? I once had this mood ring when I was a kid and the dang thing was always blue. Maybe he's related to a chameleon. You think that's possible, huh? Cause if it is, he might not be a hominid. He'd be like some kind of lizard man which reminds me of the lizard man in the Carolinas. Did you see what that SOB did to that person's SUV? I wonder if the insurance paid for that. What do you write when you make that claim, huh?

(Matt smacks him upside the head)

Ranae: This looks like a good place to set up.

Matt: I think this area looks ideal for setting up camp and some trap cameras in the periphery (points around them).

Ranae: (to Cliff) Didn't I just say that?

Cliff: Matt, I think Ranae chose this location.

Matt: (forehead wrinkles) Are we letting viewers pick our spots now? Jesus! Do we want this to be like "Ghost Hunters" having on special guests from wrestlers to housewives to, heaven forbid, Meredith Vieira?

Cliff: No, Matt, Ranae is on our team--the girl. You know, the skeptic?

Matt: (shrugs his pack off his shoulders and sighs wearily) She's still with us?

Ranae: Ah, I can hear you Cliff.

BoBo: Whatcha want me to do this time? Huh? Huh? (excitedly waves) Maybe I could stand in for the Snowbeast and you can see if I look like him. Maybe I could run across the field real fast and you could clock my speed. Remember that time it took me 50 takes to get just the way you wanted, Matt? You want me to be your pack horse again? I can carry all your heavy gear to prove the strength of the Bigfoot like that experiment you had me do on that 18-mile hike. Do you need me to be your car jack when you work on your truck again, Matt? Remember that time you left me in the meadow overnight when it was pouring rain and 40 degrees because you wanted to see if Bigfoot could stand the cold and the rain? I can't wait to see the experiment this time (claps his hands excitedly).

Cliff: BoBo, we were kind of thinking you might be a good lure for Snowbeast.

BoBo: (grins proudly) So, you want me to be bait, huh? So, what do I do? Beat on my chest and holler? (pounds on his chest and screams)

Matt: (comes over and shoves two snowshoes in BoBo's hand) You're going to wear these Bigfoot snowshoes and make impressions in the snow. Bigfoot surely is desperate to find more of his kind. You just walk your way through the forest and head on back here where we can be ready to snare him with my camouflage netting (points up to the trees where a net is suspended)

Cliff: Here, you should wear this Ghillie suit too (hands it to BoBo). It'll make you look more like a Bigfoot if he sees you.

(BoBo hoists the fluffy suit on and then the snowshoes)

Ranae: BoBo, I'm just go help you smell right. (Ranae holds her nose and sprays the Ghillie suit with a horrible stench)

BoBo: (gags) What is that?

Matt: It's my own special blend. I'm thinking of marketing it. It's the musk of a baboon mixed with orangutan dingleberries, the sweat of a fertile chimp and the spit of a gorilla. There's a subtle undernote of skunk and stinkbug juices. (inhales it deeply and sighs dreamily) Isn't it remarkable? It's like perfume of the gods! (dabs some behind his ear)

Ranae: (elbows Cliff) You get to ride shotgun on the way back.

Matt: So, BoBo, how good are you at sashaying?

BoBo: (forehead wrinkles) W-what?

Ranae: (chuckles) I think what Matt is trying to tell you is that, (she reaches into her backpack and pulls out two balled up pairs of socks and stuffs them inside BoBo's ghillie suit) You're going to be a girl Squatch.

BoBo: (frowns) I'm gonna be a g-girl squatch bait? (gulps)

Cliff: (checking the ghillie suit to be sure it's fastened) Now, you be sure and alter your Squatch call.

BoBo: Alter it?

Cliff: Yeah, buddy, (slaps him on the arm) Can you do a kind of Shania Twain scream?

Matt: I actually think a Christina Aguilar scream might be attractive to the beast.

Ranae: (under her breath, rolling her eyes) Attractive to the beast or you? (snorts) BoBo, just go out there and there and walk around, we'll film your footprints, look at you on the FLIR and shout that we see something in the trees, cut away to a commercial and before you know it, the show is cobbled together to look like a mythical beast was chasing you. (leans in and whispers to him) We all know this is a ridiculous endeavor, but my ass is cold. Let's get going, shall we? There's a hot latte at Starbuck's with my name on it! (slaps him on the back)

(BoBo stomps away in the snow as the last bits of light disappear and a moonless night begins. An hour goes by and the team stomps in place and hugs themselves to stay warm, occasionally hearing a pitiful wavering cry in the forest)

Cliff: Poor BoBo. He sounds like Carol Burnett doing the Tarzan call. Maybe we should call him in?

Matt: Wait! I'm getting a figure on the FLIR. It's walking upright! Oh holy hell! It's huge! Get ready, Cliff. Go to the net, be ready to drop it. That beast is almost here. Three. Two. One. Drop the net!

Cliff: (pulls the cord and drops the net) Wow! I can see something struggling. (turns on his flashlight and hovers over the struggling figure in the netting)

Ranae: Well, I'll be! That thing is hairy, big and smelly. Just like people have been reporting. I'm feeling pretty stupid about now. Obviously, this creature did exist.

Matt: (turns to film crew) Put that on record. The female skeptic admitted Bigfoot exists!

Cliff: Ah, Matt, it appears we've caught BoBo (pulls at one of the snowshoes through the netting).

(an hour later, the team is driving off in their truck down a snowy back road)

Ranae: This heater feels soooooo good.

Cliff: Hey, you think BoBo might like an apple?

Matt: I don't know, why don't you find out?

Cliff: (rolls down the window, BoBo jogging alongside the truck in the Ghillie suit and snowshoes, breathing hard)

BoBo: S-ure. So, I'm just gonna run alongside the truck back to the hotel, huh? See if Bigfoot could keep up with a car. G-great experiment. Th-that Matt is one s-smart guy!

(Cliff hands him the apple, rolls up the window and Matt turns up the heater)

"F'ing Bigfoot" TONIGHT! DO NOT MISS IT--WOW!

The "Finding Bigfoot" team on Animal Planet is going to do a special tonight that will curl every BF-lover's toes. They're going back to the setting of Patterson-Gimlin. Oh man! Those lucky bastards!

I know, I know, I call it "F'ing Bigfoot" but it's my goofy way of making a shortcut and making a statement about how freaking hard the beast is to find! I have a feeling the team probably curses it under their breath upon occasion after a long uneventful search, "that f'ing Bigfoot!"

To honor my favorite new show, I will have a new episode of LAUGH in just a while based on the show in a scenario where they go looking for Snowbeast in Colorado.

Liz Has Crushes on Zombie Walk

First, I want to say, I am not a traitor! I can't help it that at the zombie walk in Phoenix, I found some of the humans quite delicious (and I don't mean for supper). Isn't this one handsome even though he still has a healthy complexion?

This group of the humans really caught my eye, especially the tall boy. Us tall gals appreciate their altitude.



I wanted to ask these two cuties out, but Stella is happily married (sigh). Oh well, perhaps at the next zombie 5K!


LIZ

(See the post earlier today to see some of the zombies)

Zombie Walk Phoenix October 2011 Costumes

I will do a post about more aspects of this most amazing Zombie Walk 2011, but for now, let's enjoy a few photos of costumes and then I will share videos and more. There were easily over 1000 people and some of the zombies got very unruly and went after the humans on the sidewalks and cafes. When the crowd resonated with groaning, it was awesome. The Ghostbusters hearse lit up their lights and started off the course. The downtown streets were blocked off and the huge horde stumbled along. It was the most amazing event I've ever been a part of. It was fantastic!


A zombie wearing a onesie flannel pajama and monkey backpack.


A zombie with a mohawk.


A sock monkey and evil clown.


Day of the Dead wedding couple.


A zombie cow, why not?


Zombie control SWAT team that wrangled us up and walked some zombies on long sticks with straps and rode in a jeep with mounted guns. These guys were super yummy! This zombie gal, Liz, wanted to take a bite out of one of their cute butts!


A little tongue fest.

We ran into some amazing costumes, a few Fred Flintstones, tons of really graphic costumes including a woman with a zombie baby working its way out of her belly, dead Elvis playing guitar (got that on nightvision video), and lots of families with little zombie children and babies.

"Zombie Apocalypse" Syfy

This original airs on Syfy tonight.

Still want more zombies? Come join Julie and I's blog based on our upcoming book "Zombie Housewives of the Apocalypse."

And, the new season of Face-Off on Syfy is coming too....

Parapsychology Research: Global Consciousness

This is my new series exploring research in the field of parapsychology. Today, we're discussing global consciousness.

IONS (Institute of Noetic Sciences)



IONS mission statement: Broadening our knowledge of the nature and potentials of mind and consciousness and applying that knowledge to enhancing human well-being and the quality of life on the planet.

One time, years ago, I was coming out of the grocery store like any other day and walking through the parking lot when I stopped, pivoted and studied the mountains in the far off distance to the northeast. I felt a sense of immense peace. It was so unusual that I put my groceries in the trunk and wandered further into the lot and studied that direction. I had a sense of a gathering. A very large gathering. Lots of people. But, they were gathering for a large prayer or peace mission. I had no idea what I was getting such a sense, but it was as strong as a psychic sense when I touch an item that is super charged. I got into my car and pulled out of the parking lot, but not before stopping and thinking how much I wanted to just get rid of the groceries and keep driving far northeast to meet these people. I felt compelled to turn on my radio and I listened to talk radio usually, so I put on the channel and listened and immediately they started talking about a huge gathering of people in Northeastern AZ for a group prayer mission for peace. They were gathering right now and praying en masse.

When you put minds together for a single purpose, that intention can be quite intense. IONS gets this and is learning how to weigh, measure, and direct this power to fuel the world for positive change. It may sound new-age, but the concept of gravity was new-age for its time too.

Here is what Princeton is doing for global consciousness: When human consciousness becomes coherent and synchronized, the behavior of random systems may change. Quantum event based random number generators (RNGs) produce completely unpredictable sequences of zeroes and ones. But when a great event synchronizes the feelings of millions of people, our network of RNGs becomes subtly structured. The probability is less than one in a billion that the effect is due to chance. The evidence suggests an emerging noosphere, or the unifying field of consciousness described by sages in all cultures.

Basically said, taking random number generators, they randomly spit out 0's and 1's, but if a huge global event happens, like say a tsunami, there is something that happens with the "random" numbers that shows a pattern that is above chance. This is leading to many interesting conclusions about fate and humans.

I've discussed this many times on the blog, but it's my belief that intentions are everything. It's one of the reasons I think we have difficulty on ghost hunts and hunting Bigfoot. The moment we are concentrating on and intending to seek out these things, they pick up that intent and retreat. The only time people usually run across ghostly activity or Bigfoot is when their mind is intent on something else.

Let's look at it this way. A child goes missing in Alabama and meets a bad ending. We find it awful and sad, but accept it as a daily occurrence. But, should someone bomb a daycare center and kill 20 children, we are enraged and angered, hurt and vengeful. Now, imagine one person praying for something and then imagine 1000 people focusing on one emotion.

This is interesting research and I will be avidly following it. My team, POE, hopes to use a random number generator and correlate it with activity at a haunted site to see if we can find any connections. We are open to all possibilities with no assumptions about any phenomena.

Liz and Stella in Zombie Walk!

***Please vote for my steampunk costume in this Halloween steampunk costume online contest -I'm the steampunk ghost. You can vote once a day on the contest, so multiple votes are much appreciated!**


1950s bowling shirts for Stella and Liz (Julie and I's characters for our upcoming book "Zombie Housewives of the Apocalypse"


Going to bowl with a skull....


Cute bowling bag, huh?

Julie and I are off with some dear friends, 5 crazy women, dressing as zombies and doing a huge zombie walk downtown. We will be filming and photographing it. Julie and I are dressing as our characters from our upcoming book "Zombie Housewives of the Apocalypse," Stella and Liz. We're going to wear 1950s bowling attire and even have a fake head to bowl with. It should be a total riot. We're going to take the Light Rail in to the downtown area while in character. Should scare the other passengers!

I will report back with photos and vids, you know it!

Protect Your Blog--Backup!

I had a horrible scare earlier. I went to my blog and got a message that it had been deleted and was no longer available for use. WTF?

So, after I stopped hyperventilating, I found out a few things I didn't know. You can backup your blog and then if they hose it up by deleting it, you can put it back up again.

Go to Settings and click on export blog. It will download a copy of your entire blog to your computer and then you can put it wherever you want that you will remember it.

I also backup my template so I can keep the same look by going to design and "edit HTML" and copy the HTML code into a word document and save it.

I found a great post about what to do if this happens.

Thankfully, if you use the help button in the upper right, you can leave a question on a forum regarding your problem. They seem to keep it well managed because usually within an hour or two, the problem is fixed.

Blogger has been messing things up lately, but at least we can protect ourselves, just in case. I came pretty darned closed to having a litter of kittens on my carpet when I found my blog gone!

Ghost Adventures Drinking Game Time!

"Lonely Day" System of a Down (I love this band!)

So, here's the awesome location of the newest episode of "Ghost Adventures" on Travel Channel tonight--


From Opacity site: In 1907, appropriations were made to construct the Eastern New York State Custodial Asylum in rural Theills N.Y. as a response to a growing need to house the "feeble-minded and epileptic." 2,000 acres of sprawling farm country were purchased for $188,575 in 1907; one year later, the hospital was renamed Letchworth Village Home for the Feeble Minded and Epileptics after William Pryor Letchworth, a noted humanitarian and philanthopist who was familiar with institutional conditions. The hospital was touted as the model institution for the disabled since its opening.


Since this is the last episode before Halloween, I feel like Zak and the Boyz need a real good drink for tonight's drinking game, so let's be inspired by the season!

Pumpkin Pie-Tini
1 oz. milk
2 tablespoons pumpkin puree
1 ½ oz. vanilla vodka
1 ½ oz. Crème de Cacao

Using a small amount of honey, rim martini glass with graham cracker crumbs. Shake milk and pumpkin puree over ice to combine. Pour in remaining ingredients and shake well. Strain into the martini glass.

Okay, y'all - it's rules time:
1. Stay home.
2. Take a drink for every "bro," "dude," "man," every time Zak thinks he's touched by a ghost and every time Aaron's mouth drops open in horror.

I can't begin to imagine what the boyz will do tonight, but they have a fantastic location to have some seriously ridiculous times.

Vintage Halloween Masks

I want to have a wall collection of vintage Halloween masks. Oh, you know the ones--uber creepy and wrong, wrong, wrong, like something out of the movie "The Strangers." There's a shop online that sells them calle Goblinhaus.


Ebay has a lot too, but mostly I think it would be great to make them based on some awesome google search images of vintage Halloween masks. They are so handmade which makes them even more disturbing.

In the movie "Trick R Treat" the kids on the bus were wearing the best ones I've ever seen. Totally horrifying. Most craft stores like Joann and Michaels have the simple plastic mask and you could go to town recreating some of these babies....

No "Butterfly Effect" - More Like "Tsunami Effect!"

The convoluted path of my life goes something like this (and a lot like Lucy Ricardo)....

I think to myself, "hey, last year I did an online virtual zombie walk event, so I should do one this year to kick off October."

Then, I think, "we need a logo." So, a fantastic artist whips one up and I make a button and tell people.

Then, over 60 people join the event.

So, I'm thinking, "I should probably have a cool picture of me as a zombie for the event, maybe in an apocalyptic place, like that Slaughterhouse we photographed at."



Julie and I plan a trip to the Slaughterhouse for her to photograph me as a zombie, but then I start thinking, "hey, maybe she should pose too. We could do poses like zombie housewives in a post apocalyptic house."

I stew on that thought for a few days and then think, "Dammit! That should be a book! Something mocking 1950s housewives and their zombie like existence where even a toxic bomb couldn't stop them from coming back as zombies and doing their housework as usual."



So, we find an artist we want to do the cover of the book, we head to the abandoned place, do a photo shoot. Then, we get back and I think to myself, "you know, we should include the gals doing their housekeeping tips and the character Liz, the drunken divorcee, giving drink recipes."



As I see the fantastic posts on the blogger virtual zombie walk, I think, "you know, there's some amazing zombie themed artists out there." So, I decide to feature them in the book, along with references for books and films and zombie goods of all kinds. A sort of zombie reference book.



It seems that the zombie housewives have the potential to become a coined term. Julie and I think, "hey! CafePress shop!" So, Julie and I talk about designs and she works on them so people can enjoy the zombie housewife theme.



Then, I find out there is a real zombie walk downtown at Halloween. I have on my bucket list that I want to do a zombie walk. I think, "hey, it seems like it ties in with the book, huh?" I mention the idea to Julie and she thinks it'd be fun. We plan out our costumes to go to the event.

I tell people we're doing the zombie walk and they're thinking "hey, this'd be fun." Suddenly friends and their families are joining in with us. We take it a step further and decide to ride the light rail into the downtown area in costume and characters.

I sit back right now, a few months into all this craziness and realize I didn't just think shit, I did it. I didn't just do it, I brought others into the whirlpool. A week from now, when the zombie walk is in our past, we will all look back and laugh about the insanity of it and not a one of us would have done it if I didn't decide to that blogger virtual zombie walk.

I have a convoluted path in my life, but I don't do it alone. I surround myself with great people willing to join in. I like to run my blog that way, as well, and my paranormal investigating. No one is leaving this relationship unaffected.

How do you affect your world? Just look at one day's decisions and see how they change your fate and that of others. You'll be surprised how just the simplest thought becomes an action - becomes a result.

Classic Horror Movies List

I was getting a bit frustrated going through the usual modern-day horror movies to get into the Halloween mood. It dawned on me, some of the classic creepy ones are the ones I cut my teeth on and were allowed to watch as a kid. Some of them have more mood and atmosphere than 10 modern movies. Enjoy these classics and consider them part of your Halloween collection henceforth so you're satisfied with quality--

JACK THE RIPPER THEME:


"Time After Time" (1979)


PHANTOM OF THE OPERA:


Phantom of the Opera" (1943)


THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME:


"The Hunchback of Notre Dame" (1956)


KING KONG:


"King Kong" (1933)


GODZILLA:


"Godzilla" (1954)


THE WOLF MAN:


"The Wolf Man" (1941)


THE MUMMY:


"The Mummy" (1932)


DRACULA:


"Dracula" (1931)

THE FLY:

"The Fly" (1958)

Others to add:
Psycho
Rear Window
The Birds
Village of the Damned
Frankenstein

New Profile Pic

I'd like to thank the talented artist and horror writer and paranormal investigator, Cullan, for taking one of my steampunk ghost pics and making it into a cool shot. I'm using it as my profile pic. I love it!

Parapsychology Lecture; Barry Taff & Loyd Auerbach

I went to an interesting paranormal lecture recently entitled "As the Spirits Move Us: Science and Speculation of the Paranormal" and the beautiful Herberger Theater in Phoenix. Following the lecture by two top paranormal investigators/parapsychologists, we attended a dessert social where we could speak more intimately with them about the subjects they discussed. The speakers were Loyd Auerbach and Barry Taff.

Chances are, you've seen Loyd on paranormal specials and interviews.



Look familiar? Well, he was a most engaging public speaker, reminding me a lot of Josh Gates with a quick wit, quick mind, and quite comfortable in his own skin. He studied magic and does a very impressive mentalist routine with audience members. But, it's his interesting cases that really caught my attention including a funny one involving a yuppie couple who left a lovemaking residual tract down in their old bedroom for the new owners to deal with.

Barry Taff, you might recall as one of the investigators on the original Entity case. He has experienced 43 years in the business with more poltergeist activity witnessed than any one human being could have. He has his doctorate in psychophysiology and this should not surprise us because his take on ghostly activity is very much in line with mine; involving the right set of geomagnetic conditions (magma chambers, geology, seismology, underground springs, high tension wires, and people with the right physiology to actually measure on a magnetometer.

Interestingly, he discussed something that had me thinking. He mentioned that if people see an apparition, it doesn't mean that it's necessarily in a visual form in the environment, but is an image placed directly to the minds of those in the room. Sometimes, they even see something different than each other. It made me think about EVPs and how voices imprint on audio without being audible. So, perhaps phenomena is not actually in the environment, but taking a direct path to the mind or recording device which is something I've debated about a long time.

They also discussed poltergeists being associated with the living, which I am absolutely in line with. Residual is another issue that can be left behind by the living from actions they took in that environment. Some people with issues involving residual can get by changing the environment with new memories by taking over the space and laying down new patterns. As well, when dealing with ghosts, one can simply ask who the ghost is and what they want. Sometimes, it's as simple as wanting to be recognized. They can also do things that make it uncomfortable for a ghost. Loyd humorously spoke of a case where the young son got a book of jokes and couldn't stop telling the corny jokes. They ended up having him read them for an hour and told the ghost, the kid will continue to do this if didn't go elsewhere. Even the threat of country music to a dead rap star's home could make it unwelcome there. These were humorous and yet very practical ideas.

Taff spoke of a confluence that involves poltergeist activity containing these 3 elements; Location, neurophysiology, and emotions. I am completely aligned with that assumption. It's something I've believed since I was a child.

In an interesting mention, they spoke of static electricity being present and helping the whole process and if one were to wave around a fluorescent light tube in a static-ridden atmosphere, it would light and that would show potential conditions.

Both men suggest the use of a wide variety of instruments, but stress the need for very expert level (expensive) instruments and the knowledge of how to use them and what they mean.

I enjoyed the lecture very much and found the Herberger Theater to be a fantastic place to view a lecture and enjoy fine art on the walls of the lobby and stair wells. It was a very enchanting evening. The links to the speakers' names above link you to the books of theirs that I recommend.

Steampunk Ghost Costume

Here's my costume! Vote for it here in a contest.

Horror Movies: Paranormal Investigator Themes

My favorites are in bold.

"Death of a Ghost Hunter"



"Knocking on Death's Door"



"Poltergeist"



"Ghostbusters"



Others:

"The Haunting"
"Legend of Hell House"
"The Changeling"
"White Noise"
"1408"

Fact or Faked Reviewed

(Julie and I did these at the farm event last weekend. I think the answer to this pic--for the first time ever is--faked!)

Let's play a little game--you tell me how you would change FoF to make it better.

My concept: Ben as producer and acting as a Skully type figure with a sassy charming woman--a female Josh Gates--as the Mulder aspect of the team. He asks hard questions and uses his skills on witnesses and she charmingly defuses things and sheds a different point of view on cases. The two of them go and grill witnesses and learn how hoaxers hoaxed things from their own POV, such as leaving the hoaxer in shadows to describe how he did his little online faked video. I'd rather see an X-Files format than the adolescent, awkward, playground assembly they have going with hokey experts on the team and no personality to a one of them. They are all kind of dead inside which to me means that they: a. Have no personalities. b. Are limited by the constraints put on the show to not be spontaneous or natural.

GH Tonight--Yikes! & FoF

Area 51 on FoF tonight--review tomorrow.

I will be at a paranormal lecture this evening with two "top" parapsychologists; Barry Taff (not sure what I think of him) and Loyd Auerbach (once again, not sure what I think of him). I hope to hear some intelligent conversation from them about the new world of parapsychology and not the old world of possession and poltergeists, seances and spiritualists. I'd like to hear some serious discussion on EVPs which show the best promise so far of a way to capture evidence. I don't know if either of them are associated with such research, I seriously doubt Taff is. I haven't heard him and EVPs in the same discussion, so I'm guessing he's one of those types who can't hear an EVP if it screams at him. With many 70s era researchers reaching retirement, I wonder about the future of the industry. Like Bigfoot research, many of the innovators in the field are going bye-bye. I'm hoping to hear them talk about the direction the field is going (hopefully utilizing theorists in physics) and I will report back.

I won't even show a clip of GH because the guest star is Meredith Vieira. Need I say more??? WTF??? They didn't jump the shark, they ran it over with a motorboat!

Oh, WTF? I'll go ahead and give you the clip purely for entertainment purposes, I don't think it would be encouraging you to support their sponsors and watch the train wreck--



Expect my review tomorrow and I want your input about Fact or Faked! You will enjoy the FoF photo tomorrow taken at the farm event.

On a funny WTF note--At the farm there was a parking lot sign to remind us where we parked and it was a cow--sponsored by--Sonic Drive-In! Hee hee (poor cow)

Punishing Dale the Doll

So, y'all are probably wondering what Dale is up to. It's October--he's possessed, right? I've been keeping him in the front window to scare the kiddies, with Hellspawn and Skittles flanking him. They do a fair job of keeping him out of trouble, but the other night he snuck out and managed to rattle the blinds and scare the crap out of me. I'm putting him in his "my first Halloween" baby onesie that he despises and I found the perfect punishment: Dale despises vapid valley girls, so I chatter valley girl speak to him and he, well, becomes rather catatonic. Works like a charm! Enjoy!

Horror Movies: Creature Themes

We all love creatures and monsters in movies. The 1950s Sci-Fi movies with the radioactive beasts were the best! It still strikes a "creeped out" sensation in viewers, especially if the monsters are just odd enough to be unsettling. My favorites are in bold.

"The Beast Within" (1982)



"Prophecy" (1979)



"The Howling" (1981)



"Trollhunter"



Others:

Them!
Godzilla
King Kong
Sasquatch
Cloverfield

Cobbling Together the Ultimate Paranormal Show

(I know the picture has nothing to do with this subject - but it's so damn awesome!)

"Ghost Lab" was brilliant! Lots of equipment, willing to ask experts and best of all-taking theories and testing them. Problem: A bunch of yahoos way over their heads, abrasive personalities, Zak Bagans type of takeovers of historic sites. It was like brain surgery with a buzz saw.

"Ghost Adventures" The concept of being locked in without a crew is a good one--if it's true that they don't have a crew (I find that preposterous). Problem: Obnoxious and idiotic. It's not to be taken seriously. It truly is like frat boys tearing into an abandoned site. The concept of taunting is ridiculous. There is nothing here but pure entertainment--not one drop of contribution to the field. They are taking away from true research and smart minds for ratings and products.

"Paranormal State" Had the mood and atmosphere, music and editing that made it truly creepy like a fireside tale. Problem: It's just a horrible abomination. They screwed up families that were already fragile, imparted magical thinking and possessions, demons, and evil. There were no benign hauntings, only horrible threats to people's mental health. I despise this show and the people who made it happen. That's the honest truth!

"Ghost Hunters" Great concept of debunking, using some commonsense and putting less bodies in a site. Problem: No growth, no change. They think they know what ghost types are and how they work -- where did they learn this at Hogworts? They never consulted professionals and experts. They never changed it up. Stale, stale, stale.

Ideal paranormal show would have the best here--debunking, smaller teams, being locked down, having no extra crew, having great editing, music and atmosphere and testing theories with unlimited experts and equipment. And, if we're going to make this entertainment, find someone as engaging, smart and funny as Josh Gates, puh-lease.

Okay, now Syfy--let's get this baby out there!

Terrifying Nightmare

Have you ever had a nightmare that just stuck with you for a long time?

I was up the other night, watching "The Walking Dead" when I was getting ready to go to sleep. I switched the channel and saw a bit of "The Mist." It had me confused before going to sleep and I had a nightmare that was amazingly real....

In the dream, I was in the back seat of a car. The car was full of other people, probably 4 others. Two in the front seat were dead and the ones in the back seat with me were crying out and upset and pounding on the windows and I was telling them to stop doing that. It was over. We were done.

I scrambled through my purse as I began to feel really weird in my head. I grabbed my lipstick, tears streaming down my face, and I tried to will my mind to still work as I wrote backwards on the window, "we used to be normal." I knew it would be my last message. I grabbed a gun from the floor of the car and shot the two people next to me and then turned it on myself as I was turning into a zombie.

I woke up, heart pounding, but I remember that feeling I had inside, that resolve that I knew this was the end of the line, we were bitten and going to change, and all I could think of was to leave a reminder that we were once human and once normal.

What sorts of nightmares have you had that haunted you long after like this one?

What You Didn't Know about "Night of the Living Dead"

What I believe to be the best horror movie of all time, has a lot of intriguing facts you might not have known.

It was filmed in the Pittsburgh area.

Evans City Cemetery, Evans City, Pennsylvania
Head northwest on on Franklin Rd for half a mile. Continue onto Pioneer Rd. for 1/5 mile. Turn left on PA-68/W. Main St for almost 3 miles. Turn left on Magill Rd. for 3/4 of a mile to cemetery.



Originally, Barbara survived the night.

The main character was originally written as a big burly truck driver.

"Night of the Anubis" was the original title.

The bodies in the truck were actually ham and chocolate syrup the zombies ate.

The house was slated for demolition, so the owners allowed use of it.

The entrails were supplied by a local butcher.

The man who played the father actually worked in a lot of roles in production of the movie.

On top 10 most profitable films of all times, here's how the movie did on that list:
#9: Budget: $114,000
Box Office Revenue: $30,000,000

Ghost Case: He Came In the Night

My family moved into Aspen Grove when I was a little toddler. The sights and sounds of the house to me were perfectly normal. Children adapt to realities, like tossing your ball in the air results in it coming back down every time and the sound of a sister screaming at the other sister in another room can be heard through even the thickest walls.

When we first moved in, our family dog, King (a Collie/German Shepherd mix) had some issues with--nothing. My mom would watch the dog growling at the wall, backing off from the center of the room, snapping at something not there, then jumping as if he had been kicked, tail between his legs, howling and rushing off, nearly going through the closed side door. My mother eventually got spooked by his reactions to what seemed to be something he was aware of that she was not. Eventually, King would not come in the house anymore and remained the rest of his 15 years outdoors. We set him up a sweet doggy place in the shed, but he would not go near the inside of the house again.



Then, while father was away on his work that took him off in all hours of the night to locations around the country, mom would lie in bed alone and listen. The house seemed to come alive the minute the last person went to bed. Was it settling sounds? Well, nope. One time, father heard it too and commented. She felt great relief.

One day, an old owner of the house visited and lightly mentioned the ghosts. My mother blinked. She was not a believer in ghosts, but the woman explained a story that gave my mother shivers.

"During the Civil War when the home was being used as a field hospital, a young soldier was upstairs in bed when shooting erupted outside. He rushed out without his boots that his parents had given him. He was shot and killed outside. Every night, he still walks the stairs and hall looking for his boots."

My mom, being a closet historian and an art teacher, found some romance in that story and took pity on the soldier. She began to haunt the library and City Hall in search of information about the home's history. I grew up in the dusty records rooms glancing through old soldier's diaries and other books while mother gathered her information.

And, every night I heard him. Booted feet, walking up the stairs, then down the hall to the middle bedroom. He only took a few steps into the bedroom and then in front of the radiator, the board would creak and that was the end of his vigil. As a kid believing my life was being guarded by unseen soldiers, I would turn and whisper to him, "good night." It was a ritual I grew to appreciate until I became a self-conscious adolescent and the thought of a man in my bedroom was kind of creepy. So, I took the end bedroom in the newer part of the house that had no activity.

One night, tired of telling stories of the ghosts and having kids scoff at them, I sat down on the middle of the stairway, turned on my dad's recorder and waited. He started up the stairs. It was the first time I'd been there when it happened and it seemed to go so quickly and then he was on the board I sat on. And, for the first time in all those years, he paused a moment and then continued on. I held my breath and exhaled as he headed down the hall. I realized in that moment that he seemed to have sensed me just enough to stop a moment and wonder before finishing his trek.

It was in that moment one of my theories began and still persists--perhaps they are not the only ghosts; perhaps we are ghosts to them.

Haunted Locales For Sale: Oxbow Inn

This location (above) is the Oxbow Inn in Payson, AZ and it's for sale for a good price, actually. It was popular in the mountainous region for being a busy saloon and dance hall. I have heard that the activity there (spirit wise) is quite impressive. It's the kind of place I would very much like to hunt in before it's taken over and renovated and changed. It's in the quiet time right now when it should be quite interesting to capture paranormal goings on. I have such a love of historic places and their meanings through the decades. Just as a psychometrist and ghost hunter, history lover and romantic, I would very much like some time in there to soak it in and see it come to life again in the nighttime. Whoever buys it is a very lucky person and I hope they realize how unique these kinds of places are and the responsibility of owning a piece of history. I also hope they like serious-minded paranormal investigators.

Then, there's the Vulture Mine....



Sadly, the Vulture Mine (hilarious "Ghost Adventures" episode) that Julie and I enjoyed photographing and filming, was finally bought after years on the market. Hey, it is a gold mine and gold being worth a lot, well.... We can only hope that the new owners take care of the historic buildings and understand the preciousness of what they now possess. I hope to be able to go back and do ghost hunting with the buildings being preserved and history remaining intact for visitors to see and feel.

My childhood home, Aspen Grove, was bought by a contractor at one point in time and he meant to tear down the 250-year-old mansion and all the outbuildings to put up condos. The historical society and neighbors fought and the bastard was allowed to tear down the outbuildings and orchards and build condos around the mansion. I cursed his soul and I do believe he went bankrupt eventually, though I had images of hanging him from one of the remaining trees--by his scrotum.

Hey, here's a site just for paranormal homes for sale.

One can always dream of residing in a home with others where you don't have to give up bathroom time and space for them.

NDEs: Interdimensional Travel?

If you want to cut to the 5-minute mark on this video, it begins her description on the "other side." She had a brain aneurysm and surgeons had to stop her heart, ice her body, and drain her brain of blood. It is an extraordinary case of near-death experience.

Many of us have had anesthesia during surgery. They put us out. We wake up. There is no in between land of dreams and memories.

How does a person with no brain activity manage to have an experience that is cognizant and one they remember?

I've talked before on here about the concept of heaven being the fourth dimension. Here's an example of how this might all work: I exist in third dimension, but also in the second dimension in a photograph.

It is entirely possible that in third dimension I am a prototype of what I am in the fourth dimension. It is in that dimension that everything becomes "real."

Many who experience NDEs claim that coming back to this world was not real--that the other world is the real world. My own father had such an experience when he had an NDE. He said there were even colors and flowers that don't exist in this world.

If a person in the third dimension can make an image of himself on a photograph, why then couldn't a person in the fourth dimension create an image of himself in this third dimension, a being that has three dimensions and acts out in this world sort of like a SIMS character on a video game?

Would this maybe explain the "god" part of the brain in the temporal lobe that gives use the sense of another with us, beside/behind us/witnessing our lives? The "we are not alone" sensation.

Here's another mind fuck--what if it's like this: We take a photo of ourselves and it now represents us visually. That photo can be torn up and thrown away, end up in a dusty unused album, hung in a frame, made into a poster, or even printed on money if we're famous, but the worth of the photo doesn't have anything to do with the value of the person it represents.

You can take a photo of a killer and a photo of a great citizen and they are both represented, both photos could be taken care of the same way and last just as long. What if our lives in 3D form can be played out either quickly like a torn photo/dying young or with great value as President of the United States, but none of these 3D renditions "lives" have anything to do with the worth of the being in the 4th dimension they represent?

Yeah, crazy, huh? Welcome to my world of theories.

Sex and the Single Ghost Hunter: Mary Tyler Moore?

This is one of my ongoing series about being single after decades of marriage.

When I was a kid, Mary Tyler Moore's character, a single working woman, was my example of what I wanted to be when I grew up. Eventually, I jumped over to Rhoda's side because the idea of being a window dresser and dressing more bohemian attracted my odd side.

Speaking of odd sides, now that I am my own Mary Tyler Moore character, I don't find it as neat and pretty as her world was because, well, I'm kind of quirky. You want to see my independence photo? I didn't toss my cap in the air in front of witnesses, no, I tossed my face out there in front of witnesses.

















I was scared to show my face on the blog for the longest time because I thought I was hideous. That's what a very unhealthy relationship can do to one. The moment I showed my face to the readers, I was liberated and, in fact, strong enough to ask for the divorce-finally. Some men even called me beautiful. In all my years of modeling, pageants and marriage, my ex never called me beautiful. I had never heard that word in association with myself.

TVland shows Mary Tyler Moore show from time to time. I watch it and smile. Oh, that Mary.

What's it really like to be single when you went from childhood home to long-term marriage? Besides feeling like it's summer break every day?

I'm able to leave dishes in the sink.

I don't have to make elaborate meals adjusted to someone's dietary needs and fussiness. I make a supper of fresh mozzarella balls, beets and artichoke hearts - because I can!

I can leave my clothes on the closet floor if I want to (and often do).

I buy sexy lingerie with no guarantee anyone is ever going to see it.

I have quiet moments at night when I have existential thoughts about being alone in the world. It's like a tree in the forest--if there's no one to say good night to, do I exist?

I wonder where I'll be five years from now, 10 years... Ultimately, I know that the rest of my life isn't already pre-determined like it had been before when I knew just how every day of the rest of my miserable life would be played out. With it being a complete giant question mark before me, I can make it anything I want from day to day and change it at will. I love not knowing what the frag happens next!


The awesomeness definitely beats the awfulness 100:1!

Was MTM a good role model for a young Autumnforest? Yes. She made her own decisions, her own love life mistakes, her own home, her own friends as her second family, and her own achievements when she stood up to Lou.

This is perhaps the best example of what I have in common with MTM....