Gothic Garden--the Celtic and Christian Sections--Costs Zero $--Priceless

Since my mother was a very proud Highlander Fraser, I did a nod to my Celtic heritage in the garden. I had a lot of beautiful limbs from the dead mulberry, so I curved them and tied them off to make an arbor up against the ugly shed. I planted a bower vine and ground cover and ferns surrounded by a ring of rocks (all of them free--relocated from around the garden). I hung two Green Man faces in the arbor and one statue of Him on the ground and a large celtic cross (all free, already had them). I painted the cross to age it and make it look moss covered. I also painted the Green Man images with iron paint so they rusted out. I think over time, this will age nicely. The bower vine is extremely crazy growing, so I expect it to weave around and in and out of the Green Man faces.

I turned the triangular garden into the Christian garden with an angel, cherubs, and lots of thorns (blackberry and rose bushes). I hope to get lots of little vignettes around the garden and then take flagstones and river rock and make weaving pathways so it's a giant labyrinth. I've always wanted to have a labyrinth and I figured since I don't have a big open area to do it, I can just incorporate it into the garden and walk through it every day and contemplate the spiritual icons arounds me.

I still want to do one section for "magical" religions (paganism), Wiccan, Viking, and more indigenous religions. I've made a dreamcatcher and I'm working on a small totem pole next. I haven't figured out how I want to portray Viking and Wiccan, but I'd love input if anyone has ideas. I think I might do something with an altar for Wiccan. The Viking--Thor's hammer???

I couldn't find anything on Muslim faith. Apparently they don't like idolitry, so there are no symbols or statues. They did adopt the crescent moon and star, but it's not theirs and they consider it to be of Pagan origins. I heard they like rosemary in their gardens, so I planted a rosemary bush--in the Christian garden. Somehow, it seems like it might make peace.

If you can think of any other religions to add, let me know.

It's really weird because it seems as if they all go together in a peaceful kind of way, like being in a cemetery with a lot of different headstones. It just makes a cohesive intricate curiosity. I wonder what it does for the energy of the garden and my growing herbs/fruits/veggies???

Come and Meet the Dead People

I wanted to let locals know about an event MVD Ghostchasers is putting on in conjunction with the Pioneer Cemetery Association to help raise funds for the Association. It's a walking tour of the Pioneer Cemetery in downtown Phoenix. Us members of the MVD Ghostchasers will be in costume speaking as the deceased characters of Phoenix's founding families. Standing at our own graves, we will tell you about our lives and contributions to The Valley. I'm playing the part Phoenix's first mayor's wife, Anna Alsap. This will be Sunday the 31st. I'll be sure and give you a reminder just before then too. (info below)

A Historical Walk in Phoenix’s Early Cemeteries
“Where Phoenix’s Past Comes Alive”

Sunday March 29, 2009 11:30 am to 2:30 pm

Pioneer & Military Memorial Park 14th Ave. and Jefferson St.Phoenix, AZ 85007
602-534-1262

For more information contact:www.azhistcemeteries.org
Sponsored by the Pioneers’ Cemetery Association.
Thank you for joining us!

$10 donation for adults$5 donation for students 12 and under Children under 5 free

Join us after the walk for refreshments

“Show me your cemeteries, And I will tell you what kind of people you have." Benjamin Franklin

Meet Our Cast of Featured Characters:

James Henry Broomell 1837-1896 He was born in Pennsylvania. He served as a Union soldier in the Civil War and fought in two of the most significant battles: Antietam and Chancellorsville.

Anna D. Alsap 1855-1902 She was married to the first mayor of Phoenix. Praised as a dedicated Sunday school teacher, a stained glass window was placed in her honor at Methodist Episcopal Church South.

Elizabeth Gardiner 1841-1895 Sailed to America 20 years after the husband she thought had perished returned to England to find her alive and well, too! The Gardiner Hotel was a family-run business in early Phoenix.

Sam Korrick 1871-1903 This enterprising young Russian came to America and established a dry goods store in the valley called the New York Store—later Korrick's Department Store—and revolutionized the mercantile business in Phoenix.

Bryan Philip Darrell Duppa 1832-1892 "Lord" Duppa, as he was called, is accredited with naming both Phoenix and Tempe. He was known to quote Shakespeare passages daily. This eccentric man was buried not once, but twice in the cemetery.

Sarah Ella Hill McElhaney 1872-1911 Wife of one of the best-known ranchers in the valley, Ella helped move their cattle and horses from Holbrook to the Salt River Valley. She raised their six children in the growing Arizona Territory.

Leona Wooldridge Wilson 1874 -1899 She was the daughter of Wooldridge, and wife of Wilson—the owners of the Wilson and Wooldridge shoe business in Phoenix. She was the first person buried in the Wooldridge specially-constructed vault.

Czar J. Dyer 1846-1903 Dyer was an acting mayor and a city councilman. He was the draftsman who drew most of the plats of the City of Phoenix still in use today. Dyer drew a Bird's Eye View Map of Phoenix. A copy of the map is located in the Smurthwaite House.

Gothic Garden

A friend was telling me I should share this online and get ideas. I've been doing a total renovation of my backyard to make it a place I want to live in since nature if extremely important to me. Over the years, I've collected a lot of statues and things that are very gothic/cemetery feeling and I thought of doing a fake graveyard in one portion of the yard, but then as I started working on issues--like this ugly wall, I came up with an idea.

A gothic garden.

Different areas for different spiritual belief systems. I have this one I just installed for the Buddhist belief system. I was cutting down a dying tree and used the limbs to make a giant 6' tall windchime. I took old windchimes around the yard that were rusted and used their bells to make this chime. Put some sand and river rock below, a Buddhist statue, and a bamboo shade to hide my garden tools. I'm very pleased with that area.

This weekend, I hope to finish my "darker side" of spirituality garden. It's a boulder lined island that will be filled with thorny rose bushes and a dark cherub.

I have a celtic area under work right now too. I hope to do a nod to Norse Mythology and Christianity and other systems of belief, hoping to capture them with plantings and statuary that suits them.

As I finish each area, I'd like to share them on my blog. If you have any ideas, please share them. I have a giant tree carcass I'm thinking of trying my hand at carving and I'd love suggestions on what it should become. I'll run a poll on that in my next article.

I'm intrigued by a garden where in a small area there will be many spiritualities portrayed. I grow a great deal of fruits/veggies/herbs, and I like the idea of life being an ongoing and blessed process by all the groups acting as one--something they never do in real life!

Triangle UFO Three Lobes

Since folks are seeing this all over the world, I thought I'd put it out there. We saw this (my husband, son and myself) in August 31, 2008 in Phoenix heading south to north on a very directed path in daylight. It moved very slowly, whic makes me think it might have been quite high in the sky. I thought I'd mention it. My husband, an extreme skeptic, announced "it's a UFO." My first thought was wayward balloons, but it was not only going against the wind, but it was moving very purposefully and not getting smaller and smaller as balloons do when they lift. Let me know if you've seen it too.

Spine Tingler: Jerome Grand

I visited this hotel when I very first started ghost hunting in the early 2000s.

We walked up to the 5-story hotel cut into the hillside and we all stepped back. The façade almost looked gothic in the setting sun and the bats were beginning to go nuts, flying spastically back and forth in front of the structure. I felt a chill as we stepped inside and lost sight of its mass and our eyes became accustomed to the lobby. T

The old-fashioned elevator caught my eye right away.

I arrived at The Jerome Grand knowing nothing about it, except that it used to be a hospital. I didn’t want to be colored by anything anyone had experienced and even chose a room at random. I bought a few postcards as I always do and stepped into the old elevator for the ride up one floor. Not a big leap, but I just had to know what riding it was like. Our room was atop of the lobby. It a nice long room with two beds and a bath. It had a very clinical feel to it because the obvious architecture of the prior hospital was evident.

We quickly gathered up our cameras and set off down the hallways that were lined with antiques and had that musty old antique shop feel to them. I fully expected a cowboy in his attire to step up the stairs. We wandered the length of the place, checked out where the restaurant was at one end and I entered the bathroom nearby. The women’s bathroom had a “I’m being watched feel” very strongly. It was almost impossible to use the stall without studying the top of the walls with curiosity and tension and a bit of performance anxiety.

I washed my hands and got a chill that made me shiver wildly. I looked around me, but I was alone. I heard the intake of a woman's breath right behind me and swung around. No one was there.

We had a nice supper out in the “downtown” corridor. The whole place had me unsettled, admittedly. It wasn’t even my fear of heights—the drive up I had to close my eyes (thankfully I wasn’t driving), but the people and the place just have a very strange feel. Bisbee has a similar feel, but in Bisbee you feel they like to hang out. Here, they felt like they liked to tuck in and hide behind shuttered windows. It was very weird. I only feel this much an outsider when I visit relatives in the hills of West Virginia where we could shut down all conversations at the Dairy Queen by stepping inside and not being from around there.

Other than a few orbs, the hotel didn’t offer anything, but I do admit I started out my first few months of hunting with only a digital cameara. I found it very hard to fall asleep. I lay there on the bed staring at the bits of light coming in and hitting the ceiling. My body was exhausted, but my mind was active. I felt the same sensations I felt in my childhood home which was also a hospital in its past. I felt like I needed to be alert in case someone needed me—a sort of phantom nurse syndrome as I once called it.

Somehow, I finally nodded off. I heard coughing in the room right near the door at the foot of my bed. The corner of the bed felt like an insistent child was shaking it to get my attention. I waited before opening my eyes. Perhaps it was someone in the hall? My hubby? I opened my eyes and the coughing came in another set, right beside the trash can. Most definitely in the room. I squinted into the darkness and shook my head and went back to sleep. I awakened again. With no clock for reference, I didn’t know what time it was but I heard the coughing again and I could still feel the vibration at the foot of the bed as I became conscious. The coughing came from the exact same spot, perhaps 8’ away from me. I got up and tiptoed over to the trash can where I’d heard it and the looked at the door. I swung it opened and studied the lit hallway. Not a soul in sight.

I closed the door and went back to bed, falling into a deep sleep. I awakened again to coughing in the same spot. I sat up in bed and studied the trash can area while it let out one more cough while I was fully awake. It was definitely in the room! The sound of it was just like my mother’s emphysematous cough.

I once again checked outside the door. No one anywhere. I knew there wouldn’t be. When someone walked down the wall, you could feel it in the floorboards. It had been very silent that night. In fact, there were only a few of us visiting the place.

I heard the cough two more times during the night and I think in a groggy voice I even said “what do you want me to do?” which must have awakened my hubby somewhat because I heard him murmur something and turn over in bed, probably thinking I was talking to him.

Admittedly exhausted the next day, I made it down the mountain with my eyes open. Somehow, my weird fear of heights only bothers me when I’m going up, not down. We got home and I started sorting through pictures and then decided to check on the background of the building. Was it haunted? It had been a hospital, it should have been haunted.

I found that many people reported issues with the women’s bathroom and with coughing in the rooms (believed to be miners who were in the hospital there). I was able to tuck that experience away, pleased with the findings, other than at the time I only used a camera to capture phenomenon and didn’t think to leave it near my bedside.

I did something right, however. I liked to go to places cold so that whatever I read would be accurate and not tainted by what I knew about the place. I still prefer to do this. I don’t mind knowing what the building once housed, I just don’t want to know what others have experienced. I still insist on going about it this way.

HauntedCon!

HauntedCon is coming to Jerome in September:
http://www.hauntedcon.com/
Debe Branning from the local MVD Ghostchasers will be there, as will Chip Coffey of Paranormal State and Psychic Kids, John Zaffis the demonologist, Christopher Moon of Haunted Times, Michelle Belanger (psychic used on Paranormal State), and loads more. Check out the site. The location is awesome. In fact, I was just now writing my article about my time at the Jerome Grand when Debe sent me this link. Deja vu!

Where is it?

Hey, anyone who's a big "Ghost Hunters" show fan and bought DVDs episodes, do you have any idea where the DVD is for the 2005 Halloween special that included the Moon River Brewery where the shadow person went in and out of the wall behind the pool table? I have the complete season 2 on DVD, but didn't see it listed. I can't find it sold separately either. Let me know, I'd like to complete my collection.

Crafts: Making an Alien Autopsy Cake

Boy, I wish I had a picture of this--but someone stole my camera during a Halloween party and didn't leave the film behind (which would have been kinda nice--but they were party crashers in costumes). Anyways, this is one of my favorites. I used this for my son's school parties as well, but it's fun for an adult Halloween party. It's a favorite and we usually use the camcorder to "film the autopsy," giving the cutter rubber gloves and a mask.

Bake a Red Velvet cake (basically, a bottle of red dye in a chocolate cake mix). You bake this in two pans: one round 8 or 9" pan and a large sheet cake pan. When they're done, cool and invert. I usually do this onto flour dusted tin foil on the counter. Take a knife and cut the sheet cake into thirds. One third will be the body rectangle. One third will be cut into two long strips for arms, one third will be cut into two long strips for legs. The round will be cut to an alien head shape--with a pointed chin and round top. Take a piece of dental floss and use it to slice these pieces into two (layers). Saw it back and forth and then set aside the top layer.

Now, here's the fun and creative part. You can use strawberry jam, but it's more fun to use things like white frosting with a medium green food coloring for the frosting between the layers. Spread that on one layer of each piece. Next, gummy worms and chow mein crispy noodles are fantastic for insides, sprinkle those over the frosting. If you want, you can use other candies to create organs/heart/lungs. This is for your own creative part, but some ideas include marshmallows that have been stretched and food dyed, a Baby Ruth bar, red vines... Put the layer on top of each piece and now assemble on a piece of long cardboard covered in a piece of tin foil like a shiny autopsy table. Once he's in place, frost him with a gray frosting (mix a bit of blue into the white frosting with a one drop of red and two drops of yellow)--adjust as necessary. You could also use fondant dyed gray if you are really good with cakes. Most folks will find the grayish frosting works well. Spread him nice and smooth and use a thin piece of clipped licorice for his slit mouth and two tiny cut ends of it for his nostril slits. For his eyes, you can use any number of things. I ended up using licorice cut into tiny strips and used to fan out into a circle, but be creative.

People usually fight over what piece of the alien they want to eat, but the really fun part is just simply filming the dramatic autopsy with a scalpel/gloves/mask.

Meet Quatchi!

Anyone who knows me, knows I'm obsessed with Sasquatch. I was thrilled to discover that Vancouver is hosting the 2010 Olympics and one of their mascots is Sasquatch or "Quatchi" as they call him. His profile says his favorite color is "chill blue." (Personally, I think his favorite color is berry purple or salmon pink):

http://www.vancouver2010.com/mascot/en/meet.php

Valley of The Sun Cemeteries for Taphophiles

Taphopile: One who loves tombstones.

I’ve seen a great many of the cemeteries in Arizona. I love cemeteries and think of them as peaceful parks. Having lost a great deal of my family members, I find it comforting to know that others suffer losses and come and visit and “update” their family members regularly. My family members are back east, but in Arizona I enjoy visiting the local cemeteries. I love photographing them, painting them, and also being inspired in my horror novel writing by the stillness and the epitaphs left behind. There’s something contemplative about being near the cycle of life and feeling at peace with it.

NOTE: I don’t have any cemeteries on my top fav’s list that don’t allow headstones. The more modern cemeteries that like to make mowing easier for them by limiting headstones to plaques in the grass and don’t allow people to leave offerings, I won’t even visit. They feel very sterile and are not beautiful. I can’t imagine having to visit a relative here and leave nothing and have no statues or headstones. What are these cemetery owner’s thinking?

Here’s my top fav’s in The Valley depending on what type of need you have (top 2 choices per type):

“I’m looking for a cemetery that’s park-like, green, and has lots of people visiting and is shady.” (A tall order for Phoenix) There are two cemeteries in The Valley that come to mind the most in this category: Greenwood Memory Lawn just west of 23rd Avenue and north of Van Buren. This cemetery was a few cemeteries combined and it is very lush, green, shady, with huge statues, tons of intriguing headstones, and it’s sort of an all-day event because there’s so much to see and so much ambiance. Bring a packed lunch. No kidding. This one is the “Forest Lawn” of Phoenix. Bring lots of film too and sketch books, oh and comfortable shoes! The other one that comes to mind is the City of Mesa Cemetery at 1212 N. Center Street between Brown and McKellips Roads. This one has an enormous amount of Cypress trees (you can see their pointed tops before you even get nearby). It’s very green and shaded with interesting headstones and statuary. Joggers and local folks exercise here because it’s so pleasing. It makes for fantastic photo-ops and a great walking workout.

“I’m looking for something eerie and perhaps even active with phenomenon.” Immediately, I have to list Double Buttes (west of I-10, south of Broadway). This cemetery is just downright unsettling and has lots of legends of a woman in white, a man attending a grave who disappears, and lots of photographic oddities. The place feels weird, is uber creepy, and has many very old graves and important graves as well, many of the founders of The East Valley. St. Francis is my other great choice, located at Oak and 48th St (need to take Thomas to get to it because 44th St doesn’t have an exit for Oak). A shadowperson has been seen by several witnesses around the large stained glass at the outdoor crematory and a man speaking in Latin was heard. This is a giant Catholic cemetery, extremely creepy, unsettling, filled with wild cats, and more bodies per foot than any other cemetery in The Valley. You'll probably get the most eerie photos here for your collection. If you stick around the outdoor crematory (the long concrete hall with the huge stained glass window) you’ll be in weird-ness central for any action.

“I’m looking for something small and intimate in an urban setting.”
Pioneer Cemetery in downtown Phoenix is a remarkable one at 15th Ave. and Jefferseon. It’s in a nasty part of town, but has its own lot and is fenced off for safety. The founders of the city are buried here and the famous Lost Dutchman Miner (the very farthest possible right corner from the entrance in the back lot of graves). It has an amazing view of the city while showing off very old headstones. Camelback Cemetery at McDonald and between Scottsdale Rd. and Invergordon (directly across from Kiva Elementary School - must park in school lot) is an amazing neighborhood cemetery. It sits right smack dab across from an elementary school and surrounded by neighboring homes (with tall bushes – guess they don’t like looking at a cemetery). It’s easy to access and very small, perhaps 2 acres. There’s a crazy mix of ethnicities and religions here, which is intriguing. You can wander around a long time looking at strange offerings, weird headstones, and puzzling constructions. There’s a section of plain white crosses for Hispanic workers who died of the 1918 influenza. Cars make EVP impossible, but the place has a very strange unsettling feel, so it’s worth the charming walk around the dirt lot.

There are lots of other cemeteries to choose from in The Valley, but if you just viited these eight, you’d have satisfied any needs.

How to Contribute to Ghost Hunting at Any Level

(Thanks Devin for this idea serendipitously)

Anyone can contribute to the ghost hunting field and you don’t have to be tromping around abandoned buildings with a team and equipment to do it.

My sister is a good example of ways you can help ghost hunting without having to be a field person.

My sister isn’t willing to buy any ghost hunting equipment and absolutely refuses to use a new-fangled computer, but she lives in an amazingly rich area of abandoned buildings and dramatic history in West Virginia. There are no local ghost hunting teams, so no one has scared off local businesses who have historic buildings. She would have a great pick for any place to hunt, but she’s going to forgo that avenue.

So, here’s some alternative options she (or you) could consider that in the end could even make her money:

A. If she loves cemeteries, should volunteer to the cemetery association. They could give her a list of cemeteries that haven’t been documented yet. She could go to the cemeteries, write down the names and date of birth/death for each occupant and take photographs. This could help the cemetery association to build their records, as well as to put them online for genealogy buffs to find relatives. This is a perfect option for those who love cemeteries, love history, and love doing things that are neat and orderly and concise. It’s a way to volunteer in the field without having to run around in the middle of the night. You can also take a trash bag and clean up the cemetery, pick up overturned flowers for the graves and put them back in place, and also get some amazingly eerie photography, which is often sell-able on line. People are very fascinated with eerie sunsets and graveyards and the lonely starkness of an unattended grave. She could sell the photographs or keep them for a potential coffee table book. This is also a really helpful option for people who have suffered losses. It sometimes helps put things in perspective and comfort them to know that people still visit, still remember, and still miss loved ones just like they do.
B. If she loved history, loved stories of the past, and found it all quite romantic, she might consider working for the local historical society or she might consider being a researcher. Finding the true back stories to tragic deaths, battles, and murders is a way to compile information that can be helpful for the local ghost hunting group. She can let them know she has a library card and is ready and willing to learn about any site they’re trekking to. She could check with the registrar for the city to learn about the building or lot’s history and make a great relationship with those at the local library. In the end, this could become an intriguing book that you’ve compiled based on the true background of famous hauntings.
C. Should my sister be technically inclined, she could do a little research to come up with ways to modify her equipment or perhaps invent new testing equipment that isn’t out there in the field now. This has the potential to be sell-able online. Just look at how the KII meter took off. When I ordered mine, I was on a waiting list.
D. If she liked detective work, this is a great field for it. She could print out a map of the US and proceed to find the most verified haunted places in each state, marking them on the map, looking for correlations with water and geology and train tracks or other features that no one has noticed yet. This ground-breaking information would be a huge boon to ghost hunters in their research. This map could be sold online and would offer not only certified haunted locations, but the features that might link them together. Folks could add other places they’ve discovered and see if they meet the factors that tie the other locations together.
E. If she didn’t get bored easily, she might consider reviewing evidence. If she connected with a local group, they could allow her to have copies of the EVP and photographic evidence. She could sit and review this evidence for anything that might be missed. With expert software, she could be sought after to review such things.
F. If she were a spiritual seeker, she might consider learning about feng shui, crystals powers, incense, paganism, occultism, demonology, or many other possible avenues for ghost hunting. When a team needs someone for advice, she might be the one called on to come and feng shui the environment or give advice on how to cleanse a house.
G. If she were the literary type, she might make friends with ghost hunters in the hopes of writing a book about it, poetry about it, or art inspired by it.

The important thing to know is that, although you see Jason, Grant, and Steve in the forefront of ghost hunting in the field on “Ghost Hunters” show, there are many more people behind the scenes. People trying to contribute to the field and knowing their talents. When I hunt, I keep in mind that my skepticism, logical mind, psychic abilities, and my counseling skills make me better for certain situations. Had I not been in the field, I would pursue art inspired by graveyards and getting my horror novels done—finally. But, I enjoy all those things, so I get a little of each done and none exclusively. That might be the case for you, as well. Sometimes, just being a supporter of the arts by going to concerts and helping to finance them is more important than being the singer on the stage.

Where would one be without the other?

Book Review - Ghost Hunting Books I Keep

I started out getting all the books I could on ghost hunting, then I began to weed out the “dead weight” (pun intended). It's probably something akin to that pet hoarding issue, I just passed by a book on ghost hunting and "had to make room for it." Unfortunately, I have a book addiction and limited space, so some just had to go to new homes. I ended up with only a choice few that satisfy different needs:

“Confessions of a Feng Shui Ghost-Buster” by Anna Maria Prezio. I really enjoyed this book because it could be applied to ghost hunting, as well as your own home planning. In ghost hunting, I’ve found some real correlations between clutter and darkness and haunting issues. I’m working to develop my knowledge in this area and experimenting to see how a change in environment can kick things up (like hauntings go wild during renovations) and how they can settle things down (like people cleaning and settling into a place). When you add new occupants or take them away, hauntings seem to go on the rise, as well. These things had me considering if homes can just be good magnets for paranormal issues because of the manner in which people are living in them. This book was very helpful. I would take it on a home follow-up to go through and give occupants ideas for making their home a bit more peaceful. I learned the worst place to place a windchime inside your home is the southwest corner, which is my bedroom corner where I happened to hang a windchime. I thought it was a good idea because during the night I often hear things shifting in the room and I thought it might be an early warning system. What happened instead was I had horrible nightmares. I removed it and they stopped immediately. Don’t know yet if Feng Shui is the way to go, but it should be in everyone’s arsenal, ghost hunter or not.

“Ghost Hunting” by Jason Hawes and Grant Wilson with Michael Jan Friedman. Not an exceptionally well-written or witty book, but if you like the SciFi series “Ghost Hunters” and wish you could see more episodes, this book covers much of what we missed in their early years and is laid out kind of like how their show is, so it’s easy to follow. It’s not particularly informative, but if you want a read-able episode of GH, this book does it for you. Jason and Grant still reveal very little about why they’re in the biz, which I find a bit aggravating. We all study ghosts because something happened that surprised us, but we’re usually not so defensive and protective of what exactly started the quest. I’d really like them to open up about it, even if they think it’s some kind of sacred secret. They won’t sound any sillier than they do when they talk to four walls with a recorder in their hand.

“Communicating with the Dead: Reach Beyond the Grave” by Jeff Belanger. This book is a good concise one that explains the devices, how they’re used, and some things we might not have known about like Einstein’s plans for a device to talk to the other world. I found it intelligent and not superstitious.

“How To Be a Ghost Hunter” by Richard Southall. This book was good for anyone who wants to start a group. It’s got some practical ideas about documentation and how to handle interviews and all the details you need to know.

“Ghost Worlds” by Melba Goodwyn. Although we’re not on the same page about ghost hunting, she does have a wealth of experience and knowledge about spiritual matters, so if you tend to follow ghost hunting as an exploration of demons, ecto-mist, and vortices, then this a great book for you. I like to know all sides of ghost hunting and refuse to dismiss anything. There’s always a grain of insight in even the silliest supposition.

“Ghost” by Katherine Ramsland. This is a guilty pleasure and I admit to reading this book so many times I wore the pages out. I could jump into this book and live. This is written by a psychologist who works in forensics. She actually followed a group of vampires in New Orleans and when one of them passed on, took his ring and basically set out to find his ghost. She has connections with his partner vampire that are bone-chilling and she sets off trying to learn all she can about ghosts and experience them. Her search is very much like any budding ghost hunting but the details are chilling and the experiences hair-raising. This is a great curled up in bed book that feels like fiction but is her own account of what happened. You often see her interviewed on paranormal shows and when major crimes happen in the news because she is an expert in the field.

I wouldn’t recommend buying any books new. Go online to Amazon.com and check the used versions—they’re usually much cheaper, sometimes only pennies. Enjoy your guilty pleasures and be sure and tell me if you find a book worthy of keeping on my limited shelf space.

Spine-tingler: Artifacts

This is only a small sample of the artifacts we had on display at Aspen Grove.

I admit I was nearly born with a metal detector in my hand. I think it was one of the first things I learned growing up at Aspen Grove. Mother taught oil painting in a beautiful window-lined room in our gracious manor home and in her spare time (while raising five kids) managed to be a very astute historian. She was responsible for getting the house on the historical register and learning of its history as a Civil War Field hospital taken over by the Union soldiers and later reclaimed by the Confederate, so that both types of soldiers agonized and died on the wooden floors we walked and ate and slept upon, still staining the wood with black blotches from attempted surgeries.

My mother had a giant showcase in the art room that displayed the relics we’d unearthed. When any of us kids were bored, we’d simply grab the metal detector and wander the huge property. We had a crazy assortment of everything from tons of Native American arrowheads (the house was originally built as a fort against Native people) and included bayonets, gun parts, more bullets than anyone should have to display, all kinds of kitchen tools, and parts for horseback riding, horseshoes, and carriages.

I remember one boring winter when my brother and I went into the basement crawlspace. It was an area under the kitchen (which was an added on room more recently). The kitchen sat up above the dirt ground and allowed about a 3’ tall crawlspace. When you walked down the basement stairs, you’d look to the left and see this opening and the dirt. We both crawled in and scrambled around past the resting black snakes who wintered there. (Yeah, it was that kind of childhood that I caught and played with grass snakes and black snakes, snapping turtles, frogs, and made pets of wounded geese). We took the metal detector and began to dig under the stairs. We came across something strange. A piece of graying fabric. When we pulled at it, we found a medal on it. A military medal of some sort. Nearby, we found the part of a brim of a hat. We were onto something. It all looked quite mummified which would make sense since the basement crawlspace was powdery silt. My brother dug deeper, his hand grasping something, and up came a long bone. Either an arm or leg bone. We didn’t know a lot about such things as kids, but in retrospect by the size of it, it wasn’t a femur, perhaps a tibia bone. I say that as someone who works in the medical field. I didn’t have that knowledge as a kid, but looking back by the shape and size of it and nearby “uniform” pieces, I’d say it was a tibia. We both quickly buried it back up as close to the original finding as we could. We feared upsetting the ghosts in the house and we feared mother displaying them in her showcase.

My brother seemed a bit more anxious to unearth the entire body, but my sensitivity kept him from doing that. He was a big brother and I was quite upset at the prospect of bothering the dead. I wonder sometimes if he went back to inspect it or dig it up. A great deal of activity in the house occurred following the disruption of these things, but there’s no way in retrospect to know if they correlate. True ghost hunting wasn’t really in existence in the late 60s/early 70s, except for the Ouija board type of hokum.

We never excavated the crawlspace again. We never went out and said actually why we were avoiding it, we just never brought the subject up.

I had a sense of the soldier’s name and I told my mother a story about a soldier who stayed in our house in the past. She smiled and patted me on the head for the creative little girl I was, but at the time I didn’t realize I was reading objects. I wandered the property using my “imagination” as I came to call it. I was drawn to one area near a row of English boxwoods. I kept kicking at the ground there and pacing back and forth. Every day, I came outside and that spot called to me. I couldn't go play or do anything until I answered the call for inspection.

I kept picturing a little boy darting in and out behind the boxwoods. I finally got frustrated and took out the metal detector. I knew something was there. I knew a boy was tied to that place. I couldn’t explain why. I still to this day can’t explain why I can know things. I just accept it, as weird as the talent is. I took the metal detector to the spot where I’d kicked holes into the ground and found a hit. It was perhaps 2’ long. I was curious. I had to know, so I got on my knees with a hand trowel and began to dig furiously. About 18” deep into the soft black soil I found something.

I reached in and pulled it out and felt an immediate jolt of recognition. It was something of the boy’s. Most definitely!

I held it up and studied it. Some kind of metal soldier. My hands dug at the bare earth without the tool, now. I knew there were more, in a perfect row. I lined up the tin-like soldiers on the ground and studied them. I looked up and around me, expecting to see the boy. I felt a strange giddiness like he was thrilled someone realized he’d been there.

Then, it dawned on me, who would realize I had been here?

I would spend the summer trying to figure out where and when to plant a time capsule. Of course, distractions get in the way of the young and once his soldiers were unearthed, the sense that he wanted my attention was completely gone. I went on and did my own things and completely forgot to plant my time capsule.

Occasionally, when I passed by the display case in the art room, I'd see one of the soldiers standing upright while the others were still lying down. I'd open the case, put him back in place. Sure enough, a few days later, another one would be standing. It was like a game we played. I'd tell him I recognized that he did it, and I'd put the soldier back. But, the little booger still kept messing with them. Perhaps he had a little sister he liked to torment during his visit upon the earthly plane and I was taking her place, but I already had two big brothers and wasn't in the market for more. I tolerated his antics. It was like our little secret game. I heard my brother comment once that I should leave the soldiers alone and I asked him what he meant. He said he saw one of them was standing and mom wouldn't be pleased I was opening the case. I had to smile when I heard that. It's always reassuring to see others witness the same trickery. You feel a little less "imaginative."

I wonder sometimes if he still wanders the property. If he’s looking for his long lost soldiers. I understand future owners took the collection with them instead of leaving it with the house. I can only hope there was a curse placed upon them to anyone who would desecrate the history of Aspen Grove.

May they be tortured by the spirits of those who were tied to the objects. (Most hopefully by a vindictive little boy with mischief in mind).

Ghost Hunting Gear--What I'm Packing--Save Yourself $

I started ghost hunting when it wasn't on TV yet. I didn't really know what folks in the field might be using, other than a digital camera, so I set forth with that first. I borrowed my hubby's old one the first year, then squirreled away a little cash for a $150 model the next year that was my own. I cut the strap off right away--realized I don't ever want to wonder what ended up in the picture. For that matter, I tie my hair back too and fan my fingers our when I take the shot. These are things you learn in the field, but there's no reason you should be fumbling in the dark like I did. I think the digital camera is the number one tool. A 35 mm is good too. I just prefer being able to come back from the hunt and review shots right away. Even if you get no phenomenon, keep the shots. Some day you might want to reference that place again. I've heard that choosing a digital camera with the flash further from the lens is better to keep from getting tons of orbs, but anywhere you go hunting is going to be dusty and I don't think they make a flash that far from the lens.

Later, I bent some rods and made my own divining rods and brought a pendulum. We'd ask questions and see if the pendulum would move. We'd walk around a site with the rods and then if they crossed, we'd take pictures. I eventually put these in the antiques file. They could potentially be useful, but not for any scientifically verifiable reason. There could be something going on that affects them, but I'd rather use other tools to see if what they found was accurate.

I moved on then to more scientific methods, or pseudoscientific depending on where you stand in the biz. I got an EMF meter (black device in the photo) and a thermometer (yellow device) which also gives me ambient temperatures. One thing I don't like to see TAPS doing is using the thermometer gun. It measures objects, not ambient air. Great if you want to know if the wall cooled off, sucks if you want to know if the room's air cooled off. I've considered getting a cheap watch at a sporting good store/camping store that is a watch with a barometer and thermometer. Sometimes in sites the pressure does seem to change like it does when there's a hurricane arriving and I'd like to verify that. That is on my list of must-have's right now.

Moving on, I added our family camcorder. It was great for setting up and leaving to record and area. Sometimes things happen when you're gone. Actually, probably more likely to happen when you're gone. Some digital cameras (the better models) have a built in video capability, but the quality isn't great, but in a pinch it's a consideration. If you buy a camcorder with digital camera capability, then you've got a better device.

I've added other accessories that I learned I needed like the flashlight, the little flashlight ring that shines a blue light and can be velcro'd to my finger. It makes it possible to work without getting light affecting shots and yet not falling into holes in the floor at the same time. Notebook--keep meticulous notes. You should have someone on the team who just does notes and times and locations and events. I added a tap light because it can easily be touched and turned on (round device). Set it out and show the spirits how to use it and hope for a lucky click of light.

I wanted to talk to the dead, so I got a $99 Best Buy hand held digital recorder (slender silver device). It's easy to use, easy to transfer to the computer and listen to. I found that EVP is a great tool, but the problem with it is that a lot of sites are just too noisy. I've been to very few places I was actually able to get legitimate recordings because there was no traffic, airplanes, wind, or other people nearby. You want to sit with your environment a good 15 minutes or more and see if it's sound-proof enough to record, otherwise you're likely to listen later and get excited at a car backfiring. Also, if you are recording and there's a sound, even if it's someone in the room walking, shuffling, or coughing, announce it, "please disregard, a person was shuffling" for future reference when listening later on the computer.


Eventually, I had enough of seeing TAPS having success with the KII meter (gray device with colored stickers on the top) and I got one. I never thought I'd stoop to gadgetry, but after trying it out, I realize it's better than my EMF meter. My EMF meter is really only good when I can cut out all the breakers in the place and know there's no electriticity going to devices. The cool thing about the KII is that it's a tool electricians can use to find out if a line is live or not and so you really have to have it up against an electrical source for it to go off. You set it in the middle of a room and it's not going be picking up stray stuff. It needs serious contact. Stick a penny under the lip of the thumb depression "on" button and it'll stay on for you while you talk and try to get responses. So far, I've never had it light up which makes it even more promising as a tool.

I later added on a homemade strobe light. I thought if something in the environment is moving at a rate of speed that we can't see it, perhaps slowing it down so the eye can capture it would help. This is definitely not for the weak, it'll give you a migraine and can give seizures to folks with epilepsy, so be careful. I try it out for at least 15-20 minutes in a room that seems active. Nothing yet, but I'm hopeful. If you take shots with your digital camera of your ceiling fan, it can actually give you stop action on the blades, capturing something moving fast and stopping it for you to see. I figured the strobe would give my naked eye the same opportunity.

There's a lot of other tools out there, like thermal imaging, but it can get so many false readings, it's just not good enough for me to fork over a few grand for it.

If you're starting out, the basics you'd need are the simple things; a camera, a flashlight, a notebook. Move on if you like and make your own divining rods if you can't get an EMF meter. Don't go too nuts if you can't check EMF and temperatures because there's just no true way to verify what you get, false readings are too easy. I'd rather capture the spirits myself with proof like film and audio. An electronic voice recorder might be your next happy addition, and then if you get very ambitious go for a camcorder. I've truly found that folks having sensations of chills and hair standing on end, pressure in their face and head, and trouble breathing is usually a fine sign to use recording devices rather than EMF or thermometers. It's nice to be able to see that they correlate, but I'd rather not waste the time registering something the human body is better at noting. Instead, taking pictures, begin to do audio.

Like any other business, as you move on, you upgrade and you toss things out. I'm no different than the rest. I'm pretty happy with my tool kit for now. Some day, I hope to get my engineer husband to sit still long enough to design me a piece of test equipment no one else is using. He has some intriguing ideas and he's a complete disbeliever, so he wouldn't want me to use anything that could give false positives. I'll let you know when he cranks something out.

For now, I'm pleased with my most favorite tools I don't like to go without which are; digital camera, electronic voice recorder, camcorder, and of course all six of my senses.

Spine-tinglers: The Janitor

Setting: Pinal County Jail, Globe, Arizona

We had this abandoned little prison to ourselves for the night. The place showed promise from a psychic’s point of view, but the chemistry of having 30 bodies in the small building was not conducive.

The teams broke off into cells below, but my hunting partner and I decided the attic room was for us. We walked into this cavernous room and knew something was watching us almost immediately. To me, it felt as though it moved the dust with it as it scurried behind the bathroom wall. This was supposedly the room the guards used for their relaxation. How they relaxed in this room surrounded with windows and perpetual chill was unimaginable. We arrived in dead of winter and the night would be icy with no protection from the elements except thin glass panes. It made me wonder what summers must have been like. Hellacious, no doubt.

The evening was planned out with the group to take a tour of haunted spots in town, to spend some time wandering the prison and filming. A few planned EVP sessions, others had the unmitigated gall to watch movies on their laptop. My partner and I rolled our eyes and tucked away in the attic on a pile of sleeping bags and waited. We stalked our prey, knowing it was curious but still timid.

In our usual manner when we’re in a pensive environment, we made each other laugh. I have a bawdy sense of humor that makes most people blush and I managed to make my hunting partner bright red within minutes. We teased and made fun of our convoluted trip to Globe. We’re highly distractible and had to stop at every antique shop, which is a manner of heaven and hell for me, someone who reads objects. I both love and hate antique shops because it can feel as though objects are screaming to be noticed and touched from all corners of the store. Until I’ve found the blasted objects and held them and heard their story, I cannot rest. It is, however, an overall good feeling. More objects have good memories than bad.

So, we continued on with our playful banter, knowing that laughter and women combined is the most inviting and least threatening combination. We allowed our natural tender-hearted souls to be revealed and it was paying off. Before long, the sense that something had drawn itself out into the corner of the room, away from the bathroom wall gave us hope. We photographed. We spoke lightly about things. We offered sympathy for those who might have been imprisoned there.

Then, a loud disruption shocked us both. A rogue group of hunters who wanted to film a documentary of their own came upstairs and found a quiet area they could use their Ouija board. They cautiously asked if we would be willing to Ouija and we eagerly agreed. We both found Ouija entertaining. The outsiders worried we might be of the “Ouijas invite evil” variety. We sat down and proceeded to use the board in different combinations, but it appeared that when my partner and I used the board, we got genuine answers. We were amazed.

I immediately honed in on a personality of a child-like man named “Jim” or “James” or “Jimmy.” He was hired for little money to sweep the jail and act as a kind of custodian. It was a simple task he was able to do, but he seemed to like to retreat to the attic where the guards slept because the prisoners taunted him so much. They often had confrontations about him going downstairs and doing his job. He was very timid, very fearful, and very slight of build with dirty blonde hair. A rush of information came across to me about his life and how he died in the flu pandemic of 1918.

As we asked questions of him, I spoke to him like he was a frightened 4-year-old. One of the Ouija folks was upset at the way I was speaking to the entity. He thought I was being condescending. I explained that I am a mother and I was speaking to a man with a 4-year-old child’s capacity and a good deal of fright, calling him “honey” and coaxing him and occasionally scolding was the only way to get more information. We finished the Ouija and their filming, the group leaving us back alone.

Now that I knew the name of our potential entity, I called his name. We wanted to try EVP, but the folks downstairs were so noisy we gave up. Just when I was feeling disappointed, I got a deep shiver starting through my whole body. It felt like it moved from the spine outward to my skin. Not shivers from the outside, but from within. There was no doubt something was manifesting.

A hunter interrupted us, wishing to take pictures of the room. While she was flashing off photos of every corner of the cavernous room, I wrapped my arms around myself, shivering hard. The hairs began to raise on my neck and arms. I knew something was about to happen. The photographer clicked off a shot across from me and I looked up, knowing somehow that was where Jim was hiding.

When the light went off, I saw him. Completely and fully. He was as real as a person in the room.

Except, his posture was strange. He had his arms straight down along his body tightly and his shoulders lifted up near his ears as if he were trying to tuck in and be invisible. He looked directly at me with dark eyes, a gaunt face, stringy dirty blonde straight hair, and a dusty looking shirt in kacki-like color with jeans. He was lean and his nose looked like it had been broken in the past.

The time it takes to flash a digital camera’s light is short. Remarkably short. But, in that brief second I got a complete and total view of him that was eerily unnatural and like something out of a Japanese horror movie.

I’ve seen and experienced a lot of things in my life, especially growing up in a Civil War Hospital, but I’ve never ever seen something that wasn’t there. I’ve never seen someone full body before. I was astounded. Even more astounded when I realized no one else in the room had been looking there or seen it. It was both joyful and disappointing. As an investigator knows, your hope is that the event was witnessed.

The chills went away. The spot where he had stood was not unusual in anyway by lighting, wall paint, or any features that I might have misinterpreted. I took numerous shots to try and get him, but the only thing that showed up in every shot was a giant white orb. Whenever I spoke to him and took a shot, I got the orb. I couldn’t even be excited about that finding, however, because I always disregard orb shots. Something about it, however, seemed very odd. The room became warmer. The feelings in it dissipated. Hunting partner and I decided to try and get some sunrise sleep at a local hotel. We packed up our things to say goodbye and as I said goodbye to Jim, he sent off another bright orb of recognition.

I still remember his face clearly. We got back to the hotel and I drew up a rough sketch of him (haven’t drawn since I broke the base of my thumb years ago and am unable to hold a pencil tightly). The drawing was rough, but the info and the basic look of him was accurate. It is my duty now to try and find out if Jim existed, if he worked at the prison, and if he’s buried in the local cemetery. I don’t like to leave a case open, but other cases stacked up right after it and Jim was set aside.

It’s hard to explain to folks what seeing a full body apparition is like. It’s very surreal. The bodily sensations that go with it are ones of alertness, hair raising, body tingling, deep chills, and a sense of dread deep in your belly like ice water sloshing around. I think the most amazing thing about it was that, for whatever reason, he showed himself to me only and I believe as a hunter with some experience that being a tender-hearted mother, a good natured person, and playful and silly, actually works to my advantage to attract such phenomenon. I hope to see another one again. I really hope to go back there some time and get Jim to interact and perhaps show himself in a shot.

For now, I’ll hang onto these orb shots (a few are above) that I usually toss. They remind me of him.

Television Ghost Hunting Leaders

What a breakthrough it was when TAPS got the gig for the "Ghosthunters" show. No one had taken the field as anything of interest before that. Shows like Britain's "Most Haunted" tended to actually scare people away from the biz. After all, it was all overacting, dramatics, and Derek (won't even go there).

Since the launch of "Ghosthunters" some folks have really made a name in the field and their techniques are being mimicked by investigators in the field. The shows that most often come to mind are; "Ghosthunters," "Ghosthunters International," "Paranormal State," and "Ghost Adventures." There have been other shows here and there, but these seem to be the ones being picked up again and again for seasons and exposing us to many ways to hunt ghosts.

Top of their field as far as being publically viewed are the leaders of TAPS, Jason Hawes and Grant Wilson. The charming and introspective college student, Ryan Buell, from Penn State Paranormal Research Society is quickly becoming a recognizable researcher. Then, there's Zak Bagans of "Ghost Adventures" (sorry, don't know if they even have a research name--not really an actual ghost hunting team, more like hired wranglers).

If we break it down, Jason and Grant have obviously been at this longer, back into the 90s. That gives them a huge jump time-wise on being in the field. Of course, time can be wasted in the field, so it isn't necessarily indicative of knowledge, but I would say that in their case it is. They've surrounded themselves with consultants and people with knowledge in science and engineering, religion and occultism. They have a good group to work from and they aren't afraid to try new things. Following their gig at the Manson victims' haunting, they adopted the KII meter and have found it valid enough to continue using it in the field. They've tried the Geiger counter and put that one away. They've bought a mac-daddy of thermal cameras and were willing to admit along the way as they were learning it, that sometimes it reflects on shiny surfaces and bounces back body heat. They're reasonably skeptical. The time they heard what sounded like a bouncing ball on the ceiling of the Birdcage Saloon in Tombstone, Jason readily admitted they'd heard that kind of suspicious sound before. Just like Ashley Simpson shouldn't be taken as a top talent because she's so overcommercialized and there are plenty of better singers out there that don't get her attention, I am certain we can say that Jason and Grant probably have some competition from the more serious and diligent and science-educated folks doing research in the field. Still, as popularly accepted examples go, Jason and Grant are good folks. Even if they don't appear to have a lot of scientific education, they are willing to ask questions and get answers from the experts in their fields. They're humble and they're real and what's most impressive about them is their desire to separate fact from fiction and find the real phenomenon. They sit down, hang out, and talk to ghosts as if they were shooting the breeze. I don't know anyone who wouldn't want to respond to people who aren't keyed up, aren't angry, aren't condescending, but folksy. I hope they never lose those attributes because they do make good role models in the field. Their assets are that they're folksy, skeptical, logical, curious, and have a great group of people backing them. Their weaknesses are probably that they don't seem to know how to form a team as serious as they are about the phenomenon, other than Steve and Tango who seem genuinely interested. I also think that they could work a bit more on their counseling skills. I know they're Yankees, but they could be a bit more gracious and comforting, I feel.

Ryan of Penn State is in the early stages, kind of like how Grant and Jason felt the first season. He seems to have his own take on what hauntings are and a very in depth understanding of people's mental states and emotions. I don't think we've ever seen Jason and Grant interview someone who was terribly overcome with fear, except perhaps the lady with the noises in her attic and the faucet turning on, but even she seems pretty reasonable. Ryan, however, has a way of falling into a setting and the folks around him just crumble. I'm not sure if it's his approach which will be spiritual and mystical or if it's that he chooses cases that show signs of bad family dynamics and sometimes mental illness. It certainly makes for a moody atmosphere, but more like an episode of "A Haunting." I think his assets are that he's great at getting people in to help, whether they're psychic, demonologists, or counselors. He understands the emotional aspects of hauntings and the need for people to feel resolution. He also does a great job of interviewing past residents, checking on the history of the place, and considering all these elements. His weaknesses, I believe, are simply experience and open-mindedness. He seems to truly believe that burying coins in the corners of a property might help make things better. I'm not sure what book of sorcery that comes from, but it should be hocum to most serious folks in the field.

Zak. What can I say? I find him highly entertaining. It's a huge family watching night when he's on "Ghost Adventures" because we honestly keep hoping he'll fall through a floorboard. Zak isn't a real ghost hunter. He's a publicity hound and perhaps a budding hopeful documentarian, but he's certainly showing no signs of learning about the field. Sometimes the things he says about equipment and what ghosts are or aren't is hilarious. He's rather misinformed. I have to admit, though, that he's onto something with his taunting and anger and fear. Emotions really do seem to stir things up. Go ghost hunting on a night when you're grieving or just had a fight. Or ladies, you know what time you should ghost hunt--when you're most vulnerable emotionally...It's true. Stirring things up produces results. He's in this for an assembly line of sounds and reactions. What he's doing, as mortifying as it is (like taunting a man who hung himself with a rope), can get results. If you're not interested in the preservation of humanity past the physical state, go for it, Zak. If you have respect for even the confused and perhaps angry who have passed on, you don't want to watch his show. Zak's assets are that he's got equipment and he's got access to interesting places and he uses emotional techniques to drive things into the open. Zak's weaknessses are that he's not a real ghost hunter, he's very disrespectful, and if I have to hear "dude" from a 30-something-year-old man in baggy pants again, I'm going to scream.

There's good and there's bad in all the ghost hunters that are out in the public's eyes. I know people who swear by Ryan's techniques or think Zak is the next coming in ghost hunting, but I must admit my admiration is with Jason and Grant, and newly earned by Robb. After this past season of "Ghost Hunters International" I feel that the team's base not only has chemistry, but Robb and Joe have this kind of sensitivity that attracts stuff like Jason and Grant. I'd like to see Joe and Robb teamed up more often together. I think they'll be the next dynamic duo.

It's level heads, intelligence, skepticism, and respect that will win us over. Keep it up GH and set the standards for researchers in the field.

Boycott Wendy's!

Okay, have to let this off my chest. Today, I went with my son and parked at Saver's to try and get some costume stuff for a tour I have to give. We park my car and get out and go inside like we always do and we're just inside the door when I hear "if you have a red car, it's being towed" over the loudspeaker. My son looks outside and goes, "mom, your car is gone!" I go inside Saver's and they're like, "yeah, here's the number for Wendy's, they have a deal with the towing company." As I go back outside, they're towing another car off that just parked. I'm like--what the hell is happening here? I go inside Wendy's and the manager says, "there's nothing we can do." I go, "Lady, my son and I were going to shop and have lunch. We have to do this in a small area, I can't walk far since my Achilles tendon surgery. You just towed your customer's car away." And she's like, "but you went into Saver's." So, I had to deal with the dirty underbelly of scum who tow cars for a living for impound lots. I wanted to come home and wash. On the phone they were rude. We went to the lot and there's no where to stop your car on the street to park and go inside and they're like "park at the gate" but the gate sign says they'll tow you, so they say "figure it out" and hang up on us. When we finally find a way to the window, the dude goes "cash only." "What? No one told me that!" He said, "They're supposed to." I'm beyond livid at this point. I find an ATM and pay for it and get the hell out of there and go after corporate.

I can't believe that Wendy's hires thugs to drag people's cars away to an impound lot and make that kind of cash in one day.

We stood in the Wendy's lot waiting for our ride and told at least a dozen families with little babies in the hot weather not to park there. Can you imagine if these low income families had been abandoned there with babies?

I'm furious!

Had to let that off my chest and tell people the kind of company Wendy's is.

Keep Great Logs - Make Advances in Ghost Hunting

I'll admit, ghost hunting is a bit of an adrenalin rush, so sometimes we venture in like Brian from TAPS and bounce around like puppies and get all thrilled, and everything is a ghost, every noise is a sign..., but the truth is there's a real responsiblity in ghost hunting.

You only get one chance to have phenomenon occur just like it did that one time it happened.

Keeping records is vitally important. It's important to designate someone in the group to be the secretary with a good watch so he/she can time and write out things that occur, but there's also the background you need on the site to make your records helpful not only to the field of ghost hunting but for your future encounters.

I've been keeping records looking for anything that ties haunted places together, or timing of phenomenon, good nights from bad nights... Here are some things that are worth noting before you take off to a site. Keep your records and refer to them often. Eventually, you can plot and graph these things and see trends. These trends will help not only in research amongst ghost hunters but also to postulate how we might be "guaranteed" a haunt in a certain location at a certain time.

1. Take note the night of the hunt the mental situations for all participants. It's probably not embarrassing--you all know each other quite well more than likely. Are any women menstruating? Hormones could create stronger emotions and more sensitivity. Has anyone been angry, upset, worried, anxious, grieving? These mental conditions can actually have an effect on the hunt and the results.

2. In AZ, I take note of where the HoHoKam water canals ran. A map is at: http://www.waterhistory.org/histories/hohokam2/ The faint blue lines show the waterways. There's no proof they correlate, but to take note of such things and see if there are connections is to find ways to outsmart a haunting by knowing what areas have "ideal conditions."

3. Railways: Once again, no real proof that hauntings occur near railways. It could be that civilization developed around railways and so there's more likely to be hauntings there, but it's worth taking note of. In AZ you can try this site:
http://azmemory.lib.az.us/cdm4/item_viewer.php?CISOROOT=/shmmaps&CISOPTR=73&CISOBOX=1&REC=5

4. Geomagnetic fields/solar x-rays/moon phase:
http://www.showmeparanormal.net/Paranormal_Weather.html
This is worth noting. I have noted correlations between geomagnetic activity especially and solar x-rays--solar storms. I'm skeptical about moon phase only because nothing changes about the moon during its phases other than how much of it you see and because it's shown no correlation in my studies.

5. Weather conditions: http://www.weather.com/
It isn't just whether it's rainy or foggy (could give you strange photographic phenomenon from mist and moisture or dust in the wind), but because things like barometric pressure may change in haunted sites. That feeling of pressure in your head could be a coming storm, it could also be arriving activity. They sell watches with barometers and thermometers in them at sporting stores for a reasonable price. It's worth a try. Once again, it's your data over time that will show you trends.


6. History of the building/land/genealogy: http://www.azgab.org/project_registry.htm
This is an absolute must. No exceptions. You need to know what might have been on that plot of land, what the house might have been used for, if anyone had died there, et cetera. Most city registrar offices are helpful. The one listed here is for AZ.

7. State preservation office: http://azstateparks.com/SHPO/index.html
Once again, does the place have historic relevance.

8. Latitude and longitude: http://www.worldatlas.com/aatlas/imageg.htm
Plug in the address and see what the numbers are. There's no reason to think this might have a strong bearing, but there are some held beliefs that certain longitudes and latitudes are cursed. Anyone with some time and ambition should consider taking note of the addresses of the most famous haunted sites in the world and plug them onto a map and see if there's anything that can predict a haunted area.

9. Bedrock geology map of AZ http://geology.about.com/library/bl/maps/blarizonamap.htm
This one is important because it's long been held a belief that bedrock can affect the haunting situation of places built in these locations. Certain things like water/granite/limestone/quartz are believed to be conducive to hauntings. Let's see if this is true. Start taking note.

There are lots of other options I probably have missed. My main interest is in trying to prove of disprove some of the long-held beliefs about what constitutes a haunted site and perhaps help us to move forward into predicting potentially haunted sites. Once we have "ingredients" for a "haunted soup" we can begin to actually predict a haunted site and then prove it based on the criteria it has met.

Once again, happy hunting! Oh, and let me know if you've thought of other things to take into consideration for logging in your records. I'm always curious what others are looking for.

"The Thicket"

This is off my usual talk of ghosts, but along those lines I also enjoy writing horror. I’m currently working on a manuscript entitled “The Thicket” and I thought I’d share a scene from it. It’s a very rough draft (no editing yet), but will give you a sense of spine-tingling potential (I hope).

The premise is a woman who finds out she was adopted and has inherited the old family home in the hills of West Virginia. She wants to know why her parents gave her up and wants to escape the city, so she packs up and moves to a mountaintop where she finds an intriguing community of pagans who were the founders of the town below. In the community’s origins the her ancestor, the daughter of the founding father of the community, performed black magic in the woods, casting a curse on the females of her lineage. Hence, the reason her mother sent her to her aunt’s to be raised. Since the early 1800s the woods grew to a huge gnarled mass that is impenetrable and the people call “The Thicket.” Eventually, it will encompass the entire mountaintop, driving them out if the last of the lineage cannot stop it. The unmarried women of her family were known to go missing in the thicket in the month of October ever since the curse 200 years ago. Savannah’s move to the mountaintop was a prophecy fulfilled for the pagan community who want to stop the curse and right the wrongs so that they can practice magic once again. Everything rests on this woman who is not a believer in magic. In this manuscript the antagonist is the cursed forest that watches her every move, but the hero is the Green Man (a Celtic figure, guardian of the woods). In this scene, Savannah doesn’t believe the pagans who tell her the woods are cursed and that she especially should not go near them. She does, however, have plans to clear a path into the woods to prove to them that it’s not a place to fear:



July 28

Dusk, that ambivalent time between day and night. It was impossible to begin something new with darkness impending, so Savannah stared into the shadows, witnessing the slow death of another day. It was odd how the same light at sunrise could make a person feel such promise and hope of a new day and dusk could make one feel rushed to get indoors.

She peered into her surroundings with just enough light to see the surface, enough dark to sense mystery. Everything was bloodless and quiet and her eyes seemed to become unfocused the more she stared into one spot. Obviously, too much of the day had gotten away from her to start a new task this late.

Savannah remained before the thicket considering her approach. All plans to clear a path and put up the beautiful wrought iron arch and make an official gateway to the mystery that surrounded her would have to wait another day.

Perhaps she shouldn’t test the local’s beliefs? Just go on with her life as if there were no supposed curse. If she pushed at this tender sore, would it just infect the madness that was already spreading through the town upon her arrival? She was to the point of dreading going to The Lower because of the open stares. And, although those in The Upper looked at her like a savior, she had no reason to believe she could live up to their hopes. If she truly wanted to endear the neighbors and make a place for herself in the community, to finally belong somewhere, should she be known as the woman who probed their darkest fears and made them all look foolish for believing in curses and magic?

Pacing in one spot, rivulets of sweat dribbling down her back, she could easily reason this was a task better tackled some time in the fall. She had a warehouse to set up in the basement, a house to furnish redecorating, and a new website design to consider. What was she doing contemplating gardening at this point in time? Likely as not, the bushes would just grow back before summer’s end. If she waited until colder nights, it would be easy to break down the dying raspberry bushes and wild grapevines.

Feeling pleased with her decision, she nodded to the bushes.

You’ll just have to wait until autumn.

Studying it one last time she realized the shadows of the thicket that always ran dark, ran exceptionally opaque at dusk. The black line that usually covered the mossy narrow backyard was now shadowing her and the backside of the house. Studying her place in its depths, she was primed for a shiver. Looking at it right now as the last of the light was being squeezed from the surroundings, it was like one solid silent tsunami bearing down on her, waving in its usual frenetic manner. The wind never stopped for the woods, even when the farmland was stagnant.

Dwarfed by the darkness, fingers of chill air emanated from the structure and made her skin break into a rash of goosebumps. She rubbed her sweaty arms. How was it possible that on a hot twilight evening in the middle of summer the woods could contain such a chill?

Savannah stepped forward bravely and held out her hands to feel waves of crisp air rushing between the webs of her fingers. She rubbed her hands together. They felt cool. She stepped in closer, taking a breath of the wet forest and putting herself fully in its reach now. The thicket seemed to create its own cooling breeze. The dusk was still, soggy, and hot, but the woods were crisp.

She leaned forward into the dark growth. Feeling a leaf brush her cheek, she startled and gasped, pulling back. Just then, she felt her hair lift and float around her face gently. Individual hairs began to rise, dancing towards the woods. Just as she observed the strange floating of her hairs, it blew out again, taking her hair out to the sides of her face and away. Her hair rustled lightly, her eyelashes fluttered.

Then, it drew in again.

Savannah clutched her hand to her breast in horror. Her mind was playing tricks on her. A cool breeze could not be spitting itself in and out from the woods in patterns that mimicked breathing.

In. Out. In. Out.

But, it is.

She felt it again, the rush of air coming at her, greeting the still soggy air of her backyard. The mass of plant life was so gnarled and packed within the thicket that it moved like a giant diaphragm pulsing slowly.

One, two, three…

Swoosh.

One, two, three…

Swoosh.

Her fingers clasped tightly in a fist against her sternum. The rhythm continued for minutes. She was unaware of anything else. Afraid to back up. Afraid to turn away. Afraid it would stop. Afraid it would not stop.


Then, she counted again in her head. The breeze danced over her as she exhaled. She inhaled counting. She exhaled as it breathed over her.

Her heart skipped two beats as she put her hand to her mouth to keep a small scream from escaping. In her fear, she held her breath, but then continued to hold it.
And the breeze stopped.


She exhaled.

The breeze rushed over her.

Primal instincts made her want to race away, but commonsense had always prevailed for Savannah. She stopped, allowed herself a calming breath, and then proceeded to change her breathing patterns.

Short. Long. Short. Short. Short. Long.

The air moved with her in tiny puffs and long drawn out sighs. She held her breath again, as long as she could stand it, hands in the air, feeling for any movement of air. When her lungs could take it no longer, she exhaled loudly.

And the air skidded over her powerfully, rushing between her outstretched fingers with equal exertion.

Eyes watering, mind filled with childish terror, she turned away from the thicket and rushed to the kitchen. Slamming the door, she flicked the indoor lights on. No longer able to see the mass of the thicket any longer, she couldn’t discern if it were breathing along with her.

She let out a slow breath and tried to calm down her heartbeat. The combination of the strange erotic dreams, the feeling of being watched, the green blinking lights in the thicket, and now this strange occurrence, were making her panicky. She wanted to tell someone, but then she didn’t. Wouldn’t that just feed their stories of the legend and the curse? She didn’t want to incite people. Perhaps now she understood why the locals were frightened of the woods. They did have strange winds that never stopped. Hadn’t Becca mentioned unusual storms that swept through the woods called “Witch’s Cauldrons” and a thick impenetrable fog that lasted the month of November? Perhaps it was like that. Something perfectly natural, just new to her.

Perhaps I was breathing unconsciously in rhythm with the wind?

Running a hand through her hair, Savannah sighed. She wasn’t entirely certain of her logical explanation, but she was determined to distract herself long enough to get some distance from the event and perhaps some perspective. It wouldn’t do for her to give into the local hysteria. Someone had to keep their head as the calendar ticked down to October and people awaited her fate to the thicket.

Ghost Hunting Theories

The famous ghost picture of Bachelor's Grove Cemetery (shown)


Ghost hunters should always keep open minds to the possible explanations for phenomenon. Everyone is aware of the most popularly accepted theory for ghosts, i.e. the souls of people who have passed on. There are, however, many other concurrent theories in the field that are worth investigating and getting acquainted with. Even if you are resistant to the concepts below, there might be something in these theories that helps aid us all in finding new ways to predict, repeat, document, and prove phenomenon by disproving some of these theories:

Hutchison Effect: Let’s begin with one of my favorites I investigated when I first officially started hunting. If you look up in Wikipedia “John Hutchison” you can find the “Hutchison Effect.” He could be a total quack or totally brilliant, and that will be disputed forever, but this inventor claimed to create a machine that created so much electromagnetic fields that it caused objects to levitate, fusion of objects, and many other changes that are compatible with “ghost activity.” The assumption made from this is that the right conditions can create the sorts of things we see and hear when we encounter ghosts, therefore making ghost phenomenon possibly related to surges in electromagnetic fields that are random and fleeting. I admit to being very excited about the claims of what he was able to do, but usually once excitement wears off, I begin to ask questions and anyone with this knowledge should be sharing it with the world. This could be like the guy who claimed to work at Area 51, just one of those eggheads with an amazing sense of self importance. Still, it is worth noting that strong electromagnetic fields do affect people’s perceptions and bodily sensations. Usually when there is a theory, there is something it was originally based on that is steeped in truth.

Residual hauntings: These do not involve an intelligent being but are replaying events from the past, are best explained in this thorough article: http://theshadowlands.net/ghost/residual.htm
I am skeptical about most everything in life except two things: Bigfoot exists and residual hauntings do happen. Other than, everything else is in doubt. I’m like anyone else. I gather information to make a decision, including my experience, and my gut feelings, and I can make a measured decision about the subject and feel confident that, for myself, this is the conclusion. I haven’t come to a lot of conclusions, but residual is one of them. I witnessed this nearly every day of my childhood at Aspen Grove. I think that nearly all hauntings could be in this category, but I keep my fingers crossed for signs of intelligence that I can personally witness. If I get what I consider to be proof of interaction, I will be turning down the road of “ghosts are souls,” or “ghosts beings in another dimension.” (next theory)

Interdimensional beings: This is within the realm of physics theories such as string theory, that time is not perhaps as linear as we thought and may curl up on itself or that many dimensions occur simultaneously so that basically any decision you make could have outcomes in many dimensions playing out many different alternate lives. According to string theory, space-time can have 10 dimensions. If you don’t mind reading about physics, this is a pretty good explanation:
http://www.tprconline.com/index.php?topic=2769.0;wap2


Aliens: The more you read about UFOs, ghosts, and bigfoot, the more you hear interesting things, like statistically bigfoot sightings occur at the same time as mass UFO sightings. Some folks link the two together that bigfoot and UFOs are one and the same event—Bigfoot being an alien. (I want to see the planet that breeds this beast that is technologically able to build and fly an UFO). Well, there are those who think that things such as shadowpeople are actually aliens. I can understand the connection. It’s like ghosts. We assume that if something is occurring that we can’t see, it must be of a spiritual nature, but that is a primitive man’s correlations. Modern man knows that radiowaves and electricity occur and we do not see those, but they are not supernatural. I think the reason more people think shadowpeople are aliens is because one of the most distinct characteristics about these “beings” is that when you look at them and they realize they are being seen, they vanish quickly as if shocked that you were able to see them. That would be a feature one might expect an alien to exhibit. We can blame unexplained events on ghosts, God, or aliens, it just depends on whether you’re Middle America, conservative, or a geek. Here’s a good basic article on it:
http://paranormal.suite101.com/article.cfm/shadow_people_what_are_they

Geological/electromagnetic issues:
The geology of a location is often times mentioned when speaking of seriously haunted sites. Looking into the makeup of the ground, things like limestone, granite, and quartz are often considered to be “conductors” for spiritual activity. In the British film “The Stone Tapes” (one of my fav's) this was discussed as a potential way that certain sites recorded events and held spirits to be replayed, such as in residual hauntings. This can often times upset electromagnetic fields. If you’ve ever gone to Sedona, you’ve probably felt it and most notably at the vortices. It can actually be measured and has been measured by scientific equipment, but whether the human body can feel this change in the fields, is subjective. Still, it is a consideration in potentially haunted spots, along with running water which is often felt to be able to carry spiritual energy. I understand the correlation people are making with things that are conductive to electrical energy and crossing that over to spiritual energy. Still, it’s not something we can really prove yet, but we can find out if statistically there are certain types of ground that have a higher percentage of hauntings. I myself looked up the top haunted sites in America and found them all either on granite beds, running streams, near the water, or railroad tracks. I don’t now the significance of this, but then I would suppose there’s a pretty good chance places people settled had those features and where people settled there’d be a higher concentration of buildings that were inhabited and occurrences that locked into the environment. Still, all of this is conjecture. If you want to read more about tectonics, check out:
http://www.assap.org/newsite/htmlfiles/Geology.html

There are a lot of other goofy theories out there, but the point is that if we pursue ghosts as only something the spiritual realm, we might be using things like Ouija boards, séances, and crystals to try to deal with the spiritual aspects, when the link that makes us able to communicate or prove what it is might be in the laws of psychics or geology or some other area as yet unexplored. So, a truly good ghost hunter would educate himself/herself in all the theories on the table and perhaps take note of things when going to a site. Instead of just writing down the dramatic history of the building and the killings that occurred there, he/she might investigate the geology, measure the electrical fields, and take note of things like shadowpeople being seen there. It’s entirely possible that not all ghostly phenomenon comes from the same source. A full-body apparition could be a memory visually replayed in a space by a flicker in time-space or a sound could be held by the bricks in the walls and replayed when the humidity is high enough, or something making your KII meter light up when you ask questions could be interdimensional or even yourself answering your own questions from the future.

You can see why I love this field. The evidence is as varied and vast as the explanations.