Well, as you may (or may not) be aware, I browse the news in search of possible paranormal articles. And though I don't usually post them here, though I occasionally post them on Twitter (I should post more of them on twitter, @CleverKraken y'all, follow me so I have motivation to post paranormal news, okay?).
Anyways, the past couple months have seen a increase in the number of UFO related stories:
(Warning: some of these links are obnoxious with pop-ups, so make sure your blocker is on)
An Earth-sized UFO near the Sun?
http://www.examiner.com/article/earth-size-ufo-spotted-orbiting-the-sun-nasa-images-report
UFO on the Moon?
http://www.examiner.com/article/ufo-spotted-above-the-moon-s-surface-explorers-from-another-planet-video
UFO on Mars (this is probably a bolt-head)?
http://www.examiner.com/article/ufo-sighting-on-mars-nasa-image-shows-huge-flying-saucer-on-mars-video
UFOs visiting the International Space Station?
http://www.examiner.com/article/ufo-sighting-on-mars-nasa-image-shows-huge-flying-saucer-on-mars-video
And: http://www.examiner.com/article/is-a-ufo-monitoring-astronauts-during-iss-space-walk
And the Colorado Mountains?
http://www.examiner.com/article/ufos-sighted-over-colorado-mountains-formation-investigated-by-police-norad
Could this just be a successful result of my efforts to only look at news I'm interested in because the web keeps track of your activity. Well, yeah, but I've also gone weeks with no new paranormal, so I assume that means there were fewer UFO stories to find. So then, are UFOs a hot topic right now, or has there been an increase in activity? Time to head over to MUFON and such to see if there's any apparent spike, I guess.
Anyways, for your viewing pleasure, here's some more Supposed Stuff on Mars:
Elongated Skull:
http://www.examiner.com/article/is-that-an-elongated-human-skull-on-mars
Raygun:
http://www.examiner.com/article/gun-found-on-mars-by-nasa-rover-video
Ball:
http://www.csmonitor.com/Science/2014/0929/Mysterious-ball-on-Mars-Where-did-it-come-from
Sunday, October 26, 2014
Friday, October 10, 2014
Book Reviews II: Haunted Alaska: Ghost Stories from the Far North
Today's book for review is Haunted Alaska: Ghost Stories from the Far North, by Ron Wendt (2002, Epicenter Press).
(Note: I am in no way affiliated with Ron Wendt, Epicenter Press, or Alaska Book Adventures. I am reviewing this book from my own personal first edition copy I bought in Alaska. I am not being commissioned or compensated in any way.)
For those of you that like numbers and stars, this book gets 4 stars out of 5. It's good, it's a good casual paranormal read.
The book is short, perfect take along with you size, and just under $10 if you get it new. It consists of 15 loosely themed chapters, named for the first story in each, and each containing two, or more commonly three, stories. Usually there's a little history, then a fairly recent account of activity. The third story is usually in italics, and appears to have been quoted in their entirety from some interview or communique. A note explaining that better would have been nice.
Speaking of notes, the beware notes on/in this book are a little unnecessary and cliché, but don't really detract from the experience. The artwork is okay, though only slightly relevant, but I didn't buy it for the artwork anyways. I would have preferred pictures of the public locations myself.
At the front of this book you'll find a map, giving rough locations for all the events within the book. This is really nice, especially if you want to look up or visit, the public locations mentioned, like the Alaskan Hotel. And in the back, you'll find the usual source list, this one containing more personal names than usual. In fact many stories appear to be hearsay with no other documentation to back them up, however this is a fairly common problem in paranormal research.
Some of the stories don't actually take place in Alaska, but rather British Columbia and the Yukon. But that's really nothing to complain about.
My only real grip relates to the situations where there was more official documentation, but it's not mentioned save in the sources section. It would have been nice to know when the author had (or hadn't) found evidence that such-and-such ever existed in the first place.
(Note: I am in no way affiliated with Ron Wendt, Epicenter Press, or Alaska Book Adventures. I am reviewing this book from my own personal first edition copy I bought in Alaska. I am not being commissioned or compensated in any way.)
For those of you that like numbers and stars, this book gets 4 stars out of 5. It's good, it's a good casual paranormal read.
The book is short, perfect take along with you size, and just under $10 if you get it new. It consists of 15 loosely themed chapters, named for the first story in each, and each containing two, or more commonly three, stories. Usually there's a little history, then a fairly recent account of activity. The third story is usually in italics, and appears to have been quoted in their entirety from some interview or communique. A note explaining that better would have been nice.
Speaking of notes, the beware notes on/in this book are a little unnecessary and cliché, but don't really detract from the experience. The artwork is okay, though only slightly relevant, but I didn't buy it for the artwork anyways. I would have preferred pictures of the public locations myself.
At the front of this book you'll find a map, giving rough locations for all the events within the book. This is really nice, especially if you want to look up or visit, the public locations mentioned, like the Alaskan Hotel. And in the back, you'll find the usual source list, this one containing more personal names than usual. In fact many stories appear to be hearsay with no other documentation to back them up, however this is a fairly common problem in paranormal research.
Some of the stories don't actually take place in Alaska, but rather British Columbia and the Yukon. But that's really nothing to complain about.
My only real grip relates to the situations where there was more official documentation, but it's not mentioned save in the sources section. It would have been nice to know when the author had (or hadn't) found evidence that such-and-such ever existed in the first place.
Wednesday, October 8, 2014
Well, I missed the Blood Moon part of the Blood Moon
A faint beeping sound emitted from my phone, a sort of pinging tone. It was dark out, way to early to get up normally, but this morning there was an eclipse. The porch light cast a faint glow on the mist, and the sliver of moon left was not as viable through the mist as I'd have liked (it was too misty to see stars even). In ancient times this would have been the remains of a communal campfire. It was already easy to see how an early society might find this whole scenario mystifying.
I had missed the first Blood Moon stage. This I had intended to watch, but clearly I'd mixed up the timing, but at least there was still the final stage of the full eclipse. Slowly, excruciatingly slowly, the sliver of moon that was left, disappeared into the misty darkness, quite and still. It would have been easy to believe the moon was being eaten by a wolf, by Quetzalcoatl, or by Kronos.
The frost colored spiderwebs stood out now, the texture of the porch wood, the dandelion seed stuck to the faux suede of my boot. Soon the animals started to state their disconcern. The owls were first and spoke out most often. Coyotes followed, then chickens, geese, and ducks, and a band of traveling raccoons, and some distant horses.
As I waited, I wondered how it must have felt, to wonder if the moon was ever coming back. After all if it had been eaten, there was no reason for it to return. And I waited. It was tempting to go get an electronic device, but of course that would have ruined my night vision. And I waited.
Eventually, I was too cold and tired to wait any longer, and went back to bed. Three possibilities stood out in my mind. First, it had clouded up, given the mist, this was likely, and indeed it was cloudy the next morning. Secondly, I was impatient and waiting longer would have been rewarded by the second Blood Moon phase, as well as punished by further sleep deprivation, as I had only really intended to watch part of it. Or thirdly, the moon was gone, not very realistic from a modern perspective, but I had just spent all that time thinking about it...
I had missed the first Blood Moon stage. This I had intended to watch, but clearly I'd mixed up the timing, but at least there was still the final stage of the full eclipse. Slowly, excruciatingly slowly, the sliver of moon that was left, disappeared into the misty darkness, quite and still. It would have been easy to believe the moon was being eaten by a wolf, by Quetzalcoatl, or by Kronos.
The frost colored spiderwebs stood out now, the texture of the porch wood, the dandelion seed stuck to the faux suede of my boot. Soon the animals started to state their disconcern. The owls were first and spoke out most often. Coyotes followed, then chickens, geese, and ducks, and a band of traveling raccoons, and some distant horses.
As I waited, I wondered how it must have felt, to wonder if the moon was ever coming back. After all if it had been eaten, there was no reason for it to return. And I waited. It was tempting to go get an electronic device, but of course that would have ruined my night vision. And I waited.
Eventually, I was too cold and tired to wait any longer, and went back to bed. Three possibilities stood out in my mind. First, it had clouded up, given the mist, this was likely, and indeed it was cloudy the next morning. Secondly, I was impatient and waiting longer would have been rewarded by the second Blood Moon phase, as well as punished by further sleep deprivation, as I had only really intended to watch part of it. Or thirdly, the moon was gone, not very realistic from a modern perspective, but I had just spent all that time thinking about it...
Thursday, September 11, 2014
Rat Kings
Something strange has been going on in my garden as of late. When you grow your own fruits and vegetables, a lot of times you end up with surprises that would never have made it too the store, Martian shaped potatoes, eggplants curling around into donuts, butt shaped apples. I left some onions last year, and for the most part I just got a single onion in the same place again. Then there was this:
The Onion King
Why did I call it that? Well, it reminds, morbidly I admit, of a bizarre and somewhat horrible natural occurrence, once connected to the paranormal; that of, the Rat King. A Rat King occurs when several rats become entangled the tail (usually while huddling for warmth). The situation can occur with or without some assisting substances (blood, mud, feces, ice, sap). X-rays of preserved Rat Kings have shown that in at least some cases they lived long enough for their tails to callus and heal (as they are often broken).
Similar specimens of other rodents, such as squirrels, have been found. This Squirrel King story had a happier ending than most:
http://metronews.ca/news/regina/702478/photos-regina-squirrels-stuck-in-a-sticky-situation/
This, and other recent king finds, suggest that the theory that Rat Kings were merely a hoax thought up by bored Rat Catchers (yes, that was a professional title), is probably incorrect.
Folklore has it that when rats were joined in such a manner they acted as one creature, sometimes with a single 'king' rat sitting on top and directing the others. Linguists however, tend to point out that they were called 'kings' due to their extraordinary weight compared to a single rat.
The Onion King
(One of those bizarre potatoes can be seen here too.)
Similar specimens of other rodents, such as squirrels, have been found. This Squirrel King story had a happier ending than most:
http://metronews.ca/news/regina/702478/photos-regina-squirrels-stuck-in-a-sticky-situation/
This, and other recent king finds, suggest that the theory that Rat Kings were merely a hoax thought up by bored Rat Catchers (yes, that was a professional title), is probably incorrect.
Folklore has it that when rats were joined in such a manner they acted as one creature, sometimes with a single 'king' rat sitting on top and directing the others. Linguists however, tend to point out that they were called 'kings' due to their extraordinary weight compared to a single rat.
Another Reason I Love the Internet
Well, this happened:
http://hudsonvalleygeologist.blogspot.com/2010/09/holy-crap.html
I was looking for pictures of the Centipeetle from Steven Universe (for an art project, why is not really the point though, so I'll avoid rambling about that for now), but I didn't know how it was spelled. So, when I tried Centipetal, I found a link to what you see above.
Yeah, that happened. I really happened. In 2010 religious people were still trying to prove the sun revolves around the Earth. As much as I'm in favor of religion, I cannot fathom why something so long disproved and not actually in the Bible (unless you want to use 'the sun doesn't actually rise' argument, in which case, you're just as hopeless), was up for a revival.
Thank you, Yahoo Search and Steve Schimmrich
http://hudsonvalleygeologist.blogspot.com/2010/09/holy-crap.html
I was looking for pictures of the Centipeetle from Steven Universe (for an art project, why is not really the point though, so I'll avoid rambling about that for now), but I didn't know how it was spelled. So, when I tried Centipetal, I found a link to what you see above.
Yeah, that happened. I really happened. In 2010 religious people were still trying to prove the sun revolves around the Earth. As much as I'm in favor of religion, I cannot fathom why something so long disproved and not actually in the Bible (unless you want to use 'the sun doesn't actually rise' argument, in which case, you're just as hopeless), was up for a revival.
Thank you, Yahoo Search and Steve Schimmrich
Sunday, August 31, 2014
Will-o'-the-wisps
Not long ago, I was discussing with a chat friend, Spooky, about some lights he was seeing over a hill near his house (large orange orb lights), and what they might be, assuming they were something paranormal, as there were no cell towers or airport in the area. Now, the first order of business was to determine if they were flying or just floating. Why? Well, are they UFOs or something else? What else? Fairies, Witch lights, Ghost lights, and Hinkypunks.
Which of course, begs the question, what the heck is a Hinkypunk?
Well, we used to call them Boggarts locally (which is technically correct, but seeing as Rowling has popularized the household shape-shifter version of this creature, I just started referring to them as Hinkypunks as she does). Hinkypunks, or Bog Lights are lights that appear in marshy areas. And if a lost traveler follows them, they're lured into deep water, and drown.
So, do you know what happens when you look up Hinkypunk on Wikipedia? You arrive at this page:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hinkypunk
Which is actually a copy of this page:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Will-o%27-the-wisp
(And if you're curious, this is what you get if you look up Boggart:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boggart )
Because Wikipedia includes Hinkypunks as Will-o'-the-wisps (Ghost Lights, particularly those seen over bogs and marshes, sometimes marking treasure). Okay, fair enough. But what else to they include?
Ignis Fatuus (Foolish Fire)
Jack-o'-Lantern (Jack's Lantern)
Friars's Lantern
Hobby Lantern
Spook-lights
Ghost-lights
Orbs
Ghost Candles
Fairy Lights (Either fairies or lights held by fairy creatures)
Pixy-lights (Leads travelers to danger)
Faeu Boulanger (lost souls)
Aleya (Marsh Ghost-lights)
Chir batti (Ghost-lights)
Hitodama (Soul Orb, human soul)
Hi no Tama (Ball of Flame)
Aburagae
Koemonbi
Ushionibi
Boi-tatá (Fiery Snake's Eye)
Luz Mala (Light [which is] Evil)
Brujas (Witches)
Luces del Dinero/Tesoro (Lights of the Money/Treasure)
Min Min light
Are these really all names for the same phenomenon, or did someone just get so carried away lumping similar phenomenon together that they threw Brujas, which tend to appear over houses and are said to be witches that can turn into owls, and Hinkypunks, that tend to appear in swamps and bogs and lead travelers to their doom?
Its hard to say, but the lights in question were easier to explain, they were just cars....
Which of course, begs the question, what the heck is a Hinkypunk?
Well, we used to call them Boggarts locally (which is technically correct, but seeing as Rowling has popularized the household shape-shifter version of this creature, I just started referring to them as Hinkypunks as she does). Hinkypunks, or Bog Lights are lights that appear in marshy areas. And if a lost traveler follows them, they're lured into deep water, and drown.
So, do you know what happens when you look up Hinkypunk on Wikipedia? You arrive at this page:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hinkypunk
Which is actually a copy of this page:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Will-o%27-the-wisp
(And if you're curious, this is what you get if you look up Boggart:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boggart )
Because Wikipedia includes Hinkypunks as Will-o'-the-wisps (Ghost Lights, particularly those seen over bogs and marshes, sometimes marking treasure). Okay, fair enough. But what else to they include?
Ignis Fatuus (Foolish Fire)
Jack-o'-Lantern (Jack's Lantern)
Friars's Lantern
Hobby Lantern
Spook-lights
Ghost-lights
Orbs
Ghost Candles
Fairy Lights (Either fairies or lights held by fairy creatures)
Pixy-lights (Leads travelers to danger)
Faeu Boulanger (lost souls)
Aleya (Marsh Ghost-lights)
Chir batti (Ghost-lights)
Hitodama (Soul Orb, human soul)
Hi no Tama (Ball of Flame)
Aburagae
Koemonbi
Ushionibi
Boi-tatá (Fiery Snake's Eye)
Luz Mala (Light [which is] Evil)
Brujas (Witches)
Luces del Dinero/Tesoro (Lights of the Money/Treasure)
Min Min light
Are these really all names for the same phenomenon, or did someone just get so carried away lumping similar phenomenon together that they threw Brujas, which tend to appear over houses and are said to be witches that can turn into owls, and Hinkypunks, that tend to appear in swamps and bogs and lead travelers to their doom?
Its hard to say, but the lights in question were easier to explain, they were just cars....
Saturday, August 2, 2014
What to do if You See a UFO
People report seeing UFOs all the time, you need only look at the live MUFON map to be aware of that. But often they cannot recall very many details and/or fail to get a picture despite almost everyone having a camera on their phone nowadays. So how can you help?
If you ever see a UFO(s):
Step 1:
Take that phone out of your pocket and snap a picture. It may not show up or properly represent what you saw, but at least you tried.
Step 2:
Mentally note the color, shape, location, and apparent size of the UFO. To get the apparent size, fully extend your arm and 'pinch' the UFO with your fingers. You can then compare the size of your 'pinch' to everyday objects such as aspirin and pennies.
Step 3:
Got a better camera, camcorder, a tape recorder, or a digital recorder on you? Use it! You can get this device out while making note of the properties in Step 2.
Step 4:
Keep track of what the UFO does, and make mental notes on any other details; such as the UFO's surface texture, direction of flight, aerial maneuvers, emission, and sounds.
Step 5:
As soon as possible after your experience, write down or draw any details, and submit a report to UFO reporting agency such as MUFON or NUFORC. Include any photos or recordings.
If you ever see a UFO(s):
Step 1:
Take that phone out of your pocket and snap a picture. It may not show up or properly represent what you saw, but at least you tried.
Step 2:
Mentally note the color, shape, location, and apparent size of the UFO. To get the apparent size, fully extend your arm and 'pinch' the UFO with your fingers. You can then compare the size of your 'pinch' to everyday objects such as aspirin and pennies.
Step 3:
Got a better camera, camcorder, a tape recorder, or a digital recorder on you? Use it! You can get this device out while making note of the properties in Step 2.
Step 4:
Keep track of what the UFO does, and make mental notes on any other details; such as the UFO's surface texture, direction of flight, aerial maneuvers, emission, and sounds.
Step 5:
As soon as possible after your experience, write down or draw any details, and submit a report to UFO reporting agency such as MUFON or NUFORC. Include any photos or recordings.
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