Friday, July 27, 2012

Supernatural Friday: Those Little Devil Monkeys!


I’m going to blog about a Southern legendary monster, the devil monkey. No, it's not some bad little monkey you might aee at the zoo, or with the organ grinder, tippingits hat for you to deposit coins in. Devil monkeys are described as baboon-like creatures able to leap like kangaroos. They have dark, “mean” eyes, pointed ears, short to shaggy fur that varies from red to gray to black, and large flat feet. Ranging in height from three to eight feet, it is said that they won’t back down, even from dogs, and although thought to be vegetarians, there are stories told of them killing livestock and small game. They exhibit a range of primate hoots, calls, screeches, whistles, and unearthly screams, and have an odor so bad, they have been also called Skunk Apes. It has been seen in the area of the Appalachian Mountains to even in British Columbia.
A cryptozoologist, Chad Arment, investigated the sightings of these creatures that one Virginia family and their friends had experiences with. This occurred from 1959-1990s, in the mountains that surround Saltville.
Paranormal investigators Pauline and James Boyd’s parents were attacked in 1959 by a creature that left three scratch marks on their car. Not long after, a couple of nurses were driving home when an unknown animal attacked their vehicle, ripping the convertible’s top off. Badly shaken, they escaped otherwise unharmed.
Friends of Pauline saw one of these creatures trotting across the road in front of their car. It leaped over a ditch, glided over a fence, and bounded through weeds along the road.
Other sightings have occurred as recently as 2001, when a giant black monkey was seen nine different times over the course of two weeks in rural New Hampshire. It has even been told that a search party was formed to track one of these they thought was a devil monkey, but that the dogs refused to follow the trail.
Another beast, the "Belt Road Booger” was encountered by several people in Georgia in the 1970s. It was thought this might have been a devil monkey. The Nalusa Flaya of Choctaw legend bears a strong physical resemblance to the devil monkey, though the devil monkey does not appear to have any of the supernatural abilites attributed to this legendary monster.
What are these devil monkeys? Some people think devil monkeys are feral monkeys released into the wild or escaped from research facilities, such as the ones that broke free in Florida due to Hurricane Andrew in 1992. Cryptozoologists think that are a surviving species once thought to be extinct, like a fruit-eating spider monkey originating from Brazil, or a large baboon that lived 650,000 years ago in East Africa. Maybe they could even be a sort of Sasquatch? Or could these beasties be nothing more than an illusion? Whatever devil monkeys are, they are a fascinating tale to tell on Halloween around the hearth fire or around a campfire.
In 1996, a woman named Barbara Mullins was driving down a stretch of road in Louisiana known as Highway 12 when she noticed something odd on the side of the road. At first Mullins through the carcass she had found was that of a dog, that was until she saw it’s baboon like features. Mullins snapped several pictures of the carcass with her camera; the resulting images have been the topic of much debate in the cryptozoology world. The creature was described as being about the size of a large adult Saint Bernard and covered with a think coat of dark wooly hair. It's most notable attribute was its decidedly simian features, extended feet, and small, presumably pointed ears. I went to the website with the pictures and concluded myself it was nothing more than some dog, maybe gone feral. To me, there was nothing ape-like or monkey-like in the dead animal's appearance.
Was that a screech you heard in the night? Beware, it just might be the. . .devil monkey!

Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Weird Wednesday Will Be Articles Not Pictures As of August 1st

As of tomorow there will be no more pictures for Weird Wednesday. Give me a  week and August 1st I will have Weird Wednesday back, but posts about the strange and bizzare I hear about or find out about.

Friday, July 20, 2012

Supernatural Friday: Giant Snakes-Real Monsters or Big Hoaxes?


Once again it’s all about monsters. Last Friday, I blogged about Bigfoot, werewolves and Mothman. Today it’ll be about giant snakes seen in places they should not be seen outside of the jungles of South America and Africa—like in Pennsylvania and more.

It has been found recently that a species of really giant snake they named Titanoboa from 58 million years ago. Weighing more than a ton and measuring 14m (approximately 50ft) the giant reptile could swallow a whole crocodile without showing a bulge. But a few years ago, scientists never even knew it existed. It was thought to be a distant relative of the anaconda and boa constrictor, except it was not venomous. Instead, it crushed its prey with the constricting force of 400lbs per square inch. That’s equivalent of lying under the weight of one and a half times the Brooklyn Bridge.

Fossils exposed by excavation at the massive Cerrejon open-face coal mine in northern Colombia in 2002, scientists discovered at that site the remains of a tropical rainforest from the Palaeocene Epoch - perhaps the planet's first. Not only the snake, but many extremely large reptiles were found. Like turtles the size of a kitchen table and the biggest crocodiles ever dug up, eclipsing past fossil records. They also found the vertebrae of a colossal snake. One of the few snakes to make iinto fossil records due to being so big, that not only a vertebrae found, but three snake skulls, so that scientists could determine how really large this reptile was. It was found to be the biggest predator after extinction of the dinosaurs! To view how big it was, a life-sized replica is now on display at the Smithsonian Natural History Museum in Washington, and will begin a nationwide tour in 2013.


So snakes double the size of constrictors and anacondas today existed once upon a time. Scientists felt that warmer temperatures after the dinosaurs were wiped out caused this. Maybe not this gigantic as snakes seen in movies on SyFy Channel, still have giant snakes been seen? Like the 55-foot snakes seen in China, where the photo of it has been seen on the Internet. The snake was one of two that were awakened by local workers digging up huge mounds of earth in preparation for a new road that was to cut through the forest that lay just outside of Gupiing city in the Chinese province of Jiangxi.

While one snake, which was reported to be 55-feet long and weigh approximately 300kg, became a casualty of the bulldozers digging, another one, described as a gold boa, appeared supposedly bearing its fangs, causing the workers to flee in terror.

The driver of the bulldozer, however, is said to have been paralyzed with fear. When the workers returned, he was so sick he could barely move, and eventually died at the hospital, presumably of a heart attack.

Despite the story and the accompanying photo, the local government has deemed it all a hoax, due in part to the distinct lack of native boas in that area. It was also thought the coelacanth was extinct until one was discovered in 1938, so to completely dismiss the story as a hoax is to laugh in the face of just how darned scary and unpredictable nature can be.


But big snake stories in the US have been almost proven true. Rarely does one consider imported snakes, sold through pet stores as problem species for North America. But in Florida where now constrictors and pythons live wild and free, thanks to escaping during hurricanes hitting Florida, these kind of snakes are threatening Florida’s wilds like the Everglades. Also, pet owners release the snakes into the wild once the snakes become too big. These include Burmese Pythons, Reticulated Pythons, Yellow Anacondas, Beni Anacondas, Green Anacondas, and Deschauensee's anacondas. It is believed that there could be up to tens of thousands of pythons in Florida. The snakes have become the most sensational invasive species plaguing Florida. The snakes adapted quite well to Florida's climate, and the Everglades provides a bountiful source of food.
Burmese Pythons, in the right conditions, grow very quickly. They are usually an easy-going snake in temperament, making them a favorite for pet owners. Among the largest snakes on earth, they are able to grow up to 23 feet long and weighing 200 pounds in normal circumstances. Burmese Pythons are a threatened species in their native habitat.

Snakes that reach these sizes can present a risk to humans as well, although humans are not normally part of the diet of a giant snake. While rare, Burmese Pythons are capable of killing people. Earlier this year, a two-year old in Florida was strangled by a pet Python. In 1996, a 19-year old man was killed by his pet Burmese Python. Shades of SyFy monster moives, Florida's problems with giant snakes came to light years ago after tourists witnessed epic battles between giant snakes and alligators. Not alone in this problem, North Carolina is having same problem with Burmese Pythons that were let loose or escaped.
From 1919 through more recent sightings in 1975, a forty-foot snake is claimed to be seen on the slopes of Big Top Mountain, Pennsylvania. There are reports from 2007 of a small serpent by comparison in Bristol, Bucks County, Pennsylvania. It was a 9-foot-long snake said to be on the loose, reportedly eating several kittens. The Bucks County Giant Snake has yet to be captured.

One of the most famous Giant Snake sighting series from the USA’s Midwest was that of the “Peninsula Python” in Ohio, in 1944. The media attention of this new wave of sightings in 2007, in Pennsylvania, may soon rival the hysteria of the “Peninsula Python,” during the modern age of the Internet. Though chances That the 2007 one is based on an escaped pet.

Another place that a snake has been seen is Devil’s Den” in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. This place is famous for the event that caused the lore and legend of the Devil’s Den is undoubtedly the fighting which took place here on July 2, 1863, the second day of the Battle of Gettysburg. According to early accounts from the area, the tangled, outcropping of rocks was a Native American hunting ground for centuries and some say that a huge battle was once fought here, called the "Battle of the Crows" during which many perished. Early settlers had told stories of ghosts seen there and Indian "war-whoops" heard on certain nights. It was also reported that strange Indian ceremonies also took place in the area. According to local legend, the name "Devil’s Den" was actually in use before the Civil War battle took place. How the area got its name remains a mystery, though many believe that the strange atmosphere of the area itself may have contributed to the designation. There was another legend persists that the Devil’s Den was always known for being infested with snakes. It is said that one gigantic black snake in particular eluded the local hunters for many years and they were never able to capture or kill him. He was allegedly nicknamed "the Devil" and thus, the area of rocks was called his "den". After the Civil War battle that happened there and all the deaths, apparitions have been seen. So not only a giant snake, but ghosts, too.

Are these pets that escaped, where some sizes were magnified, actual giant snakes?  Or the imagination of those deluding themselves due to alcohol or drugs? Good question. No matter what one’s opinion is, it’s still fascinating to wonder if giant snakes live among us, ready to devour us at a moment’s notice. If nothing else, good fodder to tell around a campfire at night to other campers. Just be forewarned; what else is sharing the woods with you? And did you hear that hiss in the darkness beyond the trees, or is it only your imagination?


Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Weird Wednesday





Found this perculiar house, obviously made inside ice. Be a cool place to live during the summer time, for sure.

Friday, July 13, 2012

Supernatural Friday: Beware of Monsters: Bigfoot, Werewolves and Mothman!


With all the ghost reality shows there is the occasional TV show about monsters. Like "Destination Truth." I love ghosts, but also enjoy a good monster story or legend. Who doesn’t like to learn if a werewolf has been seen in their area, or if Bigfoot has been stomping his/her way through the woods nearby?


Bigfoot, also known as Sasquatch, is usually very tall, maybe up to seven or eight foot, and covered in hair, mainly black. It is supposedly seen only in the State of Washington, maybe even Oregon, Northern California, and other parts of the Far West. But that’s wrong, for there have been sightings of Big Foot for more than four hundred years in many of the other states too, including my own state of Virginia. In fact, Virginia has the oldest sightings, some as far back as the 1800s. Take that Washington!

Similar to Asia’s Abominable Snowman, the history of Bigfoot reaches far back into America’s past with the Indian people. In the Northwest and west of the Rockies, Bigfoot is seen as a special being, all due to close relationship with humankind. Indian tribe elders see him as a border between animal-style consciousness and human-style consciousness, one that gives him special powers. In Indian culture, animals are not looked upon as inferior to humans. Instead, they are regarded as elder brothers and teachers of humans. Interestingly enough, the Northwestern tribes never considered the Sasquatch as other than a physical being. But to other tribes in the U.S., Bigfoot is perceived more as a supernatural or spirit individual. An appearance to humans is meant to convey some sort of message. The Sioux called Bigfoot Chiye-tanka. Turtle Mountain Ojibwe call the Sasquatch Rugaru, close to the French word, loup-garou, which means werewolf.  They also associate Bigfoot with Windago, the cannibal-giant of their legends.  The Hopi see Bigfoot as a messenger who appears in times of evil. Among the Iroquois, mentioned much more often than Bigfoot are the “little people”—both are regarded as spiritual or interdimensional. These are the Pukwudgies. They believe that these beings can enter or leave our physical dimension whenever they wish to.  Strange that these little people myths are all over the world, like the little people known as fairies in Europe, for example.

Sightings of the Sasquatch have been reported to this day, even by credible people. To many, these facts suggest maybe the presence of an animal, probably a primate that exists today in very low population densities. Bi-pedal, unlike an ape, it walks with long strides and has a cone shape for top of the head. If so, it has became very adept at avoiding human contact through a process of natural selection.

Besides the U.S., it has been seen all over the world, as was evident in "Destination Truth" first episode on July 10, 2012. So this creature doesn’t just haunt the forests, mountains, and swamps of America, but many other places worldwide.

Another furry being is the werewolf, known in legends the world over, along with other shapeshifters that include leopards, lions, elephants, snakes, tigers, bears, foxes, hyenas, jaguars, and I am certain much more.

Werewolves, also known as lycanthropes or wolfmen, are mythological humans with the ability to shapeshift into wolves or wolf-like creatures. This can be either by being bitten by another werewolf or from being placed under a curse. The medieval chronicler Gervase of Tilbury associated the transformation with the appearance of the full moon; however, there is evidence that the association existed among the ancient Greeks, appearing in the writings of Petronius. Shape-shifters similar to werewolves are common in tales from all over the world, though most of them involve animal forms other than wolves.

There are traits that only a werewolf has. Like the joining of both eyebrows at the bridge of the nose. Other indicators are curved fingernails, low set ears, and a swinging stride. One method of identifying a werewolf in its human form was to cut the flesh of the accused, under the pretence that fur would be seen within the wound. A Russian superstition tells of how a werewolf can be recognized by bristles underneath the tongue.

The appearance of a werewolf in its animal form varies from culture to culture, though they are most commonly portrayed as being indistinguishable from ordinary wolves save for the fact that they have no tail—a trait thought characteristic of witches in animal form. They also retain human eyes and voice. After returning to their human forms, werewolves are usually documented as becoming weak, debilitated, and undergoing painful nervous depression.

Historical legends describe a wide variety of methods for becoming a werewolf, one of the simplest being the removal of clothing and putting on a belt made of wolf skin, probably as a substitute for the assumption of an entire animal skin (which also is frequently described). In other cases, the body is rubbed with a magic salve. To drink water out of the footprint of the animal in question or to drink from certain enchanted streams were also considered effectual modes of accomplishing metamorphosis. According to Russian lore, a child born on December 24 can become be a werewolf. Folklore and literature also depict that a werewolf can be spawned from two werewolf parents. In Italy, France and Germany, it is said that a man turns into a werewolf if he, on a certain Wednesday or Friday, went to sleep outside on a summer night, with the full moon shining directly on his face. In Galician, Portuguese, and Brazilian folklore, it is the seventh son after six sons (though sometimes it can be the seventh child, a boy, after a line of six daughters) who becomes a werewolf. In Portugal, the seventh daughter is supposed to become a witch and the seventh son a werewolf; the seventh son often gets the Christian name "Bento" (meaning "blessed) as this is believed to prevent him from becoming a werewolf later in life. There are also those myths that say that the transformation is accomplished by satanic allegiance, often for the sake of sating a craving for human flesh. And of course, among the Native Americans there are the skinwalker stories.

For this blog, the last “monster” I will talk about is Mothman. Who hasn’t heard about the Mothman?


The Mothman is a being seen in West Virginia, around Charleston and Point Pleasant, mainly between November 12, 1966 (near Clendenin), and December 1967. For thirteen months, the entire town of Point Pleasant, West Virginia lived in a grip of dark terror culminating in a tragedy that made headlines all over the world. Most observers describe the creature involved as a winged creature the size of a man, with reflective red eyes and large moth-like wings. The creature often appeared to have no head, with its eyes set into its chest. A number of hypotheses have been presented to explain eyewitness accounts, ranging from misidentification and coincidence to paranormal phenomena and conspiracy theories.

It all began on November 12, 1966, when two young married couples from Point Pleasant, David and Linda Scarberry and Steve and Mary Mallette, traveled late at night in the Scarberrys' car. They had just passed the West Virginia Ordnance Works, an abandoned World War II TNT factory. They noticed two red lights in the shadows next to an old generator plant near the factory gate. Stopping the car, they discovered that the lights were actually the glowing red eyes of a large animal. Shaped like a man, but bigger, it stood maybe six and a half to seven feet tall, with wings folded against its back. Terrified, they raced toward Route 62, where the creature supposedly pursued them at speeds exceeding hundred miles per hour. From then on, others ran into this monster until the December 15, 1967 collapse of the Silver Bridge spanning the Ohio River.

There are claims that Mothman is related to parapsychological events in the area, including UFO activity, men in black encounters, poltergeist activity, Bigfoot and black panther sightings, animal and human mutilations, and precognitions by witnesses.

One of the early theories is that the Mothman was a misidentified Sandhill crane, which, in the late 1960s, had been a problem in the surrounding area. Sandhill cranes can reach a height of six feet, achieve wingspans of ten feet, have the general appearance described, glide for long distances without flapping, and have an unusual shriek. Other theories suggested the possibility of the Mothman being a barn owl or perhaps a large Snowy owl.

Funny thing, since then, this being has been seen in Virginia by three friends in Prince William County during 1968-69. Lately, sightings of a Mothman or maybe Mothmen have been seen in the Mid-West. Not just in America, there has been an article I found online, mentioning about London sightings of it. There is evidence that the Mothman case bears striking similarities to a lengthy investigation carried out in London which dealt with a supernatural phenomena dubbed by the British media ‘The Highgate Vampire’.  Recent sightings happened in Seattle, Washington in May 2012.

Mothman has moved into the realm of the paranormal, or supernatural. That the one in West Virginia is due to a curse put on the Point Pleasant area back in 1770s, called the Cornstalk Curse. You can read about this curse at http://www.prairieghosts.com/cornstalk.html. As a child when I first read about Mothman in West Virginia, I always thought of it as maybe an alien (due to UFOs seen in the area at the same time) and maybe this was a spacesuit that people mistaken for a creature. I still stick to that this day. What is your opinion?

Today, I wrote about three different types of monsters. Next week, I will blog about more monsters.

Next time, you walk through a spot of woods Bigfoot has been seen, a park a werewolf has been claimed to been seen, or drive a lonely stretch of road that there has been sightings of Mothman, take care. Maybe it’s not a myth. Maybe you did see those red eyes in the dark, or heard what might not been a coyote howling.

Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Haunted Richmond II is a Goodreads Giveaway


My fourth nonfiction ghost book releases August 2012. I am doing a Goodreads.com giveaway of one signed copy to those in the USA until September 5, 2012. So if on Goodreads, go enter to win it! http://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/27049-haunted-richmond-ii


WEIRD WEDNESDAY


I guess someone wanted their goat to have a punk mohawk?

Sunday, July 08, 2012

Fantasci X-A Cool Convention on a Hot Day


Saturday, July 7, 2012 was hot, but inside the Chesapeake Central Library in Chespeake, Virginia, most of us kept cool during Fantasci X, the one-day science fiction, fantasy and horror convention the library has put on for ten years now.


My husband, Bill and I got up at 5:00 a.m. and by 5:30 were dressed and had the car packed with my books, and other things. After watering my plants as this was to be the hottest day this week at 104, with heat index way worse, we drove out of the driveway, on our way to Chespeake. We made a brief stop at a McDonalds on 450 for breakfast and use of their restroom, then we sped down the road on the last leg of our journey. By 8:00 a.m. we got to the library, unloaded the car, and parked it. By 8:30 a.m. my table was decorated and my books out. I took photos just before the public was allowed in at 10 a.m. then got behind my table and ready for seven hours of a fun time.



There was the Klingon jail, set up for charity where you could have your best friend, er enemy, arrested and released on bail, the money going to charity. The Klingons serenaded their prisoners to tunes of “Row, row your boat or the Barney the Purple Dinosaur “I Love You” theme. Sheer horror. The Umbrella Corporation was there to watch out for the zombie apocalypse, so the one-day convention could goon uninterrupted. Or maybe they were secretly infecting us all.



Tidewater alliance was there in their Star Wars costumes, while Star Trek groups paraded by. There were Legos, two incarnations of Doctor Who, artists with wonderful art, like my friend Susan L. Wickham, dealers selling cool items I never got time to purchase (next time, next time. . .), and authors with their books to buy and get signed. There were even panels on writing, alien food and what to do during a zombie apocalypse, and even lightsaber duels.





By 5:00 p.m. everyone was packed up and gone, and some headed over to a nearby Mexican restaurant for dinner. Some headed back to the library for movie night that started at eight, rest of us (like Bill and me) drove home in super hot, humid heat. It was a good day though.  See you next year, Fantasci!










Friday, July 06, 2012

Supernatural Friday: Snow Angel



Something to cool off your hot Friday, since snow is the focus of my fantasy tale. This story is copyrighted, so please do not copy it off and paste it elsewhere--the only other place allowed to post it was The Chocolate Box and on here, as this is my original work. Do share the link to here to all your friends and relatives to read.


Snow Angel

By

 Pamela K. Kinney


I remember that winter night when I saw the snow angel. It had just started to snow after supper, about six o’clock. Thanks to the weather, when the sky would have been just turning dusk, instead darkness covered the scene like a shadow.

Pressing my face against the ice-cold glass of the large picture window in the living room, I watched the snow falling in the dark. It was illuminated by an eerie kind of ghost-light. At least that’s how I thought of it. Silence. The only movement came from a lone cat struggling through the drifts to disappear down a storm drain across the street.

I sensed rather than heard someone behind me. I blew out my breath, fogging the glass.

“Mom, it’s time for bed.”

My daughter, Marie. Of course, who else could it be, since I lived with her and her husband, Andy?

I looked over my shoulder at her. “This feels like a reversal of when you wanted to stay up later. Remember those days?”

She sighed. “I’m sorry, Mom, but the doctor gave me strict instructions that you get enough rest.”

Grumbling, I moved away and headed down the hallway to my bedroom, Marie close on my heels. Not caring, I shrugged off my clothes and flung them to the floor. Marie flashed frustration on her face, but stooped and picked up the clothing, tossing it in a hamper nearby. I put on my nightgown and ducked beneath the soft pink blanket on my bed. My daughter leaned over to give me a kiss on my cheek. Feather-soft, her lips tickled my skin.

“’Night,” she said, her voice a whisper, “and dream of snow angels dancing in the snow.”

“That’s silly,” I said. “I only told you that story when you were a kid to get you to sleep during the night. It was my way of getting you to not worry about monsters in closets or under your bed.”

“There are all kinds of angels in Heaven, Mom. The snow angel is God’s own special answer to make sure that snow falls just right so that children will have a wonderful winter world to marvel at.” She stroked my hair. “Least that’s how you explained it to me. Now go to sleep.”

She left me alone. I didn’t feel somnolent, instead I never felt so wide awake.

I slipped out of bed and sat on the seat by my bedroom window. I peered through the glass and tried not to smog it up with my breath, hoping the snowflakes were still lit up with odd glow. Thank goodness, they still were.

Just then, I noticed a dark shadow moving in the distance, outlined by the glow, too. Flickering off and on like a shorted bulb, it appeared to be gliding closer and closer to the house. I rubbed my eyes, thinking they were playing tricks on me. But when I took my hands away, something peered back at me from the other side of the window and it was not my own reflection!

Heart pounding, I toppled off the window seat. Its head—at least I assumed that was its head—popped through the glass like it was water and looked down at me. Twin orbs of icy-blue glowed from that dark visage. The glow grew brighter and brighter. Unable to move or speak, I fell into that glow and a sense of peace and warmth filled me. I stood.

“Who are you?” I whispered.

Silence. It slid its head back through the window. I got the feeling that it wanted me to join it outside. Not even stopping for a robe or shoes, I unlatched my window and shoved it and the screen up. Frigid air invited itself in and I shivered, but I still climbed out. I dropped down into a soft drift of snow piled beneath my window. To my surprise, I didn’t feel the cold snow squished between my toes and the freezing wind of the blizzard biting into my exposed skin. A warmth filled me and feeling giddy, I danced through the snow, laughing.

My visitor took my hands, and I stopped dancing and looked up at it. It loomed over me, the ghost-light revealing a long figure of ice and snow. Its wings, made not of feathers but icicles, chimed like church bells. The being was glorious and terrifying at the same time. I wasn’t frightened.

“You’re a snow angel, aren’t you?” I asked breathlessly. “A real snow angel.”

It just pressed me against it. Together, arm in arm; we danced a waltz through the snowflakes. We seemed to be floating on air. Magical, like Christmas morning or that first kiss.

There was nothing to fear and when the angel offered, I let it fly me up, up, through swirling snowflakes, high above the neighborhood.

****

At first I never gave a thought to my family. But when I heard the screaming and crying from far away it drew me back. I peeked at the scene below. Morning had dawned and the snow stopped. Something small and indistinct dressed in a pink nightgown lay blanketed by snow right under my bedroom window.

The window was still propped open. Marie dropped to her knees in the snow and snatched up that still form, screaming and crying. Andy stood over her, talking on his cell phone.

Marie stared up at the sky. She acted like she couldn’t see me. But I saw her tear-stained face and the pain in her eyes. “Why, God, why?”

I wanted to go to her, but I felt a touch on my shoulder and I looked to see the snow angel hovering beside me. It held out a hand. I took it.

I looked back at Marie and said, “It’s all right, everything’s all right.”

Ready now?

I nodded with a smile. We rose higher and higher and passed through a tear in the sky that appeared.  The tear closed behind us and I passed through shining gates, entering the snowy fields of Heaven.





     

Tuesday, July 03, 2012

WEIRD WEDNESDAY




Guess he wanted a mustache on top of his head. Kind of Snidely Whiplash type, too.

Sunday, July 01, 2012

Supernatural Friday is Now Today Supernatural Sunday


It's hot, humid and unless you're at the beach or up in the cooler mountains, you rather be indoors in the AC. I decided what better than "Halloween in July: ten ghostly films to watch. So here are ten suggestions of ghost horror films to watch on DVD. Go grill those burgers or hot dogs, grab that bag of chips, make the macoroni salad, and fill glasses of ice full of soda or iced tea, and get comfy to watch a marathon in air conditioning. And though there are more films--worthy one--there are ten to start with.


1. The Haunting (1963).
2. Woman in Black (2012). There's a 1993 version, too.
3. Ghost Story (1981).
4. Changling (1980).
5. House on Haunted Hill (1999).
6. The Lady in White (1988).
7. What Lies Beneath (2000).
8. The Uninvited (1944).
9. Poltergeist (198)
10. The Fog (1979).