Quinn Noll's Blog, page 4
May 14, 2021
Feed your Inner Child (or at least, water it )
Stepping outside the realm of the freaky, paranormal blogs that, hopefully, challenge and open your mind, to another unknown mystery that stares us all in the face daily. I’m talking about the frantic, hurried pace of life that seems to stir in us a desire to do better, be better, than the person next to us. That need, that urgency, ignites a spark that can, at times, consume us, making us blind to some very real truths.
One of these truths, I believe, is the key to a happier existence.
You must feed your inner child.
What, you say? What is this madness she speaks of? Glad you asked, my friend. The fact is, somewhere between our youth and that magic age of ‘adulthood’, we’ve forgotten how to be truly happy. Happy in our choices (whether they’ve turned out bad or good), happy with our loved ones, happy in our own company. The drive to succeed, though an admirable trait, is the same drive that chains us to traveling the interstate of life at Mach 10, rather than taking the scenic route.
Nothing is pretty at 80mph, people.
Don’t get me wrong— I am as guilty as the next person. Some days, not only do I fail to stop and smell the roses, I don’t even see that they’re there. But, think about it. When was the last time you sloshed gleefully through a mud puddle or camped in the backyard just to see the stars? When was the last time you danced in the rain?
Image credit HDC Photography
I mean, sober. With your clothes on.
My point is that these are things we did way back when, before the responsibilities of life damn near crushed us. Family routines and housing costs, car payments and doctor visits, tuition rates and orthodontics. And while all of these are important, vital parts of life that cannot, should not, be ignored, they are but one thread in the fabric of life.
Damn, that should be on a t-shirt.😆
Life is complicated and demanding and messy most of the time. It can deal us a brilliant hand one day, and a saggy bag of caca the next. But it’s the only cards we have. And the best part? You can say ‘bite me’, flip those cards over and see a cool design on the back! Or, you can toss them aside for a new deal, stick an ace up your sleeve, or bluff your way to a winning hand.
The only thing you can’t do is fold.
So, how do we keep life fresh? How do we avoid falling into the trap of the mundane? We feed our inner child! We have that ice cream cone, ride that roller coaster, do whatever it is that, once upon a time, made us aware that we are ALIVE!
When life gets you down, look up.
Truth bomb here for the younger crowd— the years develop wings after the age of 21. It seems we can’t wait to reach that magical age, the one where we are truly considered to be a grown-up. Then, one morning you wake up to realize you are 26, maybe married, just starting a family. Your inner child is off to the side, crouched in the corner, politely waiting until things settle before springing back into action.
Blink.
Next thing you know, you are in your mid- thirties, attending parent conferences, plugging for that raise, building your portfolio for retirement. Retirement that seems a lifetime away. Your inner child is no longer visible, hiding behind the skirts of obligation and duty and accountability.
Blink.
Your forties fly by you. Suddenly, you are looking at college choices for the kids, maybe considering changing careers, wondering what the hell happened to your thirties. Your inner child is now just a reflection, a faded memory of what you used to be.
Blink.
Well, you get the idea. I won’t depress you any further. I used to use the term ‘I can’t wait,” a lot. Stuff like ‘I can’t wait until the kids are out of diapers’, or ‘I can’t wait until my kids can drive themselves to practice.’ The ‘I can’t wait’s’ piled up until one day, I looked around and noticed that everything I couldn’t wait for had passed. And, in the interim, I’d missed the enjoyment, the journey, of actually getting there. After all, life is supposed to be a slow roll, right? We don’t want to sprint to the finish line, do we?
Yeah, cause the finish line is the end of the line.😬
Now, when I look back, I wish I could turn back the clock to diapers and football games and birthday parties at the bowling alley, carrying a box of tissues under my arm for that one kid who always seemed to have a snotty nose.
But, unless you are Cher, we can’t turn back time. Bummer.
Life is a gift. And while it is an amazing opportunity to experience love and laughter, it is also a privilege revoked far too soon.
So, feed that inner child. Don’t be afraid to enjoy your own company, take a risk you normally wouldn’t, buy that triple venti no-foam latte if it pleases you. Your soul and body are a package deal. You can do all the crunches in the world, but if your soul isn’t thriving, your body is just a shell; a container holding your bones as you sleepwalk through life.
And that’s no fun.
So, please, take care of you. All of you.. We want you around a long, long time😊
If we live our lives like today is our last, we will have lived the best life possible.
Later gators…I’m heading outside. It looks like rain😉 Peace out, my friends.
— Q
April 30, 2021
Exploring the Unknown: Two if by Sea
Water comprises about seventy percent of our planet, and the oceans take up somewhere around ninety-five percent of that figure. Yet, we know so little about the mysteries of the ocean. Here, we will delve into just a few that, while we may not know everything about, we know enough to make us go “holy mackerel!”
See what I did there?😁
And, speaking of sea creatures, how’d ya like to be immortal? Personally, I find the idea of going on and on rather exhausting, but there is one species on the planet who simply do not die. Who, you ask? Why, the Immortal Jellyfish, of course!
Their scientific name is Turritopsis dohrnii and their claim to fame? Being known as the only immortal creature on the planet. How do they do it? Youth serums or face creams? (Do jellyfish even have a face?) Antioxidants or vitamins? No, my friends. Apparently, the secret to an immortal existence is to turn the clock back. (If only😔) These gooey critters have a bunch of babies, and then revert back to a stage of sexual immaturity. And really, isn’t maturity is soooo overrated anyway? Crazy stuff, but it’s like they can get their virginity back and become innocent, pure little wads of jelly again.
Hmmm.
Of course, they CAN die if eaten by a big, obnoxious sea creature or if they develop some kind of disease. But otherwise? They just keep on keepin’ on, forever young, never adhering to the ‘circle of life’ concept.
Kind of like J.Lo.
Speaking of geometric figures— not J.Lo but the ‘circle’ reference above 😁— we’ve all heard of The Bermuda Triangle, right? It is the 500k plus area of the ocean just east of Florida. Stories abound about UFO sightings, missing ships, strange lights. There is even a fellow who claims to have experienced missing time, 28 minutes to be exact, as he flew over the Triangle. He wrote a book about what he calls ‘Time fog’, entitled ‘Electronic Fog’. But, he isn’t the only one to speak about weird occurrences. Several seamen, to include Christopher Columbus himself, spoke of bright lights and compasses that failed while sailing through the Triangle.
Image credit Wikipedia
So when did the hubbub and fascination in this country truly begin? That would be Dec. 5, 1945, when a squadron of U. S. Navy bombers went missing during a training exercise over the Bermuda Triangle. Before all radio contact was lost with the leader of Flight 19, the tower heard him say, ‘"Everything looks strange, even the ocean. We are entering white water, nothing seems right." None of the 5 aircraft, nor their 14 total crew members, were ever found. But in perhaps the strangest twist of all, one of the search-and-rescue planes, carrying 13 men onboard and sent to look for the missing planes, vanished during the search.
So, how many people have gone missing in The Bermuda Triangle, you wonder? Well, some put the numbers at 20 planes and around 50 ships that have vanished without a trace— no distress signal, no debris found. But, that is the conservative estimate. Other sources cite up to 75 planes and over a thousand ships lost.
That is a crap-ton of missing people.
Oh, sure, some logical explanations are out there: electromagnetic interference with flight equipment, heavy fog, gulf stream currents that sweep away crash debris. Even alien abductions.
Yikes😬
But wait! Bermuda isn’t the only place with their own triangle! Michigan, indeed, has its own fabled area where spooky and unexplained disappearances or craft crashes occur. Perhaps the biggest difference between the two locations is that in Michigan, most of the time the wreckage is discovered. Still, the questions abound regarding how it is that these disasters occur? Why are there no distress calls? It’s as if things go swimmingly until just before the accidents. No reports of wonky equipment or sudden storms. And why are there no survivors? I mean, you’d think at least one person would have luck on their side, no?
Oh, and don’t get me started on the underwater Stone Hedge-type formation discovered by archaeologists in a shallow area of Lake Michigan. It’s exact location is a secret while scientists try to ascertain whether this is man-made or…?
Oh, and the blocks of ice that fell from the sky in 1883. They crippled a ship called the Mary McLane, the crew even saving a block to show people ashore.
Definitely not something you see every day.
Speaking of things you don’t see everyday…Don’t you love a good loch? I know I do! Especially one in particular, located in the Scottish Highlands, home to The Loch Ness Monster, affectionately known as Nessie. Described by witnesses as a prehistoric-looking animal, there are few photographs that have been deemed ‘legitimate,’ although this one is probably the most widely-known photo out there.
Nessie, the legend goes, is the lone survivor of either a variant of the dinosaur or, some say, a dragon. Still others think she is a gigantic eel or an extinct marine reptile. Nessie spends her days swimming in the waters of Loch Ness, alone and, apparently, camera-shy.
Image credit Britania.com
I’ve also heard she enjoys sunsets and long walks on the beach.🥰
What say you? Do you believe any of these mysteries indicate something paranormal? Or are you a left-brained thinker, believing there is a logical explanation to them all. Drop me a line below in the comments section!
Next time on Exploring the Unknown, we will take on some of the Wonders of the World! Until then, just keep swimming!
April 16, 2021
Exploring the Unknown: Two if by Sea
Ghost ships. You know their out there, lurking, circling, trying to make it to safe harbor. With or without their crew.
Creepy, right? Sightings around the world of these so called ‘Ghost Ships’ have been reported for centuries. So what is a ghost ship, you say? Glad you asked, my friends! A ghost ship, sometimes referred to as a phantom ship, is a vessel at sea with a strange twist… there is no living crew aboard. It may be a ship without a crew, a vessel found with dead crew members aboard, or merely a ship that slipped its ropes, only to be carried away by the pulse of the waves or the strength of a mighty wind. Today, we will be discovering the eerie facts surrounding three such ghost ships: The Flying Dutchman, The Mary Celeste, and Octavius. Then, just because I freaking love Gordon Lightfoot, we will end with a look at the tragedy of The Edmund Fitzgerald, which occurred closer to our lifetime than the others.
Bonus points if you can give me the month and the year 😉 (psst— don’t look now, but the month is in the lyrics)
We start with The Flying Dutchman. The year was 1641 (such a fun time, when there was no pressure about life expectancy since everyone died before waking up to their first wrinkle. Unless, of course, the typhoid or scarlet fever or syphilis got ya first!) Back in the day, passage around Africa was a necessary but dangerous route for ships to sail as they delivered their cargo. Hendrik van der Decken, captain of The Flying Dutchman, found himself in the unenviable position of navigating his vessel around the treacherous outcropping of rocks that made up The Cape of Good in South Africa. This cape, also called The Cape of Storms for its temperamental weather, had become the final, watery grave for many a ship caught in one of its infamous storms. On this day in 1641, the crew, aware of the danger, begged Captain van der Decken not to sail into the storm. But, like any other narcissitic, bull-headed sea captain— not that I have anything against sea captains in general, mind you :)— he did it anyway, believing he could tame the brutal winds and driving rain. In fact, even in the face of doom, legend has it he swore at the heavens, vowing to continue to sail around the cape for all eternity if need be, in order to make it safely to shore.
Be careful what you wish for.
The vessel was deemed lost, never to surface again. Except, of course, as a ghostly sighting. The Dutchman is said to be cursed, and anyone who sees it will be in for some terrible luck. Many believe the doomed ship continues in an eternal loop, forever damned to sail ‘round and ‘round, never reaching a safe harbor.
Bummer.
The Flying Dutchman
The Mary Celeste is one of the more unsettling mysteries of the sea, in my humble opinion. It was in 1972 when Captain Benjamin Briggs, along with a small crew and the Briggs’ family, left New York on The Mary Celeste, a merchant ship laden with industrial-grade alcohol, bound for Genoa. A month later, the ship was discovered, abandoned and adrift, on the coast of Portugal. It was completely unscathed, its sails in place, and the only thing missing aside from the crew was the captain’s log and the single lifeboat.
There were strange marks, gouge-like injuries to the wood, and what may have been blood, found on the floating ship. The lone lifeboat was missing, leading investigators to believe the disappearances of the crew could have been due to a mutiny, with the guilty crew members escaping in the lifeboat. Another theory was that pirates, or the men from the ship who discovered the abandoned craft, were the ones who killed the crew, hoping to take their booty. (Booty as in loot, cash, cargo. Get yer minds outta the gutter, people😛.) The problem with that theory? The ship hadn’t been looted at all.
There are also those who theorize The Mary Celeste encountered a problem of the Third Kind. Yep, some folks point to the absence of both bodies and witnesses as evidence of little green men whisking the crew away to their spaceship. Personally, I think the chances of that are astronomical. (Get it? Astronomical? 😁)
The most ‘popular’, and perhaps plausible, theory is simply the ship ran into trouble on the seas in the form of a waterspout. Waterspouts are like vicious tornadoes at sea, ones that cause colossal damage with gale-force winds and a pounding deluge of water. The crew, maybe fearing The Mary Celeste would sink, abandoned her temporarily, transferring into a lifeboat that subsequently capsized. Makes as much sense as anything else.
Mary Celeste
How’s this for terrifying? Imagine you are a sea merchant in 1775, sailing your way merrily across the Arctic, when you encounter a three-masted schooner, unmanned in the middle of the ocean. You board the seemingly abandoned vessel and begin a search for survivors. Instead, you find the entire crew of men, along with a woman and small child, below deck… frozen solid, perfectly preserved, posed in their final moments of death.
Congratulations…you have boarded the ghost ship Octavius.
But here is where it gets really weird. The captain of the Octavius was found at his desk, a pen in his hand, as if actively writing in his journal. Behind him, tucked neatly in blankets, lay his wife and child, frozen. Well, as you can imagine, this sight wigged out the men who had come aboard to search the ship and they beat feet, taking only the captain’s log with them. The final entry in that log? November 11, 1762. You know what that means? It means that ship was out there in the arctic, with a dozen or more frozen corpses, for 13 years! After reading the entries in the log, it was determined that the ship became trapped in ice after attempting to navigate through the Northwest Passage. Whether they simply froze to death or died from both exposure and hunger is anyone’s guess.
Finally, we have the Edmund Fitzgerald. You know, I hear tell that the legend lives on from the Chippewa on down… But seriously, what a tragic tale. Lake Superior, November of 1975 (did you get the answer right?😁) A storm was brewing as the Fitzgerald left Duluth, Minnesota, enroute to Detroit, Michigan. There was another ship, a freighter called the Arthur M. Anderson, traveling about 15 miles behind the Fitzgerald.
Both ships remained in contact as the strong storm picked up, the Fitzgerald warning the Anderson about the fierce winds and water damage it was taking, the Anderson attempting to help the ailing ship navigate the remaining trip to Whitefish Bay. Less than 10 miles from safety, radio communication from the Fitzgerald ceased. The last message was a crew member telling the Anderson they were in “One of the worst sea’s I’ve ever seen. We are holding our own.”
Then, nothing. Radio silence, as well as the disappearance of the Fitzgerald on the Anderson’s radar screen.
Twenty-nine lives were lost that day, their remains never recovered. Massive 90 feet waves, known as the “Three Sisters”, are believed to be responsible for sinking the ship. The name Three Sisters refers to a series of waves, one after the other, typical for the unforgiving Lake Superior. In a nutshell (or a ship hull, as the case may be) several waves hit a vessel in quick succession, pounding the ships hull and filling the decks with an overwhelming amount of water.
In 1995, a dive team recovered the ship’s bell, and the names of those lost were engraved on the side. Other than that piece of her, the Edmund Fitzgerald remains 500 feet below the surface of Lake Superior, broken into two, never to be seen again.
Unless, of course, we are counting the dozens of ghost sightings reported since 1975, right in the area of where she lay.
The Edmund Fitzgerald
Yeah. Ghost Ships.
Next time on Exploring the Unknown: Two if by Sea, we will take a look at some other phenomena associated with our vast oceans. Namely, the Bermuda Triangle and Atlantis. Til then, avast ye maties!
April 2, 2021
Ghosts Around the World: Castle Fever
Quick! When I say haunting, what comes to mind? An old house? A cemetery? How about a chilling location of murder and mayhem? Okay, sure, all of that and more. But what if I said…castle? Uh huh, that’s what I thought. What is more spooky than a 13th or 14th century castle?
Unfortunately for us Americans, we are sadly lacking in the castle department. Oh sure, we can kill ‘em with haunted roads and crime scenes and ancient Victorians. But castles? Not so much.
Never fear, ladies and gents! I am here to share with you some of the most haunted castles around the world. And some day, if you are able, put these babies on your ‘must see’ list when arranging your tourist destinations. I bet you won’t be disappointed!
First up, Leap Castle, located in a place that is close to my heart… my beloved Ireland. The castle was built somewhere between the 13th and 15th century for a wealthy Irish clan by the name of O’Carroll. It is said that one of the O’Carroll brothers, in a play for power, plunged a sword into his brother, a priest who was in the middle of saying Mass.
Pretty risky move, slaying a man who has God’s ear, am I right?
The castle also had, of course, a dungeon where all manner of dastardly, evil deeds occurred. Legend has it that, in the early 1900s, renovation workers discovered dozens of bones, said to be prisoners of the castle. They would fall through a trap door, landing on wooden spikes strategically placed in the dungeon below, that would gore their chests and collapse their lungs. Death took some time, and the members of the household undoubtedly heard the pleas and dying screams of many a man as they suffered a horrific end. It is purported to be one of the— if not THE— most haunted places in the world. Of course it is…it had dungeons and stuff!
But truthfully, is there a self-respecting castle anywhere that doesn’t have a dungeon? I mean, seriously, if you didn’t have a dank, creepy, hidden cave that rivaled the pits of hell, you were a poser, a joker, a wanna-be just playing at being a powerful Lord who held life and death in his hands.
And don’t get me started on the jeweled crowns on their heads or the lush robes on their backs. Sick.
But, once again, I digress. In Chillingham Castle (I swear, I’m not making that name up) in England, the dungeons and torture chambers were commonplace. Thumbscrews, beds of nails, the stretching rack— all manner of gruesome instruments of torture. (As an aside, I think I just found another blog topic 😉) Today, people experience whispers, light touches, camera and video equipment malfunctions. And the Lady of the Pantry, a woman in white (it’s always white, isn’t it?) who is longing for— water. I kid you not. Lore says that she comes to the pantry begging for a drink of water. Some say it’s a pretty good indication that, in life, she was poisoned and thus, extraordinarily thirsty.
And this is why Kings and such had royal tasters😬
How ‘bout that bonny building in Scotland, Castle Fraser? Full disclosure here…there is a wee bit of a Scottish back story in my next book, so I just had to give this one a nod. Castle Fraser is said to be haunted by a lovely princess who was murdered in her sleep. The killer or killers dragged her bleeding body down the tower stairs, leaving blood stains so embedded, they would not come off. Eventually, the blood stains on the steps were hidden using wood paneling that remains in place to this day. Visitors have reported hearing whispers, feeling phantom breaths on their bodies, even seeing the princess herself.
And last, but certainly not least, is Houska Castle. Located in the Czech Republic, this is probably the only castle that I would shy away from, the only one I’d say ‘Hell, no, I won’t go!’ Oh, I hear ya…Why? you ask. Why, Quinn, since you live for this stuff? True, all true. But this castle has something the others do not.
… An enormous hole in the ground. A hole said to be the gateway to Hell.
Hot damn! ( no pun intended.)😈
So the deal was, someone skipping around town found this gigantic hole in the ground and decided it must be a portal; a doorway for demons and the like. Seems like a pretty big leap to judgement for me but, hey, different strokes and all that. Anyhoo, rather than risk these pesky nasties entering our world, they built the house OVER the hole. Now, some believe that the demons trying to gain entry here are trapped in the lower level of the house. But, if that isn’t enough to curl your hair…
Eventually, someone decided sealing it off would be a capital idea. But, before they did, they really wanted to get a gander of what was down that hole. You know, for posterity. After all, no one had ventured inside, as it was said to be bottomless. (Although, seriously, the bottom has to be somewhere, right? I could never wrap my head around the ‘bottomless’ concept.) Anyway, they had a plan. They would grant prisoners sentenced to death a pardon if they would agree to be lowered via rope into the opening and report back what they saw. When they lowered the first inmate down, he immediately began screaming, and they pulled him back.
The poor bastard had aged about thirty years— white hair, wrinkled skin, the works. They don’t say whether any other prisoners were lowered down that hole, or if any of them reported back what they saw.
And that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
Do you have a topic you want to learn more about? Something you’ve heard about and want to know more? Drop me a note at quinnnoll@gmail. com or in the comment section below.
Til next time!
—Q
March 19, 2021
There's Something I Need to Get off My Chest...
Picture this, if you will…you are fast asleep, dreaming of ice cream cones and sunny beaches and a fluffy little puppy named Sam, when you are suddenly jarred awake by something. A sound, a touch, a whisper. You try to move, try to speak, but your body refuses to cooperate, refuses your command to flee. Terrified, paralyzed, you try to scream out, but make no sound. And then, as if a page in a Stephen King horror novel, you see it, hovering above the bed, …
A demon, a ghost, an alien creature descending upon you, settling on your body, choking you. Smothering you.
You try to buck, to toss it off your chest, but it only draws closer, its foul breath and razor-sharp teeth nearing your neck. You try once more to cry out, aware that you are dying, that some ‘thing’ is killing you. And then…
You wake up. Sweating, shaking, maybe sucking your thumb. (I can’t be the ONLY one who does that, right?) Tears fill your eyes as you search the room, scanning every corner, every crevice, for the bastard that damn near took your life. But nothing is there. No ghost, no boogeyman, no reaper waiting to steal your soul. So what the hell was it?
This first happened to me several years ago (like over two decades ago) but I still remember it vividly. I was asleep, having a perfectly sane dream, when I awoke to the sound of David Letterman on the TV in the next room. My husband had worked late and was watching TV before turning in for the night. I can even remember the guest he was interviewing (Tom Hanks) and the canned-sounding laughter from the studio audience. I tried to get up but failed. I—couldn’t—move—anything. Not a toe, a finger, an eyelash. I was beyond frightened and knew immediately that I was dying. Had to be…what else could it be. The medical professional in me went through the possibilities; stroke, aneurysm, Guillain-Barre syndrome? All I knew was that I was dying and Letterman and Tom Hanks couldn’t give a fat rat’s ass about it. They just kept on chatting while I slowly drifted away.
Bastards.
Source: Laughing Colours
Just when I thought it couldn’t get any worse, surprise! Enter Demon Man, stage left! This billowy, grayish dude just suddenly appeared on top of me, breathing his rank, stinky-ass breath all over my face. I was screaming now (well, not out loud. But in my head! Man, you should have heard me. Jaime Lee Curtis would have been proud!)
Where was I? Oh, yeah, the smelly fellow currently compressing my chest. I legit couldn’t breathe, actually felt four fingers squeezing the back of my neck as a struggled for air. Then, this hideous creature opened its mouth, and I literally felt my soul being pulled from my body. No joke…I could feel something leaving, as if I was astral projecting or something.
And then, as suddenly as it started, it stopped. The creature was gone, my body obeyed the command to move, my soul remained intact.
I can still remember the terror, smell the fetid breath, feel the droplets of tears as they ran down the sides of my face. So, what in the actual hell happened?
In a word (or two words) — Sleep Paralysis.
Simply put, sleep paralysis happens when you wake up during REM, or Rapid Eye Movement, the dreaming phase of the sleep cycle. Apparently, because our bodies have thought of everything, our brain shuts off the ability to move during REM as a protective mechanism. I mean, think about it: What if we were able to move and were having dreams about flying off of rooftops, swimming in the surf or, I don’t know, pole dancing? Sleep paralysis keeps us from acting out our dreams, and thus, saves us from physical harm.
Not to mention saving us from crushing our dreams of becoming an exotic dancer.
So, where does the scary part, the hallucinations of an evil presence fit in? Beats the hell outta me. Personally, I find it intriguing, though, that I did not witness the frightening apparition until after I realized I could not move. So, perhaps, the terror of that situation allowed my inner-most fears to manifest themselves?
As it is in Tootsie Pops, the world may never know.
[image error]Source: Pinterest
In researching these haunting hallucinations (because, you know me— I can research something to death) I discovered a few things. They can occur because of anxiety, lack of sleep, stress— all things I was experiencing at the time as the wife of a cop and the mother of five— or simply because of sleep position. Handy tip— don’t sleep on your back.
Oh, and alcohol can be a potential trigger. So ease up on the booze.
As if… I’m Irish, so back off.
It would be an understandable leap to interpret these sleep demons as an actual visit from beyond. After all, if there are angels, there must be demons, too, right? Morning and night, light and dark, yin and yang. Everything must be in balance in the world. But the clue here, for me, is not only the paralysis but the immediate feeling of terror. The true visits I have experienced in the past started out with wonder and ended up with a warmth that is hard to describe. Even a visit from an evil being would, I think, begin with something other than stark terror. Curiosity, confusion, or disbelief maybe? I believe the fright of sleep paralysis comes from within, buried fears we hide from ourselves while we are awake, and not from any outside entity.
Do you have a story about sleep paralysis you’d care to share? If so, drop me a line here or at quinnnoll@gmail.com.
See you next time and remember…back sleepers never prosper!
March 5, 2021
Exploring the Unknown: One if by Land Part 2
So many lunatics, so little time, am I right? But not to worry, people…there’s a place for that! Several, in fact. One such place in West Virginia even had lunatic in their name! Talk about slacking in the creativity department. I can picture it now—a bunch of egomaniacs discussing what catchy name they will put on the building to house the mentally ill.
“Hey!” says one guy, “I know! How about ‘Crazy Acres?”
“Nah, too generic. We need something that tells a bit about the patients here. How about, ‘Lunatic Lock-Up/ Because Safety is out First Concern?”
“Wait, wait! I got it! How does ‘Sometimes you feel like a nut?’ sound?
In the end, though, they settled on a much more sensitive name for their building (and for those of you who haven’t had their first cup of coffee, this right here? Sarcasm😁)
What is the name you ask? Why, it’s the ‘The Trans Allegheny Lunatic Asylum,’ of course. Erected in the mid 1800’s, the facility began with an altruistic philosophy—eradicate the stigma of mental illness and introduce effective treatment protocols that would allow patients to lead a more normal life. But, as with many things that start with the best intentions, things went wonky. Twenty or thirty years after opening, the increased diagnoses of mental illness meant an enormous influx of patients at the facility. It was originally built to house 250 patients, by the time it closed, there were 10X that many patients. Overcrowded, understaffed, and unable to keep up with regular maintenance, the building became a run-down disgrace. There are tales of botched lobotomies, brutal beatings, starvation due to the increased numbers of people housed there, even the caging of human beings who were not ‘well-behaved.’ Is it any wonder why this building is considered one of the most haunted in the world?
Trans Allegheny Lunatic Asylum. Source: The Washington post
The asylum closed its doors to patients in 1994. In 2007, the new owners opened its doors for ghost hunting and ghost tours. I have to be honest here…this place is on my ‘must visit’ list. Right up there with the Winchester Mystery house and another visit to Gettysburg. (Who is up for a road trip?)
So, what kind of activity do we see here? There are reports of small children laughing, a woman named Lily who walks the halls, and a man named Jacob looking for his beer. (Aren’t we all?😜) In all, the tour guides there believe at least seven or eight patients who still walk, or glide, the halls of the Trans Alleghany Lunatic Asylum. Makes for an interesting work shift, don’t you think? And, speaking of crazy…
If I mentioned Room 217, a hedge maze, the Grady twins, and F.O. Stanley, what comes to mind? If you answered The Stanley Hotel in Colorado, or thought of Stephen King, you get a gold star. The Stanley Hotel was the inspiration for Stephen King’s ‘The Shining’. He came up with the idea for the novel after staying in the Stanley right before it was slated to close. That last night, he had a nightmare about his toddler son running down the halls, screaming and in danger. Now, I am sure there is more to this story, but he basically says that he had almost the whole thing written in his head by check-out.
Today, there are so many sightings, shadowed figures, and disembodied voices, that I could do an entire story on it. You name it, they have it…from Elizabeth, a ghostly presence in room 217 who apparently frowns on sex before marriage (and will come between people trying to see their own light show😉) to a piano in the concert hall that plays by itself, to a freaking vortex in the grand staircase. A vortex? How cool is that? Fun fact— rumor has it that the actor Jim Carrey stayed in the hotel (in room 217, actually) and ran screaming from the room, half nekkid and scared to death. I don’t care what they say; he isn’t dumb or dumber😝
Stanley Hotel. Source: The New York Times
Before I get to the very last on my list, an honorable mention (props, shout out, you-da-man) kind of awe goes out to a few places. The Myrtles Plantation in Louisiana has been investigated, written about and filmed countless times, and for good reason…it is haunted as (insert curse-word here). A slave girl named Chloe, who is alleged to have tried to poison her lecherous master Clark Woodruff, but accidently killed his wife and children, was hanged, thrown into the Mississippi, and supposedly still haunts the plantation. As does, allegedly, the entire Woodruff family, a young Native American girl, and a man who was murdered in the home. In total, there are said to be somewhere in the neighborhood of 12 ghosts residing at Myrtle’s Plantation. And why not? It is a beautiful, antebellum styled home. Hell, I may haunt that place someday.
The other shout out goes to the Pine Barrens in my very own home state of New Jersey. The over one million acres of preserved woodlands span seven counties across the state. While the most famous supernatural creature to gain notoriety in the Pine Barrens is The Jersey Devil, rest assured, numerous eye-witnesses detail encounters with what are called The Ghosts of the Pine Barrens. See there? Yet again, you learned something! Included in the list of spirit residents are a young boy hit by a car who roams the woods, an African American doctor lynched for practicing medicine, and a young blonde woman who, like, died I guess.
Seriously, I couldn’t find any other info on her.
But, now on to my absolute favorite, one I have visited and would love to do so again. The Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, now famous for its haunted tours, was once an infamous prison run by people who believed in putting the punishment back in the prison system. As such, prisoners were tortured in various ways. Many a man went mad simply because communication in any form was forbidden. That meant no talking, no singing, not so much as a whistle or a pipe bang to communicate with a fellow inmate. In addition, no contact with the outside world meant no radio, no visitors, newspapers. The lack of human companionship takes a tremendous toll on the psyche. In addition, there were certain barbaric punishments doled out for even the simplest of infractions. Inmates were denied meals, tied outside to a wall in winter and doused with water until ice formed, or simply chained to a wall for months at a time.
Eastern State is where Al Capone did a little time, where Charles Dickens visited and called the conditions ‘rigid, strict and hopeless,’ and where Inmate Leo Callahan (I swear, I’m not making up that last name😉) built a ladder and simply climbed away from the prison, never to be caught again.
PSA— Leo is still on the loose and considered armed and dangerous. Although he’s, like, 110 years old now so not much of a threat I would think. Unless he comes at you as a vengeful spirit, of course.
Source: Visit Philly
There you have it. You’ve explored the unknown, those creepy places on land that everyone talks about and is dying to see (poor choice of words there). Next time on Exploring the Unknown…Two if by Sea, where we will discover all things spooky on, near, or in the sea.
See you on the other side.
—Q
Exploring the Unknown: One if by Land
So many lunatics, so little time, am I right? But not to worry, people…there’s a place for that! Several, in fact. One such place in West Virginia even had lunatic in their name! Talk about slacking in the creativity department. I can picture it now—a bunch of egomaniacs discussing what catchy name they will put on the building to house the mentally ill.
“Hey!” says one guy, “I know! How about ‘Crazy Acres?”
“Nah, too generic. We need something that tells a bit about the patients here. How about, ‘Lunatic Lock-Up/ Because Safety is out First Concern?”
“Wait, wait! I got it! How does ‘Sometimes you feel like a nut?’ sound?
In the end, though, they settled on a much more sensitive name for their building (and for those of you who haven’t had their first cup of coffee, this right here? Sarcasm😁)
What is the name you ask? Why, it’s the ‘The Trans Allegheny Lunatic Asylum,’ of course. Erected in the mid 1800’s, the facility began with an altruistic philosophy—eradicate the stigma of mental illness and introduce effective treatment protocols that would allow patients to lead a more normal life. But, as with many things that start with the best intentions, things went wonky. Twenty or thirty years after opening, the increased diagnoses of mental illness meant an enormous influx of patients at the facility. It was originally built to house 250 patients, by the time it closed, there were 10X that many patients. Overcrowded, understaffed, and unable to keep up with regular maintenance, the building became a run-down disgrace. There are tales of botched lobotomies, brutal beatings, starvation due to the increased numbers of people housed there, even the caging of human beings who were not ‘well-behaved.’ Is it any wonder why this building is considered one of the most haunted in the world?
Trans Allegheny Lunatic Asylum. Source: The Washington post
The asylum closed its doors to patients in 1994. In 2007, the new owners opened its doors for ghost hunting and ghost tours. I have to be honest here…this place is on my ‘must visit’ list. Right up there with the Winchester Mystery house and another visit to Gettysburg. (Who is up for a road trip?)
So, what kind of activity do we see here? There are reports of small children laughing, a woman named Lily who walks the halls, and a man named Jacob looking for his beer. (Aren’t we all?😜) In all, the tour guides there believe at least seven or eight patients who still walk, or glide, the halls of the Trans Alleghany Lunatic Asylum. Makes for an interesting work shift, don’t you think? And, speaking of crazy…
If I mentioned Room 217, a hedge maze, the Grady twins, and F.O. Stanley, what comes to mind? If you answered The Stanley Hotel in Colorado, or thought of Stephen King, you get a gold star. The Stanley Hotel was the inspiration for Stephen King’s ‘The Shining’. He came up with the idea for the novel after staying in the Stanley right before it was slated to close. That last night, he had a nightmare about his toddler son running down the halls, screaming and in danger. Now, I am sure there is more to this story, but he basically says that he had almost the whole thing written in his head by check-out.
Today, there are so many sightings, shadowed figures, and disembodied voices, that I could do an entire story on it. You name it, they have it…from Elizabeth, a ghostly presence in room 217 who apparently frowns on sex before marriage (and will come between people trying to see their own light show😉) to a piano in the concert hall that plays by itself, to a freaking vortex in the grand staircase. A vortex? How cool is that? Fun fact— rumor has it that the actor Jim Carrey stayed in the hotel (in room 217, actually) and ran screaming from the room, half nekkid and scared to death. I don’t care what they say; he isn’t dumb or dumber😝
Stanley Hotel. Source: The New York Times
Before I get to the very last on my list, an honorable mention (props, shout out, you-da-man) kind of awe goes out to a few places. The Myrtles Plantation in Louisiana has been investigated, written about and filmed countless times, and for good reason…it is haunted as (insert curse-word here). A slave girl named Chloe, who is alleged to have tried to poison her lecherous master Clark Woodruff, but accidently killed his wife and children, was hanged, thrown into the Mississippi, and supposedly still haunts the plantation. As does, allegedly, the entire Woodruff family, a young Native American girl, and a man who was murdered in the home. In total, there are said to be somewhere in the neighborhood of 12 ghosts residing at Myrtle’s Plantation. And why not? It is a beautiful, antebellum styled home. Hell, I may haunt that place someday.
The other shout out goes to the Pine Barrens in my very own home state of New Jersey. The over one million acres of preserved woodlands span seven counties across the state. While the most famous supernatural creature to gain notoriety in the Pine Barrens is The Jersey Devil, rest assured, numerous eye-witnesses detail encounters with what are called The Ghosts of the Pine Barrens. See there? Yet again, you learned something! Included in the list of spirit residents are a young boy hit by a car who roams the woods, an African American doctor lynched for practicing medicine, and a young blonde woman who, like, died I guess.
Seriously, I couldn’t find any other info on her.
But, now on to my absolute favorite, one I have visited and would love to do so again. The Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia, now famous for its haunted tours, was once an infamous prison run by people who believed in putting the punishment back in the prison system. As such, prisoners were tortured in various ways. Many a man went mad simply because communication in any form was forbidden. That meant no talking, no singing, not so much as a whistle or a pipe bang to communicate with a fellow inmate. In addition, no contact with the outside world meant no radio, no visitors, newspapers. The lack of human companionship takes a tremendous toll on the psyche. In addition, there were certain barbaric punishments doled out for even the simplest of infractions. Inmates were denied meals, tied outside to a wall in winter and doused with water until ice formed, or simply chained to a wall for months at a time.
Eastern State is where Al Capone did a little time, where Charles Dickens visited and called the conditions ‘rigid, strict and hopeless,’ and where Inmate Leo Callahan (I swear, I’m not making up that last name😉) built a ladder and simply climbed away from the prison, never to be caught again.
PSA— Leo is still on the loose and considered armed and dangerous. Although he’s, like, 110 years old now so not much of a threat I would think. Unless he comes at you as a vengeful spirit, of course.
Source: Visit Philly
There you have it. You’ve explored the unknown, those creepy places on land that everyone talks about and is dying to see (poor choice of words there). Next time on Exploring the Unknown…Two if by Sea, where we will discover all things spooky on, near, or in the sea.
See you on the other side.
—Q
February 19, 2021
Spirit Chronicles: Part 3
She really liked it here…
All my life, I’ve dreamed of living in an old Victorian home. There was always some kind of invisible pull to the history, architecture, and stories that revolved around a structure hundreds of years old. Driving by one of these grand dames, as I’ve been known to call them, left me peppered with questions: Who lived there? What were their lives like?
Once I finally got a chance to own one of these beauties, I jumped at it. The home we purchased came fully-loaded, stocked with all sorts of antiques, from knick-knacks to beds to other assorted furniture and paintings. After being there for a few months, I developed all new questions to occupy my mind, like…
What was the builder thinking when he made the servant stairs so steep? Why the hell are these ceilings so low? And don’t even get me started on the seating choices. I mean, did these people not eat? Teeny-tiny chairs with narrow seats that only fit the backside of people who disappear when standing sideways.
After living there for awhile, I was forced to face some hard truths…dog nails are brutal on pumpkin pine floors, and sitting in the dining room chairs would always feel like sitting in a kindergarten seat at a parent-teacher conference.
Still, I was living the dream! We had a huge wrap-around porch, a separate screened porch, even a workshop next to the garage. On the main floor was the master bedroom, two bathrooms, plus a sunroom, living room and parlor. Upstairs were four additional bedrooms and three baths.
No bathtub in the entire house though, which I found odd.
Source- Eastern Shore Public Library
So we moved in (sort of…we still had one foot in NJ) and I began to make the house our own. I think the first encounter I had with something ‘weird’ was more of a creepy feeling rather than anything tangible. There was a bedroom on the second floor—in truth, the prettiest room in the house—that always felt off. The canopy bed in the room came with the house and was a gorgeous cherry wood, but very, very old. The canopy, bed spread, pillows, and curtains were all a blue floral print, so we called this the Blue Room (sometimes creativity is overrated!). We slept in that room for the first three months or so, until we could purchase and set up a bed in the master bedroom. I loved that room in the light of day. But at night….
Da da da daaaaa! (That’s supposed to be creepy music, if you didn’t get that.🎹😯)
So, remember in Spirit Chronicles Part Two where I told you about the little kid who whispered in my ear, looking for his bike? That was the room where he whispered to me. It was also the room where, after feeling a migraine coming, I laid down for awhile, fell asleep, and woke up three times repeating everything that had happened each time I woke up. It was just as if I were in some kind of time loop, like the movie Groundhog Day. Every time I “woke up” I would go to the door, trip over a bicycle, and nearly tumble down the steps. On the fourth time I ‘woke up’, it was daylight and only an hour after I’d fallen asleep. I sat up in bed (after slapping my face a few times cause it was just too weird) and that’s when I heard the little boy whispering in my ear.
‘I can’t find my bike.’
Jumpin’ Jehoshaphat, it was all I could do not to scream.
I did search the garage and the attic for his bike, but never found it. He whispered to me again, one more time, before he finally made a ghostly appearance. This time was months later, when we were finally downstairs in the master bedroom. The ‘safe’ room.
In a pig’s eye, the safe room!
This time I was alone in the house. It was late and I was just getting into bed. Suddenly, I felt the hairs on my neck standing up and think I muttered “Oh crap” but in more colorful terms. Then, I heard the whisper.
‘She really liked it here.’
Don’t ask me how, but I knew he was talking about the old lady we bought the house from. She loved the place, was in the process of turning it into a B&B with her husband, when he died suddenly. Her family was in Florida and didn’t want her so far away so she put the house up for sale.
There were soooo many encounters over the few years we owned the place that I could write a book about it (haha). But below, I’ve listed a few of the highlights, with the circumstances surrounding it.
1) Circa 2017. I was home alone, battling what I would later find out was double pneumonia. I was coughing so hard, I literally coughed up blood. Gross. Anyway, during one particularly nasty bout of coughing, I saw a small figure peek out from behind the fireplace chimney several times. I knew right away, could feel right away, that my little friend was more concerned than curious. I sat up a little straighter and said softly (croaked if I’m being honest), “It’s ok, little man. I’m ok.” Once I said the words, the shadow boy peeked out once more and then disappeared for the rest of the night.
2) Appliances in the house were always wonky. Radio’s turned on and off, televisions seemed to turn channels by themselves (cartoon network was, apparently, their favorite channel), and then there was the incidence with the carbon monoxide detectors. The house was wired strangely—not unexpected for a house built in 1899—but the former owners also had some new wiring done. The gazillion smoke detectors in the home were all wired together, so if one sounded, they all did. The CO detectors were the plug in kind, with several placed on each floor.
One day, one of the CO detector upstairs started to go off. After checking around and moving a few others nearby (with no alarm sounding) we decided it was a battery issue and removed it from the wall. Once we did, one of the downstairs ones went off. Again, after checking, we chalked it up to dying batteries and replaced them on both units. Strange coincidence but it could happen. At the same time, on the same day.
Yeah.
We changed out the batteries and in a few minutes, both the up and downstairs ones began going off. Now, I know what you are saying…maybe there was carbon monoxide present. Trust me, that wasn’t it. For one, it was summertime. The only thing running hot was the electric meter as it powered the air conditioning and the baseboard radiators (that seemed to turn on by themselves, regardless of the season. Super.)
But wait! There’s more to the story. So, one of the kids goes upstairs to take the battery out and reposition it (seemed to work on the downstairs one.) She does and plugs it back into the wall. Half a second later, it flies out of the wall and hits the wall on the opposite side. Needless to say, we didn’t use those units anymore.
Source- MoreThanVacuums
3) I chose this last one because it happened to a family member (who shall remain nameless) who is such a skeptic he didn’t believe any of the tales coming from visitors. These are some typical responses we would get to spooky experiences in the home:
‘It’s dead silent on the block but I keep hearing people talking.’
It’s probably the neighbors.
‘I swear, I just saw someone walk into the parlor. And we are the only ones here.’
Just your eyes playing tricks on you.
‘The TV went on again by itself. Again.’
Kooky wiring in this big house.
He finally became a believer when he had his own encounter with an unseen force while cleaning the Blue Room. He was alone in the house, vacuuming the window sills upstairs before putting in the air conditioning units. He finished with one window, turned off the vacuum, and walked to the next sill.
The vacuum turned on.
Thinking that he must have not ‘pushed the button right’, he turned it off again. Waiting a moment, he proceeded to the second window.
And the vacuum turned on again. And just like that, he became a believer.
There you have it. A small sample of the nutty stuff that went on in that house. There are a dozen more stories, each weirder than the next, and maybe I will tell you about them sometime.
Right now, I feel a need to check the radiators and CO detectors in this house.
Next time, we will continue investigating haunted buildings on Exploring the Unknown: One if by Land, Part Two.
Later, gators.
February 5, 2021
Exploring the Unknown: One if by Land
Mysterious Locations Part One…or not
Ok, so you’re probably wondering about the subtitle above. What the heck does she mean by ‘or not’? Has she gone mad?
Actually, no. At least, I don’t think so. Let’s back up a second. My intention (what is it they say about good intentions and the road to hell?) in this series was to share three or four of the countries most haunted or strangest locations on land. This would be followed by the next in the ‘Mysterious Locations’ series, covering the most haunted or bizarre locations by sea. Get it? Only, after doing a bit of research, I’ve concluded that there are just too many of these places to stop at three or four. So, in true Quinn fashion, I’ve decided to rise to the challenge and separate these two series into a few parts; only then will we delve into the next series and the mysteries we find at sea. Sound good? Groovy. So strap into your seats for a wild ride of spooky spirits and creepy places all over our great nation.
via winchestermysteryhouse.com
We start with one of my personal favorites, The Winchester Mystery House. Owned by the widow of William Winchester, designer of the famous Winchester rifle, Sarah Winchester built the home in San Jose after a visit with a medium following the her husbands death. Sarah’s goal was to find peace and comfort, perhaps even contact her beloved husband or infant daughter in the great beyond. Instead, she received a shocking communication that would change the course of her life.
The spiritualist (definitely not an Oda Mae Brown type of gal) immediately went into a trance, appearing to channel William Winchester. During this trance, she delivered a dire warning— the ghostly victims of the Winchester rifle were angered at Sarah’s lavish lifestyle. According to William, the spirits believed she attained her wealth through ‘blood money’ and would haunt her ass for all time unless she built a grand home where the spirits could dwell.
The caveat? Construction could never stop.
Now, make no mistake, Sarah was a wealthy woman who could afford such renovations. But to do it, like, forever? Hammers and saws and dozens of workers trampling through your house night and day? I mean, literally night and day…BECAUSE CONSTRUCTION COULD NEVER STOP! If it did, the medium warned, Sarah would die.
Bummer.
And so, she built… willy-nilly, with no vision and no plan, for 38 years until her death. The result? A home with staircases that led to nowhere, trap doors, and hidden rooms. In fact, some say that no one knows the exact number of rooms in the labyrinth-type mansion. Or the reasons behind her fascination with the number 13. Or why she had a secret room (the séance room) where she would allegedly spend hours in communication with spirits. One thing we do know, though, is that the Winchester Mystery House has had reports of ghost sightings, disembodied voices, footsteps, and even the sounds of construction when none was occurring. This makes it one of the spookiest places in California, and one that I would love to visit!
And talking about visiting…how about a trip to that Lizzie Borden house in Massachusetts, huh? You remember that cheeky broad, don’t ya? How did that creepy song go? Something about Lizzie taking an axe, giving her mother forty whacks, then when she’d seen what she had done, gave her father 41? Or is it reversed? Either way, definitely overkill, right? Actually, it was more like 17 or 18 on mom and less than that on dear old dad. Although, it’s all relative, right? (See what I did there?😜)
via wikipedia.org
Lizzie was, and remains to this day, the prime suspect in the murders of both her father and step-mother. Although acquitted at trial, there have been several books and articles claiming that Lizzie was guilty. The motive to the killings remains a mystery. Her father, Andrew, was a wealthy miser, well-known for his dour personality. There are those who suggest he mistreated Lizzie and her sister, Emma, and his was a revenge killing. As far as Abby Borden, his wife? Town talk back then was that Andrew was giving away his fortune to Abby’s family while Lizzie and her sister scraped by with a small allowance, and Lizzie resented her for it.
The Lizzie Borden house is now rated as one of the top haunted locations in the world. Operating as a Bed and Breakfast now, guests have told tales of hearing a woman weeping softly and being ‘tucked’ in at night. Shoes seem to move on their own, while phantom footsteps walk the halls at night. (Maybe that’s why the shoes are moved?😜)
My kind of place.
Perhaps the most tortured and, in my opinion, most likely place for a haunting, is in the trenches of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. During a three-day period in 1863, nearly 51,000 men were killed on various battlefields in perhaps the most crucial showdown of the Civil War. When it comes to hauntings, two specific areas are known to produce an amazing number of spirit encounters.
via vrscout.com
Little Round Top, a.k.a. The Valley of Death or The Slaughter Pen (due to the high number of bodies left to lay for months) is rumored to have had George Washington’s ghost leading the battle. And who is to say good ol’ George didn’t lend a hand? Regardless, looking a the sheer number of dead and injured, George didn’t carry much weight in the spirit department.
Another, more well-known, area is called The Devil’s Den. It was here, on this rock formation, that more than 20,000 men lost their lives inside of 72 hours. Its name came from the belief that the devil himself resided within the rocks there. Today, visitors report hearing the sounds of cannon fire, military commands, and claim to see ghost soldiers re-enacting their final battles.
Now, that would be cool 😎
Another interesting tidbit surrounding The Devil’s Den is how cameras seem to malfunction whenever anyone attempts to take a photo on that field of battle. Batteries drain, shutters stick, and flashes fail to go off, despite being accurately set. Word on the street is it is because the dead are plenty pissed at photographers in general. Historians, after closely examining old pictures, concluded that many of the battle photos had been staged. They noticed a peculiarity in that several photos of the fallen depicted the same soldier, staged in death, at various spots among the field.
Meaning that some fool had moved one body and repositioned him different ways for a photo shoot. No wonder the ghosts don’t like cameras.
via ghostcitytours.com
An honorable mention goes to St. Augustine Lighthouse in Florida. Many paranormal researchers have investigated this tourist attraction because of its claim of being haunted. Visitors hear the giggling of children (thought to be the children of a former lighthouse keeper) and see a shadow figure who peers over the enormous staircase.
The many tragedies that have occurred over the years in St. Augustine’s Lighthouse leads one to conclude that some of the visitors found there are not visitors at all, but residents…. spirits of those who perished in or near the lighthouse who refuse to leave.
Sounds like frightfully good fun!
There you have it, the first batch of eerie places on land. Stay tuned next time for another thrilling episode of Exploring the Unknown: Mysterious Locations/ One if by Land.😃
January 22, 2021
Exploring the Unknown…
The Outlandish World of Superstition
SUPERSTITION: A widely held but unjustified belief in supernatural causation leading to certain consequences of an action or event, or a practice based on such a belief.
Crazy, right? I mean, to believe that something bad will happen just because a black cat crosses our path? (She says as she tosses salt over her left shoulder, hitting the dog in the right eye.) Funny thing about the salt ritual—it is thought to stem from biblical times, when folks believed an angel sat on your right shoulder, the devil on your left. Throwing salt to the left would ‘blind’ the devil, leaving him powerless to do his wicked work. (See there? You learned something, didn’t ya?)
Indeed, we Americans have many rituals we perform based on our superstitious beliefs. We knock on wood, walk around a ladder rather than under it (more on that later) and genuflect whenever a funeral procession goes by. But, seriously, are we the only ones who are slaves to this madness? Are we the only country that correlates a broken mirror with 7 years of bad luck? (Which, going by the number of mirrors I’ve broken in my lifetime, I estimate my bad luck should end somewhere around midnight in the year 2084🙄)
But back to the question…no, we are not the only ones who follow these strange customs! Buckle up as we dive into the observances and rituals of our fellow humans all around the globe.
We begin this journey ‘round the world with a few superstitions that have found their way across all borders and boundaries. First up—the mysterious powers of the ordinary ladder. The belief that walking under a ladder brings a run of bad luck is first traced back to the Egyptians. They believed that a ladder was a tool used by the God’s to ascend or descend from the heavens. (Who knew?) So, walking under one would “interrupt” their travels.
(I’m just gonna spitball here and assume we all agree on this one; one of the top ten things in life you don’t wanna do is piss off a God😬)
During medieval times, the ladder symbolized the gallows, where naughty villagers who were caught breaking various (and sometimes really bizarre) laws would meet their ultimate fate. Therefore, most law-abiders were loathe to tempt fate and walk under those stepped structures, lest they find themselves on the business end of a noose.
Egads.
We also share with the world a deep phobia surrounding a full moon. People who work the night shift—to include law enforcement, firefighters, medical personal or even lycanthropes (aka werewolves) are aware of the propensity for chaos and havoc during this phase of the lunar cycle.
(But this may not be superstition at all! I’ve worked enough late nights to go on a little faith and deem that, in fact, the lunar phase stirs up the lunatics.)
Here’s a fun one involving our furry friends (I’m speaking here of dogs, not werewolves): In France, if you step in dog poop with your left foot, it’s good luck. With your right? Not so much. And while we are on the topic of putting your ‘best foot forward’, in Spain it is best not to walk into a room with your left foot first. (Although, I would imagine that if the sole of that left foot was covered in dog doo, you’d be good to go😁)
The following are more generalized superstitions that, while they don’t give you the warm and fuzzies, they don’t necessarily point to your immediate demise if you practice them:
Our friends in Mexico tell us not to put two mirrors opposite each other on a wall because, apparently, this can open a portal for the devil👿
In Russia, it is considered bad form to say ‘Happy Birthday’ before the blessed day arrives. So nyet… don’t do it.
You will never find a superstitious Englishman or woman to put their shoes on a table. It seems that, in days of yore, shoes on the table meant that someone in the family had passed on.
If you have a yo-yo in Syria, you’d best hide it. Yo-yo’s are taboo as it is believed they cause drought conditions (this one had me scratching my head. I mean, who doesn’t love a good yo-yo?)
Finally, in the category of ‘we have no clue where this originated, but whoomp, there it is’, giving knives as a gift without attaching a coin signifies a severing of the relationship between the gift giver and recipient. To circumvent this, we attach a coin to the knife (which is immediately returned to the gift giver, for you misers out there), thus ‘paying’ for the gift and erasing any bad juju.
Moving on, did you know that the beard some females are sporting in Rwanda is, in fact, not due to the hormonal changes that take place during menopause but because they have been eating goat meat? (Damn, if I told you once, I told you a hundred times, …..)
And speaking of hair, a trim on a Tuesday if you live in India is just begging for trouble, so on Tuesdays, go bowling instead.
Now on to the dire predictions, the dastardly consequences, if one crosses the superstitious line. Enter if you dare! (Cue evil laugh here.)
Filipinos will never return straight home after a funeral, as evil spirits lurk around grief and will follow you home. Instead, they trick the bastards and stop for coffee or a sandwich first.
In Lithuania, whistling while you work means you won’t be working alone for long—your tunes will summon a demon.
Germans love to toast each other. Just don’t do it with water. Toasting with water means you wish death upon the other person.
The Japanese are a fun group. When sleeping, they make sure their heads never point north, as that is how the dead are reposed. Similarly, in Africa, the dead face to the west, so they must not lay their heads in that direction. Combine these two and that leaves us sleeping with our heads pointed Southeast.
Which is groovy ‘cause it puts you somewhere around Orlando and Disneyworld.
Finally, we enter the truly dark side; the stuff that, if breached, will cause dire consequences. Maybe even death.
Gadzooks! (Note that I really have no reason to use the term ‘gadzooks’ here—I just feel like this word is totally underused😜)
Ever wonder why ‘Three on a Match’, or lighting three cigarettes from a single match, is considered bad luck? It seems this superstition got its origins from the Crimean War during the 1850’s and goes like this: the first soldier who strikes the match alerts the enemy while the second soldier who lights his cigarette from that match gives the opposing force time to aim their weapon. And the third soldier? Well, after having had the time to line up the shot, the third guy is, unfortunately, the recipient of the fatal bullet.
Another excellent reason to throw away those cigarettes!
When it comes to superstition, our feathered friends are a fowl lot. (See what I did there?😁) For instance, if a black crow hits your window, it is an omen that death will soon enter the household. The hooting of an owl means trouble’s abrewin’, but if that owl gets into your house, someone is going to die!
Whoooo will it be?🦉(Sorry, couldn’t resist that one😆)
There is no limit to the lengths we will go to in an effort to prevent some bad karma. We hold our breath when walking through a cemetery to avoid inhaling the spirits of the deceased and place coins on the lids of our departed to pay the ferryman for passage to the afterlife. In the Philippines, we never wear red during a storm as red attracts lightning and thus, death. And, in the room where our loved one departed, we stop the clocks to signal the spirit to move on rather than stay, haunting the house and its occupants forever.
Of course, no one I know does these things. And no one I know has died in my home( knock wood, hurl salt, drop to one knee). But, as Francis Bacon once said, “Who questions much shall learn much,” or something like that.
Last, but certainly not least, I must pay homage to my ancestors from The Emerald Isle and tell you that, in Ireland, wearing bells on your wedding dress is said to ward off evil spirits. Thankfully, it does nothing to hamper all the other spirits that flow during an Irish celebration!🍺
And there you have it. You’ve explored the unknown and come out a better, more enlightened, person. Now, go forth and hide your yo-yo’s, invest in more salt, and stay the hell away from goat meat.
So, what are your superstitions? And are they actually superstitions, or just behaviors handed down from generation to generation? Or, perhaps, following certain rituals is merely a form of OCD? What say you? Drop your comments below!
Next time on Exploring the Unknown…
Mysterious Locations, Part One: One if by Land.
Weird.
