Doug Dillon's Blog, page 138
March 18, 2014
Creature Attacks Teens in Oldest & Most Haunted CIty in U.S.
St. Augustine, Florida – teen novel - Stepping Off a Cliff – paranormal, historical, romance & soft science fiction.
The St. Augustine Trilogy, Book II is finally published! First check out the book description below and then the trailer:
An otherworldly, evil and dangerous force infests America’s oldest and most haunted city, St. Augustine, Florida. Everyone living there, or visiting, is at risk in ways too horrible to imagine.
Standing between this invader and the people of St. Augustine are teenagers Jeff and Carla, the mysterious Native American shaman, Lobo, and Lyle, the homeless guy.
In their quest to save themselves and all the inhabitants of this ancient Florida city, Jeff and Carla uncover lost parts of St. Augustine history, push past the limits of space and time, and come face-to-face with what they come to realize are the true walking dead.
Click here to check out how Book I of the series, Sliding Beneath the Surface, is being used in school reading classrooms.
March 17, 2014
Historic School Rules
Author Doug Dillon
Regulations for schools, classrooms, teachers and students. Talk about educational control!
If you have ever thought you had a lot of rules to follow in school, check out the ones below from 1786 in the colonial city of St. Augustine, Florida.
This was during the final decades when the Spanish owned Florida.
In those days, schooling was definitely controlled by the Catholic Church but in the name of His Majesty the King of Spain.
Formal education during most of colonial St. Augustine was for only for boys, even those of African ancestry–as long as they were not slaves. Sorry ladies but that’s how it was back in the day.
Castillo de San Marcos watch tower
These rules were written by Father Thomas Hassett, Parish Priest, Vicar and Ecclesiastical Judge of St. Augustine.
They lasted until the city passed into American hands in 1821. Father Hassett was just one of many Irish priests who served Spanish St. Augustine over the centuries.
The primary source of this information is the East Florida Papers from the Library of Congress. But to make them easier to understand, I cut out the less interesting parts and paraphrased much of the original wording.
Whether you are a student, a teacher, a parent or a history buff, I think you’ll enjoy what follows:
All teachers must be approved by St. Augustine church and city leaders.
The King of Spain’s royal coast of arms at the drawbridges
All teachers must obey and carry out the following rules completely.
The King of Spain pays teachers sufficiently. In that light, no teacher may demand any kind of payment from parents.
Teachers shall prepare a list of all students in the city and request that their parents send their children to school. If parents keep their children away from school for whatever reason, the teachers shall report them to the Parish Priest. The Parish Priest shall decide how to deal with those parents.
School shall open each morning at 7 am. Students shall not be dismissed for lunch before noon.
Oldest House inside – top floor
After lunch, school shall open again at 2 pm.
Each day, except in winter, students shall not be dismissed before sunset.
Each day in winter, students shall be dismissed a half hour before sunset.
As each student enters school both in the morning and after lunch: he shall greet with proper courtesy, first his teacher and then his fellow pupils; he shall then hang up his hat after seating himself in all modesty; after crossing himself in the name of the Holy Trinity, he shall take up the book or paper with which his study is to begin.
At 8 am in the morning and at 2:15 in the afternoon, the teacher shall call the roll. If anyone fails to answer, the teacher shall immediately send one or two boys to that student’s home to learn the cause of his absence, and if necessary, to bring him to school. If warranted, the teacher shall then apply appropriate punishment to the student when he arrives at school.
Oldest House – outside
Teachers should treat each student impartially as faithful Christians worthy of love and charity.
Teachers shall take special care to get to know each child.
Old Schoolhouse
Teachers shall try to be moderate in their punishment of students.
Teachers shall not yell or swear at students nor should they throw in their faces the faults of their parents or other relatives. Nor under any circumstances, should teachers allow students to treat each other in this way either. This means in school and anywhere else.
Students shall arrive at school with their hair combed and with their faces, hands and feet clean (if they come barefoot).
Teachers shall not permit a student to attend school if he has a contagious disease. The student’s parents must be notified immediately so they are not offended by having their child kept out of school until the child is cured.
The schoolrooms shall be swept at least once a week by the pupils themselves and the teachers shall appoint enough
students to get the job done properly. This task should be shared equally by all students.No student shall leave the schoolroom, even to go to the bathroom, without getting permission from the teacher.
Not more than one student shall leave the schoolroom at a time. Each time a student leaves the schoolroom, the teacher will give him a special ruler to take with him. The next student needing to leave cannot do so until he obtains that ruler and the permission of the teacher.
When a student leaves the schoolroom, his absence shall be measured by a pendulum hung from the ceiling of that schoolroom. The student shall put that pendulum in motion as he leaves and the teacher shall note whether or not the pendulum is still moving when the student returns with the ruler.
Every month, the Parish Priest and the teachers shall give all students an examination to determine their progress in writing, reading, arithmetic and Christian Doctrine.
Seating in the classroom will be determined by a student’s progress in their examinations.
Teachers shall instruct students how to assist at Mass and in services at the Parish Church on special days of the year. Teachers are to then name two students at a time to assist in these services.
St. Augustine Cathedral
On nights when special religious processions pass through the city streets, the teachers shall attend with their students. No exceptions and no excuses. Teachers are to make sure students behave at these times with modesty and devotion.
Teachers shall attend all services of the Church with their students.
Tolomato Cemetery on Cordova Street
If a boy dies, the teachers shall march with their students in the boy’s funeral procession. If necessary, four boys shall carry the dead boy’s remains to the burial place.
On four specific days, a year, all students seven years of age and above shall make confession in the presence of their teachers. Just before those days arrive, teachers shall instruct their students how to properly prepare themselves for confession.
Teachers shall not permit any other language than Spanish to be spoken in the school.
Whenever students meet any of their elders in the street, they should greet them with proper courtesy.
Upon leaving school, students should go directly home without loitering, or shouting, or committing mischievous pranks in the streets.
If any black students should attend school, they shall sit apart near the door. But teachers are to give them the same quality of instruction as all the rest.
If you would like to read the actual wording of these rules, click on one fo the selections below:
March 16, 2014
Carl Jung Vs. Sigmund Freud on the Paranormal
Jung: Synchronicity, Coincidences and the Paranormal
In 1909, Carl Jung visited Sigmund Freud in Vienna. Jung very much wanted his views on the paranormal, something that he, Jung, thought was very important.
As they talked, it became apparent that Freud had no time for such far-out ideas.
The more Freud talked, the more discouraged Jung became until he felt a very weird sensation in the area of his solar plexus. In fact, that region of his body actually became, as he called it, “tight and hot.”
Just as Jung became aware of those sensations a loud noise erupted from a bookcase standing very close to both men, startling them and making them jump. The noise was so loud, Jung thought the bookcase might fall on them but didn’t.
Feeling certain that the noise had a paranormal origin, Jung told this to Freud. He tried to explain how what had just happened was just a sample of such events but Freud would have none of it. When Freud continued to argue, Jung interrupted him and warned that another such noise was about to come from the bookshelf. Jung had no idea why he was so certain this would happen but he felt compelled to make that prediction forcibly.
The second Jung finished speaking, another loud sound exploded from the bookcase. When that happened, Freud just stared at Jung in apparent amazement.
Jung and Freud never spoke about that incident again and their relationship cooled considerably. It was at that point in their friendship, Jung believed, that Freud lost trust in him.
March 14, 2014
“The Adventure Continues!” Paranormal & Historical
Stepping Off a Cliff: The St. Augustine Trilogy, Book II for Young Adults and Adults Young at Heart.
A review placed on Amazon.com by Steve Ballou.
“I completed reading Book II of Mr. Dillon’s trilogy today and found myself more enthralled with the history of St. Augustine and the magic that was created in the story that begins in Book I.
“I am a stickler for reading epics in sequential order (I sill cringe when I think of friends I know who read Book II of Tolkien’s trilogy before reading Book I).
“By now, the characters are etched in our minds, some of the visual pictures we have of the characters and place have been established; but, do not be lulled into thinking this is an ordinary tale. It is remarkable how Mr. Dillon created such a creature from the sea, a creature who at first does not arouse any personal feelings in us but slowly evolves into a specific type (or archetype) of emotion: the unexplained negative forces that draw us away from who we truly are.
“This theme, good versus evil, is appropriate since the real motive for writing this trilogy appears to be with the hope to draw young people into the joy of reading, to be swept away from this world into one created by the imagination. And, hopefully, it will lead them to even more books and start a life-time passion for reading.
“If you are a parent, it is safe to say that the value system of this book is of great benefit for your teenagers.
“If you are a teenager reading this review, you will find purchasing this book is worth both the money and the time you will spend getting to know Jeff, Lyle, Carla, and, most of all, Lobo.
“Have fun!”
To see this review on Amazon.com, click here.
See below for the book trailer:
For more information on The St. Augustine Trilogy, click here.
March 13, 2014
Carl Jung’s Haunted Cottage Experience
Jung: Synchronicity, Coincidences and the Paranormal
In the summer of 1920, Jung was invited to give a long series of lectures in London. To give these talks though, he had to find a place to stay. A friend finally located a lovely little cottage for an unusually cheap price and rented it for him.
During the time Jung lived at the cottage, the friend who found it for him occasionally visited overnight, as did others. Evidently, everyone enjoyed being there but Jung.
At the end of his first week of giving lectures, Jung went to bed around 11 PM. Tired but not actually very sleepy, he just lay there in bed. Seconds later, he found he wasn’t able to move. Not only that but the room seemed stuffy and some sort of bad smell filled the air.
Finally willing himself to get up, he lit a candle. Immediately the smell went away but he only slept after dawn broke.
That next night, the same things happened as before, while other people were staying with him —stuffiness in the room, hard for him to move and the bad smell. Added to all that, however, was a constant dripping sound—one drip every two seconds, according to Jung. He thought the roof must be leaking.
Again, willing himself to get out of bed, he lit a candle and searched for the leak. The dripping sound continued as he looked around.
The ceiling showed nothing so he followed the sound of the drips. When he located the exact spot where the noise came from on the floor, the sound stopped. The thing is, there was no water anywhere. That next morning he asked his guests if they slept well and they all said they had.
Unhappily for Jung, all the above phenomena happened the following night with more added. This time there were loud noises, like rustling, creaking and knocking. He also had the distinct sensation that a dog was running around his room. The poor man was only able to sleep at dawn when all the commotion came to a complete stop. Apparently, no one else in the house heard, smelled or felt any of this.
Very frustrated, Jung eventually spoke to one of the maids. He noticed that after serving dinner in the evening, they scurried out of the cottage very quickly and went home.
When he asked them about their behavior, they said the place was haunted and they didn’t want to be there after dark. Evidently, everyone in the neighborhood knew this. That’s why the rent was so cheap, they told him.
Armed with this information, Jung shared it with the friend who rented the house for him. The friend only laughed.
Poor Jung. All of the phenomena continued and one night he turned over in bed to find himself looking at the partial face of an old woman lying next to him. That did it. He leaped out of bed and spent the rest of the night in a chair. After that, he moved to another room where he wasn’t bothered at all.
When he told his friend about moving, the friend laughed at him again. That caused Jung to challenge this man to stay in his, Jung’s, room overnight when no one else would be in the cottage. His friend agreed but decided that if there were ghosts, they could be anywhere in the house. So instead of sleeping where Jung had, he stayed in the cottage’s main room. Interestingly enough, he brought a shotgun with him.
The friend set himself up as if camping and just as he was falling asleep, he heard something. It sounded like footsteps in a nearby hallway. Taking a candle with him, he looked but saw nothing.
That made him so uncomfortable that he closed the door leading to that hallway. But there was no key. Since he couldn’t lock the door, he shoved a chair up against it. That gives you a good look at the man’s state of mind. No doubt he kept his shotgun nearby. How he intended to use it on ghosts is unclear.
Just as he settled back down for the night, Jung’s friend once again heard footsteps in the hallway.
This time they stopped just on the other side of the door. Seconds later, the chair he had put up against that door creaked as if someone were pushing it.
Immediately, he jumped up, grabbed his camping equipment and spent the rest of the night in the garden where he slept undisturbed. Later when he spoke to Jung, he told him he would never stay another night in the cottage.
March 12, 2014
“Wonderful Addition to Any Library.” Paranormal & Historical
Stepping Off a Cliff: The St. Augustine Trilogy, Book II for Young Adults and Adults Young at Heart.
A review placed on Amazon.com by Condygurl.
”This book is the second book in the St. Augustine Trilogy. You will not be disappointed with this book! It will keep your flipping the pages to find out what happens next. We get to not only deal with the kids again. Carla and Jeff, but also get another dose of Lobo and Lyle.
“This time the kids with the help of the adults are dealing with some REAL BIG NASTIES!!! I won’t go into details, I hate spoilers, but we will see a bit of time travel again. Gotta love time travel. A bit of a fight, and learn a bit of history.
“If you loved book one as I did, you will definitely love book 2! I can’t wait to see what happens in book 3 of this trilogy!
To see this review on Amazon.com, click here.
See below for the book trailer:
To see more about The St. Augustine Trilogy, click here.
March 11, 2014
Teens vs Monster in Oldest & Most Haunted U.S. City
St. Augustine, Florida – teen novel - Stepping Off a Cliff – paranormal, historical, romance & soft science fiction.
The St. Augustine Trilogy, Book II is finally published! First check out the book description below and then the trailer:
An otherworldly, evil and dangerous force infests America’s oldest and most haunted city, St. Augustine, Florida. Everyone living there, or visiting, is at risk in ways too horrible to imagine.
Standing between this invader and the people of St. Augustine are teenagers Jeff and Carla, the mysterious Native American shaman, Lobo, and Lyle, the homeless guy.
In their quest to save themselves and all the inhabitants of this ancient Florida city, Jeff and Carla uncover lost parts of St. Augustine history, push past the limits of space and time, and come face-to-face with what they come to realize are the true walking dead.
Click here to check out how Book I of the series, Sliding Beneath the Surface, is being used in school reading classrooms.
March 10, 2014
Carl Jung’s Ghost Visitors
Jung: Synchronicity, Coincidences and the Paranormal
One day in 1916, Jung felt restless. He also had the strange feeling that unseen entities were in his house but he could discover no reason for that odd conclusion. Later in the day, one of his daughters claimed she saw an indistinct, white figure pass in front of her.
That night two of Jung’s other children had these frightening experiences:
Somehow, another of Jung’s daughters had her bed covers pulled off her. She hadn’t been told of her sisters ghostly sighting that afternoon.Jung’s nine-year-old son had a very bad dream about the devil.
The following day, both children told their parents about those experiences. But instead of talking about his dream, Jung’s son asked for crayons, which he rarely used. Using the crayons, he drew a picture of what he remembered which finally allowed him to explain it as follows:
He saw a man fishing near a river.Somehow the man had the fishing rod attached to his head
Nearby, a chimney spouted flames and belched smoke
The man caught a fish
When he caught the fish, the devil came flying out of the woods
The devil swore at the man for stealing his fish
Then an angel appeared
The angel told the devil to leave the man alone because he only catches bad fish
At about 5 PM on that same day, the doorbell started ringing and ringing as if someone was very impatient. Jung could actually see the bell inside the house moving as well as hearing the noise.
Since it was a nice summer day and the windows were open, Jung poked his head out of one that was close to the front door. Immediately, the ringing stopped but there was no one at the door.
Jung then had a distinct feeling something else was going to happen and it did. To him, the air in his house felt thick and crowded, as if there were a great many people everywhere. Finally, ghostly images began speaking to him pressuring Jung to write. And write he did, for three straight evenings. He realized exactly what it was the ghostly visitors wanted him to produce. When he had completed his work, the barrage of paranormal events stopped.
What Jung wrote was something called, “The Seven Sermons of the Dead.” Eventually, he included it in his famous book titled, Memories, Dreams and Reflections.
March 9, 2014
“Doug Dillon Does it again!” Paranormal & Historical
Stepping Off a Cliff: The St. Augustine Trilogy, Book II for Young Adults and Adults Young at Heart.
A review placed on Amazon.com by Latinlillyreader.
“Book II of the St. Augustine Trilogy is a slam dunk! The Author does a fantastic job of weaving together the History of St, Augustine and a fantastic tale of mystery and adventure.
“Once again the main characters Jeff, Carla and Lobo encounter the unexpected and jump in feet first.
“Stepping off a Cliff is as exciting and addicting as his first book, Sliding Beneath the Surface. I highly recommend this series for Young Adult readers as well as the young at heart. I am completely hooked on the St. Augustine Trilogy.”
See below for the book trailer:
To see this review on Amazon.com, click here.
To see more about The St. Augustine Trilogy, click here.
March 8, 2014
Teens Haunted in Ancient City
St. Augustine, Florida - Sliding Beneath the Surface - a teen novel – paranormal and historical, Book I of The St. Augustine Trilogy.
Description
In America’s oldest and most haunted city, St. Augustine, Florida, teenager Jeff Golden is in trouble. Horrible dreams won’t let him sleep, and he is up to his eyeballs in terrifying, paranormal experiences.
Finally, Jeff turns to his girlfriend Carla, and Lobo, the mysterious Native American shaman, for help. But what he discovers is a lot more than he bargained for.
A ghostly presence linked to a local historic cemetery is not only threatening Jeff’s sanity but his life as well. And before he knows what’s happening, Jeff finds both himself and Carla pulled into one of the nastiest and bloody events in Florida history. It is a place from which they may never escape.
See book trailerbelow:
Click here to see how this book is being used for motivation and skill building in school reading programs.
Click here to see more about this series.
