Doug Dillon's Blog, page 50
January 3, 2016
Paranormal vs Supernatural
On my walk around the neighborhood this morning shortly before sunrise, a brilliant full moon hung low in the west just above a tall, billowing thunder head. Illuminated by the unseen star we call our sun, it struck me how thoroughly many of us human beings tend to divorce ourselves from the natural world as we becoming increasingly technologically advanced. Not a new concept, of course, but this morning that thought magnified the perceptions I had on another walk just a few days ago.
Before I continue, here’s a moon picture to get you in the mood, courtesy of NASA. If you haven’t been to their website before, give it a try and play around with the universe for a while.
On that other walk I mentioned, it was right after the break of dawn. So quiet. Unusually quiet. No wind. Nobody up yet. No other walkers. No dogs barking. Totally still. Then an owl started hooting nearby, followed by the continuous throaty chirping of a tree frog across the street.
Here’s one that sometimes lives in a potted plant my wife keeps just outside our front door.
A toad joined in the chorus with his own unique song and within seconds, a few birds sang their versions of wake-up calls.
Five minutes later, birds everywhere seemed to awaken and filled the air with special appreciations of the morning. All that lasted for about ten minutes and then stopped almost as if orchestrated.
After a short gap in sound, somewhere a dog barked just as a car with its lights on rounded a curve in the road coming towards me. In the far distance, a truck engine revved up. Next, a hollow crash like a dumpster being dropped disturbed the peace as only a dropped dumpster can. Also in the distance, the murmur of traffic on nearby I-4 somehow quickly became apparent—time for our civilization to overshadow the natural world.
In thinking now about those two walks in the early morning, I’ve been increasingly comparing them to brief episodes where I’ve experienced something that might be considered supernatural or paranormal.
My conclusion is actually a reinforcement of something I’ve believed for a long time now. For what it’s worth, here it is. Just as how many of us in the developed world find ourselves separated from nature, for an even longer time, we have increasingly separated ourselves from a part of nature that we now call the supernatural or paranormal. In lifting ourselves out of superstition and ignorance, we as a species have also cut ourselves off from things that are a very natural and normal part of our heritage.
So, do yourself a favor. The next time you see the moon or hear an owl hoot, see if any of what I’ve said touches a place deep down inside you.
###
If you enjoyed this article and would like to read more about this subject, you might like to take a look at one of my latest books.
Titled, Carl Jung, Hauntings and Paranormal Coincidences, it uses the great psychiatrist’s own paranormal experiences as jumping off points for some of my own life events and those of other very reliable people. Many of these stories take place in St. Augustine.
Listed below are direct book links to some of the larger book retail outlets in the English-speaking world where you can find it:
Amazon.com, Amazon Canada, Amazon UK, Amazon India, Amazon Australia, Barnes and Noble, Kobo (Canada)
January 2, 2016
Florida Ghost Hunters Unite
Paranormal Unity Day 2015
Saturday, January 9, 2015
Fellsmere, Florida (Just north of Vero Beach, exit # 156 off I-95)
Fellsmere Auditorium
22 S. Orange St.
Sponsored by Offthetrails Paranormal Investigators (OPI) and The Florida Bureau of Paranormal Investigators.
Florida Paranormal Investigation Teams from around the state are invited to a free conference. Dinner and an investigation to follow.
A wonderful opportunity to learn from others by sharing experiences, thoughts and ideas.
Schedule
The Conference:
1:00 – 6:00 PM
At the Fellsmere Auditorium (Located in the Old Fellsmere School)
Presenters
1. Andrea Perron – Owner of the House featured in the “A Haunting in Connecticut,” and depicted in the movie, “The Conjuring.”
2. Doug Dillon – Paranormal author specializing in the haunting of St. Augustine, Florida. Speaking about “The Nature of Coincidences.”
3. Rich Valdes – Demonology.
4. Bob Cenkner – Client follow-up and Cleansing Techniques.
Dinner:
6:15 -7:45 PM
Marsh Landing Restaurant
44 N. Broadway, Fellsmere
A Paranormal Investigation:
8:00 PM until whenever.
At the Old Fellsmere School (where the conference will take place)
$10 per person.
For further information, contact:
Mary Jo Fister or Greg Bush of OPI @ 772-267-2034.
Click the following for information about
Florida Para Unity Fest 2015
Paranormal Unity Day 2015Saturday, January 9, 2015Fellsmere, Florida (Just north of Vero Beach, exit # 156 off I-95)Fellsmere Auditorium
22 S. Orange St.
Sponsored by Offthetrails Paranormal Investigators (OPI) and The Florida Bureau of Paranormal Investigators.
Florida Paranormal Investigation Teams from around the state are invited to a free conference. Dinner and an investigation to follow.
A wonderful opportunity to learn from others by sharing experiences, thoughts and ideas.
Schedule
The Conference:
1:00 – 6:00 PM
At the Fellsmere Auditorium (Located in the Old Fellsmere School)
Presenters
1. Andrea Perron – Owner of the House featured in the “A Haunting in Connecticut,” and depicted in the movie, “The Conjuring.”
2. Doug Dillon – Paranormal author specializing in the haunting of St. Augustine, Florida. Speaking about “The Nature of Coincidences.”
3. Rich Valdes – Demonology.
4. Bob Cenkner – Client follow-up and Cleansing Techniques.
Dinner:
6:15 -7:45 PM
Marsh Landing Restaurant
44 N. Broadway, Fellsmere
A Paranormal Investigation:
8:00 PM until whenever.
At the Old Fellsmere School (where the conference will take place)
$10 per person.
For further information, contact:
Mary Jo Fister or Greg Bush of OPI @ 772-267-2034.
Click the following for information about
Compassion in Buddhist Psychology
Excellent work, so much so that I had to do a review and post it for the benefit of others. Highly recommended.
A Book Review
Author – Lorne Ladner, Ph.D.
A Washington, D.C. clinical psychologist in private practice
Director of the GUHYASAMAJA Buddhist Center in Northern Virginia
Harper San Francisco, 304 p.
Even though author Lorne Ladner is Buddhist and combines concepts from his spiritual practice with professional psychological guidance, you don’t have to be Buddhist to find value in his words. This book is a beautiful blend of East and West that truly gets to the heart of how the implementation of compassion in one’s life can lead to happiness.
Essentially, Ladner presents compassion as a vital part of psychological stability and viable spiritual practice. Smoothly written, this book plunges right to the heart of daily living and shows how working on relationships of all kinds through the use of compassion ends up being beneficial to all.
Ladner uses examples from his own life and offers readers very practical exercises in the enhancement of their compassionate outlooks. These sample chapter titles give you a taste for what he has to say: “Compassion for Yourself”; “Seeing Through Projections”; and “Joyfully Losing an Argument”.
To be perfectly honest, I found this book of such tremendous value that I took all the underlining I did in it and created a little mini-handbook that I still refer to periodically. The author’s words rang so true for me that I occasionally send quotes from his work out over Twitter. In closing, I’ll leave you with these words from Ladner, my favorite:
“Heartfelt kindness toward someone who has just treated you badly has the clean, pure feeling of a cool creek in the high mountains.”
Click here to find this book online.
###
If you found this article useful, and are interested in the edgier aspects of the mind and spirit, you might find my latest book of interest.
Titled, as you can see, Carl Jung, Hauntings and Paranormal Coincidences, it uses the great psychiatrist’s own paranormal experiences as jumping off points for some of my own life events and those of other very reliable people.
Listed below are direct book links to some of the larger book retail outlets in the English-speaking world where you can find it:
Amazon.com, Amazon Canada, Amazon UK, Amazon India, Amazon Australia, Barnes and Noble, Kobo (Canada)
January 1, 2016
Florida Para Unity Summit 2015
Paranormal Unity Day 2015
Saturday, January 9, 2015
Fellsmere, Florida (Just north of Vero Beach, exit # 156 off I-95)
Fellsmere Auditorium
22 S. Orange St.
Sponsored by Offthetrails Paranormal Investigators (OPI) and The Florida Bureau of Paranormal Investigators.
Florida Paranormal Investigation Teams from around the state are invited to a free conference. Dinner and an investigation to follow.
A wonderful opportunity to learn from others by sharing experiences, thoughts and ideas.
Schedule
The Conference:
1:00 – 6:00 PM
At the Fellsmere Auditorium (Located in the Old Fellsmere School)
Presenters
1. Andrea Perron – Owner of the House featured in the “A Haunting in Connecticut,” and depicted in the movie, “The Conjuring.”
2. Doug Dillon – Paranormal author specializing in the haunting of St. Augustine, Florida. Speaking about “The Nature of Coincidences.”
3. Rich Valdes – Demonology.
4. Bob Cenkner – Client follow-up and Cleansing Techniques.
Dinner:
6:15 -7:45 PM
Marsh Landing Restaurant
44 N. Broadway, Fellsmere
A Paranormal Investigation:
8:00 PM until whenever.
At the Old Fellsmere School (where the conference will take place)
$10 per person.
For further information, contact:
Mary Jo Fister or Greg Bush of OPI @ 772-267-2034.
Click the following for information about
Florida Paranormal Investigators Conference
Paranormal Unity Day 2015
Saturday, January 9, 2015
Fellsmere, Florida (Just north of Vero Beach, exit # 156 off I-95)
Fellsmere Auditorium
22 S. Orange St.
Sponsored by Offthetrails Paranormal Investigators (OPI) and The Florida Bureau of Paranormal Investigators.
Florida Paranormal Investigation Teams from around the state are invited to a free conference. Dinner and an investigation to follow.
A wonderful opportunity to learn from others by sharing experiences, thoughts and ideas.
Schedule
The Conference:
1:00 – 6:00 PM
At the Fellsmere Auditorium (Located in the Old Fellsmere School)
Presenters
1. Andrea Perron – Owner of the House featured in the “A Haunting in Connecticut,” and depicted in the movie, “The Conjuring.”
2. Doug Dillon – Paranormal author specializing in the haunting of St. Augustine, Florida. Speaking about “The Nature of Coincidences.”
3. Rich Valdes – Demonology.
4. Bob Cenkner – Client follow-up and Cleansing Techniques.
Dinner:
6:15 -7:45 PM
Marsh Landing Restaurant
44 N. Broadway, Fellsmere
A Paranormal Investigation:
8:00 PM until whenever.
At the Old Fellsmere School (where the conference will take place)
$10 per person.
For further information, contact:
Mary Jo Fister or Greg Bush of OPI @ 772-267-2034.
Click the following for information about
The Slave Trade, Property Law and Natural Law
Excellent addition to an important field of study.
Book review
of: Dark Places of the Earth: The Voyage of the Slave Ship Antelope
Author: Jonathan M. Bryant, professor of history at Georgia Southern University specializing in slavery, emancipation, and constitutional law.
Publisher: Liveright Publishing Group, a division of W.W. Norton & Company
Formats: Hardcover, eBook, Audio CD
Details: 376 pages with 47 pages of notes. Includes some drawings and photographs.
Johnathan Bryant does a very skilful job of shedding a bright light on a little known but extremely important event in American History. Meticulously researched, the author’s efforts show in graphic detail the plight of over 300 Africans brought to the shores of the United States by the slave ship Antelope. And in the process, he lays before readers the intricate legal wrangling that ended in Supreme Court rulings solidifying the rights of property over the natural rights of human beings, rulings that lasted for thirty-five years.
As the book title indicates, this is a dark tale, one that throws readers directly into the horrors of the slave trade and the institution of slavery as practiced during the early years of the republic. Author Bryant’s simple statistics of what remained of the Antelope’s starving and diseased human cargo when it finally arrived in Savannah, Georgia during the year 1820 give stark and concise testimony to the brutality of such transatlantic profit seeking voyages:
• Out of 331 people originally captured and put aboard the Antelope, only 258 remained alive – a 22% loss of life.
• 83% of the captives were under the age of 20.
• The average age of all the captives was 14.
• 106 were between the ages of 5 and 10.
• 8 were between the ages of 2 and 5. 2 and 5 (that is an intentional factual repeat)
For almost eight years after landing in the United States, the captives languished in servitude on Savannah plantations as if they had been bought and sold as slaves, which they were not. And after those eight years, most of those people who actually survived were legally enslaved and sent to Florida by Supreme Court rulings. Only a small group ended up being sent back to Africa where they faced severe hardships, disease and attack by the nearby native population.
Jonathan Bryant’s story of the multiple legal battles that caused the captives to wait nearly eight years is fascinating and so full of detail as to be almost overwhelming. But true to presenting the facts as he found them, the author offers readers these historical events in step-by-step fashion in order to leave no doubt about what happened. His 47 pages of notes at the end of the book speak to the incredible depth of his research.
One of the most telling scenes is when the Antelope case finally arrives at the Supreme Court of the United States in 1825, five years after the captives set foot in Georgia. The legendary John Marshall was Chief Justice and four of the justices were slave owners. The attorney for the supposed owners of the captives, Spanish and Portuguese citizens, was a slave owner as well. Enter the attorney for the government of United States trying to free the captives, Francis Scott Key. The same F.S. Key of the Star-Spangled Banner fame had slaves of his own. Slave ownership stood out on that day as a vivid yet unofficial finger pressing on the scales of justice.
This author’s work is beautifully organized, well written and thoroughly documented. It is an important scholarly work and should be read by those deeply interested in slavery, the slave trade, constitutional law, international law, and American politics during the first quarter of the 19th century.
Useful Links
YouTube video – interview with the author
December 31, 2015
Florida Paranormal Investigators Unite
Paranormal Unity Day 2015
Saturday, January 9, 2015
Fellsmere, Florida (Just north of Vero Beach, exit # 156 off I-95)
Fellsmere Auditorium
22 S. Orange St.
Sponsored by Offthetrails Paranormal Investigators (OPI) and The Florida Bureau of Paranormal Investigators.
Florida Paranormal Investigation Teams from around the state are invited to a free conference. Dinner and an investigation to follow.
A wonderful opportunity to learn from others by sharing experiences, thoughts and ideas.
Schedule
The Conference:
1:00 – 6:00 PM
At the Fellsmere Auditorium (Located in the Old Fellsmere School)
Presenters
1. Andrea Perron – Owner of the House featured in the “A Haunting in Connecticut,” and depicted in the movie, “The Conjuring.”
2. Doug Dillon – Paranormal author specializing in the haunting of St. Augustine, Florida. Speaking about “The Nature of Coincidences.”
3. Rich Valdes – Demonology.
4. Bob Cenkner – Client follow-up and Cleansing Techniques.
Dinner:
6:15 -7:45 PM
Marsh Landing Restaurant
44 N. Broadway, Fellsmere
A Paranormal Investigation:
8:00 PM until whenever.
At the Old Fellsmere School (where the conference will take place)
$10 per person.
For further information, contact:
Mary Jo Fister or Greg Bush of OPI @ 772-267-2034.
Click the following for information about
December 30, 2015
Florida Paranormal Unity Conference 2015
Paranormal Unity Day 2015
Saturday, January 9, 2015
Fellsmere, Florida (Just north of Vero Beach, exit # 156 off I-95)
Fellsmere Auditorium
22 S. Orange St.
Sponsored by Offthetrails Paranormal Investigators (OPI) and The Florida Bureau of Paranormal Investigators.
Florida Paranormal Investigation Teams from around the state are invited to a free conference. Dinner and an investigation to follow.
A wonderful opportunity to learn from others by sharing experiences, thoughts and ideas.
Schedule
The Conference:
1:00 – 6:00 PM
At the Fellsmere Auditorium (Located in the Old Fellsmere School)
Presenters
1. Andrea Perron – Owner of the House featured in the “A Haunting in Connecticut,” and depicted in the movie, “The Conjuring.”
2. Doug Dillon – Paranormal author specializing in the haunting of St. Augustine, Florida. Speaking about “The Nature of Coincidences.”
3. Rich Valdes – Demonology.
4. Bob Cenkner – Client follow-up and Cleansing Techniques.
Dinner:
6:15 -7:45 PM
Marsh Landing Restaurant
44 N. Broadway, Fellsmere
A Paranormal Investigation:
8:00 PM until whenever.
At the Old Fellsmere School (where the conference will take place)
$10 per person.
For further information, contact:
Mary Jo Fister or Greg Bush of OPI @ 772-267-2034.
Click the following for information about
December 29, 2015
Florida Para Unity Conference
Paranormal Unity Day 2015
Saturday, January 9, 2015
Fellsmere, Florida (Just north of Vero Beach, exit # 156 off I-95)
Fellsmere Auditorium
22 S. Orange St.
Sponsored by Offthetrails Paranormal Investigators (OPI) and The Florida Bureau of Paranormal Investigators.
Florida Paranormal Investigation Teams from around the state are invited to a free conference. Dinner and an investigation to follow.
A wonderful opportunity to learn from others by sharing experiences, thoughts and ideas.
Schedule
The Conference:
1:00 – 6:00 PM
At the Fellsmere Auditorium (Located in the Old Fellsmere School)
Presenters
1. Andrea Perron – Owner of the House featured in the “A Haunting in Connecticut,” and depicted in the movie, “The Conjuring.”
2. Doug Dillon – Paranormal author specializing in the haunting of St. Augustine, Florida. Speaking about “The Nature of Coincidences.”
3. Rich Valdes – Demonology.
4. Bob Cenkner – Client follow-up and Cleansing Techniques.
Dinner:
6:15 -7:45 PM
Marsh Landing Restaurant
44 N. Broadway, Fellsmere
A Paranormal Investigation:
8:00 PM until whenever.
At the Old Fellsmere School (where the conference will take place)
$10 per person.
For further information, contact:
Mary Jo Fister or Greg Bush of OPI @ 772-267-2034.
Click the following for information about
