Sylvia Shults's Blog, page 27

Today I Learned …

James Patterson, the mega-uber-bestselling author, used to work in advertising. He came up with the line “I’m a Toys-R-Us kid.” (from Mental Floss: The Book)

Today I Learned …

The State Farm jingle — “Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there” — was written by Barry Manilow. (from Mental Floss: The Book)

Today I Learned …

More people die every year of constipation (an average of 157 Americans, according to CDC data from 2008 to 2017) than from shark attacks (an average of six people globally, according to the International Shark Attack File). (from Gory Details: Adventures From the Dark Side of Science, by Erika Engelhaupt)

2022 Calendars Still Available!

Are you still looking at your 2021 calendar? The year is over (and thank goodness for that!).

There’s a great way to get your spooky fix for all of 2022. I’ve put together a new calendar, using twelve of the 366 stories in Days of the Dead: A Year of True Ghost Stories. It’s bigger than last year’s calendar, so you’ve got lots of room to write down dentist’s appointments, swim meets, class reunions, stuff like that. $18 gets a calendar sent right to your door.

And here’s what else that $18 gets you: when you order a calendar, using the Contact Me link at the top of the page, tell me a date that’s special to you. Come closer … whisper it in my ear. It could be your birthday, or the day you brought your furbaby home, or the day you watched a really pretty sunset. Tell me about it, and I’ll write a special message on that day in your calendar.

So click that Contact Me button, and get ready to make every day spooky!

Today I Learned …

The string of typographical symbols comic strips use to indicate profanity (“$%@#”) is called a grawlix. (from Mental Floss: The Book)

Welcome — I Think? — To 2022.

What can I say about 2021, besides things that would probably get my mouth washed out with soap? Good grief. (Literally. We lost many family members this past year, including a sweet dog.)

But life does have a way of going on. For instance, there are now two MORE places you can listen to my true ghost story podcast, Lights Out. It can now be found on Amazon Music/Audible (https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/a11f3c03-703c-45aa-97a9-7425342d2320), and at reason.fm (https://reason.fm/podcast/lights-out-with-sylvia-shults). So go, check it out, subscribe if you like. I’ve been promising a new episode for, like, forever, but I have several good excuses, including the fact that I’ve been working really hard on a new book for you guys. More on that later.

For now, go out and sneak your way into the New Year. Remember, no sudden movements. (It can’t see you if you hold still, or does that only work for T-Rexes?)

Also remember: I love you guys. Stay safe.

Today I Learned …

When John Williams was tapped to compose the music for “Schindler’s List”, he was really intimidated. (Imagine, John Williams having imposter syndrome…) During an early meeting about the project, Williams told Steven Spielberg, “You need a better composer for this.” Spielberg replied, “I know, but they’re all dead.”

Today I Learned…

Of the billions of letters sent to Santa each year, most of them come from France. An incredible 1.7 million letters are written to the jolly old elf from the good boys and girls of France. Canadian kids send 1.35 million letters to him (using postal code H0H 0H0). Just over one million letters show up at the North Pole from children in America. Mexico and Latin America aren’t even on the list, but this may be because kids in those countries don’t send letters to Santa. They put their letters in helium balloons and release them.

Merry Christmas 2021!

Thanks for being a vital part of this blog! You guys all rock. I appreciate you tuning in every Monday morning for Today I Learned, for Lights Out episodes, and for whatever other thoughts are running around my brain. Here’s a little extra Christmas present for you guys this year: links to a couple of Christmas shows I’ve done recently.

The Christmas episode of “Right Now” (host Mia Johnson says, “Could listen to your stories all day…”) : https://kwmr.org/broadcasts/35731

Into the Parabnormal: https://youtu.be/Ga-DJ-XU2kc

On Ron’s Amazing Stories we have something special. We play the classic old-time radio version of A Christmas Carol written by Charles Dickens. This adaptation is performed, written, and directed by Orson Welles. The part of Ebeneezer Scrooge is played by actor Lionel Barrymore who has performed this role more than once during his historic career. Also, on the show, Sylvia Shults and I preview next week’s groundbreaking podcast which will be focused on A Christmas Carol. https://ronsamazingstories.com/ras-521-a-christmas-carol

On Ron’s Amazing Stories this time we are presenting a follow-up to what we played on last week’s show. Call it A Christmas Carol – Part Two, with a twist. Sylvia Shults and I are going to take and turn the classic story on its head with real ghost stories, Victorian oddness, Historical observations, and much more. We have skits, gripping discussions, and a whole lot of fun. So press that play button, this is going to be something special. RAS522-Xmas2021-122321.mp3

The Twelve Nightmares of Christmas, Day Twelve: Wawel Castle

Wawel Castle rises above Krakow, Poland, the symbol of Polish national identity for centuries. Nestled in a bend of the Vistula River, it sits proudly atop Wawel Hill.

The castle was built by King Casimir III the Great, who ruled Poland from 1333 to 1370. It was in the early 16th century that the castle became a symbol of the political and cultural heart of Poland. King Sigisimund the Old and his queen renovated the 200-year-old castle into a splendid Renaissance palace. The monarchs hired native and foreign craftsmen to decorate the castle, turning it into a showplace for the talents of Italian, German, and Polish artists.

But Wawel Castle, as beautiful as it is, is not the only area attraction. The Dragon’s Den is a cave in the western slope of Wawel Hill. The cave’s evocative name comes from the legend that a dragon once terrorized the countryside from that cavern. The monster stole livestock and rampaged through towns, leaving a dragon-sized path of destruction behind it.

A local shoemaker had a brilliant idea — he left several sheep, gutted and stuffed with sulfur, in a field. The dragon swooped down and devoured the sheep. As soon as it started to digest the meal, the sulfur hit the dragon’s fiery innards. The dragon, who had been napping in the cave after its meal of mutton, crawled out with a massive tummyache. Deathly ill, it dragged itself down to the Vistula River and guzzled gallons of water. The drenching did no good — shortly afterwards, the dragon exploded. The shoemaker was rewarded for his ingenuity; he married the princess and became the prince of Wawel Castle.

Every Christmas Eve, all the ancient kings of Poland gather in the vault under the castle. In Krakow, when the bell of the cathedral tolls midnight, the ringing wakes a pair of enchanted knights. The knights leave the cave where they’ve been sleeping all year, and ride to Wawel Castle. They knock at the door of the chamber underneath the castle, and rouse King Boleslas the Brave. He takes his throne once more, and presides over the yearly council of Poland’s long-departed monarchs.

While you’re out and about in Electronland, take a trip over to www.weirddarkness.com . If you’ve enjoyed Darren Marlar’s Weird Darkness podcast, why not consider subscribing? That way you’ll get a constant supply of weird tales.

I wish you all a very happy and peaceful holiday season. Hug your loved ones and snuggle your pets, have something delicious to eat, wear comfy socks, be excellent to each other, support small businesses, stay warm, and stay spooky.