Sylvia Shults's Blog, page 79

Neighborly Shenanigans

So for three weeks now, there’s been a construction project going on next door. It started with enclosing the porch, and putting on a really nice glass-paned front door. The project continued, the whine of saws and the quiet conversation of the workers filling the air. The gutters were replaced, and (I’m told) flooring was installed. Husband and I were a bit puzzled over the two wires sticking out of the side of the porch.

I went out of town for a paranormal convention this past weekend, and came home after dark Sunday night. That’s when I discovered the reason for the wires.

I feel like a Mogwai, muttering “Bright lights, bright lights!” whenever I have to leave the house after dark. Yeesh.

But you guys wanna know the best part?

 

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(I KNOW you guys wanna know the best part…)

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The best part is that THEIR PORCH STEPS ARE COMPLETELY DARK.

Last Night’s Supermoon

I made some time last night to go out and enjoy the sight of the supermoon. I couldn’t tell much of a difference in size, but it was a lovely full moon.

The moon’s up there, all right. It’s kind of a bummer when Yahoo posts articles on “How to take cell phone pics where the moon isn’t a blurry blob” the day AFTER the supermoon.

I treated myself to a campfire and a glass of fancy artisanal soda (Flying Cauldron “Butterscotch Beer”, for those interested. Tastynice!)

Have a great week, everyone!

Well, This Beats Stepping on a Lego …

44 Years in Darkness has been entered in several contests, and it’s holding its own. I’ve just gotten word that it’s been named a runner-up in the Shelf Unbound Indie Book Contest. Which, you know, is a good start, along with a five-star review from Reader’s Favorite.

I’ll share the results of the other contests when I hear of them. In the meantime, why not see what all the fuss is about? https://www.amazon.com/44-Years-Darkness-Madness-Shattered-ebook/dp/B01M4IJFNF/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1478876574&sr=8-1&keywords=44+Years+in+Darkness

 

Not too shabby!

The Happiest Day Of My Life

Travel

Image @ Kothrud, Pune, India

A miracle happened to me yesterday and I have to share it with all of you. I was still a bit sleepy in the morning, slumbering in my bed. As soon as I opened my eyes and was wide awake, these words reverberated in my ears, ‘Today is the happiest day of my life.’ I got startled and looked around. Who whispered these words in my ears? I couldn’t see anyone. But, this created a huge impact on my day.

I started behaving as if today is the happiest day of my life. Everytime I set to do a task and was confronted with a challenge I wasn’t discouraged. I infact told myself, ‘This happened for good.’ I didn’t have an iota of negativity in me. This was magical as the whole day went great and I enjoyed each moment thoroughly.

Words are magical, they…

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National Author’s Day

Hi all,
Just letting you know that today is National Author’s Day. I didn’t know it existed until I got an email from an author friend of mine, Donnie Light. (Maybe that’s why November is also NaNoWriMo … hmm … ) Every year on November 1, millions of people celebrate authors and the books that they write. After her grandmother’s death in 1968, a woman named Sue Cole began to promote the observance of National Author’s Day.
So celebrate yourself and the authors you love to read (or just love, if you’re married to one) and have a great National Author’s Day.
(Apparently, today is also National Calzone Day, so we know what’s for lunch, don’t we?)

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween from Lights Out, your virtual campfire. Pull up a chair, open those trick-or-treat bags, and enjoy this tale of a haunted home in Davenport, Iowa. https://youtu.be/z8Uc-Yx5Et8

Ron’s Amazing Stories

Wow, October’s almost over! Halloween’s almost here!I’ve been super busy with promoting the new book, so I apologize for not posting more often. But I have a treat in store for you — no trick!

I know I promised the second half of the Haunted Objects Lights Out show. And it’s coming, I promise! But I want to give you all a show for Halloween. I’m working on putting that together today, and it will be up today or tomorrow.

In the meantime, here’s a link to the interview I did with Ron, for Ron’s Amazing Stories. Ron does a Month of Spooky, and I’m honored to be one of his recurring guests. This podcast show got 800 downloads in the first hour it was posted. Enjoy the show! http://ronsamazingstories.libsyn.com/ras-263-ghost-stories-with-sylvia

Home Again, Home Again

Another beautiful fall day … seen from the window of a speeding train. I’m on my way home from A Paranormal Affair in Faribault, MN.

The energy of last night’s investigation was not as high as Friday night’s. (Although I’m delighted to report that neither was it as COLD as it was Friday night.) This time, I was with a small group of investigators, rather than with the public. We returned to the Walcott Farm Colony site. We got nothing at all in the root cellar. The most excitement we had at the “big house” was when we were playing flashlight tag with a child’s spirit.

We did sort of get distracted at the baby cemetery; we were standing around, about to start asking questions, when a car passed the cemetery entrance, driving slowly. It returned a few minutes later, and stopped, idling in the dark road. A young woman leaned out of the passenger window.

“Who are you?” she inquired.

We looked at each other and shrugged. “Investigators,” someone replied.

“What’re you investigating?”

“Ghosts,” Steph answered back cheerfully. In for a penny…. we waited to see what the young woman’s response would be. Would she laugh and tell her mom to drive on? Would she give us a disdainful snort and say “there’s no such thing”? Would she threaten to call the cops? (The local sheriff’s deputy was standing guard for us down at the entrance to the other site.)

…..”Do you guys want to hear about what we saw here two summers ago?”

Recording forgotten, we wandered over to the car to hear what the girl had to say. She told of finding a doll hanging from a tree, its plastic wrists slit and splashed with blood, pill bottles scattered at the base of the tree. Someone’s idea of a sick joke, no doubt. The forgotten cemetery still has a powerful draw.

I’m thankful to say that I did not suffer any nightmares last night, the way I did Friday night. I made my train on time, and headed for home.

I’d like to thank my hosts, Jerry Ayres and Jen Kruse of The Calling, for inviting me to Minnesota. I was entranced my first taste of Minnesota hospitality. It was a real joy to spend a few days surrounded by that lovely North Country accent, the hard r’s and the long o’s that manage to be clipped and throaty at the same time. I had lots of fun on my working vacation — I met some great folks, gathered material for a new Lights Out show, and had some wonderful experiences.

A Paranormal Affair

I’m here for the second day of A Paranormal Affair, here in Faribault, MN. It’s an utterly gorgeous day outside–brilliant sunshine and cloudless azure blue skies.

Last night, about thirty of us went out to the ruins of the Walcott State Hospital for an investigation. We explored the root cellar, the building where grain was stored, and the cemetery. Last night was quite cold, and rather windy. I was grateful for the Columbia jacket that one of my hosts lent to me–I stayed cozy and warm even with the 44 degree temps. We got quite a bit of action on the K2 meters in the granary, and some in the cemetery. (My personal takeaway from the evening was a sleep full of vicious nightmares, but I’ve learned to expect that after an investigation in a strange place.)

We’re going back to Walcott tonight, and I’ll do some more taping. You’ll be hearing our experiences in an upcoming Lights Out episode. Until then, I’m going out to enjoy a bit of this delicious sunshine.

Road Trip!

Hey there! I’m posting this from beautiful Minnesota. I’m here for the Paranormal Affair conference in Faribault. My hosts for the conference are Jerry Ayres and Jen Kruse of The Calling. (I was a guest on the show on Wednesday night. Jerry picked me up from the train station in the Twin Cities on Thursday, and he says we had good numbers for the show …. 27,000 people tuned in to hear us talk about Rhoda Derry, including folks in Canada, Ireland, Singapore, and Czechoslovakia! I mean how cool is that?)

We’re going to be doing two investigations, tonight and tomorrow night. It’s a ghost hunter’s dream! I’ll try to post updates, and I’ll be doing lots of recording while I’m there. I expect to get enough material for an episode of Lights Out. Hey, I might even go live on Facebook for some of this, if I get squirrelly. Would you guys like to see that? Let me know!