Quinn Noll's Blog

Apo who? Lucky Charms? (And not the cereal!) Protection spells? What is this vile sorcery? Grab a seat, and let’s explore ancient methods thought to thwart evil!

Wondering how I came across this topic? Glad you asked, my friends! I’ve been doing a ton of research (no shocker there!) on protection incantations and various spells folks would cast in days of yore, all for my next book. Rosemear is a tale about a haunted mansion rife with ghosts, betrayal, and heartbreak. This plantation, built in the 1800s, had more than its fair share of tragedies, and because of that, its previous owners tried everything in their power to ‘cleanse’ the house.

Including protection spells, preventive barriers, and other safeguards to aid in keeping the residents of the home safe.

Alas, at least for the occupants of Rosemear, nothing worked… because nothing was as it seemed!

But enough of my shameless plugging! Back to the evil at hand 🖐 😁

Before we get too invested, though, let’s explore that crazy word (which I’d never heard of) called apotropaic. Pronounced ‘app-ah-tro-pay-ic,’ Webster’s dictionary defines apotropaic as a measure ‘designed to ward off evil.’ Simply put, these are your rituals, marks, charms, and amulets thought to safeguard people and property from the wicked, malicious nasties that try to worm their way into our homes.

Yeah…heavy stuff 😜

So, in the spirit of spooky October—and because we all love to learn creepy facts—we will explore a variety of talismans, symbols, and protections that began hundreds of years ago and, to some, still ring true today.

Don’t believe me? Keep reading, or I’ll give you the ‘evil eye!’

Yes, my friends, the ol’ evil eye is an example of averting dastardly spirits and demons!

Some believed this supernatural curse—thought to have been started in ancient Greece with the image of an eye on a drinking cup—meant that a malevolent glare in one’s direction could result in dire consequences to the recipient of such a glare.

Others during that time asserted that the evil eye acted as a form of protection, and wearing an amulet with its image actually reflected danger away from the wearer.

Image credit: Freepik

And, yeah…the evil eye as a shield is considered an apotropaic talisman. (Learned something, didn’t ya?)

So, what are some other symbols considered apotropaic in nature? An interesting one is called a hexafoil or daisy wheel. This mark, which dates as far back as the 6th century (which is between 501-600 AD for those calendar nerds reading😜)resembles a daisy within a circle. Often etched into fireplaces, walls, or above doors, it was thought to prevent witches and evil spirits from entering the home.

And all I do when encountering evil or nasty ghosts is burn sage. Lame.

Image credit: Historic England.org

Here’s another:…ever heard of the term ‘immurement?’ Me neither! Immurement is a fancy word for the practice of burying or concealing things within the walls of a home (and yes, before you ask, this does include the ancient art of burying someone alive inside a wall or floor!) There are countless stories of people doing renovations on very old homes and finding skeletal remains, assorted animal bones, shoes, and coins.

In years past, Kings, Queens, Governors, and others who have reigned over a community used immurement for many reasons; to punish criminals, remove people they viewed as a threat, protect their castles while bringing good fortune, or simply for entertainment.

Because nothing says ‘fun’ like watching a person slowly die🙄😕

Honestly, a brutal and, might I add, unattractive quality in a royal regime.

On occasion, poor souls who were not sentenced to die would, instead, be walled up for years and fed meager meals through a slit in their prison. Some of these committed crimes against society; others were pedophiles (okay, not crying about those jokers!). Occasionally, nuns actually volunteered to be imprisoned with the saddest of victims, the children— sacrificed by their own parents as it was believed the blood of an innocent strengthened the castle walls.

Some stayed alive for years within their prisons; many more perished.

The rest of the immured were murderers, Vestal Virgins who broke their vow of chastity, or other people considered ‘heretics’ …monks and nuns who, too, either broke their vows or dared question a King’s barbaric ideation. Walled up while alive, they died from starvation, dehydration, or lack of oxygen.

Image credit: journalnews.com

When not torturing people, immurement was used as a form of apotropaic magic. Burying innocuous items( such as shoes, jewelry, and pottery) belonging to a homeowner was thought to deter the entrance of sinister spirits or witches.

Fun fact? There may be a touch of immurement in Rosemear! 🩻🦴

So, what other marks have been found in old homes? Scorch marks and Marion marks, that’s what! Scorch marks, usually found on wooden beams, were created by tilting a tapered candle near the timber to create an oval design. This would burn a small section of wood within the home, protecting all who dwelled there from fire.

Sort of a ‘fight fire with fire’ way of thinking, I suppose.🤷‍♀️

Marion marks resemble two ‘V’s joined together to form a ‘W’ or an ‘M’ and are thought to invoke the protection of the Virgin Mary. Banisters, fireplaces, and front doors were common places to find Marion marks in a home. On occasion, as pictured below, there was an ‘A’ in front of the ‘M,’ meaning ‘Ave Maria.’

Fascinating stuff!

Image Credit: Apotropaios.com/Uk

There are honestly so many images, rituals, and totems we have used for protection the past—and still use today—that it would be difficult to name them all. But, in the interest of luck (think salt over the shoulder, a rabbit’s foot, a four-leaf clover), I’ve included a few more.

Crosses…In Ireland, on St. Brigid’s Day, people weave a ‘Brigid’s Cross’ and hang it above the door to ward against illness, fire, and bad luck. A Brigid’s cross differs from the usual cross in that there is a diamond shape at the center of the cross.

Dreamcatchers…These are hung above a child’s bed to catch and lock away nightmares. True story? My son, John, was prone to nightmares as a kid so we placed a dreamcatcher in his bedroom. One day, after having another nightmare, he informed me he was afraid the dreamcatcher was ‘full’, so I vacuumed it. After emptying the ‘bad dreams’ from the vacuum to the garbage, John panicked, concerned that the trash men who collected the vacuum bag would now be subjected to all his nightmares. What eight-year-old would even think of that? A gem of a kid, that’s who!❤️❤️

Horseshoes…The iron in these beauties was said to repel witches and evil spirits, as iron was thought to have supernatural power and strength. Hung above entrances, if the ends pointed upward, it was said to ‘catch’ good luck as it entered the home. If the ends pointed downward, it was said to spread good luck and fortune throughout the home.

Also, pretty cool-looking decor, in my opinion!

Image Credit: Gettyimages.

That will do it for this time! Now, I have a request from you all! I would love to do a blog about NDE’s. For those of you unaware, a NDE is a Near-Death Experience. I find them fascinating and my original thought was to research (obviously lol) reported cases all over the world. But then, it hit me…

Credit: Pinterest.

What if I turned to you, my readers, for true stories of NDE’s? Does anyone have any first-hand experiences, or know anyone who has? It could be a friend, family member, even a friend of a friend!

If any of you have something to share, I would LOVE to hear about it! And don’t worry—your identity will remain a secret! Just reach out via my website or email me at Quinnnoll@gmail.com, leave your name and a contact email, and I will be in touch!

Honestly, I would love to hear about it!

Til next time!

Peace out, scuba scouts…

—Q

And…I’m back!

After a summer hiatus (because, frankly, if “Virgin River” can disappear for the season, why not me?), I am well-rested (sort of) and raring to go (always!), ready to dive into all things weird! This time, because I get asked about it all the time, I’ve decided to explore the good, the bad, and the ugly, of writing a book! Also included in this short series will be some known and not-so-known tricks, tips, and eccentricities of some of your favorite authors!

It matters little if we look at books that are best-sellers or those who limp along for years, living in obscurity. The truth is that there is always one common denominator—

The idea!

Yes, as simple as it sounds, the very first step in the writing process is to come up with something interesting to write. You could be as polished as the sea after a storm, but a smooth sea never made a skilled sailor! Simply put, if you have a crappy idea that won’t hold water, (pun intended), you’ll never capture your reader’s attention.

Credit: Presenter media

My biggest problem? I have too many ideas! They explode in my noggin, oblivious to the time of day, bombarding my brain with possibilities. I know, I know—I should just be grateful that I have ideas.

And a brain.

But, back to the point. Not only do you need a brilliant idea (or at least one YOU believe in) you also need a general direction to take that idea.

Now, I know what you’re thinking…what makes a great idea for a book? Glad you asked, friends!

But first, as promised, here is one of the crazy writer quirks I found. Victor Hugo, author of ‘The Hunchback of Notre Dame.,” found inspiration by writing in a comfy chair wearing very little clothing.

I wonder what that chair looked like after years of…oh, never mind.😳

Anyhoo, after the idea for Hunchback came to him in the Fall of 1830, Victor decided to start writing with the goal of completing the book by February of 1831 (no small task, I assure you!) He not only met his goal but exceeded it by finishing it under deadline. How did he accomplish this? By buying a bottle of ink, locking himself in a room while half-naked, and giving his staff strict orders not to release him until he wrote something good.

Wonder whose job it was to decide if his work merited an early parole?

Oh, and, fun fact—his original title for The ‘Hunchback of Notre Dame’ was ‘What Came Out of a Bottle of Ink.’

Glad he thought twice about that one.

So, what really does make a great book idea? Well, for starters, it has to be original. Don’t get me wrong. Almost every book out there has some similarity or familiarity to another book. For instance, take Fred Gipson’s ‘Old Yeller’ and Stephen King’s ‘Cujo’. Both books center around a dog who gets bitten by a rabid animal and then follow the consequences of that disease on the main characters.

Sure, the books split in different directions, but the core concept began with, well, rabies.

What makes it work is putting a new ‘spin’ on it. So, if you have an idea about a love story involving a vampire and a human, you need a ‘schtick’ that separates that idea from, say, ‘Twilight’ or ‘The Vampire Diaries.’ Maybe the vampire is pure evil, only pretending to love the main character, but in truth is secretly planning to have his/her love interest for lunch—literally! (Although, to be fair, I think if Damon came knocking, I’d fall to the ground and hand him the ketchup.😜)

Or, maybe there is some weird vampire curse in place, making physical contact an impossibility or a catalyst resulting in the ‘vamp’ instantly bursting into flames.

Credit: Getwallpapers/ Damon Salvatore

See there? We’ve taken a popular trope, tweaked it, and developed a totally new direction.

Speaking of direction…did you know that Charles Dickens used to carry a compass to ensure he only slept facing north? Now you do! He felt sleeping north helped to improve his writing. Since he was a brilliant writer, maybe there was something to that superstition!

Where was I? Oh, right…ideas!

So, once you have a terrific idea to make your own, what then? This actually differs from writer to writer but I can tell you that, for me, next comes research. I am a Virgo and have been known to research a subject to death.

Like, seriously, by the time I am done— I’m still not done. Ever.

During the entire writing process and beyond, I continue to examine things like scientific studies, photographic evidence of the paranormal, geography and maps, investigative techniques and tips, etcetera, etcetera, and so forth.

Rinse and repeat.

Because, as I always say, I can look stupid all by myself. No sense in proving that point with poor research and incorrect facts! So, in my writing journey, research and note-taking occur right away. After all, how do I know a concept has enough ‘meat’ to it to last the entire book? I’ll give you an example. For my first book, I spent countless hours researching service dogs. I wanted to know if I could provide the reader with more than just a “yeah, this is my cadaver dog. He finds dead bodies and shit.”

Credit Getty Images/Cadaver dog

Boring, right?

But what if I found out more…like how dog handlers, during mass casualty incidents, will ‘plant’ a live person for the dog to find so they have hope? Or how training differs between search and rescue animals and dogs tasked with finding the dead?

See what I mean? Research is my jam, ma’am.

Sure, it’s fiction, and you could throw anything out there to see what sticks. But I’ve found readers really appreciate knowing a bit more about the subject matter they’re reading. In fact, not to blow my own horn (toot, toot), but a recurring theme whenever fans of my books reach out to me is how much they appreciate the in-depth research I do.

Thank you, thank you. Hold your applause, please.😁

Honestly, it’s one of those OCD things I do. And, while it’s lovely to be appreciated, I’d do it regardless.

So, what now? We have an idea, we’ve done some research (although, to be fair, we’ve only scratched the research surface. Once we get ensconced in the book, more research is sure to follow), and we are, finally, ready to dive into the actual writing.

Or some semblance thereof. There is no shame in outlining chapters, jotting down notes, or plotting timelines. Some authors are ‘planners,’ while others are ‘seat of your pantzers.’

Most, I think, fall somewhere in between.

When I begin with an idea, I sharpen and tweak it, do my initial research, and envision (sort of) the beginning, middle, and end. Along the way, though, plans change. The trick is to adapt to those changes and carry on with a new direction or plan for the path of your work.

All while listening to the same playlist over and over. One of my silly routines to get the juices flowing.

Speaking of routine—how about that Truman Capote? Talk about your silly superstitions! It is said that the author of the mind-melting book, ‘In Cold Blood,’ refused to stay in a hotel room with the number ‘13’. He would not phone a friend or family member if the digits in that number added up to 13. And he never started or finished a work on a Friday.

Image Credit: Getty Images/ Truman Capote

In addition, and this is truly bizarre, he refused to fly on a plane that had two nuns on board. Why the nun hate, anyway? They’re just people like us, only with an inside lane to the ‘big guy!’

Just spit-balling here, but I’m gonna assume that the series, “The Flying Nun,” was never on his television screen. How do you like ‘dem apples?

Which reminds me of Agatha Christie. Dame Christie, they say, was so fond of apples that she ate them in the bathtub—all the while looking at crime scene photos—as a source of inspiration.

And I thought my habits were weird! Which we will delve into next time in Part 2 of “The Writing Process.”

As always, I welcome your suggestions and ideas about future blogs and books! In the meanwhile, stay well, keep the shiny side up, and thanks a million for your unwavering support!

Till next time! Peace out, scuba scouts!

—Q

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Creepy vibes, Benjamin, and orbs galore…Don’t get much better than that!

Let’s start with the basics and a full disclosure here… I was never a fan of orbs. I felt they were the ‘lazy man’s out; the easiest way to ‘prove’ to friends and family that ghosts exist without having actual proof. I have seen tons of orbs— both in photos and in real-time— just flying about, occasionally diving seemingly through the ceiling or floor…

Or through a person😳

But, truth be told, I’ve always chalked them up to reflections or dust. All that changed when we visited the Brentwood Restaurant in Little River, SC.

Yes, indeedy, my friends. I readily admit to being a card-carrying member of the ‘It ain’t supernatural, dude... it’s dirt,’ club, whose members ascribe to the theory that orbs are merely tricks of the light, camera malfunctions, dust particles, or insects.

Speaking of Supernatural though…I miss my boys💔

Image credit: Imgflip

Sigh. But, the orbs, though…

These glowing, zig-zagging balls of illumination, I reasoned (before I saw the light—pun intended😁) were more than likely reflecting the torso of a kamikaze gnat or blood-thirsty mosquito rather than representing the energy of a wayward spirit.

I think I was wrong. Yep, I said what I said.😏

Because remember this, my friends…in every paranormal investigation, the first step to an airtight answer is to first record the evidence gathered, then look for a logical, scientific, or rational explanation for it.

Once you do that, once you have dotted all your ‘I’s and crossed all of your ‘T’s’, what is left is the unusual or irrational explanations.

What is left is the supernatural; what is left is the Brentwood Restaurant.

When Cyndi and I went into the investigation of both Savannah and Brentwood, we went in with the assumption that anything we witnessed was NOT necessarily a paranormal event.

At least until we proved it otherwise.

After all, if a person claims that every shadow, every flash of light, and every disembodied voice stems from the ghostly realm, it kind of diminishes and invalidates the true hauntings around us.

So you go in, eyes wide open, expecting nothing. Then, you pick apart what evidence you have in front of you and try to debunk it. Finally, when you throw away the endless possibilities— that the orb you are seeing is the result of car headlights or dust on the camera or flying little no-see-ems—you’re left with the conclusion that what you are seeing (or hearing) is not of this world.

But, as often happens, I digress. We’ll get back to the Brentwood Investigation, after a word from our sponsors.

Not really. Just always wanted to say that🤣

Anyhoo, the sheer amount of orb activity in that building was staggering. Within five minutes of the tour, we had witnessed dozens of orbs dancing around the building. But, interestingly enough, it wasn’t just the orbs that kind of wigged me out. The entire building gave off a weird vibe.

And, along with that, it gave me something else.

I swear I’m not losing it here, but stepping through the doors seemed to make whatever on-point intuition or psychic ability (uncontrolled, as it were) I have more powerful. The place was virtually humming with energy, and I think (though would never swear to it in a court of law) it made all of my senses stronger.

Like some kind of freakin’ Twilight Zone shizzle.

But, my lips to God’s ears, I found myself knowing things about the building’s history—things I shouldn’t have known. And my girl, Cyndi, was feeling those creepy vibes, too, especially when we were in the upstairs bar area, as well as in one of the bathrooms on the main floor.

The shot below is a still of an orb as it dives at her, trying to steal her soul.

Or, it had finished in the bathroom, washed up, and was just leaving. (New idea for the next blog…”Do Ghosts Poop?”)

This orb( top left ) was in the bathroom and came straight at Cyndi!

The stories about paranormal events experienced by the restaurant’s patrons and staff vary. Some claim to have been touched; a few swear to having seen a male face in a mirror upstairs. Others report having heard voices in the night or feeling a general unease whenever in the building. When we first arrived, despite my brain trying to fight it, I was overwhelmed with ‘knowing’ some of the history of the place. I told our guide what I could see in my mind’s eye—a young woman with a disfiguring facial scar, a person we will call “grumpy old man” who hung out in a dark corner near a closet, and a little boy and girl running around, playing tag and hide and seek, much to the dismay of grumpy, old man.

The reveal? So, it turns out that the staff actually do complain about an angry, older male lurking about. He generally keeps to the shadows, in the particular corner that wigged me out, but will occasionally stomp around the building, making people uncomfortable. And a psychic who visited the place not long ago told them she felt there was at least one child present.

Oh, and the disfigured girl I saw in my mind? Apparently, there were twin girls who used to hang out when the building was a boarding house. At some point, there was a fire in the building. Could the girl I saw with the scars on her face have been a victim of that fire? Inquiring minds want to know!

The still pics I have here do not do justice to the abundance of orb activity. I am still going through the video, photographic, and audio information we amassed from the places we visited during our trip. Once I gather all the evidence, I will post it on my website.

This is a still shot of one of the largest orbs I’ve even see. Brentwood dining area.

Another still shot of a really big orb.

So all of this begs the question…what, exactly, are orbs? I mean, besides celestial bodies in space or really big eyeballs?😁 Are they the energy of a lingering spirit or the result of residual activity in a place with a dark history? Or, perhaps as some suggest, could orbs be portals or doorways used by spirits to enter our world? Most importantly, how can you distinguish between a speck of floating dust and an actual paranormal event?

The easiest way, IMO, is to futz around with the lighting in the photograph. Orbs shine from within, creating their own self-illuminating light. So, if we take light away from a picture, everything within that photo should go dark. If it doesn’t, if an orb remains lit after you diminish the lighting, that means it is something that has created its own light (or so I’ve read.) Below is a perfect example of that.

My house in NJ was, and still is on occasion, very active spirit-wise. Word on the street is that the land was all part of a large Indian burial ground. We also have a cemetery right down the road (quiet neighbors😜) that is filled with many of the dead. Some graves are quite old, actually.

So, activity has always been almost cyclic there. We would have a bunch of stuff going on, then nothing.

As if they went on vacay or something. (Blog idea #2…”Haunted Hijinks…A Travel Blog of the Dead.”)

Somebody write these down…this is gold!

Anyway, one evening, my son snapped a bunch of pics in the pitch dark after he heard movement. (He had been asleep and the ‘whoosh’ noise, which sounded to him like corduroy pants, woke him up.) There were several orbs captured, but this was the best example. I minimized the lighting until the picture was much darker and still, the orb kept glowing.

Yeah, my ghost wears corduroy pants. So retro.

So, how about our nighttime investigation of the Savannah Theater? Said to be one of the most haunted theaters in the US, I can say with certainty it did not disappoint! Unfortunately, the stuff that happened is all on audio or video, which means I cannot show it here. Or maybe I can, but just don’t know how.

Admittedly, not a stretch for me. I suck at technology.

I will, however, put it all on my website so you can analyze it for yourself.

There is one audio in particular that gave me the willies. Cyndi and I were backstage, in the pitch dark, when suddenly, she felt someone touching the top of her head. At the same time, I felt a light finger drag down the side of my neck. Talk about goosebumps!

On the recorder, you can hear me ask if someone is touching Cyndi. Then I say, “What’s your name?” and I swear on my children’s eyes (or orbs lol) that we got a response.

I know what I think it says; I am interested in y’all hearing it and telling me what you think it says.

In another room, we had a REM POD set up. This is a device that will light up in the presence of spirit. It is also a good tool to use when trying to communicate with them (Ex; “ Is Benjamin here?” and the thing goes nuts!)

Benjamin was a little boy who was killed during a stampede when the Savannah theater caught fire. He is said to be there, hiding things, giggling, touching people. You know… generally doing what an ordinary ten-year-old boy would do…only, as a ghost. Below is a still of the REMPOD going bonkers when we asked if Benjamin was with us. (For reference, the guides told us that there are many investigations where the device remains quiet. For whatever reason, the night we were investigating, the thing was off the hook.)

REMPOD lights activated when we mentioned Benjamin. Also, take note…the EMF detector on the right is also lit up, indicating the presence of a spirit or spirtis. Here, we see 3 or 4 lights lit. For reference, there should only be one, the first light, lit up.

Another interesting thing (interesting is probably the wrong word choice, but I try to avoid any “Holy s*@t language on the blog. Go figure 😎) was that when the tour guide lifted an empty bottle of champagne and joked about a staff celebration the night before, the spirit box app on his phone said “cheers.”

AT THE PRECISE MOMENT HE PICKED UP THE BOTTLE.

That spirit talking app (which, tbh, I am still on the fence about) also gave us a number (7) when we asked how many people were in the room at that moment. There were only five of us.

But we’d been communicating with 2 spirits, Benjamin and a fellow named Bill. Fun facts with math!

The other thing I wanted to mention is how one of the people in our group was forever in need of a newly-charged battery for his video camera. He went through 3 fully-charged batteries in about 2 hours.

Unheard of. But, in case you didn’t know, ghosts make a mad grab for energy or electricity when they want to communicate, so battery drain or burned-out lightbulbs is not uncommon.

Finally, what happened in the Marshall House Hotel?

We had the laptop camera going every time we left the room, trying to catch something. We captured too many loud bangs to count, and what sounded like coins jingling or twirling on a desk. We had no video evidence, nothing manifested in our absence. Be we did have flickering lights, groaning, a few sounds that were pretty close to screams, and some hushed talking. We tried debunking all of it, as it is a running hotel and there were other guests.

However…

We paid special attention to the sounds we made in the hallway and outside the door when coming back from an adventure. You could definitely hear us, but the sounds were just muffled belly laughs (because we are a fun couple of gals😁) until we opened the door. Then, our conversation was crystal clear. The Marshall House owners would be happy to know the place is very well insulated.

A comforting thought, until you realize what that statement truly means.

It means that the voices, the bangs, the groans—all of it came from inside the room.

Where we had to sleep. Oy.

Beautiful hotel and an amazing experience with one of my dearest friends. Can’t wait to go back!

That wraps it for this time, gang. Keep an eyeball (orb) out for the audio and video evidence on the website. Once it is up, drop me a line on what you think the voice says in the theater (when I asked its name.) And, as always, if you have a place you feel needs investigating (and we won’t get arrested for trespassing!), let me know.

At the end of May, I will be traveling to yet another paranormal hotspot, Gettysburg. I’ve booked an investigation with a few of my posse and will let y’all know how things turn out.

Till next time, send me your video or photographic evidence of potentially paranormal phenomena, and we will get her up on the site!

Peace out, scuba scouts!

—Q

Take two lifelong friends, toss them headfirst into a notoriously haunted location, and watch them go!

Hello, gang! Hang on to your shorts because in this edition of ‘you gotta be kidding me!’, we will delve into what Cyndi and I found (or didn’t find) during our paranormal investigation of haunted Savannah! Video evidence or any EVP’s will be posted on my Quinn Noll Facebook page but here, you can see some pretty neat photos and get a vivid look into what it was like to traverse spooky graves, buildings that supposedly held dead bodies in their walls, and discover the outcome of our real-time paranormal investigation of the Savannah theatre!

So, let’s dive right in!

Our first stop when we arrived in Savannah’s historic district was, obviously, to check into our room at The Marshall House (affectionately known by Cyndi as ‘The Mission House” ) The looks —not to mention loose change—we accumulated when she explained we were staying at “The Mission,” was hysterical.

Cyndi (stopping the locals because, well because she’s Cyndi lol): Hi there! What a beautiful area! We are loving the history!”

Random man #1: Oh, yes we love our city! Where are you staying?”

Cyndi: Over on Broughton Street at the Mission House. So much to see and take in there! It’s overwhelming!”

Random man’s wife: (shakes her head in sorrow) Oh, I’m so sorry for your troubles. Here, (hands me a pocket full of change) take this. Buy yourselves a cup of coffee.”

Cyndi: Stares in silence at random man’s wife (a feat in itself if you know my girl, Cyndi…standing in silence is rarely a thing 😜)

Me: Jesus, Cyndi! There’s like 83 cents here! I think you’re onto something!”

Of course, I am joking, but only about the loose change. Calling it the Mission House is gospel lol. So freaking funny, but no worries…by the day we checked out, she had it nailed down!🤣

The Marshall House/Entrance

After checking in, we headed out to explore. We had a reservation for an evening walking tour—featuring Savannah’s darker history, sprinkled with some ghost stories—so decided to walk around and look for the meeting place for the tour. (P.S—fun fact…from our arrival Tuesday afternoon until the time we left Savannah on Thursday, we had walked over 50,000 steps! That equates to about 25 miles, nearly a marathon!)

The first area we checked out was—shocker here😜—the Colonial Cemetery. It is a pretty spot and was kind of quiet (yes, yes, I know they are dead there. I mean quiet paranormal-wise😉) until we approached the rear of the property. There, leaning against a wall, were dozens of headstones in poor condition. We assumed these headstones were separated from the graves they mark due to weather events, the aging process, or unfortunately as happens, vandalism. Walking along the wall, voice recorder in hand, I was minding my P’s and Q’s and simply asking questions when suddenly, I felt a freezing chill run the length of my neck and arms. Immediately, I notified my trustee sidekick, Cyndi, and she opened an app on her phone that supposedly tells you when spirits are near. Below is what she caught, hitching a ride on my back😳

The video shows this much better but…here is my “pal” hopping on for a piggyback ride. There should be only one green stick man representing my form. So who is my little friend here?

After we got this, we experimented a bit. I always want to assume a piece of evidence is NOT paranormal related until proven otherwise. Validation matters. So we tried taking my jacket off of my waist and still, the passenger remained. Then I put down my sling purse and Mr Green was still there.

Finally, I had Cyndi walk the same path and turned the app on her.

Nothing was there.

The next day we went back and tried to recreate the circumstances. That day, I walked alone. Pretty crazy.

After traversing all over God’s creation, we grabbed a bite to eat and got ready for our evening haunted walking tour. I had the voice recorder and camera going, Cyndi had the EMF (an electronic device that lights up in the presence of spirits) and her cell phone. That night, despite some very cool stories about ghost sightings and a ‘hanging’ tree in the big square, we saw and felt nothing.

Night shot of the cemetery. I don’t see anything. Do you??

That evening as we left I set up the laptop camera and let it run while we were out. We did that every night, trying to capture something. There are some pretty weird noises, bangs, pops etc that I could not explain, as well as some words or short sentences that are intelligible but are definitely coming from inside the room.

The videos are very long so once I figure out how to isolate what I mean, I will post on FB.

The next day, we walked all over that city, taking pictures and enjoying the beautiful day. We tried to get into a tour of “The Owen-Thomas House,” a building built in 1819 with a nearby carriage house that was the quarters of the enslaved workers of the property. Seeing the Owen-Thomas was honestly the main reason for the trip. I wanted to see it in person, mimic its construction and aesthetics into the fictional mansion at the center of Book 4, Rosemear. Unfortunately, we couldn’t get in on Wednesday but did get tickets for the next day.

We planned to tour the home and walk around a bit more before returning to our ‘home base’, Cyndi’s digs in Myrtle Beach.

Random guy #2 in front of the Owen-Thomas House. Yes, he is alive.

On the evening of the second day (Wednesday) we had tickets to tour The Sorrel-Weed House. This gem, built in 1837, was actually in the opening scenes of the movie “Forrest Gump.” It sits on a plot on land in Madison Square, an area where a tragic massacre took place during the Revolutionary War. Soldiers in the throes of battle fell in unfathomable numbers, so many that it was impossible to track the bodies piling up.

A surgeon on site, operating in the basement, contributed to the deaths of many Revolutionary fighters. It is said that his operative success rate was around thirty percent…meaning up to seventy percent of the soldiers who made it to his operating suite died there. A lack of knowledge regarding aseptic procedures, combined with the doctor’s atrocious surgical skills, meant certain death for many who may have survived under different circumstance.

And, as the body count rose, locals were having a hell of a time burying the dead. So, to assist in ‘clean-up,’ a trench was built and the dead were dumped inside.

Unfortunately, it turns out not all of the soldiers were actually deceased when they got thrown in. Apparently triage was not a thing and many of the ‘dead’ were actually wounded men who were buried alive. No wonder it is a hotbed of activity!

And, yeah, in case you are wondering…they never moved the bodies from beneath the city (key Poltergeist soundtrack here!) and instead, built over them. Hence, our guide tells us there are dead people buried beneath the entire historic district. It was kind of creepy walking around, wondering if you were stepping on someone’s head.

No wonder Savannah is considered one of the most haunted cities in the nation!

The Sorrel-Weed House is said to have several pulseless individuals who haunt the premises. Aside from the Revolutionary soldiers, the owners of the house are said to have never left.

Francis Sorrel, a wealthy plantation and slave owner, was first married to a woman named Lucinda. Lucinda died early in the marriage, so Francis did what anyone would do…he married her sister, Matilda.🤢They had a lovely marriage aside from one flaw…Frankie boy had a roving eye. He began an affair with a young slave girl called Molly.

Just a creepy spot in the Sorrel House!

Eventually, despite Francis’ best efforts to keep his affair hidden, Matilda found out. Distraught, she leapt over a second-floor balcony, landed head-first, and died. Soon after her death, Molly, sick with guilt and afraid she would be blamed for Matilda’s death, hung herself. Now, people claim to have seen all three women (Lucinda, Matilda, and Molly) walking around the home, appearing in mirrors, or speaking in hushed, female tones.

The Sorrel-Weed house has been featured on several paranormal investigation programs, namely Ghost Hunters, Ghost Adventures, and Most Terrifying places on the Travel Channel. So, what happened while we were there?

Not too much objectively. But subjectively, the space feels ‘different,’ especially the cellar where the surgeries took place. Cyndi felt creeped out and mentioned how much heavier the air felt. I had a similar feeling and also felt, at one point, almost panicked. It was like I had to get out of there or I would die. Weird, but the God’s honest truth.

Basement where the Shadow man hangs—Sorrel-Weed House.

No sir, I did not like the atmosphere in that basement. At all. Especially when near an empty stool that is said to occasionally have an ass in its seat…the ass of a tall, shadowed figure that claims the space as his own. Is it the surgeon? Francis Sorrel? Or perhaps, one of the soldiers? I have no idea.

All I know is it felt heavy, threatening, icky in that space and it was the only place I felt scared a little.

You know me…takes alot to freak me out. Thanks, Sorrel-Weed House!

That’s a wrap for now. Next time, we will look at the Savannah Theatre paranormal investigation we took part in, as well as the Owen-Thomas results and our dinner evening in a haunted restaurant in Little River, SC called The Brentwood. Wild stuff!

Til next time, folks…keep your eyes open and message me if you have an active home or business you would like us to investigate! ( And you can join us! Extra eyes and ears are welcome!) We’ve been bitten by the paranormal investigative bug!

Peace out, scuba scouts!

—Quinn

Gone without a trace!

Ships traveling the seas, massive jets packed with passengers, entire communities (or even one solitary individual) vanish without a trace. Who or what is responsible for these mysterious disappearances?

According to NAMUS (National Missing and Unidentified Persons System), over 600,000 people, on average, are reported missing each year. Thankfully, the majority of those cases are resolved quickly, with the missing person being reunited with their loved ones in short order.

That said, there remain tens of thousands of unsolved disappearances in this country every year and, inside of that year, over 4000 bodies are found.

Of those bodies, only a thousand or so are ever identified.

I don’t know about you, but I find that fact heartbreaking and so very foreign to me. How tragic that a person can go missing, even die, and there is no one to either search for them or grieve them.

But, back on topic…the missing. One person who vanishes is bad enough, but what about people who disappear as part of a group? People who have been gone for decades with no contact, no leads, no bodies.

As if someone snapped a finger and they were gone.

Take the disappearance of Springfield, Missouri residents Suzie Streeter, Stacy McCall, and Suzie Streeter’s mother, Sherrill Levitt. In June of 1992, following their high school graduation ceremonies, best friends Suzie and Stacy went out on the town. They hit several graduation parties before returning to the Levitt home about two in the morning.

The next day, friends came to pick up Suzie and Stacy for a planned trip to a waterpark. They arrived at the Levitt home to find the house unlocked and empty. The purses and cigarette packs of the women were left behind. It was as if they ran out the door with only the clothes on their backs.

The disappearances became known as the case of the “Springfield Trio.” Various leads have come and gone over the years but to date, no bodies have been found, leaving this mystery unsolved.

Another instance of a group disappearance is the case of the “Fort Worth Missing Trio.” In that 1974 case, three young females (Rachel Trlica-aged 17, Lisa Wilson-aged 14, and Julie Moseley-aged 9) vanished from a Fort Worth mall after doing some Christmas shopping.

Several witnesses recalled seeing the girls leave the mall with packages, heading toward the parking area.

They never arrived home.

When the girls failed to show up that evening, family members headed to the mall and found Rachel’s 1972 Oldsmobile in the mall lot, Christmas packages in the back seat. The family waited the rest of the evening in the parking lot but the girls never showed up. Police were called to the scene and, since they found no signs of a struggle, theorized that the girls were simply runaways.

Runaways who left their only means of transportation behind; runaways who spent their savings on expensive Christmas gifts for their families, only to leave them behind.

Fortunately, a person with an actual brain realized it was fifty shades of stupid to believe the girls disappeared voluntarily, and the case moved into the ‘suspicious’ pile.

As yet, decades after they were declared legally dead, no remains have been found. And, although tips continue to trickle in regarding the disappearances, their families have suffered for forty-eight years not knowing what really happened to these girls.

Of course, mysterious disappearances do not occur only on land. There have been dozens of reports of planes suddenly disappearing from radar or ships that vanish without explanation or wreckage.

But what of the spooky ghost ships? The ones that sail across the sea, unmanned, passengers and crew no where to be found? Perhaps the best example of this is a ship called the Mary Celeste.

On November 7, 1872, Captain Benjamin Briggs, accompanied by his wife and toddler daughter, set sail for Italy with a crew of eight highly recommended, highly trusted men. Nearly a month later, the ship would be discovered by another vessel, abandoned. Although the sails were slightly damaged, the ship was found to be sea worthy, with its cabins neat and the kitchen well-stocked.

Image Credit: Wikipedia

There were little clues about the possible fate of the Captain, his family, and the crew. Several theories abound, including mutiny( although the crew were said to be rock solid and reliable), a pirate attack, or a paranormal event. The last entry in the ships log was dated November 25th— about tens days before the ship was found empty— and made no mention of anything concerning.

No personal effects or remains were found. The sea gave up nothing.

So what would push an experienced Captain to voluntarily leave the security of his ship? To put everyone in a lifeboat in the middle of the ocean, including his two-year-old little girl? Whatever his reasons, the decision (whether voluntary or not) to abandon a functioning ship makes this disappearance one of the most puzzling mysteries in maritime history.

What else? Oh, here’s one…does the word ‘Croatoan’ mean anything to you? That’s right, ladies and gents—we are talkin’ Roanoke and the Lost Colony. The original Roanoke colony was founded in 1585 but deserted only a year later due to a lack of food supplies. In 1587 they decided to try again, sending out a second expedition. Those colonists arrived safely in Roanoke and began a settlement there (in what is now Dare, North Carolina, FYI😉).

Image credit: Saturday Evening Post

It was this second group of settlers, comprised of approximately 120 men, woman, and children, who would forever be known as ‘the Lost Colony.’

The plan was simple. The colonists on Roanoke would ‘set up shop,’ while awaiting another expedition—set to arrive the following year—which would resupply them with food, clothing, and other goods.

Only, their plan hit a snag the following year with the advent of the Anglo-Spanish War. That conflict, and the resulting Spanish Armada, delayed the supply ship from returning until 1590. Once the re-supply mission finally arrived, they found the settlement fortified, with strong defenses, but abandoned. The only clues found were the letters ‘CRO’ carved in a tree and the word ‘Croatoan’ on a wood post.

There was no sign of the settlers.

What happened to them? Some say they were killed by a local tribe angry at the intrusion on their land; others believe the colonists were not killed by a neighboring tribe, but rather, joined the clan and assimilated into it. Another theory is that the colonists simply moved to Croatoan Island, a nearby land mass.

Still others believe something more sinister was responsible.

Something evil.

*Cue creepy music here….Da-Da-Dahhhhh!

So, what do we make of it? Amelia Earhart, Jimmy Hoffa, Anastasia Romanov (maybe? still not convinced on this one), D.B. Cooper (for the fetuses in the back, Cooper hijacked a plane in ‘71, parachuted out, and was never seen again.) Where are these people? Is there a rational explanation for their disappearances? Or could they be the result of something else? Something…different? Unearthly?

Just like the Tootsie Roll Pop, the world may never know.🍭

Thanks for the read! Don’t miss next time, where I will reveal what evidence (if anything) Cyndi and I find during our paranormal investigation in ‘haunted’ Savannah.

And stay tuned…if it’s ‘active,’ we may even do a livestream!

Later, gators

—Q

If you check into one of these, leave the lights on. It makes it easier for those who’ve never left to find you!😮👻

That’s right! In this month’s edition of all-things ghostly, we will explore (from the safety of our living rooms!) the most haunted—and sometimes least-known—hotels in America. Now, I can hear your burning question as I write this… “Quinn, is there a reason you’re doing this now instead of exploring this in the summer, when most people vacation out of state and could use the heads up?”

Yes, yes! I have a really good reason!

**Wrings hands like that mustached guy in the cartoons who snickers as he ties the damsel to the train tracks…

It’s because a visit to one of these hotels is in my immediate future!

Yes, it’s true! I just got confirmation and am so excited to investigate, photograph, and learn the history about the hotel I will be visiting in March (with my very dear friend and constant source of support, Cyndi!)

Let’s see if you can guess which one of these hotels will attempt to scare the s*%t outta us in a few short weeks!

In exploring these locations, I wanted to hit lesser-known haunts that have compelling stories. So, as we dive in, we’ll put aside the ones nearly everyone has heard about (The Stanley in Colorado, The Cecil in California, Lizzie Borden’s B&B) and look into some locations that are just as active but who, for whatever reason, get much less publicity. Ready? That’s the spirit! (See what I did there? 😉)

Let’s start in California, L.A to be specific. The Millennium Biltmore Hotel is said to house the spirits of several children (including a boy without a face seen on the roof) and the ghost of Elizabeth Short— also known as ‘The Black Dahlia,’—a woman who was murdered and dismembered and is known to have spent her last days at the Biltmore.

Image credit: The Biltmore LA

Fun fact…it also was the hotel Slimer was hanging out in when the snooty manager called the Ghostbusters!

“Someone saw a cockroach up on 12th.”

“Must be some cockroach.”

“Take your head off, man.”

IYKYK 😜

Staying in LA, another creepy haunting is at the Knickerbocker Hotel. This hotel was a favorite of several celebrities, including Howard Hughes, Betty Grable, and Rudy Valentino (who is said to haunt the bar.) Even Marilyn Monroe and Joe DiMaggio spent time here (and Marilyn has been said to still be hanging out in the Ladies Room, fixing her makeup ;) The Biltmore is also where Harry Houdini’s wife would hold seances, trying to connect with him. She did this for over a decade before giving up.

Harry never showed.

But, perhaps Harry found himself at the Roosevelt Hotel instead. This gem, host of the first ever Oscar awards, is said to be visited by Carole Lombard and Montgomery Clift, as well as some reported Marilyn sightings (because, even in death, Marilyn loves to make an entrance!)

Moving east, we find the Crescent Hotel and Spa in Eureka Springs, Arkansas. Just the photos of this place alone make me want to visit. The hotel itself is stunning, with a pretty crazy history. A one-time women’s college, the Crescent eventually became an experimental cancer hospital run by a nutjob named Norman Baker. Baker touted to the world that he’d discovered the ‘cure’ for cancer, despite having no medical degree. Instead, a magician and radio broadcaster, Norman raged against the AMA and promised cancer patients a medicine that would stop their disease in its tracks.

Baker was a con man. He injected patients with pricey cloves and herbs and nonsense, telling them they should be cancer-free in a matter of weeks. Of course, no one’s cancer was cured and, in fact, many of his ‘patients’ died in his care. The tragic end of lives and, more importantly, the cruel realities of false hope, is said to have given rise to the current level of paranormal activity.

Image credit: The New Yorker

You can take a ghost tour, do an investigation, even read through the archives of it’s history that are kept on the fourth floor. Ghost investigations occur every January during the “Eureka Springs Paranormal weekend.’

So, all my Arkansas peeps…let’s do this next year! We can take over the hotel!

Planning a trip to Georgia? If so, don’t miss the Marshall House in Savannah. One of the oldest hotels in the city, the Marshall House was once a civil war hospital and, later, also a hospital for victims of yellow fever. So, yeah, a lot of death occurred here. Which may explain the phantom footsteps, giggling ghost children, and previous hospital patients moaning and screaming in the night.

If you stay here, keep in mind that the fourth floor is said to be particularly active!

Let’s see…what else. Oh, I know. How about the Sagamore Resort in upstate NY in the Adirondacks? The area is known for historic battles in the 1700s. Some even contend the hotel was built on a Native American burial ground (bound to piss off a spirit or two!) So what kind of activity occurs here?

Well, apparently a little boy who was killed by a car right out front in the 1950s haunts the golf course, occasionally throwing a golf ball or taking a tee from a player. There is also said to be a woman who is not a fan of people in her space and will blow cold air onto their eyelids while they are sleeping (Okay, I don’t care how tough you are…that is creepy AF😳) Also, a chef quit after a woman ‘walked right through him’ as he was cooking in the kitchen, and in the dining room, guests have reported a couple fighting where the man throws the woman on the floor, she puts out a hand, then just vanishes.

The Sagamore Resort

**Key previous blogs where we learned the difference between active and residual hauntings. That right there would be a residual…activity on a loop, happening almost the same time every day, and the ghostly participants have no clue you are there. See? Learning is fun!😜

Last one (and one on my bucket list) is the Lord Baltimore Hotel in Baltimore. Site of at least twenty suicides by jumping off the roof, it cements the theory for me that places of great tragedy are almost always a hotbed of paranormal activity.

The hotel, 23 stories high, was the scene of despair and self-harm during the Great Depression. One little girl named Molly is said to haunt the 19th floor, the location of the room she and her parents occupied when, distraught over the stock market crash, they flung themselves off the roof, taking Molly with them.

Hated reading that story. 😭

Image credit: Lobby in the The Lord Baltimore Hotel

There are also reports about the elevator in the hotel—child’s finger prints that cannot be wiped away and an elevator that is often called up to the 19th floor (Molly’s floor) by unseen hands.

So, where, oh where, are Cyndi and I going in March? Did you guess it? The Marshall House in Savannah! I am so psyched and have booked an actual paranormal investigation and a ghost tour there! Why, you ask? Because Book 4, Rosemear, about a haunted mansion and a mystery surrounding that haunting, takes place in Savannah! I need to research the people and her history, so what better way to do that than in person? (I may ask my high school bud (and tax guy Bill) if I can claim this trip as a work deduction lol)

Image credit: The Marshall House

There you have it. Now, your assignment is if you or someone you know has stayed at the Marshall House, drop me a line! I would love to hear if any of my peeps have some inside intel.

Until next time…later, gators!

—Q

Last time, we learned the differences between a residual and intelligent haunt. In this installment, we will learn how to tell a poltergeist haunting from a…gulp…demonic one!

Full disclosure, here…both of these type of haunts are difficult to wrap your head around. Sort of like trying to comprehend how the worlds most popular pencil is a #2 (why not call it #1?) or how surprised we are when our kids, after trying to wrangle their own infant into a onesie, turn to us and say, “Now I get it! Sorry, mom!”

Yeah. Poltergeists and demons are like that. Crazy stuff.

So, what, exactly, is a poltergeist haunt? Glad you asked! The German word ‘poltergeist’ literally means ‘noisy ghost,’ a nod to the paranormal activity usually seen in this type of haunting; unexplained bangs, opening and closing of doors, lights turning on and off, and generally disrupting our environment. In fact, this is the kind of haunting that can not only manipulate your surroundings, but can actually produce physical harm in the form of scratches, bites, or pinching.

But are these poltergeists just pissed off ghosts or what?

Not exactly.

Many paranormal investigators believe poltergeists are non-corporeal (meaning no body) manifestations of energy in overdrive. They are not visible as ghosts sometimes are, and are said to be violent and thoroughly pissed off at the world.

I used to have a friend like that.

A poltergeist will use the energy in a home or business— or even a troubled teen—to increase its strength and capability to mess things up. Many even believe this violent energy is a manifestation of the anger and emotions of a person, usually an adolescent girl. The theory is this mass of spiteful energy is attracted to, and becomes attached to, a person in crisis who, in turn, can control the chaos.

Yet another strike from our friends at Puberty-Hormones, Inc.😜

Poltergeist hauntings are, thankfully, rare. It’s tough enough raising a kid without having one with the ability to telekinetically toss you around the room, am I right?

So, what if it isn’t a person controlling a glob of random, cheesed-off, energy? In that case it is thought that, perhaps, the random non-bodied energy has joined forces with an actual ghost or another grouping of energy. This “coming together” means more power and more destruction is possible.

Image Credit: Pixabay

Because two heads are better than one. Or two riled up, pesky paranormal entities (also known as RUPPE) are better than none.

Made up that last bit, . but admit it…RUPPE could work!

Bottom line? Poltergeist hauntings are scary, sometimes dangerous, types of hauntings that leave you with only two options: Get rid of the teen with angst by sending them off to boot camp, or buy them that nasty video game you’ve said ‘no’ to a dozen times.🤷‍♀️

Before we dive into demons (she said cheekily), a word about a few other mysterious haunting-type entities. The dreaded ‘Shadow People.’

Yeah, yeah, I know what you’re thinking…”But Quinn, are there really such things as short, hooded shadows who dart two and fro, making adults clutch their necks in disbelief and scaring children out of their rooms and away from the hallway?”

Sure are. I know. I’ve seen ‘em.

And no, I don’t have cataracts. Or glaucoma. Legit, I have seen the little buggers in several buildings, whizzing by without a care in the world. Perhaps they are sent to check on people with a pulse; maybe they are entities from another dimension, using a portal to come and go from our world.

Portals. Yeah, a whole new batch of creepy we will get into at another time. For now, though, it’s on to the demon population!

So, what exactly is a demon, you ask? I mean, besides that wicked headache on New Year’s Day after a celebratory evening, or the piercing screams of a toddler who throws himself on the floor in an aisle of the supermarket and begins kicking and screaming.

All because you won’t let him buy an oversized rutabaga (true story.)

I mean, what the hell is a rutabaga anyway? And what was he going to do with it? It’s stuff like this—not demons or monsters—that keeps me up at night.

The word demon actually started out harmless enough. It is a variation of the Greek word ‘daimon’ meaning spirit or supernatural being. Originally, it merely indicated someone who was a spiritually- inclined person. Now, of course, it is associated with evil or malevolence.

A demon (or imp or ghoul or devil…so many options!) is a being who has never been human or had a human form. Some theologians consider them fallen angels, as in the case of Lucifer. Others believe they are angry, malevolent entities or a lower form of a supernatural being. These ‘things’, for lack of a better word, are not here to find closure, as many ghosts who wander the earth are thought to do.

No, these bastards are here for the pain. They are here to revel in suffering and sorrow, and pin their hopes on finding a poor, lost soul just ripe for a possession. It could take weeks, months, years of trying to possess a tortured soul, but a demon has no deadline, no time constraints. They are clever, cunning, and extraordinarily dangerous.

If you believe in them. I, for one, do not.

Don’t get me wrong…I 100% believe that there are evil spirits who prey on the weak. I just happen to think of them as former humans who were shit people. There are a few reasons I think this way.

First and foremost, I refuse to give an evil entity any more power than it already has. There have been stories (not all verified or witnessed) where people claim they were tossed around like a hot potato before being sent flying through the air by some unseen force. I think the most dangerous thing in the world is to give validation to these creatures.

It’s like a serial killer (yeah, yeah, I know. I can’t help it…my mind just goes there.) The last thing you want to do is give him or her an audience. These dudes love their work, and get their jollies just listening to the news and the police talk about their crimes.

It’s like Picasso, getting all warm and tingly when someone gushed about his work—despite his obvious difficulties regarding the placement of facial features.😜

Image credit: Fine Art America

Another reason I refuse to engage in ‘demon’ pillow talk is because I’m kind of afraid it will open a door. Similar to messing with a Ouija board (dear God in heaven, please please don’t do that!) I believe it leaves the soul vulnerable to attack just playing with the board or, in the case of a demon, acknowledging his or her existence.

Image credit: Pixabay

Call me crazy, but there are plenty of demon-like jerks in this world… seems silly to worry about what’ s hanging around in the Underworld.

There it is, my beautiful little Quinlets! Everything you’ve ever wanted to know about hauntings but were too terrified to ask!

Now, I am looking for ideas for next month’s blog. Anything you’d like to explore more? Any haunting case you are dying (hehehe) to learn more about? Please, send me your suggestions! I will make every attempt to research and answer any and all requests😊And, if you witness any paranormal activity in or around you, please take pictures, videos, and recordings and send them my way!

Until next time…keep your mind open and your head on a swivel!

Peace out

—Q

There are four types of hauntings: Residual, Intelligent, Poltergeist, and Inhuman. This month, we will explore Residual vs Intelligent Hauntings.

Residual haunt? Intelligent haunt? Are you experiencing a true haunting? Or, is your ghost an echo of a particular time, place, or event? Just what the blazes is hanging around your house, the local cemetery, the coffee shop? Well, wonder no more, my fine people with a pulse! Today, we will learn the difference!

Let’s start with the one that is most difficult to wrap your noggin around…the residual haunting. Thought to be the type of haunting people experience most often, a residual haunt is like an imprint or memory that plays in a continuous loop.

Like a scratched record from the 70s or a parent telling their toddler for the 456th time that ‘we must not stick sissy’s fingers in the electrical outlet’ , a residual-type haunt plays out the same scene, the same images, the same sounds, over and over. Also known as ‘psychic impressions’ left on a particular location, a residual haunting involves a trapped memory that is ‘absorbed’ (for lack of a better word) into the surroundings.

It’s like taking all your love and hate and anger and confusion regarding a specific event, wrapping it in a ‘Silly Putty’ blanket, and pressing it against the wall, leaving an imprint.

More often than not, residual hauntings occur in areas where strong emotion, duress, or tragedy occurred. These emotions are taken in by the atmosphere and leave a sort of fingerprint on the surroundings because, let’s face it…we are more than a mixed bag of atoms and DNA! All that energy that has to go somewhere when we kick it!

This event or replay of a timeline is like a recording, destined to play to, what is most times, a terrified audience.

But, fear not, folks! Residual haunts cannot hurt you because they are more like a photograph in time than a spirit taking form. In fact, the ‘ghost’ seen in these haunts is created solely from the energy and memory of the building or place it haunts.

So, the living are essentially watching a movie of the dead. There is no communication, no intelligent interaction. Basically, they don’t know you’re there because they aren’t really there.

Sounds like my kids when they were teenagers.

So, how do you know if your haunting is residual? Easy peasy. If the apparitions perform the same acts or steps or motions, seemingly unaware of anything but the ‘loop’ they are playing in, it’s residual. Phantom footsteps, piano music, knocking or voices, can all be evidence your haunt is residual in nature.

But, fear not! It is possible (some say probable) that most hauntings involve both residual and intelligent activity. So, if you have a hankering to jaw with the ghost of Abe Lincoln in the White House, you will probably find him, along with some residual imprints of some of our past president’s indiscretions and energy!

Some examples of residual haunts include the battlefield at Gettysburg and the Myrtle’s Plantation in Louisiana.

Image credit: Military.com

And what about intelligent hauntings, you say? Glad you asked, friends! Here is the difference in a nutshell…interaction!

Ghosts in an intelligent haunt see us, may try to communicate via electronic manipulation, sometimes will even try to talk to us. Disembodied voices are voices we hear with our own ears and don’t require an electronic device to listen to—think moaning, footsteps, whispers. EVP, or electronic voice phenomena, is communication we cannot hear in ‘real time’ with our ears. Instead, sounds and voices are picked up using a digital recorder and played back later.

So, why would a ghost hang around instead of moving on to their next destination? Of course, no one knows for sure. But paranormal investigators believe that the deceased had ‘unfinished’ business here on earth. Perhaps they died in a tragic accident or were killed at the hands of another. Or, maybe they have a message to pass on to a loved one. Sometimes, the emotional ties binding a spirit to a place or person are too great for the ghost to move on.

Image credit: YouTube

And sometimes, the dead don’t even realize they are dead! Which is truly heartbreaking and the reason paranormal investigators are all about ‘crossing over’ a lost spirit.

You know…”go to the light, Carol Anne,” kind of stuff.

Anyhoo…in an intelligent haunt, you may see doors or cabinets opening or closing by themselves, shadow people, or radios or televisions that turn on and off. Physical effects of a ghostly presence vary. You might feel a hand on your arm or a finger brushing back your hair, or you may experience ‘goosebumps’ on your neck or feel a sudden chill in the air.

And, of course, the Mack Daddy of all, you may physically see them. Sometimes they are transparent, sometimes as real and vivid as you or I.

All that being said, keep in mind that not every entity is a pleasant one. Just as in life, there are some pretty pissed off spirits in this world. A negative energy can have consequences, both physical and emotional. So, if you do encounter something that seems angry, violent, or mischievous, tread carefully. There is no shame in asking for help when ridding your space of a nasty ghost.

Because, let’s face it…we can’t all be Casper.

Image credit: Wikipedia

One last word about seeing or interacting with spirit. As we get older and more jaded, adults sometimes are blind to what is right in front of us. And I’m not talking ‘male’ blindness here—

Husband: Dear, have you seen my lucky socks?

Wife: Probably in your lucky sock drawer, sweetie.

Husband: sigh…I don’t see them. How about the severed head I put in the fridge?

Wife: Top shelf, next to the mayo.

Husband: (Laughing) Oh, there it is! If it had teeth it would have…oh, wait…

No, I’m speaking of adults and how we disavow what our eyes and hearts and brains tell us occasionally. And not just with ghostly phenomena, either. Children are programmed to believe what they see because they have not experienced deceit( or a weekend binger that sets off some pretty crazy delusions.)

Children, as well as household pets, are pure of heart and not cynical like their parents. So if your kid tells you there is a creepy guy in a clown suit hanging out in the closet (or in the sewers😳) or the dogs are barking at walls, refusing to go into certain areas of the house, or stealing a few swigs of your whiskey while shaking in their boots, listen to them.

And for the love of all that is holy, if they tell you to GTFO the house, don’t stop to put on lipstick!

That’s it for now. Next time, we will visit the other two, more frightening types of hauntings: Poltergeist activity and demons. Yikes.

Later, gators

—Quinn

How can identical twins, in some cases unaware of each other’s existence, demonstrate parallel lives?

Whelp, I admit it. I am not a twin and, furthermore, I’ve not had any twin children. Which, to be honest, annoys the crap out of me. I mean, here I am, in an extended family dripping with twins. And all I can offer is a measly, single birth.

It’s embarrassing.

But, ever the optimist, I’ve researched strange events between twins and have found it fascinating. The stories are crazy! A twin who ‘feels’ his twin’s pain from surgery. Or ‘feels’ the impact his or her twin had during a car accident. I’ve even found some twins who swear they knew when their twin died.

And I believe it all.

I have always felt a strong bond with both my sister and brother. As we’ve grown, that bond has only gotten stronger. It seems whenever I think about one of my siblings, they call, text, or suggest a visit. So, I admit, I have trouble wrapping my head around friends or family members who haven’t spoken to their brothers or sisters for years. I cannot imagine not having contact with my ‘sibs.’ And, I’m sure—as their favorite sister—they would be crushed without my wit and loving personality. 😜

Our connection, I believed, was a strong as any siblings could have. Apparently, I was wrong.

Those stinkin’ twins, with their freakish physical and psychic connection, beat us out every time.

No one likes a show-off.

But first, a little history. There are three types of twins; Fraternal, identical, and cojoined. Fraternal twins share a womb but have their own DNA, like any other sibling. Identical twins are exact replica’s of each other, in both appearance and DNA. They are sometimes referred to as the ‘mirror image’ of each other…one may have a mole on the left cheek, the other on the right. Or one may be right-handed, the other left. Cojoined, or Siamese twins, are always identical twins and, most often, female.

Brittany and Abby Hensel. Image credit: NYDailynews

Two famous cojoined twins come to mind…Abby and Brittany Hensel, who have two heads and one body, and the Bunker twins, Chang and Eng, Siamese-American twins for which the term ‘Siamese’ twins was born. Cojoined at the sternum, separation would have proved fatal at the time (1811) but, with today’s medical advances, would have been an easy surgery.

The brother’s died in 1874, within hours of each other.

Chang and Eng Bunker. Image credit: Wikipedia

Studies have been conducted on the unbreakable, unique bond of siblings who happen to be twins. There are countless stories of identical twins who have gotten married or given birth or even died on the same day. Many of these people not only lived hundreds of miles away but, in some cases, were separated at birth and unaware of their twin’s existence.

Like I said. Freaks.

The Silent Twins. Image credit: Cracked.com

Take the case of The Silent Twins. (Why did I just hear a Vincent Price piano intro here?) Jenifer and June Gibbons were twins who, born in Barbados, grew up in Wales. They were dubbed the ‘silent twins’ because they decided on a life of selective mutism, speaking only to each other in a cryptic language no one else understood. As they grew, both their refusal to speak and odd behavior began to morph into something more disturbing.

Like going from being besties, giggling and writing stories and doing each other’s hair, to trying to kill each other. Like, literally.

Jennifer Gibbons tried to strangle June with an electrical cord; June threw her sister off a bridge. You know—good, clean fun.😳

After several rounds of theft, vandalism, and arson, their parents were urged to commit them to a psychiatric hospital, where they stayed for eleven years. One day, the twins’ decided the only way to ensure longevity was for one of them to die. That way, the surviving twin could go on to live a normal life.

Call me crazy, but weren’t they both a tad nutty to start with? How ‘normal’ a life could they have?

But wait, it gets better! After discussing it among themselves (in that creepy, no language-language, no doubt) Jennifer decides to take one for the team and, at age 29, tells June she will be the one to die. And days later, as they were being transferred to a new psychiatric facility, Jennifer did just that. Her sudden and unexpected death was attributed to a sudden inflammation of the heart.

I hear that, following Jennifer’s death, June did become a version of ‘normal’, and went on to marry and start a family.

Next up, the famous ‘Jim Twins.’ Adopted out to separate families at just 4 weeks old, these identical twins (both named ‘James’ by their adoptive parents) found each other when they were close to 40 years old. Only one Jim knew was aware he had a brother out there and began a search later in life. When they finally found each other, what they learned about the similarities they shared throughout their lives was shocking.

For example, along with both boys being named James, both men had children and named their son, James Allan. Both had grown up with a dog they named ‘Toy’ and got headaches the same time of day. James Springer married a woman named Linda, divorced her, and married a woman named Betty; James Lewis married a woman named Linda, divorced her, and married a lady named Betty.

👀😳

Oh, and both men were chain smokers (Salem cigarettes), drank Miller beer (🤢) and had careers in law enforcement.

The ‘Jim twins.’ Image credit: Cracked.com

Moving on, Craig and Mark Saunders were identical twins who did everything together, which, not for nothing, conjured up all sorts of privacy violations in my head. As it turns out, privacy may not be a ‘thing’ for some siblings.

The brothers’ got engaged on the same day , after several double dates with identical twins Diane and Darlene Nettemeier. Later, they married the sisters on the same day. Then, because none of them wished to be separated, they moved into side-by-side homes in the same town…next door neighbors forever.

And, as if that wasn’t enough, Diane and Craig went on to have a set of identical twins of their own.

Or, how about this one? In what has been calculated as a one in a million chance, fraternal twins named Ashlee Spinks and Andrea Springer gave birth to twins, both boys, on the same day. Oh, and they neither planned to get pregnant together nor used fertility drugs, which makes it even more remarkable.

Say, did you know that there can be identical triplets? Yep, crazy pants. Did you also know that there are evil bastards in this world who think nothing of making guinea pigs out of innocent children in the name of science?

Now you do.

Meet Eddy Galland, David Kellman, and Robert Shafran, identical triplets who were born in 1961 and adopted at birth by three different families. Interesting to note here that there were actually four babies, the fourth brother dying at birth.

Quadruplets. I couldn’t find if the fourth child was also identical but the odds are like one in 11 million births. Wowza.

But, as always—with the attention span of a gnat—I digress. The brother’s discovered each other after a fluke encounter when Robert was attending a NY college. There, he had people coming up to him constantly, calling him Eddy. Eddy, outgoing and well-liked, had attended the same university recently. Eventually the two met, realized they were siblings, and posted their story to social media.

Which caught the eye of the third brother, David. Once he eyed the brothers, he knew he was their identical triplet.

These three strangers, in a quest to know each other better, dove into their relationship with all the feets. They became a media sensation, opened a restaurant, moved in together. Soon, though, it became obvious that the brothers were more dissimilar than similar. Their relationship began to crack as issues with mental health surfaced. Sadly, brother Eddy lost his battle with depression and took his own life in 1995.

Identical triplets. Image credit: Wbur.org

Now, the evil side of that story. The triplet’s mother, young and single at the time, gave the boys up for adoption and, unbeknownst to the adoptive parents, the children were subsequently separated and enrolled in a study by a couple of psychiatrists. The experiment, which involved several visits and examinations by psychiatric doctors, intended to measure the ‘nature vs nurture’ theory by placing each child in a different socio-economic status—blue collar, middle-class, and affluent—to assess behavioral or personality differences attributed to social standing. The adoptive parents of each child had no knowledge of the experiment, instead being told the frequent assessments and evaluations were a part of the adoption agency rules and regulations.

They were essentially unwilling, unknowing, lab rats. Talk about unscrupulous. And, sad to say, they were not the only ones enrolled in the ‘developmental study.’ There were a few other sets of twins being studied at the time, all without the knowledge of either the subjects or their parents.

The triplet’s story sparked a Netflix movie, a documentary called ‘Three Identical Strangers.” Today, the surviving twins are still in touch and see each other when they can.

There you have it, folks. Only a smattering of stuff I dug up while researching the mystery of twins. Say, are you a twin? Have any interesting stories about your life? If I get enough feedback, I will do a special ‘twin’ feature with your stories!

Until then, stay safe, enjoy Turkey day, and thanks for reading!

—Q

The Fascinating, disturbing truth about a small town, a family feud, and the power of suggestion!

In honor of Halloween 2022, I thought we’d look at one of the most well-known miscarriages of justice in the history of our courts…the Salem Witch Trials.

Witch Hunt—”A search for and subsequent persecution of a supposed witch; a campaign directed against a person or group holding unorthodox or unpopular views.”

Image credit; Alamy.com

The never-ending search for evil doers, in the form of witches, originally began in 14th century Europe. There, countries like Germany, France, Italy, and Switzerland, are said to have tried over 100,000 people for suspected witchcraft. Of those, over 50,000 were burned at the stake.

Fast-forward to the U.S in the 17th century when, for nearly a year, ‘witch-fever’ seemed to overtake a small village in Massachusetts. Back then, there were actually two ‘Salem’ named towns within ten miles of each other. Salem Town (which would eventually become modern-day Salem) was populated by citizens said to be the well-bred upper crust of the area. In contrast, it’s sister town, Salem Village, was populated by poor farmers.

So, what was the goal of these Salem witch hunts, you ask? Simple. The people believed witches were immoral, men and women in cahoots with Satan himself. If a person promised their soul to the devil, he would assist them in magical and evil deeds. Such people were thought to have the ability to shape-shift into animals and enchant animals into becoming their ‘familiars.’ In fact, these crazy witches, in their unholy debauchery, would fly to secret meetings and orgies and seances, not on a broom like we have been told, but on a stick or pole.

Think I went to school with a girl who could do that ;)

So, how would an innocent man or woman get on the witch-hunter’s radar? Who were these cockamamie accusers, anyway? To understand that, you need to understand the powerful players in both ‘Salems’ at the time. There were two families, not unlike the Hatfield and Mccoy’s, whose sole purpose seemed to be pissing each other off. The Porter’s, a wealthy family in Salem Town, were pitted against the Putnam’s, poor farmers in the community of Salem Village.

As I researched this, I came to the conclusion that both the Putnams and the Porters were assholes.

The bad blood between them stemmed from land disputes and political disagreements. When the Putnam’s lured an Orthodox Puritan pastor to minister to the Village church, folks were not happy. Pastor Samuel Parris, with his fire and brimstone sermons and divisive ways, created a deep divide between the community.

Basically, you were either pro-Parris or you got on his caca list.

When the people had enough and Parris lost his job, he was less than pleased. And coincidentally (italicized because it’s not coincidental at all!) when that happened, lo and behold, his daughter and niece became the first in the Village to level an accusation of witchcraft against an innocent party. Seems the girls had been dabbling in fortune telling and acting stranger than usual (screaming, contorting their bodies, convulsion-like fits. Yeah, I’d say that’s weird.) and needed an excuse for their bizarre behavior.

Teenagers, am I right? Always with the lame excuses…’My dog ate my homework’ or ‘I’m the only one who doesn’t have a Nintendo Switch’ or ‘Ms. Sarah is a witch and we need to kill her.’

Silly gooses.

Anyway the girls—after being interrogated (and probably terrified) by Samuel Parris into pointing a finger at someone who could have caused their behavior— yielded. The girls’ accused the family slave, ‘Tituba’, along with two local and extremely poor women, Sarah Good and Sarah Osborne. Good was a town beggar known for being a bit of a smart ass; Osborne was an elderly, bed-ridden woman. Tituba, after extreme questioning that, no doubt, included torture, confessed to not only being a witch but threw both Sarah’s under the bus as well, testifying she ‘saw their names’ on Satan’s list.

CYA I suppose.

And, just like that, group think and hysteria and suspicion built until everyone got in the act—neighbors turned on neighbors, friends on friends. And the Putnam’s? Turns out they were responsible for dozens of accusations.

What did you have to prove when making an accusation? Um, nothing, really. All you needed was rumor, suspicion, knowledge of a third nipple. The courts even allowed what was known as ‘spectral’ evidence, when the accusers would relate how they were kicked, bitten, or punched by an invisible demon under the control of the accused.

Crazy pants.

So, what happens when you are accused of the crime of witchcraft or sorcery? Why, you end up in court, of course!

As a side note regarding the legal system, the Salem Witch Trials were part of the impetus for criminal justice reform, leading to significant changes in how we do things. Like, innocent until proven guilty, the guarantee of legal representation, not allowing ghost evidence to be admissible.

Or, at least, not letting ghost evidence convict you.

Which is a good thing. And, not to sound like a Polly Anna, but the subsequent changes to the legal system after the witch trials gives meaning to those 25 meaningless deaths.

Yes, you heard right. There were 19 people executed during the trials; the other’s died due to the deplorable and inhumane conditions in the ‘dungeon’, aka the prison basement where countless accused waited for their day in court.

Their day when, representing themselves without benefit of counsel, they, literally, fought for their lives. If they confessed to being a witch, they were spared. If they professed their innocence, they went to trial and were subjected to the Witch Tests.

Tests that no one could actually pass but like, why let that stop ‘em?

My personal favorite had to be the ‘water’ test. You bind a suspected witch, hands and feet, and toss them into a vat of water. If they float, they’re a witch. If they don’t, they are found innocent.

Of course, the poor bastards drowned before they could hear those sweet words, ‘Not guilty.’ But, don’t bother me with trifles.

They also tested the defendant’s faith, asking them to recite the Lord’s Prayer or other scripture without screwing up. One misstep, and they were found guilty.

But, at least those that failed the previous tests didn’t have to go through the ‘scratch’ test. ‘Victims’ would scratch the accused until he or she bled. If the victim professed to feel better once the accused bled, they were proven to be a witch.

Innocent people were subjected to starvation, torture, and humiliating ‘body’ checks while housed in the prison basement awaiting trial. Women, particularly, were made to strip and their bodies poked and prodded. Examiners were looking for beauty marks, freckles, scars, and the aforementioned third nipple. All were said to herald contact with the devil.

My beauty mark-infested body would be in serious trouble.

In the end, 19 people were executed. Contrary to belief, none were burned at the stake. (Well, in the US anyway. Many were burned at the stake in Europe🤷‍♀️) In all but one instance, the ‘offenders’ were hung very shortly after trial (like a week later😢)

Image Credit: History of Massachusetts.

The convicted person who was not hung was named Giles Corey. Giles was said to be a grouchy curmudgeon of a man who catered to no one. He refused to make any kind of plea and was subjected to ‘pressing.’ Stones were laid upon his chest, one heavier than the next, until he succumbed three days later from traumatic asphyxia.

Image credit: Intheolives.com

The others who died in this senseless campaign died in the prison from starvation, torture, or a combination of the two. The oldest to be accused was well in her seventies, the youngest just four-years old.

Dorcas Good, barely out of diapers, spent months in that prison while the courts decided what to do with her. During Dorcas’s imprisonment, her mother, Sarah, was hung. Her baby sister, born in the prison, died shortly after birth.

So, there you have it. Proof that hysteria is contagious and fear can make people do, and confess to, anything to save themselves.

Hoping you have a fabulous Halloween and, if this back story touched your heart as it did mine, dress up this year as a witch…a collective ‘na-na-na-boo-boo” to the three ‘P’s”—the Putnam’s, the Porter’s, and Samuel Parris.

Later, gators

—Q