Sue Darroch and Matthew Didier's Paranormal Blog

"In the Afghan capital, Kabul, a fortune teller consults one woman while another waits her turn. Fortune telling was banned in Afghanistan until the Taleban regime was ousted in 2001."

Happy Wordless Wednesday! Thank you for stopping by! Please note that this entry is for both the Tuesday, and Wednesday editions of WW. Hope I didn't scare ya too much!

For a list of other Wordless Wednesday participants please click here.

Image Credit: BBC

Brian Vike of HBCC UFO Research in Terrace, British Columbia has been receiving numerous reports of possible Sasquatch activity in recent months.

The following was reported by The Province on Thursday,September 25, 2008.

Tales of a giant, hairy ape-like creature trampling through the woods are running wild in a northern Interior town after a rash of Sasquatch sightings.

There have been three reported sightings in the area within a month, said Brian Vike, director of HBCC UFO Research.

"To be honest with you, I don't know what to make of all this," said Vike. "I know with UFOs we're doing well in B.C., but I don't know with the Sasquatch. I'm just trying to figure it out."

One of the sightings was reported by Houston resident Delores Harrie, who was at home on July 28, just after 6 p.m., when her two dogs began barking furiously.

She saw the doorknob rattle, and when she went outside to investigate, she saw a shaggy creature runing across the tree line into the bushes:

"It was huge, about seven to eight feet tall, and hairy," said Harrie, 45.

"He had long hair, shaggy, . . . in a pine-beetle colour, totally covered.

"I couldn't believe how fast he moved," she added.

"I can't see it being a grizzly. They run but they don't run on two legs, and I know it's not a moose either."

Harrie reported the incident to Vike, who investigated and recorded some strange markings on the ground.

"Definitely, something had been there," said Vike.

"There's some cow tracks, but this was something else - someone with a good-sized foot."

The other sightings were on Morgan Road in Houston in July and on Telkwa Highway Road in Moricetown, about an hour and a half away, on Aug. 27.

There was also a reported Sasquatch encounter in Campbell River on Aug. 31.

Vike said he gets periodic Sasquatch sightings across B.C. and the Pacific Northwest but it hasn't been active - until recently.

Harrie, who was "freaked out" about the encounter, said she's trying to be open-minded about what she saw.

"There's so many things out there I think it would be a little crazy to think we're the only ones here."

Full article here

I cannot help not to notice the increase of Bigfoot activity that is occurring along with an increase in UFO activity in the region, and can only speculate if they may or may not be somehow related?

Our Do's and Don't checklist for investigations is drummed into the memory of everyone who volunteers with us. We feel that each of these are pretty much common sense, but we still print it off for all of our newbies as they are good rules of thumb to follow.

DO:

- ALWAYS be polite, courteous, and respectful no matter what the circumstances.

- Arrange when and what time you will be starting your investigation with whomever you need permission from and BE ON TIME!

- Arrange when and where you're team will meet and what roles who might fill before heading out.

- Obey any rules the owners/tenants have laid down. Breaking a rule in the name of research makes a good "Movie of the Week" but will almost guarantee you will not be invited back.

- APPOINT LEADERS and make sure that they can coordinate amongst themselves successfully.

- LEAVE THE AREA YOU ARE ASSIGNED IN THE SAME CONDITION OR BETTER THAN WHEN YOU ARRIVED!

- BE QUIET AND RESPECTFUL OF YOUR TEAM'S RESEARCH AND YOUR TEAM IN GENERAL!

- LEAVE your investigation on time. Respect the property owner's time. Do not make someone miss a home cooked meal or a date because YOU want half an hour more to fuddle around in an attic.

DON'T:

- Smoke unless you are absolutely certain it is ok to do so.

- Smoke while someone's taking a picture nearby.

- Make a lot of noise around recording equipment.

- LITTER!

- CONSUME ALCOHOL of any quantity before, during, or immediately after an investigation. This should go without saying, but any illegal substance either. The latter will have you removed from our team.

- "Break in" to a sealed room or home to get a better picture or whatever.

- TALK TO THE PRESS WITHOUT CONSULTING YOUR LEAD!

- Assume the jokes you're making are funny to everyone.

- FORCE SOMEONE TO DO SOMETHING THEY DON'T WANT TO DO!

Of course this is added to, and tailored for each unique outing, but over all these are the most important points we like to cover.

Fort William First Nation, Thunder Bay Ontario June 21st 2008 2:00 - 2:30 am approx.

The witness describes seeing a multicolored ( blue/red/yellow hues) object that was a ball or star shaped. The witness states it came from SE and moved to NW but stopped and levitated up and down for about 5 minutes. Duration of sighting was approx 20 mins. The object was faster than a satellite slower than a comet or meteor, and when last seen shot straight up and disappeared.

Our thanks to the witness for contacting us, and sharing this experience with us. If you have witnessed something similar especially at this location and/or time please contact us.

Each Friday we will have a look at the stories and experiences that have been related to us over the years that are amongst our personal favourites. These will include Crypto, Ghosts, Hauntings, UFO's, and other strange events that may be considered Fortean, from in around the Toronto, Canada area .... and since they are from our own personal files will likely not be found elsewhere on the web .... enjoy!

Cineplex Odeon Eglinton Town Centre - Scarborough Ontario

I was wondering if you've heard of any sightings at the Cineplex Odeon Eglinton Town Centre Cinemas location. The theatre is located at 22 Lebovic Avenue in Scarborough, Ontario. The closest intersection is Warden Avenue and Eglinton Avenue East.

I've heard stories of garbage bins turning corners and rolling down ramps by themselves (from leveled ground) to "reserved" signs moving when no one's around.

As a former employee, I've experienced a fridge door closing on it's own. When I went to ask the other employees who were working with me at the time, they told me that they weren't anywhere nearby.

The stories that intrigue me the most, though, is that of a little boy, a man and a little girl who wander the theatre. I haven't experienced anything with the little boy or the man (or as the employees call him now, "their father"), but the little girl is another story.

After finishing a movie one night, a group of friends and myself were talking just outside the auditorium. one friend asked the rest of us if we saw a little girl walking up and down the stairs. The majority of us said "no", but another friend saw the little girl as well.

I just recently heard a story about a little girl found in the female change room.

There's been rumours that the theatre is built over an old Native Indian burial ground, but that story seems a little too convenient and a little "Hollywood" to me.

The theatre was opened in 2000. Before that, I believe it may have been a block of factories or something. I'm not really sure. Also, the street (Lebovic Avenue) was made to give cars access to the block (the theatre is part of a plaza).

That's pretty much all the information I have so far. I plan on going back to the theatre within the next couple weeks. When I do visit, I'll try getting more information/stories about the three people.

Our thanks to this witness for writing in and sharing their experiences at this theatre. Have you had a similar experience? Do you have any information that you would like to add? If so, please contact us.

Please note the image above is not the same cinema, but is another Odeon in Toronto. It is for aesthetic purposes to this entry only.

We would also like to take this opportunity to introduce you to a website that contains nutritional supplements including fat burners for those that are interested in these types of products, and like a good bargain. Please note that this is informational only, and we have not tried these ourselves.

Have a great weekend!

In my opinion a beautiful photo of our very own Robin (middle) during a handfasting ceremony while at the Mothman Festival. I hope she does not mind my sharing it here with you.

If you have not picked up any of robin's books yet, you have got to check out Haunted Hospitality, which features the very haunted Lowe Hotel. Information on purchasing the book can be found here.

Robin has returned from giving her talk on the history of paranormal happenings around the Point Pleasant, and surrounding areas during the Mothman 2008 Festival. For those who are already part of our Facebook group (see side link) we have posted a bunch of photos from this once a year super-fun event. I particularly enjoy the Mystery Machine pics....but I digress.

We will try to have a page up on the PSICAN site with some limited pics over the weekend for those of you not on Facebook.

I have not seen her yet, but hopefully Robin snagged some groovy swag like personalized pens or other Mothman merch that you tend to see at these types of conventions

He's popped up on trees, sandwiches and even a Cheeto and now Jesus is leaving his mark, so-to-speak, on a ceiling in Arkansas City, Kansas.

The image appeared at the One Stop Body Shoppe, a low-impact weight loss clinic for women, after a rain storm.

Full KTLA Article Here

I admit that I am not a religious person, nor a Christian, but if I were I do not think the messiah would be appearing just anywhere like this.

I have a strong hunch that as the world sleeps deeper into hard economic times we will be seeing more of these types of images or at least what people in need of spiritual guidance will perceive them to be.

Boo!

Happy Wordless Wednesday! Thank you for stopping by! Please note that this entry is for both the Tuesday, and Wednesday editions of WW. Hope I didn't scare ya too much!

For a list of other Wordless Wednesday participants please click here.

Many people in all areas of the paranormal claim things just won't happen or won't be experienced unless the witness of the events has an "open mind". There is some truth to that because I hope we all know that the human brain does have a perception filter nicely built in that occasionally does filter out things we probably don't need to concern ourselves with too much... like a stray dust particle flying into our face, an ant under foot during a long stroll, or a multitude of other like things... basically, our brain might acknowledge their existence, but then banishes the importance of the event as not needing to be given too much strength in our day to day life.

Now, what if (from the corner of your eye,) you "saw" something odd... but when you re-examined where it was supposed to be, nothing was there? Would you spend days or hours being overly concerned about that? Nope... your brain knows it's not that important.

So, in this instance, keeping an open mind means to be keeping your brain from not excluding what it feels is not important.

Problem is, this is most definitely not what so many people mean when they accuse others of not owning those minds which are ever so open... and we've seen this, as I'm sure you have, all too many times.

The overly credulous... those "too-true believers" out there accuse anyone who doubts something of not having an open mind...

Conversely, the so-called sceptics (not REAL sceptics)... the "non-believers" accuse anyone who refuses to budge from their faith as not having an open mind...

So which is it?

The answer is that the definition of open mind changes with whoever is accusing their opposite of not having one. In other words, an open mind may not actually exist... as such.

To be honest, we've been claiming... no, begging people keep a genuinely open mind... open to the possibilities that paranormal things happen and open to the possibility that paranormal things can be explained without being terribly paranormal.

In other words, don't take belief or disbelief on faith alone... but question (quite literally) everything and although there's nothing wrong with faith in things, you must discern what is absolute empirical fact from what is what is faith only.

So, the next time you see a light in the sky and say, That's just a satellite probably. and somebody near you says you need to keep an "open mind"... remind them you are... open to all possibilities... which means, you're open to it likely being just a satellite. Next time you are shown a picture of a rainstorm and see absolutely nothing and are told there are faces in the clouds looking down... but you'll only see them with an "open mind"... think to yourself... is that person keeping an open mind, or closing themselves off to more normal explanations so that they can slide back onto more "paranormal" answers for proof of their faith?

It does go both ways though... if someone tells you that the sighting of a ghost in a location is just a hallucination... and seven people have seen that ghost at different times without knowing about previous sightings... that's some hallucination... being able to copy itself for so many people at different times... that's some coincidences... or is it the lack of an open mind on the part of someone grasping at a "normal" answer to something that may not have an easy answer?

The point of this article is that a truly open mind is open to all possibilities... both for and against certain explanations... and that "open" and "absolute belief/faith" and "open" and "scientific observation" are not mutually exclusive...

Sometimes, some of the people that claim others do not have open minds are just as closed as they assume their opposite number to be.

On a quick note with today being the very last day of summer in the Northern Hemisphere this a good time to start checking out the deals on a good dehumidifier. If you click on the link you can check out some quality products that you'll appreciate if you are a fellow allergy sufferer.

Have a great week ahead!

Yes, I know its Friday and you might be reading this because you are here for Freaky Friday when we usually highlight some of our favorites reports of ghosts, hauntings, UFOs, aliens, and other things that go bump in the night.

Since we are both pretty sick (in the fluish sorta way) I did not get one prepared for ya, but if you need a paranormal fix, and your on Facebook please do check out our Canadian Paranormal Facebook Group. Although we are Canada centric in our investigations we do welcome people from around the globe, and the group is really starting to take off.

You can also check out our Freaky Friday archive that has 70 + reports of paranormal encounters.

Have a great weekend everyone, and hopefully we'll be back next Friday with a good freaky story to end off the week.

The very nice thing about re-doing the whole websites is that some people are being introduced to older articles we've written...

One of them has even spurred on a WONDERFUL gift for something we've been wanting to assist in our work for years at The T/OGHRS groups...

A kind benefactor has sent us a mini-weather station that is for "indoor/outdoor" use!

This will allow for a myriad of experiments and readings we've been dying to do while on investigations... and we look forward to "breaking the unit in" over the next few weeks.

Again, our many, many thanks to the kind person who's donated this piece of equipment to our cause!

Or What Should I Look For?

This is a continuation of our how to series. For similar article please see the How We Do The Things We Do category. As a TOP NOTCH researcher for the GHRS, you are expected to become a MASTER detective of the Sherlock Holmes variety! Okay, well, you should become familiar with SOME things...

#1: Look for odd or "out of sorts" things on the investigation. For example, we have now been to two investigations where for whatever reason; most of the major appliances have not been plugged in. Make notes as this is odd and MAY explain something later on down the road.

#2: Watch the behaviour of those who reported the incident if they are near or watching you. Are they trying to lead you somewhere? Why? Has their story changed?

#3: Look for obvious weirdness. Okay, I know. I'm in a "haunted house", what else could be weird? Well, if the people LIVE in the home, are the windows are all open in the middle of February? If so, why? Check bookshelves. What are they reading? What videotapes do they own? If it's nothing but Stephen King and they seem to be suffering only at late night, could it be nightmares?

#4: Be aware of architecture. If they say the house was built in 1890 but aren't REALLY sure, make sure there is a coal chute or obvious signs of multiple fireplaces. Roughly how old would you say the houses around theirs are? Are there obvious signs of an addition built recently? An example of this is spotting a woman in an old hoop skirt dusting in the second story den of a century home... Wouldn't it be a LITTLE odd if the room she's been seen in was added in 1977? It doesn't preclude that the ghost does not exist but actually poses some interesting questions...

#5: Who are the witnesses? Was the reporter sending you what their eight year old son (who's in therapy and on Ritalin,) saw and managed to convince you BEFORE arriving that it was their own testimony? (Trust me, it happens.)

#6: Are the people DEEPLY involved in a religion or cult? Look for MANY religious icons and yes, even shrines. Remember, when you carry ONE belief to an extreme, you could be taking some others along for the ride. AGAIN, just make a mental note... This really may not mean ANYTHING.

#7: As corny as it sounds, ask how the pets are behaving. Case in point, on one investigation, we were told the family dogs would NOT happily go into the "haunted" room yet while we were there, one dog literally BOUNCED into the room, jumped onto the bed and sat there looking at us wagging it's tail. This dog did NOT seem stressed about its surroundings in this room but the owners insisted it was. Go figure.

#8: WATCH YOURSELF! Are you looking too hard for something? Let's face it, if somethings there to be found, you WILL probably find it without too much work but if you find yourself STRAINING to get a glimpse of something or hear something, you probably will even though it's more likely than not, all in your head. Go with the flow, do not be "lead down the garden path" by someone vindicating their own views or experiences and judge for yourself. DO take all accounts into consideration and on final presentation; make sure all versions are heard. TRUST ME, nobody's always right... even CSICOP... even GHRS.

VERY IMPORTANT: In June of 2003, a nineteen year-old Western New York GHRS member was on a private, non-GHRS investigation when he was struck from behind and killed by a car on a dark country road. The driver was intoxicated and the young man on the road was dressed in dark clothing. This is not and excuse but, it is the facts.

This driver was not part of the investigative team but, a person who just happened to be on the road at the time. IT was not intentional, it was, for all intents and purposes, an accident. A person putting their own "need to be somewhere" despite their intoxication over the life of an anonymous pedestrian. A nineteen year old man who, as a 'day job', worked with children and was well liked and admired by those that knew him.

We at the GHRS in the memory of this young ghost investigator cannot stress the importance of either dressing to be seen or, if nothing else, wearing some reflective tape or other type of highly visible type of clothing or straps so that this tragedy will never happen again to a GHRS person or *any* ghost enthusiast or researcher.

Please, take the time to be sure to be seen while out in the field. It will not be only good to avoid traffic or other accidents but, also assists in being seen as a "researcher" in long distance photos and videos.

Most hardware stores, auto parts stores and camping stores sell reflective tape, stickers or straps for bags, cameras or whatever. A few dollars spent on this could save a life.

And on that note I would like to add that if someone on your team is struggling with a substance abuse problem it behooves you as a group to suggest either a drug rehab or an experienced alcohol rehab treatment program so that they can get the help they need. It should go without saying, but any substance that impairs judgment, and thinking capabilities should never be used on an investigation. Ever!

"Royal Canadian Air Force pilot R. J. Childerhose, while flying in a 4 plane formation at an altitude of about 11 km on 27-Aug-1956 7:20PM, saw and photographed a bright, sharply-defined disk, that was remaining stationary between the clouds."

Happy Wordless Wednesday! Thank you for stopping by! Please note that this entry is for both the Tuesday, and Wednesday editions of WW.

For a list of other Wordless Wednesday participants please click here.

Image Credit

We received a nice message from a couple who are just starting out investigating ghosts & hauntings in the Georgian Bay area of the province. They are seeking reports of paranormal activity in and around Midland, Penetanguishene and the Western Islands of Georgian Bay.

We could offer them little help in this regard. Unfortunately, and despite being online since 1997 other than a Discovery Harbour write-up, we have received only two other reports from private property owners and neither gave us permission to publish their stories online. So that is three total in almost a 12 years!

This area has got to be the most under reported on our website, and I put that down to poorer internet accessibility in the past. At least that is my guess. Historically the region should lend itself well to ghost stories, in theory we should actually have far more from there than say Peterborough to the east, but we do not.

If you have any stories to share please contact us. We are particularly looking for public locations that would not mind having people visit, and potentially looking into reports of ghosts & hauntings.

Thank you in advance!

In other news I would like to pass along this tip to anyone who may be in need of a baby seat. Britax car seats are available at great prices via the link I have added in for you. Safety and safe driving are very important to our group as is obeying existing provincial laws. All young children must be properly restrained in vehicles, and this product provides you peace of mind in knowing your child is properly restrained. Have a look by clicking on the link.

Hope everyone is enjoying a nice if rainy weekend here in T.O.

Please join us on our brand new Canadian Paranormal Facebook Group. Although we are Canada centric in our investigations we do welcome people from around the globe.

If you are interested in paranormal social networking but do not have a Facebook account you are certainly welcome to join our paranormal discussion forums. We moderate heavily so that people are given a safe, and intelligent place to discuss the topics we love, ghosts, ufos, and other creatures that go bump in the night!

Each Friday we will have a look at the stories and experiences that have been related to us over the years that are amongst our personal favourites. These will include Crypto, Ghosts, Hauntings, UFO's, and other strange events that may be considered Fortean, from in around the Toronto, Canada area .... and since they are from our own personal files will likely not be found elsewhere on the web .... enjoy!

I'm writing about one of my childhood homes that my family resided in from 1978-1989. The house on (deleted for privacy) was once a single family structure that my father had converted into apartment in the 1960s. The apartments were rented out to numerous tenants over the years until my family lived in the whole house again as one unit; that is using all the units for our own use. During that time my family had experienced some things which make us believe to this day that there is someone else sharing the apartment house. Most of the sightings were in the back half of the house on lower and upper floors.

My mother claims that some old tenants of the apartments said that they would see a woman with short hair wearing a dress and a shawl. My mother never had seen the woman herself however had an experience while removing dishes from a kitchen cupboard she had dropped plates as she had felt as if someone/thing had forced her arms downward.

My sister saw the woman in the back apartment on the second floor which use to be a bedroom in the original layout of the house. During the conversion to apartments my father had added on to the back and had created a 2 story addition where access ways to new rooms were once windows or doors. My sister used this room as her bedroom. She had seen the woman in the room and had something loom over her while in bed. She had seen her many times while she lived in the house until she moved out and married in 1981. One time she had seen the woman during daylight hours in the kitchen, pointing to her with my brother and mother in the room but they could not see her.

Myself, I had seen a dark shadow on the wall in that room while was going up to sleep one night. I had to pass through the room to access my room through a new doorway where a window would have once been. The shadow was strange as the light source into the room came from behind the wall I on which saw the shadow on. It was a huge silhouette of a woman with short hair.

A few years later my Grandmother had moved in with us and had used a room at the back on the main floor as her bedroom. Let it be known that my Grandmother had all her mental faculties and had told past stories of her encounters of with ghosts and thus claimed to have had no fear of them. It's also important that I emphasize my father restructuring of the house to explain what my grandmother saw. My grandmother in the middle of the night saw the woman standing by her bed looking at her. My grandmother motioned her to shoo and she watched the woman walk through the wall where a doorway once was. The next morning after my grandmother telling us of the event, my mother phoned my sister and confirmed with her the same woman in appearance and dress. My Grandmother passed away peacefully in her sleep while living with us in 1982. She never doubted that there was someone besides the family in the house.

My mom's father had moved in with us in the mid 1980s. Unfortunately he did not have all his faculties but would every once in a while say that That woman came by again last night . Grandpa used the same room that my Grandmother had used as a bedroom. Before the conversion of apartments this room was an enclosed like porch/pantry that my father used as the base of the two story extension built onto the back of the house. The doorway which was now a wall with shelving unit instead of door would have been a well traveled path in the house by previous residents to the back garden and garage.

After moving out of the house in 1989 my father resumed renting out the units. My brother and his family lived on the main floor for a few years. He doesn't claim to have seen anything but always talk about how there is the feeling of being watch in stairwell going upstairs (original stairway of original structure) the two upper apartments. He claims that a tenant had claimed to see things in back unit where my sister and I had seen the woman/shadow.

It has been many years since my family lived in the house. My father sold it in the mid 1990s. But it still is a topic discussion with my family. In fact it was topic of conversation over the past holiday with my sister, brother and mother. Events that have must have made a big impact on me as I still think about it 20 years later. There are many theories and other stories. But the appearance of this woman to my sister and grandmother where actual events. I'm sure that it would be interesting to know if other people living there have seen the woman. The apartment house is still there.

Our thanks to this witness for writing in and sharing their experiences with us. Have you had a similar experience? Do you have any information that you would like to add? If so, please contact us at submissions@ontarioghosts.org

Do you have a real life ghost story, an encounter with a UFO, or other paranormal experience/s you'd like to share? If so, we'd love to hear from you! Post your own experiences in our comments section or send us an email. Please post only true life experiences ... we love good fiction, but there are other fantastic blogs out there to post fictional accounts to.

Approaching witnesses from our how we do tthe things we do series for the blog.....

When going IRL (In Real Life) to someone of an unknown mind-set to discuss a possible haunting and what they might have experienced, it is best to start with a very neutral stance to open up the conversation.

Let's say you're in an old fort that you have read is haunted. Approach one of the tour guides casually and say something like, "I've heard this place has a reputation for ghosts, have you heard anything?"

If the person is extremely sceptical or a non-believer in ghosts they'll most likely answer about how you're wasting your time or the like. Simply agree and say that you were just interested in why people would even THINK that the place was haunted! Sometimes the person will then open up about the weird stories he's heard about the place. At worst, he or she will just say something like "I dunno" and you can pursue your next contact.

If the person isn't a non-believer but merely "sceptical", you'll probably get "Well, I haven't heard anything or seen anything myself BUT..." and out comes the story. These people rarely have their own story and prefer to tell the story that blank told them. If this happens why not see if you can talk to blank and get the first hand version.

If the person is a 100% true believer and possibly a little overzealous, they'll talk your ear off. MAKE NOTES (mental or otherwise) and only stick to the pertinent information you are getting. Maybe they can give you a clue as to where most of the ghostly activity has been happening!

If the person has experienced it first hand, chances are they will not be too happy to share unless they fall into the category mentioned above. You may need to gently inquire about what happened and try to feel out if they're looking for someone to acknowledge the phenomena or to disprove what they do not want to believe. Either way, try to meet them with what they WANT to hear so you can gather your facts and plan the investigation properly.
Remember above all else we at the GHRS believe that witness comfort and safety ALWAYS comes first! When dealing with anyone be courteous, and professional. Use your best people skills and and treat people the way you would want to be treated.

Now on a different topic, a quick note if you are an investigator of the paranormal or not, and you are looking to purchase home theater products please have a look at the link I have added in for some great savings! Consider that my hot tip of the week on electronics.

I have been asked to do a "meme" by Andy at the Spicy Cauldron about what I'd do if I knew that the Earth was going to be utterly destroyed tomorrow.

I don't know how Andy found out, or what he knows... but I do have an escape plan... and sorry, I'm not taking any of you with me. You've done enough to wreck the Earth never mind the Universe.

Yup, I'm outta here, dying my skin blue and calling myself a "Moxx of Balhoun", and movin' on... so long, Earthling suckers you finally managed to destroy yourselves, and everything around you!

Byeeeeee!

Chinnery "Back Seat" Ghost Photo

Famous "ghost" photo that still gives me the chills!

Happy Wordless Wednesday! Thank you for stopping by! Please note that this entry is for both the Tuesday, and Wednesday editions of WW.

Sent in by Chris Laursen......

Last year, with the support of Sue, Matthew and PSICAN, I conducted a six-week-long experiment to see if volunteer members of the public could obtain accurate information by holding objects belong to people they did not know. Sixty-five people are varying ages and backgrounds participated at six different public dates through the Toronto, Hamilton, and Niagara regions of Ontario, Canada between 1 May and 30 June 2007.

Three participants gave particularly accurate impressions of the objects they read, in particular a web designer and online publication editor from Hamilton who has had clairvoyant experiences throughout her life. Other participants were able to give accurate information on a few of the objects they read. However, as expected with an experiment geared to the general public, the majority of people gave no or very little accurate information about the objects they inspected.

You can read my full report and results on the Psychometry Experiment website hosted by PSICAN: http://psychometry.psican.org/

Many thanks to Sue Darroch and Matthew Didier for all of their help, to the volunteers who assisted with conducting the experiment and managing the volunteer participants, and of course to all of the participants who came out to try the experiment and for their patience while I was assessing results! Thanks to Heather Anderson of Maple Ridge, B.C., for guarding information on those who lent objects for the experiment. I am especially grateful to St. Catharines Museum at Lock 3, the Ancient Mystic (Markham), Robert Cross at Seneca College, and Conspiracy Culture (Parkdale in Toronto) for providing free space for the experiment, and to Lucsculpture Studio & School in the Danforth in Toronto for kindly offering space although that date was cancelled. Special thanks to the anonymous donor who covered travel costs and rental of space at the Dundas Public Library and Toronto Public Library (Beaches Branch). The kindness of people is what carried this experiment.

Four, yes that is four, separate emails came in this week asking for exact addresses, and one for email or contact information for all of the people who have ever contacted us from a specific area.

This despite that we have clearly put up the following on our FAQ page:

Question:

"I want the exact address of that report I saw on your website or I want the contact information for the people who write to you"

Answer:

Our organization/s are compliant with the Ontario Privacy Act of 2004, as well as other Canadian privacy laws and we provide the people who report to us complete anonymity, and confidentiality.

We do not give out exact addresses of private buildings nor do we ever give out contact information. We would hope that you understand, and respect the privacy of those who contact us.

Sorry people, not only is this made VERY clear on our website would you want a company or organization to give out YOUR private information to any stranger that sends them an email. I don't think so....so please stop asking.

Please read, and please use your common sense.

Enough said.

Each Friday we will have a look at the stories and experiences that have been related to us over the years that are amongst our personal favourites. These will include Crypto, Ghosts, Hauntings, UFO's, and other strange events that may be considered Fortean, from in around the Toronto, Canada area .... and since they are from our own personal files will likely not be found elsewhere on the web .... enjoy!

In the late 1980s I moved with my family to Ajax Ontario. We lived in the area just north of the 401 & Harwood Avenue in a two story townhouse on Cedar Street. The townhouse had three bedrooms, and my younger sister who was then in college moved in with us. At the time I was married to my ex, and my kids were all very small.

The first 6 months in the townhouse were uneventful until one day my sister, and a family friend were getting ready to attend a funeral for an elderly lady who was the grandmother of another close friend. I came up the stairs and immediately was overwhelmed with the smell of roses. I asked my sister, and her friend if they had broken a perfume bottle or had gone spray happy? They answered no, and both were as puzzled as I as to where the smell was coming from. It seemed to be heavily concentrated in my sister's bedroom. After a few minutes the intensity of the smell started to dissipate, and soon was forgotten.....until a few days later.

This time I was in the living room area of the house when the air began to fill with the smell of roses. Again it was very strong and this time I decided I was going to find out what was causing it. I asked both sets of neighbours that our unit was attached to if they used rose scented perfume or possibly fabric softener (figuring the smell could be coming in the window from a dryer vent) and both answered in the negative. They also both said they had not experienced anything similar. I then looked around outside for a possible source. The only rosebush I could find at the time was by a church (I later found out it was originally a dance hall in the war days) but even I had to admit that this was quite a stretch, and in fact impossible.

The smell of roses continued to plague us. Many people witnessed it from family to friends, to the kids friends. It would happen at anytime of day in all of the rooms. Sometimes it was so bad I would open the doors and windows....even in winter!!!!

Other things began to happen. Little things at first. Items would go missing, keys, jewelry, little things, only to reappear where the kids had no access, and where the other adults swore they never put them. I soon realized that these were places that I knew I had already checked. Some days I still felt like I was losing my mind.

One day my mother who was babysitting nearly had a heart attack (her words) when she heard my oldest child screaming her head off. My Mom (already an older lady at the time) ran up the stairs to where the terror filled screams were coming from. My oldest was pointing to a large mirror that we had and staring as if transfixed. Her screams subsided as soon as she saw her grandmother, but I was told she was sobbing about the lady who she saw in the mirror. The lady had a cut on her head, and she was bleeding. My mother saw no one. To say she was unnerved would be putting it mildly.

Soon afterwards my two older children complained of feeling as if they were being watched especially in the upstairs area. My ex, my sister, and I all tried to rationalize their fears away, and make them feel better, but I too felt as if someone were always watching.

A few times I thought I heard a woman singing.....when no one else was home nor was there any rational way I could explain it away.

One day as I washed the dinner dishes, and watched the older kids playing outside through the kitchen window the smell of roses started up again. Very strong and very close. I was alone yet I could feel someone standing behind me. I felt as if I could put my arm back I would touch a solid person. And I started to cry. Out loud I said the words (and I'm not even sure why) "please stop you are scaring me." And it was as if everything shifted. The entire atmosphere of the room changed. The sensation of someone standing behind me was gone, and the very heavy smell of roses started to dissipate.

This was the first time I acknowledged to my self that I encountered a ghost. To this day I believe it was trying to make contact, and had I turned I would have seen it.

After this incident things quieted down for about a year. My sister moved out, and my youngest was moved into her room. It was at this point that she started talking about the lady on the ceiling or would wave to the lady who would be either walking up or down the stairs. We never saw this lady.....but the rose smell became a problem again, and so did things going missing.

When my favourite ring (a present from my sister) disappeared from the kitchen counter (I had been preparing burgers, and took my rings off just minutes before) I yelled out to "give it back." I searched everywhere, and never found it. The creepy thing was that it was a pinky ring, and I had put it inside a larger ring....yet poof!

I decided to investigate a bit. I was convinced I was going to find out we lived in some murder house etc. This is what I found out. The people who had lived in the unit before us were there for 10 years (so I assume were not too troubled if they even were) and then I found the original tenants! They were alive, and well living in an Ajax senior citizen residence. I hit a dead end.

Just before we moved my ex and I were already having some serious problems and he usually slept on the couch in the downstairs living room area. One morning I came down the stairs to find him white as a sheet smoking a cigarette. He said he had been woken up by some calling his name, telling him to get up, and was shaking him rather violently on the shoulder. The voice was female so he thought it was me. When he got up he was shocked to see he was alone. He told me he could feel the fingers on his shoulder. It was the shaking that initially woke him up. When he checked upstairs and saw that the kids and I were all fast asleep he got very freaked out. He never believed in ghosts nor haunting before this incident despite everything that had gone on before. He always had a good excuse for what was going on until that night..........

Before closing off I do want to say other then our nerves none of us were ever harmed by this lady. That is why we stayed for nine years. Most of the time nothing was happening. I am still peeved about the ring that I never found. And I often wonder who she was, and what was her story. I'll probably never know.

Do you have a real life ghost story, an encounter with a UFO, or other paranormal experience/s you'd like to share? If so, we'd love to hear from you! Post your own experiences in our comments section or send us an email. Please post only true life experiences ... we love good fiction, but there are other fantastic blogs out there to post fictional accounts to.

Have I told you lately how much I loathe the TV show Most Haunted...no...well in case there is any doubts I think it is the worst show depicting the paranormal ever!

Yes, legitimate investigators of the paranormal were somewhat vindicated when an investigation of Most Haunted was ordered by the Television Regulator in the UK, Ofcom, in which the show was cleared of any deception of its viewers, in which it stated that "Most Haunted is an entertainment show, not a legitimate investigation into the paranormal, and should not be taken seriously." Finally, a bit of the truth.

However, this show has done a great deal of disservice to real investigators, and credible researchers by making a mockery of us, and our study in my opinion.

And now, thanks to more shoddy research a disservice to historical study as well. You can read about that via Most Haunted Trashes History .... what more can I say, but yuck!

1934 Photo Supposedly of The Loch Ness Monster

What are your thoughts on the Loch Ness Monster? Is it possible that a sea monster of some sorts haunts the famous Scottish Lake? Or is it all just wishful or fanciful thinking?

Happy Wordless Wednesday! Thank you for stopping by! Please note that this entry is for both the Tuesday, and Wednesday editions of WW.

For a list of other Wordless Wednesday participants please click here.