tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-90908083993243256412024-03-05T14:05:51.656-08:00Ghost Vigil Investigationsghostvigilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05626885871380824199noreply@blogger.comBlogger24125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090808399324325641.post-3550349822048433772020-03-26T18:30:00.000-07:002020-03-26T18:30:01.906-07:00Paracelsus and the Elementals<br />
How about a somewhat odd topic? ELEMENTALS. In our current Western Culture, we tend to think that all paranormal experiences or contacts are with residual energies from past events or the disembodied souls/spirits of the dead. But, I've always been interested in older and more diverse theories describing beings or energies other than the dead.<br />
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I'm going to be borrowing from this <b><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elemental" target="_blank">wikipedia page</a></b>. Feel free to go read it, if you are interested:<br />
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The idea of elementals is often described in occult and alchemical writings originating during the European Renaissance. An interesting fellow named Paracelsus wrote about them in the 16th century, and many writers and philosophers followed up on his theories with variations and extensions of their own. <br />
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Paracelsus suggested that there were four types of elementals: Gnomes (earth), Undines (water), Sylphs (air), and Salamanders (fire).<br />
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Paracelsus is drawing on a number of much older traditions, but he is building something expanded and new upon the foundation that came before.<br />
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"The elements of earth, water, air, and fire, were classed as the fundamental building blocks of nature. This system prevailed in the Classical world and was highly influential in medieval natural philosophy...The homunculus is another example of a Paracelsian idea with roots in earlier alchemical, scientific, and folklore traditions."<br />
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"He noted that undines are similar to humans in size, while sylphs are rougher, coarser, longer, and stronger. Gnomes are short, while salamanders are long, narrow, and lean. The elementals are said to be able to move through their own elements as human beings move through air. Gnomes, for example, can move through rocks, walls, and soil. Sylphs are the closest to humans in his conception because they move through air like we do, while in fire they burn, in water they drown, and in earth, they get stuck. Paracelsus states that each one stays healthy in its particular "chaos," as he terms it, but dies in the others."<br />
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You can get more details from the article, or hunt down some of the sources cited by the article.<br />
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I suppose what interests me about this topic, is Ghost Vigil went on an investigation in southern Missouri some years ago, where a man living in the woods was plagued by what he described as "elementals" or "salamanders." He used both terms, interchangeably. And we had at least one other investigation back then, where elementals were blamed by our client for the paranormal experiences they were having.<br />
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For me, it is a reminder that we don't have a perfect (or even a good) understanding of all of the mechanisms at work in the paranormal field. And cutting your learning and explorations short at "dead people" is selling yourself short. There is more out there than we understand, or possibly even comprehend.ghostvigilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05626885871380824199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090808399324325641.post-15073634192540066042020-03-25T14:00:00.000-07:002020-03-25T17:35:01.062-07:00"Haunting in the Heartland"Paranormal-Television will be with us forevermore. The reason is simple. It is relatively inexpensive to produce. People are intrigued by the Paranormal, so it is a subject matter to which they are attracted. It is inexpensive to produce television with a built in viewership.<br />
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This new Travel Channel series, "<b><a href="https://www.abc12.com/content/news/Merrill-starring-in-new-Travel-Channel-series-investigating-paranormal-activity-567661351.html" target="_blank">Haunting in the Heartland</a></b>," is intriguing to me. First, it focuses on the Heartland of the country, and I love stories like this set in small towns and rural areas. Secondly, I don't know Steve Shippy, but perhaps he'll be fairly grounded and reasonable in his approach. One can hope, and be optimistic.<br />
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<a href="https://media.graytvinc.com/images/810*456/Steve+Shippy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://media.graytvinc.com/images/810*456/Steve+Shippy.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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A real paranormal investigation or consultation is NOT made for television. These things tend to be fairly long and uneventful. So, shows such as this one feel a natural pressure to produce something one film that is compelling. In some cases this means faking events, and in other cases it means using editing and narration to exaggerate everything to a fever pitch...though in the end, very little has happened.<br />
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I think there would be room in the market for a paranormal show that follows a very grounded group, as they logically examine legends, anecdotal experiences, and reported phenomenon. But, to date, I'm not sure we've seen this happen yet. Perhaps Steve Shippy will buck the curve. :-)<br />
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Though this marketing copy from the article suggests my optimism might not be warranted: "The alleged evil spirit at work in Merrill may be connected with another haunting. Shippy gets help from a clairvoyant during the episode to ward off the spirit."<br />
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Well, even if the show is a completely loopy over-hyped train-wreck, it might still be entertaining. And really, what more can we ask from a television show than entertainment?<br />
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Mark Stinson<br />
<b><a href="http://www.ghostvigil.org/" target="_blank">Ghost Vigil Investigations</a></b><br />
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<br />ghostvigilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05626885871380824199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090808399324325641.post-52834401292059172382020-03-24T09:50:00.000-07:002020-03-25T17:34:17.637-07:00Narratives Formed by Events that Coincide<br />
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<a href="https://www.wxyz.com/michigan-couple-says-ghost-seen-on-nanny-cam-scratched-infant-daughter" target="_blank"><img border="0" data-original-height="289" data-original-width="512" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_xjKoilBNi63n-MkGBUBI3aGm82zPn3eddj3L2aXe0hVAOEYwHmN22bNfuahoRhX9-EA3yrgqQJXja-w7HTQz9o7cdqi7LPPQpLeP_ufst4-rydv_2Owyn-bFmATgPQpptCL-B0QHGqLv/s320/baby_cam.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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What is so difficult about the strange experiences people have is the human mind's innate ability (or inclination) to connect events or circumstances, that aren't necessarily connected. I'm sure this is a basic survival instinct from our earliest days. Event A happened, and Event B happened at nearly the same time, and Event B was really really bad, so in the future avoid both Event a and Event B. Its the mechanism behind psychological conditioning.<br />
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When unexplained events coincide, and we start to connect them, we build a narrative that pulls all of the events together into one cohesive story. And this narrative becomes very real to us, and we are usually willing to defend that narrative.<br />
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So, taking the basic facts of <b><a href="https://www.wxyz.com/news/region/oakland-county/paranormal-investigator-talks-about-ghost-on-baby-camera" target="_blank">this example story</a></b>, lets look more closely. A family is living in a home that the extended family tells haunted stories about. A family mythology has developed where the location is creepy, and "something" paranormal is there. This is a common thing that happens in many families, and is most always based on anecdotal experiences. This is condition A.<br />
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Their video tape shows an unexplained anomaly, where a strange lighter colored shape or band crosses across the screen. Since this anomaly on the recording is unexplained, we can attribute a more mundane explanation to it (digital artifact, car lights crossing across window, etc.) or something much less mundane. This is condition B.<br />
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Their child had a scratch on their face. This is utterly normal. Children scratch themselves all the time, either with their own fingernails or in a fall. And they are so young, unless you see the scratch happen, it remains unexplained. This is condition C.<br />
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Any one of these conditions taken on its own is not particularly interesting or compelling. But, if you put the child in the creepy location (condition A), and an anomaly shows up on the camera (condition B), and then you notice a scratch on the childs face (condition C), suddenly a conclusion is reached that "a ghost has hurt our baby and we caught it on tape."<br />
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This narrative is so charged with emotion and fear, but seems like such a definitive conclusion to the people who have woven the narrative, that an outsider coming into the situation and trying to examine it logically will have a very difficult time of it.<br />
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The thing to keep in mind, is that events are happening constantly. Millions of moments and events passing by you every day. Various conditions come and go in your life. Just because events and conditions coincide, it does not necessarily mean they are connected.<br />
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But, as an investigator you must respect the importance of the narrative to the family, and handle matters in a delicate fashion. And you must also keep in mind, that just because these events are not necessarily connected...there is at least the possibility that they ARE CONNECTED.<br />
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Mark Stinson<br />
<b><a href="http://www.ghostvigil.org/" target="_blank">Ghost Vigil Investigations</a></b>ghostvigilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05626885871380824199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090808399324325641.post-75651397317646741632020-03-23T19:20:00.001-07:002020-03-23T19:23:38.895-07:00ESP, Hauntings and Poltergeists<br />
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Loyd Auerbach is an excellent writer, and this book is (in my opinion) an excellent book for those wanting to learn more about the paranormal and Psi-Theory. What mechanisms are possibly at work behind our unexplainable perceptions? If the topic interest you, this is worth getting.<br />
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This book was written long before the modern television ghost-show craze. It is based on a parapsychologist's perspective, rather than the perspective of someone trying to carry a multi-season television show.<br />
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You can buy new copies on Amazon or other online booksellers, or you can find a used copy most places where used books are sold.<br />
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<a href="https://www.amazon.com/ESP-Hauntings-Poltergeists-Parapsychologists-Handbook/dp/1539131661?fbclid=IwAR0SUj9zyCiZUYPWlmb9PxyYdm_IvQDNfTYmGJettn8cAuA3K-KAfAUDIRs" style="font-weight: bold;" target="_blank">Buy it on Amazon</a><br />
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Mark Stinson<br />
<b><a href="http://www.ghostvigil.org/" target="_blank">Ghost Vigil Investigations</a></b></div>
<br />ghostvigilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05626885871380824199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090808399324325641.post-4760521326686137052018-11-20T20:03:00.000-08:002018-11-21T20:05:35.278-08:00Such an Interesting Topic<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX7pRsWCX-inyF4zZTd3-kGQmVimZThSa_Pl2oxDhgCrITmFl8AfowW32hwh-_LhAoqxzJXKEj039D6C4wPt-u_2IhsfP7_DjgiGZV4HppgY38OtuJY1VW_ZrKUflZ80ukneMXVpOSHqCU/s1600/Such_an_Interesting_Topic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX7pRsWCX-inyF4zZTd3-kGQmVimZThSa_Pl2oxDhgCrITmFl8AfowW32hwh-_LhAoqxzJXKEj039D6C4wPt-u_2IhsfP7_DjgiGZV4HppgY38OtuJY1VW_ZrKUflZ80ukneMXVpOSHqCU/s320/Such_an_Interesting_Topic.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
What could be more interesting than an exploration of whether it is possible for consciousness to survive the physical death of the body? What mechanisms are at work that might allow this survival? Does consciousness survive as an intact whole, or is it only a partial, fractured survival?<br />
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The theory that consciousness can survive the death of the physical body and then go on to affect the physical environment by touching and moving things, making sounds, and being "seen" by the living suggests many things about the nature of consciousness. It also strongly suggests that the consciousness of a living person might be capable of affecting the physical environment in equally extra-ordinary ways.<br />
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Such an interesting...and often frustrating...subject to pursue.<br /><br />Mark Stinson<br />
<b><a href="http://www.ghostvigil.org/" target="_blank">Ghost Vigil Investigations</a></b>ghostvigilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05626885871380824199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090808399324325641.post-26568958246694212142018-11-18T16:21:00.000-08:002018-11-21T20:22:36.864-08:00Definition of Psychometry<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkCm9PRKpLxr8etqwH8Np52H-ur6xQzF2LezrUTihD9Dj2G3EwTVYfqpmZdqGUtZxxp9MbBOMsR6mHZQ0tjVBjEd2Iqo0m1ol8YdCZSEuC4-gE1Sd1MwmWrIs9Zx9gxMmNXA4JkBnyzHAi/s1600/psychometry.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="800" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkCm9PRKpLxr8etqwH8Np52H-ur6xQzF2LezrUTihD9Dj2G3EwTVYfqpmZdqGUtZxxp9MbBOMsR6mHZQ0tjVBjEd2Iqo0m1ol8YdCZSEuC4-gE1Sd1MwmWrIs9Zx9gxMmNXA4JkBnyzHAi/s320/psychometry.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
PSYCHOMETRY - The supposed ability to discover facts about an event or person by touching inanimate objects associated with them.<br />
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Theoretically, this may depend on a similar mechanism as "recordings" on an environment that result in hauntings in a building or physical location. The person using psychometric uses psi abilities to read or access the "recording" on the physical object.<br />
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A possible alternative to this theory is that the person using psychometric is using the object as a focus to view events that happened in the past within the presence of the physical object. Rather than observing some sort of psychic recording, in this case the viewer is actually looking backwards in time.<br /><br />Mark Stinson<br /><b><a href="http://www.ghostvigil.org/" target="_blank">Ghost Vigil Investigations</a></b>ghostvigilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05626885871380824199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090808399324325641.post-26131857378155529372018-11-14T09:42:00.000-08:002018-11-22T09:46:19.507-08:00Slamming Cabinets and Drawers<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Years ago, I spent time in a house where the kitchen cabinets would open and close. Often you would leave the kitchen with all of the cabinets closed, only to return later and find many of the kitchen cabinets at varying degrees of open. On occasion, when you were upstairs you could hear kitchen cabinets opening and slamming shut, and when you went to investigate what was happening, the cabinets would be at varying degrees of open. To my knowledge no one ever directly saw a cabinet open or close in the kitchen of that home. In all instances, the results were seen after the fact, or merely heard in progress.<br />
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More recently I was contacted by an old friend who was experiencing similar phenomenon in a house where they were house-sitting. No one else had access to the home during times that cabinets and drawers that were closed would be opened. The phenomenon was never heard, but the discoveries of open cabinets and drawers were frequent, as well as other moved and stacked objects.<br />
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Obviously, one should consider mundane causes in these situations. Did a roommate or family members simply leave cabinets or drawers open? Is a cabinet catch broken and the cabinet hung in a way that allows it to work its way open with only the minimum environment vibrations or coaxing? Did you accidentally leave a cabinet or drawer open yourself?<br />
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But obviously the mundane begins to slip away when you hear drawers and cabinets opening and slamming themselves shut when you are alone in a locked house. But conceivably, one would want to check for open windows, drafts, and other non-paranormal possibilities. As well as 100% re-confirming that they were alone in the house at the time of the phenomenon.<br />
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Assuming for a moment that every mundane cause is eliminated and we have reason to believe the activity is inexplicable or paranormal in nature, what is the theoretical mechanism behind this activity? There is the possibility that an intelligent/conscious spirit has survived the death of his or her body, and the spirit in question is using psi powers in order to move the physical objects in question. In other words, an intelligent ghost is using telekinesis to create the activity. Cabinets swing on hinges and drawers often roll on small wheels and tracks, making them a large noticeable way to affect the physical world with minimal effort. It takes very little physical force to get most cabinets or drawers moving, suggesting that a being capable of moving objects with his or her mind would need to employ minimal mental effort. Minimal effort as compared to moving heavier objects not hung on pivot points or sitting on wheeled tracks. One could suggest that the intelligent spirit is attempting to get attention, express frustration, or communicate some other message in a way that gets the most bang for their buck.<br />
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We must also consider that if the activity is paranormal in nature, then this activity could be caused by a living being, either consciously or subconsciously using telekinesis to move the cabinets and drawers. For psi theory, there is very little difference between a living being using telekinesis to move a physical object, and a spirit that has survived the death of the physical body doing the same thing. We bring up the subconscious use of psi abilities, because so often when the living are the cause of paranormal activity they are doing so inadvertently. Traditional poltergeist activity is usually centered around a young person going through emotional turmoil, who subconsciously affects the world around them with psi abilities. Their emotional state boils over, causing them to subconsciously lash out at the world around them. Physical objects being thrown about or moved being one of the main results.<br />
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It is also worth noting that in the many varied mythologies and belief systems that have existed throughout the history of mankind, a ghost-centered approach is not universal. Unseen beings and forces that are decidedly not human, and have never been human, are attributed the ability to move physical objects in an unexplained way. Modern Western Culture tends to shoehorn all paranormal activity into the category of ghosts, but this does not hold true when we look at cultures across the globe. We tend to focus on our own beliefs, but in some cases it may be necessary to look at wider understandings.<br />
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Mark Stinson<br />
<b><a href="http://www.ghostvigil.org/" target="_blank">Ghost Vigil Investigations</a></b>ghostvigilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05626885871380824199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090808399324325641.post-74997414935935534262018-11-12T09:48:00.000-08:002018-11-22T09:52:18.522-08:00Guaranteed 24-Hour Response<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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We guarantee a 24-Hour-Response to your communications. We understand that if you have a question or a concern about something potentially paranormal that you have experienced. you don't want to wait. For this reason, we check our email account and messenger multiples times per day. <div>
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Remember to include your phone number in your email or message if you'd like us to call you back rather than responding by email or messenger. We are interested in hearing what you are experiencing, and it is our Mission to assist you in the best way possible.<br /><br />Mark Stinson<br /><a href="http://www.ghostvigil.org/"><b>Ghost Vigil Investigations</b></a></div>
ghostvigilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05626885871380824199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090808399324325641.post-11206025864468067142018-11-11T09:54:00.000-08:002018-11-22T10:09:54.339-08:00Haunting of Hill House - Sleep Paralysis<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This is my second post here about the Haunting of Hill House. But, the Netflix Original Series is being viewed by an enormous amount of people, and since it involves the paranormal, it will to some small degree the mainstream cultures's view regarding supernatural topics.<br />
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One such topic is Sleep Paralysis, or as some refer to it, the Night Hag phenomenon. Again, I don't want to spoil this for anyone. I will speak very generally, but if you absolutely don't want any potential spoilers about the Haunting of Hill House, stop reading now.<br />
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The character Nell experiences Sleep Paralysis in the show, from childhood up through adulthood. As an adult, she actually pursues medical treatment or counseling for the condition. It being a horror movie, the counseling seems to work for a bit, but in the end, the supernatural nature of her affliction overcomes in the most horrible ways.<br />
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If you have never experienced Sleep Paralysis, it can be enormously terrifying to experience. If it is accompanied by the visual of someone or something holding you down, the terror increases exponentially.<br />
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The scientific explanation of Sleep Paralysis, in very simple terms, involves a natural process in sleep where the mind in deep sleep cuts off the connection between the mind and body (paralyzing the body) to prevent you from moving around violently as you dream. An abnormal sleep cycle or an interruption of the sleep cycle at a very specific time can cause the mind to wake before the mind has been reconnected with the body (releasing the paralysis). And this results in a person who is awake by paralyzed for a time.<br />
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Probably the oddest thing about Sleep Paralysis is the visual component of the experience. Often the paralyzed person sees and feels someone holding them down. Sometimes they see a hag-like woman on top of them, holding them down. Other times, people see a dark figure, someone they know, or even something as odd as an alien. Science explains this as the mind, only recently woken, creating a plausible explanation for the paralysis. Nothing more than a visual hallucination.<br />
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This scientific explanation can be comforting for some. For others, the intensity of the experience and the utter reality of their experience leaves the scientific explanation a little empty.<br />
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I personally have experienced the phenomenon several times. Everytime, it was enormously frustrating and scary. There is a sense that if you could just move your hand, or turn your head, or scream out that you will be free. But, try as you might, you can't move or call out. Eventually you do...and the whole experience ends. But, it can be quite unsettling.<br />
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I was impressed with how the Haunting of Hill House handled the phenomenon. Especially how they explained it scientifically, and had Nell seek out and receive counseling.<br /><br />Mark Stinson<br />
<b><a href="http://www.ghostvigil.org/" target="_blank">Ghost Vigil Investigations</a></b>ghostvigilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05626885871380824199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090808399324325641.post-45534984291245614872018-11-08T10:12:00.000-08:002018-11-22T10:15:53.273-08:00Haunting of Hill House - Through Time<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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It is hard to go to work or talk to friends without someone suggesting the Netflix Original show "The Haunting of HIll House." It has great character development, interesting twists, amazing visuals, and some pretty intense tension. And it has some good scares.<br />
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***SPOILERS BELOW***<br />
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If you haven't watched the show, you should probably stop reading. Go watch the show and come back! I'm going to speak in general terms, but some of what I write below could spoil parts of the show if you are particularly clever. :-)<br />
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Okay, one of the more mind-bending aspects of the story, is the suggestion that time does not matter. As living beings, we experience time in a linear fashion. But what if linear time is an illusion, and in fact means very little? What if a spirit that survives the death of the physical body drifts from moment to moment, jumping through time, and experiencing moments with little regard for linear time? What if someone dead was actually haunting an earlier (living) version of himself or herself?<br />
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There is another "haunt" in the story that has a very odd appearance. It is suggested that this odd appearance has its origins in how the spirit viewed himself when he was alive. This is sort of an interesting take on Psi theory, where we see spirits with our mind rather than our physical eyes. In which case, "seeing" a spirit is actually a communication from the spirit to the mind of the living of how they look. The interesting part here, is that in the show, a spirit looks a certain way, to be the opposite of some insecurity or flaw he felt while he was alive. Like an over-compensation, influencing how the spirit communicates what he looks like to the living.<br />
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In the dialogue of the show, there are a lot of interesting thoughts on the nature of ghosts, and what they can represent. It really is a rather intelligent script.<br />
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Anyhow, "The Haunting of Hill House" is first and foremost entertainment. But, like all good entertainment, it provides us with some interesting things to think about.<br /><br />Mark Stinson<br />
<b><a href="http://www.ghostvigil.org/" target="_blank">Ghost Vigil Investigations</a></b>ghostvigilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05626885871380824199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090808399324325641.post-46563952419946926892018-11-07T10:52:00.000-08:002018-11-22T10:57:54.196-08:00Gearing Up Again<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Back in 2005 when we started Ghost Vigil Investigations, we did what everyone does when they start something new. We looked at existing paranormal groups, did a lot of reading both in books and on-line, and then did our best to emulate groups that we respected and that appeared to have a lot of integrity.<br />
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Over time, we learned from practical experience, and this shaped our approach to both helping people experiencing unexplained events in their home and investigating historically "haunted" locations. Over several years the group evolved and became something unique to our own point of view and experiences.<br />
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We haven't actively investigated in a number of years, but things are gearing up again. What's nice, is that we come to this refreshed venture already knowing exactly what we want to do and who we are as an investigative group. We will always be learning, adjusting, and evolving as a group. But this time we start with a foundation in actual investigations, rather than having to emulate others.<br /><br />Mark Stinson<br />
<b><a href="http://www.ghostvigil.org/" target="_blank">Ghost Vigil Investigations</a></b>ghostvigilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05626885871380824199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090808399324325641.post-5695748155772957802018-11-06T11:02:00.000-08:002018-11-22T11:02:53.294-08:00Everyone Has a Story<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Everyone has a story. Well, almost everyone. One of the consequences of involving yourself in the study and investigation of unexplained experiences, is that people tend to trust you with their stories. Often, the story they share with you is something they have told very few other people. Often it is a story that makes them feel embarrassed or afraid that people will think they are crazy. But, they feel a little safer sharing it with someone who is publicly involved in paranormal investigations.<br />
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What is striking about this for me personally, is how universal this is. People you would never think had a story...do indeed have a story. People from all walks of life. I've even had people come up to me and say they don't believe in ghosts, but then they immediately follow that with an experience of their own that is truly strange and unexplained. A story that directly contradicts their insistence that they don't believe in ghosts.<br />
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If you have questions about the paranormal, or a situation you need help with, contact us by email at ghostvigil@gmail.com. If you'd like to be called, include your phone number in the email. As always, the details of your communications with us will be completely confidential.<br /><br />Mark Stinson<br />
<b><a href="http://www.ghostvigil.org/" target="_blank">Ghost Vigil Investigations</a></b>ghostvigilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05626885871380824199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090808399324325641.post-32771977557279525172017-06-30T11:25:00.000-07:002018-11-22T11:37:34.180-08:00Heretical Approach<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This will sound a bit heretical, but paranormal investigations at possibly haunted sites tend to cast themselves as "scientific," when in fact they have very little to do with science. These investigations are sometimes even at odds with science. My saying this is not a condemnation of "ghost-hunting" or "ghost-hunters." It is just an observation.<br />
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There is no existing science that supports the existence of ghosts as beings or energy, or manifestations of energy. And I realize this is why it is called "paranormal" science. Other-than-normal. Unexplained. I get this. But, there is no evidence that the spirit of a human can survive the separation from the physical body, and exist as a being of "energy." I have put the word "energy" in quotes, because we don't know what ghosts are. Or what they consist of. And yet, most paranormal investigation equipment focuses on measuring electromagnetic fields or temperature variations.<br />
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Ghosts do not have a physical form. No vocal chords with which to speak or moan. No body or physical form to reflect light, so they can be captured on film or digital imagery. No body parts with which to move objects or touch people.<br />
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If ghosts do consist of energy, then they consist of an energy that we do not understand, have no real way of measuring or detecting, and nearly every piece of equipment used by paranormal investigators is useless...worthless. Most ghost-hunters are well-meaning, and feel they are being honest and scientific in their methods...but very few of them are actually scientists, or even understand the scientific method. Most look for confirmation of their beliefs, rather than exacting evidence. The craze over "photographic orbs" (caused by dust close to the lens being lit up by a flash or IR light) being "spirit energy" is an example of what happens when people do not understand research, or bother to do any actual research.<br />
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Most ghost-hunters read a few, or perhaps piles of, ghost-hunting books. Most of what they learn, they learn from these subculture specific books or what they read on the internet. The subculture of paranormal investigations is incestuous, with ghost-hunters educating new ghost-hunters in their subculture's conventions, thus propagating the mistakes of the past.<br />
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Again, I'm not condemning ghost-hunters or ghost-hunting. I think most involved in the field are well-meaning, and truly believe they are looking for answers and scientific evidence. But, there needs to be a departure from the subculture's conventions. There will always be ghost-hunters, and I'm not calling for the death of the subculture. I'm just saying, it is about time that someone (not me...just someone), come at this from a clever new way, that gets away from the odd and off-target methods of current ghost-hunters.<br />
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<i>(All this being said, I've been guilty of most of the things I discuss in the paragraphs above. I'm not better, nor smarter, than others. Everything other ghost-hunters have done, I've done myself. More than anything, I'm describing why I stopped actively investigating the paranormal a few years ago. There were no real answers to be found using the current methods popular in the current ghost-hunting community.)</i><br /><br />Mark Stinson<br />
<b><a href="http://www.ghostvigil.org/" target="_blank">Ghost Vigil Investigations</a></b>ghostvigilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05626885871380824199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090808399324325641.post-21475739967568355742017-06-29T11:38:00.000-07:002018-11-22T11:43:11.131-08:00Supernatural Television Show<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I was watching the television show "Supernatural" the other day, and I saw the episode with the "Ghostfacers" ghost-hunting group for the first time. Honestly, it was brilliant. I mean, it was a raging exaggeration...but it hit on all the right notes.<br />
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When Ghost Vigil Investigations was very active and very public a few years ago, we met a lot of other ghost-hunting groups. Sorry, "paranormal investigation groups."<br />
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Anyhow...whoever wrote that episode did their research...or personally knew some ghost hunters. Because it was perfect. :-)<br /><br />Mark Stinson<br />
<b><a href="http://www.ghostvigil.org/" target="_blank">Ghost Vigil Investigations</a></b>ghostvigilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05626885871380824199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090808399324325641.post-62909348735161515812015-06-01T15:44:00.000-07:002018-11-22T15:45:09.246-08:00Historic Locations Credibility<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9rwKZTvMfCKc4vga5B4g2_3Us_ifNFP_5Negul8kyjn3hsJ_mxIRXdBRruyzrYAGUpxhEj9NiclYu9sph61RSGyHdwld5jOX0A7eK3Ko_LeJaUE0Gekzj9svpb5yXAcjsNeIXMu0XoZOU/s1600/historic_locations.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9rwKZTvMfCKc4vga5B4g2_3Us_ifNFP_5Negul8kyjn3hsJ_mxIRXdBRruyzrYAGUpxhEj9NiclYu9sph61RSGyHdwld5jOX0A7eK3Ko_LeJaUE0Gekzj9svpb5yXAcjsNeIXMu0XoZOU/s320/historic_locations.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Historic locations that do promote the haunted nature of their location, and then charge money for tours, investigations, and other forms of access to their site aren't doing anything wrong. it is incredibly difficult to maintain an historic site. It can be hard to find a method for raising money to support the staff, maintenance, and other costs associated with such a location. If a site has a legendary status as a haunted location, and there are people willing to tour it or investigate it, then it is only fair that those people help financially support the location.<br />
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The only real concern, is how honestly the paranormal nature of the location is portrayed or explained in order to market access to the location. If marketing becomes full of lies and half-truths, this is damaging to the Truth of the location.<br /><br />Mark Stinson<br />
<b><a href="http://www.ghostvigil.org/" target="_blank">Ghost Vigil Investigations</a></b>ghostvigilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05626885871380824199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090808399324325641.post-66844939256319438572015-05-31T21:55:00.000-07:002018-11-22T16:19:00.864-08:00Children are Impressionable<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I can say with confidence, that every private investigation that Ghost Vigil Investigations has conducted that involved children experiencing the paranormal, the children had watched a number of Ghost Hunters episodes or some other paranormal television show.<br />
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I am not saying that ghost-television causes children to experience or imagine paranormal experiences in every case. Clearly that’s not true, because children have been experiencing paranormal phenomenon long before ghost-television. But, children are impressionable and imaginative.<br />
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When I was a child, there were scores of television shows and movies about Big Foot. I could hardly go into the woods, without imagining that big hairy lug being around the next bend on the path. One time there was a loud sound while I was in the woods, and I breathlessly ran a full mile home...sure that Big Foot must be right at my heels.<br />
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It is important when interviewing a child that has experienced the paranormal, to keep in mind the influences on the child, and to what subject matter in media (television and internet) the child has been exposed.<br />
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Mark Stinson<br />
<b><a href="http://www.ghostvigil.org/" target="_blank">Ghost Vigil Investigations</a></b>ghostvigilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05626885871380824199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090808399324325641.post-60728535655106662992015-05-31T15:36:00.000-07:002018-11-22T15:38:11.127-08:00Paranormal Amusement Parks<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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There are reported paranormal hot-beds (old asylums, tuberculosis hospitals, abandoned prisons, homes where people were murdered) around the country that charge for people to come and investigate the paranormal. We used to joke that these places were the equivalent of “Paranormal Amusement Parks.”<br />
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I don’t mean to say that these places are fake, or that no paranormal activity takes place in these locations. But, with the popularity of ghost television shows, a paranormal industry sprung up. Incredibly scary looking locations with dark histories were commercialized, and turned into tourist destinations for the many paranormal investigation groups that began springing up.<br />
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I don’t necessarily think it is a bad or negative thing, but I’m unsure it is a good thing either. It can lead to claims of paranormal activity that have their origins in marketing strategy, rather than credible evidence.<br />
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Mark Stinson<br />
<b><a href="http://www.ghostvigil.org/" target="_blank">Ghost Vigil Investigation</a></b>ghostvigilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05626885871380824199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090808399324325641.post-41783809474924745422015-05-30T16:28:00.000-07:002018-11-22T16:32:00.516-08:00Ghost Vigil 2015<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Ghost Vigil (minus Tara who was in Jamaica) on our May 2015 investigation at the 1859 Jail in Independence, MO.<br />
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Mark Stinson<br />
<b><a href="http://www.ghostvigil.org/" target="_blank">Ghost Vigil Investigations</a></b>ghostvigilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05626885871380824199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090808399324325641.post-78431298283049195902015-05-30T16:23:00.000-07:002018-11-22T16:24:41.832-08:00Fear of the Unknown<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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A fear of the unseen, or the unknown, must have its origins in the very beginnings of mankind. The terror of what you don’t understand...what you can’t anticipate or prepare for...and all things outside our normal experience. Modern humans are no different, and have not escaped this fear.<br />
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So when a modern individual or family experience things in their home that they do not understand, it is natural and understandable that fear results. The purpose of a paranormal investigator or consultant is to help with this fear. The unexplained phenomenon should be analyzed and explored. The possible explanations should be described and articulated. Possible ways to prepare for future phenomenon and how to deal with it should be shared.<br />
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And the individual or family should be reassured that possible paranormal phenomenon, while unsettling, is in almost every case - physically harmless.<br />
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Mark Stinson<br />
<b><a href="http://www.ghostvigil.org/" target="_blank">Ghost Vigil Investigations</a></b>ghostvigilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05626885871380824199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090808399324325641.post-50010642038737402162015-05-29T16:53:00.000-07:002018-11-22T21:30:08.635-08:00Visual Expert Article: Night Vision<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq_bdN_C_ugBx3L2-tHp8xelmNKONxf5iugZbBktPOdOiGVf87kHAFwInhRiMDpX0kENkq4O5yUN0FEaCRfYOSmIuwB3h-c4-Kw8TbW1pIFRxSr_XJYJAg4RHG9OLFfkcNqy8zsaEYMrtj/s1600/night_vision.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="243" data-original-width="276" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq_bdN_C_ugBx3L2-tHp8xelmNKONxf5iugZbBktPOdOiGVf87kHAFwInhRiMDpX0kENkq4O5yUN0FEaCRfYOSmIuwB3h-c4-Kw8TbW1pIFRxSr_XJYJAg4RHG9OLFfkcNqy8zsaEYMrtj/s1600/night_vision.jpg" /></a></div>
An interesting article on night-vision, and the various forms or modes of vision the eye employs to adapt the the level of light it is encountering. It is much more complex than just rods and cones.<br />
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<b><a href="http://www.visualexpert.com/Resources/nightvision.html" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: large;">Click Here for the Article</span></a></b><br />
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Considering the low light conditions that many paranormal investigation groups find themselves in, it is important to understand how night vision works.<br />
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Mark Stinson<br />
<b><a href="http://www.ghostvigil.org/" target="_blank">Ghost Vigil Investigations</a></b>ghostvigilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05626885871380824199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090808399324325641.post-85018769208772624922015-05-15T21:34:00.000-07:002018-11-22T21:38:56.052-08:00Ghost Vigil Television Pilot<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHz7ncluNBK3gBNOGiRpRv-JawZNBVV0FCxLwralqjPlgKxMRp_bL5N5noDbyS3fObkjwPlP7t_Z085WRy_8O2OGkycRlFwasbH8OzlRQKoYEPlq6croXgwQ0DEjkaTinFCt3C-v2DPr0m/s1600/television_pilot2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHz7ncluNBK3gBNOGiRpRv-JawZNBVV0FCxLwralqjPlgKxMRp_bL5N5noDbyS3fObkjwPlP7t_Z085WRy_8O2OGkycRlFwasbH8OzlRQKoYEPlq6croXgwQ0DEjkaTinFCt3C-v2DPr0m/s320/television_pilot2.jpg" width="320" /></a>Way back when, a production company approached Ghost Vigil Investigations about shooting a pilot for a television show. The producer had also produced Ripley's Believe it or Not for television, and was interested in producing a paranormal television show.<br />
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We went to the Strawberry Hill Museum in KCKS with the film crew, and shot pilot footage. In the long run, the production company ended up not producing the show. But, it was an interesting experience for us...and gave us some idea of what it must be like to have to produce a whole season worth of interesting ghost-television footage...<br />
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Mark Stinson<br />
<b><a href="http://www.ghostvigil.org/" target="_blank">Ghost Vigil Investigations</a></b><br />
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<br />ghostvigilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05626885871380824199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090808399324325641.post-31329002062366195692015-05-14T21:43:00.000-07:002018-11-22T21:44:59.950-08:00Photographic Orbs<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The fact that photographic orbs are caused by brightly lit particulate matter close to the camera’s lens, played into the error in thinking that caused orbs to be considered paranormal in nature for so long. In everyday photography (birthday parties, kids in the backyard, photos of scenery on family vacation), there are not that many opportunities for orbs to appear in photos.<br />
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But, on a paranormal investigation...the conditions are almost always perfect. Paranormal investigations usually take place indoors at night, and require a flash to take clear photos. Paranormal investigations often take place in older homes or historic buildings, and these places are usually rife with dust that can be stirred up. In addition, a lot of photos are taken in basement areas, attics, and unused portions of the building, which are even more susceptible to having lots of dust. So, we see more orbs in photos taken on paranormal investigations, because all of the conditions required to cause photographic orbs are present.<br />
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Even cemetery investigations at night are opportune moments for capturing photographic orbs in our pictures. One of the following is almost always present on an cemetery investigation: pollen in the air, dust kicked up from the road or ground, or moisture in the air. This prevalence of photographic orbs in investigation photos and their rare appearance in every-day photos, helped spark and maintain the false belief that orbs in photos and video have a paranormal cause.<br />
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Mark Stinson<br />
<b><a href="http://www.ghostvigil.org/" target="_blank">Ghost Vigil Investigations</a></b>ghostvigilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05626885871380824199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090808399324325641.post-23731461160590786652015-05-13T21:46:00.000-07:002018-11-22T21:50:32.095-08:00Orb Anecdote<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw4CXP_QWTjzboeozT7V_tnI3L1k0rWr2132MR0gUvk68fPaD2hbMCbRYRu2sUoFvxTE4BRf0fW2E8RN4BB9oBAJmdcy-C9u0tGyHUTZbIF45R6d6szc9NZFtyVu2OU4ixUw7g5jBSNbIr/s1600/orbs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="342" data-original-width="279" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhw4CXP_QWTjzboeozT7V_tnI3L1k0rWr2132MR0gUvk68fPaD2hbMCbRYRu2sUoFvxTE4BRf0fW2E8RN4BB9oBAJmdcy-C9u0tGyHUTZbIF45R6d6szc9NZFtyVu2OU4ixUw7g5jBSNbIr/s320/orbs.jpg" width="261" /></a></div>
Several years ago, I was giving a workshop on the paranormal, and explained the mundane cause of photographic orbs. So prevalent was the belief in a paranormal cause for orbs at the time, that an attendee of the workshop loudly challenged my theory, stating that orbs were indeed paranormal, and I was just being too skeptical.<br />
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I pulled out a camera right there, and took a flash photograph of the audience. No orbs. I then stomped on the carpet in the room, and stirred up a bunch of dust in the air. I took a second photo of the audience, and it was full of photographic orbs.<br />
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I passed the camera around and let everyone take a good look at the orb-less and orb-filled photographs, and that seemed to quiet down the protest against my mundane explanation of photographic orbs.<br />
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Mark Stinson<br />
<b><a href="http://www.ghostvigil.org/" target="_blank">Ghost Vigil Investigations</a></b>ghostvigilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05626885871380824199noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9090808399324325641.post-49613176300839455262015-05-12T17:52:00.000-07:002018-11-22T21:55:42.066-08:00Dust Orbs on Video<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjA_OlTB4-vut63Z34LluV-f89EZIVtkv8vGaSK4oCPlZdNlzXpw9Ah18j4GwxYPxU9HOOosMMJIMLrH831r45-0nPL1qgFkco7-5InNrOk71nojE279RfvNkwjeJcXSuTFXUc9ti6XdS5/s1600/dust_orbs_video.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjA_OlTB4-vut63Z34LluV-f89EZIVtkv8vGaSK4oCPlZdNlzXpw9Ah18j4GwxYPxU9HOOosMMJIMLrH831r45-0nPL1qgFkco7-5InNrOk71nojE279RfvNkwjeJcXSuTFXUc9ti6XdS5/s320/dust_orbs_video.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
Orbs also appear in video recordings made with both tape and digital recording devices. Again, all that is needed is particulate matter (dust, moisture, lint, etc.) in the air close to the lens and the light on the camera. The particulate matter is brightly lit by the camera’s light, and since the particulate matter is in front of the lens but completely out-of-focus is appears as moving balls of light in the video recording.<br />
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Potentially, a video camera with its light turned off could still capture orb imagery, if there is a flashlight, over-head spot, or some other source of bright light capable of shining on particulate matter close to the lens. Again, orbs appearing in video recordings have a completely mundane cause, and can be recreated time and again through experimentation.<br />
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Mark Stinson<br />
<b><a href="http://www.ghostvigil.org/" target="_blank">Ghost Vigil Investigations</a></b>ghostvigilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05626885871380824199noreply@blogger.com0