Moving On...

It is time I officially announce here that I am moving on in life and leaving Utah, which I have called home for almost eleven years. Soon my new home will be Kansas City, located smack dab in the middle of the United States.

Before you jump to conclusions, let me clarify that I will still be talking a lot about the paranormal,including in the Kansas City area as well as Utah. I also have plans to cover more paranormal topics from my home state of New Mexico.

For those who don't know, Kansas City has a lot of history and paranormal hot spots. I would venture to say there are many, many more haunted spots in the area than in all of Utah. Stay tuned for more information as I explore these areas, including pictures of the different spots.

Smaug and Fafnir

Like any great author, Tolkien drew on those who had gone before. Despite the fact that some critics of his time thought The Hobbit was unoriginal, Tolkien was able to take the work others had done and morph it into something different, something that was his and bore his distinctive mark.

Smaug is a central character in the book, the old dragon that guards the treasure that Bilbo and his companion dwarfs desire to obtain. Smaug is the last of his kind, the giant worms that once plagued Middle Earth and spread so much destruction across its face. Despite the fact Smaug is such a vile creature, Tolkien chose to portray him as an intelligent creature, one that speaks articulately and is cunning.

I could go on for a long time about what this decision does to the storyline of The Hobbit. What I really want to point out, though, is that a human-like dragon was not Tolkien's original idea. The Saga of the Volsungs features a dragon named Fafnir, who was human but was turned into a dragon. Fafnir talks, is conniving and has an exchange with the hero that in many ways is similar to the one Bilbo has with Smaug. Both dragons use riddles to try to extract the identity of the hero so that they may exact revenge for his trespass on the dragon's lair. I could go on with the similarities, but I will keep it brief in the spirit of this blog.

The point is that we all stand on the shoulders of those who go before us. Any author who claims that they have not relied on authors and their works from before is not being completely honest with themselves or other people.

More Utah UFO Drama

I posted on the blog before about UFO sightings in the northern part of Utah County, around Lehi and American Fork. One news station in Utah theorized that Chinese lanterns were the cause of the sightings, which have been blamed for some UFO sightings in the United Kingdom.

Now another Utah news station claims to have interviewed a local artist named Andrew Smith who claims to have fabricated the UFOs himself. Smith would not divulge how he made his creations, other than to say he uses helium and flares.

Smith went on to tell a reporter he wants to keep some mystery about how he creates the objects. Is Smith telling the truth? The fact he is being so coy causes one to wonder and be at least a little suspicious. As is the case with other paranormal cases, I am not about to open up and swallow Smith's story without question, especially since he seems slightly eager for fame and recognition for his supposed work.

Evidence of a Lake Cryptid in England?

Cryptozoology can be a fascinating subject to explore, but inevitably the field has its share of hoaxes, or even people who panic and mistake a bear for Bigfoot. Because of the fantastical claims made by some who supposedly have witnessed a cryptid, I have learned to be cautious and to remain critical.

The news world is alive with the recent photo taken by a couple of kayakers in England, who snapped a photo of a famous lake monster. No, the monster is not the Loch Ness Monster, although the photo taken looks ever-so-much like some photos of Nessie. You can see the photo and some of the news story surrounding the supposed encounter by clicking here.

As the article points out, there is reason for suspicion in this case. It does not take a genius to realize that going kayaking in February, especially in England, is not a very bright idea. In fact, the whole story and photograph are called into question by this strange activity. Add to that the fact that the photo taken by the witnesses is extremely blurry and shows little to nothing, and I personally feel this is a grab for fame and attention, similar to the frozen Bigfoot corpse incident.

February's Shades of Night

It's a new month and I had the intention of having a new Shades of Night available on Amazon for everyone to read and enjoy. Yes, I say "had" because there is no way the story will be posted this month. I am a little bummed because it is such a great story, but at the same time I need to do it the justice it deserves.

This month and next will be a little crazy for me since I will be relocating (along with my family, of course) to a different part of the country (more on that later). Needless to say, some things will have to be pushed back. I am more willing to push back some of the Shades of Night stories than delay the launch of my next book, The Devil's Nightmare.

Sorry to delay things, but once I am settled in my new office you can expect more Shades of Night stories. For now, I will let you know that the next story is about a clown, but that is all I am willing to say. This next one will be great, I promise, and I will let you all know when it will be posted once I know.

Critics Know Best?

Critics and critical reviews can play a key role in making or breaking the exposure for creative endeavors, such as books, albums or movies. Like everyone else, though, these critics are not all equal, nor are they always right. With the explosion of the internet, it seems everyone literally has become a critic. We write reviews on products and services, voicing our opinions and experiences to a worldwide audience. We -- like professional critics -- are not always right in our assertions.

Melville's Moby Dick is one classic example of a book critics panned, but it later was "rediscovered" and is now hailed as one of the great classic works of American literature. Before you think that critics kind of did not like Moby Dick, let me clarify that some critics practically set out on a personal agenda to smear Melville, who later wrote a short story that strongly hinted at his feelings after having his writing career severely damaged by the critical reviews of Moby Dick.

Everybody loves Shakespeare, right? While the Bard has collected his fair share of critical acclaim, critics have not and still do not love all that he wrote. One play that has been torpedoed by critics for centuries is Love's Labors Lost. Critics have asserted that the play is just plain horrible for a number of reasons, including that it is not truly a comedy but is rather an anti-comedy (an opinion I personally agree with, but think that it actually makes the play more intriguing). Kenneth Branagh, who has adapted a number of Shakespeare's plays into movie form, nearly broke his career with his adaptation of Love's Labors Lost, causing a whole new crop of critics to again declare it as Shakespeare's worst play. I personally find the play quite enjoyable, but realized this only after going through it more than once since it is  less accessible than most of Shakespeare's other works. I know others who find the play to be quite enjoyable, but I have yet to find a critic who thinks the same.

I could rattle off a list of other books (including Tolkien's The Hobbit), movies and other creative works that have been huge hits and left an everlasting mark on the landscape that were also hated by the critics of the time. I always find it interesting that some authors will live or die according to what critics say, and that some readers will make their reading choices solely based on critical reviews.

Bernard Pivot Blogfest

I am officially participating in an event with other writers, answering a few questions so you and they can get to know me better. You can see how this all started by clicking here. Without any more fanfare, I will just launch into the Q & A:

1. What is your favorite word?  That’s a hard one. I would probably something that is French in origin, just because those words make you sound smart.
2. What is your least favorite word? Awesome. It is way overused by people today, especially since they are not genuine in their usage.
3. What turns you on creatively, spiritually or emotionally? Nature, reading, good movies, music, artwork and meditation.
4. What turns you off? Negativity, fear.
5. What is your favorite curse word? Hell – hey it’s a place.
6. What sound or noise do you love? Crickets at night.
7. What sound or noise do you hate? The sound of a pig slaughter. I will never forget the first time I heard one – it was horrifying.
8. What profession other than your own would you like to attempt? Jewelry creation. I have read up on it, but have not tried out anything yet. Something about it fascinates me, though.
9. What profession would you not like to do? Prison guard. Interestingly I started to look into that once, but the pay is not wonderful and the risks are huge.
10. If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates? “Good job” or something to that effect. I think that’s what most people would want to hear.

               

UFOs Over Utah

UFO sightings over the greater Salt Lake City area have been in the news lately,especially several reported sightings over northern Utah County. One news station claims to have a plausible explanation for the sightings that does not involve involve swamp gasses, at least, but does point to Chinese lanterns as the source (which have been blamed for UFO sightings in England for some time now). Read the story about Utah by clicking here.

I am always fascinated by people's reactions to UFO reports. Some feel an undying need to explain away the phenomena using simple natural events -- some of which are ridiculous. Others immediately jump to the conclusion it is proof of extraterrestrials who are visiting Earth and that the government will stop at nothing to cover up the truth.

Why can we not suspend judgment until we can find out more? Something in human nature compels us to categorize, classify or otherwise process uncertainty. We simply cannot deal with a moving object in the sky staying unidentified, swinging to one side of the spectrum or another as a result.

In Case You Missed It...

In case you missed it, the infamous phenomena known as crop circles have popped up in the news in the past few weeks. In late January a farmer in Indonesia reported a pattern that supposedly appeared in some remote fields. Some witnesses claimed they saw a small tornado touch down in the area, while others fully embrace that an alien ship touched down in the field and created the crop circles.

News of crop circles have essentially disappeared from news outlets after some highly publicized hoaxes. Some people, though, are still convinced at least some crop circles are formed by extraterrestrials. What do you think of crop circles?

Read Fox News' report on the Indonesian crop circles by clicking here.

A Monster a Day Keeps the Boredom Away?

For those of you who like monsters, I recently became aware of a group on Facebook called Monster-a-Day. An artist named David Irvine, who is from the Toronto, Ontario area, decided to start creating a different monster each day. He has placed some ground rules for himself, like the monsters must be created in fifteen minutes or less meaning the creations are oftentimes primal. If you look at Irvine's over 270 monsters and counting with these rules in mind, I think you can appreciate the efforts this artist has put into this rather ambitious project.

Check out the group on Facebook by clicking here.

Bigfoot, Yeti and the Wild Men Archetype

There are some obvious parallels between the North American Bigfoot and the Himalayan Yeti, despite the two legendary creatures being separated by thousands of miles and the largest ocean on the planet.Both creatures have been described by many witnesses as being ape-like, taller than at least most if not all humans and being elusive to contact with most humans. More parallels between the two creatures exist, but I will not bore all of you with a long list.

Interestingly, the Eskimos have tales of a creature they call Saumen Kar, or "Man of Snow." Saumen Kar tales have a striking resemblance to Yeti, especially since both are snow-bound.

Why do the tales of Bigfoot and Yeti endure to this day? Entire organizations have been created, dedicated to proving their existence, academics have spent a good portion of their careers studying supposed evidence and collecting eyewitness accounts of encounters with the creatures and numerous books have been written about both.

One possible explanation has to do with the existence of wild-men stories in the lore from many civilizations, including the Celts, Native American groups and the early Mesopotamia region. These wild men are always described as hairy and savage and often are larger than most humans, adding to the fear and wonder that swirls around the wild men tales.While Bigfoot and Yeti are said to not really engage humans, these wild men are marauders who will take goods, crops, animals and even people's lives. Perhaps our wild men who live in fear, hiding in the shadows where they do not dare to assault us say something about us as a society.

Just because we shape the tales surrounding Bigfoot and Yeti does not necessarily mean that they do not exist. What I am arguing is that the way that we view these creatures tells an awful lot about us and our values.

Paranormal Dating

I just posted a new article about a paranormal dating site called Paranormal Passions. Click here to read my article and learn more about this new social media website.

Let me know if any of you meet the love of your life on Paranormal Passions and send me an announcement as well. I want to see a wedding cake topper with an alien abducting the groom.

Master Chief as a Classic Hero

Those of you who are not interested in the video game Halo or science fiction or even hero lore, please excuse my indulgence for a moment as I take some time to organize some thoughts that have been knocking around in my head lately. If you are the least bit interested in any of the above subjects, read on and feel free to join the conversation.

As I have stated before, the Halo video games are a guilty indulgence of mine. The Halo franchise has several games, all of which have been at least fairly popular. Books have also been written about the Halo universe, as well as the Master Chief, the main character of the series.re are Why do so many people like the Halo games? I am sure there are many reasons and that they vary quite a bit. I do think one reason is that the character Master Chief taps into something that runs deep in human nature, and so the story satisfies this human need at least to an extent.

Even the casual student of folklore will recognize that human heroes often are half god, adding to their magnificence and ability to accomplish the seemingly impossible. For example, Gilgamesh, Odysseus and even Jesus all were the product of a mortal mother and an immortal father. Master Chief carries on this tradition as a Spartan warrior of the future, the only humans the enemy aliens fear. The Spartans are a product of genetic engineering, meaning they are taller, stronger and overall more capable soldiers than regular humans. The Spartans are the product of a mortal mother, Mother Nature in that they are organic, and a "god-like" father in the form of Science. Even though we think we have progressed beyond the old archetypes, we have recreated them using our modern lenses, proving that we are indelibly connected to our ancestors of old.