PHOTO: The Gurdon Light - Gurdon, Arkansas

Gurdon Light

The Gurdon Light is one of the better-known, and examined, cases of "ghost lights."  First reported in Gurdon, Arkansas (US) around 1931, the Gurdon Light is seen over the railroad tracks in the small town in Clark County, Arkansas.  It is clearly visible, and attracts flocks of spectators -- especially around Halloween.

This photograph was taken in 1994 by the immensely popular US TV show, Unsolved Mysteries (see sidebar).  It was one of the first photos of the phenomenon considered "credible" by the scientific community.  Other photographs and footage of The Gurdon Light captured both before and since 1994 have taken on added significance, but I chose this one due to its historical import (and Fair Use).

Ghost Lights go by many names, including faery fires and corpse candles, and have been seen across the world for centuries.  They seem to be most prolific in Welsh legend, but are far from unique to the UK.  Prevailing theories explaining the Ghost Lights phenomenon include magnetic fields, mineral deposits, and the infamous "swamp gas."  While some instances are known to be manufactured (usually by, and for, criminal means), there is no official explanation for Ghost Lights.

Arkansas' Gurdon Light remains unexplained.

© The Weirding, 2018

Squanto was Real, and He was an Escaped Slave

Squanto

According to tradition, Squanto was an English-speaking Native American who proved invaluable to the survival of the Pilgrims, teaching them the ways of the Native Americans, and translating for them. It was with his help that Thanksgiving between the Pilgrims and Indians first came to pass.

The truth, however, is much spottier: Squanto was captured by British slave traders in 1614, then sold as a slave in Spain. He escaped to England before making his way back to Cape Cod in 1619. Sadly, his home village of Patuxet had been wiped-out by disease.

There were 35 Pilgrims among the Mayflower's 102 passengers, and Squanto taught them to cultivate corn, as well as where to hunt and fish. The Indians celebrated an autumnal harvest feast, and it is probable that they invited the Pilgrims to attend, but the Pilgrims held no such observance. Pilgrims did not become part of the traditional Thanksgiving myth until the 1890s.

President Abraham Lincoln set aside Thanksgiving as a national holiday in 1863, specifically to create unity in a divided nation. Squanto, or Tisquantum, is believed to have died in 1622.

© The Weirding, 2017

The "Lost" Thunderbird Photo

The "Lost" Thunderbird Photo

Thunderbirds -- and "living dinosaurs," in general -- are a difficult topic to discuss, due to religious Fundamentalists, moneyed "experts" who receive backing from shady organizations and are known to falsify research, and a general lack of evidence that has been made public.

Many photos, video documentation, even alleged specimen, regarding a great number of topics we discuss exist in private collections that are not accessible to the public.  Some can be found in reputable books (where they were licensed for publication), others in privately-owned museums (where no photography is allowed), and elsewhere -- just not online.  Uploading them can result in termination of accounts (though the images are usually just reported/removed), and has -- as they are protected by Copyright and similar restrictions.

Stories of Thunderbirds go back centuries, but appear to be specific to North America.  While tales of winged, sky-faring, man-eating beasts appear in cultures worldwide, the very term is taken from Native American accounts.  Early settlers' accounts repeatedly mention the fear American Indians had of these creatures, and record tales of their attacks on people -- mostly children.  These scant details bear the hallmarks of Legend, but the story goes deeper.

Accounts of posses being amassed, and hunts organized, for Thunderbirds also exist in historical record.  In several cases, these hunts were carried-out by otherwise serious-minded, "common" people of Anglo-Saxon descent who may have been swept-up by hysterical tales of recent attacks, or sightings in the area.  Others were expeditions carried-out by wealthy trophy hunters -- even more important, as it proves that belief in these tales was strong enough to entice men of a higher status (and assumptively better education) into paying top-dollar, and traveling the world to brave unchartered territory, just for the chance to nab one!

There are a handful of similar photos, all of which appear to be fakes based on the fabled accounts of "The Lost Thunderbird picture" -- none of which mention Vicksburg or the Civil War, by the way.  Most Thunderbird accounts of that period came from the American Southwest -- Arizona and the immediate area, to be precise.  Some of these tales were likely cases of mistaken identity coupled with fear -- the product of conditioning from hearing tales of such fearsome, loathsome beasts since childhood -- others, however, are not as easily dismissed.

And, though some modern researchers have conducted studies that seemingly "prove" modern people untrained in Zoology often misidentify known creatures -- not something serious researchers question in the first place -- their apocryphal data proves nothing regarding the knowledge of ancient tribal peoples whose entire lives were spent living and working in tandem with their natural surroundings.  This is especially true of American Indian culture, which revered nature and the animal kingdom.  On a separate note, the very hypothesis smacks of racial bias, as it seems to "confirm" the era's prevailing, racist views toward Amer-Indians more than anything.

This alleged picture of a Thunderbird hunt may well be the "Lost Thunderbird Photo" of paranormal lore.  While many have attempted to debunk it, no conclusive evidence proving its fraudulence has come to light.  Proffering that it may have been a hoax of its day -- a staged photo in front of a theatrical prop or taxidermic creation -- is a sound approach toward establishing reasonable doubt; resorting to claims of digital manipulation is lazy at best, and not at all convincing.  As always, I am not claiming this is an authentic photograph; I remain hopefully skeptical that it is, and so far unswayed by attempts to debunk it.

Especially since I am not sure how this picture made it online, because I think it belongs to a private collection.  Most of the photos from said private collection are unavailable online (although many are available in print), so I am not entirely sure how this particular photo of an alleged Thunderbird hunt around the turn of the 19^th-Century persevered.

Though I, too, may be mistaken.

© The Weirding, 2017

Pacu Fish in New Jersey Lake Origin of Urban Legend?

Pacu

Regardless of where you live in the United States, you are likely to have heard the urban legend regarding testicle-biting fish that infest local bodies of water.  Usually, these myths are accompanied by moralistic tales of illicit activity -- skinny-dipping or romantic trysts by moonlight.  However, a recent discovery in a New Jersey Lake had even national periodicals discussing the urban legend.

Two Pacu, fish with human-like teeth that are indigenous to South America, were discovered in Swedes Lake in New Jersey.  Pictures of the fish went viral online, and have been seen around the globe, causing the testicle-eating fish myth to begin anew.  However, National Geographic, USA Today, and other major outlets were quick to lay the urban legend to rest, saying the Amazonian fish eats fruits and nuts, not meat.  Pacu are related to piranha -- another fish with razor-sharp teeth which is infamous for its, very definite, carnivorous diet.

However, the legend persists: In 2011, two swimmers' bodies were found in New Guinea sans testicles, fueling speculation amongst the locals.  No one can confirm or deny that the fish may mistake swimmers' testicles for their usual vegetarian fare on occasion, but fish and other wild animals are also known to eat the soft parts of decomposing corpses.  They usually go first for the eyes, ears, and -- yes -- the testicles.

Tropical fish, the Pacu are unlikely to survive in temperate waters that may well freeze in winter.  As to how the Pacu got into Swedes Lake, it's likely they outgrew their fishtank and someone threw them in there.

© The Weirding, 2015

The Prophetic Ghost Lights of Golden Grove Bridge

Another Welsh term for Ghost Lights is Corpse Candles, which are believed to prophesy death in the area in which they appear.  The number of lights is said to indicate the number of lives soon to be lost.  

One famous case claims witnesses on a coach saw three corpse candles as they crossed the river bridge near Golden Grove.  Several days later, three boating men capsized and drowned at the spot where the ghost lights had been seen!

© C Harris Lynn, 2010

The Tatzelwurm

The Tatzelwurm

The Tatzelwurm truly tests the accuracy and efficacy of cryptozoology, as its existence remains a hotly-contested subject for debate.  While there is a lot of anecdotal evidence to support the creature's existence, others have completely written it off as folklore and legend.

To be sure, the legend is incredulous: A seven-foot, serpentine creature with the head of a rat and shiny, possibly scaly, skin.  Its mode of transportation and attack is even more disturbing, as the tatzelwurm is said to coil itself and spring toward its victims, biting and scratching them with its short forearms.

The tatzelwurm's origins are rooted in antiquity; it is thought to have been first mentioned in 1779 in the Swiss and Austrian Alps.  Reports grew more frequent in the late 19^th-Century, but no tatzelwurm was ever produced.  A skeleton discovered in 1924 was purported to be that of the tatzelwurm, which was so well-known as to have three distinct names (stollenwurm and springwurm being the other two), but it was never proven to be.

Many believe the creature did exist at one time, but is now extinct.

© C Harris Lynn, 2010

The Panther of Blackhole, Tennessee

The story of the Blackhole Panther was relayed to me by someone who has lived in the area her entire life.  I believe it to be fallacious (to a large extent) and classify it simply as Tennessee folklore of the region.  I relate it in hopes of hearing from others who may have heard the tale of the Blackhole Panther, or possibly even have an encounter of their own to share.

According to the subject, she, her future husband, his brother, and his brother's wife were "partying" on the Buffalo River in Humphreys County (Tennessee) at an area once called "Blackhole," at Exit 143 (I-240), late one night in the summer of 1980.  She had to think about the date, but settled firmly on 1980, as her child was born in 1981.

The spot was called "Blackhole" due to the depth of the river at that point.  According to the subject, "If you stood on the bridge in broad daylight, the water looked black, it was so deep."  She later relayed several stories of people who tried to reach the bottom but could not.  Neither she nor I know if Blackhole still exists as it did 30 years ago.

The couples were drinking and smoking marijuana, then decided to go skinny-dipping in the river.  All four went to the bank and began disrobing when they were startled by what "sounded like a woman screaming."

According to the her, local lore held that a "panther" frequented the area and she had "been hoping to see it."  When the shriek frightened the foursome, they saw "glowing" red eyes on the opposite bank.  Suitably scared, the party collected their clothing and made their way back to the single car in which they had arrived -- an early 1970's model Ford LTD (1974, according to her, but she was not certain).

She said the eyes belonged to a large, black cat which swam across the Buffalo River to their site and made its way to their car.  The width of the river at Blackhole was estimated by the subject to be about 40' -- or from one side of I-40 (a four-lane interstate) to the other.

She said the Panther of Blackhole approached the car, then mounted the hood.  The cat walked around on the hood before curling-up to gaze at the party, "Daring us to get out of that car."  It had a long body- - distinctly different from that of a bobcat which, though extremely rare, are still in the area -- and a long tail.  Bobcats can be black, but have a distinctive head and mane, which is often gray and tawny.  The bobcat is named for its "bobbed" tail -- a short, stubby, and fuzzy appendage.  The encounter lasted approximately 15 minutes from first appearance (on the opposite side of the river) to it laying on the hood of the car.

The subject continued: About a year after the incident at Blackhole, she and her (then) mother-in-law were at an undisclosed cemetery (the name of which escapes her) at Cuba Landing -- approximately ¹/₂ mile from the site at which they first encountered the Panther of Blackhole -- when they spotted several, small, black creatures in a field.  At first, she thought they dogs, due to their large size.  "They were fuzzy -- fuzzy and black.  There were a lot of stray dogs [that] used to run around out there, back then.  I was pregnant then and I wanted to take one home."

When she went to the fence to lure one, she realized they were large cats and told her mother-in-law, who was still behind the wheel of the car.  Partially inspired by her alleged encounter with the Blackhole Panther, she decided she still wanted one to take home.  As she stood there, her mother-in-law called excitedly from the car, "Those aren't just cats -- here comes their mama!"

The subject said a large, black cat, similar to the one she saw that night at Blackhole a year earlier, slinked from the woods.  Both it and the kittens were sable, with long tails.  She was within an estimated 20' of the kittens and the mother was about twice that distance from them (roughly 60' from the subject).  Her mother-in-law began screaming at her to get in the car.  She did so calmly, but quickly, and they left the area.

The subject says the Blackhole Panther legend was well-known amongst residents of the area at the time, but few claimed to have actually seen it.  She has not heard much about it since, but no longer lives in the area.  The friends she had at that time generally live elsewhere, or she has lost contact with them, and she has since divorced. She never saw the creature before nor since these, possibly related and entirely alleged, incidents.

I wholly discount the witness' alleged encounter at Blackhole, though I do believe she encountered a wild creature that night on the opposite bank -- possibly even one with "glowing red eyes" (that is to say, the eyes were red and may have appeared to be glowing to her and the others in her group). 

That the creature remains unidentified is not meant to suggest an Unknown or Cryptid; there is a very good chance that the creature unseen was, in fact, a bobcat -- or a cougar, bear, owl, even a large, stray dog.  Whether or not anything more happened beyond that point -- the creature crossing the river, and most especially mounting the hood of the car -- I cannot say, but do not believe it did.

I remain unconvinced of the story, though "The Blackhole Panther" sounds cool as hell.  This was the boom-time of the infamous "Beast of Exmoor" in England, and those accounts made headlines and network news here in the States several times throughout the era.  However, The OddBlog is always interested in tales relating to the subject matter we discuss.  If you, or anyone you know, has anything to add to the Panther of Blackhole, TN legend, please share!

© C Harris Lynn, 2010

Ancient Magic: Singing Spells

A Typical Skald or Bard

Singing was closely related to early wizardry. In many of the earliest legends in which they appear, the wizards and wise-women simply sing their enchantments into being. Some are as simple as love spells, while others move mountains and change the faces of entire worlds, and even raise the dead.

Most of history was passed orally through epic tales, almost always by performers known as skalds or bards. The most treasured bards wove magic through their music, primarily through their lyrics. Homer's Iliad, largely considered the first Western work of literature, was meant to be sung. This tradition continued well into the 14^th-Century, as Merlin -- the wisest and most well-known of all wizards -- employed singing in many of his spellcasting feats.

One of the most well-known of the skalds was the Welsh bard, Taliesin. Taliesin was an actual, historical poet of the 6^th or 7^th -Century, responsible for writing and popularizing many of the earliest-known Welsh myths. In legend, he was the son of a witch named Ceridwen. When Talisein, in another form, spoiled one of Ceridwen's potions meant to give her lame son all the knowledge of the world, Ceridwen pursued him in many forms until she ate him in the form of a seed. The witch then gave birth to the beautiful Taliesin, who eventually carried a magic harp, and cast magic through his songs.

This appears to have been common-thinking, worldwide: Many sorcerous operations involved singing, chanting, or playing instruments. Dancing featured prominently, as well. As late as the 18^th-Century, dancing and singing at different times of the day or year were associated with witchcraft.

By the 16^th-Century though, Magic -- Astrology and Alchemy, in particular -- had become scholastic pursuits, and the wizards of legend were revered more in theory than as actual, and possibly (once) living, beings.

© C Harris Lynn, 2010

Coincidence or Fate?: Two Bullets, Two Brothers

This one I have to chalk-up to folklore for several reasons, but according to The Official History of Guilford, Vermont, 1678-1961, Jabez Spicer of Leyden, Massachusetts was killed when two bullets struck him in the back at the Battle of Shays' Rebellion in 1787.  At the time he died, he was wearing the very coat his brother, Daniel Spicer, had been wearing three years earlier when he was killed in battle.  By two bullets through the back.

The bullets which killed Jabez passed through the holes the bullets which killed his brother, Daniel, had made in 1784.

© C Harris Lynn, 2009

Texas' Violent Sasquatch At It Again

Texas' Bigfoot has a history of violence.  In one of the handful of Bigfoot accounts in which the creature actually attacked (or tried to) someone, a Texas sheriff claims a white-haired beast threw a tire at him... a tire with the rim still in it!  (Such things are abundant in Texas, apparently even back then.) 

BIGfoot.

There are a few other instances in which eyewitnesses claim the hairy biped (as Bigfoot is also sometimes known) they encountered threatened, chased, or attempted to attack them, but in America, they are fairly rare.  

In certain other countries, however, the Bigfoot (which goes by any number of names, from Yowie to Wildman to Yeti to Sasquatch, and many, many more) is a fearsome, sometimes predatory, and always violent creature to be avoided.  The beast seems to appear on every continent on the planet, excepting the warmer ones, where their "wildmen" are far more ape-like, even by zoological standards.

In a 1977 New Jersey string of encounters, a wildman Sasquatch was credited for the killing of several neighbors' rabbits.  It tore through barns to get to the rodents (rabbits are rodents, aren't they?) and was seen by several eyewitnesses.  While studies were performed on the carcases and the area canvassed, no real evidence was ever discovered.  It did, however, "swat" a snarling attack dog some 20' aside.  

BIGfoot.

And so it came to pass the other night that San Antonio police were bombarded with calls reporting a "Sasquatch" and "large, hairy man over 6' 3" which had just killed a deer -- with its bare hands -- and dragged the fricking thing into the woods!  

BIGfoot.

According to police, though almost all of the calls came from "homeless" people, they "sounded scared, and surprisingly sober."  Police did not look for the creature.

© C Harris Lynn, 2009

The Leeds Devil, Pt. 1

This bit of American folklore is often confused (in my estimation) with what is indisputably (again, in my estimation) an eyewitness account of an actual, paranormal event. In fact, I was not even aware of the connection between the Leeds Devil and the Jersey Devil until researching the folklore of the former. From what I can tell, the tales are only interchangeable amongst the New Jersey citizenry; everyone else seems to consider the Leeds Devil and the Jersey Devil not only as two separate accounts, but in completely different lights.

First, let us dispense with the folklore of the Leeds Devil. Since there are numerous variations on the story, I will pass along the account most often traded, as it is disputably the oldest of the bunch (published):

Mother Leeds of Burlington was a sober Quaker highly suspected of practicing witchcraft. In 1735, she bore a child during a terrible storm ¹. As the women of the time crowded around whenever there was a death, marriage, or birth, they were all present, and before their very eyes, the shape and demeanor of the child did change: it grew long and brown with a snake-like body, a horse's head, cloven-hoofed feet, bat's wings, and a long, leathery, forked tail. It increased in strength and size until it was the bulk of a full-grown man, whereupon it emitted savage screams and "fell on the assemblage," beating them all - even its own mother - severely with its wings and tail before escaping through the chimney.

That night, several children disappeared - eaten by the dragon. While it seldom did much harm afterward, it was glimpsed in the woods of the Pine Barrens many times. Wherever milk soured, cows dried-up, or corn was seared, the Leeds Devil was said to have been. On still nights, farmers could follow its trail by the howling of dogs, hoots of owls, and squawks of birds - but few did.

At this point, the account gets a little blurry, connecting the Leeds Devil to the shoreline, where it portended shipwrecks (and was sometimes "seen in the company of the spectres that haunt the shore: the golden-haired woman in white, the black-muzzled pirate, and the robber, whose head being cut-off at Barnegat by Captain Kidd, stumps about the sands without it, guarding a treasure buried nearby." - American Myths & Legends, Charles M. Skinner). It was blamed for the deaths of the fish in the ponds and creeks in the cedar swamps - as it wanted a "change of diet" and breathed upon them - as they whitened and decayed and floated in such numbers as to threaten illness to all the neighborhood ².

The legend of the Leeds Devil then comes full-circle when, in 1740, a pious and exemplary clergyman is secured - one who "had dominion over many of the fiends that plagued New Jersey" (including applejack, "which some declared to be a worse fiend than any other") - who banned the Leeds Devil for 100 years. And for a century, the area was unmolested by the creature.

The Leeds Devil was all but forgotten by 1840 when, as if on cue, it once again began stealing sheep and clutching at children after twilight. Sightings were rare and spotty, but it was reported in Vincetown and Burrville in 1899, which was its last, great raid - at least at the time this account was published. The Leeds Devil's lifespan was thought to have run its course and the fiend was seen no more again forever...

...unless you link it to the strange events which occurred in the very region in January, 1909. While this seems plausible, given this regional folklore, it becomes more difficult, once we include the events of 1885 in Devonshire, England. And I feel this necessary, given that these events actually occurred - whereas the Leeds Devil legend is almost certainly just that. Like all verifiable legends, it has many variations, little to no solid evidence backing it, and is completely far-fetched in nature...

Except that there is some evidence backing it. And the same could be said of the strange events occurring in 1885 and again in 1909, were it not for the photographs and multitude of eyewitnesses.

Note also the inclusion of other New Jersey legends. This co-mingling is somewhat unusual and must be noted when considering the intersection of the folklore concerning the Leeds Devil and the very real account of the Jersey Devil, which occurred in 1909. After all, the lore of the Leeds Devil was already present in the region, and the last "great raid" attributed it was a mere decade before, so - faced with such an inexplicable event - it was quickly associated. The legend told here, from the source cited, was published in 1903. Kind of early for the author's insistence on the finality of the Leeds Devil, but this is a folklorist's tale, which demands an end.

In the second part of this study, we will delve into the lore surrounding the Leeds Devil - independent of the events which occurred in and around the area in 1909.
---
¹ Leeds' impregnation alone is considered "proof" of her witchcraft in this published account - why, I cannot say, except to note that she is referred to as "Mother" Leeds, which denotes an advanced age. This particular account - passed-on in several books, at least - does not mention a husband or father, which may also be the reason.

² This suggests an historical event, possibly due to a massive turnover - the mixing of upper and lower layers of a freshwater body, which occurs in the fall and can kill fish, especially bottomfeeders, such as catfish - though this does not explain the deaths of the livery in the creeks, unless they are slow-moving. Disease is also a possibility - and, given the account, more probable - but as I have personally seen the effects of a turnover, and the condition of the fish as described is similar, I included it.

© C Harris Lynn, 2008

Folklore: Fact from Fiction

One of the things that makes sifting through the tall tales to find the nuggets of truth which inspired them is folklorists, themselves. Like scientists, many folklorists approach their job as foregone conclusions. The best of them simply record the tales they are told; the worst of them can't help but point-out the inferiority of the tellers' education and acumen, offhandedly dismissing the story's relevance or any truth it might contain. In other words, many folklorists - like scientists - approach their work with their minds already made-up: these are mere stories, told to amuse, and nothing more. This attitude taints their work.

Many also seek to further their own field by fitting incomplete data into fully structured tales. For example, in his excellent book, A Treasury of American Folklore, editor B. A. Botkin's footnotes indicate he collected his tales orally, then rewrote them in a manner "true to the speech of our informants" (p. 697). However, in so doing, Botkin forces the tales into a regimented structure - introduction of obstacle, climax, and denouement - even where said structure did not exist (especially where this structure did not exist).

Most often, folktales are less actual stories than free-standing accounts. For example, we have all heard how a relative, friend, neighbor, or the neighbor of a relative's friend once saw a ghost. That is basically the entire account; the tale does not include whose ghost it was, why the person was in the area, and so forth. Folklorists often add these details when they record the tales, as they make for better reading and "complete" the legend.

These details are nearly always complete fabrications by the recorder. That the folklorist strives to maintain the integrity of the culture's locution, phrasing, speech, and so forth does not matter for our purposes - especially not when the folklorist deigns to do so. Again, the best simply obscure the information we researchers seeks; the worst condescend and corrupt the testimony.

As paranormal investigators, we are obviously concerned with unearthing that nugget of truth in these tall tales - that single, inspiring factor which led to the account and its continued popularity - and this embellishment obscures that. Folklore is an oral tradition, so certain accommodations must be made when translating it into the written form; we can't blame folklorists for doing their job, but it bears noting that it makes our jobs more difficult.

© C Harris Lynn, 2008

Shapeshifting Others

Last night, I discussed an American twist on the witch's legendary power of shapeshifting (the "slip-skin" belief). As I said then, shapeshifting and witchcraft are intimately entwined, no matter the variations by culture and region. But while the legend of witches' shapeshifting comes with many permutations, their ability to shapeshift others is pretty cut-and-dried and remains steady to this day; the concept of witches turning others into animals is so steadfast that it still appears in pop-culture - children's cartoons and books are filled with it and it serves as the plot device for many.

One interesting take on this theme is that of being "ridden by a witch." While pop-culture often depicts witches riding broomsticks, the folklore source most often mentions them shapeshifting objects, including humans, to ride.

In one folktale, an American describes how a witch entered his home one night while he was in bed. As he got up to fend her off, she drew a bit and in the ensuing melee, managed to bridle him! As he was circling with the witch astride, he saw his legs becoming hindquarters and soon realized he had been transformed into a mule, which the witch rode to carry out her nefarious deeds (which, in this story, was meeting bank robbers). This activity continued for several nights.

The man approached a Witch-Master, who told him to mark the cave where the witch was taking him so he could kill the witch with a silver bullet and the two of them could take the loot. So the following night, when the witch had bridled and ridden him to the same cave they'd been visiting, he "jest drapped as many drappin's as [he] could, an' started in for t'chaw me a good big blaze on th' white-oak saplin', like [the Witch-Master] told me..."

He ends the story by saying he awoke in the morning to find he'd shat the bed and "dang near bit th' ol' woman's laig off!"

While a humorous take on the matter, the recorder of this tale notes that her aunt took her aside afterward and assured her the man telling it believed in witches and witchcraft "deep down in his heart," but would never admit it to any but his closest friends.

In all of these tales, the witch strikes when the victim is nearly asleep - drifting into that gray state where one starts dreaming but is still technically awake. The dreams one experiences are generally tied to stimuli in the immediate area. This period is notable in all folklore, as well as Occult practices, lucid dreaming, and psychology. This is the state in which "sleep paralysis" occurs - a phenomenon which was tied to witchcraft and called "riding." It was so prevalent a belief that Henri Fuseli even painted a famous piece based on the concept. This gray state is the "in-between" area amidst full consciousness and sleep; all "in-between" areas - passages, doorways, etc. - are said to hold great power, as they are literally portals between our world and that of the Unseen.

With this tale, you can see how this legend was built upon as it traveled across cultures.

© C Harris Lynn, 2008

Slip-Skin

Shapeshifting has often been related to witchcraft. According to the basic, European legends surrounding witches, a witch often performed a summonings ceremony to call forth a familiar. According to the culture and region, the witch was either able to see through the familiar's eyes and access its other senses in various fashions, or literally shapeshift into its form. But American folklore brings its own twist to this belief: that of the slip-skin.

According to much folklore, American witches are able to "slip-skin" - that is, remove their skin to reveal an animal beneath, thought to be their "true form." Most witches did this at night - some even used spinning wheels to accomplish the task - largely so they could go about, causing mischief.

As witches were killed with silver and this was young America, silver bullets were the usual manner of dispatch in these tales. In several, a strange creature, or domesticated animal acting strangely, is shot but survives. Shortly thereafter, a woman bearing the animal's same wound(s) comes to light.

The slip-skin belief seems to be isolated to America; European folklore leans more heavily toward witches' associations with their familiars. It may have its roots in American Indian beliefs in shapeshifters, which also used the slip-skin method to change form. Shapeshifters were prevalent in American Indians' beliefs.

© C Harris Lynn, 2008

Cannibals in American Folklore

According to folklorist, B. A. Botkin, there existed a strain of American folklore in the "Wild West" days concerning braggarts who purported to be cannibals.

The American "Wild West" refers largely to the entire 19^th-Century, but more specifically (and usually) to the latter half of the century, after the Civil War and before the turn of the Century. As America was settled in the East, the West was indisputably "wild" by comparison, and true cowboys and Indians often fought it out across the plains as European descendants expanded westward.

From this era come many legends of violent, debauched men - many of whom were vilified in their day, but have since become heroes of a type. And according to B. A. Botkin, there was a second group of "pseudo-bad" men who boasted of deeds and behavior similar to such legendary men as Wild Bill Hickock, Jesse James, and the like. However, this group of braggarts laid claim to a practice which made them stand apart: "man-eatin'."

Apparently, this claim's origins can be traced back (somewhat) to "savage remarks" such as "I eat men for breakfast" and the stories carry much the same structure, regardless of whom told them:

I live in ____, Texas... whar the human man-eaters come from, and I'm one on 'em. Every person they don't take no fancy to is drug out and scalped alive. My hum range is so plumb full of murder and sin that [H]ell won't be no treat to me.

While the Wild West certainly forced many a man to do things most of us would consider inhuman, and others did these things out of sheer desire or "meanness," Botkin considers these tales to be exactly that and asserts those who told them were invariably drunk at the time.

© C Harris Lynn, 2008

Ladies Privilege

The Gregorian calendar contains 365 days per year, with an extra day, February 29^th, intercalated to make up the difference between the calendar year and the astronomical year. Every four years, this extra day comes into play on what has come to be called a "leap year."

Today is Leap Day, 2008.

All calendars have some sort of intercalated period to account for the difference, except for Muslims (of course), because Allah deemed them blasphemous (of course). People born on Leap Day are called "leaplings" and traditionally celebrate their birthdays on February 28^th and Catholics change their February religious holidays accordingly, postponing them a day in leap years.

According to some sources, women in the Western world could only propose to men in leap years. However, this is disputed by many as historically inaccurate. It is supposed to go back to the 5^th-Century but no actual references exist before the 19^th-Century. In Greece, it is considered bad luck to get married during a leap year.

"Leap Day" got its name because English courts did not officially recognize the 29^th of February; they basically "leapt" past the day when it came up on the calendar. If a crime was committed on this day, it was treated as though it had never occurred!

Many of the superstitions surrounding Leap Day and Leap Years have to do with the "between" magic of Aelfheim and the Faerie World. These are most prevalent in Irish folklore. General superstition decrees leap years as "lucky" years for entering business ventures and this very date as particularly auspicious for business matters and dealings!

Happy Leap Day and Leap Year!

© C Harris Lynn, 2008

Legendary Changes

Sometimes, it's hard to keep the blogs separated; there are a lot of issues, topics, and events that could fit on several of them and a handful that fit perfectly well on just about all of them. I often find myself wrestling over exactly which blog to post a certain entry on.

I discussed the book I am presently reading over to The Rundown a while back and intend to give a more replete review there once I am finished. I mentioned that I had first read it back in highschool and was absolutely blown away, so when I discovered that, over the years, I had collected the other two books in the trilogy without realizing it, I went on eBay and bought a new copy of Magic Kingdom for Sale - Sold! And I am loving it!

But that's not what this post is about:

Two of the main supporting characters (which may sound like a misnomer, but isn't) are kobolds. Now, those of you familiar with any flavor of Dungeons & Dragons probably know the creatures, but the rest of you probably do not.  In D&D, they are basically nothing, little critters (even though there was a fantastic article in Dragon magazine some years back in defense of the kobold, rife with fantastic tactical ideas) -- the equivalent of the Snotling from the Games Workshop's more true-to-legend Warhammer Fantasy Role-Play (WFRP) -- but in Magic Kingdom for Sale - Sold!, kobolds are a vicious, powerful breed of fighters.

This got me to thinking -- so much so that I was distracted from my reading -- about how legends are changed in their retelling.  Now, Magic Kingdom for Sale - Sold! is a fictitious work which not only doesn't hold to "fixed" legends and so forth, but actively seeks to redefine some of them in order to stand apart from the pack and be its own animal -- but that doesn't change the fact that the overall concept of the kobold was firmly set by the pop-culture phenomena known as D&D, and the players of that classic RPG are obviously the target audience for such a work.

Tolkien reinvented several legendary creatures in his works, and his changes have now become part of the "revised" legends surrounding those fantasy beasts.  For example, trolls don't turn to stone in the sunlight according to the original legends from which Tolkien drew.  The words "elves" and "dwarves" were invented by Tolkien; the proper plurality of these words are "elfs" and "dwarfs."  These may seem like minor changes -- irrelevant to anyone but nerds and pedants, like myself -- but the fact is that these changes were embraced by the general populace.  So much so that they have become the new standard, and made recapturing the original versions of these legends more difficult.

You are unlikely to read or hear anyone refer to the plural of "elf" as "elfs;" Tolkien's work completely changed the legend of the Fey Folk forevermore.  And this happens on a somewhat regular basis.

Just, you know, just thinking.  Just... putting it out there.

What in the World: Paris Hilton?

Starting yet another ongoing series, What in the World will look deeper into mysteries, weird news, and similar subjects, dissecting them and laying them bare so we can better understand the situations surrounding them.

Today, we're going to go a little deeper into the Paris Hilton debacle which I have been covering all day on pretty much all the blogs. The reason I wanted to do this is because I know some people will think I'm just talking about her to drum-up some traffic or something and that's honestly not the case.

This has everything to do with Sociology in general, and specifically how myths and legends are created. Let's face it: this entire episode has cemented Paris Hilton's legendary status. This will be shown, rebroadcast, dissected, analyzed, and eventually show up on VH1's I Love the 00's, as well as umpteen other shows like it. This is also going to be a case-in-point for other celebrities.

Outside of pop-culture, this is going to be a really big sticking-point in the legal circles, as well. Most all of the experts have said that anyone else arrested on these same charges would have only served several days, at best. It really is a case of her being treated unfairly, held up as an example to the other "bad girls" in Hollywood, as well as any others who see Hilton as some sort of role-model.

But my point here has a lot to do with folklore, legend, and myth. In today's reporting alone, we heard all about how Paris supposedly decided she was going to call in to court instead of showing up, but Greta van Susteren said the media was told that Paris would be calling-in by a Sheriff's deputy. It begs the question, now that we know of the struggle between the sheriff and the judge, if she decided this or she was told this would be okay by the sheriff, or someone in his department.

This mysterious "medical condition" which got her out of jail to begin with, verified and explained by Greta van Susteren, SMACKS of withdrawals from a certain drug, but it has widely been reported that she caught some kind of rash while in jail. The going "codeword" being used is "nervous breakdown," but there is no such thing as a "nervous breakdown" in medical jargon, and if Paris Hilton had a Psychotic Break, we would most certainly have heard about that.

There are several other factors which are shrouded in mystery and/or conflicting reports and I think it's important to see how it all plays out. This is how things happen when there is a panic, when there are strong emotions. Sure, this is over-the-top drama of a celebrity kind, but I want to keep this in mind and dissect it from a folklore perspective as it goes on, because I think we can learn a whole lot from this as researchers.

It sounds silly, but if Paris Hilton were Bigfoot - and there are glaring similarities - is this how everything would go down, is this how the public, media, and legal system would react? Think about that, as it's going to be the focal point throughout this discussion.