Monthly Archives: October 2015

A Fascination With the Afterlife

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First: Still want to hear your stories of strange experiences.

Next: This vlog was a bit of a mess. I’m not feeling on top of my game today and this is a huge topic that’s really kind of important to the whole paranormal research aspect of what I’m interested in. That time period between the 1840s and 1930s was when dozens of research organizations and secret societies were in their heyday… and a lot of them are still around (in some form) today.

I rambled on, with multiple false starts, and ridiculously long pauses for a whole 20 minutes. Editing took… a while. And, after that, I can think of dozens of ways I’d rather have done this.

In short, I’m really running head on against my perfectionist tendencies and they’re clawing at me something fierce. Of course, I can’t even begin to do much different and still hold to my schedule.

Guess that means there’s stuff to work toward eventually. 🙂

The book I mentioned in the vlog is one written by Peter Aykroyd, that’s Dan Aykroyd’s father. I picked it up a couple of years ago and it’s a really good read. So, if the history of ghosts, spiritualism, and the influences Dan Aykroyd grew up with are things that interest you, definitely check out A History of Ghosts: The True Story of Seances, Mediums, Ghosts, and Ghostbusters. Seems it’s only available for Kindle on Amazon right now.

So, check out the vlog.

Don’t forget that you have some say over what goes on for the next 100 days… click the big green button below here to get to the page where you can submit topic suggestions and questions (so I know what kinds of things you want to see go on in these videos).

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Those First Weird Books

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Now we’re up to the point where I really want all of you to join in.

In today’s vlog, I talk about a bunch of the weird books that provided me with the framework for my explorations of the strange and unusual. I want to know what books and experiences you’ve read and had that involve the paranormal and supernatural.

Here’s the promised list of books from me:

There are many, many more than this… and then tons of television shows and documentaries. I could go on for hours and still miss bunches whose titles have faded from my memory, even if the stories and knowledge they contained hasn’t.

If I’d had access back then to the volume of information on ghosts, UFOs, and other paranormal things I have now, all sorts of things would have been so much more amazing. Knowing what I had to go through to get the knowledge I have of this stuff is what really makes me sad that a good bunch of the people–some running podcasts on this very same stuff–don’t know about what I consider basic things (like The Philip Experiment).

Oh… and Von Daniken did open a theme park of sorts. Back in 2003. It really didn’t last as a full-time venture.

Here’s today’s vlog, a quick run through some of my books. Let me know if you like it… but more importantly, tell me the stories you know.

Don’t forget that you have some say over what goes on for the next 100 days… click the big green button below here to get to the page where you can submit topic suggestions and questions (so I know what kinds of things you want to see go on in these videos).

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Unboxing Blood Rage

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So many games with miniatures coming my way… this is the first one: Blood Rage.

Of course, you don’t get a good look at most of the minis… I’d need a completely different setup for that. And they’re probably best illustrated by stills, anyway. (Maybe still just like what they did on the Kickstarter page.) They are very nice minis, at least compared to what I’m used to in a number of other board games I’ve played over the years. They’re plastic, with enough flexibility to not break and enough hardness to hold their shape and feel good and solid.

I bought into this game because I totally dig the style–the art and the sculpts and the general plot are all fantastic. Since it’s a 60-90 minute game, I may even be able to drag it to Game Night and get people to play it. Or, y’know, hold my own game day again. Either way, it doesn’t seem prohibitively complex rules-wise. (I’ll know more when I do get around to playing it.)

I’ve seen some pics online of painted versions of these Vikings, gods, and monsters and it really tempts me to try to dress them up a little. Over the past few months, I’ve watched a few painting tutorials online (because I have so many games with so many minis coming my way) and I’m not sure I have the patience for it. Guess we’ll see as time goes on. (It’s not like I have any shortage of friends who know more about painting than I do…)

So, yeah, Blood Rage, it showed up on time, looks awesome, and I own it (and all the expansion stuff) now. Cool.

Here’s the vlog where you can get a quick look at things.

Don’t forget that you have some say over what goes on for the next 100 days… click the big green button below here to get to the page where you can submit topic suggestions and questions (so I know what kinds of things you want to see go on in these videos).

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An Important Distinction

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As I’ve said regularly, I’m into some strange stuff.

That includes believing in things like ghosts, psychic powers, and flying saucers. I’ve talked about them a lot over the years with a lot of people. I’ve had a handful of personal experiences and I’ve heard a lot more first hand accounts of various bits of “strangeness.”

Here’s the important thing: I don’t expect anyone to believe me when I talk about this stuff.

In fact, I get a little worried when someone I’m talking to doesn’t question the legitimacy of the story at least a little bit.

These things are weird for a few reason. They don’t happen to everyone. They don’t usually happen to people in exactly the same way. And, perhaps most importantly, we haven’t been able to reliably record–let alone reproduce–these strange happenings.

Even worse, a lot of people have lied about them over the years for one reason or another. Maybe for some attention. Maybe to scam some people out of money.

The bottom line is, a lot of the occurrences of these things can and are explained away in very sensible ways. But there are a significant number that aren’t.

It’s that bunch… those unexplained ones that can’t be waved away… that I’m interested in.

The important distinction here is that I’m talking about stuff that can’t be explained and that I don’t expect anyone to actually believe really happened. So, if you’re not interested, I’m okay with that.

If you feel the need to tear into me (or anyone else talking about this stuff) about how utterly ridiculous it is and how idiotic and/or dangerous people who believe in it are… well, please keep on walking by. I’m not trying to convince you it’s real, I’d like the same respect in the reverse direction.

There’s never been any question in my mind that all of this stuff will eventually be explained by science. Not explained away, mind you, just explained. I think we still lack the proper technology to really do so right now. Even worse, I think a lot of our current technology may actually hamper our ability to accurately explore some of these paranormal things.

But that’s all stuff I’m likely going to talk about at length in future vlogs and posts. For now, I just want you to know that I’ve got nothing to prove here. I just want to have a decent conversation about strange stuff. Specifically about experiences people have had.

So, if you’ve had strange and unusual experiences with ghosts, psychic abilities, UFOs, or anything else like that… let me know. I want to hear your story.

For now, though, you can listen to me ramble a little about the weird stuff I believe.

Don’t forget that you have some say over what goes on for the next 100 days… click the big green button below here to get to the page where you can submit topic suggestions and questions (so I know what kinds of things you want to see go on in these videos).

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Discomfort and Horror

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One of the bigger complaints I hear about horror films in various reviews is that “it made me feel uncomfortable.” Usually leading to the reviewer giving the film a bad review.

Discomfort is one of those things that really puts people off to an experience. I get that. It’s a feeling that’s got a lot of negative associations.

But it’s also what precedes any serious bit of growth and is often found along the path from ignorance to understanding.

Discomfort crops up when you’re out of your comfort zone. And it’s your “comfort zone” that will kill you with stagnation if you’re not careful.

I love films and stories that make me feel uncomfortable. It means I stand to learn something from them–either about myself or about the world in general. Usually something I wouldn’t learn otherwise.

We spend a lot of our lives avoiding being uncomfortable and scared. For at least some of us who love horror films, we seek out those feelings. And when we can get both of them at once–discomfort that gives way to enlightenment and fear that explodes into a release–well, that’s a magical thing, indeed.

Both movies from the last regular night of the Spooky Movie Film Festival provided those feelings. They Look Like People was intensely uncomfortable in places, not being sure whether the main character was crazy or was actually being made ready to face a demonic invasion. German Angst was decided European in its style and, for those of us in the U.S., that’s always a bit uncomfortable (take us out of our cultural element and we don’t know how to react all the time). Definitely films I’d recommend. German Angst, though, most certainly isn’t for everyone. It’s not the most graphic film, but the mix of realistic and ritualistic violence really isn’t at everyone’s cup of tea. Even more so with the sexual themes involved in at least part of the film.

Now that Spooky is over, I won’t be running around quite as much and may actually have a chance to get ahead of the game again. Maybe even figure out some titles or something. This coming week, I’m going to try to move away from fictional spooky things and into more real-world ones. We’ll see how that goes.

So, here’s the vlog on those last two movies. Enjoy!

Don’t forget that you have some say over what goes on for the next 100 days… click the big green button below here to get to the page where you can submit topic suggestions and questions (so I know what kinds of things you want to see go on in these videos).

[jbutton size=”xxlarge” color=”green” link=”http://durosia.com/vlog-questions” newpage=”yes”]Come Ask a Question Here[/jbutton]