Paranormal is not Horror

If you look for images of “paranormal” online you will find a lot of women (very biased!) in situations likely causing horrible and gruesome deaths. That isn’t what paranormal is to me. Its not even what the horror genre is to me. Horror should be far more interesting and the paranormal is far more unusual and unexplained than bloody.

The first, or earliest, paranormal thing I remember reading did horrify me. It was about a little girl in the schoolyard who suddenly became suspended in mid-air. Then she was smashed down to the ground. It would be typical of most paranormal/horror movies. But, there was speculation about what could have caused this to happen and if it were real. So, yes, there was the fear of something like this happening but also the curiousity of why and how it happened.

Since then I’ve read about so many other paranormal, unexplained and mysterious things. I think unexplained is a better name because paranormal has been taken over by horror fans.

Weird, Unexplained and Paranormal Canada

Paranormal Canada There are paranormal explorers all across Canada. Paranormal gets mixed in with everything ghosts. But, paranormal is a lot more than ghosts and haunted houses. In Canada we have a lot more paranormal, unexplained mysteries and mysterious monsters than you may think.

I tried sorting paranormal and ghost hunter links but it became a judgement call based on very little for some groups, researchers and societies. For the links here I read through some of the site’s pages, recent work and blog posts (if there were any). Then I decided whether or not they were truly paranormal in nature. Most were focused on ghosts. I guess that’s where the money is for a lot of them. My heart is with the real paranormal researchers – those who have an interest in the weird, more than just the haunted.

A Paranormal Explorer Needs a Good Camera

One nice thing about a digital camera for paranormal exploring is also a reason I really like the digital camera for exploring in general. – you don’t need to get your film developed. This means you don’t need to spend money on film and developing film. You also don’t need to wait. You can take your camera home, plug it up and see your photos right the same day or evening.

Once you add extra memory to your digital camera you can take all the photos you would ever need from one location. I’ve just bought a new memory card which stores up to 2 gigabytes. I’ve got an older memory card on my back up camera, it only stores 512 MB. Still funny to think of that as only 512 MB. It was a lot of memory at the time I bought that card. (If you want extra memory pick up another memory card and keep it stored safely in your camera bag to switch it out).

Some digital cameras will have a feature which lets you shoot in infrared light, or even low light will help get you something. Flash is not a good option because it washes out everything with bright light for that one instant. To find out if you have infrared on your camera, read the instructions or check the camera manufacturers site for a list of features and how to use them. Most camera manufacturers will have a downloadable instruction guide on their website for each of the cameras they sell/ make.

The new cameras, with more zoom, are becoming bulkier. I bought one for the extra range when I am photographing buildings from a distance. Or, even when I am close to the building itself but want to get close to a feature which is high up or very small. So, for my outdoor work, the bulkier camera with the added zoom is good. You won’t need extra zoom for indoor photos, looking for paranormal activity. You may want to find a camera with a lot of shutter speed. A fast shutter speed means there is very little time between you pushing the button and the camera actually getting the photo. This means you can use a smaller, slimmer camera – which means it is fairly easy to be portable and slip into a pocket or purse. Nice for leaving your hands free when you aren’t actually using the camera.

Paranormal Photography

Paranormal Photography Condensed, by Brian Schill
Camera Equipment – For paranormal research
Camera for paranormal photography of ghosts – Long Island Paranormal Investigators
FindersCreepers – Paranormal Photography 101

Canadian Paranormal Groups, Investigators and Societies

OSI Team – Other Side Investigations (Alberta based)
Canadian Ghost Society
Canadian Paranormal Society
ParaResearchers Quebec
PRS (Paranormal) Canada
PSICAN – Paranormal Studies and Investigations Canada
Weird Canada

What Do Guys Read?

If you look at the fiction for boys and young men, there isn’t a lot to choose from. I noticed this years ago as my nephew (Zack) was growing up. Now Zack is almost 16. He reads books from the regular fiction. But, once in awhile he backtracks to something he read as a boy. He has a loyalty to the books he liked, he will read them again and again. So why are there so many more books for girls than boys?

I found a link to Guys Read in an older copy of Reader’s Digest.

Our mission is to motivate boys to read by connecting them with materials they will want to read, in ways they like to read.
1. Make some noise for boys.
We have literacy programs for adults and families. GUYS READ is our chance to call attention to boys’ literacy.

2. Expand our definition of reading.
Include boy-friendly nonfiction, humor, comics, graphic novels, action-adventure, magazines, websites, audiobooks, and newspapers in school reading. Let boys know that all these materials count as reading.

3. Give boys choice.
Motivate guys to want to read by letting them choose texts they will enjoy. Find out what they want. Let them choose from a new, wider range of reading.

4. Encourage male role models.
Men have to step up as role models of literacy. What we do is more important than all we might say.

5. Be realistic. Start small.
Boys aren’t believing that “Reading is wonderful.” Reading is often difficult and boring for them. Let’s start with “Here is one book/magazine/text you might like.”

6. Spread the GUYS READ word.
Encourage people to use the information and downloads on this site to set up their own chapters of GUYS READ, and get people thinking about boys and reading.

On the site they have a list of genres and types of books guys might read: Scary, War, How to build stuff, At least one explosion, Action/ adventure, outer space, but with aliens, Cars, trucks, etc., Mysterious occurrences, Ghosts, Monkeys and/or apes, People being transformed into animals, Outer space but without aliens, and Books for little guys which is probably the same list just a different shape of book.

What would you write for boys or young men? Think of a plot and characters that would appeal to them.

What do you see Outside your Window?

What’s Out Your Window? – I’m not looking out a window from a highrise building. I have, in the past. But these days I’m in a one storey house. I can still see snow outside but the roads are clear from the snowploughs and the sunshine we had all day today. It’s after midnight now so outside it is quiet, dark and a bit mysterious. I can see everything from the streetlight at the bottom of my driveway.

Share your photos and stories with the Highrise – What’s Outside your Window project.

Be the Ice Queen and Be Proud!

You may feel like the Ice Queen inside when you go through a divorce. It may be how you hold yourself together and pull yourself through the whole thing. It’s not a bad thing to be the Ice Queen. Wear it with pride!

Later, when you begin to thaw out and become yourself again, you can still be the Ice Queen, a bit mysterious and unreachable. A bit aloof and above the crowd. Feeling special is a good thing.

Kate Spade has an Ice Queen set: brooch, ring and a necklace on a thick silver chain. This one above is called the bib necklace, it’s my favourite in the set.

Try a Cinquain

A cinquain poem is 5 lines long. It has a one word title. Two describing words. Three action words. Four feeling words. Then one synonym for the title (on the fifth line). Try one! Mine is below.

Smile
Open, mysterious.
Twisted, curving lips.
Curious, shy, never expected.
Facetious.

If you want to know more about cinquains:

Cinquain.org – “A scholarly exploration of the American cinquain as popularized by Adelaide Crapsey.”

Amaze – The cinquain journal (online but not updated often).

From PoeWar:

Cinquain, despite its French-sounding name, is an American poetry form that can be traced back to Adelaide Crapsey. Crapsey, influenced by Japanese haiku, developed this poetic system and used it to express brief thoughts and statements. Other poets who popularized the form were Carl Sandburg and Louis Utermeyer. While the form does not have the extensive popularity of haiku, it is often taught in public schools to children because of the form’s brief nature.

Most cinquain poems consist of a single, 22 syllable stanza, but they can be combined into longer works. A cinquain consists of five lines. The first line has two syllables, the second line has four syllables, the third line has six syllables and the fourth line has eight syllables, the final line has two syllables.