Phantoms and Monsters

Posted: 13 Aug 2011 03:05 PM PDT

Along with my passion for the paranormal and all things strange is my interest in Great Britain's history and mythology. I'm going to piece together many of the vintage tales and occasionally post these collections. If you have a venerable narrative or anecdote that you'd like to share, please feel free to forward to me.

The Evil Black Hound

The old Newgate Prison harbors one of London's most terrifying apparitions, that of an evil black hound. The legend dates back to the reign of Henry III, during a period of extreme famine, where prisoners were alleged to have gorged upon one another to survive! One of these victims was said to have been a sorcerer of the darkest arts, who claimed near death that he would seek revenge on the inmates. A fascinating account originates from the pen of a Luke Hutton, who was an inmate in the 1500s, and hanged in 1598. This oft-repeated version of the beast comes from 1638, entitled 'The Discovery of a London Monster' and reads as follows:

I maintained that I had read an old Chronicle that it was a walking spirit in the likeness of a blacke dog, gliding up and down the streets a little before the time of Execution, and in the night whilst Sessions continued, and his beginning thus.

In the raigne of King Henry the third there happened such a famine through England, but especially in London, that many starved for want of food, by which meanes the Prisioners in Newgate eat up one another altue, but commonly those that came newly in..there was a certain scholar brought tither, upon suspicion of Conjuring, and that he by Charmes and devilish Whitchcrafts, had done much hurt to the kings subjects, which Scholler, mauger his Devil Furies, Spirits and Goblins, was by the famished prisoners eaten up…

With vengeance promised by the prey: …nightly to see the Scholler in the shape of a black Dog walking up and downe the Prison, ready with ravening Jawes to teare out their bowles; for his late human flesh they had so hungerly eaten, and withal they hourely heard (as they thought) strange groanes and cries, as if it had been some creature in great paine and torments, whereupin such a nightly feare grew amongst them, that it turned into a Frenzie, and from a Frenzie to Desperation, in which desperation they killed the keeper, and so many of them escaped forth, but yet whither soever they came or went they imagined a Blacke Dog to follow, and by this means, as I doe thinke, the name of him began.

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The Highbury Hunchback

Mr Stock moved into his home in Highbury during 1849. Although the door number was 13, Mr Stock was not prone to superstition. And the overhanging trees and overgrown garden also did not deter Mr Stock. The rent was cheap, and that was the main thing.

Mr Stock employed a housekeeper, a Mrs Brown. Their first night at the property was a little strange, because as Mr Stock retired to bed, on passing a window he noticed not only his own reflection, but one of a very ugly, almost hideous looking man. Again though, Mr Stock had more important things on his tired mind. The following night whilst reading a magazine in bed Mr Stock dozed off but suddenly awoke. In the glow of the candle he noticed an old woman at the far end of the room. Eerily, the door began to open and the haggard figure slinked out the exit. Mr Stock's yell alarmed Mrs Brown who comforted him but told him it was just a dream.

Two weeks went by without event, until that night he returned home from the theatre. With candle in hand Stock crept wearily upstairs. Staring once again, possibly by habit now, at the window, Stock noticed in the reflection that someone was following him up the stairs. Turning round he saw a terrifying apparition. A ghastly, wretched face almost obscured by a head of wild, shaggy hair. The figure had a hunched back, and its face was illuminated by some unnatural light. The sinister ghoul clutched a table knife in one dirty paw, and slowly ascended the stairs, step by step, towards the cowering Mr Stock.

Bizarrely, as the figure came closer, Stock realised that the monstrous spectre was completely oblivious to his presence, gliding by him on the stairwell and heading towards Stock's bedroom. Stock, almost frozen with fear, found the strength and courage to follow the intruder. The beast reached the door, turned the door handle slowly and entered. Stock peered over the shoulder of the wraith at a distance, just in case the hunchback suddenly became aware of Stock, who clearly at this point was not on the same astral plateau.

Stock then saw the elderly woman he'd seen in the 'dream'. She looked petrified as the hunchback leered with menace and approached her. Suddenly, the door slammed shut by the force of the wind. Stock reached for the handle, desperate to free himself from the horror about to unfold. However, when he quickly glanced back at the room, there was no terrified woman, and there was no evil hunchback. Stock ran downstairs and spent the remainder of the dark hours with gaslight in full flow.

Shortly after, Stock was brave enough to search the house but found no other presence or sign that anyone had been there. However, he did find that many years ago the house had been inhabited by a woman and her rather deformed son. Rumour had it that the woman left home and allegedly died abroad and the hunchback stayed in the house, never venturing in to daylight. Local word said that the reclusive figure then mysteriously vanished.

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Dragons Over London

Dragon-like 'sky serpents', which have also been connected to sightings of weird-shaped craft throughout history, have been occasionally seen over London. The Brentford Griffin, if genuine, was the last of the 'dragon' sightings, but a similar beast was spotted during the 1700s, and was mentioned in "The Gentleman's Magazine":

"In the beginning of the month of August, 1776, a phenomenon was seen in a parish a few miles west of London, which much excited the curiosity of the few persons that were so fortunate to behold it. The strange object was of the serpent kind; its size that of the largest common snake and as well as could be discovered from so transient a view of it, resembled by its grey, mottled skin. The head of this extraordinary animal appeared about the same size as a small woman's hand. It had a pair of short wings very forward on the body, near its head; and the length of the whole body was about two feet. Its flight was very gentle; it seemed too heavy to fly either fast or high, and its manner of flying was not in a horizontal attitude, but with its head considerably higher than the tail, so that it seemed continually labouring to ascend without ever being able to raise itself much higher than seven or eight feet from the ground."

Even more amazing was the fact that the magazine recorded, in 1797, another flying serpent account, this time between Hyde Park Corner and Hammersmith, on 15th June late one evening. The witness, merely known as 'J.R.', wrote a letter describing the weird encounter, stating "…the body was of a dark colour, and about the thickness of the lower part of a man's arm, about two-feet long."

The witness continued, "…the wings were very short and placed near the head. The head was raised above the body. It was not seven or eight-feet above the ground."

Whilst the creature seemed very life-like, and indeed almost like a flying snake, the letter ended in morose fashion, concluding, "…being an animal of such uncommon description, I was particular in noticing the day of the month, and likewise being the day preceding a most dreadful storm of thunder and lightning."

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Spring Heeled Jack

One of the most curious and persistent of all paranormal creatures is Spring Heeled Jack. Reports of his existence date back to the early 19th century in Sheffield, England, and he has been reported on and off in England and the US as recently as 1995. And while a decent case can be made that the legend of Spring Heeled Jack is nothing more than a series of cruel hoaxes, it would represent a conspiracy of impressive scope and durability.

In 1808, a letter to the editor of the Sheffield Times recounted how "Years ago a famous Ghost walked and played many pranks in this historic neighbourhood." The writer went on to identify this entity as the "Park Ghost or Spring Heeled Jack," and briefly described its ability to take enormous leaps and frighten random passers-by, but concluded, "he was a human ghost as he ceased to appear when a certain number of men went with guns and sticks to test his skin."

The following is the chronicle of chaos:

September 1837 – Barnes Common. Over the course of two nights a businessman, and then three girls, were confronted by a fiery-eyed, darkly clad figure. The apparition tore at their clothes and laughed.

Early October 1837 – Cut-Throat Lane, Clapham Common. Mary Stevens, heading towards what was then Lavender Hill, was groped and kissed by a laughing maniac. The following night, a carriage on Streatham High Road was attacked by a creature. Both coachmen and the footman were injured in the crash. A woman walking near Clapham churchyard with her two sons observed a tall, thin and darkly clad gentleman who mocked them.

October 11th 1837 – Blackheath. Polly Adams was assaulted by a mysterious, bounding attacker, described as being cloaked, having glowing eyes and a mouth that spat blue flame. With iron like claws the assailant tore at her clothes, exposing her breasts, and then fled in a rapture of mocking laughter.

Late autumn 1837. Rumours of a stalking spectre at Hampton, Richmond, and Kingston.

Winter 1837. Two young girls were cornered in Dulwich; the clothes were ripped from one. In Forest Gate a couple were confronted; the man had his face slashed whilst a gypsy lady hampered the exploits of the criminal, calling for nearby help before the attacker could strike. He disappeared into the mist.

January 9th 1838. The Lord Mayor at Mansion House addressed the audience with mention of a disguised prankster, appearing also as a 'ghost', 'bear' and 'devil', claiming that the "unmanly villain has succeeded in depriving seven ladies of their senses". In the same month, rumour spread that the 'Peckham Ghost' had attacked and killed in areas of Vauxhall, Brixton and Stockwell. In St John's Wood the 'monster' attacked for two weeks and police believed the criminal would murder six women.

Late January 1838. The name Spring Heeled Jack was born, originating from his ways of leaping, described as 'springald' – a jumping jack.

February 1838. Sisters Lucy and Margaret Scales visited their brother Tom at Narrow Street, Limehouse. The girls left Tom at 8:35 pm, and as they walked along a dimly lit passageway, Lucy saw a fleeting figure, which then pounced. She was enveloped in his cloak, the glow of a lantern showing his mouth of blue flame. The figure vanished into the night. Two days later at the home of a Mr Alsop, a knock at the door during a late hour disturbed his three daughters, Mary, 16, Jane, 18, and the married Sarah. Jane went to the door and in the gloom of the shadows saw a tall, dark figure wearing a top hat. "I am a policeman," the figure muttered, "for God's sake bring me a light we have caught Spring Heeled Jack here in the lane!" he exclaimed. Jane hurried indoors to grab a candle but upon turning around was met by the figure the whole of London had become so fearful of. Again, his eyes were aglow, as was his flaming mouth. He wore a large helmet and tight fitting garb, and with razor claws slashed at Jane's garments. It was sister Sarah who took on Jack, freeing her sister from his fateful grasp and then screaming for the police, sending the attacker of into the shadows. According to Mr Alsop, the fiend left his cloak behind.

February 27th 1838. A servant boy at Turner Street, off Commercial Road, answered the door to a figure with glinting claws and fiery eyes. The boy screamed and the form fled. The next day whilst under questioning, the boy claimed that upon the chest of the intruder he saw a breastplate showing off some ornate crest and also the letter 'W'.

1839. Reports of bounding, fiery-eyed attackers come from as far afield as the Midlands.

Early 1840s. A cloaked, spring-heeled figure was rumoured to have terrorised the Home Counties.

August 26th 1843. A cloven-hoofed 'Jack' assaulted a man at Commercial Road. However, the victim fought back against the cloaked figure, even setting him on fire, although such a figure seems like a hoax.

November 1845 – Bermondsey. A springing, leaping figure was seen by several witnesses, bounding through Jacob's Island. The figure then grabbed thirteen-year old prostitute Mary Davis on the bridge crossing Folly Ditch, spat flame in her face and then threw her into the murky depths where she perished. Her body was recovered and she became the first recorded victim of SHJ.

1870s. Reports from 1845 onwards seem a little vague. During the 1870s the 'Peckham Ghost' attacked a wagon at Lordship Lane, and was also seen at Dulwich College, but many of these figures seem to appear as pale imitations of the original, sinister terror.

1900s. SHJ haunted parts of Aldershot.

Spring Heeled Jack's exploits, since their birth, have embedded themselves in world folklore with similar apparitions being sighted across the United States, South America, France and elsewhere in the UK. Many researchers believe that the Marquis of Waterford was the man behind the original London crimes, an eccentric Irish nobleman about whom author Peter Haining claimed, "the exploits of Spring Heeled Jack were wholly within his capabilities", in his detailed book on the legend (The Legend and Bizarre Crimes of Spring Heeled Jack). Waterford died in 1859, although similar attacks occurred in Norfolk in 1877.

Some theorise that SHJ was an extraterrestrial, but whatever your beliefs on alien humanoids, this theory just doesn't hold weight. Jack was also blamed for the mysterious set of footprints covering snowy Devon in 1855, which could not be attributed to any known animal or means of human capability.

Whether ghost, devil, serial killer or prankster, the crimes and events that many claimed were the work of the infamous shadow will always remain foggy, because, just like Jack The Ripper only a few decades later, Sweeney Todd, the London Monster previous, and many other puzzling mysteries, they are simply best left unsolved, even as they persist to the present day.

Sources:
londonist.com
www.thecobrasnose.com
"The Blacke Dogge of Newgate" - Luke Hutton - 1638
"Spring Heeled Jack: The Terror of London" - Anonymous
www.casebook.org
www.springheeled-jack.com
www.blackcatpress.co.uk

Just the Facts? - Jurassic 'Chicken', 5 Mile Wide UFO and Mexican Tinkerbell

Posted: 13 Aug 2011 12:53 PM PDT

Making a real Jurassic Park...well, sort of

Find an ancient mosquito trapped in amber. Draw dinosaur blood from its belly. Extract DNA from that blood and insert it into a crocodile embryo. Hatch the egg. Feed the dino. Start an amusement park. Don't open the gates.

That series of steps might have sounded pretty fanciful back in 1993 when the blockbuster film "Jurassic Park" (based on the book by Michael Crichton) hit theaters. Today though, in the world of genome sequencing, transgenic (hybrid) animals, and bacteria built from scratch in the lab, the resurrection of extinct species sounds a little more feasible. Is it?

Turns out scientists might very well create dinosaurs or dinosaur-like creatures in the not-so-distant future. They won't do it in the way Crichton envisioned, though.

Unfortunately, DNA molecules, the genetic instructions for creating life, break down over time. Sixty-five million years have passed since dinosaurs last flew, swam and walked the Earth, and DNA seldom stays intact longer than 500,000 years. According to Jack Horner, a renowned dinosaur paleontologist at Montana State University and the technical adviser for all the Jurassic Park films, we've never actually found dino DNA. He and his colleagues discovered soft tissue from a Tyrannosaurus rex in 2005, but even that contained no usable material: "The soft tissue is apparently composed of biomolecules other than DNA," Horner told Life's Little Mysteries.

Even if we do someday find ancient dinosaur DNA, it will be in shambles — snippets of code just a few base pairs long. We'll have no idea how to stitch the snippets together. Thus, sequencing the dinosaur genome from fossilized tissues or blood may never be a viable route to their revival.

Jurassic chicken

But geneticists are trailblazing an alternative path to Jurassic Park. In the past few years, several groups working independently have begun to awaken the dormant dinosaur DNA present in one of the extinct creatures' descendents: chickens, whose genome is fully sequenced. Led by Horner, the scientists hope to eventually grow a chicken that has teeth, scales, a tail, and forelimbs. In a word, they want to build a "dinochicken," and it'll be pretty darn close to the real thing.

First, in 2005, developmental biologists John Fallon and Matt Harris at the University of Wisconsin were experimenting with mutant chicken embryos when they noticed strange protuberances emerging from the chicken fetus's jaws. The bumps turned out to be saber-shaped teeth identical to those of embryonic alligators.

The toothy chicken embryos were mutants — they possessed a recessive gene that kills fetuses before they're born. As a side effect (unrelated to how it killed them), that gene was switching on another one that has lain dormant in chickens' evolutionary line for at least 70 million years: an ancient dinosaur tooth gene. Fallon and Harris created a virus that behaved similarly to the lethal recessive gene present in the mutant chickens, but without being deadly. When they inserted the virus into normal chicken embryos, they grew teeth.

Later, a paleontologist named Hans Larsson at McGill University found that chicken embryos' start out with tails. At a certain point in a chick's development, a genetic switch flips and the tail goes away. Using growth hormones to try to override the stoppage, Larsson and his colleagues are attempting to flip the switch back (though they haven't done so yet).

In the same vein, Horner believes chicken embryos can eventually be genetically manipulated to develop forearms instead of wings. "The absence of a tail, the difference between wings and grasping forearms, and the absence of teeth are all subtle evolutionary changes on a basic dinosaur plan," he wrote in a book he co-authored with James Gorman called "How to Build a Dinosaur" (Dutton 2009).

So how long will it be before the scientists create a dinochicken? "It may be a few years as it mostly depends on funding," Horner said. In a world where cancer remains uncured, not everyone thinks dinosaur revivalism deserves a share of the meager monetary offerings available for scientific research. Others — perhaps, someday, a wealthy private investor — think it would be cool. - lifeslittlemysteries

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UFO...5 miles wide!

MUFON CMS - Missouri, August 7, 2011 - Huge Disc - shaped object hovering over downtown Kansas City.

I left my office and was traveling west on 23rd street in Independence, Missouri just past Noland road when I saw a huge disc shaped dull gray metallic object hovering at what looked like the north half of downtown Kansas City directly to my west and slightly north. You can see the KC skyline clearly from the high hill I was driving on.

As a UFO investigator, I shouldn't be shocked by anything, but in this case, I was very surprised by what I saw, especially since I had received a report earlier in the day from a witness who described a similar very large craft in South Kansas City.

The object did not move and I saw it clearly for two to three seconds, which was long enough to know I saw SOMETHING. It was a disk shape, with flat sides, and a domed top. I could not see any details or lights. I estimate the size to be 5 miles wide.

I immediately called several people I knew and other MUFON field investigators to see if they could see anything from their vantage point.

After I arrived home, I found that I had left my good cameras at the office and only had my cell phone camera (it figures). So I went outside and started taking random photos of the sky. Just as I turned the camera off I noticed what looked like a commercial jet flying at high speed and low (maybe 5,000 ft or less) and almost completely sideways with both wings clearly visible! It was banking hard to the left heading from Northeast to Southwest. That type of manuever is usually reserved for smaller craft and fighter jets, not a commercial airliner.

The jet was a silver and peach color - the peach may have been a reflection of the sun. I tried to get the camera ready again but was not fast enough. Total time in view was approximately six seconds.

Right after the jet was out of sight, a large round white object the size of a dinner plate at arm's length with a hole in the center appeared and disappeared in the exact same location as where I first saw the jet appear, or when I first noticed it.

I then posted a message to the Missouri MUFON chat list about what was going on and after receiving some other messages put together a timeline of events. -

12:15 p.m. - A witness called to report a giant UFO over south Kansas City (see other report filed) -

1:30 - 3 p.m. - A UFO spotter and photographer in Topeka, Kansas (72 miles from KC) photographs multiple UFOS in "battle mode." He has been able to capture UFOs on film using a special method and AB UV sunglasses. -

2 p.m. - A Kansas City MUFON member reported a large number of UH-60 helicopters flying very low at treetop level at 125th and State Line in south Kansas City. This is definitely NOT a normal occurrence for that area. -

4:20 PM - I saw the large disc over downtown KC, then the plane and white disc. -

5:20 PM - a MUFON field investigator saw a strange cloud with structure North of Iatan, MO from his vantage point across the river in Kansas. -

10:30 PM - my daughter called, she was watching the skies and saw a black helicopter with no markings flying very low at tree top level in Independence, MO, just a few blocks from my house. -

3:00 AM Sunday - St. Louis, MO- a MUFON field investigator and her entire neighborhood were awakened by a very loud strange banging and humming noise along with what sounded like gunfire, that lasted for several minutes. The vibration seemed to be coming from a spot in the sky. They have not identified the source yet.

Note: I don't know if this is related, but since it is also strange I thought I'd mention it. The next day (Sunday) a big storm came in very quickly with high winds that caused a large number of power outages throughout the city and took our power out for 7 hours.

Just prior to the storm, I took my Nikon camera outside to take some pictures as it came in. I had the camera set at 1/200 sec without flash and multi-shot mode. I took 6 pictures in a row, then analyzed them. In one shot out of the series there are multiple orbs in my yard, and in subsequent photos there are tiny red and blue lights that can't be explained. No rain was falling at that point.

After taking the photos, I went inside and the lights flickered on and off six times. I then took a nap (which is unusual for me) and was unaware that the power had gone completely off. I was in a dead sleep, and was awakened by a loud static noise with lots of voices talking at the same time coming from the radio. I sat up and looked at the radio, but the power was out so it should have been impossible for that to happen.

On Monday, we had two guests and a guest speaker from St. Louis MUFON attend our monthly meeting. After it was over we were standing outside talking and I saw a bullet-shaped white line, then a white crescent shaped object appear and dissapear very quickly. These were west of our location in Westport in Kansas City. No one else saw anything.

I am surmising that some of these objects are things that come into view for a short period of time, and are noticed by clairvoyants like me, but not by others. Perhaps they are entering or exiting wormholes, or are cloaked somehow and uncloak accidentially for a few seconds.

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Crashed experimental craft may have prompted past UFO reports

"On August 11, 2011, the Falcon HTV-2 project came to an end near the Kwajalein Atolls in the South Pacific," said MUFON STAR Team Manager and Texas Chief Investigator Fletcher Gray.

"US Military launched this hypersonic test aircraft sometime this month in California. Most of the reports that I read about this project didn't indicate a launch date. Reports from the MUFON CMS data did indicate that this vehicle may have been launched as early as August 9, 2011, around 10:40 p.m.
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"News reports did indicate that the launch took place at Vandenberg Air Force Base located in southern California. The flight path of the launch was over the Pacific Ocean toward the Kwajalein Islands. This would place the craft over the Hawaiian Islands. Information from the witness report leads this Investigator to believe that DARPA didn't conduct a press release until two days after the event. An eyewitness coming fourth validates the reporting system of MUFON being a great research tool for Ufology. The CMS II reporting system aids Investigators to complete their mission statement 'The Scientific Study of UFO's for the Benefit of Humanity.'

"A witness on vacation in the Hawaiian Islands filed the following statement: (MUFON Case 30796 Witness statement reads in part) 'On August 9, 2011 around 10:40 p.m. I noticed it because I was staring right where it seems to appear out of thin air. It was a ball of light that resembled an egg/oval/missile leaving a pretty large trail that glowed just as bright behind it. We watched it cross the sky for about 3-5 seconds when it accelerated and the object itself expanded or glowed brighter and disappeared.'

"The Falcon Hypersonic Technology Vehicle is designed to fly anywhere in the world in less than 60 minutes. This aircraft can fly speeds of up to 13,000 mph, and experience temperatures in excess of 3500 F. Research on the Falcon indicates that it is designed to carry a payload for striking capability anywhere in the world. Researching the DARPA web site, it seem that this vehicle used a Minotaur IV launch vehicle to put the payload in flight.

"The HTV-2 has a long history back to test flights as early as 2003. The delta shaped craft has gone through several design changes. One design it had vertical wings located at the rear of the craft for stability. The last three years reports have been filed with MUFON of this design type. The X-37 also has this same design with the vertical tail wing. The X-37 is a deployment vehicle for the US Air Force to deploy satellites since the shuttle program has come to an end. The latest model of the HTV-2 the vertical wings were removed for easy deployment. The body or fuselage is a uni-body type and is shaped like an arrow head.

"Other test projects of this type called Black Swift and the HTV-3 may have contributed to a lot of the sighting reports over the years that may have been filed with MUFON. These test may have been the earliest long range deployment and stability flights conducted by theUS Air Force. It is not known at this time if the HTV-2 can be put into low orbit and maneuvered to it's striking point. Indications are this test flight lost control at Mach 20 and splashed down near the Kwajalein Atolls. This Investigator will follow-up on reports in reference to this type of events as they come in."

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Mexican Tinkerbell, er....fairy

An unemployed 22-year-old bricklayer claims he has found a fairy in this western Mexican metropolis.

Jose Maldonado, who charges a monetary 'donation' in exchange for displaying what appears to be a simple plastic figure kept in a container of formaldehyde, says he has already received 3,000 visits from people eager to see the so-called fairy at his home in Lomas Verdes, one of Guadalajara's poorest and most dangerous neighbourhoods.

'I was picking guavas and I saw a twinkling. I thought it was a firefly. I picked it up and felt that it was moving; when I looked at it I knew that it was a fairy godmother,' Maldonado told EFE.

The tale of the fairy that Maldonado claims to have discovered last weekend has run like wildfire through the area and his home is now besieged by the curious, some of whom wait for up to an hour to enter.

What Maldonado shows the paying public is a small container filled with formaldehyde containing a humanlike figure about 2 centimeters tall, with a gelatinous consistency and a certain resemblance to Peter Pan's Tinkerbell.

Maldonado says that what seems to be just a little plastic figure is a fairy and that it was alive when he found it. And there are those who believe him.

'I've seen everything and, yes, I believe the fairy is real. Therefore, I wanted to come to confirm that those myths are true,' said Cesar Ramirez, a visitor.

To be allowed to examine the 'fairy' for a few seconds and take a photograph of it, the curious must make a donation to financially help out Maldonado who recently lost his job.

His neighbours have also taken advantage of the situation to sell photographs and keyrings with the image of the fairy for about 20 pesos ($1.60), as well as refreshments including drinks and food to those people while they wait in line outside Maldonado's house. - maktoob

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Filming skunk ape proving problematic

David Shealy's list of grievances against the National Park Service is long and longstanding.

Shealy, the owner of Trail Lakes Campground in Ochopee, says the staff at the Big Cypress National Preserve has stolen his customers, blocked his access to the park and created a hazard by not providing hunters with adequate means of disposing of dead animal parts.

But his latest claim strikes at the heart of his being -- hindering his ability to market the skunk ape.

Shealy is the world's foremost purveyor of skunk ape lore, the legends of a Yeti-like creature roaming the wilds of the Everglades and Big Cypress. Continue reading at Filming skunk ape proving problematic

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The Messiah has Returned?

My UFO phenomenon began on the way to visit my grandmother in western Kentucky. We were riding north on Highway 51 late at night listening to the AM radio when we heard a news report of UFO's seen in western Kentucky and western Tennessee. I looked out the back window at the stars above stating that I wish I could see a UFO. It wasn't two weeks later I had my wish. I was back at home in Memphis when my mother asked me to take out the garbage at 10pm Sunday 15 November 1964. I went out back and I looked up and saw a white full moon above then I looked around and to the east I saw a full orange full moon rising. I looked back above and noticed the white full moon shaped UFO again for a few minutes until it ascended in the sky looking like a bright star at high altitude. I believe this phenomenon was outside of my head and it was fantastic.

In 1964 the "Moon of Memphis" appeared at 10 pm Sunday 15 November over the city of Memphis. It was a night with two moons in the sky, the "Moon of Memphis" overhead and the lunar moon rising in the east. There is significance to this event because the timing of the event has biblical implications. First it appeared in 1964 which can be analyzed to derive meaning. If you take the alphabet and match the letters with numbers then you can derive a numeric number for words. I analyzed many religious words and I found two that are interesting. The English word Israel and the English word Zion both decodes to 64 sixty four. Israel is a word that has meaning to the Jewish, Christian, and Muslim religions. The word Zion is a word that means Israel and Jerusalem in particular. In Revelations of the Bible, there is writing about a New Jerusalem or a new Zion. Could the timing of the "Moon of Memphis" mean that it was God's New Jerusalem or Zion?

The "Moon of Memphis" was possibly the same object as the "Star of Bethlehem" but at a much lower altitude. The Book of Mormon states that a bright light appeared in the sky over Bethlehem. Was this the Star of Bethlehem at a much lower altitude like the "Moon of Memphis"? The "Moon of Memphis" ascended and appeared as a bright star until it ascended out of sight. The symbol of Islam is the moon and star. Was the "Moon of Memphis" trying to send a meaning to Islamic believers? At high altitude it appeared like a bright star reminding me of the "Star of David" or the "Star of Bethlehem". It seems that the "Moon of Memphis" was trying to relay meaning to all of the religions of Zion; Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. This event also suggest that the "Star of Bethlehem" appeared as a very bright star from a distance but appeared as a full white moon to the people directly under it giving a moon-like light to the community below and baptizing the people with the Holy light of God.

The "Moon of Memphis" is a sign, the lamb of God, of the return of the Messiah for it is written:

Revelation 21:23 "The city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light.

Revelation 22:5; "There shall be no night there: They need no lamp nor light of the sun, for "the Lord God gives them light" And they shall reign forever and ever.

With the "Moon of Memphis", the New Jerusalem will be made and with its power, the people will have light. This Holy city may not come about anytime soon according to scriptures, but the "Moon of Memphis" is proof that God can make good his promise to bless this new city with heavenly light not from the sun or the moon. Since the "Moon of Memphis" appeared over Memphis, Tennessee (USA) in 1964, it is possible that this city is similar to the New Jerusalem, an important city of God. The "Moon of Memphis" proved in 1964 to produce light as bright as the moon and I suspect that it could produce a much brighter light if it had to. It is a commitment to the earth to always be with us during good times and bad times. The "Moon of Memphis" is the lamb of God and also the Holy Grail or Holy light of Christ. Celebrate and be exceedingly joyous of the truth and existence of the "Moon of Memphis".

The historic battle of Armageddon was probably the famous Six Day War of Israel in 1967. This war fulfilled prophesy and it occurred just several years after the return of Jesus Christ's spirit, the Messiah, and other new Messiahs that came in the "Moon of Memphis" event. Apparently Jesus knew that with the turmoil in the world and Middle East, He and other Spirits of God had to appeared or return to work with this earth to make it more peaceful. The Cold War with the Soviet Union and China were also very serious concerns to God. Many prayed to God and Jesus to help and their prayers were answered with the "Moon of Memphis" appearance and influence. Maybe prophesy of gloom were indicators when Godly influence was necessary to help humanity. Maybe every generation in need get their own second coming of Jesus or appearance and influence of God. For this generation the 1964 appearance of the "Moon of Memphis" was our second coming of Jesus and coming of new generations of Spirits of God made from collected spirits from the best of God's creation and the best of humanity.

In the New Testament book of Revelations from the Bible, John of Patmos may have been mislead because of his association of disasters and end of the world in association with the return of the Messiah, Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ had a good character and kind personality and his return has created a world that is more in tune with him as a messiah and savior. We see the understanding and appreciation between nations and cultures; we see many nations dedicated to preserving peace and cooperation; we see much charity from many nations to other nations; we see animals receiving preserves and protection; we see kinder view of other religions; we see advancement in construction, science and technology; we see the human race living more comfortable and entertained; we see cooperation between nations to prevent and resolve issues of war; we see remarkable improvement in medicine and health; and we see the advancement of food production. These are but a few of the many things that also truly mark the return of the Messiah for Christians and coming of the Messiah for other religions. A true sign of God, the "Moon of Memphis" is a sign that a kind God is with us and dedicated to all things living. Do not follow prophets of gloom, but understand that disasters are natural phenomenon that can not easily be predicted but we can overcome the trauma with our faith in a kind God and Messiah. The best of your religion will not fail you if you try to be kind in every way and not lose reverence to our kind lord, our God.- newsvine

NOTE: this is one of several posts by William Bickers and his UFO theory 'The Moon of Memphis'. You can find his other posts at Bicker's archive. Take it for what it's worth...but it does make for interesting reading. Lon

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