Contemplating the World Beyond

Pee Dee Region Paranormal Group's investigation of St. Albans Sanatorium began as soon as the dark settled in on Friday evening, May 4, 2018.  None of us knew what to expect, but we were excited to get started and see what the place had in store for us. We commenced investigating down in the boiler room, where the man who liked to smoke, listen to Johnny Cash and get touchy-feely with women was said to reside.  As I mentioned in my last entry, a collection of cigarettes laid atop the boiler as peace offerings from previous visitors (I did not happen to notice if the smokers in our group contributed to this).   So, like in most PDRPG investigations, we started with an EVP (electronic voice phenomenon) session using the Rob Box to get things going.  For those unfamiliar, the Rob Box is a bluetooth speaker modified by our co-founder Rob Humphries and connected to a special mobile app, which generates a series of recorded voices played backwards. ...

It has been just over a year since my last post, and now seems like a better time than any to start blogging again, as I just completed a two-night investigation of an infamous former sanatorium. A lot has happened in the past year, most notably that I joined a local paranormal research team called Pee Dee Region Paranormal Group.  Along with getting to investigate purportedly haunted locations with proper equipment, I have also been tasked with building and maintaining the group's website .  Overall it has been an amazing opportunity filled with incredible experiences, and I've met lots of great people along the way.  But all of this was just in preparation for what awaited us at St. Albans Sanatorium. St. Albans is a large, looming complex at the top of a hill in Radford, Virginia, overlooking the New River.  It is a maze of old, decrepit buildings connected by additions and other changes throughout its 126-year history.  The facility began as a L...

The terms "ghost" and "spirit" are used so interchangeably that there seems to be no discernable difference between the two.  However, these phenomena each have their own characteristics that uniquely distinguish one from the other. Ghosts are traditionally accepted as the source behind a haunting.  They were at one time living human beings (or animals), who upon death became somehow attached to a location or a specific object.  Ghosts are essentially trapped in limbo, doomed to haunt their assigned surroundings for all eternity.  That is, until they are ready to move on or can be released through a cleansing ritual or similar means.  So where do they go from there, you might ask?  That would depend on your belief system, but for the purpose of this blog we'll just say "into the Light". Spirits, on the other hand, have more of a religious connotation.  They come from the Light, and just to visit, not to haunt.  When someone sees a vision of a ...

There is something to be said for the popularity of countless books, movies and TV shows that deal with ghosts, poltergeists and other supernatural occurrences.  Humans are intrigued by that which they can't explain, whether they truly believe in it or just enjoy the thrill of a good scary story.  However, when it comes to paranormal phenomena, the line between fact and fiction is about as transparent as a ghostly apparition. People from all walks of life have reported ghostly encounters as far back as records are kept.  Even Abraham Lincoln claimed to have seen ghosts in the White House, and many other famous figures have reportedly seen Lincoln's ghost roaming the same halls.  Most religions across the globe believe in some form of afterlife, so the existence of ghosts shouldn't be much of a stretch for them.  Then there's the mountains of photographic, audio and video evidence that have been captured by paranormal researchers since the early 20th century. ...

Through forces beyond our understanding (or perhaps by invite), you have stumbled upon my blog.  This is a place where I aim to share all my thoughts on the supernatural and otherworldly.  While I do not claim to be an expert on the subject, nor have I definitively experienced such happenings myself, I have spent much of my life researching and feeding my fascination with the unexplained.  Of course, comments are welcome and appreciated, but please be civil and respectful.  Most of all, keep an open mind! Thanks for visiting!