Posts by Hayley
Sophia
It’s a bit morbid, but on the bookshelf in my bedroom, sitting between the Discworld novels and the Stephen King books there is a small blue book called ‘Funerals without God’. It was authored by Jane Wynne Willson for the British Humanist Association. It’s a guide on how to conduct a Humanist funeral and scribbled among the pages are things that I want my family to know are important to me.
Poems, songs, quotes etc.
When I was Eighteen I came very close to popping my clogs, so to speak, and so I bought the book as a way to help my family cope should I ever die unexpectedly. I want my funeral to be a Humanist funeral because I want people to remember me for who I am now, or who I was before I died. I want them to celebrate my strange little life and take strength from their memories.
In prep for an upcoming project of theirs, I recently got to sit down with some students at Bath College, and we spoke about death and life and they asked me about being a Humanist. One of them asked ‘do you think that once you die, you’re dead, that this life is all you have?’
I replied honestly that I did indeed think that this life is all we have, but I went on to say that my view of life wasn’t as morbid or depressing as it sounded when summarised like that. Life is a sort of adventure that you get one shot at. You have to make what you can out of it, and you have to live it for you. That’s what I try to do with my life. Sometimes I fail, but hey, it’s all an experience.
Recently I had it brought home to me just how precious our lives are.
Rob Weeks helped me to create the Bath Skeptical Society. It took us ages to get it going. On January 3rd Rob and his wife Lucie had to suffer the tragedy of their 11 week old daughter dying without any prior warning or indication.
On the day that Sophia died, Rob wrote on his Posterous blog:
Life is one of the greatest things that we can think of, it’s amazing that we’re all on this planet in the first place with no purpose other than to enjoy the tiny speck in time that we are on this rock. Unfortunately we never know how much time we have, but this fact does mean that we treasure all the more our fleeting existence together with the ones we love. We will always treasure that she somehow came into our lives, and every single precious moment that we spent with her.
It chokes me up every time I read it.
On the 20th of January the Weeks family held a celebration of Sophia’s short life, and instead of flowers they asked for donations to two very worthy charities. The Foundation for the Study of Infant Deaths, and Great Western Air Ambulance who did everything they could to save Sophia.
Perhaps you could spare a couple of pounds by clicking one of the links below?
- Foundation for the Study of Infant Deaths: http://www.justgiving.com/Sophia-Rose
- Great Western Air Ambulance: http://www.justgiving.com/Sophie-Rose-GWAA
The Weeks family have raised nearly £3,000 in memory of their daughter, and I hope that my blog readers will help them to raise even more. I hope that when I die my family too will do something this great in my memory.
It may seem odd to some that someone like me, who has been directly involved with grief, death and the desperate hope for ghosts of loved ones to still linger since the age of Eighteen, can hold such a final view of life and death. I guess it may seem bitter to some, hopeless to some. However, memories are beautiful. I think this poem (which is in my funeral book) sums it up.
To a descendant Lorna Wood
I shall not be an importunate, nagging ghost,
Sighing for unsaid prayers: or a family spectre
Advertising that someone is due to join me…
Nor one who has to be exorcised by the Rector.
I shall not be the commercial type of ghost,
Pointing to boxes of gold under the floor
And I certainly don’t intend to jangle chains
Or carry my head… (such a gruesome type of chore!)
I shall not cause draughts, be noisy, spoil your ‘let’, ―
In fact, to be brief, I shan’t materialise.
But I shall be pleased if anyone ever sees me
In your face or your walk or the glance of your laughing eyes.
—
Let’s raise some cash in memory of Sophia. How about it?
- Foundation for the Study of Infant Deaths: http://www.justgiving.com/Sophia-Rose
- Great Western Air Ambulance: http://www.justgiving.com/Sophie-Rose-GWAA
Bownessie, oh Bownessie
Rather oddly (some would say), the Bownessie lake monster has made the BBC news website here and here. Not because new ‘evidence’ has emerged, not because people have finally accepted that both myself and Dr Ian Winfield are correct in our guesses that it isn’t a monster but is in fact an animal or fish being misidentified, but because… well… I don’t know actually.
I have my theories though but I’ll come onto those later…
The BBC report focusses upon two pieces of the so-called evidence that a monster may be in the lake.
The first is the experience that local hotelier Thomas Knoblett had in 2009 while swimming in the lake. A one-foot-tall wake hit him when there was nothing in the lake that could have caused it (such as a passing boat or similar). Knoblett says in the video on the BBC website that he also felt something hit him as it passed. I’d never heard this part of his testimony before.
As Mr Bob Dezon, the ghost guru boffin who taught me most of what I know about investigating weird stuff said, if something was big enough to create a one-foot wake as it moved through the water, it would be big enough to break ribs and more if it were to hit a human swimming in the water.
Let’s not speculate though, eh?
The second piece of evidence they focus upon is the photograph taken by Mr Linden Adams in 2007 that allegedly shows an unidentified thing said to be ‘four meters long’ in the water.
The report also features Dr Ian Winfield who explained once again that it was probably just fish or animals being misidentified. Dr Winfield must get fed up with having to repeat himself over and over and over…
However he is only a Dr who studies the ecology of the lake every month and has been doing so from 1990. What does he know?
At first I found it very confusing that the report focussed upon two really old pieces of evidence that can’t really be taken at face value.
Then I remembered my brief discussion with Deborah Moyce, the PA for “psychic” Dean ‘Midas’ Maynard who conducted some ‘expedeitions’ on the lake in search of the monster. They had refused to share their findings with me because, and I quote Deborah here:
““I have spoken to Dean about your request and have to inform you that due to discussions being held with a third-party we are unable to give you this information at the moment as it may be used during the publishing of a book later on in the year.”
Now, I’m not psychic , right, but I reckon that this recent coverage on the BBC might be related to Mr Maynard’s monster book. We’ll see…
To read my extensive report on the Bownessie monster click here.
pic credit: Tom Gauld
Is there anybody there?
In January I spoke for the Centre For Inquiry about ghosts, ghost hunting and ghost hunters. The CFI have since made the video of the talk available and I have embedded it below.
This was a brand new talk I hadn’t delivered before, there was also an issue with the sound and I was also suffering from a throat infection. Apart from that though I don’t think it is too bad at all. (Even if I may say so myself…)
Following the talk I made several posts. I clarified my points about the SPR and Ethics here and here. Also, the EVP recordings didn’t play well during the talk so I made them available on my website here.
As a side note, I recently interviewed Dave Wood, the chairman of ASSAP, and CJ Romer, an investigator I have a lot of respect for, about the ethics of ghost hunting for the Righteous Indignation Podcast. You can listen online here. It ties in with the points I made within my talk quite nicely.
Once again, Thank you to the CFI and the BHA for inviting me to talk, and for being such friendly, gracious hosts.
Intimidation as a distraction
You may remember that a while ago I blogged about a man called Don Philip who in involved with a paranormal group called GSI UK. After I was critical of the methods they used on investigations I was subjected to abuse from Don. You can read about it here and here, but to summarise the experience, rather than answer the criticisms as I had offered him the chance to, he ranted and raved online about how GSI were being attacked because of how good they were.
I’m not at all surprised to discover that Don Philip has been doing the same recently, in response to a media student who dared to email Don to get his side of a story.
The media student, Chris, had been approached by some people who had allegedly worked with Don and other members of GSI UK in the past who made allegations about Don and his team mates. Chris emailed Don to get his side of events regarding the allegations.
Rather than respond to the criticisms Don has ranted and raved on his Facebook pages and groups for days and days. He has openly attempted to intimidate the media student involved.
Image of comments left on the GSI Facebook page reads:
“Nick Stoppani-Presenter: Can’t see a link there myself mate, I wonder what the college would say I’d [sic] they learned what one of their students was up to? Also could you let me know what Ctoff has said please.
GSI Paranormal U.U & GSI Paranormal X events: Not so hasty Nick, I’ve just got to finish printing these posts off for someone who has requested them
Nick Stopanni-Presenter: OK don’t forget to inbox be [sic] what he has posted so I can show the officer later.”
Image of status from the GSI Facebook Group admin reads:
“Police just been, it would appear our freelance reporter is actually a media student. Interestingly he went to the police the day after I posted that I had reported my [sic] this myself, but he went claiming he was being harassed by ME ! ummm…”
Image of Facebook quote from GSI Paranormal reads:
“Update: In light of the idiotic accusations from x3 known individuals, x1 of which should really no [sic] better ! & all in an attempt to thwart the progress of (G.S.I) I thought the seriousness of money extortions etc best be looked at by the police. Now I have suggested the idiots making these claims take their so called evidence to the police themselves ? there seems to be some reluctance to do so on their part! So……… I thought I [sic] help you out ad [sic] a the same time show how pathetic your claims are: I spent a whole a the police station on your behalf last night, gave the all your emails / accusations / including the email where you claim to have recorded evidence!!! CRIME REF NO: LEP12 02 12 – 0701. They have promised to come see me today. KEEP YOUR EVIDENCE SAFE THEY MAY WANT TO SEE IT!! Now post this in your story oon the 17th ! (& do one) as I’m wasting no more time with wanna be (freelance reporters) (Rival ghost team members & their stories) or indeer amateur film makers who also tell porkys!”
Instead of intimidating a student by making public posts that Don knows Chris will read, about reporting him to the police, publically sharing his email address and making abusive posts about him, Don could have (and should have) just responded to the private email from Chris in response to the allegations that had been made to Chris by other people.
If those other people had lied then that isn’t Chris’ fault – at least he had the decency to follow the allegations up with the other party involved. More than the mainstream did with me recently, I can assure you.
When I saw the drama on the GSI Facebook page I wasn’t at all surprised but I was annoyed. Don Philip appears to be a very closed minded individual who cannot handle any criticism leveled his way whatsoever. It’s a shame, because when you stick your head above the parapet you will become a target for criticsm. Whether that criticism is justified or not doesn’t matter. It’s something you have to expect to deal with – especially when you make the sort of claims Don does.
Being abusive and rude wont distract people from the original criticisms being leveled in your direction – it just strengthens the criticisms against you. To simply abuse everyone who dares to criticise you, to claim they’re only doing it to ‘ruin’ your reputation and the ‘good’ work that you do is at best naive, and at worst, arrogant.
The Animal Panel at QED
It has recently been announced that I am going to be speaking on ‘The Animal Panel’ at the QED Conference in March 2012. This is the second QED conference and will be the second time I’ve spoken on a panel for them and I’m very excited to be doing so. I will be speaking alongside Deborah Hyde and Joe Nickell (who both have a lot more experience than I do)
I am quite a new comer, when it comes to researching monsters (in any form). I’ve had my fair share of experiences researching the ‘beasts’ that are said to roam the English countryside and have an obsessive knowledge of all big cat sightings in the South of England because of the fear I developed after a big cat scare in the village I grew up in.
'The Hilperton cat' that started it all off
I was so petrified of the idea that a big cat could be in the village of Hilperton that I lived in until the age of eighteen that I would regularly have nightmares about it (and I still do).
My fear is mainly because I had two ‘cat’ experiences of my own at the age of seven that I rarely tell anyone outside of my family about. Maybe I shall share them with the panel? They still make me shudder to this very day.
When I first started learning about the rational causes for these reports and experiences it was people like Joe Nickell who inspired me to stop hiding under my duvet, and to go looking for the facts. Once you start rummaging it can be very hard to stop. Yet I also know just how real these scary experiences can seem because of my own scary experiences.
Monsters, they might not always be real, but they’re still scary. I am truly excited to be speaking as part of the Cryptozoology panel, you can find more details here on the QED website.
Check it out…
