Thursday, September 27, 2012

Pendulum usage

First a note....there will be a blog break until Monday October 8. If anyone has any cool ghost questions or stories, send them in, after all it will be HALLOWEEN month.

I had a question today on pendulum usage. Who should use them, and should they be used for a specific purpose, etc.

Good question!

I have heard of people using them to choose melons at the market, while seeming kind of cool, it is debasing the pendulum, and I am not sure it really works! You see a pendulum's task is to connect with your Higher Self to find answers for direction. The answers will always apply to you, so when people say they do pendulum readings, what they are doing is simply fooling themselves.

ANYONE can use a pendulum. You do not need special abilities or training. You just need to be honest with yourself and allow the pendulum to swing as it will. I have seen people rock it purposefully and claim that they are doing nothing. I don't know if they really believe that, or they are just trying to fool people. I think that they are just fooling themselves, because it is quite apparent that they are moving the pendulum.

When you get a pendulum, you should cleanse it, and get anyone's energy off of it. Then you say a little "prayer", basically saying:  " Only my Higher Self and positive energy will influence this pendulum, no outside forces have any influence on it at all". They you ask the pendulum to show you which way is YES, which way is NO, which way is HAS NOT YET BEEN DETERMINED, and which way is YOU DO NOT NEED TO KNOW. Many folks won't like these options, they want a yes or no, but the pendulum doesn't work on your desires, it works on your Higher Self. Then you ask your question. Make it clear, and precise.

Remember that the Universe is very literal. I know of a person who asked the pendulum frequently if she was "going to be with so and so". The pendulum would answer yes. She would see him, frequently, but her question really meant "be with him long term". She saw him for a while and stopped using the pendulum. This man was married, he got a divorce, and he also got a new girlfriend. She was shocked. She asked why the pendulum would lie to her. I told her first, that isn't an appropriate question for the pendulum. One more appropriate would have been, "Am I doing the best thing for myself being in this relationship with so and so?" The question was also, worded would she "be with him" and she was, many times. Not only was the question inappropriate, but it was ill stated. It should have been in that context, "Will I be in a long term relationship with so and so".

Pendulums are not meant to be used to predict the future. They connect to your Higher Self. Sometimes the Higher Self knows where you are going in the near future, and you may consciously also, even though you may not want to admit it. The Higher Self is there to tell you what the best thing is for you to do for yourself in the long run. When used properly, pendulums are POWERFUL tools. They are especially useful in those situations that seem like there is no good answer. The "Catch 22" or "damned if you do, damned if you don't" scenarios. They help you make the best choice for your growth, health, well being, and your soul.

Not many people really want those types of answers, they aren't fun, they are like talking to your parents and getting advice. You know they are right, but you still don't like the answer most of the time. When you listen, good things happen. Maybe not today or tomorrow, but in the long run.

Use the pendulum properly, and you will have powerful insider information that is there for the taking, just ready for you to ask!!



Peshaui Wequashimese



(C) 2012 Dr R M Wolf, may not be used, copied or reproduced without prior written permission.


Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Did you come here for an argument?

Sometimes when I am doing a reading the Monty Python skit "Did you come here for an argument" pops in to my head.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kQFKtI6gn9Y

Why do people contact psychics to ask a question to argue about the answer? When you are so sure that you have the right answer or view, why call?

The answer is that they are looking for someone to tell them they are correct, not to get any real answers. Psychic help is about real answers.It is not about making you feel better about making bad decisions. The argument may allow the client to vent some stream, and feel better, but it doesn't make the reader feel better, nor does it ever change the situation.

 If I were John Clease in the skit above and was getting paid to argue, than so be it. But my job is to deliver messages from a Higher Power, not to lie to people or foster their hatred and vitriol.

What do I do when I come upon people like that? I give them one more chance, after all , we can all have a bad day, but after the second time, I block them. I also block people who are prejudicial, abusive, sexual and hateful.

When you want advice from a psychic, take it as advice. Listen, try it, don't sit and argue about it.

This goes for real life too. It isn't about forcing someone to see your point of view. You can advise, try to teach, or recommend, but forcing someone to think or do something is totally unacceptable. Never give an ultimatum unless you are fully prepared to live out the consequences. Arguments are OK in life, it helps show different points of view, and resolves issues, even if it is an agreement to disagree. Fighting is a whole other entity and should be avoided.

Never allow a person to abuse you, even if they are paying you!



Peshaui Wequashimese





(C)2012 Dr R M Wolf. May not be used, copied or reproduced without prior written permission


Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Thomas House

This past weekend a group of people from SIPI went to Thomas House in Red Boiling Springs, TN. This is an old hotel that was once a family home of the Cloyd Family. The home was featured on an episode of Ghost Hunters recently.

This is a good place for those starting out. The reason I say this is, is that the people who run the ghost hunt are very helpful and will be happy to explain how things work. We were shown some pictures and listened to EVPs ahead of time, including the GH episode while we ate dinner. There are some items there for sale if you want a laser grid for example, you can have one at a great price.

You will be led by a group leader, and have ample time at each location during the evening. You can go to your room (some are haunted, some are quiet), whenever you want to. You are well fed, and there is always coffee in the pot.

Now for the haunted side. It is a place that has things going on. Our group had individual experiences and group experiences with strange noises, black shadows, apparitions, and strange lights. The place does not have the creep factor like Villisca, but then it doesn't have the horrible history either. It was a place where yes, there were accidents and deaths, but no mass murder.

It is nice to be able to investigate a place where you have everything you need under one roof for one price. The hosts are nice, friendly people, and the building is beautiful on beautiful grounds.

There was a downside to all  of this though. We had a pair of guides, and there was way too much chit chat for us. I am sure when people who have never gone on an investigation are there, they like the chat, the information, and the socializing. We like quiet, finding things out for ourselves, and socialize later. Don't get me wrong, we have fun, we even joke and laugh a bit, but not too much, and not during an EVP session.

We had a person with the guide who said she was psychic. I guess she didn't realize she had a professional psychic, and two sensitives in the group who can get their own info, including names. Everything she told us "psychically" was wrong, and even people in the group who were not psychic said something along the lines of, "There is no way she is psychic". I suppose it generally livens up the tour up a bit, however we deal in facts, and evidence.We use our "outsider info" as a way to know where to go in the building, or set up cameras or a name to try calling out. The flow of conversation and "information" totally ruined an entire EVP session. We also , unfortunately have to do some member training, but at least that is under our control.

People issues aside, it was a fun and interesting evening that had comfy beds and good food. The most active place I found was the dining room where we all ate. I think maybe the spirit go and hide back in that area since people don't hang out in there after eating. I recommend spending time in there with your recorder on. It is not part of the regular tour although there is an EVP session done in there with everyone present at midnight snack time.

I don't have the mass of EVPs I collected at Villisca. Many I heard were either too quiet, or too questionable (we were surrounded by chatty Kathys), so most of what I have are noises.I only have one voice EVP I can trust. We have not looked at our video yet, and I am hopeful that the video will be helpful. It doesn't have audio, so I won't find new EVPs, but it sure would be nice to see an apparition walking down the hall. That being said, we plan a trip back.

This is a good , safe, non-scary place to go. It is a place where you don't have to worry about food, and bathrooms. I recommend it. The best thing to do would be to go with a group so you can keep things a little under control. We had a couple of people outside of our group doing the ever popular "flashlight communicating", and I am glad my investigation time wasn't wasted with that hokum.

So gather at least eight people together and you will be able to have your own group on the tour.

There was a bonus for us, when we saw a Barred owl land in a tree over our heads and a Blue Heron stroll through the creek at about 2 AM.

Thanks to Chad for all of his help, and to the Thomas House staff for their hospitality.


Peshaui Wequashimese



(C)2012 Dr R M Wolf. May not be used, copied or reproduced without prior written permission.



Monday, September 24, 2012

EVP sessions

I was going to write a blog today on our trip to Thomas House, but I will leave that for a day or so as we are still reviewing evidence. I would have to rate it somewhere below Villisca (which is the most amazing haunted experience I have had), and above Whispers Estates. You can search and review those blogs for some spooky reading.


Today I wanted to go over EVP sessions. We had the experience this weekend of not only getting to see inexperienced people who learned everything they know from a TV show, but we also had guides who were not the best people to have in the room during EVP sessions, and some of us forgot the simple rules, or didn't know them to begin with. So review time!

EVPs are the greatest piece of evidence to me. People can say a shadow was the cameraman, a car, a light being turned off in another room, but it is impossible to refute a Class A EVP when you are in a session with everyone noted. Yes, you can fake it, but if you take fakery out of the picture, it is hard to refute EVP evidence!

EVPs also let us know what is going on and give us ammunition for a further investigation. They are clear direct communication.

I have many Class A EVPs. They are not hard to get, but to set the stage is sometimes difficult.

First let me say what EVPs are. They are electronic voice phenomenon. That means that at the time of the recording, you didn't hear anything with your ears. When you hear it with your ears, and on the recorder it is a disembodied voice. A totally different phenomenon. A spirit who can expend that much energy is a very powerful one.

EVPs are ONLY heard later on a recorder. EVPs are NOT ever collected with a flashlight, or a K2. I also want to say I have seen the iPhone "ghost box" used twice. It is totally useless. It just spouts out words that have nothing to do with anything. Your best bet is still a digital recorder. NEVER use a flashlight (and we will go into that in depth at another time) or a K2 for getting messages. NEVER. It is against our organization's guidelines and for good reason.

Getting back to EVPs. There are simple guidelines to follow that will make for successful and authentic EVP sessions that will be hard for any skeptic to refute. They will give you Class A recordings that will pass on valuable information.

Stat by buying the best you can afford.Olympus is the best digital recorder brand. I have an Olympus VN8100PC. It is wonderful. I get clear and crisp recordings. I can tell tone, accent, male, female, young, old, etc. with it. Also get headphones or ear buds, they help in review and are better than just listening through the speaker. Turn up your volume as high as you can without vibrating the speakers, and set on "Meeting" so it is listening all around, or go all the way and buy a multi directional recorder. The Olympus I have costs about $70, and the multi directional is about $225.

DO NOT EVER use cell phone aps for ghost hunting. They are all just about useless. The only thing they can do, is take nice pictures, but you are usually limited to what types of pictures you can take. A digital camera doesn't cost much, but your best bet is an SLR digital, so you can leave the lens open in the dark and get awesome pictures!

Then get ready!

First, mark your recording. Include site, date, time, area, people. Example: I am at Thomas House in the Seance Room 9/21 at 1 AM with Bill, Melany, Matt, Buzz......you get the picture. If I get a voice that sounds like Buzz and he isn't in the room, I know something is going on. When I have activity at 1:15 AM and another member captures shadows moving in their video at 1:15 AM in the Seance room, we have some very powerful proof. We also know if this is a later conversation. Maybe we asked for a specific spirit, or a complicated question, then in the next session we had that answer, or spirit saying "You looking for me?". You also may go to the same venue multiple times. When you know 1 AM is an active time in the Seance room, you want to make sure that you are there again at 1AM.

Introduce yourselves. Not only is this polite (remember YOU are invading a spirit's home), but it helps review who is there. Be polite at all times. Don't be Zak Bagans demanding ghosts to speak to you. When you have to twist their arms to get them to talk, then you don't have a haunting do you? "Haunting" means regular , active happenings, not ghosts being forced to speak out loud for one night.

Never be alone. This way you have another set of ears, a person to look out a door and see if someone is outside talking, and just plain safety reasons.

When in doubt, toss it out (thanks Grant Wilson), when you aren't sure, you have to disregard it. Later your big EVP may be shown to be a live person saying "Yeah that was me".

Know where people are. Is there a group in the next room? Outside the window? Is there something that makes noise like a ice maker, a smoke alarm with a dead battery, a wind chime?

This is a BIG one. NEVER EVER talk in baby voices, whisper, or imitate a voice or sound. Don't make scary noises, or if you do to lighten things up, say THAT WAS ME!! Be careful when moving to a room nearby, you sound even more like a ghost talking from the Great Beyond now. Just becasue you are out of the room, doesn't mean you are out of earshot.An example this weekend was that there is a history of a whistling ghost, so what is everyone doing to entice him? Whistling. You hear it and think AHA!
When you are going to do something like that, note it. Say, "Can you whistle like this" ,  "John whistling" or "I want you to complete this tune". Don't just whistle.

Give spirits plenty of time to answer. Sometimes they need to work up the energy, and it can take up to 20 seconds to get the average EVP answer! Don't rapid fire questions, and don't chat in between!

Don't use conjecture. Ask "Who is here" don't say, "Hi Susie, I know that is you, knock on something for me", that is NOT and EVP session.

NEVER, EVER alter and EVP in any way. THIS INCLUDES "cleaning it up" once you do that you make your EVP a piece of garbage open to ridicule, and then people will doubt all your evidence. When you need to mess with it to know what it is saying, it isn't a Class A anyway.

Ask questions to determine if you are getting residual (doesn't really respond to the question, but is a statement totally off the mark), or intelligent EVPs (answers questions directly and clearly, imitates participants, or talks about what they see like "there are three of you here").

Note any noises you make, or someone else makes, like "Bob's chair scraping", "door opening outside". When you are moving to another area, say "Walking to the fireplace, at the fireplace", NOT "walking walking walking walking" with every step. Note everything you hear with your ears that is not obvious. We know what a camera beep sounds like, but a thump of a dropped flashlight could be anything three days later when you hear it again.

Mark movement. "Joe is shuffling papers on the table".

RECORD and REVIEW your own EVPs. When I wasn't present, how the heck will I know what is Joe setting up his camera , or a group passing the door. I wasn't there. I cannot verify ANYTHING on that recorder. Anything recorded by another person is useless. You cannot in any way defend it, clarify it, or be sure about it.

When you are making constant noise, step out or the room and resolve it. Excuse yourself on the recorders. Many times people have yawning "fits" (yawns sound very spooky on recordings), coughing fits or sneezing fits. Walk outside and resolve it. If you sneeze, cough or make some other noise constantly, you can totally hide or ruin EVPs for hours on end. We all sneeze or cough. Our bellies rumble, and sometimes a burp sneaks out. We are human, but if it happens every other minute, you are really disturbing the session. EVP sessions are about limiting as much outside noise as possible. Leave your recorder and walk out of the room. Resolve your issue and return saying "Mary walking back into the room" . Meanwhile if it one yawn, say "Joe yawning".

I leave my recorder running. I have had several EVPs as I went outside the room or building where a session was being held. Ghosts are not confined to the library, or the house at all. They can wander around. Many times they go to get away from you, and you catch them outside the area where you were investigating. Just mark everything. Sometimes you won't have to , someone will say "OK let's go to the kitchen next", and you will later know and remember your trek to the kitchen (another reason to do your own EVPs).

 Always use software after locating what you think are EVPs. You may review it to see that in fact it is in our hearing range, and not an EVP. There is software available to allow you to see if it is in the range of spirits, or our hearing and decibel levels. It is very helpful for finding those friends whispering in the hallway!

Remember that the whole point is to gather evidence. Not scare yourself, or socialize, you can do that later (or before). There should be no conversations going on aside from that with the spirits. Sometimes having a discussion about the place you are in inspires them to speak up, but allow pauses for them to speak.

When you are going to a paid venue, like Waverly Hills, people are paying a good chunk of money for evidence, not to hear you talk, sneeze, laugh, and carry on. You will ruin your EVPs and theirs. When you are not ready to be totally serious and careful about what you are doing, you are not ready to be on an investigation with others. I know we have a good amount invested in equipment, and have friends that have invested even more. When there are hundreds, even thousands of dollars invested, and time away from family invested, you want good experiences and hard evidence, not someone making more noise than a small army on every recording. Be respectful, professional, and authentic, this way you will have great evidence and a good time.

You want clean evidence, give a clean atmosphere for the evidence to present itself in!

Have fun and be safe!!



Peshaui Wequashimese



(C)2012 Dr R M Wolf. May not be used, copied or reproduced without prior written permission.


Thursday, September 20, 2012

Nature Spirits

I recently had an email question about nature spirits. The querant asked if there really were such things, and if they were part of hauntings.

Nature spirits can be at a haunting, but they stay outside. They are part of nature, not man made structures or activities. You find them in woods, cemeteries, battlefields, and on the plains. They are out and about , everywhere. Most times you would not know they were there. They do not interact with humans unless you invite them to do so in order to help nurture yourself, or unless you try to do harm to nature.

Most times they sit quietly in the background. They are of the 4 elements, air, fire, water, and earth. Sometimes they appear as tiny lights, smaller than fireflies when you are taking photos (non flash) outdoors at night. They can be earthy smells that seem to come from nowhere, or heat, cold, and wind that comes past on a still night.

They are protectors and they are ancient. They are something to be considered when people tell of flashing lights outside, strange smells, upset animals, or noises in the trees. Those things can be human spirits, but they can also be Nature Spirits. A good investigator will be able to figure out which they are and if they are part of a haunting or not. They are there, that is not what you need to find out, just if they are actively interacting in a way that is being misconceived as a haunting. They in and of themselves are not "haunts", but their interaction with humans, rare as it is, can be misinterpreted as a haunting.

You may know these tiny beings as sylphs, fairies, undines or gnomes, but they are all part of the hidden universe of the earth and Mother nature. They all resonate with one of the four elements and help protect them. They will not bother you if you do not bother them.

Nature interacts with us each day, we may have a hard time understanding or noticing, but Mother Nature is always in charge of all of our surroundings. Respect Mother Nature, and the Nature Spirits will leave you alone.

Enjoy Gaia, and protect her, she is the mother of all of us!

Peshaui Wequashimese


(C)2012 Dr R M Wolf. May not be used, copied or reproduced without prior written permission.



Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Small world and women drumming.....

Back in the days of my psych class we were taught something that had never dawned on me, once I got  bit more out into the world and different parts of the country , I began to see it more and more. When you are young and learn something, anything, you assume that this is how it is everywhere with everyone. You think every part of the country does things the same way, eats the same foods, thinks the same thing. It doesn't. We currently have so many ways of traveling around the country, we can be on opposite coasts in a matter of hours, where it took our ancestors months. We have mass media, social media, and we can talk to a human in another part of the world just by dialing a phone or checking Skype.The world is getting smaller.

Imagine how our ancestors had things. They may have learned different ways of doing things, new foods to grow, and new celebrations as time went on, but it took decades for those things to happen. There wasn't any quick and easy way until the mid to late 1800's, and the speed of things today is mind blowing compared to that.

There was a lot of discussion yesterday about drumming after coming off of a pow wow weekend. There is a great misconception out there that it is traditional for men only to drum. That is a HUGE misconception. I grew up learning that women were equal (if not actually having more status), in my family's tribes. Our tribes were mixed, there were a lot of people in a small area, and they loved each other, killed each other, captured each other, and married both indigenous people and outsiders. We were the melting pot before the US was a melting pot. Yet what my grandmother taught me , and what I had seen first hand was that women were the ones who did everything, so did men. The society was matrilineal , so the woman's bloodlines were followed. We had great women leaders and even women who led war parties, like Weetamoo. We had women healers. There was no "this is a man's job", or "this is woman's work". My grandmother and her sisters knew much history and had passed it down through the women of the family. I didn't get to spend much time with her, she was miles away with my Dad's side of the family, a man my Mother divorced before I was born. Yet, she passed on much of her knowledge in that short time.

When I traveled to other parts of the country I did notice that some people had a different view of things, but let's talk drumming. Most of the people I met off of the east coast when I moved to NV, and NM didn't have big drums. They used hand drums. Think about it. Not much wood and large hides available in the desert are there? It was part of that realization that not everyone is the same, even similar people. When I met a Navajo medicine woman, she and I talked about much metaphysical, and never really got into the "pow wow" part of things, but she had hand drum that was made of cottonwood , it was beautiful. A friend later gave me a cottonwood drum.

I never in all my association with people from several nations and many tribes, heard a word of women not being allowed to do something until I landed in Indiana. I assumed it was the local way of things. It didn't really matter all that much, I was not about to toss my ancestors in the garbage for local beliefs, beliefs that really for the most part, aren't even local, but from Plains tribes. I work in spiritual endeavors each day, so my motto is "to each his own". I always respected other people's ways, because my travels and friendships with many tribes, I knew that no one did things the same.  There may be similarities, or you can see where one tribe adapted another tribe's ways (like the Lakota adopting the Ute Sundance and making it an important and integral part of their ways). Yet there was always the local twist. Most of the "twists" came from what was available to the people.  We didn't all live in tipis becasue we were not all nomads, nor had the huge buffalo hides needed to make one. This is just one example of what we learned in the movies, isn't so. Native people out west where John Wayne roamed the buttes, didn't live in tipis like in the movies. But I digress.....

We always drummed and learned songs that I barely remember pieces of. Heck, I barely remember pieces of ones I learned last week....but it was the way it was. I read all the books by James R Walker who lived with and was adopted by the Lakota in the 1800's. He wrote extensively of all the rituals, beliefs, and traditions, and never said "no women on a drum" anywhere. Women on their moon were not allowed to touch any ritual object, including a drum, but that was only when they were on their moon.

Once I started looking into trying to find out why women were supposedly not always allowed on the drum locally, I could only find from research the northern/ southern style indicator. Northern style  allows women at the drum, southern does not, they can sing, but stand behind the men. I then learned that this difference was modern, it was a style way of looking at things and really had nothing to do with where the tribe existed, as far as geographical location.

When I get stuck, I always try to get a hold of my elusive aunt. I think she is a wandering Lakota at heart because I can never get her at home....she doesn't have a drop of Lakota blood, but she sure is out and about a lot. I asked her yesterday about women on the drum, and she said...what do you mean, what kind of silly question is that? A question like that to here is like "Do you get wet when it rains?" It is most likely to be answered with a "duh".  She said that women don't drum as much as they just have other things they want to do, but no one tells them they cannot or should not, and that is our way. Always has been, always will. She told me to look up a "Shannon someone" who talks about current research.

Looking up a "Shannon someone" isn't easy, but I found it.  Apparently current research shows it really never was a rule that women were not allowed at the drum. They were always at the drum, keeping the drum, singing the songs, keeping the songs. They didn't sit on the drum much after a while just out of personal preference, and then it suddenly got switched from  "don't want to much" to  "they are not allowed to" in the 1970's. Did the native nation all get together and pass a law saying women were not to drum? No, it never happened. Like many rumors, it took hold, and stories were formed to make it be a "man's right". It never was to begin with.

Those of us who grew up knowing better, always wondered at why there were beliefs that a woman didn't belong at a drum. I blame it on the movies made in the 40's and 50's. We were a Man's Nation at that time, and I think some people started thinking Hollywood knew more about Indians than Native Peoples. Some figured it was tribal difference, and those may have actually existed, but there was NEVER a blanket belief that women were not allowed to drum. NEVER. There really is not a blanket Native belief period. When something is tradition, it is Navajo tradition, or Lakota tradition, or Cree tradition, not Native tradition, there is no blanket NA policy on "this is the way it will be and always has been". That doesn't exist , never did. If anyone EVER tells you , "that is Native American tradition" they are totally incorrect. That concept and reality doesn't exist.

The research showed that in the 1970's men started with the "no women at the drum anywhere" talk and it was adopted by many. The people who always had a bunch of women who drummed just shook their heads, and kept drumming, but certain people bought into it, and all of a sudden we had northern and southern style drums. We still do not have a "no women at the drum rule" for the Native community as a whole, that never came to be. Tribes held on to their traditions, and became known as "northern drums". They certainly aren't all in the north either.

So as our small world that existed in the 70's ever expands and new researchers are talking to elders who are over 80 years old, they realized there was never a "no woman at the drum" rule. There may have been a  particular ceremony where the women didn't drum, or the men didn't do a certain task, but there was never a blanket rule about drumming.

There was never a rule about women not drumming in the northeast, and much of the southeast. There weren't even big drums in many tribes out west.

When people have a mistaken belief that they have had for years, it is hard to erase it or change it overnight. My aunt's "are you kidding me",  response made me laugh, I realized to her I sounded like I was saying something akin to "Is my husband allowed to walk through the kitchen?". I must have sounded slightly insane to her.

A quote from the research:
 Northeastern tribes have a long history of women involved in all aspects of ceremonial life, dances, and tribal leadership.  Women are considered the original song givers and played the drum for their people.  Thus, no one can say that Northeastern women have no place to sit the drum.

The pendulum always swings back to center, to truth, to the way it needs to be, and it has been for a few years now, yet there are still people out there that believe someone, somewhere, at one time back in their tribal history said "no women at the drum ever", and in most cases, they are incorrect.

The more important part of this is that when someone else has a different tradition (and they will!), you respect it, you honor it, and you allow them to do their thing their tribal way. You take a step to the side and allow them to peacefully participate without telling them they are wrong or cannot do that. The NA community is varied and has as many different traditions as there are languages.

Like I said yesterday, think about the joke...How many Indians does it take to screw in a light bulb? I think the best answer is "how many tribes are there?"

Always allow room for the ways of others, including people from every part of this world. This is 2012, it is not "my way or the highway", it is not about saying "my tradition is better than yours". There are thousands of cultures on this planet. There are hundreds of belief systems, let each person do what is their way without interference.

Never limit yourself , be open and aware of other people's lifestyles, beliefs, and ways. Just because you learned something as a child, doesn't mean that it is the way it is for EVERYONE! This small world is getting smaller , don't be squeezed out!

Happy drumming!!!




Peshaui Wequashimese



(C)2012 Dr R M Wolf. May not be used, copied or reproduced without prior written permission


Tuesday, September 18, 2012

No room for rumors.

I don't hear a lot of rumors anymore. I know the reason why. The reason is, that if you are not going to state a fact , name names, and allow me to check it out, I don't even want to hear it. When someone starts a sentence with "I heard thru the grapevine", or "someone told me this but I can't say who", then I have no time, sympathy, or patience for anything that comes next. When a person doesn't have the guts to stand in front of you and give names and dates, it is because they know it is all BS that will fall like a house of cards.

If more people were like that, not even wanting to hear a rumor,  the world would be a better place. I remember a saying I heard not too long ago, it basically says that a person who talks TO you about someone, will talk ABOUT you to someone. They are people we don't need in our lives.


 I use this blog to teach so I will make it simple. DO not start rumors, spread rumors, or believe rumors. Tell the person who passes on the information "Really, I find that hard to believe, let's check right now with (the person in question), I have his phone number." Don't send passive aggressive notes along the lines of..If you said this you are a dirty dog, or "I can't believe you would do this to me!"  I have said this before and will say it again, SPEAK DIRECTLY to the person as soon as possible. It is best to have an answer so you can look the rumor monger in the eye and say...Nope you are wrong. Speak to the person, call and say "I heard something upsetting, from (name here), and want to know if there is any truth in it." NOT, "I heard a rumor that you are being a jerk, and want to know what you have to say for yourself".

When you don't know the person's name who is passing the information (a little birdie told me), then the rumor needs to stop RIGHT THERE. Some rumors don't even need that much energy. You just state, "That is ludicrous, and I don't even want to waste my time hearing any more if it."

A wise man said to me this weekend...you nipped that right in the bud and that is what you need to do.  Rumors need to be cut off at the stem immediately, and not given a moment of sustenance to grow. Once all that is done, you go back to the rumor monger and make sure they know that they were wrong, that you don't like rumors, and that you don't want to hear any more BS from them. You most likely won't hear more. People spread rumors to those they know will listen, will get upset, and will pass them on. There is no fun in telling a rumor to a person who will not get upset and participate in the game. Rumors are usually used as a weapon or tool to get someone to do something.

Don't spread rumors, and make sure that you stop others from spreading them too. This is a time of change and growth, it is 2012, not our first year in grade school. If you started or fostered a rumor lately, it is Rosh Hashanah. Stop the rumor, and ask for forgiveness. Follow the Jewish tradition of asking forgiveness to those you have offended, or might have offended. For some people, that will take months of phone calls....but do it anyway.

Anyone would be happy to get a phone call asking if a rumor about them were true so they could address it, but you best be ready to pass on the name of the rumor starter, otherwise, it is just another rumor being passed, not a problem being addressed.Always assume a rumor is FALSE and be able to give the person being talked about the name of the person passing the rumor so they can address it properly, directly and strongly....nipping it in the bud!

NIP NIP NIP



Peshaui Wequashimese



(C)2012 Dr R M Wolf. May not be used, copied or reproduced without prior written permission.

Monday, September 17, 2012

Drums.....

I have a ton of things to do today, actually a heck of a week ahead....including two raptor classes, a meeting at WNIN for our convention , and a trip to TN. There is a pile of pow wow stuff to be cleaned and put away, and client calls to answer....so since I still have drumming on the brain, here is a reprint of an earlier blog. Hope that you all can enjoy it, or learn something from it.
I will be back to "work" tomorrow!! Have a wonderful week!!!

***************************************************

The question that came was if I knew anything about a gourd dance/song/drumming. I said, "No, but I will find out". The answer is, it is a Kiowa dance that began in the 1940's, so as dances go, it is new. The drumming for the dance is high energy with double beats and a lively dance accompanies it. The only people who are to do this drumming/dance are the Kiowa or a tribe they have gifted the dance to. The dance is supposed to only be performed before Grand Entry when it is in a pow wow setting and is for the dancers. It is sometimes used to honor a tribal member.

Here is an example of a Kiowa Gourd Dance:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xKbPFuq8Fxg

Traditional or original songs are to be gifted to drums, tribal groups, etc. In other words, it isn't OK for someone to take a ceremonial song and perform it without the permission of the person they learned it from. Some other songs, not ceremonial are the same way. Social songs are usually different, but if they are original, you still need permission. Think of it this way, you cannot perform a Beatles song because the copyrights will be infringed upon. Songs are for sharing, but in a certain way. The only way you should be singing a song that is NA, is when someone allows you , by teaching it to you and gifting it to you. When you want to learn a song, ask in the proper way. The answer may be "no", and that is OK! Now, traditional inter-tribal songs...songs everyone and anyone in an area knows, you can sing...sort of like not needing permission to sing "Row row row your boat."

I really like the gourd dance, but it isn't one I will ever see in person , unless I do some traveling.Certainly one I will never drum or sing. (NOTE: I did get to finally see one at the Gathering of Nations Pow Wow in 2012. It was to honor the Navajo Code Talkers)

The other major question was, what was the difference between a northern drum and a southern drum. I found that there is a lot of confusion about that , even in the NA community. Some thought if you were from the south, you were a southern drum. That would make sense, but it isn't that simple. Many NA groups moved from one place to another, they brought their ways with them, and sometimes melted into the groups they came in contact with. The northern/southern drum is an example of that. It doesn't matter where your original tribe lived, or where you live now. It is a style. You can live in Alabama and be a northern drum.

So, style not location. What does the style mean? This wasn't easy. I found that many groups are a mixture or don't even know there are "styles", the "big dogs" in the drum world know though, people like the Black Lodge Singers , and Bear Claw who do national pow wows.

Northern style is sung in a higher voice or pitch. It is loud and proud. The beats are a bit faster and livelier. The songs are louder and sung to get the dancers moving. There are women allowed to sit at the drum, but tribal differences apply here. Some tribes will not allow women at the drum ever, or if they are on their moon. Northern drums will be outside the sacred circle, but next to it, with the host drum (there can be several drums at a pow wow) in the best position.

Here is an example from Black Lodge Singers:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bArhAQ9oOr4

Southern style is sung lower and slower. They use honor beats frequently, although northern drums sometimes use honor beats, especially when doing southern songs. No women can sit at the drum, however they may sit behind the drum and sing harmonies, but never on the first two push ups (or rounds). Southern style drums have four posts, each representing and facing the cardinal directions.

 Here is a southern drum example, the voices are much lower, and lots of honor beats in the song. A great example of a southern drum by Bear Claw Singers. You can hear the women in the background, but will not see them seated at the drum. They stand to honor the song, while the men are seated at the drum.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W8nj2LoxrD0&NR=1

First I want to say THANK YOU to the folks who sent in these great questions! It made me think, research, and find some knowledgeable resources that will always be good to have.

Remember, you cannot just take a song and sing it in most cases.



                              Some other drum stuff from questions sent in......

No, a woman should not touch a drum, or any other sacred object like a pipe, when she is on her moon .More on that point. No woman on her moon should be in the same room as the drum, under the arbor with the drum, in the dance arena, nor any other area where there are sacred objects!

Drums traditionally have seven to eight people surrounding the drum. A little fact I found while researching this, is that the average drum is 26" wide.

In Oklahoma the drum is in the center of the dance ring.

Traditionally each song has 4 rounds or push ups, they can increase if there is a request by a dancer (who may fan, whistle or wave a staff over the drum), to continue so they can dance more. Quotes from dancers, from those who enter contests, to those who dance for fun and to honor their traditions all say the louder, more energetic, more enthusiastic the drumming, the more they want to dance and dance well. It gets the energy flowing. One dancer said"..all slow drumming does is make me want to take a long nap until the pow wow is over. I will dance as it is respectful, but you most likely will not see my best dancing."

Drums should not sing in only one language for pow wows. A pow wow is a gathering, and all groups should be honored. Ceremonial drumming will take on one language reflecting the ceremony's origin.

There is more, of course, and some of it was already written about in the blog, but I found out some interesting things.

That was a fun journey, and I am sure that it is only beginning. Keep the questions coming on any topic!

Peshaui Wequashimese.

Have a great weekend!

(C)2011 Dr. R M Wolf. May not be used, copied or reproduced without prior written permission

Wednesday, September 12, 2012

Death and the Death card, know what you are doing.

I had a frantic caller yesterday. A client who sometimes "reads her own cards" (always a bad idea), saw the death card and was very upset. She wanted to know who was going to die. Well, all of us, and no one right now. One of the worst things you can do for yourself is read your own cards, the second worst is read your own cards when you really do not know what you are doing.

The Universe has one secret it always keeps. Death. Death and passing through the veil, is much too important and significant to be told to us.Some see disasters , yes, but usually not an individual's death. If you knew a death date of a loved one, what would you do? The answer is not as simple as it seems, and you would most likely be too upset to trek to the top of Mount Everest.

Death messages do come in subtle ways like "You need to speak to your brother". Of course messages like that do not always mean he is going to die, but that is a way death messages may come across.

So then what IS the death card all about???? I think a better name for it would be "Death/rebirth". The death card is an ending yes, but its' inherent message is, "and a new beginning". People forget to tack on the important part at the end. Many times when I am reading on the phone , people will ask me what cards I laid down. I won't tell them. First of all, if you want to interpret the cards yourself, do a reading. Second of all, I read the cards psychically, so I get more information that non psychics. people will say "Well how did you get that from those cards?" My psychic abilities My Pretty!!

I also have, and so does every reader who has read a lot, cards that mean something to me. They don't mean it to you, just to me. This doesn't make me special, it happens to everyone who forms a bond with the cards. I also go through them so quickly (I don't have to stop and think to look the cards up in a book), that I go through the messages coming in quickly, and I don't remember all the cards that go down (usually 10-15 for a complicated question).

So , going back to "Death". There are many meanings to each card. Death is no exception. It is first a major arcana card, which means that it is something Karmic, something that you cannot change, it is a major life event/person. Here is where you need to know what you are doing. You have to interpret the card in response to a question. General readings are harder for interpretation as you have nothing to go on, and have to really scrutinize cards around it and trust your intuition or psychic ability. Does the card mean a person or situation? What person? What meaning of the card? When that happens I feel I am doing a psychic reading, not a tarot reading, and it actually slows down things for me. My psychic brain and my brain that reads the cards, are two different brain waves, doing both at once is a juggling act that I have down pretty good, but when I then have to "think" on top of it all, it makes it harder for no reason. It makes me waste precious client time, and not get as clear a picture as I can.

I keep digressing from "Death". It is a major arcana card and it can represent a person, or a situation, all tarot cards do. Death is more "situation representative" than representing a person. In the rare case it is a person, it represents a Scorpio sign, and a person who deals in death. An undertaker, a grave digger, a crime scene analyst can all be represented by "Death". Death's main message is that something has run its' course, and change needs to occur. It can be a message to end something that needs to end, or that something is about to end. All of the decideing which come from experience and /or other talents. Other messages from the card are Rebirth of something that you let go of; a corrupt situation; a need to let go of old ideas and ways of doing things; transformation; endings; embrace the new; let go of the old; life transitions like marriage to divorce or the opposite; radical change; adaption ; embrace new opportunities; trust in what lies ahead.

The meaning of the death card in all of those meanings was never "you are going to die". Be careful how you read because you can ask how someone's relative with a serious illness is doing , see the Death card, and impart the bad news, just to learn that the death was the ending of the disease!

Reading tarot is not as simple as picking up a book and reading card meanings. Read first, then apprentice with an expert. Make sure you note any personal meanings of cards so that you pick up on a meaning no one else would have. Never try to read cards that another person puts down. Their methods, layouts and personal associations with the cards may make their reading totally different from your interpretations. There is not a set meaning, one for each card that always comes through. If I had to pick one meaning for "Death" it would be "drastic change involving an ending".

The metaphysical world is not for dabblers or people who learned all they know from a TV show. Learn from the experts, and NEVER read your own cards!



Peshaui Wequashimese


(C)2012 Dr R M Wolf. May not be used, copied or reproduced without prior written permission

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

Passive Aggressive relationships...leave them.

Many times there are people who call about their relationships who do not understand why they don't go well. They think that they are managing them well, the problem is that they feel like they have to manage them at all.

The key to a good relationship does not lie in making a person do something that you want them to do and they do not. Trickery, blackmail, ultimatums and abuse will never get you what you want in the long run. These tactics may work for a short period of time, but never for the long term result.

Then there are those who do this in a more subtle way, the passive aggressive personalities. Passive aggressive disorder is serious and is listed in the DSM II. It is serious. People can act passive aggressive in certain situations, or be that way all the time. Neither is good, but "all the time" makes them impossible to deal with. It is a disorder where people act aggressively or in a hostile manner and try to disguise it as passivity. This is seen quite frequently in interpersonal relationships and in the workplace.

A good example is a person who acts like they are joking when they say hurtful, hateful things. When you say something to them about their hurtful comments they smile and say something along the lines of  "Oh my you took me seriously!? I was just kidding, don't be so sensitive!". Meanwhile their way of striking back at you, is to make nasty comments which they really do feel. They WANT to jab at you, but don't have the courage to admit it, or do it outwardly.

They speak cryptically, make promises they never keep, and never intended to. They just don't want to face you and say "no". They "forget" things that they don't want to do. They fear competition, so are jealous, and will sabotage meetings with friends or anyone they see as competition. For example, if you are supposed to go out that night with a friend, they will suddenly not feel well and need your help, when in fact there is nothing wrong with them. The discussion on where you are going and how they feel about it, won't be had because that is the "passive" part of things, it is too difficult for them. Yet, they need to stop you , and will (aggressive behavior), so they "get sick" or hurt. They don't like your behavior so they tell your spouse, parent, or boss instead of talking to you directly. They play the victim, they procrastinate and they pout. They attack about ex's new partners in a joking manner saying she is "fat" or "ugly", then laugh about it as if it were all a joke, when it is not. They are people that you will constantly struggle with, and they are people that go through relationships like clean underwear!

When you are in any situation with a passive aggressive person, get out. They can get help , there is therapy, but there is no "cure". They rarely want to go to therapy and change, and that needs to be the first step towards getting a better handle on things. Therapists can try to help them learn new behavior, but what frequently happens is they use the therapist and the tools they are given for change, as weapons. They have a hard time working in teams and frequently lose their job.

When you are acting this way, and you all know who you are, stay out of relationships until you can get a handle on things. The energy around passive aggressive people is scattered , and confused. It never amounts to good, just chaos. You can't fix them , they control you. They will never talk to you about a problem, just change things so they are comfortable and everyone else be dammed. When I see this behavior, I move on.

I know a few passive aggressive people who think they are just strong people, they are strong all right, but in an inappropriate manner. Real strength is NEVER used inappropriately.

DO the right things for the right reasons.
DO unto others.....


Peshaui Wequashimese



(C)2012 Dr R M Wolf, may not be used, copied or reproduced without prior written permission



Monday, September 10, 2012

Relationships are NOT about drama

All weekend I had clients in a state of upset over relationships. Relationships are not supposed to be hard. They always are not easy, when you do have an easy one, you count your blessings, but they sure are not supposed to be filled with fighting, abuse, and emotional blackmail. They are not supposed to be filled with ultimatums that you can't keep or an intensity that keeps you from living life (as in talking on the phone all day inwork until you lose your job).

Relationships are supposed to ADD to your life, NOT complete it. They are supposed to enhance your life and enable you to grow, and share new experiences, places, and opportunities.

So many fall for the "soulmate" line where they think the Universe has one special person we are supposed to be with. How they can rationalize that it is OK if that person is married to someone else is beyond me. Rarely is there a karma situation where you need to resolve something with a mate. RARELY. When that does happen it is a relationship that is hard, short lived (you either resolve the issue or you don't and move on), and difficult. When people are involved in what they think are soulmate relationships, they are rarely with a person who honestly feels love for them. It usually isn't love they feel anyway. It can be desperation, desire, lust, but rarely is it love. When you love someone you are able to let them go.

Lately people seem to think it is OK to tell spouses to do things that are totally inappropriate, disrespectful, and completely loveless. You should never tell your spouse that they cannot speak to their child, have dealings with the ex (sometimes it has to be, especially if there is children or shared property still involved) , see friends, go places. When you say, do what I say or get out, don't come crying when they DO get out. You cannot threaten people time after time and expect them to eventually say...OK! See you! How can someone who loves their fiance tell her if she doesn't get over her wedding nerves and have sex with them they will have to go and find release somewhere else. REALLY? I can see why she is afraid to marry this person.

Relationships are a two way street. When two people love each other the same and do as much for each other as possible, in a respectful and loving way, you have a great relationship. When you need to talk to someone six times a day , then all they are doing is helping to calm your insecurity. That isn't love, that is fear.

I don't know how many people cay "I can't trust them". When you cannnot trust your partner, you cannot be with them.

Great relationships are not based on the stars, or a movie style romance. They aren't based on sexual encounters. They aren't based on chemistry, that is just hormones and hormones won't help you when you are 60, 70, or when the bills aren't getting paid, or the child is sick.

Love is about mutual respect, trust, and desire. MUTUAL being a very important word there.

Make sure you are in a relationship. That means two people who are equally adoring each other and making sure that they do as much as they can for the other person, before themselves. There is no emotional blackmail in true love relationships. There is no fear. Fear comes when people are not ready to be in relationships. Being able to be independent, is what makes you strong and unfearful, and keeps you from sabotaging your relationship.

As always....treat others as you would want to be treated!


Peshaui Wequashimese




(C)2012  Dr R M Wolf, may not be used, copied , or reproduced without prior written permission.



Thursday, September 6, 2012

More email answers!

Some days the email comes in bunches...then there isn't any for a while, then more bunches.
Here is some of last night's email.....

Do you use your abilities in everyday life, like for example to pick a candidate?

I really don't like politics. I see so many people get excited and angry over pure BS it isn't even funny. That said, Yes, I do. The Universe gave us all intuition, to use. We need to always use what we have when it is to access messages from the Universe. So , yes I do. I know who has the nice, clear aura and who doesn't.

Do you meet more people recently who claim to be psychic/medium? There seem to be a very many of them lately.

Yes, they seem to be coming out of the woodwork. The popularity or TV shows is the culprit. Everyone wants to jump on the bandwagon. Many are just looking for attention and some are mentally ill. It was hard in the old days to be believed because there was no proof of any of the paranormal, now there are so many crazy attention seekers out there, the same thing has happened. The pendulum finally swung, but now it is worse than ever!

I read a blog that mentions OBE and NDE many times, the author doesn't answer my email...do you know what this means?

OBE is out of body experience and NDE is near death experience. They are similar in that you will be able to see your body, but your consciousness is not in it any longer. OBEs can be brought on by some people, they can control it and "travel" frequently. NDEs usually happen in medical emergencies, like on the operating table.

Does Karma really happen?

Sure it does. It may not happen in an instant, although sometimes it does. It also may not always be a similar response. Say for example, you have a person who comes and does property damage to your things. Their Karma may not be property damage, but an illness. Karma works itself in in the best way to effect that particular person. Not everything negative that happens is Karma, and when you think your ex is having a great life because they found a new love, their life may not be great because they are having trouble at work. Karma is not a direct and immediate response.

Will burning sage chase negativity out of my house?

Yes and no, it isn't that simple. When you just are doing some "spring cleaning" it will work, but entities who want to stay will hide, and need more of a push. Sage just makes the place "uncomfortable", some entities resist uncomfortable very well. When you need a place cleansed, get someone who knows what they are doing. You can cause more harm than good. Just waving a sage stick around will not clear the house of evil spirits.

My friend took some classes and says she is a Shaman, I told her "no way" . Who is right.

I don't know who she studied with, but I would say you, and here is why.....

First of all, you don't take classes to become a shaman, you may learn some of the things they do, but that is like saying you take a class on Native American beading and become an Indian.
Shaman only exist in Alaska and Hawaii, South America, etc. Not in the lower 48 states. There were medicine men, healers, singers, but no shaman.

Shamanism calls you. You can't take a class in it and be it. It is a calling that chooses YOU, you don't choose it. I am sure you can take a class in anything these days and get a piece of paper saying you are a (fill in the blank). But you can't take a class in something that has to be in your soul or self to begin with. You can't take a class in Eidetic (photographic) memory . You have to be born with it. You can improve your memory, but you can't alter your DNA. You can take a class in memory improvement, but you cannot then walk around claiming an eidetic memory.  Same with being a shaman. Shaman are born, they don't stroll out of a classroom. If your friend were to go to a reservation and say "Hi , I am a shaman I took a class at the Shaman Institute in Chicago" The laughter would be heard all across the country.

Shaman need to be born with the ability to communicate with spirits. They are the conduit between this world and the other world or worlds depending on their background and tribal affiliation. That is the whole point. They go beyond this world for solutions to issues, sickness, and to find answers. In white man terms, they need to be psychics or mediums, or easily able to have OBEs. They also need to have healing abilities.

All that said, no true NA teacher will charge you any amount of money to learn NA spirituality. So , if she apprenticed with a real medicine man (which I doubt), and had natural abilities beforehand, she can be a medicine woman.

KEEP THE QUESTIONS COMING!!



Peshaui Wequashimese



(C)2012 Dr R M Wolf. May not be used, copied or reproduced without prior written permission

Wednesday, September 5, 2012

Kids and some haunted places, really don't mix.

Last night I had an email in my box about "can kids go to Villlisca?". Really? Why would anyone want to bring children to a place where six kids were brutally murdered with the blunt edge of an axe in their beds? This is a place with strong spirits, spirits that harm and frighten off adults. The place has that "vibe" too, a vibe that may keep the kids from sleeping in their own beds at night for a few months. There are parts of that house that feel "bad" and I know a few adults who shied away from places in that house. That said, Villisca allows minors if you ALWAYS have them with you, and you of course pay for them. Every human that enters that house has to pay $70.

A responsible 17 year old may be able to handle it, but remember for all a kid's bravado, they are still kids and when they crawl into bed at night, then they may not be so happy about a decision to go to a place like Villisca. There are a few places that allow minors, not many. There are good reasons for that.

Villisca is a place with at least one nasty spirit. It is NOT a place for kids. Period. There were places there that made me feel uncomfortable, but didn't stop me from going there. I have the tools , belief system, and protection that makes it OK. Kids don't have all of that.

 There was no provoking or game playing while we were there. I would think parading a kid through Villlisca would be akin to walking him through a child molester's house while firmly holding his hand....not smart, and no good reason to do it!  When I say there is a nasty spirit there, it is an understatement, and he is STRONG.

There is another aspect to this. We had older teenagers come to the house while we were there and prank. We had to call the sheriff on them. This happens frequently there. There were also a couple of strangers who knocked on the door and just wanted to come in for a few minutes. People you probably don't want your kids around. People who don't want to pay for the experience.

To go over why we don't allow kids on "ghost walks" (and some of this would apply to places like Villisca and some not), here is a part of a previous blog:

 Why don't you allow people 18 and under to go on ghost walks?

A few reasons. First of all, when out wandering around, you may go onto someone's personal property. If they call the police on you, you can be charged with contributing to the delinquency of a minor (even if you are the parent). It isn't worth it. If you are where you don't have permission to be, that is just part of the charges that can be brought against you.

There is another reason. Sometimes you run into bad stuff. Now that goes two ways.There are times when myself and other people who are out doing these investigations, run into "bad stuff". There are two kinds of "bad stuff". One is everyday stuff, like people who are drunk, high; people who are making/selling drugs; animal issues; crazy people issues, and people hiding/squatting . They aren't always friendly. Some investigators have been shot at by drug manufacturers. Some have almost been run over by dealers trying to get out once they were spotted. There is no reason to involve anyone in this, especially children and young adults.

It is also dangerous out there in a purely physical sense. Cemeteries have fallen stones that you can trip over. There are snakes, spiders, ticks. Recently a stone fell on a boy and killed him. Old buildings have floors you can fall through, and things to trip over or get hurt on.


That being said , there is "bad stuff" out there in the spirit realm. That is more rare than the issues listed above, but it is out there. I have bumped into these things twice. I was able to protect the people with me, and back off successfully each time. What if a person with no knowledge or skills bumped into one of these beings? It could get VERY ugly, very fast. Bad enough if you make your decision to go , but what if you took your child and something "bad" happened? It isn't worth it. I have seen people grabbed, scratched, hit and knocked down. Your child may be all gung-ho and "Zakified" to go ghost hunting, but when they get scratched and punched by something they can't see, it may do damage beyond the physical.

Another reason is, it is all fun and games watching ghost hunting on TV, but when you find yourself alone or even with another person in the woods at night, things feel a lot scarier than they do when you are sitting on your couch. Some kids are great at it, but it really isn't worth the chance. One Zak fan who was 15 went with his Dad ghost hunting....he didn't sleep in his room for 4 months...and nothing "bad" happened. He would probably still be sleeping in his Dad's room if there was a scary event!

The two times I bumped into these nasty things were in places that I had been to several times before, without a problem, so don't think that going to a place you have been to that was "safe", is still safe.

**********************************

Villisca isn't a "fun and games" place. It is a serious place. It isn't a place for adults to act stupid. You don't have to provoke there, the man spirit comes out to say "what are you doing here" all on his own!

Many times kids want to do things to be like us, it is natural, but as parents we have the responsibility of making the decision about where they should and should not be. There are places much more "calm" than Villisca for kids to ghost hunt.

Happy ghost hunting....and leave the kids home!


Peshaui Wequashimese

(C) Dr R M Wolf. May not be used, copied or reproduced without prior written permission.


Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Villisca & the cost of Ghost Investigations

Well we said we would return, and I am in the process of booking the second of two trips to Villisca for 2013. Unlike most group trips, these are booked before I make the reservation. I know that none of the people who are going will back out.

Villisca is a very haunted place. It will separate the men from the boys, so to speak. There is a very strong and mean entity there. It spun a camera around , scratched a person and pulled a blanket off of another. It isn't a place to play games , or taunt. It is a place to be on guard. The spirits there are strong enough to harm you, and that is a rare thing indeed. When spirits can move things and harm people, it is a  place that is a true paranormal investigator's delight. I wouldn't recommend it for first timers, especially if there is not an experienced person in the group.

The day we left the house after our first investigation this spring, we said we were going back. We had not even known yet that we had so many EVPs, and a photo or two that is still unexplainable. We saw things move, heard furniture move, thumps, and at one point the house and barn both shook at the same time. There were no earthquakes reported that night.

The spirits are inside, outside and in the barn (the so called "safe place"), and there are more spirits there than the family that was killed on June 10, 1912. I have a woman with a very southern accent on several EVPs, and the mother who was killed there was originally from Illinois, so it isn't her, although I know she is also there.

Usually when you try to get a group together for an investigation, you get a bunch of folks that say they want to go, they beg, promise, and put their name on the list. Then, nothing. Something always "comes up". With my friends I have instituted a "until you pay you aren't going" and "if you don't go you don't get your money back" policy. Too many times I have had people back out , where it cost each of the rest of us more to go, or we came close to cancelling and losing a deposit. When I spoke to the Villisca owner, Martha this weekend, she said that she has had people back out all the time and was left with just the small deposit she had requested, but no full payment for the night. Not only is that a shame as she gets financially harmed, but if there were a night on the calendar this year we would have gone again. She would have made the money and we would have had the pleasure of returning before next year.

I managed to book a night close to the anniversary of the murders for our first visit next year (we are actually going twice...so far anyway). I am sure more people will want to go and there may even be a third visit. The point is, if you say you are going somewhere.....go. When a group is reserving a space, some poor soul is dropping down a deposit. Usually on these excursions, there is a fee depending on how many people go, the cost is shared, so when you drop out, everyone's price goes up! I can tell you that people who drop out on me, don't get asked again on my dime, unless there was a darn good reason like an illness, death in the family, or some other real emergency. Yet they still don't get a refund. It is sad it has to be that way, but that is the way it is.

Many do not realize that the whole "ghost hunting" hobby is expensive. Any hobby is really. Most good places are between $75-100 per person. This doesn't include getting there, food and possibly a motel. There are bargains out there, but they usually involve larger groups and you may be in with a bunch of screaming strangers (or like me have a strange woman attached to your hip at Waverly because she was scared to death). Having a location all to yourself all night, is expensive.

Villisca is an eight hour drive from here, so add in the gas money, snacks, drinks, and meals.....it will actually be over $250 per person, and that is if you don't throw a motel room into the deal to rest up! Whoever makes the deposit, is already out that money (Villisca is a $200 deposit). We are not going to slap down $200 so a bunch of folks can back out. Luckily we have a solid group already booked, and another booking in the process.

Before volunteering to go on an investigation, know what all the costs are, and use your head. Don't expect the group leader to tell you you will have to pay for food sometime over a two day period, that should be something you should know. Know how you are getting there. Don't say "I'm in",  then hope to find a ride. Know that you will be paying for gas whether you are driving or not. Have some extra "emergency" money on you if you are going a few hours away. If the car breaks down you will need repair funds and maybe a motel...and more meals. Make sure you can have that day off (and the next one as you will be worn out), and pay up as soon as you can. The group leader isn't an ATM (if you go with me, you pay before you are even considered to be going at all).

Book a trip on the thought process of, "I can afford it, even if everyone backs out", if you can't, get the money first, or don't book.

Then ENJOY! Know where you are going, plan the trip and be safe!

Peshaui Wequashimese




(C)2012 Dr R M Wolf. May not be used, copied or reproduced without prior written permission.