EVPs, Spectre Detectors & some really bad ghost crafts.

Okay, I was kidding about the ghost crafts...maybe. Stop by and say hello June 8th!

Field Day and Loser Ribbons

My kids love field day. I think it's an experiment in who comes out on top and who gets a swirly from the Young Republicans club. It's supposed to be fun: games, Popsicles, bruises, blisters and possible heat exhaustion. Wait. Field day sucks.

My worst memories of the day are wrapped up in a collection of gold loser ribbons. Now kids are patted on the back and told they're awesome when they get dragged across the field during Tug-of-War because their parents were handed fake satin ribbons at the end of their field days and they know the feeling of being told you're a complete doofus with the rest of the class. I'd trudge home, soaking wet from water games that made my nose run and my hair look like rat tails around my face. I'd squeeze out my sneakers, watching the muddy water pool on the cement sidewalk next to the house in suburban California and compare lacerations with my best friend who also sported a gold ribbon. The athletic children who tossed cabers in their backyards would ride by, their red ribbons flashing from the handlebars of their bikes like a winking Devil's eye. I'd plot revenge then give my ribbon to my hamster to tear up for bedding.

The swings were removed from the playground at one of my daughters' schools last week, yesterday kickball was banned yet field day continues. Pretty soon they'll call that one day a year "recess." Maybe a little flag football wasn't so bad after all.

Rough beauty: Abandoned houses in northern Virginia

After years of being a history buff, degrees in history and archaeology, and spending countless hours roaming around places that should have been condemned in the US and Europe, I discovered there's an actual job that goes along with it: architectural historian. It's fancy way of saying I love old buildings but it doesn't quite encapsulate the lure of what secrets are tucked away within their walls so I'm going to explore and see what I find in my tiny corner of Virginia.

I especially love decrepit buildings though maturity and a healthy fear of tetanus shots have stopped me from scrambling around dangerous places -- for the most part. Photographs only tell part of the story -- I want it all. There has to be a good ghost story in there somewhere, eh?

Have a building near you that is falling apart? Is it an eyesore or a rough beauty?

When author photos (mine) go goofy

I woke up to a wee surprise this morning, photos from a shoot in 2010 taken by my friend, LaMishia Allen, were tagged on my Facebook profile. She's a genius but not even she could make me look less goofy so to all those authors out there trying to keep your chin up, eyes bright & suck in that gut -- we're all doomed.

I'm seriously not sure what I was going for in this picture. Bond villainess?
Kissing my grandmother? Golf clap?

Why yes, I'll be happy to take your mortgage application.

The best part of the day was hanging out with my daughter (#2 for those playing the home game). I can't wait to post this one on her Facebook page. heheheheh

In other news, reviews are staggering in for the Zombie Tarot (releases June 5th) and I couldn't be happier!  Thank you to everyone that took a peek!

A couple of reviews:

A Tarot Deck for the Zombie Apocalypse: Esoteric Insight for Surviving the Undead Uprising

On Zombie Tarot Cards

Confessions of a Pagan Soccer Mom: The Zombie Tarot