Robert W. Benjamin asked:


Ghost Hunting can be very fun and yet at times it can be one of the most terrifying things you will probably ever do in your life.

The following are just a few of the things folks have encountered during ghost hunting or paranormal investigations:



Smells: These smells can seem to come from no where, and develop instantly and disappear just as fast. The smells are often putrid like rotted meat, or like fresh bowel movements, and are very overpowering at times.



Apparitions: Some spirits appear as barely visible forms, while some become as solid and normal looking as a living person.



Clouds – Mists – Masses: Often fleeting shadows, things seen out of the corners of the eyes are encountered. Or a rolling black mass may appear, sometimes a whispy form like smoke is seen.



Disembodied voices: These are often heard and at times they can be very scary. Imagine being in a darkened room, and having something invisible whisper or even shout in your ear. These are not EVP’s, but normal sounding speech.



Physical Sensations – Some ghost hunters have been touched, pinched, slapped, had their hair pulled, been scratched or even bitten by invisible entities.



Rappings – Scratching – and Knockings: In walls, ceilings and floors. Strange sounds and noises are often heard in haunted locations, as well as hearing what sounds like objects being dropped, or moved in nearby rooms.



Cold spots: Sometimes just before a spirit manifests they draw energy from the surroundings. Often a spot in one area of a room will suddenly become very cold. For example the temperature thoughout a room may average 75 degrees but in one corner or area, the temperature will suddenly plummet to 50 degrees or even colder. This is a sure sign of a spirits presence or a soon manifestation.



Power drains and equipment malfunctions: Like cold spots, when a spirit is drawing energy needed to become solid or more visible, they will often draw-in nearby energy, this energy can also come from batteries in video camers, and other devices. Often cameras, tape recorders, even lights will suddenly go haywire or stop working all together when a spirit is present.



Almost everyone that does ghost hunting believes that there are two types of spirits, human and in-human, the latter are also called demons. I am a born again christian and believe the bible 100%. From my beliefs in the bible as factual. I believe there is only one type of spirit involved in any haunting, and these are in-human or demons.

According to the bible, when we are dead our spirits or souls are present with God, from there we are either granted a life of love and peace in heaven with the creator and the other believers, or we are cast into hell forever, with no chance of escape. The bible also says there is a huge chasm or void that separates the living from the dead, they cannot cross over or communicate with each other. There are other statements in the bible that clearly says that ghosts can not be the spirits or souls of people who have died.

Whether the creatures involved in a haunting are spirits of dead humans or whether they are demons, if one is trying to prove that they truly exist or if you are trying to disprove a haunting, then you must do paranormal investigations as a professional.

A professional Ghost Hunter or paranormal investigator needs to have the right tools. Here I will explain devices that every ghost hunter or paranormal investigator MUST have, if he or she is truly taking the phenomenon as real or as a business, and not as a joke.



Voice Recorder: It doesn’t matter if you use a standard tape recorder or one of the new digital recorders, what does matter is the quality and the ability to use an external microphone. Try to get one that is of good quality, but make sure you get one that has a plug in microphone with a cable or cord so the end of the microphone is away from the recorder. The small all-in-one recorders that have the built in microphones, pick up a lot of the hiss and gear noise from the recorder when they are in record mode. A recorder is a necessity for recording EVP’s. EVP’s also called (electronic voice phenomenom) are a very unique and sometimes frightening thing that is often encountered in a haunted area. What an EVP is, is a voice or other communication that is heard on a tape or digital recorder during playback, that was not heard when the recorder was recording.



Film Camera: Do NOT use a digital camera because the photo will always be questioned as being fake, no matter how good it is, where if you use a film camera, you at least have the negatives as some proof. And unless you buy a high mega-pixel digital camera, the photo quality will be less than a nice cheap 35mm film camera.



Camcorder: A camera is good, but a camcorder is even better. Get one that uses a tape, either the small cassettes or one of the older models that use the full sized VHS tapes. I bought two of these older camcorders for under $75 each recently.



Thermal Imaging scopes or goggles: These capture the upper portion of the infrared light spectrum, which is emitted as heat by objects instead of simply reflected as light. Hotter objects, such as warm bodies, emit more of this light than cooler objects like trees or buildings. Often spirits that manifest have a temperature in their form that stands out in this spectrum, especially if a spirit is present in a cold location.



Night Vision scopes or goggles: These little devices have become very cheap, a nice night vision scope can now be purchased easily for under $200. They work by collecting the tiny amounts of light, including the lower portion of the infrared light spectrum, that are present but may be imperceptible to our eyes, and amplifying it to the point that we can easily observe the image.



Flashlight: Take along two small pocket ones for each team member. What can be worse then exploring a dark cellar or underground area, and having the lights or another flashlight fail.



Walkie Talkies: If you have a group of team members, and you are investigating a large location, walkie talkies are not just a good thing to have, but they can be a life saver at times.



Notebook and pencils: Often any electronic, electrical or other devices may fail in a haunted location, so it’s very wise to carry along a small notebook and some pencils in case you need to keep some valuable notes.



Thermal Scanner: A hand held thermal scanner (thermometer) uses infrared technology to measure the surface temperature of material without touching it. You simply point at your target, pull the trigger and read the temperature on the lit LCD display.



One of the best tools I recommend, is also the cheapest, under $10 U.S. It is a computer software program that is made just for Ghost Hunting and Paranormal Investigations. It’s called ‘Ghost Hunter’. The software is for anyone who explores haunted houses or locations where any type of paranormal activity is occurring. Whether you are trying to gather evidence of the haunting or other proof, this software can help make the job more organized and easier.

Ghost Hunter software was made as a scientific tool, for paranormal researchers that believe in spirits, demons, or ghosts. Researchers can easily keep track of vital data gathered at the haunted locations. With this software you can know at a glance such vital information as; the date and times of the activity, location info, GPS data, telephone numbers, notes, sounds heard, odors detected, temperature anomalies, and more.

You can use the software on location during the investigation with any WINDOWS based notebook Computer or back at home or in the office after the investigation.

For more information and the ability to download and try a free demo version of the ‘Ghost Hunter’ software, please visit the website:

http://www.rb59.com/ghosth

By Robert W. Benjamin

Copyright © 2006

You may publish this article in your ezine, newsletter on your web site as long as it is reprinted in its entirety and without modification except for formatting needs or grammar corrections.

Justin Pretorius asked:


For eons the human imagination has focused on things that cannot be seen or things that happen and are unexplainable. What causes this phenomenon, these paranormal activities and is the force behind them good or evil, dangerous or curious and natural or unnatural? Famous scientists and intrepid explorers have vouched at the possibility that these lingering apparitions of long deceased fellows still haunt our waking world and go out of their way, daily, to prove the existence of such paranormal occurrences.

People have photographic, cinemagraphic and witness evidence of things such as transparent spirits, Will O’ the Wisps, Headless horsemen and other paranormal activities such as objects moving without human or natural intervention, doors slamming, lights flickering, and presence of mystical orbs.

The arguments for or against these paranormal occurrences are numerous with “scientists” on either side of the argument trying to disclaim or prove what the previous one had said. Why the fascination though, why would someone try to prove something with instruments that are probably incorrect for the use in the study they are busy with in the first place? Intrepid ghost hunting has become the livelihood of many an entrepreneur willing to take advantage of the gullible nature of paranormal scientists in their quest to prove the inexplicable. Theses humble entrepreneurs go out of their way to sell paranormal scientists equipment used for ghost hunting that often cost hundreds to thousands of dollars where probably the most humble of equipment could do exactly the same job.

Do not get me wrong, I am in no way suggesting that there are no ghosts nor am I suggesting that there are, it just infuriates me to see people been taken advantage off by others who should know better. But then again if people are gullible enough to fall for such things then maybe they should be taken advantage of.

I myself am fascinated by the subject of ghosts as it plays a relatively unusual roll in the human psyche. Have your parents or even you not ever scared you or your children into behaving by telling you that this or that spirit, ghoul or other entity will come and get you or your child if there is no behaving.  Also you have often heard stories of ghosts, spirits or other entities doing good for fellows in history by leading them out of danger or even leading others to their rescue. These paranormal beings have featured in stories where they have comforted, reassured and uplifted the spirit of those around them. Yet there is always an evil element to every character and you have probably heard of paranormal happening where people have been injured, killed, and mentally scared. Now the question that one has to ask is whether the injuries were self inflicted or were they perhaps bought about through mishandlement. Look at young children that are physically hurt by these so called paranormal events, they often portrait scratches, bruises and shallow cuts and these are even bought about under controlled conditions where the children are sleeping and with nobody near them.

The arguments are often endless and tend to go in continuous circles but there is no mistaking that through out history the subject has fascinated human kind and this even before the advent of scientists. So make up your own mind about what or what not to believe but do so with an open mind and without fear. Go and do those ghost tours, find your own sightings and explore the other side of human nature and only once you have done that will you be able to say with surety that you do or do not believe in ghosts.

Mike Samadi asked:


Doesn’t matter who you are, first you are a human. God’s creation, and God’s gift to the world. Whether you believe in him or not, we are all brought to this world (born) to serve our purpose, to live and experience the ups and downs of life, to cry and laugh, to share the same with others. You know that this life’s eternity is not promised to anyone. What we do on earth is the reflection of how we want to be treated. As we leave this world, some of us want to be remembered for our good deeds and some may not want to be remembered at all. The choices are yet our own.

Whether you believe in God or not, whatever your goal in life is, I hope the article below puts tears of JOY, LOVE and HOPE in your eyes, heart and mind. I hope it pushes you closer to your friends and brighten your days as you’ll do the same for others. My repeated message has been “Do to others as you want to be done to you.”

The following article has no mention of finances, credit repair or credit score. It is all about you, the God’s creation and your love for another human being.

Best of luck.

Mike Samadi

THE OLD FISHERMAN

Our house was directly across the street from the clinic entrance of Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore . We lived downstairs and rented the upstairs rooms to out-patients at the Clinic.

One summer evening as I was fixing supper, there was a knock at the door. I opened it to see a truly awful looking man. “Why, he’s hardly taller than my eight-year-old,” I thought as I stared at the stooped, shriveled body.

But the appalling thing was his face, lopsided from swelling, red and raw Yet, his voice was pleasant as he said, “Good evening. I’ve come to see if you’ve a room for just one night. I came for a treatment this morning from the eastern shore, and there’s no bus ’till morning.”

He told me he’d been hunting for a room since noon but with no success; no one seemed to have a room. “I guess it’s my face. I know it looks terrible, but my doctor says with a few more treatments…”

For a moment I hesitated, but his next words convinced me: “I could sleep in this rocking chair on the porch. My bus leaves early in the morning.” I told him we would find him a bed, but to rest on the porch.

I went inside and finished getting supper. When we were ready, I asked the old man if he would join us. “No thank you. I have plenty” And he held up a brown paper bag.

When I had finished the dishes, I went out on the porch to talk with him a few minutes. It didn’t take a long time to see that this old man had an oversized heart crowded into that tiny body. He told me he fished for a living to support his daughter, her five children and her husband, who was hopelessly crippled from a back injury.

He didn’t tell it by way of complaint; in fact, every other sentence was prefaced with thanks to God for a blessing. He was grateful that no pain accompanied his disease, which was apparently a form of skin cancer. He thanked God for giving him the strength to keep going.

At bedtime, we put a camp cot in the children’s room for him. When I got up in the morning, the bed linens were neatly folded, and the little man was out on the porch.

He refused breakfast, but just before he left for his bus, haltingly, as if asking a great favor, he said, “Could I please come back and stay the next time I have a treatment?

I won’t put you out a bit. I can sleep fine in a chair.” He paused a moment and then added, “Your children made me feel at home. Grownups are bothered by my face, but children don’t seem to mind.” I told him he was welcome to come again.

And on his next trip he arrived a little after seven in the morning. As a gift, he brought a big fish and a quart of the largest oysters I had ever seen. He said he had shucked them that morning before he left so that they’d be nice and fresh. I knew his bus left at 4 a.m. , and I wondered what time he had to get up in order to do this for us.

In the years he came to stay overnight with us there was never a time that he did not bring us fish or oysters or vegetables from his garden.

Other times we received packages in the mail, always by special delivery; fish and oysters packed in a box of fresh young spinach or kale, every leaf carefully washed. Knowing that he must walk three miles to mail these and knowing how little money he had made the gifts doubly precious.

When I received these little remembrances, I often thought of a comment our next-door neighbor made after he left that first morning. “Did you keep that awful looking man last night? I turned him away! You can lose roomers by putting up such people!”

Maybe we did lose roomers once or twice but, oh! If only they could have known him, perhaps their illness would have been easier to bear. I know our family always will be grateful to have known him; from him we learned what it was to accept the bad without complaint and the good with gratitude to God.

Recently I was visiting a friend who has a greenhouse. As she showed me her flowers, we came to the most beautiful one of all, a golden chrysanthemum, bursting with blooms. But to my great surprise, it was growing in an old dented, rusty bucket. I thought to myself, “If this were my plant, I’d put it in the loveliest container I had!”

My friend changed my mind. “I ran short of pots,” she explained, “and knowing how beautiful this one would be, I thought it wouldn’t mind starting out in this old pail. It’s just for a little while, till I can put it out in the garden.”

She must have wondered why I laughed so delightedly, but I was imagining just such a scene in heaven. There’s an especially beautiful one, “God might have said when he came to the soul of the sweet old fisherman. “He won’t mind starting in this small body.”

All this happened long ago — and now, in God’s garden, how tall this lovely soul must stand.

The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.”

Friends are very special. They make you smile and encourage you to succeed. They lend an ear and they share a word of praise. Show your friends how much you care.

Pass this on, and brighten someone’s day.

Nothing will happen if you do not decide to pass it along.

The only thing that will happen if you do pass it on is that someone might smile (or cry like I did…)~ because of you!

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Friends are special Hugs from GOD!

The Author of “the Old Fisherman” is someone other than Mike Samadi. They have no affiliations

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