Blog is moving

I'm relocating my blog over to WordPress. Just more features that impress me. You can visit it @ http://joshlowe.wordpress.com/. It's now titled "Oxi is a Moron", until I come up with something better. Thanks for visiting!

~J~

A Haunting...er, sort of

I'm happy to report that our ghost hunting investigation/ tour was a hit! We showed about 1/2 hour early and had our fill of appetizers from Olive Garden, Kellys, etc., not to mention wine & punch...box wine ain't all bad either! lol

Anyway, the tour was of the Phoenix/ Mid-City Hotel in downtown Bloomington, IL. It was a hotel from around 1903 - 1950's. The place was essentially untouched since the 60's. Our tour guides were dressed in early 1900's attire, and were very knowledgeable about the hotel. Our tour kicked off around 5pm.

We went upstairs to the main lobby of the hotel. The first thing I noticed were the original guest ledgers from the 1900's. I opened one book to the date of 12/31/1941 - 1/1/1942. Very cool. The floors were littered with newspapers from the 60's. I've never seen so much wallpaper either...lol.

We made our way around that floor, performed some techniques involving a pendulum, electro-magnetic meters & dowsing rods. We all had minor experiences here. Nothing ground-breaking. Then we made our way to the 3rd floor (2nd floor of the hotel).

The upstairs had 26 rooms. They were creepy to say the least. Zero light up there. So the flashlights were essential. My wife & I branched off from everyone else. She saw a shadow in one room, we were introduced to a Korean War vet in another room via our spiritual medium. He took a fancy to brunettes. Unfortunately, that was about it. I wasn't once uneasy nor did I experience anything. I was disappointed about that, but it was a great tour anyway.

After the tour ended, we decided to talk with the medium. I expressed to her that I was very interested in participating in any future ghost investigations. Not tours, but "real" investigations. I have always been fascinated with the paranormal & the supernatural. If there is a legitimate group forming in Bloomington-Normal, I want to get in on the ground floor (so to speak).

After that, Megan & I decided to drink & eat some more before we fully got our money's worth. At night's end, we had had a great time. We look forward to the next tour, which is a walking tour of downtown. We'll be there.

I Sense a Disturbance in the Force...

So Megan & I have decided to go on a ghost tour-type thingy in Bloomington tomorrow. It is apparently in the upstairs floors of an old-ass flower shop. There will be a psychic who will show us how to tap into our ability to "sense" spirits, as well as a seance or ghost hunt, or something. Plus there's booze & food from different restaurants that will be there. Score!

I'm pretty psyched, because I LOVE shows like Ghost Hunters, Most Haunted & Ghost Adventures. Always have been an avid paranormal buff. Now I will (hopefully) get to experience something first-hand. I just hope it's not a total fake!!

Learning to sense spirits might be cool, but I'm sure it's just a form of meditation toget you to a point where you hear & sense everything around you to "feel" like there's stuff happening around you. I AM convinced that the "training" won't convert me into a certified paranormal medium, though it sounds like a cool experience. But I might be seriously pissed if I wake up Monday morning and start seeing dead people!

Quarantine...been there, seen that.

So, my wife & I went to see this movie "Quarantine". Yeah...if you've already seen films like "28 Days Later" or "I Am Legend" or any other "some unknown virus turns people into killer zombies" type of film, then you've seen the likes of "Quarantine". Stay home.

Synopsis : A camera crew have been trapped in a building secured by the intelligence bureau due to the outbreak of a virus that turns humans into blood suckers...no shit.

There were very few moments where you could blatently anticipate the "holy sh*t" moment upcoming. I could immediately pick out the characters who would make it through until the end of the film. The movie itself was filmed in a familiar POV reference (think "Blair Witch Project" or "Cloverfield"). My wife was actually naucious at the end of the film. Very shakey, lots of camera movement. In the end, the film was fun. It could have easily been a rental though.

Frighteningly, I enjoy these "bio-terror" films. Some of the plots are not too far off from reality when you think of all the mutations we conduct with genetic studies today. The most frightening outcome was "I Am Legend"'s cure for cancer. Great solution, however it has a mutation that will zombify all of humanity and wipe the human race from this planet. Jesus...just think about all the drugs/medicines that the FDA approved thinking they were fine. Now links are showing child immunizations a possible link to Autism. And I'm quite sure that sterioids & estrogen are boosting cancer in women. Not to mention anti-persperant deoderants...they block you from sweating out crutial toxins from your body. And as a result, the toxins build up in your lymph glands. Hmmm. Time to wake up people!

ISU Homecoming

As sad as it is to admit, this year was one of the first homecoming events I've been to since graduating from ISU in '97. It was a great time. Unfortunately they hosed the football game in the 4th quarter, but all in all it was a fun & lively homecoming this year.

Hell, I was even on the clock with the Secretary of State's office the entire time. I worked a booth where we issued license renewals, ID's, sticker renewals, etc. Handed out lots of free "junk", met a lot of nice people and ate a ton of great and FREE food! And the college kids were just walking around with cases of beer out in the open!! I guess the town of Normal is loosening up a bit on their anti-drinking crack-downs. That would have NEVER happened when I attended. As for the ISU Homecoming events in the future, you can guaran-damn-tee that I'll be attending from here on out!

Go Redbirds!

Chicago Cubs Baseball...It's Fantastic!

really?!  3 & out?!  ugh, must be painful.  but i didn't really have any doubts it would happen.  100 years of tradition has to mean something.